Advocacy

Whether by sharing important information about disability issues with friends and family or taking part in an event near you, we'd love for you to get involved.

You Can Help!

Join Easterseals today in educating and informing public officials about issues that affect individuals with disabilities. As part of the greater Easterseals network of affiliates, we are interconnected to help individuals live a full life and help them thrive, no matter what stage of life they’re in. We stand together as many of our network depend on federal funding for their operations.

View Easterseals action alert below and contact your legislators now!

1. Advocacy Effort: Medicaid Funding

Due to gaps in insurance, Medicaid, and Early Intervention reimbursements, we rely on private donations to make sure our services are accessible and available to as many children as possible. Our advocacy efforts include opposing actions and legislation on federal funding cuts and restrictions to Medicaid. Such actions are harmful to the individuals we serve and the organizations with which we partner. Medicaid is currently underfunded and does not adequately meet the needs of individuals with disabilities and their families. 

We urge you to tell Congress that Medicaid is a lifeline for people with disabilities! Federal lawmakers need to understand how Medicaid supports you and your family and the significant impact that reduced funding or services would have. They need to be aware of issues such as waiting lists and the challenges of navigating insurance battles.

Here are resources to get started:

  • Tell your story! You can use the worksheet (pictured below) to help lawmakers understand how Medicaid helps you live the life you want.

advocacy alert with storytelling examples

  • ANCOR, community options and resources has made it VERY easy to send a message to our US Senators and Representatives. Click here.
  • Make three phone calls to your federal legislators. You have three Federal legislators who will make decisions about cuts to Federal Medicaid spending.

Resources:
llinois Council on Developmental Disabilities: Visit the ICDD Website
The Arc: Visit their Medicaid Advocacy Resources

2. Advocacy Effort: State of the State Budget Initiative-Township Consolidation

Synopsis:
A key component of Governor Pritzker's 2025 fiscal strategy includes the consolidation of state governmental bodies, such as townships, to reduce administrative overhead and alleviate the tax burden on residents. This initiative is part of a broader effort to streamline government operations and enhance efficiency across Illinois. 
What this means:
  • Townships often provide localized services tailored to their communities, such as road maintenance, property assessments, and aid programs this includes funding from Mental Health Boards which have helped expand Easterseals DuPage & Fox Valley's MHFS department and provide financial assistance to 1,627 families
  • Consolidation could shift control to larger county governments which reduces accessibility, efficiency, quality of care and health equity 
  • Merging townships or transferring responsibilities to counties may result in disruptions in essential services like road maintenance, senior assistance, emergency response, and aid to community programming (what we receive!)
  • While reducing administrative overhead sounds beneficial, studies on government consolidation suggest that savings are not always as significant as projected; the cost of finding (replacement) aid, negotiating/terminating contracts, and re-purposing personnel ends up taking more resources in time and tax-payer money, which means less money awarded to programming that is tailored to each community. 
CALL TO ACTION:
  1. Send your local state senator and representatives an email and/or call urging them to oppose any efforts in consolidating townships. You can find your legislators here ---> Find and contact elected officials | USAGov & locate your STATE OFFICIALS. From there, you would locate their contact information either clicking on the information provided OR searching by name or district -->Illinois General Assembly Home Page 
Your call or email should state:
  • Your name
  • Statement of residency of Representative or Senator's district (usually an address will suffice)
  • Reason why you are calling: Representative and/or Senator to oppose any efforts in consolidating townships & your personal connection (you can use the above bullet points) 
  • Keep it concise and formal
  • Don't forget to "thank" them
  • Provide email and/or phone number as appropriate for follow up communication

3. Advocacy Effort: HB3439, HA1 Common Sense Improvements to Child Care Licensing

  • The bill streamlines and improves child care licensing in Illinois as licensing responsibilities shift to the new Department of Early Childhood (IDEC) starting July 2026. HB3439, HA1 aims to strengthen the state’s licensing child care infrastructure by aligning timelines and clarifying hiring processes, including:

    • Following federal guidance in requiring background check renewals for staff to take place every five years, instead of the current every three years
    • Codifying into law the existing Illinois Department of Children & Family Services guidance regarding provisional hiring (Illinois Action for Children, 2025)
    • Creates efficient processes within non-profit organizations (like ours) to remove barriers to care like extended timelines, red-tape, multiple touchpoints/contacts and THIS WILL HELP JILL!
    CALL TO ACTION:  Create a witness slip (public record that allows you as an individual or as a member of an organization to indicate your stance on a given piece of legislation ahead of a scheduled House or Senate committee hearing)

    Witness Slip Instructions:

    • Go to: https://bit.ly/4bXSbEC
    • Fill out Sections 1 and 2 as they apply to you.
    • Under Section 3 - POSITION - Click the “Description” drop down menu and select "HCA1", then check the “PROPONENT” box.
    • Check the ‘Record of Appearance’ box in Section 4 - TESTIMONY.
    • Check the ‘I Agree to the ILGA Terms of Agreement’ on the bottom left of the form.
    • Click the “Create Slip” button on the bottom right of the form.
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