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Tag: Mike Madigan
Just one more week remains in the current legislative session before the Illinois General Assembly adjourns Friday, May 31. At this point, major issues remain unresolved, which is not uncommon given the natural rhythm of the legislative process in Springfield. Kathryn Buettner, NIU vice president of University Relations, was in Springfield this week and delivered...
Presidents and chancellors at public universities and colleges across the state reached an agreement in principal with House Speaker Michael J. Madigan and House leaders Thursday for public universities to assume the employer share of employee pension costs beginning in FY2015. The hope is that Thursday’s agreement might help break up the logjam in Springfield...
NIU President John G. Peters
Dear Colleagues, I am writing to you today to update you with some very important information relative to the very fluid pension debate in the General Assembly in Springfield. Thursday afternoon, the Illinois Senate approved an amended version of Senate Bill 2404, a union-backed proposal sponsored by Senate President John Cullerton that offers Tier I...
The Illinois House has approved a comprehensive pension-reform measure sponsored by House Speaker Michael Madigan by a vote of 62-51 Thursday afternoon. Senate Bill 1 is designed to close a $97 billion deficit that hangs over the state’s pension plans. Underfunding for decades has left the pension systems short of what they need. The bill...
Mike Madigan
The Illinois House Personnel and Pensions Committee passed a pension reform plan put forth by Speaker Michael J. Madigan by a 9-1 vote, clearing the way for the pension reform bill to be called before the full House today. Madigan’s plan calls for employees to pay 2 percent more of salary toward their retirement plans....
State Pension & Budget Update
Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan filed an amendment to a comprehensive pension-reform package passed by the Senate last month that caps the salary on which a pension can be based and limits annual cost-of-living increases. The House Personnel & Pensions Committee is scheduled to consider the legislation at an 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, May 1, meeting. The...
Photo of a man hanging his head over a pile of unpaid bills
In Springfield … As the Illinois General Assembly struggles to deal with the massive backlog of unpaid bills, a measure is moving through the House of Representatives, supported by Speaker Madigan, which would authorize the sale of $2.5 billion of general obligations bonds. Up to $2 billion of the bond proceeds would go Medicaid providers,...
Seal of the State of Illinois
The presidents and chancellors of the 14 public universities in Illinois have unanimously endorsed a six-point proposal for addressing the state’s pension funding crisis as it relates to the State Universities Retirement System (SURS), and in a letter to the governor and legislative leaders they called it “a thoughtful and responsible approach.” “We write to...
Symbol of the State of Illinois
In Springfield … The Illinois General Assembly has been busy with committee activities over the last two weeks. This week is the last week to get bills through committees in their house of origin. Higher Education-Related Legislation In the Senate Higher Education Committee, SB 2163 passed unanimously out of committee Tuesday, March 12. Sponsored by Sen....
Illinois State Capitol building in Springfield. Photo courtesy Illinois Board of Tourism.
State lawmakers will meet in a special one-day session Friday to discuss potentially dramatic changes to the pension systems that serve state employees. Statehouse watchers say that Speaker of the House Mike Madigan has agreed to call HB1447 for a vote. Approved May 31 by the Illinois Senate on the final day of the spring...
In Washington, D.C. … Congress begins a five-week Summer Recess. Prior to adjourning, Congressional leaders and the White House agreed to a bi-partisan deal that will keep the government funded for six months, through March 31, 2013, at a level consistent with the 2013 level ($1.047 trillion) set forth in the Budget Control Act passed...
Photo of a monthly payment schedule booklet
In Washington, D.C. … Officials of the U.S. Department of Education today unveiled the Obama administration’s college financial aid “shopping sheet,” which was developed jointly with the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The shopping sheet, while allowing individual institutions to provide customized information, provides a number of common elements regarding a student’s financial aid...
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