SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Emil Jones (D-Chicago) offered the following remarks in response to Governor Rauner’s State of the State Address:

“I am excited to work with Governor Rauner and learn more about his agenda to fix Illinois’ budget issues,” Jones said. “He mentioned the need for budget cuts and structural reorganization, but his latest executive order that froze $7.5 million to help at-risk youth and $300 million for struggling families is unconscionable. This is not the compassion Illinois that Governor Rauner talked about after winning; I want to work with him to help communities of need.”

“In November, the people of Illinois were loud and clear about their support for a minimum wage increase,” Jones continued. “The overwhelming support indicates that we need this now and not over the course of seven years – by then inflation will be even further from a livable wage.”

 Dear Neighbor,

It is an honor to have the responsibility to serve as your state senator. This month I have introduced several legislative measures designed to enhance the well-being of our district and the citizens of Illinois. Please allow me to share some of the initiatives we have taken to improve life in our state.

To learn more about my legislation, please visit the General Assembly website at www.ilga.gov or the Senate Democratic Caucus website at www.IllinoisSenateDemocrats.com .

To the Editor:

This week, in the final days of legislative session the General Assembly passed the budget for Fiscal Year 2012. Throughout this process, many tough decisions had to be made. There were cuts to nearly every agency in the state. I completely understand that we are in tough fiscal times and balancing our budget. My question is at what point do we stop cutting our most used and necessary programs that help our most vulnerable citizens.

To the Editor:

The now infamous tragedy at Burr Oak Cemetery is an event that will weigh on the hearts and minds of Illinoisans for years to come. The images shown of the discarded headstones and burial monuments throughout the media and the knowledge that the bodies of people’s loved ones were treated with callous disregard were mind-blowing, my colleagues and I in the General Assembly knew that we needed to take action. In 2010, we passed the Cemetery Oversight Act (COA). The legislation completely transformed the way cemeteries conducted business and recorded data. The COA provided strict regulations to ensure that disastrous events like those at Burr Oak never occurred again.