State Senator Li Arellano, Jr

06/01/2026

I’m at WMBD in Peoria, having just finished an interview about the budget and the failure of Bears stadium legislation. 🏈

I spent the morning in Springfield. I did catch a few hours after sleep after the all-night session ended around 5am! I’ll now be here in Peoria for the next few hours for meetings and events. 🎤

It’s been a long week away from home, so very much looking forward to family time tomorrow! ❤️

06/01/2026

It’s past 5:00 a.m.

But before I finally head to bed, here is a short update—with a guest appearance by State Senator Seth Lewis

Illinois taxpayers will wake up this morning to a terrible budget bill, and some concerning news about the Bears.

This is what happens when the majority party refuses to be transparent. The most important legislation of the year was negotiated behind closed doors and pushed through in the middle of the night while most Illinoisans were asleep.

You deserve better than billion dollar tax hikes, backroom deals, and a budget process designed to avoid scrutiny.

06/01/2026

It’s after 5am at the Illinois Capitol, and the sun is rising after a long night of debates and voting to end legislative session in the Illinois Senate.

I’m glad I can work alongside some great colleagues. As frustrating as it is to witness this ridiculous governmental disfunction, it’s an honor to serve with these Senators. Thanks for working on this great mission with me!

06/01/2026

Update!

It is 5:15 and I am leaving Springfield now. Bears Update:

06/01/2026

Illinoisans are being asked to pay more while getting less.

I voted NO on a nearly $56 billion budget that includes more than $800 million in new taxes, fees, and fund sweeps.

My statement is below.

06/01/2026

It’s 3:14 am, we just passed the last of the budget bills (over bipartisan opposition, including my no vote). We are now debating the new Bears bill.

This is NOT the same bill or even concept sent over from the House.

I will be voting no based on the terrible process used, concerns over government debt, and the fact that this bill simply is not ready. There were better paths, but the supermajority picked their path and knew they could power it through the Senate. I have no doubt it will pass over to the House.

Side-note: because of the midnight process, we don’t even know if the Bears themselves support the complete change in approach that is in the bill. That’s…a little crazy. But that has been this whole process!

06/01/2026

It’s after 1am, we’re still voting on last-minute budget bills, and we haven’t even discussed this last-minute Bears bill yet. There will be no committee hearing on it before the floor vote, so I will be moving fast to understand all the implications of the legislation and be prepared to vote.

The Illinois Supreme Court has let transparency become a joke here, with the “three readings” rule having been absolutely gutted of any truth. The massive Bears discussion just completely changed language in the middle of the night, yet could be voted on here soon with almost no no oversight or discussion.

Leaders in Springfield are drunk of power.

06/01/2026

It’s getting to be Hail Mary time in Springfield for the Bears.

I’d love to say we’re about to see one of those Caleb Williams comebacks, but there are still a lot of moving parts and a lot of back-and-forth negotiations.

Nobody really knows if a deal gets done tonight.

One thing is clear: if we’re going to keep the Bears in Illinois, time is running out.

05/31/2026

Quick budget update:

We finally have a budget bill (mostly)!

Our policy staff was digging through it all night; and is walking us through what they’ve found while still studying. They do incredible work, but let’s be honest: there is no way any state senator can fully understand every detail of a massive budget dropped at the last minute like this. That’s a huge ethical problem.

This is what happens when Democrats run a secret budget process behind closed doors. Legislators are handed thousands of pages with little time to review them before being called on to vote.

What we’ve already found is alarming: more spending, more taxes, and more burdens on Illinois families.

Illinoisans deserve a budget process that is honest and transparent. Instead, we’re again being asked to vote on one of the most important pieces of legislation of the year without adequate time to properly review it.

We’ll have more updates as we continue digging through all the hidden junk.

05/31/2026

💸Tax increase/fund sweep update from the unethical last-hours budget amendments:

(still working on details, and we’re also expecting another amendment):

-$200M social media fee
-$300M business taxes hikes
-$79M shifting sales tax to general fund
-$60M new tax in crypto brokers (no one knows/is explaining exactly what that means)
-$3.8M cigar tax
-$150 shifting motor fuel sales tax

There too much new spending to put in this short post, and there are other tax increases that are in other bills—so I’m not counting them in this update. They will still be hitting you and the Illinois economy at the same time, though (such as more insurance taxes, that will trigger more costly insurance).