Years served: 1997 - Present
Committee assignments: Health Care Licenses; Public Policy & Accountability; Infrastructure; Mass Transit; Medicaid Reform, Family & Children; Joint Comm. on Government Reform.
TAXES AND SPENDING
Kosel voted for a huge electric rate increase.
Kosel helped pass SB1652 – a huge electric rate increase sought by ComEd and Ameren. (2011)
Kosel voted to raise sales taxes and fees.
Kosel voted for HB255 significantly raising the sales tax on a number of grocery related items including beverages, candy, and health and beauty aids. Taxes on beer, wine and other alcohol were also hiked. HB255 also triples the driver’s license fee. Further, this bill legalizes video gambling for bars and taverns. You can call that a “voluntary” tax if you want - but it still represents a big tax hike. Those bars and taverns don’t just hand over a big cut of their gambling machine proceeds to the state out of the goodness of their hearts. It’s a tax that gets the state its share of the machines’ take. (2009)
Kosel was absent for the vote to pass Governor Blagojevich’s handout scheme that provides free public transportation to all senior citizens, even the wealthy.
HB0656 concurred with the Governor’s amendment to provide free public transportation to senior citizens aged 65 and older. (2008)
Kosel was absent for the vote for Governor Blagojevich’s Transportation Act.
HB0656 amends the Regional Transportation Authority Act by increasing the rate of taxes the Authority is allowed to impose. (2008)
Kosel did not vote against Governor Blagojevich’s diversion of $385 million from the state’s general revenue fund to the Regional Transportation Authority.
Kosel was in attendance when the vote was taken, but did not vote avoiding taking a principled stand. SB0307 proposed using sales tax collected on motor fuel sold within the six Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) counties (Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will) to fund the region’s mass transit systems. (2007)
Kosel voted for the Democrats’ pork-bloated FY2008 $59 BILLION budget.
Kosel’s vote for HB3866 demonstrates inability as a legislator to seriously address Illinois’ chronic fiscal crisis that’s attributable to out-of-control spending, an antiquated pension system, and government corruption. (2007)
Kosel voted to allow the Mayor of Chicago to DOUBLE the telephone tax.
SB0837 would give Mayor Richard Daley the ability to raise the telephone tax from $1.25 to $2.50 per month for all customers. (2007)
Kosel did not vote against Governor Blagojevich’s ALL KIDS universal health insurance plan.
Once again, Kosel was in attendance when the vote was taken but voted “present” to avoid taking a principled stand. Critics of HB0806, a bill that would cost $45 million in its first year alone, said they feared that such a sweeping offer could end up costing far more at a time when the state’s budget is already strained. The program can also be expected to turn Illinois into a magnet for families from other states desperate to insure their children. (2005)
Kosel voted to increase the real estate transfer tax by $30 million.
SB0075 increased the cost of selling a house in Illinois by adding a $10 tax to closing fees. (2005)
Kosel voted against reducing the taxpayers’ burden to the state pension fund by $1.1 BILLION.
According to National Taxpayers United of Illinois, SB0027 limited end-of-career salary hikes for government school teachers and other government employees to 6% instead of the usual 20%. Such a reform would reduce state taxpayers’ contribution to state retirement funds by over $1.1 billion yearly. (2005)
Kosel was absent for the vote for Governor Blagojevich’s FY2005 Partial Operational Budget totaling $45.5 billion.
SB3340 included substantial increases for healthcare and education but did not address out-of-control spending. According to National Taxpayers United of Illinois, after months of debate in the legislature, the FY2005 Capital Budget was passed totaling $9.1 billion. FY2005’s $54.6 billion state budget represented a 4% or $2 billion increase over the FY2004 budget. (2004)
Kosel was absent for the vote for a state income-tax increase that hits Illinois businesses for $29 million.
According to National Taxpayers United of Illinois, SB2207 redefines that phrase “business income” in a way that benefits the big-spenders in Springfield. (2004)
Kosel was absent for the vote for a computer software sales-tax hike.
SB2205 raised state sales taxes on computer software by $64 million. (2004)
Kosel voted for a $750 million pork spending bill.
SB1239 included $300 million in new pork spending and about $450 million to finish projects started by former Governor George Ryan. $556 million of the pork spending bill was vetoed by Governor Blagojevich. Kosel voted to override most of the Governor’s line item vetoes. (2003)
Kosel voted to keep the Illinois Death Tax alive.
SB1725 kept the Illinois Estate Tax alive, even as it was being phased out at the federal level. According to National Taxpayers United of Illinois, this new death tax will cost Illinois taxpayers as much as $500 million per year by 2010. (2003)
EDUCATION
Kosel voted against groundbreaking school choice legislation.
Kosel voted against SB2494 which would have given parents in underperforming Chicago school districts a voucher to cover educational expenses at nonpublic schools. SB2494 represented a lifeline to poor children who face bleak futures as a consequence of the awful and dangerous public schools in the City of Chicago. To read more about this disgrace - go here. (2010)
Kosel was absent for the vote to prohibit parents’ right to alternative education.
HB0232 prohibits the State Board of Education and school boards from establishing, maintaining, or in any way supporting any virtual schools or virtual classes for elementary or secondary students in this State. (2007)
Kosel voted to increase education spending by nearly $600 million.
Kosel’s vote for HB3866 proves she is incapable and unwilling to address the public education-spending crisis in Illinois. Instead of leading with bold reforms, Kosel follows the Democrats’ dishonest argument that blames school failures on “not enough money.” (2007)
Kosel voted for a $45 million taxpayer-funded experiment - Universal Preschool.
According to National Taxpayers United of Illinois, SB1497 will once again prove that “universal preschool” schemes yield benefits that simply do not justify the costs involved. (2006)
GAMBLING
Kosel voted to allow video poker at truck stops and VFW halls and to make it more difficult to regulate gaming operators.
Kosel voted for HB4927 - a controversial video poker bill that state gambling regulators fear will allow operators of illegal machines to stay in business throughout the state. The bill requires a felony conviction on gambling charges before regulators could deny a license to operate video gambling machines in Illinois. HB4927 further expands gambling by adding truck stops and VFW halls to the list of venues that will be allowed to have on-site video gambling machines that make payouts to patrons. (2010)
Kosel voted to allow video poker at OTB locations.
Kosel voted for SB744 allowing restaurants and bars attached to off-track betting locations to have video gambling machines. (2010)
Kosel voted for a massive expansion of gambling.
Kosel voted for HB255 - a massive expansion of gambling in Illinois. HB255 legalizes video gambling for bars and taverns, and permits Internet Lottery on computers and cell phones. Video gambling machines are often called the “crack cocaine” of gambling because of the speed of play and the rapid onset of addiction. (2009)
Kosel voted for a massive expansion of gambling in Illinois.
Kosel voted for the massive gambling expansion bill - HB 2651. Passage of HB2651 would have meant 3 new casinos, new gambling machines at racetracks, the introduction of electronic poker games, plus many other expansions. The good news is this irresponsible bill failed with 55 State Representatives voting “no” and 47 voting “yes.” A three-fifths majority was required for passage. The bad news is it was a big chunk of the GOP caucus led by House Minority Leader Tom Cross who was on Governor Rod Blagojevich’s side in trying to pass HB 2651. (2008)
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
Kosel did not vote against forcing state and local governments to recognize “consular identification cards” issued by foreign governments.
Kosel was in attendance when the vote was taken, but vote “present” refusing to take a principled stand. SB1623 forces state and local governments to recognize the consular identification cards issued by foreign governments and commonly used by illegal Mexican immigrants. (2005)
Kosel voted for in-state tuition for illegal aliens.
HB0060 allows undocumented immigrants to attend state universities at in-state tuition rates. (2003)
NANNY STATE
Kosel voted with the Radical Left for a ban on trans fats.
Kosel voted with the Radical Left for a ban on trans fats on food served in restaurants, movie theaters, cafes, bakeries, and through school vending machines (HB1600). Fortunately cooler heads prevailed in the Senate where the nanny staters and their ridiculous bill were defeated. (2011)
REFORM (or the lack thereof)
Kosel voted to water down ethics reform law.
Kosel voted to exempt transportation projects from the new ethics law (SB761). Despite the awesome demands of riding around on a High Horse every day since Rod Blagojevich’s arrest lecturing about the need to reform Illinois’ culture of corruption - state lawmakers still somehow found time to gut their own brand new “landmark” ethics reform law. This of course would be the same ethics reform law these same lawmakers hailed as “a big step forward.” (2009)
Kosel voted to make it more difficult for write-in candidate to get on the ballot.
SB662 changed the deadline for filing to be a write-in candidate to 61 days before an election. The purpose for this change is purely for incumbent protection. (2007)
Kosel desperately opposes a common sense reform that would once again allow ALL Republicans to directly elect the senior leadership of their own Illinois Republican Party.
Kosel continues to keep rank-and-file Republicans from having the same voice all Illinois Democrats enjoy in their State Party. Kosel opposes SB600 - returning to the better system of direct election Illinois Republicans used until the late 1980’s. Illinois has been a “Blue State” ever since the change to the easily corruptible system Kosel dishonestly still protects.
Kosel did nothing to help cleanse the Illinois Republican Party of the tainted National Committeeman Bob Kjellander.
Bob Kjellander could have been removed and replaced with an honest leader a lot earlier, if only Republican “leaders” like Kosel were serious about reform. Kosel never joined the rank-and-file and more serious officials who overwhelmingly called for Kjellander’s immediate ouster. It’s only because Kosel and a tiny handful of other old guard faces refuse to unify on reform that even this simplest of clean-ups remain difficult to accomplish.
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