Hello 2024! 👋🏽
Happy 2024! ✨ I hope you had a restful and lovely holiday season with your loved ones. We kicked off the year by hosting our first office hours of the year, gearing up for the spring legislative session, and planning some exciting events. I’ll cover all of these highlights and more!
Before we dive into 2024, let’s recap 2023!
Image of a student completing the District 51 Budget worksheet
We concluded the first year of our Youth Advisory Council with a District 51 Community Budget. Students researched, advocated for, and finalized a budget to distribute $1,000 to six community based orgs!
Image of Represenative Syed alongside advocates of the Generic Drug Pricing Fairness Act
We passed the Generic Drug Pricing Fairness Act! HB 3957 prohibits price gouging of generic and off-patent drugs, making prescription drugs more affordable for Illinois consumers.
Image of Representative Syed alongside Comptroller Mendoza and Littly City Advocates holding a check
Community-based organizations and businesses were awarded more than $1,000,000 in grants!
$433,911: Little City
$131,858: Palatine Public Library
$540,956: Back to Business
We …
concluded the first year of our Youth Advisory Council with a District 51 Community Budget. Students researched, advocated for, and finalized a budget to distribute $1,000 to six community based orgs!
passed the Generic Drug Pricing Fairness Act! HB 3957 prohibits price gouging of generic and off-patent drugs, making prescription drugs more affordable for Illinois consumers.
awarded community-based organizations and businesses more than $1,000,000 in grants! Including
$433,911: Little City
$131,858: Palatine Public Library
$540,956: Back to Business
Our year in numbers …
130 Constituent Cases Completed
50 Events Hosted or Attended
29 House Bills Introduced
7 Bills Signed into Law
5 Committees served
1 New District Office Created
District Highlights and Upcomeing Events
For anyone hoping to visit us in person at our district office, we will be remote on Fridays until further notice. Our hours of operation are the following...
Monday-Friday 9 am - 5 pm
Available by email, phone, or in person visit Monday-Thursday
Available by email or phone on Fridays
If you would like to see our team in-person, but can't find a time that works for you, please be on the lookout for our October office hours and/or send us an email so we can find a time that works for you.
And finally, please join us on Thursday, October 12th at the Barrington Park District for a legislative update and for an opportunity to get your questions answered!
District Highlights
We partnered with Illinois Solar Education Association for a very successful Solar Energy Town Hall!
Thank you to the Illinois Solar Education Association for partnering on an informative session about everything solar energy!
The presentation, from a District 51 constituent and volunteer, broke down common misconceptions and laid out the process of switching to solar energy for households. In our discussions, we got to talk about specific concerns that audience members have when they think about converting to solar, and what the state can do to continue to make Illinois a place where going solar can be financially beneficial.
Thank you to all who were able to attend! Our Livestream is now posted on Facebook for those who missed it. And, catch the feature about the event from the Daily Herald! You can read the article here.
Constituents from across the district listen to a presentation on Solar Energy 09/19/23
Lake Zurich Area Chamber of Commerce State of the State Breakfast was a success!
I got to sit down with State Senator Dan McConchie and Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky to answer some questions about how we can support small businesses in our districts. Thank you to everyone who joined us!
The LZACC saw a full room of constituents at the Ela Area Public Library 09/22/23
Additional image of the legislators participating in the panel discussion 09/22/23
At the legislative breakfast, I got to share some good news for small businesses in the 51st!
Make it stand out
It was exciting to be a part of rolling out this grant opportunity, aimed at helping businesses that are still seeing the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic. If you have a small business and need support navigating resources, do not hesitate to reach out to our district office.
I also joined many of my colleagues for a panel discussion presented by the Hoffman Estates Chamber of Commerce
It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces and hear from community members what issues matter most to them.
We had a wonderful tour of Harper College with Dr. Proctor
Dr. Proctor and Rep Syed on Harper College's Campus
Thank you to Dr. Proctor, who led us through the cultural and health center, and taught us about some of the many programs that Harper has to offer.
And, thank you to all the Harper College faculty and staff who work tirelessly to provide our community with education and opportunities.
We welcomed the Henry County Farmers to the 51st District!
It was an honor to host Henry County Farmers in our district through the Adopt-a-Legislator program.
The program headed by The Illinois Farm Bureau aims to educate legislators about the state’s largest industry: agriculture! 🧑🌾 The goal is to educate members on the needs and concerns of rural and urban districts.
We visited the Palatine and Ela Historical Society to learn more about the history of our district. Afterwards, we headed over to the Hawthorn Woods Country Club for lunch, and a big thank you to Donna, the Village’s Chief Administrative Officer, who educated us about Hawthorn Woods.
I am grateful that people are committed to preserving the history of towns so we can get a glimpse of the past and learn about how much we have changed.
Congrats are in order...
To Nathan, who achieved the honor of the Eagle Scout Rank!
To Nathan, who achieved the honor of the Eagle Scout Rank!
—Nathan and Rep Syed at Nathan's Eagle Scout Court of Honor
And to Adlai E. Stephenson High School. They ranked 9th in the entire country for their public education!
—Rep Syed and Rep Didech presenting a certificate of congratulations to the School Board of Stevenson High School
From the Community
Join the community for a 5k to honor our local firefighters. Use the QR code to register!
Learn more about Harper Experience Day by visiting their website or scanning the QR code!
Elderworks October Food Drive
From the State 🏛️
Attn: Educators seeking field trip opportunities!
The Field Museum offers all Illinois school groups FREE admission to the museum with pre-registration! We hope this can be a resource for anyone seeking field trip educational opportunities for their students.
Learn more by visiting www.fieldmuseum.org/field-trips
IDHS launched a new Grants Administration Page
This page is meant to serve as a “one-stop shop” for all things grants-related. It includes the following resources:
Centralized resource for all available funding opportunities
Step-by-step instructions on how to get pre-qualified and how to request additional assistance (presentation, recording)
Grant application requirements and resources to complete them
Pre-award requirements/information (Internal Controls Questionnaire)
Post-award information/resources for establishing/complying with requirements (presentations/recordings/summaries)
Interactive Learning Management System to provide additional grant application/management training (how to build a budget, post-award requirements)
Additional tips and resources for the grant application process
This is what the page looks like:
The Treasurer's Office launches Illinois First Steps Program: $50 to help Illinois parents start saving for college
Treasurer Frerichs announced the launch of Illinois First Steps, the Illinois Children's Savings Account (CSA) Program designed to jump start college savings for new parents. This program, which was approved by the General Assembly in 2019 and funded in 2023, provides a $50 seed deposit to all Illinois parents with a child born or adopted on or after January 1, 2023.
To qualify for the $50 seed deposit, parents or legal guardians must be Illinois residents at the time of birth or adoption, the child must be born or adopted on or after Jan. 1, 2023, and the parent must open an Illinois Bright Start or Bright Directions 529 College Savings Account to claim the seed deposit before the child's 10th birthday.
Two new seniors only DMV centers are coming to the northwest suburbs
The new Skip-the-Line system that the Secretary of State's office implemented earlier this month has posed a few barriers to seniors. In light of this issue, the Secretary of State’s office launched two ‘Senior Only’ walk-in centers located in Evanston and Bridgeview!
The two facilities accept appointments, however, their goal is to prioritize walk-in services for seniors without impacting those with an existing appointment. This allows a barrier to be alleviated for seniors who may be facing issues creating appointments online when seeking DMV services.
That was a lot! Thank you for reading all the way through. Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. Our office number is (773) 916-6553 and our email is info@repsyed.com.
With gratitude,
Nabeela
