South Central Reporter

Illinois state senator Jason Plummer has expressed concerns regarding the priorities of Democrats, accusing them of favoring political allies over residents. He suggests that adhering to the state constitution in legislative processes would better serve the people of Illinois.

"The legislative process must follow the law," said Plummer, State Senator 55th District (R), according to Facebook. "Once again, in the middle of the night, we saw the Democrat majority hand out egregious gifts to their political donors and special interest allies to the detriment of the citizens of Illinois struggling to keep their head above water and the small businesses throughout this state that wonder why they shouldn't just fold their tent. Our state is being hollowed out by corruption and bad public policy. Making sure the legislative process follows the constitution would be an obvious, and big, step in the right direction for the good people of Illinois GOP lawsuit seeks to end ‘gut-and-replace' legislation."

According to a report from the Belleville News-Democrat, shared by Plummer on Facebook, Illinois Republicans have initiated legal action to halt the state legislature's use of a procedure known as "gut-and-replace." This practice involves using a shell bill—one with only a title and number but no content—that is later amended to include new legislation, often after committee approval deadlines have passed. "This is legalized litigation tourism. And it further damages Illinois’ reputation as a state that’s hostile to businesses and job creators," said Plummer.

Screenshot of State Senator Jason Plummer's June 19 Facebook post | State Senator Jason Plummer's Facebook page

The lawsuit centers around Senate Bill 328, originally introduced by Senator Don Harmon on January 24, 2025. Initially intended to change a single word in the Code of Civil Procedure, it underwent multiple amendments. The first two amendments were filed and adopted by the Senate in early April. Subsequently, two additional amendments were filed by the House at the end of May and passed on May 31. The full bill was approved by both chambers on June 1. Among other changes, one Senate amendment allowed corrections to electronically submitted documents to be backdated, while a House amendment required businesses submitting information to Illinois courts to disclose their operational locations and consent status for general jurisdiction if they are out-of-state entities.

Plummer has served as State Senator for Illinois' 54th Senate District since his election in 2018. He positions himself as an independent conservative voice for Southern Illinois residents whom he believes have been overlooked by Springfield politicians.