August 25, 2009

To the Honorable Members of the

Illinois House of Representatives

96th General Assembly

Today I return House Bill 363 with my specific recommendations for change. I thank the sponsors for their hard work and the members of the General Assembly for passing this bill.  However, in order for me to give unqualified support to this measure, I respectfully request the adoption of the recommendations set forth below.

House Bill 363 creates the Chicago Education Facilities Task Force to study school facility related decisions and recommend criteria for an equitable and transparent master facility plan for Chicago Public Schools. While I agree with the goal of this legislation, the timeline is too soon to allow for successful implementation to take place.  Moreover, I believe that the membership of the Task Force should be diversified to ensure the most fruitful discussion possible.     

Therefore, pursuant to Article IV, Section 9(e) of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I hereby return House Bill 363, entitled “AN ACT concerning education.”, with the following specific recommendations for change:

on page 3, line 7, by replacing “15” with “30”; and

on page 3, by deleting lines 11 through 14 and replacing them with “(1) Two members of the House of Representatives, one appointed by the Speaker of the House and one appointed by the Minority Leader of the House.”; and

on page 3, by deleting lines 15 through 18 and replacing them with “(2) Two members of the Senate, one appointed by the President of the Senate and one appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate.”; and

on page 3, by deleting lines 19 through 21 and replacing them with “(3) Two representatives from the State Board of Education, including the Superintendent or his or her designee.”; and

on page 3, by deleting lines 22 through 24 and replacing them with “(4) Four members of the education community, two appointed by the Governor and two appointed by the Mayor of Chicago.”; and

on page 4, by deleting line 1 and replacing it with “issues, one appointed by the Governor and one appointed by the Mayor of Chicago.”; and

on page 4, by deleting lines 2 through 4 and replacing them with “(6) Two representatives of school community organizations with past involvement in school facility issues, one appointed by the Speaker of the House and one appointed by the President of the Senate.”; and

on page 4, by deleting lines 12 through 22 and replacing them with “(d) The Governor shall appoint one of the appointed members as chairperson of the Chicago Educational Facilities Task Force.  Members appointed by the Governor, the Mayor and the legislative leaders shall be appointed for the duration of the Chicago Educational Facilities Task Force; in the event of a vacancy, the appointment to fill the vacancy shall be made by the appointing authority who made the original appointment.”; and

on page 5, line 3, by replacing “15” with “30”; and

on page 5, line 23, by replacing “October 30, 2009” with “March 30, 2010”.

With these changes, House Bill 363 will have my approval.  I respectfully request your concurrence. 

Sincerely,

PAT QUINN

Governor