"House Perfunctory Session will come to order. Committee Reports. Representative Barbara Flynn Currie, Chairperson from the Committee on Rules reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: recommends be adopted, referred to the floor is Floor Amendment #2 to Senate Bill 1."
"The House shall come to order. The Members shall be in their chairs. Representative DeLuca will take his seat. We shall be led in prayer today by Father John Jamnicky, who is the Pastor of St. Raph… Raphael the Archangel Catholic Church in Old Mill Creek, Illinois. Father Jamnicky is the guest of Representative Osmond."
"Let us pray. Oh God, You are the creator and the source of all life. You have shared Your life with me so that I may serve You. May I be the best of servants, never putting myself or my selfish interest first, but keeping You, my God, and Your creation as the focal point of my life. May I be a good and faithful servant. You have chosen and selected all who are gathered here to be public servants. We are not only Your servants, we are the servants of the servants of God. All servants have great responsibility in caring for Your creation, naming Your creation, and providing an environment of peace, harmony, respect and justice. Fill me with the gifts of Your spirit. Give me the gift of wisdom, of understanding, of counsel, of knowledge, of fortitude, or piety, and a fear of the Lord so that You and You alone may judge me a good and worthy servant. Where there is hatred, let me bring love. Where there is injury, let me bring pardon. Where there is 09800048.doc 1 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 doubt, let me bring true faith. Where there is despair, let me bring hope. Where there is darkness, let me bring light. Where there is sadness, let me bring joy. Make us, Your servants, a channel of Your peace, Amen."
"We shall be led in the Pledge of Allegiance by Representative Cross." Cross – et al: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Speaker Madigan: "Roll Call for Attendance. Representative Currie."
"Thank you, Speaker. Please let the record reflect the excused absence of Representative Flowers."
"Mr. Bost."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let the record reflect that all Republicans are present and ready to do the work of the people."
"Mr. Clerk. Mr. Clerk, take the record. On this question, there are 117 people responding to the Attendance Roll Call. There is a quorum present. Mr. Clerk."
"Committee Reports. Representative Jakobsson, Chairperson from the Committee on Higher Education reports the following committee action taken on May 01, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 1688, Senate Bill 2163. Representative Hoffman, Chairperson from the Committee on Labor & Commerce reports the following committee action taken on May 01, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 09800048.doc 2 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 104. Representative Franks, Chairperson from the Committee on State Government Administration reports the following committee action taken on May 01, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 39, Senate Bill 204, Senate Bill 1670, Senate Bill 1693, Senate Bill 2183, Senate Bill 2332. Representative Ford, Chairperson from the Committee on Restorative Justice reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 1854. Representative Jackson, Chairperson from the Committee on Counties & Townships reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 1430, Senate Bill 1499, Senate Bill 1846, Senate Bill 1950, Senate Bill 2268. Representative Mayfield, Chairperson from the Committee on Public Safety: Police & Fire reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 1456. Representative Chapa LaVia, Chairperson from the Committee on Elementary & Secondary Education reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 84, Senate Bill… correction, Senate Bill 1550, Senate Bill 1703, Senate Bill 2157; do pass as amended Short Debate is Senate Bill 2199; recommends be adopted as amended is House Joint Resolution #5. Representative Monique Davis, Chairperson from the Committee on Insurance reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: do pass Short Debate is Senate Bill 1658, Senate Bill 1729, Senate Bill 1730, Senate Bill 1758. Introduction of Resolutions. House Resolution 296, offered by Representative Pritchard, and 09800048.doc 3 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 House Resolution 299, offered by Representative Reboletti. These are referred to the Rules Committee."
"Mr. Clerk, on page 8 of the Calendar, on the Order of Resolutions, there appears House Resolution 169. What is the status of the Resolution?"
Clerk Hollman: "House Resolution 169 is offered by Representative Hatcher. Amendment #1 was adopted in committee. Floor Amendment #2, offered by Representative Hatcher, has been approved for consideration."
"Representative Hatcher."
"Thank you, Speaker. Resolution that we brought forward is with the Olympic Resolutions to improve wrestling as part of a continuing Olympic sport. The Amendment that's on the floor simply inserts Illinois details."
"All right. Mr. Clerk, is there an Amendment?"
"Floor Amendment #2 is offered by Representative Hatcher."
"Representative Hatcher wishes to offer the Amendment. Those in favor of the Amendment say 'aye'; those opposed say 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. The Amendment is adopted. Now, Representative, would you wish to speak on the Resolution as amended?"
"If I might. Thank you so much, Speaker. As you all know, the Olympics is the oldest athletic Illi… event in the world. And as part of that, wrestling has been a part of the Olympics from the very inception of its beginning. Much of the world was stunned whenever it was discovered that the Olympics would improve wrestling in 2016, but 09800048.doc 4 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 intends to exclude it in 2020. This Resolution is part of an effort, internationally, to keep wrestling as part of an Olympic effort."
"Is there any further discussion? The Lady moves for the adoption of the Resolution. Mr. Cross."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If we could get folks attention on this. I… I think we're about to hear from another speaker that happens to be in the House, a former Member of the General Assembly of Illinois and… and Speaker of the other House, Denny Hastert. I think, Speaker Madigan's going to have him address the chamber. But one of the reasons that Representative Hatcher and I are working on this Resolution and are asking for your support is of the… the significance and the importance of wrestling in the State of Illinois at the high school level and at the collegiate level. And there is nobody that has been a stronger proponent or advocate for wrestling in the State of Illinois than Denny Hastert. Many of you know Denny because of his time in the Illinois General Assembly and his time in Congress, and of course his time as the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. But I got to tell you, many of us in the Fox Valley area, whether it's Kay Hatcher, Tim Schmitz, first knew Denny as he… as a high school teacher and as a wrestling coach. I happened to have Denny as a teacher in high school at Yorkville High School. I graduated back in 1976. And while I didn't wrestle, there were a number of young men at Yorkville High School who had the experience and the opportunity to go through an exceptional wrestling program led by Denny Hastert. When I 09800048.doc 5 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 first got to high school in 1972, the wrestling program in the State of Illinois only had one class, if I remember correctly. One class, and Yorkville High School is very small. I don't know, there were a little over 100 kids in my class, so put that in perspective for all the other high schools in the State of Illinois. In 1972, a young man by the name of Gary Matlock, with only one class, became a State Champion in wrestling. It was unheard of, and that happened because of the leadership and the coaching of Denny Hastert. Move ahead three more years to 1976, four more years, and the Yorkville High School wrestling team, 12 people had an opportunity to go downstate to Champaign. Nine of the 12 men on that team, boys, young men, made it to the State Championship, three of them became State Champions. And Yorkville High School, a small little high school, located at Fox Valley, won the State Championship. And while as special as that was for those young guys and for the school and for our area, what I think was even more special is, I think, if you talk to any of those 12 kids, or any of the kids that went through the Yorkville… went through Yorkville High School as part of the wrestling program, would tell you that beyond just learning how to wrestle, Denny Hastert was a… was a mentor, was a parent, was a coach in so many ways and made them exceptional individuals as they went on into life. And I think Denny would tell you that that opportunity to coach and lead and mentor happened because of the experiences he had as a head coach of a wrestling program. We have a state that has a proud heritage and a background in wrestling, and the 09800048.doc 6 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 opportunity for numerous kids to engage in wrestling at a variety of ages, whether before high school, through high school, into collegiate level is something we really should be proud of. And for the International Olympic Committee to say, we're going to stop wrestling, is a shame. It has been something that has been a very, very worthwhile tool for Illinoisans and for our kids throughout the years. So, I want to applaud Representative Hatcher for taking the lead on this. She represents Yorkville and knows the history of the sports program behind wrestling. But I also want to say thank you to Denny Hastert who's done so many great things for this state in the political world and we appreciate that on both sides of the aisle, I know. But what he's done for athletics, for high school coaching, for high school teaching, and for more than just wrestling, I want to say thank you. And Denny, it's good to see you in the chamber and I know we're going to get to hear from you, but I think we would all be doing a lot of kids a great opportunity by supporting this Resolution and I, too, would appreciate a 'yes' vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Representative Williams."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to thank Representative Hatcher for bringing this to the attention of the Body. My nephew, Colton, is 14 years old. He is… and recently won the U.S.A. Wrestling Folkstyle National Championship in Iowa earlier this month. He will be 21 years old during the '20… '20 Olympics, and I know he spends many weekends, many hours, my brother and his family, traveling all across the country to wrestle 09800048.doc 7 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 competitively. I would hate to see the opportunity for him and many other energetic committed young people foreclosed by this decision. So, thank you again."
"There being no further discussion, those in favor of the Resolution… Representative Hatcher."
"Just to add to the details. While we've all heard what… how important it is… that wrestling is to people, we should know that there are 17 thousand youngsters in the State of Illinois that are involved in wrestling, and we have 18 universities. That being a fact, I would hope that every Legislator in this Body is… name would be added to the Resolution. Thank you and I urge a vote."
Speaker Madigan: "The Lady has requested leave that every Member be added as a cosponsor to the Resolution. Is there a leave? Leave is granted. Every Member shall be added as a cosponsor of the Resolution. There being no further discussion, the question is, 'Shall the Resolution be adopted?' Those in favor say 'aye'; those opposed say 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. The Resolution is adopted. And would the… would the staff retire to the rear of the chamber, and would the Members please take their seats? Would the staff retire to the rear of the chamber, and would the Members please take their seats. As mentioned by Representative Cross, we're very privileged today to have with us a former Member of the Illinois House of Representatives, former Member of the United States Congress, and former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Denny Hastert distinguished himself here in the Illinois House as a very dedicated, thoughtful State Representative who worked 09800048.doc 8 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 cooperatively on major issues such as a major rewrite of the Telephone Regulation Act and the Electric Regulation Act. And… and his hallmark, during his service here in the House, was that he just wanted to work with people to solve problems and to solve issues, and he did very, very well. And then he went on to the Congress of the United States and served with great distinction as the Speaker of the House, and I can tell you that service as a Speaker anywhere is a tough job. And so, let me give you Denny Hastert."
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you, Leader Cross, for those kind introductions. You know, it's a humbling experience to come back where you started your political career from, and I look around this chamber and think of the debates and the arguments and the sometimes humorous things that have happened. But really, when it comes to it, I look across this Body and there's not too many left that were there when I started in 1980. It was a bigger House then, there was 177 Members, and our… our desks went way under the… the place where folks could stand and look down at you. And so, we reduced this House by a third, but when we did that, we changed, sometimes, the political equation or formula on how things got done. But we're able to change, and we're able to… to work together. I… I guess when you look back, my experience here, the… the first 6 years that I served in this House, I probably got more done here, in this Legislative Body, then I did the first 12 years I was in Congress. You don't realize it, but you can do things in three or four months 09800048.doc 9 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 here, that takes us 6 years to do in the U.S. Congress because you have the ability to reach across the aisle, you have the ability to work together, and you have, really, the ability to get things done. So, when it really comes down to it, that's our challenge, and that's what we strive to do. And I appreciate your taking the time, I know it's a very busy time of the Session. You have a lot of very, very important issues coming down, but to take some time and think about this one issue, which sometimes thinks, well, that's not a very important issue. This is something about the U.S., it's wrestling, and the U.S. Olympic Committee, or International Olympic Committee. But when you look at the opportunity that we give our children, I can only look at the opportunity that I had when I was a young man, and I had a coach, and I had an opportunity to… to perform, and I was told… I was shown that I could do much more than I ever dreamed I could do. And I guess that lesson went with me in a coaching career, it went with me here in the Legislature, and then went on with me on to Congress. So, you know, this whole business is about ordinary people being able to do extraordinary things. And to take away opportunities from young people today, not only to be able to participate and to try to look at it and say, you know, I can be an Olympian someday. I can set my goals, and that's where I want to go. And for a, I think, a wrong-headed decision made by the International Olympic Committee, which is all internal politics of people who didn't have constituencies, they happen to be princes and sisters or kings and sheiks and those types of people. But we need to send them a 09800048.doc 10 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 message. We'll be one of 30-something states passing a Resolution, as well as the U.S. Congress, on to the U.S. Olympic Committee, and I think they will. You know, wrestling is one place where countries like Iran, and Russia, and United States, and Turkey, and Mongolia, and Korea, and all of the stands in the former Soviet Union country… parts of the Soviet Union are now individual countries, they all have earned medals in this sport. The… they raise more medals… more countries have earned more medals in wrestling than any other sport offered by the Olympic Committee, and it's wrong to take the decision that they have. I applaud this Body for standing up and saying, this is the right thing to do; we need to change. There is ability to do that, and people need to take notice. Anything that gets done begins with an initiative somewhere, with somebody really believing something in their heart and their spirit that they can make a change. And when you get elected to this Body, or some stay as some of you may be moving on to the U.S. Congress, or the U.S. Senate, who knows, or the U.S. Presidency, because people from this Body have gone there, you have the ability to make huge changes. You have the ability to make people's lives better. You have the ability to change what the future of this nation is for good. So, thank you. Thank you for the opportunity. It's great to be back. God bless you."
Speaker Madigan: "Mr. Clerk. Mr. Clerk, on page 3 of the Calendar, on the Order of Senate Bills-Third Reading there appears Senate Bill 724, Representative Currie. Mr. Clerk, what's the status of the Bill?" 09800048.doc 11 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 724, a Bill for an Act concerning liquor. Third Reading of this Senate Bill."
"Mr. Clerk, has the Bill been read a third time?"
"Yes. Third Reading of this Senate Bill."
"Representative Currie."
"Thank you, Speaker and Members of the House. It used to be the rule that you could not be the president of the… of a village of a city in the State of Illinois and also hold a liquor license in that city, because the mayor was automatically the liquor commissioner. Some years ago, we changed the rule. We said if a community is 50 thousand or less in population, the mayor could have a liquor license as long as somebody else was appointed to be the liquor commissioner and we had fairly tight controls about who that individual might be. Well, we've come to a situation in which a newly elected mayor of a city, that is a little bit bigger than what that population standard holds, has been elected mayor, does have a very popular restaurant that holds a liquor license, and so this Bill would say, we'll raise the population from 50 thousand or less to 55 thousand or less. You should know that the change from… from no community to 50 thousand meant we had 1336 villages and cities across Illinois for whom that provision held. If we pass Senate Bill 724, we will add only 5 communities to that list. I think it's important for us to respect the wishes of the people of Oak Park, who have elected a new mayor, and pass Senate Bill 724 so that the new mayor can be sworn in on May 6, without fear of losing his 09800048.doc 12 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 livelihood. I'd be happy to answer your questions, and I'd be grateful for your support."
"The Chair recognizes Representative Cabello."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise for a point of personal privilege."
"State your point."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, if you look up here at the gallery, we're honored to have some of my coworkers from the Rockford Police Department Color Guard Unit. These men are not only my coworkers, they are my friends and they are my heroes. And please, join me in welcoming them here in Springfield."
"Representative Currie. Excuse me. Mr. DeLuca, do you wish to speak on the Bill… on the Bill?"
"Yes. I have a question."
"Mr. DeLuca."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Leader yield?"
"The Sponsor yields."
"In the event that there's a… a liquor violation by the establishment that the mayor owns, how would they handle a hearing? How would that be handled?"
"Through the new commissioner, who… the new liquor commissioner, who would be appointed by the… by the body, by the city council, and who would be someone who has a… a lawyer… a legal license, could not have any liquor interest in the village or in the city. So that person would be appointed, having to meet certain ethical standards and the liqu… and the liquor commissioner would be the one that would establish what happens next." 09800048.doc 13 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Okay."
"So, the mayor would have no role in selecting the new liquor commissioner, and that is currently the law for 1336 communities across Illinois."
"Okay. Thank you very much."
"Representative Currie to close."
"I'd appreciate your 'aye' votes."
"Those in favor of the passage of the Bill signify by voting 'yes'; those opposed by voting 'no'. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Representative Gordon. Representative Reis. Have all voted who wish? The Clerk shall take the record. On this question, there are 65 voting 'yes', 50 voting 'no'. This Bill, having received a Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Representative Lang."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of personal privilege."
"State your point."
"Thank you. I'd like to introduce to the Body many executives from JP Morgan Chase, who have joined us today. They came to Springfield yesterday, met with a lot of us, and now they wanted to watch the festivities in the House. So, welcome to Springfield."
"Mr. Sims, for what purpose to do you arise?"
"I rise on a point of personal privilege…"
"State your point."
"…Mr. Speaker. Today, we have with us Cameron Nelson. He's in the gallery on the Republican side. He's a seventh grader. He's here in Springfield representing the City of 09800048.doc 14 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 Chicago in the statewide history fair, with his project entitled Brotherhood of the Sleeping Car Porter – Frontiers of the Perfect Union. Please rise and be recognized by the Illinois House, Cameron."
Speaker Madigan: "Mr. Bost, for what purpose do you seek recognition?"
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We need the record to reflect that Representative Reis is excused today."
"Would the Clerk please record that request. Representative D'Amico, for what purpose do you seek recognition?"
"Point of personal privilege, Mr. Speaker."
"State your point."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just wanted to announce that last night we had the House-Senate softball game, and that… it was a great time, it was had by all. The House won the game 12 to 5, so the trophy stays in the House again. So, I just want to thank everyone for coming out and supporting the team and for everyone that came out and played. It was a great night. Thank you."
"Representative Scherer."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of a personal privilege."
"State your point."
"I have the two honorary Pages here today. That would be Benjamin and Julia Taraszewski, and if you'll have a little stand up for us. We appreciate your help today."
"Mr. Turner in the Chair." 09800048.doc 15 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Members, we will begin on the Order of Second Readings, on page 3 of the Calendar, starting with Senate Bill 30. Representative Sacia. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 30, a Bill for an Act concerning government. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
Speaker Turner: "Representative Sacia. Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, Senate Bill 33, Representative Franks. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 33, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, Senate Bill 47, Representative Will Davis. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 47, a Bill for an Act concerning public aid. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, Senate Bill 50, Representative Davidsmeyer. Please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 50, a Bill for an Act concerning wildlife. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 62, Representative Golar. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill." 09800048.doc 16 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 62, a Bill for an Act concerning health. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 63, Representative Golar. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 63, a Bill for an Act concerning State Government. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 72, Representative Tryon. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 72, a Bill for an Act concerning safety. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 93, Representative Hammond. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 93, a Bill for an Act concerning State Government. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 922, Representative Beiser. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 922, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1169, Representative Mell. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill." 09800048.doc 17 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 1169, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1170. Out of the record. Senate Bill… Senate Bill 1170, Representative Acevedo. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1170, a Bill for an Act concerning wildlife. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1191, Representative Evans. Mr. Clerk, please the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1191, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1197, Representative Beiser. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1197, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1213, Representative Mayfield. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1213, a Bill for an Act concerning the Department of Juvenile Justice. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1225, Representative Sims. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill." 09800048.doc 18 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 1225, a Bill for an Act concerning aging. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1287, Representative Wheeler. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1287, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1292, Representative Sims. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1292, a Bill for an Act concerning health facilities. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1293, Representative Tracy. Out of the record. Senate Bill 1303, Representative Lilly. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1303, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1321, Representative Sims. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1321, a Bill for an Act concerning public health. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1322, Representative Kay. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill." 09800048.doc 19 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 1322, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1340, Representative Zalewski. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1340, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1293, Representative Tracy. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
Clerk Hollman: "Senate Bill 1293, a Bill for an Act for warehouses. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1373, Representative Brady. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1373, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1383, Representative Brauer. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1383, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1439, Representative Bellock. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill." 09800048.doc 20 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 1439, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1497, Representative Tryon. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1497, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1524, Representative David Harris. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1524, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1530, Representative Tryon. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1530, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
Speaker Turner: "Senate Bill 1620, Representative… Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, can you read the status of Senate Bill 1530, please."
"Senate Bill 1530 was just read a second time. It's on the Order of Second Reading."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1620, Representative Hammond. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill." 09800048.doc 21 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Senate Bill 1620, a Bill for an Act concerning wildlife. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1538, Representative Halbrook. Representative Halbrook. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1538, a Bill for an Act concerning wildlife. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1623, Representative Golar. Representative Golar. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1623, a Bill for an Act concerning health. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1691, Representative Harris. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1691, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1814, Representative Franks. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1814, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed." 09800048.doc 22 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1871, Representative Martwick. Representative Martwick. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1871, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1954, Representative Mayfield. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1954, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 1214, Representative Lang. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1214, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Senate Bill 2234, Representative Zalewski. Representative Zalewski. Out of the record. Senate Bill 32, Representative Mussman. Representative Mussman. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 32, a Bill for an Act concerning State Government. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Mr. Clerk, Agreed Resolutions." 09800048.doc 23 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
Clerk Hollman: "Agreed Resolutions. House Resolution 293, offered by Representative Riley. House Resolution 294, offered by Representative William Davis. House Resolution 295, offered by Representative Phelps. House Resolution 297, offered by Representative Poe. House Resolution 298, offered by Representative Manley. And House Resolution 300, offered by Representative Hammond."
"Representative Currie moves for the adoption of the Agreed Resolution. All in favor say 'aye'; all opposed say 'nay'. In the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the Resolutions are adopted. Mr. Clerk, Senate Bill 1493, Representative Sullivan. Please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1493, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Clerk, please hold that Bill on the Order of Second Reading. Mr. Clerk, House Resolution 146, Representative Evans. Please read the Bill."
"House Resolution 146 encourages drivers in the state not to smoke in a motor vehicle that contains a minor under 13 years of age."
"Representative Evans."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd ask your support for House Resolution 146. This Resolution was initially a Bill, which I required individuals or mandated that individuals receive a fine if they smoked in their vehicles with children under the age of 13, and I moved it to a Resolution because we got enough regulations as it is. And I decided to make it a Resolution. I ask your support because yesterday we wore 09800048.doc 24 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 our gym shoes to fight against cancer, to fight for cancer research, and we know that, unfortunately, cigarettes are a cause of cancer and children should have the opportunity, in my opinion, to make the decision of whether or not they want to participate in activities that could potentially be cancerous or cancer causing. So, I ask you, and I ask you to not just support this Resolution, but to communicate to those individuals in your various communities that cigarettes cause cancer and the secondhand smoke is dangerous, particularly, to our children. Let them make the decision to take care of their health or to not do that. We want to encourage healthy living and we want to protect our children, even protect our children from ourselves. So, I ask you for your support for this Resolution. Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Members of this Assembly."
"The Gentleman moves for the adoption of House Resolution 146. All in favor say 'aye'; all opposed say 'nay'. In the opinion of the Chair, the 'ayes' have it. And the Resolution is adopted. Members, Speaker Hastert is down in the well. If you'd like to take a picture, please come down and have your photo taken. Thank you. Leader Acevedo, for what reason do you rise?"
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of personal privilege."
"State your point, Sir."
"You know, folks, earlier today we had some policemen out there and their families and it just goes to show you that in this… in one moment lives… so many lives can be changed. I'm going to tell you two stories that happened to 09800048.doc 25 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 my dear friends. One of them was named Donny Marquez. We worked in the same unit, along with myself and Senator Muñoz. While issuing a warrant, he busted the door down not knowing that the gentleman behind there was fully loaded with about six handguns. Unfortunately, he was killed in the line of duty. They actually even showed it on TV that how long the gunfire lasted while they were… they were having the shootout on trying to save Donny's… grab Donny's body into safety, but unfortunately, he succumbed to his injuries. Another one is a very dear friend of mine, and he was a fraternity brother of my son's in Western University. His name is Alejandro Valdez, 24 years old. He gets a call on the air, shots fired. He responds to shots fired, and as he's doing an investigation, he's in plain clothes, they do a drive-by on the police officers. Imagine that, a drive-by on police officers. Unfortunately, he was killed in the line of duty as well. I was fortunate enough to pass a piece of legislation that would enhance penalties and make sure that these individuals who are carrying weapons, unlawfully, do not get probation but prison time. So, please, just remember the job that these brave men and women do day in and day out, because when they leave their homes, they never know if they're coming back. Thank you so much."
Speaker Turner: "Thank you, Representative. Representative Reboletti."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I know that it's a little bit loud in the… in the gallery but I, too, would like to talk about a friend of mine that was killed in the 09800048.doc 26 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 line of duty when I was a prosecutor at the State's Attorneys Office in Will County, and his name was Jonathan Walsh. And on August 20 of 2004, he was responding to a burglar alarm which ended up being a faulty alarm. And on his way to that call, he was hit by somebody who was actually revoked for drunk driving. And as he was broadsided, his squad car was rammed across the street. He was pushed into a trailer, and he died almost instantly when his aorta was severed. He had been on the job for about three and a half years and we had spent time moving up the ranks together from traffic court to misdemeanor court, and up to the felony courtroom. Many folks with Joliet Police Department, from their Honor Guard, from their bagpipes were here today to remember him. His parents were also here. We also had Trooper Deatherage's family here, as they were honored for his service, and they have a long road to hoe for themselves. I would ask that you all keep all of these officers in mind as they go about their jobs every day, keeping ourselves and our families safe. Thank you very much."
Speaker Turner: "Thank you, Representative. Representative Bost."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I… I know that it's a kind of an exciting time and people are moving around the floor, but the last two speakers just spoke about those men who just serve us to the point that they gave the ultimate sacrifice. But yet, the Body doesn't seem to understand that we need to be quiet and reverend at a time when we're offering up respect to those people who have served us and 09800048.doc 27 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 done that, and they're their families and their friends. I would just ask that we… we could pay attention to what we're talking about so when these type items come up, we would give the proper reverence that should be given at that time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Representative Dunkin."
"Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen and Mr. Speaker. Point of personal privilege."
"Please state your point, Sir."
"Ladies and Gentlemen, if you look over to my right there, there are some wonderful students who were brought down here by their… their teacher, Miss Anna Erickson from Von Steuben High School. Can we welcome them to the House of Representatives."
Speaker Turner: "Welcome to your Capitol. Representative Monique Davis." Davis, M.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to bring special recognition to a wonderful police officer that we lost in Chicago. His father was a police officer. He served two tours of duty in Iraq, Afghanistan. And he comes home to his community in Chatham, and someone trying to steal his motorcycle murdered him. This officer was young; he was a brother, a son, an uncle, and I think we owe him a debt of gratitude for his memorial service in the Army and also his service… service to the police department. His name was Thomas Wortham. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
Speaker Turner: "Thank you, Representative. Representative Moffitt." 09800048.doc 28 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Two things. I want to rise to a personal priv… point of personal privilege, but if we have… I'll… I'll make that first and then, just to offer an idea."
"Please…"
"I'd like to recognize a group that's here at the back of the chamber, in the balcony, over on the Republican side. And this is a group of people whose service all of us hope we never need, but we're so thankful they're there for us when we do need help. I'd like to recognize members of the Illinois State Ambulance Association for the work they do for us in EMS. They have a reception this evening at Saputo's from 5 'til 8. Would you please make welcome members of Illinois Ambulance Association, up here. Thank you."
Speaker Turner: "Welcome to your Capitol. Representative Moffitt."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just the other point. We have acknowledged some people that have made the ultimate sacrifice with different ones that have been mentioned. Normally when we do that, it's a Resolution and we're talking. Today, of course, was the memorial for police officers. I think, with your indulgence, it would be appropriate for a moment of silence for those that have been mentioned, but for all fallen police officers, the ones that were… the one that was honored today and… and throughout our history. Could we do that? Would that be appropriate? Those that…" 09800048.doc 29 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Yes, Sir. Will all Members rise for a moment… for a moment of silence. Thank you, Representative Moffitt."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank…"
"Representative Sandack, for what reason do you seek recognition?"
"Good afternoon, Mr. Speaker. A point of personal privilege, please."
"Please state your point, Sir."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Ladies and Gentlemen, I have a good group of constituents, friends, from Superior Ambulance. I think they're somewhere in the gallery. If they'd rise, and we give them a nice, warm welcome to Springfield, I'd be appreciative."
"Welcome to your Capitol. Mr. Clerk, Senate Bill 48, Representative Soto. Can you please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 48, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. Second Reading of this Senate Bill. No Committee Amendments. No Floor Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Representative Bost."
"Thank… thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just a point of personal privilege, if I might. I know it was brought up about the softball game earlier and I'm not sure that this was mentioned, but during the softball game, we actually made a major trade with the opposing team last year. And we actually, now… Representative, former Senator, Sandack was the most valuable player and… and was amazing in… in what he did. And… and it was really nice because we traded 09800048.doc 30 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 Senator Connelly, who probably didn’t do a lot for the Senate and… and we were glad to go ahead and send him over. And… and so, we're… we are glad to have Ron here to help us and Connelly over there not to help them."
"Representative David Harris." Harris, D.: "And… and to amplify what the previous speaker just said, we traded three of us to get one of him."
"A good trade. Representative Bost, for what reason do you seek recognition?"
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. An inquiry of the Chair."
"Please state your inquiry, Sir."
"We're just wondering if maybe we were waiting on the Age of Aquarius to come back before we do anything, or we just… What is the plan?"
"It sounds like a good idea to me."
"You probably don't remember the Age of Aquarius, but that's all right."
"Mr. Clerk."
"The Rules Committee will meet immediately. The Rules Committee will meet immediately."
"Mr. Bost."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The House Re… I will wait."
"Thank you, Representative. Mr. Clerk."
"Committee Report. Representative Barbara Flynn Currie, Chairperson from the Committee on Rules reports the following committee action taken on May 02, 2013: recommends be adopted, referred to the floor is Floor Amendment #3 to Senate Bill 1; and approved for 09800048.doc 31 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 consideration, referred to the Third Reading is House Bill 2562."
"Representative Bost."
"Thank you… thank you, Mr. Speaker. We would request an immediate Republican caucus in Room 114, and if the Members could hurry there as quick as possible so that we can get started."
"The Republicans will caucus in Room 115… 114 immediately, 114, Republican caucus."
"The House will be in order. Representative Lang in the Chair. The Chair recognizes Leader Currie."
"Thank you. Please add Representative Jakobsson to the list of excused absences from this point forward."
"Mr. Clerk, Senate Bill 1 on the Order of Second Reading. Please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. This Bill was read a second time on a previous day. Amendment #1 was adopted in committee. Floor Amendment #2, offered by Speaker Madigan, has been approved for consideration."
"Speaker Madigan."
"Mr. Speaker, would you withdraw Amendment #2?"
"Amendment #2 is withdrawn. Mr. Clerk."
"Floor Amendment #3, offered by Speaker Madigan, has been approved for consideration."
"Leader Cross."
"I thought you were going to make a Motion to waive the time… time requirement, which is why I was going to speak, which I… I'm… I agree to that… to do that." 09800048.doc 32 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Madigan moves to suspend the appropriate rules to allow this Bill to be heard now. And those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Motion is adopted. Speaker Madigan."
"Mr. Speaker, I would move to adopt Amendment #3, adopt the Amendment on Second Reading, move the Bill to Third Reading, then consider the Bill on Third Reading."
Speaker Lang: "Those in favor of the Amendment say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."
"No further Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Please read the Bill."
"Senate Bill 1, a Bill for an Act concerning public employee benefits. Third Reading of this Senate Bill."
"Speaker Madigan."
"Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, this is the comprehensive Bill on pension reform that we have all worked on now for several weeks. It incorporates numerous provisions and I will detail those shortly. But before I get to the provisions, let me first thank and compliment, first, Leader Tom Cross; next, Representative Nekritz; next, Representative Senger; next Senator Biss in the original group of 21 Members who came together to work cooperatively on this legislation, and all of whom will have played a critical role in the drafting of the legislation and the passage of the legislation. There are 14 main items in this Bill that I would like to set out for you. So to begin, number one, the Bill would provide a new 09800048.doc 33 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 funding schedule for the four state pension systems, bringing those systems to 100 percent funding in 30 years. Next, there would be a new method of certifying contributions. This method has already been approved by the House in House Bill 1277 sponsored by Representative Senger. Three, there will be supplemental contributions to the pension systems beginning in Fiscal Year '20. The state is currently making payments on pension obligation notes from 2010 and 2011. In 2019, the state will make a final payment on these notes. At that point, this Bill would commit the state to annually contribute 1 billion in addition to the state's scheduled contributions to the four state pension systems. This is an idea which has been advanced successfully by Representative Fortner. Number four, the Bill would provide a funding guarantee so that if the state and the Legislature fails to make the required payments, the pension systems will have a right under the statute to bring a mandamus action to compel the state to make the appropriate payment. Number five, the pensionable salary cap for Tier I employees would become the current pensionable salary cap for Tier II employees. Number six, there would be a new method of calculating the COLA. The COLA would be based on 3 percent of a maximum annuity amount based on the years of service, and the cap will be $1 thousand for each year the employee has worked. This idea was originally proposed by Senator Radogno and is now part of the Bill. In addition, there'll be a delay in the implementation of the COLA. Retirees who are age 67 or older would be unaffected by this delay. Those under age 67 09800048.doc 34 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 would have their COLA paused until either they reach age 67 or until the fifth anniversary of their retirement, whichever comes first. Number seven, the Bill would increase the retirement age for those 45 years old or under. This has already been approved by the House in House Bill 1166. Number eight, there would be an increase in employee contributions by 2 percent. Number nine, the Bill would eliminate the subject of pensions from collective bargaining. Number ten, there will be an adjustment in the COLA for Tier II Members of the General Assembly Retirement System. This would lower the General Assembly Retirement System down to one half of CPI, to bring it in line with the other systems. Number eleven, it would prohibit nongovernmental organizations from participating in state systems. Number twelve, it would change the effective rate of interest for university and community college employees hired before 2005. Number thirteen, it would prohibit the use of pension funds to pay the costs associated with health care. And finally, number fourteen, it would require a separate appropriation request for the employer normal cost in the amortization of the unfunded liability, when that request is submitted by the Governor's Office as part of the budget making process. Those are the 14 highlights in the Bill. This Bill has been worked deciduously by many, many people. Obviously, it does not meet every request. Obviously, it does not make everybody happy. I think we're all familiar with the severe fiscal problems of our state, and the fiscal problems of the pension systems are a large, large part of that broader problem. In my judgment, this is 09800048.doc 35 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 a critical action that must be taken now, must be taken for future budget making, must be taken for the fiscal well- being and reputation of the State of Illinois. And I would recommend an 'aye' vote, and I'm available for questions."
"Speaker Madigan has moved for the passage of Senate Bill 1. The Chair recognizes Representative Ives."
"Thank you. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Speaker Madigan yields."
"I am a freshman here, and I was just wondering if you could give me some idea, some bit of background, about the factors that led us to this pension crisis."
"The factors that led us to the pension crisis would consist of lack of proper funding by the Legislature and the Governor's Office. There were instances in the past where the payment was not fully made. There may have been instances where it wasn't made at all. In addition, there were enactments by the Legislature, signed by prior Governors, that greatly enhanced the benefit levels in all of these systems. Next, there was a severe downturn in the condition of the stock market, which affected the investment income of all of these systems. And then I would add in conclusion, the attitude of many people who have come to the Legislature over the years with the view that the Illinois Government has been a very welcoming government. And so, over many years, why, many supplicants would come before the Legislature with requests. All sounded pretty good, but they all cost the state money, and then it accumulated over several years. And then finally, came to roost. So, I would say that those were four 09800048.doc 36 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 reasons, or maybe more that I can't recall right now, but four good reasons."
"Okay. My next question is, can you describe briefly how this Bill and its funding guarantee will affect future budgeting processes? We're going to look at paying debt service first, and then are we going to… what's the calculation we're going to make to provide the normal cost and then, will that be the de… the decision that's made, then everything else will fall below the line for the budget?"
"As we move forward, why, the systems will continue to certify to the Legislature the amount of money that the Legislature would be required to appropriate. There'll be no change in that. What the Bill does is to give the systems the authority under the statute to file a mandamus action to compel the Legislature and the Governor to make the payment as certified by the systems. The Bill puts pension payments second in line after debt payments. So, the statute today provides that first in line on appropriations would be debt service. Number two, would be the pension payments. And so, you're correct. Said a little differently, would take these two items and put them above the line, take them out of the area of discretionary spending."
"And could you tell me, do you have any idea, perhaps, just roundly, what the cost would be for FY14?"
"Please understand, this is just an estimate…"
"Sure." 09800048.doc 37 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"…but for FY14, the payment to the pension systems is estimated to be between 19 to 20 percent of general revenue."
"Yeah… yes. That's an… an astounding number. And under your Bill, it still stays 19 to 20 percent is what… under your Bill, it's 19 to 20 percent. Is that correct, of general revenue?"
"Can you help me understand your question? Is it still on FY14?"
"Yeah, for FY14."
"This doesn't affect FY14."
"Okay. So, FY15 then? Is this affecting FY15?"
"All right…"
"It would be about 19 percent?"
"We're esti… we're estimating that for FY15, the payment would be 1.5 billion less."
"Less than what's projected right now?"
"FY14."
"Okay. Then FY14. And I'm not trying to be difficult here. I just think it's important that we understand that… then in FY16, we really don't know what the cost is going to be, do we? Because we'd have to know all the inputs. We'd have to know what the market returned on the fund. We'd have to know if there were any benefit enhancements passed by Legislators. We'd have to know if actuarially, they decide that people are living longer, so longevity was a factor. And the biggest thing that we have absolutely no control over, we have to figure out if there were lots of 09800048.doc 38 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 salary increases granted at the local level. Is… is that true?"
"That's all true."
"Okay. I… I just want to make sure that we understand when we pass this Bill that the funding guarantee means that every single year, we really don’t know how much we're going to have to fund because there's a lot of inputs out there that we have no control over in this State Legislature. And while I think your Bill does add towards reform, I… I'm just very suspect of not knowing how much we're going to have to pay every year. Would you agree?"
"I would. Yes."
"The next question I did have is, why are judges excluded and do you plan on doing a specific Bill that covers them in the future?"
"Judges were excluded as a practical decision. We anticipate this matter to go before the Illinois court system and the Illinois Supreme Court. And the absence of the judicial pension system in the Bill will, let's say, relieve them of the burden of dealing with a conflict of interest."
"Okay. For the initial take for them to look at. And I would agree. We need to pass something so that we can get this idea of whether… whether it's constitutional or not, kind of out there in the open and make a decision. The next question I have is, do you plan in the future to approach a cost shift idea?"
"I do."
"Okay. Thank you." 09800048.doc 39 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"Thank you."
"That's all my questions."
"Mr. Durkin."
"Will the Speaker yield?"
"The Speaker yields."
"Speaker, just this one provision, if you can just give me some explanation on is this severability clause. I… I read it in my analysis that some parts are severable, other parts aren't. Could you just give us an idea of how that is going to work 'cause we know that if this does pass, it will be a challenge and we'll be anxiously awaiting a decision from a court, and possibly the Supreme Court."
"Mr. Durkin, let me read something that we had prepared for this purpose. You will see in the legislation that we have tied the COLA provisions to the new funding schedules and funding guarantee provisions. In other words, we have provided through a partial inseverability clause that if the COLA provisions are invalidated by a court, then the new funding schedule and the funding guarantee provisions must be invalid as well. The reason we have done this is a practical one. Without the cost savings, we would achieve from the COLA provision, the state would be unable to meet the obligations of the new funding schedules or satisfy those funding guarantees. Thus, if a court were to hold that the COLA provision is unconstitutional, the funding schedules and guarantees in this legislation simply could not exist and would not have been enacted. Without the COLA provisions, they would actually have the effect of worsening the state's fiscal crisis. While we have 09800048.doc 40 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 carefully considered these issues and believe this legislation is constitutional, this provision is needed to make sure we don't find ourselves in a position where we are making funding promises we cannot keep."
"Thank you. One last question, there is a provision regarding private employees who are currently earning pensions through IMRF, SERS and TRS. If this Bill is signed into law, I presume that those pensions will cease at that point, and whatever they've earned up until that moment, they will be able to capture as a benefit and be… earn as… they… they would be paid out as a benefit upon retirement."
"This provision would only affect new employees."
"Okay. But the people who are currently the private employees who are in those systems will still continue moving forward to participate in IM… IMRF, SERS and TRS?"
"There is no effect on current employees under this provision."
"Okay. Thank you."
"Mr. Zalewski."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. First of all, I want to praise the Speaker and… and Leader Nekritz, and Leader Cross to… for the… for the work they've put into what's on the board today. We've been criticized a lot in the last four or five months for our… the House's approach to the pension issue. And for what it's worth, I think any number of us feel that by building, sort of, momentum and… and our Members engaging in the process and knowing the stakes, we've able to come forth with a proposal that, hopefully, will receive a Majority and will set the pat… 09800048.doc 41 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 the state forward on a path to fiscal stability. There was some discussion in… in this morning's papers about the toughness of this vote and if it's… whether it's a tough vote or not. And I… I feel like it's important that everyone realize it for a lot of us that support this Bill, this is probably as tough a vote as we can take. There's nothing that any of us relish about producing benefits for teachers that aren't a beneficiary of Social Security and have worked their whole lives and paid into a system that, in the end, won't be able to do the things they expected to do unless we make these changes. There's those of us who a couple of years ago, in January, supported a Bill that raised the Illinois income tax two percentage points to bring the state back from the brink of fiscal calamity. And that was a tough vote. So, I just feel as though it's important for the Body to realize that this vote is as equally as important as any vote we'll take in this chamber to put this state back on the path of fiscal stability. It's also important to note, when it comes to the funding guarantee and the pension stabilization fund that these are things that will ensure the stability of this systems. These are important parts of the Bill that ensure that retirees will be able to go to court if in the future the state's unable or unwilling to make the payments that the systems need. So, it's important to bring those things forward and know that there's important parts of this Bill that strengthen the systems and bring forth fiscal stability. So then, I'd like to thank the Speaker. I'd like to thank Leader Cross and Leader Net… Nekritz. For those of 09800048.doc 42 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 us who have been on… tried to be on the right side of bringing this state back and setting it forth on a path toward the future, I… I'd respectfully ask for an 'aye' vote."
"Mr. Morrison."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Speaker yield?"
"Mr. Madigan yields."
"The comment by the Representative from Chicago, Mr. Zalewski, he said this was a… this was a tough vote, or this is going to be a tough vote. This is a tough vote for me but there are very few people in this chamber who have the same reasons I have. I think it's a tough vote because the taxpayer seems to be underrepresented in this Body. The taxpayer who's not in a public sector union. And so, I would just ask, Mr. Speaker, why in this Bill the… the hybrid portion was taken out? Why the defined contribution components were taken out of the Bill?"
"Because I had planned to come back on that issue on another Bill."
"That's fair. I guess that would be… I was going to ask what… what the next steps were and we might not hear a detailed answer on the floor, but I… that's something that I wonder out loud and in private, what are the next steps for our state? Because there is still, even if this Bill passes, even if it becomes law, there's still an enormous unfunded liability that remains. And Representative Ives brought up some good questions, I thought, that we have huge unknowns in the future. None of us has a crystal ball. So, how do we pull those… the… the remaining tens of 09800048.doc 43 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 billions of dollars of… and according to some estimates, maybe still, even over a 100 bil… even if this passes, maybe still even over 100 billion dollars in unfunded liabilities. How do we pay that down?"
"I'm sorry. Was that a question?"
"It was… that actually was a question, yes."
"All right. Well, let me say that this is a first step. As you have said, there's much work to be done, and I think we all acknowledge that we have a huge problem on our hands and so, this will be a tough vote, but there'll be more tough votes ahead. So, I… I know you'll be anxious to work with all of us to get the job done."
"Okay. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. I've… I've introduced a Bill, House Bill 3303. It would move the state toward a modernized pension system. Other states have gone down this road. On… in committee yesterday, it was mentioned that Rhode Island was a state that passed a significant pension reform plan. Their problems were, and in many other states, there are huge, huge problems with defined benefit systems. The private sector has moved toward defined contribution plans. Our constituents, you may not be hearing from them, but they're out there. You may not be hearing from them because they're so busy trying to keep their heads above water. They're so busy trying to provide for their families, keep a roof over their heads, pay for food. The public sector unions have been very outspoken. They've been very well organized, fighting to maintain a system that we all acknowledge is not sustainable. I think there are some good reforms in this 09800048.doc 44 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 Bill. I wish it would go significantly farther. I think we owe it, even to the members of these pension systems, to go significantly farther, 'cause I still am not confident that passing this Bill is going to fulfill a promise to those workers who are counting on them. I hope that this Body will… will consider my Bill or… or major components of it, 3303, because I think it is the fairest for those who are in these systems, but also for the other roughly 95 percent who aren't, who we are counting on to continue to pay the taxes to support this, and none of us can guarantee that. No one in here can tell me 10 years, 20 years from now, 30 years from now, what the… what's going to be the population in Illinois. What's going to be the… our business climate? What's going to… the unemployment rate going to be? What's the life expectancy going to be? Nobody can answer those questions. And so, that's why I still have… have some concerns. I'm going to continue to listen to the debate, but I appreciate the time."
"Mr. Fortner."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"The Sponsor yields."
"Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to thank you for the recognition of some of the work I had done which relates to the pension stabilization fund. I'm glad to see that that is part of this effort. I do have some questions. I want to understand how the funding guarantee works in connection with this since I see those were parts that were bound together. If I'm reading this correctly, and I just want to make sure I am, this guarantee is related to the 09800048.doc 45 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 calculation of both the normal cost and the unfunded liability as determined by law. And then it becomes the obligation of the boards of trustees of those funds to then bring an action should the Legislature… should the state fail to make those payments to the… to the boards. Is that correct?"
"That's correct."
"If it is simply pursuant to law, is there anything in this that then binds a future Legislature from changing that law, as it… as it would affect what those payments would be?"
"The answer is no."
"So, it's entirely possible that any future Legislature should, whether it be directly by law or through the budgetary process through a 'bimp' Bill, could essentially change the method of computation as it affects law for that year and in so doing, change what the required payment would be? Is that…"
"The answer is yes."
"Thank you. To the Bill. That… that gives me a little bit of pause, I have to say. It… I find to be a weak guarantee. One reason I think we've gotten into this problem is that there have been occasion in the past where this Body has approved budgets and approved procedures that have left us on the hook for a much greater cost in the future. When I've offered language for Bills over the last couple of General Assemblies, I've tried to make sure that we didn't get into that problem again. And it… I have some concern here in the language that we're being presented 09800048.doc 46 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 with today, we do not have a real guarantee, in fact… the fact that we can change it through our budgetary implementation process gives me the concern that a future Legislature will do very much the same things that we have seen happen all too many times in the past decades under a variety of different administrations that put us in the hole because we don't do the full computation, we don't really make the payment that we need to get this thing moving forward. I leave with… with those concerns but I think those are substantial concerns and I think those are concerns this Body really needs to address if we're ever going to have a lasting solution to the pension problem. Thank you."
"Mr. Kay."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Speaker yield?"
"Speaker Madigan yields."
"This is a pretty serious matter and I think, Speaker, you've addressed it in a serious way. I'm… I'm kind of reminded of a, and I may not remember this correctly, but people who like to watch sausage making and respect the law should never, ever watch either one being made because it's pretty doggone messy. And I think this is messy even though it's somewhat understandable. I share some of the concerns that my colleagues have expressed and I have because many of them have covered the questions I had. I'm just going to simply go to the ones that remain. But I am curious, you mentioned that you intend to pursue the cost shift, and may I ask you why?" 09800048.doc 47 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"I intend to pursue the cost shift because I think we have a situation today where one person makes a spending decision and sends the Bill to a second person to pay the Bill, and I think that's a bad policy, but especially a bad policy for governments."
"Okay. I, in fact, happen to agree with the, conceptually, with the fact that we've allowed for years, and years, and years, local counties and school districts to negotiate our liability. That's not a very good business practice, and that's the simple truth. Would you agree, when it comes to our inability to pay our bills; however, that we have added on to our constitutional requirements that were laid out in 1970, a number of enhancements? In fact, 17 enhancements which have brought us to the table, to this point today, where we can't pay our bills. Is that a fair statement?"
"I think it is."
"Okay. So, that should be, Speaker, a lesson that I'm getting from you, as you answer that question, that we should never, ever do that again. Is that fair?"
"The answer is yes."
"Thank you. I… coming back to Mr. Fortner's question about guarantees, it seems to me like in addition to the 17 enhancements that we've added on to the underlying constitutional requirement, that we've relied on TRS to give us a lot of math, statistical information that we've relied upon with respect to funding or underfunding our pension liability. And in many cases, what I've discovered is that we have understated our liability because we have 09800048.doc 48 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 overstated what we thought was coming through the door from TRS investments. Is that what you understand too?"
"I agree with you that the… the performance of the funds and their investments has… has been short of our expectation."
"So, my question is, are we going to guarantee, from this point forward, projected losses or projected gains? I mean, I don’t think TRS is going to come through and say we're going to… we're going to project the loss, but what I'm afraid of and when I see the word guarantee, I'm afraid that we're going to say, TRS, it makes little or no difference what you do or what you invest in or what the return is or what risk you take, we're going to guarantee that."
"Mr. Kay, that's exactly the reason why I played a role in the Legislature and the Governor, providing that… that there would be a state actuary as part of the Office of Auditor General. As you know, the Office of Auditor General is a legislative office selected by the Legislature, and today, there is in place, at the Auditor General, a section of that office which acts as the state actuary. And these systems are required under the statute to get clearance from the state auditor before they proceed to do the things they do in sending the bill to us."
"So, I'm gathering from your statement, and I… I somewhat see where you're going here and I think the segue between maybe two people or two heads is better than one is a philosophy that is… is going to work. I hope it does because TRS has certainly been a part of the problem here 09800048.doc 49 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 and it goes back long before I came here, and it's something that needs to be addressed if we're going to guarantee some things. I'm curious, there's been several references by Representatives on our side of the aisle about the legitimacy of what we're doing here today and it's no reflection on you, Speaker, because I'm rising today to support your Bill. But I think the reputation of the State of Illinois is poor and I think our handling of money is bad, and I think our accounting has been lacking. And again, it's not a reflection on you, it's a reflection on the state of the… State of Illinois. And so, when I… I speak today, I go back and I think about, and I can think back to '84 or '85 when we began in the state to promise this and then we promise that, and then we come back and refine it and at the end of the day, we never lived up to our end of the bargain. How do we restore confidence in government with respect to keeping our end of the bargain with respect to the Bill that you bring to us today?"
"Mr. Kay, I think that we all have to resolve that the mistakes of the past should not be repeated, and that we should all work together to make sure that we keep our commitments, but at the same time, not spend money that we don't have and not continue to take on obligations that we can't afford to pay for."
"I… I certainly agree. Speaker, in all due respect, having said that, do I have your word, since I support your Bill, that you will do nothing to change this Bill and you will do everything to promote it as long as you're in the General Assembly?" 09800048.doc 50 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
"So, the answer is yes."
"Thank you. I appreciate that. To the Bill. I've heard a lot of comments today about, expressly, what the future looks like, what we can project, and what we might not project, and I've heard comments about uncertainty. Well, there is a lot of uncertainty and this Bill doesn't speak to every need. Indeed, there are… are many things that cannot be answered and I think the Speaker has done pretty well in trying to address a lot of our concerns. I think the fact that he's given me his word today that he's going to live by this Bill and see it through and make it work makes this Bill more worthy, at least it does to me. But I think we need to bear in mind today, for everyone who has not made a decision about this Bill, that this state is in crisis. What we're doing today is not an easy move, but it's a move that if we do not take, I sense that we will fail. And we will fail quickly, and we will fail completely. A state the size of Illinois with the un… income we have, the revenues we generate, cannot operate solely on a cash flow. We can't burden the taxpayers any further with our incompetence and lack of managing money. It just simply can't happen. So, forget the uncertainty, get off the fence if you don't mind. I understand that some people will feel compelled to vote 'no'. I understand that. But I think you should feel compelled today to… to remember that you're not necessarily sent here just to represent your district, but you're sent here to represent the best interest of the State of Illinois. And there's no question 09800048.doc 51 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 in my mind that this Bill does just that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Mr. Arroyo."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"The Sponsor yields."
"Mr. Speaker, Mr. Madigan, is this the best we could do with this pension Bill?"
"My answer would be that this is the result of intense work over several years. And there would be people in the Body that would feel that we could do better, or do it different, but our goal here is to pass a Bill. Therefore, we've worked with everybody in the House and the Senate and we've come to this point where we're prepared to pass this Bill. Could there be modifications? The answer is yes, but I would not recommend that today because I think we've pretty well settled that this is what we want to do."
"Ladies and Gentlemen, there are some parts of this pension Bill that I'm not comfortable with, but we have to take the hardest vote we're going to have in this General Assembly this year. This is the quietest time of this year that I've heard this whole Body. Everybody is paying attention to this Bill, everybody has concern to this Bill. I want to thank Speaker Madigan, Elaine Nekritz, and Tom Cross for working together. This is the way the General Assembly should work when we have these hard decisions to make. I think that this is one of our hardest Bills this year. I believe that we should vote for this Bill. I'm not comfortable with some of it, but I think that I want to be part of passing this pension reform this year, in this 09800048.doc 52 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 General Assembly. A lot of the Members that have a problem with it, we got to represent the whole State of Illinois. And this is the time to say 'present' and support this Bill and pay attention to what we're doing here because this is going to be very important for the State of Illinois and this General Assembly. Thank you very much."
"Mr. Bradley."
"To the Bill. I am the son of teachers. I was raised by teachers. My family is composed of teachers. For us to hide under our desks or to act like that this system is going to be sustainable without us taking some type of action, is not realistic. I'm also the chairman of the Revenue Committee. More and more of our budget goes each and every year to paying for the mistakes of the past. We are cutting K through 12. We are cutting human services. We are cutting Medicaid. We are cutting all of the programs of government. In the last five years, since we underwent the constitutional crisis of removing a Governor of our own Party from office, we've done education reform. We've done comp reform. We've done unemployment reform. We've done Medicaid reform. We've done ethics reform. We've done procurement reform. We have changed the way that we do budgeting. Most, if not all of these, have been bipartisan efforts. But at the head of every train, you have to have leadership. We have had leadership on this issue from Leader Cross. We have had leadership on this issue from Elaine Nekritz. And we have had leadership on all of these issues from Speaker Madigan. We didn't get sent here to make easy votes. We didn't get sent here to disregard the 09800048.doc 53 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 reality of the situation. We didn't get sent here to play to the home crowd. We got sent here to fix problems. Nobody likes this. Nobody really wants to do this. Nobody wishes that they lived in this time where we have to do this. But what choice do we have? The system has to be sustained. As the son of teachers, I was taught that we think about the next generation. If we don't do something, there will be no pension for the next generation. Take the lead, reform our own pensions. Take the lead, show the rest of the world and this state that the General Assembly continues to work to solve these long-term, 50-year issues. Take a courageous vote. Stand up. Stand up, 'cause I guarantee at the end of the day, we'll be judged by these reforms we make. And this is an opportunity to show the courage of serving in the same chamber as Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln, and being a Representative in the State of Illinois, in the House of Representatives. Thank you, Speaker Madigan, for having the leadership to take on these tough issues. Thank you, Leader Cross, for standing with us on many of these. Thank you, all the Members of the General Assembly, for having the courage to do hard things when hard things have to be done."
"Mr. Mitchell." Mitchell, C.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With a very heavy heart, I rise in support of this Bill. I want to emphasize that this is personal for me. I have a mother who's been a nurse for many, many years and in her 26th year, her job shifted everyone who had been there for less than 30 years to a defined contribution plan and she lost so much of what she 09800048.doc 54 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 worked for. There's no doubt that this is difficult. There is no doubt that in some ways it's unfair. Every analysis will show you that the lion's share of this problem was created by state underfunding, 50 to 60 percent. But the bottom line is that we're here now. We're here now in a situation where the increase above normal cost of our pensions this year is two to three times the cost of what we're going to be cutting from education, which we have cut by over a billion dollars in the last three fiscal years. This is a problem that demands a solution now. This is a better and fairer proposal than Senate Bill 512 and its predecessors. It rewards longevity and loyalty, which is especially important because our most loyal employees tend to be those with lower incomes. It has an ironclad funding guarantee going forward, on par with the kind of guarantee that we give to our bond holders. This needs to happen as unfortunate and painful as it is. But it is my hope and fervent prayer that for all of us in this chamber, we will heed the words of the Speaker in saying that this is a beginning and not an end; that this is part of a necessary step to save our state, but it is only one step. We have gotten to this place because we chose to forgo our pension payments and effectively use them as a line of credit to cover for a structural budget deficit, budgeting out of habit and tradition instead of for performance. We have a regressive and archaic Tax Code that puts too much of a burden on working families, has too many holes, confuses corporations and small businesses, and fails to raise the revenue that we need in the 21st century. We have been 09800048.doc 55 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 reactive, lurching from year to year without a real strategic plan and we are seeing the consequences for our roads and our bridges and our schools and today, we're seeing the consequences for workers who have given their blood and their sweat and their tears for so many years to this day. I hope that we will resolve to move forward together, to have a real conversation about the difficult choices we need to make on spending and revenue for the 21st century. This is a first step. I hope that together we will decide that we will never find ourselves in this position again. I urge an 'aye' vote."
"Mr. McSweeney."
"To the Bill. Let's face facts. The state isn’t solvent. Paul Volcker, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve put out a report and said the state's been insolvent since 2008. We could argue all day long about who created the mess. My view is that if we don't enact real pension reform today that the state is not going to be able to borrow money. Three months ago, the state had to pull a $500 million bond deal. Six weeks ago, the state borrowed money, $800 million at three times the cost on a spread base as the State of California. And what does that mean? That means that we will not be able to fund basic social services. That means that the hard-working small business people who are trying to create jobs will be facing higher taxes. This is not a perfect Bill, but I rise in strong support of this legislation because it is a first step towards getting our fiscal house in order. I am here to help save the pension system. I am here to help create jobs 09800048.doc 56 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 in Illinois. And I am going to vote 'yes', and I encourage all my colleagues to be courageous. Let's save the pension system. Let's create jobs in the State of Illinois. Thank you."
"Mr. Reboletti."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Speaker Madigan yields."
"Speaker Madigan, I just have one question. In anticip… anticipatory of this passing the House, and if it passes the Senate, the Governor signs this, obviously, all of us here have no doubt that the public sector unions will challenge this in court and it could be there from… anywhere from one to two years. If that were to occur, are we then required on our budgetary process to make pension payments? If it takes two years to resolve this, because it's not worth changing the entire pension system, are we making pension payments for the next two fiscal years moving forward?"
"Mr. Reboletti, our expectation is that there will be a challenge. And our further expectation is that as part of the litigation, there would be a stay entered against the effect of the Bill which would mean that we would have to continue to make the pension payments pursuant to the current statute without this Amendment."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
Speaker Lang: "Before we move on, by mutual agreement, Representative Nekritz and Leader Cross will comment before the Speaker closes. So, there are no other lights on. Is there any other Member that wishes to speak on this Bill 09800048.doc 57 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 before we move to Representative Nekritz? Representative Nekritz."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, we are very much taking a historic step to getting Illinois back in fiscal order. And this Bill is historic in two ways. It's historic because of the dramatic nature of the legislation itself. These are steps none of us relish taking, but we feel… but we know we should. It's also historic because we, as a Body, today are sending a very clear message. We are putting necessity ahead of political expediency and doing the right thing over the easy thing. We've taken a lot of steps in the past to address our fiscal crisis. We raised the income tax, we've made significant cuts, but the pension payment has consumed almost all of what we took in when we raised the income tax. And the increased revenues that we're experiencing are again consumed by the increase in the pension payment. We already devote significantly more revenue to the pension payment than any other state and governmental Body in the country. That's not a sustainable path for us. The math simply doesn't work. And I believe that the math in this Bill does put us on a path where it can work in the future. And those numbers are important, but the most important thing this Bill does is for the first time in history and the history of the State of Illinois and its pension systems, we are going to be using… instead of Illinois fuzzy pension math, we are going to be using actuarially sound practices. And it is that alone, I think, that will allow us to move forward in a fiscally sound fashion. Previous efforts at… at pension 09800048.doc 58 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 reform have not used that actuarial science, and we all see today the effects of where that got us. I think we can all agree… all serious… completely agree about the serious nature of this problem and it will get worse if we don't act this Session. But another aspect of this is that the… is we need to know that the solution truly matches the problem. Other solutions that have been put forward in the last couple of years, in my view, do not address the depth of the problem. We must provide for everyone, ourselves, taxpayers, and particularly workers and retirees, the certainty that this will, in fact, address the problem and that we won't be back in this position in a few short years, asking for yet more changes, and apologizing again for doing what is right. Also, I just want to spend a couple of… say a few words about the constitutional question because that's been a very, very important part of this debate. I believe we have a very strong case in this Bill before us as to why this Bill is constitutional. Just as though… just like under the First Amendment, which is a very absolute statement that you're… that your freedom of speech cannot be abridged, you can't, under that, still be allowed to shout fire in a crowded theater. And I believe that the courts will not force us, in this instance, to put pension payments above every other constitutionally required and constitutionally encouraged priorities that… that this state has. We are striking a balance here and for me, throughout this entire debate, this has been about balance, about seeking balance. But I think we have here is a… is a balanced view that the court will view as… as a 09800048.doc 59 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 very positive step in this difficult and increasingly worse financial crisis. I would like to echo the thanks to Speaker Madigan for providing the leadership on this very significant issue. For Leader Cross for delving in and spending a lot of time with me and Senator Biss on this, making… making all this happen, and to Representative Senger. And… and I feel a very special thank you for the… the group of 21 that first stepped forward and took a… took a very significant risk to step out and support the proposal that looked very much like this last December. A very special thank you, and he's here in the chamber today, to my researcher, my drafter, my strategist, my colleague, and my very dear friend Senator Daniel Biss. I'm… I know how difficult this vote is today. I've heard over and over from countless retirees and workers just how difficult this is. I emphasize with each and every one of them and I'm no way… in no way do I relish doing this. Yet, the right thing is not always the easy thing to do. Today, we are standing up and saying it's time. It's time to do the right thing, the responsible thing, to provide for a pension system that protects investments and gives security without bankrupting our state. I think we can be proud in knowing that Illinois will be on better footing for having passed Senate Bill 1. Thank you."
"Leader Cross."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to thank a few people, as well. It seems to be a day of thanks. Darlene Senger, on our side, has been very solid with a background in this area equal to none. And I appreciate her leadership, her 09800048.doc 60 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 strength, her vision, her willingness and determination to move forward and stay moving forward on this issue, unlike very few, and I admire her work ethic. Michael Mahoney and Andrew Freiheit, you and I have been spending hours, and hours, and hours on pensions and you have been reading the Bills and explaining them to all of us countless times for the last two and a half years and your expertise and your knowledge continues to amaze me and awe me, and thank you for your very, very, very strong work. And for our caucus who I think is tired of the issue, tired of listening to me talk about it, thank you for as much as you… wherever you may be on this issue, I… I appreciate your patience and understanding and to… to know that we need to address this issue. Some of you have been very helpful in this issue, many of you have been very helpful in this issue. I think about David McSweeney's… David McSweeney's ability to take the most complicated issue and condense it down to a simple concept for us that don't know numbers like he does, and explain it to us, and I admire that and appreciate that. And Michael Fortner, one of your ideas, a great idea, to come along and say why don't we take that bond money and infuse it into this issue, and infuse into this problem, and help solve the problem long-term, is taken and put into this Bill and going to be, I think, part of law. You deserve a lot of credit, Michael, for being part of this solution and very much admire you. Elaine Nekritz and Daniel Biss, you, too, stepped out in an area that was not easy to step out to and I… and I admire that, and I enjoyed working with you and… and I appreciate that. And Speaker 09800048.doc 61 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 Madigan, it seems like it was a year ago, in fact, it was a year ago that we were on the floor and things weren't going that well. I think at one day you even gave me one of your Bills. I… I don't think that's going to happen today and… and that's fine, but I appreciate you stepping up and it's… it's time. I, like many, would say this should've happened a while ago but we move on. And this is one of those issues where we need to come together and make it happen. I… I want to just focus a little bit on a couple things. Representative Kay, Representative Morrison, I think Representative Ives talked about it, this issue of the guarantee. I think we all need to keep in mind, I think Dwight alluded to it, we can put anything we want into law and we can talk about guarantees, but if this General Assembly, either the House or the Senate, doesn't have the capacity and the willingness and the understanding to not spend more than we have, then it really doesn't matter what we put in the law. It… I don't remember the specifics back in '95 when we created the ramp under Governor Edgar, but it was at that time that we put in the language that said the pension payment was a continued approp, that it was going to be one of the first payments we make every year. 'Cause we had a problem back then and we recognized, we said awe we got to do something so we don't get into this mess again. And low and behold, in the mid-2000s, not going into details, pension payments weren't made and it exacerbated the problem. So, the guarantee language, I… I get the need for that and I respect that but really, in my opinion, it doesn't matter what we put in it, in this Bill, 09800048.doc 62 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 it's a matter of what… what is our willingness and what is our understanding, and what is our approach to… to spending or not spending. And this General Assembly, over the last decade, has not, in my opinion, demonstrated that… that willingness to live within its means. So, let's try to keep… keep focused on that as we move forward, if we're ever going to get out of this mess, and we really have no choice. You know, Representative Bradley and others have alluded to this and I want to… I want to be very careful to not sound patronizing, but if I'm a state worker or if I'm a teacher, a university worker, I have every right to be mad as hell. I have done everything you've asked me to do. I, dutifully, have whatever percentage, depending on the person or the… the job, taken out of my check with every expectation that what I was promised when I started was going to be there. And these folks work hard and they put in a lot of hours and I think the rhetoric on this issue has gotten out of line at times. And it is not about the issue itself but it becomes the, oh, this person only works eight and a half months out of the year, the teacher or they're only there for X number of hours, or this state worker only does this. It's like anything, they're great state workers and great teachers and they're not so good just like there are in the General Assembly. And I look at, you know, my own… my own experiences in life, whether it's my mom who taught, my wife that taught, Mrs. Blocker, who was our daughter's first-grade teacher, who's the reason Reynolds is in school, who wants to be a teacher. They've all had impacts on our lives and we have to be careful 09800048.doc 63 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 about that rhetoric and make this a discussion about saving or attempting to salvage our retirement system. So, I think in many ways, we owe those folks an apology, as a General Assembly, and we can point fingers on why this got into the mess it did. And many people are new here and had nothing to do with it. But not making payments was wrong. And it was wrong because the discipline was not there to live within the means that we needed to do, and that's a shame. There are other reasons for this mess and there are other causes for this mess and I'm not going to go into that because we need to be… we need to move forward as everybody has said today. And if you still have doubts about whether or not we need to do this, the word today was certainty. And I… I think it's operative that whether it's the employee that doesn't know, because we've been talking about this for so long: should I retire; should I stay; can I retire; what happens when I retire; to the person trying to plan for retirement, what do I need to save extra? I don't know what they're going to do. To the business that is worried that we're going to tax them even more because we can't fix the pension system, meaning they may not expand. They may not come here. They might leave here. To the bond house… or bond houses that have downgraded us, and to David McSweeney's point, they may not even allow us to loan money. To those of us that have watched this and know that there are entities in this country whether they're counties or cities that have, in fact, gone bankrupt with their pension systems, we have no choice. We have to move forward today. And I agree that there other things that 09800048.doc 64 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 could have been done. Not everything in 3411 that we had is in this and I'm… I'm disappointed in that but to be able to reduce our unfunded liability by $30 billion is not insignificant. To reduce our overall payment between now and 2044 is significant and this Bill does that. It provides certainty to employees. It provides certainty to annuitants. You may not like it but it provides certainty that you will have a pension and you will know what that pension is. And it also provides to John Bradley's point some certainty as we move forward to those that are affected and impacted by the crowding out. That is very real and we have no choice but to do this. Is this tough? Yes. Is it uncomfortable? Yes. Will people be angry at us? Yes. But I do think folks now realize that this is very much a real problem. It is a problem that's not going away. It's a problem that gets worse by the day and we have no choice. We have no choice. And it doesn't get easier if we put this off. So, to everybody involved in this process, wherever you are on it, I would urge you to continue to express your opinions wherever you are, but recognize that this is a very real, real issue and that this… this Bill goes a long way in taking us in this direction we need to. And for those reasons and others, I would ask for an 'aye' vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Speaker Madigan to close."
"Mr. Speaker and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House, thank you to all. Everyone who spoke today did very, very well. The time has come for this Bill. I recommend and ask for an 'aye' vote." 09800048.doc 65 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013
Speaker Lang: "Speaker Madigan's moved for the passage of Senate Bill 1. 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? Please take the record. On this question, there are 62 voting 'yes', 51 voting 'no', and 2 voting 'present'. And this Bill, having received the Constitutional Majority, is hereby declared passed. Speaker Madigan now moves to reconsider the vote by which Senate Bill 1 has passed. Leader Nekritz moves to lay that Motion on the table. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Motion by Speaker Madigan to reconsider lies on the table. And now, Leader Currie moves that, allowing perfunctory time for the Clerk, the House stand adjourn 'til Friday, May 3 at the hour of 10 a.m. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the House does stand adjourned 'til Friday, May 3 at the hour of 10 a.m."
"House Perfunctory Session will come to order. First Reading of Senate Bills. Senate Bill 492, offered by Representative Currie, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. Senate Bill 1004, offered by Representative Monique Davis, a Bill for an Act concerning criminal law. Senate Bill 1042, offered by Representative Williams, a Bill for an Act concerning civil law. Senate Bill 1204, offered by Representative Bradley, a Bill for an Act concerning local government. Senate Bill 1639, offered by Representative Zalewski, a Bill for an Act concerning regulation. Senate Bill 1739, offered by Representative 09800048.doc 66 STATE OF ILLINOIS 98th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 48th Legislative Day 5/2/2013 Lang, a Bill for an Act concerning gaming. Senate Bill 1898, offered by Representative Fine, a Bill for an Act concerning transportation. Senate Bill 2202, offered by Representative Williams, a Bill for an Act concerning higher education. These are referred to the Rules Committee. Introduction and First Reading of House Bills. House Bill 3626, offered by Representative Evans, a Bill for an Act concerning appropriations. House Bill 3627, offered by Representative Currie, a Bill for an Act concerning State government. These are referred to the Rules Committee. There being no further business, the House Perfunctory Session will stand adjourned." 09800048.doc 67