Rep. Coulson led the effort and sponsored legislation (HB 418) to extend the 7% assessment cap for Cook County homeowners and raise the eligibility level. However, after several versions, the General Assembly passed HB 664.

House Bill 664:

• Extends the seven percent tax assessment cap on residential property taxes for three more years with exemption maximums in place.
  
  
• Provides an additional exemption to the assessment cap for only the 2006 tax year if the assessed value of the residential homeowner's property is increased by 100 percent or more during the last two assessment cycles.
  
  
• Increases the General Homestead Exemption by $500 (from $5,000 to $5,500) in tax year 2008 and $6,000 in tax year 2009 and thereafter.
  
  
• Creates a long-term exemption for those who have owned their home for more than 10 years and have a household income of less than $100,000. (Must be applied for)
  
  
• Provides an additional one time only exemption, of at least $2,000, if the assessed value increased by 80 percent or more over the 2002 base year level.
  
  
• Offers relief to senior citizens with an increase of $1,000 for the Circuit Breaker Income eligibility and a $500 increase in the Senior Homestead Exemption.
  
  
• Under the Senior Citizen Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption, grants full assessment freeze benefits for seniors with a household income of $50,000 or less and eliminates the graduated exemption for seniors with a household income between $45,000 and $50,000 for the 2007 tax year. Increases the maximum income limitation to $55,000 in the 2008 tax year and thereafter.
  
  
• Creates a one-time $5,000 homestead exemption for tax year 2007 and thereafter for veterans returning home from active duty.
  
  
• Creates a $5,000 homestead exemption for veterans who are 75%-100% disabled and $2,500 homestead exemption for 50%-75% disabled for tax year 2007 and thereafter.
  
  
• Creates a $2,000 homestead exemption for disabled homeowners for tax year 2007 and thereafter.
  
  
• Grants permissive authority to municipalities and counties to abate taxes levied for property owned by the surviving spouse of a fallen police officer or rescue worker.

“As you can see, the property tax relief in House Bill 664 is comprehensive, and should bring about savings for residents of Cook County. However, I'm still not satisfied and I will continue working to improve property tax relief in the coming year,” Rep. Coulson said.

Rep. Coulson supported SB 678, which has been enacted into law and will inspire cable competition in Illinois , while requiring accountability of the cable companies.

Since its enactment, several cable TV providers have announced their plans to invest in Illinois , which should create jobs and further economic development. The law also protects public access programs, and leaves eminent domain in the power of the local municipalities.

“This is a win-win solution for cable companies wanting to expand their services and consumers who should benefit from better service and lower prices,” Rep. Coulson said.

Upholding her priority for real budget reform, transparency and an end to pay-to-play politics, Representative Coulson co-sponsored a series of new ethics bills.

HB 1 would limit the political contributions that a state contractor could make to the officeholder responsible for awarding the state contract. HB 3 requires the Governor to establish a single, accessible, searchable database listing each entity that receives state funds. HB 3764 would ban announcements by a state constitutional of.cer or legislator from being displayed on a billboard or electronic message board. HB 3765 would prohibit gubernatorial appointees and department heads from soliciting campaign contributions for the Governor. Each of these bills passed in the House and is being held in the Senate Rules Committee.

A longtime advocate of smoke-free legislation, Rep. Coulson co-sponsored the Smoke-Free Illinois Act which passed during this legislative session and has been enacted into law.

Illinois residents will soon be breathing easier with the successful passage of the Smoke-Free Illinois Act – legislation that Rep. Coulson co-sponsored.

Effective January 1, 2008, smoking will be banned in all public places including restaurants, bars, private clubs and places of employment. Offenders will face fines.

“ Illinois employees and customers will now be able to breathe clean indoor air in public places, which will help reduce lung cancer and other diseases. The Act will create a level economic playing field for all businesses from one community to the next,” Rep. Coulson said.

Rep. Coulson passed HB 304 which mandates that the state Health Facilities Planning Board provide a publicly available review of pending permits of healthcare facility applications before the public hearing. The bill has been signed into law and will encourage public input and transparency.

“As a strong supporter of excellence in healthcare, I believe it is extremely crucial that the permitting process of healthcare facilities in Illinois be as open and transparent as possible,” Rep. Coulson said.

SB 547, sponsored by Rep. Coulson and signed into law, establishes a Health Data Task Force to create a publicly available data system which reports on Illinois ' health problems, plans prevention programs and evaluates existing program effectiveness.

“We need to better educate people about healthcare issues and the services available to them,” Rep. Coulson said.

Advocating for public awareness and prevention against the human papillomavirus (HPV), Rep. Coulson co-sponsored SB 937, which increases awareness about the HPV vaccine and the virus' link to cervical cancer. This new law requires the Department of Public Health to provide informational material to female students entering sixth grade and their parents about the availability of the vaccine and HPV's link to cervical cancer.

Rep. Coulson co-sponsored two bills which have been signed into law, that are designed to improve the hiring and staffing process in hospitals, supportive living, assisted living and shared housing facilities.

SB 640 requires each facility to check the state's new Nurse Aide Registry before hiring nursing aides, habilitation aides and child care aides. SB 867 requires every hospital to implement a written nursing staffing plan for each inpatient care unit with input from nursing staff.

Following up on her prior sponsorship of Illinois ' Safe Haven Act, Rep. Coulson sponsored legislation to educate and inform Illinois residents about the law and the locations of hospitals, fire stations and police stations where newborn babies can be taken. SB 335 has been signed into law.

“This law has already saved the lives of more than 36 infants who otherwise would have been abandoned in garbage bins and perished unnecessarily. We want people to know that these safe havens are available,” Rep. Coulson said.

Rep. Coulson played an integral role during intense budget negotiations. School districts across Illinois will benefit.

Rep. Coulson was able to secure $137 million for special education, which will provide a $1,000 per position increase for special education. This is the first time special education has received an increase since 1985. In addition, the foundation level received a $400 per child boost, increasing spending to $5,734 per pupil.

The final education budget includes an increase of nearly $600 million for elementary and secondary education, and $60 million for higher education. Additionally, Rep. Coulson fought for the following increases: $25 million for the Early Childhood Block Grant; $12 million for the teacher, principal and superintendent mentoring and induction programs and $5 million for gifted education.

Each year more than 50 children participate in Rep. Coulson's Summer Reading Program which concludes with an ice cream social.

For many years, the Chicago area has depended on one of the premier transit systems in the country including the inexpensive and efficient services offered by CTA, METRA and PACE. In the 17 th District, residents utilize three METRA commuter lines, two CTA lines and PACE bus routes. Currently, this transportation system is under-funded and on the verge of collapse. The Auditor General examined the system and recommended reforms that were included in SB 572.

I supported this legislation as it provides funding and reform to our state's mass transit system as well as local roads through a quarter cent sales tax. Unfortunately the General Assembly has not come to an agreement on this issue. I will continue to fight to improve transit in the district and throughout the region. Without mass transit funding and reform, service cuts and fare hikes are imminent after November 4, 2007.