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Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Central Illinois legislators comment on Pritzker's State of the State
CENTRAL ILLINOIS (WCIA) — Central Illinois lawmakers had much to say about Governor JB Pritzker's State of the State address. Some Democrats applauded Pritzker's spending priorities, including lowering the prices of prescription drugs and investing in education. They also liked that there was no new tax increases proposed. 'K-12 education is the foundation of our future, and investing in our schools is investing in our children's success,' Sen. Paul Faraci (D-Champaign) said in a statement. 'The governor's budget reflects the importance of public education and takes steps to sustain efforts that prepare the next generation. The $350 million increase in evidence-based funding ensures Illinois families have access to quality schools and programs.' Party leaders react to State of the State for FY 2026 Republican lawmakers expressed concerns with the total size of the budget. 'Governor Pritzker introduced the largest budget in Illinois' history, totaling $55.235 billion, a nearly $2 billion increase from the Fiscal Year 2025 budget,' Rep. Brandun Schweizer (R-Danville) said. 'The state is faced with a $425 million deficit for Fiscal Year 2026 and yet again, the Governor is asking taxpayers to foot the bill so that he can cater to his core constituencies.' Many Republicans also took issue with Pritzker comparing the Trump administration actions to the rise of Nazi Germany. 'There were some good things about the speech, but he just threw it all away with these unbelievable comparisons of Nazis and things like that,' Sen. Steve McClure (R-Springfield) said. 'You know, Governor, it's OK for me to disagree with you because they call him horrible names. Apparently, he just wants to get national attention with this speech and govern our state.' New Illinois law requires changes for how businesses comply with state alcohol rules Some Democrats from the Legislative Black Caucus and the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus were quite critical of the governor's ideas. State Representative Carol Ammons said Wednesday she would vote no on the budget the way Pritzker drafted it. 'Not even a slight mention towards me is an insult to this entire black community that is standing right here with you right now,' Ammons said to Pritzker at a news conference. 'We must demand not just by words, but by your actions. Be willing to say no.' Some Republicans warned they viewed the proposed spending may cause more people to relocate outside of Illinois. 'This budget is a smoke-and-mirrors scheme designed to justify yet another tax hike on hardworking Illinoisans, further cementing the Democratic agenda that is making Illinois politically uninhabitable,' Rep. Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville) said. 'This budget spends more than the previous year while continuing to expand programs that fund illegal aliens. Meanwhile, Illinois continues to lose employers and residents.' Illinois Attorney General co-leads coalition for action against counterfeit weight loss drugs Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) said she looks forward to working with other elected officials to bringing necessary funding to Central Illinois. 'Whether you're a small family farmer outside Mt. Auburn, an accountant at ADM in Decatur, work customer service at Horace Mann in Springfield or drive a truck for Cleeton's in Tovey: This budget should recognize your needs,' Turner said. 'Because you deserve to live in a state that can balance its finances the same way you do at home.' Pritzker's speech also laid out a number of new initiatives, including offering four-year degrees at community colleges and keeping phones out of K-12 classrooms. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Pritzker's proposed budget to eliminate health care program for non citizen adults
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) – Governor Pritzker pitched his budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year Wednesday and while it doesn't include tax increases, it does make some cuts. The proposed budget eliminates a health care program for non citizen adults. 'There are lots of priorities I'd like to do immediately if we had the resources to do it. We cannot do it this year and so that's why we had to make some changes,' Pritzker told reporters following his budget address. The Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults (HBIA) program, which covers adults ages 42 to 64, costs the state more than $400 million every year. Pritzker already scaled back the program in 2023 when it was expected to come in way over budget. 'I really do believe that we should be covering everybody,' Pritzker said. 'Unfortunately, we expect that the federal government is going to stop reimbursing for any of that cost and they were reimbursing for some of that cost.' The Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus didn't agree with the idea. 'We believe that healthcare is a human right and we believe that taking people off of health care is not the right answer,' State Sen. Karina Villa (D-West Chicago) said during a press conference after the governor's speech. The members say they're going to fight to keep the program going. 'This is just the beginning,' Villa said. 'This is the governor's proposed budget and now we have a few months here to work hard and look line item by line item to see where we're going to be able to make things up.' Republicans have been calling on the state to completely eliminate the non citizen health care programs. 'I'm glad he's finally listened on the immigrant health care piece, eliminating a lot of that,' State Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet), said. 'He didn't eliminate all of it.' But Republicans don't think the program will get cut at the end of the day. 'I don't think it's real,' House Minority Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savanna), said in a press conference following the governor's budget address. 'I think it's just going to set us up for a tax increase.' While the proposed budget cuts the non citizen health care program for adults, it does keep funding for a program for non citizen seniors 65 and up to get health care. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
