HR1476 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1476 LRB095 21868 RLC 52453 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The question of whether to call a Constitutional Convention will appear as a referendum on the ballot at the general election on November 4, 2008; and

WHEREAS, If called, a Constitutional Convention could propose either an entirely new Constitution or a series of amendments to the existing Constitution; and

WHEREAS, Because there has been uncertainty as to what the cost of such a Convention would be, the citizens of the State have been subjected to the proliferation of wildly excessive, distorted, and inaccurate cost estimates; and

WHEREAS, Public misinformation constitutes an undue distraction for the electorate during a season in which citizens deserve an opportunity for deliberate and conscientious consideration of the merits of this unique and rare referendum; and

WHEREAS, The Legislative Research Unit of the Illinois General Assembly in April 2008, produced a detailed report illustrating that widely-promulgated Convention cost estimates of $78 million or more are inaccurate because they rely upon a number of dubious assumptions; and

WHEREAS, The Legislative Research Unit's own cost estimates indicate that, under one of the three most likely Convention time-frames conceivable, the costs of the Convention might, in fact, very easily be as low as $14 million dollars; and

WHEREAS, The Legislative Research Unit's cost projections are credible insofar as they rely upon the costs of the 1970 Convention, adjusted for inflation, along with more recent data about current costs of various commodities necessary for the Convention's operations, and omit figures for extraneous, speculative, or unnecessary costs; and

WHEREAS, There is uncertainty as to what the procedures for electing delegates to the Constitutional Convention and for administering the Convention itself would be; and

WHEREAS, If a Constitutional Convention is called, the General Assembly must enact a statute setting forth procedures for electing delegates, and for operating and financing the Convention; and

WHEREAS, The General Assembly of Illinois enacted a statute in 1969, P.A. 76-40, in anticipation of the last Constitutional Convention that provided a judicious, successful, and model framework for establishing a truly thoughtful and deliberative body uniquely oriented toward promoting the common good through such mechanisms as a cost ceiling on the Convention and the non-partisan election of delegates; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that in the event the electors of the State approve the referendum calling for a Constitutional Convention:

(1) In light of the findings of the Legislative Research Unit that an efficiently-administered Constitutional Convention fully in keeping with all applicable constitutional requirements could be held for as little as $14 million dollars, the General Assembly will make all efforts to control and limit the costs of any Constitutional Convention, with a goal of making sure that Convention costs will not exceed an amount equal to approximately one dollar per Illinois citizen, and, in any event, not more than approximately $15,000,000;

(2) Given the Legislative Research Unit's report that under the other two most-conceivable Convention time-frames, the estimated costs of the Convention itself would be either approximately $17 million or $23 million, the General Assembly is confident that because there are various plausible low-cost options readily available, budgetary concerns alone should not dissuade citizens from supporting a Convention;

(3) The General Assembly should follow the judicious and wise example of the 76th General Assembly by enacting implementation legislation modeled on Public Act 76-40 in 1969;

(4) All Illinois voters ought to be aware that because a Constitutional Convention would not be under any obligation to draft an entirely new Constitution to replace the Illinois Constitution of 1970, the delegates could instead choose to propose amendments to the existing Constitution to the Illinois electorate; and

(5) Any Constitutional Convention should attempt to address endemic problems in Illinois State Government through a set of proposed constitutional amendments addressing topics including, but not limited to:

(A) tax fairness, equity, and progressivity;

(B) equitable financing of public education; and

(C) ethical standards in government.