Senate Republicans Push for Transparency on Noncitizen Spending

Governor JB Pritzker’s non-citizen welfare policies have exhausted state resources and helped create the largest migrant crisis in the Midwest. The Governor’s financial gimmicks and loopholes make it impossible to know exactly how many taxpayer dollars he has used to fund his invited migrant crisis. This lack of transparency is even more egregious considering Governor Pritzker has proposed nearly $1 billion in tax hikes on Illinois families to continue to pay for the migrant crisis he created.

In response, State Senator Sue Rezin cosponsored legislation to give Illinois taxpayers much-needed transparency on the migrant crisis Governor Pritzker has created. Senate Bill 3170 would require the Illinois Department of Human Services to work with relevant State agencies, to prepare an annual report to the General Assembly identifying all state spending on services and resources for migrants. It would also be available to the public on the department’s website.

The report would include details of services and resources provided by various state entities, including but not limited to the State Board of Education, Department of Human Services, Department of Public Health, Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security, Department of Central Management Services, Department of Labor, and Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

The report is required to include the following information concerning expenditures:

  • Total amount spent on noncitizen and asylum-seeking populations in the previous fiscal year.
  • Specific appropriations authorizing the spending.
  • Any transfers among line-item appropriations associated with noncitizen and asylum-seeking populations.
  • Total number of families or individuals impacted by each service or resource.
  • Funding sources of the service or resource.
  • Contracts awarded to organizations providing services or resources in various categories such as emergency shelter, food, health screenings, legal services, job readiness support, enrollment in public schools, long-term housing, mental health assessments, and other related spending.

Further, the legislation requires the Governor to include a detailed accounting of all proposed spending on noncitizen populations in future state budgets, providing an additional layer of transparency to the people of Illinois.

Senator Rezin says that the people of Illinois deserve to know how much of their tax dollars are being spent on migrant services, especially when the Governor is trying to raise their taxes by $1 billion.

You can watch the press conference discussing this new legislation here. Join us in saying NO to Governor Pritzker’s tax hikes by signing Senator Rezin’s petition.

Want to stay up to date with your Senator?

Sign up for the District E-Newsletter below:

[wpnbf-signup]