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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of former
4Illinois State Representative Vincent A. "Vince" Persico, who
5passed away on July 21, 2016; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Vincent Persico was born on December 9, 1948 in
7Oak Park; studying in his native state, he earned a bachelor's
8degree from the University of Illinois in 1971; pursuing
9credentials as a teacher, he earned a master's degree from
10Northern Illinois University in 1986; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Vince Persico instructed young people in history
12and government as a Hadley Junior High School teacher for many
13years until 1988; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Vince Persico was an involved member of the Glen
15Ellyn community; he was a member of the Kiwanis Club, the
16Glenbard West Booster Club, the Hadley Junior High School PTA,
17and many other clubs and groups, and was active in Glen Ellyn
18boys' baseball leagues; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Vince Persico began his life of public service by
20joining the boards of directors of Glen Ellyn Family Services
21and the Milton Township Committee on Youth; he also became a

 

 

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1trustee for Milton Township, which in the 1980s was a
2fast-growing township within central DuPage County that was
3enjoying many challenges and opportunities; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Seeking to move his public service to the next
5level, Vince Persico chose to run for election to the Illinois
6House of Representatives; in an example of persistence in
7action, he sought the seat and lost twice, in 1986 and in 1988,
8before winning unanimous election to the House in November of
91990 without general-election opposition; in January of 1991,
10he took his seat in the Illinois House of Representatives,
11where he would serve for 11 years; and
 
12    WHEREAS, As a member of the Republican Party, Vince Persico
13quickly showed an aptitude for bipartisan committee work,
14serving with colleagues from both parties on the House
15Committees on Aging, Environment and Energy, Financial
16Institutions, and Labor; when he began his service in the
17Illinois General Assembly, the State laws governing relations
18between Illinois residents and regulated utilities had become
19suboptimal, especially in the areas of electricity and
20telecommunications; Illinois laws continued to assume there
21would be only one big supplier of services in any geographic
22area and customers would have to take it or leave it; and
 
23    WHEREAS, As a key member of the House Telecommunications

 

 

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1Rewrite Committee, Vince Persico helped to rewrite the Illinois
2Telecommunications Law; he played a major role in opening up
3Illinois telecommunications services to consumer-friendly
4competition and in moving the law from a paradigm based on
5wireline telecommunications toward the wireless services of
6the future; the cell phone shops and advertisements that have
7become ubiquitous features of Illinois life are a tribute to
8the success of his work; and
 
9    WHEREAS, As the selected co-chairperson of the Electric
10Utility Deregulation Committee, Vince Persico played a major
11role in deregulating supplies of Illinois electricity; one of
12the most significant legislative achievements he achieved with
13the help of chosen colleagues, the Illinois Electric Service
14Customer Choice and Rate Relief Law of 1997, restructured the
15customer side of the Illinois electric utility industry to
16offer many Illinois customers a choice between electric
17suppliers while retaining the right of owners of the "last
18mile" of electric delivery wire to earn a fair return on their
19investments; and
 
20    WHEREAS, In January of 2002, Vince Persico retired from the
21Illinois House of Representatives to join the private sector;
22in the private sector, he remained a familiar figure in the
23Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, educating lawmakers on a
24wide variety of issues; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In late 2015, Vince Persico was diagnosed with
2terminal brain cancer; during his final months of life, he and
3his wife Donna set an example of courage and fortitude for the
4members of the Illinois House of Representatives, including his
5former colleagues; therefore, be it
 
6    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
7NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
8pay tribute to the memory of former Illinois State
9Representative Vincent A. Persico and his life of courage, hard
10work, and public service; and be it further
 
11    RESOLVED, That we express our appreciation for the support
12given to Vince Persico by his wife Donna and his son Derek
13Persico, House Republican Senior Legal Counselor and District
14Office Director in the office of House Republican Leader Jim
15Durkin; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
17delivered to the family of Vincent "Vince" Persico as a symbol
18of our sympathy and appreciation for his service to the State
19of Illinois.