April 23, 2026

GOOD DAY!

The Illinois House convenes for its 3rd and final legislative workday scheduled for this week. The House gavels in at 9:30 a.m. The Illinois State Senate is not in session this week.

RECAP OF THE LAST SESSION DAY-With a wild card couple of weeks in terms of floor time and committee scheduling, yesterday was as if House leadership threw a hand grenade in the House chamber with calling three major actions. HJRCA 28 (redistricting referendum) was called on the floor for action where the House stood at ease for Republicans to caucus. The House reconvened and passed the redistricting referendum. The House again stood at ease for the House Revenue Committee to meet for the second time of the day to consider HB 910 (MEGA PROJECTS---aka Chicago Bears Arlington Heights) which also passed on the House floor. The House adjourned last evening at 8:00 PM.

Floor Action of Note

HJRCA 28-Redistricting passed off the House Floor on a vote of 74-38-0. HJRCA 28 alters provisions under the Illinois Constitution related to how legislative districts can be drafted. HJRCA 28 will now move to the Senate, where it will need to be passed out of committee and off the floor before May 3rd for the referendum question to appear on the November ballot. It is worthy to note that the late exposure of the proposal and expedited nature of the proceedings runs counter to our democratic-republic processes and our expectations of a post Madigan era.

HB 799 (HFA1)-Tax Sales passed off the House floor on a vote of 72-39-0. The legislation alters a portion of the delinquent property tax sale process to align the State with the decision made in Tyler v. Hennepin County (598 U.S. 631). Several members of the House Revenue Committee expressed protestations that the legislation stops short of the intended remedy.  The sponsor indicated that further conversations would unfold in the Senate.

HB 910 HFA1- Megaprojects passed off the House floor on a vote of 78-32-0. With House floor Amendment #3, the legislative measure does the following:

Establishes the Megaproject Assessment Freeze and Payment Law.
Establishes the Railroad Rehabilitation and Economic Development for Yards megaproject (“RREDY” megaproject).
Building materials that will be incorporated into a megaproject purchased during the incentive period are eligible for the same building materials as the exemption available to High Impact Businesses under ROTA.
To be eligible for megaproject incentives, the company and the local municipality must enter into an incentive agreement.
Creates New Opportunities for Vacation and Adventure Urban District (NOVA urban district). Sets forth the requirements to be certified as a NOVA urban district.
Establishes the Capital Area Tourism Authority in the City of Springfield, Sangamon County, and the State of Illinois.
Creates the Capital City Downtown Medical District within the City of Springfield.

ORDER OF THE DAY-There are two committees posted this morning kicking off at 8:00 a.m. Being that the House is coming from 3rd Reading Deadline week last week and a very hectic week this week, I suspect the chamber will convene and conduct minimal floor action and ministerial business. While the Senate is not in session, Senate Executive Committee will meet virtually this afternoon for a subject matter hearing on posted bills.

 House Committee Postings

Senate Committee Postings

SUPPLEMENTAL RECORD-
--This afternoon I will be speaking at the Illinois County Treasurers Association meeting in Springfield on our legislative initiative-HB 5391 Government Reporting Enhancement and Transparency Act.
--The Millionaire’s Tax HJRCA that was in play was not called and therefore is dead—at least for now.
It will be interesting how the Senate deals with HJRCA 28 (Redistricting) and the Mega Projects legislation. While both chambers are solid blue, history has shown they do not coordinate on issues—vis-à-vis staggered legislative work weeks. House Democratic leadership expended a great deal of capital to get these two items over the threshold.
--The Senate will be the only chamber in session next week.
--The House is scheduled to return to the Capitol on May 5th.
--ICPAS Legislative Tracking Reports-Legislative Tracking Reports continue to be updated with my annotated notes and their statuses.  Pending relevant bills of interest from the Spring Session remain posted as they may move.
General Legislative Tracking Report
Tax Legislative Tracking Report