Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn said he’ll decide within a month whether to sign a bill abolishing the death penalty.

The Illinois House and Senate approved ending the state’s death penalty earlier this month.

But Quinn hasn’t decided whether to sign the bill into law.

The governor encourages people with opinions to contact his office.

“I’ve met with a number of people and I plan to do that over the next few weeks. I think that’s the proper way to handle something as important as this – to listen and then I will make a decision within the month,” Quinn said.

For 11 years, Illinois has had a moratorium on executions. More than a dozen death row inmates have been exonerated.