SPRINGFIELD - The 101st Illinois General Assembly adjourned two days after its scheduled date, and history was made.
Rather than have Illinois Review writers put together a list of things the legislature did that would interest conservative-minded Illinoisans, we ran across a list accumulated and posted on Facebook by now-retired State Senator Tim Bivins (R-Dixon), in a way only the dependable conservative can convey:
From Tim Bivins:
I’m feeling nostalgic. Almost every week for close to 11 yrs we would write an article called Week in Review, recapping what occurred in Springfield that week. So I thought I would give a brief review one more time. Be sure to read to the end.
This week in Springfield the following legislation was passed [to Governor JB Pritzker's desk]:
1. Expanded abortion up to birth.
2. Expanded gambling with up to 6 new casinos.
3. Allowing inmates to vote including establishing a polling place at the Cook County Jail.
4. Removing $5 co-pay for inmates making medical and dental completely free.
5. New law passed regarding Driver Licenses. When completing your drivers application you can identify as Male, Female, or Other (non-binary).
6. Legislation to extend voting rights to non-citizen student trustees in Illinois.
7. Passed legislation preventing law enforcement from enforcing the law and making Illinois a Sanctuary State.
[8. A bill that requires all Refineries in Illinois, all petrochemical plants, all ethanol plants, all basic organic chemical plants must become union. (This bill did not pass
9. Tonight passed legislation for a $40 billion budget (a billion more than the governors proposed budget) and $45 billion capital bill, raising license plate fees to $199, legalizes sports betting, higher taxes on video gaming and an expansion of video gaming, a tax hike on cigarettes and vaping, a new tax on parking garages, and raises the gasoline tax to $.38 a gallon.
10. Passed a constitutional amendment to go from a flat tax to a progressive tax.
11. Increased minimum wage to $15.
12. Legalization of marijuana.
13. Last, but not least, legislators gave themselves a 2.5% salary raise, a 25% and 33% increase in mileage and per diem.
