By Ron Gidwitz

Two years ago Governor Rod Blagojevich proposed to the Illinois General Assembly a tax increase unlike anything before - a three percent payroll tax on Illinois businesses to fund the largest expansion in government healthcare history. The Gross Receipts Tax was born. Taking the issue to the people, the General Assembly called a rare but effective meeting of the whole. Business owners, manufacturers, statewide business and trade associations all testified to the negative impact this legislation would have on the state’s economy. The measure failed on a 105-0 unanimous vote. The measure as we knew it was dead, a victory for those supporting free market solutions to healthcare.

The Governor, always last to concede defeat, made an “end around play” to circumvent the legislature and its Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, who along with the Illinois Secretary of State ruled he did not have the legal authority to expand healthcare without legislative approval.

Exceeding his constitutional authority, the Governor expanded the program to an unknown number of Illinois families. In his mind, it was within his authority to provide free health care to families earning more than $83,000. Never mind the billions in unpaid Medicaid obligations the State was neglecting to pay. Never mind the $55 billion in unfunded pension debt. He simply didn’t care, and we couldn’t let him get away with this.

We had to act and we did. In April of this year, a 7th Circuit Court judge issued an injunction telling the Governor to stop the program. Of course, the Governor ignored the injunction. We then brought suit in the Appellate Court, which confirmed what the Circuit Court had already acknowledged – the Governor was wrong, and the program had to be stopped.

During this whole legal process, the Governor’s people admitted they didn’t know who was signed up in the expanded government provided healthcare program or how to find them. Clearly, here was an agency that was totally incompetent and a governor and an agency head that were breaking the law.

Winning this lawsuit was a victory against the Governor, a victory against increased spending, a victory for the free market and a victory for the Illinois constitution. Most of all, this was a classic victory for those engaged in AFP-IL’s grassroots movement. No one is above the law, and we proved that you can have an effect on how government operates and how it affects the issues and the free market you care about.

Ron Gidwitz
Chairman AFP-IL