Gov. Rauner vetoes taxpayer accountability bill

The governor vetoed legislation on August 18 that aimed to curb reckless privatization and ensure accountability to taxpayers by preventing the state from privatizing services currently performed by state employees without first meeting rigorous requirements.

Sponsored by Rep. Litesa Wallace and Sen. Andy Manar, the legislation allowed the state to enter into third-party contracts only when those contracts are in the best interest of Illinois.

In order for a third-party contract to be deemed in the state’s best interest, it has to clearly demonstrate that it meets numerous conditions, including:

• Third party contracts must be awarded through a competitive bidding process.
• Contracts must result in overall cost savings to the state and those savings must be large enough that they won’t be eliminated by cost fluctuations in the work.
• The need must justify the size and duration of any contract and prove that the savings won’t be achieved through diminishment in service quality or quantity.
• Contracts cannot adversely affect affirmative action or veterans’ hiring preferences.
• Jobs cannot move out of Illinois or out of the country as a result of any third-party contract.
• The potential advantage of a third-party contract must outweigh the benefit of having state employees perform the service.

“Rauner's veto of this incredibly important bill is disappointing but not surprising,” said John Cameron, Director of Political and Community Relations at AFSCME Council 31. “The governor has no real interest in protecting taxpayers from irresponsible privatization schemes that hurt workers and degrade public services.”