Steven J. Rauschenberger
State Senator, Illinois
Steven J. Rauschenberger has been an Illinois State Senator for the 22nd District since 1993. He was appointed Assistant Republican Leader in January 2003. He serves as chief Senate Republican negotiating member of Appropriations Committee. He is an active member of the Senate Environment and Energy and Executive Appointments Committees. Senator Rauschenberger chairs the Illinois Growth Task Force and is an appointed member of the McCormick Place Advisory Board.
As former Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Rauschenberger has negotiated multi-billion dollar state budgets, which have provided millions of dollars for schools, vital state programs, senior citizen services and local road and infrastructure improvements without a tax increase. Senator Rauschenberger is an advocate for state taxpayers, supporting statewide tax caps and increasing the income tax exemption. He is the Senate negotiator of KidCare, the state health insurance program for children in low-income, working families. In addition, he is a leader in areas such as electrical and telecommunications deregulation and Medicaid policy. He is an Executive Board member of National Conference of State Legislatures, Co-Chair of the NCSL Executive Committee on State and Local Taxation of Telecommunications and Electronic Commerce, and Co-Chair of the Lakefront Redevelopment Project ISFA Advisory Committee.
The senator has been honored many times for his legislative work and has been awarded over sixty awards and certificates by groups as varied as Easter Seals, Illinois Fighter Fighters, chambers of commerce, human service groups, educators, and other local organizations. He received a Bachelors of Business Administration from the College of William and Mary in 1978.
Senator Rauschenberger is active in his community as a Republican Committeeman in Hanover Township-Cook County, a former Senior Warden of the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, Explorer Post 5, Boy Scouts of America and a YMCA board member. He is a native of Elgin, where he resides with his wife, Betty, and their two sons.
Appearances
Biography last updated June 6, 2003