Rep. William Davis (D-30) sponsored 13 bills in the second quarter of 2019, five more than the average Illinois state representative, and was added as a co-sponsor on 40 bills, seven less than the average, according to a South Cook News analysis of data made available by the Illinois General Assembly.
During the second quarter, 117 representatives sponsored legislation, with Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-113) sponsoring the most with 36 bills. There were 120 representatives that co-sponsored legislation, with Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez (D-24) co-sponsoring 129 bills, more than any other representative.
When a bill is introduced to the House, the clerk reads the bill title before the House and it is automatically referred to the Rules Committee. If the Rules Committee thinks that the bill merits further consideration, it is assigned to another committee. If the committee reports favorably on the bill to the House, or if the committee has been discharged with respect to the bill, the bill will be ready for its second reading before the House.
According to House rules, a bill can be passed only after the House clerk has read the bill before the House on three separate days. However, many bills are introduced as shell bills in order to circumvent the rule requiring three readings before they can be passed. These shell bills, which are far more common in Illinois than in other states, are created with the purpose of beginning the often lengthy process of passing a new piece of legislation. But since they would only make trivial or meaningless changes in the law in the form that they initially appear, they are either left to die or are later changed to something more substantive that can be rushed to passage without bothering with procedure. This has the unfortunate effect of leading to laws that may not have been debated or discussed sufficiently.
Representatives that sponsor an inordinately large number of bills are often sponsoring many shell bills.
The following table shows the bills that Davis sponsored in the second quarter.
CONGRATS-LANDON & BOBRA WALKER
CONGRATS-CHRIST TEMPLE BAPTIST
MEMORIAL-SEYMOUR L. BRYSON
MEMORIAL-HARVEY WELCH JR.
CONGRATS-DR. RHONDA TOWNER
MEMORIAL-COLLEEN A. DAVIS
PROP TX-INCOME PRODUCING PROP
DHFS-MEDICAID-LONG TERM CARE
PROCURE-DURATION OF CONTRACTS
SCH CD-SPECIAL ED AGREEMENTS
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE-SUNSET
PROF LAND SURVEYOR-SUNSET
The following table shows the bills to which Davis was added as a co-sponsor in the second quarter.
Rep. Carol Ammons (D-103)
Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch (D-7)
EVIDENCE-RESTORATIVE JUSTICE
Rep. La Shawn K. Ford (D-8)
NO REPRESENTATION WITHOUT POP
Rep. Sonya M. Harper (D-6)
SCH CD-PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Rep. Andrew S. Chesney (R-89)
WILDLIFE-ENDANGERED SPECIES
Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch (D-7)
Rep. Camille Y. Lilly (D-78); Sen. Christopher Belt (D-57)
SCH CD-ANGER MANAGEMENT CLASS
Rep. Curtis J. Tarver, II (D-25)
HUMAN RIGHTS-HOUSING-ARREST
Rep. Delia C. Ramirez (D-4); Sen. Ram Villivalam (D-8)
EQUITABLE RESTROOM-BABY CHANGE
Rep. Carol Ammons (D-103)
Rep. Camille Y. Lilly (D-78); Sen. Don Harmon (D-39)
KIDDIELAND AMUSEMENT PARK ROAD
Rep. Michael T. Marron (R-104)
Rep. LaToya Greenwood (D-114)
Rep. André Thapedi (D-32)
LEGALIZED CANNABIS-AG STUDY
Rep. André Thapedi (D-32)
SPORTS WAGERING-IGB STUDY
Rep. André Thapedi (D-32)
SPORTS WAGERING-IGB STUDY
Rep. André Thapedi (D-32)
LEGALIZED CANNABIS-AG STUDY
Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez (D-24)
Sen. Iris Y. Martinez (D-20); Rep. Delia C. Ramirez (D-4)
LICENSE-REMOVE CITIZENSHIP REQ
Rep. Mark Batinick (R-97)
PRAIRIE RESEARCH-MICROPLASTICS
Sen. Andy Manar (D-48); Rep. Katie Stuart (D-112)
IL TEACHING EXCELLENCE PROGRAM
Sen. John G. Mulroe (D-10); Rep. Robert Rita (D-28)
Sen. Ann Gillespie (D-27); Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-39)
Sen. Don Harmon (D-39); Rep. Robert Martwick (D-19)
CONAMEND-INCOME TAX RATES
Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch (D-7); Sen. Pat McGuire (D-43)
MENTAL HEALTH ACTION ON CAMPUS
Rep. Justin Slaughter (D-27); Sen. Patricia Van Pelt (D-5)
STATEWIDE GANG DATABASE-REPEAL
Rep. Lamont J. Robinson, Jr. (D-5); Sen. Mattie Hunter (D-3)
SCH CD-CHILD OPPORTUNITY ZONE
Rep. Thaddeus Jones (D-29); Sen. Jacqueline Y. Collins (D-16)
EXPRESSWAY SAFETY ACT-CAMERAS
Sen. Ram Villivalam (D-8)
PROMPT PAYMENT-CONTRACTORS
Sen. Cristina Castro (D-22); Rep. Debbie Meyers-Martin (D-38)
ILLINOIS BANK ON INITIATIVE
Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford (D-4); Rep. Camille Y. Lilly (D-78)
Sen. Elgie R. Sims, Jr. (D-17); Rep. Arthur Turner (D-9)
FILM TAX CREDIT-PERMANENT
Sen. John F. Curran (R-41); Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-113)
ATTY GEN-WORKER PROTECT UNIT
Sen. Emil Jones, III (D-14); Rep. André Thapedi (D-32)
COMPLETE COUNT COMMISSION
Sen. Omar Aquino (D-2); Rep. Carol Ammons (D-103)
VEH CD-LICENSE TO WORK ACT
Rep. Natalie A. Manley (D-98)
PUB AID-SNAP-JOB TRAINING
Sen. Melinda Bush (D-31); Rep. Kathleen Willis (D-77)
WORKPLACE TRANSPARENCY ACT
Sen. Michael E. Hastings (D-19); Rep. Margo McDermed (R-37)
BUSINESS ENTERPRISE-BUSINESS
Sen. Scott M. Bennett (D-52); Rep. Carol Ammons (D-103)
COAL ASH POLLUTION PREVENTION
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