Honored to #MarchForLife with a few of my fellow state reps. in Springfield this week. Each life is a gift from God, and must be cherished as such!
Lifesite News has all the Coverage.
Thousands gather at Illinois March for Life In Springfield
Miller Passes House Resolution Honoring PFC Donnie Joe Clough
In recognition of his ultimate sacrifice during combat in the Viet Nam War and his name being immortalized on the Viet Nam Wall Memorial in Washington, D,C,
Listen to My Speech here.
Caulkins Debates Giving Illegal Immigrants Standard Drivers Licenses
This week was the deadline for all House bills to receive final passage in the House. Legislation that made it through will then move to the Senate for consideration. In one nine-hour stretch on Thursday, the House debated and passed 142 bills. In case you are wondering that is an average of less than four minutes per bill.
None of the bills on the docket that were considered and passed addressed our most pressing issues. Here is just three of those bills.
HB2789 – Disallows state grants to public libraries that ban books. The target of the bill is to ensure that parents and community members cannot influence what books are in their library like controversial books such as Gender Queer that is in public school libraries.
HB2773 – Phonics Education. The bill is one line long and simply says that school shall teach reading using Phonics. Could this simple bill be the cause for reading scores going up exponentially over the next few years? I will watch and be hopeful.
House passed bill that gives people here illegally standard driver’s license.
HB3882 – This bill gives illegal immigrants a standard driver’s license instead of a temporary valid driver’s license (TVLD). On January 8, 2013 the legislature passed the TVLD during lame duck session, Read the ABC News article at the time of passage. The legislation was very controversial as the people receiving an official government document were here illegally. The reason for issuing this document to undocumented people was to provide them a legal way to drive and obtain car insurance. The entire argument for issuing the TVLD was simply for driving purposes. To ensure that the license would not be used for other purposes or confused by voter registrars as documentation for registering to vote the TVDL was, importantly, visually different with a purple line running through the license itself.
Now the argument is that because the current TVDL looks different, illegal immigrants are being discriminated against when they present the card to pick up prescriptions needing an ID or to purchase alcohol. The sponsor, Rep. Barbara Hernandez, in debate emotionally described how her own parents for 21 years were discriminated against for being here illegally. Rep. Guerrero-Cuellar stated that she was the one in the household that had to pick up prescriptions and alcohol for their family because her husband was discriminated against for having a TVDL. No one seemed concerned that these folks are/were here illegally for years or that we are giving standard drivers licenses to not just non-citizens with legal status like a green card holder, but to people residing here illegally.
None Of This Makes Sense!!
Illinois’ education system in a nutshell:
Spending up, student outcomes down.
Property taxes up, home values down.
Look at the select school districts around the state including Central Illinois school districts of Marshall, McClean and Springfield
This recent analysis from Wirepoints lays out the dismal student outcomes in the state’s largest school districts and a select few others. Meanwhile, spending and tax burdens continue to grow while Illinois home values continue to suffer.
Illinois ranks 8th in per student spending and has the highest property tax burden in the nation. Yet despite that spending, just 30% of Illinois students are reading at grade level and only 26% are proficient in math.
Wirepoints has new report cards for Illinois’ 20 largest school districts – Wirepoints | Wirepoints
Illinois Pension Money Should be Invested for Maximum Returns, Not Social Causes
Leave it to Democrats to find yet another way to cripple our state.
Their recently introduced senate bill (SB2152) which would strip pension trustees of control over how to vote shareholder matters and vest the power in the state treasurer, currently, Michael Frerichs. And this horrible idea is gaining traction.
Still worse, the treasurer would then be bound to comply with the Illinois Sustainable Investing Act on how he votes on behalf of stocks owned by the pensions. That law requires officials like the treasurer to include “sustainability” considerations in how public money is invested. It’s basically a progressive policy agenda also known as ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance). It’s often ridiculed as “woke capitalism,” and includes the goals of zero fossil fuels, “equity,” gender and identity politics, and pretty much any other social justice fad du jour.
Illinois Bill Would Give State Treasurer Voting Control On Pension Assets – Wirepoints | Wirepoints
‘Only Whistleblowers On Our Side Can Play’
After sneeringly laughing off one whistleblower’s fraud claim last July, Attorney General Kwame Raoul last week filed a brief in an Illinois appellate court to uphold a ruling that that would end that whistleblower proceeding. Whistleblower Emily Fox’s complaint was filed in the saga of Jenny Thornley, a former Pritzker campaign worker and state employee. The complaint alleges participation by Gov. JB Pritzker’s office in worker’s compensation fraud and other intervention on Thornley’s behalf.
Meanwhile, Raoul is pushing a whistleblower bill for illegal immigrants.
The bill would give the attorney general’s office the power to investigate and fine employers that threaten to check someone’s citizenship status or ask an employee to produce immigration documents. He told reporters, “For immigrants, threats of deportation or repealing immigration status can influence a worker’s willingness to voice concerns about their workplace.”
https://www.audacy.com/wbbm780/news/local/whistleblower-bill-seeks-to-protect-immigrant-workers
Illinois State Law Makes It Difficult For Landlords To Evict Squatters
Even when somebody breaks into a property, the owner still has to go through the eviction process which can take months. It’s a lengthy process that can cost owners thousands of dollars in attorney fees, court fees, and paying sheriff’s officers to evict. In addition to those costs, owners are burdened with lost rent and repair costs.
Chicagoan Darthula Young says a squatter has taken over a two-flat she owns, and she can’t get him out:
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/chicago-squatter-two-flat-eviction-attempt/
Illinois LAST In The Nation For Opportunity Zones
Should This Be On The New Illinois Flag?
Even though Illinois state lawmakers have far more pressing issues at hand, the effort to change the Illinois state flag still pushes on. The idea is gaining momentum, but this column illustrates why the goal is DUMB and totally unnecessary.
We have more important things to discuss.
Illinois Trout Fishing Begins Soon!
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources stocks more than 80,000 rainbow trout each year in bodies of water where trout fishing is permitted during the spring season. The 2023 Illinois spring trout fishing season will open on April 1 at 58 lakes, ponds and streams throughout the state, including 20 locations in Central Illinois
FYI – The House passed a bill allowing for a 3-year sport fishing license this week
Aunt and Uncle Linda and Jim Taber visited the Capitol this week.
Jim served in the US Navy during Vietnam.
Here is a map of the new 101st House District. Use this link for a clearer picture and to enter your address to see if you live in the district: https://repcmiller.com/district/
As your state representative, my office is available to assist you with any issues you may have when interacting with a state agency.
Please call our office at (217) 508-4108 to get help or schedule an appointment to see me.
The office is located at 1113 Lincoln Ave., Charleston and is open Monday-Friday from 9am to 4 pm.
-Chris