Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR0899
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Full Text of HR0899  103rd General Assembly

HR0899 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

 


 
HR0899LRB103 42525 MST 75758 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, A native of Illinois, Brent Hassert was born on
3October 29, 1952 in Joliet, where he enjoyed his childhood;
4and
 
5    WHEREAS, Brent Hassert studied horticulture at America's
6first community college, Joliet Junior College, in preparation
7for the first half of his career as a landscape contractor;
8along with his brother, Earl, he was the co-owner of Hassert
9Landscaping; and
 
10    WHEREAS, The population boom of the 1970s and 1980s in
11Brent Hassert's home, Will County, brought many community
12challenges; as a leader among his neighbors, he stood for
13election to the Will County Board in 1986, becoming a county
14commissioner and executive pro tem; and
 
15    WHEREAS, As a result of the population boom, affirmed by
16the United States Census of 1990, a new Illinois House
17district, the 83rd Representative District, was created to
18center on the fast-growing communities of Romeoville,
19Plainfield, and Lockport; increasingly aware of the challenges
20facing this region as part of the overall governance of the
21State of Illinois, Brent Hassert put his name forward as a
22State lawmaker; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In March 1992, with 4,877 votes, Brent Hassert
2was chosen by his Republican neighbors as their party's
3candidate for the Illinois House of Representatives from the
4new 83rd Representative District; in November of that year, he
5was elected, with 24,804 votes, to be the first-ever state
6representative from the newly-created district, with a 59.8%
7landslide majority; and
 
8    WHEREAS, With his experience as a county leader, Brent
9Hassert was quickly chosen to be the Republican vice
10spokesperson on the House Committee on Counties & Townships;
11and
 
12    WHEREAS, When he and his fellow Republicans achieved a
13House majority in the 89th Illinois General Assembly, Brent
14Hassert was chosen as vice chairman of the Committee on
15Environment & Energy, building a bipartisan coalition that led
16to consensus on restructuring the electricity industry of the
17State of Illinois; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Brent Hassert was continually elected and
19re-elected by his neighbors to the Illinois House of
20Representatives for a total of 16 years in office, from 1992
21until 2008; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, As gaming became a significant industry in
2Joliet, Brent Hassert became the minority spokesperson of the
3House Committee on Gaming, where he helped shape the laws that
4governed the fast-growing field of Illinois riverboat casinos;
5a key law enacted during this period in June 1999 helped create
6jobs by ending the requirement that these Joliet casinos
7physically cruise up and down the Des Plaines River; and
 
8    WHEREAS, As the governance of the State of Illinois became
9more complex and complicated, Brent Hassert became aware that
10more and more of our State laws were being implemented through
11complicated new rules and regulations promulgated by State
12administrative agencies; serving as co-chairman of the
13bipartisan Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR), he
14helped maintain Illinois General Assembly oversight on these
15rules and the processes used to draft and enforce them; and
 
16    WHEREAS, During this time, Brent Hassert steadily rose in
17the estimation of his Illinois House colleagues, especially
18his Republican colleagues, achieving for six years, 2003 to
192009, the rank of Deputy House Minority Leader; and
 
20    WHEREAS, In the year 2008, Illinois Democrats helped to
21nominate a senator from Illinois, Barack Obama, to be
22President of the United States; the Obama campaign created
23great enthusiasm among the members of his party in Illinois,

 

 

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1and in January 2009, Brent Hassert returned to private life,
2leaving a legacy of dedication and service to his district;
3and
 
4    WHEREAS, As a community leader in Plainfield and as an
5acknowledged expert in Illinois law and governance, Brent
6Hassert now entered a new phase of his career as the owner and
7operator of Brent Hassert Consulting, advocating on behalf of
8local governments; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Throughout these career changes, Brent Hassert
10relied upon his wife, Lee Ann Goodson, his brother, Earl, his
11son, Justin Hassert, his son, Josh Hassert, their son, Matthew
12Goodson, their daughter, Alexandra Goodson Ruikis, and their
13daughters-in-law and son-in-law; and
 
14    WHEREAS, A growing headcount of seven grandchildren, Kyle
15Hassert, Jena Hassert, Colton Hassert, Carson Hassert, Aria
16Phoenix, Avery Ruikis, and Bailey Ruikis, brought happiness to
17Brent Hassert; and
 
18    WHEREAS, On August 29, 2024, Brent Hassert passed away,
19leaving behind a body of Illinois laws, his saddened friends
20and neighbors, and his bereaved family; therefore, be it
 
21    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE

 

 

HR0899- 5 -LRB103 42525 MST 75758 r

1HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
2we mourn the loss of Representative and Deputy Republican
3Leader Brent Hassert of Illinois; and be it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
5presented to Brent Hassert's wife, Lee Ann Goodson, as a
6symbol of our deepest sympathies.