Two major proposals backed by Gov. JB Pritzker did not
advance out of legislative committees before last week’s passage deadline.
Sen. Suzy Glowiak Hilton confirmed that she won’t be
advancing her legislation supported by the governor that would dissolve
townships with populations below 5,000 (SB2217), and eventually abolish
townships with populations below 50,000 and lower the petition threshold to 5%
from 10% to put a township abolition on the ballot.
“We’re still having conversations,” the Western Springs
Democrat said. Pritzker did not highlight the proposals during his State of the
State address, but they were included in his budget book. Township officials
throughout the state have bombarded legislators with their negative opinions of
the legislation.
But Pritzker took a much bigger hit last week.
The governor has trumpeted his plan to allow community
colleges to offer four-year baccalaureate degrees during his State of the State
address, on numerous national TV programs, bigtime podcasts and a tour of the
state.
Well, that proposal (HB3717) was not called for a vote in
the House Higher Education Committee last week after fierce opposition from
four-year universities, as one top Pritzker administration official and some
Pritzker allies hovered outside the hearing room for hours.
The chair of that committee, Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville,
did her best to downplay the significance of the committee’s refusal to take up
the bill, saying, “I think that there’s a way that we can make sure that this
is very narrowly tailored to meet what’s not being met with the four-year
institutions.”
Stuart, a member of House Democratic leadership, also
said the legislation as written could “collapse” the student base of minority-serving
institutions such as Chicago State and Northeastern Illinois University.
It’s routine during committee passage deadline week to
advance bills to the floor that need more work, with the promise to not move
the bills until all issues are worked out. That committee courtesy is routinely
given to even the lowliest of legislators.
The indignity of denying that routine courtesy was heaped
upon unpopular, ineffectual governors in previous years. But Pritzker is a
popular billionaire governor with perceived national ambitions. Yes, he’s
trying to accomplish a very difficult task of passing bills that have failed in
years past, but not getting his legislation to the floor during crunch week is
quite the rebuke.
So, what the heck is going on? On a basic level, several
sitting legislators previously served in township government. Many others are
strong political allies of township officials. And others believe that
townships deliver services at lower costs than counties. The townships have
successfully fended off efforts to get rid of them for decades, so they have a
tried-and-true oppositional playbook.
As far as the community colleges are concerned, the
universities years ago successfully fended off an attempt by then-Sen. Andy
Manar to allow community colleges to offer four-year degrees in nursing. Manar
is now Pritzker’s deputy governor.
The Higher Education Committee is filled with members who
have universities in their districts, which is mainly why they serve on that
committee. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is in chairperson Stuart’s
district, after all.
But these Pritzker defeats seem like much more than that,
and they come just a couple of months after House Speaker Chris Welch refused
to advance a Pritzker-supported bill to regulate the wide-open intoxicating
hemp industry.
The governor’s office downplayed the significance of the
setbacks, saying there was still plenty of time to pass something before
adjournment. But they clearly made a strong late push to get the community
college bill to the House floor. They insisted they had enough votes to
pass the bill, but those alleged proponents didn’t lift a finger to pressure
the committee chair to advance the legislation.
The hearing finally ended shortly after what I’m told was
a tense meeting between the governor’s chief of staff and the House Speaker’s
chief of staff, during which the speaker’s chief urged the governor’s chief to
convince her boss to lay out his priorities to Speaker Welch, which, of course,
the governor already did during his State of the State and budget address.
Welch’s chief was told that this move was not helpful, to say the least.
What the universities did was pure gangsta. They clearly
out-muscled the governor. Pritzker may not like it, but the universities showed
that the negotiations would be on their terms, at least in the House, unless
the governor can convince them to back down.
This article appears in Mar 27 – Apr 2, 2025.
Great job to the legislative committees for their thoughtful decisions not advance the township and community college legislation. It shows a strong commitment to carefully considering the long-term impacts and ensuring that any proposed changes are thoroughly vetted. Responsible governance like this actually supports the governor. It helps to protect the best interests of the community and ensures that any new laws are truly beneficial.
Regarding the township legislation, it important to remember that before there were states, there were colonies. A colony is a group of animals, insects, plants, or people of the same type that live and work together as a unit. Remember, there were 13 original and different colonies. A state is an association of these different groups of people. Townships are families and tribes. It is better to have small connected communities than disconnected cities. In general, Small towns offer a lower cost of living, safer neighborhoods, a stronger sense of community, and have less of an impact on the environment than cities. In township governments the people are better represented, and local autonomy allows for more responsive governance.
The proposed community college legislation doesn’t address the real challenges facing higher education. LLCC’s graduation rate is about 31%, and white students graduate at a rate six times higher than that of minority students. And it’s not just LLCC—most community colleges face similar issues. We need to change the way we educate in order to better serve the diverse needs of our communities. It’s about creating an education system that truly supports all students and helps them succeed. The concentration of RNs in Illinois is above the national average, at 22 for every 1,000 jobs.
The challenges in Illinois can be overcome once we truly commit to making change. When we decide to prioritize what’s best for our communities, we have the power to create meaningful progress and build a better future for everyone.
I take issue with the comment that popular billionaire governor Pritzker….. if you look at most of the state excluding Chicago you will find that fb Pritzker is not popular and is even very unpopular. He has his aspirations and national agenda but the rest of Illinois do not share them
Two well written and accurate posts that, in my opinion,, do speak for the majority of Illinoisans. Thank you John Jordan and KendraMichele.