By almost all accounts, 2023 was the most “normal” session experienced in Springfield since 2019. After three years of truncated legislative sessions, the General Assembly adjourned last week in the early morning of May 27th. Of course, this was after a self-imposed adjournment date of May 19th was missed as budget negotiations and other end-of-year business were prolonged. Just like every year, the Illinois Chamber team diligently drafted, tracked, and advocated on legislation impactful for the business community. This document is a product of that advocacy.
Illinois Chamber of Commerce Victories Permitting Portal: Illinois Chamber and Illinois Environmental Regulatory Group Initiative Passes House and Senate Unanimously HB 3017, sponsored by Representative Yednock and Senator Villivalam passed out of the House and Senate unanimously. This bill is a joint initiative of the Illinois Chamber and the Illinois Environmental Regulatory Group (IERG) to assist businesses in obtaining environmental permits for large-scale projects. We believe this tool will help spur economic development statewide. This Chamber initiative is a significantly amended version of HB 5555 which unanimously passed the House last spring during the 102nd General Assembly. With this bill, the Business Assistance and Regulatory Reform Act is amended to improve the permitting process in the State by creating an online permitting portal for new and existing environmental permit applicants with a qualified investment of $20 million or greater. With such a portal, businesses seeking certain permits for industrial projects can access a website to better understand the timeline and process for agency approval and to track the status of their permits. This legislation will support economic growth in the state by giving businesses user-friendly tools to assist them in navigating the complexities of environmental permitting for projects. Additionally, such a tool makes Illinois competitive with nearby states that offer similar assistance for businesses. We thank the General Assembly for recognizing a need for transparency and a pro-growth mindset in State government and empowering DCEO to utilize information technology to streamline interagency coordination for the issuance of environmental permits.
Consumer Health Data Bill Held for Remainder of Spring One of the bills that caused us the most worry this session was HB 3603 (Williams). This bill was pushed by the same groups that brought us BIPA and it’s not an exaggeration to say this bill had the potential to be equally catastrophic. The proponents, mainly the ACLU, claim it is a reproductive health protection act. In reality, it’s an omnibus data privacy bill cloaked in reproductive healthcare protections. A thanks to all the business groups that lined up in opposition to this including Technet, IMA, IRMA, iBio, Chicagoland, and the Fuel and Retail Association. Thankfully we were able to prevent this bill from moving during the Spring session. Kudos to the General Assembly for not rushing flawed policy. HB 4093 is close to identical language. It was introduced late in session as a placeholder for conversations this summer. You can read our joint fact sheet HERE. 5
Business Coalition Help Stop Onerous Environmental Justice Act Another Year Expectations lingered all session regarding a desire to adopt legislation dealing with Environmental Justice (EJ). Numerous bills were filed by environmental activists. The business coalition made up of the Chamber, IERG and other associations filed its language to counteract the environmental activists’ narrative. The Chamber and IERG helped stop HB 2520 (Harper) from passing this session. The bill was placed on postponed consideration after its first failed attempt to pass the House, then when a second attempt was made, the bill failed to receive the number of required votes to move to the Senate chamber. The Chamber and IERG continue to advocate for the passing of an environmental justice bill that prioritizes the economic health of a region, its businesses, and residents. The business coalition environmental justice legislation, SB 852, was filed on May 8, 2023. This language was developed by a partnership of various industry Associations.
California Misclassification of Independent Contractor Legislation Proposed Independent contractors, sometimes referred to as 1099 employees after the tax form they receive, are a critical part of the economy. 4 years ago, California passed AB 5 which made their usage exceedingly difficult. The intervening years have seen dozens of carve outs, widespread protests and a statewide referendum overturning portions of this law. The Attorney General’s office attempted to bring this terrible law to Illinois. One of the main priorities of the Chamber this session was preventing movement on this spectacularly bad idea. We put together a weekly working group of nearly 40 lobbyists to halt this measure before it received any movement. While a sample draft was floated, we were able to stop even the official introduction of this language. We will remain on guard for similar proposals in the fall.
Autonomous Vehicle Restrictions Prevented Four bills were filed which would have dramatically restricted the testing and implementation of autonomous vehicles in Illinois. Two of the bills were backed by the Teamsters Union HB 1403 (Evans) / SB 306 (Villivalam) and two backed by the powerful motorcycle group ABATE HB 2053 (Kifowit)/ SB 1471 (Turner). The Chamber viewed these measures shortsighted, and fear based, response to the technology of the future. We have heard from auto manufacturers, trucking companies and major agricultural brands that seek to use autonomous vehicles in the near future and are concerned about these legislative proposals. We joined a coalition of business groups in opposing these measures. After meetings with the Speaker, Senate President and the Governor’s staff, these bills were all held in committee.
First Medicaid Rate Increase in 28 Years A long overdue Medicaid increase was passed in the final days of the General Assembly. Providers will see their first increase since 1995. While providers only received half the increase they requested, 10% as opposed to 20%, this represents much needed relief. As Senate Republicans pointed out on the floor, if rates had kept up with inflation over this time budgeteers would need to fund a 96% increase.
###