Lake County Gazette

State Rep. Martin McLaughlin (R-52) said ensuring services for Illinois citizens need to be prioritized over providing for illegal aliens coming into Lake County. He made the statement on a recent episode of the Prairie State Times podcast. 

“So the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois both declared themselves sanctuary cities,” McLaughlin told podcast host Bryan Hyde. “Last year we spent over two billion on services to illegal migrants.”

“I do know this: it costs the taxpayers of Illinois two and a half percent of our total budget last year,” said McLaughlin. “And when they're placed into our communities, we don't have the services available for the numbers of people that are coming. Illinois citizens need to come first."

The TRUST Act of 2017 transformed Illinois into a sanctuary state, shielding undocumented immigrants from federal immigration enforcement. 

This policy has sparked significant controversy, with over nearly 700,000 undocumented residents in the state that costs taxpayers billions of dollars annually. 

McLaughlin said "we really have to make a decision. Can we afford the level of immigration, illegal immigration, and who's going to pay for it."

Public school districts in the country are facing increased student bodies due to illegal immigration. Waukegan schools saw an increase of 119 students from illegal aliens in the area during the 2021-22 school year, 378 in the 2022-23 school year, and over 430 during the 2023-24 school year, according to a Chicago Tribune article.

“It puts an economic burden on our food banks, it puts an economic burden on our townships, for social services, for our counties, for health services," McLaughlin said. "And go to our emergency room in the city of Chicago. It used to be a 30 minute wait. You're standing behind, now, hundreds of people that are here in our country, illegally."