Illinois Commission on Poverty Elimination and Economic Security

The Illinois Commission on Poverty Elimination and Economic Security's (CPEES) purpose is to improve policy makers' understanding of the root causes of poverty and economic insecurity in Illinois, support efforts to ensure residents have equal opportunity to achieve economic security, and ultimately reduce and eliminate poverty in Illinois by making policy and other recommendations to the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the State. Specifically, the Commission's statutory goals are to:

  • Reduce deep poverty in the State by 50% by 2026
  • Eliminate child poverty in the State by 2031
  • Eliminate all poverty in the State by 2036

The Commission launched its Strategic Plan Brief pdf in March 2022 which outlines a different approach that promotes the development of asset-based social support programs that recognize the relationship between individual situations and the systems that perpetuate poverty. These approaches or strategies are organized under five action pillars on which the subcommittees, created by the Commission, were based on.

The Commission was created under the Intergenerational Poverty Act (IPA) in June 2020 and is comprised of 25 state leaders. As part of the IPA, the Interagency Working Group on Poverty Elimination and Economic Security was also created to advance the work of CPEES by studying systems that perpetuate poverty, improve interagency coordination, and implement policies and programs that break the cycle of poverty. Please follow this link to view a description, membership, and meeting information about the Interagency Working Group on Poverty Elimination and Economic Security.

Commission Membership

Appointment Appointed By Member
Member of General Assembly President of the Senate Senator Kimberly A. Lightford
Member of General Assembly Minority Leader of the Senate Senator Dale Fowler
Member of General Assembly Speaker of the House Representative Kimberly du Buclet
Member of General Assembly Minority Leader of the House Representative Jeff Keicher
Member of the Judiciary Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court Hon. Freddrenna M. Lyle, Appellate Court Justice
Member of the Judiciary Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court Hon. Kevin T. Lee, Associate Judge
Representative of an anti-poverty organization focusing on urban and suburban poverty Governor

Co-Chair

Audra Wilson, President & CEO, Shriver Center on Poverty Law
Representative of an anti-poverty organization focusing on rural poverty Minority Leader of the House Co-Chair (TBD)
Individual who has experienced deep poverty Speaker of the House Channyn Lynne Parker, CEO of Brave Space Alliances
Individual who has experienced deep poverty Minority Leader of the Senate Oriane E. "Annie" Hewitt
Representative of an organization that advocates for health care access, affordability and availability Minority Leader of the House TBD
Representative of an organization that advocates for persons with mental illness President of the Senate TBD
Representative of an organization that advocates for children and youth Governor Ricardo Estrada, President and CEO, Metropolitan Family Services
Representative of an organization that advocates for equity and equality in education Minority Leader of the Senate TBD
Representative of an organization that advocates for individuals who are homeless President of the Senate Rev. Dwight Ford, Executive Director, Project NOW
Representative of a statewide anti-hunger organization President of the Senate Kate Maehr, Executive Director & CEO, Greater Chicago Food Depository 
Representative of an organization that advocates for military veterans Minority Leader of the Senate TBD
Representative of an organization that advocates for individuals with disabilities Speaker of the House Samantha Alloway, Executive Director, The Arc of Illinois
Representative of an organization that advocates for immigrants Speaker of the House Juan Manuel Calderón, Chief Operating Officer, The Puerto Rican Cultural Center
Representative of a statewide faith-based organization that provides direct social services in Illinois Minority Leader of the Senate TBD
Representative of an organization that advocates for economic security for women Minority Leader of the House TBD
Representative of an organization that advocates for older adults Minority Leader of the House TBD
Representative of a labor organization that represents primarily low and middle-income wage earners Governor TBD
Representative of school districts in this State President of the Senate Al Llorens, President, Illinois Education Association
Representative of county governments in this State Governor Pam Davidson, Chairperson, Knox County Board
Representative of municipal corporation governments in this State Speaker of the House TBD

Meetings

Regional Convenings

Subcommittees

Commission Annual Reports

Commission Resources

Press Releases

Commission Requirements

Training Requirements - view the training requirements for this Commission.

IDHS Administrative Support

Poverty Commission Administrative Contact: Priya Khatkhate, IDHS Chief Policy Officer - Priya.Khatkhate@Illinois.gov