CHAMPAIGN, Ill.
Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn on Tuesday said the university-funded scholarships that state lawmakers hand out should be need-based and be part of discussions this fall at the Capitol about shortfalls in state financial aid funding.
Some longtime critics of the General Assembly scholarships also said the political atmosphere in the state right now might lend itself to rare change in the century-old perk.
An Associated Press review of state records of political donations and recipients of General Assembly scholarships found that between 2004 and 2009, at least 41 scholarships went to relatives of someone who gave money to the lawmaker awarding the perk. At least 42 more went to relatives of other people with political ties — donors to other politicians, lobbyists, party officials and others.
The state provides no money for the scholarships and requires only that students live in the lawmakers’ district. The scholarships costs state universities $12.5 million in 2008.
Quinn said Tuesday that he wants lawmakers to talk this fall — when he wants them to look for money to make up for cuts made this year in state financial aid programs — about how they award the scholarships and the money they cost universities.
“If part of that conversation involves how legislators use their scholarships, I think that might be a good time.
