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Witness Slip Warriors

If you are interested in DIRECTLY influencing state legislation, ensuring that our legislators put laws in place that protect our rights and promote our values, please become a Witness Slip Warrior. We’ll provide instructions! To become a Witness Slip Warrior, send an email to [email protected]

The Illinois General Assembly will be convening its Spring session in January, 2024, as well as holding veto sessions in October/ November 2023.

  • When the Illinois General Assembly is in session you may see requests from NCJW and other organizations to fill out Witness Slips.
  • A witness slip is a person’s or group’s position on a particular bill. A witness slip can be filed on behalf of yourself or on behalf of an organization you are representing (make sure you have their permission before filling on behalf of an organization).
  • Not every state uses witness slips but they are a part of the legislative process in Illinois. They come into play as bills are debated and voted upon in substantive committees.
  • Witness slips used to be actual pieces of paper that lobbyists and others in the Illinois statehouse would fill out and submit prior to committee hearings to express their position on a specific bill, letting legislators know who they would be pleasing (or not) with their vote. It was very much an insider’s tool.
  • Now, however, the process is much more transparent and anyone with access to the internet can go onto the Illinois General Assembly website and fill out slips for any bill they like.
  • Witness slips are used to show support for bills early in the session and to engage advocates and others in creating “buzz” around an issue in advance of a hearing. They become very important when the bill is controversial.
  • So, if you are on email lists or following social media for NCJW and other trusted organizations, and you see them calling for witness slips, go ahead and fill one out. It is unlikely we would be asking if we did not think they were needed
  • Calls for witness slips are often urgent since they can only be filed once the bill has been scheduled for a hearing, usually with less than a week’s notice.

We’re looking for NCJW Witness Slip Warriors who would be able to respond to these urgent requests for witness slips.

Check here for Committee Hearings and to file a witness slip: dashboard of Illinois General Assembly website

Here is great guidance on witness slips, including how to fill them out from ACLU.  FAQ on witness slips