Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner during his comments about lawmakers' failure to reach a balanced budget
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner during his comments about lawmakers' failure to reach a balanced budget
After Gov. Bruce Rauner exercised his amendatory veto on Senate Bill 1, there are only three things that could happen moving forward.
Senate members can vote the altered legislation into law, they can override the veto which will allow the original bill to stand, or they can do neither and let the bill die. If this happens, they would have to pass new legislation.
State Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorn Woods) believes the latter will happen and that House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) is just waiting to find enough Republicans to break away from the governor like they did recently with the state budget.
State Senator Dan McConchie, (R-Lake County)
“They (Republicans) went over and joined with the speaker and created their own deal. I think that that’s what we are waiting for,” McConchie told Dan Proft and guest host Shaun Thompson of "Chicago’s Morning Answer" radio show.
Proft is a principal of Local Government Information Services, which owns this publication.
McConchie believes Madigan does not want to make a deal on SB 1. He said after hours of negotiations about the bill, it’s clear to him that Madigan is willing to wait to get what he wants.
“He (wants to be) able to peel off enough Republicans to do it and he is able to say to the governor ‘at the end of the day you really don’t matter. I’m the only thing that matters in this state,’” McConchie said.
The amendatory veto eliminates the $250 million annual block grant to Chicago Public Schools, according to the Northwest Herald. McConchie said the governor wants to use that money for other schools that are as poor or poorer than CPS.
“In Cicero, 100 percent of the kids that go to those districts are in poverty according to the definitions that have been set,” McConchie said. “We’re estimating that under SB 1, they would get about $8 million to try to help upgrade their schools. Under the governor’s plan, the numbers we were roughly working up are going to be closer to $15 million.”
McConchie said Illinois residents are getting fed up with politics as usual and there will be consequences if fiscal irresponsibility continues.
“The failed policies that have been pursued for so long, we’ve just been doubling down on them. People are just going to begin in mass to abandon the state,” McConchie said.
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