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Speaker Madigan says compromise bill will help school kids

After the Illinois House of Representatives approved a new funding formula for schools Monday, Aug. 28, House Speaker Michael J. Madigan issued the following statement:
 
“Today we saw compromise. Instead of pitting children and communities against each other, Democrats and Republicans came to an agreement on much of what’s in this bill. And even where we don’t fully agree, we’re willing to work together in good faith and meet each other half way.
 
“This bill provides the same promise of permanent funding for our schools as Senate Bill 1 (SB1), with some additional items included at the request of Republicans. Even if all members did not agree with 100 percent of what is in the final bill, this bill still delivers 100 percent of what schools throughout Illinois need. This bill is a permanent promise of more funding for schools statewide. Every district in Illinois wins under this plan.
 
“Through compromise, we’ve included some provisions that many members would not have supported on their own. But a package that permanently provides more money for Illinois schools and puts us closer than ever to fixing Illinois’ broken school funding system is too important to let partisan differences get in the way.”
 
Legislators have been working for months on a new school funding formula (SB1) that would guarantee additional state dollars to the neediest districts across Illinois. It was approved by the Illinois Senate but vetoed by Gov. Bruce Rauner, who argued that it gave too much support to Chicago Public Schools.
 
The Senate was able to override the governor’s veto, but the Illinois House had to renegotiate sections of the legislation to get enough votes on Monday to pass the bill. Details of the bill are forthcoming.
 
The House version of the legislation goes back to the Illinois Senate for approval on Tuesday.

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