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

Revenue for Fiscal Year 2024 remains as predicted as state legislators begin finalizing the Fiscal Year 2025 budget and as lawmakers figure out how to make the most of strong revenue with a tighter revenue-to-expenditures margin.  

Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill less than 48 hours after it was introduced to change election rules. And a new state department proposed by Pritzker is set to pass the House.  

The vote board in the Senate reflects votes on a plan to end the party appointment process for open spots on the ballot. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

In just 24 hours, General Assembly Democrats rammed through an elections package to change the rules around filling vacancies for political parties on the ballot as local Republicans in two areas in the state attempt to name new candidates to open seats on November’s ballot. 

Comptroller Susana Mendoza speaks at the annual Illinois Police Officers Memorial at the Illinois Capitol on Thursday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza earned a standing ovation from Illinois police officers and their families on Thursday following a passionate speech at the annual Illinois Police Officers Memorial gathering at the State Capitol.  

The Illinois Capitol 

The House voted Wednesday to put three advisory referendum questions on the ballot for voters to consider on a range of subjects from insurance coverage to property taxes.  

The bill also would prevent political parties from appointing candidates to fill open spots on the ballot in legislative races in a sudden political maneuver by House Democrats.

Illinois Capitol   

Senators demanded improvements from the new leadership of the Prisoner Review Board (PRB) during the agency’s annual appropriation’s hearing on Tuesday. The hearing came less than two months after a decision by the board resulted in the murder of a child.   

Illinois Environmental Council Executive Director Jen Walling speaks at a news conference in Springfield on Tuesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

With the state’s major climate law now almost three years old, Illinois environmental leaders are setting their sights on new targets to achieve the spirit of the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) by pushing new policies to limit natural gas use in buildings and get more drivers behind the wheel of electric vehicles.  

The Democratic Party of Illinois 

In a little more than 100 days, all eyes of American politics will be on Chicago as the city hosts the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC) to nominate President Joe Biden for a second term.  

It’s not new for Illinois Democrats to be in the host seat given Chicago’s rich history of political conventions, but it comes at a time when support for Biden struggles to rise, and many Americans protest the president’s decisions in the Middle East.  

Supporters of the Pretrial Fairness Act celebrate outside the Cook County Courthouse in Chicago on Sept. 18, 2023 as the law took effect. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

It’s been more than half a year since Illinois became the first state to entirely abolish cash bail and data on the success of the law is slowly trickling in. While more data is needed to make a better assessment of how the law has changed Illinois’ legal system, supporters of the law aren’t seeing any red flags so far.

Rep. Lilian Jimenez (D-Chicago) speaks on the House floor on April 16. [Blue Room Stream]

Legislators want to make mental health professionals that respond with police officers to calls eligible for line of duty benefits in recognition of their work and dangers they too face on calls.