"House Perfunctory Session will come to order. Committee Reports. Representative Harris, Chairperson from the Committee on Rules reports the following committee action taken on February 10, 2021: recommends be adopted as amended, referred to the Order of Resolutions is House Resolution 72."
"The House will be in order. Members will be in their chairs. We shall be led in prayer today by Lee Crawford, the Pastor of the Cathedral of Praise Christian Center in Springfield. Members and guests are asked to refrain from starting their laptops, turn off all cell phones, and rise for the invocation… well, I'm sorry, I'm ahead of myself a little bit. We shall be led in prayer today by Lee Crawford, the Pastor of the Cathedral of Praise Christian Center in Springfield. Pastor Crawford."
"Let us pray. Gracious and sovereign God, giver and sustainer of life, we come humbly before you this day asking for your blessings and for your guidance upon this august Assembly, upon the Speaker of this House, upon all of its Members. As we come together today, we humbly open our hearts, our minds, our souls to not only honor you but, oh God, to hear you. We thank you for, as they assemble together, they would work with a sweet sound of harmony, in a spirit of unity, as united and not divided. For as you, oh Lord, have said a house divided cannot stand. So, we ask of you, oh God, to come amongst us, to help us, to lift us, to inspire us, to empower us, and to graciously lead us as we do your business this day. This we kindly pray, Amen." 10200006.docx 1 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021
"I'm going to get the hang of this, eventually. This afternoon, we're going to be led in the Pledge of Allegiance today by Representative Cassidy."
"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. Members, please vote your own switches only. Roll Call for Attendance. Members, for social distancing purposes, if you've already marked yourself here for attendance purposes, I would ask that you move from the chamber. And group one, last names beginning with A through E, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group one, last names beginning with A through E, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Those who have already voted their switch, please make your way out of the chamber for now. Leader Harris is recognized to report any excused absences on the Democratic side of the aisle."
"Mr. Speaker, let the record reflect that Representative Gabel is excused today."
"Representative Batinick is recognized."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let the record reflect that Representative McCombie is excused for the day."
"Leader Durkin is recognized."
"Thank you. Good afternoon, Speaker Welch. And it's great to be back in the chamber. It's been a year. You made a comment earlier that it's important for Members to vote their switch today. And I just can't stress enough that, of all 10200006.docx 2 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 days, this is the day in which Members should vote, not let their staff members vote for them. I think it's important that Members come in and actually do their own voting today. We're going through a process today which is unique. Something which we haven't dealt with before. But I think, again, I want to just stress that it's very important from our side of the aisle that all Members, Republicans and Democrats, vote their switch."
"Leader Durkin, we agree. Thank you."
"Thank you."
"Group two, last names beginning with F through L, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group two, last names beginning with F through L, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Just want to repeat that group two, last names beginning with F through L, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Roll Call for Attendance. Please make your way to the House Floor. Group two Members, please vote your switch, if you haven't already, and move from the chamber. Group two Members, if you haven't already, please vote your switch. Mark yourself in attendance and move from the chamber so that we can move to the next group. Group three, last names beginning with M through R, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group three, last names beginning with M through R, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group three Members, please vote your switch and then move from the floor. Group three Members. Group three Members, please vote your switch and move from the floor. Group four, last names beginning with S through Z. 10200006.docx 3 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Group four, last names beginning with S through Z, please make your way to the House chamber to vote you switch. Group four. Group four, last names beginning with S through Z, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group four, please make your way to the House Floor, S through Z. Group four Members, please vote your switch and move from the chamber. We'd like to get to the rules debate. Group four Members, please vote your switch. Have all recorded themselves who wish? Have all recorded themselves who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. There being 112 Members answering the roll call, a quorum is present. Leader Manley is in the Chair."
"On Supplemental Calendar 1, under the Order of Resolutions, appears House Resolution 72. Leader Harris is recognized on the Resolution. Leader Harris."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. House Resolution 72 is the House Rules for the 102nd General Assembly. For those of you who saw the posting this morning, you'll note that there was an Amendment filed this morning and adopted. So, before I begin the presentation, just to be transparent, I want to disclose what was in that Amendment. There were three major things in that Amendment. There was some clarifications about remote participation in the Rules Committee. There was a technical change and a technical correction regarding the COVID rules now that we have returned back to the Capitol. And there was a change regarding the default start time for the convening of the General Assembly, absent… Order of the Chair or an Adjournment Resolution. I will just tell you, as the Chairman of the Rules 10200006.docx 4 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Committee, there is one other thing not in there. You may have noticed the state of New Hampshire recently tried to ban cats and dogs from Zooms. We are not going to do that here in the State of Illinois. So, your pet is still welcome in the Zoom. So, let me just talk about, then, the Resolution that is before us. These new House Rules really do represent a historical turning point in rules development in… and adoption in the House of Representatives. I want to make it really clear to those who are listening, that, while this is a change from our past procedure in how we came up with and adopted rules, we, at least on the House Democratic side and we know our colleagues on the Republican side, believe that this also just a first step in reforming ways of the past and injecting more transparency and accountability, while ensuring our chamber operates effectively and fairly. Now, I'm sure we'll hear that some of these changes don't go so far, don't go far enough. I’d like to say that Members on both sides of the aisle had many more suggestions that we're including in an ongoing review. And as I go further into my presentation, I'm going to mention what some of those suggestions are. The… so, the process will continue. Just a little bit about what the rules are and what they represent. You know, we're each elected individually to represent the voters in our community who send us here from our cities, and towns, and counties. We're all elected and form caucuses to represent the deeply held beliefs that all… that, as an aggregate, we are sent here to represent, to support the kind of ideals that folks who vote for us send us down here to promote, to adopt rules and laws and Resolutions for the State 10200006.docx 5 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 of Illinois that bring these values into practice in our everyday lives. And it's a competition of ideas. And we need… we need some organization, and we need some rules, and we need some guide paths. I'm being sure that all of these ideas are appropriately heard. But also we're in a situation, and this has been true in all of the 102 General Assemblies the State of Illinois has… has had, is there is a… there is a Majority Party and there is a Minority Party. You know, based on the number of people who voted for and elected people who represent the ideals of those two groups. And as time has gone on, the control of the General Assembly has switched back and forth between Republicans and Democrats. And each party who is the Majority Party always wanted to have strong rules in place so that we could be sure that the things that our voters send us here to do got done. Republicans do it. Democrats do it. That's part of why we have elections and why we compete so hard is to be sure that our ideas do rule the day. In 1993, the Republicans made some changes in the House Rules when they controlled this chamber. They're very good changes. They're very powerful changes, and it helped the Majority, at the time, achieve a lot of their goals. Since that time, succeeding Speakers, or a succeeding Speaker, have also seen that those rules benefit us to this day. They're still good guideposts. So, using that as a base, we decided to build on and make some changes to those rules to reflect more of the times and a lot of the requests that we've heard from Members from both sides of the aisle. But at the end of the day, we're here to protect the things that are important to us. We're here to protect voting rights. We're here to 10200006.docx 6 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 protect our seniors. We're here to make sure that health care is accessible and affordable. We're here to protect workers' rights. We're here to protect organized labor. We’re here to be sure that we protect a woman's right to choose, that our neighborhoods are safe from gun violence. We're here to protect immigrants and refugees and be sure that they live with respect in all of our communities. We're here to protect LGBTQ people and be sure that they're treated with dignity throughout the State of Illinois and that their needs, as part of our society, are met. So, all of these are values that, as we look at the rules, we want to be sure that rules are in place that can protect these values that our voters sent us here to stand up for. We want to treat folks with dignity and respect. We want to close disparities. We want to repair systemic inequities. And that's what these rules are about, making sure that we can get these things done 'cause that's what we're sent here to do and that history cries out for us to get done, especially in this moment in time. And Speaker Welch said we're going to go about this in a different way this year. He is changing from tradition of the last number of General Assemblies. Rather than the Speaker introducing rules and saying this is your choice, vote on it, yes or no, the Speaker said he's going to take input and he wants this to be an ongoing process. So, in the House of Representatives, we opened up a working group on the Democrat Caucus side of the aisle, and we invited Member participation. I'm really happy to say that over a third of our Members, a third of our Members physically came via Zoom to all the meetings we had on the… the rules working group, and another 10200006.docx 7 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 10 or a dozen sent in ideas and suggestions that they wanted to place in consideration. The Republicans also sent in a list of… a lengthy list of ideas and suggestions they had. And I want to say to you that, as you compare the list that Republicans sent and you compare the list that our Democratic Members submitted, there was actually a fairly good deal of overlap. That they are issues that both the Republican side and the Democrats side wanted to see us look at, as we go forward, in reforming our rules. Not only in the iteration we're form… voting on today, but in succeeding iterations. So, that… that is a significant break from the past. So, I want to talk about what's in these rules that are before us today, and then I want to make a commitment again publically. People have said, well, you going to talk about publically, are we going to go forward and continue to review these rules? And if so, what are the things that are going to be on that list? You know, I just want to go through and commit to what those things are. So, first off, the things that are in the current rules that have changed from the… the rules of the 101st General Assembly. Big one that a lot of people have seen in headlines about are establishing term limits for the Speaker of the House and the Minority Leader of five General Assemblies. Another thing that has gotten a lot of wide attention is a requirement, not permissive, but required that, in odd numbered years, Bills submitted to the House Rules Committee must, must be sent out to the appropriative, substantive, or appropriations committee for consideration. And thirdly, another item talked a lot about in the media in the last couple days, is establishing remote legislating for 10200006.docx 8 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 the House of Representatives. So, this would allow us, on a committee basis, to begin, as soon as we leave here tomorrow and these rules are approved, to begin to get back into a more normal legislating process where every week, seven days a week, we can be holding hearings on issues that are of interest to the people of Illinois and to begin to process the Bills that every Member of this General Assembly has submitted. Other items in the rules are our limits on seconding speeches during the nominating process for Speaker, allowing a nominating speech in the seconding speech. In the appointment of the Assistant… of the Assistant Clerk, should a vacancy occur during a term, it would require that the Speaker consult with the Minority Leader in that process. It would prohibit the Speaker or the Minority Leader from being Members of the Rules Committee. It would allow remote participation in the Rules Committee on a year-round basis, regardless of whether there is a public health threat or other emergency. It corrects the default hour of meeting and changes it to noon for the General Assembly. It clarifies an issue that arose in a… an election contest and qualification challenge where some legal bills had to be paid, but the authority to get them processed under the old rules expired with the last General Assembly. So, it just clarifies that if those things are still in process that they can be processed in a succeeding General Assembly. In the matter of investigating committees and disciplinary committees, we ended up in a situation where the rules had not contemplated, when they were written, that the two main parties in the investigating committee would end up being the Speaker of the 10200006.docx 9 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 House and the Minority Leader. And in the old rules, those two individuals were given, in their rules as the leader of their caucuses, certain responsibilities for appointing Members and other supervisory roles in those committees. This simply provides that, should the Speaker or Minority Leader be a complainant or petitioner in those proceedings, that there is a recusal and that the next highest ranking person in their caucus would take over those duties. So, it was just a something that had not been contemplated when the rules were drafted, and we wanted to clean that up. Lastly, in rules for disciplinary proceedings, there is a requirement, right now, that the Speaker of the House must approve the rules of those proceedings. That… that requirement is removed in the current rules. So, that's a summary of the changes we've made. And now, I want to talk about the types of things we're looking at for long term review. So, the… rules working group will continue to meet periodically, after today, to talk about issues regarding the notice for consideration to Bills, Amendments, and other legislative measures in committees and on the floor. Selection of committee chairs, vice chairs, and minority spokespeople, powers of committee chairs, the powers of the Speaker of the House and the Minority Leader, debate time standards, use of Robert's Rules of Order or other parliamentary standards like Mason's Manuel of Legislative Procedure, disciplinary processes, note procedures, and observance… observance of holidays. So, I think, Ladies and Gentlemen, that is a summary of the things I wanted to say. At this point, I'd be happy to answer any questions." 10200006.docx 10 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021
"For further discussion, Representative Batinick is recognized."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker. I'm going to go straight to the Resolution. And as I was sitting here thinking about the point that I wanted to make, it was about notice to Members of the public on what will be up for action in committee and on the floor, and I realize how wonderful the last 48 hours have been. You know, we… we all knew that we were coming here to debate the rules. We sent out press releases on it, we studied it, there was some back and forth. And it was just knowing what we were coming in to do is something that I know everybody seemed to like. We… you mentioned that there was some overlap between what Republicans and Democrats wanted, and I guess my question is, is I'm unsure why we didn't… why we didn't do that. In order to properly debate and engage on legislative issues, there must be timely notice of what Bills are going to be called for consideration. House Republicans and Democrats requested this change be incorporated in the House Rules. The people of Illinois need a daily notice on the House Calendar of all legislative measures the Speaker and the committee chairperson plan to call. I know we get a thick book, Calendar of hundreds of Bills, but we really don't have an idea of the 5, 10, or 20 Bills that are going to be called. We’ve had too many instances, the latest being… in lame duck Session, where significant Bills were brought forward for debate at the eleventh hour. As lawmakers, we need adequate time to read Bills in final form and time to determine our… position on each issue, like we did with these rules, which was really a nice process. We cannot properly 10200006.docx 11 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 vote and advocate for our districts on what we don't know about. This is not only a necessarily rule change to give lawmakers ample time to digest legislation and prepare for debates, but it's important for the general public. We’ve talked about more transparency, and we need greater transparency in our governmental process, which this rule change would really provide for. Given daily notice into what legislation is being considered would allow the public to be more informed on what is being considered in the House and allow them to have a more active role in the legislative process. I never thought I'd say this on… on the House Floor, but I like the Pelosi rule. United States Congress requires a daily notice of legislation to be considered so that they have a proper understanding of what business will be discussed that week. Our chamber's message should be… our chamber's method should be no different. It should not be a surprise as to what Bills are being presented, whether it be in committee or whether it be here on the floor. I'm kind of a… I summarize it this way… and I understand the… that the Sponsor had spoken about the Majority Party and the Minority Party, and the Majority Party does… does have the right, with the numbers, to make the rules as they wish. And for decades, it's been the situation… and I don't know what happens in other states, but I know here… and I don't know what happened a long time ago, but the Majority Party has treated us like mushrooms. Keep us in the dark and feed us manure. And that's okay because you have the ability and the numbers to do that. The problem is, is when you're treating us that way, you're also treating the entire general public that way. The people, 10200006.docx 12 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 whether it be us, but the people of the State of Illinois deserve better. They deserve more transparency. And I urge a 'no' vote. Thank you."
"The Chair recognizes Leader Hoffman."
"Well, thank you, Madam Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. I would just like to reiterate what Leader Harris pointed out. There are several reforms contained in this… these rules, and to say that somehow this is the tyranny of the Majority, I think, is wrong. I can just give you a historical perspective. Historically, way back… and I think that Leader Durkin probably was one of the only folks here when I was here at that time. Way back in '95, when your side of the aisle made these rules, that in large part these rules are based upon, I can tell you that there were two Representatives, Representative Curry, Julie Curry, and Representative Steve Davis, who got zero Bills out of Rules. Zero. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Zero out of Rules. These Rules say that all Bills this year will get out of Rules and they will go to a substantive committee. I hardly believe that that is keeping people in the dark. Leadership term limits, something that many people on your side of the aisle have clamored for, for many years, that is in these rules. Remote legislation, listening to the ideas of your side of the aisle that were raised last May, with the concern that we wouldn't be here for floor action, we limited that remote legislation to committees. What happened before is… was really prior to these rules that were adopted by your side of the aisle and were written by your side of the aisle way back in '95, historically, was… there were hundreds of Amendments that 10200006.docx 13 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 were filed on Bills, and those Bills… those Amendments were simply a means of stalling some of the things that we believe are important. The rights of working men and women, ensuring that people have a voice, making sure rights of women and minorities are respected. And all of those Amendments that were filed resulted in us only being able to call a couple Bills a day. And it was just a stalling technique. We have to govern. We're faced with a historic pandemic. We're faced with a historic budget crisis, and we need to govern. And, as the Majority Party, we intend to govern. And I don't believe that this is in any way a power play. As a matter of fact, I think that we have listened to the… many of the ideas from your side of the aisle, and they have been incorporated in these rules. So, from our side of the aisle, we're going to continue to work with you. We're going to continue, on our side of the aisle, to look at the rules, continue to look at ideas, as we go through this 102nd General Assembly. For all those reasons, Madam Speaker, I ask for a favorable roll call."
"The Chair recognizes Leader Bourne."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"He indicates that he will."
"Thank you. Representative, I want to focus my comments mainly on the changes made in Rule 18. My first question is, where did you get the language for these changes in Rule 18, which is on Bills being assigned to committee?"
"On Bills being assigned to committee? Can you tell me which page you're look at so I can…"
"Sure. It is on page number 32, starting line 14." 10200006.docx 14 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021
"That… that language is very similar to what was in the rules, I think, before the 98th General Assembly."
"Thank you. I appreciate that. And one other question. Is there any mechanism in these rules for a Bill to be called for a vote in committee without it being called by the Majority Party? Meaning, is there a guarantee for a vote on any Bill? Is there a guarantee… you can get every single Member of the committee to cosponsor the Bill, still not guaranteed a vote."
"There's not a guarantee, whether you're a Republican or a Democrat."
"Thank you. To the Resolution. Just for a little bit of context, the rules can be used to manipulate Bills so it looks like they might be being called for consideration or not stalled in the Rules Committee, and yet those with the idea and the Bill presented will never, ever get a fair shake on that Bill being called for a vote. I can't give you the historical perspective about the 1995 House Rules because I was three years old, but I can give you little bit of historical perspective on where this language came from. We see that Majority Party today is saying that they are open and transparent. No longer will we have Bills that we introduce, on either side of the aisle, be stuck in the Rules Committee forever. Well, this rule is a throwback to a Madigan rule, circa 97th General Assembly. And I've got that rule with me. It actually is a little bit stricter now than the Madigan rule in the 97th General Assembly. In the 97th General Assembly, it said a Bill must be sent to a committee within three days of it being filed. Now, the proposed rule says it 10200006.docx 15 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 must be sent to committee before the committee deadline. Meaning, they could wait the day before committee deadline and decide we'll send it to a substantive committee. No chance to talk to committee Members. No chance to talk to your Bill Sponsors or your Bill supporters. No chance to talk to the member of your… your constituent to get them up to the committee. This is actually less transparent and less open than the throwback Madigan rule from the 97th General Assembly. Our caucus, I think, had some pretty reasonable suggestions on this. We're not asking that every Bill of ours gets out of committee, just that we have the opportunity for an up or down vote on an idea. The Sponsor of this Resolution, in his introductory remarks, said, this is… that we're in a competition of ideas and that the rules that we pass govern this competition of ideas. It's not a competition if you don't even get a vote. Let us lose on our ideas, but let us lose. Letting them sit in committee and not even get a vote, not even get to represent our constituents, that's not a competition. He also said, we're here to protect what's important to us, what we value. And you can see what they value in the rules. And what you're seeing in this rule change is what they value, is silencing the Minority and not giving us a fair shake. I know of many Bills that we've had that have 60 cosponsors, or cosponsors of a majority of the committee. Still can't even get a hearing for an up or down vote. This really is not, I don't think, a controversial suggestion of the Minority Party that we get a vote on a Bill. If you want to kill it and have everybody vote against it, that's fair. But let us represent our constituents and bring 10200006.docx 16 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 forth ideas in this competition of ideas. I will also add, this says that all Bills must be added or sent to committee. There is no mention of Constitutional Amendments. Some of the biggest issues that our state faces… we have presented Constitutional Amendments on term limits, on fair maps. Name your Constitutional Amendment that you support, this… these rules would not require that those Constitutional Amendments are even sent to committee. They can still be killed in Rules. Make no mistake about what these changes do. This isn't a new day for a fair competition of ideas. This is substantively the same thing that's been happening for decades. Killing Bills in rules or killing Bills in a committee or a subcommittee is actually all the same impact. So, unfortunately, while I was hoping that we would see a new day in these rules, where our ideas can get a fair shake, this is the same old game. I would encourage my colleagues to vote 'no'. I appreciate the opportunity to vote on these ideas though. This is the people's House after all, so let's get back to an operating structure that allows us to represent our constituents and be a voice for the people who sent us here. Thank you."
"Chair recognizes Representative LaPointe."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"He indicates that he will."
"I'm going to speak directly to the Resolution, and with respect, I don't think this is the same old game. As somebody who's just pretty much beginning my legislative career, as somebody who's been a Legislator during a time of deep crisis for longer than I've been a Legislator during 10200006.docx 17 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 regular life, it's exciting and it's very meaningful to be part of the House at this historic time when everyone is Illinois needs us so badly. Once again, the Members of the 102nd General Assembly are making it clear that this does mark the end of business as usual. These new rules have been developed through a fair and transparent process that has brought in good ideas, good ideas, from both sides of the aisle. So, I'm proud that the House's new leadership and the new leadership team is listening to Members who have been asking for years, and to Members who have been asking for maybe just a few years, to have their voices heard in a more meaningful way. I'm especially encouraged by the change to allow remote committee hearings and remote legislating, because that is just simply a modern adaptation that has been way overdue since March and May 2020. Legislators should not have to choose between fulfilling their duty to their constituents and protecting their own health and the health of those closest to them. It was devastating for some of us last spring when House Members did not have any official way to work and to get our job done during the multiple crises that we're living through. We were hobbled at the exact time when the people of Illinois desperately needed our best efforts. And the people of Illinois needed us then, they need us now, to have our full toolbox. At last, the House is joining the many Legislative Bodies around the state and across the country that are using 21st century technology to keep working together safely and to move forward during a pandemic that is a public health crisis and an economic crisis. I'm so pleased that we are introducing reasonable 10200006.docx 18 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 leadership term limits. A 10-year term gives our leaders plenty of time to grow into their jobs and to establish a legacy. A leader can get a lot done in 10 years. But this also opens the door to people who have great leadership potential who have had very limited room to grow for decades. We've made history already by electing the first black Speaker of the House in Illinois. And now, we can look forward to generations of talented people making history by growing in this chamber and then leading in this chamber. I want to close by addressing some of the criticisms that have been raised about these new rules. Any fair and reasonable person who looks at these new rules will see that they represent real progress towards making the House more open and more… open to good ideas from everybody, truly. But at the same time, we need to remember that elections have consequences. The people of Illinois have made a strong statement by electing a Democratic Supermajority once again. Our constituents expect us to keep on standing up for them and keep fighting for them about the issues that they care about the most. These new rules ensure our ability to advocate for a strong, prosperous middle class. They ensure our ability to protect workers' rights, LGBTQ rights, the rights of people of color, and they ensure our ability to keep fighting for affordable and accessible health care, including mental health care for everyone in every corner of Illinois. Under these new rules, we will continue to defend every woman's right to make her own decision about her reproductive choices. Under these new rules, we will fight to make our constituents and our communities safe from gun violence, and that's every 10200006.docx 19 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 neighborhood, and that's every corner of the State of Illinois. And under these new rules, we will work hard to fight climate change and make sure we're guiding Illinois into a new, greener future. I, myself, am very proud to stand here today in support of these new rules. They will bring in a long-awaited era of transparency, accountability, and increased democracy, which is why we're all here. Our chamber will operate more effectively and efficiently. These rules were… will make our chamber more accountable and more responsive to the people we serve, which is, at the end of the day, while… that is why we're here. That is what democracy is. I hope that we can pass these rules swiftly. I look forward to a new era of remote legislating, and I urge an 'aye' vote on this Resolution to everybody. Thank you."
"The Chair recognizes Representative Friess."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker. To the rules. We are a citizen Legislature, sent here by the people we represent, from across the State of Illinois, to be a voice for the district we were sent here to represent. The rules of the past are, unfortunately, the same rules of the present, but we can make a change for the better today. When I ran for office, I was hopeful that my voice, the voice of the 116th District, would finally be heard here in the House chamber. We can improve the House Rules by allowing each Member of this Body the opportunity to do what we were sent here to do when considering legislation on the House Floor. That is to have the opportunity to speak on the floor, in favor of or in opposition to rules and Bills, and ask questions concerning the legislation that comes before us. What this Legislative 10200006.docx 20 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Body and the taxpayers witnessed during the lame duck Session last month was really sad. It was… should not be a reflection… it is not representative… reflection of a representative democracy. During the lame duck Session, numerous Bills were dropped within 24 hours. And when these Bills were sent to the House Floor to debate… debate, all 118 Members of this Body were not allowed to speak, nor were they allowed to ask questions concerning the fiscal impact of this significant legislation. Changes to the House Rules are needed so that Members who wish to debate a matter are given the chance and the Members receive as much information as possible to make an informed vote. Our constituents send us here to be their voices, and we are denying them that right when we don't allow Members to debate key issues. If we want to be the best Legislators we can, we need to be as informed as possible before we vote. A strong and vigorous debate allows that to occur. Just like Representative mentioned, a battle of ideas. We should not be afraid to have that battle here on this House Floor. The taxpayers we represent are counting on us to ask questions and take the time needed before we vote on legislation that will impact their livelihood. It's as if the Democrat Majority, here today, does not want the public to know how much their legislation will cost the taxpayers in this state. What happened last month is in the past. But today, we can change that. Today, we can improve the House Rules to… increase the ability of Members to debate legislation on the House Floor. We can change House Rules today by allowing each Member of this Body to be able to voice… be a voice for the district they were sent here to 10200006.docx 21 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 represent. If we don't make this positive change to our House Rules, then to those who would vote 'yes' to rubber-stamped rules of the past are sending a clear message that you don't care about digging the state deeper in debt, and you don't want to hear a perspective that might disagree with you, and that we don't care about the taxpayers of this state. Ladies and Gentlemen, we can do better and we must. Thank you."
"The Chair recognizes Representative Tarver."
"Thank you, Madam Chair. It's good to see you there in the box. Mr. Speaker, I want to commend you. You really hit the ground running, but you haven't rushed. You've actually showed the perfect stride. You immediately promised change, and you delivered. One can simply look at you leadership team. It's as diverse as our state and each geographic area is covered. One can look at your promise in term limits for leadership pretty much simultaneously while raising your right hand and taking the oath of office. That directly effects your tenure and limits it. Yet, here it is in writing, ready to be voted upon today. That's leading by example. One need to look no further than your willingness to listen to ideas from both sides of the aisle. And we know that you're committed to listening beyond partisan lines. To be honest, or TBH as my daughter likes to say, one could make the argument that since Democrats represent 61.86 percent of this Body, and considering we would have had the votes on January 13 to pass these rules, that we could have and should have done it then and got to work sooner. Still, you didn't rush. You neither pushed an individual nor party agenda. Rather, you asked for working groups, and we had working groups. 10200006.docx 22 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Leader Harris is to be commended. He convened the multiple… the working groups multiple times per week. He fielded phone calls, texts, emails, probably a couple smoke signals, but he took his time, he listened, and he explained. Instead of moving hastily, and at times to the vexation of many of us, you took nearly a month to ensure that you listened, that you understood, and that you analyzed the rules. You know very well the needs of this state. That's why we elected you, Speaker. We know that you know that. You know the importance of pushing through a pandemic and getting work done. It would be irresponsible to continue to ignore the need for some remote function to keep this Body moving, on behalf of the nearly 12.7 million people in this state. You've demonstrated the patience of Job, as my grandmother would say. Yet, here we are. After all of that, no matter what changes you proposed, what is clear is that, for those who are in opposition, this was actually never about the rules. The rules were fine when our colleagues to the right of the chamber controlled the chamber. The rules are insufferable now. No, this is not about the rules. This is about… this is like some pseudo political guilt trip. That's what it is. This is about 19, the difference between 64 and 45, when they controlled the chamber and where they are now. It's just that simple. The rules were good enough when they were in Majority. Consequently, they're good enough for us now that we have the Majority. I urge an 'aye' vote, and let's get to work."
"The Chair recognizes Leader Demmer."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker. To the Resolution. With the way that the rules have been described today, I can't help 10200006.docx 23 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 but think about advertisements that we see on TV. Car commercials. What do we hear in car commercials? We hear this new model year has been completely redesigned, rebought, rebuilt, reengineered, reimagined from the ground up. Then they show you the car, and it looks exactly like it did last year, and exactly like it did before the year before that, and the year before that. But it's a great tag line. It's a great tag line. We hear today that these rules are the product of a grassroots effort, working groups that were assembled and put together to bring in perspectives and input from all different aspects of the Democratic Caucus. These rules are 141 pages. The changes can fit on one page. These working groups completely reimagine it, only to come up with word for word identical rules to what we've had in previous General Assemblies. Even more so, what we're hearing today is that these rules are inspired by the Republican Majority rules from the '90s. I wish I would have been around to speak up against those rules at the time. I was in kindergarten or whatever. I would have said at the time, be careful what kind of rules you're putting forward because they're exactly what Democratic Caucus working groups are going to imagine 25 years from now. Is this really the product of grassroots efforts, of working groups, of people coming up with House Rules from scratch? Or, is this 99.5 percent the same rules that we've been operating this chamber under for the last 40 years? But I want to appeal, not just in the weeds of the technical nature of the House Rules and exactly how procedure will operate here, but instead appeal to something far more fundamental to our system of government, the Illinois 10200006.docx 24 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Constitution. Article IV of the Constitution creates the General Assembly. It creates a House of Representatives and the Senate, and it gives us powers, and it gives us restrictions and limitations. It is the fundamental document by which we operate. The Constitution requires that Bills are read on three different days. It's not hard to imagine what the writers of the Constitution were envisioning when they required that a Bill be read on three separate days. That a Bill be introduced, made available to the public, and made available to the Members who are going to vote on it. The Constitution also requires that committee meetings of the House have reasonable public notice of the committees' time and scheduled time to meet, as well as a statement of items to be considered at those meetings. Again, it's not hard to understand why the writers of the Constitution would have said, if a citizen of Illinois, if a Member of the Legislature wants to be informed and prepared and well aware and ready to engage in the process of lawmaking, they need to know the basics. When, where, what, how can I participate? These things are fundamental requirements in the Constitution. The House Rules that we create should support and defend those constitutional rights. The Constitution doesn't have any special provisions that say, when convenient. It doesn’t have a special clarification that says, these rules shall be in place so long as it doesn't make it more difficult for a Majority Party to enact legislation. This is not about the Majority Party or the Minority Party. This is about protecting and defending the rights of the people of Illinois. The people who are represented here in the General Assembly. The House 10200006.docx 25 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Rules, as they're offered today, again, supposedly the product of grassroots, communications, and conversations, but 99.5 percent exactly the same, word for word text that prior General Assemblies have operated under. And those rules still allow for, not a protection of constitutional right, but a circumvention of constitutional right. A circumvention that's designed to say, a Bill will technically satisfy the requirement of being read on three days because the Bill will literally do nothing. The Bill introduced and read on three days will do nothing. It will strike out the word 'the', and it will reinsert the word 'the'. And then, in order to circumvent that constitutional requirement, a… an Amendment will be offered to the Bill. That Amendment will be 700 pages long, it could be voted on 10 minutes after it gets introduced. Does that, in any way, comply with what we think the Constitution, the authors of the Constitution had in mind? Does that, in any way, protect the interests of the people of the State of Illinois who are represented here in this Body? Does that, in any way, respect the rights of any individual Member of this chamber to be prepared, informed, and ready to make an important and consequential decision that's at the core of our service in the General Assembly? The House Rules should support the Constitution. They should not circumvent it. And if we're really serious about a new day, a new day doesn’t start by copying and pasting the rules from prior General Assemblies that have drawn the ire of Members of both parties, members of the press, members of government watch dog groups, and the frustration of so many of the people that we represent. We have an opportunity for a new day. We have 10200006.docx 26 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 an opportunity for rules that empower. These rules are not it. Vote 'no'."
Speaker Manley: "The Chair recognizes Representative Gong- Gershowitz."
"Thank you, Madam Chair. To the Resolution. I rise to urge… urge my colleagues to begin the work of the 102nd General Assembly by voting in favor of the changes in these rules. These changes include term limits for the Speaker of the House and the Minority Leader, remote committee work to ensure that we can continue to tackle the problems our state faces while we fight this pandemic, and a requirement that every Bill introduced in an odd numbered year, whether by a Democratic Member of a Republican Member, be assigned to committee. But while I rise today to speak about the rules that will govern our work in the 102nd, I stand on this floor at a historic moment. These rules represent an important early step in a transformational process that began when our caucus came together to elect Speaker Welch, the first black Speaker in Illinois history. That I would be standing here, just the second Asian American ever elected to this house, is a dream that would have been unimaginable to my immigrant grandparents just two generations ago. They faced deportation and discrimination under the Chinese Exclusion Acts based solely on race, and yet here I stand. Here in this chamber, Illinois has led the way and made history time and time again. Here, in the people's House, exercising the will of the people, we have consistently defended the rights of every person to love who they love and be who they were born to be. The values that we represent are more than just taglines to 10200006.docx 27 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 us. These values are who we are. It's important to remember that the majority of the people elected Members that would defend these things, like a women's right to choose, to protect our environment, and improve the quality of education for every child in Illinois. These rules ensure that we will not be deterred or deflected from pursuing the values and policies that our constituents elected us to pursue. I am proud to be part of the most diverse group of Legislators in Illinois history, many representing communities whose calls for equity have long been ignored. As we aim to answer the call for social justice and transformational change in our broader community, we also recognize the need for transformational change within this Body. That change has begun. In fact, the very process for developing these House Rules reflects a substantial break from tradition. Feedback from Members on both sides of the aisle was sought, considered, and incorporated in a process that included phone calls, meetings, and conversations with Leaders and rank and file Members over the past few weeks. Some will say these changes don't go far enough. This is a process. And it will continue. The rules working group will continue its review of proposed changes offered by both Democrats and Republicans, including notice for floor consideration of Bills and Amendments, the appointment and powers of committee chairs, the powers of the Speaker and Minority Leader, rules regarding notes and debate time standards, and more. We are beginning a brand new day in the General Assembly. These rules inject more transparency and accountability, while ensuring that our chamber operates effectively and fairly. It's a start. The 10200006.docx 28 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 rules govern the procedures through which the Legislature conducts the business of legislating in much the same way as the Code of Civil Procedure governs the process of the courts consistent with the Constitution. The flow of litigation, discovery, and trials. We would not endeavor to change major sections of the Code of Civil Procedure after two weeks of discussion. We should exercise the same thoughtful deliberation when it comes to the rules that govern the Legislature. Colleagues on both sides of the aisle have proposed changes to House Rules that merit further consideration, but these rules include those changes where there has been broad consensus. This package includes substantial reforms. These rules include structural changes that many Members of this Body, including House Republicans, have called for. Legislative Leaders will be term limited in their… leadership positions to no more than 10 years in total, and Bills will not languish in Rules. We began this transformative process 34 days ago, and this isn't the end. We are living history in this moment together. We serve the people at a time when we must work together to heal the damage of a pandemic that has dealt a devastating blow to far too many lives and livelihoods. We must do more than heal the divisions of angry rhetoric. We must respond with action to the inequities laid bare in our health care system, our education system, our economic system, and our criminal justice system. But right now, we need to get to work. And these rules enable us to do just that, and I urge an 'aye' vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"The Chair recognizes Leader Durkin." 10200006.docx 29 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021
"Thank you, and good afternoon, Madam Chair."
"Good afternoon."
"It's good to be back in our chamber. It's been a while, guys. It feels good. And my hope is that, at some point in the future, this will be a new day for the State of Illinois and also for this chamber. I want to take… start briefly and talk about this issue of term limits. Yeah, it sounds great. But the thing is, the House Republicans, four years ago, we instituted our own term limits for my positon as Legislative Leader. So, I'm glad that you're doing it, but the fact is, we started this before, other chambers have done it in the past. So, this isn't breaking news, folks. But let me also say that I'm glad that the prior speaker said that this work today has been 34 days of… of a transformative process. But let me just say that you're 36 years too late to instituting term limits. So, here we are. We finished the 101st General Assembly with a very aggressive lame duck Session. We left with a lot of emotion. Clearly, a lot of emotion on those last days, but also, we left with distrust. Not only upon substance, but something equally as important, and that is process. Process is dictated by the House Rules, the subject of our discussion today and our vote. And I will say the spectacle of a different person serving as our Speaker is a fact that none of us could have ever anticipated a few weeks ago. And again, congratulations, Speaker Welch. But let me be direct, the House Rules passed by the prior Speaker were founded in absolute control and power by one, with little or no control by any Member, neither Democrat nor Republican, to be able to live out their legislative destiny. What does that 10200006.docx 30 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 mean? Getting their Bills called, giving them a fair shot. And that's just not right. Republicans on this side of the aisle, we were sent here by the same amount… we represent the same amount of Illinoisans. And our constituents, through our actions, should be extended the same courtesies as you do to your Members. And I hope we can get there. I hope we can sincerely get there. We talk about the new day. That's how we do it. All right, let's talk about the Rules Committee. That great quandary of whatever you want to call it, the Rules Committee. A lot of people have said a lot of things and described it in a number of ways. But for a better definition, it's where good ideas go to die a slow death. Now, in these rules today, it is my understanding that all Bills will be sent and would be referred to a standing committee. Sounds good. But, unfortunately, I've seen over the past few General Assemblies, because of the criticism of the Rules Committee, they're automatically sent to that standing committee. And what happens there? Nothing different. They die. And why? How many times has a Member of our side have gone up to this chairman, my… my Bill has been assigned to Judiciary or Environment. Why can't I get it called? Well, it hasn't been posted. The heck does that mean? What it means, it goes back to the top. It's not about the chairman. The decision on posting is ultimately going back and the directions are coming from one person. I've been around long enough to understand that. So, if we're going to get a Bill sent to a standing committee, please extend that courtesy to our Members and not go through this nonsense about posting. Tell them when that person can have an up or down vote on their legislation. 10200006.docx 31 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 That's all. That's all we need. Now, today's rules, there's nothing of a substantive, meaningful change of any meaningful change at all. Rather, the changes are on surface, and you have just heard that. You can disagree with what our… what we said, but please listen to what my colleague said about their thoughts on this rule. I agree with them. The changes are on surface. We talked about it a little bit about this issue of the term limits. It's not that big of a deal for us 'cause we already doing it. I'm glad we're doing remote. The fact is, there's really nothing after that that changes anything from prior General Assemblies. Now… now, it has been said by the Majority Leader that the rules are a work in progress and could be modified by a working group. Now, that raises a few obvious questions. One, are Republican Members of the House of Representatives going to be assigned to the current Democrat working group, or are we going to be given the opportunity to be part of this working group? Because I've heard about this great working group today. That's your own working group. Republicans had nothing to do with it. The other thing that I think is important to ask, is that if there is a working group to modify the rules, is there a date certain to come back with a report or recommendation? Otherwise, we're repeating the past. And let me just make mention of a few of them. Remember the bipartisan, bicameral ethics commission that was formed after Assistant Majority Leader Arroyo was arrested by the feds for bribing a Democrat State Senator over on the other side of the aisle who was wearing a wire? Can't make that stuff up. We were going really tackle ethics, what happened? Nothing accomplished, no 10200006.docx 32 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 report. Okay, after the… after the fair tax question was passed by the General Assembly and sent to the voters, remember a couple Members, what did they get out of their vote? Well, I got a task force on property tax relief. Failed miserably, even by the Governor. How about this Restore Illinois Commission that happened last year? That's been a bust. What I'm saying is that these commissions or working groups did nothing but run out the clock on… underlying issues. So, if we're going to have a working group, bring the Republicans in, give us a slot for a few Members, whatever you think is representative, let's get a date certain to come up with recommendations. But that's how we're going to make this better. And that's the only way I will believe that we are operating in good faith, after today, to make this a true work in progress. I will say that, based on what I just said, there's a reason why my… our Members, as of today, will be suspicious and will be looking at this body of work with a jaundice eye. Because we're just not there. And I also can't say that we're there for a new day because there really is not that much greater transparency or Member involvement in these rules. But I hope that we can get there at some point in the future. Basically, on how the working group will be constructed and how will the Minority Party be allowed to participate in this. Now, we've expressed our thoughts, myself and my colleagues on this side of the aisle, about what we believe is right, what's important, and I think a lot of the Democrats have expressed support for the number of things that we've talked about. Making sure that we get a fair vote. Making sure that there is a at least a 3 day period 10200006.docx 33 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 from the time a 40, $42 billion budget Bill is going to be presented for a vote and all the other issues that we talked about. Because I think that that is how we're going to bring openness and fairness to this process. But let me just say this, that we are clearly at a decisive time in our state, more so now than we have been in the past, because of what is going on in, not only in our state, the nation, but in the world. And it's going to require both sides of the aisle to improve where we currently are at, and that means respect for the Minority Party and the millions of Illinoisans that we represent. We can do better. Today's product doesn't get me there. I will be voting 'no'. I hope to be, at some point down the road, I can change my vote. Please help me get there. Now, I just want to finish with one thing. Now, Leader Harris, Mr. Hoffman was very eloquent in which he stated back in 1995, we're the only two people that I think were around at point and also the former Speaker. But it's often been mentioned, particularly by your predecessor, the Majority Leader, about the 1995 House Republican rules, which they've used a foundation for their rules. Now, that's 26 years ago. Twenty- six years. Things have changed. The world's changed. The Legislature's changed. The state's changed. Ninety-eight percent of the Members here today were not here, were not serving back then. It really has… no longer has any relevancy. And, Leader Harris, you're a fine man. You're an educated man. We should just drop this whole thing about saying that, well, we're just basing these based on Republican ideas from 1995. It really doesn’t have any relevance anymore, and I don't think that our Members should be going back and saddled 10200006.docx 34 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 with a bad idea back then, which is still a bad idea today. So, I hope that we can just drop this whole vernacular that, well, it was Republicans in that one blip of history back in '95 and '96 who've made us… who put us in this direction to create these rules. Rules are meant to be fair. They're meant to be transparent. They're meant to be open. Let's do better. Thank you."
"The Chair recognizes Speaker Welch."
"Thank you, Madam Speaker. To the Resolution. Almost a month ago, I took the oath of Speaker very seriously. I took that oath with a goal of reforming the ways of the past and injecting more transparency and accountability, while ensuring our chamber operates effectively and fairly. These rules here today, being presented, are a historic first step in that process. Let me repeat that. A first step in that process. Change does not happen overnight. It's a process. That process began in earnest on January 14, when we could have taken a vote on the rules. We pulled those rules and slowed the process down. And Leader Harris and the rules working group worked diligently, sought feedback from both Democrats and Republicans. This, alone, demonstrates a considerable break from tradition. I don't think there's a week that has gone by where I haven't reached out to the Minority Leader. That is a break from tradition. And the rules, themselves, account for major changes to the business of the House. Major changes. You cannot say that these changes are insignificant. This is historic, what we're doing today. Term limits on the Speaker of the House and the Minority Leader. Remote committee work so that we can do the work of 10200006.docx 35 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 the people, we can get back to work and do it safely. Isn't that what you want to do? Let's go to work. And guarantee for all Bills filed on time to be assigned to the committee… a substantive committee in the first year. A guarantee. What you should do, Members of the other side, work with those chairmen. Go talk to them. You know, we had a committee in the 101st General Assembly where the Chair of the Executive Committee and the Republican Spokesperson actually communicated with each other. We worked well together. Maybe you want to do that in the 102nd General Assembly. We empowered those chairs for a reason. Work with them. These changes incorporate a number of items, Leader, that Republicans have long advocated for. And these rules mirror what the Republicans across the way have consistently supported. Consistently. Despite these steps, and despite the multiple instances in which Republican requests have been accommodated, for the last 48 hours, all we've heard from the other side of the aisle has been spin, spin, spin. Putting out nothing but untruths that these rules are about protecting the Speaker's power. But what they are really saying is that the Majority of this chamber should stop protecting the things we were sent here to protect. We're not going to do that. We're going to continue to do our jobs and protect the people that sent us to protect them. We all know that this is not about protecting anyone's power. It is about protecting women's rights. It is about protecting the right to collectively bargain. It is about protecting the right of hard earned rights of people of color and the LGBTQ community. It is about making health care and prescription drugs more 10200006.docx 36 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 affordable. It is about keeping our communities safe from gun violence. Not allowing one side or the other to slow the process down so that good legislation that protects hard working people in this state doesn't get past the General Assembly. Protecting those people and the values, as voters sent the majority of this chamber to do, is not controlling the process, it is the fundamental responsibility of a representative body. That's what this is about. That's what these rules are about, Ladies and Gentlemen. There is more work to be done, Leader. Lots more work to be done. The rules working group will continue its review of proposed changes offered by both Democrats and Republicans, including notice for floor consideration of Bills and Amendments, the appointment and powers of committee Chairs, the powers of the Speaker and the Minority Leader, rules regarding notes and debate time standards, and much more. There's a lot of things that still left to be discussed. We're not going to change the world in three weeks. Not going to happen. And you know what, Leader? We're going to have those breakfast meetings. We’re going to keep talking. I'm going to keep extending my hand to you even though you guys keep slapping it down. I'm going to keep extending that hand to you. I ask for a 'yes' vote on these new House Rules, which is just the beginning. It is a new day, a new era, a new approach. And so, what we should all do here today is support these rules, and let's go to work. Let's get the job done for the people and begin by voting 'yes' here today. Thank you, Madam Speaker."
"Leader Harris to close." 10200006.docx 37 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021
"Thank you, Madam Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen. You know, before I close, there were a lot of statements over on the other side of the aisle in regard to the Bill. And I just want to set the record straight on a couple of these things because I think it's important that we do that. The statement was made that the commission on ethics didn't do its work, couldn't meet remotely, didn't finish its job. We could have met remotely if, back in May, the remote legislating Bill had passed in our emergency Session. However, the two Republican appointments to that ethics commissions voted against remote participation. Had they voted for remote participation, we would have gone all summer. So, I just want to point that out. There was a comment made about the rules were a bad idea in 1995, and they're a bad idea now. You voted for those rules in 1995, I believe. You know, we heard a lot of examples of… we heard a lot of examples of how lack of notice, lack of transparency, lack of posting are bad for our process, and how those kind of problems should be corrected. I just think it's ironic… you know, I'm just thinking back in my own mind of just of our recent history and Bills that have been worked on by both sides of the aisle. So, you have a budget a couple years ago where at the very end of session, at the very last minute, there was a deal made to put in some tax credits and loopholes for data centers and some other things. That was fine to put on as a Floor Amendment with minimal notice and no posting. So, when things are good for you guys, if you want them, it seems to be fine to go ahead and do them. But if it's something we want, then it seems to be a problem. In our session… in our lame duck Session, I got a request from 10200006.docx 38 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 your side of the aisle. There was some TIFs out there that couldn't pass in Republican districts. Could we help them out on our side of an aisle? So, yes, we did. We put them on some Bills, and they got called right away, and some requirements were waived. Again, when we do it, bad. When you want something done, good. You know, that's a little ironic to me. You know, I… I think we just need to acknowledge that. When there was a Bill on ethylene oxide out there, there was an… there was an urgency to get that Bill passed. And folks came to me and asked, could I waive posting requirements for that so that there would not have to be public notice and the Bill could move quickly? And I had filed the Rule 21 Motion myself on that Bill. Again, I understand it's an important issue, but a lot of the issues that we're talking about are important to us, too. So, what's good for the goose is good for the gander. And the last thing I just want to say, before I close, is I just want to point out that… to all the Members who brought me different ideas. At the end of their discussion of what those ideas were, I asked people, so why is this important to you? Why do you think we should make this rule change, or why… what do you think the problem is you're trying to solve? What I heard from folks on your side was, why that Reproductive Health Act came out of nowhere and we didn't have enough time to actively stop it. And I also heard from your side that the black lives agenda moved so fast we couldn't mobilize opposition. Some of your Members told me that. And I will tell you that if I can help our side move those Bills along, whether it's LGBT equality, whether it's immigrant issues, whether it's the black lives agenda, 10200006.docx 39 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 whether it's reproductive health, and we can use our rules to get those things through and get them passed, I'm proud to be a part of that. But I understand that there are ways we can do this better. And I stand with the Speaker in saying we look forward to working with you over the next several months on addressing some of these items. And if we all agree that there are some problems to fix, and if we come to a consensus, then let's fix them. But for now, Ladies and Gentlemen, we have made major strides under the leadership of Speaker Welch. Let's vote 'yes', and then let's get to work."
"Leader Harris moves for the adoption of House Resolution 72. All in favor vote 'aye'; all opposed vote 'nay'. The voting is open. Group one, last names beginning A through E, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group one, last names beginning with A through E, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Group two, last names beginning with F through L, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. This is an announcement for the Members on the floor. After you vote your switch, please exit the perimeter here. Thank you. Group two, last names beginning with F through L, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Once you vote your switch, please move from the House Floor. Members, once you voted your switch, please move off the House Floor. Group three, last names beginning with M through R, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Members, once you've voted your switch, please move from the House chamber. Members. Attention, Members. Once you vote your switch, please move from the House Floor. Group four, 10200006.docx 40 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 last names beginning with S through Z, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Members that have already voted their switch, please move from the House Floor. Group four, last names beginning with S through Z, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. All other Members who have already voted, please move from the House Floor. Members that have already voted, please move off the House Floor. Group four, last names beginning with S through Z, please make your way to the House chamber to vote your switch. Once you have voted your switch… Members, once you have voted your switch, please leave the House Floor. Thank you. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 70 voting in 'favor', 44 voting 'against', 0 voting 'present'. And this Resolution, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby adopted. Mr. Clerk, Agreed Resolutions."
"Agreed Resolutions. House Resolution 17, offered by Representative Marron. House Resolution 19, offered by Representative Mazzochi. House Resolution 27, offered by Representative Barbara Hernandez. House Resolution 30, offered by Representative Windhorst. House Resolution 34, offered by Representative Brady. House Resolution 37, offered by Representative Didech. House Resolution 42, offered by Representative Keicher. House Resolution 43, offered by Representative Windhorst. House Resolution 44, offered by Representative Harris. House Resolution 45, offered by Representative Bennett. House Resolution 51, offered by Representative Barbara Hernandez. House Resolution 58, 10200006.docx 41 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 offered by Representative Lilly. House Resolution 59, offered by Leader Durkin. House Resolution 68, offered by Representative Harper. House Resolution 69, offered by Representative Harris. House Resolution 74, offered by Representative Windhorst. House Resolution 75, offered by Representative Hoffman. House Resolution 76, offered by Representative Hoffman. House Resolution 80, offered by Representative Jones. House Resolution 83, offered by Representative Halpin. And House Resolution 84, offered by Representative McLaughlin."
"Leader Harris moves for the adoption of the Agreed Resolutions. All those in favor say 'aye'; all those opposed say 'nay'. And in the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the Agreed Resolutions are adopted. Mr. Clerk, please read the Adjournment Resolution. And now, allowing perfunctory time for the Clerk, Leader Harris moves that the House stand adjourned to the call of the Speaker pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1. All those in favor say 'aye'; all those opposed say 'nay'. In the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the House stands adjourned."
"House Perfunctory Session will come to order. Introduction of Resolutions. House Resolution 13, offered by Representative Ford. House Resolution 14, offered by Representative Keicher. House Resolution 15, offered by Representative Bennett. House Resolution 16, offered by Representative Stuart. House Resolution 18, offered by Representative Swanson. House Resolution 20, offered by Representative Flowers. House Resolution 21, offered by Representative Flowers. House Resolution 22, offered by 10200006.docx 42 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Representative Flowers. House Resolution 23, offered by Representative Flowers. House Resolution 24, offered by Representative Flowers. House Resolution 25, offered by Representative Flowers. House Resolution 26, offered by Representative Spain. House Resolution 28, offered by Representative Davis. House Resolution 29, offered by Representative Stava-Murray. House Resolution 31, offered by Representative Jones. House Resolution 32, offered by Representative Hirschauer. House Resolution 33, offered by Representative Hirschauer. House Resolution 35, offered by Representative Brady. House Resolution 36, offered by Representative Kifowit. House Resolution 38, offered by Representative Greenwood. House Resolution 39, offered by Representative Mussman. House Resolution 40, offered by Representative Stuart. House Resolution 41, offered by Representative Gonzalez. House Resolution 46, offered by Representative Harper. House Resolution 47, offered by Representative Bennett. House Resolution 48, offered by Representative Greenwood. House Resolution 49, offered by Representative Greenwood. House Resolution 50, offered by Representative Greenwood. House Resolution 52, offered by Representative LaPointe. House Resolution 53, offered by Representative Barbara Hernandez. House Resolution 54, offered by Representative Harper. House Resolution 55, offered by Representative Lilly. House Resolution 56, offered by Representative Lilly. House Resolution 57, offered by Representative Lilly. House Resolution 60, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth. House Resolution 61, offered by Representative Flowers. House Resolution 62, offered by 10200006.docx 43 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Representative Welter. House Resolution 63, offered by Representative Keicher. House Resolution 64, offered by Representative Moeller. House Resolution 65, offered by Representative Kifowit. House Resolution 66, offered by Representative Bennett. House Resolution 67, offered by Representative Gonzalez. House Resolution 70, offered by Representative Miller. House Resolution 71, offered by Representative Avelar. House Resolution 77, offered by Representative Gong-Gershowitz. House Resolution 78, offered by Representative Scherer. House Resolution 79, offered by Representative Ortiz. House Resolution 81, offered by Representative Harper. House Resolution 82, offered by Representative Hurley. House Joint Resolution 5, offered by Representative Meier. House Joint Resolution 6, offered by Representative Didech. House Joint Resolution 7, offered by Representative Flowers. House Joint Resolution 8, offered by Representative Flowers. House Joint Resolution 9, offered by Representative Flowers. House Joint Resolution 10, offered by Representative Keicher. House Joint Resolution 11, offered by Representative Batinick. House Joint Resolution 12, offered by Representative Bennett. House Joint Resolution 13, offered by Leader Durkin. House Joint Resolution 14, offered by Representative Hammond. These are referred to the Rules Committee. Introduction and First Reading of House Bills. House Bill 739, offered by Representative Ann Williams, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 740, offered by Representative Guzzardi, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 741, offered by Representative Stuart, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 742, 10200006.docx 44 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 offered by Representative Hurley, a Bill for an Act concerning domestic violence. House Bill 743, offered by Representative Carroll, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 744, offered by Representative Walsh, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 745, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 746, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning the State government. House Bill 747, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 748, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. House Bill 749, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. House Bill 750, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. House Bill 751, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. House Bill 752, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. House Bill 753, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 754, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 755, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 756, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 757, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 758, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 730… 759, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 760, offered 10200006.docx 45 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 761, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 762, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 763, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. House Bill 764, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. House Bill 765, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. House Bill 766, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. House Bill 767, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. House Bill 768, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 769, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 770, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 771, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 772, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 773, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 774, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 775, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 776, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 777, offered by 10200006.docx 46 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning employment. House Bill 778, offered by Representative Butler, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 779, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 780, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 781, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 782, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 783, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning abortion. House Bill 784, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 785, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 786, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 787, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 788, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 789, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 790, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. House Bill 791, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning human rights. House Bill 792, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 793, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 794, offered by Representative Windhorst, a Bill for an Act concerning government. House Bill 795, offered by Representative 10200006.docx 47 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Mazzochi, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 796, offered by Representative Mazzochi, a Bill for an Act concerning education. House Bill 797, offered by Representative Mazzochi, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. House Bill 798, offered by Representative Willis, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 799, offered by Representative Greenwood, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. House Bill 800, offered by Representative Andrade, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 801, offered by Representative Gong- Gershowitz, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 802, offered by Representative Davis, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 803, offered by Representative Guzzardi, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 804, offered by Representative Ann Williams, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 805, offered by Representative Tarver, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 806, offered by Representative Mah, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 807, offered by Representative Avelar, a Bill for an Act concerning government. House Bill 808, offered by Representative Mazzochi, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation."
"House Bill 809, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 810, offered by Representative Hoffman, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 811, offered by Representative Carroll, a Bill for an Act concerning notices. House Bill 812, offered by Representative Gabel, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 813, offered 10200006.docx 48 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 by Representative Gabel, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. House Bill 814, offered by Representative Keicher, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 815, offered by Representative Mussman, a Bill for an Act concerning elections… correction, a Bill for an Act concerning education. House Bill 816, offered by Representative Mussman, a Bill for an Act concerning education. House Bill 817, offered by Representative Gordon- Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 818, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 819, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 820, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 821, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 822, offered by Representative Gordon- Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 823, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 824, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 825, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 826, offered by Representative Gordon-Booth, a Bill for an Act concerning health. House Bill 827, offered by Representative Niemerg, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 828, offered by Representative Chesney, a Bill for an Act concerning courts. House Bill 829, offered by Representative Chesney, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 830, offered by Representative Davis, a Bill for an Act making 10200006.docx 49 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 appropriations. House Bill 831, offered by Representative Gabel, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 832, offered by Representative Davis, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 833, offered by Representative Davis, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 834, offered by Representative Bennett, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 835, offered by Representative Halpin, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 836, offered by Representative Evans, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 837, offered by Representative Mason, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. House Bill 838, offered by Representative Mussman, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. House Bill 839, offered by Representative Moylan, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 840, offered by Representative LaPointe, a Bill for an Act concerning education. House Bill 841, offered by Representative Mah, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. House Bill 842, offered by Representative Costa Howard, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 843, offered by Representative Ugaste, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 844, offered by Representative Ugaste, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 845, offered by Representative Ugaste, a Bill for an… a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 846, offered by Representative Ugaste, a Bill for an Act concerning finance. House Bill 847, offered by Representative Meier, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 848, offered by 10200006.docx 50 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 Representative Manley, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 849, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. House Bill 850, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. House Bill 851, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 852, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 853, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning finance. House Bill 854, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 855, offered by Representative Ann Williams, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. House Bill 856, offered by Representative Miller, a Bill for an Act concerning education. House Bill 857, offered by Representative Miller, a Bill for an Act concerning education. House Bill 858, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 859, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 860, offered by Representative Davis, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 861, offered by Representative Jones, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 862, offered by Representative Ford, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. House Bill 863, offered by Representative Mason, a Bill for an Act concerning vegetation. House Bill 864, offered by Representative Mason, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. House Bill 865, offered by Representative DeLuca, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. First Reading of these House Bills. There being no 10200006.docx 51 STATE OF ILLINOIS 102nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 6th Legislative Day 2/10/2021 further business, the House Perfunctory Session will stand adjourned." 10200006.docx 52