Illinois Rep. John Countryman, R-DeKalb, commented on several issues, including the possible shutdown of NIU if Senate Bill 1520 does not pass, at a campaign fundraiser brunch Sunday.

SB 1520, which would allow NIU to spend money generated from the $150 spring semester tuition increase as it comes in, might be too expensive for the state, Countryman said. Several amendments which require state funding have been added to the bill, he said. Legislative support for the bill depends on how many costly amendments are added, he said.

NIU President John LaTourette said a four-week university shutdown during the spring semester is possible if SB 1520 does not pass.

Shutting down NIU is “a pretty drastic move,” Countryman said. “I think I’ll have a long talk with him (LaTourette) before he does that.”

Countryman said he does not believe the state has the funds to support all overrides of Gov. James Thompson’s budget cuts. The house overrode $62.5 million in primary and secondary education cuts. “I believe from everything I’ve read about the budget that we only have $20 million (for supplemental funding),” he said.

igher interest rates for the state might result if too much money is spent on supplemental funding, Countryman said. “If we (state) overspend, our bond rating could go down,” he said.

If the state’s bond rating went down, Illinois bonds would be a greater risk to its creditors and the interest rates might increase as much as $100 to $300 million per year, Countryman said.

Countryman said he would support a tax increase under two conditions. “First, the increase must be limited to the income tax, and second, the money has to be committed to education,” he said.

A tax increase might be the only way to provide more money for education, Countryman said. “You could cut other areas of the budget (to raise funds for education), but that may be difficult to do.

“I think the income tax is the fairest tax (to increase).” Other forms of taxation need to be reviewed on an individual basis, he said.

Countryman said he would not necessarily support an override of Thompson’s veto of dollars for Tax Increment Financing (TIF) until the funding crisis is solved.

The DeKalb City Council in October passed a resolution urging state legislators to override Thompson’s line item veto of SB 338. The veto cut about $6 million out of the TIF budget.

Under TIF, DeKalb gets back 5 percent of the state’s 6 percent sales tax collected in the TIF district. If Thompson’s veto is overridden, DeKalb will get $672,000 in TIF funds. If it is not overridden, DeKalb will only receive $231,846.

TIF is “a good program,” Countryman said. “Hopefully, in future years, we (state) can get it underway. When we’re talking about shutting down the university, … I think education is the primary problem,” he said.

Countryman said it is difficult to determine how much money will be raised from the brunch which was held at Kishwaukee Country Club, 1901 Sycamore Road. “I think (the brunch) will raise $7,000 to $8,000,” he said.

About 275 Countryman supporters from the DeKalb area turned out for the brunch.

Countryman will run for his third term in the March republican primary election. He circulated at the fundraiser a petition needed to file for the election. “We (Countryman supporters) need to get 600 to 700 signatures to file. We’ll probably get 1,000 to 2,000 signatures (before filing),” he said.

Campaign efforts for the March primary will be aimed at getting the vote out, Countryman said. “If there is apathy, we will contact people we know voted republican in the past and see what we can do to get them to the polls.”