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. 

While this is not an ideal budget, it is the best we could do in these tough economic times.

I know many of you have been concerned about funding social services and I want you to know that I’ve been equally troubled by the deep cuts that originally threatened these agencies. A group of legislators and I actively advocated for these community based programs during several meetings with Governor Quinn. It is imperative these programs continue to be funded in order to provide services to families around the state.
 
The budget will also meet the state’s pension obligation for the fiscal year. I recently met with a group of educators who were rightfully concerned about their pension.
 
Another victory is that the budget does not include the proposed 50 percent state income tax increase. During a struggling economy when jobs are lost, 401Ks have shrunk and home foreclosures continue to rise, now is not the time to increase the income tax.
 
As part of the budget deal, lawmakers will take 12 unpaid furlough days throughout the next year. Earlier this year we voted against a pay raise. In another cost saving measure, we approved legislation for lawmakers to take four unpaid furlough days. However, during the budget negotiations House Republicans fought to increase the furlough days to 12. This idea was the number one suggestion on the new website www.ReinventIllinois.com, which I told you about last week.
 
As we move forward, reforms will continue to be a top priority of mine. We must change the culture of spending and corruption in government. If you haven’t had a chance to check out www.ReinventIllinois.com yet, I highly suggest doing so. Knowing what is most important to you helps me make decisions on legislation in Springfield.
 
Sincerely,

Suzie Bassi

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.

Another financial concern, I voted against the Democrats income tax scheme. Instead of cutting spending, they wanted to raise the income tax rate by 50 percent on individuals (from 3 to 4 percent) while boosting the corporate income tax rate to the maximum allowed under the State Constitution (from 4.8 to 7.2 percent).

I cannot support new taxes on residents or businesses when we have yet to reduce government spending. Uncontrolled spending and new programs have riddled the state budget for the last six years. When our country is facing the worst financial situation since the Great Depression, I cannot support an income tax increase on hard-working families.

The only part of the budget that I supported was legislation to refinance the state’s debt at a lower interest rate, which allows the state to save hundreds of millions of dollars.

The House also approved legislation to allow residents to recall the governor. The Senate has yet to vote on it, but I believe it is a great start at tackling the abuses that have occurred in our state government. It also provides real checks and balances. It will give the citizens of Illinois the voice they deserve and don’t currently have.

This month I’m hosting two events that some of you might be interested in attending.

Senior citizens are invited to a Heart Healthy Sock Hop from 3 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 24, at the Palatine Township Senior Center, 505 S. Quentin Road, Palatine.

Current and retired educators are invited to my Education Advisory Board meeting at 9 a.m. Monday, June 29, at the Palatine Public Library – Main Branch, 700 N. North Court, Palatine.

Please RSVP to either event by calling my district office at (847) 776-1880.

Please continue to give me your feedback on these issues or any others by e-mailing repbassi@aol.com or by calling the district office at (847) 776-1880.

Sincerely,
Suzie Bassi

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 …

Compensation Review Board – Senate Bill 2090

• Eliminates the Compensation Review Board that annually decides on cost of living increases for legislators and state officials
• Freezes salaries for legislators and other top state officials
• Every member of the General Assembly is mandated to take four furlough days

Termination of Ryan and Blagojevich Appointees – Senate Bill 1333

• Creates the Officials and Employees Termination Act of 2009 that calls for the termination of directors, assistant and deputy directors of agencies, members of boards and commissions and “double exempt” employees hired by former governors Ryan and Blagojevich.
• Employees will be terminated in 90 days, unless the governor retains the individual.
• Creates the Illinois Task Force on Personnel and Patronage Reform Law to review hiring practices and patronage abuse.
• Members of the Executive Ethics Commission and the State Board of Election will have their terms terminated in 90 days. They must be re-nominated and go through the confirmation process to be re-seated.
• Separates Lottery, Racing Board, Gaming Board and Liquor Control Commission from the Department of Revenue.

Ethics and Lobbyist Reforms – Senate Bill 54

• Ethics Commission: grants expanded authority to the Executive Ethics Commission to scrutinize the investigative work of the various inspector generals.
• Attorney General Powers: expands the authority of the Attorney General to investigate violations of the Ethics Act.
• Inspectors General: Allows inspector generals to self-initiate investigations, expands their executive branch authority to review agency compliance with state hiring laws and ensures public availability of their investigative work.
• Revolving Door: Implements revised revolving door prohibitions and eliminates the current waiver procedure.
• Lobbyist Act: Increases the annual registration fee to $1,000, expands the authority of the Secretary of State Inspector General to investigate violations of the act and requires weekly expenditure disclosure reports.

Procurement – Senate Bill 51

• The state ethics commission will appoint chief purchasing officers to handle state purchases who will serve 5-year terms.
• State agencies will have internal auditors.
• Strengthens purchasing codes to alleviate pay-to-play

I will continue to keep you updated on important developments from Springfield as we enter the final stretch of this spring session.  

If you wish to sign up for the new electronic newsletter, please e-mail my district office at repbassi@aol.com or call (847) 776-1880.

Sincerely,

Suzanne “Suzie” Bassi

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 …

Without hesitation, the idea was blocked by Speaker Madigan’s floor leader Barbara Flynn Currie, “No, there’s no chance at all, for heaven’s sake. If (Cross) wants a few more opportunities on the floor of the Illinois House, he’d better do a better job electing Republicans.”

Since the request was denied, the House Republicans hosted our own hearing Friday, May 15, inviting legislators from both parities, constitutional officers along with the public to hear from the commission.  

In making their recommendations, the IRC noted that 46 other states have stronger finance regulations in place and provide their law enforcement agents stronger resources to root out public corruption than Illinois.

Throughout my tenure, I have filed and co-sponsored several pieces of legislation regarding term limits, redistricting, requiring a 3/5ths majority vote on all tax increases, and abolishing unnecessary government positions such as the comptroller and lieutenant governor. Unfortunately, House Speaker Madigan has ignored these reform proposals.

While there are 34 recommendations, here are a few that I firmly believe will help stop pay-to-play government:

Real-time disclosure of campaign contributions - Require year-round electronic submission of A-1 forms to the Illinois State Board of Elections within five business days after receipt of any contribution of $1,000 or more for statewide elections and $500 or more for any other elections.

Contribution limits - Limit contributions of $2,400 for individuals, $5,000 for political action committees and $30,000 for a legislative caucus committee giving to a legislative candidate.

Leadership term limits - Legislative leaders would be limited to 10 years in their positions. Madigan has controlled the House all but two years since 1983. Both Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton have near-exclusive control over what bills are assigned to committee and which are left to die, denying rank-and-file legislators of both parties an opportunity to have their bills be given fair consideration.

Important bills deserve a vote - The House and Senate adopt rules requiring that each bill introduced to the Rules or Assignment Committees be subject to a full committee vote if the bill has a minimum of 16 sponsors in the House and eight sponsors in the Senate.

Fair redistricting - Allow a computer program to draw maps impartially without regards to residency, political affiliation of registered voters, previous election results and demographic information. The redistricting process, which occurs every 10 years, is currently partisan, depending on which party wins the flip of a coin. The districts are carefully drawn based on how an area historically votes, therefore favoring one party over another.

I encourage you to visit the IRC’s website, www.ReformIllinoisNow.org, to view the commission’s full report and find out how you can help us enact meaningful ethics and campaign reform this year. Please don’t hesitate to let me know which reform proposals are more important to you and where you believe priority should be given.

The General Assembly is in the final push to pass a budget, reforms and a possible capital bill by the scheduled adjournment May 31. I will keep you posted as details emerge.

Sincerely,

Suzie Bassi

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.

Continue reading …

I look forward to keeping you up to date on the happenings in Springfield throughout the coming year. I also recently launched a new website at bassi.ilhousegop.org where you can track legislation, view scheduled events, etc.

College Savings Seminar

Parents of students in grade school and junior high are invited to learn about Illinois 529 savings plans at 7 p.m. Monday, April 6, at Harper College Wojcik Conference Center Room W101, 1200 W Algonquin Road, Palatine. Representatives from both Bright Start and College Illinois will discuss both 529 college saving programs along with information about scholarship opportunities. Everyone in attendance will be entered into a raffle for Bright Start 100. A winner will be drawn that night to receive a $100 voucher toward a new Bright Start account.

General Assembly Scholarships

My office is also currently accepting applications for General Assembly Scholarships for the 2009-2010 school year are now available to residents of the 54th District. These one-year scholarships cover tuition costs at the undergraduate, graduate or professional level at any Illinois state school.

To obtain an application, please call the district office at (847) 776-1880 or visit our office at 331 W. Northwest Highway, Suite 102, Palatine, or send an e-mail to RepBassi@aol.com. The applications are also available on the website at www.bassi.ilhousegop.org.

The application deadline is April 16, 2009. Scholarship recipients are chosen by a committee and based on a composite of academic achievement, extracurricular activities, financial need, teacher recommendation and an essay.

Please continue to give me your feedback on legislative issues by e-mailing TheBassiBeacon@aol.com or by calling the district office at (847) 776-1880.

You have been sent this e-newsletter because you have shown an interest in legislative matters in our district. We take your privacy very seriously and do not share any e-mails or private information.

Sincerely,

Suzie Bassi