SPRINGFIELD - Governor Bruce Rauner took action today on the following bills:

Bill No.: HB 1081

An Act Concerning Transportation

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediate, with the exception of sections 1, 5, and 10, which take effect on July 1, 2016, and section 20, which takes effect on January 1, 2016.

CHICAGO - Governor Bruce Rauner announced he has made the following appointments to the Board of Trustees for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.

Name: Jim Bruner

Position: Chair - Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Jim Bruner to the Board of Trustees for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. He brings nearly five decades of business experience to the board.

Bruner is the President of United Contractors Midwest, an asphalt paving company founded in 2001. Prior to that company's founding, Bruner was President of Illinois Valley Paving Company in Winchester, where he worked for over  30 years.

On top of his business, Bruner is an active member of the community. He serves as Trustee and Secretary of the Central Laborers Pension and Annuity Board and Chairman of Investments. He is a Life Director of Associated General Contractors of America and a past two-term President of the Associated General Contractors of Illinois.

Bruner earned his bachelor's degree in business from Illinois College. He lives in Jacksonville, Illinois.

Name: Gail Shiel

Position: Trustee - Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Gail Shiel to the Board of Trustees for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. She brings over three decades of experience in art, design and civic engagement.

Shiel is a self-employed interior designer and has been designing commercial spaces for over 30 years. She is also an adjunct professor at Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis (IUPUI). She teaches architectural and interior technology. She previously held full-time faculty positions at IUPUI and Butler University.

Shiel is also a fellow of the International Interior Design Association, a member of the board of directors for the Institute of Business Designers and a member of the Illinois Humanities Council.

Shiel received a bachelor's degree in environmental design & interior design from Purdue University. She is currently working on her master's degree in arts administration and policy at the Art Institute of Chicago. She lives in Chicago.

Name: Andy Volpert

Position: Trustee - Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Andy Volpert to the Board of Trustees for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. He brings 15 years of experience as a history and social studies teacher.

Since 2003, Volpert has taught AP American Government, U.S. History and other classes at Springfield Southeast High School. He previously spent three years teaching at Morrisonville High School.

Volpert volunteers as a youth baseball and basketball coach in the community. He is also a dedicated member of the Laurel United Methodist Church and the Southern Illinois University Alumni Association.

Volpert received a bachelor's degree in history education and a master's degree in history from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. While earning his master's, Volpert won the Stanley A. Zucker Essay Prize for his outstanding research in the SIU History Department. He lives in Springfield.

Name: Jane A. Hay

Position: Trustee - Illinois Historic Preservation Agency

Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Jane Ann Hay to the Board of Trustees for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. She has an extensive background in state government and real estate.

Hay is a real estate broker with The Real Estate Group, Inc., a company that provides residential and commercial real estate sales and leasing in Springfield and Sangamon County. Prior to obtaining her real estate license in 2009, Hay served as Project Manager for REAL ID in the Illinois Secretary of State's office. She was also Manager of Scheduling for the Office of the Illinois State Treasurer for eight years.

Hay is a member of the Capital Area Association of Realtors (CAAR) Board of Trustees, and was awarded the CAAR "Rising Star" Award in 2011.She is President of the Chatham Area Chamber of Commerce, Secretary of the Chatham Area Public Library Foundation Board, and a member of the Ball-Chatham Education Foundation Board.

Hay is a graduate of Taylorville High School and has a certificate from Patricia Stevens Business College. She lives in Chatham.

Loebsack's RURAL Act will provide necessary support for rural schools

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Dave Loebsack announced today that he will be hosting a series of roundtables throughout Iowa to discuss his legislation, the Restructuring Underutilized Resources for Advancing Learning (RURAL) Act. Throughout the week, Loebsack will be making stops in Tipton, DeWitt, Eldridge, Washington, Knoxville, Oskaloosa, Eldon, Sigourney, Tiffin, Mt. Pleasant and West Liberty, among others. At each roundtable, Loebsack will be joined by school administrators, principals, teachers and other support staff. Media are invited to attend.

MONDAY, October 12

Tipton "Expanding Opportunities for Rural Students" Tour

Tipton High School

Library

400 E. 6th St.

10:00am

NOTE: All media must check in at the school's front office.

DeWitt "Expanding Opportunities for Rural Students" Tour

Central High School

519 E. 11th St.

Noon

NOTE: All media must check in at the school's front office.

Eldridge "Expanding Opportunities for Rural Students" Tour

North Scott High School

200 S. 1st St.

1:20pm

NOTE: All media must check in at the school's front office.

TUESDAY, October 13

Washington "Expanding Opportunities for Rural Students" Tour

Washington Community School District

404 West Main Street

10:00am

NOTE: All media must check in at the school's front office.

Columbus Junction "Expanding Opportunities for Rural Students" Tour

Columbus Community High School

1004 Colton Street

11:30am

NOTE: All media must check in at the school's front office.

Mediapolis "Expanding Opportunities for Rural Students" Tour

Mediapolis Community School District

821 North Northfield

1:30pm

NOTE: All media must check in at the school's front office.

About the RURAL Act

Rural schools have fewer financial resources than non-rural schools, which has resulted in teacher recruitment and retention challenges, digital learning barriers, and a lack of quality after-school programs. This legislation, which is comprised of four key components, is focused on supporting rural communities in order to ensure students attending rural schools are not forgotten. The RURAL Act has been endorsed by various organizations and associations such as the National Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Association of Secondary School Principals and the National Association of Elementary School Principals.

Des Moines, October 6, 2015– On Thursday, October 15, members of the Iowa Supreme Court will meet with students from six high schools and one college to discuss the Iowa judicial system and the role of the courts. The justices will visit high school students in Newton, Grinnell, Monroe, Bondurant, Saylor Township, and Williamsburg, and meet with college students on the Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) Newton Campus.

High school visit schedule for Thursday, October 15

8:30 a.m. Chief Justice Cady Grinnell High School

8:58 a.m. Justice Hecht PCM High School

9:05 a.m. Justice Appel Bondurant-Farrar High School

9:45 a.m. Justice Mansfield Newton High School

9:45 a.m. Justice Wiggins Saydel High School

10:00 a.m. Justice Waterman Williamsburg High School

11:00 a.m. Justice Zager DMACC real time reporting students, Newton Campus

In addition to the school visits, the supreme court will hold a special session in Newton on Wednesday evening, October 14, at 7:00 p.m., in the Newton High School Center for Performance, 800 East 4th Street South, Newton. During the special session, the court will hear oral arguments in one case. The oral arguments are open to the public. A public reception with the justices in the Newton High School cafeteria will follow the oral arguments.

Special session

Wednesday, October 14, 2015, at 7:00 p.m.

Newton High School Center for Performance

800 East 4th Street South

Newton, Iowa

The Iowa Supreme Court will hear lawyers argue in one case:

Hutchison, et al. v Warren County Board of Supervisors, et al.:

Former employees of Warren County contend the Warren County Board of Supervisors violated Iowa's "open meetings law," Iowa Code chapter 21, when individual supervisors met separately with the county administrator, serving as a go-between, to deliberate a proposed restructuring of the county workforce. The district court determined there was no open meetings violation because there was no gathering of a majority of supervisors. A question before the supreme court is whether "walking quorums" or "serial communications" constitute a "gathering" within the definition of "meeting" in Iowa's open meetings law.

Public reception

There will be a public reception in the Newton High School cafeteria following the oral arguments.

For more information about the oral arguments

Attorneys' briefs for the case and a guide to oral arguments are posted on the Iowa Judicial Branch website at:

http://www.iowacourts.gov/About_the_Courts/Supreme_Court/Offsite_Oral_Arguments_Newton

Note to news media

News media are invited to attend the oral arguments. Court rules apply regarding still camera, video camera, and audio recording devices used during the oral arguments. Information on expanded media coverage is available on the Iowa Judicial Branch Website at: http://www.iowacourts.gov/For_the_Media/Expanded_News_Media_Coverage/

Chapter 25 of the Iowa Court Rules regarding cameras and other electronic devices in courtrooms is available on the Iowa Legislature website at https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/CR/LINC/04-30-2014.chapter.25.pdf .

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