| At the November General Election, you will be asked to vote
on a question “Should a constitutional convention be called?”
Your answer should be NO.
I speak to you today in the name of the Illinois League of Women
Voters, a non-partisan organization with a long history of support
for constitutional reform. Let me explain why, after a study of
the benefits and risks of a convention, our membership concluded
overwhelmingly to oppose the call at this time:
- Our members were particularly concerned with the risk of
exposing the entire constitution to revision which would risk
the loss of significant gains attained in the 1970 constitution.
The scope of the convention cannot be restricted by either
the voters or the General Assembly. Convention delegates could
change or rewrite the entire constitution. Furthermore, there
is no guarantee that your favorite reform will be incorporated
into the new document.
- We are concerned that the political dysfunction in state
government that we have been experiencing will extend to the
convention. Remember, even if Con Con passes, the Illinois
General Assembly must decide parameters for the delegate election
process, budget, staff, location, dates, etc. for a convention.
- We are also concerned that special interests and party politics
will gain control of the delegate election process as well
as the convention’s deliberations, with the potential
for the results being unrepresentative of voters’ concerns.
- Specific changes can and have been achieved by the amendment
process, which was made easier in the 1970 constitution. Since
1970 seventeen proposed amendments have been submitted to
the voters. Ten have been approved. (One proposal, submitted
three separate times, accounts for three of the seven defeated
amendments.)
- The cost of a convention, estimated at $78 million or more,
outweighs possible benefits.
In short, we think the citizens of Illinois have far more to lose
than to gain from calling a constitutional convention at this
time.
Other organizations supporting this view are:
Center for Tax and Budget Accountability
Illinois Chamber of Commerce
Illinois Education Association
Illinois Federation of Teachers
Illinois Farm Bureau
Illinois Retired Teachers Association
Illinois State AFL-CIO
National Federation of Independent Businesses/Illinois
(as of June 9, 2008)
Please join us in a NO vote on Con Con on November 4th.
Don’t be conned into Con- Con!!
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