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State Legislature Update - 10/30/09
Monday, 02 November 2009 01:45 | Author: Administrator |
  
IML STATE HOUSE BRIEFING “On the ground news and insider information!” 10-30-09 The General Assembly concluded the 2009 Veto Session late Friday afternoon.
Cemetery Bill Stalled: Our last update announced that an amendment was adopted in the House that exempted government bodies from most of the regulatory requirements proposed within SB 1471. The House passed this much more government-friendly bill over to the Senate. The Senate opted not to vote on SB 1471 during the Veto Session. No cemetery reform legislation will be sent to the Governor at this time. It remains possible that the Senate will act on the bill when the General Assembly convenes for one day on January 12, 2010.
Campaign Finance Reform: The General Assembly approved a bill that contains new campaign contribution caps. The General Assembly initially sent campaign finance reform legislation to the Governor during the spring session (HB 7). Despite having supported HB 7, the Governor and the legislative leaders agreed to scrap the bill and begin anew after reform groups criticized the perceived ineffectiveness of the contribution caps. Read more about SB 1466 -- the latest version of campaign finance reform here.
Video Gaming: The House defeated a bill that would have allowed establishments to continue to conduct video gaming for up to 2 years after a local government opted to prohibit gaming. HB 1306 was approved by the Senate but failed to receive sufficient votes in the House.
Next Session Day: The General Assembly is scheduled to return on January 12, 2010. State Legislature Update 10/29/09
Friday, 30 October 2009 03:06 | Author: Administrator |
IML STATE HOUSE BRIEFING “On the ground news and insider information!” 10-29-09 Evening Edition Please find below an evening legislative update for Thursday, October 29.
Cemetery Regulation Agreement: An intense lobbying effort appears to have aided the IML and other groups in securing a partial exemption for government and religious entities in SB 1471. The partial exemption contained in Amendment 3 means that municipalities must adhere to only minimal regulatory requirements. Read more about these requirements here. Following the adoption of the amendment, the House approved SB 1471 by a vote of 89-27. The bill now goes to the Senate.
Pension Relief Dead: The effort to win temporary, short-term budget relief from rising pension contribution requirements is over. No agreement was reached on SB 2011 once the police and firefighter unions refused to allow municipal governments to have at least two years of relief from what are anticipated to be jolting financial obligations. Along with declining municipal revenues, these increases will almost certainly contribute to significant budget shortfalls that can only be closed through staff reductions and service cuts in 2010. Everybody loses here.
Video Gaming: HB 1306 would allow establishments that conduct video gaming to continue to conduct gaming for up to 2 years after: (1) a county or municipality prohibits gaming; or (2) a referendum prohibiting gaming is approved by the voters. The bill was approved by the Senate by a vote of 40-12 and will next be considered by the House.
Prevailing Wage: There has been no movement on SB 43 -- legislation to extend the prevailing wage to all privately-funded projects within an Enterprise Zone. The bill remains on Second Reading in the House.
Foreclosure Bill Sent to Governor: The IML successfully advanced one of our legislative agenda items to the Governor's desk. SB 1894 passed the Senate by a vote of 53-2-3. If signed by the Governor, municipalities would begin to receive information about who actually owns properties that have gone into foreclosure as well as the contact information for the eventual purchaser. The bill would also establish a uniform method for filing liens to recover the costs of removing certain nuisances that contribute to a property falling into a state of disrepair. SB 1894 would ultimately contribute to cleaner and safer neighborhoods.
STAR Bonds: As initially approved by the General Assembly, SB 1909 would create a limited geographical area within which any state sales tax revenue generated would go toward financing bonds associated with an economic development project within the area. The Governor issued an amendatory veto that reduced the share of state sales tax proceeds used to finance the bonds by 50%. An effort is currently afoot to create what can be described as a mitigation plan to protect against lost revenues for those municipalities just outside the STAR Bond area that might see their businesses enticed into relocating within the STAR Bond development area. A legislator involved with the issue informed IML staff that STAR Bond legislation was unlikely to move before the conclusion of the Veto Session on Friday. Failure to accept or override the Governor's Veto means that SB 1909 would die. Last Updated (Friday, 30 October 2009 03:35) |
