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From Sen. Bill Brady

[DEC. 6, 2003] 

Republicans push for reforms during fall session

Senate Republican lawmakers played a significant role during the fall legislative session, helping to craft comprehensive ethics reforms, working to keep trucking jobs in Illinois and putting crucial death penalty reforms into law.

My colleagues and I contributed to the ethics legislation that was approved with bipartisan support. Among the tenets of the bill we suggested are time sheet requirements for all state employees, financial disclosure of unpaid advisers who act as "shadow government" and a ban on government-paid promotional pieces (such as bumper stickers, posters, billboards, lapel pins, stickers or magnets) that include an elected official's name or photo.

Only 14 hours later, Senate Democrats asked for loopholes in Illinois election laws that could lead to voter fraud and could dismiss all violations and fines currently before the State Board of Elections. We voted against the proposal -- even though it contained the language that would place President George W. Bush on the Illinois ballot -- preferring to maintain the integrity of Illinois' elections laws rather than bow to Democratic pressure. The measure failed 23-27-0. We will reintroduce the legislation in the spring to ensure George W. Bush appears on the Illinois ballot following the Republican National Convention.

We also worked to begin eliminating the excessive tax and fee hikes imposed on truckers this year, a move that will save thousands of trucking industry jobs. House Bill 852 gained approval in the Senate only after Senate Republican Leader Frank Watson and our caucus won a commitment that the fees will be rolled back over the next two years, instead of the three-year rollback suggested by Democratic lawmakers. Our plan has the support of the trucking industry.

 

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In other action, we played a strong role in the task force that drafted crucial death penalty reforms. The new law allows for continued review and reforms through the Capital Punishment Reform Study Committee, allows judges to rule out the death penalty in cases that rely on a single eyewitness or police informant, allows the Illinois Supreme Court to overturn a death sentence, prohibits execution of mentally disabled individuals, and allows condemned inmates to more easily clear their names with newly discovered evidence and to see state's evidence that favors them -- including some previously off-limits documents. A second bill, also approved by lawmakers, addressed the governor's concerns about removing police officers who commit perjury on the witness stand.

Governor's Opportunity Returns plan for north central Illinois

On Dec. 3 Gov. Blagojevich announced several major initiatives and grants to counter job loss and spur economic development in north central Illinois. [See "Gov. Blagojevich brings Opportunity Returns to north central Illinois."]

Legislation information

If you would like specific information on legislation that was acted on during the veto session, go to www.legis.state.il.us and click on "Bills & Resolutions." This will give you a menu of all bills introduced to the General Assembly. When you click on the particular bill you are interested in, you will get the history of action on the bill, and, if it was voted on, you can obtain the voting record.

If you need information about legislation, please do not hesitate to contact my office at (309) 664-4440 for assistance.

[News release from  Sen. Bill Brady]

 

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