CASE STUDY
Professional Licensure Bill
After 10 Years of Failure, a New Approach
The organization's ability to pass a bill had stalled repeatedly for
For 10 years a national healthcare organization had sought to create a new licensure law for its profession in Illinois, but failed.
On January 3, 2022 they hired Sanborn Williams.
On January 5, 2022 the spring legislative session started.
Without the typical benefit of the fall months to organize, to write the bill, to build a coalition, Sanborn Williams got creative. Fast.
The national organization had natural partnerships within niche communities of the healthcare industry, but had been unable to translate their relationships into legislative action. Sanborn Williams organized and activated those relationships and leveraged its own relationship network to assemble a coalition of more than 30 organizations to support the licensure bill.
After weeks of negotiations with stakeholders around the table led by Sanborn Williams, which included producing multiple amendments, while meeting weekly legislative deadlines, Sandborn Williams got all sides to “yes.” The bill cruised through the Illinois Senate, 51-0. The bill’s path to reach the governor seemed assured..
But in the House, it stalled. A House lawmaker placed “a brick on it.”
With 14 days before the legislature’s scheduled April 8 adjournment, Sanborn Williams negotiated a resolution to overcome the recalcitrant lawmaker’s opposition and maneuvered the bill out of committee, 7-0, on March 23, positioning the bill for a final House floor vote. Still, the bill required another amendment, which was only approved on March 28.
The full House approved the amended licensure legislation,111-0, on March 31, but the bill needed to return to the Senate for approval of the House amendment. But only seven-days remained before adjournment. Failure loomed. Again.
Sanborn Williams persuaded the senate sponsor to prioritize the licensure bill over other measures and worked with senate leadership staff, which controlled the legislative calendar, to assure the bill was slated for a vote. On April 8, with less than [three] hours before adjournment, the Senate approved, 54-0, the amended bill.
The governor signed the law on May 27.
After the governor’s signature, work remained. Sanborn Williams had to negotiate with the Department of Financial and Professional Regulations and other stakeholders to write administrative rules required by the act to ensure appropriate implementation of the law.