Top 6 things legislators in Springfield don’t want you to know
1. A supermajority means the rules do not apply When it comes to running a state, there is a long list of rules and parliamentary procedures the government must abide by during its everyday operations. These rules govern everything from how votes are taken to how bills are read and are in place to protect...
1. A supermajority means the rules do not apply
When it comes to running a state, there is a long list of rules and parliamentary procedures the government must abide by during its everyday operations. These rules govern everything from how votes are taken to how bills are read and are in place to protect the democratic process. There is a catch to these rules, however, and that is that if a party has a supermajority of members in the legislature, like the Democrats have in Illinois, you can ignore these procedures and do just about anything you want.
Take, for example, a recent vote Democrat legislators took on a bill that would dedicate $100 million in taxpayers’ dollars toward constructing the Barack Obama presidential library in Illinois. While only four out of 10 committee members were present for the committee hearing the bill, the bill somehow passed out of committee 9-0. Not only were there not nine members present in committee, but there wasn’t a quorum to take a vote to begin with. According to the rules of the Illinois House of Representatives, a committee cannot vote on a measure unless the proper posting requirements have been met and a quorum is present. Of course, the Democrats went ahead with the vote anyway, because when you are in the supermajority, rules do not apply.
2. Sometimes there are no reasons for what they do
There are a lot of important battles in Springfield; legislators emotionally and passionately fight for legislation they believe is important and for outcomes they believe will benefit the common good. But that’s not always the case; sometimes legislators take up battles for no reason at all.
For example, state Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, a Democrat from Aurora and head of the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee, has been at war with charter schools in Illinois and has been attempting to limit school choice for citizens across the state. When recently asked on the House floor what the logic was behind crafting a bill that would hurt charter schools, Rep. Chapa LaVia responded “There is none.” A statement that couldn’t be truer.
3. Numbers are an afterthought
Legislation and laws usually come with a price tag; whether a bill is introduced to save the state money or will cost the state a few more dollars, hardly anything is signed into law that doesn’t have money attached to it. Yet, even though large sums of money are attached to pieces of legislation, it’s often the case that legislators think about the cost after the bill becomes law.
In 2013, the Illinois General Assembly, under the leadership of Speaker Michael Madigan, passed what was billed as sweeping pension reform. The problem? The legislation that was being debated and voted on hadn’t been officially scored by an independent actuary, and the amount of money the bill was projected to save was largely unknown. Madigan’s promise of $160 billion in savings to the state fell well short, to the tune of $22.6 billion. On top of that, out of all the bills that legislators view, debate and vote on, very few have official fiscal notes attached to them. Without fiscal notes explaining the costs and savings associated with the bill, legislators often find themselves voting for legislation while having no idea of the fiscal impact the bill would have on the state and taxpayers.
4. We aren’t as good as our neighbors, and we know it
It’s no secret that adjacent states are often enticing jobs, businesses and taxpaying citizens to move to their state from other states. Illinois has been losing the battle to keep its residents while falling far behind on growing jobs and attracting businesses to Illinois; sadly, members of the Illinois General Assembly have known this for a while and have done nothing to remedy the destructive problem.
After years of net migration of citizens and losing jobs to neighboring states, Illinois has taken actions that only encourage more of its residents and its businesses to leave the state for more friendly grounds. In the past year, Speaker Madigan has pushed Democrats to hike taxes by enacting a progressive tax that would increase taxes on small business owners and everyone making over $23,000; Madigan has also pushed for a millionaire’s tax that would increase taxes on the individuals who currently pay more in taxes than anyone else in the state. Despite knowing Illinois is losing important people and dollars to other states, Madigan insists on forcing those who stay in the state to live a less fruitful life by giving more of their hard-earned money to the government. Businesses are looking for tax-friendly states, and Illinois is not one of them. Other states, like Indiana, know the hostile environment Illinois places on its citizens and businesses and have been actively seeking to pull jobs out of Illinois and into their state.
5. You don’t trust us, and we aren’t changing
Legislators are elected to represent the people of their district; with that responsibility come essential rights that constituents deserve, such as truth, responsibility and dedication to improving the state. In Illinois, citizens do not believe they are getting what they deserve.
A recent Gallup poll shows that Illinois residents trust their state government to handle their state’s problems far less than residents in any other state in the nation. In fact, only 28 percent of Illinois residents trust their state government “a great deal” or “a fair amount.” You would think, then, that with such mistrust, the legislators who form this government would do more to improve their image among their constituents; unfortunately, they have been doing the opposite. For example, in 2011 the Illinois Legislature raised taxes on Illinois families by 67 percent – the largest tax increase in Illinois history. At the time, Gov. Pat Quinn and Democrat leaders were calling this tax increase temporary; now those same politicians are calling to make that same tax increase permanent – throwing away their promise and the people of Illinois’ trust to the wayside.
6. The more we work, the more we get paid
Despite being considered a part-time job by many, Illinois legislators find themselves crafting, debating, voting and meeting on bills that are on their way to becoming laws. All the work they do, however, doesn’t go unrewarded; in fact, the more legislators work, the more taxpayer dollars they get paid.
Members of the Illinois General Assembly are among the highest-paid state legislators in the country, and many make far more than the base amount, due to per diems and bonuses that come with leadership positions. The more committees a lawmaker chairs, the more money he/she makes. Who created the system of rewarding legislators for doing their job? It should come as no surprise that it was the Legislature itself.