It seems that politicians often forget that the money they are spending comes from you, the hardworking families of Illinois.

The process by which legislators negotiate how to spend finite taxpayer resources should be based on public policy outcomes and not political considerations.

Illinois residents can see evidence their state government is operating unethically by simply reading their newspaper. With that in mind, I proposed legislation to tackle unethical behavior and ensure our elected leaders are leading by example.

More Chesney: Time is running out on Illinois businesses, breeders operating as puppy mills

Below are some of these proposals:

• House Bill 1919. Campaign funds cannot be used to defend a crime.
• House Bill 4103. No legislating between midnight to 6:00 a.m.
• House Bill 2874. No legislative pay while no balanced state budget.
• House Bill 3342. $100,000 fine for legislators convicted of a felony from their service.

To say these proposals are the “low-hanging fruit” of reforms is putting it mildly.

I considered all of these proposals to be olive branches toward bipartisanship. In the wake of findings in late 2020 that the state’s largest public utility engaged in a decadelong scheme to bribe the Illinois Speaker of the House, Michael Madigan, through operation of an “old-school patronage operation,” reformers certainly should have a strong case to make when it comes to improving state government operations and reforming ethics.

With the endemic corruption swamping Springfield for decades, no one in the state would blame conservatives for trying to swing the pendulum hard against the one-party corrupt rule we’ve seen in Illinois for too long. However, that’s not what happened.

Others are reading: Take a peek inside the Rockford Casino: A Hard Rock Opening Act

Republicans instead offered Democrats numerous opportunities to show Illinois they were serious about real reforms by offering numerous milquetoast suggestions.

Thus far, no Illinois Democrats have taken the opportunity to co-sponsor these common-sense good government reform measures. I invite my Democrat colleagues to do so. To that same end, I invite my Democrat colleagues to let me know about their own good government reform measures they have initiated.

I am eager to review these opportunities for bipartisanship, as I hope all who serve the residents in Illinois would be inclined to consider. All too often in Springfield, the perfect becomes the enemy of the good.

If we’re serious about reforming the way the state does its business, perhaps less emphasis should be put on “omnibus bills” and rather consider opportunities for bipartisanship through piecemeal proposals if they provide a runway toward the true launch of government reform in Illinois.

State Rep. Andrew Chesney is a republican representing the 89th district in Illinois.