Rep. Barbara Hernandez Ends Session with Responsible Budget, Reforms to Property Tax System, Criminal Justice, Senior Drivers’ Licensing

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Barbara Hernandez, D-Aurora, finished the Spring 2025 legislative session with progress passing a fiscally responsible budget, advancing new reforms on property taxes, securing equitable criminal justice and easing of unnecessary restrictions on seniors’ freedom to drive.

“Every year I go to Springfield to fight to build a better future for our community, and this year I’m happy to finish with a fiscally responsible budget that makes life more affordable for our working families,” Hernandez said. “By redirecting redundant administrative spending, we can combat the crisis and chaos coming from the Trump Administration while continuing to create a world-class education system, raising wages for in-home caregivers and opening new safety net hospitals and health clinics in underserved areas.”

In another step to ease economic burdens for low-income Illinoisans, Hernandez also helped advance Senate Bill 2156. This bill will create much-needed relief, fairness and efficiency in the state’s property tax system, by extending the senior property tax freeze from $65,000 to $70,000 and tying potential future increases to the growth of social security payments.

“Fixed-income Illinoisans—seniors especially—deserve relief from a property tax system that disproportionately puts a financial burden on them,” Hernandez said. “While there is still more work to do, this measure helps build the equitable property tax system that our community and our state needs.”

Hernandez also put her support behind House Bill 1226 to eliminate the age-based driving test requirement for drivers who are age 79-86, as well as establish a process for immediate family members to report when they believe a loved one is no longer safe to drive.

“We are living during a time when seniors are more capable of maintaining their abilities to drive than ever before and our laws should reflect that,” Hernandez said. “While I’m committed to upholding public safety and keeping dangerous drivers off the road, I’m also committed to fairness and equity for seniors. This measure eases overly-tight restrictions on drivers without
creating any irresponsible dangers on Illinois streets.”

Hernandez has also pushed for greater equity in criminal justice, and this session saw major victories in that area. Hernandez worked to pass the Clean Slate Act out of the House to update an existing petition process for court record sealing procedures into an automatic one to remove barriers to success for formerly incarcerated people. She also backed Senate Bill 1953, which made major law enforcement hiring fixes to ensure more clarity in the process and help keep unfit people out of uniform.

“Illinoisans need a more equitable criminal justice system,” Hernandez said. “I had the privilege of advancing measures to prevent unfit candidates from getting a badge and gun with new reforms that create greater transparency when hiring police. We also made progress on the new Clean Slate Act, which helps formerly incarcerated people return to normal lives after they have paid their debts to society.”