State Chamber President Maisch Said Legislature Needs to Show Up and Do Its Job

(ILLINOIS STATE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PRESIDENT AND CEO TODD MAISCH SPEAKS REMOTELY FROM SPRINGFIELD AT THE FEBRUARY FIRST FRIDAY CHAMBER LUNCHEON)

Illinois State Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Todd Maisch Friday said that the Illinois General Assembly needs to "show up and do its job" to assist with an economic recovery in the state in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Maisch spoke remotely from Springfield at the Effingham County Chamber of Commerce's First Friday Luncheon, but that was due to his schedule. He said it's time for state legislators to meet in Springfield and move ahead with the Spring session of the General Assembly.

Maisch said he doesn't feel it would be constitutional for legislators to pass measures allowing them to meet remotely. He said it would deny citizens the opportunity for "redress of grievances' as is outlined constitutionally.

The State Chamber president said he thought the Governor was correct in showing leadership at the time the pandemic began to grow, but that there was an imbalance in that there was no action to address the state's economic crisis that resulted. Maisch said, "The State needs to be able to do two things at the same time."

Speaking as the head of the state's chief business organization, Maisch said, "We have to wipe away the whole issue of essential as opposed to non-essential businesses. He said, "It's arbitrary; it's political; it needs ripped from the playbook."

Maisch also thinks a "liability crisis" is just around the corner. He said the premise that if you operate your business, you're a public nuisance, is ripe for attack, and that such businesses need liability protection.

Maisch said a percentage of the stimulus package being discussed in Washington (he suggested the funds could be called "Biden bucks") should be earmarked for the hospitality industry. He also proposed that every state agency needs to look at suspending any measures that is a regulatory burden to business and industry.

Maisch also hopes that someone is taking notes on how the pandemic has been addressed; to see what did and what didn't work for future reference.