Illinois collected $9.06 million from pesticide registration fees in fiscal year 2025 to support enforcement and education programs related to oversight of pesticide applicators.
But state spending records indicate that much of that money, which is supposed to fund educational programs and enforcement, may not be directly funding what it was intended to.
In fiscal year 2025, the Illinois Department of Agriculture spent $4.7 million — nearly three-quarters of spending from the Pesticide Control fund — on personnel costs such as salaries, retirement and employee benefits rather than the enforcement or education activities defined in the Illinois Pesticide Act.
With concerns growing over the effects of increased pesticide usage, the state department has repeatedly claimed its resources are strained to regulate the growing pesticide industry.
The department said in a statement to CU-CitizenAccess.org it has requested increases to the Pesticide Control fund budget in the last several years to help the department “support operational costs for staff and to carry out programs and mandates outlined by the Illinois Pesticide Act as well as upgrade the licensing and inspection systems used.”
Illinois is one of the nation’s top agricultural states, and uses nearly 70 million pounds of pesticides per year on corn and soybean crops. According to the department as of March 25, there are currently 16 pesticide inspectors for 36,000 applicators in Illinois. That’s one inspector for every 2,250 applicators.
However, the department did not return multiple requests over the past four months to verify its staffing for the current fiscal year and did not respond to questions about its enforcement, funding and expenditures. Lori Harlan, public information officer for the department, did not respond to follow-up questions or return calls from CU-CitizenAccess.
The widespread use of pesticides creates a host of dangers, which is what the Pesticide Act is designed to minimize. Among the long-term risks of pesticide exposure are cancer, asthma and neurological issues. Short-term effects include headaches, skin inflammation and respiratory issues.
Prairie Rivers Network, an Illinois-based nonprofit, recently released a study that revealed pesticide drift not only impacts rural areas close to farms, but also affects schools, parks and playgrounds in both rural and urban areas. The study found an average of 20 drift events occurring at each Illinois site observed during the growing season.
Section 22.1 of the Illinois Pesticide Act created the Pesticide Control fund, which generated $9.06 million last year. It states money collected from annual pesticide business and product registration fees are appropriated for public education on proper pesticide use and other activities related to the enforcement of the act.
Enforcement is described in Section 15 as an examination or sampling of pesticides, devices, records, labeling and books used by pesticide applicators. Legal action can be taken if these items are investigated and found to be used improperly. However, these enforcement actions and protocols are not explicitly outlined.
As of 2026, Illinois businesses currently pay $1,050 every two years for pesticide business registration and $850 to register each pesticide product. The department reports there are around 1,200 companies with 13,000 registered pesticide products operating in the state.
Since 2004, $125 of each pesticide business registration and $50 of each product registration have been deposited directly into the state’s General Revenue fund.
Registration fees were increased legislatively in recent years. Product registration fees rose from $800 to $850 in 2024 and business registration fees increased from $1,000 to $1,050 this year.
“At the time of the first fee increase, fees had not been increased in more than a decade,” the department said in an email. “The second increase came at the request of the industry to help us make the transition from an annual testing method to continuing education units for license renewal.”
According to the department, most enforcement is conducted through complaint-driven investigations, with 243 misuse investigations in fiscal year 2025.
The department defines routine investigations as “an inspection conducted without a specific suspected violation.” These are generally chosen on a random basis. The number of routine inspections conducted each year is influenced by available resources, program priorities and any applicable federal or state requirements, the department said.
The department did not directly answer whether current inspector staffing levels are sufficient to conduct investigations.
According to Investigate Midwest, at a 2022 meeting of the Interagency Committee on Pesticides, the agency said in its minutes, “the stress on our resources is real,” after discussing how they received 380 misuse complaints but only had the staffing to handle 100 to 115 cases per season. It also reported a backlog of cases at that time.
The proposed budget request for Pesticide Control fund appropriations for 2027 is $9.1 million, compared to $7.7 million in 2024. The department has said this increase would help support staffing, programs and upgrades to the inspection systems used.
State partners with UI Extension to provide pesticide education
Any direct mention of educational programs is notably absent from the expenditures listed on the state comptroller’s website. The department’s website says training and testing resources are offered in partnership with the University of Illinois Extension’s Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP).
According to Extension Specialist Travis Cleveland, the program offers statewide training clinics, online courses and publishes 21 pesticide safety education manuals as references for licensure exams.
Covers of manuals used for pesticide safety education by the University of Illinois Extension via CU-CitizenAccess.
In-person and online training courses average 11,000 enrollments annually, Cleveland said in an email to CU-CitizenAccess. The program is partially funded via a $295,000 a year grant through a cooperative agreement with the Department of Agriculture, along with training registration fees and publication sales.
“Education and enforcement both have important functions in pesticide regulation,” Cleveland said. “Education focuses on proactively preventing application errors and pesticide misuse … enforcement penalties help to deter misuse.”
He said enforcement may also include educational components, such as guidance to bring an operation into compliance with the law.
“Education and enforcement go hand in hand in this space,” the state department said in an email. “The Department provides opportunities to be sure applicators are aware of the requirements and restrictions for their jobs and enforces the Act when it is violated.”
Most spending supports personnel and operational costs
Records from the Illinois State Comptroller show, in fiscal year 2025, the department spent $6.53 million from the Pesticide Control fund.
$2.48 million of that went to a category called “Regular Positions,” about 38%. Other major expenditures included “State Employee Retirement” at $1.27 million and “Employer Contributions for Group Insurance” at $837,695.
The majority of spending goes towards personnel costs, but the department did not directly answer how much of the Pesticide Control fund is spent directly on enforcement activities.
The comptroller’s public database does not specify which employees are paid from the fund or what enforcement actions or educational programs were financed. Indeed, none of the items in the expenditures data, such as Scientific Instruments, Contractual Services and Rental Property, appear to describe enforcement or education activities.
CU-CitizenAccess.org obtained records detailing the department’s expenditures for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.
Spending on contractual services, totaling $569,237, showed two expenditures related to the University of Illinois’ education program. Just over half, about $304,000, went to the program.
The records also showed $75,000 in rental property at Northern Illinois University for an office and $591,356 spent on lab equipment and supplies for pesticide testing.
The department spent $22,240 on travel expenses and conference fees. In-state travel reimbursement for 22 employees totaled $8,466. Out-of-state travel for six employees totaled $6,994.
A list of the names of 57 Illinois Department of Agriculture employees whose salaries are financed by the fund was obtained in a Freedom of Information Act request.
Of these 57 employees, 21 have job titles listed as either Plant & Pesticide Specialist I or Plant & Pesticide Specialist II. Other job titles included were Administrative Assistant, Office Coordinator, Chemist, Public Service Administrator and more. Only a portion of these positions appear to be directly related to enforcement.
The department said non-inspector staff play a critical role in supporting enforcement activities:
“Pesticide laboratory personnel analyze plant, soil, and water samples for pesticide residues, and also test pesticide product formulations to verify that active ingredients match labeled specifications. These analytical results are essential in informing and supporting enforcement decisions. In addition, enforcement officers, supervisors, and program managers provide direct oversight, coordination, and administrative support to enforcement efforts and field staff, ensuring consistent application of regulatory requirements.”
According to the comptroller’s database, in 2025, there were 14 employees listed as “Plant & Pesticide Specialist I,” which decreased to 11 total employees in 2026. Nine of the employees listed in 2025 appear to have been moved over to “Cannabis Regulator” positions.
The department did not comment on the reason for this change or whether it has impacted inspection capability.
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