JOLIET – Will County Board Member Denise Winfrey (Joliet) will moderate a panel on Friday that will examine best practices for counties across the United States that are administering Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) for individuals who face housing insecurity because of the Coronavirus pandemic. The panel is hosted by the National Association of Counties (NACo) of which Winfrey is the First Vice President.

​“I’m very proud of the way that Will County has administered our rental assistance program and I’m honored to be asked to moderate this panel on ERA best practices,” said Winfrey. “Our dedication to our residents is why Will County government is a role model for counties throughout the United States. 

JOLIET – Will County was highlighted by the White House for rapidly delivering rental assistance to tenants in the county, staving off evictions as the pandemic upended the economy and threatened housing stability for many renters. The county was one of 22 state and local governments that were highlighted by the Biden Administration for delivering 85% or more of their rental assistance funds by the end of July.
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“The population of Will County has grown substantially over the last couple of decades, so the County Board was talking about housing before the pandemic shot a hole through the economy,” said Will County Board Speaker Mimi Cowan (Naperville). “When the layoffs started and businesses shut down, we knew we needed to act swiftly to stabilize the rental market both for tenants and landlords.”

JOLIET – The Will County Board today announced that their first budget workshop will be held on August 31st at 9:30 am. This comes as the Board today heard the County Executive’s spending plan of $678 million ($243 million corporate and $435 special funds) for fiscal year 2022. 
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“The County Board looks forward to crafting a sustainable budget that continues our legacy of fiscal responsibility,” said County Board Speaker Mimi Cowan (Naperville).  “We plan to review the Executive’s proposal with a fine-tooth comb and offer suggestions that will get us to a final budget at the November County Board meeting.” 

JOLIET – The Will County Board is seeking input from residents, business owners, and non-profits on how to spend $133 million in federal pandemic relief funds. The money was distributed as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) passed by Congress earlier this year. 
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“We want to know what the people that live and work in Will County need in their communities due to the pandemic,” said Speaker of the Will County Board Mimi Cowan (Naperville). “This short survey will help the County Board direct funds to where they are most needed.”

JOLIET – The Will County Board continued their drive to modernize operations in the County today by moving forward on a plan for a major overhaul of the computer systems for the State’s Attorney and other judicial stakeholders. The new infrastructure improvements are estimated to cost $654,000.  These enhancements are necessary to handle the increased capacity needs especially as law enforcement agencies begin to implement new state requirements that all officers wear body cameras. The Executive Committee voted to bring the plan before the entire County Board at their July board meeting.

The move follows years of Board investment in hard and soft IT infrastructure which has included the construction of a new purpose-built 911 dispatch center and Public Safety Complex, new Emergency Management facility, Health Department and state of the art Courthouse.

“Our county continues to grow and the technology that is required to meet the needs of our residents continues to evolve,” said Will County Board Speaker Mimi Cowan (Naperville). “All of our Sheriff’s officers are now required under Illinois law to wear body cameras, and their interface with the State’s Attorney requires more advanced technology than we currently have.”
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JOLIET—During the summer annual meeting of the National Association of Counties (NACo), Will County Board member Denise Winfrey will assume the 1st Vice Presidency of that body meaning a bigger spotlight and greater influence for Illinois’ fourth largest county.
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“There is no doubt that we in Will County stand to benefit in many ways from Denise Winfrey’s ascension among the Executive Board of this prestigious national organization,” said Mimi Cowan Speaker of the Will County Board. “Denise’s long-time experience on the Large Urban County Caucus as well as her new leadership role as 1st Vice President will give us a greater voice in Washington when it comes to securing federal funds.”

JOLIET – The Will County Board is pleased to announce that three major infrastructure projects are included in the federal infrastructure improvement bill currently working its way through Congress.

“Government works best when we work together,” said Speaker of the Will County Board Mimi Cowan (Naperville). “The County has been working hand-in-glove with our congressional representatives to ensure that the people of Will County have a seat at the table when it comes to federal infrastructure spending.”

The three projects included in the draft legislation are $1.5 million requested by Congressman Rush for improvements on 80th Avenue from 191st to 183rd Street, $2.7 million requested by Congressman Foster for improvements to Gougar Road from Laraway Road to Francis Road, and $2.1 million requested by Congresswoman Newman and Congressman Foster for improvements to Weber Road from 135th Street to Airport Road. 

JOLIET—Will County Board members today applauded the decision by Moody’s and Standard and Poor (S&P) to maintain the investment grade rating for Will County bond sales. Moody’s pegged Will County at an Aa1 rating while S&P issued an AA+ bond rating. Both are considered investment grade ratings.
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“The decision by S&P and Moody’s to keep our high bond ratings is a feather in our cap that will pay dividends to our taxpayers down the road in the form of more favorable interest rates on debt that we take on,” said Chairman of the Will County Board Finance Committee Ken Harris (Bolingbrook.)

JOLIET – An elderly resident of the Fairmont neighborhood in Will County Board District 9 received some much needed help cleaning up her property after she reached out to her County Board Representative Annette Parker (Crest Hill).

“People had unfortunately been dumping garbage on this resident’s property for some time and she was unable to remove the debris because of her age and health,” said Parker. “Many elderly people also don’t have the means to hire a cleanup service and so this resident asked if I knew of any help that might be available.”

JOLIET – The Will County Board ad-hoc CARES Act Funding Committee today approved another $1 million in relief funding for small businesses negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants in the amount of $10,000 are available to businesses that have not already received CARES relief.
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“The County Board has been working non-stop to deliver pandemic relief funds to residents, businesses, and nonprofit organizations,” said County Board Speaker Mimi Cowan (Naperville). “Even as we distribute the last of the CARES funds, we are looking at how to allocate the latest round of federal relief for Will County.”