SPRINGFIELD – Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law Friday a measure that expands vote-by-mail and curbside voting for all future elections.
House Bill 1871, now law effective immediately, revises the state election code to allow election authorities to install drop box sites where voters can submit mail ballots without postage before and on Election Day. Election officials can also allow for curb-side voting for individuals to cast ballots from their car under the supervision of election judges from both parties and poll watchers.
The law, introduced in the Senate by state Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Lake Forest, would also require election authorities to accept mail-in ballots with insufficient or no postage.
“We saw during the November 2020 General Election how many people enjoyed having a more safe, accessible and easier way to vote,” Morrison said in a statement. “Just because the pandemic is winding down, doesn’t mean expanded voters’ rights have to.”
Also under the bill, Illinois can use federal funds distributed to states for election administration through the 2002 Help America Vote Act to create and maintain secure collection sites for mail ballots.
The changes to the election code went into effect immediately after being signed into law, meaning they will apply to the consolidated municipal elections on Tuesday, April 6.
Pritzker released a statement on March 26, following the Senate’s passage of the bill the day prior, contrasting Illinois’ efforts to those happening in other states such as Georgia to restrict absentee voting.
“Here in Illinois, we’re shining a bright light on how to make it easier, taking lessons we learned in the pandemic and applying them to the future. I applaud our General Assembly for voting to strengthen vote-by-mail opportunities here in Illinois by allowing local election authorities to use drop boxes and curbside voting,” he said in the statement. “In Illinois, voters will have safe and convenient options to exercise this fundamental, constitutional right.”
What to know about the coronavirus relief funding coming your way
What to know about the coronavirus relief funding coming your way
LIMITED SPENDING
Much of $1,200 checks issued in the first round, as part of the CARES Act, did not generate spending sprees. The National Bureau of Economic Research found that almost 60% of the money went to pay down debt or into savings.
Researchers at the University of Chicago found that households on average spent 40% of the first check, mostly for food, beauty items and other products that people hoarded in the early days of the pandemic. Little went to purchases like cars or appliances.
Economists reasoned that with lockdowns in place last spring, there were far fewer options for spending the money.
One other factor to watch this time, given the size of the checks: Economists say that the greater the check, the less likely people are to spend it.
BILL PAYING
A survey in early January by Bankrate.com found that 71% of people said the second-round $600 checks they expected to receive for every adult and dependent child in a household would only sustain their financial well-being for less than a month. Four in 10 people surveyed said they would put the funds toward monthly bills such as rent or mortgage payments and utility bills.
ERASING DEBT
Almost 5 million people in Illinois age 18 and older said someone in their house received a relief payment in the previous seven days, according to data collected by the Census Bureau between Feb. 17 and March 1. Of those who detailed their plans, almost 2.4 million said it would be mostly be used to pay off debt.
BUYING STOCKS
Some recipients have their eye on the stock market. A survey of 430 retail investors by Deutsche Bank last month found that half of those surveyed between the ages of 25 and 34 plan to buy stocks with half of their checks.
SAVING
With the third round of relief payments, Bank of America anticipates more of the funds will be saved in one way or another, not spent. In its survey of 3,000 people in late February, only 36% of respondents said they planned to spend the money. The rest had other plans: 9% planned to invest it, 25% would save it and 30% would use it to pay off debts.
It’s not good news for sellers of food, clothing and other necessities. Planned use of the money in those categories is anticipated to be down almost 5% from what people planned to do with the payments last year. One bright spot is vacation and travel, which saw big gains compared with earlier surveys but it was still a small part of overall picture.
Bank of America found that every household income group planned to save much more than normal. Among high earners, people with household incomes of more than $120,000, 79% said they either planned to save it, pay off debts or invest it. That same sentiment was echoed by 53% of people surveyed who had household incomes of less than $30,000. The lower-income group also reported the highest intentions of spending it on food, clothing and other needed purchasers.
