HC0061HAM001LRB096 24635 AMC 44748 a

1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
2
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT 61

3    AMENDMENT NO. ___. Amend House Joint Resolution
4Constitutional Amendment 61 by replacing line 3 on page 1
5through line 13 on page 3 with the following:
 
6    "RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
7NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
8SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there shall be submitted to the
9electors of the State for adoption or rejection at the general
10election next occurring at least 6 months after the adoption of
11this resolution a proposition to add Section 8.1 to Article IV
12and to add Sections 2.1 and 2.2 to Article VIII of the Illinois
13Constitution as follows:
 
14
ARTICLE IV
15
THE LEGISLATURE

 

 

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1      (ILCON Art. IV, Sec. 8.1 new)
2SECTION 8.1. PASSAGE OF REVENUE BILLS
3    A bill that would result in the increase of revenue to the
4State by an increase of a tax on or measured by income or by an
5increase of a tax on or measured by the selling price of any
6item of tangible personal property may become law only with the
7concurrence of three-fifths of the members elected to each
8house of the General Assembly.
 
9
ARTICLE VIII
10
FINANCE

11      (ILCON Art. VIII, Sec. 2.1 new)
12SECTION 2.1. LIMITATIONS ON APPROPRIATIONS AND TRANSFERS
13    (a) For the fiscal year ending in 2014 and each fiscal year
14thereafter, aggregate appropriations and transfers from the
15general funds are limited as provided in this Section. "General
16funds" include the General Revenue Fund, the Common School
17Fund, the General Revenue Common School Special Account Fund,
18and the Education Assistance Fund and any fund utilized for
19general or operating expenses. "Appropriations and transfers"
20do not include (i) reappropriations from a previous fiscal
21year, (ii) those made for debt service payments, and (iii)
22those made to a budget stabilization fund.
23    (b) Aggregate fiscal year appropriations and transfers
24from the general funds may not exceed the limitation amount.

 

 

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1For the fiscal year ending in 2014, the limitation amount is
2the aggregate amount of appropriations and transfers from the
3general funds in the fiscal year ending in 2010, as adjusted as
4provided in this subsection (b) for the fiscal years ending in
52011, 2012, and 2013. For the fiscal year ending in 2015 and
6each fiscal year thereafter, the limitation amount is the
7aggregate amount of appropriations and transfers from the
8general funds in the previous fiscal year, as adjusted as
9provided in this subsection (b).
10    For the fiscal year after a fiscal emergency is declared
11under subsection (c) of this Section, the limitation amount is
12the aggregate amount of appropriations and transfers from the
13general funds in the fiscal year in which the fiscal emergency
14is declared minus the specific dollar amount by which the
15limitation amount was increased for the fiscal emergency, as
16adjusted as provided in this subsection (b).
17    The adjustment is the average annual percentage change in
18the average per capita personal income for Illinois for the 5
19most recent calendar years for which data is available, as
20defined and reported by the United States Department of
21Commerce, or its successor.
22    (c) The Governor may declare a fiscal emergency by filing a
23declaration with the Secretary of State and copies with the
24Senate and House of Representatives. The declaration must be
25limited to only one State fiscal year, set forth compelling
26reasons for declaring a fiscal emergency, and request that the

 

 

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1limitation amount for that fiscal year be increased by a
2specific dollar amount. If the Comptroller and Treasurer advise
3the General Assembly that they concur in the Governor's
4declaration, then by a record vote of three-fifths of the
5members elected to each house, the General Assembly, by law
6conditioned upon the approval of a majority of voters in the
7next general, primary, or special election, may authorize
8increased appropriations and transfers in a specific dollar
9amount that is no more than the increased amount requested by
10the Governor in the declaration. "Emergency" means
11extraordinary circumstances outside the control of the General
12Assembly, including catastrophic events, such as a natural
13disaster, terrorism, fire, war, and riot, and court orders or
14decrees.
15    (d) If the general funds revenues for a fiscal year exceed
16the limitation amount for that fiscal year, then those excess
17revenues must be deposited into the Past Due Paydown Fund,
18State Budget Stabilization Fund, and the Taxpayer Relief Fund
19as provided in subsections (e), (f), and (g).
20    (e) The Past Due Paydown Fund is established as a special
21fund in the State treasury and must be administered for the
22purposes identified in this Section. At the close of the lapse
23period for each fiscal year beginning in 2011, the State
24Comptroller shall identify the amount of General Fund
25unappropriated surplus above the Spending Growth Index
26limitation and transfer to the fund any amount necessary up to

 

 

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1the total past due operating debt owed by the State as of the
2close of fiscal year 2010.
3    The General Assembly may authorize transfers,
4appropriations, and allocations from the fund only to fund the
5costs of paying down the remaining past due debt until such
6debt is zero. Any remaining funds shall be transferred to the
7State Budget Stabilization Fund.
8    (f) The State Budget Stabilization Fund is established as a
9special fund in the State treasury and must be administered for
10the purposes identified in this Section. At the close of the
11lapse period of each fiscal year, the State Comptroller shall
12identify the amount of General Fund unappropriated surplus
13above the expenditure limitation described in subsection (b) of
14this Section and above the amount necessary to fully fund and
15pay down the past due operating debt to zero. The fund may not
16exceed 8% of the total General Fund revenues received in the
17immediately preceding fiscal year.
18    The General Assembly may authorize transfers,
19appropriations, and allocations from the fund only to fund the
20costs of State government up to the expenditure limit
21calculated by law in years when State revenues are less than
22the amount necessary to finance the level of expenditures
23permitted by law. Transfers require a three-fifths
24supermajority vote of the General Assembly.
25    The money in the fund may be invested as provided by law,
26with the earnings credited to the fund. At the close of every

 

 

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1month during which the fund is at the 8% limitation, the State
2Comptroller shall transfer the excess to the Taxpayer Relief
3Fund.
4    (g) The Taxpayer Relief Fund is established as a special
5fund in the State treasury and must be administered for the
6purposes identified in this Section. At the close of the lapse
7period of each fiscal year, the State Comptroller shall
8identify the amount of General Fund unappropriated surplus
9above the State expenditure limitation and above the amount
10necessary to fully fund the Past Due Paydown Fund and the
11Budget Stabilization Fund.
12    By September 1st annually, the State Comptroller shall
13notify the Commission on Government Forecasting and
14Accountability and the Department of Revenue of the amount in
15the fund as a result of the transfers.
16    If the amount in the fund exceeds 1% of General Fund
17expenditures, then the General Assembly shall, by September
1815th, enact legislation to provide for the refund to taxpayers
19of amounts in the fund. Refunds may take the form only of
20temporary or permanent broad-based tax rate reductions.
21    If the General Assembly does not enact legislation by
22September 15th to provide refunds, then the State Comptroller
23shall, by September 30th, notify the Department of Revenue of
24the amount in the fund. The Department of Revenue shall
25calculate a one-time bonus personal exemption refund. The
26amount of the personal exemption refund must be calculated by

 

 

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1dividing the amount in the fund identified by the State
2Comptroller by the number of personal exemptions claimed on
3income tax returns filed for tax year beginning in the previous
4calendar year. The Department of Revenue shall issue a refund
5by October 30th to a taxpayer who filed an income tax return by
6April 15th of the same calendar year based on the number of
7exemptions claimed (times refund per exemption) on the
8taxpayer's return without regard to the taxpayer's tax
9liability for the year.
 
10      (ILCON Art. VIII, Sec. 2.2 new)
11SECTION 2.2. OBLIGATIONS TO RETIREMENT SYSTEMS AND PENSION
12FUNDS
13    In each fiscal year, obligations of the State to retirement
14systems and pension funds created under the Illinois Pension
15Code must be met as provided in that Code.
 
16
SCHEDULE
17    This Constitutional Amendment takes effect upon being
18declared adopted in accordance with Section 7 of the Illinois
19Constitutional Amendment Act.".