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September 25, 2008
Volume 22 - Issue 20
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ETHICS BILL NOW LAW, MORE REFORMS APPROVED BY SENATE
The Illinois Senate, following the House’s action 2 weeks ago, overrode Governor Blagojevich’s amendatory veto of what’s now known as the Ethics Bill, HB 824 (Fritchey, D-Chicago), that would prohibit any contributor or would-be contributor with a state contract in excess of $50,000 from contributing to the office/agency in charge of approving the contract. While the law would apply to any office or agency of the state, this predominantly affects the governor’s office and his ability to raise money.
Blagojevich’s amendatory veto added many provisions to the law designed as a “poison pill” to effectively kill the bill entirely, including the same contribution prohibition for legislators, how legislators vote on pay raises, baring them from working in most other government jobs, and require more disclosure of lobbying by legislators and their spouses. The Senate, in coming to Blagojevich’s defense of his amendatory veto, took up many of his ideas in another piece of legislation, SB 780 (DeLeo, D-Chicago) and passed it to the House, where it future remains very uncertain.
Up until now, there were no limitations of any kind on campaign contributions in the state, period. This new law takes effect January 1, 2009. |
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FUND SWEEPS TO COVER SOME BUDGET CUTS
The Senate also followed the House in voting on restoring more than $220 million in budget cuts, funded by fund sweeps. This is a process by which money in certain funds for specific programs are siphoned off into the state’s general account. This was done to save more than 300 state jobs and keep open state parks and historic sites.
But the Senate vote, which now sends the measures to Gov. Rod Blagojevich for his approval, came on the same day as the state’s Revenue Department announced that the slowing national economy has crimped tax collections. Income, sales and other tax receipts are down $200 million from anticipated levels. It’s not known what the governor will do with the measures. |
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SENATE APPROVES AUTISM COVERAGE … AGAIN
One of the special sessions that Governor Blagojevich called this week was for a proposal to mandate autism insurance coverage. Coming on the heels of a bill amendatorily vetoed by Blagojevich to provide this type of coverage, which was soundly overridden, the Senate revived a measure for at least the fourth time aimed at requiring insurance companies to cover treatment of autism disorders. The House again, however, took no action on the idea.
The bill would specifically provide that the coverage would be subject to a maximum benefit of $36,000 per year, but shall not be subject to any limits on the number of visits to an autism service provider until age 21. It is estimated that there are 26,000 cases of autism in Illinois. According to fiscal estimates, passage of this mandate could ultimately cost employers close to a billion dollars per year in increased insurance coverage. |
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BLAGOJEVICH SIGNS E-WASTE LEGISLATION
Illinois became the first state in the Midwest to enact electronic waste recycling as Governor Blagojevich last week signed legislation, SB 2313 (Garrett, D-Lake Forest), into law requiring the collection and recycling or reuse of electronics products.
The law authorizes the use of a combination of incentives and mandates to reduce the ever-increasing amount of electronic waste – televisions, printers, computer monitors, computers, laptops, printers, fax machines and MP3 players from being disposed in Illinois landfills. It also allows strategies to meet the goals of electronic reuse and recycling, such as partnering with retailers and local governments to sponsor collections. Manufacturers, recyclers, refurbishers and collectors must also register annually with the Illinois EPA.
Effective January 1, 2012, landfills would be prohibited from knowingly accepting any of the law’s covered electronic devices for disposal.
In 2006, the governor signed an Executive Order directing state government to recycle electronic equipment – PCs and laptops, fax and copy machines, cellular phones and other e-waste products.
CICI’s main concern in this proposal was making sure chemical products were not banned in electronic devices, as had once been the case during negotiations with the Senate sponsor. CICI was successful in making sure chemical products were not banned in electronic devices. |
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LEGISLATIVE & REGULATORY MEETING AT NALCO OCTOBER 17
CICI’s next Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Committee meeting will be held at Nalco Company, located at Rt. 59 and I-88 in Naperville, on Friday, October 17, 2008. The meeting will start at 9:00 a.m. and will cover topics such as legislation, the November elections, and updates on regulatory proposals and issues. To register for the meeting, follow this link: http://www.cicil.net/member/Agendas/Legreg101708.html
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: 1400 E. TOUHY AVE., SUITE 110, 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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