BENTON, IL – State Representative Dave Severin has added his name as a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed in Sangamon County Circuit Court seeking to enforce the Illinois Constitution’s Third Reading Rule. The lawsuit challenges using the “gut and replace” method to pass Senate Bill 328.
“The Third Reading Rule is outlined in the Illinois Constitution to grant public transparency to legislation as it moves through each Chamber,” Severin said. “This litigation is an effort for Republicans to fight for transparency and adherence to the Constitution. Democrats repeatedly break the rules that they create and vote for, and we are fighting back in the name of good government.”
SB 328 is legislation that would allow for out-of-state plaintiffs to sue out-of-state businesses in Illinois courts. On Wednesday, the American Tort Reform Association called on Gov. Pritzker to veto the bill, calling it one of the “Single worst bills we have seen this year, nationwide,” and warning that if the bill is signed into law, “Illinois is likely to see a mass exodus of businesses leaving and a sharp decline in new business investments.”
“We go for weeks in Springfield doing very little actual legislative work on the floor, and then Democrats ram these huge issues through at the end of the Session with time running out because they know people aren’t paying attention,” Severin said. “There is plenty of time to do things the right way and to ensure transparency for the public. This lawsuit seeks to restore that transparency and restore some integrity in the legislative process.”
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