103rd ILLINOIS GENERAL ASSEMBLY:
The Illinois General Assembly is scheduled to reconvene November 12-14 and November 19-21 for the two-week Veto Session.
The House Mental Health and Addiction Committee will hold a joint subject matter hearing with the Senate Behavioral and Mental Health Committee on November 7 at 10 am to discuss the administrative and funding barriers to substance use disorder treatment, recovery, and harm reduction and on December 10 at 1 pm to discuss psychedelics as behavioral health treatment – HB 1 and beyond. Both hearings will take place in the Bilandic building in Chicago.
The House Health Care Availability and Accessibility Committee will hold a subject matter hearing on December 3 at 10:00 am in the Bilandic Building in Chicago to discuss wholesalers, pharmacy service administrative organizations, and the long-term future of Independent Pharmacies.
GOVERNOR’S HIGHLIGHTS:
IDFPR Launches New Professional Licensing System: The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced the launch of the Comprehensive Online Regulatory Environment (CORE), its new online licensing system. The system is currently in a pilot phase and will be utilized initially for new applicants seeking licensure as clinical psychologists, nail technicians, and music therapists. According to the Department, the new online process eliminates the need for paper applications, gives applicants more control over their application materials, and helps prevent deficient applications from being submitted. In addition to creating a streamlined online application process, CORE features a simplified review process for all license applications received by IDFPR.
The system will be rolled out for all 300 license types over the next two years. Subsequent phases will transition the Department’s remaining manual and paper-based processes, starting with healthcare professions. Eventually, CORE will handle the full regulatory processes for IDFPR’s Divisions of Professional Regulation, Real Estate, Banking and Financial Institutions.
Prospective licensees will be notified directly within the system when applications are received, reviewed, and licenses are issued by the Department—eliminating the need for paper mail and email responses from the Department. In addition, enforcement services (including complaint intake and review, document tracking, and investigations) will be transitioned to CORE. IDFPR will make user guides available online as more services are added to CORE. Read more here.
Voortman Steel Machinery to Expand Illinois Operations: Governor JB Pritzker announced that Voortman Steel Machinery, a global leading manufacturer of CNC steel processing machinery and software solutions, will invest $51.4 million to expand its operations in Monee, Illinois. Joined by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the governor highlighted how Voortman’s investment, supported by an EDGE agreement, will allow the company to acquire and develop new property as well as grow its skilled workforce to increase production capacity.
Voortman has acquired a 27-acre property to build a 100,000-square-foot facility, including 20,000 square feet of office space and 80,000 square feet for warehousing. This expansion will enable the company to meet growing customer demand and organizational needs by increasing staff and capabilities to deliver high-quality customer service, while relocating their supply chain operations to Illinois. Read more here.
Governors Issue Joint Letter to Grid Operator PBM: In a joint letter, Governors JB Pritzker of Illinois, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Phil Murphy of New Jersey, Wes Moore of Maryland, and John Carney of Delaware have called on PJM Interconnection, the regional grid operator, to urgently address the soaring electricity costs facing their constituents.
The letter highlights issues that threaten the states’ progress towards renewable energy goals, including concerns about the market structure and interconnection process. Notably, prices in PJM’s most recent capacity auction for the 2025/2026 delivery year skyrocketed to nearly 10 times the previous year’s level, placing a significant burden on residents and businesses.
The governors attribute these unnecessarily high prices to serious flaws in the auction rules. To address the problem, they have recommended several key reforms:
- Ensure that capacity from Reliability Must Run units is included in the next Base Residual Auction, which experts estimate could save consumers $3-5 billion without undermining market competitiveness.
- Eliminate the must-offer exemption for intermittent generation resources, while protecting them from performance penalties that discourage participation.
- Lower the capacity price cap to the pre-reform level.
- Review and adjust the recent changes to Effective Load Carrying Capability accreditation as needed.
- Swiftly implement a sub-annual capacity market design to reduce transmission system risk, even if it takes longer than the upcoming auction.
Read more here.
Non-Profit Security Grant Program: The Federal Emergency Management Agency notified the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security on October 28, 2024, of two grant opportunities for non-profit organizations in Illinois. Nationally, $210 million in funding is available for these Fiscal Year 2024 Nonprofit Security Grant Program National Security Supplemental (NSGP-NSS) grant opportunities.
As the State Administrative Agency, IEMA-OHS will issue competitive grants of up to $200,000 to applicants approved by FEMA’s Grants Program Directorate. Eligible non-profit organizations with a single site may apply for up to $200,000. Those with multiple sites may apply for up to $200,000 per site, for a maximum of three sites and $600,000 per sub-applicant, per funding stream. The period of performance for these grants is 36 months. Read more here.
New Phase of Three-Year Transformation Initiative Will Increase Mental Health Beds: The Illinois Department of Human Services has announced the expansion of mental health services at the Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in Anna, Illinois. Effective November 1, 2024, the facility’s civil units will add up to 25 new beds, increasing the total capacity from 50 to 75 patients.
This expansion is a critical component of the three-year transformation initiative unveiled by Governor Pritzker and IDHS in March 2023. The initiative aims to repurpose portions of the Choate campus and reshape the state’s approach to caring for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
ICC Urges Eligible Natural Gas Customers to Enroll in New Low-Income Discount Rates: The Illinois Commerce Commission is urging eligible natural gas customers to enroll in the state’s new Low-Income Discount Rates program. Starting in October 2024, this program will provide a monthly bill credit ranging from 5-83% for qualifying customers, based on a five-tier system that considers their income, household size, and the local cost of utility service.
Customers enrolled in the state’s Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) will automatically receive the Low-Income Discount Rate. However, they must reapply for LIHEAP each year to maintain this discount. Additionally, customers whose income is between 201-300% of the Federal Poverty Level, but who do not qualify for LIHEAP, can still get a 5% discount by self-reporting their eligibility to their utility company. Read more here.
Illinois Gaming Board: The Illinois Gaming Board met last week. A full listing of Board action is here.
Illinois Launches Help Stop Hate: Governor JB Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Human Rights, and the Illinois Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes have announced the launch of Help Stop Hate. This confidential service provides support and resources to people and communities affected by hate.
In 2023, hate crimes reached an all-time high, with 11,862 incidents reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Help Stop Hate offers assistance to victims and witnesses of hate acts. The service helps them report what happened and connects them with vital resources.
Help Stop Hate is free, confidential, and not affiliated with law enforcement. Individuals can report incidents online in their preferred language and receive help from call specialists trained in trauma-informed care.
The Help Stop Hate launch will be followed by a statewide, multilingual campaign to support access to the service. The campaign will focus on reaching people and communities most frequently targeted by hate, including Black Americans, Latinos, Arab Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, LGBTQIA+ people, religious minorities, immigrants and refugees, and people with disabilities. Read more here.
State-Designated Cultural Districts: Applications are now open for State-Designated Cultural Districts across Illinois. These districts are communities, towns, or geographic areas with a distinct shared history and cultural identity that unites the local population. Once selected, the State plans to make $3 million available to support the designated districts. The goal is to uplift the unique cultural contributions of these historic areas and foster economic development opportunities.
The State-Designated Cultural Districts program aims to:
- Encourage economic growth
- Support the preservation and development of historically and culturally significant structures, traditions, and languages
- Promote local cultural education and development
- Provide a focal point to celebrate communities’ unique cultural identities
- Advance equitable growth and opportunity without generating displacement
Read more, including about how to apply, here.
OTHER NEWS:
Mayor Johnson’s FY 25 Budget Proposal: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson submitted his $17.3 billion FY 25 budget proposal on Wednesday, the second budget of his tenure. The city is facing a projected $982.4 million shortfall in 2025. The plan includes a $300 million property tax increase, the largest such increase in almost a decade. Also included is sweeping tax increment financing funds and eliminating hundreds of vacant positions across city government. Fourteen aldermen have signed a letter indicating they will not support a budget that includes a property tax increase. The budget will require 26 votes for passage. State law requires approval of the new budget by year’s end.
The budget briefing is here. The full budget address is here. The Chicago Tribune offers more here.
Illinois Report Card: The Illinois State Board of Education released The Illinois Report Card which provides insight into how Illinois’ 850-plus school districts are performing. The data includes information on hundreds of metrics such as test scores, enrollment data, chronic absenteeism, high school graduation rates, student participation in career and technical education programs, enrollment in advanced classes, and teacher retention rates. The full report is here. Read more here.