Sangamon Sun

In a May 9 Facebook post, Rep. Bill Hauter (R-Lincoln) thanked Sen. Sally Turner (R-Lincoln) for letting him pass SB 1376 in the House.

The bill he sponsored in the House would require housing agencies to consider the military status of any member of a family while determining that family's eligibilty for services for homeless veterans and their families.

“State Senator Sally Turner was the chief sponsor in the Senate,” he wrote. “Thanks Senator for letting me pass your bill in the House.”

The Housing Assistance Council reported more than 500,000 veterans live in Illinois.

The bill passed the House in a 104-0 vote and is now headed for Gov. J.B. Pritzker's desk for signing.

Turner is the chief sponsor of the bill, and she was joined in the Senate by Sens. Mike Porfirio, Jil Tracy, and Andrew S. Chesney. In the House, the bill was sponsored by Reps. Hauter, Paul Jacobs, Gregg Johnson, Michael J. Coffey, Jr., Jason Bunting, Dave Severin, and John M. Cabello. It requires a referring agency to consider the military status of any member of the family to determine the family's eligibility for state or federal benefits and other supportive services for homeless veterans and their families, including, but not limited to, housing or rental assistance, job training, and employment opportunities, when a referring agency is considering referring a family with school-age children to a shelter.

Hauter is a medical doctor who represents the 87th House District. Hauter was elected to the Tazewell County Board and served on the Health Services and Property Committees. He was also an elected officer in his physician group, the Illinois Society of Anesthesiologists, as well as several other medical societies and organizations. He is a Fellow and Delegate in the American Society of Anesthesiologists and a Fellow in the American Academy of Emergency Medicine.