Illinois House Floor Debate — May 23, 2017

"The House will be in order. We shall be led in prayer today by Dr. Richard Riley who is with First Lutheran Church in Pontiac. Dr. Riley is the guest of Representative Bennett. Members and guests are asked to refrain from starting laptops, turn off cell phones and rise for the invocation and Pledge of Allegiance. Dr. Riley."

"Let us pray. Almighty and benevolent God, we humbly ask that Your blessings be placed upon this House of Representatives. Those who have been duly elected to govern this great State of Illinois have a task set before them that requires Your divine guidance to direct them in a manner that not only brings honor to their positions, but to the people who have entrusted to them the honor of representation. May Your grace rest upon this great State of Illinois, this wondrous prairieland of my birth and of so many others, from the Windy City of Chicago to the dark, rich earth of Central and Southern Illinois that sprouts and grows the green tall stalks and yellow-hued corn, we give You thanks. For nearly 200 years, this state has been a place of hopes and dreams, of sweat and labor, of industry and innovation and may it 10000052.docx 1  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 continue to be a state that lifts people up to greater heights and gives to them strength in their weakest moments. May Illinois always be a land where these Representatives give of themselves in a bipartisan way to ensure that Your will be done for all Illinoisans. And may You, Oh God, place Your hand upon all these present today and may this state always be a beam of hope and a light that guides the paths for all people who call it home. In Your name we pray, Amen."

"Be led in the Pledge by Representative Greg Harris." Harris, G. - et al: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

"Roll Call for Attendance. Leader Currie."

"Thank you, Speaker. Please let the record reflect the excused absences of Representatives McAsey and Soto."

"Mr. Demmer."

"Thank you. Mr. Clerk, please take the record. There are 115 Members present. We do have a quorum. The Chair recognizes Mr. Batinick. For what reason do you rise?"

"Please proceed."

"Welcome to Springfield. Thank you for joining us. Mr. Beiser is recognized. Mr. Beiser."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Point of personal privilege."

"Proceed, Sir."

"I'd like to introduce the… my two Pages for the day to the body. Julianna Barnard and Myleigh Mabe down in the front. Welcome here and hope you have a lot of business today, ladies."

"Thank you. Welcome. Mr. Riley is recognized."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A point of personal privilege."

"Please proceed."

"Thank you. I'd like the indulgence of the House. I'd like to make you aware of a tragic situation but one where the person is really fighting for his life. A constituent of mine and because this person is from Homewood, he's also a constituent of Will Davis and Anthony DeLuca. Amtrak conductor and member of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation member Michael Case of Homewood, was shot in the abdomen while performing his duties last Tuesday afternoon in Naperville, Illinois. The shooter was immediately detained by other Amtrak crew members and passengers and is currently in custody having been charged with attempted murder and aggravated battery. While Mr. Case remains in intensive care, it is reported that his injuries are stabilized and he's moving in the right direction. And I spoke to someone… Mr. Speaker. I spoke to someone from the union today. And he says that Michael is 10000052.docx 3  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 doing much better, he's not out of the woods, but they think he's going to make it. Mr. Case had been a conductor with Amtrak for 10 years and he's also a Navy veteran. I don’t talk about the Navy that often but not only was a Navy veteran but he was a submariner. So, he's a special Navy veteran. He has a wife and they have four children. And so, I would just ask that you keep him in your thoughts and prayers. And maybe you can send a letter to Mr. Case. I'm sure, you know, we can get the address or the hospital that he's at and let him know that you're thinking about him. But in a situation like that where you have a conductor who is subject to just a random shooting, and matter of fact, the person who shot him, I think there was some mental health issues and he himself was retired from law enforcement. This is a tragic situation. But we keep him in our thoughts and prayers and I will wish you do the same thing, too, for my constituent. Thank you."

"Thank you, Sir. Mr. Swanson is recognized."

"Please proceed."

"Thank you. Glad to have you with us today. Representative Stuart is recognized."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Point of personal privilege."

"Please proceed."

"I’d like to introduce the Ladies and Gentlemen of the House to my Page today Even… Eden Vitoff. I was lucky enough to meet Eden through his work with the Edwardsville High School Environmental Club which he singlehandedly reinvigorated and made much more than just a simple recycling program. Eden is a passionate advocate for the fight against climate change. He's just finished his freshman year at George Washington University. He was a leader in the movement to get the university to divest from fossil fuels. He's studying political science with an interest in public policy. I have no doubt he'll be a strong force for his generation. So, please join me in welcoming Eden to our Capitol."

"Welcome. Thank you for joining us. Representative Bourne."

"Thank you. It’s great to have you with us today. Mr. Skillicorn."

"You may proceed."

"Let the Body take a moment of silence. Thank you, Sir. Mr. Bennett."

"You may proceed."

"Thank you for being here with us today. Much appreciated. Representative Ives, for what reason do you rise?"

"Please proceed."

"Thank you, Representative. Good to have you here with us. Mr. Welter."

"Please proceed."

"Thanks for being with us today. Mr. Swanson."

"Proceed."

"Thank you. Glad you're aboard. Representative Ammons is recognized."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First of all, I would love the Body to welcome back our colleague, my seatmate, Representative Elgie Sims who is back with us after an unfortunate accident."

"Welcome home, Representative."

"I also want to take the opportunity to welcome the 43… 43rd 4-H mem… 43 4-H members from across Illinois who are attending the University of Illinois 4-H Legislative Connection event being held today and tomorrow at the Capitol. They're up to my right… I mean, to my left. These youth are from 22 different countries throughout the state. From Pope and Hardin Counties in the south to McHenry County… Thank you. I know you guys want to hear about our 4-H students ‘cause it's such an important program. They're from McHenry County in the north both rural and metropolitan areas. And they represent nearly 200 thousand 4-H participants in 102 counties. The teens are active in their club, communities, and counties in community service and 4-H projects ranging from animal science, of which my son is a member of the animal science, to aerospace, shooting sports to visual arts, nutrition and wellness to environmental studies and more. These youth represent the Illinois 4-H Youth Leadership team and the Speaking for Illinois 4-H program. They're also working with the teens this week are… those who are working with the teens this week are Patricia McLaughlin, Deb Stocker, and Erica Austin of the University of Illinois Extension, Carol Ann Tibbs, Logan County 4-H volunteer and Genie Hollan, 10000052.docx 8  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 Jerry Hicks, and Pam Webber, members of the Extension Partnership Organization in Illinois. And we want to welcome the 4-H Leadership and all of the students that you see in green shirts to the Capitol this afternoon. Thank you all so much for coming."

"Great to have you here. Thank you. Enjoy your day in Springfield. Mr. Davidsmeyer."

"Please proceed."

"Welcome aboard. Thank you for joining us. Ladies and Gentlemen, we're moving to page 5 of the Calendar, Senate Bills-Second Reading. Senate Bill 899, Mr. Rita. Mr. Rita. Out of the record. Senate Bill 1581, Mr. Sims. Mr. Sims, you can do your Bill sitting, if you wish. Out of the record, Mr. Clerk. Senate Bill 1671, Mr. Swanson. Out of the record. Senate Bill 1688, Mr. Sims. Please read the Bill, Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1781, Mr. Sims. Mr. Sims. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1811, Representative Kelly Burke is handling the Bill. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1842, Mr. Sims. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1905, Mr. Moylan. Please read the Bill."

"Please hold the Bill on the Order of Second Reading pending the notes. Page 3 of the Calendar, House Bills-Third Reading. House Bill 230, Mr. Thapedi. Please read the Bill."

"Mr. Thapedi."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. Members, New York just passed legislation that provides free tuition for high school graduates that attend its public universities. I repeat, free college tuition to in-state New Yorkers, free. The Texas Governor in a Republican state has on his desk today a Bill that he intends to sign that specifically allows Tennesseans to have free community college tuition, free. In Oregon, the Oregon Promise Bill provides high school graduates and GED recipients with free rides. Same thing in Oregon. Same thing in Arkansas, Minnesota, South Dakota. All free rides for their students. This Bill has nothing to do with free tuition. The fiscal impact of this Bill is zero, absolutely zero. I purposely waited all these weeks to run this Bill so that Members would have the opportunity to actually read the Bill, talk with me about it and have a meaningful conversation with me about it, in person and also on the floor today. Some Members have asked me for data. Some Members have asked me for information about the Bill. I answered those questions then and I'm prepared to answer any additional questions now. At the same time, I waited because I wanted all of the stakeholders to actually read the Bill and not get caught up in red herrings, misunderstandings, or misperceptions. House Bill 230 has two fundamental goals. First and foremost, the first goal is to retain our best and our brightest students here in Illinois. The second goal is to address concerns with the demographics in our state universities. Both of these goals are satisfied under this Bill by automatically admitting Illinois high 10000052.docx 11  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 school graduates into our state universities that do two things. First and foremost, graduate in the top 10 percent of their class. The second thing that they must do is they must satisfy the ACT and/or Act Benchmarks that's associated with those tests. Unlike New York, Tennessee, Oregon, Arkansas, Minesota, South Dakota, our kids will not necessarily get a free ride. I repeat; they will not necessarily get a free ride. Instead, they will simply get a seat in the freshman class. Again, they will simply get a seat in the freshman class. There should be no opposition to this Bill, Ladies and Gentlemen. There should be none. The IEA, the IFT, the Chicago Teachers Union, the Fire Fighters, the Charter Schools, the Urban League, and the NAACP all support this Bill. Now actually… after actually reading the Bill and understanding the Bill, an overwhelming majority of the universities are not actively in opposition to this Bill. One hundred percent of the Black Caucus in this chamber supports this Bill and are listed as cosponsors. And I should add, Mr. Speaker, that virtually every other minority member of the House of Representatives along with Members in this chamber that represent minority districts also are cosponsors of this Bill. Please, Members, take a look at the roster of cosponsors. My hope is that Members who represent majority rule communities in this state will also recognize that their children, their students, their constituents also benefit under this Bill. All of the diligent kids in our state, the kids that have been putting their noses to the books and have been aggressively learning, they win under this Bill. Equally, if not more importantly, this Bill is impervious to 10000052.docx 12  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 valid constitutional challenges. This is so because this Bill is patterned after the recent Supreme Court of the United States decision in Fisher v. the University of Texas at Austin. Said another way, the plan before you, Ladies and Gentlemen, has already been approved by the United States Supreme Court. Now, if these things are not important to you and if they're not important to your constituents, by that I mean the retention of our local, home grown talent, or diversity in our universities or a plan that is expressly approved by the Supreme Court of the United States or a plan that is supported by the NAACP, the Mexican-American Legal Defense Fund, the Asian-American Defense Fund, you should vote 'no' and sleep very well tonight. But if you're like me, for the retention of our best and brightest students here in Illinois and stopping them from fleeing to Ann Harbor, Lansing, Bloomington, Indiana, or Columbia, Missouri to never come back, you should vote 'yes'. If you are for diversifying our universities so that our kids are prepared to compete in this global economy, you should vote 'yes'. This Bill is about our kids. This Bill is about our state. To teach our kids, we have to reach our kids. I'm available to answer any and all questions. Before I do that, Mr. Speaker, I would ask for a verification consistent with the House Rules."

"This Bill is on the Order of Short Debate. The Chair will remove this Bill from the Order of Short Debate. The Chair recognizes Mr. Andersson."

"Sponsor yields." 10000052.docx 13  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"They would… Correct in part, but more specifically the Bill reads consistent with what the Texas Bill reads and that is the ACT or SAT benchmarks that are established by SAT and ACT perspect… respectively. So, what that would mean is as far as…"

"And so again Steve, what that means is with respect to the ACT they would have to have an 18 in English, a 22 in mathematics, a 22 in reading, and a 23 in science. With respect to the SAT, they would need to have 480 with respect to evidence based reading and writing and a 530 in math."

"Well, let me answer that question for you this way. Northern Illinois University… and here are their deadline requirements on their website… they specifically use class 10000052.docx 14  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 rank in ascertaining who is able to get into the university at all."

"They do."

"They do. They use class rank. The same thing for the Univer… excuse me, for Eastern Illinois University. Same deal. They use class rank. So, it's somewhat disingenuous to say that, well, we can't figure out who the top 10 percent in our class is because they know the GPAs of all of their students. In fact, that's how they ascertain who the valedictorian and who the salutatorian is. They have the ability to do that. And I think it's important to note, Representative Andersson, that under the Bill there's a specific requirement under the Bill that the Illinois State Assem… of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission will work with high schools to ensure that their students have the ability to ensure that their… their files actually comport with the letter and spirit of what we're doing here today."

"Hold on one minute, Steve. Hold on one moment. Because we don’t have… well, okay. Go ahead. We got a timer going, but I want to answer this question because you're the Floor Leader and I figure that I can resolve these issues right here and now."

"All right. Well, that's between you and your side of the aisle."

"But my point is, I want to give detailed answers to this question because if the Bill is successful and if we do have litigation, I want to ensure that the legislative intent is clear the same way that they did in Texas. And again, as I mentioned earlier, this has been tested by the United States Supreme Court. The most conservative court that has sat since the 1930s has already approved this plan, as is."

"Okay. Well, that's good to know."

"Okay. That's another good question. And here is the answer. So, if you look at the Bill, you will see in the Bill that the universities have the ability to look at the top 10 percenters that are applying to the school, evaluating their files. In other words, we already know that they're smart because they're graduating in the top 10 percent of their class. We already know that they're college ready because they've already satisfied the ACT and the SAT requirements in 10000052.docx 16  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 order to be admitted into college, but what they don’t know is necessarily what classes they've taken. So, we've talked about weighting, et cetera. If they're on an accelerated track or whatever case may be, the universities have the ability to actually evaluate the files of those students."

"When they evaluate the files of those students…"

"Please complete your remarks."

"…when they evaluate the files of those students, they have the ability to determine whether or not those particular students will need some additional support to get into the university and be successful and even more specifically into the individual colleges."

"Representative Bryant yields you her time. You have five additional minutes, Sir."

"Mr. Speaker, I can't…"

"All right. Well, what do you mean by that, how do we address homeschoolers?"

"What's your question?" 10000052.docx 17  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"Well, this is my understanding of how the homeschool community works. And I've been working with the homeschool community for quite some time. And I'm assuming that maybe you have as well. Mr. Kirk Smith from the Illinois Christian Home Educators…"

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is an important piece of legislation. It may be controversial as we go through this. Let's let the Gentlemen who are speaking to each other hear each other. And the Chair would like to hear them as well. So, I'm going to ask people to retire to the rear of the chamber with all of their conversations. And let's have some order in the chamber. Please proceed."

"Could you repeat your question, please, Representative?"

"Well, again, it’s my understanding that the way that the homeschool community is set up is that the parents that are actually homeschooling their children are not actually monitoring all of the work that their kids are doing and assigning a grade point average to their kids. They're actually sending that information off to different agencies 10000052.docx 18  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 that work with them as far as consolidating the information, grading the… the tests, and coming up with grade point averages. So, again, those entities would have the ability to also do the same thing to make the adjustment or make the assessment as to whether or not that particular student would fall into the confines of this particular Bill. I should tell you, in addition, Representative Andersson, that I have had specific long, long conversations with the homeschool community. More specifically, Kirk Smith from the Illinois Christian Home Educators. Do you know him?"

"All right. Mr. Scott Woodruff from the Homeschool Legal Defense Association. Do you know him?"

"All right. So, these two gentlemen from my understanding are the gurus on… on homeschool issues. And what we did is… and that was another reason why it took me so long to actually run the Bill because I've been spending a lot of time working with the homeschool community… that while they have adequate protections, as I've just mentioned, there was some questions as to whether or not we could provide them with unprecedented protections."

"And I wanted to do that."

"So, the point is, is that the other Amendments that we filed, those were attempts to try to give the homeschoolers unprecedented protections. We came up with the final decision 10000052.docx 19  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 that it was best that that be run as a separate Bill, but under this Bill, they’re adequately protected."

"Mr. Demmer is recognized."

"State your inquiry."

"Sponsor yields."

"What do you mean, what is my intention?"

"I did."

"I'm running the Bill right now, Representative."

"That's a very interesting question. Are you ready for a long explanation or do you want…"

"…a brief… well, this is the way the debate is going to work with me. I don’t think that I'm required to answer any questions but what I'm willing to do is, I'm willing to try to flesh out the legislative intent behind the Bill. So, if it's a relevant question that goes to the subject matter of the Bill, I will discuss it. If it's not, I won't."

"Having said that…"

"Well, having said that… having said that, you asked me a specific question. And the answer to that question is 10000052.docx 21  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 exactly what I just explained to Leader Andersson. That I have been working with countless stakeholders over the last several weeks and that's why you see the other Amendments. And in fact, Mr. Demmer, you were actually there in committee the first time that I presented the Bill. So, the Bill that I presented to you, Mr. Demmer, before your entire committee, that's the Bill that's up that we're talking about right now. The subsequent Amendments were attempts to try to provide primarily the homeschool community with unprecedented protections. In my view, they're not necessary but because they had concerns and because Members came to me and asked me about those issues, I brought those concerns to the homeschool community. In fact, if you look at Amendment #3, it's exactly what they wanted. But even with all of that stuff, they still didn’t want… not want to be… become proponents of the Bill in large part because they want a separate, standalone Bill. I accommodated them and that’s why I'm running the Bill right now in its fresh version."

"Representative Ives."

"Sponsor yields."

"Mr. Speaker."

"No. It’s public or private."

"Correct."

"Correct."

"Correct."

"You… you will automatically be admitted to a state university if you satisfy those requirements, yes. Will you get free tuition? Not necessarily. But yes, you will be offered an admission… you will be offered a seat in the freshman class, yes."

"It depends on the university."

"Well… well, again, Representative, and I'm sure that you're learned on this issue as well."

"Just recently, at the start of this year, several of our state universities were looking to expand the number of seats in their respective freshman classes. So, again, the universities have complete autonomy to decide how many freshmen they want to admit, how many freshmen they don’t want to admit, how many transfer students they want to take. So, the universities have the ability to do that. If the 10000052.docx 24  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 universities want to add more seats to their freshman class, they're free to do that. If they want to reduce the number of seats in the freshman class, they're free to do that as well."

"I'm glad that you asked that question and I'm… and I'm glad that you brought up the University of Illinois. My first question is, Representative Ives, and I want to answer all your questions, have you read the Bill?"

"All right. Well, let me walk you through it. If you look at the actual language in the Bill, you will see that there are specific provisions in the Bill that address the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, specific provisions. And the reason why is because that’s exactly what happened in Texas. And what happened in Texas was is that the flagship university in Texas is the University of Texas at Austin. So, one of the issues became all of the top 10 percenters were all applying to the flagship university. So, as a result of that, all of the freshman seats were being cannibelized by the top 10 percenters. So, in this Bill, consistent with what happened in Texas, there are a certain number of seats that are allocated at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana for top 10 percenters and that allocation is up to 75 percent. So, hypothetically, if the 10000052.docx 25  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 freshman class has a thousand seats available, the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana would have the ability to admit up to 750 top 10 percenters. They don’t have to, if they choose not to do so, but they have the ability to admit up to 750 top 10 percenters. They may decide that they only want to do 2…"

"…top 10 percenters."

"What they… no. That… you're not listening to what I said. And probably the problem is that…"

"…you didn’t read the Bill."

"Well, we haven’t finished this part."

"Well, do you want complete answers or do you want incomplete answers?"

"But Representative…"

"All right."

"If you are a high school graduate from a public high school in Illinois or from a private high school in Illinois, you would be eligible to participate in the top 10 percent program. In addition to those students, and again the problem…"

"Please complete your remarks."

"…and again, the problem is, Representative, and that's why I waited all this time to give Members the opportunity to read the Bill. In addition to those students, also the children of fallen fire fighters, fallen police officers and fallen correctional officers, they, too, are allowed to be admitted under this program. The only reason why I did that was because that’s exactly what they've done in Texas and that’s exactly what the conservative Supreme Court of the United States has approved."

Speaker Lang: "Mr. Harris, are you giving your time to Representative Ives? Five minutes."

"Well, hold on, Representative. Let's be clear about that. Let's flesh that out a little bit. Again, let's not get away from the purpose of this Bill."

"Well, no… I…"

"Well, hold on. I'm not 100 percent sure that you do, but if you do, I want to make sure that we've clarified it. One of the purposes of this Bill, Representative Ives, is to ensure that our best and brightest students stay here in Illinois, that they don’t leave. In fact, I recall when Representative Halpin was running his Bill, 3538, you brought up the fact, you personally brought up the fact, that our students were running out of our state. Here's an opportunity for us to keep them here. Here it is; here it is."

"Mr. Pritchard for five minutes."

"Sponsor yields."

"Well, thank you for that question, Mr. Pritchard. And I know exactly the answer to the question about how many students are actually leaving our state and going elsewhere because it was you, Mr. Pritchard, that on the House Floor during the course of a debate specifically said that 50 10000052.docx 29  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 percent of our students are leaving. So, I would have to assume that they're leaving for a variety of things, but to be more specific and answer your question specifically, and you and I talked about this after the first time I appeared in committee. That I have the data on all of the schools so if you want to talk about a particular school, I can give you the exact data on how many students are applying, how many are admitted. And I can do that, but I do want to say, and I want to clarify this from a comment that the Lady from… from Wheaton said. For some reason, it's not resonating into the minds perhaps on this side of the aisle where I'm sitting or throughout the entire chamber, but I want to be perfectly clear. We're not talking about dummies. We're talking about kids that have graduated in the top 10 percent of their class. So, the previous speaker who gave inclinations, in fact said, that these kids are not qualified to go to college because they live in a minority community, notwithstanding the fact that they have graduated in the top 10 percent of their class is disingenuous. And quite frankly, disrespectful and quite frankly one of the reasons why there's been a lot of litigation on this issue and quite frankly why the Supreme Court of the United State is approving the plan that we're talking about here today."

"Well…" 10000052.docx 30  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"Well, again, first of all, you're asking me to speculate as to why the 50 percent number that you identified are actually leaving to go elsewhere. But again, the idea behind the Bill is to provide incentive to tell those students, hey look, we care about you, you've gone to high school here, this is your home. We don’t want you packing up. We don’t want you leaving. We want you to stick around here. We want you to raise your family here. We want you to work here and become a productive member of our society, paying taxes, et cetera. So again, Mr. Pritchard, you're asking me to speculate as to the reasons for why a body of students are actually leaving the state. And I can tell you that we've talked about multiple reasons why businesses for example are leaving our state and all… and all of it is all speculation. So, again, I'm not going to speculate because again…"

"Well, no, no, hold on. So again, I'm not going to speculate and I'm not going to speculate because we're taking a transcript and I don’t want to have any speculation with respect to legislative intent." 10000052.docx 31  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"Mr. DeLuca. Gentleman does not wish to speak. Representative Ammons. Ammons."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Sponsor yields."

"It was… it was interesting debate, Representative. I'm trying to clarify just a couple questions that I didn’t completely hear the answer because…"

"Speaker… Mr. Speaker."

"…it's kind of noisy in the space. So, to clarify this, would this policy make it easier for universities and other states to recruit high-achieving Illinois residents in the 11 to 30 percent range of student completion? And would it, in 10000052.docx 32  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 some way, exasperate out-migration of our students under this policy?"

"I think you're going to… I'm going to have you to rephrase your question, Representative. I don’t understand…”

“Okay.”

“…the question."

"So…"

"In large part… and if you’d just bear with me for a moment…”

“Okay.”

“…in large part because we just heard one Representative say that at his school, Northern Illinois University, that virtually all the students get in. That is not true."

"Okay."

"I have the data here. African-American students applying to Northern Illinois University last year: 1,710 applied, 441 were admitted. So, what is he talking about? We have to talk about apples and apples in this debate. And I'm not saying that as a way to stall, Representative. I just want to make sure that I understand exactly what your question is. I want to understand the foundation of your question so that I can answer it thoroughly."

"I appreciate it. I appreciate the fact. The assertion is that the Bill would in some way cause a higher out… out- migration of our students or other students who may not get in because of the 10 percent rule?"

"I would disagree with that. And I think that the reason why I would disagree with that is because in my meeting with President Killeen, your President at the University of 10000052.docx 33  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 Champaign-Urbana, that was one of the issues that he brought to my attention. He brought to my attention that he was losing students by the droves, going specifically to Mizzou. He picked out Mizzou. He didn’t say Michigan; he didn’t say Michigan State; he didn’t say Northwestern; he didn’t say any other flagship state university. He specifically said that he is losing students to Mizzou. What I am trying to do here is, that I am trying to make sure that those top 10 percenters, the cream of the crop here in Illinois, that they recognize that we want them here. There's no reason for them to go shopping for another university. We want them here. We want them to stay here. We want them to be educated here, raise their families here, et cetera. We do not want them leaving."

"So, can you also explain a little bit about the top 10 percent application. How this would work in reality? In some schools they may have a different standard by which to measure their top 10 percent. Can you… can you speak to that as a response to this particular Bill?"

"I certainly can. And again, Representative, that's the reason why ISAC is involved in this process. And initially, in the first iteration of the Bill, the Illinois Board of Higher Education was going to be empowered to do those things, to make sure that the top 10 percent program, the application process, et cetera, would move… would move smoothly. The Illinois Board of Higher Education felt as if they were not the best entity to do that. And by no invitation made on my part, the ISAC people came to me and they said, well, Representative, this is what we do every day. We do recruitment, we work with the students, we do all of these 10000052.docx 34  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 things. So, to answer your question, if you’ll look actually at the Bill, you'll see the provision in there that talks about what ISAC's role is as far as outreach, in terms of the promulgation of rules, et cetera, to bring the program to fruition."

"And can I ask a final question on this process? I know you refer to the Texas legislation as you built upon this Illinois… Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just my final question, Representative. You spoke about the Texas legislation that you modeled Illinois's after. Can you give us a little bit of insight of the data and the impact of the Texas legislation which is motivating what you're moving today?"

"What exactly would you like to know?"

"I would really like to know how it has affected enrollment of African Americans in Texas."

"Well, it's my understanding and again, I'm told that it's working. I'm told that it's working; that it's a good thing. That it is, in fact, helping to further diversify the University of Texas system. But I can tell you, in addition to the issues that we've already talked about, and this is because you brought up specifically Texas, Texas had to make an adjustment. They had to make an adjustment because of the…"

"Please complete your remarks."

"Texas had to make an adjustment because of the cannibalization issue. And in fact, in Texas now, it's been boosted up to the top 7 percent at this point. Because again, you know, in the situation with Abigail Fisher, who was actually the plaintiff in that case, she gradu… she actually graduated in the top 12 percent of her class and roughly 80 10000052.docx 35  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 to 90 percent of the UT at Austin seats were being cannibalized by top 10 percenters. So, the direct answer to your question is, it's working. It can work here. And I want to give it that opportunity."

"Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."

"Representative Kelly Burke." Burke, K.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Sponsor yields." Burke, K.: "Representative, I applaud your goal in opening opportunities to students who may be underrepresented, closing the achievement gap and your goal of bolstering the number of students from Illinois who attend our Illinois public universities. And I know you had an exchange with another Representative about the use of class ranks, specifically for students whose schools do not use class rank and unfortunately, I was unable to hear your full reply to that. So, can you walk me through how a school that does not rank their students, how those students would be able to be included within this program?"

"Again, and I appreciate the question, Kelly. The way that that would work is ISAC would be empowered to help us do that. Again, with respect to outreach, as I said a little earlier, there are…" Burke, K.: "Well, can I… can I stop you right there?"

"No." Burke, K.: "How would…"

"Not really because I want to answer your question. Specifically, Northern Illinois University, Kelly, and you know this, they use class rank. Eastern Illinois University, 10000052.docx 36  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 they use class rank. So, again, ISAC will work with the individual schools that decide not to use class rank to perhaps use class rank or at least formulate the class rank so that those students that want to take advantage of the top 10 percent program are able to do so. That's… that's the best answer that I can… I can give you." Burke, K.: "Well, so that answer has some shortcomings. So, 1) how will ISAC work with schools that don’t class rank? I don’t understand the mechanism of how ISAC would be able to rank a particular school and it is my understanding that a significant portion of schools around the state, including numerous high schools within the CPS system, do not use class rank and that the trend of high schools is going toward not using class rank. So, schools use… colleges use class rank as one of several factors in determining admission but this Bill uses class rank as the only factor that allows a student to be considered within this program. So, I have a lot of questions how schools that don't use class rank whether or not their… their students will be adversely affected and not be able to participate in this program."

"Well, and I can appreciate that question. But I think that you would agree with me, Kelly, that schools are still assigning grade point averages to their students, correct?" Burke, K.: "Yes."

"And so, when they’re assigning grade point averages to their students, they have the ability to look at the grade point averages and they can determine who's the valedictorian, who's at the top of the list. They can determine who's at the bottom of the list. So, if a school 10000052.docx 37  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 wants to make the determination as to whether or not student x is in the top 10 percent of their class, they can do that. Again, I'm not putting the burden on ISAC to do that. The burden is going to be on the individual school, if that school wants to take into consideration giving an opportunity for one of its best and one of its brightest students to take advantage of this program." Burke, K.: "So, you would be asking the schools who have made a policy choice to not… not use class rank to then revisit that policy and start using class rank?"

"No. What I am suggesting is, is that if a school has a particular student that wants to take advantage of the program, that school would have the ability to determine whether or not that particular student graduate in the top 10 percent of their class. They may not necessarily say, well, you're #1, you're #2, you're #3, you're #4, but they could say, yes, this particular student did, in fact, graduate in the top 10 percent of their class, so that’s a check. It moves on to the next phase, whether or not they not have the requisite SAT or ACT scores. And it's done. This doesn’t have to be as complicated as you're making it out to be. If the intention is, is to try to obviate the issue and make it very, very difficult for students to be able to utilize the top 10 percent rule to get into school, I mean, that's somewhat disingenuous. So again, where there's a will, there's a way. It can be done." Burke, K.: "I would suggest that with… a significant portion of school districts and private schools not using class rank and moving away from class rank that it would have behooved you 10000052.docx 38  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 to work with them to come up with a mechanism to do this because it sounds like you're just leaving this significant portion of students out of the program."

"So, are you suggesting that Texas did the same thing?" Burke, K.: "I don’t know what happened in Texas."

"Okay." Burke, K.: "I'm saying that then we're talking about this Bill in this state and we have a significant portion of…"

"Please bring your remarks to a close." Burke, K.: "…that do not rank their students by class and it appears, from the answers you've given me, that those students will be put at a disadvantage versus schools who do class rank."

"How… how are they at a disadvantage, Kelly? I'm not understanding that. The… these students are not barred from going to the school. They can still apply and go to the school. They just wouldn’t be able to get in, hypothetically, under the 10 percent program. No different than a kid that can't play basketball or a kid that can't run touchdowns, if they can't get into a particular school because they're not an athlete." Burke, K.: "But it's not…"

"It's no different." Burke, K.: "But it's not that they're…"

"They're different… they’re…" Burke, K.: "…not excellent students. It's that they're at the mercy of their own school that does not class rank. I just think that a little more thought should have been put into a 10000052.docx 39  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 provision for this very large group of students who are not going to be covered under this…"

"But…" Burke, K.: "…this current version that you have."

"But I disagree with you, Kelly. I don’t believe that there's a large portion of it and the reason why I don’t believe there’s a large portion of it is because we are already seeing from some of the universities… state universities here that they are, in fact, using class rank. So…" Burke, K.: "As a factor."

"…I haven’t… I haven’t seen… I haven’t seen any statistics. And I've talked with just about every person dealing with higher education issues under the dome. No one has shown me any specific statistics that talk about the number of students that are using class rank. What you're…" Burke, K.: "I…"

"…what you're relying upon is you're relying upon the crib sheet from the University of Illinois at Champaign…" Burke, K.: "No. I'm…"

"…not data." Burke, K.: "…relying on answers from three schools in my district that have told me they do not class rank…"

"Representative Burke…" Burke, K.: "…as well as numerous others."

"Which schools?"

"…can you bring your remarks to a close." Burke, K.: "Yes. District 230, Oaklawn High School and Evergreen Park High School as well as numerous other schools that are 10000052.docx 40  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 reported throughout this state. This is not an isolated set of schools that don’t class rank. It's many. And I think they… they're… the practical function of how these schools are going to help their students take advantage of this program should have been taken into account."

"Mr. Reis."

"Sponsor yields."

"As strange as this will… may seem to some of the Members, your Motion is in order, Sir. Mr. Breen is recognized."

"Representative McDermed."

"Sponsor would be happy to yield."

"Again, Representative McDermed, the goal of the Bill is to retain our best and brightest students here in Illinois and the second goal of the Bill is to further diversify our universities. For an example, the University of Illinois that many Members have asked about, they have 5 percent African Americans in their entire student body, 5 percent. So, your question about what is to be the safeguard or how do we determine how many students are leaving and where they're going, I don’t know the answer to that question. I do know that in my conversation, as I said a little earlier in response to answers from another Representative, that the President of the University of Illinois system explained to me that one of his big concerns was that he was losing students to the University of Missouri. That's what he said."

"That's a good thing."

"Well, actually…"

"You are."

"You are. And I appreciate that. An overwhelming majority of the state universities are excited about this proposal because they understand that… they understand that they will have a pool of students to choose from, not just the top 10 percenters but students in general that want to stay here and go to school here. I mean, I'm not making this up. I'm not making this up. We have universities here. We want to keep them here. Here's a Bill to keep them here and here's also a Bill that will further diversify our universities. And on the same token, Representative, when we're talking about a business-friendly environment, businesses want to see an educated workforce. That's what they're evaluating. When they're evaluating whether or not they're going to stay in a state or go to another state, that's one thing that they're looking at. They're looking at the quality and the educational background of their workforce. And if this Bill will further educate our student body, that's a good thing. That's pro- business and I don’t understand why all of the people on the side of the aisle that I'm sitting on are not supporting this Bill because this is good for business."

"I'm sorry. Repeat your question."

"They call their parents, first of all. That they have a discussion with their parents that, hey, mom and dad, I've done well. I'm graduating in the top 10 percent of my class. I have good SAT scores, I have good ACT scores. What type of school should I apply to? Well, Susie or Johnny or whatever the hypothetical name that you used is, because you're in the top 10 percent of your class and because you also have the requisite ACT and SAT scores, you can get into any one of the state schools that are in the State of Illinois."

"Let me finish. Any one of them, you can get in to. So, I find it very, very hard to believe, very hard to believe that a student that graduates in the top 10 percent of their class, has the requisite SAT or ACT scores is not going to get into one state university. I find that very hard to be…"

"Please complete your remarks, Sir." 10000052.docx 45  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"And in fact, I think that if you ask some of your colleagues that are on the Higher Education Committee, Mr. Welch's committee, I think that they will tell you that they are thirsting and starving for students and they would be happy and more than… and thrilled to actually get applications from top 10 percenters. So, the hypothetical that you… that you posed to me is just not possible."

"Representative…"

"…are you… have you completed your remarks?"

"Thank you. Mr. Andrade."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Sponsor yields."

"I have a couple of questions that have come up. Does this take in consideration early admission?"

"Which school are we talking about, Representative. Because, again, I want to be specific because as I said a little earlier, the University of Illinois at Champaign is somewhat of a separate animal, if you will, because it's our flagship university. But what do you mean by early admission?"

"So, the schools require… you're saying they have to be… the senior year class ranking, right?"

"Yes. Your last two years, yes."

"Last two years? So, what happens if… if you can't… well, first of all, our number one school in the State of Illinois and actually two out of the top five do not take in consideration class ranking because Northside College Prep, their average ACT is 30. So, every student at Northside 10000052.docx 46  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 College Prep is top 10 of the whole State of Illinois. And early admission requirements, you have to guarantee and say I want to go to this school November… by November 1 to December 15 of the year… before you graduate. So, does the Bill take into consideration early admission?"

"That's a good question. So, let me be more specific. Now, you used Northside Prep as an example that I believe that you said that the average ACT score was…"

"Thirty."

"…30 or something like that."

"And Whitney Young… Whitney Young does not do class rankings either."

"Okay. Well, the answer to your question is, those students, they're going to college. In fact, they're probably going to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, one of the Ivy Leagues. The key is, is what can we do to ensure that students that are graduating at the top 10 percent of their class, the cream of the croppers, will stay here in Illinois. So, again, with respect to early admission, it's kind of unclear as to how that would actually occur. But what happened is though, is that the school would have the ability to take a look at the grade point averages of its students, make a determination as to who is in the top 10 percent, who's not in the top 10 percent, and then after the ACT or SAT scores come in, they can decide."

"So, but… so, your Bill does not take into consideration early admission?"

"It takes into consideration the application process. So, if ISAC… So, if…" 10000052.docx 47  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"So, it does not take in consideration early admission."

"So, again, if ISAC wants to actually put something in there as to how they will actually deem early admission applications, they're free to do that as well."

"Okay."

"They're free to do that."

"That's just my concern about the early admission."

"They're free to do that."

"Well, what do you do… All right. Thank you very much."

"Thank you."

"Representative Hammond."

"Mr. Wheeler." Wheeler, K.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Absolutely." Wheeler, K.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Representative Thapedi, I'm reviewing an email regarding the support from those universities as my colleague just mentioned a moment ago. I see a list of universities, one of which is in support, being Chicago State, but the rest of them are either neutral or opposed. So, could you just clarify your remark about the 10000052.docx 48  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 excited nature of these universities with respect to this Bill?"

"I've had conversations with several of the Presidents and all of them have relayed to me the excitement about the prospects of retaining the best and the brightest students here in Illinois. The question has always become how do we actually implement this? How do we implement it in a way that it works? And I think that it would be disingenuous for us to think that our college Presidents are not excited about the opportunity to keep some of our best and brightest students here." Wheeler, K.: "Andre, I completely agree with you.”

“Yeah.” Wheeler, K.: “The idea of keeping students here, our best and brightest. We want them here to build a great future in Illinois for us, but until this Bill moves with the current form it's in now where it's opposed by most of these universities, we just can't move that forward with the language as it sits right now. So, I hope you go back to the drawing board and make this better where the universities are on board with what the language actually says rather than just being excited about the theme."

"But quickly, Keith. What universities are you saying that are opposed? We have several state universities, what is your analysis saying as far as those universities that are opposed… opposed?" Wheeler, K.: "Okay. The opposed ones I've got here are Governor's State, Illinois State, Northeastern Illinois, Northern Illinois, and U of I; neutral are Eastern Illinois, Southern 10000052.docx 49  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 Illinois and Western Illinois, as confirmed by the Board of Education on March 8."

"Okay." Wheeler, K.: "After the Amendment was adopted that's on the board today."

"You said March 8, correct?" Wheeler, K.: "That is correct."

"And today is?" Wheeler, K.: "May… end of Session effectively for this Bill."

"Thank you." Wheeler, K.: "But nothing's changed in the language, Representative. So, that's my point."

"But that's not my understanding in light of the conversation that I had. And I talked about that when I first opened up. That after I actually had an opportunity to have a conversation with these universities, and actually after we read the Bill, and understood what was in the Bill, they felt a lot more comfortable. Especially… especially, with the component that's in the Bill that requires universities to ascertain which student, notwithstanding the fact that they may have graduated in the top 10 percent of their class and have the requisite ACT and SAT scores, if a university kind of thinks that that person is just maybe a little marginal, the university has the ability to require that student to come down to campus and take some additional courses. They have the ability to do that. And all the college Presidents that I spoke to were very happy about that because they did not know that that was in the Bill and that was a concern 10000052.docx 50  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 that they had about students that were not going to be adequately prepared to… to be successful in college." Wheeler, K.: "Representative, I'm just going to go back to the original intention of the question which is the support from these university Presidents. If you could let me know which university Presidents you wrote… you spoke to so I can confirm with them or my team can, so we can understand exactly where we are in this that would be helpful to us in that respect."

"I'll tell you that off the record and we're not going to do that here. I'm not going to be yelling out different Presidents’ names. I've already talked about U of I already. And I talked about U of I specifically because that is the main driver of the opposition to the Bill. And I understand why. And you know, again, I think that's the best that I can do at this point. And again, we're in the House, you know, potentially it'll move to the Senate or we'll go through the process and we can always make changes." Wheeler, K.: "Representative, as always, I love working with you and I look forward to doing that in the future, but in this particular case, without that kind of context, this… this doesn’t really work. When the universities are opposed to the Bill that effects them directly, we really shouldn’t move forward with that. In this case, I urge a 'no' vote. Thank you."

"Mr. Hays."

"Sponsor yields."

"ISAC is happy to work with those schools. I had a very detailed conversation with the Illinois Board of Higher Education and ISAC when I first filed the Bill. And as I said a little earlier, Leader Hays, that one of the issues that arose at the time is that on the initial draft of the Bill that power or that direction or that authority, if you will, 10000052.docx 52  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 was to be granted to the Illinois Board of Higher Education. ISAC then came to me uninvited and explained to me that that's exactly what they do. So, that's why Amendment #1 to the Bill which was adopted and which is a part of the Bill now as we stand here today empowers ISAC to handle the issues that you just mentioned. Beyond that, I don’t know what more I can tell you."

"And I understand exactly what you're saying. And that's the point, is that this should be an issue that is determined by the individual high school. The high school has the ability to, look, for example, you have some students who are honor students and the maximum GPA for the school is 4.0 but some of the kids that are taking advanced placement courses, APA courses, they can go beyond a 4.0. So, you're automatically going to get a bump, generally, for taking those advanced courses and that's where it all kind of evens out." 10000052.docx 53  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"And again, we want…"

"Please bring your remarks to a close, Sir."

"Ah, that's an excellent point, Representative Hays. And that's why under the Bill, we are empowering ISAC to promulgate rules in order to bring the program to fruition. We can’t just do it legislatively. These… we're talking about empowering the experts on these issues. To be able to reach out to the individual high schools and craft a way in which we can address all the issues that we've talked about today. The issues that you've just brought up to me, the issues that 10000052.docx 54  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 I heard a little earlier about early enroll… about early application process, the entire global package. And that's the point. That we cannot specifically list every single thing that's supposed to happen in a Bill. And that's why so often times here in the General Assembly, we… to select a particular agency or quasi-agency and empower them to promulgate rules to bring into fruition the legislation that's at issue. And this is a perfect example of that."

"Thank you."

"The final speaker is Mr. Welch."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Probably, he will, yes."

"Thank you, Sir. First of all, I want to commend the Sponsor for the work that he has put in on this Bill. Every single group or person that came to me with concerns, I took those issues back to the Sponsor and he addressed them or attempted to address them. And so, I want to commend you for that, Representative. But I do have a few questions for you. The data that you have been presented with shows that the out-migration from Illinois to other states is real. Is that correct?"

"Extremely real."

"With the exception of the University of Illinois and the Illinois State University, every single state university in this state is losing enrollment, correct?"

"Absolutely."

"And the University of Illinois is the only state university that's opposed to this Bill currently, right?" 10000052.docx 55  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"They are the only state university that is actively opposed to the university, notwithstanding numerous conversations that I've had with them and notwithstanding numerous requests that I've made from them to provide me with alternative language that would be more feasible to them."

"In your opinion, this Bill will help our regional universities. Isn’t that correct?"

"There's no question about it."

"This Bill will help Eastern Illinois?"

"It'll help Eastern Illinois tremendously."

"This Bill will help Western Illinois?"

"It will help Western Illinois tremendously."

"Northern?"

"Northern Illinois as well."

"Southern?"

"Both Southerns, both the Edwardsville campus and the Carbondale campus."

"NEIU university?"

"EIU they're happy to see the new students coming in and we've heard testimony from some of our colleagues talking about the troubles at EIU and how they would welcome the opportunity to have more applicants there, especially the cream of our crop."

"CSU and Governor's State?"

"Well, CSU and Governor's State, I think it goes without saying that those universities need the best and brightest students there in their halls to keep them viable." 10000052.docx 56  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"So, while this state is experiencing record numbers of out-migration, you are trying to address that issue by passing House Bill 230. Is that correct?"

"Absolutely."

"And that will increase diversity in all of our state universities including the University of Illinois."

"It certainly will. And that's especially… It's not going to be that hard to increase diversity at the University of Illinois considering they only have five percent African Americans in their student body."

"And the bottom line is you're trying to bring our students back to Illinois?"

"Absolutely."

"To the Bill, Mr. Speaker. This is a great piece of legislation. This Representative should be applauded. This debate has gone on way too long for a Bill that is trying to address one of the main problems in our state and that is the out-migration of our students. We're trying to bring students back to Illinois and here is a solution. Right here on the table. Everyone should be voting 'yes' for this Bill. This Bill will lift up Illinois. Bringing these students back to Illinois, they're going to pay taxes here, live here, raise their families here. This Bill is the answer to many of our problems. Let's lift up Illinois and vote for House Bill 230. Thank you, Representative Thapedi."

"Mr. Thapedi to close."

"We’ve had a long, long debate. The purpose of this Bill is twofold. First, to retain our best and our brightest students here in Illinois. The second goal of this Bill is to 10000052.docx 57  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 further diversify our universities. This plan has been tested by the United States Supreme Court. We have university Presidents that are thirsting for qualified students. This Bill gets it done. I urge an 'aye' vote."

"Gentleman moves for the passage of the Bill. A reminder that Mr. Reis has asked for a verification. Members will vote their own switches and be at their desks. Those in favor of the Bill shall vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 53 voting 'yes', 54 voting 'no', and 6 voting 'present'. Mr. Thapedi asked to be recognized."

"Move for Postponed Consideration, Mr. Speaker."

"Gentleman asks for Postponed Consideration. That will be the order. House Bill 31… House Bills-Second Reading. House Bill 3185, Representative Ammons. Please read the Bill."

"Representative Ammons."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If you would allow me a second to get my analysis up. Thank you. House Bill 3185 is a clean- up Bill of the State Universities Civil Service System. I'll run through… I'm sorry. This is a Floor Amendment. I ask that we adopt the Floor Amendment on House Bill 3185." 10000052.docx 58  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017

"Just a very quick explanation, Representative."

"There's some technical changes. Changing words from 'executive' to 'chairman', changing words in provision of training, eliminating a couple of provisions that refer to East St. Louis, for instance, that doesn’t exist anymore. It's a clean-up language."

"Those in favor of the Amendment say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. Leader Currie on a Motion on Senate Bill 851."

"Thank you, Speaker. I move to suspend the posting requirements so that Senate Bill 851 can be heard in due course."

"Seeing no objection, is there leave? Leave is granted. And the Lady's Motion is adopted. Leader Currie on a point of personal privilege."

"Thank you very much, Speaker and Members of the House. Two weeks ago today, Tuesday, May 9, we delivered a letter to Governor Rauner. I signed the letter so did my colleagues Leader Lou Lang, Leader Jay Hoffman, Leader Art Turner. We told the Governor in that letter that we think adoption of a comprehensive responsible state budget is the highest priority for Illinois State Government. We told the Governor in that letter that we were willing to work with him on off- budget items. We pointed out that the Members of this House have many times passed measures that would freeze property taxes. We have proposed legislation that would make all the 10000052.docx 59  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 savings from the 2011 workers' comp reforms actually find their way into the pockets of the business community. We told the Governor that we had ideas, too, about how to make Illinois a more economically competitive, business-friendly state. We said, Governor Rauner, we're prepared to work with you on the off-budget as well as the budget items because a comprehensive, responsible budget is critical to the wellbeing of the people of the State of Illinois. The next day, I called the Governor's Chief of Staff. Early last week, I phoned the Governor. We still have not had a meeting with the Governor. We've offered the olive branch and to date, he hasn’t taken it. Let me read to you the last line of the letter we sent. It said, as we stand ready to work with you, we hope you can resume working in cooperation with us to end this destructive budget impasse… destructive budget impasse’. I would suggest to my colleagues and to the Governor, wherever you are, whether you're on the second floor, in your Chicago office, hanging out at home in Wilmette or at one of your many other houses across the country, I would hope, Governor Rauner, that you are listening to this plea. Since December 31, 2016, higher education institutions, public higher education institutions, needy college students, victims of domestic violence, of sexual assault, people needing Meals on Wheels, they have been left in the lurch. Not one penny of state money has come their way, December 31, 2016. We are getting towards the end of May. It would be unconscionable for this State Legislature to finish at the end of May without a budget for fiscal year '18. Two years without a budget is two years too many. Three years without a budget would be 10000052.docx 60  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017 absolutely the worst scar, the worst stain upon this body politic of any I have ever known. Governor Rauner, we stand ready to work with you. Our caucus is for a comprehensive, responsible state budget. We are willing to work with you on the off-budget items so that we can finally do the right thing for the people of the State of Illinois. Governor Rauner, I hope you are listening. Governor Rauner, I hope you'll give me a call."

"Leader Durkin, for what reason do you rise, Sir?"

"I thought so. Please proceed."

"I believe Leader Currie's name was mentioned in debate. The Chair recognizes Leader Currie."

"Thank you, Speaker. Just to clarify the record. I never heard from the Governor. I did have a call last week from his Chief of Staff suggesting a meeting. I said that Representatives Lang, Hoffman, Turner and I were willing to meet any time, any place. Mr. Goldberg turned me down. He said we'll meet with you, but we will not meet with your team. But this team is the team that represents the House Democratic Caucus. The team that has worked on issues like workers’ comp, like business incentives. This was an important group to meet with the Governor's Chief of Staff. We were willing to do it, but he shut the door in our face."

"Leader Currie moves for the adoption of the Agree… Excuse me. Mr. Clerk, Agreed Resolutions. There are no Agreed Resolutions and there is no Motion. Ladies and Gentlemen, Democrats will caucus upon adjournment in Room 114. Democrats will caucus immediately upon adjournment in Room 114. And now, allowing perfunctory time for the Clerk, Leader Currie moves that the House stand adjourned ‘til Wednesday, May 24 at the hour of 12:30 p.m. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the House stands adjourned 'til Wednesday, May 24 at the hour of 12:30 p.m. Have a lovely day." 10000052.docx 64  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 52nd Legislative Day 5/23/2017