“We saw it again for the umpteenth time last week when Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates castigated the governor and the Democratic legislative majorities for not spending more on the city’s public schools. … (Gov. JB) Pritzker went on to blame the Trump administration. ‘The federal government has taken away education funding from schools all across the United States,’ he said, adding the state has increased funding by $2.5 billion during his time in office.”

“This is quite frankly one of the worst audits I’ve ever seen,” state Sen. Chapin Rose said. “And it’s so bad you don’t even know where to start. But let’s start with the taxpayers, and then we’ll conclude with the human beings whose lives are caught up in this.”

“For us to be able to go on offense, and not be on defense, is what I love about this state,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a video posted to social media. “Together we are fighting ignorance with information. We’re fighting cruelty with compassion.” The state has spent $250,000 launching the helpline,

“Instead of addressing low proficiency, the (State Board of Education) is minimizing the problem by changing the definition of a student struggling.”

Illinois’ pension mess has outlasted governors of both parties and decades of half-measures. Pritzker may not be able to solve it outright, but without clearer signs of real progress, the state’s future — and his own — will remain weighed down.

Illinois started to provide standard driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants last year. Gov. JB Pritzker has now signed a bill into law to allow them to become driving instructors.

“College is expensive, and many students rely on financial aid. Taxpayers expect those limited dollars to help U.S. families first,” said state Rep. Regan Deering. “Under the Democrats’ policy, non-citizens are prioritized over citizens.”

Pritzker issued vetoes on two bills, according to a news release: HB2682, which would have streamlined Family Violence Option screening into the standard TANF application process and increased Crisis Assistance benefits; and SB0246, which would have allowed the State Treasurer to create a nonprofit investment pool and electronic payment processing program for 501(c)3 and 501(c)5 organizations.

The Regional Transportation Authority reduced their RAP and TAP programs — that pay part of the cost of rideshare or taxi rides for ADA eligible riders — to allowing eight rides a day to just one. The RAP and TAP Pace programs are more efficient than paratransit.

Several insurers are also pulling out of the exchange in Illinois for 2026. Aetna CVS Health, Health Alliance and Quartz will no longer offer exchange plans in Illinois next year, and Cigna Healthcare of Illinois will no longer sell marketplace plans in Cook County, though Cigna plans will be available in other parts of the state.

Preliminary data indicates continued growth into 2024 and a decrease in 2025.

Deering filed a measure to end preferential treatment for non-citizens in Illinois’ public higher-education system and ensure no non-citizen receives a better tuition or financial-aid benefit than a U.S. citizen.

“Now is not the time to move the goalposts on test scores. It’s time to get serious about what these scores are telling us — essentially, that many of our kids need our help. Lowering expectations also won’t inspire better outcomes. On the contrary, it risks misleading parents and denying the very students who need help the support they deserve.”