Springfield, IL – In the waning hours of the final day of the spring session, Illinois Democrats passed a massive spending plan contained in the Fiscal Year 2026 Illinois State Budget.
The budget passed by the Democratic majority will spend $55.2 billion, which is nearly $2 billion more than the FY25 enacted budget. State spending has increased by more than $15 billion, a 38% increase since Governor JB Pritzker took office in 2019.
Deputy Republican Leader Norine Hammond (R-Macomb), who serves as the chief budgeteer for the Illinois House Republican Caucus, criticized Democrats for their outof- control spending.
“The tax-and-spend budget passed by Illinois Democrats is completely irresponsible. It’s a $55 billion budget that relies on $1 billion in new taxes, a massive number of fund sweeps, and hundreds of millions of dollars in Road Fund diversions.
What’s in this budget? Pay raises for politicians. Nearly $250 million in pork projects for Democratic legislators aka the ‘Democratic Majority Slush Fund’ and an additional $100 million slush fund for the Governor.
This budget continues to provide taxpayer- funded Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors, another $110 million in spending for illegal immigrants.
This budget cuts funding for higher education. Our state universities are seeing a two percent reduction in funding from the Governor’s introduced budget.
No money will be deposited into the State’s Rainy-Day fund in the next fiscal year. There isn’t a backup plan when the Democrats’ fund sweeps and one-time revenues run out. That sets us up for yet another tax hike next year.
And the Democrats slashed property tax relief grants to help pay for their reckless spending. There’s no relief for hardworking families and seniors in this budget.
Rather than working with Republicans on a responsible budget plan, Democrats once again chose to go it alone. Their tax-andspend budget is a disservice to my constituents and to families across Illinois.”
