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1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
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2 | | WHEREAS, Illinois State Senator Mike Jacobs has |
3 | | represented the citizens of the State of Illinois and the |
4 | | families of the 36th Senate District since 2005; and
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5 | | WHEREAS, Senator Mike Jacobs joined the Illinois Senate in |
6 | | May of 2005 as the unanimous choice to fill the vacancy created |
7 | | when his father, Senator Denny Jacobs, stepped down from public |
8 | | office after serving the Quad Cities for 14 years; and
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9 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs learned the strong values of public |
10 | | service and giving back to his community through the selfless |
11 | | examples provided by his grandmother Caroline "Ma" Jacobs, |
12 | | known for serving plentiful portions of generosity, regardless |
13 | | of a customer's skin color; she is believed to be the first |
14 | | white restaurant owner in Illinois to serve African-Americans |
15 | | at her restaurant, Jake's Cafe; and |
16 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs was elected to the Illinois Senate |
17 | | by the voters of the 36th Senate District in 2006, 2008, and |
18 | | 2012; and
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19 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs previously served as the downstate |
20 | | liaison for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, where he |
21 | | managed driver facilities and operations for 14 counties across |
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1 | | northwest Illinois; and
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2 | | WHEREAS, Understanding the importance of job creation to |
3 | | improve the region's economy, Senator Jacobs worked to make |
4 | | sure the Western Illinois University Riverfront Campus became a |
5 | | reality; Senator Jacobs, together with Representative Pat |
6 | | Verschoore, worked to secure $62 million to fund the expansion; |
7 | | and |
8 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs worked hard to enhance |
9 | | transportation and economic development opportunities in the |
10 | | Quad Cities area by securing direct flights from the Quad |
11 | | Cities to Washington, DC and by keeping the doors of the Rock |
12 | | Island Arsenal open, thereby securing employment for 7,000 |
13 | | employees at the Arsenal; and
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14 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs worked diligently to secure $150 |
15 | | million to expand Amtrak service to the Quad Cities, providing |
16 | | a direct connection between the Quad Cities and Chicago, which |
17 | | will benefit the region for years to come; and
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18 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs saw the Thomson Correctional |
19 | | Center as an economic opportunity for Carroll and Henry |
20 | | Counties and worked with leaders at the federal, State, and |
21 | | local levels to secure the sale of the Thomson Correctional |
22 | | Center to the federal government, which resulted in an influx |
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1 | | of over 2,000 long-term jobs in the 36th Senate District and |
2 | | $165 million in revenue to help balance the State's budget; and |
3 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs helped secure vital funds for the |
4 | | construction of the newly-opened $40 million KONE Centre |
5 | | development in downtown Moline to create good-paying and stable |
6 | | construction jobs for the residents of the region for years to |
7 | | come; and
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8 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs has been a strong advocate for job |
9 | | creation throughout his career; he worked to amend the Quad |
10 | | Cities Regional Economic Development Authority Act by |
11 | | extending its geographic area to include Jo Daviess, Carroll, |
12 | | Whiteside, Stephenson, and Lee counties; and
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13 | | WHEREAS, As the Chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, |
14 | | Senator Jacobs worked to bring more than a thousand jobs and |
15 | | additional clean energy to Illinois by securing an agreement |
16 | | that required the State to push green energy usage from 3% to |
17 | | 5% and promoting an initiative to support wind turbine and |
18 | | transmission manufacturing that resulted in over 1,450 union |
19 | | jobs and approximately $7 billion worth of investments in |
20 | | innovative wind energy projects; and |
21 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs was honored by the Illinois |
22 | | Committee of Blind Vendors for securing the passage of the |
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1 | | Blind Vendors Act, which helped to create vending and |
2 | | concession businesses and provide new opportunities for blind |
3 | | women and men in Illinois to allow them to be self-sufficient |
4 | | and self-employed; and
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5 | | WHEREAS, Acting to promote the independence of our most |
6 | | vulnerable populations, Senator Jacobs worked to pass a law |
7 | | that requires gas stations to make sure there are easily |
8 | | accessible fueling stations for those with disabilities by |
9 | | requiring gas stations to have a call device that allows |
10 | | motorists with disabilities to request assistance; and
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11 | | WHEREAS, To raise cancer awareness, Senator Jacobs worked |
12 | | to pass "Brandon's Law" to raise awareness of testicular cancer |
13 | | in high school health classes; Brandon Ballard died from |
14 | | testicular cancer at the age of 19, and his parents worked with |
15 | | Senator Jacobs to craft legislation to promote cancer awareness |
16 | | to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future; and |
17 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs understood the importance of |
18 | | honoring our veterans for the tireless sacrifices they have |
19 | | made for our country; he was recognized by the American Legion |
20 | | Department of Illinois for his commitment to the Veterans |
21 | | Special Programs American National Network; and
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22 | | WHEREAS, To provide the children of the 36th Senate |
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1 | | District with excellent educational opportunities, Senator |
2 | | Jacobs fought to secure funding for Silvis School District 34, |
3 | | securing $11.4 million to construct Northeast Junior High |
4 | | School and renovate the George O. Barr Elementary School; and
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5 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs understood the long-term benefits |
6 | | of providing children with after-school programs; he worked to |
7 | | secure $600,000 for construction of the Martin Luther King, Jr. |
8 | | Park and $88,000 for renovations to the organizations' center |
9 | | to strengthen schools, families, and communities and to create |
10 | | additional outlets for children to thrive; and |
11 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs received the 2014 YMCA Legislative |
12 | | Hero Award for his work to secure $175,000 in funding for |
13 | | renovations to the Two Rivers YMCA and as a symbol of their |
14 | | gratitude for his years of dedication to the YMCA, local youth |
15 | | and teens, and his community; and
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16 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs led the passage of a major State |
17 | | construction plan that brought $563 million to northwest |
18 | | Illinois, which has been invested in infrastructure, job |
19 | | creation, future construction, and railroad expansion and has |
20 | | provided hundreds of immediate jobs for area residents; and
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21 | | WHEREAS, To help keep businesses open in the 36th Senate |
22 | | District, Senator Jacobs worked with the Wahl Clipper |
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1 | | Corporation to secure an incentive package to guarantee that |
2 | | the company would be able to keep up with the growing worldwide |
3 | | demand for its products; when Wahl Clipper discussed moving out |
4 | | of the region to meet its growing business needs, Senator |
5 | | Jacobs worked to ensure that the company kept over 1,000 jobs |
6 | | in Sterling and created additional jobs for local residents; |
7 | | and |
8 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs is the fourth member of his family |
9 | | to serve in the General Assembly; his great-uncle, Charles |
10 | | Carpentier, was a former Illinois Secretary of State, State |
11 | | Senator, and Mayor of East Moline; his grandfather, Oral "Jake" |
12 | | Jacobs, served in the Illinois House of Representatives, on the |
13 | | Rock Island County Board, and as an East Moline Alderman; most |
14 | | recently, his father Denny Jacobs served as Mayor of East |
15 | | Moline and as a State Senator; and
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16 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs is an advocate for labor unions and |
17 | | working families throughout the State and is a former member of |
18 | | 3 Quad City area unions: American Federation of State, County |
19 | | and Municipal Employees Local 2025; United Automobile Workers |
20 | | Local 1304; and Laborers' Local Union 309; and
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21 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs' commitment to his district and its |
22 | | communities is demonstrated by the excellent job he has done as |
23 | | a State Senator and by the recognition he has received from |
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1 | | numerous groups and organizations, including the Illinois Farm |
2 | | Bureau ACTIVATOR, the Readers' Choice Award in recognition of |
3 | | Best Local Politician, the Downstate Democrat Bald Eagle Award, |
4 | | the Illinois Committee of Blind Vendors' Randolph Sheppard |
5 | | Advocate Award, the Illinois Association of Regional |
6 | | Superintendents of Schools' recognition of Outstanding Service |
7 | | to the schools of the State of Illinois in 2006 and 2011, the |
8 | | Illinois Public Transportation Association's Legislator of the |
9 | | Year Award, and the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois' |
10 | | Legislative Award for Outstanding Leadership; and
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11 | | WHEREAS, Senator Jacobs is the father of his loving son, |
12 | | Elliott, and the son of Mary Ellen and Denny Jacobs; he will be |
13 | | deeply missed by all in this chamber; therefore, be it
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14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL |
15 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank State Senator |
16 | | Mike Jacobs for his dedicated service to the people of Illinois |
17 | | and honor him with this resolution; and be it further
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18 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
19 | | presented to Senator Jacobs with our best wishes for his future |
20 | | endeavors.
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