More like this, please
Wednesday, Sep 24, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’ve heard lots of positive things about this freshman Republican. From what I am told by several people, he’s genuinely interested in learning about how state government works and understanding legislation. Plus, as one person pointed out today, “54 meets is A LOT.” Yeah. It’s a lot for an entire term. In less than a year? That’s almost unheard of for a freshman.
Also, I don’t mind him trumpeting this effort. It shows his constituents that he’s engaging with government in a positive, curious way. And yeah, he got in a ding about out-migration, but whatever. He seems like a good fit for the Legislative Audit Commission…
Senator Balkema Meets with Dozens of State Agencies to Increase Transparency and Efficiency
SPRINGFIELD, IL- Senator Chris Balkema (R-Channahon) has been in office less than a year but has already completed meetings with leaders from 54 state agencies as part of a broad initiative to strengthen transparency and efficiency in Illinois government. Multiple agencies remain on the schedule, underscoring Balkema’s commitment to a thorough review.
“The objective is both simple and essential,” Balkema said. “I want to clearly understand each agency’s mission, budget, and leadership structure so Illinois families can be assured their tax dollars are being put to work responsibly.”
Senator Balkema emphasized that these reviews lay the foundation for stronger oversight, closer collaboration, and reforms aimed at cutting waste while improving the quality of services each agency provides.
Additionally, as a member of the Legislative Audit Commission, Balkema reviews all the financial audits performed by the Illinois Auditor General’s office.
“Our state must meet vital needs while respecting hardworking families,” Balkema said. “By reducing costs and increasing accountability, we can help reverse the flow of moving trucks that are currently taking people out of Illinois.”
Balkema reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring state government remains responsive, responsible, and focused on serving the people of Illinois.
He’s also on the administrative burden task force, which is looking at ways to reduce the administrative burden of Medicaid and behavioral health.
Anyway, discuss.
- Copy Desk has a question - Wednesday, Sep 24, 25 @ 12:49 pm:
Republican acknowledges government has a role.
Good for him.
- Macon Deliberations - Wednesday, Sep 24, 25 @ 12:54 pm:
FCRCs should be emailing more documents (besides the notices of decision and verification checklists) in my opinion. Don’t grill DHS for giving papers to people who want it like that but yeah
- Frida's Boss - Wednesday, Sep 24, 25 @ 1:07 pm:
That’s good. It’s nice to see legislators who actually attend meetings and improve their skillsets rather than just take the paycheck. They are only available in Springfield, let staff do all the work, and are never seen in the district unless at PC’s or during petition time.
- Anyone Remember - Wednesday, Sep 24, 25 @ 1:32 pm:
Further request. State of Illinois is a massive undertaking, he can’t get it done all by himself. Publishing his results / findings would give others the opportunity to add (more than correct).
Also, he might see firsthand many things that “don’t make sense” or “seem inefficient” are in response to auditor Findings / Recommendations, particularly OAG’s expression “good business practice(s)” … .
- Homebody - Wednesday, Sep 24, 25 @ 1:43 pm:
I don’t know this particular individual, so I’ll reserve judgment. But historically when members of his chosen party have said things like this, it hasn’t always been in what I would consider good faith. There have been numerous high profile examples of this at both the state and federal level.
I’ll reserve judgment on Senator Balkema for now, and hopefully he’ll prove my presumptions wrong.
- Frank TJ Mackey - Wednesday, Sep 24, 25 @ 2:03 pm:
The bar is below the ground, folks.