Illinois Enacts Record $55.9 Billion Budget for Fiscal Year 2027

The Illinois General Assembly passed a record state budget for fiscal year 2027, with the House voting 76-39 and the Senate voting 37-21 to approve the measure in the early morning hours of June 1, following a lengthy overnight session. Governor JB Pritzker subsequently signed the roughly $55.9 billion spending plan, marking the eighth budget of his tenure, and later issued a clean-up veto to correct drafting errors introduced during the late-night process. The budget document itself ran more than 3,700 pages. The plan raises several hundred million dollars in new taxes, including levies on corporations, social media companies, fantasy sports operators, and digital assets such as cryptocurrency; one report specified that new taxes on corporate net operating loss deductions and social media companies were projected to generate about $500 million in revenue. The budget also increases K-12 education funding, with one figure citing more than $300 million in new education spending, and allocates close to $100 million toward food assistance programs. Additional provisions include a sales tax holiday on school supplies and a pause on a previously planned increase to the state's gas tax. The budget takes effect July 1, 2026, and represents the largest in Illinois history by total dollar amount. Republicans criticized the plan for relying too heavily on tax increases, while Democrats defended it amid broader debate over affordability heading into election-year politics. Reports differ slightly on the precise total, with figures cited as either approximately $55.9 billion or $56 billion, and on whether the plan is characterized as a 2026 or fiscal year 2027 budget; these discrepancies remain unresolved in available reporting.