Over 40% of Illinois bills passed in last week of session

Giving Illinoisans a sense of déjà vu, the Illinois General Assembly raced the clock to pass legislation toward the final day of session — or in some cases just after the deadline.

Almost 400 bills passed the Illinois General Assembly this session — 140 in the final week and 21 more after the midnight May 31 deadline.

Waiting until after midnight to pass legislation seems to be a common practice lately for the General Assembly. At the end of the 2025 regular session, 155 bills passed in the final week and 20 more after the midnight deadline.

The race to the finish line this year can be attributed at least partially to the differing House and Senate calendars. The schedule didn’t allow ample opportunity for members of the two chambers to interact throughout the five-month session.

More time for such discussion might have reduced the practice of gutting and replacing the contents of bills in the race to the finish to short-circuit the bill-reading process. The state constitution requires that bills be read on three separate days before they are voted on. That provision is meant to give all lawmakers a chance to know the substance of the bills before they vote and to give the public time to become informed on proposed legislation.

But in practice, the three-day reading requirement is rarely enforced, meaning lawmakers must vote on bills they had little to no chance to read. These bills cannot face real scrutiny until after they pass.

A more effective legislative calendar would enable more House-Senate interaction throughout the session, not just in the final weeks, giving lawmakers more time to consider legislation before final votes in the General Assembly.

Lawmakers who want to improve Illinois must prioritize deliberation, transparency and accountability.