John J. Millner State Senator District 28 - Republican
Contact:		Springfield Office:	District Office:
		105 State Capital	2580 Foxfield Rd.
		Springfield, IL   62706	St. Charles, IL  60174
	Phone	(217) 782-8192	(630) 524-9250
	Fax	217/782-4079	(630) 524-9251
January 22, 2007
For Immediate Release

MILLNER LEGISLATION GIVES VOTERS
A CHOICE ON U-46 SPLIT

Bartlett, IL – State Senator John Millner (R-Carol Stream) plans to introduce legislation this month that will allow U-46 School District residents to vote on a referendum concerning the future size of the district.

If the bill is passed and signed by the Governor, the referendum question would ask voters if they want U-46’s nearly 40,000 students to be placed in two smaller districts.

“There has been a growing call from people all over the district to address this issue in an open and fair way,” Millner said. “I know there has been a lot of debate about this for a very long time, so I feel it is appropriate to move this legislation forward so we can put the question to the voters.”

The legislation is called “The Meeting Local Educational Needs Act” and specifically would allow for a change in the existing process for segmenting districts with at least 30,000 people.

The Elgin-based U-46 District, the second-largest district in Illinois, covers 90 square miles and includes 11 communities in three counties. It has been one of the fastest growing districts in Illinois for decades.

“Everyone talks about local control of schools but our district is second largest in Illinois to Chicago,” said parent Joseph McCain of Bartlett. “At least in Chicago, all the students live in the same county. We are in three counties and 90 square miles and this district was developed in size when it was a rural area. As a parent, it was time to speak up- so we contacted Senator Millner.”

“Most importantly, this bill allows every voter in the entire school district to express their opinion and have a voice,” Millner said.