Illinois Report Projects Budget Deficits and Lagging Revenues
A yearly report by the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget (GOMB) projects troubling news for Illinois’ economy – a $3.16 billion state budget deficit for the upcoming Fiscal Year leading some to question if another tax hike could be on the horizon.
State Senator Terri Bryant says state government spending has increased by 32 percent since Governor JB Pritzker took office, which is why Democrat leaders earlier this year forced through a record-breaking $53 billion budget that includes nearly $1 billion in higher taxes. That record-breaking $53 billion budget also provides more than $1 billion in benefits for noncitizens.
Senator Bryant says years of such record spending pose a serious risk to Illinois’ fiscal stability and the financial security of its residents. Senate Republicans will continue to support the kind of business and government reforms needed to boost Illinois’ economy and jobs.
ISAC Offers Help With College and Financial Aid Applications
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is offering free college application and financial aid application completion workshops statewide.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, the 2025-2026 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will launch in December.
The FAFSA is the key to unlocking federal, state, and some institutional student financial aid to help pay for college, vocational school, or graduate school. The FAFSA is not just an application for student loans, but also for aid that students don’t have to pay back. That includes scholarships as well as federal grants such as the Pell Grant, and state grants like the Illinois Monetary Award Program (MAP) Grant, which is the state’s largest need-based grant program for low-income college students.
Students should complete the 2025-26 FAFSA as soon as possible when it becomes available in December 2024. For information, click https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa.
IDFPR Launches New Online Professional Licensing System
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) recently launched the Comprehensive Online Regulatory Environment (CORE), a new online licensing system for IDFPR-licensed professionals.
This digital transition begins with three license types—clinical psychologists, nail technicians, and music therapists—who can now complete their entire application process online. CORE seeks to streamline and modernize licensing, moving away from paper applications and simplifying the review process for license applications received by IDFPR.
This launch is the first phase of a two-year rollout that will transition licensing for over 300 professional license types and manage records for more than 1.2 million professionals. More information about professional licensing in Illinois can be found on IDFPR’s website.
Illinois DCFS Celebrates Adoption Awareness Month
November is Adoption Awareness Month, and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is celebrating thousands of families across the state who have opened their homes to 19,347 children in the past 10 years.
Courtrooms across the state are also opening their doors to finalize adoptions during special Adoption Day celebrations on November 22 in Chicago and Marion, November 23 in Rockford, and December 27 in Edwardsville.
Last fiscal year, 2,184 Illinois children were adopted into permanent, loving families. Currently, there are 18,850 youth in care waiting for a family and place to call home.
For more information about becoming an adoptive parent, visit dcfs.illinois.gov and click on “Loving Homes,” then click on “Become a Foster or Adoptive Parent.”