|
 Former state Rep. Luis Arroyo was sentenced to 57
months in federal prison May 25, after pleading guilty to charges of accepting
bribes in exchange for promoting legislation expanding sweepstakes gambling in
Illinois.
The conviction of the former Illinois House assistant majority leader comes more
than two years after Arroyo was first arrested in October 2019 by federal
authorities on one count of bribing a state official.
In a matter of months, the embroiled state representative retired from office
and picked up additional federal charges of wire and mail fraud. He also
collected an Illinois taxpayer-funded pension worth $129,762, a Freedom of
Information Act request shows.
The retirement payout Arroyo received over just 29 months was more than triple
what he contributed over his 13 years of public service.
While Arroyo was ultimately stripped of his pension by law after being found
guilty, Illinoisans were still on the hook to pay the corrupt public official
$53,694 each year until his sentencing for his personal use. These funds were
never recouped by state taxpayers.
As lawmakers predicted the trial of indicted former House Speaker Michael
Madigan to stretch on for several years, state Rep. Amy Elik introduced a bill
that would have suspended tax funded benefits for lawmakers under criminal
investigation.
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HB 5737 was introduced in the final days of spring session after federal
authorities indicted Madigan, the nation’s longest serving house speaker, on
charges of bribery and racketeering in connection with alleged corruption
schemes. Madigan served as majority leader alongside Arroyo before his arrest.
“Corrupt lawmakers should not receive a taxpayer-funded pension if they
defrauded the taxpayers while serving themselves in state government,” Elik
said. “Suspending pension payments while awaiting the resolution of a case will
send a strong message to corrupt politicians that if you break the law, the
consequences will be costly.”
Elik’s bill was reassigned to the House rules committee April 1. The measure did
not make it to the floor for a vote before state lawmakers ended the session
April 8.
Inaction by politicians on HB 5737 and other corruption fighting reforms over
the decades has ended up costing Illinoisans $556 million every year. Not only
does this corruption weaken residents’ faith in the government, but it decreases
economic growth and disincentivizes investment in the state.
Similar attempts at ethics reform during the spring session, including a bill
preventing lawmakers convicted of corruption from running for public office,
were also reassigned to the rules committee for review until the close of
session. |
