A press release from State Rep. Mike Tyron about the signing of his online government information bill, House Bill 35, is below.
Meanwhile, Springfield’s State Journal-Register had some fun at his expense by pointing out that his salary was not yet posted on the data base run by the Illinois Department of Central Management Services.
Governor Commends Tryon’s Work on IL Transparency and Accountability PortalCrystal Lake…Today, Governor Pat Quinn hosted a bill signing ceremony highlighting several key transparency reforms including a new law spearheaded by State Representative Mike Tryon (R-Crystal Lake) to create the Illinois Transparency and Accountability Portal. Rep. Tryon joined the Governor, Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Speaker of the House Michael Madigan and the members of the Illinois Reform Commission.
During the ceremony, Governor Quinn announced the signing of House Bill 35 (Public Act 96-0225), introduced by Rep. Tryon to create the Illinois Transparency and Accountability Portal. The transparent website, Accountability.Illinois.gov, will detail nearly every financial transaction within state government and show taxpayers how their money is being spent. The legislation was suggested to Rep. Tryon by Americans for Prosperity, a grassroots activist organization leading the charge for transparency in Illinois and throughout the nation.
“I applaud the Governor for signing this bill and taking the first step to make Illinois government more honest and transparent. Especially during an economic recession, it is absolutely crucial that we show taxpayers where state government is spending each and every dollar. For too long, the culture of secrecy has dominated Springfield and pay-to-play politics has been the norm,” Rep. Tryon said.
Specifically, the Illinois Transparency and Accountability Portal will provide the public with direct access to:
- state employees’ salaries
- state expenditures
- tax credits
- tax breaks and
- state contracts
“With the widespread corruption of our former Governor, public trust in state government is at an all-time low. It’s time to open up the checkbooks of state spending and hold elected officials accountable for how they spend taxpayer money,” Rep. Tryon said.
Rep. Tryon believes the Illinois Transparency and Accountability Portal will ultimately reduce the number of Freedom of Information Requests that the state must process. Additionally, it will be a deterrent to employee discrimination and ghost pay rolling.
“Currently, Illinois is known as one of the most politically corrupt states in the nation. AFP already has a proven track record of leadership in transparency reform, including state level reform in Kansas and Oklahoma and strong support for the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act. Illinois will soon become a national leader in transparency,” said Joe Calomino, state director for Americans for Prosperity.
The Governor also signed into law legislation supported by Rep. Tryon to strengthen the process by which Freedom of Information Act requests are processed, and created a new website putting state boards and commissions online called Appointments.Illinois.gov.
