Gov. Pritzker Vetoes Legislation

SPRINGFIELD - Today, Governor JB Pritzker vetoed the following legislation:

Senate Bill 76 removes the moratorium on new construction of nuclear power plants to allow for the construction of both advanced and traditional large-scale nuclear reactors in Illinois.

The bill is vetoed because the vague definitions in the bill, including the overly broad definition of advanced reactors, will open the door to the proliferation of large-scale nuclear reactors that are so costly to build that they will cause exorbitant ratepayer-funded bailouts. Additionally, it provides no regulatory protections or updates to address the health and safety of Illinois residents who would live and work around these new reactors.

House Bill 2507 addresses many issues surrounding property taxes, including important property tax relief for surviving spouses of first responders and other more technical changes that the Pritzker Administration supports.

The Governor has issued an Amendatory Veto due to a change that was added to give private nursing home owners in Cook County a property tax break. That break passes the tax burden to Suburban Cook County homeowners and small businesses, with the most impact felt in the South Suburbs. That change to property taxes on homeowners risks driving up costs for residents and threatens local school funding.

House Bill 2878 addresses procurement issues important to the Pritzker Administration. But, because the bill allows for the creation of public private partnerships (P3s) with counties, municipalities, and any other unit of local government without proper oversight in place, the Governor has issued an Amendatory Veto.

The Governor has removed this provision through an Amendatory Veto that creates a local pathway for private industry to enter P3 agreements that skirts transparency and anti-corruption requirements established in state statute, including ethics, BEP, campaign finance, and procurement laws. It also puts the state at greater risk of project failure by decreasing competition and reducing the opportunity for public input currently required under state law during the P3 project planning and implementation process.

House Bill 3643 amends the School Code to require the Illinois State Board of Education to enter into a statewide education master contract to provide religious dietary options to all Illinois school districts.

The bill is vetoed because it requires the Illinois State Board of Education to enter into a master contract they cannot execute because this is a local school district responsibility. Local school districts, not the Illinois State Board of Education, have the expertise and understanding of local needs required to enter into food service contracts based on federal USDA nutrition guidelines. The bill would restrict the capability that local school districts have to contract meal vendors based on their students' unique local and cultural needs.