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Sunday Senate Session = $132 Per Lawmaker For No Action
State lawmakers are now in the last two weeks of the regular spring session, but the focus is on ethics reform and a building and construction plan, with little talk about the upcoming nearly $12 billion deficit in the operating budget.

That's becoming a problem for several senators, Republican and Democratic, who say ethics could be handled over the summer, and that the deficit must be tackled yet this month. State Sen. Kwame Rauol (D-Chicago) says the theme lately is that the sky will fall in the next two weeks without ethics reform. He says if lawmakers don't focus on the deficit, the sky will fall for many people in Illinois who will see teachers laid off, mental health services cut further, and other programs scaled back.

State Sen. Brad Burzynski (R-Clare) agrees. He's also worried about the governor's insistence that the state needs a 50 percent increase in the personal income tax rate. Burzynski says Boone County, which is in his district, is facing a 20 percent unemployment rate now that auto dealerships are closing, and he says folks just can’t take what amounts to another cut in pay if taxes go up

The Senate met for about 20 minutes late Sunday, but didn't vote on any bills. The senators who attended will each receive a $132 per diem. Two weeks remain in the scheduled legislative session.

(Illiniois Radio Network)
05 18 09 by Newsroom
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