State Representative Dwight Kay

The Illinois House of Representatives today approved a resolution paying tribute to the late Stan Musial. House Joint Resolution 23 (HJR 23) sponsored by Illinois State Representative Dwight Kay (R-Glen Carbon) designates January 19th as Stan Musial Day in Illinois.

“Stan Musial wasn’t just another baseball player, Stan ‘The Man’ was a role model, veteran and humanitarian,” said Rep. Kay. “Musial played his entire 22 year career with the Cardinals and is widely proclaimed as the greatest St. Louis Cardinal of all time. Cardinal Nation will never forget Stan ‘The Man’ Musial, naming January 19th as ‘Stan Musial Day’ in Illinois is another way for us to show our respect and appreciation for the late Stan Musial.” Read the rest of this entry »

With the potential of creating thousands of jobs and growing Illinois’ economy, Illinois lawmakers held a press conference today in Springfield calling for a House vote on bi-partisan legislation to expand the fracking industry.

“Expanding the fracking industry in Illinois could bring 47,000 jobs to our state,” said Rep. Kay. “There are people in the metro east ready to go to work, expanding the fracking industry will provide people the opportunity to obtain a good paying job and support their families.”

Hydraulic fracturing, more commonly referred to as fracking, is the extraction of natural gas and oil from the earth through horizontal drilling. The extraction technique involves injecting water, sand and chemicals into rock to release the natural gas. Read the rest of this entry »

Illinois State Representative Dwight Kay (R-Glen Carbon) introduced a package of legislation designed to reduce fraud and misuse of the state’s welfare system. Rep. Kay sponsored five bills to reform the State of Illinois welfare system.

“The welfare reform package introduced will eliminate the day to day fraud and misuse of an abused welfare system,” said Rep. Kay. “The people who need help the most are being turned away as a result of the fraud and abuse of our welfare system. Our state simply can’t afford to give cash benefits to persons misusing taxpayer funds to purchase illicit drugs, alcohol, or lottery tickets. The assistance is supposed to be used for essentials such as food, water and shelter.”

The cost of welfare in Illinois continues to rise, 4.7 million Illinoisans are currently are on welfare, resulting in one-third of Illinois residents receiving state assistance. The welfare reform package focuses on reducing the fraudulent use of LINK cards (food stamps), the misuse of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (cash) benefits, and preventing criminals from receiving welfare benefits. The goal of the legislation is to save taxpayer dollars by eliminating fraud and misuse of the welfare system while preserving benefits for those who need it most. Read the rest of this entry »

Illinois State Representatives Dwight Kay (R-Glen Carbon) and Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) sent a letter to Governor Quinn regarding the open positions on the Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees. Recent media reports speculate the Governor has reached an agreement on his appointees.

In the letter sent to Governor Quinn, Representatives Kay and Bost stated the following, “We encourage you to consider the welfare of the two campuses and their needs when making new selections for the three open positions. We suggest your selections ideally would be graduates of either campus. However, if this is not the case, we hope you’d consider individuals who have had family members attend SIU Carbondale or Edwardsville. We firmly believe new members of the Board of Trustees would be well-served to have first-hand experiences with these campuses. We respectfully request you strongly consider our request when making your selections for the three open positions on the SIU Board of Trustees.”

On February 27th the Illinois Senate rejected Governor Quinn’s recommended appointees to serve on the SIU Board of Trustees with 23 voting no and 32 voting present. As of today, the Illinois Senate awaits Governor Quinn’s second round of nominees to fill the three vacancies on the SIU Board.

The Illinois House of Representatives approved bi-partisan legislation to abolish the office of Lieutenant Governor. The legislation is House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 18 (HJRCA18). State Representative Dwight Kay (R-Glen Carbon) co-sponsored the legislation.

“The elimination of the office of Lieutenant Governor will save taxpayers over $2.2 million dollars,” said Rep. Kay. “While the abolition of this office is a step in the right direction, we still have a great deal of work ahead of us to get state spending under control.”

HJRCA18 would eliminate the office of Lieutenant Governor beginning with the 2019 term and designate the Illinois Attorney General as next in the line of succession for Governor. The subsequent vacancy in the Attorney General’s office would be filled by an appointment from the Governor and hold office until the next election.

HJRCA18 was approved by the Illinois House 83Y-28N-2P and awaits approval in the Senate.