Back in the Capitol: Illinois lawmakers resume business in Springfield
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Illinois lawmakers returned to Springfield on Tuesday, resuming legislative business in the new year.
It's year two of the 103rd General Assembly, following up with hundreds of bills signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker last year. Still, more than 7,000 bills have been filed that lawmakers could act on between now and May.
If the fall veto session is any indication, this year's four-month spring session will likely be slow at the start. Lawmakers will be in session two more days this month where any action would likely come from committee hearings. Floor action in either chamber will be mostly limited to resolutions this week.
Activity typically picks up after the governor delivers the State of the State address in February, outlining budget priorities and touting the accomplishments of his administration. However, election season will shape the overall aggressiveness of the lawmaking process.
As Kent Redfield, professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Springfield, has noted, lawmakers will be slow to act before the March 19 primary.
"Historically, you do all the heavy lifting in the first year," he said previously. "Because of the primary structure, you try not to do anything that might cause you primary problems."
While most attention will be on the presidential election, at stake in Springfield are representation in the state Senate and the House of Representatives. Democrats currently enjoy supermajorities in both chambers and are expected to hold, possibly add to those margins in November. All 118 seats in the House and 23 seats in the Senate are up for election.
Holdovers and new business
Much of the General Assembly's legislative priorities will be revealed in the months to come, but there are a few things Illinoisans can expect out of the state legislature.
Veto session concluded in November and, while passing legislation that ended the state's nuclear moratorium, there were several matters of unresolved business.
Among them, lawmakers did not renew Invest in Kids, a program providing income tax credits to those supporting private K-12 school scholarships or a bill allowing the unionization of legislative staff. Legislators and advocates on both matters have expressed interest in renewing conversations this year.
More: Speaker Welch pushes bill allowing legislative staff union, amendment to follow
A subject of much recent conversation, lawmakers also did not take any action regarding supplemental migrant funding last fall, as thousands of migrants have been transported to the Chicago area from Texas. Legislative leaders House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch and Senate President Don Harmon are weighing options.
The state invested an additional $160 million from the Illinois Department of Human Services budget this fall to help settle and shelter migrants in Chicago, part of the $638 million Illinois has spent on the asylum crisis since August 2022 according to the governor's budgeting agency.
Pritzker issued a letter to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday requesting him to at least pause the transport of migrants to the city amid frigid temperatures. Nearly 35,000 asylum seekers have arrived in Chicago by bus from Texas since August 2022 according to city data.
“Suffice to say, I’ve brought this up to leaders,” Pritzker said in an unrelated press conference last week. “They haven’t wanted to bring it up yet. I do think it’s going to be important to deal with the costs here.”
More: Illinois voters assert Biden 'ineligible' to run for office, move to strike him from ballot
New bills filed include one from state Sen. Jil Tracy, R-Quincy, establishing right-to-repair for farmers to mend their own agricultural equipment, and another that would ban the sale of certain products containing PFAs or "forever chemicals" starting next year. Both bills were referred to assignments last week.
State Rep. Carol Ammons, D-Urbana, is leading House Bill 4198 which would permit local election authorities to mail ballots to all registered voters in their area. An increasingly utilized voting option since COVID-19, current state law requires voters to request a mail-in ballot. Eight states and Washington D.C. offer the vote-by-mail program.
May 24 is the self-imposed adjournment of the spring session, but lawmakers have built a contingent schedule to allow for extra days if needed.
Contact Patrick M. Keck: 312-549-9340, pkeck@gannett.com, twitter.com/@pkeckreporter
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Back in Springfield, lawmakers return for spring session
