8 ILLINOIS BUSINESS LEADER 8 ILLINOIS BUSINESS LEADER CONNECTING Highlights from Chamber Day 2025 The Illinois Chamber of Commerce held their eighth Annual Chamber Day on Wednesday, March 19th at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel. It was a great crowd matched with plenty of informative programming and mean ingful visits at the Capitol. A special thank you goes to all four legislative leaders and the Attorney General for taking time out of their busy schedules to speak with us: House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, Senate President Don Har mon, House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, Senate Leader John Cur ran, and Attorney General Kwame Raoul. It is always a pleasure to have you at our events! As part of our Chamber Day programming, we were honored to hear brief remarks from all four legis lative leaders aimed to the State and what we can expect this legislative session. We would also like to thank Senator Ram Villivalam and Senator Donald P. DeWitte for addressing the issue of the public transit fiscal cliff, and Ryan Gleason from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for providing a crucial federal update. Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch expressed an inter est in gaming and energy omnibus legislation, though it is still too early to determine specific details. He also emphasized the strong relationship he has built with the Chamber over recent years. Republican Leaders Curran and McCombie, both of whom have been long-standing supporters of the Chamber, reiterated their commit ment to partnering with the business community to stimulate job growth and attract new enterprises to Illi nois. Curran emphasized the inher ent assets of the state and the need for policies that facilitate economic advancement, while McCombie pointed out constructive proposals from her caucus and expressed her readiness to collaborate across party lines. President Harmon addressed several critical issues, underscoring the significance of fiscal stability for businesses, the ramifications of recent federal policies, and the ne cessity to avoid political contention. He expressed his determination to collaborate with the business com munity on practical solutions and affirmed that maintaining a “respon sible, balanced budget” constitutes the primary objective of the General Assembly. Attorney General Raoul provid ed updates regarding his initiatives to combat organized retail theft, emphasizing the importance of collaboration with law enforcement. He outlined his objective of achiev ing a balance among protections for consumers, workers, and businesses. State Senator Ram Villivalam and Senator Don DeWitte sat down for a panel discussion with Illinois Chamber President and CEO Lou Sandoval to discuss the RTA Region Fiscal Cliff. We want to thank everyone who participated in our 2025 Chamber Day event. We look forward to seeing what 2026 brings! ... McCombie pointed out constructive proposals from her caucus and expressed her readiness to collaborate across party lines.
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