Gov. JB Pritzker holds a news conference at Rochester Elementary School in Rochester on Thursday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Illinois’ Smart Start preschool program, which aims to eliminate deserts to early childhood education and was the centerpiece of Gov. JB Pritzker’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget, had a successful first year that saw the state’s investment create more seats than expected.  

Gov. JB Pritzker said the White Sox have not made any funding requests to the state and he reiterated his general opposition to public funding for stadium projects. And interstate shootings decreased in 2023, according to Illinois State Police data.  

The House Freedom Caucus holds a news conference on Wednesday to discuss their trips to the Texas border and migrant shelters in Chicago. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

General Assembly Republicans are offering up their solutions for the migrant crisis, chiefly calling for repealing the state’s TRUST Act that makes Illinois a sanctuary state, as discussions begin in Springfield about new steps to grasp the migrant crisis after a year-and-a-half of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott busing asylum seekers to Chicago.  

U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson, who represents Illinois’ 1st Congressional District, changed his voter registration this summer but still passed petitions for an address outside his district. Gov. JB Pritzker announced a new business investment stemming from a 2023 trip to Germany. And the Illinois AFL-CIO made endorsements for the 2024 election.   

House Minority Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savanna) speaks at a news conference last March. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]  

As talk about how to address the migrant situation emerges as a potentially major topic of the 2024 spring session, House Republican Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savanna) said her caucus will be focusing on advocating for Illinois’ existing residents to ensure their needs aren’t put aside in favor of the new arrivals.  

The Illinois Capitol   

Lawmakers will return to Springfield on Tuesday for the first week of the 2024 spring session. Though many are focused on their March primary campaigns, budget challenges and other legislative issues will be on lawmakers’ plate throughout the spring. 

Gov. JB Pritzker holds a news conference in Chicago last week. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

As Chicago suffers through one of the annual deep cold spells of winter, Gov. JB Pritzker sent a letter to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott pleading with the Republican governor to “pause” sending migrants to Chicago and the suburbs during the dangerous winter weather.

The State Board of Elections 

Rep. Adam Niemerg (R-Dieterich) won’t appear on the March primary ballot after the State Board of Elections ruled his statement of candidacy contained a notary error.  

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at a news conference in Chicago on Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

Lawmakers will return to Springfield on Tuesday, but any action to assist in the migrant crisis is no sure thing. 

The Illinois Supreme Court

The Illinois Supreme Court is weighing an appeal in a criminal case from Macon County that could decide how Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) investigators consider using Miranda rights in investigations.