A story getting a lot of traction this week is the one I first saw from FOX Illinois about Lincoln College, which has been closed for two years, receiving a $500,000 allocation in the FY 2026 state budget. Social media posts on this are getting lots of shares and comments about how stupid Illinois legislators can be to grant money to a defunct entity. In response, at least one state senator assured the media that the money wasn’t actually transferred to the college, but that it was simply a budget line from a previous budget that did not get deleted in this year’s rendition.
Well, that tells you all you need to know. The budget document is NEVER scrutinized year to year and never read by individual legislators, except to make sure their individual requests are included. This isn’t just sloppy work by a budget staffer. This is intentional disregard for creating legally sound bills and doing due diligence to thoroughly review every line of legislation before votes are taken.
You’ve heard the line – I know these people and they are worse than you think. Well, now everyone should understand just how much of a game is being played against taxpayers with every vote in this state. Only Democrats voted Yes on the budget – they don’t care how they spend your money.
The good news is that there is a lot of interest now in digging into the particulars of the budget and following the money or the appropriations, especially regarding money being sent to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
We are glad to see other news outlets, policy groups, and individuals dig into the budget details and follow the money. We need more scrutiny on all the spending. And hopefully, in next week’s newsletter, I will be able to share our entire spreadsheet of the NGOs getting money. When seen in aggregate, the money going to NGOs should shock everyone – it’s billions of dollars.
Two NGOs came to my attention this week, and I want to highlight them as part of our ongoing DOGE IL series.
First Up – SouthWest Organizing Project https://www.swopchicago.org/
I have noticed this group before because they are affiliated with the other groups that have radical agendas when it comes to political power, supporting illegal immigration, and educational equity.
They were also a group highlighted in this Comprehensive Overview of 2025 Illinois Legislative Session from McGuireWoods Consulting, which gives a good summary of the budget, the budget implementation act, the revenue items, and other important legislative actions. (I only noticed this report because Wirepoints had it linked in their daily email of articles.)
In their summary, McGuireWoods highlighted that the Southwest Organizing Project is receiving an additional $6 million this year for parent mentoring programs. In last year’s budget, the group was appropriated nearly $28 million – mostly for parent mentoring, but also for infrastructure improvements.
From our budget analysis of FY 2025, here is what their grants look like:
The first column is the page number in the budget.
For the rest of July, this group, according to their events page, is hosting team meetings along with the following:
July 19th – Open Gym from 5 pm-8:30 pm
July 19th – A new immigrant workshop from 8 am-1 pm
July 19th – A Block Party from 3-7 pm
July 27th – United Power Action, an Action to demand the city keeps its promises regarding the budget for the acquiring and rehabbing of homes, as well as to demonstrate that the investment in the south and west sides should be just as much of a priority as work done downtown.
Did you send your money to Springfield to fund these???
SWOP is the State-funded fiscal agent for the Parent Mentor Program. These programs get parents engaged in schools, teaching them how to assist their children in their learning. What started out as someone’s well-intentioned idea has become an ever-increasing line item in the budget. In fact, every year, representatives come before the education appropriation committee and argue for continued funding for their entity. Not every non-profit gets a specific set-aside time in a hearing – they get special attention, which is outrageous. I know – I was on that committee in the House for six years.
SWOP has direct personal contact with parents in a critical area of their lives. Is it no wonder that this NGO gets loads of money in the state budget?
In most rural and suburban areas, parent mentoring programs are either unheard of or not formal, intensive, state-funded programs. Oftentimes, parents are paid to be parent mentors in schools – another incentive for parents to lobby – and vote – for legislators who will promise more money for education.
SWOP has coalition partners who are unabashedly political advocacy groups, not service organizations.
Second highlight – United Power for Action and Justice: https://united-power.org/. This group is one of the SWOP’s coalition partners. According to the Grant Transparency and Accountability database, United Power received the following amounts from state taxpayers: FY2022 – $1 million, in each fiscal year 2023-2025 – $8 million.
However, the FY2025 budget document says they only received $5 million.
In the FY2026 budget, we have found appropriations totaling $10,862,700.
Their website says they have received $215 million in capital funds for their projects with 57 new homeowners, 83 waiting mortgage approvals, which are also subsidized by the state, 150 homes under development, and 500 lots for development committed by Chicago (whatever that means).
A Chicago Tribune editorial from March of this year celebrates this group, writing:
The group is off to a great start, having raised tens of millions for construction from an assortment of big banks, foundations and other deep-pocketed contributors since 2018. United Power built 70 homes in these selected neighborhoods last year and is on track to more than double that total in 2025….
United Power has the money to build and keep building. With $40 million in hand — none of it directly from taxpayers — in a revolving fund designed to perpetuate itself as homes are sold, what the group needs to keep the momentum is continued investment by the state in subsidizing those who buy the units. In the past two years, the state has contributed $15 million, enabling homes built at a cost of about $400,000 each to be sold for $250,000 to $300,000. These are 1,650-square-foot homes with three bedrooms, room enough for a small family.
With the subsidized prices and borrower-friendly mortgages from participating financial institutions such as Self-Help Federal Credit Union, owner now of the old Seaway Bank on the South Side, households making annual incomes as low as $45,000 can qualify with credit scores of at least 580. The groups that make up United Power are tasked with vetting applicants and ensuring they are in need of this kind of subsidization and that they are prepared to keep current on their loan and save enough to maintain their homes.
There are a couple of things about the above. First, the Tribune says taxpayer money isn’t involved, and in the next paragraph literally lists the taxpayer money they receive. Second, taxpayers are subsidizing not just the rehab/construction but also the purchase of these homes. We are essentially landlords again and again.
This group is no longer a non-governmental organization. Its entire program depends on government funding, most importantly, subsidizing homeowners.
As you read stories about the One Big Beautiful Bill cutting back federal subsidies for Medicaid or SNAP, or other stories about energy relief funds running out, know that Pritzker could backfill these cuts with state funds if that were his priority.
When the Chicago Tribune publishes bleeding heart stories about Humboldt Park Health potentially losing $5-7 million from Medicaid cuts, know that Pritzker could backfill them, but he rather give Puerto Rican arts and culture groups over $8 million in grants.
When Pritzker announces that he is awarding 29 small manufacturing companies a total of $1.3 million in grants, know what a joke that is compared to the NGOs receiving multiple times more for their bogus operations.
The Governor has ZERO concept of the term opportunity costs. And, he has no regard for taxpayers who should not be forced to fund these groups.
Taxpayers are being forced to fund NGOs at the local level too. DuPage County awarded $711,000 to various NGOs and it was a bipartisan spending spree.
Read that story at this LINK.
Here’s an excerpt:
One grant in particular drew attention: Naperville Neighbors United (NNU), founded by Democratic Naperville City Councilman and former mayoral candidate Benny White, received $30,000—the group’s largest award to date. NNU promotes racial and cultural diversity and has received support from Democratic officials including Gov. J.B. Pritzker and State Reps. Anne Stava-Murray and Janet Yang Rohr.
DuPage County Board Chair Deb Conroy, a Democrat and former state representative, led the presentation of grant checks. She also donated $1,000 to White’s 2023 mayoral campaign.