"The House shall come to order. The Members shall be in their chairs. We ask the Members and the guests 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 Daniel Krumrei. Daniel Krumrei is the Command Staff Chaplin of the Illinois National Guard and the Pastor of the Parkway Christian Church in Springfield. He is the guest of Representative Raymond Poe."
"I would like to invite those would to bow for a word of prayer. Almighty God, Lord of Hosts, Yahweh, it is by different names that we know You and by different names that we come before You. We pray and we lift up to You this day those men and women, those sons and daughters of Illinois who serve their nation, this state, and their communities, sacrificing their times, sometimes their health, and sometimes their very lives for the freedom of this Assembly. I pray for Your wisdom, Your grace, Your hope to fill each person here in their deliberations, in their care for all of those men and women and for the poorest among us. We seek to recognize Your presence, Your blessing this day and always, Amen."
"We shall be led in the Pledge of Allegiance by Representative Poe."
"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." 09500160.doc 1 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"Roll Call for Attendance. Mr. Hannig."
"Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. Let the record reflect that the following Democrats are excused today: Representatives Currie, Ford, Hamos, May, Osterman, Patterson and Scully."
"Mr. Bost."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let the record reflect that Representatives Bassi, Durkin and Meyer are excused today on the Republican side of the aisle."
"Mr. Clerk… Mr. Clerk, are we ready? The Clerk shall take the record. There are 108 Members responding to the Attendance Roll Call, there is a quorum present. Mr. Clerk. Mr. Moffitt, do you wish to call HR750? Mr. Moffitt on House Resolution 750."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. HR750 is an initiative of the March of Dimes Illinois Chapter. And what it would do would be declare or proclaim November 13, 2007, to be Premature Birth Awareness Day in the State of Illinois. The incident of premature birth appears to be increasing. It has risen twenty… approximately 27 percent over the last two (2) decades. It's the leading cause of death among babies from birth to one-year-old. I just urge its adoption."
"The Gentleman moves for the adoption of House Resolution 750. There being no discussion, the question is, 'Shall the House adopt HR750?' Those in favor say 'aye'; those opposed say 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. House Resolution 750 is adopted. Mr. McAuliffe. Mr. McAuliffe, did you wish to call SJR17?" 09500160.doc 2 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"Yes."
"Mr. McAuliffe on SJR17."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move to adopt Senate gin… Senate Joint Resolution #17. What this legislation would do was enable the Republic of Poland to be eligible to the United States Department of State's Visa Waiver Program and join the other 27 countries that are able to travel to the United States for tourism or business for up to 90 days without having first to obtain visas for entry. I'd be happy for the adoption."
"The Gentleman moves for the adoption of the Resolution. Those in favor of the Resolution signify by voting 'yes'; those opposed by voting 'no'. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? The Clerk shall take the record. On this question, there are 108 people voting 'yes', 0 voting 'no'. The House does adopt SJR17. Mr. Fortner, Fortner."
"Yes, a point of personal privilege."
"State your point."
"On Tuesday we had a very important committee meeting down in Chicago. It was a meeting of the Mass Transit Committee and today as we're supposed to I went to file my voucher to get my expenses for that. And I found an unusual irony in that I was required to provide proof of insurance for a vehicle. Now finding it appropriate, I took the train and I avoided taking my car into Chicago that day. And yet, to get my reimbursement for that committee meeting I had to still present some kind of vehicle insurance. I just find this to be terribly ironic 09500160.doc 3 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 and I think we should maybe investigate why it is, to go to a Mass Transit Committee meeting we have to show proof that we have a car. Thank you."
"Mr. Miller, Mr. Miller. Did you wish to call SJR59? Mr. Miller."
"Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. SJR59 instructs the Illinois State Board of Education Community College Board of Higher Ed to develop a method utilizing results for the Prairie State Achievement to better understand college readiness. I would ask for a favorable adoption."
Speaker Madigan: "The Gentleman moves for the adoption of SJR59. There being no discussion, those in favor signify by voting 'yes'; those opposed by voting 'no'. Have all voted who wish? The Clerk shall take the record. On this question, there are 108 people voting 'yes', 0 voting 'no'. The House does adopt SJR59. Representative Lindner. Lindner, did you wish to consider Senate Bill 831, a Motion to override the Governor? Representative Lindner on a Motion to override the Governor."
"Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I move to override the Governor's Veto. Many of you voted for this Bill before. It was House Bill 224 and it's a coalition of all the fast growth counties who cannot keep up with the infrastructure and need money for that infrastructure. This is a front door referendum. We already allow by referendum three (3) counties, DuPage, Kane, and McHenry to impose a gas tax and this would add the counties of Will, Kendall, Boone, Lake, DeKalb and Grundy. And it's 'may' impose a tax only if there's a front door referendum. And 09500160.doc 4 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 it 'shall' be used for roads and infrastructure. If you look you have all received this yellow sheet. There's a long list of people who support this including the Illinois Road Builders and AFSCME as well as all the counties. And I'd ask for a favorable vote to override the Governor."
"Mr. Clerk, for an announcement. Mr. Clerk, for an announcement of the Rules Committee meeting."
"The Rules Committee will meet immediately in the Speaker's conference room. The Rules Committee will meet immediately in the Speaker's conference room."
"Representative Lindner has moved that Senate Bill 831 do pass, notwithstanding the Veto of the Governor. And on that question, the Chair recognizes Mr. Black."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, I rise in opposition to the Bill even though it does carry a front door referendum. Crude oil closed at the end of the trading yesterday at the second-highest price in history. Gasoline prices are jumping throughout the country. The Wall Street Journal reported that gasoline reserves are at a five-year low. So it's interesting that this Bill comes up in a period of time when gasoline prices are a little lower, about seventeen cents ($.17) lower on average than they were a year ago, but I want you to look at the difference. In Champaign County the low gasoline price yesterday was two dollars and fifty three cents ($2.53) a gallon. The high price of gasoline in Illinois was in Chicago, three dollars and twenty-nine cents ($3.29) a gallon. Why the difference? The difference is very simple. Taxes. The State of 09500160.doc 5 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 Missouri yesterday the price of gasoline was two dollars and thirty-five cents ($2.35) a gallon, the lowest price in the Midwest. Why is that? The difference is taxes. In Illinois we are approaching sixty cents ($.60) a gallon in taxes, sixty cents ($.60) a gallon in motor fuel taxes. We're one (1) of only nine (9) states that charges a sales tax on gasoline, something I've tried to abolish for many years and have had many cosponsors but the Bill has never been allowed to have a vote. Let me tell you the fallacy of what these counties are trying to do. The gallonage tax will not raise the level of funding that anyone thinks it will. If you read an article that appeared in The Wall Street Journal on April 25 of '07, and I have it here if you want to see it, as the price of gasoline continues to go up, and it will take a big jump either today or tomorrow, people are voting with their pocketbooks to buy more fuel-efficient cars. So it only stands to reason that the higher your tax the less gallons you will sell. As people will curt… they will curtail driving, they will take mass transit, they will look for alternative sources of energy in order to do their daily commute, electric cars, hybrid cars, whatever. The headline in this article in The Wall Street Journal; 'Fuel-efficient cars dent state road budgets.' And they give you a little chart here to show there is a direct correlation between the price of gasoline and the amount of gallons sold. So these counties think they're going to reap millions of dollars by raising the gallonage tax. Economics 101, one of my favorite courses, the text was written by Dr. Samuelson. When you raise the 09500160.doc 6 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 price of a commodity people will look for ways to get around that price. And they're doing it, more fuel- efficient cars, alternative energy. And since these only include certain counties you'll go to another county. You'll vote with your automobile or your electric scooter or whatever you have. You won't… you won't pay that higher tax if you can possibly avoid it. At least the Bill calls for a front door referendum which gives the people some ability to hope that people will come to their senses. Jack Kemp said it best, 'When you tax something, you'll tend, eventually, to get less of it. When you subsidize something, you will eventually tend to get more of it.' I rise in opposition, not to the Sponsor, not to the Bill because at least it has a front door referendum, but I rise to… to say what I have said for the past five (5) years, gasoline taxes are too high in the State of Illinois. We don't need to raise them; we need to lower them. Why is the price of gasoline three dollars and twenty-nine cents ($3.29) a gallon yesterday in Chicago, because Chicago and Cook County have the highest gasoline tax of any governmental entity in the fifty (50) states. Go ahead and vote for this and hide behind the front door referendum. And when gasoline a month or two from now is two ninety- nine (2.99), three fifteen (3.15), three twenty (3.20) you tell your constituents that you voted to raise the gallonage tax in these counties. I'll bet they'll send you a Christmas card for it. I intend to vote 'no'."
"Mr. Mathias." 09500160.doc 7 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"I rise in strong support of this Bill. I always thought that important matters such as… as this should be left to the voters. And that's exactly what this Bill does and I agree… and some of the comments are… are certainly well-taken that Representative Black just made and I think those comments would be more in line if this Bill imposed the tax that he's objecting to. I think they'd be very good arguments for him to make, but I also think that we have very intelligent voters in our districts and I think they should have a choice. And that's what this Bill does, it gives them a choice. If they look at the gas tanks and the gas prices and say, you know, it's too high we don't want to increase our taxes, they will have that choice. On the other hand, if they look at the roads in our counties, I happen to represent a part of Lake County as well as Cook County, and say… and Lake County's part of this Bill and… and say, well our roads are terrible. We have congestion. What are you guys doing about mass transit? Well, obviously, at the present time nothing's moving forward. So we at least need to get to work, we need to get to our places of employment, we need to get to our medical facilities and we need good trans… road transportation to do that. Maybe I'll vote for this because I know this will lead to better roads in my community, that's their choice. And that's all we're doing in this Bill is giving them their choice. We're not making the choice for them as we, on so many occasions, do in Springfield. We think we know better than our constituents, well, we don't. Our 09500160.doc 8 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 constituents should make the choice. Give them that choice. And I ask for an 'aye' vote."
"Representative Lindner, Lindner."
"Yes. I respectfully disagree with one of the former speakers. This is not something that the counties just thought up now because gas taxes are high. I mean gasoline is high. This was an initiative of these counties four (4) years ago when we all got together and thought about what can we do for our area without taxing the state, without having any other state taxes. These are the people in their own areas saying if you want better roads if you want better infrastructure, because our area is growing so much then let's do something ourselves. Let's have a local initiative. It is a front door referendum and I'd still urge that we override the Governor's Veto."
"Representative Lindner has moved that Senate Bill 831 do pass, notwithstanding the Veto of the Governor. Those in favor signify by voting 'yes'; those opposed by voting 'no'. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Has Mr. Pritchard voted? The Clerk shall take the record. On this question, there are 67 'yes', 41 'no'. This Motion requires 71 votes, therefore the Motion fails. On page 7 of the Calendar, on the Order of Senate Bills- Third Reading, there appears Senate Bill 934, Mr. Hannig. Mr. Clerk, read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 934, a Bill for an Act concerning health. Third Reading of this Senate Bill."
"Mr. Hannig." 09500160.doc 9 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. This deals with the Local Government Health Insurance Reserve Fund and this proposal would move this fund from the books of the… from the books of the Treasurer from an appropriated fund to a nonappropriated fund. This is not moneys that the State of Illinois has collected as taxes but it's actually moneys that local governments have contributed. We are just acting in trust for that money… with that money and this is a way to ensure that these funds are less likely to be swept or in any way used for purposes other than what the local governments have. So that's all the Bill does and I'd ask for your 'yes' vote."
"Mr. Winters, Winters."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Sponsor yields."
"Mr. Hannig, this is what is known as a 'bimp' Bill, is that correct?"
"It is… this is not a 'bimp' Bill, Representative. This concept was part of a 'bimp' Bill that existed, but this is not a 'bimp' Bill."
"Well, if it has the same effect, if it was a concept that was similar to a 'bimp' Bill… I guess what I'm highlighting to the chamber is that we have been asking for a 'bimp' Bill for education to come up. The local school districts, November 1, will be faced with a reduction in the amount of school aid that they're getting. It is time that this General Assembly took its responsibilities seriously and I would suggest that this chamber vote 09500160.doc 10 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 against this Bill until we actually see a 'bimp' Bill on the floor ready for us to pass. Thank you."
"Nekritz."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to follow- up on the previous speaker that I have concerns that… that this legis… this legislation is designed to implement a change in the budget that we made when we passed the budget on… when… the funding portion… the appropriation portion of the budget on August 10, and we… somehow we can manage to do this for the Local Government Health Insurance Trust Fund or whatever the… the name of this… this thing is, but we cannot do it for education and some of the other really important things that we've got going on out there. And so I would just… I'm very concerned that we are starting down this road, we have this one little issue that we're making… that we're making an exception for. But on the really important issues that are… that need to be addressed in the 'bimps', that we are unable to move forward on that and I would like to encourage everyone to vote 'no' until we have a large 'bimp' Bill that's ready to go on all the issues that need to be addressed. Thank you."
"Mr. Black."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. I rise to echo the comments, let's see if I can get her name right this time, of Representative Nekritz. I think she's right on target. This Bill was called yesterday by one of the cosponsors on our side of the aisle, Representative Bellock. I see she's now taken her name off of the Bill. Your side of the aisle 09500160.doc 11 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 had all kinds of questions: what's the Treasurer think about this Bill; what does this Bill really do; why are you calling it? In other words, it was your side of the aisle insinuating that Representative Bellock was calling the Bill because somehow the Republicans were trying to slip through a 'bimp' Bill. We… we called the 'bimp' Bill yesterday and you wouldn't vote for it. So we weren’t trying to slip anything through, we went at you head-on. We gave you an opportunity to vote for a 'bimp' Bill, you said, 'no, no'. So today it has a Democrat Sponsor and a Democrat presenting the Bill, so I would imagine that it might pass. But I agree a hundred percent with Representative Nekritz. It's really amazing to me that yesterday not one of you would vote on a parliamentary maneuver to put a 'bimp' Bill on the floor so we could get hundreds of millions of dollars flowing, assuming the Senate would've agreed and assuming the 'bimp' Bill would have ever been called in this chamber to schools that desperately need the money and you've already heard from the State Board of Education, by November 1, the ADA payments will be refigured and most of your schools will get less money. No, we couldn't do that. But as Representative Nekritz so eloquently said here's a little carve out. We have to help somebody; you know the Treasurer might need a little help, so that's okay. We'll do this, it's okay. We can't help education, we can't help social service providers, we can't help the developmentally disabled community, we can't help nursing homes, we can't help hospitals, but we can carve out these little areas 09500160.doc 12 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 because they take care of somebody who's a friend, a nice guy. I think Representative Nekritz said it best. If we can't do what we were sent here to do in the total package, then I'm not going to vote to carve out anything until we can address the total package. A 'no' vote is the right vote on this issue."
"Mr. Hannig."
"Yes. Mr. Speaker, there seems to be a lot of misunderstanding on what the Bill actually does, so I would ask to take it out of the record."
"Take the Bill out of the record. Mr. Clerk, Mr. Clerk."
"Representative Barbra Flynn Currie, Chairperson from the Committee on Rules, to which the following legislative measures and/or Joint Action Motion were referred, action taken on October 12, 2007, reported the same back with the following recommendation/s: 'approved for floor consideration' is Senate Joint Resolution 71, recommends be adopted."
Speaker Madigan: "Mr. Colvin. Supplemental Calendar #1. Representative Colvin on a… Ladies and Gentlemen, this is a Death Resolution. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is a Death Resolution. This will be the last item of business today, so after this Resolution we shall adjourn. Mr. Turner or Mr. Hannig. Mr. Colvin. And Mr. Turner in the Chair."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just roughly one month ago, a very good friend of mine, a gentleman many here, particularly those from Cook County, have gotten a chance to know over the years, died. Orlando Jones, Sr. was a 09500160.doc 13 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 very good friend of mine, someone I've known since I was about twelve (12) years old. A gentleman of impeccable character, incredibly able, political sense and insight, worked all his life. He grew up in Chicago Public Housing, went to Chicago Public Schools. Around the age of seventeen (17) he became… befriended by John Stroger who was at that point a Cook County Commissioner encouraged him to go to college where he earned a degree in health care management and a master's degree in public administration from DePaul University. He parlayed those opportunities, along with a keen political insight, to eventually become the chief of staff of the Cook County Board President. He was someone that I relied on often in terms of advice, whether it be political, business… he was always one with the right answers. He was completely unflappable. So many people… so many people leaned on him I often wondered who did he go to when he needed to lean on someone. He's going to be tremendously missed in the political world but probably no more than his wife Cerrelda and his sons JePaul and Orlando, Jr. I would simply ask that you keep his family in your prayers. While I know some… many of you here knew him and maybe just as equally as many who did not know him personally, I would simply ask that simple wish, his two sons, one who's a freshman in college down in Florida and another who is a second-year law student at Northern Illinois University. And if we can have a moment of silence, I ask for the adoption of the Resolution."
"The Gentleman from Cook, Speaker Madigan." 09500160.doc 14 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, I rise in support of the Resolution. I consider Orlando Jones to be a close personal friend. I met him first when he was Chief of Staff to President John Stroger in Cook County. We developed a very strong relationship, a strong friendship that persisted until his very, very unfortunate death. Orlando was an excellent governmental administrator, keen sense of people and what motivated people to do whatever they do. A keen ability to work with people and to understand how what could be done, could be done or could not be done, could not be done. His… his leaving us was terribly tragic, totally unexplainable to me and I join Representative Colvin in… in sending our very best wishes from the House of Representatives to his wife Cerrelda, his son Orlando and his son JePaul."
"Representative Colvin moves for the adoption of the Senate Joint Resolution 71. All those in favor should say 'aye'; all those opposed say 'no'. In the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the Resolution is adopted. Mr. Clerk, Agreed Resolutions. Members, if you would remain standing. After the Agreed Resolutions, we want to do a Death Resolution for a former Member. Mr. Clerk."
"On the Order of Agreed Resolutions is House Resolution 763, offered by Representative Poe. House Resolution 764, offered by Representative Poe. House Resolution 765, offered by Representative Granberg. House Resolution 767, offered by Representative Rose. House Resolution 769, offered by Representative Chapa LaVia. 09500160.doc 15 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 House Resolution 770, offered by Representative Chapa LaVia. House Resolution 772, offered by Representative Reitz. House Resolution 773, offered by Representative Turner. House Resolution 774, offered by Representative Dunkin. House Resolution 775, offered by Representative Saviano. House Resolution 776, offered by Representative Cole. House Resolution 777, offered by Representative Brauer. And House Resolution 778, offered by Representative Black."
"Representative Lang moves for the adoption of the Agreed Resolutions. All those in favor should say 'aye'; all those opposed say 'no'. In the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the Agreed Resolutions are adopted. We have House Resolution 771, Representative McGuire."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a Resolution this morning for a former Member, old friend of mine and old friend of many in the House and Senate, George Sangmeister. And if I could, I'll read this and I will not be too slow in doing it 'cause I know we're in a hurry to get out of here. But it says… WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of George Sangmeister of Mokena, who passed away on October 7, 2007; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was born in Frankfort; he served in the United States Army during the Korean War; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister began his public career in 1961, serving as a Justice of the Peace and Magistrate of the 09500160.doc 16 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 Circuit Court in Will County; he served as State's Attorney in Will County from 1964 to 1968; and WHEREAS, In 1972, George Sangmeister was elected to the Illinois State House of Representatives, where he served for two terms; he returned to Springfield as an Illinois State Senator, serving from 1976 until 1987; during his tenure in the Illinois State Senate, he served as both chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and chairman of the Senate Executive Committee; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was elected to the United States Congress in November of 1988 and was one of only eight new members to unseat an incumbent; he was re-elected to the House of Representatives… excuse me, in 1990 and again in 1992; as a congressman, he served on the Public Works and Transportation Committee, the Veterans' Affairs Committee, and the Judiciary Committee; he retired from Congress in January of 1995; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was consistently endorsed for re-election by local and Chicago media outlets and was named one of the "Top Ten Legislators" in a 1985 poll conducted by the Chicago Sun-Times; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was "Of Counsel" with the Firm of McKeown, Fitzgerald, Zollner, Buck, Hutchison, and Ruttle; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister was a member of many civic organizations, including the Frankfort Unit of the American Cancer Society, the Silver Cross Hospital Foundation Board, the American Legion, and the Frankfort Lions Club; he was a member and former Chairman of the Support Committee for the 09500160.doc 17 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Joliet; he was a former member of the Board of Directors of Joliet Junior College Foundation; he also served as Chairman of the Housing Foundation of Will County, which I serve on also, it's an organization that serves the homeless and those in need of affordable housing; and WHEREAS, His proudest accomplishment was initiating the legislation for the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, which sits on land formerly Joliet Arsenal; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister received many awards and accolades in recognition of his public service; he was the recipient of the Alumnus of the Year Award from Elmhurst College and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from John Marshall Law School; he also received the Alumnus Achievement Award from Joliet Junior College and the Distinguished Service Award from the Will County Educational Service Region; he was named in Who's Who in the Midwest; he was the chairman of the committee that planned the transfer of the Joliet Arsenal from military to civilian use and personally designated the committee to allocate almost 1,000 acres as the site for the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery; I was on the committee with him; (sic-in 1993) he was conferred with the Degree of Doctorate of Humanities, Honoris, Causa, by Lewis University; in 1994, he received a Doctorate of Law from Elmhurst College; in 1998, a Medal of Excellence was created in his honor by Silver Cross Hospital; and WHEREAS, George Sangmeister is survived by his wife, Doris M. (nee Hinspeter); his children, George Kurt (Gina) Sangmeister and Kimberly Ann (Chris) Puckett; his 09500160.doc 18 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 grandchildren, Jordan, Cole, Keegan, and Kinzie; and his numerous cousins; therefore, be it RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of George Sangmeister; and be it further RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of George Sangmeister as an expression of our sympathy. And, Mr. Speaker. I… I know I was late, but I'd like to add the Linda Chapa LaVia was to be a Sponsor of this Resolution, as well as Representative Tom Cross and any other Members that I did not mention would like to be mentioned as Sponsors. I would suggest that the whole House of Representatives, as George served here, also be Sponsors. Thank you very much."
"The Lady from Will, Representative Kosel."
"Thank you very much. George Sangmeister was my constituent, but he was much more than that. He was my first memory of an elected official in the community that I live in, when we moved in there over thirty-five (35) years ago. He worked across Party lines for what was good for the community. He was known for his dedication to his constituents. He was known for being a mentor to anyone who wanted to move into the political world. He is a shining star where he is now and he was truly a shining star in our community. He will be sorely missed. Thank you."
"The Lady from Grundy, Representative Gordon." 09500160.doc 19 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Ladies and Gentlemen, George Sangmeister… you read about in books, people who have a presence about them and you know when someone with a presence is in the room. When George Sangmeister was in a room, even if you didn't see him, you felt his presence. When I first got this job and I was at an event where George Sangmeister was there, I was with Justice O'Brien and she said make sure you introduce yourself to George Sangmeister. So I went up and I introduced myself to him and he smiled at me and he said, 'I wish you the best of luck and I'll be keeping an eye on you, young lady.' And I knew that he would. And… and when he said good luck I knew that he meant it. We can only all aspire to the things that he did when he reached out to everyone to find the solutions that we are all still looking for to the problems the we have in Illinois today. I share with him the fact the we went to John Marshall Law School, the fact the we were both prosecutors in Will County, the fact that we were both Members and I am still a Member of this wonderful, wonderful Body. But George Sangmeister is someone who I have always looked up to and hope that he will still watch over me as I am a Member of this House and I will miss him knowing that he is gone from this Earth. I was at an event earlier in the spring in Will County and George, while he was very, very ill, he attended that event and when it was announced that he was there people stood and still gave him a standing ovation because of the accomplishments that this man had had throughout his life and the respect that he had gained for all that he had done for all of us, Democrats, 09500160.doc 20 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 Republicans, Independents, young, old, black, white, because he knew that it was important to serve the people who gave him the job and he loved that job and respected every single position that he held. And he will be sorely missed and I will miss him as well. Thank you."
Speaker Turner: "The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Riley."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I met George Sangmeister, I think it was around 1977, I became chief planner for workforce development for Will and Grundy County. And it was at a place called Central Grill, I don't even know if it's still down there in Joliet now, but with the County Board Chairman, at that time, Ted Grabavoy. And simply said… I mean all… everything that everyone has said is true but you could always call on him. And anything that happened, any event that occurred, certainly in Joliet or in the region, all you'd have to do is say call George and George would be there. And I remember opening up with him a Job Corps center; it was a long time ago, I think it was around in Wilmingtom or… or some place like that. But George Sangmeister was always there for everyone, and here's a person who had presence and respect no matter what your Party was. And so I have those fond memories of him of someone who always paid attention to what was going on in his area and he will, in fact, be missed. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Representative McGuire asks leave that all Members be added to the Resolution. And now, Representative McGuire moves that we adopt House Resolution 09500160.doc 21 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 771. All those in favor should say 'aye'; all those opposed say 'no'. In the opinion of the Chair is the 'ayes' have it. And the Resolution is adopted. The Gentleman from McLean, Representative Brady, for what reason do you rise?"
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for an announcement. Ladies and Gentlemen, on a little lighter note. I would like to let you know, on your way home you won't have to stop for lunch. If you want to walk into the back rooms there are Avanti's gondolas from Avanti's Restaurant in Normal and there should be plenty of gondola sandwiches for everyone, if everyone just takes one. So have a safe drive home and go get your sandwich."
"And now Representative Burke moves that the House stands adjourned to… The Gentleman from Vermilion, Representative Black, for what reason do you rise?"
"Mr. Speaker. I would like the record to reflect that I am not in a hurry to get home. I'm tired of being called back here every 7, 10, 12 days. I'm tired of coming in at 9 a.m. in the morning, Session starting at 9:10 and we adjourn at 9:57. What I am in a hurry to do is to pass a budget implementation Bill. What I am in a hurry to do is to work out the budget Veto overrides between this chamber and the Senate. What I am in a hurry to do is to do the work that the people sent us here to do. I'm not in a hurry to get home. We didn't do fiddley, diddley, squiddley, squat today and that is an embarrassment to the process." 09500160.doc 22 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
"The Gentleman from Champaign, Representative Rose, for what reason do you rise."
"Ladies and Gentlemen, on Saturday I was privileged to be at the return of the 634th to Mattoon. They've been gone for over a year in Iraq in the conflicts and they have returned. And we were very happy to welcome them back and I just wanted to share that. It was a wonderful day, the emotion was unbelievable, the reunification of families was unbelievable and we're very, very happy to have them home."
"The Lady from Cook, Representative Mulligan, for what reason do you rise?"
"Mr. Speaker. I'm wondering if we're adjourning to a date certain or we're adjourning to the call of the Chair or what is… what are we doing here?"
"We're adjourning until Perfunctory Session on Monday, October 15."
"That's an inadequate answer. I cannot go home to my people and tell them we have not solved property taxes, we have not solved CTA, we have not solved any of the many issues, we have not solved school funding. I don't understand why you can't either… the Leaders can't get an arbiter or somebody in to solve some of these problems. This is an inadequate way to do business. It has been all year and it continues to be so. How do we go home to people that aren't getting property taxes billed, can't meet their school funding and we're not even doing the 'bimp' Bill. We're not even going to be able to give our local people their money because we don't have property tax Bills. We don't know what we're doing with the CTA and the 09500160.doc 23 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 baloney in Capitol Fax about what the Republicans are going to do or not do on that Bill does not include all of us. Quite frankly, this is a disgusting situation. Somewhere we should have a Calendar date certain of what we're doing. Our families cannot plan; you can't have a doctor's appointment; you can't plan anything that you can do; you can't plan to be somewhere to assist a constituent; you can't plan anything. This is way over the top the way this is going. Somebody ought to get their act together and give us a Calendar certain so we can understand what we do. I agree with Representative Black, somebody says to us, will I have to hurry my Death Resolution 'cause we have to be out of here. It's 10:00 in the morning. What day this week have we done the work that we were sent here to do? This is the biggest pile of baloney this year I have ever seen in my life. The fact of the matter that no one can get their act together to get anything done is just unbelievably bad. It's not the Governor, it's not the Leaders, it's all of them together that can't sit down and get their act together. For God's sake, if you can't get along get somebody in to do the work for you."
Speaker Turner: "The Gentleman from Jasper, Representative Rees, for what reason do you rise? Reis? Reis."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know it's probably a little uncertain when we are going to be back here, if we're going to be back here, but if we could get assurances from the Speaker's Office that maybe we could have a week's notice when we're going to be back here. If we know we're not going to be here next week, we can schedule days to be in 09500160.doc 24 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 our district. We have those piled up. They've been piling up all summer. So if we could have assurances from the Speaker's Office that we could have seven (7) days' notice when we're going to be back. Have we had an inkling from the Governor's Office of what's going on, an inkling of anything?"
Speaker Turner: "We have not heard anything yet. Representative Reis, it is the intention of the Chair to give you at least a week's notice."
"How much?"
"A week's notice."
"All right. Thank you very much."
"The Gentleman from Molaro… the Gentleman from Cook, Representative Molaro, for what reason do you rise?"
"Well, next week if we're… if we were in this week later I was going to be wearing Iowa Hawkeye colors. 'Cause I gotta tell you, I gotta be pulling for Iowa and… and let me tell you why though, so Chapin Rose and Bill Black understand this. For the last three (3) or four (4) years nobody bothered calling my office, Illinois wins a few games and I have hundreds of phone calls from constituents looking for tickets and I can't take it any more. All of a sudden, everybody's an Illinois fan. Everybody's jumping on the bandwagon, Chapin, and I can't believe it. I know all our lobbyists from U of I, they're all out of town 'cause they don't want to hear these requests for tickets all of a sudden. Now, I'll pull for Illinois, but I'm just letting everybody know, no tickets are available. Thank you." 09500160.doc 25 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007
Speaker Turner: "The Gentleman from Cook, Representative Dunkin, for what reason do you rise?"
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And Members of the House, since we are… some of us will be in the Chicago area, this is the annual Chicago International Film Festival that I would encourage all Members to try to attend. And so you can really understand and see the history and why Illinois and the City of Chicago's so fascinated with great films, because we've had a tremendous amount of film, producers, and directors, and stars that have come out of the State of Illinois and this is the 43rd anniversary for the Chicago International Film Festival. It’s the oldest and the longest serving film festival in the entire world, the founder is still living. It's a film festival that brings in thousand of people from all over the globe, coming right to our state as it relates to tourism. And I would encourage Members, if you are interested in attending the festival, to get in touch with me or my office or come to one of the many films from around the world and see the various cultures highlighted on film. Thank you."
"And now, Representative Jefferson moves that the House stands adjourned into Perfunctory Session on Monday, October 15. All those in favor should say 'aye'; all those opposed say 'no'. In the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the House stands adjourned into Perfunctory Session on Monday, October 15. And the House is adjourned."
"The regular House Perfunctory Session will now come to order. Introduction and reading of Resolutions. 09500160.doc 26 STATE OF ILLINOIS 95th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 160th Legislative Day 10/12/2007 Referred to the House Committee on Rules is House Resolution 768, offered by Representative Osterman and Senate Joint Resolution 72, offered by Representative Smith. Seeing no further business, the House regular Perfunctory Session stands adjourned until Monday, October 15, 2007." 09500160.doc 27