OP-ED:Standing Up for Downstate this Veto Session

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Standing Up for Downstate this Veto Session

by State Senator Mike Frerichs (D – Champaign)

Next week, my fellow legislators and I will return to Springfield for the fall veto session. Every year, the fall veto session is our opportunity to override any vetoes the governor made over the summer to legislation we passed in the spring legislative session. The governor vetoed quite a few bills this summer, using many of the various types of veto—total, line item, reduction, or amendatory—available to him. Unfortunately, if allowed to stand, the effect of many of the governor’s vetoes would unfairly and negatively impact downstate Illinois. My plan when I return to Springfield next week is to work with my colleagues to override these particular vetoes and to stand up for downstate Illinois.

In May, we in the General Assembly sent Governor Quinn a budget that cut over $1 billion in spending. Governor Quinn signed and enacted this budget, but only after making some changes with his veto prerogative. In particular, the governor signed the education budget, but only after reducing the transportation line item and completely zeroing out the line item for Regional Offices of Education (ROE). These moves may sound bureaucratic or minimal, but the real-world effects are devastating for downstate communities and therefore it is my biggest priority in the upcoming veto session to override these particular vetoes.

By zeroing out their budget without changing the responsibilities mandated by current law, Regional Superintendants and other ROE staff have been forced to work without pay for the past several months. Especially in downstate Illinois, ROEs play a very important role in education, providing many services and serving administrative functions our schools cannot do without. While I and many of my colleagues are very open to a discussion about consolidating Regional Offices of Education as needed or other ways to streamline operations for greater efficiency, that conversation—and the accompanying changes to existing law—need to happen before we can stop funding. It’s just common sense. For that reason, I plan to vote to override this veto.

Similarly, I will vote to override the reduction made to the transportation portion of the education budget. Schools use their transportation budget to pay for the costs associated with transporting students to and from school. Particularly in rural downstate districts, schools need every penny of this money to run and maintain fleets of school buses that must cover hundreds of miles of rural roads. Because this is not a responsibility schools can opt out of—they are obligated to safely transport students daily—cutting this part of their budget forces them to pull money from elsewhere. Effectively, then, this cut amounts to taking more money out of downstate classrooms. On top of that, this same part of the budget was cut by about 30% just last year! I understand the need for fiscal responsibility—that’s why I supported a budget that trimmed over $1 billion in spending—but cuts need to be fair, equitable, and need to make sense. Downstate schools have already shouldered their fair share of the burden and this cut should not stand.

After making these further reductions in the budget, the governor then began threatening to close several state facilities because he claims we, the General Assembly, cut too much. The governor says he wasn’t given enough money. Six of the seven facilities he would close are in downstate Illinois in communities whose local economies rely heavily on these facilities. The governor is asking us, the legislators, to give him more money in the upcoming veto session while dangling the threat of these facility closures and the resulting economic hit to downstate. It’s not right.

I am not willing to support a budget that places an unfair burden on any one part of the state over another. Unfortunately, with the two cuts mentioned above, and with the threats of facility closures, I feel downstate is being asked to carry too large a burden in the difficult process of fixing the state’s finances. The General Assembly already crafted a fair and balanced budget, and its one I believe we should stick with. I appreciate the governor’s attempts to find further cost-savings, but feel these particular attempts are misguided. I look forward to casting my vote to override these vetoes as part of my continued efforts to stand up for downstate Illinois.