🏛️📢 Update from Springfield: The Governor proposes a budget
Dear Neighbor,
The spring legislative session is underway, and I wanted to share an update with you about one of the most important parts of the beginning of session: the Governor's budget address.
Gov. Pritzker delivered this speech on February 18. In it, he lays out how much money our state is projected to collect, and he proposes how he thinks we should spend it. We've spent the last couple of weeks taking a deep dive through the hundreds of pages of budget documents that go along with this proposal.
In short, it's pretty much a "status quo" budget. The state's tax revenues are expected to grow — as wages rise, and inflation increases prices, our sales tax and income tax collections go up naturally. The Governor wants to supplement that "natural" revenue growth with a few new sources of money — most notably, a $200 million fee on big social media companies that operate in Illinois. They're constantly scraping and monetizing our data, so it seems only fair that they should pay for the privilege.
A lot of that new revenue goes to cover the automatic growth in costs. Our pension payment increases every year, so that's $200 million, and costs for providing health insurance for state employees will increase by almost $300 million. There are more people than ever on our state's Community Care Program, which helps older adults stay in their homes instead of moving to nursing homes. And the costs of running our foster system at DCFS are rising. The growth in those two programs accounts for another $250 million in new spending.
The Governor proposes to increase our funding for K-12 education by $300 million, which will reach historic levels. But otherwise there aren't many proposed programmatic increases. He would add some subsidized childcare seats, increase the state's technology budget, and hire more corrections officers and ISP cadets.
Bear in mind: these are the Governor's priorities. This proposal marks the beginning of a negotiation between the Governor, the Senate, and the House about where our money should go, and I'm excited to be a part of those negotiations.
One thing I'll say: there are real structural problems in our state budget. By our own accounting, we're billions of dollars away from adequate school funding — a level we pledged to meet by 2027. The federal cuts to Medicaid and SNAP will leave millions without food or healthcare, and our state's safety net isn't prepared to serve those folks. Our pension systems remain underfunded, and just like a credit card, if we only make the minimum payment every year, those payments will keep going up for decades. Property taxes are going to keep rising unless the state steps in with money to help cover the costs that local governments are now carrying.
These are problems that are going to take billions of dollars to fix. If we keep ignoring them, they're going to get worse. Instead, I think we need to raise taxes on the wealthiest individuals and biggest corporations, the tiny minority who really are experiencing Trump's America as a golden age of low taxes and huge profits.
I'll keep you posted on my and my colleagues' efforts in that area as session continues.
Sincerely,
Will
March 6 Event
While appointments for our March 6 event have fully booked up, and walk-ins unfortunately cannot be accommodated for DMV services, there will be other resources available to everyone who stops by.
On Friday, March 6, from 10:00am to 2:00pm, join us at Kosciuszko Park, 2732 N Avers Ave. to check out the following:
🚙 Illinois Tollway to help with I-PASS registration
💵 Illinois State Treasurer Office to assist with the I-CASH Unclaimed Property Program
💡 CEDA and Citizens Utility Board to explore LIHEAP and other utility bill assistance resources
🗳 Chicago Votes to help with voter registration
🚌 PACE to share information on paratransit services for seniors and those with disabilities
⚖ Circuit Court of Cook County to share information on expungement, eviction support, and other court related services
Community Meal
My office is partnering with the Mayor’s Office of Community Safety, Islamic Relief USA, State Sen. Omar Aquino, Alderwoman Ruth Cruz, and Metropolitan Family Services for a community meal. There’s no cost, no need to register to stop by and grab a free hot meal on Wednesday, March 11. From 3 to 5pm, we'll be at 3243 N Central Ave, the Metro Family Services parking lot at the border of Belmont Cragin and Portage Park.
Short-term Guardianship Legal Clinic
Starting on Monday, March 2, Legal Aid Society will be hosting short-term guardianship legal clinics on the first Monday of the month from 11am to 3pm at Metro Family Services North Center. 3249 N. Central Ave. Appointments are not required but recommended and can be made by calling (773) 371-3745. Language interpretation services will be available.
Restore, Reinvest, Renew Program
Applications are open for the Restore, Reinvest, Renew Program, or R3 Program. R3 grants fund programs around civil legal aid, economic development, reentry, violence prevention, and youth development in Illinois communities that have been harmed by violence, excessive incarceration, and economic disinvestment.
Nonprofit organizations, local governments, faith-based organizations, businesses, and other community or neighborhood associations may apply for grants individually or in a collaborative with other groups. Find out more information here: r3.illinois.gov.
Lens on Love Program
From February to April 2026, The Mayor's Office of Chicago is inviting young people ages 14-19 to tell their stories through photography in celebration of Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month.
Participants will use cameras to capture what healthy relationships look like in their lives—what feels healthy, what feels complicated, and what matters most. Along the way, they’ll learn photography skills, connect with other young people, and work with professional photographers. The program wraps up with a public photo exhibit and a chance for youth voices to help shape future Mayor's Office of Community Safety (MOCS) policies, with photos preserved in the Chicago Public Library for years to come.
Participants will be meeting for 4 sessions:
Saturday, March 7th
Saturday, March 21st
Saturday, April 11th
Saturday, April 25th
Young people will be provided a disposable camera for this program. Please register and apply here. 20 spots are available, and you will be contacted if you are selected!