SPRINGFIELD, IL – State Representative Charlie Meier (R-Okawville) is continuing his work to advocate on behalf of workers with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The “Dignity in Pay Act” passed during the 103rd General Assembly in 2024, which requires people with intellectual disabilities to be paid minimum wage. Previously, organizations could employ these individuals as 14c employees and pay a subminimum wage.
Meier was a critic of the “Dignity in Pay Act” over concerns that this legislation could unintentionally force people with intellectual disabilities in Community Day Service (CDS) settings out of work due to lack of financial support for groups that offer CDS workshops. Meier pointed to the joy that 14c workshops brought to these individuals, not for the paycheck but for the opportunity to have a purpose.
When the State of Illinois started discussing the “Dignity in Pay Act” in 2022, they began offering grants for certain CDS providers ahead of the law taking effect. In that time, 17 CDS providers received over $18,000,000 million in grant funding, however many did not receive any assistance.
After the mandates through “Dignity in Pay Act” took effect, only 15 CDS providers received $2,400,000 in funding to help offset the cost of immediately raising their wages by a drastic amount, leaving 80% of CDS providers without any financial support. Failure to provide any additional grant funding appropriations for 14c providers will result in loss of meaningful employment opportunities for many persons with developmental disabilities across the state.
To address this, Rep. Charlie Meier filed House Bill 4179, which would allocate $10 million to DHS for transition grants under the Section 14c transition program. These grants would help community agencies move away from subminimum wages while keeping CDS providers financially sustainable and workers employed. HB 4179 would help fund the mandate the state placed on these organizations through the “Dignity in Pay Act.”
“My bill’s purpose is to make sure that the thousands of Illinoisans who love their work at CDS workshops will have the ability to keep working when this bill is fully implemented and funded,” said Rep. Charlie Meier.
HB 4179 was heard in Health & Human Services Appropriations Committee, where advocates from Community Link and Washington County Workshop shared firsthand accounts of the challenges they face under the current law and why additional support is needed.
John Huelskamp, Executive Director for Community Link, stated, “Dignity in Pay grant funding is critical in building the necessary infrastructure, developing workforce supports and creating a sustainable community employment pathway for persons with developmental disabilities. Without it, many of the approximately 3100 people across the state currently employed in 14c workshops will be unemployed by 2030.”
Follow the status of HB 4179 at this link, or at ilga.gov.
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