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Illinois House Bill 1489 would no longer allow Pinckneyville and Du Quoin to count prison populations as part of census

An Illinois House of Representatives bill sponsored by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford of Cook County would no longer allow communities like Pinckneyville and Du Quoin to count inmates incarcerated in state prisons and boot camps located there.

Each inmate would be counted in their hometown census as it once was.

Since its introduction on March 18, 2015 others sponsors--Rep. Mary Flowers, Rep. Eddie Jackson, Sr., Rep.. Camille Lilly, Rep. Elain Nekritz, Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, Rep. Emanuel Welch, Rep. Carol Ammons, Rep. Kenneth Dunklin and Rep. Arthur Turner have signed onto the bill.

As of last week, the bill had been placed on the legislative calendar, but consideration has been postponed.

Here's why the bill is important to the cities of Pinckneyville and Du Quoin. Towns in Illinois receive local government distribution funds (LGDF) which are based on population numbers provided by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Those funds are distributed on a (per capita) basis (about $100 per person). Pinckneyville counts the 2,000 inmates at the Pinckneyville Correctional Center as part of its population. Being unable to count that population could cost the town $200,000 in LGDF revenue.

As of July 2014 the Du Quoin Boot Camp population was 220 inmates. Losing the ability to count that population could cost Du Quoin $22,000.

Gov. Rauner has already proposed cutting back state subsidy to towns apart from the inmate issue.

Du Quoin & Pinckneyville Populations Declining

By the U.S. Census Bureau's own estimates, the two communities are losing population every year (and, in turn, revenue) anyway.

The Census Bureau estimates that Du Quoin's population (including inmates) has dropped from 6,103 in 2010 to 5,977 in 2013.

It estimates Pinckneyville's population has dropped from 5,644 (including inmates) in 2010 to 5,570 in 2013.

Here is the important part of the bill: HB 1489 would "ensure that the person is not represented in any population counts reported by the Secretary of State for the geographic units that include the facility where the person was incarcerated, unless that geographic unit also includes the person's legal residence; and ensure that any population counts reported by the Secretary of State reflect the person's residential address as reported under Sections 10 and 15 of this Act.

When it means is that the Department of Corrections would begin getting hometown addresses of the inmates, then turn that information over to the Secretary of State, which forwards it to the Census Bureau.

The bill is naturally sponsored by lawmakers in Cook County because that is where many of the state's inmates are from. It would grow Cook County's share of LGDF funds.