Illinois § 5

§ 5.

Findings and declaration of policy. The General Assembly hereby finds, determines, and declares the following: (1) the number of women and girls, of all ages in Illinois as of 2013, was close to half of the State's population, at 6,560,187; (2) approximately 13% of the total population of the women are immigrants; (3) Illinois women who work full-time, year-round, earn 80 cents on the dollar compared with similarly employed men; (4) approximately 28.2% of those working in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields in Illinois are women, compared with 28.8% nationwide; (5) approximately 32.7% of women in Illinois have a bachelor's degree or higher, which is an increase of about 8 percentage points since the 2000; (6) women in Illinois who are unionized earn $122 more per week, on average, than those who are not represented by a union; (7) approximately 61% of women in Illinois are part of the labor force, and 27.2% of businesses in Illinois are owned by women; (8) heart disease is the biggest killer of women in the United States, and Illinois ranks 29 of 51 with a mortality rate of 136.9 per 100,000 women, specifically, 133.8 for Caucasian women, 79.8 Hispanic women, 186.1 for African American women, 70.5 for Pacific Islander women, and 72.1 for Native American women; (9) the female lung cancer mortality rates for women, per 100,000, in 2011-2013, was 42.0 for Caucasian women, 11.6 for Hispanic women; 44.2 for African American women; and 15.8 for Pacific Islander women; (10) the female breast cancer mortality rates for women, per 100,000, in 2011-2013, was 22.8 for Caucasian women, 10.6 for Hispanic women, 32.6 for African American women, and 11.5 for Pacific Islander women; and (11) wide racial and ethnic disparities exist in Illinois pregnancy-related mortality rates, which in 2013, in deaths per 100,000 births, were 8.1 for Caucasian women and 28.9 for African American women, and the severe maternal morbidity rate for Illinois between 2011-2013 was higher than the national rate; (12) teen pregnancy is often unintended and can have long-term negative health effects on future physical, behavioral, educational, and economic development of mothers and children, and teen birth rates in Illinois are significantly higher for African American and Hispanic teens than for Caucasian teens; (13) women who are transgender experience high rates of discrimination, harassment, and violence in every aspect of their lives, including health care settings, other public accommodations, housing, and employment; and (14) approximately 65.9% of women in Illinois are registered to vote. Based on the foregoing findings, the General Assembly determines and declares that it is the public policy of the State of Illinois to provide fair and equal access for women in Illinois to adequate healthcare, resources for professional and academic opportunity, and resources for safety and proper living conditions for them and their young children, paying attention to the variances of impact in these areas along the lines of race and ethnicity. (Source: P.A. 100-913, eff. 8-17-18.)