Illinois House Floor Debate — March 7, 2013

"The House will be in order. Members will be in their chairs. We shall be led in prayer today by Reverend Doris Green, representing the AIDS Foundation of Chicago. Reverend Green is the guest of Representative Zalewski. Members and guests are asked to refrain from starting their laptops, turn off all cell phones, and rise for the invocation and Pledge of Allegiance. Reverend Green."

Speaker Lang: "We’ll be led in the Pledge today by Representative Demmer."

"Roll Call for Attendance. Leader Currie."

"Thank you, Speaker. Please let the record reflect that there are zero excused absences among House Democrats today."

"Leader Bost."

"Please take the record, Mr. Clerk. There are 117 Members present, we do have a quorum. Mr. Clerk."

"Mr. Clerk, Agreed Resolutions. Excuse me, Mr. Clerk, please proceed with the Committee Reports.”

Speaker Lang: “Thank you, Mr. Clerk. And now Agreed Resolutions."

"Leader Currie moves for the adoption of the Agreed Resolutions. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Agreed Resolutions are adopted. The Chair recognizes Mr. Bost."

"The House will be at recess 'til the hour of 12:30 and the Republicans will caucus in Room 114. The House will be in order. Members will be in their chairs. The Chair Recognizes Mr. Bost."

"Thank you, Sir. Mr. Clerk, on page 2 of the Calendar, under the Order… Weekly Order of Business-Second Reading, there appears House Bill 1154. Please read the Bill."

"Representative Nekritz."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Floor Amendment 6 is a continuation of the kind of votes that we were considering last week with regard to the pension Bills… the pension reform effort that… that we obviously are in the throes of. This particular Amendment deals with the cost-of-living adjustments which, as I think I mentioned last week, the… this single benefit constitutes about 20 percent of the overall cost of the… of the… of the pension benefits. And so, if we are going to impact, at all, the rising cost of the pensions and the pressure that's putting on our budget, we must look to the COLA. This is a 10-year freeze on the COLA. In this… I don't think any… any… this has not been part of any other proposal that's been put forth. But this is certainly what Mayor Emanuel put forth when he testified before the Pensions Committee last spring."

"Lady moves for the adoption of the Amendment. There being no debate, those in favor of the Amendment will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves, Members. Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 2 voting 'yes', 67 voting 'no'. And the Amendment fails. Mr. Clerk."

"Leader Nekritz."

"I thought… I believe… I thought that Representative Zalewski was presenting this one."

"Excuse me. Mr. Zalewski."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Floor Amendment #7 does a… makes a change to the pension system that we've been discussing. It… it… it caps the pensionable salary at Social Security index which right now is at $113 thousand. It's important to know that there’s a grandfather provision in this… in this Bill which… which accounts for those who've exceeded that salary but going forward their pensionable salary will be at $113 thousand. It is also important to know that with respect to this specific provision, this would remedy those situations where teachers in later… or administrators later in their career have their salaries inflated to a significant amount and that particular salary becomes onerous upon the system simply because it was inflated later in the… in the career. I think this is the Amendment that, we've been told, has… has much more support than… than other Amendments that have been put forth thus far. And I would respectfully ask for its adoption."

"The Gentleman moves for the adoption of the Amendment. The Chair recognizes Mr. Franks."

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

"Gentleman yields."

"Representative, I think this is a good Amendment. I want to start with that. I've… I've actually filed similar 09800025.doc 6  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 legislation previously. So, I'm glad to see that we're finally going to be voting on it.”

"Thank you."

"Has there been any studies or do you have any numbers that you can give us that would indicate how much we would save, should we pass this?"

"So, Representative, my understanding is that the SURS’s actuarial analysis of House Bill 3411, which has this particular provision as one of its linchpins, would estimate the savings from this provision would bring in about a billion dollars. There’s also a COGFA number that we're not entirely sure of its complete accuracy, so we'll stick with that number for now."

"That's pretty substantial savings. So, what… how this would work would be, people would be capped at the Social Security level which is indexed every year with CPI."

"Correct."

"So, this year would be $113,700 and next year it could be… could be more, correct?"

"Correct."

"Okay. Now, for folks who are earning more, ‘cause we have some high earners. Let's assume we have someone who's making $200 thousand a year and that person has been… or let's… let's use the Governor, for an example. The Governor makes $175 thousand a year. So, the Governor’s been paying in for his pension at 175. How would this effect the Governor of the State of Illinois?" 09800025.doc 7  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Under your… under that hypothetical, because he’s currently making that $175 thousand level, he would be frozen at that $175 thousand salary level."

"Okay. But he would not… now, if he’d paid more than the 175, would he… would he get the 113, 7 when he retired, or would he get 85 percent of the 175 thousand?"

"So, I'm told that… that it would be frozen at 175. If the Social Security index would ever reach that…"

"Oh, okay."

"…he could… then he would rise with that."

"Okay. So, this would be more for people who are not above that level yet, correct?"

"Correct."

"Okay. So… but once you’ve started making more… Let's assume you started making $130 thousand or so, prospectively, then the most you would ever get is 113. So, you would not pay in more than you would actually be able to take out, correct?"

"The answer is yes with… with the caveat that your pension is based on a percentage of your salary."

"Correct.”

“Yes.”

“So, I'm not sure. Let's assume you're in the General Assembly or you're… you're a constitutional officer and you'd be entitled to 85 percent of your last wage, but you have not been elected yet. Okay. So, let’s assume you run for whatever off… the Attorney General. I think the Attorney General makes around 150, but you have not yet been elected. So, if you run for Attorney General and you 09800025.doc 8  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 stay there for 20 years and you’re making $150 thousand, you would not get a pension based on 85 percent of the 150, you would get the maximum of 113."

"That… under… Well, under your scenario, Representative, I'm told that Member would go under Tier… the Tier II system."

"Oh, you're right. Okay. But… okay. So, this would be more for people who would be earning more in the future."

"And a current employee."

"And the current… Okay. Well, I think it's a wonderful Amendment. I think it's long overdue. I'm glad you brought it forward. And I encourage everyone to vote for it."

"Thank… thank you, Jack."

"Representative Nekritz."

"Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Gentleman yields."

"Representative, you, I think very adeq… competently described this is a cap. If… Is… Will someone continue to pay in on the… on the excess salary that they have in excess of the cap as their salary grows in the future?"

"No. The… the answer to your question is no."

"So, someone in that situation could take… Let's just say they’re a school superintendent and they’re making, you know, $150 thousand a year, their salary grows to 160 next year. They could take the 9.4 percent that they’re putting in now and put it into a deferred comp plan, put it into a 401k, create their own investment with it."

"Correct."

"All right. Thank you." 09800025.doc 9  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Mr. Zalewski to close."

"Again, on this particular Amendment, this is one Amendment where I… I believe that House Bill 3411 addresses a fix to the system that would bring in a billion dollars and I… I really think that if it were this Body is going to substantively deal with the pension systems, this is one Amendment where Members should… should think long and hard about voting 'aye' on this Amendment. I'd ask for its adoption."

Speaker Lang: "Gentleman moves for the adoption of the Amendment. Those in favor of the Gentleman's Motion will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves, Members. Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 65 voting 'yes', 7 voting 'no', 1 voting 'present'. And the Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."

"Speaker Nek… Leader Nekritz. Sorry."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have a limited number of benefits that we can look to in order to… to achieve the savings that we… I think are important, again, to bring our expenses in line with our revenues. We've talked about the COLA… the COLA. We've talked about the… the pensionable salary. This is another one of those benefit impacts where we would ask employees, current employees, to contribute 4 percent more into the pension system, phased in over two years. So, 2 percent year one, 2 percent year two. Each… each… this would… this would bring in, in terms of revenue 09800025.doc 10  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 into the pension system approximately… somewhere between 1 billion and 1.4 billion a year."

Speaker Lang: "Lady has moved for the adoption of the Amendment. The Chair recognizes Mr. Zalewski."

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

"Lady yields."

"How much… What would be the cost savings of this Amendment, Representative?"

"I'm told that the… each increase in the contribution of 1 percent is somewhere between 300 and 350 million. So, we're looking at probably at a billion, two to a billion, five."

"And on the issue of contributions to the… from members in the system in general…"

"Representative, I'm sorry, I… I was confused with the 2 percent. So, 1 percent is 170 so multiply that times 4, it's 700 million a year."

"All right, all right. And… and with respect to proposals that have been out there, what's been the recognition on this particular aspect of reform from all sides with respect to increase in contributions?"

"There are a number of the proposals that are out there that include an increase in employee contributions. Certainly, House Bill 3411 does that. There are, you know, a number… I think probably with… I'm sure that there’s some exceptions, but I think I could say that there is a consensus around there, in all the proposals, that an increase in employee contributions will be part of the solution." 09800025.doc 11  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Okay. Thank you, Representative.”

“Thank you.”

"Mr. Ford."

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

"Lady yields."

"Representative, I just have one question. If this Amendment should pass and there is a freeze in COLA, how much would this actually cost the professional in the long run?"

"Representative, it would really depend on what the freeze in the COLA is. I'm… and I'm not sure I understood your question."

"So, I know that there’s a thought to freeze COLAs. And right now the COLAs are at what percentage?"

"The current COLA for a retiree is 3 percent compounded. But I… I would say that every proposal that's been put up on the board, so far, to freeze a COLA has… has really failed to achieve an adequate number of votes."

"Okay. So… but if this passes, COLAs right now would still be in effect. Is that correct?"

"This… this particular Amendment would have no impact on the COLA."

"Oh. And… but what happens if we pass the COLA, in another Amendment somewhere down the line. It may cost the retiree more, right?"

"Well, the retirees are not paying into the system currently. So, those are really two separate questions. Only active employees are required to increase their contributions. Retirees are not paying anything in. They’re 09800025.doc 12  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 only… they’re receiving a check every month. So, there… these would… these would impact two entirely separate cohorts."

"Good. And what percentage of the… what percentage of the state contributors are there? What is it about 7 percent…"

"I…"

"…that’s contributing to the pensions?”

"You mean what is… what is…"

"What percentage…"

"the percentage…"

"Yes… of…"

"…of active employees…"

"Yes."

"…versus retirees?"

"Yes."

"I think it would depend on the system. I… and honestly, I don't have those numbers, Representative."

"Okay. Thank you, Representative."

"Thank you."

"Representative Hernandez."

"Will the Member yield?"

"Lady yields."

"Representative, can you please tell me how… what is the total amount of… You said it's 2 percent increase in premium every two years."

"Oh. For… What's it…"

"So, it's a total of four."

"It's a total of four, correct." 09800025.doc 13  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Okay. And with what we are currently paying into it right now, what it be a total of, then?"

"It would depend on the system. The teachers are paying in 9.4 percent, so this would take that to 13.4. For example, I think we, in the General Assembly, are paying in over 11 percent, so it would take it to 15 percent. And I'm not… so… and don’t have the other numbers right on the top of my head. You know, SER… the… the state employees pay in less because they’re coordinated with Social Security, for the most part. So, theirs would go from… They're… they're at 4 right now, so it would double it to 8."

"Okay. So, it ranges anywhere from 9 to 15 percent or so."

"I… with the first…"

"With… with the 4… the 4 percent increase."

"I would say… I would say it ranges from 8 to 15 percent, correct."

"Thank you."

"Thank you."

"Mr. Franks."

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

"Sponsor yields."

"Representative, I appreciate the cost estimate savings. That's pretty… that’s pretty significant. Now, would this be across all five pension systems?"

"No, I believe this is only for four."

"Okay. And we've… we've left the judges out of this, correct?"

"Yes." 09800025.doc 14  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Okay. Is there been any…"

"And I think… I think with regard to judges, this is… this one is particularly problematic because judges have a… a… a very specific protection in the Constitution for salaries as well. And I think that this would be a particularly problematic change for judges."

"That… that was my concern and that's where I was going. I appreciate that you anticipated that question because… are there any… I guess, are there… are there any prohibitions on increasing the contributions with any collective bargaining issues? ‘Cause I know for us, for those Members of the General Assembly, it's not a big deal; we can do that. But I'm wondering are there any contracts that say opposite to this? Do we have any constitutional issues with this?"

"Well, I think there will certainly be those that would argue there are constitutional issues with this. I'm not aware that this particular component of the pension… of the Pension Code is a subject of collective bargaining."

"Okay. That's… that would be my concern. I think it… it makes sense obviously to maintain the type of pension system that we have. It's not sustainable with the amount that the employees are paying in. So, I think everyone anticipates they’re going to have to pay more in. How did you come up with this number, though? Was there a… Did you look at different ones and how did you settle on this one?"

"Well, Representative, you'll… you'll see that the… in the proposals that are out there, there’s a wide range of 09800025.doc 15  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 requests for additional contributions. So, last week we voted on a 5 percent increase that was…”

"Went nowhere."

"…with no phase in. There… in the… in the proposal that I’ve put forward, it's a 2 percent increase phased in over two years. Leader Lang has a proposal for 3 percent. So, you know, there's… I don't think there’s any magic to any of the numbers. It's really how they come together to achieve the adequate level of savings that… that we need to, again, have the increase in the pension payment match our… the increases in our revenues going forward."

"Well, thank you. I appreciate it."

"Representative Nekritz to close."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, you know, these… this is a… we have a menu of options before us to… to impact benefits in a way that makes the overall pension system affordable for taxpayers and sustainable for those who are expecting this pension when… when they reti… as they age and when they retire. And I think this is a compo… an important component part of the… of the package. Thank you."

"Those in favor of the Amendment will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves. Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 11 voting 'yes', 52… 58 voting 'no', 2 voting' present'. And the Amendment fails. Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. Please hold the Bill on the Order of Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill on Third Reading."

"Out of the record. Members, we're moving to page 3 of the Calendar, under the Order of House Bills-Second Reading. House Bill 64, Mr. Ford. Please read the Bill."

"Mr. Ford."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of the House. I move to adopt House Floor Amendment #2. It removes the requirement that elementary and secondary schools included… include excep… expectations of students using social network websites in school discipline rule policies. There is no opposition to this Amendment. And I move for the adoption."

Speaker Lang: "Gentleman moves for the adoption of the Amendment. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. The Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1017, Representative Feigenholtz. Please read the Bill."

"Representative Feigenholtz."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Floor Amendment #2 to House Bill 1017 is language that was agreed on by all nine parties who are in support of this Bill, predominantly the Illinois State Medical Society, clarifying some points that we made in the underlying legislation."

"Lady moves for the adoption of the Amendment. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The ‘ayes’ have it. The Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. Moving to page 4 of the Calendar. House Bill 1202, Mr. Sosnowski. Please read the Bill.”

"Out of the record, Mr. Clerk. Turning to page 5 of the Calendar, House Bill 1203, Mr. Sosnowski. Please read the Bill."

"Mr. Sosnowski." 09800025.doc 18  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Gentleman moves for adoption of the Amendment. There being no debate, those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. The Amendment’s adopted. Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. Members, turning to page 7 of the Calendar, under the Order of the House Bills-Third Reading, please be aware that we’re going to go down the list and be ready when your Bill is called. First one is House Bill 61, Mr. Ford. Please read the Bill."

“Mr. Ford.”

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Members of the House. I'd move to adopt House Bill 61. What it does, it removes the principal… principal notification at schools about whether or not a student has HIV or AIDS. This measure is supported by the Department of Public Health and it has a host of proponents and I'm very happy that we're at this point in the process where we know more about HIV and AIDS and we know how HIV and AIDS can be contracted. We do know that universal precaution is the best measure for dealing with a person with HIV and AIDS. And I move for the adoption of House Bill 61."

"Gentleman moves for the passage of the Bill. The Chair recognizes Mr. Sacia." 09800025.doc 19  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Sponsor yields."

"Correct."

"Yes."

"Yes."

"It's not communicable, no. It's not. It's passed through blood."

"I can only answer the question that, right now the law states that schools and… should use universal precaution in all circumstances to prevent cases where the schools are not aware of the student that have been tested… that has 09800025.doc 20  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 not been tested and has HIV or AIDS and the school is unaware of it. So, the goal is to deal with all cases the same and use universal precaution when dealing with HIV and AIDS in school. It's also important to know that, right now, the only individual… the only human right now that has this stigma on them are children."

"And the… the problem is the only person right now that still is required to have their status known publicly are children. Well, HIPAA protects children as well. And so, it's important that we protect students right to privacy as well as protecting the rights of privacy of others. If our concern is that HIV or AIDS can be transferred because a student has it, then I think it is most important that we do everything in all settings to use universal precautions. And this Bill sets forth the universal precaution and it kicks it in and it really makes sure that all schools are more aware that universal precautions are used. And the first responders were once against us. They are now in support of this legislation because of it’s time. The CDC and the Department of Public Health, everyone now believes that it's time for this measure to pass."

"I… Yes, I appreciated their concerns. Their concerns were worth listening to and their only concern was they wanted to know. And they feel that if a child has HIV or AIDS, then we should treat those children differently and that's discrimination. I don't think you should treat children differently because they are identified with HIV and AIDS. You should treat everyone as if they are carriers of HIV or AIDS. If we fail to do that, we put every child and every teacher and every faculty member in jeopardy of contracting HIV and AIDS because we’re not using universal precautions."

"We should treat everyone with the universal precaution because some children could possibly have HIV and never had the test. And so, we will assume that the only child that has HIV or AIDS are the ones that have been tested and that the school has been notified. What about the child that's never been tested and… and we don't know about?"

"I can help you with it. Let's say, for instance, we have two individuals that are on the playground and none of 09800025.doc 22  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 the students have been tested, neither of the students have been tested for HIV and AIDS, but one of them has it. So, we don't know about it; so, we're going to treat that child as if he or she is HIV negative because we don't know about it. But… So, we’re going to let that child move about in the normal way because we haven't been notified that this child has HIV or AIDS. Universal precaution says, you treat everyone whether they’ve been tested or not as if they are positive so that we prevent unknown incidents from happening. So, universal precaution is very important."

"It… it's used in schools and it's… yes and that's why the Department of Public Health endorsed this legislation."

“Thank you.”

"Representative Pihos."

"Sponsor yields."

"No. Thank you for that. The answer is no."

"Representative Tracy."

"Gentleman yields." 09800025.doc 23  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"And the entire school."

"Is it possible to prevent a biter from biting?"

“Right.” 09800025.doc 24  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"All right. And you would say that the child that we know of that has HIV or AIDS should be discriminated against and put in isolation because he or she may be a biter and we…"

"Right. So, what do we do about that? What type of response would you…"

"Okay."

"And… and for the record, the CDC and there has never been a case of a… a… where a biter has transmitted HIV or AIDS to a person. So, that's a fact and secondly, I think that… what about the student that has HIV or AIDS that the teacher is not aware of and that child is a biter or receives a bite. What would you do about that? That's why it's great to deal with the universal precaution the way the Department of Public Health is encouraging."

"Now, that's…"

"I… I…"

"That's… So, are you telling me that you believe that you could contract HIV from sneezing and coughing?"

"That's a good… So, you're saying that the child should be discriminated against and put in isolation because of the…"

"You know, everything that you've talked about, when you talk about biting, when you talk about sneezing, all of those are teachable moments for teachers to talk about, we should not bite, to talk about when we sneeze we should cover our mouth, to talk about, when we sneeze we should 09800025.doc 26  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 use Kleenex so that we can… So those are teachable moments and I think that that's… that's covered."

"I have a daughter. She's going to be nine."

"And I appreciate your comments and…"

"I'm glad you bring that up. One of the leading groups that are having an increase in HIV contractions are the high schools. And so, they're discouraged from taking the HIV test because their status is going to be known public. And what we want to do in this state is encourage more people to be tested so that we can prevent them from… and… and allow them to have longer lives and live with the disease."

"I could sure get you numbers." 09800025.doc 27  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"And for the record, I used to teach also. And I think that a teacher has a responsibility and Representative Flowers is always talking about washing hands and we have to make sure…"

"…we do all sorts of things like that. And I think that everyone under this Bill will be protected using universal precaution. And you know, this country has spent so much money on research and knowledge about HIV and AIDS, it only makes sense now that we've come so far and we understand how HIV and AIDS are contracted that we move forward. And we now protect students right to privacy and pass this legislation."

"Mr. Hays."

"Gentleman yields."

"Did you… I'm sorry… I'm sorry you have to repeat that."

"So, you know, I just want to ask you, are you going down a path that someone should know at the school?"

"Okay. No. A custodian…"

“…worker would not be…" 09800025.doc 29  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"You know, I think that what's important is to move into the direction that where we have come to with all the money that we've spent on the study of HIV and AIDS and knowing exactly what and how a person could contract HIV or AIDS and to move to universal precaution to protect everyone in the school and to understand that just because a staff person, a principal, knows something about a person's status, there's nothing they can do to help that person anyway if there is a problem. So, I think that universal precaution protects everyone. When you think about all the reasons why we use universal precaution in… in our daily life, this is one of the times that we have to make sure that we protect the students and the teachers and everyone in the school and make sure that we begin to teach the students to wash their hands more, to… to cover their mouths and do things like that. It's universal precautions that save lives."

"Representative Cassidy."

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

"Gentleman yields."

"Representative, are schools currently mandated to utilize universal precautions?"

"Yes."

"So, curren… under current law, every student must be treated with universal precautions."

"Yes."

"So, by telling a school administrator or a teacher that one kid in the classroom has this condition, we might be setting up a situation where the child might be treated differently."

"Correct."

"To the Bill. I think that it needs to be made very clear, the CDC has… has made clear that there has never 09800025.doc 31  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 been a case of HIV transmission in a school setting. To the previous speaker's issue about HIPAA, when you go to your doctor, you sign an acknowledgement of… of your understanding of HIPAA. These students and their parents are not given that same authority to waive their HIPAA rights. And… and to the issue of the question of… of diabetics in school or kids with peanut allergies or any of those things, the parents make the decision to take the school as a partner in… in… in that issue and in that child's care. My guess is that many parents with chil… who have children with HIV would make that decision. The difference is that this is the only condition where that notification is mandated and it sets up the possibility where misunderstanding and stigmatization of a… of a particular condition could cause a child to be treated differently and… and mistreated in a school setting. And for that reason, I strongly support this Bill."

"Representative Jakobsson."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of this Bill. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Gentleman yields."

"Representative, I know that you’ve been asked this several times, but I just want to make sure that I’m understanding that this Bill is about the child in the classroom and the child that might have HIV. We want to make sure that… Are you trying to make sure that the child is treated just like any other child in the school?"

"Yes." 09800025.doc 32  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"And so, what is… what is… that you talk… I mean, I was in committee and I heard people say, but maybe the child shouldn't be right near everybody else. So, what's your response to that when we think about, you know, somebody said, well, if the child has a cold maybe they're even separated and that was a statement that was made in a committee hearing. What's your thought about that? Should we separate the child?"

"No. I mean, I think that the parent and the physician understands the… the student's level of illness, if the child is ill. And they understand the precautions that have to be taken and that's what I think. And not to mention, that one… one of the most important things that we have to remember that this law that we're trying to repeal violates the HIPAA law. And so, if we here in Illinois want to not be in violation of the HIPAA law, I think it's important that we pass this Bill."

"Thank you. That's another good point that I was hoping that you might make because we know we live under that law and so, I believe everybody should live under the HIPAA law. So, to the Bill. I… I believe that this is a really important piece of legislation to pass. It's really about our students, our children in our classrooms and I'm… and I'm under the understanding that our classrooms are supposed to be inclusive. They're supposed to encourage full participation of all of the students. And so, I encourage an 'aye' vote."

"Representative Flowers." 09800025.doc 33  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. I rise in support of the Gentleman's Bill. We are talking about AIDS and quite frankly, more people have died from MRSA… more people have died from MRSA than from AIDS in this country and in this state and no one is… has passed any type of legislation saying that the teacher has a right to know. So, once again, Representative Ford, I commend you on this legislation and I would urge everyone to vote 'aye' because the children are also protected by HIPAA laws. They have a right to be protected and MRSA has killed more children than AIDS. AIDS is something that we can live with and not die from. I would urge an ‘aye’ vote. Thank you."

"Representative Gabel."

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

"Sponsor yields."

"So, you may have answered this earlier, I… I… I don’t recall, but are there any other conditions, medical conditions, that are required to be reported to the schools?"

"No, Representative."

"And in your opinion, has… has HIV disease and AIDS, has that changed over the years, our understanding of it, our treatment of it?"

"Yes."

"So, I… I think that… To the Bill. I think that, really, our understanding, our treatment of AIDS is so much different today than it was when this Bill was first passed. I think that this is an issue of respect for our 09800025.doc 34  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 students, a respect for privacy and really to be able to treat our… our children with respect in the classroom. So, I think that parents have the ability, if they want to tell the school they can. And I believe that that's what parents of children with diabetes do, if they are concerned about it, they can talk to the school about it. I think parents who have children with AIDS or HIV, they have the ability to talk to their teachers about it and the principal. And I don't think that this disease should be treated differently than all the other diseases that… that children have and that they bring to school. I have one other question for the… for the Sponsor. So, are there any cases that have been identified of HIV being spread through biting?"

"No, no cases. And I've checked that fact and the answer is no."

"Thank you, thank you very much. I strongly support this Bill and I urge all of us to vote 'yes'. Thank you."

"Mr. Ford to close."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker and for all the Members that spoke during the debate. I want to thank Representative Flowers, Representative Gabel, Representative Harris, and our former Member, Representative Connie Howard. These are people that have been… and Representative, of course, Leader Currie, who have been fighting for these issues for a very long time. And I'm just lucky to be one to try to carry this one at this time. And I ask for a favorable vote."

"Those in favor of the Gentleman's Motion will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all 09800025.doc 35  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves, Members. Burke, Fortner. Please take the record. On this question, there are 61 voting 'yes', 55 voting 'no', 1 voting 'present'. And this Bill, having received the Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Stay… stay there, Mr. Ford. House Bill 77, Mr. Ford. Read the Bill."

Speaker Lang: "Continuing down the Order of Ford. Please proceed, Sir."

"Thank you. Okay. So, this Bill… we talked about this Bill and I learned a lot from all of the Members. So, what I did, I went back and I did everything that I could to have a better Bill and now the Bill has no opposition and it has the support of the American Heart Association and has the support of CPS. And so, I will take any questions. And it also only applies to the Chicago Public Schools and it brings Illinois and the Chicago Public Schools in line with the recommendations from the Federal Government. And I ask for the passage of House Bill 77."

"Gentleman moves for the passage of the Bill. The Chair recognizes Representative Pihos."

“Yes.”

"Gentleman yields."

"So, the rules, they are still… I'm being told that they’re still going over the rules. But the one rule that they have established is no trans fats and bought with the federal dollars. And I just want you to know that because of your recommendations, all of the other times when we or I tried to prohibit trans fats, this is only limited now during the school hours. Only during school hours when federal lunch program is in place. It's not for sporting events. It's only during the hours of school lunch."

"You're correct."

"Mr. Moffitt."

"Gentleman yields."

"That's right" 09800025.doc 37  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"All concerns were addressed and it's a better Bill and I'm very happy that I was able to work with both sides of the aisle to give me recommendations to make this Bill better for Illinois."

"That's correct."

"What it does do is make sure that during the lunch hour when… Students can bring whatever they want into the… in their hot… in their bag lunches. It's just saying that during the lunch hour that schools should not serve trans fat with any extra servings, just during the lunch hour. So, basketball games, any extracurricular activities, any sales, like that they're trying to do fundraising, they can continue to sell trans fatty goods at this time."

"You know, that I'm not sure, but I can tell you that the only thing that a school lunch provider would have to do is when they're ordering their lunch… Whatever you buy, if you buy a doughnut, you can buy a doughnut with trans fat or you can buy a doughnut without trans fat. So, the request would be, we would like to have the best lunch for our students here and we recommend that you provide us any products without trans fats. So, it doesn't take a 09800025.doc 38  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 dietician to do it, it just takes someone that can read and make proper orders."

“Thank you.”

"Representative Mayfield."

"Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Gentleman yields."

"Representative Ford, is there any provision in your Bill that allows for exercise?"

"Well, I mean, I don't see one, but… and I’m all for students being fit and I think that it's important that we… when they workout they have good health."

"Well, according to the American Heart Association and many other organizations out there for fitness, and I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but it's diet and exercise. What you’re seeking to do is to remove basically everything from the menu. Yes, you know, we've already got… We're baking the fries. We're baking the pizza. We've removed the Ho Hos, the Twinkies, the doughnuts, all these things are already removed from the schools, but until we put exercise in there, our children will continue to be obese. I feel that this is an extra oversight that is unnecessary for the school district."

"We're not putting anything in, we're just saying that… Right now the Federal Government is saying that you cannot… 09800025.doc 39  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 you cannot provide trans fat items to the students. And so that means that a school, if they're going to serve French fries, if they're going to serve any type of food, it cannot have trans fats. So, we're saying, in this case, for Chicago, not your area…"

"This Bill is just for Chicago?"

"Yes. And it's saying that we should simply just say that when the schools are ordering foods please exclude items that have trans fats."

"But is this going to create an additional expense for the schools because when you start talking about taking out trans fats we're looking at more organically grown foods…”

"No."

"…and those foods are a lot more expensive."

"We don't have…"

"And a lot of our school districts are on budgets."

"You know, right now you can have Twinkies, you can have Nabisco Oreo cookies, you can have potato chips, you can have almost whatever you want to eat and trans fats are not included in it."

"Well, Representative, I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but I'm still…”

"It's only for Chicago."

"…going to vote 'no' on your Bill. I would like to see an exercise component. It is diet and exercise. Thank you."

"Mr. Reis."

"Sponsor yields."

"’Cause you didn't want it."

"And they did. Chicago…"

"…Public Schools said they want it."

"They did; that's why I'm doing this."

"They needed… they wanted… You just gave me the answer. Let the local schools decide. They have decided and I ask you to support their decision."

"There's a lot of things we don't have to do but things happen…"

"And you've got to remember that…”

"They did. And remember this is something that the Federal Government has already made the decision. The Federal Government has…”

“…already sent down the guidelines that…"

"What kind of food?"

"Right."

"So…"

"So, you're saying that we have no duty here to provide for better quality of life for the people that we represent."

"No. They are neutral."

"There's no opposition and the school board that you're talking about, they're for it."

"Yes. For the record, I will not come back with a statewide trans fat Bill for schools."

"No. In fact, guess what, the school districts can receive money for their lunch program because they want to provide healthier choices. So, this can help."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, I mean, they’re going to get it from the Federal Government."

"We're still spending though."

"Representative Flowers."

"Once again, I rise in support of the Gentleman's Bill. In the State of Nevada, they also passed legislation or they were considering legislation to eliminate trans fat because it has been proven that trans fat kills. And trans fat is a double jeopardy; it causes the good cholesterol to go down and the bad cholesterol to go up. It causes our children to have a higher rate of diabetes and our children are going to be sicker longer and they’re going to cost the state that much more because we’re going to have to take care of them that much more longer. It's unfortunate that we have taken exercise out of the school. So, if we were to leave the trans fat in, if we had exercise in the school, maybe they could work it off. But because they’re no longer able to have recess, because they are no longer… able to have gym, they are just sitting there. They’re not moving and as a result it's causing hardening of the arteries for our children. And the reason why the garbage is full because the kids don't want to eat that junk. There's a way that they could eat healthy. We are making a long-term investment into our future. We’re talking about our children. We should eliminate all the bad things in the schools. We don't want guns in the schools. We don't want bullies in the schools. We don't want bad teachers in the 09800025.doc 44  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 schools and nor should we want trans fat. It kills. I urge an 'aye' vote. Thank you."

"Mr. Bost."

"Your request is acknowledged, Sir. Mr. Ford to close."

"Thank you for the opportunity. This Bill only provides for about 30 to 45 minutes of lunch time where we prohibit trans fat goods sold or given to kids in Chicago, in Chicago only. The Chicago Public Schools supports it and I urge an 'aye' vote."

"Gentleman moves for the passage of the Bill. Those in favor vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Acevedo, Feigenholtz. Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 58 voting 'yes', 57 voting 'no', and 2 voting 'present'. And the Gentleman moves for Postponed Consideration. Mr. Clerk."

"Chair recognizes Greg Harris." Harris, G.: "Mr. Speaker, I rise for a point of personal privilege."

"Please proceed." 09800025.doc 45  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 Harris, G.: "I would like to have one of the embarrassing moments where I ask the Clerk to correct the record on House Bill 61. I intended to vote 'yes' as a cosponsor. Due to either operator error or equipment malfunction, I recorded myself as 'no'. I believe, I wish to be recorded a 'yes'."

"The record will reflect your intention. Moving to page 9 of the Calendar, under the Order of Senate Bills- Third Reading, appears Senate Bill 622. Mr. Clerk."

"Leader Currie."

"Thank you, Speaker. I'd like to move the Bill back to Second for purposes of eliminating an Amendment."

"Mr. Clerk, please put the Bill back on the Order of Second Reading and read the Bill."

"Leader Currie."

"Thank you, Speaker. I move that we amend the Bill by taking off House Amendment 1 to Senate Bill 622."

"Lady moves to table the Amendment. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Amendment is tabled. Mr. Clerk. Mr. Clerk, we'll take this Bill out of the record. Returning to page 7 of the Calendar, there… under the Order of House Bills-Third Reading, appears House Bill 100. Mr. Costello. Please read 09800025.doc 46  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 the Bill. Mr. Clerk, out of the record. Returning to page 2 of the Calendar, under the Order of House Bills-Second Reading. Mr. Clerk, please read House Bill 1."

"Third Reading. House Bill 22, Representative Flowers. Out of the record. House Bill 83, Representative Dan Burke. Out of the record. House Bill 86, Mr. Franks. Read the Bill, please."

"Third Reading. House Bill 163, Representative Osmond. Out of the record. House Bill 743, Mr. Jackson. Mr. Jackson. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 982, Mr. Mautino. Out of the record. House Bill… House Bill 1163, Mr. Brown. Out of the record. House Bill 1201, Mr. Sosnowski. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1233, Mr. Sacia. Out of the record. House Bill 1256, Representative Gordon. Out of the record. House Bill 1281, Representative Senger. Out of the record. House Bill 1330, Mr. Mautino. Please read the Bill."

"Please hold that Bill on the Order of Second Reading. House Bill 1379, Mr. Phelps. Out of the record. House Bill 1404, Mr. Bradley. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1453, Kelly Burke. Representative Kelly Burke. Out of the record. House Bill 1486, Mr. Mautino. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1534, Mr. Unes. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1538, Representative Golar. Out of the record. House Bill 1568, Representative Nekritz. Out of the record. House Bill 1570. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1581, Mr. Beiser. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1589. Please read the Bill."

Speaker Lang: "Third Reading. Turning to the next page, Members. House Bill 2232, Mr. Tryon. Out of the record. House Bill 2245, Representative Chapa LaVia. Out of the record. House Bill 2269, Mr. Evans. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 2310, Mr. Beiser. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 2360, Representative Kelly Burke. Out of the record. House Bill 2361, Mr. Mautino. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 2370, Mr. Pritchard. Out of the record. House Bill 2393, Representative Hammond. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 2411, Mr. Hoffman. Out of the record. House Bill 2413, Mr. Hoffman. Out of the record. House Bill 2423, Representative Will Davis. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 2428, Representative Conroy. Representative Conroy. Do you wish to move your Bill to Third Reading? Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. House Bill 1281, Representative Senger. Please read the Bill."

"Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, Committee Report."

"On the… on page 9 of the Calendar, we've… there appears House Bill 622. What is the status of that Bill, Mr. Clerk?"

"Speaker Madigan moves to table the Amendment. Those in favor of the Gentleman's Motion say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The… Those in favor of the Gentleman's Motion will vote 'yes'; opposed vote 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves. Franks, Mayfield, Thapedi, Welch. Representative Mayfield. Please take the record. On this question, there are 115 voting 'yes', 1 voting 'no'. The Gentleman's Motion carries. Mr. Clerk."

"Third Reading. Please read the Bill." 09800025.doc 51  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Leader Currie."

"Thank you, Speaker, Members of the House. I think almost every Member of this chamber is aware that there is a crisis in the performance of duties by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation with respect to the licensing and the disciplining of doctors. The funds from the license fees of doctors do not begin to cover the cost of making sure that we can license doctors in a reasonable time period and also discipline the bad actors, the bad apples among them. What you see before you is the Senate's proposal to solve the problem, at least in the short run. This would ask the Treasurer to move some $660 million from the Local Government Sales Tax Fund to the department for purposes of beginning to get rid of the backlog of applications that are waiting and disciplinary actions that need to be taken. The department was forced in January to lay off 18 of the 26 staffers in the department. And under this proposal, the money from the Local Government Sales Tax Fund will be returned to the fund over a three-year period. In addition, doctor's license fees will go from $300 in a three-year period to $700 until July 1, 2018, when they will go back down to $600. As I say, this will not be a long-term solution to the problem, but it certainly will get us over the immediate crisis. On March 21, those graduate medical students who are looking to begin residencies will decide which hospitals they want to match with, and if we are not able to say to those students 09800025.doc 52  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 we can give you your license in a respectable period of time, none of them will come to Illinois. This is a crisis and I would certainly appreciate your support for the short-term fix that is contained in Senate Bill 622."

"Lady moves for the passage of the Bill. On that question, the Chair recognizes Mr. Franks."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Majority Leader yield?”

"Lady yields."

"Representative, I want to ask a little historical perspective here. How did we get in this situation where we've got a system that is now insolvent that was set to monitor our physicians, which is a very important, vital aspect of government?"

"Simply put, the $300 fee for a three-year period, so a hundred dollars a year, was established in 1987. The department over these last 25 years or more has been asked to do a much better job policing bad apples, making sure that doctors who are fondling patients or providing inadequate care are, in fact, bounced from the profession. But since the fee has not increased since 1987, the department has found it less and less able to do the job. The result were layoffs, of the 26 people in that department 18 are gone. There's one person in medical licensing. There are a couple of people in the disciplinary side of the equation, but it isn't enough to do the job."

"And we've worked together to pass some of those stronger legislation and last year we did that. But I 09800025.doc 53  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 remember back a few years ago and I think that this fund was swept under the prior administration."

"You know, maybe… maybe eight years ago, something like that. Now, let me just say to you and to the other Members of the House that many funds were swept."

"Right."

"There was some money in the fund then, but if we were to take the money that was swept and put it back now, it wouldn't begin to solve the problem, not even close."

"Well, that's what I was going to ask. Because I remember there was millions of dollars that were swept. Do you remember the number, how much it was?"

"I think there were perhaps about 10, 10 million swept. I don't think just from this specific fund."

"No, I mean from this fund."

"No, no, no. There were… there were a lot of funds that were at stake. If we were to try to put them all back to what they had been like in 2005 or whatever it was, that would be quite costly to the Treasury, and in terms of this fund, what we were to give back wouldn't begin to do the job."

"I appreciate that. I'm going to speak to the Bill and I appreciate the Majority Leader's efforts. And I understand what she's trying to do and certainly, this is an important function of our State Government. But unfortunately, we have a process here which allows administrations to sweep funds and there's nothing in this Bill, that once the doctors have their license fees have gone up almost 300 percent, there's nothing protecting that 09800025.doc 54  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 these same moneys won't be swept again. I think we ought to consider a universal settlement here, in the sense that we will stop sweeping these funds because what we’re really acom… amounting to is double taxation. What we have our people are paying into these special funds under their licensing fees, those fees aren't used for what they're intended to do, the state takes those moneys, uses it for something else. I think it's patently unconstitutional to have an excise tax that's not used for the intended use. And now, what happens is the physicians that paid in, they've done what they're supposed to do. They've paid in and the state's took their money, never paid it back and the money that the doctors expected to be there is not and now we're saying we're going to raise the fee 300 percent because we stole the money. I think that's rotten public policy and should this Bill pass, I think we need to have a trailer Bill that says we will not sweep money. We cannot continue to do so or we should do then is not charge these professionals fees because they are not being utilized for what they’re paying. It's unfair and it's illegal. And I'm voting 'no' and I encourage you to do the same."

"Mr. Pritchard."

"Leader Currie yields."

"It will be enough for a while. It will not be a permanent solution. The department says that they will be able to get through the next couple of fiscal years. Part of the problem for this whole fund is that there has been, over many years, a structural deficit building up. To raise the fee at this point to $700 will help, but when it goes back down to 600, we're going, in several more fiscal years down the road, find ourselves in the same pickle."

"I'm sorry. Could you say it again?"

"I think it will be more than three years. I think it… it may be closer to five, but it is not the long-term solution that the department requested of us."

"I believe they are doing just that, Representative. If we’re not paying enough for them to be able to hire staff to do the job, it's hard to say they need be more efficient. I think they have been fairly efficient, but without this infusion of money, it could take as long as a year for a doctor to get a medical license."

"My understanding is that this particular shop in the department is a very efficient shop and operates very effectively. But without the resources, we're not going to be able to give doctors medical licenses in a reasonable time frame and we're not going to be able to get rid of the bad actors in the medical profession."

"Well, I… think… I think when it comes to the licensing, I think they should be able to do it in somewhere between 30 and 45 days.”

"And I think they will be able to do that, but only if we solve the immediate fiscal crisis. When it comes to licensing, or taking away licenses of the inappropriate medical actors, it depends on when they get evidence, when there are problems brought to their attention or discovered in another way and how quickly they can do the kind of investigation they need to do in order to develop a case. But right now, they're hard-pressed to do anything in that arena because there are no resources in the department."

"I thought I had, just a moment. Yeah, I thought I had it in my file here. I do not. But I do know they have gotten rid of bad apples, doctors who have… have run pill mills, doctors who have abused sexually patients, doctors who are engaged in child pornography activities. And I will get to you the actual numbers of…”

"…patients that they have investigate on an average basis."

"No, it's certainly not as small as that, but it is not a big percentage of doctors."

"Again, without this measure we won't be able to go after them at all."

"Representative David Harris." Harris, D.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A question of the Sponsor."

"Sponsor yields." Harris, D.: "Representative, the funds were swept…"

"Many years ago." Harris, D.: "…and… I understand. …and the funds were swept from many other funds, correct?"

"You are correct." 09800025.doc 58  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 Harris, D.: "Have any of those funds been repaid?"

"Not to my knowledge." Harris, D.: "Okay. Thank you."

"Mr. DeLuca." Harris, D.: "Ladies…"

"Excuse me, Mr. DeLuca. I… I'm sorry, Mr. Harris, I thought you were completed with your remarks." Harris, D.: "No… Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, if I may address the Bill. Think about this for a second. The average person out there does not think this government can organize its way out of a paper bag. We have $8 billion in unpaid bills. We have a crushing pension system and we have a credit rating that is in the toilet. And now… and now the fifth largest state in the union cannot license its physicians. That is a disgrace. That is the type of thing that gives us the perception that Illinois can't shoot straight; we can't do anything right. I had an individual from a downstate hospital come to me, a critical access hospital, and he said to me, I have an employed physician on my staff whose license has expired. An employed physician, a physician who should be treating patients and that employed physician cannot treat patients because he can't get his license renewed. That's an employed physician, the hospital is paying his bills, or his salary but he can't treat patients. He's doing clinical work. I was told that an academic medical center in Chicago, one of our premier institutions, cannot… was trying to recruit a surgeon, I don’t know if it was a brain surgeon, but was trying to recruit a high-ranking surgeon. And that surgeon 09800025.doc 59  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 said, I can't get licensed in Illinois. I'm not coming to Illinois. I'm going to go to Minnesota. You know, this is not a real crisis, and I beg to differ with the distinguished Majority Leader, this is a manufactured problem. One month ago, we passed a supplemental appropriation Bill that contained $42 million of General Revenue Fund. In that 42 million was $6 million to Chicago State University, $6 million to Chicago State University. Now, that was very controversial on this side of the aisle. Do you know that there is $11 million sitting in the State Gaming Fund that's designated to Chicago State University that, because of an interpretation by the Comptroller, can't be transferred to Chicago State University. My point in saying that is this, there are dollars out there that could have solved this problem without getting to this point. This is a case of two bullies on the parking lot saying, I'm stronger than you are. The docs say I'm not… I don't want my fee going up until you pay back the money. Why should the doctors be any different than any other fund that has been swept? Why don't we try to pay them all back, because we can't. So, why are they saying, hey, I'm special. Well, I disagree that you're special. I don't think the funds should have been swept. I think you're right, but guess what, you're not alone. At the same time, why is it that the Physician Licensing Act is only extended 1 year at a time? Every other Act is extended for 10 years at a time. Why, because we're going to come back and instead of doing a 1-year and a 2-year and an 11-month and 1-year extension of the Physician Licensing Act, we're 09800025.doc 60  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 going to somehow hold the physicians hostage again next year. Two big guys in the parking lot saying I'm stronger than you. This is a manufactured crisis. It is a disgrace for us to be in this position. This Lady has a solution, maybe it's not the perfect solution, but let's get us out of this silly situation. Vote 'yes' on this Bill and let's move forward."

"Mr. DeLuca."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What's the status of the Amendment, Amendment 1?"

"Mr. Clerk."

"Okay. Thank you. Will the Leader yield?"

"Lady yields."

"Leader Currie, does the legislation without Amendment #1 still transfer dollars from the Local Government Distributive Fund?"

"It does. It transfers 6.6 million from that fund and the repayments happen in three separate… separate chunks of change July 1, 2014; October 1, 2014; and January 1, 2015. And I just for… for… for your purposes, the $6.6 million is coming from a fund that has a balance of $1.115 billion. So. the fund is not at risk if we borrow this money with a commitment to pay the money back."

"Can you give me an estimate on how far behind we are with our payments to our municipalities from the…”

"Yeah."

"…Local Government Distrib… how far behind we are…”

"This is…” 09800025.doc 61  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"…right now?"

"Sorry, this is not the Distributive Fund. This is not the income tax money. This is sales tax money that is collected for municipalities by the state."

"Is… is there any penalty… Well, there's probably not a penalty, but if the payments are not made… the repayments are not made by those dates…"

"Representative…"

"…what recourse is there?"

"Representative, you and I, I hope, will be here and I hope that you and I will make sure that those payments are made."

"Is it going to require any kind of action to make sure that the payments are made or…"

"Our action. We are the General Assembly. We are the appropriators. We decide how to allocate funds and it certainly is my commitment and I know it is yours that we repay those funds in a timely fashion on the schedule that is set out in statute. I should imagine that the locals could, in fact, go to court if the statute says we have to give them back this money on this date and that money on the next date and we don't actually do it."

"Is there a reason why this fund was selected to be the fund we would transfer from?"

"Because this was a fund with a very significant balance, a balance of over a billion dollars, a fund that had collected somewhere 100 and 150 million on a monthly basis. So, there was no risk to the fund if we took a very 09800025.doc 62  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 small, very tiny share, less than 6 percent of the fund for this… for this purpose."

"Would it make it easier to transfer this money from this fund if there was a direct deposit into this fund from the dollars that are collected? I'm talking about my legislation, a piece of legislation that I have."

"Yeah."

"Would it make it easier to then transfer money out of this fund if that legislation was enacted?"

"We hadn't thought of doing it that way. I don't think we need to do it that way because, as I say, you will be here, I will be here and the statute is clear."

"Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Leader."

"Mr. Reboletti."

"Leader Currie to close."

"Thank you, Speaker, Members of the House. This is a crisis. This measure will see to it that we can license doctors and discipline the bad ones. The match date is March 21, two weeks from now and if we do not have a licensing program in place, residents, medical residents will choose any place but Illinois in order to serve patients and in order to continue their medical education. Please vote 'yes'."

"The Lady moves for the passage of the Bill. Those in favor of her Motion will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Acevedo, Arroyo, Ford, Rosenthal. Please record yourselves. Mr. Rosenthal. Please take the record. On this question, there are 65 voting 'yes', 49 voting 'no', 2 voting 'present'. And this Bill, having received the Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Chair recognizes Mr. Bost."

"Thank you, Sir. Returning to page 7 of the Calendar, under the Order of House Bills-Third Reading, there appears House Bill 141. Representative Flowers. Please read the Bill." 09800025.doc 64  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Representative Flowers."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. House Bill 141 amends the Public Aid Code to allow persons convicted of a drug-related felony to receive cash assistance from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. Under current law, persons were permanently unable to receive this cash, but since then the Federal Government has given states the option to opt out of this particular program and allow people that are ex- felons to receive food stamps as well as TANF. I know of no opposition to the Bill. And I'll be more than happy to answer any questions you may have."

"Lady moves for the passage of the Bill. The Chair recognizes Leader Bost."

"Lady yields."

"That is correct."

"I'm glad you asked that question because there are guidelines. This is not a automatic. They will have to follow certain criterias in order to receive this. And the 09800025.doc 65  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 guidelines are, in order to be eligible parents must go… undergo some type of employment assessment, be prepared for achieving some type of employment and self-sufficiency. They… if they owe child support, they will be… they’ll have to pay child support. They will be required to go to school or either be in some type of work-related activity."

"Well, one of the… one of the specific guidelines would be or is that they would have to pay their obligations in regards to any type…”

"…of child support."

"You know, Representative, there are… whatever the state… the state sets the guidelines, the state."

"But we don't make the rules. We… we pass the laws, but we don't make the rules. There lies the difference."

"So, therefore…"

"Right?"

"That's right."

"So, we need to talk to JCAR."

"I'm not on JCAR. Are you on JCAR?"

"I'm not on JCAR either.”

"All I do is pass the law."

"But if we could talk to someone that’s on JCAR, maybe we could talk about that and have that rule implemented. But right now…”

"Yes." 09800025.doc 67  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"JCAR, JCAR, JCAR."

"We let… we…"

"Representative, Representative…"

"…I would love to be able to work with you on such a piece of legislation…"

"…but in the meantime…"

"…House Bill 4… 141 does not address that issue."

"And so, therefore, we should not be debating that issue at this moment."

"But you…" 09800025.doc 68  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Let us work on that."

"Can we work on that, please, but in the meantime, JCAR, JCAR, JCAR."

"Yes, Representative. Yes, Representative.”

"Yes, Representative."

"You and I, we can do anything together, but not right now."

"Oh, gosh. They were set…"

"You know what I mean."

"Representative, can we get back to…"

"…House Bill 141?"

"I have…"

"Sir, I am older than you."

"I have my own personal summers. Okay? Please. Thank you."

"Thank you."

"Finally."

"Mr. Durkin."

"Mr. Reboletti."

"Sponsor yields."

"Well, first of all, Representative, under the circumstances in which you just gave, they haven't been convicted of a crime. That's number one. Number two, the reason why I think this Bill is so important because while those people may have been convicted and served time, while they were incarcerated, Sir, we gave them three square meals a day, we housed them, we fed them, and we clothed them. So, once they get out, in order for them to no longer be a burden on the taxpayers, because it costs us over $67 thousand a year to keep this person incarcerated versus maybe a 300 and some-odd dollar TANF check that would allow him, until such time that he is able to find a job, there's criterias in which this person would have to go through. They would have to be eligible for empl… the employability assessment. They would have to be prepared for some type of employment. They will be required to work into some type of related program for 30 days. But while they were incarcerated, they didn't have to do any of those things. So, if we may, for the… the… because we know the 09800025.doc 71  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 constraints that the state is under and we can no longer continue to have a revolving door to allow people, who are guilty of being poor, who cannot find a job and this will be an opportunity to give them some assistance. So, either way it go, we’re going to pay for them. Either we’re going to pay for them to be incarcerated, which is much more expensive or we’re going to pay them… pay for them to have TANF through our taxes until such time they are able to find a job and to become taxpayers themselves."

"Mr. Ford."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And of course I rise in support of Representative Flowers’ Bill. I just want to ask you, Representative Flowers, if you would yield."

"Yes."

"Lady yields."

"Representative Flowers, who does TANF provide assistance to?"

"TANF presently provides assistance to the needy, the elderly, and the people who qualify for TANF."

"And you would say that… that children are part of the people that qualify, is that correct?"

"Of course, children, yes."

"And I would say that one of the number one reasons regardless to any of the concerns that people may have to support this legislation is to support babies, to support children regardless to what the families may be going through. To vote 'no' against this Bill would be saying that you refuse to feed babies. So, I appreciate you bringing this Bill to the House Floor so that we can take care of the needy in our state. Thank you."

"Mr. Reis.

"Representative, I'm glad…"

Speaker Lang: "I'm sorry, Representative. Did you have a response?"

"Yes. I'm glad you… I'm glad you brought that up because I would like for the Members to know that this ban 09800025.doc 73  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 disproportionately effects female offenders and of the… most female offenders are in dru… in jail for drug felons, 28 percent of these female offenders are parents living with minor children and if they do not receive TANF to pay the rent or keep the lights on, their children will once again become wards of the state. That will cost the state even that much more. So, what we're trying to do with this Bill, Ladies and Gentlemen, is to keep people out of prison to allow them to become independent, to allow them to go through a drug treatment program. After all, they have served their time. So we need to stop penalizing them and start helping these people to find jobs. And I would appreciate an 'aye' vote."

"Mr. Reis."

"Lady yields."

"I can't give you an estimate on how much TANF would cost, right now. Currently, they’re not allowed to apply, so I cannot tell you how much it will cost. But I can tell you that it costs us more than $38 thousand…”

"…for the inmates. That does not include the children, it does not include the probation officer, and it does not 09800025.doc 74  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 include the other entities that we will, as taxpayers, will be having to pay for."

"Yes, there is. In the program, they will have to go for drug testing programs. And they will have to be in a… they will have to be in a… It does not… I'm sorry, please forgive me. The Bill does not address drug testing."

"Well, I don't know if you are aware but recently there was a court case that deemed that law unconstitutional because many states have tried it and recently, as I stated, the court has deemed that to be unconstitutional."

"Well…"

"Well, you know, this is not only about drugs. This is about a felony and that could be one of the felonies, so therefore, once again, that would be another cost that would have to be incurred by the people of the State of Illinois.”

"And once again…”

“Pardon me?"

"Well, to answer your first question. If I may quote the ACLU, welfare recipients are no more likely to use drugs than the rest of the population. That's number one. And number two, your second question, in regards to how long, we know the economy in regards to jobs is very hard to come by and truly for an ex-offender it’s even harder. So, these people will be placed into… They will be eligible to receive the TANF only if they are eligible to go to parenting classes, if they go through an employability assessment. And then you have to… and you have to take into consideration that maybe some of them have income that would not allow them to need this TANF."

"Representative Tracy."

"Lady yields."

"How many people are currently on TANF?"

"No, I have no idea, but…"

"…I can imagine, because of the economy, there's more people on TANF throughout the United States." 09800025.doc 77  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Well, Representative, don't get me started on that one, but yes, we did cut people off TANF last year under the disguise of supposedly saving money…"

"…but recently a report came out that we did not save any money at all."

"And Representative?"

"Well, Representative, I guess the part that's kind of confusing to me, the people… That's… that's exactly who this Bill is addressing, the people who are in need of TANF funds. Remember, we pass laws to prohibit these people from getting TANF in the first place and food stamps. We just recently passed laws to allow them to get food stamps. Now, we’re slowly undoing what we've done and we are allowing them to have TANF and the Federal Government has given 09800025.doc 78  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 states the opportunity to do that because initially this was a federal ban, it was a federal ban. And then we…"

"…found out that… Pardon me?”

"Well, I do know that the Federal Government has given all the states more money to expand Medicaid. I do know that."

"Well, one thing about it, Representative, either way it go, we haven't got more moneys from anyone to put more people in jail and to hold them longer only because they are guilty of wanting to feed their family. They're guilty of only wanting to keep a roof over their head. They're guilty of not wanting to die in this freezing cold because they need some utilities. They are guilty of just wanting to be treated like human beings. Because they committed a crime does not mean that they should be sentenced to death and not only them sentenced to death is their entire family that will die in a cold house, in a dark house or either go hungry. This is America; we can do better. I know we can."

"We pay $67 thousand or more to keep that family incarcerated, but we won't give a mere $15 thousand to keep them in their homes, in their communities. Whereas that they will no longer be a burden and maybe the possibility 09800025.doc 79  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 of them finding a job, maybe the possibility of them being able to go back to school, maybe with the possibility of them being able to pay taxes to put more revenue into the General Revenue Fund. Maybe if we gave them that opportunity and get out of their way, they will become self-sufficient."

"Representative, all I have to say is those of us without sin cast the first stone. No one is perfect and everybody is deservant of a second chance."

"And… and so…"

"…and so, I'm not God. I'm not about to pass judgment on anyone. If I see someone hungry, I want that person fed. I don't want nobody's child to go hungry because of the sins of their mothers and fathers. That's not who I am. That’s not who we are. That's not what we should be doing for the families and the taxpayers because this same felon that you’re talking about was probably once a taxpayer. They paid their dues. There are… They are entitled to what their tax dollars have been doing for other people as well."

"Excuse me, Representative, let me tell you something about the TANF. You know the reason why it's called TANF? First of all, all the money comes out of the GR revenue funds, GRF revenue fund and so it depends how you want to split the pie. So, the tax breaks that we give to the wealthy, the tax breaks that we give to the business people, those are TANF funds also. Those are taxpayer dollars. So, if I can give tax breaks to the wealty… wealthy, if I can give tax breaks to business people, surely I can help the poor. What is wrong with us that we refuse to help poor people? Do we see ourselves in these people? What are we afraid of? We're talking about children. Why can't we help the children? You don't have to like the parents, but can we respect the child, please? Can we help the babies?"

"Representative Will Davis." Davis, W.: "Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"

"Sponsor yields." Davis, W.: "Representative, I… As I've listened to some of the debate, I think maybe some clarification on some order might be necessary because I think for many of us when we see drug felony we’re thinking about someone who probably is moving or distributing large sums of some illegal substance. So, can you maybe clarify under, I guess, if you can, and I don't know if you can… It's possible that someone may be convicted of a drug felony that has a very small amount of something, correct?"

"You're correct, yes." Davis, W.: "Okay. So… so, my point being is that, as many have talked about, 'cause I think they're thinking about big time drug dealers and things like that. Sometimes we could be talking about someone who may be in possession of, you know, a couple of joints, if you will, very small amounts of… of cocaine. I'm not saying that they are users, maybe they unfortunately were in a situation where they were holding it for somebody and who may be eligible for TANF. So again, we're not necessarily talking about, I think in 09800025.doc 82  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 the mindset of some, people who are driving Mercedes Benz, living in large houses, we're talking about people who otherwise would be eligible for TANF. Which means that they’re low income, possibly poor but unfortunately have been caught in a situation where they maybe have been charged with a felony for very small possession, if you will. Something of that nature. Is that correct, Representative?"

"You're correct, Representative. This also could have been a young person as a teenager who was convicted of this crime, now he's a young adult. He cannot find a job. He cannot get TANF. He cannot go to school. This is giving him a second chance." Davis, W.: "Abso… Absolutely, Representative, and that’s… that's the point that I wanted to make, Ladies and Gentlemen. Again, let's start thinking about drug offenses, even if it's classified as a felony, as someone who may be pushing or moving large amounts of a particular substance. We're talking about regular everyday people who, for whatever reason, maybe… maybe have been charged with a felony for a small possession or something… something of that nature. So again, these are people who would otherwise be eligible for TANF, if for no other reason would be eligible for TANF. I'd like to encourage you to support the Lady's Bill and lets pass this so that we can continue to provide resource for individuals in our state which is what we, as government, are supposed to be doing. Thank you."

"Representative Ives."

"Lady yields."

"Representative, in 1996 Bill Clinton passed a law and he did TANF, welfare reform. And as a result, that was the height of the crack cocaine. And that's when we started passing all kinds of laws in regards to, if you’ve been convicted of a crime, you cannot collect welfare. That was the purpose of it then. Since then, Representative, we have realized that we've painted ourselves into a corner. We have locked people up longer for crimes that used to be probationable. And we have ended up spending more money on incarceration and destroying people's lives because we never did have enough beds to give them the type of treatment, like an alcoholic get treatment. We don't grow these drugs over here for the most part, the crack cocaine. We do grow the marijuana, but for the most part these drugs are being imported to our country, placed into our communities, and children and peoples lives were being destroyed. So, now the Federal Government is realizing that we've made an error. And as a result… as a result, there are 39 states that have modified the ban that said we need to change this because this is costing us more money because these people who are being incarcerated, again, are being incarcerated for crimes because they wanted to feed their family, they wanted to keep a roof over their head. So, let's try to help them as opposed to hurt them. And I 09800025.doc 84  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 just want to answer some of the previous questions that were asked."

"Okay. I'm sorry. Yes."

"No, because right now we don't know how many people would fall into the category."

"The Federal Government has given states the opportunity to opt out. And as I stated earlier, 39 states have eliminated this ban and they have allowed states to give TANF as well as food stamps. In Illinois, we have opt out in regards to the food stamps. So… so, we've allowed these people to have food stamps and now this Bill would allow them, with conditions, to also collect the TANF."

"Absolutely, what they need to live with."

"Pardon me?"

"Absolutely."

"I would… I wouldn't say it's…" 09800025.doc 85  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Pardon me?"

"No, no, no, no, their basic needs are met."

"No, I'm… You know, I'm sorry Representative, I don't know what shelter are we giving them? We're not… I don't understand what you're talking about."

"I don't know what you're reading from, but I can tell you that we are not… Only in the jail, yes, in the jail while they’re locked up, we are providing them with food and shelter, while they’re locked up. But now we want…”

"I'm sorry, Representative. Can you speak a little closer to the mic? And I don't… what are you asking?"

"It is my understanding that two years after their conviction, if they complete the program they would be eligible."

"Yes."

"After the two years."

"Yes."

"Yes."

"That was the initial Federal Law."

"Only for certain felonies. Only for certain felonies."

"No. No."

"As I stated earlier, there's no statistics that says that ex-offenders are more apt to use drugs than anyone else. And there's no statistics that shows that people that are on TANF use it for drugs. The point of this is that a woman or man who's on TANF would be able to be self- sufficient and not go to prison because they are trying to provide food on the table…"

"…or provide for their family.”

"Excuse me. Excuse me. Excuse me. Whatever you do, don't you put words in my mouth, please."

"Don't do that, please."

"No do not do that. Don't do that. Now, if you want to ask me a question…”

"…if you want to ask me a question, please feel free to do so."

"Does that have anything to do with this Bill?" 09800025.doc 88  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013

"Are there any… are there drug users that are not on TANF?”

"Are there rich drug users?"

"Are there rich drug users?"

"Oh. Well, then…"

"Excuse me."

"I'm sorry."

"Excuse me, Representative. Excuse me. I just need for you to understand that, while that person is convicted of a crime and serving time in jail, we are spending thousands and thousands of dollars a year to keep this person that's been convicted of a crime incarcerated. And as a result, it has caused us not to be able to spend more money on senior citizens, not to spend more money on education, not to expand our libraries and our institutions, and our access 09800025.doc 89  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 to health care because of what we've been doing. And I'm trying to follow 39 other states that realize the errors of their ways. According to the Federal Government, we've made some mistakes. It is okay, the Federal Government said, to now allow these people, who have served their time and under certain conditions, to be able to apply for food stamps, as well as TANF. For food stamps as well as TANF so they will not return to prison, so they could be self- sufficient, eventually find a job and become a tax contributor as opposed to a tax burden on the State of Illinois."

"Mr. Zalewski."

"Speaker, I move the previous question."

"Gentleman moves to the previous question. Those in favor of the Gentleman's Motion will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the previous question is put. Representative Flowers to close."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. I want to make a correction, please. Representative Tracy asked me a question and I was not able to answer her properly. And I would like to answer the Lady's question. I want you to know, Representative, as a 09800025.doc 90  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013 result of the… the rolls, there's less people that's on TANF today and we have over $100 million increase from FY12. The rolls have dropped, so we have ample money and ample space to add these people on to the roll without being a burden to the State of Illinois, without being a burden to any other program. Ladies and Gentlemen, I want you to remember, with this legislation we're talking about children. And if a man or a woman wants to try to do the right thing, can we please help them. It's less expensive to help them with 200 and some-odd dollars a month versus $67 thousand a year. I would appreciate an 'aye' vote on behalf of the children of the State of Illinois as well as the taxpayers. Thank you very much."

"Lady moves for the passage of the Bill. Those in favor of the Bill will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Mr. Arroyo. Please take the record. On this question, there are 36 voting 'yes', 80 voting 'no'. And the Bill fails. Members, on page 2 of the Calendar, under the Weekly Order of Business-Second Reading, there appears House Bill 1154. Mr. Clerk, what is the status of the Bill?"

Speaker Lang: "Please return that to the Order of Second Reading and read the Bill."

"Mr. Zalewski."

"Mr. Speaker, I move for the adoption of Floor Amend… Amendment #10. It is a gut and replace that becomes the Bill."

Speaker Lang: "Gentleman moves for the adoption of the Amendment. The Chair recognizes Representative Osmond."

"Representative Osmond, we're about to adjourn and go to committees. So, the Sponsor has taken the Bill from the record. Does that change your request?"

"Sponsor takes the Amendment from the record. Mr. Franks, for what reason do you rise?"

"I wanted to ask about the Amendment, but if we're going to adjourn I’d…"

"All right. So, we'll move on…”

“Thank you.”

“…because the Bill’s out of the record.”

“Thank you.”

“Mr. Clerk, take the Bill out of the record. And now, leaving perfunctory time for the Clerk, Leader Currie moves that the House stand adjourned 'til Friday, March 8 at the hour of 10 a.m. Those in favor say 'aye'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the House does stand adjourned 'til Friday, March 8 at the hour of 10 a.m." 09800025.doc 92  STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 25th Legislative Day 3/7/2013