Peoria Standard

A protest outside her Macomb office on April 17 prompted Illinois Assistant House Minority Leader Norine Hammond (R-Macomb) to pen an update on the General Assembly and the "ridiculous impasse" recently.

“The top, salient concern continues to be that Illinois does not have a budget, which in turn leaves social services, higher education, services for seniors, and so much more underfunded or, in the worst case, completely unfunded,” Hammond wrote for her website. “For the past two years, I have repeatedly called on our state[…]to negotiate a compromise and comprehensive budget. Unfortunately, even with these efforts, some members have not been able to negotiate and/or compromise in good faith, which has ultimately resulted in this ridiculous impasse in which we find ourselves.”

Hammond emphasized the need for compromise from all parties, bodies and offices in the state to come to an agreement on the urgently needed budget. She also stressed her dedication to ensuring that social services and higher education maintain their funding in budget negotiations.

“As always, I remain ready and committed to doing the job the citizens of the 93rd District elected me to do,” Hammond wrote. “I will continue to tirelessly work toward compromise and resolution to fix the prevailing and future problems facing the state and the district. Your comments, suggestions, and concerns are always appreciated and only help me do this job more effectively.”

Hammond said as part of her commitment to transparency, she was starting a new public Facebook page and would continued her efforts to keep her website up to date with news.