 Just what have these freshman legislators been up to? Now that the
bill introduction deadline for each legislative chamber has passed,
Illinois Statehouse News continues a look at those activities.
Government fiscal responsibility
Restraining government spending seems to be top on the agendas of
new lawmakers, who aim to demonstrate fiscal responsibility by
cutting their own pay first.
Three measures introduced by freshman lawmakers in both the House
and Senate deal with cutting the pay of state legislators and
administration employees by 10 percent.
"This is just a show of good faith to the people in the community
that we, too, are doing something in terms of trying to live within
our means and cut back," said state Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris.
Another proposal -- backed by state Rep. Joe Sosnowski,
R-Rockford, in the House and Rezin in the Senate -- eliminates the
state's fleet of airplanes and helicopters, leaving only one of
each.
"Obviously it's not going to cover much of the gap," said
Sosnowski, who estimates the measure will reduce spending about $20
million. "When you extrapolate that amount over decades, the cost to
the taxpayers is large."
Although these initiatives might put only a small dent in the
state's $11.5 billion budget deficit cited by Gov. Pat Quinn's
administration, Rezin said every little bit counts.
"We cannot continue to increase the spending at this rate. You'll
see many measures, hopefully, that will roll back up spending,"
Rezin said.
State pension system
Another popular issue among the new lawmakers is reforming the
state's pension system, which has recently caught the eye of the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Illinois lawmakers have
said that the system is funded by only 50 percent, with liabilities
around $136 billion.
State Rep. David Harris, R-Mount Prospect, is sponsoring a couple
of bills that amend the Illinois Pension Code.
"Our state indeed does have a pension problem, in terms of our
pension liabilities," said Harris, who previously served in the
House chamber for 10 years about two decades ago. "And I don't think
our financial problems will be resolved until we resolve the pension
issue."
Job creation
Illinois' unemployment rate stood at 9.2 percent in December, the
most recent month for which data is available, and lawmakers are
working on bills that would create jobs.
State Rep. Thomas Morrison, R-Palatine, introduced a bill that
creates a financial incentive for employers to hire additional
workers. His measure would give businesses a $3,750 tax credit for
every employee hired and retained for two years.
[to top of second column] |
 Scholarships
General Assembly scholarships have long been seen as a way for
legislators to give back to their community. Questions, however,
have been raised about the program's legitimacy, as many lawmakers
choose to nominate children of families, friends or campaign
contributors to receive the tuition waivers.
While the House is considering legislation to eliminate General
Assembly scholarships, Harris, the Republican from Mount Prospect,
hopes to add a few limitations.
House Bill 3078 reduces the number of students -- from two to
one -- legislators can nominate to receive General Assembly
scholarships.
The Illinois School Code currently allows lawmakers to nominate
two people from their district to receive four-year scholarships.
Additionally, they can also choose to nominate two people for
two-year scholarships or four people for one-year scholarships.
"The objective is to award the scholarships when it's not a
financial burden on the universities, when we are paying our bills,"
Harris said.
Fellow freshman lawmaker state Sen. Christine Johnson,
R-Sycamore, said the legislature should get rid of the program
altogether.
"I think there's a place for them -- when you have the money --
but, unfortunately, right now we don't have the money," Johnson
said.
Click here to read a previous Illinois Statehouse News article
on the work being done by freshman lawmakers.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By MARY J. CRISTOBAL and MELISSA LEU]
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