Senate week in review         

April 30-May 4

[May 04, 2007]  SPRINGFIELD -- As criticism of the governor's proposed gross receipts tax on business continues to mount, Senate Republicans formally declared their opposition to the proposal with a Senate resolution introduced Thursday, said state Sen. Larry Bomke, R-Springfield.

Senate Resolution 167 is similar to a measure debated by the House of Representatives earlier in the week that received widespread support from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers. Senate Republicans are encouraging their Democratic colleagues to join them in co-sponsoring the resolution and express their opposition to the controversial tax, which experts caution could have a negative impact on Illinois' employers, economy and consumers.

Residents in rural Illinois are likely to benefit, however, from legislation approved by the Illinois Senate that would protect septic system owners from complicated and costly regulations and fees. Illinois representatives are expected to consider Senate Bill 184. The measure restricts the pending regulations for owners of private, surface-discharging septic systems, which are likely to cost rural property owners across Illinois an additional $500 a year or more.

Senate Republican legislators have worked with concerned local officials over the past year to prevent the implementation of these exorbitant fees and the adoption of the regulations that officials warn would be a logistical nightmare for local health departments and municipalities forced to police the strict new requirements.

Additional legislation approved by the Senate last week increases penalties for parents who knowingly allow underage drinking in their home, if an underage drinker is hurt or killed as a result of consuming alcohol in the household. Several instances where parents allowed children to drink, which resulted in their death, have been reported in Illinois. The bill received bipartisan support and now awaits consideration by the Illinois House.

Lawmakers also received a response from the Department of Central Management Services regarding recent legislative inquiries into reports of slow hiring of nurses at state-run veterans homes. Senate lawmakers on the Veterans Affairs Committee recently sent a letter requesting information on how the state is working to expedite the hiring process at the state's veterans homes.

Bomke explained that the letter was sent after the committee received testimony revealing that veterans homes continue to face nursing shortages despite a recently signed law that sought to accelerate the nurse hiring process. The acting director of the state's Central Management Services has promised to work with the Department of Veterans' Affairs to immediately begin implementing solutions intended to reduce nursing shortages at the state's veterans homes.

Legislation approved by the Illinois Senate last week:

Green Building Enterprise Zone (Senate Bill 135): Creates the Green Neighborhood Grant Act to spark the use of green building standards.

Credit cards (Senate Bill 171): Prevents credit card issuers from including a universal default clause in the cardholder's contract. Such a clause allows the issuer to raise the interest rates on the card if the cardholder is late on a payment for a card from another card issuer.

Crime (Senate Bill 115): Makes it an aggravating factor in the sentencing of a person who commits a felony against a member of the armed forces of the United States if the person knew the victim was a member of the armed forces.

Energy assistance (Senate Bill 124): Extends the sunset on the Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund from Dec. 31, 2007 to Dec. 31, 2013.

Judicial campaigns (Senate Bill 222): Provides for public financing of Supreme Court and Appellate Court races and places limits on contributions to judicial candidates.

Juvenile sex offenders (Senate Bill 121): Requires registration of juveniles as sex offenders but allows juveniles to petition for removal from the registry after two years for a misdemeanor and after five years for a felony.

Nurse task force (Senate Bill 211): Creates the Task Forces on State Employed Nurses Act.

Procurement code (Senate Bill 1381): Authorizes chief procurement officers to participate in joint government purchasing agreements without any method of source selection for the purposes of jointly procuring supplies and services. 

School consolidation (Senate Bill 194): Allows school districts whose enrollment increases by 90 percent-plus as a result of a partial annexation to be eligible for consolidation incentives. 

School health centers (Senate Bill 715): Requires the Department of Human Services to initiate 20 new school health centers over a five-year period beginning July 1.

Youth hunting (Senate Bill 201): Creates a two-day youth deer season and stricter permit and tag violation penalties.

[Text from news release sent on behalf of Sen. Larry Bomke and received from Illinois Senate Republican staff]