Illinois House Floor Debate — February 22, 2011

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, let the record reflect that Representative McAuliffe and Mulligan are excused on the Republican side of the aisle today."

"Thank you. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Representative, I don’t know… I don’t know if you understand the protocol involved. Apparently, staff… first of all, I got to tell you, I'm a little bit impressed, at this point, that you're standing alone. This is your first Bill."

"My understanding is that this is the first Bill that you're presenting to this Body?"

"Wow. Where's your support group? Where is the… you're going to answer the questions?"

"Come on over. Well, let me first ask you… did you, upon filing of House Bill 91, and by the way, congratulations, too, for getting a House Bill under 100. How did you do that… for your first Bill?"

"Luck, okay. Well, I hope you have a lot of luck because that’s what you're going to need to pass this."

"Normally, and it has been… and Representative DeLuca, I think, can… can confirm this. Normally, a Representative comes to the House Floor for their first Bill appropriately clad and you… you don’t have a red jacket."

"Well, let me ask you a question. Then based on the fact that… and you know what, I understand you could just have 09700018.doc 6  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 missed that, that's a very technical aspect of first Bill. Would you pull the Bill out of the record, then get a red jacket and then come back and then present the Bill in a manner that… that is a little more acceptable?"

"Well, wait… as an alternative, Representative Randy Ramey is usually able to help out and I think I saw Representative Ramey or some red blur just pass up the center aisle. Perhaps, Representative Ramey can assist you in the proper attire. He has a red jacket available for you, if you don’t mind."

"Okay. Then we can continue. Representative Ramey, if you don’t mind helping the young Lady out. I do have some technical questions related to the Bill. There we go."

"No, you can put it on."

"It's okay to put it on. There you go. Or just put it on. There you go, now."

"That's much better. Could you, again, now that you're clad appropriately, tell us what your Bill does?"

"Well, it sounds to me like you're stalling."

"Well, you're asking… do you believe this to be a very, very important report?"

"Then don’t you think it would be important that they meet the timeline rather than stall for an additional amount of time?"

"So, you're… you're saying it's better to be more accurate than timely."

"That's completely contrary to the way we've been doing business here for… a period of time, so I'm not sure why 09700018.doc 8  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 you want to try that type of tactic, but I'll tell you what, I… I think that you'd be better off trying to go for both timeliness and accuracy, and I think and unless and until you try to make that point, we should vote against this legislation, have you bring this back in a manner that's more acceptable so we meet both goals. I'd urge the Body to vote 'no' on this and have the Lady bring it back in a better form."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to… introduce… up in the gallery… Denise Meehan, who's Andrew's mom. And Denise, I thank you for being here today and Denise was back in my office with her husband Jerry Meehan. Jerry's… to her left. Along with Andrew's brothers, Jerry… I'm sorry, Ethan and also Andrew, they're both there, you guys… raise your hand and Sergeant Michael Smith who is also here… right behind them… providing support to them, as have others… for the last few months. We are… we're very lucky to spend some time, in my opinion, with… Andrew's mom and the others 'cause we got an opportunity to find out what kind of man… a young man, but never-the-less a man, and a strong man Andrew Meari was. And I had an opportunity to spend some time with them along with Representative Stephens, Representative Harris and Representative Bost. And we talked a little bit about… what it meant… to serve in… the capacity he did. And… what had happened and… what it meant to us as a state and as a country. But I said to Denise, what is it we need to know about Andrew, what do people need to know and remember about Andrew? And the first thing she said, or a couple things was, how he smiled, and he always laughed, he was always caring, he was always silly, and he had a good deal of irreverence about him. Which I think kind of struck us all as… how did that irreverence coincide with the life in the Army? And as Denise said, it did, it worked very, very well. But as I looked through some things that were written about Andrew 09700018.doc 16  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 the last few days as I was looking through them, his friends talked about this rambunctious personality who had a love of Techno music, and stayed in touch with his friends, even though he was thousands of miles away. One of his friends that he grew up with since he was seven talked about him more as a brother, who wouldn’t be ashamed or not be afraid to grab all the kids in the neighborhood and say, 'Let's go play football.' And his love for being a DJ at parties was well-known. But I think the thing that struck me, Denise, about Andrew above all else and the caring is critical and the silliness and irreverence are all beautiful things and things that are so critical to a character of an incredible young man, but she said he always wanted to be a soldier. And he carried with him, while in Afghanistan, a photograph of his grandfather, who was in the Korean War. But the thing that kept coming out, and I read a quote from his Uncle Todd Williams. He loved to joke around and loved to tease, that was big in our family, but he was very protective of his cousins and his family. And then Denise went on to say that, while he always wanted to be a soldier, he always had everyone's back. Not just in the nonmilitary world he lived, but in the military world. And she has a bumper sticker on the back of her car that says, 'If you can't stand behind the troops, stand in front of them.' And I think that speaks volumes about the kind of man and the kind of person he was in the Army and serving this country as if he was a leader and that he was always out front. And he provided comfort to those around him and he protected them and he always had 09700018.doc 17  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 our… had their backs. And that, to me, is the sign of an incredible leader. And at the end of our conversation, I think Ron Stephens, I think it was him, said, 'Is there anything else that you're concerned about?' Denise said, 'I don’t want him to be forgotten. All those things are fabulous, but I always want to be remembered and don’t want to be forgotten.' Well, Denise, as far as we're concerned, here in Illinois, and in this General Assembly and in this state and on behalf of this country and the role this General Assembly plays, Andrew is not going to be forgotten. He's a special… special son, a special brother and a special member of the Army and an incredible human being and an incredible citizen of this state and this country and we will not forget Andrew. So, thank you for… your raising Andrew and making him the man he is and thank you, Mr. Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to say something about a remarkable young man who served his country exceptionally well and was an incredible son and brother and thank you very, very much."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t know what I can add to what the Leader just spoke; he did very well. The one thing that I want to say is that he will not be forgotten. But as we talked, there in the Leader's office a while ago, the one thing that many maybe don’t understand, but those of us who… It's one thing that those of us who served understand what it's like to be able to be on the call and ready to go. But the harder job I've had than serving, whenever I 09700018.doc 18  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 served in the Marine Corps, is the fact that my child serves. So not only do I want to say thank you to Andrew, but I want to say thank you to his mother. No one knows the long nights, the times you worry, the fear you have… Not only is Andrew not to be forgotten, but you, Denise, you're not to be forgotten either. For raising a child, instilling into them the importance and love of this country and the willingness to serve others and that he then gave that ultimate sacrifice. Too many times I think that… that when we talk we… we do remember those people who have served and fallen. And we appreciate that service, but we do need to also remember those parents and those loved ones and spouses that stay here. We thank you for that. We hope that you are able to understand how much we do appreciate that and that… and there's not enough recognition that we can give to your son or to you for what he has done, but with that I do want to say thank you. And I do ask, with the permission of the Leader, that all of us would be added as sponsors of this legislation."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. You know, it has been said that the United States is the lighthouse of freedom to the world, and I believe that, but I also believe that its brightest light are the members of our Armed Forces. You know, history talks to us about the greatest generation and the sacrifices that this nation has done to send our most precious assets to expand freedoms, not just here, but everywhere. And so, we know all about the greatest 09700018.doc 19  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 generation, but I think there is a next greatest generation. Andrew graduated in 2008, two years later, when most of us were in college, this young man puts his life on the line so that people he doesn’t even know may have a chance at a smidgen of the freedoms that we enjoy. So I guarantee you that we will not forget and to quote the end of the film Saving Private Ryan, when the Tom Hanks character says, 'Earn this.' We will earn this by making sure his memory lives on. We will earn this by working together to continue to help our veterans. And I hope that you boys will earn this, earn his sacrifice as you continue in life to make him proud. Thank you."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To… to Denise and the rest of the family here with us today, we… we give you what little of our hearts we can. The… we hope that that is all of our hearts, but we are human and we are frail and we will struggle… we will struggle to… to do honor for your family. But as I got to know your son this morning, a little bit by meeting you and his brothers and the rest of the family, we… I learned a few things that were extremely important to me. First of all that his mother, when asked, 'What can we do?' I'll never forget the look on your face, Denise. As if we were doing something for you, nothing else that I could ask for, you said. You also said that you struggled daily with a question, 'What was it all about, raising this boy?' You raised him from a boy to a man and he made up his own mind about how he would live out his 09700018.doc 20  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 life. It was all about him living out his life. I can tell you as a former leader of combat troops, how proud I would've been. I think I served with some men like your son. A little bit irreverent about the military, about life, others maybe, but I also know that when the troops came in and had his radio out with him on the patrol, he was the first one to meet them at the wire and say… as you said, he thought they might have poured sand in the radio and he would take care of his equipment and he was a go-to guy in his squad. He won a few awards. I can tell you that none made him more proud than when, and I bet you were with him when he got the first award, his jump wings. Several members of this Body on each side of the aisle have been awarded those wings. For a young man to then follow that up in combat, to get the Combat Infantry Badge, I can tell you I know how he wore that, that first day because it's… it's not a reward you can work towards. It’s an award that you only get when you have faced America's enemies face to face. It's real combat. Those awards are not given lightly. They are not… for the soldiers honored with them like your son was, it really meant something. What was it all about? Too often we stand here and as Denise said we wish that we would never do this again. That’s true, isn’t it? We wish we would never do it again. But the honor and respect for his country, his nation and his… and for us, that this young man had, cannot be forgotten, will not be forgotten and it inspires others. And I agree with Representative Watson, that greatest generation is the next generation. 09700018.doc 21  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 There will always be Americans like Andy because of Andy and his sacrifice, we will not forget him. God bless you."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, to be a soldier, to be a sailor, to be a Marine, to be an airman is one of the greatest callings that any person can have in life. Andrew's mother said that since he was five years old he always wanted to be a soldier. It is 09700018.doc 22  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 unfortunate that he paid the ultimate sacrifice doing what he loved to do. It is unfortunate that we stand here recognizing that. It is unfortunate that because of our operational strategy around the world, the country's operational strategy, that we may have to stand here again. But to the family, we can tell you this, she was concerned… his mother was concerned… that he would not be forgotten, but she said one thing, which is absolutely so true. She said, 'It is quite possible that six or seven others are alive because of what my son did.' And that is true. There's a phrase that was referred to a little bit earlier and that is you cover your six, an airman would understand that. You cover your back. My sense is that Andrew paid the ultimate price so that his buddies, his fellow soldiers, could be alive. And to the family, we tell you this, our nation, our country, our state, the Screaming Eagles of the 101st Airborne Division are better because of your son's service and we thank you and him for it."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This Bill amends the State Parks Designation Act designating the Harry 'Babe' Woodyard's State Natural Area in Vermilion County as a state natural area, effective immediately. This is an area that was originally given this distinction back in the 1990s in honor of Senator Harry 'Babe' Woodyard. Senator Woodyard 09700018.doc 27  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 served in this Body with distinction and then moved over to the Senate. Unfortunately, passed while in the Senate at a… an age that was much too young. At that point, by gubernatorial distinction, Governor Edgar came out to Vermilion County and designated the Harry 'Babe' Woodyard State Natural Area. And it's been uncovered recently that the statutory paperwork was never completed to make that distinction permanent. And I'm asking this Body today to honor Senator Woodyard by putting that in statute forevermore."

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

"Do you… This is your first Bill?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Okay. Was this a Bill that was cleared by Bill Black for you to carry?"

"Representative Black is very enthusiastic about this Bill. He would term Senator Woodyard as a mentor to him and Representative Black actually took the seat that Representative Woodyard vacated when he moved over to the Senate."

"Well, I want to let you know that I served with both Representative Black and Senator 'Babe' Woodyard and… and let me also let you know that to carry a Bill like this for your first Bill, because see I would love to go ahead and attack you on this legislation, but I really like 'Babe' 09700018.doc 28  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 Woodyard and I know 'Babe' Woodyard. I served with 'Babe' Woodyard and you, Sir, are no 'Babe' Woodyard. Well, maybe in time we'll see how that pans out, but I'm really bothered by the fact because on your first Bill you should be able to be open to… you know, to really analyze a legislation, to really see how you do as far as legislation. And I'd really like to attack you on this, but I really can't because… you know, I know… I knew Babe, I love Babe. It's quite an honor. Representative, maybe I'll just get into you on your second Bill, how about that?"

"Absolutely."

"Representative Black did take this up previously, yes."

"I wouldn't really presume to… to answer that question. It did come to my attention that the matter was not resolved. So, I had the privilege of serving as mayor of a small community; Senator Woodyard was my Senator. And the respect and reverence with which I hold him led me to bring this back to the floor." 09700018.doc 29  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011

"I'm a little unclear on what the final disposition of the Bill last year was, Representative."

"It was amended as part of a Bill that I understand that you were carrying and… and ultimately that… Amendment did not move."

"That’s my understanding."

"I… That’s hard to believe, I know."

"I would be less than honest if I could tell you that I knew the answer to that."

"I don’t know."

"I actually do. I actually know a great deal about the Senator. I had the privilege of having him as my Senator, both as a citizen and as a sitting mayor in his district. As… as you know, Senator Woodyar… Woodyard was a gentleman farmer, he was a terrific outdoorsman, lover of the outdoors, a conservationist. He is someone who having a state natural area named after him is a most fitting tribute to a wonderful public servant in an area that he was really renowned for."

"I… I certainly… I certainly will. I've had the opportunity to communicate with Representative Black and he indicated that the… putting this into statute and having this distinction for his colleague, for as long as Illinois would be chartered as a state, would be a day that he would rejoice in."

"I…"

"Thank you."

"I… I… as I indicated, I… I had a thorough discussion with my predecessor in relation to this and he…"

"It was very thorough. As you know, he can be thorough. And he was very pleased that this kind of a Bill would be carried forward as my first Act in keeping in the tradition of honoring a man who spent a good portion of his adult life trying to make this state a better place for all of us."

"We were successful in getting that… it out of committee. I certainly would not have wanted to disparage the terrific record of my predecessor in any way, but for whatever reason, this matter was left undone." 09700018.doc 32  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011

"There are a couple of other follow-up measures, but I certainly would not characterize those as Bills that the Representative was unable to carry on his own."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will Representative Black yield?"

"It is Representative Black? We keep talking about him, right? Is it his Bill?"

"Oh, he will yield. Okay. I do have a question or two. First of all, Representative, we've established that you've followed Bill Black as Representative… as State Representative. When he left here he said he'd completed 09700018.doc 33  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011 all of his work and now you're saying he hadn’t and you had to bring this up. There seems to be a credibility problem here. Was Representative Black's work completed or not?"

"My understanding is after 25 years of distinguished service that the Representative had given his best effort on all fronts. As some Members of this Body may not know, Representative Black is on the ballot, on this date, running for alderman in the City of Danville, so apparently his work is not complete."

"Well, did… this is really his idea and not yours?"

"The matter came to my attention as the Department of Conservation uncovered that the paperwork had, in fact, not been completed. As I stated earlier, the ceremony had been commenced back in the late '90s in Vermilion County and we wanted to make sure that we didn’t have any ambiguity of what this Body had originally intended or what the Governor back in the late '90s had intended. And we wanted to make sure that every 'i' was dotted and every 't' was crossed, so going forward, what the original intent of this 1100 acres had been would be in statute."

"Did you say how long this would before… how long this would be in place? How long is… this… this action? How long would it last?"

"The intent would be that this would be in place for so long as Illinois would be chartered as a state. It would be in place forever in the context of Illinois as a state of this union."

"Are you sure a freshman can pass legislation obligating the state forever?" 09700018.doc 34  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011

"You asked that question in committee, an outstanding question. I believe that until someone would bring the matter before this full Body to reverse what we're talking about here today that it would, in fact, be the law of the land into perpetuity."

"Well, Representative, I know if Representative Black was presenting this we would all have a great deal of comfort. I'm concerned that I've not heard from him. I kept my cell phone out here on my desk assuming that he was watching your presentation, expecting a call from former Representative Bill Black. It appears he may have lost interest in it. I didn’t receive any communication, any call and still my phone's not ringing. I wonder if maybe he's changed his mind."

"I… I believe that he would be extraordinarily happy to have this matter come full circle and be put into statute. It may well be the case that he's campaigning."

"Representative, you've held up very well under questioning. I'll withhold judgment. Certainly, if I get a call from former Representative Black, it'd make it easier to decide he's still behind it, this was unfinished business and this needs to happen and that you have the authority. But I will… I'll have to evaluate your responses and if I do not hear from Representative Black, whether or not to vote 'yes'. Thank you."

"Thank you."

"Thank you. Will the Sponsor yield?" 09700018.doc 35  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, this is an important piece of legislation and if you don’t believe me, just ask Representative Hays. Representative, where… where is the boat going to be located?"

"This particular piece of legislation would not include a gaming provision. This would be a state natural area that would include hiking and fishing and hunting just over 11 hundred acres."

"So, this… this… I thought I saw Representative Lang up. I figured this had to do with a gaming Bill. No?"

"No. This is not related, Sir."

"Okay. Well… So, what does it do? It names… have you been to this state park yourself, personally?"

"Yes, Sir."

"You've visited it?"

"Yes, I have."

"Can you describe it?"

"It is a… it is a natural area that has trees and grasses that would be native to Illinois. It would be an area that would provide… there are 12 endangered or threatened species there, a habitat for 23 forest interior species. There's hiking, there's fishing, there's hunting."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So how many acres?"

"1104 acres."

"1104 acres. Has that been surveyed?"

"I believe that it has. I believe the state purchased the ground in 1995 and then Governor Edgar came out and dedicated the ground in 1997." 09700018.doc 36  STATE OF ILLINOIS 97th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 18th Legislative Day 2/22/2011

"So, let me ask this question. In 1995 they surveyed this; it was 1104 acres. My understanding is in 1997 it was designated the Harry 'Babe' Woodyard Natural…"

"Area."

"…Preserve… Yeah. And so, why did it take you 14 years to bring this to the attention of the Illinois House of Representatives, 14 years?"

"Well, I was elected on November the 2nd, and I'm hoping on this day, the 22 of February, to put it to bed forever. So, I would like the record to reflect that my involvement in this has been rather expedient."

"So, that’s why it took you 14 years. This is… this is an… you know, I mean, this is important legislation; it shouldn’t have had to wait 14 years. I applaud you for finally bringing it to us. I'm really shocked that it took you this long and I'm not sure that we should support this without the actual boat location being part of the legislation, Representative. I think for a first effort this might be average and hopefully we'll see some better work in the future as… as your term here continues because I think… I think Representative Lang has more pertinent questions on other issues."

"Thank you. I appreciate your perspective and… look forward to the other matter, perhaps, coming back later in the Session."

"Yes. The… it came to my attention that the Department of Conservation had uncovered that the state natural area that had been dedicated in the honor of Senator Harry 'Babe' Woodyard back in the late 1990s had never been reduced to statute in the State Parks Designation Act. This… this Bill seeks to do just that to ensure that the area that has actually been on the Department of Natural Resources website for some time, you can get a full overview of… of the area, is in fact in statute as it should have been… honestly… those many years ago."

"I am."

"Yes."

"I was aware that it was in committee."

"I believe my Bill was filed first and in focusing on one chamber at a time, my focus on this date is to move it through this chamber."

"I am familiar with that Bill, yes."

"Yes."

"In the Senate… it's my understanding that it has passed in the Senate but not in this Body."

"I've already picked it up."

"Yes, Sir."

"Thank you, Speaker. House Bill 189 is the result of a task force that was put together last year to study school district mandates and this Bill basically allows for IEPs that call for speech-only services to… not count toward a 30 percent level which would trigger a second teacher in a classroom. It's something that I know of no opposition to. And would be happy to answer any questions and appreciate your support on."