SR1066 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR1066 LRB097 23592 MST 72630 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Illinois State Senator Chris Lauzen has represented the citizens of Kane, Kendall, and LaSalle counties and northeastern Illinois with distinction in the Illinois State Senate for 20 years; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was first elected to the Senate in 1992, promising to "work hard, stay honest, and use common sense"; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was one of a group of newly-elected conservative State senators known as the "Fab Five", including Senator Dave Syverson, Senator Steve Rauschenberger, Senator Patrick O'Malley, and Senator Peter Fitzgerald, who consistently voted to limit the size of government, protect individual freedoms, expose corruption in both parties, and introduce fair accounting rules to the State budget; and

WHEREAS, Throughout his two decades of service, Senator Lauzen has represented his constituents in Springfield with determination and distinction, fighting hard to make the State of Illinois a better place to live and work; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen personally responds to all correspondence, telephone calls or emails, he receives from constituents; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen started "Illinois Porkbusters", which seeks to cut $5 million in wasteful spending each year from the State budget; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen sponsored a property tax assessment freeze for homeowners older than 65 with incomes less than $35,000, was the lead sponsor of the "5% Pay Cut for Politicians" legislation, and sponsored the largest employment tax decrease in the past 16 years; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen worked to reduce property taxes on VFW and American Legion veterans' posts by 85% and place a cap on future increases; and

WHEREAS, As a supporter of effective public education, Senator Lauzen helped secure more than $48 million for school construction grants; he sponsored education license plates for future teachers' scholarships and was the only senator to speak out and vote against tuition discounts for illegal immigrants at public universities; and

WHEREAS, To counter the rising costs of medical care, Senator Lauzen launched a prescription medication pilot program that saved participants an average of 50% on the cost of drugs, at no expense to taxpayers; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen sponsored a ban on intact dilation and extraction abortion; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was the original lead sponsor of the Breast Cancer Research voluntary check-off on the State personal income tax return, which has raised millions of dollars for breast cancer research; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen served as Republican Spokesman of the Senate Revenue Committee since 2003; he was a member of the Senate Pensions and Investments Committee, the Senate Appropriations I and II committees, and was co-chair of the Legislative Audit Commission; and

WHEREAS, In recognition of his consistently pro-employment record, Senator Lauzen was honored by the Illinois Chamber of Commerce with the "Champion of Free Enterprise" award in 2002 and 2012, and by the NFIB with the "Guardian of Small Business" award in 1996; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen also received the John Ericcson Republican League of Illinois Award in 2011, the Illinois Farm Bureau Friend of Agriculture Activator Award in 2008 and 2010, the IATCD Legislator of the Year in 2009, the A.B.A.T.E. Recognition of Support of Our Freedom Award in 2009, the Illinois Civil Justice League "Friends of Fairness" Award in 2007, the Army National Guard Certificate of Appreciation Support of the Illinois Army National Guard and Charlie Troop 2/106th Calvary in 2007, the Outstanding Senator Award from the DuPage County Farm Bureau, the Education Center Community Leadership Award in 2000, the Holy Angels School Alumnus of the Year in 1999, the Illinois Family Institute Leadership Award in 1997, the Marmion Academy Centurion Award in 1996, the Family PAC Legislator of the Year in 1996, and the Y-Me National Breast Cancer Organization Award in Excellence in 1994; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen is a nationally recognized expert on public pensions; he spoke at the American Legislative Exchange Council's 2009 Convention in New Orleans, at the National Conference of State Legislatures' 2009 Convention in Philadelphia, and at the 2010 U.S. Chamber of Commerce event broadcast on C-SPAN; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was a member of the Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission and the Illinois State Crime Commission; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen published an article about education reform with the Heartland Institute and was also a member of the Institute's Legislative Forum; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was an elected delegate for the White House Conference on Small Business in Washington, D.C., in 1995; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was appointed to the Economic Development Board by Sam Skinner; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen has been involved in the Lions Clubs in several communities, numerous local Chambers of Commerce, the Compassion Foundation Board of Directors, the Fox Valley Maoris Rugby team, the Heart of Illinois POW/MIA Association, the Sons of the American Legion, and the Illinois Republican National Hispanic Assembly; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen was born in Aurora, Illinois, and raised in the Pigeon Hill neighborhood; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen earned a bachelor of science degree with honors in management science and english in 1974 from Duke University; he received his Certified Public Accountant credentials in 1976 from the University of Illinois and a master's degree in business administration in 1978 from Harvard Business School; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen is a player/member of the Harvard Old Boy Rugby Team; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen is currently pursuing a doctorate in education finance from Northern Illinois University; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen worked as the president of the Comprehensive Accounting Corporation, where he helped teach more than 300 accountants how to go into business for themselves; and

WHEREAS, During his 5 years as president, the number of franchise offices tripled to 450 nationwide, pre-tax profit doubled, and the network of accountants served more than 22,000 small-business owners; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen and his wife later purchased a Comprehensive Accounting franchise, and in less than four-and-a-half years, he was managing the books and tax preparation for more than 200 small businesses in the local area; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen's grandparents emigrated from Romania to the United States in the early 20th century; and

WHEREAS, On July 28, 2006, Romanian President Traian Basescu awarded him the Order of the Star of Romania Medal, Commander Rank (the highest commendation granted to a foreign citizen by Romania), in recognition of his work to "build bridges of friendship and commerce between the people of Romania and the United States"; and

WHEREAS, Senator Lauzen and his wife, Sarah, are the proud parents of Ted (wife, Sarah), Elliot, Hans, and Robbie; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Senator Lauzen on his retirement from the Illinois State Senate after 20 years of honorable and dedicated service; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this preamble and resolution be presented to Senator Lauzen with our friendship, our gratitude for his hard work, and our best wishes for his future endeavors, including his service as chairman of the Kane County Board.