Illinois Senate Democrats are trying to impose limits on artificial intelligence, or AI, in the final weeks of the legislative session.

The proposed package of eight different bills would target specific areas impacted by the emerging technology, including its effects on mental health and the usage of AI in schools.

State Sen. Bill Cunningham said because Congress has not put much regulation around AI, state lawmakers feel they have to step into the void.

“Artificial intelligence, or AI, can be a powerful tool for good, but currently there are minimal guardrails in place. It’s like the wild, wild west. Illinois needs to create a roadmap for responsible innovation to prevent catastrophic risks. And that is why we are all here today,” said State Sen. Mary Edly-Allen.

Edly-Allen’s proposal, which passed out of committee Wednesday and now heads to the full Senate, aims to increase transparency from big AI companies like ChatGPT and Claude. It would require large companies to make annual reports explaining what they are doing to prevent what lawmakers call “catastrophic risks.”

If a company learns about a critical safety incident, it has to report it within 72 hours, or 24 hours if the incident poses a serious risk of harm or death.

Another bill, led by Sen. Laura Ellman, aims to address the growing number of young people turning to AI during a mental health crisis, specifically people who confide in a chatbot about their suicidal thoughts. AI companies would have to implement methods to detect self harm and refer the user to a resource, such as the suicide hotline.

Other bills try to crack down on AI being used to fix rent prices, curb someone’s data from being used for targeted ads or sold to third parties, ban teachers from using AI to grade a student’s work and cut down on bots scooping up tickets to concerts and sports.

The current legislative session is set to end on May 31, with lawmakers working to pass a host of bills before that date arrives.

The Chicago metro area is getting its first Dutch Bros cafe this week, with additional Illinois locations set to open later this year.

The West Coast coffee chain announced the openings in a press release Wednesday, May 13, adding details about available freebies.

Dutch Bros coming to Melrose Park

Dutch Bros will be making its Chicago suburbs debut in Melrose Park, with doors set to open Thursday, May 14, at 1931 N. Mannheim Road.

The cafe will operate from 5 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 5 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Melrose Park customers will be able to snag a free keychain with any drink purchase on opening day, while supplies last, according to the chain.

“Opening in the Chicago area has always been a dream for us at Dutch Bros, and Melrose Park is just the beginning,” Dutch Bros Local Market Lead Allie Lahti said in the release.

Where else is Dutch Bros opening locations in Illinois?

The chain also announced plans to open cafes in Rockford, New Lenox and Buffalo Grove, with locations slated to open this summer. The chain lists the Rockford location as “coming soon” to 7103 E. State St. on its website.

The amount of state and local taxes paid here also is near the nation’s highest.

Illinoisans continue to pay the highest combined state and local tax rate in the country, according to WalletHub.

Effective state and local tax rates totaled almost 17% for a median Illinois household last year, compared with the national average of just over 11.02% and higher than No. 2 New York, at 14.95%.

The median amount of state and local taxes for an Illinois household was $12,538 last year, fourth-highest in the country. The national median was around $8,949. (These amounts use a different household measurement.)

Illinois’ burden is driven by property, sales and excise taxes that exceed national averages and those in neighboring states.

Property taxes are especially high, with an effective rate of 1.92% of the value of a typical home, more than double the national median of 0.89%.

Sales taxes are also elevated in Illinois, with a 6.25% state rate and a nearly 9% combined state and local rate on average.

High taxes were a top-two issue for 58.1% of likely Illinois voters in a recent poll. State residents aren’t waiting for lawmakers to hear their concerns — almost all of the nearly 83,000 who left Illinois in 2024 went to states with lower taxes.

In Iowa, the neighboring state with the next-highest combined state and local tax rate, the annual tax total for median household is over $3,841 less than in Illinois. Indiana and Wisconsin also impose significantly lower combined burdens.

Illinois needs to reduce its tax burden to encourage more people and businesses to stay or move here. That cannot happen without improving fiscal responsibility. Lawmakers should consider reforms such as:

• Enacting a spending cap to ensure the state’s budget grows responsibly.
• Rightsizing agency spending by eliminating waste and returning costs to sustainable levels.
• Reforming pensions to prevent retirement obligations from crowding out necessary services and driving up taxes.