IVCA Provides Updates for State Legislative Issues – 10/15/2025
Illinois Venture Capital Association Illinois Legislative Report
David Stricklin / Stricklin & Associates
Wednesday, October 15, 2025
LEGISLATURE WRESTLES WITH TRANSIT / BEARS / ENERGY / FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
The Illinois General Assembly is in session this week in the first week of the annual Veto Session. Veto Session isn’t much about dealing with a veto from the governor these days with Democrats in control of both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly and the governor’s office. It’s instead a mini-regular-session, a place where overlooked or unsettled issues go for a hearing, except of course for the fact that it requires a super-majority three-fifths of the votes for something to pass. The legislature meets this week mostly to assess member sentiment and to prepare for floor action the last week of October.
* WAND | Back in action: Illinois House Speaker, Minority Leader break down veto session priorities: While McCombie is not optimistic about work getting done this week, Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch told WAND News it is time to address actions threatening public safety. […] Democrats hope to limit ICE agents from detaining people in courthouses, expand the definition of law enforcement prohibited from cooperating with immigration enforcement, and potentially ban law enforcement from wearing masks or neck gaiters on the job. Yet, Republicans strongly oppose those ideas.
While the “fiscal cliff” for the transit reform and funding package seems to have been turned into a “fiscal curb”, there’s still hundreds of millions of dollars needed, and the ideas being floated run the gamut:
MILLIONAIRES TAX AND MORE TRANSIT IDEAS
Some of those ideas are obviously without much support in the Capitol building. But somewhere there will have to be new revenue found for the mass transit package.
One of the Illinois legislature’s biggest opponents of the Chicago Bears’ plan to relocate outside the city introduced legislation on Tuesday that could stall or hinder the team’s efforts, but significant questions remain about whether the bill will garner enough support or when it might be voted on.
The legislation from state Rep. Kam Buckner of Chicago — a former University of Illinois football player who represents the district where Soldier Field is located — calls for greater transparency around stadium deals in Illinois and could require the team to dig deeper into its pockets. It remains silent, however, about major financial issues, including whether the franchise would have to pay off outstanding debt for the 2003 Soldier Field renovation, a point some opponents of the team’s move have said is a bare minimum for their support. […] “I want to at least lay down the tracks for what the rules of engagement are for us,” Buckner said. “We’ve asked the Bears to come forward with a plan and show their work and show how this is a net benefit to the people. I think they’ve fallen short of that. And so, I think now the ball is back in our court. It’s incumbent upon us to tell what we need to hear from them.” […
In addition, the Buckner bill targets the Bears’ plans to negotiate a long-term property tax deal with local schools and other taxing bodies, which is a crucial aspect of the team’s plan to relocate to northwest suburban Arlington Heights. Under Buckner’s proposed legislation, sports franchises would instead have to reimburse schools, libraries and emergency services for property taxes lost as a result of stadium agreements.
FORMER SPEAKER REPORTS TO FEDERAL PRISON
Once the most powerful person in state government, outlasting numerous governors and plenty of political foes, former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan reported Monday to a federal prison facility in West Virginia.