Issue Position: The Issues

Issue Position

Issues

"A ten percent cut in pay for Illinois legislators isn't going to solve all of our budget problems, but it is an appropriate starting point to set the tone for the upcoming budget discussions," said Rep. Hammond.

"The Service Member's Employment Act protects the jobs of our service men and women when these brave individuals must leave their employment to serve our country," said Rep. Hammond. "What HB 2095 will do is ensure that employers abide by current standards that allow service members to return to their job. If an employer receives a civil rights violation of this nature they will be added to statewide list of employers convicted of violating this act and that list will be made available to the public."

"The statewide capital construction program contains funds for both the Northeast and Northwest Macomb bypass, with work on the Northwest section scheduled for the upcoming season," said Hammond, who reiterated that infrastructure improvements are vital to attracting economic investments. "One of the most important factors businesses look for when picking a location or deciding where to expand is the quality of the infrastructure. It is absolutely critical that we continue to invest and improve our transportation networks if we want to provide a positive economic environment for employers to locate."

"The reality is that we are going to have to cut the budget if we want to restore fiscal stability and have a balanced budget for the state of Illinois," said Hammond. "These cuts which I suggested are not going to erase our deficit, but you have to start somewhere and in my opinion these are common sense places to save tax dollars."

Rep. Hammond suggested a little over $55 million in cuts to the General Services budget alone. Below is a list of potential cuts Hammond recommended.

Cut board and commission operations by 10% - $2 million
Reduce the number of state vehicles by 50% - $30 million
Cancel taxpayer funded cell phones, blackberries and PDA's - $7 million
Reduce in-state travel by half - $9.9 million
Eliminate all association dues - $3.8 million
Eliminate agency subscriptions - $1.4 million
End practice of providing health benefits to part-time board members - $200,000
Reduce the Prisoner Review Board from 14 to 4 members - $859,000
"In most states these substances are perfectly legal to purchase, and are often purchased by teenagers looking for easy access to substances that will make them intoxicated," said Hammond. "Children ingest these chemicals not knowing the potential damaging effects, and on many occasions those children end up in the hospital. Make no mistake about it, these so-called "bath salts' are drugs that are being abused, and it is time we made this substance illegal here in the state of Illinois."

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