Dear Friends,

As many of you know, the General Assembly is still trying to resolve the budget deficit Illinois faces, while constructing a balanced budget for the 2010 Fiscal Year. I have received a tremendous outpouring of communication from constituents throughout the 17th district, as well as throughout the State. Employees, volunteers and board members from the various social services agencies, as well as many constituents have contacted me -expressing their desire to preserve the vital services Illinois provides to our most vulnerable citizens. I have heard heart-wrenching stories from so many people that will be negatively affected by these cuts.

As a health care provider and educator, I have spent 13 years in Springfield, working to create new programs that will protect and help those most in need. Many of the proposed cuts will affect programs that I helped to create and have fought to expand. I am adamant in my position that early education programs, housing and services for the developmentally disabled and mentally ill, home healthcare for seniors, addiction treatment support, foster care, day care services and support plans for the ill are NOT DISPENSIBLE PROGRAMS – THEY ARE VITAL.

I believe that as elected officials, we have a responsibility to act in a fiscally responsible manner and make government run accordingly. I am determined to reform how government spends. A plan to do this successfully will necessarily include a combination of cutting non-essential services and reallocating revenues. We must employ a moratorium on new programs until the budget is balanced and a freeze in pay increases should be implemented for all government employees and elected officials. Compromises must be made, but I am not willing to abandon those children, families and seniors that need our help most. Continue reading »

Dear Friend,
As a medical school Professor and Department Chair for 22 years, I taught an ethics course to aspiring medical professionals. For 13 years, my husband Bill was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago who specialized in prosecuting wayward public officials at all levels of government. Therefore, I was relatively well-acquainted with real-world ethical needs and problems when I was first elected to the Illinois Legislature in 1996. From day one, as a legislator, I have made ethics reform a priority – with some successes over the years. I have helped enact campaign disclosure laws, mandated ethics training, and helped to create the Illinois Gift Ban. Continue reading »