(The Center Square) – Local Illinois officials have different views on how Amendment 1 will impact communities across the state.
Supporters say Amendment 1 aims to codify collective bargaining rights in the Illinois constitution.
The language of the amendment says "No law shall be passed that interferes with, negates, or diminishes the right of employees to organize and bargain collectively over their wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment and work place safety, including any law or ordinance that prohibits the execution or application of agreements between employers and labor organizations that represent employees requiring membership in an organization as a condition of employment."
Opponents of the proposal say it will raise property taxes by possibly increasing public sector labor costs for local taxing bodies.
The Illinois Municipal League, a group that advocates for local governments, opposes the measure. In a fact sheet, the IML urged a no vote and said the measure is not needed.
"Illinois already has enacted legislation prohibiting local right-to-work ordinances; a constitutional provision for that purpose is unnecessary," the IML said.
Springfield Mayor Jim Langfelder offered a different opinion on the amendment.
"I see the benefit regarding worker’s rights," Langfelder told The Center Square. "For us as a city, it does not impact our government as much because we already have a plurality of unions within city operations."
Many opponents of the measure, including the IML, have claimed that the measure will stop legislators from blocking tax increases.
"Voter approval of the constitutional Amendment would preclude any future or meaningful reform of existing laws, restrict the passage of new laws impacting collective bargaining, and may lead public safety labor unions to attempt to reclaim a right to strike," the IML’s fact sheet said.
Langfelder said city officials are always working on the taxpayer cost of offering local services.
"Taxes are always a concern," Langfelder said. "We work through that with unions as city operations. We have done it for decades. I do not see this changing that magnitude at all."
The measure is on the Nov. 8 ballot in Illinois. The question requires either three-fifths approval of those voting on the question or a simple majority of all votes cast in the election to be enacted.