Costs expected to rise with bills Illinois governor signs

(The Center Square) – Consumers and business owners may be dealing with rising costs after Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed several bills into law.

Friday, Pritzker announced he signed 59 measures into law, impacting education, insurance, employers and more.

Taxes are one thing, but National Federation of Independent Business Illinois State Director Noah Finley said there are other ways politicians inflate costs and burden businesses.

“Our small businesses are still dealing with the fallout of years of high inflation. Regulation is an enormous thing they have to deal with,” Finley said.

Pritzker signed a bill that requires insurance coverage of in vitro fertilization services and annual menopause visits.

The governor also signed a mandate of coverage for wigs or scalp prostheses worn due to alopecia, chemotherapy or radiation. State Rep. Yolonda Morris explained why she felt Senate Bill 2573 was needed.

“I feel it’s necessary because it will give women empowerment to feel better about themselves, knowing that they can get a hairpiece. And wigs are expensive,” Morris said.

The law takes effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

Starting next year, landlords will have to disclose to every potential tenant if a property is located in a high-risk flooding area.

Separately, coal-producing mines will be required to maintain fully-equipped rescue teams.

Illinois Policy Institute Senior Director of Fiscal and Economic Research Bryce Hill said the bills are in addition to a state budget that also raised taxes by a large amount.

Around “$1.1 billion worth of tax hikes were passed in the package of bills that was associated with the state budget, funding a record $53 billion spending plan that has everything from business taxes to sports wagering and casino tax hikes to hotel tax hikes, things like that,” Hill said.

Several new laws contain mandates for government agencies.