State legislators oppose Chicago mayor’s desire for more taxpayer dollars -
“A number of Illinois legislators are making it clear that they oppose spending more state taxpayer dollars on Chicago unless city officials...more
From cellphone bans to teacher evaluations: Illinois lawmakers are considering several education issues this session “With just over a month left in the spring legislative session,-
Illinois lawmakers are advancing a...more
Longtime Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin won’t seek reelection -
“Democratic U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin will not seek a sixth term next year, confirming to WBEZ in an Illinois exclusive that he will leave office in 2027 in a...more
Democratic state lawmakers start to move on promise to ‘be a check’ on Donald Trump -
“With six weeks left in the spring legislative session, lawmakers have a range of measures before them that backers say are necessary to...more
Gov. Pritzker, other Governors issue joint letter in response to CMS Proposed Rule -
“Multiple governors, including Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, issued a join letter to the director of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid...more
Congress calls JB Pritzker to testify on immigrant policy -
“Gov. JB Pritzker is one of three Democratic governors being called to testify before the same congressional committee that called Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to...more
Pritzker signs Illinois trade agreement with the United Kingdom -
“Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has signed a trade agreement with the United Kingdom, in addition to an agreement with the State of Mexico signed last week, in an...more
It’s not just Chicago. Downstate public transit agencies face funding challenges-
“State lawmakers are spending this spring’s legislative session debating how to solve a $771 million funding gap the Chicago area’s public...more
Illinois AG Kwame Raoul warns legal community against ‘being complicit’ with Trump -
“Hours after joining 22 other states in filing a lawsuit aimed at President Donald Trump’s cuts to health services, Illinois Attorney...more
Gov. Pritzker to embark on trade mission to Mexico -
“Gov. JB Pritzker will lead a delegation of public and private business leaders on a three-day trade mission to Mexico, to strengthen the state’s relationship with the...more
Illinois AG pushes for more funding amid legal battles with Trump administration-
“Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is pushing for additional funding for his office as it takes on a host of lawsuits and legal filings...more
Illinois bill improving drinking water quality signed into law-
“Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law Friday to enhance the quality of public drinking water in Illinois. This law will require the Illinois Environmental...more
Illinois lawmakers pursue restrictions on search warrants after botched raid in Chicago -
“An Illinois House committee on Tuesday moved to overhaul how Illinois police officers execute search warrants in response to the...more
3/20/2025
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Educational Institutions ,
Illinois ,
Immigration ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Legislation ,
Public Policy ,
Public Schools ,
School Safety ,
State and Local Government ,
Transparency
Illinois eyes taxing drivers by the mile rather than by the gallon of gas-
“Under proposed legislation, Illinois would explore the viability of reducing reliance on the state’s gas tax by putting in place a “road usage...more
Illinois schools turn to retirees, substitutes, outsourcing & state grants to combat prolonged teacher shortage -
“From hiring retired educators to adjusting class offerings, Illinois schools are relying on a variety of...more
3/14/2025
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Illinois ,
Labor Reform ,
Public Schools ,
State Education Departments ,
State Labor Laws ,
State Legislatures
Gov. JB Pritzker’s $300M proposal seeks to attract developers to abandoned sites that now draw only vandals-
“The Pritzker administration said the program would create jobs and support community revitalization, and the...more
3/11/2025
/ Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Illinois ,
New Legislation ,
Political Candidates ,
Property Tax ,
Public Safety ,
Public Schools ,
Real Estate Development ,
State and Local Government ,
Unions
Legislative revenue estimate more than $700M lower than Pritzker’s proposed budget-
“The General Assembly’s bipartisan Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability released a new fiscal year 2026 revenue...more
3/7/2025
/ Department of Agriculture ,
Energy Policy ,
Health Insurance ,
Illinois ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Medicaid ,
New Legislation ,
Public Schools ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
Teachers
Gov. Pritzker Proposes Expanding Access to Four-Year Degrees at Community Colleges -
“Today, Governor JB Pritzker joined students and leadership from Lewis and Clark Community College to propose a new community college...more
3/4/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Educational Institutions ,
Illinois ,
Infrastructure ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Legislation ,
Public Schools ,
State and Local Government ,
Students
AROUND THE STATE Pritzker and Illinois Dems say the state is being shorted $1.9B by Trump -
“Gov. JB Pritzker and most of the state’s congressional delegation sent a letter to Russell Vought, the new director of the Office...more
Pritzker proposes $500M to turn state properties into development-ready sites -
“A $500 million proposal by Gov. JB Pritzker to turn state-owned properties into shovel-ready real estate projects is part of a proposed $55.2...more
2/27/2025
/ Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Illinois ,
Infrastructure ,
Public Policy ,
Real Estate Development ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Social Equity Programs ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Credits ,
Urban Planning & Development
On Wednesday, February 19, Governor J.B. Pritzker delivered his seventh annual Budget Address to a joint session of the General Assembly, where he unveiled his $55.2 billion FY26 Executive Budget - marking an approximately $2...more
2/20/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Economic Development ,
Educational Institutions ,
Healthcare ,
Illinois ,
Medicaid ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Public Safety ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Taxes ,
Tax Reform
“Gov. JB Pritzker will present his seventh budget proposal Wednesday as the state faces a projected $3.2 billion revenue shortfall for fiscal year 2026, which begins July 1. Federal pandemic aid has all been allocated and the...more
2/19/2025
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Funding ,
Government Agencies ,
Illinois ,
Infrastructure ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Public Policy ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Legislatures ,
Tariffs ,
Tax Reform ,
Unions
Civic Federation Says Illinois Should Extend Sales Tax to Services to Help Bridge $3B Budget Deficit -
“Illinois should extend its sales tax to services like haircuts, dry cleaning and plumbing, the nonpartisan Civic...more
2/14/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
Attorney General ,
Corruption ,
Deficit Reduction ,
Housing Market ,
Illinois ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Public Health ,
Real Estate Development ,
Sales Tax ,
State and Local Government ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Budgets ,
State Taxes ,
Trump Administration
Judge declines to extend ‘swipe fee’ injunction to credit unions, applies it to out-of-state banks -
“A federal judge on Thursday declined to issue an injunction to stop an Illinois law that bans certain credit card fees...more
2/12/2025
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Credit Unions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Governors ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Illinois ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
State and Local Government ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations ,
Unions
Illinois House Republicans demand Pritzker cut migrant services -
“Illinois House Republicans want to cut migrant services as a way to handle the budget deficit facing Illinois. The state is looking at a $3.2 billion budget...more
2/6/2025
/ Budget Cuts ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Education ,
Economic Growth ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Funding ,
Immigrants ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Sanctuary Cities ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Legislatures ,
Trump Administration