On Saturday, May 30th the Illinois House of Representatives approved legislation to improve the concealed carry law for law-abiding citizens. Two provisions sponsored by State Representative John D. Cavaletto (R-Salem) were included in the legislation to improve the current concealed carry law.

“Today’s passage of the concealed carry clean-up bill is progress for individuals who conceal and carry,” said Rep. Cavaletto. “There is more work to do to improve the law however I am happy we are moving in the right direction.”

Senate Bill 836 co-sponsored by Rep. Cavaletto included ten provisions to improve the concealed carry law enacted July 2013.  Included in the clean-up bill were two proposals inspired by Cavaletto’s constituents changes the following:

• Eliminates the requirement for a concealed carry licensee (CCL) to carry both a CCL and FOID card when in possession of a firearm or ammunition.

• Provides that a concealed carry licensee who presents his or her license to law enforcement during an investigative stop is deemed to have disclosed that he or she is carrying a firearm. Applies to a non-resident that is able to prove he or she is eligible to carry in his or her state of residence. The licensee must still identify the location of the firearm at the request of the officer.

Rep. Cavaletto added, “the two proposals brought to me from my constituents down home will certainly help enhance the concealed carry law. I look forward to working with my constituents on additional proposals to protect our right to bear arms.”

Representative Cavaletto’s 107th District covers all or portions of Bond, Clinton, Effingham, Fayette, and Marion counties.

As a member of an Appropriations Committee in the Illinois House, I understand the challenges of crafting a budget. Today I opposed various bills proposed by the majority party that looks to spend $4 billion more than the estimated monies anticipated to come into the state through various taxes and fees.

We don’t have the money to sustain this spending without significant reforms, and everyone seems to know it but the Democrats. It gives false hope to those who rely on state services and is an outright lie to schools, service providers and the state’s most vulnerable.

Illinois is estimated to bring in $32 billion next year, and their proposed budget would spend over $36 billion. The proposed spending is 12% higher than projected revenue and would push the backlog of bills to over $10 billion, equaling 30% of the state’s total revenue.

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Rep. John Cavaletto (second from the right) joins many of his House colleagues in front of the National Guard Armory in Springfield on Memorial Day to honor all of those wh have made the ultimate sacrifice for our great country.

Once again the Democrat-controlled House brought sham legislation to a vote for the sole purpose of putting Republican lawmakers in a trick bag and embarrassing the new Governor.

House Republicans have long worked to provide Illinoisans with much needed and deserved property tax relief. Each year members of the House Republican Caucus introduce legislation that would deliver property tax relief and each year the Democrats block those measures. The real roadblock to property tax relief has been the Democrat-controlled legislature.

It is not without merit that House Republicans question the majority leadership’s commitment to property tax relief, when out of the clear blue sky they embrace so-called property tax freeze legislation that neither includes reforms nor guarantees that property taxes won’t increase. It is not hard to draw the accurate conclusion that it is just more political theatre.

 Newly-appointed State Fair Director looks forward to return to farm themes.  Patrick Buchen, the director of the state fairs held each summer in Du Quoin and Springfield, Illinois, called for the two fairs to renew their historic identities as promoters of Illinois agriculture.  The fairs include events in which competitors submit live animals and a variety of agricultural products and crafts for judging.  Many of the entrants are Illinois young people.

Announcing its 2015 theme, “Growing Illinois,” the State Fair and its new director thickened the status of plans for their annual festivals.  The Illinois State Fair in Springfield, with its 162-year-long history, will be held on August 13 through August 23.  The DuQuoin Fair, which has been held for 92 years in Southern Illinois, will be celebrated on August 28 through September 7.  Music, carnival rides, ballroom events, and festival food will be enjoyed at both fairs.   

An all too often told story played out again today in the Illinios House of Representatives; the story of a broken, backwards budgeting process intended to divide, not unite.

The process began with the Governor’s introduced budget which is meant to be a starting point for negotiations through which changes are made, with a final budget arriving back on the Governor’s desk for either approval or rejection.

The budget process is designed to ensure all priorities are considered and more important that all decisions are made in an open and transparent manner.

This week, in a divisive spirit, House Democrats short-circuited the budget process by bringing the Human Services budget directly to the House floor with little notice and no committee deliberations, then defeated the bill with unanimous Democrat opposition. This action was not genuine, it was intended to send a message. Recognizing that, I joined the House Republicans by voting “Present.”

Immediately thereafter, House Democrats filed 15 additional amendments, cherry-picking various programs vulnerable in the budget and began running them one at a time, again in the hopes of deliberately sabotaging the budget working groups that have been meeting for months… and continue to meet.  Again, I and my House Republican colleagues voted “Present.” 

State Rep. John Cavaletto discusses the positive impact coal mining has on Southern Illinois’ economy.
Click here for the video.