Post by title1parent on Aug 10, 2011 7:12:51 GMT -5
Quinn hints he might end legislators’ scholarship perk
BY DAVE MCKINNEY
Sun-Times Springfield Bureau Chief
dmckinney@suntimes.com
Last Modified: Aug 10, 2011 02:13AM
SPRINGFIELD — Gov. Quinn signaled Tuesday that he may rewrite legislation on his desk later this week to abolish the long-controversial program that allows state lawmakers to dole out free college tuition to anyone they want.
Quinn dropped the hint after the Chicago Sun-Times first reported Monday that former state Rep. Robert Molaro (D-Chicago) is under federal investigation for awarding the tuition waivers to four children of a campaign donor.
The governor characterized the legislative scholarship program as one “that really has a cloud of scandal around it for decades” and suggested legislation now before him does not go far enough.
“The essence of the bill on my desk is it doesn’t abolish the program, and that’s what I really think we have to do,” said Quinn, who refused to say outright that he intended to veto or do an amendatory veto of the legislation, telling reporters there needed to be “suspense” surrounding his action.
The bill before Quinn would bar lawmakers from awarding the tuition perks to relatives and give legislators the option of turning over the nomination process to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, if they don’t wish to participate.
The legislation’s chief Senate sponsor, Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale), urged Quinn Tuesday to tweak the legislation to provide for an outright abolition of the program — something that the governor has called for repeatedly but that has never gained legislative traction over the years.
“Rep. Molaro is the latest in a long string of questionable practices of a program that should have been abolished previously. He’s just one more in a string of abuses,” Dillard said.
“The governor, with his amendatory veto power, can rewrite the bill to end the controversial General Assembly scholarship program. Procedurally, we could kill this program in one day during the veto session,” Dillard said.
The Sun-Times reported that federal investigators subpoenaed the State Board of Education in April, seeking records about legislative scholarships worth more than $94,000 that Molaro awarded to the four children of Oak Lawn real estate broker and Molaro campaign donor Phil Bruno.
A late-July subpoena broadened that request and sought documents related to all legislative scholarships that Molaro, now a lobbyist, awarded during his time as a state legislator.
Molaro told the Sun-Times last week that he did not do anything illegal or inappropriate with legislative scholarships he awarded as a state senator and representative during a political career that ended in 2008.
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Copyright © 2011 — Sun-Times Media, LLC
BY DAVE MCKINNEY
Sun-Times Springfield Bureau Chief
dmckinney@suntimes.com
Last Modified: Aug 10, 2011 02:13AM
SPRINGFIELD — Gov. Quinn signaled Tuesday that he may rewrite legislation on his desk later this week to abolish the long-controversial program that allows state lawmakers to dole out free college tuition to anyone they want.
Quinn dropped the hint after the Chicago Sun-Times first reported Monday that former state Rep. Robert Molaro (D-Chicago) is under federal investigation for awarding the tuition waivers to four children of a campaign donor.
The governor characterized the legislative scholarship program as one “that really has a cloud of scandal around it for decades” and suggested legislation now before him does not go far enough.
“The essence of the bill on my desk is it doesn’t abolish the program, and that’s what I really think we have to do,” said Quinn, who refused to say outright that he intended to veto or do an amendatory veto of the legislation, telling reporters there needed to be “suspense” surrounding his action.
The bill before Quinn would bar lawmakers from awarding the tuition perks to relatives and give legislators the option of turning over the nomination process to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, if they don’t wish to participate.
The legislation’s chief Senate sponsor, Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale), urged Quinn Tuesday to tweak the legislation to provide for an outright abolition of the program — something that the governor has called for repeatedly but that has never gained legislative traction over the years.
“Rep. Molaro is the latest in a long string of questionable practices of a program that should have been abolished previously. He’s just one more in a string of abuses,” Dillard said.
“The governor, with his amendatory veto power, can rewrite the bill to end the controversial General Assembly scholarship program. Procedurally, we could kill this program in one day during the veto session,” Dillard said.
The Sun-Times reported that federal investigators subpoenaed the State Board of Education in April, seeking records about legislative scholarships worth more than $94,000 that Molaro awarded to the four children of Oak Lawn real estate broker and Molaro campaign donor Phil Bruno.
A late-July subpoena broadened that request and sought documents related to all legislative scholarships that Molaro, now a lobbyist, awarded during his time as a state legislator.
Molaro told the Sun-Times last week that he did not do anything illegal or inappropriate with legislative scholarships he awarded as a state senator and representative during a political career that ended in 2008.
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Copyright © 2011 — Sun-Times Media, LLC