In this issue:
- Chicago area mass transit bailout passes
- Welcome Illinois Soybean Association
- Dwight student was House Page for the Day
- Blood drive coming up next Wednesday
Chicago area mass transit bailout passes
It was an expensive few days for Illinois taxpayers last week as the House and Senate met for the final three days of the fall veto session and passed more big spending legislation.
Last week I told you about the energy bill which will drive up electricity costs for consumers. This week I have some details about the bailout of the mass transit system in the Chicago area.
The transit systems were facing a $200 million “fiscal cliff” if they did not receive help from Springfield. The General Assembly responded by approving $1 billion in higher charges for drivers on the Illinois Tollway and hundreds of millions of dollars more swept from the fund that pays for road construction and maintenance.
The bailout also ends the longstanding transportation funding deal which saw transportation funds split on a 55/45 percent basis between downstate counties and the Chicago area. Instead, the bailout sweeps $500 million from downstate road funding, and switches to an 85/15 percent Chicago/Downstate split. It is one of the largest Road Fund raids in Illinois history.
If there is any good news out of this, it is that the earlier Democrat proposals for funding the bailout did not come to pass. Before last Thursday night, those proposals included a new tax on grocery deliveries, then a $7 “amusement tax” on events and streaming services, then a $5 large event ticket surcharge (on top of the $7 tax), and more. These proposals were so unpopular that they did not advance.
I voted No on this bailout. It is now headed to the Governor for his signature.
Welcome Illinois Soybean Association
Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting with members of the Illinois Soybean Association at the Capitol for a tour and visit. We had great conversations about the challenges and opportunities facing Illinois farmers and the soybean industry.
Thank you to the Illinois Soybean Association for your advocacy and dedication to our state’s agricultural community!
Dwight student was House Page for the Day
Last Thursday it was great to have Ameliah Sancken, a fourth grader from Dwight, join me in Springfield as a House of Representatives Page for the Day.
Ameliah is a student at St. Paul School in Odell, and likes to sing, perform and read. She wants to be a psychologist when she grows up.
We enjoyed having Ameliah join us in the House chamber to see the workings of the House of Representatives first-hand.
Blood drive coming up next Wednesday
MARK YOUR CALENDAR!
On Wednesday November 12 I am joining Senator Chris Balkema and ImpactLife to host a blood drive at our Dwight district office, located at 132 E. Main Street.
We will be accepting blood donations from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. For more information about who is eligible to donate blood, please click here. This is a good opportunity to take a small action that could help save someone’s life.
Our current bill backlog
When a vendor provides the state with goods and services, they submit the bill to the Illinois Comptroller for payment. The Comptroller processes the paperwork and pays the bill when funds are available in the state’s checking account. Currently the total amount of unpaid bills is $2,147,554,593. This figure changes daily. Last year at this time the state had $2.1 billion in bills awaiting payment. This only includes bills submitted to the Comptroller for payment, not unfunded debts like the state’s pension liability, which is well over $100 billion.
Illinois headlines
Illinois bill ‘decouples’ state, federal taxes, raising revenue and angering businesses
Illinois pats itself on the back for better student performance – after lowering education standards
Physician-assisted suicide bill passes Senate
Threatening ‘traffic ticket’ text scams are back in Illinois, and they may contain a major typo