VILLA PARK- State Senator Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) is urging DuPage County teachers to take advantage of a new tax credit in Illinois for public school teachers and administrators who use personal funds to purchase school supplies for their students.

“Educating our children is a noble profession,” Cullerton said. “Our state should serve as a partner and honor the investments our educators have made in the future of Illinois. This tax credit will help lessen the burden for teachers who work endlessly to ensure our children receive the best education possible.”

Teachers and administrators can qualify for a tax credit up to $250 for instructional materials and supplies used in the classroom.

“DuPage County teachers are training the future leaders of Illinois,” Cullerton said. “92 percent of teachers across our nation spend their own money on classroom supplies to educate our children. It is our duty to provide support and resources to our educators for their generosity.”

The Illinois tax credit is available in addition to the current $250 federal deduction. It is available to teachers, principals or aides in a qualified school who work at least 900 hours during a school year.

Area educators with questions on the new tax credit can call Cullerton’s Villa Park office at (630) 903-6662.

VILLA PARK- State Senator Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) is excited to announce qualifying Illinois veterans will now have easy access to Veteran Identification Cards or VICs starting November.

“Illinois veterans will have a nationwide standardized method to prove their military service without the added risks of identity theft,” Cullerton said. “Our military men and women should not have to jump through hoops to receive benefits they qualify for. This small step will honor our military’s bravery and serve as a reminder that we must never forget the sacrifices they have made for our great nation.”

Currently, many veterans carry copies of their military discharge paperwork or other personal documents to redeem corporate discounts and services which make them more vulnerable to identify theft and other fraudulent activity.

Illinois currently allows veterans who have received an Honorable or General under Honorable Conditions discharge to add a veteran's designation on their driver's license or ID card.

Cullerton believes a nationwide identification card gives Illinois veterans a standardized method to verify military service, especially when they travel across state lines.

The application process will be online on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ website. Veterans will need to upload a valid government ID such as passports and drivers licenses, a recent photograph for the Veteran ID Card and will need to provide details about their military service. The VA will mail the ID card directly to the veteran.

“It is ridiculous to expect our nation’s heroes to carry DD-214 discharge papers to prove their veteran status,” Cullerton said. “This standardized identification card is a simple way for us to honor the service and sacrifices our veterans have made for our country.”

Cullerton will release more information as it becomes available. DuPage County veterans are welcome to call his office at (630) 903-6662 with any questions on the application process.

VILLA PARK- DuPage County now has a new tool to fight the growing opioid epidemic in Illinois.

State Senator Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) is proud to announce a Standing Order has been issued to make the lifesaving drug, Naloxone, more readily available to first responders and community members.

“We can’t rest until the opioid crisis is eliminated from our communities,” Cullerton said. “Allowing emergency professionals to have quick access to this life saving tool will help us fight this nasty epidemic.”
Naloxone is a non-addictive prescription medication that, if used while someone is having a heroin overdose, can save the person’s life. It is more commonly referred to as Narcan.

The Naloxone Standing Order allows eligible organizations, mostly pharmacies and opioid overdose education and naloxone distribution (OEND) programs to provide naloxone to any person without a direct prescription. With Illinois’ standing order, insurers, such as Medicaid and Medicare, can be billed. Eligible individuals must complete appropriate training on naloxone administration to use the program.

Cullerton believes this Standing Order puts a missing link in place to provide the lifesaving drug to emergency professionals to save DuPage County residents’ lives.

“Thirty-eight percent of Illinoisans have never heard of naloxone,” said Deborah A.P. Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. “We are paying for that lack of awareness with lives lost. We applaud Sen. Cullerton and his colleagues for making naloxone available via a statewide standing order. Efforts like these will save lives.”

Since 2014, over 3,143 individuals have been trained to administer Narcan among 60 program sites across DuPage County and the northern Illinois area. The DuPage County Narcan Program was the first countywide overdose prevention program approved by the state Division of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse.

145 lives were saved in DuPage County in 2016. However, the increased use of the deadly drug fentanyl with heroin is believed to have led to an increased number of overdose related deaths.

In 2016, Cullerton worked to addresses heroin and opioid abuse and addiction through House Bill 1. The law combats the opioid epidemic in a variety of ways, by training public safety entities in administering Narcan, requiring state agencies to develop a three-year heroin and opioid drug prevention program and expanding state-funded treatment to include addiction treatment and prescription costs.

“Our work to end the opioid overdose epidemic in Illinois and across our nation is far from done,” Cullerton said. “We cannot rest until this crisis is eliminated from our communities. Until then our top priority will remain putting protections and precautions in place to save lives.”

Cullerton urges DuPage County residents to give his Villa Park Office a call at (630) 903-6662 with any questions regarding where to receive help fighting opioid addiction.

GLENDALE HEIGHTS-Consumer fraud and identity theft are becoming a growing epidemic in Illinois.

To promote prevention, State Senator Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) and the Village of Glendale Heights are offering free paper shredding services for area residents.

To help reduce the chances of identity theft, experts recommend shredding things like bank statements, credit card offers and credit card convenience checks. Residents should also shred canceled credit cards, canceled checks, pay stubs, old photo IDs and tax returns that are more than three years old.

To accommodate all participants the limit is two boxes of residential shredding per a person. Boxes and bags will be returned.

No business shredding will be accepted.

Date: Saturday, September 16

Time: 9 a.m. to noon

Location: Village of Glendale Heights (300 Civic Center Plaza, Glendale Heights, IL)

For more information, call Cullerton’s office at (630) 903-6662.