August 6, 2026 · 2,674 words · 8 speakers · 51 segments
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you Thank you Thank you. Thank you. Thank you Thank you. Thank you.
Hey, Colin. I just want to confirm you're the court reporter.
Yeah, I'm the court reporter.
Can you hear me?
Yes, thank you.
You also have to be on camera.
Thank you.
All right, good afternoon everybody. The hour of...
Recording in progress.
I should have waited for that. Good afternoon again, everyone. The hour of 12 p.m. having arrived, the House Special Investigation Committee shall come to order. Mr. Clerk, before you take the roll, I just want to make a note that we have a court reporter who is online on Zoom taking down everything that we are seeing today. And with that, Mr. Clerk, will you please call the roll?
Tarver.
Present.
Spain.
Hoffman.
Present.
Jimenez.
Present.
Neymar.
Here.
Ugaste.
Here.
With five members of the Special Investigation Committee present, we have a quorum. Spokesperson Spain was unable to attend today. Is that correct? Did you guys stay?
Yes, it is.
And then you will be serving as spokesperson today. Is that also correct?
I will.
Thank you. Thank you. I'd like to thank everybody for being here today for the first hearing of the Special Investigation Committee as we begin reviewing and investigating the serious allegations made against Representative Carol Ammons. For the most part, this committee will operate like any other House committee. The House Rules of the 104th General Assembly will set forth the disciplinary proceedings of the House members and provide the framework that governs this special investigating committee. This committee will also be informed by precedent to the extent that it is consistent with the House Rules for the current General Assembly. Finally, after consulting with the committee as chair of this committee, I am adopting procedural rules pursuant to House Rule 91 . The rules will be filed with the clerk and copies will be provided to Representative Ammons and the members of this committee. We have filed the rules and all members of the committee have a copy of them as well. Before proceeding further, I want to note that Representative Ammons is not going to be present today and established for the record that our counsel to the Special Investigating Committee, Catherine Bray, informed Representative Ammons of today's hearing as required by House Rule 91. Specifically, on July 10, 2026, counsel informed Representative Ammons that the committee had been created and shared copies of the petition, the appointment letters from Speaker Welch and Minority Leader McCombie, and the House rules that govern this disciplinary proceedings. Council also informed Representative Ammons that pursuant to the House rules, she will receive notice of all committee hearings. She has the right to be present and has the right to counsel during all the committee meetings. And she will have the opportunity to present at all hearings and to testify as otherwise, or testify with any relevant information. On July 17th, the initial hearing notice for today's hearing was posted publicly and counsel forwarded that email containing the notice of the hearing and the link to the hearing notice to the General Assembly website. On July 31st, 2026, counsel sent a second notice to Representative Ammons and her two attorneys of record, Mr. Akbar and Ms. Reney, again informing Representative Ammons of today's hearing. That same day, Attorney Akbar acknowledged receipt of the hearing notices on behalf of Representative Ammons and asked to speak with counsel Bray to ask clarifying questions about this process. Yesterday, August 5, 2026 Counsel Brace spoke with Attorney Akbar and Attorney Reney about this process and they informed counsel that neither Representative Ammons they informed that neither Representative Ammons nor they would attend today's hearing given that it's organizational in nature Although Representative Ammons nor her counsels are present today, it is clear that adequate notice of today's hearing was given by this committee At this time, I will enter a copy of the July 10th, 2026 email correspondence from our committee counsel, Catherine Bray, into the record as Exhibit 1. Three of the four attachments to that July 10th, 2026 email will be entered into the record as group exhibit two. Speaker Welch's appointment letter will be exhibit two A. Minority Leader McComey's appointment letter will be exhibit two B. and Article 12 of the 104th General Assembly, House Rules will be Exhibit 2C. And I've tendered those to the clerk. I'm also entering the email notices from our committee counsel, Catherine Bray, to Representative Ammons and her attorneys into the record as Exhibit 3. The second notice of hearing letter dated July 31st, 2026, attached to the second notice email is hereby entered into the record as Exhibit 4. Redactions to these exhibits were made to protect private information, such as personal email addresses and telephone numbers. With that behind us, I will now offer brief opening remarks and then ask Leader Ugasse and other members of the committee if they would like to make remarks as well. First and foremost, it is critical to point out that as members of the Illinois House of Representatives, we take an oath to uphold the constitutions of the United States as well as the state of Illinois and to faithfully discharge our duties to the best of our abilities. When one of our members is the subject of a criminal indictment based on allegations of a wire fraud, false statements to the FBI, and conspiracy to obstruct justice, there is a direct threat to the public trust in this very institution. In serious cases such as this, the House rules provide for a disciplinary process that begins with the creation of a special investigation committee, such as this one. We should not take this process or the discipline of a member lightly. Precedent has shown that this process is reserved for actions so egregious, so contrary to the core values of this institution, that we must act immediately to restore public trust. While Representative Amos has been indicted, she has not been convicted of any crime. Under the Constitution, she's presumed innocent, unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, following a fair trial. This committee is not a court of law and we are not judging innocence or guilt. Rather, we are tasked with inquiring into the underlying facts to determine whether reasonable grounds exist for the discipline to be pursued by the House. Given the extraordinary and serious nature of the disciplinary procedure excuse me process it is our obligation to be as thorough as possible while conducting ourselves in a fair bipartisan and objective manner at all times The rights of Representative Ammons will be respected and she will be given the opportunity to defend herself. Representative Ammons and her counsel will receive as much notice and information as possible. Representative Ammons and her counsels will have the right to be present at all public hearings. Representative Ammons will have the right to speak to the substances of these charges and provide this committee with any evidence that she believes will clear her of the charges against her. This committee will provide public notice of all its hearings and be transparent, as transparent as possible. To the extent that the House rules do not otherwise require, we will publicly post all notices, transcripts, and exhibits on the General Assembly website. I want to thank each of the members of this committee for accepting the important task of serving on the committee. And at the end of the day, it is imperative that our investigation be serious, be thorough, and fair in order to restore public trust. Now I will yield to Leader Daniel Gasty if he has any comment or remarks. The floor is yours.
Thank you, Chair Tarver. I'm State Representative Daniel Gasty. I'm serving as the spokesperson today. Just a few comments for the member named in the petition, Representative Ammons. The other members of the House who I'm certain are paying attention to these hearings and following them, and the people of the state of Illinois. And while I can only speak for myself based upon discussions with other members, I believe much of what I say may be true for the Republican members of the committee and possibly all members. We have been asked to investigate, by all reasonable means, potential misconduct of a member and then determine if reasonable grounds exist to authorize charges against the member named in the petition. This is not a task to be taken lightly. It must be done transparently and seek the truth as to whether the misconduct alleged in the petition occurred. It is a serious assignment that I do not believe any of us ever sought when elected to the House, but were willing to undertake when asked, both to make certain that Representative Ammons is treated fairly during the investigation, and at the same time, the integrity of the Illinois House of Representatives is protected. Because the people of this state need to believe that their elected members are here to serve them and their interests and be good stewards with that in which they entrust us and be people of honor and integrity ourselves, this has been undertaken. Finally, politics has no role in these hearings. This should and I'm sure will be handled and viewed in the same way for Representative Ammons as a member of any party who would appear before a committee such as this. With that, thank you Mr. Chair and all the members of the committee for serving on this committee with me.
Thank you, Leader. Does anyone else seek recognition?
Thank you, Chair Tarver. Today is a difficult day for our state and for each of us serving on this committee. We have a challenging but necessary job in front of us. There is no question the allegations against Rep. Carol Ammons are serious. The people of Illinois deserve answers, and above all, they deserve the truth. This committee cannot become another Springfield exercise in delays, double speak, excuses, and more political protections for insiders. Decades of scandal have destroyed the public's trust in state government. This must end. We cannot allow Illinois to continue to be known for corruption and ethical misconduct. We must follow the facts, conduct a thorough and transparent investigation, and hold Rep. Ammons accountable if she violated the public's trust. Today's hearing is only the beginning. We have a serious and somber task ahead of us. I am committed to giving this task the seriousness and level of commitment it deserves, and I hope all of us here will do the same. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
You're welcome. Anyone else seek recognition? Seeing none, we'll now take up the petition. The Special Investigation Committee has been created pursuant to House Rule 91 following the filing of a petition signed by 11 members of the House. Those representatives are David Smyre, Ellick, Bunting, Deering, Fritz, Halbrook, Laha, Miller, Moore, Weber, and Will Hauer. They filed it with the Speaker's Office and the Minority Leader's Office. In accordance with House Rule 92, the chair shall enter the petition into the record. The committee is in receipt of the petition dated July 10, 2026, listing all alleged charges. The petition is entered into the record as Exhibit 5 The committee is also a receipt of a document included with the petition entitled Indictment in the matter of the United States of America versus Carol Ammons and Aaron Ammons Case number 26CR20033 A copy of the indictment is entered into the record as Exhibit 6. Leader Davis Meyer is present today And it is my understanding That Leader Davis Meyer has an amended petition Signed by the same 11 members that I just mentioned Who signed the initial petition And that he would like to present to the committee For its consideration And to supersede the underlying petition Is that correct, Leader Davis Meyer?
Yes, Mr. Chairman.
Please present the amended petition.
Thank you, Chairman Tarver and members of the committee. As was said earlier, as members of the Illinois House of Representatives, we are held to a higher ethical standard. And we must hold each other to that high ethical standard as we make sure to take care of this institution. I am here before the Special Investigating Committee as one of the signers of the original petition that created this SIC to offer an amended petition. It has been provided to the committee. Rather than read the full petition, I will highlight the key changes from the original petition. The amended petition removes charges 2, 3, 8, and 9 from the original petition. Now there will only be five separate charges rather than nine. The amended petition is signed by the same 11 representatives from the original petition, including myself. With that, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I ask for a favorable consideration of the amended petition. Thank you.
Thank you, Leader Davis Meyer. Just to be doubly sure, I want to make sure the record is clear. One, it's my understanding that all members of the committee have been provided a copy of the amended petition. Is that your understanding? Yes, Mr. Chairman. Okay. And again, just to clarify what is different between the original petition and the amended petition is the removal of charges two, three, eight, and nine from the original petition are no longer included in the amended petition. Is that correct? That is correct. Thank you. Is there a motion to enter the amended petition into the record to supersede the petition signed and filed by the 11 members on July 10, 2026.
I so move.
Leader Gassidy moves that the committee enter the amended petition into the record to supersede the original petition. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
Tarver.
Yes.
Hoffman.
Yes.
Jimenez.
Yes.
Neymar.
Yes.
You got to stay.
On a vote of five, yes, zero, no, zero vote in the present. The motion has been carried, and the amended petition will be entered into the record, superseding the initial petition. My apologies, that was exhibit number seven. Our final order of business today is to determine the first step of our investigation going forward. consistent with the House's practice in the investigations of former Governor Rob Bogovic, former Representative Derek Smith, and similar to the investigation into former Speaker Madigan. It is my recommendation that before proceeding further into gathering information, this committee should consult with the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois, Mr. Greg M. Gilmore, to avoid taking any action that he would consider an interference with an ongoing federal investigation. I would ask for approval that a letter be sent by this committee to Mr. Gilmore seeking to obtain any relevant information that he possesses and to receive guidance on whether an investigation by this committee would be considered an interference with this federal investigation. Is there a motion that we contact the U.S. attorney for this purpose?
I so move.
The UGASTE moves that this committee contact the U.S. Attorney. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
Tarver. Yes. Hoffman. Yes. Jimenez. Yes. Neymar. Yes. UGASTE. Yes.
On a vote of five in favor, zero opposed, zero vote in present, the motion has been carried. we will proceed at once to contact the U.S. Attorney to have this discussion. Upon receiving a response from the U.S. Attorney, we will determine our next hearing date and time. Public notice for the next hearing will be provided on the General Assembly website, and the same notice will be provided to Representative Ammons through her counsels. At our second hearing, our letter and any response will be entered into the record. There being no further business before the committee today, the House Special Investigation Committee will stand at recess until the call of the chair. Thank you, everyone.
I need you to sign.