NASW-Illinois Chapter 2026 Illinois Spring Legislative Report

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Overview of the 2026 Spring Legislative Session

The 2026 legislative session closed in the early morning hours of June 1,2026, when the Illinois General Assembly adjourned around 4:30am after approving the FY27 budget, a revenue package, a Medicaid omnibus, and numerous policy initiatives. As is typical at the end of session, the final days were marked by compressed timelines, late-night negotiations, and legislation moving quickly through both chambers.

What distinguished this session was not the pace of its conclusion but how much remained unresolved heading into it. For much of the spring, the Illinois House and Senate operated on separate tracks. Legislative schedules were rarely aligned, chamber priorities diverged, and negotiations that would ordinarily have been worked through earlier in the process lingered until the final weeks. Several significant proposals advanced in one chamber only to stall in the other. The Bears stadium proposal may be the most prominent example, but similar dynamics played out across housing, economic development, higher education, and AI policy.

Throughout the session, the NASW-Illinois Chapter tracked more than 600 bills with the potential to impact social workers, behavioral health providers, or the clients and communities they serve. Of those, 85 reached the governor for consideration. Approximately 460 never advanced out of their chamber of origin.

Successful advocacy is measured by more than the number of bills signed into law. Preventing harmful legislation from advancing, negotiating improvements before passage, and educating lawmakers on the impact of proposed policy are all part of the work. The NASW-Illinois Chapter remained actively engaged on all of those fronts throughout this session.

Bills That Passed Both Chambers

HB 4826 - Continuing Education Integrity (Rep. Cassidy / Sen. Villivalam)

This legislation ensures that continuing education credit cannot be awarded for instruction that encourages practices prohibited under Illinois law. It strengthens professional standards, promotes ethical and legally compliant education, and protects the integrity of licensure for social workers and allied professionals. This was an NASW-Illinois initiative.

HB 5435 - Social Work Licensure Requirements (Rep. Mah / Sen. Villa)

A licensure clean-up bill the NASW-Illinois Chapter helped develop in partnership with the Illinois Department of Financial & Professional Regulation (IDFPR). The legislation requires individuals working toward LCSW licensure to hold a license or practice-pending status while accumulating supervised hours. It also establishes a standardized 3,000-hour supervision requirement for those pursuing their LSW through the BSW route. These changes bring Illinois into alignment with national standards and provide greater clarity for clinicians navigating the licensure pathway. (Effective Date Jan 1. 2027. We will have more details on our website later this summer.)

HB 3711 - Health Care Professional Misconduct Reporting (Rep. Cassidy / Sen. Villanueva)

Creates new reporting requirements for hospitals, healthcare institutions, and licensed healthcare professionals when serious incidents or misconduct occur. Allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse must now be reported to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

HB 5460 - School Social Work Scholarship Program (Rep. Lilly / Sen. Villa)

Expands eligibility for the School Social Work Scholarship Program, allowing more students and professionals to access funding while pursuing the credentials required to practice in Illinois schools. The legislation aims to address persistent workforce shortages in school-based settings and strengthen the pipeline of qualified school social workers. Starting this year students in private schools will have access to this funding stream for the post–MSW PEL programs.

HB 4982 - Pharmacy 9-8-8 Information (Rep. Haas)

Amends the Pharmacy Practice Act to require licensed Illinois pharmacies serving patients at a physical location to display information about the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Required signage is developed by the Illinois Department of Human Services and must include information on how individuals can access crisis support services. This bill was part of the NASW-Illinois Chapter’s Advocacy Day agenda.

SB 2771 - Tammurra's Act (Sen. Belt / Rep. Canty)

Expands awareness of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by requiring crisis resource information to be posted across a broad range of settings where Illinoisans may be experiencing behavioral health challenges. Those settings include county shelter care homes, detention care homes, public libraries, public schools serving students in grades 6 through 12, higher education institutions, assisted living facilities, and others. This bill was on the NASW-Illinois Chapter’s Advocacy Day agenda.

Budget and Medicaid

The FY27 budget totals nearly $55.9 billion and remains relatively close to the governor's introduced proposal. Lawmakers faced significant constraints from the outset: slowing revenue growth, increased inflation, uncertainty surrounding federal funding, and the potential impact of federal benefit changes on state services and family budgets. Rather than pursuing major program expansions or broad-based tax increases, budget writers focused on preserving fiscal stability and maintaining existing services.

For NASW-Illinois Chapter members, the following items are most relevant:

The Community Behavioral Health Care Provider Loan Repayment Program received a $2.5 million increase, bringing total funding to $10 million. This program supports BSWs, MSWs, and allied professionals working in designated practice settings and represents a meaningful investment in the behavioral health workforce.

The Human Services Professional Loan Repayment Program was reduced by $600,000, leaving the program funded at $600,000. Advocates sought to protect current funding levels; that effort was not successful this cycle.

Behavioral Health and Recovery Grants remained flat, as did funding for the Home Illinois Program. Safety Net Hospitals received $118 million in funding, supplemented by the creation of an $85 million Distressed Hospital Loan Program to assist struggling hospitals and preserve access to care in underserved communities.

One notable budget addition was the FRESH program (Families Receiving Emergency Support for Hunger), which provides $70 million in emergency food assistance for individuals expected to lose SNAP benefits due to new federal work requirements. Those funds were drawn from the Bridge Fund rather than the General Revenue Fund.

The Medicaid Omnibus package (SB 3365) included several provisions directly relevant to behavioral health. Subject to federal approval, the legislation increases Medicaid reimbursement rates for Assertive Community Treatment and Community Support Teams, with approximately $10.6 million designated for ACT services and $17.5 million for CST services. Both programs provide community-based services to individuals with serious mental illness. The omnibus also expands Medicaid coverage to include virtual Intensive Outpatient Program services beginning January 1, 2027, and extends implementation deadlines for Illinois's Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility state plan amendment, allowing additional time to strengthen behavioral health services for children and adolescents with significant treatment needs.

Still in Progress

HB 2473 - Social Work Compact (Rep. Haas, LCSW)

The Social Work Compact did not advance this session. Unresolved concerns about client confidentiality and interstate legal exposure in the post-Dobbs environment remain the primary obstacles. The NASW-Illinois Chapter remains committed to pursuing a compact that protects both clinicians and clients, and we continue working with the governor's office, legislators, the ACLU, and allied professions to develop a proposal grounded in social work ethics and adequate legal safeguards.

HB 5463 - Social Worker and School Counselor Shortage Repayment Program

Remains pending in the Senate.

SB 2805 / HB 4359 - Long-Term Care Bill of Rights

Did not advance before adjournment. NASW-Illinois will continue to monitor this legislation heading into veto session and the 2027 session.

HJR 53 / SJR 48 - Graduate Student Loan Access Resolutions

HJR 53 was adopted by the House. SJR 48 remains pending in the Senate.

An Issue Worth Monitoring

Late in the session, efforts emerged to permanently exempt certain private equity-owned Applied Behavior Analysis clinics from complying with Section 150 of the Licensed Behavior Analyst Act. That provision was originally intended as a temporary accommodation, giving providers additional time to come into compliance with patient protection requirements. A permanent exemption would have removed clinical decision-making authority from licensed professionals and placed it in the hands of corporate entities. The NASW-Illinois Chapter opposed the measure. Concerns about the proposed exemption were also raised within the behavioral analyst community. The effort did not advance.

This type of provision does not always generate significant public attention, but the underlying question of who holds clinical authority matters deeply to professional standards and to the people those professionals serve. The NASW-Illinois Chapter will continue to monitor for similar proposals.

Looking Ahead

With session concluded, activity in Springfield will slow considerably over the coming weeks. Legislators will return to their districts, and attention will shift toward implementation, oversight, and the 2026 election cycle. Agency rulemaking and administrative decisions related to the FY27 budget and newly enacted laws will continue throughout the summer and represent important areas to watch.

Key Dates:

·         State Fair: August 13-23, 2026 (Governor's Day: August 19 | Republican Day: August 20)

·         Election Day: November 3, 2026

·         Veto Session: November 17-19, 2026 and December 1-3, 2026

NASW membership makes this work possible. If you are not a current NASW member, we encourage you to join or rejoin today.