Attorney General engaged in growing volume of suits against Trump administration
By PETER HANCOCK
Capitol News Illinois
phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com
SPRINGFIELD — Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is asking state lawmakers for a $15 million increase in his General Revenue Fund budget for the upcoming year, saying his office needs a more “stable” system of funding as it takes on greater responsibilities, including the growing volume of litigation against the Trump administration.
In appearances before House and Senate budget committees in recent days, Raoul said the funding method that has traditionally been used for his office — one that relied heavily on fees and settlements generated by cases the office was involved in — no longer is sufficient to sustain its operations.
“This funding structure has evolved over the years as progressive court reforms have made fines and fees a less stable source of funding,” he told the House appropriations committee that oversees his office’s budget. “Also, proceeds from settlements or lawsuit damages are unreliable from year to year.”
In Fiscal Year 2019, the year Raoul took office, the attorney general’s budget totaled $87.7 million, according to state budget records. That included $32.2 million in general revenue funds and $54.5 million in “other state funds,” such as fees and settlements. Another $1 million came from federal funds.
Since then, the attorney general’s office has more than doubled. For the current fiscal year, the total budget stands at more than $193.7 million, including $105.5 million in general revenue funds and $74.9 million in “other state funds.” Federal funds are projected at $13.5 million.
Raoul’s proposed increase would bring next year’s general revenue fund budget to more than $120 million.
Since 2019, Raoul said, his office’s responsibilities have grown substantially. He said the General Assembly has passed 101 new laws — including some at Raoul’s own request — that either have added new duties or expanded existing duties of the office while his office has also been busy defending other laws passed by the General Assembly against legal challenges.
“The Attorney General’s Office is the sole enforcement agency for violations of the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act and parts of the SAFE-T Act,” he told the House panel. “Our office is working diligently to defend both new and long-standing laws against constitutional challenges. Each of these cases require significant resources, including costs associated with our attorneys, travel to courts across the state, lengthy discovery processes, as well as expert with witness retention.”
In addition to those challenges, however, Raoul has taken on additional legal work in recent months challenging actions of President Donald Trump’s administration.
Since Trump was sworn into office for a second term on Jan. 20, Raoul has joined in filing 11 federal lawsuits challenging administration actions and has filed another 14 amicus briefs in support of other legal challenges. It is also defending the state against two lawsuits that the Trump administration has filed against Illinois.
“This budget will support supplying the requisite attorneys to step up where the federal government is stepping away, as well as attorneys involved in critical cases to protect our state’s interests,” Raoul said.
Raoul’s office would not provide specific information about the number of attorneys or other staff it would hire with the additional money. A spokesperson in his office told Capitol News Illinois in an email that the money would allow the office “to hire additional attorneys to perform our growing statutorily-required responsibilities in addition to the critical work of vigorously defending the rights of Illinois residents from unconstitutional attacks by the Trump administration.”
Raoul also did not provide specific answers to questions from Republican lawmakers about how much his office has spent, or how many hours his attorneys have worked, pursuing litigation against the Trump administration.
“Our attorneys are, you know, they’re not billing hours. They’re on salary,” he said. “And so whether they work 20 hours in a day or eight hours in a day, they are compensated.”
Legislative committees are still in the process of holding hearings on each state agency’s budget request for the upcoming year. A final budget is expected to be voted on by the end of May.
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