Legislative update: Veto session

In Illinois, there are two types of annual, statutorily-obligated legislative sessions. Regular Session: The General Assembly convenes its regular session in January and adjourns in May or June every year. During regular session, legislators vote on a myriad of bills, the movement of which is usually slow. Veto Session: When the legislature reconvenes for a two-week...

In Illinois, there are two types of annual, statutorily-obligated legislative sessions.

• Regular Session: The General Assembly convenes its regular session in January and adjourns in May or June every year. During regular session, legislators vote on a myriad of bills, the movement of which is usually slow.

• Veto Session: When the legislature reconvenes for a two-week session in order to consider the Governor’s vetoes and other urgent legislation, which can pass out of the General Assembly over the course of a single day. This year, veto session begins on November 27.

Why this matters

On November 6, 2012, Illinois will have an election and we expect the largest turnover in Illinois history. Just weeks later, the General Assembly will reconvene for veto session with a lame duck legislature; this means that sitting legislators will be voting on bills before the newly-elected legislators have been inaugurated. Even though some of these legislators will have been voted out of office by their constituents on November 6, they will retain their voting power until January, which grants them unelected authority over important decisions that impact not only their districts, but the entire state.

It is often during lame duck sessions that controversial bills are passed, as there are no political ramifications for members who have already been voted out of office. In fact, it was during 2011’s lame duck session that the General Assembly passed through the 67% income tax hike – the largest tax increase in Illinois history. The members who are not reelected to the legislature are simply not held accountable during veto session – even worse, there are instances of lame duck legislators’ votes being swayed by interest groups in exchange for their next job offer.

This situation creates a unique – and urgent – opportunity for the Illinois Policy Institute, given that the upcoming veto session will likely address legislation concerning the implementation of the ObamaCare exchange and we might even see an increase on the state’s minimum wage. These legislative matters are especially pressing at a time when our total state debt amounts to $271 billion and our $8.5 billion stack of unpaid bills is hardly shrinking. That is why leading up to and through November 27, the Government Affairs Department at the Illinois Policy Institute will be educating members on key issues, selling real reform and strong solutions to the economic challenges that we face, and promoting prosperity.