Illinois Senate Floor Debate — January 9, 2019

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) The last regular Session of the 100th General Assembly will please come to order. Will the Members please be at their desks? Will our guests in the galleries please rise? The invocation today will be given by Pastor Curt Fleck, from Civil Servant Ministries in Springfield, Illinois. Pastor.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Pastor. Please remain standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. Senator Cunningham, would you please lead us?

(Pledge of Allegiance, led by Senator Cunningham)

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Blueroomstream.com is requesting permission to videotape the proceedings. Seeing no objection, permission is granted. Mr. Secretary, Reading and Approval of the Journal.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Hunter.

Mr. President, I move to postpone the reading and approval of the Journal just read by the Secretary, pending arrival of the printed transcript.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Hunter moves to postpone the reading and approval of the Journal, pending arrival of the printed transcripts. There being no objection, so ordered. Mr. Secretary, Resolutions. 1  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Resolutions Consent Calendar. The Senate will stand at ease for a few moments to allow the Committee on Assignments to meet. Will all Members of the Committee on Assignments please report immediately to the President's Anteroom? Will all Members of the Committee on Assignments please report to the President's Anteroom? Senator Hunter in the Chair. (at ease)

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HUNTER) Harmon in the Chair.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) ABC7 from Chicago requests permission to videotape the proceedings. Seeing no objection, permission is granted. Mr. Secretary, Committee Reports.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, we are turning now to final action. I'd ask all Members to be at their desks. If all Members in the sound of my voice could be in the Senate Chamber, 2  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 we're turning to final action in just a few moments. Senator Rose, for what purpose do you seek recognition?

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Mrs. Rose, welcome to the Illinois State Senate. Mr. Secretary, let's turn to Secretary's Desk, Resolutions. On that Order is Senate Resolution 2296. Senator Link, do you wish to proceed? Mr. Secretary, please read the resolution.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Link.

Thank you, Mr. President. Senate Resolution 2296 creates a committee to approve the final Journals of the Senate of the 100th General Assembly and that {sic} they have not been approved by the Body as a whole. The committee is composed of three Members, two appointed by the President and one appointed by the Minority Leader.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, the question is, shall Senate Resolution 2296 pass. All those in favor, say Aye. Opposed, Nay. The Ayes have it. The motion carries, and the resolution is adopted. Next on the Secretary's Desk is the Order of Senate Bills, Concurrences, and on that Order 3  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 is Senate Bill 3102. Senator Castro. Are you ready to proceed? Mr. Secretary, please read the motion.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Castro, on your motion.

Thank you, Mr. President. I move to concur with the House. It updates some terms and definitions in the Consumer Fraud and Deception {sic} (Deceptive) Business Practices Act. It's an initiative of the Illinois Association for Behavioral Health at the prompting of LRB, who identified concerns with the definitions as written. LRB and IABH believe the changes in House Bill -- Amendment 1 will allow for the law to be more effectively enforced. I -- there are -- no opposition in the House and I see no opposition. And I ask for it's -- to be concurred.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, the question is, shall the Senate concur in House Amendments {sic} No. 1 to Senate Bill 3102. All those in favor, vote Aye. Opposed, Nay. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Take the record. On that question, there are 52 voting Aye, 1 voting No, none voting Present. Having received the required constitutional majority, the Senate does concur in House Amendment No. 1 to Senate Bill 3102 and the bill is declared passed. Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, Senate Supplemental Calendar No. 1 has been printed and 4  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 distributed to the Members' desks. On that Calendar is the Order of Senate Bills, Concurrences, and on that Calendar there are four motions to concur. With leave of the Body, we're going to find an available sponsor and jump down to Senate Bill 3127. Senator Martinez. Are you ready to proceed? Mr. Secretary, please read the motion.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Martinez, on your motion.

I motion to concur with the House on the amendment. It provides a three-year extension to the sunset date of Design-Build (Procurement) Act, which is enabling statute that permits the Capital Development Board to use the design-build delivery method on its public projects. This Act is scheduled to repeal on July 1st of 2019 and this would extend the sunset date to July 1st of 2022. Additionally, it vacates the term of all the current members of the CDB Board on January 31st, 2019. The Governor shall fill the vacancies thereafter. And I'll be happy to answer any questions.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, the question is, shall the Senate concur in House Amendments No. 1 and 2 to Senate Bill 3127. All those in favor will vote Aye. Opposed, Nay. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Take the record. 5  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 On that question, there are 53 voting Aye, none voting No, none voting Present. Having received the required constitutional majority, the Senate does concur in House Amendments 1 and 2 to Senate Bill 3127 and the bill is declared passed. Senator Collins, for what purpose do you rise?

Thank you, Mr. President. A point of personal privilege.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Collins, for a point of personal privilege. Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, if you could please give the Senator your attention.

Thank you. Last weekend a constituent of mine passed away and today I would like to acknowledge his services to this country. It was Captain Jack Lyle, a South Side native and one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen. He died last week at ninety-eight. John "Jack" Lyle was a decorated war hero who served in World War II with the Tuskegee Airmen and was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal in 2007. He was a fighter pilot, a sailor, child musician, an entrepreneur, and amateur inventor. But his last dying wish was simple: to sit along the dock at Jackson Park Harbor Yacht Club and watch the waves of a beautiful Lake Michigan. With aspirations of becoming a fighter pilot, his only option as an African American was to train with other Black recruits at the military aviation school in Tuskegee, Alabama. He became one of the Tuskegee Airmen, flying sorties over Italy, Austria, and Germany in one of the most storied and decorated units in the country's newly formed U.S. Army Air Force. Jack Lyle's life story is partly one of defiance. He served his country in defiance of 6  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 the institutional discrimination that segregated the military. He did battle with the enemy in defiance of their destructive, bigoted ideology. But his story is also one of simple joys and the struggles of life. As one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen, his story is all the more important. We must never forget his service, and we must never forget the bravery he showed as an African American in the military before he ever took to the air. Thank you.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. Please rise for a moment of silence. (Moment of silence observed) Thank you, Senator. The -- your motion celebrating his life is on the Consent Calendar today and will be approved at the end of the Session. Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, we are continuing on the Order of Concurrences on the Supplemental Calendar. Next on the list is Senate Bill 1364. That's Senator Harris' bill, but Senator Bennett is presenting it as a chief cosponsor. Senator Bennett, are you ready to proceed?

Yeah.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Mr. Secretary, please read the motion.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Bennett.

Thank you, Mr. President. 1364 deals with the Meat and 7  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 Poultry Inspection Act. Essentially what it does is allows a class of meat processing plants called Type I facilities to provide what are called custom slaughter services in exchange for some safeguards put in place. I ask for an Aye vote and welcome any questions.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. Is there any discussion of the motion? Seeing none, the question is, shall the Senate concur in House Amendment No. 1 to Senate Bill 1364. All in favor, vote Aye. Opposed, Nay. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Take the record. On that question, there are 55 voting Aye, none voting No, none voting Present. Having received the required constitutional majority, the Senate does concur in House Amendment No. 1 to Senate Bill 1364 and the bill is declared passed. Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, we're turning back to Supplemental Calendar No. 1. At the top of that order is Senate Bill 1298. Mr. President, you ready to proceed? Mr. Secretary, please read the motion.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) President Cullerton, on your motion.

Thank you, Mr. President, Members of the Senate. I'm asking that we concur with the amendments that the House passed yesterday dealing with the Illinois Tollway Authority. What it would do is to abolish the current terms of the Tollway and require that the 8  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 Governor, the incoming Governor, make appointments to these vacant offices by February 28th, 2019. There's going to be nine appointees. They would be for staggered terms. Any of the current members of the Tollway Authority certainly are still eligible for reappointment. And I would be happy to answer any questions and ask for an Aye vote.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, President Cullerton. Is there any discussion? Any discussion? Seeing none, the question is, shall the Senate concur in House Amendments No. 1 and 2 to Senate Bill 1298. All those in favor will vote Aye. Opposed, Nay. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Take the record. On that question, there are 50 voting Aye, 2 voting No, none voting Present. Having received the required constitutional majority, the Senate does concur in House Amendments 1 and 2 to Senate Bill 1298 and the bill is declared passed. Finally, on the Order of Senate -- or Senate Bills on Concurrence is Senate Bill 3531. Mr. Secretary, please read the motion.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) President Cullerton, on your motion.

Yes, thank you, Mr. President, Members of the Senate. Also, the House passed this provision yesterday. We are concurring with these amendments. This deals with the salaries of the State agency 9  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 officers. They have been, in effect, frozen since 2009, for over ten years, because we have frozen the cost-of-living increases that are part of the law every -- each one of those years. As a result, the salaries are basically capped at about a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. It currently, by the way, is also limited in law to eighty-five percent of the Governor's salary. That's why they're capped at a hundred and fifty thousand. This bill would increase the salaries of State agency officers by fifteen percent of that current salary for the terms beginning after the effective date of the bill. And the COLA, of course, would still be in the law. There is enough money that's already been appropriated to cover this cost. It would cover the Directors and Assistant Directors, everyone who is subject to Senate confirmation. So, once again, I'll be happy to answer any questions and ask for an Aye vote.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Mr. President. Is there any discussion? Senator Haine, for what purpose do you seek recognition?

To the bill.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) To the motion, Senator.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate and Mr. President, there's two aspects we should keep in mind when voting for this bill. Number one, we have a newly elected Governor, Governor-elect Pritzker, who put himself, his fortune, his good name, out there in a bruising primary and general election. He brought ideas forward for the State. He -- he ran a clean campaign, both in the 10  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 primary and in the general. He was overwhelmingly elected by the voters in Illinois. Therefore, he has a mandate. And he's coming at this job of his with the idea of attracting the most competent people and diverse group that he can find. And part of the way he can attract them in public service in Illinois is this small overdue salary increase. It's always risky to vote for salary increases for public officials, but in doing so, we remind ourselves that they are in fact public officials. They -- they will make the trains run on time. They're expected to serve with honesty and courtesy. And they're drawn primarily from the private sector. All of that requires a reasonable and fair salary. The -- the second related point is that we have seen in the past years a diminution of respect for public officials across the board. We had Governor Quinn, God love him, cut off the salaries of the General Assembly because we wouldn't vote for one or another of his ideas. I asked myself when he did it, "Where does this happen in the world?" Iran, Venezuela - not Illinois. A judge saw this as plainly unconstitutional. The Governor received a lot of support from average folks, because he was beating up elected officials. Comptroller Munger did the same thing - stopped the pay - under a theory that we weren't doing enough, as she felt, to warrant being paid. Again, an attack upon those who come up here to serve and disagree on points of policy. Again, these positions that we're raising are public officials who will serve the people, carry out a mandate of a person who ran for the Governorship to right the Illinois ship of State. We should give him deference and we should face honestly the voters and taxpayers and say these are people who should be paid a commensurate rate -- wage for their great responsibilities. It's appalling that the head of the 11  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 Department of Corrections makes a hundred and fifty thousand a year. How would you like to get up in the morning and go to work in a prison with all the static, all the problems, for that kind of money? In many states, it's three hundred thousand plus. The Governor's doing the right thing. We should support him. We should give him deference on this. And again, and we should uphold the ethic that public service does not mean that we have a poverty wage for those who give up to serve. Thank you, Mr. President. I would encourage an Aye vote.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. Further discussion? Senator Bush, for what purpose do you seek recognition?

To the motion.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) To the motion, Senator.

Thank you. One thing I thought about yesterday when we were talking about this is what a wonderful way this is to start off - - or end this Session and start a new Session - with a Governor that clearly wants to work with the General Assembly. Excuse me. We've seen in past administrations appointments made by contract, really usurping the General Assembly's involvement in those contracts and appointments. We've see appointments with high salaries and those salaries placed in other departments in order to do that. I really want to commend Governor-elect Pritzker from -- serving a message to us that he wants to work with us and that these appointments -- and this is our decision. And I'm really looking forward to an administration that understands that there 12  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 are three branches of government. And I think this is a sign that he intends to respect that. So I urge an Aye vote. Thank you.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Thank you, Senator. President Cullerton, to close.

Yes, I would just simply ask for an Aye vote for hopefully our last bill of the 100th General Assembly. Thank you.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) The question is, shall the Senate concur in House Amendment No. 3 to Senate Bill 3531. All those in favor, vote Aye. Opposed, Nay. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Take the record. On that question, there are 33 voting Aye, 21 voting No, none voting Present. Having received the required constitutional majority, the Senate does concur in House Amendment No. 3 to Senate Bill 3531 and the bill is declared passed. We'll now proceed to the Order of Resolutions Consent Calendar. With leave of the Body, all those resolutions read in today will be added to the Consent Calendar. Mr. Secretary, have there been any objections filed to any resolution on the Consent Calendar?

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Is there any discussion? If not, the question is, shall the resolutions on the Consent Calendar be adopted. All those in favor, say Aye. Opposed, Nay. The Ayes have it. The motion carries, and the resolutions are adopted. Senator Sims, for what purpose do you rise?

13  STATE OF ILLINOIS 100th GENERAL ASSEMBLY REGULAR SESSION SENATE TRANSCRIPT 148th Legislative Day 1/9/2019 Thank you, Mr. President. Point of personal privilege.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) State your point.

I am honored with our inauguration today, I'm honored to be joined by my lovely mother and my older brother here on the Floor with us today. If the Senate could give them a warm welcome, I'd appreciate it.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Welcome to the Illinois State Senate. Glad to have you here with us today. Senator Link, for what purpose do you rise?

Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, I move that the Senate of the 100th General Assembly adjourn sine die.

PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR HARMON) Senator Link moves that the Senate adjourn sine die. All in favor will say Aye. Opposed, Nay. The Ayes have it, and the Senate stands adjourned sine die. 14