For the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. J.B. Pritzker will present from the Illinois House chambers to a joint session of state representatives and senators.
Chapin Rose
Unemployment has been a major issue throughout the pandemic. Stay-at-home orders spurred layoffs — many who lost their jobs had trouble accessing benefits — in part because there was a whole lot of fraud.
Legislators have been working toward a measure that would keep two Illinois nuclear plants open. Despite a rash of talks during Tuesday’s special session, there is still no concrete path — and less than two weeks remain until Exelon says it will close the plants.
Illinois Democrats used their supermajorities in the General Assembly to full advantage this weekend as their spring session reeled toward an end, pushing through a progressive agenda, a $42 billion budget with no tax or fee hikes on individuals, and legislative maps.
Illinois legislators voted along partisan lines Friday in response to another set of political lines: the boundaries of districts for the legislature, state Supreme Court and the Cook County Board of Review.
The pandemic-era budget proposed Wednesday by Gov. J.B. Pritzker relies heavily on businesses to bring an additional $932 million into state coffers through what the Democrat describes as closing corporate tax loopholes. We get reaction from state lawmakers.