Illinois St. Sen. Sue Rezin says the state has long been viewed as one of the most corrupt in the nation, but it hasn’t passed any ethics reforms. A package that the state’s Republicans are proposing would prohibit legislators from lobbying any other branch of state government. And it would make them wait a year to become lobbyists after leaving the legislature. The Illinois Senate Republicans say Democrats have included weaker versions of those plans in Senate Bill 4.
The Republican proposal would call for a statewide grand jury to investigate public corruption. It would give local state’s attorneys wiretap authority in public corruption investigations. And it would make the Legislative Ethics Commission a board of people from the general public instead of lawmakers. None of those are included in Senate Bill 4.
One thing Democrats are doing that Republicans agree on is stopping a lawmaker from leaving office and using his or her campaign fund when working as a lobbyist. The Republicans are supporting Senate Bill 1350.