Illinois University Funding Bill Divides State Universities Over Equitable Formula
The Illinois House is considering House Bill 1581, which would create a needs-based funding formula for public universities and provide $135 million in annual additional funding for 15 years. The bill, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford, D-Chicago, has passed the House Higher Education Committee and now awaits further action. The legislation, known as the Adequate and Equitable Public University Funding Act, has drawn strong opposition from the University of Illinois System while smaller universities support the measure.
The Proposal
Under the legislation, the state would approve an annual $135 million increase in higher-education spending for 15 years. The funds would be directed to individual schools through a specific equitable funding model based on perceived need and equity. The formula is designed to disperse state funds based on a university's specific calculated needs.
Currently, lawmakers approve a certain percentage increase or decrease from the previous fiscal year, which applies to every public university in the state. If Springfield issues a 1 percent flat rate increase, the University of Illinois and Western Illinois University would both receive a 1 percent increase, as would all other public universities.
That approach has drawn criticism from proponents of the funding formula. The current system treats all universities equally regardless of their size, student population, or financial needs. The new formula would address systemic disparities in college access and affordability by setting an adequacy target for each school and giving priority for new funding to institutions furthest from their target.
Current Funding Situation
In fiscal year 2026, Western Illinois University received a state appropriation of $57.4 million while the University of Illinois received $726.6 million. Both represented a 1 percent increase from FY25 to FY26. However, because the U of I received significantly more funding than WIU in 2025, Western's 1 percent increase was represented by $568,000 while the U of I's 1 percent increase was $5.2 million.
In Illinois, state appropriations have gone from covering 75 percent of university costs to now covering 28 percent. The national average, per the Illinois Board of Higher Education as of 2024, is 61 percent. State spending on higher education fell 46 percent between 2000 and 2023, as reported by the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability.
Opposition from University of Illinois
Nicholas Jones, the No. 2 man in the University of Illinois System, said the legislation does not take into consideration the vast responsibilities of the UI's three campuses or the fact that more than 50 percent of the state's 177,000 university students attend the UI. He said the UI's Urbana campus would receive about 2.2 percent of the $135 million.
Ultimately, this is going to weaken educational outcomes on which the state depends, Jones said. The UI finds itself on a political island in this debate. Because other state schools, which need and want budget increases, stand to benefit, they are not concerned about the UI.
Benefits for Smaller Universities
Other smaller schools would enjoy larger percentage increases in funding. Eastern Illinois University, with 6,300 students, would get a 22 percent hike from current funds. Chicago State, with 2,300 students, would get a 15 percent budget increase. Governors State, with 4,400 students, would receive a 35 percent increase. Western Illinois, with 7,300 students, would get a 21 percent increase. Larger schools, like Illinois State with 20,000 students and Northern Illinois with nearly 16,000 students, would receive 19 percent and 15.5 percent increases, respectively.
Increases are based on what are called adequacy gaps the difference between what bill supporters believe should be appropriated in the future and what actually has been appropriated. According to Advance Illinois, WIU is the least funded university, or school that's furthest from adequacy, in the whole state. WIU is 48 percent fully funded. The average university is funded at 89 percent. Regional schools like Western are much lower. Eastern Illinois University and Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville are 49 percent funded, and Northern Illinois University is funded at 51 percent.
Political Implications
State Rep. Chapin Rose, a Mahomet Republican, said he's conflicted on the legislation because he represents both Eastern Illinois, which benefits, and the UI, which doesn't. Everybody else in the bill does really well, but not the UI, he said.
The legislation is patterned after the state's K-12 funding formula, which outlines future planned spending for public schools. Unfortunately, the state's fiscal problems have prevented full funding under the K-12 formula. Teachers' unions have charged the state is $5 billion behind in its commitments.
Enrollment Concerns
Directional universities across Illinois have seen dramatic decreases in enrollment in the last decade. From 2014 to 2024, Northern Illinois University lost just over 5,000 students. Enrollment that hovered around 20,000 students at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale in 2010 has since fallen to 11,790. Eastern Illinois University, which peaked at over 12,000 students over 20 years ago, dropped to 7,030 students in 2017, but has since seen a steady uptick. Since 2015, enrollment at Western Illinois University has decreased from 11,094 to about 6,000.
Because of lesser funds coming in from the state, schools have had to rely more on the money they're bringing in from students. Proponents of the funding formula said it's hard to do that when enrollment is falling.
Political Support
Sen. Lightford is the chief sponsor of SB0013. She was a part of a commission that was created in 2021 to address higher education funding issues. Known as the Commission on Equitable Public University Funding, the 30-person commission studied over a two-year period if public higher education institutions needed a new funding mode.
Lightford emphasized that state appropriations for public universities have essentially been cut in half over the last 20 to 25 years. State spending on higher education fell 46 percent between 2000 and 2023, as reported by the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability.
Lightford said the disinvestment in state schools has led universities to raise tuition costs. As reported in the 2025 Illinois Student Assistance Commission's data book, the average cost of tuition and fees at a public four-year school in Illinois has gone from $7,151 in 2005 to $17,339 in the 2024-2025 academic year.
We want young people to stay in our state, attend our universities, and then stay in our state because then they're highly educated, they're home, and they're able to make changes in their own communities, Lightford said.
Business Concerns
The issue drew statewide attention last week when leaders of two prominent groups Mark Denzler of the Illinois Manufacturers' Association and Jack Lavin of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce raised what they called serious concerns about the legislation.
They said reforms of this magnitude should be thoughtful, data-driven and carefully evaluated to ensure they strengthen the entire system. Citing vast research and public-private partnerships across its campuses, they expressed worries about the impact of the proposed changes.
Next Steps
The bill has several dozen co-sponsors and passed the House Higher Education Committee on March 26. It now awaits further action in the full House and Senate. The Illinois Board of Higher Education continues to study the implications of the proposed funding formula.
The debate over how to fund public higher education continues to intensify as Illinois lawmakers grapple with the challenge of supporting quality education across the state's diverse university system.