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92_SB1583gms
State of Illinois
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Springfield, Illinois 62706
George H. Ryan
GOVERNOR
August 9, 2002
To the Honorable Members of
The Illinois Senate
92nd General Assembly
Pursuant to the authority vested in the Governor by
Article IV, Section 9(e) of the Illinois Constitution of
1970, and re-affirmed by the People of the State of Illinois
by popular referendum in 1974, and conforming to the standard
articulated by the Illinois Supreme Court in People ex rel.
Klinger v. Howlett, 50 Ill.2d 242 (1972), Continental
Illinois National Bank and Trust Co. v. Zagel, 78 Ill.2d 387
(1979), People ex rel. City of Canton v. Crouch, 79 Ill.2d
356 (1980), and County of Kane v. Carlson, 116 Ill.2d 186
(1987), that gubernatorial action be consistent with the
fundamental purposes and the intent of the Bill, I hereby
return Senate Bill 1583 entitled "AN ACT in relation to
persons in military service," with my specific
recommendations for change.
Senate Bill 1583 extends to Illinois National Guard
personnel activated by the Governor, similar protections
already provided to U.S. Armed Forces personnel under the
federal Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act of 1940. In
addition, Senate Bill 1583 provides that both (i) members of
the National guard activated by the Governor, and (ii)
members of the U.S. Armed Forces activated by the federal
government, shall also provide written notice within 30 days
of the termination of active duty to those whom notice was
provided originally.
Senate Bill 1583 serves a well-deserved purpose by
including the State activation of the National Guard within
the protections already received by the U.S. Armed Forces.
For this laudable intent, the spirit of this legislation has
my full support. I am concerned, however, with the
provisions of the Bill that purport to place additional
notice requirements upon members of the U.S. Armed Forces who
are activated by the federal government. As stated
previously, the civil-relief protections for these soldiers
is drawn directly from the federal Soldiers' and Sailors'
Civil Relief Act of 1940, but this Bill purports to impose a
notice requirement upon these soldiers that is not mandated
by that federal law. As a result, the Bill conflicts with
the federal law that is supreme on the matter, and the entire
State statute may be jeopardized. Rather than risk the
protections granted to members of the National Guard under
this Bill, I believe the conflicting provisions should be
removed.
I am also concerned with the placement of the amendatory
text within the Service Men's Employment Tenure Act, which
primarily concerns veterans. Because the legislation
specifically impacts current members of the Illinois National
Guard, I believe it is better to place the language in the
Military Code of Illinois that directly regulates these
members of the Guard.
For these reasons, I hereby return Senate Bill 1583 with
the following recommendations for change:
On page 1, by replacing lines 4 through 14 with the
following:
"Section 5. The Military Code of Illinois is amended by
adding Section 100.5 as follows:
(20 ILCS 1805/100.5 new)
Sec. 100.5. Illinois National Guard; Soldiers and
Sailors Civil Relief Action of 1940."; and
On page 1, by deleting lines 25 through 30; and
On page 2, by deleting lines 1 and 2; and
On page 2, line 3, by replacing "(c)" with "(b)"; and
On page 2, lines 4 and 7, by deleting "or (b)" each time
it appears; and
On page 2, line 8, by replacing "(d)" with "(c)"; and
On page 2, by deleting lines 18 through 32; and
On page 3, by deleting lines 1 through 31.
With these changes, Senate Bill 1583 will have my
approval. I respectfully request your concurrence.
Sincerely,
George H. Ryan
GOVERNOR
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