2019

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois Senate today passed Senate Bill 2023. The legislation, championed by Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs, would prohibit the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) from any action that would penalize or dissuade banks and credit unions from serving cannabis-related businesses. “We are one step closer to preventing state banking regulators from penalizing banks or credit unions for allowing legal cannabis businesses to manage their financial transactions like every other legitimate business in the state,” Frerichs said. “These legitimate business owners should not have to…

SPRINGFIELD — Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs is encouraging young photographers to submit photos for the 2019 Cream of the Crop Photo Contest. The contest encourages young photographers to share their vision of agriculture in our state. “Illinois continues to be a leader in farming and strives for agricultural diversity,” Frerichs said. “This contest gives students an opportunity to capture the beauty of our state and showcase the importance of agriculture in Illinois.” The treasurer’s office is accepting electronic submissions for the Cream of the Crop Photo Contest from Illinois…

CHICAGO — Illinois’ emerging cannabis industry could collapse if updates are not made to federal and state banking rules that threaten financial institutions with closure if they do business with the cannabis industry, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs said today. Addressing the outdated banking prohibitions is critical because laws written decades ago to squeeze illegal drug cartels do not reflect today’s reality that 33 states and the District of Columbia now legalize cannabis in some form. The conflict between Illinois law on legal cannabis use and banking regulations has pushed…

JOLIET — Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs today returned a Purple Heart Medal to the family of First Lieutenant Walter B. Ingledew, Jr. who bravely served and was killed in action in Europe during WWII. Accepting the Purple Heart was Barbara Martens, Ingledew’s niece. The reunification of the medal occurred at a ceremony at the Stone City VFW Post 2199 in Joliet. “Returning this Purple Heart to the family of WWII veteran Walter B. Ingledew, Jr. is an incredible honor,” Frerichs said. “We must never forget the sacrifices made by…

SPRINGFIELD — Illinois now has more people saving for their retirement thanks to the Secure Choice Program. Just months after the program launched, more than $1 million in retirement savings has been amassed by approximately 9,000 employees at Illinois businesses that were not previously offering their employees a way to save, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs announced today. Secure Choice officially launched last fall with the first of three enrollment waves. Wave one included Illinois employers with 500 or more employees that were required to register and auto- enroll their…