---
type: "Bill"
title: "ARAB AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH"
description: "Amends the State Commemorative Dates Act. Designates the month of April of each year as Arab American Heritage Month to be observed throughout the State as a month to recognize the valuable contributions of Arab Americans to this State and to the various aspects of American society. Effective immediately."
jurisdiction: "us/states/il"
legislature: "Illinois General Assembly"
session: "100th"
identifier: "HB 5971"
citation: "Illinois HB 5971 (100th)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: []
version_count: 3
action_count: 41
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2018-10-10"
last_action: "2018-12-14"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/36860aee-8f7d-4453-acf6-642d24f10426"
source_url: "http://ilga.gov/legislation/BillStatus.asp?DocNum=5971&GAID=14&DocTypeID=HB&LegId=113390&SessionID=91&GA=100"
source_hash: "0b1a695dd7e46753c55c64aedcd0572796f233d279085261f6a69f0ddff72de4"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-il"]
---

# Illinois HB 5971 (100th) — ARAB AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

Amends the State Commemorative Dates Act. Designates the month of April of each year as Arab American Heritage Month to be observed throughout the State as a month to recognize the valuable contributions of Arab Americans to this State and to the various aspects of American society. Effective immediately.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Introduced** (filed) — [source](http://ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=10000HB5971&GA=100&SessionId=91&DocTypeId=HB&LegID=113390&DocNum=5971&GAID=14&Session=&print=true)
2. **Engrossed** (committee substitute) — [source](http://ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=10000HB5971eng&GA=100&SessionId=91&DocTypeId=HB&LegID=113390&DocNum=5971&GAID=14&Session=&print=true)
3. **Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](http://ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=10000HB5971enr&GA=100&SessionId=91&DocTypeId=HB&LegID=113390&DocNum=5971&GAID=14&Session=&print=true)

## Votes

- Third Reading — **99–0** (pass) · lower
- Third Reading — **46–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Bill Cunningham — cosponsor (person)
- Elgie R. Sims, Jr. — cosponsor (person)
- Michael J. Madigan — primary (person)
- Thomas Cullerton — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2018-10-10** Filed with the Clerk by Rep. Michael J. Madigan `filing`
- **2018-11-07** First Reading `reading-1`
- **2018-11-07** Referred to Rules Committee `referral-committee`
- **2018-11-07** Assigned to Executive Committee `referral-committee`
- **2018-11-09** Added Chief Co-Sponsor Rep. Michael J. Zalewski
- **2018-11-14** Do Pass / Short Debate Executive Committee; 010-000-000 `committee-passage`
- **2018-11-14** Placed on Calendar 2nd Reading - Short Debate
- **2018-11-14** Second Reading - Short Debate `reading-2`
- **2018-11-14** Held on Calendar Order of Second Reading - Short Debate `reading-2`
- **2018-11-15** Placed on Calendar Order of 3rd Reading - Short Debate
- **2018-11-15** 3/5 Vote Required
- **2018-11-15** Third Reading - Short Debate - Passed 099-000-000 `reading-3, passage`
- **2018-11-15** Arrive in Senate `introduction`
- **2018-11-15** Placed on Calendar Order of First Reading `reading-1`
- **2018-11-15** Chief Senate Sponsor Sen. Steven M. Landek
- **2018-11-15** First Reading `reading-1`
- **2018-11-15** Referred to Assignments `referral-committee`
- **2018-11-15** Added Chief Co-Sponsor Rep. André Thapedi
- **2018-11-15** Added Chief Co-Sponsor Rep. Juliana Stratton
- **2018-11-15** Added Chief Co-Sponsor Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez
- **2018-11-15** Added Co-Sponsor Rep. John C. D'Amico
- **2018-11-20** Assigned to State Government `referral-committee`
- **2018-11-27** Added as Alternate Chief Co-Sponsor Sen. John F. Curran
- **2018-11-27** Do Pass State Government; 007-000-000 `committee-passage`
- **2018-11-27** Placed on Calendar Order of 2nd Reading
- **2018-11-27** Alternate Chief Sponsor Changed to Sen. John J. Cullerton
- **2018-11-27** Added as Alternate Chief Co-Sponsor Sen. Steven M. Landek
- **2018-11-27** Second Reading `reading-2`
- **2018-11-27** Placed on Calendar Order of 3rd Reading November 28, 2018
- **2018-11-28** 3/5 Vote Required
- **2018-11-28** Third Reading - Passed; 046-000-000 `reading-3, passage`
- **2018-11-28** Passed Both Houses
- **2018-11-28** Added as Alternate Co-Sponsor Sen. Thomas Cullerton
- **2018-11-28** Added as Alternate Chief Co-Sponsor Sen. Jacqueline Y. Collins
- **2018-11-28** Added as Alternate Chief Co-Sponsor Sen. Terry Link
- **2018-11-28** Added as Alternate Co-Sponsor Sen. Bill Cunningham
- **2018-11-28** Added as Alternate Co-Sponsor Sen. Elgie R. Sims, Jr.
- **2018-12-11** Sent to the Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2018-12-14** Governor Approved `executive-signature`
- **2018-12-14** Effective Date December 14, 2018
- **2018-12-14** Public Act . . . . . . . . . 100-1150 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/36860aee-8f7d-4453-acf6-642d24f10426`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Illinois legislature records).