October 2026

Head-and-shoulders portrait of Treasurer Frerichs in a blue suit, smiling with arms crossed, in front of the Illinois and United States flags.

Treasurer Michael Frerichs’ Office Publishes Annual Report on Small Business Spending

Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs’ office increased its small business spending by 66 percent from Fiscal Year 2025 to Fiscal Year 2026, a new report states. During Fiscal Year 2026, the Treasurer’s Office spent a total of $2,235,433.77 on contracts and other purchases with small businesses, which represents nearly 10 percent of the Office’s overall contract and purchase spending of $24,151,375.88. For comparison, spending during Fiscal Year 2025 totaled $1,346,772.54. The information is included in the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office annual report on the Office’s utilization of small business vendors.…

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Treasurer Michael Frerichs smiling at the camera while seated at a desk with an orange and black decorative pumpkin. Above his left shoulder are two small skull decorations.

This Halloween, State Treasurer Michael Frerichs Suggests Checking ICash for Treats

Video of Treasurer Frerichs available here: Ahead of Halloween, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs is asking residents to check the ICash website to see if there’s missing money waiting for you to claim. “You might find enough money for a bag of candy, a really good Halloween costume or tickets to a haunted house. Maybe even enough to take your friends out to see a scary movie,” Frerichs said. “And speaking of scary movies, I checked the ICash database, and it looks like there’s money waiting for several people…

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This Year’s Costumes Mean a Little More

I have always been a little jealous of people who have intricate, creative, and homemade Halloween costumes. Maybe it’s because as a kid, I frequently had the plastic costumes you would wear over your clothes with a plastic mask pressed against your face, hoping the elastic string wouldn’t break.     I wish I could say that I did better with my kids, but with the twins, we have taken the easy route.     They have dressed as a pair of pumpkins, as ketchup and mustard, and as M&M’s.…

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The Illinois Ideas That Helped Shape the World

Last week’s Treasurer’s Note unleashed a lot of pride in Illinois’ history of innovations, and readers were quick to let me know about their favorites.           Several of them, I was aware of. A few of them were new to me.           Thank you for enlightening me! Now I’d like to enlighten our readers by picking out a baker’s dozen of great Illinois innovations. We didn’t have space for them all. Hopefully, highlighting these inventions will help you learn something you didn’t…

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Eight people pose in front of a blue wall at Synapse House. Treasurer Frerichs is third from right.

Treasurer Michael Frerichs Announces Nearly $180,000 in Grants for Small Nonprofits in Illinois

Key Points: Video available from Illinois Department of Central Management Services. Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs today announced nearly $180,000 in Charitable Trust grants to 10 nonprofit organizations that help people in need by providing food and job training. The grants total $178,210. “These grants are important because they help nonprofits achieve their missions of serving others and strengthening communities,” Treasurer Frerichs said at a news conference at Synapse House, a Charitable Trust grant recipient in Downers Grove. “We recognize that people are struggling with increased inflation and higher living…

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