Call will feature experts from the Illinois Dept. of Employment Security and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association; will focus on the economic impacts of COVID-19
Chicago…State Representative Brad Stephens (R-Chicago) will host a telephone townhall at 10:15 am on Tuesday, March 31. The call will focus on economic issues and feature Robb Karr from the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) and a subject matter expert from the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES).
“Our first Tele-TownHall was an immense success, with over 3,000 people participating across all platforms. During this stressful time for our community I want to keep residents as informed as possible. Because the situation is evolving rapidly and so are state policies.” said Stephens. “Thank you to Robb Karr from IRMA and IDES for agreeing to take part in the townhall and providing our community with valuable and timely information that residents can use.”
Nationally 3.28 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits in the last week. This shattered the previous weekly record from 1982. In Illinois, so far March unemployment claims have totaled 133,763. In comparison 27,493 applied for benefits during the same period in 2019.
In order to fight unemployment, the federal government enacted a bipartisan stimulus bill on Friday. At a cost of over $2 trillion, it is the largest economic stimulus package in modern American history. It will deliver direct payments and unemployment benefits to individuals, give states resources, and provide businesses and non-profits who have been battered by the crisis some relief.
Rep. Stephens regularly updates his website with information on Covid-19, including resources on the various forms of assistance available: https://ilcovid19info.com/. Residents with concerns can also reach out to the legislative office at (773) 444-0611 or email stephens@ilhousegop.org with any questions or concerns.
To call into the Tele-TownHall please call: (877) 229-8493 and use the pin number 112825. The Tele-TownHall will also be available on a livestream at the following link: https://video.teleforumonline.com/video/streaming.php?client=12825.