Latest news with #JBPrtizker
Forbes
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Forbes
Make Bravery The Norm—Advice To Graduates (& Leaders) From JB Pritzker
Galesburg, IL June 8, 2025 Gov. J.B. Pritzker delivers commencement address We're at the end of graduation season, with its outpouring of advice dispensed from podiums across the country. My heart was full of joy and hope for my eldest daughter as she graduated from Knox College, a small liberal arts college in rural Illinois. But I'll admit, I anticipated the graduation speech by Governor J.B. Pritzker with a mixture of curiosity and skepticism. For one thing, this is a tough world our kids are graduating into—with the unemployment rate for 20-24-year-olds at 8.2%—more than double the 3.4% unemployment rate for those 25 and over, significant economic uncertainty, and heightened geopolitical risk. What could anyone say to equip and encourage them on this occasion? And in any case, hasn't it all been said? I've heard my share of commencement addresses, and few of them have transcended the usual platitudes. In addition, I am naturally skeptical of very rich guys in positions of political leadership and I worried the Illinios governor and potential presidential hopeful might politicize the speech or make it more about his agenda than the graduates. But when he took the stage in front of these young people and their parents, the governor won me over as he offered some wisdom to the graduates that many of our leaders in business and government could also benefit from. As Gov. Pritzker warmed up, he started with some mild self-deprecation (appropriate, as he was standing where Abraham Lincoln took a stand against slavery in the Fifth Lincoln-Douglas Debate in 1858). He cracked a few jokes and offered some 'dad advice'—turn off the lights when you leave a room, put air in your tires, don't subscribe to too many streaming service subscriptions—very practical, and served up with a dose of humor. The crowd was with him. But then he moved into the heart of the address with three pieces of advice that should speak to us all: Show Up. A leader, grounded in values, shows up for people when it matters, and knows that in many cases what they say or do is less important than the support provided by just being there. The governor touted the importance of showing up for others—attending funerals and soccer games and award ceremonies. 'In a world where TikTok and Instagram tells you to be selfish with your schedule, I am telling you: Be generous with your time. Showing up is a unique and meaningful thing only you can do.' This advice may seem to contradict much advice (including my own) about setting boundaries. But Pritzker's advice is not fundamentally about time management. It is about presence—not about transactions or outcomes—and our commitment to the people in our lives. Doubt. In an increasingly complex world, we may feel the urge to cling to certainty, but certainty offers only a false security and is antithetical to innovation. Pritzker encouraged the graduates to cultivate doubt, because 'doubt makes us curious. Doubt keeps us humble. Doubt makes us seek when it would be so much easier to sit idle. Doubt prompts us to ask good questions. Questions like: am I looking at ALL the facts or just the ones I want to see?' As leaders, our experiences, mental models and the playbooks that we relied on in the past may not be equal to the task of scaling in a complex world. They require constant updating and iteration. Doubt invites leaders to be vigilant about confirmation and other biases, seek out divergent points of view, welcome challenges to assumptions, and be open to experiment. Be Brave. Finally, Gov. Pritzker exhorted the graduates to make courage the norm, not the exception. 'When we tell the stories of history, we often excuse the atrocities of our ancestors by suggesting that they were merely acting on what was popular at the time. Because we understand in our core, whether we want to admit it or not, how much easier it is to live a life that chases popularity rather than courage. Occasionally we are confronted with stories, like the founding of Knox College [established in 1837 by abolitionists committed to educating women and people of color]Pritzker urged the graduates to 'expect bravery' of themselves and their communities rather than accepting passivity that it rooted in fear. In this time of uncertainty and even chaos, it is tempting to double down on fear, to hesitate and wait to see which way the wind blows. Instead, it is not just our newly-minted graduates who we are called upon to show up with the curiosity and humility borne of doubt, and be brave. It is all of us.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Changes coming to Illinois after Pritzker signs multiple bills
ILLINOIS (WCIA) — The Governor's office announced Monday that JB Pritzker signed a variety of bills, ranging from an expedited FOID card process, changes to the Illinois Medicaid program and the approval of the FY26 Budget. Governor Pritzker signed HB742 on Monday. According to his office, this will delay the date the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act would be enforced until July 1, 2026. The Interchange Fee Prohibition Act would ban banks or credit card companies from charging businesses a fee for the tipped or taxed portion of a transaction. 'Illinois has always been kind of a transactional state': Political science professor weighs in on Madigan sentencing HB1075 was signed by Pritzker on Monday, and creates a 'more transparent and expedited process' for those who have had their Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) cards revoked or denied because they were deemed a 'clear and present danger.' Before the bill was signed, individuals could lose their FOID card if they were reported as a danger to themselves or others to the Illinois State Police. State Senator Julie Morrison said that there is a process to appeal a FOID revocation or denial, but often the person is unable to challenge the decision because information from the original report is often not disclosed. Now, the FOID Card Review Board will be able to expedite the appeals process and share information with the individual about their 'clear and present danger' determination. HB850 also requires the Illinois State Police to publish data about incidents involving stolen guns or firearms with serial numbers that are missing. Bill banning AI therapy bots in Illinois awaits signature On Monday, Pritzker signed HB1075, which will go into effect immediately. HB1075, also known as the Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Implementation Act creates changes in state programs that are 'necessary to implement the state budget for this upcoming fiscal year. Some changes include: Funds from the Small Business Environmental Assistance Fund transferred to the Clean Air Act Permit Fund To promote State campground use, the state will offer coupons that waive camping fees for one night, when residents purchase at least one additional night of camping The Supreme Court Indirect Cost Fund is established as a federal trust fund in the State treasury. Money received by the Supreme Court from any federal department or agency as an indirect cost reimbursement shall be deposited into the Fund For a full list of the changes, click here Illinois bill ending scam gym membership tactic heads to governor's desk Pritzker also signed HB1075, which creates several different changes in Illinois taxes. The FY26 Revenue Omnibus legislation goes into effect immediately. Some acts that will see changes from this year's budget include: Tax Delinquency Amnesty Act amendment Illinois Income Tax Act amendments The Illinois Municipal Code Preventing Youth Vaping Act The Prevention of Cigarette and Electronic Cigarette Sales to Persons under 21 Years of Age Act You can find more changes, and read about the changes in detail here HB2771, which goes into effect immediately, modifies and makes the the Hospital Assessment Program permanent. Pritzker originally extended the program through 2026. It helps hospitals who serve a large number of patients with Medicaid to receive additional revenue. It also includes a provision for the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) to collect unpaid assessments from delinquent hospital providers. Illinois bill on governor's desk would require law enforcement to work with federal gun tracing database Pritzker also signed HB3374, also known as the Bond Authorization Act of 2025. The Bond Authorization legislation will begin January 1, 2026 and amends: The State Finance Act The General Obligation Bond Act The Build Illinois Bond Act SB2437 makes various changes to the Illinois Medicaid program and was signed on Monday. It goes into effect July 1, 2025. Some of these changes include: Hospitals with birthing centers will be required to create policies allowing a patient in a medical assistance program to have an Illinois Medicaid certified doula accompany them before, during and after labor and childbirth The Department of Healthcare and Family Services, the Department of Human Services and the Department of Public Health will develop screening guidelines for tardive dyskinesia for providers serving patients who have been prescribed antipsychotic medication After Jan. 1, 2026, over-the-counter choline dietary supplements for pregnant people will be covered under the medical assistance program To find out more about the new changes, click here Bill creating Office of State Public Defender heads to Pritzker's desk SB2456 was signed on Monday by Pritzker and makes several changes by extending various legislation or by repealing various statutes. It goes into effect immediately. Some of the changes Illinoisians may see include: Images from cameras under the Expressway Camera Act are exempt from inspection and copying until July 1, 2028 (rather than July 1, 2025) The creation of the Access to Voting for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Task Force The creation of the Illinois Elections and Infrastructure Integrity Task Force Repealing the provision calling for the state to create a program so that individuals under 18 can purchase lottery tickets For more changes coming to Illinois law, click here SB2510 represents the FY26 Budget. It was signed by Pritzker, and was approved with 'certain line items reduced,' according to his office. It adds, changes, and reduces different funding appropriations from last year's budget. Some of these changes include: Increases funding for K-12 education Small increase to higher education Cuts the number of funded hours for support professionals in group homes for people with disabilities Cuts the program giving non-citizen adults access to state sponsored healthcare Further details can be found here Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Associated Press
3 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker to seek a 3rd term amid questions about higher political ambitions
CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker will seek a third term in office next year amid growing questions about the Democrat's ambitions for higher office. The Democrat will announce his intentions Thursday at an event in Chicago, according to two people familiar with his plans who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly ahead of the events. The 60-year-old wealthy businessman was a top contender as Kamala Harris' running mate during her 2024 presidential run. Pritzker, who has spent years building his national political profile, remains a vocal critic of President Donald Trump. He has often been mentioned as a potential presidential candidate for his party, fanned by travel to New Hampshire, fundraising and campaigning for Democrats across the country. It's not clear if he may still consider a bid in 2028 or later. 'To be in public office right now is to constantly ask yourself, 'How do I make sure I'm standing on the right side of history?'' he said at a June commencement address at Knox College in Illinois. 'There is a simple answer: The wrong side of history will always tell you to be afraid. The right side of history will always expect you to be brave.' Illinois does not have term limits. Pritzker is the first governor to seek a third term since Republican Jim Thompson in 1982. Pritzker, an heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune, is a former private equity investor and a philanthropist. He became governor in 2019, his first time serving in public office after losing a 1998 Democratic primary for a suburban congressional seat. He bested a crowded primary field for governor and went on to defeat one-term Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, a venture capitalist. The 2018 matchup was one of the nation's most expensive statewide political races, with more than $250 million raised between the largely self-funded candidates. Questions about the wealth and relatability of both candidates — who each have buildings in Chicago named after their families — came up often. For instance, Pritzker faced questions about his Chicago mansion's property taxes. He received a tax break after having the toilets removed from a second mansion he owns next to his family residence and declaring it 'uninhabitable.' Pritzker later repaid the county about $330,000. Working with Democratic supermajorities in the House and Senate, Pritzker has boasted balanced budgets and paid down billions of dollars in debt, prompting several upgrades. He also has overseen increased education funding, the centralization of early childhood services, and new laws to make health insurance more comprehensive, accessible and affordable. After receiving generally high marks in his first term for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pritzker defeated a Trump-endorsed Republican with 55% of the vote to become the first Illinois governor to be elected to a second term in 16 years. He promptly delivered a victory speech that seemed bound for a national campaign, denouncing Trump and asking: 'Are you ready to fight?' He has continued to be among Trump's most vocal, no-holds-barred critics. 'Donald Trump is a convicted felon, liable for sexual assault, and a congenital liar,' Pritzker said after Trump's speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. 'He is a man who remains wholly unfit for the office of the presidency, both in temperament and character.' In February, Pritzker, who is Jewish, compared the Trump administration to Nazi Germany 'I do not invoke the specter of Nazis lightly. But I know the history intimately — and have spent more time than probably anyone in this room with people who survived the Holocaust,' he said in February. 'Here's what I've learned: The root that tears apart your house's foundation begins as a seed, a seed of distrust and hate and blame.' Pritzker, whose net worth is estimated as $3.7 billion by Forbes, has also bankrolled his political organization, 'Think Big America.' It aims to protect abortion rights and has supported state constitutional amendments to strengthen those protections in Ohio, Arizona and Nevada. Pritzker says the fight for abortion rights is personal and credits his mother Sue with sparking his early interest in the cause when they attended abortion-rights rallies together. His mother died in a car accident when he was a teen. His father, Donald Pritzker, died years earlier of a heart attack when JB Pritzker was a young boy. Pritzker is married with two children. He has several prominent family members. His sister Penny Pritzker, is a former U.S. special representative for Ukraine's economic recovery and was a U.S. commerce secretary in the Obama administration. ___ O'Connor reported from Springfield, Ill.
Forbes
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Forbes
Illinois Vehicle Mileage Tax—Fix The Roads And Fund The Future
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 18: Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker speaks at the office of The Center for ... More American Progress (CAP) Action Fund on March 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. Pritzker spoke about his views of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration so far. (Photo by) Getty Images Illinois lawmakers appear to be considering a revival of the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) tax—an idea that was first floated in 2019 but proved dead on arrival . Instead of recoiling from it as 'just another tax,' perhaps we should ask a more interesting question: what if the VMT tax is exactly what is needed to internalize the actual cost of road usage—not only in Illinois, but nationwide? Illinois already levies the second highest gas tax in the nation, behind only California . Since 2019, that tax has been set to climb automatically each year. This has generated about $2.8 billion annually in revenue. However, gas taxes, like a new car driven off the lot, begin losing value the moment they're implemented. As vehicles become more fuel efficient and as electric vehicles (EVs) gain a larger market share, the traditional gas tax withers on the vine. This necessitates a hiking of the tax rate to make up for a decrease in the total amount of gasoline used. In other words, less gas burned means less tax collected—but unlike fossil fuel emissions, road damage doesn't diminish with battery power. A Tesla weighs more than a Toyota Corolla. If anything, heavier EVs do more damage to roads per mile driven, not less. While they owners bypass the pump, they're still tearing up the roads. This is where a VMT tax starts to look attractive. Instead of taxing gallons, it taxes miles. In other words, it ties the road funding to the very thing actually causing the damage: driving. It transforms an attenuated tax on fuel into something of a user fee—not unlike a toll, but one that applies to all roads. This is a great start, but if Illinois is going to pilot this, they should try to get it right. A tiered structure based on vehicle weight would better align taxation with actual pavement impact. After all, a 7,000-pound curb weigh Rivian R1T chews up infrastructure a lot faster than a Chevrolet Bolt. The proposed legislation, SB1938 , allows for variable pricing by time of day and by road type. This opens the door to potential congestion pricing and smarter infrastructure load balancing. While the bill doesn't mandate it, there is nothing stopping the state from also tiering the fee by vehicle weight which, along with time of day and road type, would bring us even closer to matching tax policy with actual impact. Critics contend that the VMT tax opens the door to all manner of Orwellian surveillance schemes. The proposal's pilot program does entertain transponders and odometer photography, neither of which is ideal. However, it requires minimal data collection, explicitly prohibits personal information gathering, and offers non-GPS alternatives. It seems less like an Apple Watch for your Grand Wagoneer and more like a simple step tracker for your Corolla. Most importantly, the pilot program is temporary and subject to legislative review. It must run for at least a year, with a full report due to the General Assembly within 18 months. The report must analyze not just revenue and logistics, but equity impacts, enforcement concerns, data security, and the potential for fraud. Illinois is leading the way in infrastructure funding in part out of necessity. The state has already maxed out the gas tax regime. It has doubled the rate; it has tied it to inflation—and it is still projecting significant shortfalls in infrastructure revenue in the coming years. That isn't a sign of a sustainable system, it's the sound of a fiscal catastrophe approaching. A VMT offers something different: a user fee that grows or shrinks with road usage, not oil prices or efficiency improvements. It is potentially more equitable, resilient, and future-proof. Instead of reflexively fighting it, hopefully some Illinoisans might consider trying to make a VMT work—seeing it not as an addition to the gas tax, but an escape hatch from an ever-increasing tax regime. If Illinois can get this right, it could prove a template for the nation. The Prairie State isn't the only one staring down the barrel of fuel efficiency—every state is watching its gas tax base erode while infrastructure crumbles. A well-designed VMT system—tested small, tailored regionally, and scalable nationally—could be the first serious attempt to future-proof road funding in a generation.
Fox News
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
House Speaker Johnson tours ICE facility, says Chicago mayor is 'on the wrong side of the law'
House Speaker Mike Johnson called out Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson for opposing federal immigration enforcement, saying he was "on the wrong side of the law." "I tell you what, they have a very difficult job in this deep blue territory with a mayor on the wrong side of the law," the Speaker said Wednesday on Fox News' "America's Newsroom" with Bill Hemmer and guest co-host Gillian Turner. "They are doing everything they can, a patriotic duty," Speaker Johnson said, referring to his visit to a Chicago Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility. "They are understaffed, overwhelmed with the workload trying to go after the dangerous criminal illegal aliens in the country, harming American citizens. The mayor of Chicago thinks it's an ill-conceived mission, that's madness." Both Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Mayor Johnson have spoken out against Trump's immigration enforcement efforts. "We do know ICE is coming once again in force to cities across the country, so we expect to see them in Chicago," Pritzker said Thursday. "I don't know exactly how big the force will be, but I do know he has used other law enforcement along with ICE to carry out his ill-conceived mission to go after people who frankly are paying taxes, and they're law-abiding, and they've been here for many, many years." Mayor Johnson said Monday that Trump should not deploy federal troops to enforce federal immigration priorities. "We will continue to resist," he said. "Whether it's in the courts, in the streets, or through public policy, we're going to stand up for working people." The City of Chicago has allowed in over 51,000 illegal immigrants from the southern border since August 31, 2022. Speaker Johnson addressed Trump's "big, beautiful bill" — a measure to extend the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and provide new funding for the border and defense — which passed the House on May 22 and is now in the Senate. "We're working on the one big beautiful bill to allow them the resources that are desperately needed," he said. "I mean, they are doing the job. The border is secured. We are locked down. We're not allowing illegals into the country anymore. But the enforcement and removal of the dangerous people who got here is an essential task for our ICE agents and officers to take care of. They need more personnel, they need more facilities. We're here to see it," the Speaker added. He also said that the legislation will give annual $10,000 bonuses over the next four years to ICE and Border Patrol agents "for the people on the front lines," echoing a statement from the White House.
