Illinois Democrats are leading with responsibility, progress, and stability in a time of national chaos.
- The $55.1 billion budget builds on six years of progress, prioritizing long-term fiscal health while investing in the services that matter most:t education, job creation, health care, and human services
- For the seventh year in a row, Illinois Dems have passed a balanced budget that reflects our core values: fiscal responsibility, stability, and delivering for working families.
- While Trump and Congressional Republicans sow chaos and dysfunction, Illinois Democrats are proving that good governance is possible. This year’s budget doubles down on our strong fiscal discipline and responsible governance without raising taxes for working families.
- This budget is not just balanced – it’s forward looking. It protects the progress we’ve made and keeps Illinois on track to grow stronger, fairer, and more stable in the years ahead.
Healthcare Access and Affordability
We’re lowering drug costs and protecting access to care, including reproductive and mental health services.
- Democrats delivered legislation to crack down on PBMs, making prescription drugs more affordable, and to strengthen safety net hospitals.
- New laws protect reproductive rights, improve mental health care, and ensure survivors of sexual assault get the care they need.
- Prescription Drug Affordability Act (HB167): Passed the Prescription Drug and Affordability Act to reform pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and lower drug costs for Illinoisans.
- Healthcare Protection Act Expansion: Extends the prior authorization ban on inpatient mental healthcare to outpatient services
- General Anesthesia Insurance Coverage (HB1141): Ensured insurance coverage for necessary anesthesia during procedures.
- Invested in Safety Net Hospitals: Committed $600m to strengthen care in underserved communities.
Protecting Access to Reproductive Healthcare and Serving Assault Survivors:
- HB3637: Strengthened legal protections for reproductive healthcare providers and patients
- Expanded reproductive rights for students on campus in public universities
- Invested $24m in reproductive health initiatives, including $10m for a statewide patient navigation hotline
- Sexual Assault Care Reform (SB1602): Improves medical forensic services for sexual assault surviors.
Education for ALL
We’re funding education at every level and making it easier for students to get ahead.
- Illinois Democrats are investing in students from pre-K through college with record K-12 funding, expanded dual credit, and more support for teachers.
- New policies help more students access college directly, while MAP and AIM HIGH grants are growing to make higher ed more affordable.
- Smart Start Early Childhood Block Grants: Maintained $748m in funding for the grants that have created over 11,000 new preschool seats in underserved areas in the last two years.
- Historic K-12 Investment: Added $307m to the Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) formula bringing the total EBF program to $8.9b. Under Democratic leadership, Illinois has increased K-12 funding by nearly $2.5 billion.
- Invested $35m in after-school programming
- Teacher Pipeline Support:
- $5m for teaching mentorship program
- $30m for the Teacher Vacancy Grant Pilot Program
- $8m for the Minority Teachers of Illinois Scholarship
- Dual Credit Expansion (HB2967): Requires school districts to partner with community colleges to provide dual credit courses.
- Direct Admissions (HB3522): Streamlined admissions for Illinois high school students into in-state colleges.
- Increased MAP grant funding by $10m bringing total funding to $771.6m annually across MAP and AIM HIGH
- Provided over $50m in funding for the state’s public universities and community colleges
- Career and Technical Education: $1.3m increase in funding to grow CTE programs in schools.
Supporting Working Families
We’re making child care, housing, and health care more affordable for working families.
- Democrats are making everyday life more affordable – from child care and housing to medical debt relief and early childhood educator pay.
- Initiatives like the Illinois Grocery Program and Home Illinois fight food insecurity and homelessness statewide.
- Medical Debt Relief Program: Provided $15m in funding for the program. To date, the program has provided over $100m in debt relief for more than 100,000 Illinoisans.
- We’re making child care, housing, and health care more affordable for working families.
- Democrats are making everyday life more affordable – from child care and housing to medical debt relief and early childhood educator pay.
- Initiatives like the Illinois Grocery Program and Home Illinois fight food insecurity and homelessness statewide.
- Medical Debt Relief Program: Provided $15m in funding for the program. To date, the program has provided over $100m in debt relief for more than 100,000 Illinoisans.
Economic Growth and Jobs
We’re investing in job training, small businesses, and local economic growth.
- The budget includes major investments in site development, small manufacturers, and workforce training, helping communities compete for jobs and growth.
- Programs like Made in Illinois and Prime Sites are building a stronger, more resilient state economy.
- Historic Site Readiness Investment: Committed $500m to prepare idle state properties and underutilized sites for economic development.
- Workforce Development and Industry Support:
- $24m for advanced manufacturing training academies.
- $50m to grow the Enterprise Fund.
- $75m for the Prime Sites Capital Grant Program
- $10m for the Made in Illinois program to support small and mid-sized manufacturers.
Public Safety and Consumer Protections
We’re keeping communities safe and protecting consumers in a changing economy.
- Democrats are funding smart, community-based violence prevention while strengthening oversight of prisons and digital finance tools.
- New consumer protection laws are setting national standards around digital assets and virtual currency kiosks.
- Reimagine Public Safety Grant Program: Invested $40m to prevent violence and support community-based solutions
- Department of Corrections Oversight (SB2201): Improves transparency through enhanced reporting from the Department of Corrections.
- Digital Consumer Protections:
Supporting Our State’s Farmers
Even in a challenging fiscal year – and despite uncertainty from Trump’s cuts and threats to the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Illinois protected key investments and delivered wins that support farmers and strengthen our state’s agriculture.
- Invested $960,000 in the Fall Covers for Spring Savings program that helps many Illinois farmers
- Invested $1 million in the National Corn to Ethanol Research Center that is based in Illinois
Pushing Back on Republicans
Republicans are complaining, but Democrats are delivering real results without raising taxes.
- Illinois Republicans are attacking this budget with misinformation – but what exactly are they against? Is it access to health care? Child care? Is it job creation? Safer communities?
- Republicans are also complaining about the size of the budget but do they remember the Bruce Rauner years?
- Eight credit downgrades, $17 billion in unpaid bills, and two years without a state budget vs. Governor Pritzker’s seventh consecutive balanced budget that continues to get the state’s finances back on track while investing in economic development, education, and health care without raising taxes on working families.
- The Illinois GOP is working hard to portray the new budget as “$1 billion in new taxes”—this is a myth.
- Revenues for a state budget consist of a lot of different things. One of the things they consist of is collections. The budget consists of collections that are owed to the state of Illinois and they have to be put into the budget as revenue. It’s not a tax increase.
Federal Budget Spending Vs. State Spending
While Trump ran up the federal debt, Illinois Democrats are balancing the budget and being responsible.
- Illinois’ spending growth under Gov. Pritzker has remained lower than federal spending under Trump, even as we’ve restored services and met our pension obligations.
- Unlike the federal government, Illinois must balance its budget – and Democrats have done so responsibly, year after year.
- During Gov. Pritzker’s time in office, the growth of the state’s general funds budget has not outpaced the federal government’s spending.
- In 2019, Trump’s first federal budget (FY19) was $4.4 trillion. In comparison, Trump’s 2025 One Big Bad Bill’s budget is $6.6 trillion–that’s a $2.2 trillion difference.
- The federal budget increased by 50%, while the state budget increased by 36%.
- The state’s budget growth has primarily been driven by mandatory spending, including increased pension contributions, investments in education, and the restoration of critical social services that were cut by the previous administration.
- Unlike the federal government, states like Illinois are legally required to pass a balanced budget and cannot simply raise their debt ceilings.
- Illinois Democrats have consistently exercised fiscal responsibility by aligning spending that delivers for working families while maintaining long-term fiscal discipline.
- Meanwhile, Trump’s big, ugly bill could add $3.3 trillion to the national debt. Yet, Republicans are silent about that.
The Trump of it All
Trump is creating chaos and pushing cuts. We’re staying focused on protecting people and moving Illinois forward.
- While the Illinois GOP grasps at straws to try to explain how this budget isn’t for working families, Trump is slowing down the economy and actively hurting state budgets, along with pushing his disgusting bill to gut health care and services people rely on.
- Democrats are holding the line – investing in what matters and protecting working families.
- Republicans have no answer for Trump’s $3.3 trillion in new debt, but they’re eager to complain about Illinois’ balanced, responsible budget.
