Rep. Greg Harris • 13th District
Springfield Update • November 30, 2011
Budget Restorations, Breast Cancer, Corporate Tax Breaks
Budget Restorations: In yesterday’s session of the General Assembly, we restored funding to many critically needed human service and education programs, funded the MAP Grant program to keep students enrolled in college, and funded state operated facilities for people with mental illness and developmental disabilities (MH&DD). Besides providing for services for our most vulnerable, these funding reallocations will prevent layoffs and job losses for thousands of workers.
It is important to note that it is our intent to eventually transition clients from state MH&DD facilities to community based care, if they so desire and if community based care can meet their medical and supportive service needs. It is also important that institutional care remain for those who are most appropriately served in those settings or who wish to remain. In the meantime, we must make a substantial investment in housing, supportive services and community-based care before moving folks into community settings, or else we will be putting them at severe risk. A carefully crafted transition plan must be agreed to and in place before we begin moving frail and vulnerable citizens.
It is also important to note that the reallocations and supplemental appropriations listed below remain within our budget cap. In other words, we are still living within our means. The sources of the additional funding include: funds freed up by sustaining the Governor’s vetoes, reductions in cost associated with workers comp reform and elimination of the death penalty, some statutory transfers, and strategic use of funds to pay Medicaid bills and obtain millions in federal matching funds.
Listed below are some of the more important reallocations. Please call me to check on individual items that if I do not include them on this partial list:
- Executive Inspector General $2,000,000
- Department of Revenue to maintain auditors and other services $15,999,000
- Prisoner Review Board Operations $ 238,100
- Department of Corrections and Department of Juvenile Justice
- Reallocations to prevent facility closures and maintain personnel (various)
- MAP Grants $33,500,000
- Department of Children and Family Services
- Reallocations to fund operations, telecommunications, etc. (various)
- Guardianship and Advocacy Commission for operations $ 306,700
- Department of Human Rights, restore operations funding (various)
- Indigent Burial $8,000,000
- Department of Human Services (various)
- Restore community mental health funding
- Restore community substance abuse treatment
- Increase for School for the Visually Impaired
- Increase for School for the Deaf
- Restore Emergency Food and Shelter for the Homeless
- Restore funding for MH&DD facilities
The full details can be seen in the Budget Implementation (BIMP) bill, SB1311 and the Supplemental Appropriation bill SB2412. You can see them here:
Supplemental: http://ilga.gov/legislation/97/SB/PDF/09700SB2412eng.pdf
Breast Cancer Detection: Once again I am proud to have worked with Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force to take another step in improving detection and diagnosis of breast cancer for low-income women. As many research studies have documented, minority women in Chicago have mortality rates for breast cancer 62% higher than white women, and only 1/3 of hospitals in our area are detecting breast cancer early.
In the 95th General Assembly, I sponsored the Reducing Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Treatment Act, and this year, along with Sen. Mattie Hunter, we took another step in passing SB2502. This legislation follows upon the recommendations of the research done by Komen and the Task Force and provides enhanced payment to hospitals and other providers who offer digital mammography that meets high quality standards. This increased reimbursement rate should incentivize providers to upgrade equipment and diagnostic reading to improve earlier detection of cancers. You may see the bill here: http://ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=09500SB1174enr&GA=95&SessionId=51&DocTypeId=SB&LegID=29258&DocNum=1174&GAID=9&Session=
Corporate Tax Breaks: As you have undoubtedly seen in the news, two major Illinois corporations, Sears and the CME Group, have demanded various incentives in return for staying in Illinois. The House overwhelmingly defeated the first proposal which would have offered $85 million a year to CME and $15 million per year (for 10 years) to Sears. In addition there were other business and individual tax incentives included in this legislation. I voted ‘NO’ on this for a number of reasons:
- While these corporations were getting relief in the millions, working families were being offered relief in the range of $100-150.
- These same corporations have already received incentive packages in prior years to remain here, but seem to keep coming back for more
- This package could cost between $300-800 million to the taxpayers of Illinois in future years causing us to cut healthcare, human services, education and public safety further
- There is concern giving these incentives will trigger a flood of “me too” requests. It is more appropriate to craft a comprehensive corporate tax reform strategy than a succession of individual packages.
I continue to remain open to a more sensible package that would help retain jobs in our state, as long as it proportionately helps working families and small businesses and does not create an enormous hole in an already strained budget.
You can see the proposal SB1833 here. The tax incentive provisions are Senate Amendments 7 and 8. (Ignore the original bill and Senate Amendments 1-6) http://ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=09700HB1883&GA=97&SessionId=84&DocTypeId=HB&LegID=59076&DocNum=1883&GAID=11&Session=
As always, I welcome your comments and suggestions. I can be reached at 773 348 3434 or greg@gregharris.org