Lake County Gazette

As the Illinois General Assembly begins its 2025 session, a bill aimed at decriminalizing sex work is drawing the attention of Lake County lawmakers.

The legislation, spearheaded by State Sen. Celina Villanueva (D-Chicago) and State Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago), seeks to eliminate criminal penalties for consensual paid sex and expunge arrest records for sex workers. 

State Sen. Craig Wilcox (R-Woodstock), whose district includes western Lake County, expressed mixed feelings about the bill, saying it was “no surprise” given the language was included in the previous lame duck session. 

"They are the party of sex, drugs, and money," Wilcox told the Lake County Gazette. "I used to say corruption, death, and lives. But any way you look at it, it's absolutely absurd."

Wilcox addressed the political implications of the bill. 

"I think they just have a vocal advocacy group in SWAG (Sex Worker Advisory Group) that’s gotten their attention and (Democrats) do tend to kowtow to their advocate groups," he said. 

Despite his reservations, Wilcox acknowledged that the decriminalization bill could be part of a broader progressive agenda designed to win support and campaign donations. 

"Decriminalization is one, and then you'll see additional regulations in the future," he said. 

Wilcox added that this is characteristic of the leftist movement.

While Wilcox disagrees with the direction of the effort, he noted the Democratic Party’s approach to regulating new industries could play a significant role in shaping the outcome should legislators push further and try to regulate the vice industry. 

"The more I think about it, I'm excited that they want to do this because when they get down to government, OSHA safety standards and addressing business practices and strict regulation... and then they want to enact price controls to protect the customers, by the time they're done, I think their regulation could kill the industry as a whole,” he said.

Wilcox predicted that the legislation may eventually unintentionally reduce the amount of sex work in the state by introducing stringent government controls, taxes, fees and licensing requirements. 

"It may actually result in less sex work if we hold them to treat the industry the way they treat other industries," he said.

Beyond potential regulation, Wilcox said that if he were overseeing the bill in committee he would raise concerns about the lack of data on the enforcement of sex work laws and question the effectiveness of the current penalties.

"Have you actually been charging this crime very often? Are the judges actually putting people in jail for it?" he said. 

He also suggested that law enforcement might be using the laws to gather information from sex workers rather than focusing on the crimes themselves.

As Republicans prepare to review the bill, Wilcox urged his party to offer a counterproposal, emphasizing the importance of providing an alternative vision for how to address the issue. 

"We’re only the party of no unless we provide a counteroffer," he said. "I think the more we talk about this, we might actually find alignment with the majority party. The question is, can we convince them there's a better way of doing it?"

As the bill moves forward, debate over its potential impact on Illinois’ legal and social landscape will likely continue. 

Both advocates and critics are preparing for what will likely be a contentious debate regarding the legislation in the weeks ahead.

Critics like State Rep. John Cabello (R-Machesney Park) have also expressed concerns that decriminalizing sex work sends the wrong message about accountability. 

"If that's the case, then why aren’t there other people getting beat up for all of the other laws that are on the books?" Cabello said. "It means as though certain people in this state want to make it where we don’t have any penalty for anything you do wrong."

Wilcox represents the 32nd District which includes all or parts of Antioch, Bull Valley, Crystal Lake, Fox Lake, Greenwood, Harvard, Johnsburg, Lake Villa, Lakemoor, Marengo, McHenry, Spring Grove, Volo, Wonder Lake and Woodstock.