SPRINGFIELD, Illinois-- Illinois lawmakers reconvened in Springfield Wednesday for the fall veto session. At the top of their list: guns and sexual harassment.
About 100 moms came to the capitol to push for tighter gun laws. They want the state to license Illinois gun dealers and require most of them to install video surveillance systems. The bill the moms sponsor already passed through the Senate, but the House adjourned for the year before ever calling the bill to a vote.
"It's very common sense," Colleen Daley, of the Illinois Coalition Against Handgun Violence, explained. "Measure like background checks on employees, video surveillance on brick and mortar stores, and making sure there's training for employees on how to identify straw purchasers."
Before any debate, lawmakers took sexual harassment training, part of Speaker Mike Madigan's new "ethics rules." Lawmakers say the training covered basic "do's and don't's," such as refraining from behavior that is considered offensive like inappropriate staring.
Illinois State Rep. Marcus Evans (D-Chicago) said, "We`ve got to be cognizant of the times we`re living in. Maybe years ago before cell phones before social media guys could get away with that. But the gig is over. Women deserve respect. They're demanding it."
The "Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America" say they will be back when the House reconvenes in January.
The Illinois Senate will return Thursday to wrap up their veto session.
