New Lawmakers

Governor Pat Quinn says bond houses are likely to downgrade the state's credit rating as early as today — the day a new Legislature is sworn in.

Quinn hoped the House would OK a bill reducing the state's financial burden through greater employee contributions and less-generous benefits. It didn't even get a vote.

Rep. Elaine Nekritz — a Northbrook Democrat — says she will start over with a bill similar to the failed one. Senate President John Cullerton will do the same with his plan, which offers employees a choice of tough medicine. 

When the new General Assembly takes the oath of office, its ranks will include three lawmakers facing criminal charges.

Former state Rep. Derrick Smith heads back to Springfield on Wednesday. The Democrat was arrested on bribery charges and expelled last year, but voters put him back in office.

 

Sen. Donne Trotter faces gun charges for allegedly bringing a weapon to an airport, and Rep. La Shawn Ford is accused of federal bank fraud charges.

 

Illinois has a reputation for an intersection of politics and crime. Still, historians say it's been decades since so many sitting lawmakers were facing charges.

 

The situation could be a distraction as Illinois faces historic financial problems. But some experts say the charges are so different it won't matter much at all.

(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)