Illinois House Floor Debate — May 17, 2005

“The House shall come to order. The Members shall be in their chairs. We ask the Members and our guests 09400051.doc 1  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 in the gallery to turn off laptop computers, cell phones, and pagers. And we ask the guests in the gallery to rise and join us for the invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance. We shall be led in prayer today by the Reverend Dr. William Grice III of the First Congregational Church of Des Plaines… Des Plaines, Illinois. Reverend Grice is the guest of Representative Mulligan.”

“We shall be led in the Pledge of Allegiance by Representative Bellock.” Bellock – et al: “I pledge of 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. Representative Currie.”

“Thank you, Speaker. Please let the record reflect that Representatives Feigenholtz and McKeon are excused today.”

“Mr. Bost.”

“The Clerk shall take the record. There being 116 Members responding to the Attendance Roll Call, there is 09400051.doc 3  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 a quorum present. Mr… Mr… Mr. Jim Watson, for the purpose of an announcement.”

“Representative May.”

“Yes, Mr. Speaker, I have an announcement.”

“Proceed.”

“Okay, thank you. The National Caucus of Environmental Legislators has some representatives in the Speaker’s Conference Room, the door to the left. They’ll be there until 1:30 because of our delay in Session. Adam Schafer, the program director, and former Minnesota Senator Jane Krentz and former Michigan Rep. Pat Godchaux will be there. They have information about a great conference that’s going to be in Chicago December 9-11. I was pleased that so many downstaters came to the Rathskellar to meet with them this morning. But, this is an opportunity to learn about their program. Membership is free so please stop by and talk to them. Thank you.”

“Representative Jakobsson.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of personal privilege.”

“State your point.” 09400051.doc 4  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“We are happy to have with us today, and he’s in the balcony, Chief William W. Shilts, Chief of the Illinois State Geological Survey. Back in 1905, then Governor Deneen signed legislation authorizing the creation of the Illinois State Geological Survey. So, they’re celebrating their 100 years today. And I would like to welcome them. Thank you.”

“Mr. Franks.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For purposes of an announcement. We celebrated a birthday recently on the House Floor for Representative Mendoza. And sitting next to Representative Sacia is some cake for those of you that would like to partake and help Susana celebrate.”

“Mr. Brady.”

“The Democrat… excuse me, the Republicans shall go to caucus immediately, the Democrats shall stand at ease.”

“The House will be in order. Will the Members please be in their seats? We’re going to begin on page 9 of the Calendar, under Senate Bills-Third Reading, and then we’ll just go down the list for awhile. On Senate Bill 10, Representative Delgado. Is the Gentleman prepared to call this Bill? Okay. Let’s move to page 10 of the Calendar, is Senate Bill 23. Representative Lou Jones. Mr. Clerk, would you read the Bill?”

“Representative Jones.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. Senate Bill 23… Mr. Speaker, take it out of the record right now.”

“Okay. Out of the record at the request of the Sponsor. Senate Bill 52. Representative Granberg, do you want us to call this Bill on Third Reading? Out of the record. Is that correct? Out of the record? Okay. Representative Sullivan, you have Senate Bill 53. Out of the record. Representative Millner has Senate Bill 57. Okay, let’s take that out of the record. Representative Osmond, you have Senate Bill 58. Mr. Clerk, would you read the Bill?”

“Representative Osmond.”

“The Lady moves for the passage of Senate Bill 58. This is on Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 115 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Winters. Out of the record. Representative Lang, you have Senate Bill 63. Mr. Clerk, would you read the Bill?”

“Representative Lang.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This Bill embodies an agreement between all of the parties involved in the Medicaid nursing home rebursement… reimbursement issue. And this agreement between the nursing homes and the Department of Public Aid would extend by 1 year, the transition period for implementing the new MDS system. As you know, they’re supposed to implement this system this year, but they’re having some trouble putting it all together. This is an agreement by all the parties to simply extend the implementation by 1 year to give them an opportunity to get their gears together. So, I would appreciate your support.” 09400051.doc 7  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 115 voting ‘yes’ and 1 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Mr. Clerk, would you read House (sic-Senate) Bill 74?”

“Representative Joyce.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. House (sic-Senate) Bill 74… Senate Bill… I’m sorry, Senate Bill 74 would allow for the wiretapping of text messaging, faxes, and e-mails. In this Bill, simply eliminates from the statute the term ‘oral’. Today, law enforcement at the federal level is allowed to do this. This would allow local… local law enforcement to tap into these text messages, e-mails, and faxes. They would still be required to go through the same exhaustive measures, getting approval from judges before they could go. And it would be focused on very specific criminals and criminal activity, only dealing with murder, for hire murder, and narcotics trafficking. I’d be happy to answer any questions.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this 09400051.doc 8  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 115 voting ‘yes’ and 1 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Delgado, do you want us to call Senate Bill 88? Mr. Clerk, would you read the Bill?”

Speaker Hannig: “The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Delgado.”

“Thank you… thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. Senate Bill 88 seeks to reform the School Code’s physical education waiver process as part of the Illinois Childhood Obesity Prevention Consensus Agenda by requiring waiver reports to be filed earlier in the year, March 1st instead of Mar… instead of May 1st, and increasing the time for the General Assembly to act on waiver requests 60 days rather than 30. The agenda hopes to decrease the number of waivers that are granted to school districts by… thereby increasing the number of school districts which daily physical education is mandatory in a number of students participating in regular physical activity. And I would ask for your support and an ‘aye’ vote.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted 09400051.doc 9  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative… Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Mr. Clerk, read Senate Bill 100.”

“The Lady from Cook, Representative Bassi.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. And in response is Representative Davis.” Davis, W.: “Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?" 09400051.doc 10  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“She indicates she’ll yield.” Davis, W.: “Representative Bassi, I wanna make sure that I understand, at least as our analysis states, in your Amendment where it indicates that an individual fitting that description will be allowed to come on school grounds. And here it says if the school… it says, ‘the parent or guardian must notify the principal of the school if that parent or guardian will be on school grounds.’ Does that also include… because as I understand it, sometimes a notice will be sent home to the parent saying if your child is suspended or something like that they must come at this date, at this time in order to have that student reinstated. So, if that notice is sent to the parent, are you still saying that the parent must still then provide some notification to the school? Because they’re being asked to come at that day and time.”

“Representative Bassi to close.” 09400051.doc 13  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Black, would you like us to read Senate Bill 123? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“The Gentleman from Vermilion, Representative Black.”

“This Bill’s on the Order of Short Debate. And in response, Representative Franks is recognized.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of this Bill and I wanna thank the Sponsor for bringing this forward. I’ve had a number of calls into my district exactly on this issue and we had made some calls to DNR. This is a very important piece of legislation, especially with all the identity theft that we’ve had in this state and in this country, and we need to do more to safeguard individuals’ private issues. I mean, recently we saw in the CMS audit that the state had sold computers with personal information on it. It’d be nice not to have Social Security numbers floating out there. We need to be protect our citizens. This is a great Bill and I encourage everyone to vote for it.”

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Saviano, does the Gentleman wish us to call Senate Bill 158. Okay, let’s move on to Representative Mathias on 159. Mr. Clerk, would you read the Bill?”

Speaker Hannig: “The Gentleman from Lake, Representative Mathias.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone speak in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. 09400051.doc 16  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 Representative Delgado, you have Senate Bill 162. Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

Speaker Hannig: “The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Delgado.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. Senate Bill 162 is actually a piece of legislation I passed out of the House. It requires the State Board of Education to establish a goal that all school districts in the state have a wellness policy in consistent… that is consistent with the Center for Disease Control recommendations and establishes an interagency working group made of the Department of Public Health, Department of Human Services, and the State Board of Education to work on model policies. This will create the School Wellness Policy Task Force made up of representatives of the various state agencies and entities concerned with the health of school-aged children. And I would ask for your ‘aye’ vote. This is a piece of legislation all with the anti-obesity legislation I’ve been working on this year. And I would ask for your help passing this with an ‘aye’ vote.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 115 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a 09400051.doc 17  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Flider, you have Senate Bill 169. Mr. Clerk, would you read the Bill?”

Speaker Hannig: “The La… the Gentleman from Macon, Representative Flider.”

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. Senate Bill 169 is an initiative of the Illinois Municipal League and it amends the Illinois Municipal Code to allow cities to provide for the extermination of pests on private property. Now, the current language in the law only provides for the extermination of rats. And in this Bill, pests is defined as, ‘undesirable arthropods, insects, spiders, mites, ticks, and so on.’ However, pests do not include cats and dogs. So, they don’t include pets. Appreciate your ‘aye’ vote.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass? All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Ryg, do you wish us to read Senate Bill 171? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“Representative Ryg.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Senate Bill 171 clarifies townships’ authority to accumulate funds for open space maintenance and requires that the surplus funds for maintenance and operations will be maintained separately. This is similar to previous legislation that was passed and, just again clarifies that surplus funds will be maintained separately and will only be used for the intended purpose for which they were collected.”

“This Bill’s on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Reitz, do you wish us to read Senate Bill 190? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“The Gentleman from Randolph, Representative Reitz.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Senate Bill 190 creates an offense for obstructing the duties of an emergency management worker and it provides a penalty slim… similar to those that we have in… in statute now for police officers, firefighters, correctional officers. And I’d be happy to answer any questions.” 09400051.doc 19  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“This Bill’s on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Kosel. Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Lang, shall we read Senate Bill 211? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“Representative Lang.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen. This Bill would do three things. It would allow school boards to excuse students from P.E. in high school if they need the time to receive special ed. support. It also requires schools to provide students with daily courses of physical education and updates the state requirements for appropriate physical education. This is an ISBE-sponsored initiative and I would ask for your support.”

“This Bill’s on the Order of Short Debate. And in response, the Gentleman from Vermilion, Representative Black.”

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

“I would think so. This is for a very specific situation. There are children receiving special ed. support in schools with no time to do the… to give them the services and support they need. So, in these specific circumstances we would be allowing schools to bypass the phys. ed. requirement to allow these special ed. students to get the support they need.”

“Well, schools could still come and ask for their waivers but what this does is update what the P.E. requirements might be. And in addition to this section about special ed., it would require schools to provide… to provide daily courses in physical education. We already have a physical education mandate, this sort of tweaks it. The State Board of Education has requested this. And if… if they felt that this would subvert the waiver process, I’m sure they would not have brought this.” 09400051.doc 21  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“As far as I’m concerned… or, as far as I recall, the answer is ‘no’. It’s possible that someone…”

“…was opposed to this in committee, but I don’t recall that and I don’t… I don’t think so, Representative.”

“Representative Lang to close.”

“I ask for your ‘aye’ votes, please.”

“Okay. The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 115 voting ‘yes’ and 1 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Kosel, do you wish us to read 223? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“The Lady from Will, Representative Kosel.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Reitz and Phelps, would you like to be recorded? Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Franks, shall we read 248? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

Speaker Hannig: “The Gentleman from McHenry, Representative Franks.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Currently, there are over 50 different spets… sets of special license plates. What this Bill would do is require the Secretary of State to institute three different studies concerning license plates, the first determining whether a standard special license plate bearing a special sticker could be… could replace all the special license plate currently allowed under the Vehicle Code. The second study would be determine whether it’d be feasible to place a sticker on the first division vehicles that would 09400051.doc 23  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 identify the county in which the vehicle is registered, much like they do in Florida. And third is a study to determine whether it’d be feasible to permit the attachment of a special plate to the front of a first or second division vehicle and attachment of a standard plate to the back of the vehicle. I’d be glad to answer any questions.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Representative McCarthy.”

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

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

“Did the Secretary of State have an opinion on this?”

“Yeah, I… I believe they’re in favor of this Bill.”

“You believe or they believe or…?”

“That’s what I was told, but I don’t… I don’t think anyone slipped in.”

“Did someone from their office tell you or someone from someplace else?”

“I think it was someplace else. I believe they were in favor of it, though. But I… but they didn’t slip it, they didn’t come to committee.”

“Okay. So, do you have any cost figures of what this would cost the Secretary to do this?”

“No. I’m looking. The Amend… it says that there is going to be… no, I don’t know. I don’t know how much it’s gonna cost. I’m looking at the Senate analysis as well.”

“And why do they do three different studies? It seems like if they assign someone this they could do the studies, you know…”

“Well, I could see…” 09400051.doc 24  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“…at the same time.”

“Well, I presume it would be at the same time. There’s three different areas of the study we wanna… three different areas we want them to focus on.”

“Okay, but our analysis says that they have to conduct three different studies and I would assume have three different reports then. That seems a little bit…”

“Well, it could be overlapping. They could have the same findings at the beginning and then come up with different conclusions. We’re not looking to spend a lot of money here, we’re actually trying to save money. That’s the issue here.”

“And this will look at whether a sticker instead of a new plate?”

“Right.”

“And also the front plate instead of the back plate?”

“Right.”

“So, the goal would be that the back plates would still be standard…”

“Right.”

“But, the front plate could be something.”

“Right. Because there’s so many different plates it’s very difficult for our law enforcement.”

“That’s for sure. And I am one of the people that vote against these special plates, so I wish ya a lot of luck.”

“Thank you.” 09400051.doc 25  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Okay. There are few others who wish to speak, so we’re gonna move this to Standard Debate. And Representative Meyer is next.”

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

“I think the idea would be a study to see if it would be feasible to do one universal specialty plate and then have… and then have decals put on those plates. That way the monies could still go to the different charities or wherever they were going to. But it would help our law enforcement because it would standardized plates and it would also save the Secretary of State when it comes to the printing costs of new license plates.”

“No, I… no, I wasn’t.”

“Thank you. I’ll check.”

“Representative Flider.”

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

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

"Representative, I… I don’t know if you’re aware, I think you might be aware, that in my district, at Macon Resources, this is where many of these license plates are manufactured. And they are manufactured by people with disabilities, people who are employed at Macon Resources, are sometimes, perhaps, unemployed. However, this particular facility, because they manufacture license plates, allows them to have jobs and be gainfully employed. And I… I wonder if you could tell me what prompted these studies and… and why you are presenting this today.”

“Bob, I think it was a question of safety because there’s been such a… a proliferation of new license plates. And I… and I… there’s just so many, it’s very difficult for law enforcement. And plus, I believe that the municipalities are losing revenue as a result because there’s not places on a lo… a lot of the policemen’s citation checklist for these special plates. So, let’s say, for instance, your… your number on your license plate, if I’m from the General Assembly, is 105. They don’t have a General Assembly license plate, for instance. Or if there’s 09400051.doc 27  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 someone with the ‘doo-wop’ plate or whatever the plate may be. And there’s just no way they can… they are able to collect if someone is to having a parking violation. It’s also very difficult for law enforcement and it’s also really difficult for the Secretary of State. So, we’re trying streamline government, cut some costs. I understand… I remember voting for your Bill a couple years ago, for the folks who are working on this, and hopefully they’ll still be able to make license plates, ‘cause there’s gonna be a specialty license plate made, just have one specialty license plate instead of all these different ones. Possibly decals are made there. Hope… we’ll do what we can. But, I think it’s worth a study to see if this is feasible. Maybe the study’s gonna come back and say this is a bad idea, we shouldn’t do it. But I think we should look into ways, especially when there’s been complaints by law enforcement.”

"Would you consider an Amendment that would take a look at, in addition to looking at whether we could save money, the economic impact of… of not employing individuals, as opposed to them not… so for example, in other words, taking a look at the impact of these individuals with the jobs they have, given the revenues that we provide to Macon Resources, versus us paying people to, ya know, through government funds for their medical costs and… and other costs when they’re not working?”

“I think you make a valid point. We’re on the Third Reading, though, with 10 days to go before adjournment. I’d like to go forward on this. But, I think you could ask for that study, regardless, and that could be part… and once you 09400051.doc 28  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 have those results you could then include this in the results. That might be something you can do with a… a House Joint Resolution and go forward on that. But, I just… I don’t think we should do it in part of this Bill.”

"Okay. Well, thank you very much.”

“Representative Howard.”

“Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

“Yes, Representative Franks, I’m understanding why you are saying that this legislation perhaps would be necessary. But, my problem is that when people get special license plates, they want to have something that is distinctive, that sort of sets them out away from the crowd. And unless you’re talking about the studies of coming up with something that makes you have a larger plate that can then allow ya to include some graphic or some kind of language that makes it distinctive, I’m not sure what it… what you could be talking about. A sticker is not quite what my sorority and the other Greek world were thinking about when they helped us to get a law that created the Greek… the Black Greek license plates. So, tell me… give me some idea what you think, a sticker that would cover the entire plate or a substantial part of the plate?”

“Representative, there’s no mandates in this Bill. This is merely a study to see if it’s feasible. I think once we get the idea to see whether it is feasible or not, then we can talk about the specifics. But I think it’s… I think it’s germane to be able to discuss these issues and also save the state money when it comes to our license plates.” 09400051.doc 29  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“And… and certainly again, I said I understand that is… the study is what you’re talking about. But when you do a study, you already have in mind that there’s some kind of result that you want to be the case. And so, it seems to me that you’re talking about changing the… changing the plates substantially so that everybody has some kind of plate that is pretty-generic with some identifying graphic or mark on it. And I’m just thinking that I don’t see how that’s going to be possible. I’m not… I’m not sure that I like the idea of toying around with this. Who… who… is it the… is it law enforcement that is asking you to do this?”

“Yeah… yes, they’re… yeah, there has been. There’s been complaints because it’s difficult sometimes to tell even what state the… the vehicles are registered in because we have so many different license plate. We have over 50 specialty license plates, and I don’t believe that’s even counting the…”

“And is that just in the State of Illinois?”

“Yes, Ma’am. And I don’t believe that’s even counting the ones that are short-term, like if there’s a… a centennial celebration or some type of celebration in a certain town or if there’s a baseball game or things like that. There’s all these… all these special plates and it really is difficult for our law enforcement.”

“So, don’t all of these special plates have Illinois on them someplace?”

“Oh, yes, Ma’am.”

“So what is the dis… what is the problem with distinguishing them from plates from out of state?” 09400051.doc 30  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Well, I think it’s different when they have different stickers. Some of these don’t have stickers if they’re for a short term. And I just know that the law enforcement, for instance, I give the example to Representative Flider when they… doing a citation, for instance, they might not have that specific license plate on their checklist and as result they’re foregoing revenue.”

“Thank you very much.”

Speaker Hannig: “We’ve now had three speak in response. Representative Boland, do you rise in support? That’s all we have left.”

“I… I just have one question.”

“Okay, ask your question.”

“Yes. Jack, has any other states done this? Has there been success anywhere or a failure anywhere? Seems like there’s a good idea but, ya know, are we being the pioneers here?”

“That’s a good question. I don’t know the answer to that, but I think that’s what the studies will show.”

“Find out what other states have done?”

“Right. Let’s see what the practices are.”

“Okay. All right. Thank you.”

“Representative Flider, you’ve already spoke in debate. For what reason do you rise?”

"Mr. Speaker, I just heard my name mentioned in debate. I would like a follow-up question, if I might.”

“The purpose of… proceed.”

"Thank you. One further question, Representative, that I had on my mind that I wished I had asked, but thank you 09400051.doc 31  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 for mentioning my name in debate. Question has to do with are you contemplating then, if the study finds that we can save money, that the prices that our citizens pay for license plates will be reduced?”

“I would love to have that. Heck, I filed that Bill a few years ago to reduce the costs of license plates. I think we need to do that. It’s a… it’s a tax on our… on our citizens that I think is onerous. I’d like to reduce the cost. I think that’s a very good question. I’m glad I did mention your name in debate.”

"Well, I don’t know if… if that means that we’re on that track or not, but I guess what I would suggest to you is that it will be very hard to reduce the costs that our cus… that our citizens pay for their license plates. And it seems to me that what we’re talking about here is saving money. And the question is, let’s say we save that money, what are we gonna do with that money? So, we either here have to agree that we’re gonna be able to reduce the price of license plates to our citizens or I guess I would add, again, that we need to, perhaps, do a little bit more thorough study as to the overall economic impact of this legislation on the State of Illinois. Because as the case… as we made the case last year in debate, whenever we manufacture license plates in state versus, say, some other state or some other location like Canada, this is a net benefit for our citizens, just as we provide economic funds for businesses to keep jobs, retain jobs, to expand, and so on. So, it seems to me that that would be a part of a more complete picture and I just wanted to express that view 09400051.doc 32  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 right now and I… I appreciate the opportunity to do so. Thank you.”

“Thank you.”

“Representative Franks to close.”

“I’d ask for your ‘aye’ vote.”

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Mulligan, do you wish to be recorded? Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 102 voting ‘yes’ and 13 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Rita, do you wish us to read 253? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Rita.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. Senate Bill 253 increases the size of what is considered an emerging investment manager. And emerging investment manager is defined as a ‘small minority or female-owned investment management company.’ They are classified by the size… by the dollar amount is considered what their size is if they’re emerging investment manager or not. And what Senate Bill 253… it increases the threshold of the assets from 400 million to 2 billion. And what has happened over time is that it’s been harder for these pension systems to comply with statute… the state statute of 09400051.doc 33  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 minority and female investments. Be happy to answer any questions.”

“This is on the Order Short Debate. And in response, the Gentleman from Cook, Representative Parke.”

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“Not about the underlying Bill, about the amending pen… there was a… an Amendment that they were trying to put on but we did not put it on, we moved the Bill out as is. And there was no one in opposition that has contacted me or showed up to committee on this.”

“The… this come from… the President of the Senate had it and talked to me about picking it up.”

“All the different… all the different pension systems did file in support of this because it makes it easier for them to… to comply with the… the statute for minority and female- owned investment companies.”

“Well, it just makes it more difficult for these systems to comply with the statute that was passed about 5… 5 to 7 years ago that 25 percent of the investments go to minorities and/or women. It just makes it more difficult for them to comply with that statute. So, by raising the threshold it… it makes them so they can comply with the Illinois Statutes that were passed.”

“Not that I know of. I’m… I’m not sure.”

“Representative Rita to close.”

“I ask for a favorable vote.”

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Cultra. Okay. Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Yarbrough, shall we read Senate Bill 254? Out of the record. Representative Lang, you have Senate Bill 287. Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Lang.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen. Senate Bill 287 is simple. It would expand the definition of ‘hate 09400051.doc 35  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 crime’ to include electronic communications. We would ask for your support.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Parke.”

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

“Well, as you know, this Bill came out of the Senate, but I’ll… I’ll try. So, there’s a lot…”

“Well, I… I know enough to help you, Representative.”

“I… I’ll give you an example…”

“…Representative. So, people have been… just as people commit crimes of hate to harass people in public, they can harass people in private, on the telephone, over the Internet, you can think of a thousand examples. And this would resolve those situations. And we give law enforcement tool… tools to intervene.”

“I think that’s a good way to put it. And as far as I have heard, law enforcement is strongly in favor of this Bill.” 09400051.doc 36  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Thank you.”

“Any further discussion? Then Representative Lang is recognized to close.”

“Ask for your ‘aye’ vote.”

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Giles, shall we call 297? Okay, out of the record. Representative Granberg on 299. We always catch ya on the phone, Representative. Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“Representative Granberg.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. Senate Bill 299 is exactly the same as the House Bill which passed this chamber earlier this Session unanimously and the Senate chamber. It provides for the immediate reconstitution of the Rend Lake Conservancy District Board located in Southern Illinois. I’d be happy any questions.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The 09400051.doc 37  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Mr. Clerk, read Senate Bill 301.”

“Representative Froehlich.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Acevedo, shall we read Senate Bill 302? Representative Jakobsson, shall we read 323? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

Speaker Hannig: “The Lady from Champaign, Representative Jakobsson.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Senate Bill 323 amends the Build Illinois Act. It creates the Military Reservist Business Assistance Loan. It authorizes the Department of Commerce and Economic develop… or, Economic Opportunity to make loans to small businesses that lose an owner or a key employee due to a period of military conflict and that will experience substantial economic injury as a result of the loss of that owner or key employee. It authorizes the department to accept grants, loans, or appropriations and enter into contracts for the purposes of this program and also agreements. It does limit the total amount of any loan awarded under the program to $150,000.”

“The Lady moves for the passage of Senate Bill 323. This is on the Order of Short Debate. And in response, the Gentleman from Vermilion, Representative Black.”

“She indicates she’ll yield.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t hear your question.”

“That’s not the intent that I understand.”

“I believe that this is one that would mean that we have to appropriate the money for it.”

“Let me look. Well, Mr. Black, the… the legislation does read, ‘from funds appropriated for that purpose the department shall administer.’”

“Are they secured or what?”

“I don’t have the answer to that right now.”

“To the Bill.”

“Representative, could you bring your remarks to a close, please?”

“It’s on Short Debate, but if you’d like to move it off Short Debate.”

“Representative Jakobsson to close.”

“Thank you. Since this Bill would be one that would provide grants to businesses that have lost a key employee due to a conflict and… well, I just urge an ‘aye’ vote. I think it’s really important for our people serving our country.”

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Lyons, would you like to be recorded? Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 105 voting ‘yes’, 0 voting ‘no’, and 11 voting ‘present’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared 09400051.doc 42  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 passed. Representative Hoffman, shall we call Senate Bill 411? Okay. Out of the record. Representative Eddy, 427? Mr. Clerk, read the Bill.”

“The Gentleman from Crawford, Representative Eddy.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall… excuse me, Representative Monique Davis in response.” Davis, M.: “Yes, Mr. Speaker, I would just like a little more clarity on exactly what this Bill does.”

“Representative indicates he’ll yield.”

“Representative Gordon.”

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

“He indicates he’ll yield.”

"Representative Eddy, I’m… I’m looking at our analysis, I guess… and I just have some questions to clarify this as well. Have there been some lawsuits regarding this… this… this law the way it’s written and maybe an interpretation not in the favor of the principal?”

"Okay. Did… did the Principals Association bring this Bill to you? Is that where you got it from?”

"Okay. And I saw that there’ll be a chance for both private and public hearings. Can you explain to me how that works and the purpose of those?”

"I can’t… I can’t hear.”

"Okay. And bo… in both private and public? Private meaning what? In an executive session of a school board, for example, or… or what?”

"Okay. And in… and in a public hearing, so the town could come and find out why this person is being reclassified?”

"Okay. So, a school that… and I’m sorry for just maybe not understanding. But, a school that is deciding to reclassify a principal, send him back to the classroom for whatever reason, has a way to have public hearings, private 09400051.doc 45  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 hearings, written notice, and… so then we can clarify this… this law you said that… that’s somewhat confusing at the moment. That… that’s the whole point of this, right?”

"Right.”

"How many other professions have this type of procedure before someone is demoted?”

"And… and… and why are principals afforded this… this special process?”

"Thank you.” 09400051.doc 46  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Representative Eddy to close.”

“The question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 115 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’, 1 voting ‘present’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. We’re gonna return to a few Bills that were passed over, I think, when we began. Representative Delgado, do you wish us to call Senate Bill 10? That was the first one we started with today and you weren’t on the floor. So, Representative… or, Mr. Clerk, read Senate Bill 10.”

“Representative Delgado.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. Senate Bill 10 creates a State Board of Education pilot project to increase parental participation in four of the state’s lowest performing school districts. Beginning with the year 2006-2007, ISBE may allocate up to $250,000 per year to provide grants to assist four school districts in implementing measures to increase parental participation. Senate Bill 10 also provides for annual and final evaluations of the project and repeals all provisions relating to the program on December 31, 2010. And the project will include, outside of Chicago, the collar 09400051.doc 47  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 counties of DuPage, Kane, McHenry, and Will, and then the remainder of the state. And I would ask for your ‘aye’ vote.”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? Then the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. 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 116 voting ‘yes’ and 0 voting ‘no’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Mr. Clerk, read Senate Bill 23.”

“The Lady from Cook, Representative Lou Jones.”

“Members of the House. Senate Bill 23 aims to prohibit any state monies from being invested in any entity associated with the Republic of Sudan, including the government of Sudan, any company in which or in part managed by Sudan, any company established under the laws of Sudan, any company that has been identified as sponsoring terror activities or has been fined or sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury for having violated a restriction regarding Sudan, and any company that has failed to certify under oath that it does not own or control any assets materially associated with Sudan or they’re domiciled in Sudan. And I ask for a favorable vote.” 09400051.doc 48  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone stand in response? The Gentleman from McHenry, Representative Franks.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I spand… I stand in strong support of this Bill and I wanna thank the Sponsor for bringing this forward. She brought it to our committee and it gave me a chance to do some research on this. And there was a… a very interesting article that’s written by a lady by the name of Ruth Messinger, and it’s called Hotel Darfur. And I wanna give you some selections from that. ‘One year ago, international humanitarian organizations began sounding the alarm, warning of an escalating crisis in Darfur in the Sudan. In Darfur, a remote region the size of Texas in Africa’s… is Africa’s largest nation, almost 2,000,000 African tribal farmers have been violently driven from their homes by the government of Sudan and the militias they named… called Janjaweed’, which means evil men on horseback. Despite repeated calls from hu… from humanitarian organizations and United Nations agencies warning of the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today, there continues to be a systematic program of expulsion, rape and murderous violence that has… been that has taken at least 300,000 lives since the crisis began in February 2003. This campaign of destruction and displacement is calculated to ensure the loss of livelihood and means of survival, purposely forcing hundreds of thousands of men, women and children to face starvation and disease. Recently, Jews all over the world remembered the consequences of inaction by the international community in the face of genocide. We 09400051.doc 49  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 remember and we still cannot, nor will we ever, comprehend how the world looked on as 6,000,000 Jews were gassed, tortured, displaced, starved and worked to death. And we vowed, never again! So we must all be the guardians of this call for action, highly sensitive and responsive to all attempts by any people to annihilate another people. The world stood by idly 60 years ago, and again as massacres unfolded in Cambodia, Rwanda, and now Sudan. Last month was the 11th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide where 800,000 people of the Tutsi minority were slaughtered by the machete-wielding government forces. World leaders knew, our government knew, and they did nothing. It’s unconscionable that even now, with the attention surrounding the film ‘Hotel Rwanda’, the leaders of the world have not only not ended the genocide in Sudan, but they seem not to care too much about it. Current reports indicate that the situation continues to worsen. According to the United Nations Commission (sic-United Nations Commission of Inquiry), Sudanese government officials and the Janjaweed are responsible for the killing of civilians, torture, enforced disappearance, destruction of villages, rape and other forms of sexual violence, pillaging and forced displacement through Darfur. Many of these survivors of this campaign of destruction and displacement now live in hastily erected, internally displaced persons camps, lacking adequate food, water, shelter, medical care, and security. There are more than 2.5 million people in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Yet, just last month, on April 8, the United Nations-led World Food Program announced that, due to the 09400051.doc 50  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 lack of contributions from donor countries, they must cut in half the food rations they are providing to 1,000,000 people in Darfur. So not only are many nations turning a blind eye to the annihilation of a people, they are also contributing to the Sudanese government-induced ‘genocide by famine’. I pray that one day we do not have to watch a film with our children and grandchildren that depicts the horrors of Darfur and once again be asked why the world failed to act. I ask each of you to vote for this important piece of legislation and let our voices be heard. This is our obligation.’”

“This is on the Order of Short Debate. Does anyone wish to speak in opposition? Okay, it looks like a few would just like to speak, so why don’t we just go down the list. Representative Black.”

“Okay, this is on the Order of Standard Debate. The next on the list to speak will be Representative Boland. Are you in favor or in opposition?”

“In favor.”

“Okay, 5 minutes.”

“Okay. I won’t take up 5 minutes, I just wanted to commend the Sponsor actually for her actions in sponsoring this legislation. It’s been said that… that our State Government has nothing to do with foreign policy or foreign relations, and in many ways that’s true. But, we also have something that is the power of the purse. The power of the purse strings that we can use to influence, in many ways, erratic or violent or even catastrophic types of activities in other parts of the world. We have control over our own wallets and purse strings as far as the State of Illinois. And with that, we’ve done that in past. For example, I passed legislation 2 years ago that said that the State of Illinois will no longer use our tax dollars to buy goods made by political and religious prisoners in places like… dictatorships like China. We passed one just this very year and it’s now on its way to the Governor from the Senate that says the State of Illinois will not use its tax dollars to buy goods made by child labor in the… the developing world. And now, this is an attempt to say… to give the moral standard of the State of Illinois of our pocket book that says if you’re gonna… if you’re a foreign government and you engage in these type of atrocities that we have seen so much in the past, according to what Representative Franks said, and any of us who know a little bit of our world history 09400051.doc 53  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 know have happened time and time again. And we, unfortunately, in the greatest country in the world, have stood by and not really taken any action. Well, this is a way that we can take action. This is a way that we can send a very powerful message that you’re not going to get any of our dollars invested in your country if you engage in… in policies that result in genocide, that result atrocities that are almost beyond the human imagination. And it happens in all over the world. We’ve seen it in Cambodia, we’ve seen it in parts of Africa, we’ve seen it in many, many parts of the world. And in fact, we even have a little bit of it in our own history as far as the treatment of the American Indians. So, I believe that the… the Sponsor is… is taking a very principled stand, a very farsighted stand. And I just wanted to rise and support her in those efforts. Thank you.”

“So, we have Representative Jones, Franks, and Boland have spoken in favor of the Bill and Representative Black in response. The rules of debate provide that two more could speak in response. Representative Rose is recognized in response.”

“To the Bill.”

Speaker Hannig: “So now under the rules of debate, Representative Black and Representative Rose have spoken in response, three have spoken in support. The rules provide that one additional speaker could speak in response, and Representative Molaro is next on the list. Do you wish to speak in response?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Five minutes.”

“Thank you. I’m… I’m also glad I see Senator Collins here ‘cause I wanna state something that I think is important to state ‘cause this is perhaps one of the toughest Bills of the year for me, considering how many Bills we’ve had. And I even have no idea which way I’m gonna vote. So, like, Representative Black, it was encouraging. I have set a rule for myself in the 14, 15 years being down here that… Representative Boland just spoke and he’s right when he talks about state money and taxpayers’ dollars. When we talk about state money, taxpayers’ dollars, I couldn’t agree more with everything we had said. But, we have what we call public pension funds, and that’s a misnomer. I just want everybody to make sure what… they understand what I’m talking about here. You have 35,000 people that belong to certain pension funds, 40,000 in SERS, 50,000 in SURS. And they’re pubic pension funds 09400051.doc 55  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 only in the name that they work for a public entity. Once 8 percent of their check and once 8 percent of the employer’s check goes into their trust fund, it’s no longer public money. It’s private money that is owned by those 40,000 participants, some are retired, some happen to be working, but it’s no longer public money. So, it just kind of bothers me… not this Bill. ‘Cause you’re pretty close to me, I don’t want Leader Jones coming after me. Not this Bill. But, I just wanna stop the banter that it’s state money or taxpayers’ money. It’s not. It’s not public money. It’s owned by those 40,000 people who are in that fund. And all of our laws in this state and the United States says that we have a fiduciary duty to do what’s best for those 40,000 participants. We can make statements of public policy with state money and taxpayers’ money day and night, but we’re not… we are not allowed by law to do it for private individual. That trust fund is private. Now, it is created by statute and we can certainly do what we’re doing. So, it has been my hard fast rule for 14, 15 years never to vote for something that doesn’t have to do with strictly fiduciary duty. It sort of the old slippery slope argument that if we’re gonna do it for the Sudan, then why not North Korea? Why not other places? Then we gotta decide here in the General Assembly who has raised to the level where we’re gonna come up and say pension funds should… forget their fiduciary duty and we’re gonna say there are social prospects that are more important than that fiduciary duty. Now, the way I’m gonna get out of not voting ‘no’ on this is to saying… and I got Frank laughing. The way I’m gonna get 09400051.doc 56  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005 out of not voting ‘no’ is say that it’s never really a good rule unless there are exceptions to it. Okay. And this certainly comes close to rising to that exception. The only thing that I’m gonna ask the Sponsor, which is Leader Jones, and ask the Senate Sponsor, who luckily is in the room here, I would hope that in the next week and a half you can sit down again, for maybe the fiftieth time ‘cause you’ve been very gracious, Senator, sitting with… sitting with the pension funds. So, sit with them to see if there is a way that… to aleer (sic-allay)… to make sure that their fears and their thoughts are talked to ‘cause of what Rep… Representative Black said. We may need a little time to get out of some of these holdings. There may have to be exceptions that we can talk about, when he talks about… when he talks about Coca-Cola and all these other places, we… we wanna keep working with them. Now, they may come up with something that we… you might want to look at and bring in trailer legislation. I know you’ve done some things… and there are some Senators they can bring that you’re just gonna say ‘no’ to, which I don’t blame ya. You don’t want to kill a Bill you just passed. All I’m asking that maybe in the next 6 or 7 days if they get ideas, let them give them to ya. If they’re better ideas, think about it. If they’re not good ideas just toss ‘em by the wayside. But I still stand, and I have 20 seconds left, to say that is it… is should be very, very, very few times that we start messing with the pension funds. This may be one of ‘em, but it should be very, very few that we do. And thank you for listening.” 09400051.doc 57  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Okay, there’s been three now who’ve spoken in response and three who’ve spoken in support. Under the rules of debate, Representative Lou Jones is recognized to close.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And to my colleague that spoke, there is a 3 year divest period in that Bill. And I’m not trying to do anything to hurt the Retired Teachers Fund or the… or the Teachers Union Fund. All we’re saying is do not invest in Sudan. It’s genocide, babies are dying, they are killing off people unconsciously (sic-unconscionably) there. If you look on the Internet, if you look on the news you will see babies dying in the street. I’m quite sure the United States does not want to support any country that’s doing that to… to… really genocide. That’s really… no other word for it, but genocide. And I’d ask for a favorable vote. And again, it takes 3 years for this divestiture. Thank you.”

“So the question is, ‘Shall this Bill pass?’ All in favor vote ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Biggins, would you like to be recorded? Representative Kosel, would you like to be recorded? Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 89 voting ‘yes’, 23 voting ‘no’, and 4 voting ‘present’. And this Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Monique Davis, for what reason do you rise? Okay. Representative Currie is recognized for a Motion.” 09400051.doc 58  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Thank you, Speaker and Members of the House. In order to give effect to the blue sheets, which have just arrived on our desks, I move to suspend the posting requirement so that House Bill 3464 can be heard in the Judiciary-I, House Bill 3871 in… as in State Government, House Bill 4078… I’ll get back to you on that one, Senate Bill 201 to R&R, Senate Bill 244 to Exec., Senate Bill 274 to Labor, Senate Bill 468 to SGA, Senate Bill 502 to Exec., Senate Bill 530 to Child Support, Senate Bill 553 to Revenue, Senate Bill 599 to Elections, Senate Bill 662 to Fee-for-Service, Senate Bill 1701 to Environment, Senate Bill 1740 to Jud-I, Senate Bill 1821 to Exec., Senate Bill 1853 to Elementary, Senate Bill 1883 to Jud-I, Senate Bill 1909 to Energy, Senate Bill 1930 to Jud-I, Senate Bill 1968 to Exec., Senate Bill 2082 to Jud-II, House Resolution 364 to Higher Ed., House Resolution 369 to Housing, House Resolution 370 to Labor, House Resolution 389 to Environmental Health, House Joint Resolution 54 to Elementary, and Senate Joint Resolution to Transportation. Now, if you could just hold one moment on my Motion. Thank you. Renewing my Motion, my Motion does not include any direction for House Bill 4078.”

“So, you’ve heard the Lady’s Motion. Is there any discussion? Then all in favor say ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The ‘ayes’ have it. And the Motion is adopted. We have some Bills to move from Third to Second. Mr. Clerk, what is the status of House Bill 1098?”

“Return that to the Order of Second Reading at the request of the Sponsor. Mr. Clerk, what’s the status of Senate Bill 158? 158.”

“Return that to the Order of Second Reading at the request of the Sponsor. Mr. Clerk, what is the status of Senate Bill 562?”

“Return that to the Order of Second Reading at the request of the Sponsor. And finally, Mr. Clerk, what is the status of Senate Bill 1814?”

“Return that to the Order of Second Reading at the request of the Sponsor. Okay, we’re gonna have… the Clerk’s gonna read the committee schedule for the rest of the day. Mr. Clerk, would you read the committee schedule?”

“Representative Turner is recognized for an announcement.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. I’d like to remind the Members that if you remember last week we had the annual House/Senate softball game where the House was winning and then we were rained out. That game is going to be continued tomorrow evening at 5:00 at Lincoln Park, this is the park that we played at in the past. I’ll give you the address again tomorrow for the new Members who don’t know where it’s located. But the game will start tomorrow at 5:00, assuming we get out of here in a timely fashion. We’ll start from the first inning. And so the game will start over again, but it will start at 5:00 tomorrow, it should be over by 7. All Members that intend to play should be there.”

“Representative Smith.”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For an announcement. The Appropriations Committee for Elementary & Secondary Education Committee, which was scheduled to meet tomorrow morning, has been canceled. That’s the Elementary & Secondary Appropriation Committee is canceled for tomorrow morning.”

“Representative Bellock, for what reason do you rise?” 09400051.doc 61  STATE OF ILLINOIS 94th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 51st Legislative Day 5/17/2005

“Representative McCarthy, for what reason do you rise?”

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is an announcement for the Members of the Higher Education Committee. The Higher Education Committee scheduled at 9:30 tomorrow morning will meet at 10:30 instead, 10:30 instead of 9:30. Thank you.”

“Are there any further announcements? Okay, Representative Currie then now moves that, allowing perfunctory time for the Clerk, that the House stand adjourned until 12 noon tomorrow, Wednesday, May 18. All in favor say ‘aye’; opposed ‘nay’. The ‘ayes’ have it. And the House stands adjourned.”