104th ILLINOIS GENERAL ASSEMBLY:
The Illinois Senate has adjourned for the week. The Senate was in session on Tuesday and Wednesday, canceling the scheduled session for Thursday. There was little action this week, with only five committee meetings scheduled — two of which were canceled. The Senate Assignments Committee assigned 218 Senate bills to various standing committees.
The Illinois House was not in session this week.
Both chambers will be off next week and will reconvene from February 17 to 19. The Governor will deliver his combined Budget and State of the State Address to a joint session of the General Assembly on Wednesday, February 18.
Today is the deadline to file legislation for consideration during the Spring Session.
Key 2026 Session Dates:
February 6: Bill Filing Deadline — Both Chambers
February 18: Governor’s Budget and State of the State Address
March 13: Deadline — Substantive Senate Bills out of Committee
March 27: Deadline — Substantive House Bills out of Committee
March 17: Primary Election
April 17: Deadline — 3rd Reading Substantive Bills in First Chamber
May 8: Deadline — Substantive Bills out of Committee in Second Chamber
May 22: Deadline — 3rd Reading Substantive Bills in Second Chamber
May 31: Adjournment
GOVERNOR’S HIGHLIGHTS:
Pension Proposal: Two weeks before his budget address, Governor JB Pritzker outlined his plan to tackle Illinois’ pension debt. He proposes a two-year extension of the state’s pension buyout program to further reduce long-term liabilities and continue saving taxpayer dollars. He also plans to allocate extra revenue toward paying down the state’s pension commitments by transferring surplus funds that remain after income tax refunds. Additionally, the Governor revived his 2024 pension plan. That proposal aims to manage the state’s long-term pension funding obligations — including raising the statutory funding ratio goal to 100% by 2048 and addressing the Tier II safe harbor issues by adjusting the pensionable earnings cap. More information will likely be available when the Governor delivers his Budget and State of the State Address on February 18. Read more here, here, and here.
Illinois Joins WHO Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network: Illinois is now a member of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN), an international group that tracks and responds to disease outbreaks worldwide. Since President Trump withdrew the United States from the WHO and pulled back from global public health efforts, joining WHO at the state level will give Illinois direct access to global alerts, expert public health resources, and international response tools that help protect its residents from new disease threats. Read more here.
IDFPR Licensing: The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation completed Phases 3 and 4 of its CORE system, adding 16 more license types to its enhanced regulatory platform. The CORE system transitions the department from older systems to an integrated platform that manages all aspects of professional regulation –including licensing, continuing education, inspections, compliance, and enforcement –within a unified system. According to IDFPR, the latest phase enables online inspections, streamlines processing, and will eventually link enforcement cases with licensing records, enhancing oversight and coordination while improving transparency and efficiency for both regulators and licensed professionals.
The latest license types now available on CORE include: Massage Therapist, Registered Dental Hygienist, Approved Shorthand Reporter CE Sponsor, Architect, Professional Engineer, Enrolled Structural Engineering Intern, Chiropractic Physician, Occupational Therapist, Music Therapy Continued Education Sponsor, Restricted Shorthand Reporter, Professional Limited Liability Company, Enrolled Professional Engineer Intern, Structural Engineer, Physical Therapist Assistant, Physical Therapist and Certified Occupation Therapy Assistant. Read more here.
IDPH Issues Morbidity and Mortality Report: The Illinois Department of Public Health’s latest report on morbidity and mortality highlights that people experiencing homelessness in Illinois face far greater health risks than the general population, including increased emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and early death. The report analyzes data from 2017 to 2023, incorporating death certificates, hospital records, and annual counts of unhoused individuals. It estimates that around 10,000 people in Illinois faced “literal homelessness” — living without adequate shelter — while over 200,000 were in unstable housing situations during this period. The report notes these figures may be underestimated due to data limitations. The full report is here. An executive summary is here. Read more here.
Innovation Voucher Program: Illinois’ DCEO awarded 34 grants totaling $2.4 million to support small business growth and research partnerships through the Innovation Voucher Program. DCEO is also offering another $2.6 million in new grant funding for its third round, with recipients chosen via a competitive process. Read more here.
Gubernatorial Appointments: Governor Pritzker made the following appointments:
· Ann McIntyre will continue to serve as the Inspector General of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.
· Stephanie Altman, Paula Campbell, Wendy Epstein, and Lance Kovacs will continue to serve as members of the Illinois Health Benefits Exchange Advisory Committee.
· Steven Avalos will continue to serve as a member of the Labor Advisory Board.
OTHER NEWS:
BIPA Class Action Lawsuit: An Illinois judge has allowed a class-action lawsuit against Apple Inc. regarding the mishandling of biometric voice data collected from Siri users in the state. Judge Michael Mullen determined that addressing the plaintiffs’ claims under the Biometric Information Privacy Act on a class-wide basis is both efficient and fair. The class includes all Illinois residents who used Siri and had their voiceprints processed from September 14, 2014, to the present, with an estimated 3 million potential class members. This ruling enables the court to address several common questions regarding the consent requirements for the voice data collected by Apple. The order is here.
CGFA Revenue Report: In January, State General Funds revenues were $4.597 billion, down $152 million (3.2%) from last year, mainly due to reduced federal funding. Despite this monthly decline, cumulative revenues for the first seven months of the fiscal year are up by $1.038 billion (3.5%). Personal Income Tax receipts grew by $63 million (2.1%), while Corporate Income Tax receipts increased by $7 million (3.5%). The State Sales Tax also saw a moderate rise of $30 million (3.0%).
Any gains, however, were offset by significant declines in Federal Sources, which fell to $304 million—$169 million below the previous year — marking the third consecutive month of declines. Transfers-In were also down, totaling $197 million, reflecting a $53 million decrease, primarily due to the lack of a large transfer from the Capital Projects Fund that occurred last January. Declines were also seen in “All Other State Sources,” driven mainly by a $45 million drop in Interest on State Funds and Investments, alongside decreases in Insurance, Public Utility, Cigarette, and Liquor Taxes. Conversely, the Estate Tax and Corporate Franchise Taxes recorded increases. Read the full report here.
Attorneys General Reach Generic Drug Settlement: Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined a bipartisan group from 48 states and territories in announcing two new settlements with Lannett Company Inc., Bausch Health US LLC, and Bausch Health Americas Inc. These settlements amount to $17.85 million and address claims that the companies were involved in extensive, ongoing conspiracies to artificially raise and manipulate prices, reduce competition, and unfairly restrict trade in various generic prescription drugs.
Under the terms of these agreements, both companies will assist with ongoing multistate litigation against 30 corporate defendants and 25 individual executives. Additionally, they have promised to implement internal reforms to promote fair competition and to comply with antitrust laws. Read more here.
Attorneys General File Suit Against Novartis: Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, along with 41 other states and territories, also filed a new lawsuit against Novartis and its generic subsidiary, Sandoz. The lawsuit alleges that the companies engaged in a systematic campaign to conspire with other generic manufacturers to fix prices, allocate markets, and rig bids for 31 different generic drugs. Additionally, the complaint claims that Novartis took steps to fraudulently transfer and drain assets from Sandoz and to spin off Sandoz in order to shield itself from liability in three previously filed state antitrust complaints against the company. Read more here.
Illegal Gaming Operations: The Illinois Gaming Board, together with the Illinois Attorney General’s office, has sent out over 60 cease-and-desist letters to entities suspected of running illegal online casino and sweepstakes platforms in Illinois. These letters instruct operators to block Illinois residents from accessing their sites or stop offering prizes to users in the state. Failure to comply could result in civil or criminal penalties, as operating such gambling websites is against Illinois law. Read more here.