Bill
HR 490
Ceremonial Illinois resolution designates Oct 13, 2025 as Lewis Isbell Day and commends WOCOTOMADI for health, education, and cultural work; no legal effect.
Status: Resolution; assigned to State Government Administration Committee (as of Oct 15, 2025).
Introduced: January 16, 2025.
Primary sponsors (selected): Steve Cohen; El-Mahdi Holly; Solomon Adesanya; Segun Adeyina; Derrick Jackson; Rhonda Taylor; Gabe Okoye; Kimberly Du Buclet. Cosponsor: Bonnie Watson Coleman.
Note on source material: The filed text appears to combine multiple, distinct resolution texts (a commendation for the nonprofit World Coming Together To Make A Difference — “WOCOTOMADI” — and an Illinois House resolution declaring “Lewis Isbell Day”), and also includes an unrelated heading line referencing the “Constitutional Emoluments Protection of American Interests Act of 2025.” This summary describes the substantive content present in the resolved text and flags the mixed/duplicative nature of the filing.
Purpose and intent
- Ceremonial/commemorative: to honor two distinct subjects contained in the filing:
1. Commend the nonprofit World Coming Together To Make A Difference (WOCOTOMADI) for its health-education, humanitarian, and cultural programs.
2. Designate October 13, 2025, as “Lewis Isbell Day” in Illinois and recognize the life and contributions of Lewis E. Isbell.
Key provisions and content
- WOCOTOMADI commendation:
- Recognizes WOCOTOMADI as a 501(c)(3) founded in October 2011 by Julienne R. Siwe Ngongang.
- Highlights its work combating hypertension (health education, exercise and diet promotion), operating health checkpoints/clinics (blood pressure, oxygen saturation, temperature, obesity screening), and delivering medical supplies, clothing, and hygiene items in African communities.
- Notes alignment with U.N. Sustainable Development Goals and cultural-education activities in the U.S. (culinary arts, clothing, storytelling, crafts).
- Directs that an appropriate copy of the resolution be made available to the organization.
Who is affected / impact
- Direct effect: none legally — this is a nonbinding, ceremonial resolution intended to recognize individuals and organizations.
- Beneficiaries: WOCOTOMADI (public recognition), communities served by the nonprofit, descendants and communities preserving Lewis Isbell’s legacy, and the broader public through historical and cultural awareness.
- Practical impact: symbolic recognition may support public awareness, encourage community events or commemorations, and promote preservation or memorialization efforts (e.g., marking Isbell’s grave).
Procedural / timeline notes
- Introduced Jan 16, 2025. Recorded actions include readings, placement on calendars, adopted/laid before the House (March 31, 2025 in one record), and later assignment to a State Government Administration Committee (Oct 15, 2025). The docket includes filings and references to both federal House committees and an Illinois House resolution format; this reflects the mixed-source nature of the text and may indicate multiple distinct filings or clerical consolidation.
Fiscal/legal effects
- No appropriation or regulatory change included. The resolution is purely honorary and creates no enforceable obligations or expenditures beyond routine administrative distribution of copies.
If clarification is needed: recommend confirming which single resolution text is the operative filing (the WOCOTOMADI commendation, the Illinois Lewis Isbell Day declaration, or a different bill titled “Constitutional Emoluments Protection…”) and the legislative body (U.S. House vs. Illinois General Assembly) to resolve inconsistencies in the record.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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