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The dancing governor

Friday, Aug 31, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller

Go to the 17:50 point in this video as soon as you possibly can…


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Governor begins Health Care expansion *** Updated x1 ***

Friday, Aug 31, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson

* Governor snubs legislators, expands health care plan

The $16 million expansion of the state’s All Kids program will cover people between 19 and 21 years old, and represents the first wave of health care expansion promised by the governor this month.

But critics warned the governor is making a serious mistake by snubbing legislative input and leaving taxpayers on the hook for what could be “an open-ended entitlement program.”

Blagojevich announced the expansion in Chicago, and a spokeswoman said it would be paid for by dipping into unspecified funds within the state budget.

* Governor could stretch health care plan

Surrounded by health-care advocates in the play room of a children’s hospital, Gov. Rod Blagojevich said Thursday that he would act without the legislature to expand state health insurance coverage for seriously ill young adults

The proposal, dubbed the All Kids Bridge, would extend coverage for 19-year-olds who would have been dropped from the state’s All Kids program.

“I’m going to continue to use all of the executive authority that the constitution gives me as the governor to expand health care for people,” Blagojevich said, speaking at a news conference in La Rabida Children’s Hospital on Chicago’s South Side. “And if the legislature won’t do it, then I’m going to do it.”

* Governor starts expanding health care for young adults

Money for All Kids Bridge will come from cutting waste and “pork” projects from the budget, Blagojevich said Thursday, although his aides previously have said new health spending would come from shifting money and controlling costs in existing programs.

Blagojevich said his new spending does not require approval from the General Assembly because he is changing eligibility rules for existing programs rather than creating new ones But his rule changes probably will have to go to a legislative committee, giving lawmakers a chance to block his actions.

Illinois Sen. Kwame Raoul, a Chicago Democrat, praised the governor’s actions at Thursday’s news conference.

* Governor moves on health care without approval

That’s part of why critics complain that Blagojevich’s expanded health programs are likely to run out of cash before the end of the current budget year. Blagojevich, though, refuses to wait for the General Assembly to approve the new spending.

“What am I supposed to do? Just give up on health care because they can’t say no to a lobbyist?” Blagojevich said. “We’re not supposed to call ‘em out when they make priorities that are just crassly political. And they’re sellin’ out the interests of their constituents because some lobbyist tells ‘em they can’t support a way to pay for health care. I believe you’re supposed to fight for it.”

* With state late, hospitals wait

Spokeswomen for Hynes and Madigan said the governor’s long review period made it much harder to borrow the $1.2 billion in time. DeJong said the governor took so long to sign the bill because he wanted to give it a “careful review.”

“While we had a tight time frame to pull this together, we were able to secure everyone’s sign-off needed, including the comptroller, treasurer and ratings agencies, except the attorney general, who missed last week’s deadline,” DeJong said.

Sen. Jeff Schoenberg (D-Evanston), who spent last week trying to cobble together enough political support for the deal, said the program fell victim to “the lack of communication and mistrust that exists at the state Capitol.”

He said it will take another vote of the legislature to make the 2007 payments unless “a miracle happens” and the state is able to borrow the $1.2 billion within 10 days.

*** UPDATE *** From the Bond Buyer earlier this week. They beat the Tribune to that story above…

Illinois finance officials and the state Attorney General’s office accused each other of scuttling the state’s proposed $1 billion general obligation note sale that was expected to generate as much as $80 million in additional Medicaid matching funds and pay off a backlog of Medicaid bills.

The GO certificates were to sell competitively this past Monday and be repaid within 60 days, possibly with revenues generated through the state’s hospital assessment tax that is used to leverage about $600 million more in federal matching Medicaid dollars annually.

The state’s treasurer and comptroller must approve short-term financings, and the attorney general typically signs off on all bond transactions. The state faced a deadline of this coming Friday, 60 days past the close of fiscal 2007, to close on the deal in order to count the proceeds under a fiscal 2007 supplemental appropriation that would allow the state to distribute the proceeds to hospitals under the assessment program. For accounting purposes, state law permits a 60-day lapse period for paying bills for 2007 and collecting revenues to count toward the prior year.

“While we had a tight timeframe to pull this together, we were able to secure everyone’s sign-off needed, including the comptroller, treasurer, and rating agencies, with the exception of the attorney general, who missed last week’s deadline,” budget office spokesman Justin DeJong said this week. “We’re disappointed because an opportunity has been missed to help both the state and hospitals providing care to our Medicaid clients, but we’re committed to finding a way to make this work despite this set-back.”

The deal was pulled together quickly in recent weeks, but lawyers working on the transaction warned last week that Gov. Rod Blagojevich needed to sign the $59 billion, fiscal 2008 budget before the state could proceed. The governor acted on the budget last Thursday, but the attorney general’s office raised other questions over the transaction and did not sign off by late last week when the state had hoped to post a notice of sale, according to budget officials.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office sharply denied any responsibility in the sale’s delay, stressing that its approval is needed solely on the final documentation and not for the state to proceed with the transaction. Madigan chief of staff Ann Spillane blamed the deal’s troubled timing on the governor’s failure to sign the supplemental appropriation in a timely fashion after its passage this spring. “The governor’s office botched the hospital assessment program by not signing the bill until Aug. 13 and is now looking for someone to blame,” she said, adding that staff lawyers had conceptually agreed to the borrowing although they were still reviewing various details.

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Never-ending budget debacle

Friday, Aug 31, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson

* Editorial: Beware the blade of Blago

Meanwhile, as if the tax dollars already wasted on the overtime sessions weren’t enough, now Illinois taxpayers get to spend even more on a court battle over whether the governor can call even more special sessions - the Legislature has “in no way completed all the business necessary” - to squander even more of their money.

* Rep. Mitchell and others decry downstate project cuts

Still, while Decatur’s CeaseFire anti-violence program, Good Samaritan Inn, Salvation Army and other agencies saw some funding slashed in the district of state Rep. Bob Flider, D-Mount Zion, projects requested by Mitchell survived the ax.

But Mitchell said some people complaining now about the process have been silent for too long in criticizing what they see as a stranglehold that Chicago Democrats have on state government. The governor has kept some schools and communities in Republican districts from receiving money that had been appropriated to them in the past, he said.

* Tribune Editorial Board interview with Dick Durbin

On feuding Democrats in Illinois:

I received a letter about two months ago from a group in Chicago asking me if I would go to Springfield and mediate their difficulties. I said I’d rather go to Iraq — and I meant it. I’m very disappointed as a Democrat that it has reached this point. I cannot explain it other than there are personal elements involved here that have unfortunately transcended the real issues and there is not a good spirit of cooperation and compromise.

When we passed the federal highway bill we brought more federal funds back to Illinois than ever in our history. The stars all lined up. It’s a huge pot of money. We’ve never had this much federal money available for our state. It all requires a [state] match. Unfortunately, our budget in the state can’t accommodate that match. I begged the governor and all the leaders — “If you can’t agree on anything else, please don’t miss out on this opportunity for federal funds.” It looks like we missed a year of construction. We’re just squandering these opportunities to bring federal resources in.

* Editorial: Governor’s lawsuit pointless and petty

* Budget cuts hurt agencies

* Budget cuts hurt museums too

* State budget cuts could hit Springfield park district

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Cook Co. & Chicago News

Friday, Aug 31, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson

* Cook Co. hospitals may charge $3 for prescriptions

While Stroger himself would not say how much he pays for prescriptions under the county health insurance plan, most of the county’s highest-paid employees pay only $5 for theirs.

“He’s sticking it to the people who can least afford it,” said Ed Shurna of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. “To make the county’s poorest people pay almost as much as someone making six figures is completely unfair.”

* Tribune Editorial: A costly peace for the Chicago public school system

The Chicago system has seen some inroads with innovative education and management strategies. The schools have improved.

But they have so far to go. And the overriding message of this teachers contract is that the status quo is just fine, thank you.

Excuse us. The status quo plus 4 percent a year. And virtually no structural reforms.

The Illinois legislature did little this year to demand change in public schools. And Chicago school management has demanded even less.

* Teamsters reject 10-year city pact; more here

* Department of Administrative Hearings chief stepping down

* Sheriff Dart to talk to Shakman about hiring

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Morning Shorts

Friday, Aug 31, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson

* PrairieStateBlue: Latest ins and out of IL-18

The most interesting thing about the article though isn’t that Myerscough decided not to run, but rather how involved the DCCC has already been. They spoke with Myerscough before her decision not to run (who said that she came away from the meeting thinking that IL-18 was more winnable than she thought) and have also reportedly spoken with Edley and Grawey. It’s clear the DCCC thinks that this district can be in play.

* Instead of Congress, Darin LaHood to run for State’s Attorney

* Worth noting, coaches earn way more than governors

* New law gives foreclosure notice to help renters

* Questions around Ceasefire effectiveness; more here

* Blog thoughts on CeaseFire here and here

* Plane used by Blagojevich getting a makeover

* Poshard to answer plagiarism claims; more here and here and here and here

* Friday Beer Blogging: More Animals Edition

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PREVIOUS POSTS »
* Reader comments closed for the weekend
* Showcasing The Retailers Who Make Illinois Work
* Isabel’s afternoon roundup
* Uber’s Local Partnership = Stress-Free Travel For Paratransit Riders
* UIC testing lab accused of providing flawed results in 1,600 cannabis DUI convictions
* Today's must-read
* COGFA: Illinois job growth rate is about a tenth of national growth rate since October of 2019
* Question of the day: Golden Horseshoe Awards
* Roundup: Madigan trial delves into political fight over Chinatown land deal
* It’s just a bill
* Open thread
* Isabel’s morning briefing
* Live coverage
* Selected press releases (Live updates)
* Federal appeals court stays Downstate federal judge's gun ruling (Updated)
* Yesterday's stories

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