SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - The Latest on Illinois Senate action on Gov. Bruce Rauner’s education-funding legislation veto (all times local):
5:50 p.m.
The lawmaker responsible for the school funding plan endorsed by the Senate over Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto says the House should vote to override too.
Sen. Andy Manar is a Democrat from Bunker Hill. He told reporters Sunday that a negotiated compromise on the “evidence-based” funding model is still possible. But if there’s no deal, the House should override when it convenes Wednesday.
The Senate override vote was 38-19. It upheld the overhaul which ensures no school district gets less money than last year and then pumps new dollars to the neediest districts first. Rauner calls it a “bailout” for mismanaged Chicago schools and made significant changes.
Manar says Republican Rauner’s veto was not driven by policy concerns but by politics. But both Rauner and he say they’re willing to compromise.
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5:40 p.m.
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton says Sunday’s vote to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s changes to a school-funding measure “moved our state one step closer to getting rid of the worst funding system in the nation.”
The Chicago Democrat called the 38-19 tally to reverse the Republican governor a bipartisan vote “for a needed overhaul” of financing public education.
Rauner used an amendatory veto to substantially change the legislation which devised an “evidence-based” funding model. It would keep funding the same as last year for every school district and then funnel new dollars to the neediest first. Rauner called it a “bailout” for Chicago and made significant changes.
The motion to override moves to the House. The House will be in session Wednesday. Override prospects are less certain there.
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3:50 p.m.
The Illinois Senate has voted to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto of a public-school funding plan.
The Senate voted 38-19 Sunday to reject the Republican’s amendatory veto of a newly devised financing formula. Rauner says it is too generous to Chicago public schools.
The override needed 36 votes. It moves to the House where it also needs a three-fifths majority. Override prospects are less certain there.
Rauner’s amendatory veto removed hundreds of millions of dollars from what he calls a “bailout” for the nation’s third-largest school system. It redistributed funds and Rauner is promoting that nearly every district would get more money under his plan.
Democrats argued that Chicago educates largely low-income students. They say the Rauner plan simply takes district from one needy district to fund another.
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1:20 p.m.
Gov. Bruce Rauner is imploring lawmakers not to reverse his veto of school-funding legislation.
The Senate convened Sunday. Democratic leaders say they’ll attempt to override the Republican governor’s amendatory veto.
Rauner made significant changes to the legislation because he says it sends hundreds of millions of dollars to Chicago at the expense of other districts. The veto cut as much as $200 million a year for Chicago.
He told reporters at the Capitol Sunday that his plan means “the vast majority of our neediest districts get millions (of dollars) more.”
The “evidence-based” funding model funnels money to those districts with the highest levels poverty, non-English speakers and more. The budget lawmakers approved in July over Rauner’s objections requires school aid to go through the model.
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The bill is SB1 .
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