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92_SB0326gms
State of Illinois
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Springfield, Illinois 62706
George H. Ryan
GOVERNOR
August 15, 2001
To the Honorable Members of
The Illinois Senate
92nd General Assembly
Pursuant to Article IV, Section 9(b) of the Illinois
Constitution of 1970, I hereby veto and return Senate Bill
326 entitled "AN ACT relating to schools."
Senate Bill 326 amends the School code to allow for a
tax-equivalent grant to be paid to a school district (other
than the Chicago school district) if a United States military
installation or base is located in the district. Further, it
provides that the school district must have students residing
on the military installation or base who are in attendance in
the district.
Assuring that children have the resources they need for a
good education is certainly a priority of my administration.
However, this legislation would set a precedent that the
State supplement federal impact aid with State general
revenue dollars. According to the Illinois State Board of
Education it is estimated that Senate Bill 326 would cost the
State of Illinois approximately $600,035 a year. This amount
would rise and fall yearly with changes in local property
value. The funds for these impact grants to school districts
impacted by federal military installations are to be made
from a line item specifically appropriated for this purpose.
No such funds were appropriated.
It has been argued that the Federal government should
have the same responsibility as the State in funding
education in this situation and therefore, should help to
defray the cost of the tax equivalent grant. It was also
argued during the House debate that the Federal government
has an obligation to assist these school districts and the
financial needs of all school districts must be considered.
This legislation would set a bad precedent of using State
resources to fulfill the financial responsibility of the
Federal government.
For these reasons, I hereby veto and return Senate Bill
326.
Sincerely,
George H. Ryan
GOVERNOR
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