SENATOR HENDON:
Thank you, Mr. President. House Bill 3316 is an attempt by
me and the esteemed Senator, Senator Obama, to get at the
problem of ex-felons, where they can’t get jobs, and it says
simply that DHS may come up with a program that will help find
employment opportunities for ex-felons so we can keep the
recidivism rate down, keep ‘em out of the penitentiary, where we
end up paying more money to house them in jail than we could get
if we could taxes out of ‘em if they have good jobs. There --
it’s supported by Chicago Coalition of the Homeless, National
Center for Poverty Law, Safer Foundation and others, and I’d
appreciate an Aye vote.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Is there any...
SENATOR HENDON:
I’ll be happy to answer any questions.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Is there any discussion? Senator Righter.
SENATOR RIGHTER:
Thank you, Mr. President. Will the sponsor yield?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Indicates he’ll yield, Senator.
SENATOR RIGHTER:
Senator Hendon, I -- when the bill came up, I took a look
at the board up there and the title up there is “Jobs for Ex-
Offenders” and I wanted to make sure, first, that that wasn’t --
that’s a -- that’s a -- whether that’s a typo. That’s not
supposed to be jobs for sex offenders, or if that’s ex-cons or
something like that. Just for Members on my side of the aisle
maybe, if you could -- if you could walk through basically who’s
going to be affected by this program, what they need to do to be
part of it and issues like that.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Well, Senator, we’ve only been down here two days, so that
other issue hasn’t come up yet, so it is ex-offenders.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator...
SENATOR HENDON:
And...(microphone cutoff)...for jobs for ex-offenders, ex-
felons, people who’ve got out of jail, regardless of the crime.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Righter.
SENATOR RIGHTER:
Senator, is there a fiscal impact to the Department of
Corrections on this and, if so, how much is it, and beyond that,
is it provided for in the Governor’s proposed budget?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator -- Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Crotty? I’m dark hair; she’s red hair. Oh, okay. Okay.
Well, the Governor’s budget is -- I’m still trying to unravel
that mystery. Senator Demuzio said it was a good line. I used
it last week. Unfortunately, I have to return to it, so I
cannot say, in all honesty, that it’s in the Governor’s budget.
It’s not -- there was no fiscal notes attached. Total cost for
this bill is dependent on the scope of the program and the
numbers served, and it’s up to them to provide the program and
determine the number that they will serve.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Righter.
SENATOR RIGHTER:
How -- who -- who -- how does the State support these
individuals? I mean, are we writing a check to these people or
are we writing a check to an employer to hire them? I mean, can
you -- can you step through just the very basics of it for me,
Senator?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Trotter -- I mean, Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Crotty. Trotter. Okay. I guess I have to really stand
out, push my own personality a little stronger, huh?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Can’t see...
SENATOR HENDON:
The -- the program is to be designed by DHS. So, they
haven’t determined -- that hasn’t been determined as of yet.
But, no, we won’t just give them a check or we won’t just give a
check to the employer. The Department will work up a program and
then we will go from there. This does not force them to design
the program in any particularly way. It’s just suggestive that
they come up with a program because we know that it’s needed.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Righter.
SENATOR RIGHTER:
I -- I guess I’m still having an -- a difficulty
understanding, Senator. Is -- is this encouraging an employer
to hire someone who’s gotten out of prison, and if that’s the
case, how is the State supporting that individual or the
employer?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Well, this simply would have the Department of Human
Services establish a program. We’re asking them to establish
the program. I am not dictating to them what the program should
be. We’re simply saying that there should be a program, that
they need to establish a program. It is subject to
appropriations, and they will come up with a -- a design for the
program. I have spoken with the Department and they seem to
feel that they can come up with a program. I didn’t want to
dictate to them or make it a mandate. We want them to design the
program. If they want to encourage employers in some kind of
way, that’d be up to the Department.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Righter.
SENATOR RIGHTER:
Last question, Mr. President. Thank you. Senator, I
notice in the legislation it says that we are requiring to -- to
establish the pilot program in two locations. Can you tell me if
you’ve had any discussion with the Departments? Do we know
where those two locations might be?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Well, originally, Senator, when the bill came over from the
House, one of my Representatives was the sponsor of the bill and
he wanted the program in North Lawndale, where the recidivism
rate is the highest in the State, but we decided that that was
not -- to -- to designate a particular area was not in the best
interest of the State. We would like for one to be where the --
where the problem is greatest, but we’re going to leave that up
to the Department.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Garrett.
SENATOR GARRETT:
To the bill. I -- I stand up in strong support of this
legislation. I’ve had the opportunity to work with different
groups to enact such a program. And the reason why this is
important is that when people are in jail, they don’t have the
training, they don’t know how to interview, they don’t know how
to put resumes together, and there’s really no organization that
is able to help. And this is a very important piece legislation.
I would also ask the sponsor that if this does get signed into
law, that maybe we can work with the Department of Corrections
to ask them to do more for these people that are in jail.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Geo-Karis.
SENATOR GEO-KARIS:
Will the sponsor yield for a question?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Indicates he’ll yield, Senator.
SENATOR GEO-KARIS:
Do I understand correctly that your bill would include sex
offenders, S-E-X? Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Yes, it would include any ex-offender. We didn’t -- we
didn’t single out any particular crime.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Geo-Karis.
SENATOR GEO-KARIS:
Mr. President and Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, I
seldom vote against a bill of my good colleague who’s sponsoring
this one, but sex offenders bothers me. I cannot, in good
conscience, support a bill like this unless they are excluded.
When people commit various sexual -- acts against children and
other people, it bothers me, and I -- I am sorry I cannot help
you on this one. And although I am in sympathy with your
thoughts, I cannot vote for your bill. I’m going to vote
Present.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Roskam.
SENATOR ROSKAM:
Thank you, Mr. President. Will the sponsor yield?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Indicates he’ll yield.
SENATOR ROSKAM:
Senator Hendon, our analysis says that the cost of the
program would actually be ten thousand dollars per program slot,
which would cover wages, taxes, social work and administration.
That’s apparently coming from the House analysis on the bill.
Is that your understanding of how much it would cost?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Well, first, I want to -- if I can, I have to say that,
Senator Geo-Karis, you -- you have simply broken my heart. I --
I -- I just don’t know what I’m going to do without you,
darling. I -- I -- I -- I’m befuddled. I -- I can’t go on. I
can’t go on without you. I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m
going to do. But I’m not going to take it out of the record. I
just won’t have my beautiful queen on -- on this particular
bill. I don’t -- that is not my understanding. There are
programs similar to this that cost that kind of money. That’s
not what we’re looking to do. It is subject to appropriations.
That’s not my understanding at all, that it will cost ten
thousand dollars. What we’re attempting to do -- even with the
sex offenders, you -- you can’t assume that all of them are
guilty. Some of ‘em may be; some of ‘em may not be. We’re
simply trying to say that if you don’t give ex-felons an
opportunity, they will go back to crime, they will go back to
the penitentiary. We are paying forty thousand dollars to --
keep them right now. So why not give them the opportunity to get
a job? We won’t save them all. We won’t turn around ‘em all.
But if we could save a few, if we could save some, if we could
turn some of ‘em a life away from crime, then the State of
Illinois will have done a good thing.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Roskam.
SENATOR ROSKAM:
To the bill, Mr. President. I have -- our staff has handed
me, actually, the fact sheet, Senator, on -- that are -- that
has been published by the proponents of the bill. One of the
proponents is the Heartland Alliance and this is their sheet.
According to their language, they say, “A program slot for
transitional jobs costs approximately ten thousand dollars.”
So, the ten -- I mean, think about that number. Ten thousand
dollars we’re going to be paying for one job. So we’re going to
-- we’re going to hire some staff member who’s going to work for
some governmental agency, and their job throughout the entire
year -- let’s say we pay ‘em fifty thousand bucks. And they’re
whole job is going to be to -- to place five people? That
doesn’t seem like a very good deal to me. This is one of these
bills where I -- I think we really need to take a second look
at. I want to affiliate myself with Senator Geo-Karis’s remarks
and urge a No vote. Thank you.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Lightford.
SENATOR LIGHTFORD:
Thank you -- thank you, Mr. President. I rise in support
of this legislation. There are member -- members of the
community that have served time for various crimes. I’m opposed
to sex offenders as well, Geo-Karis, but that doesn’t mean that
they have to stop living, that doesn’t mean that they have to
stop providing for themselves and their families when they are
on the outside of the prison system. I’d like to also further
comment on Senator Roskam bringing up this ten thousand --
number ten thousand. But if you further read in your records,
the cost is comparable to the amount that we use for disabled
workers. So, let’s not make a big deal out of that figure and
just read into your -- your scope here a little bit further. I
rise in support of this legislation. I think it’s something that
we need to do. If we do not assist ex-offenders, they will
continue to return to the system. The recidivism rate is
extremely high and we’re paying more with the Illinois
Department of Corrections.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hunter.
SENATOR HUNTER:
Thank you, Mr. President. I rise in support of this bill.
I’ve worked -- I personally have worked with the criminal
justice population, male and females, for the past fifteen
years. Believe it or not, these are some hardworking individuals
who somewhere in their lives made a wrong turn. You know, these
people have -- they’re smart. They need a second chance. You
know, they need a second chance the same as each one of us who
may have had some kind of problems in our lives. And if we do
not speak up for them, no one else will. These individuals are
parents. They have families that they must care for. And if we
do not help them get back on the right track once again, then
they’re going to become -- they’re going to recycle through the
system all over again. So, I vote in support of this bill, Mr.
President. Thank you.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Thank you. Senator -- Senator Soden. Senator Soden.
SENATOR SODEN:
Am I on the air?
Okay. With unemployment at a six-percent set right now,
what are we doing for the people -- the law-abiding citizens to
find them jobs?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
I think that was a point, not a question. Senator Obama.
SENATOR OBAMA:
Thank you, Mr. President. To the bill. I just want to make
a -- a couple of brief observations. Number one, to reiterate
this bill is subject to appropriations. It may turn out that,
in fact, the Department cannot find the money appropriately this
year, but it does enable them to potentially set up two pilot
programs. That’s point number one. Point number two is,
although the costs of these programs may end up being ten
thousand per slot, I want us to note that given the recidivism
rate, there is a high likelihood that if these -- these ex-
offenders do not have jobs, they potentially end up back in
prison. That cost will end up being anywhere from sixteen
thousand to -- to twenty thousand per slot. So, I think it’s
important to recognize that there are costs associated with
these individuals not being employed. Final point is that I
think -- although I’m sensitive to the issue of sex offenders,
we’re all always sensitive to sex offenders. Senator Geo-Karis,
I think it’s important to point out not all persons who -- who
fall under the sex offender category or -- are pedophiles or
child molesters. Some -- it may be that there is an assault
situation for a eighteen-year-old or a nineteen-year-old.
They’ve now been out five, six years, have no marketable skills
whatsoever. We need, as a society, to think about how we’re
going to employ them. And this is my final point: These are
transitional jobs. The objective is not to provide a full-time
make-work job for these individuals forever. The idea is to
give them a potential foothold into the job market because
they’re more difficult to employ than law-abiding citizens, and
for good reason. People look at them and they say they’ve got a
felony record, they have no skills. Many of them are illiterate.
And if it’s -- if we’re not able to provide them with some
foothold into the job market, then it’s very difficult for us,
over the long term, to anticipate that they’re going to be able
to find jobs in the future. For that reason, I’d ask for an
affirmative roll call.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon, Senator Soden was asking a question. Do
you want him to repeat the question or can you answer it without
him repeating it?
SENATOR HENDON:
I’ll -- I’ll answer the question. I remember the question.
Senator Soden, I’m doing as much as I can for the unemployed in
my district, and unfortunately for me, I have one of the highest
unemployment rates in the State of Illinois within my district.
So, I understand unemployment and poverty firsthand. I live
with it every day. I also have the largest number of ex-
offenders coming back into my community. So I have to live with
that reality every day. This is subject to appropriation. This
is not mandatory. If the Department does not want to do it or
does not want to give jobs to sex offenders or want to single
out any particular category of crime, they can do so. But I do
want to point this out to everyone: When these young men and
women get out of jail and come back into our communities, if
they can’t get jobs, what do you think they’re going to do?
They’re going to stick up the suits and ties and -- and the
grandmothers and the -- the people that they see coming from the
grocery store so that they can live. We’re simply trying to
save some of those who want the opportunity to get a job and
live a productive life. We’re spending forty thousand, twenty-
six, you name it thousand -- I think it’s forty thousand to
house these people right now, and all we’re trying to do is give
them an opportunity to get a job - not all of ‘em, just some of
‘em. And it is subject to appropriation so we’re not -- if the
Department doesn’t have the money or does not want to do it,
they don’t have to.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Jacobs, for what purpose do you rise?
SENATOR JACOBS:
Thank you, Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen of the
Senate. I move the previous question.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Previous question having been moved, there are three
individuals seeking recognition. Senator Soden.
SENATOR SODEN:
My original question still goes unanswered. Again, the
law-abiding citizen - I’d like to know what programs we have to
promote businesses to hire people that are law-abiding. Now, if
there were jobs out there that were created, we wouldn’t have
these people out on the street doing what they do to get
incarcerated so that they’d have to be supported by this
program.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Senator Soden, I have personally marched on construction
sites and shut them down in my younger days, when I was a little
crazier than I am right now. I have laid out on the expressway
and stopped construction going on in my community to get these
young people jobs. I’ve done a lot of crazy things. I’ve
climbed up on top of a building to get people jobs in my
community. So, I have fought very hard to get those people jobs
in my community who have not been to the penitentiary and -- so
that they won’t end up going there. But there’s a reality that a
lot of people end up there anyway. And there’s another reality
that they’re going to get out, and when they get out, we better
give them an opportunity to do something positive or they will
be back out there doing something negative, crime rate going up,
people being murdered, people being robbed. We need to change
this system and this is just an attempt to do that.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Dave Sullivan.
SENATOR D. SULLIVAN:
Thank you -- thank you, Mr. President. Will the sponsor
yield?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Indicates he’ll yield.
SENATOR D. SULLIVAN:
Thank you. Senator, last week we put a lot of small phone
company employees out of business. Will this bill help them get
jobs?
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon.
SENATOR HENDON:
Yes. And let me point this out. This came out of
committee with a unanimous vote, 10 to nothing. 10 to zip. It
came out of the House 115 to 1. Why we’re spending this much
time debating it today is -- is a mystery to me, but I
appreciate an Aye vote. We do need to do something for these
people who are struggling to...
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator...
SENATOR HENDON:
...turn their lives around, not that all of ‘em are going to
-- not that we can save every life, but we need to save as many
as we -- as we can. Let’s do the right, moral, Christian thing
to do and vote Aye on this bill.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon, thank you for closing, but Senator Haine
has a question or a statement.
SENATOR HAINE:
I beg -- Mr. President, I’d like to speak to the bill.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Proceed.
SENATOR HAINE:
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Senate, we
participated, as State’s Attorney, in a similar program that was
in the St. Louis Metropolitan area to assist those convicted of
felonies in reestablishing a work ethic and a law-abiding ethic.
It seemed to work very well. It didn’t cost very much money.
I’m going to vote for this because I don’t see that it needs to
cost any money. There are private agencies out there, one of
which ran this program in St. Louis County, and there are --
there are many such agencies around the State - Chuck Colson, to
name one, the prison ministries. They all can work at this with
DOC. It doesn’t cost -- doesn’t need to cost any money. In
fact, I agree. I don’t think we should be spending money on
this if we’re having difficulty funding schools and hospitals.
But the idea’s a good idea. There isn’t anything wrong with it.
There are salvageable people being released from prisons and we
should do what we can to salvage them. They’re human beings and
some of them turn out very well. Some of them may be elected to
this Body some day. Thank you.
PRESIDING OFFICER: (SENATOR WELCH)
Senator Hendon, do you wish to close for a second time?
SENATOR HENDON:
Yes. I’ll -- I’ll have to close. I do want to say that this
is supported by Chicago Connections, the National Center on
Poverty Law, Safer Foundation, Heartland Alliance for Human
Needs and Human Rights, and the Attorney General. I urge all my
colleagues on this side of the aisle and my friends on that side
of the aisle, give Rickey Hendon a vote today. I need this
vote. I’d appreciate an Aye vote, and I will not forget. Thank
you.