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Blagojevich asks taxpayers to
assume risk Gov. Blagojevich is pushing for a program that
will provide state-backed loans for illegal immigrants. Wisconsin
lawmakers tried a similar program but voted to repeal it within
months.
The plan calls for below-market-rate loans for illegal immigrants
-- who generally have little or no credit history, no bank account
and no Social Security number. It would be hard to find a business
that would issue loans to ANYONE, legal or otherwise, with such
qualifications. So why is the governor asking taxpayers to assume
such a risk?
In order to protect Illinois citizens, I am going to introduce
legislation to restrict the loan program to legal residents of the
state.
State budget woes continue
Injured state employees are having to wait for their workers'
compensation money -- some until October 2006 -- because of a
shortfall in the fund.
Quoted in the Dec. 15 edition of the Decatur Herald & Review,
Springfield attorney Gloria Morris said: "It's a serious situation
for people who have been injured. It's just an unfortunate
occurrence that the state has a habit of balancing the budget on the
backs of the people who can least afford it."
Ms. Morris has hit the nail on the head, although it is getting
harder and harder to believe that the current budget was truly
balanced when it was passed in May.
Illinois counties no longer top "judicial hellholes"
Good news from southern Illinois: Madison and St. Clair counties
have lost their dubious honors of being the most "sue-happy"
counties in the nation.
New rankings show that Madison County, which has been the No. 1
"judicial hellhole" for the last two years, is now fourth on the
American Tort Reform Association's annual list. St. Clair County,
which was second last year, is now fifth.
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 A number of factors have contributed to the changes -- chief
among them the passage of medical malpractice legislation that
includes comprehensive medical, insurance and legal reforms and caps
noneconomic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits at $500,000 for
doctors and $1 million for hospitals.
On Feb. 26, 2003, several hundred doctors came to Springfield to
rally against skyrocketing medical malpractice insurance premiums
that were driving physicians and hospitals out of business and
leaving Illinois citizens with fewer health care options. At that
same time, I introduced legislation that addressed the crisis, but
state Democratic leaders blocked my efforts. More than two years
later, we were able to come to a long-overdue compromise, and
although I didn't agree with all provisions, the agreement is a big
step in the right direction.
New report: Economy heading in wrong direction
A report issued in November analyzing 15 years of jobs data
confirms what I have been saying for years: The Illinois economy is
heading in the wrong direction!
"The State of Working Illinois" is a cooperative effort of the
Center for Tax and Budget Accountability and Northern Illinois
University, with assistance from the Illinois Department of
Employment Security. Funded by the Joyce Foundation, the study
scrutinizes jobs, wages and work force trends since 1990.
Look for my comments on the study in the Dec. 18 edition of the
Bloomington Pantagraph.
[From
Sen. Bill Brady]
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