In This Issue
State of the State and Budget Highlights
Legislation from 41st District
How to File a Witness Slip
Summer Internship Program
Intellectual Developmental Disabilities Roundtable
March Coffee & Conversation
Dear Friends,
There’s been much going on in the Illinois state legislature over the last month, including legislation moving through committees and the introduction of the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget. The latter represents one of the opening steps for budget negotiations and an area where my colleagues and I will spend much of our time over the next few months. The budget shortfalls that were projected in November have been less severe than expected, but there’s still much uncertainty around Federal funding that could affect our district, including the over 11,000 residents in our 41st district enrolled in Medicaid and Illinois Healthcare and Family Services programs.
This newsletter provides details on all of these activities, as well as some of the ways you can participate in the legislative process. That can include submitting witness slips or attending our monthly coffee—we also have our summer internship program, which is a great way for high school and college students to get hands-on experience serving constituents and working on legislation.
Please never hesitate to contact my office or me if we can be of service to you.
Sincerely,
Janet
Pictured below: Chairing the House Personnel & Pensions committee.
State of the State and Budget Highlights
In mid-February, Governor JB Pritzker gave his seventh State of the State and budget address, which you can read or watch in full. The remarks covered much ground and served as a good reminder of the many areas of progress that we have seen as a state in the last few years, such as:
Earning nine credit rating upgrades
Saving $2.2 billion in a Rainy Day Fund
Eliminating an $8 billion bill backlog
It also marked the opening steps of negotiating the coming fiscal year 2026 budget. I’m approaching this process with the following goals, based on the feedback our district residents have provided:
Uplifting working people and providing relief from the rising cost of living, particularly when it comes to healthcare, raising families, and property taxes
Making smart investments to attract and keep businesses in Illinois, provide strong educational opportunities, and keep our communities safe
Identifying areas where the government needs to work better for constituents and cutting costs to better steward our resources.
My colleagues and I will be going line-by-line through the budget and evaluating priorities now through the end of May. Much of my work will focus on the state’s K-12 education budget, where I am starting my second term on the K-12 appropriations committee. As the chair of the House Personnel & Pensions committee and member of the House pensions working group, I will also be deeply involved in creating the plans to navigate our state’s many pension issues.
You can see a variety of budget details on the budget page from the Office of Management and Budget. I typically refer to the Operating Budget Detail spreadsheet the most. The Budget in Brief presentation also provides a good narrative-based rundown of the budget, including the below slide, which summarizes some of the progress Illinois has made since 2019.
Legislation from 41st District
My office and I have filed the bulk of this year’s bills for the new 104th General Assembly, and I am now in the process of presenting bills to committees. Over the next few months, I will highlight bills as they move through the committees and to the House floor for votes.
Your voice has been key to many of these efforts, reflecting the concerns and issues you have brought to our office. Please continue to share your thoughts and any support or opposition to bills. We document all of your requests, using that data to flag concerns with bill sponsors and inform votes when bills come up for votes.
You can follow legislation from the 41st District on the ILGA website, where you can also find the listing of our district’s bills.
Pictured below: A portion of the 41st District bills on ILGA website.
How to File a Witness Slip
One effective and relatively easy way to show your support or opposition to legislation is by filing a witness slip. These become part of each bill’s permanent record and are referenced during committee hearings to indicate the nature of support underlying a bill. Below is a video with instructions on how to submit witness slips.
If you know the bill number, you can also access the witness slips from the "Bill Status" page. After locating the bill page via ilga.gov’s search function (such as HB3037-Right to Play Act), click on the committee link (in this example, the Education Policy Committee) and click on the "Notice of Hearing" tab. Here, you will find a link to "Create Witness Slip".
If you need further assistance, my office is happy to help you, so feel free to call or email.
Summer Internship Program
Each summer, my office hosts a paid, part-time summer internship program for high school and college students, and we’re currently accepting applications for the 2025 summer class. Interns gain deep experience working in teams to research constituent and legislative issues, plan events, and engage with the community.
Our goal is to provide interns with a safe and supportive environment that allows them to apply their initiative, creative and critical thinking, and communication skills, all while serving their community and learning if a job related to government and policy is right for them. If you or someone you know is interested, send a note to request an application to: info@repyangrohr.com
Deadline for applications is March 21, 2025.
Below are a few pictures with 2024’s summer intern class.
Intellectual Developmental Disabilities Roundtable
Join Rep. Yang Rohr, Senator Ellman and Rep. Costa Howard for a roundtable discussion with providers and community members about the needs of members of our community who have intellectual developmental disabilities.
What: Roundtable Discussion on IDD
Where: Lombard (more info on google registration form)
When: Friday, March 14, 2025 from 12:00 - 2:00 PM
March Coffee and Conversation
Every month, my office and I host a community coffee to make sure you have a chance to ask questions, voice your concerns, and find out what’s happening in Springfield and our district. This is an informal event, and I hope to see you there!
What: March Coffee & Conversation
Where: 475 River Bend Rd., Naperville, Suite 500
When: Saturday, March 29, 2025, 10:00 am – 11:00 am
