We received this word from Zach Wichmann with the Catholic Conference of Illinois who has been working very closely with the pro-life and pro-family groups in Illinois. Thank you for all your help in defeating this bill (at least for now). It is because of your help, this bill was stopped.
House Bill 2354 will not be called for a vote before tonight's deadline. The proponents of the bill (Planned Parenthood and ACLU) were not able to muster the number of votes they needed, so they will not call the bill for a vote. We estimate they were some 10 to 15 votes short of the 60 required.
This great accomplishment would not have happened without your engagement in the issue. Catholics across Illinois participated in email and phone trees, took up petition drives, met with their representatives, and many drove to Springfield to lobby in the halls of the Capitol. We must also note the leadership role assumed by our Bishops and their willingness to speak out and rally our people. All of us came together and did a great thing.
Some people and/or groups are reporting that the bill is dead for the year. Perhaps. However, we must remember that there are many ways to revive legislation, and it will not harm us to remain vigilant. We will let you know quickly if anything stirs.
It will be very important that in the weeks to come we thank those legislators who stood up for what is right and begin to think about how to build this network of opposition to House Bill 2354 into something bigger and more important -- a network dedicated to the protection of human life and religious freedom.
