By Ray Hanania
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is increasing the tollway fees by a huge margin and tying them to a “cost of living” index that is actually higher than the cost of living” number used by employers to raise salaries and wages.
CLICK HERE TO view of all the increased charges Gov. Pritzker has imposed and his minions support.
Why raise all these taxes? To make life better for the taxpayers who work hard and pour their money into Pritzker’s bottomless pockets and ambitions?
A billionaire who just injected $65 million into his re-election campaign — putting in more than $450 million in his election over his 8 years in office — Pritzker needs to raise money to cover costs for freebies he is giving to non-Americans, undocumented residents, or “illegal aliens” as defined by the U.S. Constitution.
Just look at the state funds Pritzker has allocated to illegal aliens in Illinois — not for taxpayers or Illinois residents who can barely pay for the rising utility costs that he does nothing about, the rising grocery charges he shifted away from himself to villages and municipalities, or for hardworking citizens who barely cover the rising car insurance costs, health insurance costs, and more.
Illinois does spend substantial state money on programs that can serve undocumented immigrants, but there is no single reliable “total cost of undocumented immigrants” figure. Some programs are specifically for people without legal status, some cover asylum seekers/recent arrivals, and others are generally available regardless of immigration status. Mixing those categories can produce misleading totals.
The clearest numbers are:
Program / spendingAmountWhat it coversHealth Benefits for Immigrant Adults + Seniors (FY2024)~$682 million according to HFS*Medicaid-like health coverageHBIA/HBIS since inception through FY2024Over $1.6 billionHealth care for qualifying low-income noncitizensHealth Benefits for Immigrant Seniors, FY2026 budget$110 million GRFContinued health coverage for qualifying people 65+HBIA ages 42–64$0 in FY2026 — program ended June 30, 2025Previously provided Medicaid-like coverageIllinois state/local asylum-seeker support in 2023~$400 millionShelter, food, legal/support services, etc.; ~$300M was Chicago spendingOther immigrant/recent-arrival programsTens/hundreds of millions historicallyHousing, legal aid, case management, welcoming centers, resettlement, etc.
*The Auditor General’s accounting puts total FY2024 HBIA/HBIS costs somewhat higher—roughly $719 million across the three age groups—because of differences in reporting/accounting periods and methodology. The important point is that health coverage alone was roughly $700 million in FY2024.
1. Health care has been the biggest identifiable expense
Illinois created state-funded Medicaid-like programs for certain low-income immigrants who would otherwise be ineligible for regular Medicaid because of immigration status.
The Illinois Auditor General found that the programs cost more than $1.6 billion from their inception through FY2024, considerably more than originally projected.
For FY2024, the audit reported approximately:
$312 million — adults ages 42–54
$196 million — adults ages 55–64
$211 million — seniors 65+
That’s about $719 million under the audit’s accounting.
The services included primary care, hospital care, prescriptions, vaccinations, dental and vision care, transportation and other Medicaid-like medical services.
But there has been a major change: Illinois terminated the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults (HBIA) program for ages 42–64 effective July 1, 2025. The state retained the program for qualifying immigrant seniors 65+, budgeting $110 million in state General Revenue Funds for FY2026.
So quoting the roughly $700 million FY2024 figure as what Illinois is currently spending annually would be inaccurate.
2. What health services can undocumented residents still receive?
Even after HBIA ended, immigration status does not necessarily bar someone from every state-supported medical service.
Depending on eligibility, services available regardless of immigration status can include emergency medical services, pregnancy and postpartum care, children’s health coverage through All Kids, and health coverage for certain asylum applicants and victims of trafficking or serious crimes. Existing qualifying immigrant seniors can remain in HBIS.
HBIS enrollment is currently closed to new applicants, however.
3. Migrant/asylum-seeker spending is a separate category
This is where the numbers frequently get confused.
Since 2022, Illinois and Chicago have spent substantial sums responding to newly arrived migrants, particularly people bused or transported to Chicago from the southern border.
The Congressional Budget Office estimated that Illinois state and local governments spent about $400 million in 2023 on emergency shelter and related support for asylum seekers, with approximately $300 million coming from Chicago. Services included shelter, food, and legal/support services.
Illinois’ own Comptroller maintains an Asylum Seekers State Expenditure Transparency Portal, but importantly warns that it isn’t exhaustive—some medical assistance, rental assistance, and other immigration-related expenditures aren’t captured there.
4. Other services available
Depending on age, income, immigration category, and individual program requirements, undocumented residents or recent arrivals can potentially receive services including K–12 public education, school breakfast/lunch, WIC, All Kids health insurance for children, emergency health care, pregnancy/postpartum care, immigration legal assistance, case management, language/access services and certain shelter/housing assistance.
They generally cannot simply enroll in the full package of ordinary federally funded benefits available to qualifying U.S. citizens. Federal immigration restrictions exclude undocumented immigrants from many federal programs, which is one reason Illinois has used state funds for some programs.
The bigger historical number
One especially useful finding is the Illinois Auditor General’s 2025 audit. The state originally estimated the immigrant health programs would cost substantially less than they ultimately did.
For FY2021–FY2023:
Senior program: projected $224.0M → actual $412.3M
Ages 55–64: projected $58.4M → actual $223.1M
Ages 42–54: projected $68.0M → actual $262.2M
That means actual spending was 84% to 286% above the original estimates, depending on the age group.
So if you’re trying to determine “How much have Illinois taxpayers spent specifically because of programs for undocumented immigrants/recent migrants under Pritzker?”, rather than just what is being spent this year, that’s a different—and much larger—calculation.
I can build you a 2019–2026 year-by-year table of Illinois spending on undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers, separating health care, housing/shelter, food, legal aid, education, and other services, and distinguishing state spending from City of Chicago spending so we don’t double-count anything.
Conclusion
Pritzker doesn’t care about hardworking residents, homeowners, and taxpayers. He cares about national political issues and panders to the far Left in order to win the nomination for president when he runs.
You know Pritzker is going to run for President because he has the money. He has nothing to lose, financially.
Pritzker criticizes President Donald Trump — who deserves criticism —, but Pritzker fails to offer solutions or alternative programs.
Do you realize how bad this country is to have Pritzker and Trump’s MAGA successor run against each other?
well just keep paying thinking2 and pretend you’re different than Trump
The taxes are getting high no doubt I don't approve of the taxes, however your trying to put blame on the governor for the president doing so when you did that I knew exactly what you were about. You have no solution just pointing fingers you and what your saying don't cut it!🤨🤨