* Capitol News Illinois…

The governor signed 266 laws on Friday, moving closer to finalizing his part in approving — or rejecting — over 430 laws sent to him by lawmakers this spring.

The new laws include measures to make public defenders more independent, tighten safety regulations at warehouses and increase the age for required annual driver tests. […]

Drivers tests for seniors: Under House Bill 1226, only drivers 87 and older will have to take an annual driver’s test. The previous age for a mandatory yearly driver test was 79. Illinois drivers between 79 and 86 won’t be required to take a driver’s test to renew their license; instead, they’ll only have to take a vision test, and if they have a driving violation, a written test. The law takes effect July 1, 2026. […]

Warehouse tornado safety: House Bill 2987 requires that warehouses provide a tornado safety plan and build new warehouses with stricter safety standards. The measure follows a lethal warehouse collapse in 2021. […]

Home births: House Bill 2688 allows certified nurse midwives to enter a written agreement with a physician to provide or assist with home births. In designated maternity care deserts, they can enter into such an agreement even if the local physicians don’t provide home births.

* Frank Main and Tom Schuba at the Sun-Times…

[R]eal-life examples of people falling prey to scammers and using cryptocurrency kiosks to send them large payments prompted Gov. JB Pritzker to sign two bills into law Monday that will allow the state to regulate the booming crypto industry.

One of the new laws gives the state broad regulatory power over the crypto industry, and the other provides specific consumer protections surrounding kiosks that handle digital currency transactions. […]

To prevent fraud, the state will cap daily transaction amounts at kiosks at $2,500 for new customers, limit transaction fees at kiosks to 18% and provide full refunds to new customers who get defrauded.

“While the Trump administration is letting crypto ‘bros’ write federal policy, Illinois is implementing common sense protections for investors and consumers,” Pritzker said.

* More from the governor’s press release…

According to the FBI, Illinois consumers lost $272 million in fraud cases involving cryptocurrency in 2024, representing the most common type of financial fraud in the past year. […]

The Digital Assets and Consumer Protection Act (SB1797) grants Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) authority to regulate and supervise digital asset exchanges and other digital asset businesses. The legislation also creates strong customer protections in line with those that currently apply to traditional financial services, such as investment disclosures, customer asset safeguards, and customer service standards. Companies in the digital asset marketplace will be required to hold adequate financial resources to operate effectively and have plans and procedures for addressing critical risks, including cybersecurity, fraud, and money laundering, consistent with regulations for traditional financial services. […]

Certain consumer protections included in the legislation (such as the refunds for victims of fraud and scams) take effect immediately. Digital asset businesses in Illinois will have until July 1, 2027, to register with IDFPR.

* Fox News…

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a major Democratic leader and rumored presidential candidate, signed a bill into law opening student financial aid to all residents, regardless of immigration status, opening a pathway for illegal immigrants residing in the state to receive educational financial benefits. […]

The move was slammed by conservative Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., as rewarding illegal immigrants and a “slap in the face” to Illinois families and students. […]

The bill reads that “a student who is an Illinois resident and who is not otherwise eligible for federal financial aid, including, but not limited to, a transgender student who is disqualified for failure to register for selective service or a noncitizen student who has not obtained lawful permanent residence, shall be eligible for financial aid and benefits.” […]

“If you live in Illinois and are pursuing higher education, you should have access to the same opportunities as your peers,” said [Sen. Celina Villanueva]. “Illinois invests in all of our students, and we’re committed to helping them succeed.”

* Sen. Mary Edly-Allen…

Nationally, an estimated $2.8 billion worth of medications are wasted annually. State Senator Mary Edly-Allen partnered with State Representative Laura Faver Dias to champion a new law to provide Illinoisans with cheaper alternatives and transparency within the Illinois Drug Reuse Program. […]

House Bill 2346 strengthens the effectiveness of the Illinois Drug Reuse Opportunity Program by increasing transparency for consumers, expanding access to safe, unused medications, and helping reduce medication waste.

Under the new law, the Illinois Department of Public Health will develop and maintain a website listing the names and locations of participating pharmacies in the program. Information on the website would provide pharmacies and the public with steps on how to participate voluntarily.

In 2021, the governor signed legislation creating the Illinois Drug Reuse Opportunity Act (I-DROP) to ensure prescription medication can be safely repurposed for residents in need. This formalized the legal process for donating unused prescription drugs to certified pharmacies or health departments.

By establishing a prescription drug repository program, prescription and over-the-counter medication that remains unexpired and unopened can be returned to pharmacies and reused for eligible populations at little to no cost. […]

House Bill 2346 was signed into law on Friday and goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2026.

* WAND…

A new state law will empower schools to punish students who use artificial intelligence to bully other kids.

The law will ban students from using a digital replica to bully one of their peers and asking an AI algorithm to create explicit images of students. […]

House Bill [3851] passed unanimously out of both chambers earlier this year. Democrats and Republicans said AI has played a role in the rise of bullying, mental health and anxiety problems for minors. […]

This legislation was supported by ACLU of Illinois and the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

The new law will take effect before the 2026-2027 school year begins.

* Sen. Karina Villa…

A new law led by State Senator Karina Villa addresses the mental health concerns of defendants who have been determined to be unfit for trial languishing in county jails. […]

The new law clarifies standards to determine whether someone unfit to stand trial should be diverted to outpatient state mental health treatment programs. Additionally, the law lays out a process for reducing the maximum time a person placed in inpatient treatment spends in custody through earned credit for good behavior. This will ensure individuals who are unfit for trial do not spend more time in confinement than fit people who were convicted of similar offenses.

According to the Cook County Public Defender, on any given day, approximately 190 people in county jails are awaiting admission to the Illinois Department of Human Services’ Forensic Treatment Program, and another 100+ people are awaiting evaluation. […]

House Bill 3572 was signed into law on Friday.

* WGLT…

Gov. JB Pritzker has signed a bill into law that aims to address a shortage of health care workers.

The bill, which passed unanimously in the Illinois House and Senate in the spring, allows retired health care workers in Illinois to work as volunteers without having to pay a license fee.

Republican state Rep. Bill Hauter, a medical doctor from Morton, sponsored the bill. He said the legislation covers doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, dentists, optometrists and other health care professionals.

“We leave so much talent and knowledge ‘on the bench’ when health care professionals’ licenses lapse at retirement — now they can remain licensed in Illinois for free!” Hauter said in a social media post.

* WAND…

Illinois will soon pay landowners if their property is disturbed by carbon capture construction, thanks to a bill signed into law Friday.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers approved the plan to provide compensation if crops, trees, fences, shrubs, livestock, or other objects are damaged during carbon capture construction.

“It further clarifies just compensation for landowners and it gives further protections for surface owners in case their land is hurt or destroyed in the process of laying down a pipeline,” said Sen. Laura Fine (D-Glenview). […]

“It may not be perfect yet, but we’ve watched a lot of bills go through here that weren’t perfect,” said Rep. Charlie Meier (R-Okawville). “We are making things better for the property owners out here in the state of Illinois with this.”