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90_SR0263
LRB9013632KBkb
1 SENATE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The Senate has indeed been honored by the
3 inclusion within its membership of individuals who have
4 brought distinction to and a compassion for the well being of
5 the people of the State of Illinois; and
6 WHEREAS, Senator Earlean Collins was elected to the
7 Illinois Senate of the 80th General Assembly and immediately
8 began a career marked by numerous firsts: the first
9 African-American woman to serve in the Illinois Senate, the
10 first woman to serve as an Assistant Majority Leader, and in
11 1994, the first African-American woman to win the nomination
12 for Statewide office as the Democratic candidate for State
13 Comptroller; and
14 WHEREAS, Senator Collins developed an expertise in
15 numerous public policy areas and applied her versatile skills
16 to enact significant reforms in laws affecting children and
17 families, economic development, job creation, and education;
18 and
19 WHEREAS, Senator Collins was the chief sponsor of the
20 Earnfare program, an innovative welfare reform program which
21 assists welfare recipients entering the work force; she also
22 sponsored legislation establishing the Job Training
23 Partnership Act, the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, the
24 Youth Education Incentive Employment Program, the Child Care
25 Training Institute, and the Homeless Shelter Program; she
26 sponsored legislation which assists in the reduction of child
27 abandonment and was the principal co-sponsor of the Women and
28 Minority Business Assistance Program and the Illinois Housing
29 Trust Program; and
30 WHEREAS, In addition to serving as an Assistant Majority
31 Leader, Senator Collins has served as the Chairperson of the
32 Committee on Transportation and Chairperson for the Committee
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1 on Labor and Commerce; she has served as a member of the
2 Committees on Revenue and Education, and as a member of the
3 Legislative Audit Commission and the Economic and Fiscal
4 Commission; and
5 WHEREAS, Senator Collins will missed by this body not
6 only for her work on behalf of public policy, but also for
7 her genuine concern for the people of the State of Illinois
8 as evidenced by her work with numerous charities, civic
9 groups, and disaster relief, such as her efforts on behalf of
10 the victims of the Mississippi River flood in 1993; and
11 WHEREAS, The Senate career of Senator Earlean Collins is
12 being brought to a close by her election as a member of the
13 Cook County Board, to which she will bring her considerable
14 experience and energy to the benefit of the people of Cook
15 County; and
16 WHEREAS, The retirement of Senator Earlean Collins marks
17 the end of a career dedicated to the hard work of resolving
18 the problems that face every citizen of Illinois; therefore,
19 be it
20 RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETIETH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
21 OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we hereby offer our best
22 wishes to our colleague Senator Earlean Collins upon her
23 retirement from this body and offer her our hope for an
24 equally successful career as a member of the Cook County
25 Board; and be it further
26 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this preamble and
27 resolution be presented to Senator Earlean Collins as a token
28 of our appreciation for her twenty-two years of honored
29 membership in this body.