WIFR: Community questions Congressman Foster, State Rep. Vella on local impact of federal issues

BELVIDERE, Ill. (WIFR) - In response to the Trump administration's Big Beautiful Bill, Congressman Bill Foster and State Representative Dave Vella co-hosted a town hall Wednesday night.

More than 40 people, some of whom brought their children, spent more than an hour hearing about how local lawmakers are responding to their concerns at the state and federal levels; most notably, healthcare.

"How will the Big Beautiful Bill actually impact people?"

As this question is top of mind for some voters, dozens gathered in Belvidere to look for answers. Local lawmakers said the bill could impact roughly 17 million Americans. Congressman Foster said those without Medicaid will also be affected.

"If you're not one of them, you're probably going to see your rates go up as well because when people become uninsured, they show up in emergency rooms," said Foster.

Vella said changes at the federal level will impact those who are enrolled in the supplemental food assistance program, also known as "SNAP."

"We did actually cut some stuff out of the state budget. We couldn't cut enough because we're going to be losing billions and billions of dollars. What's going to come from the federal government isn't anymore," said Vella. "Overall, just from a macro level, it's going to hurt the state of Illinois."

When asked about the progress on the reopening of the Stellantis plant in Belvidere, Vella said work with the company shifted because funding scheduled to come into the stateline won't happen.

"The one thing that they tell me and I usually talk to them on a bi-weekly basis, is they love everything, they are ready to go, just they're trying to figure out if it's going to be an internal combustion vehicle, hybrid vehicle, electric vehicle," said Vella.

They also talked about election security.

"If they are really paranoid, they can get out their spreadsheets and check the calculation to make sure all the precincts are being added up properly. It's pretty hard to hack that as long as citizens are paying attention to what's happening in their precinct," said Foster.

Vella said the intention for the passenger rail service from Rockford to Chicago should start in 2027. He told residents they've run into issues with federal funding and the fact the Chicago Bears are moving to Arlington Heights.

Congressman Foster said he plans to have another town hall about artificial intelligence in the near future.