Beginning in the fall veto session this November, State Sen. Dale Righter (R-Mattoon) will serve as the newly-named Minority Spokesperson for the Appropriations I Committee.
In his role as Spokesperson, Righter will be a lead budget spokesman and public voice on budget issues for the Senate Republican Caucus. The Appropriations I Committee works and votes on the budgets of several state agencies that make up a bulk of state spending.
“I am looking forward to this new role as Illinois’ budget situation and the budget making process in Springfield needs to change,” Righter said. “My constituents and people across the state have had enough with the state’s fiscal problems. First and foremost, we must stop spending more than what the state is taking in. That’s common sense and the definition of fiscal responsibility. Just as important, we also have a moral and ethical mandate to spend taxpayer dollars wisely, cut waste and abuse out of the budget, and to urge the majority party to stop passing unbalanced budgets.
“Changing the way Springfield has been doing business for more than a decade hasn’t been easy, but it’s necessary to move Illinois forward so every citizen can live in a more prosperous economy and a state that doesn’t spend more than the taxpayers can afford,” Righter said.
State Sen. Matt Murphy (R-Palatine) previously held the Spokesperson position for the Appropriations I Committee, but he resigned from the Senate earlier in September.
