What the Governor Should Do with the Bills on his Desk

August 12, 2009

In this Issue:

  • What the Governor Should Do with the Bills on his Desk
  • What the Newspapers are Saying
  • ICPR Internships
  • The Race is On is Active

What the Governor Should Do with the Bills on his Desk
The legislature sent hundreds of bills to the governor this year and while those dealing with the budget have gotten the most ink in the popular media, several reform bills, along with at least one faker, await Gov. Quinn's action. Worthy additions to the state statute books include SB 189, which would make strong and much-needed improvements to the Freedom of Information Act, and SB 51, which would update the Procurement Code. The faker in the bunch is HB 7, which purports to be campaign finance reform but which would have had no impact at all on Gov. Blagojevich's war chest and which would severely weaken disclosure. The governor's phone number is (217) 782-6830. Be sure he knows what you think.

What the Newspapers are Saying
Speaking of the governor (see above) newspapers around the state have been writing about what he should do with number of bills, and their assessments are universal: Veto HB 7, but sign the FOIA bill. In the last week, the Chicago Tribune, the Daily Herald, and the Bloomington Pantagraph have all written that HB 7 is fatally flawed, while the Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, and Rockford Register Star all love the FOIA bill. Read the editorials for yourself.

Bloomington Pantagraph (on HB 7): http://www.pantagraph.com/ news/opinion/editorial/ article_ecca6766-83c1-11de- b88b-001cc4c002e0.html
Chicago Sun-Times (FOIA): http://www.suntimes.com/news/ commentary/1705054,CST-EDT- edit07a.article
Chicago Tribune (on HB 7): http://www.chicagotribune.com/ news/opinion/editorials/chi- 0806edit1aug06,0,3235681.story
Daily Herald (FOIA): http://www.dailyherald.com/ story/?id=312244&src=
Daily Herald (on HB 7): http://www.dailyherald.com/ story/?id=312921&src=
Rockford Register Star (FOIA): http://www.rrstar.com/ opinions/x1558731866/End-the- delay-gov-changes-to-FOIA- should-become-law

ICPR Internships
ICPR is now accepting applications for the fall internship term, but the deadline is fast approaching. If you are interested in applying for an internship at ICPR, please visit http://ilcampaign.org/ involved/intern.asp for more information. You can also email your resume/cover letter to Nelly Viramontes at nelly@ilcampaign.org

The Race is On is Active
ICPR's blog, The Race is On, is active with posts on current political topics. For updates on redistricting, campaign finance, pending legislation, and other reform areas, head to http: ilcampaign.org/blog/ blogger.asp .

 



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