House needs to stay in session

I and many neighbors are very disappointed that the Illinois House of Representatives will not be in session for the entire month of March, and that State Rep. Jay Hoffman didn’t join colleagues in urging that the chamber stay in session. How many of us in the private sector would have a job to return to if we left work to go on break with mandatory and necessary work unfinished?

State Representative Tom Demmer, R-Dixon, made a motion to bring the House back in session, but the Chicago Democrat leadership ignored the motion and House rules by adjourning session business until April 4.

I’m beyond disappointed the state has gone eight months without a budget and Hoffman chose to side with his Chicago allies to take a four-week spring break. The Illinois House should be in session every day this month until a compromise is reached.

Despite the budget impasse, the Illinois House was only scheduled to be in session a handful of days prior to the upcoming primary election. The session schedule in Illinois is set at the sole discretion of the leader of the respective chambers, and was selected by House Speaker Michael Madigan who was heavily engaged in primaries throughout Illinois. By contrast, Illinois Senate President John Cullerton scheduled session throughout the month of March.

There is no sense of urgency. Hoffman should have joined his colleagues in urging Speaker Madigan to stay in session until a budget compromise is reached.

This story was originally published March 21, 2016 at 2:00 PM with the headline "House needs to stay in session."