SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity revealed details on this year’s Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program this week to help low-income households with utility costs.

$226 million will be provided to eligible families to assist with natural gas, propane, and electricity bills and furnace assistance.

Families that earn up to two times the federal poverty level can receive LIHEAP payments. State leaders encourage all eligible families to apply.

“Every Illinoisan deserves to be able to keep the lights on and stay warm as we head into winter,” Governor JB Pritzker said.

Springfield agency awarded grant to help people enroll in health care

For the month of October, the program is accepting applications from:

• adults 60 years old or older

• individuals with a disability

• families with children five years old or younger, and

• households that are disconnected from their utilities, have a disconnection notice or have less than 25% in their propane tank.

Other households can apply on November 1. The application period closes Aug. 15, 2025, or when funds are exhausted.

“LIHEAP is an essential program for families across Illinois,” DCEO Director Kristin Richards said. “This priority application system will ensure families with the most critical need have the resources and information necessary to secure reliable access to energy utilities.”

More than 333,000 households in the state received LIHEAP funding last year, with the average amount of financial assistance being $724 per household.

Families can apply at Help Illinois Families’s website. Anyone needing assistance can call 1-833-711-0374 for help in one of 30 languages.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com.

Illinoisans will be asked to vote on three advisory questions in the election Nov. 5. Here is what voters should know.

Come Election Day, Illinoisans will see three questions on the statewide ballot: one on election interference, another asking about amending the state constitution to impose a 3% tax on income over $1 million and a third on requiring insurance companies to cover fertility treatments.

These questions were placed on the ballot by Senate Bill 2412, the same bill that attempted to reduce election competition in the middle of the election cycle by barring candidates who did not participate in a primary election from appearing on the 2024 ballot. That provision of the bill as applied to the 2024 election was struck down by a state appellate court in June. The Illinois Supreme Court declined to take up the appeal, so those provisions will not apply until after Nov. 5. The advisory ballot questions remained.

The statewide questions are not the only advisory questions some Illinoisans will see on their ballots. Citizens and governing bodies of municipalities, townships and counties may also place advisory questions on the ballot. For example, Barrington Township will ask voters if they support reforming public pensions by amending the state constitution.

Here are three common questions about nonbinding referenda, and what you should know before heading to the polls.

What is a nonbinding advisory question?

Illinois law allows voters or lawmakers to place questions of public policy on the ballot to be voted for or against at a statewide general election. There is no limitation to the subject matter of advisory questions. Questions can range from local to national to international issues covering public safety, the environment, foreign policy and everything in between.

The results of these ballot questions have no legal impact.

How are non-binding referendum placed on the ballot?

There are two general methods to place an advisory question on the ballot: through petition signature collections or by a resolution passed by elected leaders.

• Voters can place an advisory question on the ballot statewide by collecting the number of signatures equal to 8% of the votes cast for governor in the case of a statewide advisory question. Voters can also place an advisory question on a local ballot by collecting the number of signatures equal to 8% of the votes cast for governor in that political subdivision whether it is a municipality, township, county or school district.
• The local governing body of a municipality, township, county, or school district can place an advisory question on the ballot by passing a resolution. The Illinois General Assembly can place an advisory question on the statewide ballot by passing a law that gets signed by the governor.

Why put a non-binding advisory question on the ballot?

The main reason to place an advisory question on the ballot is to gauge public support for a particular policy proposition in a specific area – municipalities, townships, counties, school districts or statewide. It’s similar to an official poll, but the advantage of nonbinding referenda as compared to polls is the sample size is often larger, and the results measure the views of actual voters who went to the trouble to show up at the polls or to fill out and mail in their ballots. The results signal to lawmakers in a particular jurisdiction the strength of their constituents’ support or opposition to the question.

Advisory questions in Illinois are generally limited to three propositions per political subdivision. If more than three questions would qualify for ballot placement, the first three questions to be validly submitted will be placed on the ballot.

That is another reason lawmakers might place questions on the ballot: to preempt questions they’d rather not see asked. That appears to be what happened this year. A statewide advisory question proposed by the Parents Matter Coalition would have asked voters if they support requiring parental consent for the provision of non-emergency medical treatment or gender counseling of minor children. But by filling up the statewide ballot with three advisory questions before enough signatures could be gathered and submitted, Illinois lawmakers prevented it. Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed SB 2412 into law three days before the deadline to file petitions for a statewide advisory question.

In addition, research on non-binding ballot initiatives in California indicate lawmakers pay attention to these results, particularly when the issue area falls under the authority of the jurisdiction where the advisory question is on the ballot. If the question is on an issue that is controversial or that the electorate is passionate about, it can also increase turnout to the polls and increase discussions of the policy proposed, making it more likely that lawmakers address the issue substantively.

As a result, while these questions may not have any legal effect, voters should take them seriously. State and local lawmakers pay attention to the results, and what is only a nonbinding question today may become public policy tomorrow. Voters should educate themselves on the consequences of these hypothetical proposals before they pull the lever for or against, lest they discover that lawmakers take them at their word and put those policies into law.

Local 4-H programs will host open house events this fall in DuPage, Kane and Kendall counties to introduce families to their youth development opportunities.

These events, part of the University of Illinois Extension’s 4-H program, focus on building leadership, citizenship and life skills in young people, according to a release from the University of Illinois Extension.

Open houses will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 6, at the DuPage County Fairgrounds in Wheaton; 6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11, at the Kendall County Fairgrounds in Yorkville and 6 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21, at the Kane County Fairgrounds in St. Charles.

Registration is not required.

The program emphasizes fostering a sense of belonging and community service through hands-on activities, project work and leadership opportunities, said Andrea Farrier, a 4-H youth development educator, in the release.

Youth can participate in 4-H clubs, which are open to those ages 8 to 18, while the Cloverbud program is available for children ages 5 to 7.

For more information or to request accommodations, contact 630-584-6166 or visit go.illinois.edu/info4Hdkk.