Capitol Updates: lawmakers push off pension reform in favor of ‘pension conference committee’ during special session
State lawmakers were in Springfield yesterday for a special session ordered by Gov. Pat Quinn. As expected, the General Assembly did not take formal votes on any pension reform legislation. Instead, Quinn called for the formation of a conference committee, with the intention of resolving the differences between the House and Senate on pension reform. As a means of breaking up...
State lawmakers were in Springfield yesterday for a special session ordered by Gov. Pat Quinn. As expected, the General Assembly did not take formal votes on any pension reform legislation. Instead, Quinn called for the formation of a conference committee, with the intention of resolving the differences between the House and Senate on pension reform.
As a means of breaking up the current impasse, the House and Senate each requested a conference committee yesterday afternoon. Senate President John Cullerton and House Speaker Mike Madiganeach appointed three members, and Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno and House Republican Leader Tom Cross each appointed two members to the conference committee.
In the Senate, appointees include:
- Daniel Biss, D-Skokie
- Kwame Raoul, D-Chicago
- Linda Holmes, D-Aurora
- Matt Murphy, R-Palatine
- Bill Brady, R-Bloomington
In the House, appointees include:
- Elaine Nekritz, D-Buffalo Grove
- Art Turner, D-Chicago
- Michael Zalewski, D-Riverside
- Darlene Senger, R-Naperville
- Jil Tracy, R-Quincy
In the coming weeks, the conference committee will meet to resolve the differences between the various pension reform proposals on the table, working until a solution is agreed upon. If an agreement is reached, a conference committee report will be filed, but only if six of the 10 committee members have signed the report. The report must then be filed in both chambers and passed on a roll call vote by both the House and Senate. If the committee cannot reach an agreement or the report does not pass both chambers, a second conference committee can be established. If the second committee fails, the bill will be declared dead.
Arranging the procedures for this conference committee was essentially all that lawmakers accomplished during yesterday’s special session, which cost taxpayers $43,000.
Once the conference committee has finished its work, lawmakers are expected to return to Springfield to vote on their report. Quinn has set a July 9 deadline, so it is rumored that the 98th General Assembly’s second special session of the summer will be scheduled for July 8.
Illinois desperately needs pension reform, but the attitude of “passing anything” simply won’t improve the state’s fiscal health. Illinois requires pension reform commensurate with the size and scope of its pension problem. The focus of the conference committee will be on various components of Madigan and Cullerton’s pension bills, but we think lawmakers should use the coming weeks as an opportunity to consider real reform.
This spring, with state Reps. Tom Morrison and Jeanne Ives, and state Sen. Jim Oberweis, the Illinois Policy Institute introduced a pension plan in the House and Senate that is constitutional, would immediately cut Illinois’ $100 billion unfunded pension liability by nearly half and would protect the benefits earned to date by current government workers. With one lawmaker publicly acknowledging this week that “eventually moving to a 401(k)-style system” is inevitable, why wait to enact the only measure that will actually solve the state’s crisis?