FAIRFIELD-The chairman of the Illinois Forum today stated that the real reason for this year’s planned record-early adjournment of the Illinois General Assembly is the advancing Redfern Amendment to the Illinois Constitution.
“The long shadow of our proposed amendment to the Illinois Constitution, the Redfern Amendment, is making the Springfield pols scurry to the sidelines,” said Robert Redfern, head of the Illinois Forum. “The reason given for the announced ‘early’ adjournment of the Illinois General Assembly, planned for April 7, is unconvincing. The Springfield politicians are getting nervous and are reaching new heights of hypocrisy.”
The official reason for the early adjournment is “extensive renovation” of the House and Senate air conditioning and heating systems.
“Robert Redfern’s proposed amendment would increase the size of the Illinois House from 118 to 177 members, and reduce the number of times the General Assembly convenes to once every two years,” said Jim Tobin, president of National Taxpayers United of Illinois (NTUI). “It’s quite hilarious that the Illinois General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn at a record-early date this year, in order to convince voters that politicians actually do have some ‘self-control’ without the amendment.”
According to Redfern, the amendment already has half of the required 260,000 signatures required by May 7, to place it on the November 7 statewide ballot.
“The Redfern Amendment will improve the quality of state government and save billions of taxpayers’ dollars,” said Redfern. “It will make the Illinois General Assembly a part-time legislature, which it was for over 100 years. It will give us citizen-legislators who have real jobs and run real businesses, who will truly represent us, because they will face the same problems we do in our everyday lives.”
“The amendment will ensure that there will be no more full-time ‘professional politicians’ who make backroom deals for a living,” said Redfern. “It will force legislators to set 2-year budgets, address and solve important issues, and return to their home districts, saving Illinois taxpayers billions of dollars that would have been spent on pork barrel projects.”
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