The legislative package introduced in the Senate would: freeze property taxes; enact term limits; eliminate partisan gerrymandering; and advance pro-jobs economic reforms.
Underscoring the need for continued progress less than two weeks from the General Assembly’s scheduled May 31 adjournment, Republican legislative leaders stressed the need for bipartisan budget negotiations and an end to “business as usual” gamesmanship.
The legislative package would:
-
Freeze Illinois property taxes: currently the second highest of any state
-Supports local control: option to increase through local referendum
-
Improve Illinois’ jobs climate: recently ranked third worst in the country
-Workers’ compensation reform
-Lawsuit reform
-
Reform State Government:Illinois called “worst-run state in the country” last year
-Constitutional amendment establishing term limits for legislators and executive officeholders – Illinois would join 15 other states with term limits
-Redistricting reform – Constitutional amendment to create an independent commission for fair and balanced districts
Instead of participating in good-faith negotiations repeatedly offered by Gov. Rauner and Republican lawmakers, Democrat leaders have stalled, played political games, and used the approaching end-of-session deadline as a negotiating tactic to support the same type of bloated, broken budgets they’ve advanced over the last 12 years.