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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Illinois law provides that members of the General
3Assembly will receive automatic cost of living pay increases
4every year unless the General Assembly votes to reject those
5pay raises; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Pay for legislators was frozen from 2009 through
72016; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Two former lawmakers filed a lawsuit demanding
9back pay for lost wages during the time legislative pay was
10frozen; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Their lawsuit also demanded backpay for furlough
12days the General Assembly voluntarily accepted during one of
13the worst financial crises the State has experienced to date;
14and
 
15    WHEREAS, A Cook County judge has ruled that the pay freeze
16from 2009 through 2016 is unconstitutional; and
 
17    WHEREAS, We support the efforts of the Illinois Comptroller
18and the Illinois Attorney General to appeal this court
19decision; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Pending the outcome of further legal action
2through the appeals process, lawmakers who were active members
3of the Illinois General Assembly from 2009 through 2016 may be
4in line to receive upwards of $13 million in backpay from the
5State of Illinois; and
 
6    WHEREAS, The State of Illinois may also be forced to pay
7substantial interest penalties on the backpay depending on the
8final outcome of the appeals process; and
 
9    WHEREAS, The backpay would substantially increase
10retirement benefits for legislators as any legislator retiring
11in 2020 at age 60 would receive more than $375,000 in
12additional pension benefits during the course of his or her
13retirement if his or her base salary is increased to $81,700;
14and
 
15    WHEREAS, Article II, Section 1 of the Illinois Constitution
16states: "The legislative, executive and judicial branches are
17separate. No branch shall exercise powers properly belonging to
18another."; and
 
19    WHEREAS, The legislative branch of government is a separate
20branch of government and can decide for itself whether to
21accept or reject pay raises; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
2HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
3SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that as a separate and co-equal
4branch of Illinois government along with the executive and
5judicial branches, we, as members of the Illinois General
6Assembly, have the authority to decide our own pay; and be it
7further
 
8    RESOLVED, That we reject all backpay and all compensation
9for furlough days taken from 2009 through 2016; and be it
10further
 
11    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
12delivered to all Illinois constitutional officers, the Speaker
13and Minority Leader of the Illinois House of Representatives,
14and the President and Minority Leader of the Illinois Senate.