Introduces aggressive ethics reform agenda

When Pat Quinn appointed a political operative to a $160,000-per year state job at the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority a month after he lost his election last year, state Senator Julie Morrison was furious. She vowed to introduce legislation to prevent future governors from engaging in last-minute patronage.

Her plan extends beyond the ISFA to include the directors of any state agency with a member appointed by the governor.

“It seems like every governor finds new and creative ways to give away high-paying jobs to underqualified political allies,” Morrison said. “I’m sick of it. I know all the taxpayers are sick of it. I’m going to do my part to make it stop.”

State Sen. Julie Morrison, who has been actively working to reform Illinois’ Department of Children and Family Services since 2013, welcomed Gov. Bruce Rauner’s decision to bring in the Annie E. Casey Foundation to perform a top-to-bottom audit of the troubled agency.

“Over the past year, it’s become apparent that the problems at DCFS are so deep-seated that we’re going to have to rebuild the agency from the ground up to ensure the safety of abused and neglected children,” said Morrison, who chairs a legislative committee tasked with investigating the agency. “I support the governor’s decision to bring in an outside agency to help us take stock of the situation and start turning things around.”

State Senator Julie Morrison believes that Illinois law has a loophole that needs to be fixed: it's illegal to provide minors with e-cigarettes and other tobacco-free nicotine products, but it's not illegal for children to have them.

"Two years ago we made it illegal to sell e-cigarettes to anyone under the age of 18," Morrison said. "It's common sense that if it's illegal to sell these products to kids, it should be illegal for kids to have them."