By Howard Packowitz
SPRINGFIELD – It was a momentous night for the Illinois General Assembly on Wednesday. Illinois became the 37th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment on the same evening the Illinois Senate passed a balanced budget for the new fiscal year.
The Illinois House voted 72-45 in favor of the amendment guaranteeing equal rights for women even though there’s disagreement whether ERA can be added to the U.S. Constitution 36 years after the ratification deadline.
McLean County’s two Republican state representatives had opposing views on ERA. Dan Brady from the 105th District voted for the amendment, while Keith Sommer from the 88th District voted no.
After years of budget gridlock, the Senate voted 56-2 for a balanced budget that doesn’t raise taxes. Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady of Bloomington praised lawmakers and the governor for reaching a compromise.
“I think everyone who knows me knows this isn’t a budget I would draft by myself, but it is a budget given the reality of the makeup of the General Assembly, it is a budget given the reality and the philosophy of our governor that I believe we can all work with,” Sen. Brady said on the Senate floor.
“The fact that the governor is going to sign this budget after laying out his budget, but asking us to work in a compromising way under the auspices of giving him a product that he can work to balance, as well as a product that doesn’t rely on future tax increases,” Sen. Brady also said.
Sen. Jason Barickman of Bloomington said school districts will receive an additional $350 million through the evidence-based funding model he helped author, while higher education gets a two percent funding increase.
Barickman said the budget cuts over $1 billion in costs and spending, while Sen. Chapin Rose of Mahomet noted taxpayers will save more than $440 million from pension reform.
The budget now moves to the House.
Howard Packowitz can be reached at [email protected]
