Corrections’ chief S.A. Godinez and a handful of his subordinates made stops at lock-ups in Pinckneyville, Sumner and Robinson to view the daily operations of the facilities they administer.

“The director speaks to staff and inmates during these visits, as he and DOC staff continually seek ways to advance the department’s mission of managing safe and secure facilities,” said Corrections’ spokeswoman Stacey Solano.

The practice of using one of the state’s three helicopters to make future prison visits, however, would end under at least five different legislative measures being pushed by Republican lawmakers.

The most recent addition to the GOP-led effort to sell off the state’s fleet of airplanes and choppers came last week when state Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, filed Senate Bill 3559.

The measure, like others pending in the General Assembly, aims to save an estimated $7 million annually by grounding the state’s fleet of 16 aircraft.

GOP lawmakers believe the state could get a one-time infusion of $22 million by selling the aircraft.

Rezin’s main targets in pursuing the proposed law are her fellow lawmakers, who use state planes to travel between Chicago and Springfield.

“I do not feel the state should be paying to fly elected officials back and forth between Chicago and Springfield,” said Rezin, who said she hasn’t ridden in the planes.

But, her measure – as well as those floated by Republican state Reps. Bill Mitchell of Forsyth and Joe Sosnowski of Rockford – also would affect state operations like those at the Department of Corrections.

Solano said it is “rare” for prison staffers to use the state aircraft for visits. But, she said the agency would cope if the planes and helicopters were eliminated.

“Staff would make and typically do make these visits by car or van,” Solano said.

None of the proposals introduced in the current General Assembly have made it to the full House or Senate for a vote.

Last year, Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, questioned whether a similar proposal by Rezin would actually save taxpayer dollars.

He suggested it may cost less to use state-owned aircraft than to reimburse employees for ground travel and associated costs. “It wouldn’t be good if it costs actually more,” Cullerton told members of a Senate panel in March.

Rezin says it makes sense to her that the cash-strapped state cannot afford the planes, especially to help lawmakers commute to work.

“I think we’ve gone overboard and taxpayers shouldn’t be charged for it,” Rezin said.

In addition to Rezin’s most recent proposal, other legislation aimed at selling off the state aircraft fleet includes: Senate Bill 1569 and House Bills 1411, 2983 and 4019.

When Judy Lucker-Mierzwa and her husband, Gene, moved into their “dream home” in rural Will County six years ago, they imagined savoring the solitude amid the cornfields while romping with grandchildren in their wooded backyard.

But ever since they discovered in February that their homestead was in the direct path of the proposed Illiana Expressway, they have been living with “our own personal nightmare,” said Judy Lucker-Mierzwa.

Compounding the fear for the couple and hundreds of others who live along or near the 47-mile corridor is legislation pending in the Illinois House that would give the state controversial “quick-take” power to acquire land for the project.

Quick-take allows local governments to act fast in seizing land for public projects, skipping the possibly lengthy legal proceedings under eminent domain condemnation.

Anxiety levels are sky-high among many farmers and homeowners who could be affected by the expressway that would connect Illinois and Indiana. Public meetings have been standing room only. Property owners in Lake County, Ind., and Will County have been flocking to an interactive map at illianacorridor.org to see whether their homes, businesses, backyards or back 40s are within the path.

“There’s no question property can be condemned for a highway. The state or whoever is going to get it,” said Dan Tarlock, a professor at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. “The question is how much the landowner is going to get paid. Quick-take is designed to take first and then fight about the money.”

Planners have envisioned an Illiana-like bypass for more than 100 years, but the growing number of intermodal freight terminals across Will County and resulting truck congestion have amplified the calls for an alternative to Interstate Highway 80 and arterial roads.

Two months ago, Illiana planners from both states recommended a route running from Interstate 55 at Wilmington to Interstate 65 near Lowell, Ind. The corridor, known as B3, was the best of eight options, officials said.

Although the project is supported by Gov. Pat Quinn; his Indiana counterpart, Mitch Daniels; and the states’ legislatures, there is no guarantee the Illiana will be built. Only $9 million has been allocated to study the project. The price tag for just the Illinois portion is estimated at $2.87 billion.

Legislation was passed last year calling for the Illiana to be developed as a so-called public-private partnership. This would allow a private entity to finance, construct and operate the Illiana as a tollway, much like the Spanish-Australian consortium that leases the Indiana Toll Road and the Chicago Skyway.

The legislation expressly prohibited the state from using quick-take, but a new bill introduced in February would give the Illinois Department of Transportation the power.

State Sen. Toi Hutchinson, D-Chicago Heights, sponsored the quick-take legislation in the Senate, where it passed 44-8 on March 28. She said the measure is necessary to streamline the process so that ground can be broken for the Illiana by 2016.

“We want the tools to be in place so that the shovel goes in the ground as soon as possible,” Hutchinson said, adding that it isn’t intended as a “land grab.”

Hutchinson, whose district includes much of the Illiana corridor, said the project is vital for job creation and economic development in southern Cook and northern Will counties.

Giving the state quick-take power, she said, would avoid any extended negotiations or court battles over land acquisition such as what the Illinois Tollway encountered in the 1990s when it began work to extend Interstate 355 from Bolingbrook to New Lenox.

Nevertheless, Hutchinson said, quick-take should “always be a last resort.”

Opponents, including state Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, say quick-take diminishes property owners’ rights.

“It takes away the ability to negotiate,” said Rezin, who supports the Illiana. “Eminent domain gives some negotiating power to landowners. If you cannot come to a compromise, then the process is thrown to the courts.”

Although the measure moved quickly and quietly through the Senate, opponents are bracing for a fight in the House. Among the foes is the Illinois Farm Bureau, and most of the Illiana corridor is rural farmland.

“We are opposed to expansion of quick-take for the Illiana,” said Kevin Semlow, the bureau’s director of state legislation. “Basically, the government comes in, takes your land … and all you get to do is appeal (to the court) for how much it’s worth.”

The use of quick-take is not uncommon, experts said, and generally depends on how fast a local government needs to get started on a project. Most quick-take projects need specific approval from the General Assembly.

A DuPage County judge last year ruled that IDOT could quick-take the site of a strip club so the land could be used for a road-widening project.

H.R. 2888 — The Help Veterans Own Franchises Act would amend the tax code to allow a business-related tax credit for 25 percent of a qualified franchise fee of up to $400,000 paid or incurred by a veteran for the purchase of a franchise. Filed Sept. 12, 2011, by U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Ill.).

State Bills
House Bill 5789 — Establishes admissions fees for state parks. Filed Feb. 16, 2012, by Rep. JoAnn Osmond (R-Antioch) and co-sponsored by Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley). Passed the House 81-29 on March 26, 2012. Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley) voted yes.

House Resolution 825 — Designates Aug. 6, 2012, as Richard Dent Day in honor of the former Bears defensive lineman and Super Bowl XX MVP, who was enshrined last year in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Filed Feb. 28, 2012, by Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock). Resolution adopted April 17, 2012.
House Bill 5114 — Requires all students in grades 1-8 to watch a video on administering CPR and using a defibrillator. Filed Feb. 8, 2012, by Rep. Daniel Burke (D-Chicago). Passed the House 89-24 on March 27, 2012. Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley) voted yes.

Senate Bill 2882 — Allows civic groups to adopt a park. Filed Feb. 1, 2012, by Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris). Passed the Senate 54-0 on March 28, 2012.

House Bill 4063 — Amends the laws governing Firearm Owners ID cards to exclude BB-guns and paint-ball guns, among others. Filed Jan. 24, 2012, by Rep. Roger Eddy (R-Hutsonville). Passed the House 113-1 on March 27, 2012.

House Resolution 936 — Designates the portion of Illinois Route 23 south of the City of Ottawa as the John R. Crozier, Jr. Memorial Highway, in honor of a flagman killed by a drunk driver in 2003. Filed April 16, 2012, by Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley).
—Compiled by Tom Collins

Madigan wants to consider dipping into a tax stream that provides about $1.4 billion for local government. He would use that money to pay state costs for providing pensions for teachers.

Meanwhile, on the La Salle-Peru border, a group of more than 100 area teachers was picketing in front of the office of state Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris), carrying signs such as “Save Our Pensions!”

Mike Phillips, a Lostant School Board member, college instructor and Illinois Valley Community College’s Illinois Federation of Teachers’ chief, said the teachers’ overall concern is that the state will completely stop funding pensions. Both he and Region 15 Illinois Education Association chairman Bob Bradish from Ottawa High said as teachers are hired in Illinois, the longstanding agreement is that the state would pay into their pensions and neither they nor the local district that employs them would pay in to Social Security.

Phillips said the state basically has an agreement with Social Security Administration that the state pension plan “is so good” that the teachers and state employees don’t need it. Phillips said if the state were to break the deal and stop or cut back on funding pensions, the fear is eventually districts would have to pay in to Social Security, which would pass the burden on to local taxpayers.

“Everybody who’s walking here has paid their fair share. They’ve never missed a payment,” Bradish said of teachers’ payments into the pension system. He said the state, meanwhile is behind.

“This crisis is caused by the people inSpringfieldnot paying like they should have all along,” Bradish said, indicating the funding of pensions is understood as part of the deal when teachers are hired. “When somebody changes the rules to the game when they’ve made a promise and break a promise, obviously people aren’t going to be happy.”

Bradish said some proposals in Madigan’s bill and some in Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposals have teachers up in arms.

“Who knows what’s finally going to come to the floor,” Bradish said.

A spokesman says the powerful Chicago Democrat Madigan is trying to jumpstart discussions about reducingIllinoispension expenses.

But Joe McCoy of the Illinois Municipal League says Madigan may be trying to stir up so much opposition that people will embrace a different idea — making local schools responsible for paying teacher pensions, The Associated Press reported.

McCoy says mayors take Madigan’s proposal seriously and oppose it. He says it would devastate city budgets.

The bill is HB3637.

House Democrats approved a version of the budget despite fierce opposition from Republicans who originally helped draft it. The budget appears to be stingier than a version approved by the Senate, so the differences will have to be worked out before the spring legislative session can end.

In addition to addressing pensions, the Legislature also has to pass a state budget — one that is likely to cut most programs because of climbing expenses and stagnating revenues.
The House version includes money to operate prisons in Dwight and Tamms that Gov. Pat Quinn had proposed closing. Democrats said that money was restored partly to appease Republicans.
Rep. Fred Crespo, D-Hoffman Estates, said Republicans told him they would not support a budget that did not keep all state facilities open.

“We found the money. Isn’t that something?” Crespo said.
Dwight Mayor Bill Wilkey said the fact that money was appropriated in both House and Senate budget proposals was a great development.

“I think we’ve crossed hurdle number two,” the mayor said. “The COGFA (Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability) hearing and recommendation to keep Dwight prison open was the first hurdle. But we know the fight’s not over.”

“We’ve been working vigorously in Springfield and I’m pretty hopeful at this point,” Wilkey said.
“It’s because of great support we’ve received from Representatives Jason Barickman, Frank Mautino and Pam Roth and Senators Sue Rezin, Shane Cultra and Toi Hutchison. I’ve been told this budget session will be an all-nighter.

“The mood in Dwight has been a little down, especially after all the lay-off notices that went out, which were required by contract. I think that’s been weighing on everyone. However, in talking to people I’ve tried to keep everyone positive and I think the union has had that message, too.”

The House budget does contain money to keep open the Jacksonville Developmental Center and other state mental health facilities, prisons and youth centers. Wilkey said he had been told that the Senate’s own budget also contained funding for these state facilities.
However, Rep. Jim Watson, R-Jacksonville, said the budget is structured so that Gov. Pat Quinn can still close facilities.

Rep. Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chicago, chairman of the House Human Services Appropriations Committee, agreed Quinn will have the last word.

“Whether or not the governor intends on actually spending that money, that’s a policy decision, not so much a budget decision,” she said.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees praised the House budget for keeping facilities open, but also warned that it contains “cuts that concern us in several areas.”
Legislators also hope to approve a pension plan, although there’s a bitter disagreement about whether it should shift some costs to schools and universities. And a major gambling expansion could also get a final vote before the end of session, scheduled for midnight Thursday. The Illinois House has also approved legislation allowing a land-based casino in Chicago, four more on riverboats in various cities and slot machines at ailing horse racing tracks. Supporters are likely to push for a vote in the Senate — which has approved similar plans in the past.
Republican frustration in the House boiled over Wednesday night.

They accused Democrats of bargaining in bad faith and padding the state budget. They tried to halt debate with parliamentary maneuvers and charged that Democrats cut diabetes funding to punish Republican lawmakers whose children suffer from diabetes.

They challenged House Speaker Michael Madigan to explain himself — an unusually personal approach in a chamber that gives great deference to the powerful speaker.

Visibly angry, Madigan suggested Republicans were opposing the budget they helped draft because they aren’t getting their way on pensions. Madigan raised his voice, a rarity for the soft-spoken Chicago Democrat.
“Thank you very much for your interest,” Madigan snapped at the Republicans who had demanded an explanation.

Minority Leader Tom Cross, R-Oswego, then pressed Madigan on whether he would allow legislators to consider a version of the pension plan that won’t hit schools with new retirement costs. He never got a straight answer.
“I’m not going to offer you any predictions,” Madigan said.
House Republicans and Democrats had been collaborating on a budget that would cut most areas of state government. Then Madigan released a surprise pension proposal that would make schools and colleges responsible for their employees’ future retirement costs.
Republicans called Madigan’s pension move a betrayal.

“We thought we had some agreements on where we would go, and then yesterday we got a bill that says, ‘No, that’s all out the window because I’m the speaker, I can do whatever I please,’” said Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro.

House Majority Leader Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago, said it makes no sense for Republicans to abandon budget efforts.

“Right now, Republicans in the House are in a snit and they’re not playing ball. They’re picking up their marbles and going home,” Currie said.

And in the Senate, a committee spent hours discussing pensions but wound up not even taking a vote.
The state is obligated to contribute an increasing amount of money each year to retirement funds for public employees. The obligation chips away at the rest of the state’s needs, so officials are trying to change the payment schedule.

One way to justify smaller payments would be to reduce the annual 3 percent cost-of-living increase for retirees. While public-employee unions object, the idea seems to have solid support in the Legislature.

Another way is to make schools, universities and community colleges gradually take over the retirement costs the state now pays. That’s what triggered such strong opposition when Madigan pushed it through committee with little notice.

State senators serve either 2- or 4-year terms depending on an every-10-years lottery, which was overseen by Secretary of State Jesse White Thursday in Springfield.

Over a decade, each Illinois Senate seat has two 4-year terms and one 2-year term. The rotation of terms is set in place by the lottery.

The following seats in the Fox Valley and DuPage County will be serving a 2-year term first, followed by two 4-year terms:

21st District: State Rep. Michael Connelly of Naperville is the Republican nominee for the seat. No Democratic candidate has filed. Incumbent Ron Sandack, a Republican from Downers Grove, who was appointed to the seat, is running in the 81st State House District.

24th District: Incumbent Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale is the Republican nominee. A. Ghani of Oak Brook is the Democratic nominee for the seat.

33rd District: Kane County Board Chairman Karen McConnaughay of St. Charles is the Republican nominee for the seat. No Democrat candidate filed. Incumbent Dan Kotowski, a Democrat from Park Ridge, is instead running in the 28th District.

42nd District: Incumbent Linda Holmes of Aurora is the Democratic nominee for the seat. Peter Hurtado of Aurora is the Republican nominee.

The following seat will have a 4-year term first, followed by a 2-year term and then a 4-year term:

38th District: Incumbent Sue Rezin of Morris is the Republican candidate for the seat. Christine Benson of Ottawa is the Democratic candidate.

The following seats will have two 4-year terms first, followed by a 2-year term:

22nd District: Incumbent Michael Noland of Elgin is the Democratic nominee. No Republican candidate has filed.

25th District: Jim Oberweis of Sugar Grove is the Republican nominee. Corinne Pierog of St. Charles is the Democratic nominee for the seat. Incumbent Sen. Chris Lauzen is running for Kane County Board chairman.

28th District: Daniel Kotowski of Park Ridge, currently the 33rd District incumbent, is the Democratic candidate. Jim O’Donnell of Park Ridge is the Republican nominee for the seat. Incumbent John Millner of Carol Stream is not running for re-election.

45th District: Incumbent Tim Bivins of Dixon is the Republican nominee for the seat. No Democratic candidate has filed.

49th District: Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant of Shorewood is the Democratic nominee for the seat. Garrett Peck of Plainfield is the Republican nominee. Incumbent William “Sam” McCann, a Republican from Carlinville, is not running for re-election in the district. Instead he is running in the 50th District.

About a dozen people came to Peru’s city hall to hear the Morris Republican review the state’s legislative session that ended May 31.

“This is my budget talk and it’s not pretty,” Rezin said. “There are challenges ahead that impact you and your family.”

The costs to Medicaid will increase $2.7 billion from this year to next, she said. Rezin favors “scrubbing the rolls,” removing aid recipients who don’t need aid by changing criteria and by policing fraud. Six percent of current recipients live out of state and are ineligible, she said. This could save $300 million to $700 million a year, Rezin said.

The state pushed $1.2 billion in Medicaid bills to next year, bringing total Medicaid bills to $8 billion, she said.

She showed state budgets spanning 10 years, which increased 35 percent. However, the past three years leveled off, according to her graph.

Lawmakers this year agreed with a $33.7 billion revenue stream for budgeting, but the budget that went to the governor had $34 billion in spending, Rezin said. She said it needs to be cut to $32 billion. This year’s session contained “good news” in that it begins to “control growth of the state budget,” she said.

Pension reform stalled. Rezin said the system is full of “perks, bumps and sweeteners,” attributing this to the Chicago Tribune.

The proposed reform uses a “cost shift,” as in shifting the cost down to school districts. If this model ever passed, districts would need five to 10 years to plan for paying teacher pensions, Rezin said.

“We can’t handle a cost shift,” Rezin said. It would force districts to cut their budgets, clean out reserves or increase property taxes, she said. The issue will probably arise again in lame duck session in January, Rezin said.

The expansion of state-sanctioned gambling opportunities will likely get Quinn’s veto and Rezin agrees.

“I really don’t like that much of an expansion of gaming,” she said.

Dismal funding for Illinois Department of Natural Resources could be boosted by an adopt-a-park program using more volunteers, she said.

The state still is deficit-spending. It has $8 billion in unpaid bills, mostly for Medicaid. Its credit rating dropped and unemployment rose, Rezin said.
She blames the current mess on 10 years of unchecked government spe
nding.
“Nobody thought it would run out but it did run out,” she said.

The income tax that passed last year will bring an estimated $7 billion in new revenue but costs a $50,000-income family about $1,000 more per year, she said. She blames the state’s high unemployment on its income tax hike. The two are directly correlated and drove businesses out of the state, Rezin said.

“I get a lot of calls from people who are taking out a line of credit to pay their payrolls,” Rezin said. “We’ve got to look at the ways we deliver services … so we can roll off this income tax increase.”

Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago) said the General Assembly accomplished much of its agenda this year, though some unfinished business remains.

“We did not pass the pension reforms we hope to pass, but it’s been a very good year,” Cullerton said.

According to state Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley), this is the second year the state has budgeted to spend less than its projected income, which will allow the state to pay old bills and, this year, make some payments ahead of schedule to keep state facilities open, such as Dwight Correctional Center.

However, state Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) said that the $1 billion in old bills the state may be able to pay off isn’t enough to keep the state on pace to let the temporary income tax increase expire in 2015.

That’s a touchy topic among state legislators. The increase was passed in early January 2011, without a single Republican vote, Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno (R-Lemont) reminded listeners. Currently at 5.75 percent, the personal income tax rate will fall to 3.75 percent in 2015, both Cullerton and Mautino also reminded listeners. That’s written into the law as it was passed, and is not at the discretion of legislators: To extend the higher tax, legislators would have to draft new legislation and initiate another unpopular vote. Cullerton expected it would be a hot topic in the 2014 gubernatorial race.

Legislators talked about the steps taken this year to reduce state spending, including cuts to education spending and to Medicaid. According to Mautino, members of the Legislature’s five budget committees combed through thousands of line items.

“This has been probably one of the most difficult years,” Mautino said.

Cullerton said legislators removed a provision that requires the state to provide free health care for retired state employees, a move that could save $300 million if the change makes it through negotiations with the union. Answering a question from the audience, Radogno said legislators cut $210 million in education funding, targeting unnecessary programs. But those are not the only programs that will be affected. Early childhood education also was a casualty.

“Many people think investing in that program saves us money in the long term,” Cullerton said, in a tone of voice that indicated he would not argue, “but we just couldn’t do it.”

To close a gap in Medicaid funding, the legislature voted to raise the cigarette tax to $1.98 per pack, which goes into effect later this month. Radogno said she voted against that increase, though she has voted before to raise cigarette taxes. It’s part of a Republican strategy to “move the ball in the right direction.”

“What we’re trying to improve is the discipline here of living within your means,” she said.

State Rep. Pam Roth (R-Morris) noted two pieces of good news: First, that a gaming bill passed, which she said could add 20,000 jobs and provide funding for state fairs and agricultural programs; and, second, that legislators preserved the “ag line” that supports agricultural and educational programs, such as FFA.

To share the burden, Rezin said elected officials will take 12 furlough days next year, as they have this year.

“I would suggest that we acted responsibly, but to cut any more would be to the point of being irresponsible,” Cullerton said.

All agreed that pension reform remains, in Radogno’s words, “a ticking time bomb” that needs to be addressed to save the state from a further slide in its credit rating, and to give a more stable impression to companies considering locating or expanding in Illinois. Legislators expected to return to Springfield this summer, possibly before the month is out, to address that issue.

A funding bill that failed to pass the state Senate this spring will likely be called for another vote — either this summer if the Legislature is called back into session, or in the fall veto session.

When it is called, Mautino said he was confident the bill had votes to pass: Enough legislators are committed to vote for it, he said, “but when the bill was finally called at 1 o’clock in the morning” on May 31, it fell short because two state Senators were not on the Senate floor at that time.

The bill is part of a package that includes cutting $11 million in IDNR’s expenditures by eliminating responsibilities of the department that are deemed either redundant with federal oversight or not essential. The cuts were developed after IDNR head Marc Miller submitted a budget for the department. Those changes already have been approved and await Gov. Pat Quinn’s signature.
In preparing legislation, Mautino said representatives of 50 groups — from cyclists to hunters to businesses involved in coal mining — sat down to talk about ways to keep IDNR functioning, and places to reduce redundant oversight.

The bill that still awaits Senate approval would include a $2-per-year license plate fee for all Illinois vehicle owners, as well as fees for user groups such as canoe and kayak users. Those fees were designed by organizations representing each user group, and would be collected in different ways. For example, a “paddle pass” would cost a paddler $18 for three years and would be paid at the time of purchasing a kayak or canoe, and owners of other boats would see an increase in the cost of their yearly sticker, varying with the size of their boat. Those fees would be used only for boat ramp programs. Blasting and mining fees would be used to run the office of mines and minerals, which would pay for the cost of issuing permits and hiring mine inspectors. Cyclists who want to use state trails such as the Illinois and Michigan Canal also would pay a fee, and those funds would be dedicated to repairing the trails.

“And that’s the only thing those monies could be used for,” Mautino said, pointing out another provision in the law: Those dedicated funds cannot be cleared out at the end of the year to pay for other state expenses.

“The most important thing is, the governor will not sweep the funds,” Mautino said.
That’s key in preventing the department from falling into financial difficulty in the future.
This budget year is critical for IDNR, Mautino said. IDNR’s appropriation is short by about $25.5 million of the $45 million the state typically funds. Actual operating costs are about $70 million per year, and Mautino said IDNR will exhaust its reserves in another year of underfunding.
“Next budget year –— There’s a cliff there,” Mautino said.

That’s not lost on IDNR employees. Because of insecurity about funding for the department and for pensions for state employees, a wave of retirements already has begun, including three retirements at Starved Rock and Matthiessen state parks. Mautino expected at least 100 would retire by July 1, though about 330 of IDNR’s 1105 employees are eligible for retirement.
“Statewide, that will make some problems,” Mautino said. “If 100 retire, they should be able to replace about 40 of them.”

If the funding bills are approved this summer or in the fall session, Mautino said they still could be effective beginning Jan. 1. But because of the time it takes to print stickers, he expected the earliest the plan could be implemented would be in March 2013.
State Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) said she expects to see the bill come for a vote this summer or next fall, and will have to take a close look at the legislation. She voted against the bill in May.

“I do think Representative Mautino went about negotiating this bill the right way, and I commend him for it,” Rezin said. “And I do think that many people in our caucus who don’t vote for fee increases realize that DNR, in the past 10 years, their funding has been decimated.”
Knowing that the governor will not be able to sweep the funds makes the bill more palatable. Also a factor is the importance of her district’s several state parks — including Starved Rock, Matthiessen, Buffalo Rock, Illini State Park, Gebhard Woods and Goose Lake Prairie — in the regional economy.
“The state parks are very important to tourism in the area. They’re important to people who take staycations in the area,” Rezin said.

Helping hand for state parks
To help alleviate pressures on park staff, Rezin sponsored another bill that is awaiting the governor’s signature: the Adopt-A-Park Act.

Under the act, individuals or groups of volunteers can receive permission to clean up garbage in state parks.

“We originally tried to get a little more, maybe a little of a project base. That didn’t work out,” Rezin said. “But we did agree on allowing volunteer organizations to come in and do spring cleanups, just like groups clean up highways.”

“We are severely understaffed in our state parks around here,” Rezin said. “This will just free up some of their time to do larger projects, the larger maintenance projects, that need to be addressed in the parks.”

Volunteers will need to make a request for permission, provide their own safety gear if working near a roadway, and sign a “hold harmless” release. The act would become effective when signed into law.

Allison Ryan can be reached at (815) 220-6931 or svreporter@newstrib.com.

The event will address the recently approved “Smart Grid” program that is part of the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act. ComEd will roll out the program over a 10-year period with initial implementation in the suburban Chicago area.

The program is estimated to cost an additional $3 per month on utility bills but the two-way meters are projected to ultimately save money for consumers who will be able to monitor their electrical use.
“They also will have the ability to see the price they are charged at that time,” Rezin said. “In the past you were paying the general cost of electricity regardless of the peaks and valleys. With the smart grid, if you use your electricity at night when it’s cheaper, there will be a cost benefit.”

ComEd is seeking a rate increase of 97 cents a month from Illinois Commerce Commission effective next year to begin funding the $2.6 billion project.
Rezin said rate increases like this wouldn’t normally get her support but the long-term cost benefits, the estimated 2,000 full-time equivalent jobs and the overall modernization of the electric grid outweighed the short-term concerns.

“The last thing we want to do is just pass on different fees to people,” she said. “If you talk to businesses as they’re looking at states or areas to invest, their concern is, they place a high priority on a modern electric infrastructure and this modernized grid. Technology is changing and the demands on our infrastructure are changing too.”

Rezin said she currently does not have any additional town hall meetings scheduled on this topic and hopes residents from throughout the ComEd service area in La Salle and Lee counties will be able to attend.