Week of March 17, 2008

    The General Assembly began a two week break following adjournment on Thursday, March 13th. Dozens of House bills were moved from second to third reading which means that they can now be debated and voted on in the House chamber. When we return after the Easter break, there will be lots of legislation that will pass from the House to the Senate. At the same time, the Senate will be passing legislation which will become the subject of House debate later in April. Keep a close eye on legislation that is important to you once the General Assembly reconvenes. Things will be fast and furious!

    Last week, legislation that would ban aluminum baseball bats at the Little League level was defeated in committee. The legislation, offered by Representative Robert Molaro of Chicago would have banned the use of aluminum bats for those 13 years of age or under. As the legislation went down in flames, one legislator asked if parents should also carry their child from base to base to avoid any possibility of injury. Finally, we see one small defeat of the “nanny” government forces. However, that may change. The committee agreed to wait to hear a study regarding the dangers of aluminum bats before a final vote is taken.

    A bill that addresses distracted driving was also held in committee last week. HB4998 would attempt to curb “distracted driving” in Illinois. The committee could not come to an agreement of what defines distracted driving. There is some agreement that texting, cell phone use, putting on make up, changing clothes, or reading a book would be easy to classify as offenses. However, most other distracting activities would be left up to the opinion of police officers. The sponsor of the legislation will continue to work on a definition and attempt passage later.

    One issue looming large in Statehouse corridors is the budget. Revenue estimates will undoubtedly fall short of expectations. Some place the budget deficit as high as $750 million for the current fiscal year. This means that either state spending will need to be cut or reliable revenue streams must be created to make up the difference. There is no doubt a connection between the overall downturn in the U.S. economy and the shortage of revenue coming in to state coffers.

    However, Illinois has been headed in this direction financially for many years due to unchecked spending and a lack of attention to living within our means. A responsible approach must be taken in order to shore up this massive budget deficit and I do not expect our often absent Governor to take an expanded or involved leadership role in the “nuts and bolts” negotiations that are necessary to craft a budget. There are dozens of budget hearings scheduled statewide in the next few weeks in order for public input regarding the budget crisis. These hearings are similar to hearings held a couple of years ago. The problem was that the Democratic leadership did not listen to those urging responsibility at that time. The result of those budget hearings was record spending, pension raids and the state borrowing more money. Let’s hope that these hearings result in a more responsible approach. It is way past the time that we address our budget problems.

    The state of Illinois currently owes almost $2 billion in Medicaid payments as southern Illinois health care providers and nursing homes struggle to keep their doors open. The economic picture in Illinois is bleak, and strong and serious leadership will be needed in the coming months on budget issues if Illinois is to meet its financial obligations next year. I am interested in hearing from you on this issue and how you think the state should go about closing our budget deficit and meeting Medicaid obligations.

    I will have another update for you when the legislature resumes activity April 1st. I want to wish everyone a Happy Easter and let’s hope that we have great weather this spring. In the mean time, please continue to contact me with your questions, comments, and concerns on these and other issues of importance to you. You can e-mail me at reddyunit1@aol.com or feel free to call my office at (618) 563-4128.