Illinois in Focus

Just four months into the fiscal year, Illinois’ Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors program will suspend accepting new enrollees starting Nov. 6, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services said Thursday. In 2020, Illinois began subsidizing the health care of non-citizens in the state over the age of 65, estimating the cost to be $1.8 million. Two years later, the state started offering the taxpayer subsidized benefit to non-citizens over the age of 42.

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A federal judge who once ruled plaintiffs challenging Illinois’ gun and magazine ban may be able to prove their case now has the option of striking the law down based on the merits.  Illinois’ ban on more than 170 semi-automatic rifles, shotguns and pistols was enacted on Jan. 10. The law also bans the sale and possession of handgun magazines over 15 rounds and rifle magazines over 10 rounds. Firearms owners with such guns purchased before Jan. 10 have until Jan. 1, 2024 to register their firearms, attachments and .50 caliber ammunition, or face potential criminal penalties.

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As non-citizens continue to arrive in Chicago, many have been stuck at O'Hare Airport while awaiting housing. One mutual aid volunteer says even more soon will be without more shelter options. Chicago has seen more than 15,000 migrants from the southern border arrive over the past 12 months. Many of the migrants have traveled from communities in Texas, where resources are stretched thin because of the continued influx of border crossers. In response, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office said Friday the state has contributed $328 million overall to support asylum seekers to date.

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The hearing took place not in Washington D.C., but at the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police hall. Testifying was Gianno Caldwell, a Fox News contributor and someone whose teenage brother was shot and killed in Chicago. He said with the end of cash bail and do-not-chase policies, criminals feel emboldened turning The Windy City into Gotham City. Chicago is savable, but he said residents have to make adjustments.

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Illinois Democrats celebrated the end of cash bail statewide on Monday while others worried about an increase in crime. The Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity-Today, or SAFE-T Act, was approved by the General Assembly in January 2021. It makes several changes to the criminal justice system, including eliminating cash bail statewide, making it the first state to do so after being enacted on Monday. The Pretrial Fairness Act was supposed to go into effect Jan. 1, but was delayed by court challenges until two months ago when it was upheld by the Illinois Supreme Court.

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With the abolishment of cash bail coming to an end in Illinois Monday (Sept. 18), the debate continues on what the effects will be on victims, particularly of domestic violence. Under the new law as part of the controversial SAFE-T Act upheld by the Illinois Supreme Court two months ago, if a judge decides a defendant does not pose a public safety risk, then they will be released pending trial.

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Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis-Gates, who has been outspoken against the state's school choice program, is sending her child to a private school, according to the Illinois Republican Party and other reports. Davis-Gates took office in 2022 to lead the third largest teachers union in the country. Since taking office, Davis-Gates has publicly spoken out against the Invest in Kids Act, which allows people to pay for scholarships for students to attend private schools rather than attend public schools in Chicago or throughout the state. Donors get a 75% Illinois income tax credit for their contributions to the program. If legislators do not extend the program, it ends at the end of the calendar year. 

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With a new school year underway or about to begin for students in schools across Illinois, some attending a private school using scholarships from the Invest in Kids program could be left in limbo unless lawmakers take action to continue the program. Gov. J.B. Pritzker made a stop at Community STEM Center in Matteson on Thursday to highlight the start of the school year. 

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After July job numbers are included, Illinois finally returned to pre-pandemic total job levels more than three years after the COVID-19 pandemic began. And the feat was accomplished almost a year after most of the rest of the country. The data from the Illinois Policy Institute show the state gained over 11,000 jobs in July. This job gain brings the state back to its pre-COVID numbers.

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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson says the city of Chicago has had conversations with suburban leaders in Cook and other counties about the possibility of moving migrants into their communities. Thousands of migrant families have arrived in Chicago over the past year. City officials have placed many in police stations, YMCAs and Daley College.

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