Letter: Meeting the Needs of Our Veterans

By Tom Cross

State Representative, 97th District

If you have a friend or loved one who has served in a branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, you know how important veterans are to our families and within our community. If you are a veteran yourself, we thank you for your service in defense of our freedom. You deserve our profound respect and gratitude.

The State of Illinois offers a wide range of services to assist veterans on issues including employment, health care, housing, tax credits and more. I would like to give you a few examples of recent action we’ve taken in the state legislature on veterans’ issues.

In order to improve Veterans’ access to state services, we passed a new law directing the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office to add a unique distinction on veteran driver’s licenses and identification cards.

Another new law has increased the Hiring Veterans Tax Credit. We more than quadrupled the annual cap from $1,200 to $5,000 in order to incentivize employers to hire veterans. The same bill also honors Gold Star families of fallen heroes across Illinois by making them eligible for the same property tax-relief available in some communities to the families of fallen firefighters and police officers.

We also took action to protect the dignity of a fallen soldier’s funeral by expanding Illinois’ “Let Them Rest in Peace Act,” which prohibits protests within 300 feet of a funeral site and ensure that no protest can take place within 30 minutes before and after a funeral or memorial service. I co-authored this law with my colleague, Representative Kay Hatcher of Yorkville.

For veterans, your first point of contact when seeking assistance on any issue should be our local Veterans Assistance Commission (VAC). They are an outstanding resource led by compassionate, dedicated professionals experienced in helping veterans. Here are our local VAC Superintendents:

In Kane County, please contact Jacob Zimmerman at 630-232.3550.

In Kendall County, please contact Ed Dixon at 630-553-8355.

In Will County, please contact Kristina McNichol at 815-740-8389.

In DuPage County, please contact Steve Fixler at 630-407-5655.

For a list of links to veterans resources or to download a free brochure on Illinois veterans benefits, please visit my website at www.tomcross.com/veterans.

To learn more about programs and services available to veterans at the state level, please contact the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs by calling toll-free at 800-437-9824 or visit their website at www2.illinois.gov/veterans. Together we can ensure that we keep our priority on meeting the needs of Illinois veterans.