To our ILCRA members and all Certified Shorthand Reporters in the State of Illinois:

The ILCRA Board is aware of questions surrounding our position on the recent legislative activity. We understand transparency is crucial for all Illinois court reporters in order to rest assured ILCRA is not only taking action, but also supporting a position that is only to the benefit of Illinois CSRs.

Part of ILCRA's strategy has been to work quietly and behind the scenes so as not to call attention to the leverage we do have legislatively.

We are aware of the concern over what ILCRA is doing. While our legislative strategy cannot always be made available to the public in order to protect our next steps, we encourage you during this time to do several things in order to help support ILCRA's efforts to monitor Illinois legislation and the potential impact to IL-CSRs.

Senate Bill 3206, which would allow voice writers to practice in Illinois by amending the Illinois Certified Shorthand Reporters Act, remains in the Senate Committee on Assignments. The bill was not voted on by the Senate committee deadline and is basically back to the drawing board. The Voice Writers are trying to set up a meeting with the Senate Democratic Leadership and stakeholders, including ILCRA, to discuss the possibility of moving the bill this session.

The Speech to Text Institute and several digital reporting companies came out in opposition to Senate Bill 3206 in the final week of committee action. While we do not know what that opposition is based on, we are aware that the digitals are attempting to engage on this bill both legislatively and through outreach to the legal community.

ILCRA will carefully monitor legislative activity during the remaining weeks of the spring session for any developments on Senate Bill 3206, or any other bills related to the CSR Act and digital reporters. We are working in Springfield to gather information, build alliances, and provide the best advice regarding legislative advocacy. While some recommendations regarding legislation may appear to be counterintuitive, we are always working to protect the profession, based on what will best serve you here at the capitol.

What you can do to help:

JOIN ILCRA. Your annual membership dues provides ILCRA with the ability to contract with a lobbyist in order to protect not only your license, but your very livelihood. Without ILCRA's lobbying efforts, our CSR Act would be in serious jeopardy.

As an ILCRA member, you also get a discounted rate to our annual conventions and "marathon" days. These seminars consistently offer town halls during periods of time like this, when so much is happening in Springfield, to keep you informed and let you know how you can help ILCRA moving forward.

ASK QUESTIONS. [email protected] is the best place to ask your questions and get answers directly from the Board. If you are unsure of "what ILCRA is doing for me," reach out and ask before drawing conclusions.

We do our best to ensure that you get a response; but please be aware we are also a volunteer group of court reporters with jobs and families and responsibilities, just like you -- not to mention the time we are already dedicating to the preservation of Illinois CSR licensure.

GET INVOLVED. We have many positions open on the Board and on committees that need concerned ILCRA members to participate. If you are interested in joining a committee, reach out to [email protected]. The more we work together, the stronger we are.

PROMOTE SOLIDARITY. Court reporters are a relatively small and targeted group in Illinois right now. The more we engage in inner conflict, the more power we give over to our competition, and the more momentum our opponents gain.

ILCRA is not an enemy of Illinois CSRs. We are simply a group of identically-licensed and hard-working reporters, who devote hours out of our weeks to read Senate bills, act as watchdogs for court reporting schools, and work to put on these educational seminars to ensure you obtain quality CEUs.

We will continue to send updates as events unfold. Please check your email for ILCRA's e-blasts to stay up to date on what's happening in our state.

Also, save the date for our upcoming virtual seminar, “Spring Into Action,” tentatively scheduled for Saturday, April 9, 2022.

Your ILCRA Board