Chambana Sun

State Rep. Mike Marron (R-Danville) is among those leading the charge for transparency and public input in the state budgeting process.

“I’m here to talk about the budgeting process and bringing some transparency to the process,” Marron recently said from the House floor. “Prior to being elected state representative, I was Vermillion County Board chairman, and much like the state legislature, the most important thing we did every year was to pass a budget. The budget was the critical issue of the year. Getting consensus and approval required a bipartisan effort.”

Marron said he is now working on a bill that he is hoping will have the same effect in Springfield.

“It will require the General Assembly to put the proposed state budget on display for 30 days prior to passage,” he said. “For my three-year tenure here, I’ve been calling out the ridiculous process that plays out every year. Every year, the process is the same; the budget is crafted behind closed doors by the governor and the legislative leaders while appropriation committees meet mainly for show and have no influence on final product.”

Marron said Republican lawmakers are left with a budget they have little time to evaluate.

“Usually, there are some bad items stuck in without the knowledge of the public,” he said. “This year, the final product contained major errors in Article 999 regarding effective dates and now we're going to have to address that. This product is the opposite of transparency.”

Marron said he often thinks of how much better things could be in Springfield if there was a fairer process in place.

“Imagine how much better the process would be if both parties were allowed input that truly represents the priorities of the entire state,” he said. “Maybe the sloppy errors in this year’s budget would have been caught. The public continues to lose faith in government and it’s because of the shady way things like the budget are handled.”

Marron said all the backroom deals and practices aren’t limited to the budget.

 “This year, we’ve seen major bills dropped at the last minute or in the middle of the night that will radically alter the way we live and function in this state,” he said. “My shock has turned to shame. It’s time to fix the broken system that is Springfield.

Marron argues the way Democrats handled the once-every-decade job of map redistricting is another example of how Springfield has lost its way.

“Amazingly enough, Republicans aren't the only people in this chamber that have talked about fair maps,” he said. “There are a lot of my friends and colleagues on the other side of the aisle that I am proud of for taking a strong stand making strong statements on fair maps.”

Even after Democrats moved to push through a map redistricting plan critics charge was crafted in secrecy and with the aim of keeping Democrats in power, Republicans aren’t giving up. They filed a federal lawsuit earlier this month seeking to overturn the maps. The suit cites the party’s reliance on population estimates as “arbitrary” and “discriminatory.”

The lawsuit names the Illinois State Board of Elections and its members as well as the state’s Democratic legislative leaders, House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch of Hillside and Senate President Don Harmon of Oak Park.