Dear Friend,
At long last we have a state budget! The House and Senate came to an agreement Wednesday night on a state budget for the new fiscal year which began July 1. Governor Quinn immediately signed the budget that restores funding to most social services and ensures the continuation of critical state programs for the entire fiscal year.
Dear Neighbor,
The last week of session was riddled with its usual drama as the budget and other important legislation was voted on in the final minutes.
The House and Senate without Republican approval passed a budget by the May 31 deadline to keep the state operating in the upcoming months. Even though that budget passed by the Legislature, the Governor has refused to sign it into law. Therefore, the state’s top leaders met in the past two weeks to work out a deal. I expect to be back in Springfield later this summer to tackle this issue.
Ethics E-Newsletter
Dear Friend,
As session quickly draws to a close, I am happy to report that the General Assembly made some great strides this past week. In the wake of the Illinois Reform Committee’s release of 46 governmental reform proposals, the Senate and House last week passed four bills aimed at creating transparency. I personally co-sponsored three out of the four reforms: Compensation Review Board, procurement and ethics and lobbyist reforms. These bills are a good start at creating a more transparent government, however, there is still more work that needs to be done. Continue reading »
May E-newsletter
With one governor behind bars and another one indicted, it’s clear that we need to strengthen our ethics standards and demand greater accountability from public officials. Rumor around the state house is that we may vote on a reform package next week.
Immediately after the Illinois Reform Commission issued their final 100-day report on April 28, I joined with my House Republican colleagues in calling for a committee of the whole hearing in the Illinois House so that all legislators could have an opportunity to hear testimony directly from the Reform Commission members themselves on what specific proposals they recommend to clean-up state government. Continue reading »
Dear Neighbor,
As your state representative of the 54th District, I am always looking for a means to reach out to you with news of what is going on in Springfield. I am happy to report that I am starting a new service in sending out a monthly electronic newsletter, The Bassi Beacon.
With the leadership changes and budget crisis this year, I thought it was now more important than ever to give you personal updates from Springfield.
