Governor's Initiative to Increase Hiring Veterans Tax Credit; Provides Property Tax Relief for Spouses of Fallen Heroes

CHICAGO - July 9, 2012.  Governor Pat Quinn today signed a new law that will help more Illinois Veterans find employment following their service to our country, an important measure he proposed during his State of the State address in February.

The Hiring Veterans Tax Credit will provide a significant additional tax credit for every unemployed Veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan a company hires, which will help businesses create jobs and give those jobs to the Veterans who have sacrificed so much in serving our state and our country. Unemployment for young returning Veterans in America was 30% in 2011.

"Veterans are committed, disciplined and experienced, and they know how to accomplish a mission," Governor Quinn said. "We need these heroes in our workplaces, and increasing the Hiring Veterans Tax Credit will create more jobs for veterans and grow the economy in Illinois."

Senate Bill 3241, sponsored by State Sen. John Sullivan (D-Rushville) and State Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Belleville), raises the Illinois Hiring Veterans tax credit from 10% to 20% of annual wages and more than quadruples the annual cap from $1,200 to $5,000. Many of these post-9/11 Veterans struggle with higher rates of unemployment compared with their civilian counterparts.

In addition, the new law also honors Gold Star families of fallen heroes across Illinois by making them eligible for the same property tax-relief available in some communities to the families of fallen firefighters and police officers. The law allows counties or municipalities the option of reducing or eliminating property taxes for a surviving spouse of a fallen Illinois soldier killed in Iraq or Afghanistan in the way some choose to honor the families of fallen firefighters and police officers.

"We have a tremendous responsibility to honor the service and sacrifices Veterans and their families have made since 9/11," said IDVA Director Erica Borggren. "These measures will go a long way towards helping Veterans and the families of fallen service members begin the process of rebuilding their lives."

President Obama recently announced that more than one million service members will leave the military between now and 2016, with many thousands returning home to Illinois. Many of these young post-9/11 Veterans will be returning to sectors of the economy that were hardest hit by the Great Recession including construction, manufacturing, and transportation industries. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Veterans ages 18-24 nationwide have an unemployment rate roughly twice as high as their civilian peers.

Governor Quinn launched "Operation Home Front" while he was Illinois State Treasurer to give National Guard members and reservists a tool to inform them about their rights during the Gulf War. Most recently, the Governor has expanded Operation Home Front to be a place where active servicemembers and Veterans can learn about the resources available to them and their families, and a place for the public to learn about different ways they can support our troops.

First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama recently joined Governor Quinn as he signed a new law designed to help military spouses more easily find employment when they move to Illinois for military service by granting expedited professional licenses. Illinois is the 23^rd state to adopt such legislation.

For more information about benefits for our Veterans, visit Veterans.Illinois.gov or call the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs at 217-782-6641 or 312-814-2460.

CHICAGO - June 18, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today signed a new law that will increase oversight of the state's pension systems. Senate Bill 179 creates the position of a state actuary to oversee the five state-funded pension systems to help increase transparency of the systems. After signing the new law, Governor Quinn continued his call for bold pension reform that eliminates the unfunded liability.

"We must restore integrity and accountability to the state's pension systems and we are headed in the right direction with this new law," Governor Quinn said. "Now is the time to roll our sleeves up and continue to work together to fundamentally reform our pension system and rescue it from drowning in an ocean of unfunded liability."

Under Senate Bill 179, sponsored by House Speaker Michael J. Madigan (D-Chicago) and Senate Majority Leader James Clayborne (D-Belleville), the position of a state actuary will be created within the Office of the Auditor General and will report to the auditor general. The actuary will oversee the state's five pension systems: State Employees Retirement System, General Assembly Retirement System, State Universities Retirement System, Teachers Retirement System and Judges Retirement System. To strengthen accountability and transparency, the actuary will review assumptions, valuations and actuarial practices for each of the systems. The actuary will also help calculate the state's annual required contributions.

"This is another important step in making the pension systems stable by requiring an independent review of how the systems create their cost estimates," said Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan.

The new law is designed to ensure that all of the state's pension systems follow Illinois law when determining future contributions. Currently, each pension system submits a certification plan to the Governor and the General Assembly. Under the new law, the systems will submit their proposals to the Governor, the General Assembly and the new state actuary who will review the plans. The actuary will then issue a report containing recommended changes to the actuarial assumptions. Final certifications will be submitted on Jan. 15. The actuary will also be responsible for conducting reviews of the actuarial practices of the systems.

Governor Quinn continues to work with leaders of the General Assembly on a long-term solution to strengthen and stabilize the state's pension system. Governor Quinn introduced a plan to reform the pension systems that would eliminate the unfunded liability over 30 years and allow public employees who have faithfully contributed to the system to receive pension benefits.

"Reforming our pension systems is critical to funding vital state programs and paying our vendors on time," said the bill's chief co-sponsor, House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago). "This law will make sure that all of the state's pension systems are following the correct process, and I thank Governor Quinn for signing this quickly."

"We must restore confidence in the state's pension systems," said Leader Clayborne. "I would like to thank Governor Quinn for his quick action on this bill that will help us make sure that contributions are being calculated correctly."

The new law goes into effect immediately.

New Law Increases Penalties for Crimes Against Mail Carriers

ROCKFORD ­- June 15, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today signed a new law that will protect postal workers and letter carriers by allowing judges to consider harsher penalties for violent crimes against employees of the United States Postal Service. The Governor signed the law at Illinois State Association of Letter Carriers' annual convention in Rockford.

"The hard-working men and women of the United States Postal Service deserve our gratitude," Governor Quinn said. "This law will help make sure that they are able to continue doing their jobs safely."

Senate Bill 3665, sponsored by Sen. Jacqueline Collins (D-Chicago) and Rep. Jerry Costello III (D-Sparta), allows judges to consider a victim's employment in the United States Postal Service (USPS) as an aggravating factor in violent crimes like assault, battery and robbery. Upon conviction, a judge could impose more severe sentences on the offender.

This law is an initiative of the National Association of Letter Carriers, which is working with the USPS to inform postal workers in Illinois about the appropriate steps to take in the event of a crime being committed against them or in their vicinity.

As U.S. government employees, USPS workers are already protected by federal law; however, in the event federal prosecutors don't pursue cases involving crimes against postal workers, this law will allow state courts to consider USPS employment in their proceedings.

The new law goes into effect January 1, 2013.

Restructuring Package Stabilizes Medicaid and

Preserves Care for Most Vulnerable

CHICAGO - June 14, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today signed into law a package of reforms that will rescue the state's Medicaid system from the brink of collapse and make the program sustainable for the future, one of his top priorities this legislative session.

The series of new laws reaches the governor's goal of $2.7 billion in Medicaid savings, which includes $1.6 billion in Medicaid spending reductions, an increase in the price of cigarettes and resulting dollar-for-dollar federal matching funds. The legislation targets fraud and abuse in Medicaid, reduces rates for providers and decreases the burden of smoking on the Medicaid system through a dollar-a-pack increase in the price of cigarettes, which will also prevent children from smoking. The new laws also provide new federal funding for hospitals, and end the long-time practice of balancing the budget by pushing Medicaid bills into the next fiscal year.

During his budget address in February, Governor Quinn called for the fundamental restructuring of Medicaid through $2.7 billion in liability reductions to repair the program's long-term deficit. To achieve that goal, the governor convened a working group of bipartisan legislators to develop numerous options to reach the savings. In April, the governor laid out a proposal to rescue Medicaid that was informed by the working group, which served as the basis for successful negotiations on the final package of legislation he signed today.

"One of our most important missions in Springfield this year was to save Medicaid from the brink of collapse," Governor Quinn said. "I applaud the members of our working group and of the General Assembly, who worked together in a bipartisan manner to tackle a grave crisis. As a result, we preserved our healthcare program that millions of our most vulnerable rely upon."

As Governor Quinn cited in his budget address, the Medicaid program faced a $2.7 billion budget gap this year and the pile of unpaid bills would have grown to $21 billion by 2017 without a series of difficult but necessary reforms. During his budget address, the Governor called for a combination of eligibility reforms, reductions in optional services, controls on utilization and cuts in provider rates to close the gap.

Governor Quinn assigned Director Julie Hamos of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) to craft a Medicaid rescue package in cooperation with a bipartisan Legislative Medicaid Advisory Committee, led by Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and Sen. Dale Righter (R-Mattoon) and Rep. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago) and Rep. Patricia Bellock (R-Hinsdale).

The Governor signed five pieces of resulting legislation today:

·         SB 2840, sponsored by Sen. Steans and Rep. Feigenholtz:  The "Save Medicaid Access and Resources Together Act" (SMART Act) includes $1.6 billion in 62 spending reductions, utilization controls and provider rate cuts.

·         SB 2194, sponsored by Sen. Jeffrey Schoenberg (D-Evanston) and Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago):  $1 per pack increase in the price of cigarettes provides $350 million and dollar-for-dollar federal matching funds of $350 million for Medicaid; a new hospital assessment program provides $100 million for Medicaid and $480 million for hospitals.

·         HB 5007, sponsored by Sen. Kwame Raoul (D-Chicago) and Rep. Currie:  The Cook County Waiver authorizes the Cook County Health & Hospitals System to provide a limited Medicaid coverage to their patients, prior to the Affordable Care Act 2014 implementation, at no cost to the state; also extends the state's moratorium on Medicaid expansion to 2015.

·         SB 3397, sponsored by Sen. Steans and Rep. Currie:  Phases out the long-time practice of balancing the budget by pushing Medicaid bills into the next fiscal year

·         SB 3261, sponsored by Sen. Iris Martinez (D-Chicago) and Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago): defines charity care for purposes of property tax exemptions for non-profit hospitals.

The SMART Act scales Medicaid to fit available funding sources through spending reductions, utilization controls and provider rate cuts. Its key provisions include :

·         Reducing eligibility for adults in the FamilyCare program to 133 percent of the Federal Poverty Level ($30,660 for a family of four).

·         The state's subsidy for the federal prescription drug (Part D) program, IL Cares Rx, is terminated, but "Extra Help/Low Income Subsidy" provides federal assistance to low-income seniors and people with disabilities eligible for Medicare.

·         New integrity measures will aggressively target client and provider fraud through:

o   Enhanced eligibility verification of income and residency through use of private vendor's access to national databases for annual redeterminations; and

o   Expanded authority of the HFS Inspector General to deny, suspend and recover overpayments and conduct pre-payment and post-payment provider audits.

·         Eliminates some optional services, such as group psychotherapy and adult chiropractic services, and places utilization control on certain optional services such as adult dental services (restricted to emergencies), adult podiatry services (restricted to diabetics), and adult eyeglasses (limited to 1 every 2 years).

·         Limits are placed on adult and children's prescriptions to four per month, with additional prescriptions available based on patients' needs.

·         Most provider groups receive a rate cut of 2.7% except for doctors, dentists, clinics, safety-net hospitals and critical access rural hospitals. Non-exempt hospitals receive a rate cut of 3.5%.  Nursing home cuts average 2.7%, but the homes serving clients who have the highest care needs are being impacted less.

"This has been a difficult process, but I applaud the Governor and my colleagues for addressing the structural deficit in the Medicaid program that has been building up for years," said Rep. Feigenholtz. "Without making these tough choices, we could not continue to provide the critical services to those who depend on the program most."

"The Medicaid program had become unsustainable. By taking these actions, we are ensuring that the program will survive in the future and be there to serve the most fragile and vulnerable members of society," said Sen. Steans. "And we were able to avoid cuts to more vital services by increasing the cost of cigarettes, which will help lower our overall health care costs."

"The Medicaid system was on the brink of collapse and was threatening financial health of our health care delivery system and state government as a whole," said HFS Director Julie Hamos. "Now that we have put the program on a sustainable financial path, we can focus on our ultimate goal of transforming the program from one which simply pays medical bills, to one that keeps its clients healthy by coordinating their care and making sure when they do get sick, they get care that is effective and results in better outcomes."

The dollar-a-pack increase in the price of cigarettes was hailed by healthcare advocates as an important public health measure. The price increase will decrease smoking-related costs to Medicaid, which came to $1.5 billion last year, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). The organization estimates it will help about 60,000 people quit smoking, prevent 60,000 deaths from smoking-related conditions and keep 80,000 kids from taking up smoking in the first place.

"The price increase for tobacco is a great win for public health because it will do more than just ease the state's Medicaid issues," said Joel Africk, president and chief executive officer of Respiratory Health Association. "The tax increase will help people who want to quit, it will save lives from being lost to tobacco-related illnesses, and it will discourage our youth from starting to smoke. Congratulations to Governor Quinn and all of the law's supporters."

"The American Cancer Society supports Governor Quinn's actions to improve  the health of Illinois residents," said Katherine L. Griem, M.D., President of the American Cancer Society, Illinois Division. "Smoking remains the leading cause of cancer and curtailing and preventing it, especially in our youth, will save thousands of lives."

For more information, go to: http://www2.illinois.gov/hfs/agency/Pages/Budget.aspx