Local residents are being asked to voice their support for legislation that Senator Jil Tracy is sponsoring to root out government corruption among members of the General Assembly.

The 47th District Senator is asking local residents to sign a petition at https://senatorjiltracy.com/sign-the-petition asking that these bills be allowed a public hearing before Illinois lawmakers.

“Media headlines are full of ongoing federal investigations, and subsequent indictments and charges against state lawmakers. Such scandals involving legislative ‘bad actors’ are clear examples that we need to give the appropriate authorities the ability to investigate alleged wrongdoing,” Senator Tracy said. “Please sign the petition on my legislative Web site to support these common-sense reforms that will help ensure that legislators are representing the people’s interests instead of their own.”

Illinois already has some strong anti-corruption laws in place, but the seven-bill package focuses on enhancing investigative authority within existing laws, and ensuring legislators are serving the public’s interest.

The legislative package proposes the following enhancements:

• Senate Bill 4012: Allows the Attorney General to impanel a statewide grand jury to investigate, indict and prosecute bribery and misconduct by members of the General Assembly.
• Senate Bill 4013: Provides state’s attorneys with wiretap authority.
• Senate Bill 4014: Grants the Legislative Inspector General the ability to investigate members of the General Assembly without first receiving approval from the Legislative Ethics Commission, and changes the composition of the Legislative Ethics Commission to make them all members of the general public rather than legislators.

The anti-corruption legislative package also includes measures to ensure that legislators serve the public’s interest and not their own pocketbooks. Proposals include:

• Senate Bill 4015: Bans legislators from lobbying other branches of state government or units of local government for compensation.
• Senate Bill 4016: Creates a revolving door legislator-to-lobbyist prohibition for one year after leaving office, or until the end of the current term, whichever is longer.
• Senate Bill 4017:  Prohibits a legislator from leaving office and continuing to use their campaign fund to support lobbying activities. Also prevents an appointee to a board or commission that is confirmed by the Senate from fundraising for or donating from their campaign committee while serving as an appointed public official.
• Senate Bill 4018: Updates the Statement of Economic Interests to enhance the disclosure of potential conflicts of interest.