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Session Update
The Illinois General Assembly was back in session this week. The House and Senate returned to Springfield on Tuesday for the first day of veto session and finished business early on Wednesday with Thursday's action being canceled. While the Senate did pass some legislation, most of the action that occurred on the floor over the two days were personal messages and agreed resolutions. Limited committee hearings were held.
While legislative action was slow this week, much occurred behind the scenes with leadership changes in the House and Senate GOP caucuses. In the House, Representative Tony McCombie was elected as the next Republican Leader to replace current Leader Jim Durkin who recently announced he would not seek another term as head of the caucus. In the upper chamber, Senator John Curran will take over as Leader of the SGOP. Senate President Harmon and House Speaker Welch will both serve another term.
The Chamber looks forward to working with the Senate President and House Speaker as well these new leaders in the 103rd General Assembly. We thank Leader Durkin and Leader McConchie for their efforts to improve the state’s business climate.
Lawmakers will return for the second week of veto session on Tuesday, November 29th with more action expected to occur.
Unemployment Insurance Update
The Illinois Chamber Employment Law Council is actively engaged on all unemployment insurance related issues. Provided below is their update on UI negotiations.
The Illinois Chamber, joined by other business groups, have been at the table negotiating with organized labor, the Governor's office and the four legislative caucuses on unemployment insurance.
There is some urgency to reach an agreement to allow the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) adequate time to confirm conformity of our legislative changes with the USDOL and for IDES to prepare employer tax statements.
The federal unemployment insurance debt of $1.3B will not be paid by the federal deadline which will trigger the loss of a portion of our FUTA tax credit which means up to $21 per employee earning $7,000.
If you have any thoughts or questions please reach out to Jay Shattuck at jfshattuck@michaelbeststrategies.com or Aaron Harris at adharris@michaelbeststrategies.com
Legislative Action
HB 1293, Russia Divestiture passed out of the Senate by a vote of 50-0-0 and now returns to the House on concurrence. This bill, among many other things, prohibits the investment of State moneys and public funds in certain investments or institutions tied to Russia or Belarus. This bill unanimously passed the House in April but received some cleanup in Senate Amendment 1.
IDOT invites submissions for $200 million freight program
Yesterday, IDOT announced that applications are being accepted for its competitive grant program to improve the mobility of freight throughout the state while providing long-term benefits in congestion relief and economic opportunity. Applications are due Dec. 19 for up to $200 million in National Highway Freight Program funds to be distributed through 2026, with 30% slated for intermodal rail and water projects.
Administered by IDOT using federal funds, the competitive grant program is designed to implement the goals of the Illinois State Freight Plan. Successful proposals will address one or more goals of the plan, such as increasing safety, improving reliability and boosting intermodal connections and commerce at the local level.
Eligible applicants include government agencies, metropolitan planning organizations and regional planning commissions. Project proposals from private entities must have a public sponsor. Applications and qualification information is available on IDOT’s website under Illinois Competitive Freight Program. Grant awards will be announced in the spring.
Illinois Economic and Fiscal Policy Report
The FY 2023 Economic and Fiscal Policy Report has been released. The Governor's Office of Management and Budget (GOMB), pursuant to 20 ILCS 3005/7.3, annually submits an Economic and Fiscal Policy Report to the General Assembly outlining the long-term economic and fiscal policy objectives of the State, along with the economic and fiscal policy intentions for the upcoming fiscal year and for the subsequent four fiscal years.
The report also includes a comparison of the current fiscal year’s enacted budget with the current outlook for the fiscal year along with fiscal and policy options GOMB recommends for consideration by the General Assembly and the Governor to remedy any budgetary shortfalls in the current year or the five following fiscal years.
Read the FY23 Report here.
Illinois Chamber: 2022 Illinois Economy Factbook
The Illinois Chamber is proud to present our resource called the '2022 Illinois Economy Factbook.’ This document is brought to you by the collective work of many of the Chamber Council Directors. In the Factbook, you will find charts, rankings, and other helpful economic-related data from each of our core policy areas. This is our first year with this project, and we would love to expand upon it in the future. We were proud to present this item to each attendee at the 2022 Annual Meeting.
View and download the factbook here.
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