A pandemic-era law that made mixed drinks and single servings of wine available for pickup and delivery is one of many laws set to take effect Wednesday.
In addition to cocktails to-go, Illinois residents will see laws affecting drivers, schools, and the creation of new state agencies.
Here’s what you should know about some of the new laws taking effect:
Cocktails-to-go
In June of 2020, Gov. JB Pritzker signed a law that allowed the sale of cocktails by bars and restaurants with liquor licenses for pickup and delivery. It was aimed at keeping businesses afloat during the pandemic while lockdowns kept people from going out to eat or drink.
Last December, Pritzker made the practice a permanent fixture in Illinois law. And starting July 1, Senate Bill 618 allows restaurants and bars to offer cocktails and single servings of wine to-go.
One of the bill’s sponsors, state Sen. Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chicago, said the law presents an opportunity for businesses to continue improving after the pandemic.
“It is quite an investment for our retail establishments and restaurants to follow,” Feigenholtz said. “I think it allows them to reinvent how they market this.”
The law also outlines requirements for how the drinks can be distributed. Only a trained employee of the business can deliver the drinks, and it must be transported somewhere in the delivery driver’s car where anyone else in the vehicle can’t access it. Drinks must also be packaged in a sturdy, sealed container with no openings.
Safeguarding students
Lawmakers also passed several bills in the spring aimed at protecting students. One bill expands the definition of cyberbullying to include artificially generated images.
House Bill 3851 adds posting unauthorized AI-generated images to the list of tools that are used for cyberbullying.
State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr, D-Naperville, one of the sponsors of the bill, said it stems from male students making deepfake images of their female classmates.
“The use of these exploitative AI apps is so new that what we were finding are schools that were unprepared to address the issue,” Yang Rohr said.
She said the bill allows for schools to make rules governing the use of these new AI apps.
“It gives a framework for investigating and addressing the issues, and what kind of policies can schools put in place to prevent this sort of thing,” she said.
Another bill would keep a student’s record of receiving special education services confidential. Previously, a student’s private “permanent record” only included personal information like their name, age and birth date, guardian’s names and addresses, and attendance.
Senate Bill 408 adds a summary of a student’s performance that benefited from special education services to the list of private information kept on a student’s “permanent record.”
New rules for older motorists
Under House Bill 1226, older drivers will also be able to wait a few more years before having to retake their driver’s test or renew their license in person.
Motorists between the ages of 79 and 86 must renew in person and complete a vision test, but they are no longer required to take a driving test. Previously, that requirement kicked in at age 75.
Drivers age 87 and older will continue to still have to renew annually and complete both a vision test and a driving test.
New state agencies
Senate Bill 1 creates the Illinois Department of Early Childhood to consolidate services that were previously spread among several agencies. The new department will be responsible for oversight and licensing of early childhood education services like preschool and daycare centers.
The department will receive over $2 million from the state budget.
House Bill 3363 creates the Office of State Public Defender. The bill requires an 11-member commission to be appointed by Oct. 1, which will be responsible for determining the funding and costs associated with operating the new office.