HR1056 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1056 LRB102 30125 ECR 42359 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to thank State Representative Mark Batinick for his service and dedication to the 97th House District; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick has served the 97th District in the Illinois House of Representatives since 2015 after he replaced former House Republican Leader Tom Cross; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Education from the University of Illinois in 1992; and

WHEREAS, Acting on his entrepreneurial spirit, Rep. Batinick started his own business, pursuing the American dream of being a small business owner; he also works as a commercial real estate broker and is the owner of a home services company, serving mostly fellow small business owners; and

WHEREAS, After personally witnessing the many hardships that businesses and taxpayers had to endure in Illinois, too often inflicted by the State itself, Rep. Batinick joined the House of Representatives; he believed bipartisan solutions could be provided by setting aside politics to accomplish what some would consider the impossible; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick's first order of business as a state representative was refusing to accept his lucrative legislative pension to show his personal commitment to pension reform in Illinois; and

WHEREAS, In Springfield, Rep. Batinick demonstrated his commitment to bipartisan problem-solving and generating ideas for the State, including an Ideas for Illinois website in 2015, a 1-2-3 Budget Solution in 2017, a Rubik's Cube approach to address state problems, a One for All and Two for One budget re-regulation plan, and a Common Sense Approach to the Energy Debate; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick continued to generate bipartisan conversations to turn ideas into action through his Policy Nuance radio town hall series, an open letter to Governor JB Pritzker to move Illinois past COVID-19 in 2021, the Batinick Blueprint in 2022, legislation to cap the gas sales tax, and the Batinick Plan for Pension Reform as a Foundation for Property Tax Relief; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick saw many of his bipartisan bills become law over the years, including the Heroes Way Designation Program Act, an extension of his successful Batinick Buyout program, the creation of the Private First Class Andrew Meari Memorial Highway, legislation for earlier school zone speed limits, and ethics reform legislation for pension boards; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick was a strong voice in the General Assembly for basic ethics reform to restore trust in Springfield that Illinoisans desperately need; he helped launch the Reimagine Illinois pillar for Ending the Culture of Corruption in 2021, was the first sitting lawmaker to call for the resignation of then-Speaker Michael Madigan in 2019, called recent ethics reforms attempts in the General Assembly a Potemkin village, pushed for retroactive term limits, and introduced recall constitutional amendments to hold public officials accountable; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick was also a champion for women and girls, including voting against the 2019 Reproductive Health Act because he believed it was detrimental to the health of women, co-sponsoring legislation that became law to require hotels and casinos to adopt anti-sexual harassment policies to improve workplace safety for employees, supporting the Licensed Certified Professional Midwife Practice Act, hosting a diaper and baby wipe drive for a local pregnancy resource center, supporting legislation to combat human trafficking in Illinois, and working tirelessly to speak out against the 2021 repeal of the Parental Notice of Abortion Act and citing its importance in protecting girls who have been abused; and

WHEREAS, During the COVID-19 pandemic, Rep. Batinick's office immediately got to work to help the 97th District's communities and seniors, including launching an incredibly successful Helping Hands program, holding the Let's Face It campaign to motivate local stores and restaurants to require employees to wear face coverings in April 2020, hosting blood drives, helping local food collections, and consistently requesting the Governor approach the pandemic with a holistic approach and the advice of all experts; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick further aided the 97th District by hosting "Batinick Baldies" for childhood cancer research, promoting eating at local restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, and hosting an art contest to celebrate the legendary 97th District's intersection of Route 66 and the Lincoln Highway in Plainfield; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick was named House Republican Floor Leader and House Republican Spokesperson for the Personnel & Pensions Committee in 2019, serving in those roles through the 101st and 102nd General Assemblies; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick served the 97th District communities of Oswego, Montgomery, Naperville, Plainfield, Bolingbrook, Joliet, and Shorewood dutifully for eight years; and

WHEREAS, Rep. Batinick worked across the aisle to get good legislation passed for every community in Illinois, embodying the sentiment that motivated President Ronald Reagan, "There is no limit to what a man can do...if he doesn't mind who gets the credit"; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we wish to thank Representative Mark Batinick for his years of thoughtful, committed, and pragmatic leadership in the Illinois House of Representatives and his service to the 97th District; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Rep. Batinick as an expression of our esteem and respect.