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| | SR1761 | | LRB099 21430 MST 47452 r |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has had a long-standing |
| 3 | | statutory goal of spending 20% of all procurement dollars on |
| 4 | | minority and women-owned businesses; and
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| 5 | | WHEREAS, Investing in minority and women-owned businesses |
| 6 | | is a central economic development strategy for the State to |
| 7 | | ensure the businesses that prosper from the State's need for |
| 8 | | goods and services reflects the diversity of the entire State; |
| 9 | | and
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| 10 | | WHEREAS, Legal services is one of the components that the |
| 11 | | State's statutory goal for spending 20% for minority and |
| 12 | | women-owned businesses apply towards; and
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| 13 | | WHEREAS, The last year where full data is available on |
| 14 | | actual spending with minority and women-owned businesses is |
| 15 | | FY2015; and
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| 16 | | WHEREAS, In FY2015, the State spent more than $35,000,000 |
| 17 | | on outside law firms in legal services; and
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| 18 | | WHEREAS, Only 4% of the State's legal services in FY15 were |
| 19 | | with minority and women-owned firms; and
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| | SR1761 | - 2 - | LRB099 21430 MST 47452 r |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, The total spent on African-American owned law |
| 2 | | firms in FY15 was under $200,000, which is significantly less |
| 3 | | than 1% of the total spent on legal services the entire fiscal |
| 4 | | year; and
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| 5 | | WHEREAS, Governor Rauner's administration was only |
| 6 | | responsible for half of the legal services spent in FY15 as the |
| 7 | | Governor was not inaugurated until the middle of that fiscal |
| 8 | | year; and
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| 9 | | WHEREAS, While complete data for FY16 is not yet available, |
| 10 | | there have been a series of procurements for legal services |
| 11 | | that did not include any goal for minority or women-owned |
| 12 | | firms, including one posted April 8th for a Swaps Bond Counsel |
| 13 | | for the Governor's Office of Management and Budget; and
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| 14 | | WHEREAS, Unless the Rauner administration makes a |
| 15 | | significant effort to increase the participation of minority |
| 16 | | and women-owned firms in legal spending, the administration is |
| 17 | | likely on track to dramatically fall short of the statutory |
| 18 | | goal of 20% participation; therefore, be it
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| 19 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL |
| 20 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that the Rauner |
| 21 | | administration is urged to comply with the statutory goal of |
| 22 | | 20% participation with minority and women-owned firms, |
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| | SR1761 | - 3 - | LRB099 21430 MST 47452 r |
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| 1 | | particularly as it relates to professional services and legal |
| 2 | | services; and be it further
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| 3 | | RESOLVED, That the Rauner administration is urged to make |
| 4 | | every effort for FY16 to satisfy the 20% goal for participation |
| 5 | | with minority and women-owned firms in professional services as |
| 6 | | that is the first full fiscal year completely administered by |
| 7 | | the Rauner administration; and be it further
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| 8 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be |
| 9 | | delivered to Governor Rauner.
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