Murphy calls on Mautino to step aside during investigation

Earlier today, I mailed a letter to Auditor General Frank Mautino asking him to step down while his federal investigation is pending. Below is a copy of the letter that was sent to his office. Click on the letter to read more.

Murphy votes to expand insurance coverage for women

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State Senate voted Wednesday in support of expanding insurance coverage for contraceptives for women. State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) was a co-sponsor of the legislation.

“98% of American women will use birth control at some point during their lifetime for a variety of different health-related reasons,” Murphy said. “We owe it to these women to give them reliable, affordable access to a prescription they rely on.”

Under current law, not all forms of contraceptives are covered by insurance.  The proposal backed by Murphy would require insurance companies in Illinois to provide coverage for nearly all FDA-approved contraceptives, drugs, devices and products. It also would require insurance companies to provide up to 12 months of contraceptives at one time.

“This legislation brings much-needed stability to one of the most basic aspects of a woman’s life – her health. I encourage the governor to quickly sign this proposal to have an immediate positive impact on women’s lives across Illinois.”

House Bill 5576 passed the Senate with a vote of 35- 22 and will now head to the governor’s desk.

Murphy votes to engage more citizens in democratic process

SPRINGFIELD- State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) voted to create automatic voter registration in Illinois last week. The legislation, Senate Bill 250, passed the Senate with a bipartisan majority of 42-16.

Under the proposal, Illinois citizens would be automatically registered to vote when they choose to renew their driver’s license or state ID. They can still choose to opt out of registering to vote if they wish.

“Encouraging more people to get involved in the democratic process can only be beneficial to our state,” Murphy said. “The significant savings to taxpayers and additional measures to prevent election fraud are added benefits.”

In other states that have enacted similar proposals, the cost of processing an application to register to vote has dropped from 83 cents to almost 3 cents.

The legislation also included penalties for submitting false voter registration data, along with increasing the number of cross-checks the State Board of Elections must annually conduct between the statewide voter database and the National Change of Address Database from two to six.  

The proposal will now head to the Illinois House.

Murphy votes against gaming expansion to protect local funds

SPRINGFIELD- State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) today voted to oppose legislation that would allow for massive gaming expansion, but does not hold internet gaming organizations to the same regulations as other gaming in Illinois.

“If gaming is expanded in Illinois it needs to be a comprehensive plan with everyone held to the same standards. No special deals should be given to online gaming – it is still gambling,” Murphy said.

Murphy also cited concerns that the funds allocated to the city of Des Plaines from Three Rivers Casino would be adversely affected by the gaming expansion. Des Plaines is already at a disadvantage because Rivers Casino is the only casino in the state with a revenue sharing agreement, which requires funds that would normally be given to the local community to be shared with other municipalities around the state.

“If we are going to authorize this kind of gaming expansion, we need to renegotiate the Rivers Casino deal so it is in line with the other casino revenue sharing deals granted by the state,” Murphy said.

The legislation is still pending in the Senate.