Madigan offers wish list in exchange for Rauner’s property tax freeze
The veteran speaker wants Rauner's signature on legislation to overhaul how the state doles out money to schools, a bill the governor has vowed to veto, saying it amounts to a bailout for
Madigan ticked off his requirements following a closed-door meeting between the four Democratic and Republican legislative leaders but not the governor, a gathering billed as "progress" given they all have not been in a room together for several months. Rauner called lawmakers back to the
Their return has so far been largely unproductive, marked by partisan bickering instead of budget talks with
Madigan emerged from the meeting and went on the attack, reiterating his "firm belief that
"This is a governmental negotiation," Madigan said. "This is a situation where nobody gets 100 percent. I asked the Republican leaders 'Please go down to the governor and explain, in a governmental negotiation nobody gets 100 percent. Please do that.'"
Rauner's office declined to comment after the meeting, deferring to House Republicanleader Jim Durkin of
"There's been a lot of complaints about the governor moving the goal posts, we just saw that today from the
While Rauner supports large portions of the education funding proposal, his overall opposition centers on hundreds of millions of dollars that
Madigan's call to regulate workers' compensation insurance rates comes as Rauner has sought standards to prove an injury happened on the job and tougher restrictions on how much a worker is paid for an injury.
Meanwhile, Madigan's call for increased oversight of Rauner's push to revamp the Medicaid managed care program comes amid criticism from
It's unclear if Madigan's new focus on horse trading will result in a budget deal by month's end.
Durkin said
Rauner has said he would sign that proposal, but the income tax hike would have to be limited to four years starting in July and must be tied to a four-year property tax freeze. Madigan said his members are working on a budget plan that includes a property tax freeze, but would not say how long of a freeze is under consideration.
"We're open to that question, but only because the governor wants to impose that on people who rely on public schools to educate children," Madigan said. "It's part of the extreme right-wing agenda."
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