Tryon received the award this week at an SSAI meeting at the River Forest Country Club in Elmhurst. According to SSAI President Jeff Kubas, Tryon was chosen because of his sponsorship and support of numerous pieces of legislation that protects Illinois workers. “Representative Tryon goes to great efforts to reach out to staffing agencies and does his best to make sure their needs are met,” said Kubas. “He is a true champion in the state legislature. He is fair and honest and always takes time to hear our concerns.”

SSAI is made up of 25 light industrial staffing agencies that are registered with the Illinois department of labor in the Chicagoland area. The agencies employ over 200,000 temporary employees annually.

“SSAI is proud to give this award to Representative Tryon for his excellent service to our association and we look forward to collaborating with him in the future.”

The Illinois Policy Institute is a conservative think tank which promotes fiscal responsibility, job creation and free enterprise. Institute officials follow individual lawmakers’ votes in the areas of budgets, taxes, education, business climate and government transparency.

Tryon received his perfect score in the institute’s 2011 mid-year Legislative Vote Card. The vote card is issued twice each year with the first issue released following the conclusion of the Spring legislative session, and the second after the conclusion of the General Assembly’s fall veto session.

Tryon’s score was achieved through his votes (shown in parentheses) on the following bills:

• Senate Bill 2505: Lame Duck Session Income Tax Hike (N)
• House Bill 3659: Lame Duck Session Online Affiliate Tax (N)
• House Bill 111: PAYGO (Y)
• Senate Bill 79: Charter Schools (Y)
• Senate Bill 7: Performance Counts (Y)
• House Bill 2987: Project Labor Agreements (N)
• Senate Bill 43: Tax Transparency (Y)
• House Bill 1079: Higher Ed Transparency (Y)
• House Bill 1512: Sunshine (Y)

“Everyone in Springfield talks about responsible spending, job creation, the importance of good schools and of how we must restore integrity to Illinois government,” said Tryon. “My votes on these issues illustrate my true commitment toward making these ideas a reality in Illinois.”

“Shortly after the Blagojevich verdict was read, Governor Quinn went on TV and said the conviction underlined the importance of reforming state government on a daily basis,” said Tryon. “I would like him to keep true to those words by supporting legislative efforts to pass comprehensive reforms that apply to all legislators in all elections.”

According to Tryon, two years ago campaign contribution limits were put in place for individuals, corporations, unions and political action committees for all elections, but those limitations were put in place for legislative party leaders only for primary elections. “The General Election is where major money is spent by legislative and party leaders – not the primary elections,” said Tryon.  “Extending the caps to the general election is needed to dilute the concentration of power in Springfield so that candidates do not end up feeling beholden to the legislative or party leader who funded their campaign.”

House Bill 232, sponsored by House Republican Leader Tom Cross and the entire House GOP caucus, would extend caps to legislative leaders and political parties in all election cycles. The bill was filed in January and was promptly moved to the Rules Committee. The bill was blocked from being brought to the floor for discussion or debate.

Similarly, House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 28 would put into place a more comprehensive and straightforward recall provision than is currently law in Illinois.   HJRCA28 would allow the voters to recall any Executive branch official or member of the General Assembly.  It also would lower the threshold of petition signatures needed to place a recall vote on the ballot and eliminates the requirement for members of both parties in the legislature to ‘sign-off’ on a recall initiative. That piece of legislation was also buried in the Rules Committee and prohibited from consideration on the House Floor.

Other proposals filed by Republicans that were blocked from being discussed include (see attached document for more details):

• House Bill 3607 requires statewide elections to fill vacancies in the office of U.S. Senator to ensure voters have a voice in filing future vacancies

• House Bill 1048 prohibits gubernatorial appointees from soliciting campaign contributions

• House Bill 3604 would increase transparency by requiring elected and appointed government officials to disclose additional information on their economic interest statements

• House Bill 3605 prohibits public officials from discussing fundraising activities with prospective vendors, job applicants, and other individuals/entities with a personal or financial interest in government outcomes

According to Tryon, many of the bills were the direct result of information provided by the Governor’s Illinois Reform Commission.

“It appears the Governor has snubbed his nose at much of the work that his own Reform Commission put forward and proposed,” said Tryon.  “He needs to dust off that document and help us push many of the reforms that were suggested.  We must do everything we can to hold our public officials to the highest standards in the law.”

As a participant in the actions taken by the General Assembly last year to remove Blagojevich from office, Tryon said he hopes that with Monday’s verdicts, Rod Blagojevich and the shame he has brought on the State of Illinois can finally be put in the past. “Now that the jurors have spoken, we need to begin the process of restoring Illinoisans’ faith in their elected officials,” Tryon said. “We all need to do everything possible to make sure that abuses like those for which the former governor was convicted never occur again.”

Monday’s 17 guilty verdicts will accompany the one guilty verdict of lying to the FBI that came out of Blagojevich’s first corruption trial.

SPRINGFIELD…..Conservative budget figures, fiscal discipline and a bipartisan approach has led to the first balanced budget for Illinois in many years. According to State Representative Mike Tryon (R-Crystal Lake), it is the first balanced budget he has seen since he was elected to the General Assembly in 2005.

“The final budget included difficult budget decisions, but it forces the state to live within its means so that bills can be paid and finances can get back on track,” said Tryon. “It is a huge step in the right direction for Illinois.”

The $33.2 billion spending plan is $2 billion less than what Governor Quinn requested earlier this year in his budget address. Whereas the last two budgets included $3.7 billion in borrowing to make the pension payment, this new budget includes $4.2 billion to fully fund the mandated pension payment with no borrowing required.

“For the several weeks leading up to the budget votes, Representatives from both sides of the aisle worked together reviewing the budget line-by-line,” said Tryon. “We started by cutting pay raises and administrative costs wherever possible.” Just one component eliminates cost of living increases for legislators and mandates 12 unpaid furlough days for legislators and many other state employees for FY 12.

Tryon went on to say that the efforts that went into this year’s budget process must continue. “It is not a one-year process, and if we hope to get out of the hole and stay out of the hole this is the way we will need to approach the budget every year,” he said. “Only with continued discipline will we truly change the culture of overspending that has been too prevalent in Illinois.”

The budget now awaits the signature of the governor.

On Tuesday, members of the Illinois Diabetes Policy Coalition will be in Springfield to meet with legislators to discuss diabetes issues that currently affect approximately 10% of Illinoisans. Tryon, who was diagnosed with Type II diabetes in 2006, said the advocacy day should shine light on a very serious issue. “Cases of Type I and II diabetes are growing in number each year,” said Tryon. “As a combined group, we hope promote prevention, awareness and treatment of the disease.”

Tryon, along with House Minority Leader Tom Cross (R-Oswego) and Representatives Jim Durkin (R-LaGrange), Cynthia Soto (D-Chicago), Will Davis (D-East Hazel Crest), Raymond Poe (R-Springfield) and Elizabeth Hernandez (D-Cicero) announced at the beginning of April the formation of the Illinois bipartisan legislative diabetes caucus. The caucus’ goals include:

1. Seek needed legislation and evaluate filed legislation that affects people with diabetes.

2. Promote prevention education, available treatments and public programs that assist people with diabetes.

3. Reach out to agencies that assist people with diabetes.

4. Engage in outreach efforts between the caucus, its supporting agencies and people who suffer from diabetes.

The Illinois Diabetes Policy Coalition is an independent consortium of healthcare organizations which advocate on behalf of people with diabetes and who suffer from diabetes-related complications. The mission of the IDPC is to engage in initiatives that:

• Reduce the burden of diabetes and are evidence-based
• Thoughtfully address the health disparity associated with diabetes
• Improve diabetes prevention methods and increase access to education and early detection

Additional information about the Illinois Legislative Diabetes caucus can be found at www.ilgadiabetes.com.

House Bill 3500 adds an exemption to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) protecting the personal information of Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) Card holders. The bill prohibits State and local governments from publicly releasing the names or other private information of FOID card holders or applicants. HB 3500 passed the Illinois House of Representatives on a vote of 98-12.

“This is a major victory for law-abiding gun owners in Illinois,” said Tryon, a co-sponsor of the bill. “Those who choose to exercise their second amendment rights are entitled to a certain level of privacy and today’s vote helps to ensure that these people’s names and personal information may remain confidential.”

House Bill 3500 was filed in response to a ruling by Attorney General Lisa Madigan that declared the names of FOID Card holders to be public information that must be disclosed if requested through a FOIA request. The Illinois State Police and the National Rifle Association both opposed Madigan’s ruling.

“Releasing the names and addresses of people who have firearms in their homes would make it easy for criminals to target locations where they could steal guns,” said Tryon. “Making that list public would also let criminals know which homes they could break into without fear of encountering an individual who protects himself with a gun.”

The bill will now be considered by the Illinois Senate.

“We believe Governor Quinn overestimated next year’s revenues by as much as 21%,” said Tryon. “He is refusing to face the financial realities of this State and he continues to promote the spending of money that we simply don’t have. By setting a realistic and fiscally responsible revenue baseline, we can better prioritize our resources, stop the borrowing, and finally reduce State spending in a meaningful way.”

The resolution, co-sponsored by Republican House Minority Leader Tom Cross and Speaker of the House Michael Madigan, estimates that revenues for the next fiscal year will be $33.2 billion, which is $700 million lower than what Governor Quinn said in February when he presented his draft budget to a combined session of the Illinois House of Representatives and Senate.

“House Republicans have led the charge on reducing spending and today that persistence has paid off,” said Tryon. “House Resolution 110 adopts the same simple budgeting philosophy families use every day–start with conservative estimates for how much money you’ll be bringing in, then create a spending plan to pay bills and meets other expenses without spending more money than you have.”

According to Tryon, the resolution will guide upcoming budget discussions based on an Illinois Constitutional requirement that appropriations for any fiscal year not exceed estimated revenues for that year.

“The first step in balancing our budget is making sure our revenue projections are accurate,” said Tryon. “Only when we have confidence in the revenue side of the budget can we properly appropriate funds.”

State Representative Mike Tryon (R-Crystal Lake) responded to the speech, saying the Governor’s plan is not fiscally prudent given the State’s financial condition.

“It was just one month ago when this governor forced upon Illinois families and businesses the largest tax increase in Illinois history,” said Tryon. “I was incredibly disappointed to learn today that he is following that up with a budget plan that calls for even more borrowing and even more spending. He isn’t getting the message of fiscal responsibility through less spending and smaller government. Instead he is continuing his irresponsible practice of running up a balance on one credit card to pay off another.”

According to the budget address, held before a joint session of the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate, Governor Quinn plans to spend $35.38 billion during the next fiscal year while revenues are only expected to be $33.9 billion. The unbalanced budget includes a deficit of $1.48 billion

“Governor Quinn’s budget proposal assumes that we will borrow nearly $9 billion this fiscal year,” said Tryon.” While I believe we must pay our service providers in a timely manner, borrowing this money would cost the taxpayers another $3 billion in interest, thereby adding to the state’s debt. Illinois needs to live within its means and legislators need to make the required difficult decisions that will allow that to happen.”

Tryon said that just as House Republicans have driven discussions on Medicaid reform, job creation, budget transparency and controlled spending in the past, he and his colleagues will continue driving difficult discussions on budget cuts and pension reform so that the budget can be stabilized.

“I will continue to push for line-by-line reviews of state programs and services so that waste can be eliminated, and I will also continue to push for line item budgeting so that the taxpayers of Illinois can truly know how much money is being spent on what programs,” Tryon said.