Dupage Policy Journal

State Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton) is among the group of GOP lawmakers leading the charge in securing benefits for constituents left scrambling by the financial strains of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“As the elected voice for the 42nd District, which includes parts of Naperville, Warrenville, West Chicago and Wheaton, my most important job is to take care of my constituents,” Grant told the DuPage Policy Journal. “I will never apologize for fighting on their behalf.”

Since Gov. J.B. Pritzker enacted his stay-at-home order as a way of mitigating the spread of the coronavirus, the state’s unemployment rate has to climbed to 4.6%, with recent figures showing the largest job losses have come in hospitality, professional and business services and financial activities sectors.

“I’m proud that the House Republican caucus has led the effort to force improvements within IDES (Illinois Department of Employment Security), the system that processes unemployment claims,” Grant said. “It is disheartening that our advocacy on behalf of our constituents is being framed politically by Democrats as if we’ve done something wrong by insisting on changes that allow our constituents to access the benefits they are owed.”

Over the last several weeks, Grant said she has tirelessly worked to help those stymied in their efforts to access the IDES system and apply for the benefits they are entitled to.

“For the many constituents living paycheck to paycheck, the receipt of these benefits is critical,” she said. “It allows food to be put on the table and prescriptions to be purchased. So when I hear from a constituent who has tried without success every day for three weeks to file and certify their benefits, I will not sit silently while others make excuses about unprecedented claim volumes and an overwhelmed system not built to accommodate it.”

Grant argues that Pritzker and his team should have planned for such issues when they moved to institute his decree, which forced many businesses to shutter.

“As the governor and his advisers were deciding they needed to close businesses to slow the spread of COVID-19, they knew they would be putting hundreds of thousands of Illinoisans out of work and that those people would be filing for unemployment,” she added. “The administration had a responsibility to ensure plans were in place to handle those calls and website contacts before those people were put out of work.”