Secretary of State Offices reopen as Omicron peak subsides, statewide mitigations mount
Secretary of State Jesse White said the offices will reopen over the next two days as drivers’ facilities resume in-person services after the Omicron peak. Governor offers no such assurances about lifting mitigations in the state.
Illinois Secretary of State offices reopened Jan. 24 resuming in-person services at most locations across the state. The remaining driver facilities will open Jan. 25, according to a department news release.
Driver services facilities have been closed by Secretary of State Jesse White since Jan. 3 in a reported attempt to mitigate the spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19 in Illinois. The offices were anticipated to reopen Jan. 18.
Those facilities are reopening this week after state health officials announced Illinois officially passed the peak of the Omicron case surge Jan. 19. Illinoisans can schedule appointments at those facilities starting the day they open.
White’s office said visitors will still be required to wear a mask and practice social distancing when they arrive. Residents also have the option to renew licenses, plate stickers, obtain duplicate driver’s license or ID cards, and file business service documents online.
Some residents seeking to renew a driver’s license or ID card can also do so online. The state encourages Illinoisans to call 217-785-1424 to check their eligibility.
While Secretary of State offices are reopening with the downturn in the Omicron variant, Illinoisans have no such assurances about reopening the state.
Gov. JB Pritzker declared a 22nd consecutive state of emergency for Illinois in January, extending his emergency powers over the state for nearly two years on his own authority. Pritzker has signed over 100 executive orders into law in that time, circumventing deliberation in the General Assembly.
When asked what threshold for COVID metrics Illinois would need to reach for Pritzker to yield emergency power and lift mitigations at a news conference Jan. 19, the governor dodged the question, redirecting it to the state’s top doctor.
“We have ongoing discussions we’ve been waiting for an opportunity to think about how we pivot to the next stages. I am absolutely moving away from the cases given all the home test and the positives that are happening at home that are not recorded,” Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, Dr. Ngozi Ezike responded. “But you can’t hide a hospitalization and so we’re looking to understand where those numbers are going.”
“As we come up with that between the IDPH team and the governor’s office, we will absolutely share what plans we have… But we have to figure out how to live, how we are going to co-exist with COVID.”