⚖️🏛️ End of Session Wrap-Up, Part 1: The Budget
Dear Neighbor,
At around 2am on June 1st, the speaker banged his gavel and the Spring Session of the General Assembly adjourned. Unless there’s an emergency, we won’t be back in Springfield until November.
As usual, I want to send a few emails over the next week or so summing up the major accomplishments of the session, my own personal legislative wins, and some of the unfinished business we’ll have to come back to. These emails will be kind of lengthy! But I want to make sure you get the whole picture of our work.
Today’s email will focus on the state budget. Next, we’ll talk about some major bills that passed. The third email will highlight the legislation I championed, and the last will talk about measures that didn’t pass yet (transit nerds, that one’s for you!).
This year, I was more involved in the state budget than I’ve ever been. At the start of the session, I was named one of the four House “budgeteers” — a silly word that means I was one of the lead negotiators for our chamber. In practice, that meant countless hours of research, meetings with my colleagues, and negotiations with stakeholders. When we adjourned the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, most of my colleagues went home to see their families and have barbecues. We four “budgeteers” locked ourselves in a windowless conference room with our counterparts from the Senate and the Governor’s office, and worked from 9am to midnight all three days hashing out the final terms of our agreement.
We had a big budget gap to close. The Governor introduced a balanced budget in February. But since that time, Trump’s economic chaos caused our revenue forecasts to plunge. And money we were expecting from the federal government — which would usually be a foregone conclusion — was suddenly in doubt.
By the time we got the tax receipts in after April 15th, we were projecting a gap of about $1.2 billion.
In the end, we balanced the budget by bringing in new revenues, mostly from huge corporations; reducing spending through targeted operational cuts; and increasing investment in a few key areas, mostly in the healthcare space, to prepare for the chaos from Washington.
On new revenues: Republicans are running around saying there’s “a billion dollars in new taxes on working people.” This is totally false, either because they just don’t understand the budget or because they’re being willfully deceptive. Here’s what’s really in there:
$230 million from a “tax amnesty” program, where people and businesses who owe back taxes get a break on their penalties if they pay up this year. Certainly not a new tax on anyone.
$200 million in delaying a transfer of sales tax revenues from one fund to another. Again, a tax people are already paying, just moving it between funds.
$330 million by closing three different tax loopholes, only for large multi-state and multi-national corporations, that they use to reduce their tax liability. No taxes on working people or small businesses here.
$100 million in taxes on drug company middlemen and big sports betting operators. Don’t know about you, but I’m not shedding any tears for those guys.
And finally, $45 million from increases to taxes on tobacco products. If there’s anything you could describe as “a tax on working people,” I guess it’s this? But this is really making sure that vapes and Zyn pouches are taxed at the same rates as cigarettes, and we dedicate a good chunk of the proceeds on programs to keep kids off nicotine.
These are smart, fair revenue ideas that will help fund education and healthcare and public safety without raising taxes on any working people or small businesses.
We also looked at cuts on the spending side. Instead of going DOGE with mass layoffs and service cuts, we wanted to take a measured, line-by-line approach. We found savings in negotiating better deals for state employee healthcare. We saw programs that had been budgeted for $6 million but only spending $3 million, and we brought those numbers down. We trimmed operational lines at the Department of Information Technology and Corrections. All told, we saved about $400 million with this approach.
Between the new revenues and the targeted reductions, we were able to make a few new investments above the Governor’s introduced budget. We set new record levels of support for K-12 education. We’re standing up a new Department of Early Childhood, and we invested more in pre-K and childcare supports. We also maintained historic investments in community-based violence prevention programs.
And we really focused on healthcare, knowing that Trump is planning to slash Medicaid to pay for his tax cuts on billionaires. So we increased funding to safety net hospitals, free and charitable clinics, and federally qualified health centers. We also raised wages for front-line healthcare workers who serve seniors and people with disabilities. That way we can retain more of these workers, and keep the folks they serve living independently, in community instead of in institutional settings.
All told, it’s a budget I’m proud to have been a part of. We raise revenues by taxing big corporations more fairly, and we make investments in our kids, our seniors, our safety, and our healthcare.
Happy to answer any questions you might have about the budget. More soon on legislative topics!
Take care,
Will
Legislative Town Hall
Join your state elected officials for a community update on what they’ve been working on in Springfield these past few months. Come with your questions, share your thoughts, and enjoy some tacos while you're at it!
Date: Wednesday, July 9
Time: Free Tacos & Refreshments 5:30 - 6:00 pm | Town Hall 6:00 - 7:30 pm
Location: Prosser Career Academy, 2148 N. Long Ave
Día del Niño Celebration
Northwest Side Community Development Corporation’s Día del Niño celebration is on Saturday, June 7, from 12 to 4pm at Blackhawk Park, 2318 N Lavergne Ave. There will be games, piñatas, books, and so much more!
Homebuyer Expo - Camino A Su Casa
For National Homeownership Month, the Spanish Coalition for Housing is hosting a Homebuyer Expo - Camino A Su Casa on Saturday June 21. People at all stages of buying should attend for an incredible day of education, resources, and homebuying expertise! The event is from 10am to 2pm at Malcolm X College, 1900 W Jackson Blvd.