Gov. JB Pritzker presides over the inauguration of the Illinois State Senate in the Senate Chambers at the Illinois State Capitol Building. 

Speaker of the House Emanuel “Chris” Welch (D-Chicago) and Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) were each re-elected to their posts on the first day of the 104th General Assembly Wednesday. 

Rep. Maura Hirschauer (D-West Chicago) speaks at a press conference with advocates for Karina's Bill in January. 

A bill creating a uniform procedure for police to take guns after orders of protection is headed to the governor. 

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at a press conference Tuesday morning in Normal 

The 2025 lame-duck session ended Tuesday night without passage of a hemp regulation bill supported by Gov. JB Pritzker. 

Reps. Dan Ugaste (R-St. Charles) and David Friess (R-Red Bud) speak at a press conference Monday morning at the Illinois Statehouse. 

Republican lawmakers are making a push to pass a statewide recall amendment.  

Rep. Dan Ugaste (R-St. Charles) has filed two pieces of legislation that aim to give voters the ability to recall local and state elected officials.  

House Bill 5924 would allow for any local government official elected during a general or consolidated election to be recalled. That would include local mayors, city council members, county commissioners and state’s attorneys, for instance.  

Sen. Ram Villivalam (D-Chicago) speaks at the Senate Executive Committee Sunday. 

A bill removing a requirement that anyone legally changing their name post a notice is going back to the House.  

HB5164 passed the Senate Executive Committee during the November veto session, but was amended at the request of the State’s Attorneys Association. The amendment says that if someone with a criminal background legally changes their name, Illinois State Police must update criminal records to reflect both names. 

At a press conference, Governor JB Pritzker is comparing real nerds, with those containing THC (provided via X)

Illinois lawmakers are expected to return to Springfield this weekend for the January lame-duck session. Here’s some things we’ll be watching for as they convene.   

Gov. JB Pritzker announced in December his support for House Bill 4293, a measure to regulate hemp derived THC in a way similar to cannabis.   

Gov. JB Pritzker and Rep. Anna Moeller (D-Elgin) speak at a news conference in April following the passage of the Healthcare Protection Act. The measure went into effect Jan. 1. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

It’s a new year, which means new laws are going into effect. Nearly 300 new laws are now in effect in Illinois. Here are some of the highlights: 

Minimum wage increase: The state minimum wage for workers 18 and older increases from $14 to $15 per hour. The tipped minimum wage is now $9 and the wage for workers under 18 is $13. This is the final yearly increase spelled out in the 2019 minimum wage law.  

Salary transparency: Employers with more than 15 employees are now required to include the pay scale and benefit information in job postings. When making an external job posting, employers must also inform current employees of all options of promotion within 14 days of the posting.  

The law applies to all job postings in Illinois, whether they're external or internal. It applies for any job performed in Illinois or remote roles which report to a supervisor in the state. These rules also apply to jobs with a collective bargaining agreement, even if the salary and benefits are determined by the agreement.  

A person may file a complaint against a company for violating these rules within one year of the violation.  

Gov. JB Pritzker signs a birth equity bill into law at an event in Chicago in July. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Thirteen Illinois healthcare organizations will receive $200 million in capital investment grants from the State of Illinois.  

Gov. JB Pritzker announced the funding will be used for projects addressing health-related needs and reducing disparities in historically underserved communities.  

“As my administration continues on our mission to expand healthcare access throughout Illinois, we’re focused on investing in historically underserved areas,” Pritzker said in a statement. “This Capital Improvement Grant Program will improve hospitals and care centers with much needed improvements, making it easier for healthcare professionals to serve their communities.” 

The grants are an extension of Healthcare Transformative Collaboratives, a 2021 initiative by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to improve health equity. The program addresses four areas of health: community needs, health and wellness, specialized approach and sustainable investments.  

Kimberly Hobson is the CEO of the South Side Healthy Community Organization, one of the collaboratives selected in 2021. TCA Health, inc, one of their partner organizations, will receive $7.7 million to open a nutrition and wellness center in Chicago’s Far South Side. 

The state capitol building.  

The Illinois State Board of Education’s legislative agenda includes student discipline and teacher licensure.  

The board approved a list of proposed legislative priorities this week, after some debate about proposals regarding school discipline.  

One of the proposals would ban expulsions for students in kindergarten through second grade. The proposal would also require that suspensions pre-k through second grade students can only be issued by the superintendent.  

The second proposal would prevent schools from ticketing or referring students to local police departments for disciplinary actions. Students could still be ticketed or otherwise referred to the police if they break the law.  

Board member Roger Eddy said he wanted to see more clarification about those measures.  

State agencies will have to scrutinize spending as the state faces an expected budget deficit in Fiscal Year 2026.  

The Commission of Government Forecasting and Accountability (COGFA) has predicted that a combination of COVID-era funds ending and increased spending will create a “significant” budgetary deficit for Fiscal Year 2026, which begins in July 2025.