The Champaign County Board voted to adopt Resolution 2025-303 supporting formation of an intergovernmental Champaign-Urbana reparations commission and authorizing the county to participate financially and by appointment.

The board passed the resolution after public comment from local residents and community leaders and a debate among board members about scope and phrasing. The resolution, as amended during the meeting, directs the county to support the creation of an 11-member commission and to nominate 1 board representative; the board chair designated Monique Settles as the county's appointment in the meeting.

Supporters urged the board to join Urbana and other local partners in funding research into the county's history of discrimination, identifying models of repair, and preparing proposed legislation or administrative steps. Sharon Munday, who said she was speaking for Marsha Nelson and identified herself as a member of First Mennonite Church's Racial Justice Working Group, told the board the group "has supported the work of the Champaign Urbana Reparations Coalition" and urged the county to fund the commission and nominate a member. Munday noted the city of Urbana had budgeted $25,000 toward the commission and urged the county to match that contribution.

Other public commenters included Max Cogan, a University of Illinois student, who said local action could "set a precedent and show that we're ready to move forward," and Brad Allen, a Champaign resident, who linked present racial disparities in housing and criminal justice to the legacy of slavery. Renee Antrozio, pastor of New Covenant Fellowship, spoke in theological terms about the importance of facing harms before healing can occur; Alex Martel, a Champaign County resident and University of Illinois student, urged ongoing organizing beyond the commission's formation.

During board discussion, some members expressed reservations about language in the resolution and about whether the county should act alone if other jurisdictions did not participate. Several board members who spoke said they supported creating a formal commission to study local harms and options for repair; others urged caution about legal and fiscal implications. The board amended the draft at the meeting to specify the county would "nominate Monique Settles" as its representative to the intergovernmental commission. A later motion to remove a line using the totalizing term "everyone" failed after debate on its historical accuracy.

The resolution passed after a roll-call vote. The document asks staff to participate in structuring the commission, to coordinate with municipal partners and the Champaign-Urbana Reparations Coalition, and to explore funding and staffing options. The measure does not itself appropriate the larger commission budget; it authorizes county support and the nomination of a board representative.

The county will now be a formal participant in the intergovernmental effort to research and recommend potential models of repair based on local histories of discrimination, consistent with the resolution's text. Community advocates said they will continue fundraising and outreach to sustain the commission's work.

The resolution was one of the final substantive items on the board's agenda. Board members and speakers repeatedly emphasized the proposal was the start of a process — research, community engagement, identification of models and funding sources, and then potential legislation or local policy steps — rather than an immediate program of payments or remedies.

The board's action follows months of public meetings and advocacy by the Champaign-Urbana Reparations Coalition and other stakeholders. Urbana had already budgeted $25,000 for participation; the resolution asks county staff to pursue the county's share and to return with implementation details as the commission's work proceeds.