(The Center Square) – The Illinois Senate is considering legislation that would provide $50 million in state taxpayer funds to businesses affected by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions during Operation Midway Blitz.
State Sen. Mike Simmons, D-Chicago, said Senate Bill 2810 would help small businesses make up for lost earnings.
“The Illinois Accountability Commission shared its final report recently, saying that small business owners reported a sustained drop in foot traffic and in-store transactions that threatened their already fragile margins,” Simmons told the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday morning.
Simmons said the commission also found that some businesses canceled planned openings or postponed expansions.
SB 2810 provides that independently owned brick-and-mortar businesses with 25 or fewer employees as of September 9, 2025 would be eligible for the grants from a newly-created Small Business Restoration Fund.
State Sen. Don DeWitte, R-St. Charles, said similar grants were handed out during the COVID-19 pandemic and after businesses were affected by protests and looting following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
“And what was discovered was the huge amount of fraud that was conducted by these grants that were inappropriately requested, inappropriately applied for,” DeWitte said.
DeWitte said some of the grant money went to apartment buildings and private residences. He asked Simmons if measures were put in place to monitor where the grant applications would be coming from.
“I’m not opposed to the program, but so much of this money has been stolen in the process. I’m concerned that this is just going to be wash, rinse, repeat and another repeat performance of the last round of grants,” DeWitte said.
Simmons he thinks there are oversight responsibilities with the program.
“I certainly would work with the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and small business delegate agencies to make sure the program is set up in such a way where we have guardrails in place to make sure that those who actually get to take part in the grant program are those that need to benefit from it,” Simmons said.
SB 2810 has a committee and third-reading deadline of May 15.
