Cavaletto to Seek 2nd House Term

10/27/2009

Salem, IL….State Representative John Cavaletto announced today that he will seek a 2nd term in the Illinois House. On Monday, Cavaletto filed nominating petitions with the Illinois State Board of Elections, once again declaring his candidacy for the seat.

“Today I am announcing that I will run to retain my seat in the Illinois House,” Cavaletto said. “It has been an honor and privilege to represent the people of the 107^th district and I am looking forward to continuing the work that I have started.”

Cavaletto won election to the 107^th district representative seat in November 2008 and took the oath of office in January 2009. His first vote as State Representative was to affirm the impeachment of former Governor Rod Blagojevich.

In his first term, Cavaletto served as a member of the House’s Agriculture and Conservation Committee, Elementary and Secondary Education committee, Higher Education Appropriations Committee, Railroads Committee, Fire Protection Committee, and the Aging Committee. Most recently Rep. Cavaletto was named to the House and Senate Joint Task Force dealing with the Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) Fund in recognition of his efforts to protect the fund and restore it to solvency.

“I sponsored legislation to end the raids on the Leaking Underground Storage Tank fund and I worked with my colleagues to include $75 million in the capital bill to restore money that has been wrongfully taken from the fund. More than 100 jobs have been lost in my district alone because of the irresponsible raids on this fund during the last several years. I believe that dedicated funds should serve their intended purposes, so I am proud of the steps we have taken to return the LUST fund to solvency,” Cavaletto said.

Cavaletto said he is looking forward to continuing to serve the people of Marion, Jefferson, Clinton, and Fayette Counties. “I have learned a lot and enjoyed the privilege,” Cavaletto said. “I have seen the impeachment of a Governor, and passage of the first capital and infrastructure bill in Illinois in a decade. It has been an honor and most certainly a rewarding experience to serve the voters of my district as their representative.”

Cavaletto to Hold District Wide Traveling Office Hours

10/19/2009

Salem, IL…. State Representative John Cavaletto will be available to meet with constituents of the 107th district during traveling office hours throughout the district this week. The meetings are open to the public. However, constituents wishing to make an appointment with Rep. Cavaletto may call (618) 548-9080.

Rep. Cavaletto will be available at the following times in these locations.

-       Wednesday, October 21 at Kinmundy Village Hall from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

-       Wednesday, October 21 at Carlyle City Hall from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

-       Thursday, October 22 at Patoka Village Halll from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

-       Thursday, October 22 at Mt. Vernon City Hall from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

-       Friday, October 23 at Breese City Hall from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

-       Friday, October 23 at Centralia City Hall from 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

As always, Rep. Cavaletto’s office in Salem is open from 8:30 to 4:30 Monday through Friday. You may contact Representative Cavaletto through email at john@johncavaletto.com and by fax at (618) 548-9087. Visit www.johncavaletto.com for more information.

Cavaletto Honors Student Athlete

Rep. John Cavaletto recently presented Mt. Vernon Senior High School student Margo Richardson with an official Illinois House of Representatives Certificate of Congratulations for her outstanding athletic achievements. Pictured from left to right are Rep. Cavaletto, Margo Richardson, and Mt. Vernon Township High School Principal Ron Daniels. Margo was the 2008 IHSA Girls Cross Country State Champion as well as the 2009 IHSA Girls Track and Field Champion in the 1600 and 3200 meter run. Congratulations and best of luck Margo!

Cavaletto Recognizes General Assembly Scholarship Winners

8/20/2009

Salem, IL…. State Representative John Cavaletto hosted an awards ceremony at his district office recently to recognize winners of the General Assembly Scholarship offered through his office. Cavaletto honored students from Marion, Clinton, and Jefferson Counties following a brief presentation. Cavaletto addressed the students and their parents and family members gathered in his conference room. “In each of your cases a rubric that considered civic and academic achievement was used to measure your worthiness of this award. A panel of business and educational leaders from across the 107th district worked late in to the night scouring more than 90 applications. I am proud to report to you that all 8 of this year’s selections were unanimously chosen by my scholarship committee to receive this very special scholarship,” Cavaletto said.

Scholarship recipients pictured left to right are: Jacob Johnson, Amy Pulley, Brittany Albers, Jenna Beckmann, Rep. Cavaletto, Abigail Breeze, Ryan Crouse, and Doug Litteken. Not pictured: Joseph Evertz

Cavaletto Disappointed in Budget Result

5/31/2009

Springfield, IL…. On Sunday evening, the Illinois House narrowly approved an operations budget using funds currently available in the General Revenue Fund. House Democrat Majority Leader Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie sponsored SB 1197 that funds state government agencies at a level of 51%. Currently, Illinois’ operating budget deficit is estimated to be between $7 and $12 billion. Earlier on during legislative action, a measure that would have raised the personal income tax from 3% to 4.5%, failed to garner sufficient support for passage.

State Rep. John Cavaletto (R – Salem) said late Sunday night that he felt disappointed in a partial year spending plan that passed the Illinois House “We have a real problem in this state,” Cavaletto said. “Illinois government has made a habit of spending more than we take in. For the last six years we didn’t have a revenue problem, we had a spending problem. The majority party failed over and over again to take responsible action and control state spending. So, here we are with a ‘half-way’ solution for an ‘all-the-way’ problem.”

Throughout the spring session, Democrats insisted that an income tax increase was the only solution to the state’s fiscal woes. “The minority party hasn’t had a hand in budget negotiations in a long time. My Republican colleagues aren’t responsible for this financial disaster. Our good ideas to reform government and spend taxpayer money responsibly have been repeatedly ignored. Tonight I challenge Governor Quinn, Speaker Madigan, and Senate President Cullerton to show some leadership, take some responsibility, and solve the problems that we face. They were elected to lead, they are the majority. They caused the problems and they should provide real solutions,” Cavaletto said.

It is estimated that the budget passed by the Illinois House on Sunday night will cause state agencies to run out of money before the end of the summer.

Cavaletto Votes Yes on Government Reform Measures

5/21/2009

Springfield, IL….The Joint Committee on Governmental Reform was commissioned following former Governor Rod Blagojevich’s removal from office for the purpose of studying ethics and procurement reforms. Resulting legislation from those meetings passed the Illinois House this week.

State Rep. John Cavaletto (R – Salem) says many of the reforms brought about this week were needed to begin restoring public trust in Illinois state government. “Illinois state government is in need of a serious ethical re-boot,” Cavaletto said. “The passage of these ethics bills means that elected officials and anyone doing business with the state will have to abide by rules that keep the best interests of the people we represent in mind.”

Legislative action on Wednesday led to the elimination of the state of Illinois Compensation Review Board. The Compensation Review Board was responsible for setting cost of living adjustments (COLA) for members of the Legislative, Judiciary, and Executive Branches. “The last thing we should be considering as a state government is raising our own pay,” Cavaletto said. “The old process of raising legislator pay was nothing more than a fraud on the public. Now, members of the legislature will actually have to vote “Yes” to raise their own pay, which I think is a strong step in the right direction.”

On Thursday, the House passed legislation offered by Speaker Madigan that will reform state purchasing and procurement procedures, transform rules for lobbyists, and terminate directors, assistant and deputy directors of agencies, members of boards and commissions, and “double exempt” employees hired by Governors George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich. Designated employees under SB 1333 will be terminated 90 days after the effective date of the Act unless Governor Quinn decides to retain the individual within that time frame.

A comprehensive collection of documents, testimony, and resulting legislation in relation to the Joint Committee on Governmental Reform can be found by visiting www.ilga.gov.

Cavaletto Votes for Crucial Capital Jobs Bill

5/21/2009

Springfield, IL….State Rep. John Cavavletto (R – Salem) voted to create the first capital construction program in a decade in the state of Illinois. HB 312 establishes a spending plan that will create nearly 500,000 jobs statewide in coming years.

Cavaletto says the capital construction plan passed by the Illinois House late Thursday night will spark Illinois’ economy and shore up aging and crumbling infrastructure. “Today we voted to support a capital plan that will grow our economy and put people back to work,” Cavaletto said. “I feel fortunate as a freshman legislator to see my colleagues come together in a time of great economic need and pass a job creation bill. The people of southern Illinois have been waiting for this for a long, long time.”

Following a decade of stagnation on the issue of capital construction, the Illinois House unanimously approved new road, bridge, school, and infrastructure construction. “We voted today to make a major investment in our people and in our infrastructure. We will fix thousands of miles of bad roads, crumbling bridges, and build new schools. With unemployment over 9% in Illinois, this plan will put people back to work and get our economy going again,” Cavaletto said.

A study conducted by Southern Illinois University estimates a capital program of approximately that size ($25 billion) will create around 443,000 new full-time jobs, generate $23.7 billion in labor income and lead to $32.5 billion in economic activity and more than $2.4 billion in state and local tax revenues.

The capital bill that passed the Illinois House also addresses the list of 23 school districts that have been waiting since 2002 for $150 million in promised school construction funding.

Cavaletto Focuses on Ethics Reform

5/15/2009

Springfield, IL….A special “open caucus” meeting of House Republican legislators focused on the Illinois Reform Commission’s 100-day report on cleaning up state government. The special session was open to both Republican and Democrat members of the Illinois House and Senate as well as the media and general public.

Representative John Cavaletto (R – Salem) feels the meeting was productive, but says more political progress needs to be made before real reform can happen. “I was happy to see some of my democrat colleagues in attendance today,” Cavaletto said. “There was one notable absence though.” Cavaletto was referring to House Speaker Michael Madigan who declined to attend the meeting. “Unfortunately without support from the speaker, these reform proposals are dead in the water, and that is really a shame.”

Illinois Reform Commission Chairman Patrick Collins, a former assistant U.S. attorney, talked at length about the commission’s recommendations to clean up government. Topics covered in his presentation included matters of campaign finance reform, legislative map redistricting, and the indictment and impeachment of former Governor Rod Blagojevich.

“I commend Chairman Collins for appearing before our caucus and answering our questions on reform,” Cavaletto said. “Illinois government has been mired in the muck of corruption, secrets, and lies for too long. We have one Governor in prison and another one may be on his way there. We have to recognize that ‘enough is enough’ and the time for real, meaningful reform in the way we do business in Springfield has come.”

Cavaletto is urging constituents to read the Illinois Reform Commission’s 100-day report online at reformillinoisnow.org. “Folks should really read the entire Commission Report so they can get a clearer picture on these proposals,” Cavaletto said. “If we are going to make changes in Illinois government, the people will need to become educated on these issues and hold elected officials accountable.”

Rep. Cavaletto Joins Chesley and Business Leaders Opposing Prevailing Wage Legislation

4/30/2009

Springfield….State Rep. John Cavaletto (R – Salem) joined Mt. Vernon Mayor Mary Jane Chesley and representatives of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, Illinois Retail Merchants Association, NFIB-Illinois and the Illinois Municipal League in opposing Senate Bill 43 in a capitol press conference held Wednesday.

Cavaletto warned of potential risks to economic growth in Illinois should the bill move forward. “This bill will require all projects in Enterprise Zones or Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts to pay the prevailing wage on construction projects, even if those projects are 100% privately funded,” Eddy said.

The legislation alters the original intent of the Prevailing Wage Law, which was to ensure that public works projects, including the construction and maintenance of publicly-funded property (i.e. schools, municipal buildings, roads and bridges) followed prevailing wage guidelines.

“I have spoken out against all attempts to destroy business growth since taking office,” Cavaletto said. “The area I represent has lost 5,000 jobs in the last decade. I am very disappointed that the Democrat majority is pushing a bill that will almost certainly kill off any potential for economic development. Cavaletto speaks out on Prevailing Wage Bill

Mt. Vernon Mayor Mary Jane Chesley offered local perspective on the potential risk to economic growth in the King City should SB 43 pass. “We have worked hard to offer incentives to businesses looking to locate in Mt. Vernon, and we have been successful in doing so,” Chesley said.

“Passing this bill will mean that businesses who would have either located for the first time, or expanded their services in our city will head to Kentucky, Missouri, or Indiana to set up shop. We can not afford another assault on business incentives in southern Illinois,” she said. Chesley speaks out on the Prevailing Wage Bill

Rep. Cavaletto is urging citizens to contact Speaker Michael Madigan’s Springfield office at 217-782-5350 and voice their concerns on Senate Bill 43.

Cavaletto Passes Underground Storage Tank Fund Protection Bill out of Illinois House

3/31/2009

Salem….Legislation offered by State Rep. John Cavaletto (R – Salem) designed to protect the leaking underground storage tank fund from being raided by the Governor and used for unrelated budget items passed the Illinois House of Representatives on Tuesday.

In previous years, funds collected from the Illinois Motor Fuel Tax that were supposed to be dedicated to pay companies to clean up leaking underground fuel storage tanks have been diverted into the General Revenue Fund.

“I feel very strongly that dedicated funds should be left alone so they can serve the purpose they were meant to serve. Here we have honest, hard working people doing a great service for our state in cleaning up dangerous leaking storage tanks, and the state of Illinois refuses to honor its obligations,” Cavaletto said. “Something needs to be done to ensure that these people are getting paid for the work they do on behalf of the state.”

More than $54 million has been swept from the fund since 2003, causing hardship for environmental companies in Illinois that specialize in cleaning up dangerous leaking storage tanks.

The bill originated at the request of Mr. Jay Koch of Mt. Vernon. Koch is the President of United Science Industries. Currently, USI, Inc. and its subsidiaries are owed nearly $20 million for storage tank clean up work they have performed throughout the state since 2003 when the fund raids began.

HB 770 now moves to the Senate for consideration.