In this issue:
- Session entering its closing days
- Renewing the call for property tax reform
- Illinois unemployment rate holding at 5.1%
- Recognizing Prospect Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve
Session entering its closing days
The House and Senate are scheduled to complete their work and adjourn for the summer on Sunday, but there are still many issues up in the air. This includes not only the budget, but also the so-called “megaprojects” bill, which is the bill for a new stadium for the Chicago Bears.
I will have much more information about the closing days of session in next week’s newsletter, but here is a roundup of where things stand today, with two more days of session remaining.
Keep an eye on repbunting.com and my Facebook page as things continue to unfold.
Renewing the call for property tax reform
This spring I was proud to join the Property Tax Reform Conference in the House of Representatives to call for reforms to Illinois’ badly broken property tax system.
We wrote to the Governor and the leadership of the General Assembly to call for action on property tax reform bills which have were filed last spring and again this spring. Unfortunately, the leadership has thus far refused to act on this needed reform. So recently we tried again. With the number of session days dwindling down toward adjournment, we urged action for reform, but also for transparency and accountability in the property tax system.
You can read our full letter here.
Illinois unemployment rate holding at 5.1%
The latest report from the Illinois Department of Employment Security found that the state’s unemployment rate in April stood unchanged, at 5.1%. That is a 0.6% increase from April 2025.
Something noteworthy in this most recent report was that four key sectors of the economy which are driving job growth nationally and worldwide were not part of the growth picture for Illinois. Over the past year, Professional and Business Services fell in Illinois by 14,300 jobs. Trade, Transportation and Utilities were off by 9900. Financial Activities declined by 6900, and Manufacturing dropped 4400 jobs in Illinois.
The 5.1% unemployment rate in Illinois was once again higher than the rate for the nation as a whole, which stands at 4.3%.
Recognizing Prospect Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve
This week I filed a resolution to recognize the 50th anniversary of Ford County’s Prospect Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve.
Prospect Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve is located on the southern edge of Paxton and is one of Illinois’ rarest remaining mesic black soil tallgrass prairies. The grounds have been preserved for 50 years through the hard work of the Grand Prairie Friends.
Sites like these are important to our past and our future. Our state’s natural preserves are valuable for scientific research, as habitats for rare and vanishing species, as reservoirs of natural materials not all of the potential uses of which are now known, and as living museums of the native landscape wherein one may envision and experience primeval conditions in a wilderness-like environment.
Prospect Cemetery is a habitat for at least 131 species of native herbaceous forbs and grasses – 21 of which are found nowhere else in Ford County. It offers opportunities for hiking, birding and nature photography, and allows residents and visitors to experience a living remnant of the Grand Prairie that once covered east-central Illinois.
Congratulations to Grand Prairie Friends on 50 years of dedication to preserving this important site, and best wishes for many more!
Community Health Fair in Watseka on June 10
In just a couple of weeks Senator Chris Balkema and I will be hosting a FREE community health fair in Watseka.
We will be at the Watseka School Unit 9 office, which is at 1411 W. LaFayette Street, on Wednesday June 10 from 9 a.m. until noon.
This event will give local residents the chance to stop by for helpful information, guides and other resources from state, county and local service agencies.
The event is free and open to the public. I hope you will stop by!
Our current bill backlog
When a vendor provides the state with goods and services, they submit the bill to the Illinois Comptroller for payment. The Comptroller processes the paperwork and pays the bill when funds are available in the state’s checking account. Currently the total amount of unpaid bills is $815,324,558. This figure changes daily. Last year at this time the state had $1.3 billion in bills awaiting payment. This only includes bills submitted to the Comptroller for payment, not unfunded debts like the state’s pension liability, which is well over $100 billion.
Illinois headlines
Ameren Illinois summer electric rates set to take effect
GOP: IL Dems don’t have a revenue problem, they have a spending problem
Illinois lawmakers considering ban on guns like Glocks
Governor JB Pritzker open to pausing gas tax increase set for July 1