From first to worst: Illinois tops nation in legislative leader experience
Here’s an interesting argument against term limits: Government business is hard. That’s why we need politicians to hold office for a long time – so they can gain the experience they need to understand how to govern effectively. That’s effectively what Christopher Mooney, director of the institute of government and public affairs at the University...
Here’s an interesting argument against term limits: Government business is hard. That’s why we need politicians to hold office for a long time – so they can gain the experience they need to understand how to govern effectively.
That’s effectively what Christopher Mooney, director of the institute of government and public affairs at the University of Illinois, argued recently when he spoke out against a recent term-limits referendum: “If public policy and the legislature are in any way complex, lawmakers’ effectiveness will increase with experience, on average and to some limit. So less time in the legislature means less effectiveness for individuals and, on average, for the body.”
By that measure, Illinois should be among the most effective legislatures in the entire country. Illinois’ four top legislative leaders have a combined 115 years of state legislative experience.
With 115 years of experience, Illinois tops the nation for legislative leader experience.
As an individual, Speaker Madigan has the most legislative experience out of any legislative leader in the country.
For 29 of those 44 years Madigan has served as speaker of the Illinois House from 1983-1995, and 1997-present.
According the National Conference on State Legislators, Madigan the longest actively tenured state house speaker tenure, and is believed to be the second longest-serving speaker of all-time, with only South Carolina’s former Speaker of the House, Solomon Blatt, serving longer with a total of 33 years. Blatt was speaker in South Carolina between 1937-46 and 1951-73.
Despite this “blessing” of leadership legislative experience, Illinois’ leadership isn’t running the state very well. Illinois is consistently ranked as one of the most poorly run states in the country according to many different metrics.
- Illinois’ state finances and bond ratings are the worst in the country.
- Illinois is ranked as the third-most corrupt state in the nation.
- Illinois residents are subjected to the second-highest property tax rates in the nation.
- Illinois ranks 48th in economic outlook.
- Illinois ranks as the second-worst “sinkhole state,” according to total taxpayer burden.
And Illinois residents are expressing their dissatisfaction with state government.
- Illinois residents have the lowest confidence rate of state government in the entire country at only 28 percent.
- Half of Illinois’ residents would leave Illinois if they could, the highest percentage of any state nationally.
- One in four Illinois residents believe Illinois is the worst place in the country to live, the highest percentage of any state nationally.
The 78 percent of Illinois citizens who want term limits aren’t convinced that having experienced legislative leaders is cracked up to be. Unfortunately, due to the term limits referendum being kicked off of the ballot Illinoisans won’t have the ability to enact term-limits restrictions on the Illinois Genera Assembly this election cycle.