This year’s veto session was one of the most impactful in recent memory, and it moved several major issues that had been years in the making.
After countless rounds of negotiations, Illinois finally reached a deal on long-awaited transit reform. The package restructures the Chicago metro system and invests $1.5 billion in new dollars into public transit statewide. The revenue plan is a mix of increased tolls, shifting a portion of the road fund to support transit, and an expected future sales tax increase that the RTA or the new board will vote on. The bill cleared both chambers and is headed to the Governor’s desk, where it’s expected to be signed.
The General Assembly also passed HB 1312, which includes key priorities from ICIRR’s Safety and Action for Liberation Together platform. This is a major step forward for immigrant protections across Illinois and a reminder of what’s possible when communities organize together. And to avoid painful revenue losses tied to federal tax changes, lawmakers approved a partial decoupling bill. While it doesn’t address every provision, it prevents Illinois from losing hundreds of millions of dollars and sets the stage for additional action this spring.
At the federal level, the longest government shutdown in history finally ended on November 12th after Congress approved, and the President signed, a bill to reopen agencies. Even though funding has been restored, there’s still no resolution on ACA subsidies, which were at the center of the shutdown standoff. SNAP benefits were partially and now fully restored; USDA issued up to 65 percent of early benefits from a contingency fund, and IDHS has shared that November benefits will be fully out by November 20th, with December benefits expected to follow on schedule. Still, the disruptions caused by the shutdown, combined with HUD’s recent NOFO that threatens cuts to supportive housing (read more in the special feature of this newsletter) , underscore how fragile the landscape has become for essential programs.
We’ll be unpacking what all of this means for the year ahead, and where our collective advocacy is most needed, during our upcoming webinar: What’s Ahead for 2026: Federal and Illinois Policy Updates. We hope you’ll join us. Register here.
###
Never miss a news item – get our Fast4ward newsletter Sign up now
