Legislative Update From Illinois State Representative Michael W. Tryon | District 64 | May 8, 2008

Since I began serving in the General Assembly, there have been several attempts by lawmakers to pass transparency legislation. Illinois residents are so tired of corruption in state government, with our former governor serving prison time and our current governor under federal investigation. U.S. Attorney General Patrick Fitzgerald has called the Governor’s administration ‘pay to play on steroids.’ Due to increased infighting between the Governor and the state’s Democrat leaders, suspicion and distrust have replaced compromise and negotiation.

Everyone agrees on the need for transparency to break down the walls of secrecy and bring about real accountability to the process…..but somehow, these pieces of legislation always end up lost in the shuffle. A parliamentary move to keep them in committee or a claim that previous transparency bills are not comprehensive enough has left this issue in limbo. Enough is enough. This year, I have introduced the most comprehensive piece of transparency legislation that would shed sunshine on state finances and end this culture of corruption once and for all.

House Bill 4765 would create the Illinois Accountability Portal and would provide the public with direct access to:

• State Employees & Consultants: a database of all current state employees and individual consultants, sorted separately by name, agency, position title, current pay rate and year-to-date pay

• State Expenditures: a database of all current state expenditures, sorted separately by agency, category, customer and representative district

• Tax Credits: a database of all current state tax credits, sorted by tax credit category, customer and representative district

• Sales Tax Breaks: a database of all revocations and suspensions of state occupation and use tax certificates of registration and all revocations and suspensions of state professional licenses sorted by name, geographic location and certificate of registration number or license number, as applicable. Professional licenses revocations and suspensions shall be posted only if resulting from a failure to pay taxes, license fees, or child support.

• State Contracts: a database of all current state contracts, sorted separately by contractor name, awarding officer or agency, contract value, and goods or services provided.

With the help of grassroots taxpayer watchdog group Americans for Prosperity, which partnered with me on House Bill 4765; this legislation was unanimously approved in the House of Representatives last month. House Bill 4765 has garnered widespread support from several grassroots organizations, trade associations, press associations, and taxpayer protection groups. More than a dozen local and national organizations have signed a letter in support of the bill. I firmly believe the Illinois Accountability Portal will reduce the culture of political handouts, pay-to-play politics and pork barrel spending that has tarnished the public’s trust in government.

Over the years, Illinois has invested in technology that can easily put state spending on the desktop. The Illinois Accountability Portal will also be a cost-saving measure, as it will reduce the number of Freedom of Information requests that are processed.

Currently, House Bill 4765 is being held hostage in the Senate Rules Committee. With more than two dozen House sponsors and several Senate sponsors signed on, it is imperative that this bill be given a fair trial and debated in a Senate Committee. This week, newspapers reported that Senator Debbie Halvorson was removed as the powerful chairperson of Rules and replaced by Senator Rickey Hendon. With a week to get bills out of Senate Committee, I urge you to call Senator Hendon and demand that he release this bill out of Rules. Additionally, call your Senator and those serving on the Rules Committee and urge them to help take Illinois off pay to play steroids. Illinois taxpayers deserve to see how their hard-earned money is being spent. Enough is Enough.

For a list of the Senators serving on the Rules Committee, visit http://www.ilga.gov/senate/committees/members.asp?CommitteeID=393

For more information, visit Americans for Prosperity Illinois website at www.afpil.org

Sincerely,

Michael W. Tryon
Illinois State Representative
64th District