Daniel Behr: 2024 candidate for Illinois House District 57

Bio

Party: Republican

Office Sought: Illinois House District 57

City: Northbrook

Age: 72

Occupation: Transportation and economic development consultant

Previous offices held: None

How should the state respond to the influx of migrants bussed here from Southern states?

Repeal the 2017 TRUST Act making Illinois a sanctuary state. The act prohibits local law enforcement from participating in immigration enforcement.

Southern states diverted migrants to sanctuary states to respond to the crisis. Now, 700,000 illegal immigrants are in Illinois, providing free healthcare benefits, driver’s licenses, housing assistance & other taxpayer-funded benefits. The act attracts illegal migration, leading to an increase of 821% of migrants with Illinois addresses 2021 to 2023. Prior to 2021, spending on non-citizen programs was a few million dollars per year.

From 2021-23, that spending has spiraled upward to roughly $1 billion per year over the last two years. Add the above to recent criminal justice reform legislation through the SAFE-T Act & rise in crime in the already deficit-strapped state, due to underfunded pension system, I believe it is fair to say Illinois is facing a humanitarian & budgetary catastrophe. Repealing the act would be a good start.

Are you satisfied with the state's existing ethics policies for senators and representatives? If so, what about the policies should reassure Illinoisans that elected leaders abide by high standards? If not, what changes need to be made?

Illinois’ numerous ethics policies & laws, including State Officials & Employees Ethics Act, Governmental Ethics Act & Executive Ethics Commission have scarcely worked. Behold public sector union influence & indictments of Speaker Madigan & others.

The prevailing culture inside Springfield is disgusting. I cite SB2412 as Exhibit A, which attempted to change the election code, effective immediately, legislating me & 19 other legislative candidates off the ballot, effectively disenfranchising more than a million voters! A state representative gutted a dormant bill addressing DCFS, kept the bill’s title, added several election provisions, rammed it through the House & Senate & had Gov. Pritzker sign it in less than 48 hours.

Just about every informed voter I've spoken with is aghast it happened. The Daily Herald itself lambasted it in a staff editorial.

We cannot legislate principles or conscience, but we can elect ethical people who put principle & conscience into practice.

Would you support a requirement that election petitions include a line asking candidates for their campaign email address?

No, as I do not believe there is a need for additional regulation. Moreover, where do we stop? Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Snapchat, etc.? The candidate should be able to choose the contact & communication vectors they wish to share with their constituency.

How well do you think criminal justice reforms made in recent years are working? What, if any, changes need to be made?

While legislation allowing the ability to expunge low level, nonviolent crimes has helped to move Illinois criminal justice in the right general direction, the effects of the most current criminal justice reform legislation enacted, namely the SAFE-T Act, make it difficult to make firm judgments regarding its impact, as Sept. 18, 2024 marked the year anniversary.

The controversial light under which the legislation was passed in the middle of the night during the lame duck session after the 2020 elections, at least attracted enough attention of the electorate to make significant changes to the bill shortly thereafter, commonly referred to as trailer bills. You can thank mostly Republican candidates focusing on the shortcomings in the bill during the 2022 election season for the changes made.

In sum, the jury is still out.

We now have an assault weapons ban in Illinois. What if any changes should be made to the law? What more can be done to improve gun safety?

Protect Illinois Communities Act deserves thoughtful analysis. Agree w/intent, due to the mass shooting at a 2022 July 4th parade in Highland Park. We have some of the most stringent gun laws in the country already, yet are leaders in gun violence.

Additional gun legislation I question. Instead of new bans, I advocate better enforcement of existing gun laws, ensuring background checks are thorough, enforcing penalties for illegal gun use purchases & cracking down on illegal firearms trafficking. I support addressing mental health & criminal behavior as key drivers of gun violence, more resources for mental health care, earlier intervention for those indicating violent tendencies & stricter penalties for violent crimes involving guns.

The Highland Park shooter & family were already familiar to law enforcement. Law enforcement should have red flagged shooter prior. By addressing the person(s) behind the gun & upholding current law are where good solutions lie.

Illinois is the only state in the nation that mandates regular behind-the-wheel tests for senior drivers. Do you support any changes?

A difficult issue, as we see very active, vibrant, energetic and involved people, well over 80, who have all their faculties. We also know people who have experienced mental decline much earlier in life. A periodic check of people's skills & reflexes, as they age, sounds like a responsible policy.

What personal qualifications do you bring that would make you an effective legislator?

My career in rail transportation, supply chain management, & the broad transportation sector has given me a skill set & expertise that few, if any, legislators possess.

Transportation is an important & major component of Illinois' economy & we have a number of pressing issues regarding such, including the proliferation of logistics centers up & down the I-294 corridor in my district, the previous efforts to place a freight holding track in Glenview & increased freight traffic.

Further, the General Assembly put together a working group to discuss solutions regarding problems with our mass transit agencies, but that group did not include Republicans. I think I would be more than a resource for legislators on both sides of the aisle, as well as to all the parties involved, as I have the professional experience & expertise for balanced perspectives offered to all parties & am able to pose informed & professionally relevant questions to clarify issues.