Weaver: “We failed” Chamber members

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One of the state lawmakers representing this area isn’t speaking very highly of his other colleagues in the Illinois General Assembly.

“We failed.  Business community failed drastically this spring, and we failed across the state,” says State Senator Chuck Weaver — speaking at the Galesburg-Area Chamber of Commerce’s legislative luncheon Thursday.  “I don’t see change coming unless we step up our game tremendously, and we’ve got to get smarter about how we do it.”

Weaver was referring to things like a minimum wage hike, a graduated income tax, and other things he says hurt businesses, so he wants the Chamber to step up its game in advocating for legislation helping them.

All four local lawmakers — Weaver and State Senator Jil Tracy, and State Representatives Norine Hammond and Dan Swanson — were asked about the graduated minimum wage hike starting next year.

Hammond calls the minimum wage hike a “disaster” and thinks most of her colleagues don’t get how it will harm rural areas, let alone urban.

“I also worry about what’s the trickle-up here,” says Hammond.  “What about the individual that is making $15 an hour, and has been with your company for eight years, and now it’ll go to $15 an hour — what about that person?  What about the person that’s making $18 that’s going to want to make more than that?”

Weaver says he’s working on legislation that could respond to the minimum wage hike, but…

“I’ve got a bill that’s coming,” says Weaver.  “I’m not talking about it publicly yet.  If the camera wasn’t on, I’d tell you how this is going to work.”

That camera? The one that put the remarks of Weaver and other lawmakers on WGIL’s Facebook page, which you can watch below. Weaver is believed to be working on an idea to “regionalize” minimum wage rates, or “opt out” of the state rate.

(File photo of State Sen. Chuck Weaver)

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