Illinois House Floor Debate — March 12, 2019

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Please let the Journal reflect that the excused absences on the Republican side are Representative Tom Bennett and Representative Dave Severin. And if we could please keep Representative Bennett in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to present House Joint Resolution 15, which designates November 1, 2019 as Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day in the State of Illinois. This Resolution will not only honor our Vietnam Veterans, but will also offer an apology on behalf of the state to any servicemember who returned home from the Vietnam War and did not receive the proper thanks and homecoming that they so 10100025.docx 3  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 rightly deserved. House Joint Resolution 15, also requests that flags in Illinois be flown at half-staff November 1st. This Resolution was brought to my attention by a constituent of mine from Auburn, Illinois. Vince Speranza is 94 years old and is a decorated World War П combat veteran, who fought in the… Siege of the Bastogne and in part of the larger Battle of the Bulge. Vince fought in the… with the 101st Airborne in his courage is stuff that legends are made of. Vince is here with us today in the gallery to my right. Please acknowledge Vince. Vince traveled around the world talking about his service in World War П and meeting men and women of our armed services. One thing that he is most passionate about is ensuring that Vietnam generation of veterans are given the proper respect and thanks that he and others received when they returned from battle. In a recent State Journal article, a Vietnam veteran was quoted as saying, 'There was nobody to greet you when you got off the plane like there is now. You were just alone. There was no respect for you or your uniform or what you did for the country.' House Joint Resolution 15 is one small way that we can acknowledge the service and sacrifice of all those who served in Vietnam and never forget what they did. Thank you, Vince, for not only your service but for your concern to all veterans. I ask for your support of this Joint Resolution and would be happy to answer any questions."

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

"I know just a little bit earlier Representative Butler said we need to keep Representative Bennett in our thoughts. I visited Tom yesterday, but many of all know that he was involved in the extremely, extremely serious car accident Thursday night in his district somewhere in the Colfax area, where he sustained major injuries, eight broken ribs, multiple fractures in his ribs. He was very fortunate to have walked out, crawled out of that accident by himself. His van went up in flames. This is the type of thing that a lot of people don’t recover from. But Tom being the person that he is, the type of spirit that he is, he has… he was able to leave and get help. He is currently at the St. Joes Memorial Hospital in Bloomington and a number of our Members have stopped to see him. I was in with him yesterday. It's going to take a long time for him to recover, but I just hope that you all remember that Tom is such a fine, fine man. He's and absolute gentleman, and he's a good who works tireless for his district. And it pains him enormously not being here, and that’s the type of person he is. So when we say that we would like to keep Tom in our thoughts and prayers, I think it's particularly important that we put politics aside and think about Tom and if you're a person that does say prayers at night, include him in that list. But also drop him a note, he lost his phone in the accident in Gibson City, we can get that address. But I know that he will enjoy hearing from you. But were very fortunate that Tom survived that. At the end of the day, we are a family, and we do feel pain about any of our Members whether it's stricken by any type of illness or accident. And this is a situation that I hope that we just 10100025.docx 5  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 remember that were all human beings, we’re Illinoisans and we support the men and women we work for particularly when they're having a bad time. So, as I said earlier, he's one of the nicest men you're ever going to meet. He is. And I've said this before to Tom at his fundraisers that, you know, he's too nice for this job. But I also said that, you know, we’re at a time where I think that good guys win and Tom is a good guy and he did have a guardian angel on his shoulder the other night. So, folks drop him a note, but I appreciate this opportunity to speak. And let's just wish Tom a speedy recovery. Thank you."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to present House Resolution 162, which is a congratulatory Resolution for the Schlarman Academy Girls' Basketball Team, and we have them in the gallery with us today. They were the Class 1A State Champions, and they were not only the Class 1A State Champions this year, but this is the second consecutive year which they won that title. They are the pride of Danville, Illinois. So please give them a warm welcome to the General Assembly."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Members of the General Assembly, I want to introduce you your AA pom-dance and lyrical state champions, the Jacksonville J'ettes. If we could give them a round of applause. I was telling the girls earlier, I got to watch my sister be a J'ette and their coach be a J'ette for four years and win state championships. So it's exciting to see them back here returning the state championships to Jacksonville. I want to introduce you to the members of this great team. First off their coach, Tiffany Hickox. Their members of the Jacksonville J'ettes, co- captain, Sarah May; co-captain, Sarah Wilson; Olivia Pine, who's a squad leader; Grayson Moore, squad leader; Chloe Burrus, squad leader; Ava Lahey, squad leader; Hannah Loeffelholtz, Ashley Haggerty, Gabbi Meehan, Paige Scaman, Amelia Pine, Layne Rogers, Paiten Wilson, Grace Turner, Paige Hadden, Esha Kulkarni, Dani Dillard, Claire VanAken, and Jillian Claussen. And I want to… Allyson Maul as well as a coach. Actually my first grader… that’s his first grade teacher, so thank you for taking good care of him. He's learning a lot this year. Girls, I want to thank you for being such amazing athletes, for representing Jacksonville so well. We really appreciate it, and we look forward to having you back next year and all the years to come. Thank you so much. Your state champion dance team, the Jacksonville J'ettes."

"I believe the Republicans are going to caucus, but not upon adjournment because are we coming back, is that correct?"

"Okay. Yeah, the Republicans will Caucus in 118."

"Thank you. To the Bill. I've been around here for a few years and this issue has been around almost as long as I have. 10100025.docx 9  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 And I have been fight it most of my career. But I am here to say I am no longer fighting it but I'm supporting Tobacco 21 for the State of Illinois. I cannot ignore what the U.S. Surgeon General under this administration has said about teen smoking in particularly e-cigarettes and the epidemic that is going on everywhere throughout this nation, in particularly in the State of Illinois as I look at it. We cannot, no longer ignore this, stick our head in the sand. And I think this is the right thing to do on so many levels. And the thing is, I also did the research, but I looked at my greatest resource to make this determination and that would be my daughter Caroline, who is 17 years old at Lions Township High School in LaGrange, Illinois, told me, Dad, it's out of control. Not just tobaccos but also jewels, e-cigarettes, and all those that go along with it. She said, you guys need to do something. And I said Caroline, I'm doing something, I'm changing my mind, and I'll be voting for this Bill. And I recommend everyone else to support this legislation."

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

"Representative, you probably remember I voted for this Bill last time, and I do intend on voting for the Bill again. I have a couple of quick questions about the Bill specifically. While this Bill raises the age to sell tobacco… or purchase tobacco to 21, it does decriminalize it for anybody 18 and under. Meaning it is no longer illegal for anybody under the age 21 or 18 to have tobacco products. Is that correct?" 10100025.docx 10  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019

"Do you have any concerns that this might actually make accessibility for 15, 16, and 17 year olds actually higher? Because it's making the access to it easier than the law currently stands to it today."

"Okay. All right. Thanks, thanks for the clarification. The other question I have is to cost. Do you know what the loss tax revenue to the state is going to be once this Bill passes?"

"Okay. Is there and estimate… of cost?"

"What is that estimate?"

"Okay, All right. Thank you very much. To the Bill, I think some of our Members are going to be for it and some will be opposed to it. I think there's some important 10100025.docx 11  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 unanswered questions. I'll listen to the rest of the debate. Thank you."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank Representative Lily for her work on this Bill and I'm happy to be Chief Co-sponsor on the Tobacco 21 legislation. I'm glad it's back for another run in the 101st General Assembly. Almost got there in the 100th General Assembly but I'm glad you're leading it again. I just for the Body, I just would like to read some information from the Center of Disease Control and Prevention. 'Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death in the United States.' Let me say that again, 'Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death in the United States.' Nearly 40 million U.S. adults still smoke cigarettes and about 4.7 million middle and high school students use at least one tobacco product. Nine of 10 people who smoke cigarettes try it by the age of 18. Each day, 2 10100025.docx 12  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 thousand Americans under age 18 try a cigarette for the first time. In 2018, 27 percent of high school students have reported tobacco use. Four hundred and eighty thousand deaths per year are due to smoking, 1300 deaths a day. Ladies and Gentlemen, smoking kills. There's no 2 ways around this. Smoking kills. And it’s a very preventable way to make a healthier United States, if we go after smoking, especially at an early age under 21. When I spoke on this Bill last year, I mentioned the fact that when I was in high school, Miami Vice was a big show when I was in high school. Don Johnson was one of the coolest guys around, and I started smoking Lucky Strikes because of Don Johnson. I was able to only do that for only a few weeks before I stopped smoking. But there's a lot of people who continue to smoke from 18, 16, 17 on. I know this isn’t a perfect Bill. There's some changes I would like to see in it. But for those who wonder about the decriminalization aspect of it, I'd like you to ask a member of our law enforcement how many kids they actually bust for smoking a cigarette every day. It doesn't really happen today. This is the right thing to do. This is the right thing to do to make a healthier Illinois. And I would urge an 'aye' vote on it."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was a supporter of this Bill last time, and last time I dedicated my vote to my mom, Eleanor, who was a smoker all her life. She tried many, many times to quit. And if this Bill can prevent another person from dying from lung cancer then we should all vote yes. And I'm dedicating this vote to my mom. Thanks, Representative."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. Fist, I'd like to thank the Sponsor for bringing this forward. It was mentioned 10100025.docx 14  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 earlier that right now currently have a patchwork of Home Rule communities that have already adopted this legislation. So from a law enforcement standpoint, and from just a continuity in how we do things, I'm going to be a strong supporter of this Bill. My hometown, Naperville, passed this in 2016. It's the right thing to do for our youth, and I urge a strong support."

"Thank you, Speaker. I saw you correct yourself. Thank you. Will the Sponsor yield? In the 101st General Assembly, you don’t need one Republican vote to pass anything in the House, but sounds like you do have quite a few of us over here that are going to be voting for it, and unfortunately I'm not one of them. Absolutely right, smoking does kill. Killed both of my parents. And there was nothing I could do or say that was ever going to get them to stop smoking. A Bill like this, would never have gotten them to stop smoking as a child. My question is, why decriminalize this?"

"Well, the penalty for the one time… sorry. Sorry."

"Okay, well the first violation was $25 or 15 hours of community service and I don’t think anybody here in the chamber can dispute that 15 hours of community service whether you're a criminal or not is a good thing. Our youth should be doing that regardless. So I don’t think that the current law how it reads right now is a problem. And I have heard from some local police departments and they do utilize the 15 hours of community service. Another question I had was whether or not there was… if you knew what the loss of revenue was going to be? And the loss of revenue is going to be… could be up to $40 million. How do you anticipate the state to replenish the coffers on that? Would you be using the bag tax or what will you be using to raise that $40 million?"

"And no doubt. I just wonder what the loss of the $40 million, what that’s going to do for the education side of that because, I'm going to assume that’s been used in the past to educate youth on not smoking. Also, parents are often talking to me and all of us on both sides of the aisle, about JUUL. This is now going to give them actually no penalty to 10100025.docx 16  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 even smoking the JUULs in the schools and so that’s also a concern for me. You know, I understand and respect your position as well as several people that are going to vote for this Bill, but we have got to quit chipping away at our personal liberties and put tax bases and I just… I cannot imagine how we're going to continue on in Illinois if we continue to do things like this without thinking of what the actual true unintended consequences are because, as much as I wish it was healthy children, I unfortunately think it's not going to be that way. Thank you."

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

"Representative, we seem to have a lot of back and forth on the floor and I want you to know, I respect you a lot and it's obviously nothing against you because I think you're a wonderful person. My concern on this is mainly philosophical. I believe that if a person is old enough to decide who the most powerful person on the planet, the President of the United States is, I think they're responsible enough to look at the package of cigarettes or look at a can of chewing tobacco and see that it says, 'this can kill you'. I think if you're old enough to join the Army and go die for your country, you're old enough to make that decision on your own. I understand that it's bad for you and I… when I go and I speak with grade school classes, high school classes, I say, who in here thinks tobaccos good for you? And nobody raises their hand. They all understand it. I think there's a point at which you have to say, you're either an adult or you 10100025.docx 17  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 are not. And that, that is my reason for opposing this. I will say, however, I do believe this will pass today. And I want your commitment to work together to get rid of loopholes, because there are loopholes in where and how you can get tobacco, and we need to get rid of those loopholes. If we're going to say, you cannot have them, unless you're 21 or older, I want a commitment that you'll work with me to get rid of those loopholes. Will you work with me?"

"Okay, I appreciate that and I will be talking to you soon. Thank you."

"Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. First off, I would think everybody could agree that smoking is a dirty and unattractive habit. I still have to go what did we learn from banning things? I think of the war on drugs, just because we ban drugs didn't diminish demand. Just because we ban drugs didn't take it away, we still have to deal with those parts of society. We also have to deal with the black market. That significant. So this… the current law is 18 years old, is the cutoff. So this will raise it up to 21. So let's think about what people can do when they are legally 18 years old. You know we mention serving the Army and things like that but 18 year olds can get married. Eighteen year olds can have children, 18 years can go hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt to go to school. Eighteen year old are adults and they are capable of making big decisions. Deciding where to go to college, deciding going to debt for school is a big decision. It's probably bigger than lighting up a cigarette. And I'm just going to point out there a better approach to this. Educations works. Reminding young people that this is a dangerous habit, that this has health problems, that it is dirty and nasty is good enough in my eyes. So I'm going to urge a 'no' vote, but I'm also going to urge us to keep talking to young people and letting them know that this is a 10100025.docx 19  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 bad habit, and it’s a bad habit that they shouldn’t start. Thank you very much. I urge a 'no' vote."

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

"Thank you. Representative, we’ve talked about this Bill in the past on the floor here, I know this is opposition to the Bill listed in our analysis. I'm assuming that some of those are from associations that may have members that would be affected on the border communities of the state. I think we talk about that the last time the Bill was on the floor. Can you address some of the concerns that have risen to you?"

"Okay. Well again, I believe the fact that we’re not changing age of the neighboring states of this Bill, are we?"

"I understand, because were not changing the age requirement of any of our neighboring states, a person who is under 21 can go across the river into Iowa or Missouri and be legally able to purchase tobacco products there? Is that correct?"

"I appreciate that. I'm not quite sure it addresses where I was trying to go with that. But Representative, I just want to make sure the record is clear on one thing. The previous speaker had mention that making it illegal for someone under 21 to have these products is not what this Bill does, does it? It does not make it illegal…"

"Right. So it is not illegal to possess Tobacco products under the age of 21 with this Bill in effect. That’s correct, right?"

"So while I can certainly understand the motive behind this Bill. I understand the idea we all want to see a healthier Illinois. We want to see a fewer people smoking. I don’t think we're going to get to where we want to go with this Bill in the form that it is right now, I applaud your 10100025.docx 21  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 efforts, Representative Lily, I just don’t think that this is the solution that going to get us to that goal. Thank you."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A Point of personal privilege." 10100025.docx 24  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019

"In… to join my college in honor of Women's History Month, I have chosen to honor Mother Bickerdyke. Born Mary Ann Bickerdyke in 1817, she spent her life in the service of the others which is how she affectionately became known as 'Mother Bickerdyke'. She was a widow from Galesburg and she was a quote unquote 'botanic physician', who answered the call for every medical… for medical assistance during the Civil War. Mother Bickerdyke was a battlefield angel for the Union Soldiers, an indispensable figure in the Army’s Medical Corps as she established 300 field hospitals, aided the wounded in 19 battlefields during that war. During the war she was the Chief of Nursing under the command of General Ulysses S. Grant. When his staff complained about the outspoken, insubordinate female nurse, who consistently disregarded the army's red tape and military procedures, Union General Sherman joked and said, 'Mother Bickerdyke outranks me and there's not a darn thing in the world I can do about it.' She was a tireless fighter for veterans and after the war she even served as a lawyer assisting veterans and their families in obtaining pensions. She died in 1901 and was buried in Galesburg next to her husband. Soon after a statue was erected of Mother Bickerdyke kneeling beside a wounded solider holding a cup to his lips. It still stands in the courthouse square in Galesburg to honor this amazing woman, who was totally devoted to the health and welfare of our soldiers. Thank you."

"Point of personal privilege, Sir."

"In keeping with Women's History Month I want to take it a little closer to home. With me today on the floor is my wife, Deb, who for past, good Lord, close to 40 years has shared the thick and way too much thin with me. There’s a great song with a line that says, she is more than money, she 14 karat gold. I like you to welcome her to the floor. Thank you."

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

"Thank you, Sir. So many of us are aware of the many, many polls that show that a lot of Illinoisans simply want to leave our state. And sometimes in those polls we see that those same people don’t think we're do a very good job down here, they don’t think very highly of us in here in Springfield. And to that point, this Body passed a tax increase in 2001 saying that was going to fix our fiscal mess. Then again in 10100025.docx 26  STATE OF ILLINOIS 101st GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/12/2019 2015, we passed another tax increase which was supposed to fix our fiscal mess. Last week the Governor introduced yet, a third income tax hike on the residents of Illinois. Who could be so foolish as to think the third time is the charm for the State of Illinois, and we simple need is just more of your hard earned tax dollars to fix our fiscal mess. Instead what we need to be doing is looking on the other side of the equation make sure were delivering the government services efficiently. Simply raising taxes is not the solution to our problem."