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May 1, 2008
Volume 22 - Issue 11
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CICI NEEDS YOUR ATTENDANCE IN SPRINGFIELD THIS TUESDAY
The Annual Legislative & Regulatory Day and Reception will be held in Springfield this Tuesday, May 6, 2008, at the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel (formerly Renaissance Hotel), with an evening reception of legislators and key government officials at the Sangamo Club. There will also be legislative visits to the State Capitol. To register for the event, please go to:http://www.cicil.net/Flyers/Legislativeday08.html
Illinois State Treasurer Alexis Giannoulias will be the keynote speaker at the Luncheon. Treasurer Giannoulias will speak about the current budget problems facing the State of Illinois.
CICI needs your attendance in Springfield. With the potential for new and increased taxes and fees on our industry to pay for an ever-expanding government, reestablishment of the Structural Work Act,and other anti-industry proposals, there is no shortage of issues to discuss with your elected officials and they need to hear from you.
This event is a great opportunity to mingle and get to know the key people in state government, like members of the Illinois General Assembly, Constitutional Officers, IEPA officials, the members of the Pollution Control Board, and other key government officials. At the 2007 reception, over 175 legislators and government officials attended. Come thank those elected officials who are friends of the chemical industry. Already a “Who’s Who” of the General Assembly and every other important state agency has indicated they will be attending. As a result, we would like to have a nice turnout of CICI members for the event. |
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ENVIROS TRYING TO RESSURECT CHEMICAL BANS
An effort is afoot in the Senate to try to resurrect chemical bans, at least on bisphenol A (BPA), but possibly phthalates, and enact a regulatory review process that would recommend bans, limits, and mandate substitutes for thousands of chemicals used in consumer products. While the proponents of this measure failed to even call their bills for a vote in their respective committees before their deadlines a month and a half ago, CICI has learned that some sort of ban language will likely be assigned to a Senate Committee. At the time of this writing, it’s not clear what the language will look like but will nonetheless contain a ban on chemical products that have been proven safe by numerous health agencies around the globe in their respective applications. CICI has taken the lead in opposing such measures and will keep you informed of any developments that may occur.
CICI’s main argument against these bills is that the products are safe and have been proven as such. Secondly, this issue should be taken up as a federal issue rather than banning products on a state-by-state basis which would make it very difficult to conduct commerce if each state had different bans or limitations on the use of various chemicals.
In response, CICI has introduced a resolution, HR 1150 (Lindner, R-Sugar Grove) and SR 679 (Clayborne, D-E. St. Louis), calling on Congress to ensure that the Federal Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) provides the necessary statutory and regulatory controls necessary to protect human health and the environment from the risks of industrial chemicals. Further, another resolution, a joint resolution between the House and Senate, has been introduced as HJR 122 (Holbrook, D-Belleville) at the request of some consumer groups to urge Congress to meaningfully address imports – everything from toys to cat food - that have been the subject of various recalls in this country. All of these resolutions have been assigned to the Rules Committee. |
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ARCHITECTS, ENGINEERS REMOVED FROM TRIAL LAWYER BILL
Not that it made this bill any more palatable to the business community, but a House committee today amended the Structural Work Act (SWA) – now technically referred to as the Construction Safety Act of 2008 – along party lines to remove architects, engineers, and other design professionals from its onerous provisions. The rationale from the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association was that they were never a part of any settlement anyway.
The SWA was originally enacted over 100 years ago to protect workers injured in scaffolding accidents. But over the years, it became abused as workers were able to collect benefits under Workers' Compensation and then file lawsuits under the SWA against each party involved regardless of fault, including owners, suppliers, contractors, subcontractors and design. In fact, the bill was so dangerous to Illinois' economy that the General Assembly repealed the law back in 1995. This is nothing more than a way to inflate trial lawyer profits and it needs to be stopped.
According to an annual Harris Interactive survey, Illinois has one of the worst lawsuit climates in the country. Passage of HB 2094 would only make this reputation worse.
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ANOTHER TAX INCREASE FAILS
The Senate defeated a proposed change to the state’s constitution this week to enact a graduated income tax by a vote of 19 “YES”, 35 “NO”, and 1 “PRESENT”. The proposal, SJRCA 92 (Frerichs, D-Champaign), only would allow lawmakers to put in place some form of graduated rate, or sliding scale, on the state income tax. It did not specify what the new rates would be. The new rates would be left up to the General Assembly to do through the regular lawmaking process. This Constitutional Amendment needed to be approved by a three-fifths margin in both the House and Senate, and then submitted to voters in a statewide referendum a full 6 months before the November 4 election. Since the House and Senate has already adjourned and won’t return until after the May 4 deadline, no proposed changes to our state’s constitution will be on the November ballot.
This proposal is slightly different from another measure that was defeated in the House a few weeks ago. That measure, HJRCA 42 (Smith, D-Canton),would have increased the state's 3 percent income tax to 6 percent for individuals or couples earning more than $250,000, generating potentially $3 billion more for the state. The tax rate would have stayed at 3 percent for those below that income threshold. The proposal went on to require that a third of the additional proceeds go for elementary and secondary education, another third for infrastructure projects, and the remaining amount to help “working families.” This proposal failed to reach 71 votes in the House by a vote 52 “YES” and 60 “NO”. |
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RECALL OF ELECTED OFFICIALS DIES IN SENATE
The issue of recalling elected officials came to an abrupt end today with the Senate failing to pass their own version of a constitutional amendment, SJRCA 70 (Cronin, R-Elmhurst), that would have allowed a recall election. The vote was 3 shy of passing to the House, which was waiting on Senate action before adjournment. A similar measure, HJRCA 28 (Franks, D-Woodstock), became stalled in the Senate Executive Committee 2 weeks ago as the Senate sponsor (Trotter, D-Chicago) refused to call the measure for a vote. Under tremendous pressure from numerous newspaper editorial boards, the Senate advanced their own proposal that ultimately lead to the final floor vote today.
The proposal would let voters in November decide whether to change the state constitution to allow removal of politicians during their terms if enough voters demand it. The measure would apply to all state-level Executive Officers, General Assembly members, and all elected judges and local officials. A similar measure already passed the House 75-33 two weeks ago, largely on the strength of bipartisan anger towards Governor Blagojevich, but did not include the Lt. Governor, judges or other locally elected officials.
The proposed new system would be similar to the one available in 18 other states that allow recall elections, much like California did in 2003 that brought Governor Schwarzenegger into office. |
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E-WASTE RECYCLING GETS THE GREEN LIGHT IN THE SENATE
The issue of electronic waste has been discussed and negotiated in the General Assembly for a few years now. Legislation contained in SB 2313 (Garrett, D-Lake forest) finally passed the Senate unanimously and now awaits further action in the House. The proposal creates the Electronic Products Recycling and Reuse Act and requires manufacturers, retailers, collectors, and recyclers to perform certain duties related to recycling or reusing certain electronic products. The bill also sets forth goals for manufacturers for the recycling of the electronic products and requires manufacturers and recyclers of the electronic products to register with the IEPA and pay a registration fee. The bill further sets out standards for recycling facilities of the electronic products. CICI’s main concern in this proposal was making sure chemicals products were not banned in electronic devices. CICI is continuously monitoring this as it awaits further action in the House.
Please note that the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois Legislator is not intended to convey legal advice or set forth all legal requirements applicable to particular circumstances.
Headquarters: 2250 E. DEVON AVE., SUITE 239, DES PLAINES, IL 60018 · TEL :( 847) 544-5995 · FAX :( 847) 544-5999
Springfield: 400 W. MONROE, SUITE 205, SPRINGFIELD, IL 62704 · TEL :( 217) 522-5805 · FAX :( 217) 522-5815 |
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