Illinois Summary - 11/11/11

General Assembly Votes To Pay Regional Superintendents

(Springfield, IL)  --  The state's 44 regional superintendents say they feel relief now that the general assembly has restored their pay.  The Senate voted yesterday to pay the elected officials out of local property tax funds and now the proposal is headed to Governor Quinn's desk.   Governor Quinn is likely to sign the measure because paying them from local funds was his idea.  The supes will receive back pay to July 1st of this year and will be guaranteed pay until June 30th of next year.

Commission Rejects Quinn's Facility Closure Plan

(Springfield, IL)  --  Governor Quinn's plan to shut down seven state facilities is not being approved by the state's Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability.  The commission's job was to review the plan and determine how it would impact the communities where the facilities are located.  They say the economic impact would be tremendous in each of the

locations and they've advised the governor to keep all seven facilities open.  That includes the Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln, the Tinley Park Mental Health Center, and the Jacksonville Developmental Center.  Quinn says he'll move forward with the plan that will put more than 19-hundred people out of work if lawmakers don't give him more money.

No Second Vote On Tenaska During Veto Session

(Taylorville, IL)  --  The plan to bring a coal gasification plant to Central Illinois is on hold again.  Lawmakers voted on the issue during the first week of veto session but never brought the measure up again.  The plant is expected to create hundreds of full-time jobs and more than two-thousand construction jobs but opponents of the bill say consumers will have to foot the bill.  Senate President John Cullerton is sponsoring the proposal.  He pulled the failed vote from the record so it is likely to come up again.

Veto Session Wrap Up

(Springfield, IL)  --  Lawmakers have wrapped up the second week of veto session but they've left many issues on the table, including adding more gambling across the state.  The measure came up for a vote in the House but fell two votes shy of the 60 it needed to pass.  Sponsor Lou Lang said the issue would come up in the Senate before they adjourned for the week but that never happened.  Senate sponsor Terry Link says he never made that agreement with Lang.  He says he wants to reconsider the proposal and see why it failed in the House before moving forward.  The gaming proposal was already scaled back from the original plan that passed in May, but Link says he's not opposed to making more changes.  Increased gaming is designed to save jobs and save the horse racing industry in Illinois.

No Deal For Big Businesses

(Springfield, IL)  --  Lawmakers wrapped up the second week of veto session but there's no deal for big businesses.  Several major companies have threatened to leave Illinois is they don't receive some sort of tax relief.  The general assembly has a plan to provide tax breaks, but the issue didn't make it to either the House or Senate floor.  Lawmakers will be back in Springfield on November 29th.  Senate President John Cullerton says he's confident the matter will be addressed at that time.

Attorney General Increases Fight Against Synthetic Drugs

(Springfield, IL)  --  Synthetic drugs are readily available to young people, but State officials are arming themselves with the tools to double their efforts in the fight against the drugs.  Attorney General Lisa Madigan called an emergency summit in Springfield yesterday to address the rising number of young people using synthetic marijuana and what she calls "convenience store cocaine."  Madigan says more than six thousand young people nationwide have wound up in hospital emergency rooms this year.  She says just because the drug is legal does not mean it's safe and people should stay away from these drugs.

Holiday Shopping Safety Tips

(Alton, IL)  --  Shopping during the holiday season can present unique danger.  Taking a few prevention measures can help keep your holiday season joyous.  The holiday season is a time when busy people can become careless and vulnerable to theft and other holiday crime.  Captain Will Dimitroff of the Madison County Sheriff's Department says shoppers should remember are to park in a well-lit area, have a shopping partner since there's safety in numbers, and remember to lock your car.  He also says if you see something or someone suspicious when you return to your car, turn around and go back in the store.