Politics                                                                

Gov. Jim Edgar broke little ground in his address, offering a rehash of the standard Republican agenda

By CHARLES N. WHEELER III

If some of the legislature's freshmen seemed exceptionally attentive during Gov. Jim Edgar's fifth State of the State address, there's a very simple reason: None of them had heard it before.

More seasoned lawmakers, though, no doubt were reminded of Yogi Berra's sage observation — it's deja vu all over again. Edgar broke precious little new ground in his 36-minute address, offering instead a rehash of what has come to be the standard Republican agenda on some issues for the last two decades.

Indeed, Edgar himself conceded the obvious, telling reporters after the talk, "I think the surprise would have been if I had had a surprise.... What I talked about today were positions that I have taken before."

In fairness, the governor did propose merging several state agencies into a new Department of Natural Resources, and he wants convicted sex offenders who move to Illinois to provide DNA samples to law enforcement officials, the better to track them down should they strike again. Heady stuff, to be sure.

The real newsworthiness of the event was not the substance of the address, but rather the setting in which the governor spoke. As Edgar delivered his message from the lower level of the two-tiered speaker's rostrum, there behind him on the upper level stood the legislature's leaders for the next two years — Senate President James "Pate" Philip of Wood Dale and House Speaker Lee A. Daniels of Elmhurst, Republicans both. The last time a GOP governor delivered a State of the State address to a legislature controlled by his party — in 1970 — the youngest current freshman, Rep. Michael K. Smith, a Canton Democrat, was only 3 years old.

Twenty-five years later. Republicans are once again in charge, with the voting muscle to pass initiatives Democrats have blocked for years and the clear intent to move quickly. "The presiding officers of this new, dramatically changed legislature and I agree," Edgar said. "We need not wait until the closing hours of this legislative session to act responsibly and responsively on major reforms.... Property tax caps, tort reform to spur job creation, school reform, continued welfare-to-work initiatives and anti-crime legislation. I want all of it sent to me on a fast track."

With majorities of 33-26 in the Senate and 64-54 in the House, Republicans should be able to expedite much of their showcase legislation. Some issues, however, seem certain to be slowed down by troublesome details. Consider property tax caps. In his address, Edgar called for extending to Cook County limits now in place in the five collar counties, under which school districts and most other local government units need voter approval to raise property taxes by more than 5 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is less.

Should be no problem, right? Especially after the idea won overwhelming support from Cook County voters in an advisory referendum in November.

In a background paper explaining the proposal in greater detail, however, one learns that the governor also wants the cap to cover tax extensions for home rule units, which are now exempt. To impose caps on the more than 90 home rule units in the region — including the city of Chicago and Cook County — requires three-fifths majorities in each house, meaning the proposal won't fly without Democratic votes that might not be readily forthcoming.

Similarly, the governor called for changes in the state's civil justice system, including a ceiling on awards for so-called pain and suffering in medical malpractice and product liability cases. "The only people benefitting from the system in place are a few very wealthy lawyers," Edgar argued. Although the standard GOP rhetoric might lead one to assume otherwise, some Republicans happen to be trial lawyers who in the past have

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argued forcefully for protecting the rights of innocent victims of careless doctors and shoddy manufacturers. Again, Democratic help might be needed — and hard to find — on some aspects of tort reform.

While one could argue that Edgar and GOP leaders may have been too optimistic in setting a timetable for enacting their agenda, a more troubling aspect of the governor's address lies in its omissions of some of the major problems the state faces. Nowhere, for example, did the governor mention the state's huge Medicaid debt; instead, he proposed throwing off the welfare rolls mothers who have no children under the age of 13 if the women don't find jobs.

Education finance merited a one-sentence promise to increase school funding in the fiscal year 1996 budget, due to be unveiled on March 1. Instead, the governor renewed his push for reforms like charter schools and a Chicago learning zone, and called for all Illinois schools to have access to the information superhighway within a year by linking up with the Internet, a worldwide computer network. While there's no doubt such proposals are eminently sound, the nagging question persists: How do we guarantee a quality education for all our children when most school districts lack the resources to pay for it?

In like manner, few would argue with Edgar's admonition for local communities to involve themselves in combatting teen pregnancy, drug abuse, gang violence and other ills undermining family life in Illinois. But what are we to do with the 45,000 abused and neglected children for whom we the people are now surrogate parents? And where will we house those whom the cold streets already have turned into violent offenders, more of whom we say we want locked up for longer periods of time?

Perhaps, as Edgar seemed to suggest, the answers to such tough questions will be forthcoming at budget time. Maybe, as one Statehouse sage observed, the State of the State address was merely a good news capstone to inauguration week. If that's all there was to it, however, even the freshmen should feel disappointed. *

Charles N. Wheeler III is director of the Public Affairs Reporting program at Sangamon State University, Springfield.