SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Mary Edly-Allen introduced new legislation that would protect artists and music labels from situations where a third-party creates music using AI and replicates their voice without permission.

“Deepfakes can falsely and convincingly portray anyone saying anything, creating confusion and eroding public trust. This raises serious implications in a world already struggling with rampant misinformation and social media manipulation,” said Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). “We need strong regulations and protections in place to protect artists from the ever-changing world of AI that intends to steal their work and pass it off as their own.”

Last year, a song, “Heart on My Sleeve,” purportedly by Drake and The Weeknd landed on TikTok and Spotify and quickly spread across the internet. The song was created using AI by a TikTok user, who had trained AI on Drake and The Weeknd’s works and generated the new song, which perfectly mimicked the artists’ voices, lyrics, and musical styles. Within days, his video, which had gained over 9 million views, was removed from TikTok, Spotify, and other platforms in response to claims by the artists’ record label, UMG.

LIBERTYVILLE – State Senator Mary Edly-Allen is reminding residents that on Tuesday, Feb. 27 from 7-8 p.m., she is hosting a town hall at the Zion Park District Leisure Center to discuss legislative priorities, concerns across the district and answer questions in partnership with State Representative Joyce Mason.

“Town halls are a wonderful opportunity for legislators to have informal yet insightful dialog with the community to learn their needs and priorities,” said Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). “I encourage local residents to attend to learn about the legislation we are presenting this year in Springfield and to hear from neighbors on issues impacting our communities.”

In addition to the town hall, Edly-Allen’s district office will host mobile office hours at four locations across the district in the coming months from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. No appointment necessary.

The mobile office hours include:

• Zion-Benton Public Library (every third Thursday of the month)
• Avon Township Building (March 8)
• Lake Villa District Library (Feb. 28 & March 27)
• Warren-Newport Public Library (March 6)

“Senator Edly-Allen and I are working hard to pass legislation that will improve the lives of our constituents,” said State Representative Joyce Mason (D-Gurnee). “I’m excited to share the work we’re doing and also hear from members of the community about the ongoing issues that are important to them.”

Residents are encouraged to participate and bring any questions they might have to the town hall. For more information, people can contact Edly-Allen’s district office at (847) 548-5631 or on her website.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Mary Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville) issued the following statement after hearing the governor’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget proposal:

“The governor’s budget plan is a great start to tackle a few of the key challenges we are facing, including ensuring students receive a quality education and protecting our most vulnerable by increasing services for people with developmental disabilities by $940 million.

“Illinois has made significant progress in educational investments over the last few years, and I am pleased to see that our state continues to prioritize education as outlined in today’s budget proposal by increasing Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) by $350 million.

“I look forward to working with my colleagues over the coming months to pass a balanced budget that prioritizes education, working families and the human services sector.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – State Senator Mary Edly-Allen joined legislative leaders from Illinois and Indiana at the White House last week to discuss improvements to the state’s infrastructure, including updates made in Lake County thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration.

Among the standout projects funded through numerous federal grants including Community Projects Funding (CPF) was the Cedar Lake Road realignment. This transformative projects creates a smoother aligned thoroughfare in the downtown Round Lake. This investment includes bicycle and pedestrian pathways and an improved bus and rail transit facilities.

“Investments in our infrastructure are an investment in people. It’s easy to overlook how critical infrastructure improvements are until a piece stops working. We lose time with our loved ones because we are sitting in traffic or on a train that is delayed,” said Edly-Allen (D-Libertyville). “Investments like CPF bring essential transportation infrastructure updates that will not only institute high-quality jobs to our state but improve the lives of every Illinoisan. Our district is well maintained thanks to this funding.”

Additionally, the Cedar Lake Road project will provide an 86% reduction in travel delays and a 36% decrease in the frequency of crashes. The area within a 0.5 mile radius of the project has a demographic index of 51% for the number of minority and low income residents belonging to underserved communities.

“The $135.2 million in funding that Lake County received from the American Rescue Plan Act has been critical in enabling the county to invest in numerous local programs and projects to benefit our residents and communities,” said Sandy Hart, Lake County Board Chair. “Thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration’s funding allocation to Lake County and the collaboration with our state and local partners, these initiatives were made possible.”

Several major projects were federally funded across Lake County in addition to Cedar Lake Road thanks to CPF and ARPA.

"Here in Lake County, we have seen tremendous benefits from the Biden-Harris Administration's investments in healthcare, gun violence prevention, and protecting the environment," said State Representative Bob Morgan (D- Highwood). "Thanks to unprecedented federal support, we have been able to expand health insurance coverage, invest millions in community-based violence intervention and prevention, and deploy over $30 million for flood mitigation resulting from climate change. With today's White House visit by the Lake County delegation, we will continue to look for new ways for our federal partners to support our communities."

To learn more about federal funded projects across Lake County, visit the Lake County’s website.