More budget shenanigans
Thursday, Oct 9, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller
* More of that heroic leadership from the governor that we’ve all come to expect…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich has approved diverting $221 million in the state budget that lawmakers hope will prevent layoffs and program cuts, but he said Wednesday that it’s up to a potential rival, Comptroller Dan Hynes, to determine whether the money is available.
That leaves in question the fate of 323 state employees, who have been told they’ll lose their jobs soon, and 24 state parks and historic sites that would be shuttered.
Hynes pointed out that the legislation requires him to transfer the money to a “budget relief fund” in quarterly installments. So more than $110 million will be available by today, spokeswoman Carol Knowles said.
Punt to Hynes and let him take the heat from special interest groups for emptying out those state funds.
* But, wait, there’s more…
Further muddying the issue is that Blagojevich still hasn’t signed a companion bill that authorizes spending the money. Even if he does, the administration is not obligated to spend it.
“It isn’t a guarantee he won’t close parks and lay off these people,” said Rep. Gary Hannig of Litchfield, one of the Democrats’ top budget negotiators. […]
Because there is a question about how much money might be available, Quinn said, the governor will not immediately act on the companion bill that authorizes where the swept money is to be spent. She said the administration is proceeding with preparations for the previously announced cuts that will result in the layoffs and site closings.
Hannig said it appears Blagojevich “has made up his mind he wants to close parks and lay off employees and cut human services.” If there are problems with the sweeps bill, they can be fixed before the cuts are implemented, he added.
* And what about the governor’s complaint about transferring money out of those special funds? Well…
Rep. Gary Hanning, a Litchfield Democrat and House member who negotiated the deal, said the bill was in the public domain in the House for a week, and it sat in the Senate for two weeks. Democrats and Republicans of both chambers had an opportunity to voice concerns and ask for changes, some of which were accommodated before they sent it to the governor.
“All through that period of time, the governor and his people sat silently by and never weighed in one way or the other, so we assumed that they were OK with this bill,” Hannig said.
The governor’s office offered another statement that his office made its concerns known in September
September. Late September. After both chambers had passed the bill.
* Another marquee quote…
[A Blagojevich spokesperson] called Hannig’s statements “empty political rhetoric.”
Kinda like saying you made your concerns known in “September” and not saying that it was “late September, after both chambers had acted.”
* Meanwhile, the governor is doing some interesting stuff at Pontiac state prison. The guv wants to close the prison over legislative objections, and now he’s transferring some maximum security prisoners out of Pontiac to minimum security facilities…
[AFSCME] says the Department of Corrections plans to move 50 prisoners by Friday to a minimum-security prison in East Moline and another 50 next week to a minimum-security facility in Taylorville, meaning its appeal of Wednesday’s decision could come too late to stop the transfers.
* Columnist Barb Ickes notes that the East Moline facility is in a residential area and quotes an AFSCME official as saying that these large, last-minute prisoner transfers “are rare, if not unprecedented.”
But Department of Corrections spokesman Derek Schnapp said it happens all the time. When asked whether the East Moline Correctional Center ever has received 50 inmates in one day, he said, “I don’t know about East Moline.” […]
Asked whether a three-day notice was practical, he answered, “We can give it (notice) the day of. There is no set guideline on notification.”
That’s peculiar. Does the Department of Corrections truly make a habit of simply dumping dozens of inmates on unknowing state prisons? Surely not. The East Moline prison this week has 1,060 prisoners, and the place was built to accommodate 688. A fair warning would seem in order.
Thodos said he doesn’t think the prisoners are going to stick around. More likely, he said, the move is part of Blagojevich’s bigger plan.
“My personal opinion is that this is probably a stop on the way to Thomson,” he said.
The governor wants to eventually close Pontiac and move many of the prisoners to the Thomson facility.
* Related…
* Uncertainty with Blagojevich’s bill concerns parks advocates
* Empty offices symptomatic of cuts
* Gov, Legislature neglect those who need help most
* Tom Jennings named Agriculture director
- Vote Quimby! - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:06 am:
Impeach him. Impeach him now. I’d trade a con-con defeat for an impeachment—the damage he can do to this state over the next two years would be greater than keeping our current constitution for another 20 years. Impeach him. Impeach him now.
- wordslinger - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:14 am:
Messing with peoples’ jobs, especially in this economy, is really beyond the pale. Make a decision and stick with it, but quit jacking people around.
- BandCamp - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:28 am:
I know this sounds a tad over-the-top, however, if it happens, I’d be right.
What happenes when…
One such client is a 55-year-old woman who is living with schizophrenia and struggling with alcohol dependence.
…one of these clients these social service agencies are providing help for falls off the radar, and injures themself, or worse, someone else?
It becomes a tragic story.
- plutocrat03 - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:28 am:
Messing around with someone’s job or career for political gain is despicable.
Too bad its not illegal.
- Captain Flume - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:32 am:
There was a Twilight Zone episode starring Billy Mumy titled “It’s A Good Life.” Billy’s character is a child who can wish people who displease him into a “cornfield.” Of course all the adults are afraid of him, and though they find his capricious punishments thoroughly distasteful, they do nothing about it. Rod (!!) Serling’s introduction ends with ” . . . I forgot to introduce you to the monster. This is the monster. His name is Anthony Fremont. He’s six years old, with a cute little-boy face and blue, guileless eyes. But when those eyes look at you, you’d better start thinking happy thoughts, because the mind behind them is absolutely in charge. This is the Twilight Zone.”
Kind of like the Governor and the legislature . . . and the people of Illinois.
- He Makes Ryan Look Like a Saint - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:36 am:
I have asked many time just how much damage Blago (AND his staff) can do to state government over the next two years. I agree with Vote Quimby it is time to send him packing. You cannot trust him. The closings are political, IDOT, IDNR, Corrections, WHAT IS NEXT??
- Balance - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:37 am:
The economy is continuing to tighten. Income tax and sales tax revenues are not meeting projections. The legisature has been unwilling to approve several of the governor’s somewhat risky revenue plans.
Fortunately, the state does not have the unlimited borrowing capabilities that the federal government has. In this environment, expenditures must be cut.
The governor is doing what any competent governor should and, hopefully, would do.
- BandCamp - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 10:54 am:
He won’t be the Governor that raised taxes. And neither does any aspiring politico.
Balance, in this economy, things need to be done, and raising taxes is one of the things this Governor or any Governor should do. People keep their jobs, social services continue, at a minimal cost to the pop. of IL. Then maybe it would all “balance” out.
- VanillaMan - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 11:04 am:
Blagojevich is the poster boy for why we need a constitutional convention. It isn’t just his lack of judgement, it is his willingness to subvert the text within the current constitution to cover his lack of judgement.
We need a constitutional convention to fix these loopholes.
- ChampaignDweller - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 11:45 am:
Balance–the problem is that many of the governor’s decisions to cut appear to be partisan. Does it make sense to transfer high security prisoners to minimum security prisons when they are already located at a maximum security prison? The governor has moved from incompetent to mean and vindictive. If people are going to lose their jobs, then make the decision and stick to it–don’t put the onus on Hynes to find the money and continue to play games with people’s lives.
- anon - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 12:15 pm:
As one who’s job is being played with I concur that this is just wrong. What is even more wrong is cutting funding to one of the state’s most vulnerable populations, children who are wards of the state. I can tell you firsthand these cuts impact them directly, and the need to restore funding and increase funding down the road is significant.
- Fan of the Game - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 12:25 pm:
Captain Flume with the spot-on allusion! I loved that episode. And Gov. Blagojevich is so much like Anthony–a little kid who wants everything just the way he like sit. And if you make him unhappy, smething bad happens to you.
Outstanding, Captain Flume!
- WAR DOG - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 12:36 pm:
In regard to moving maximum to minimum. How stupid can the Governor and Corrections get? When there is a prison upheaval (riot) and people are hurt or killed the maybe, just maybe these people will open their eyes and say “what happened and wheres the bus.” Corrections is dangerously understaffed all over the state and I know of one facility that will spend $16 MILLION by the end of the year in overtime. Do the math!! How many new hires could $16 million hire?? By the way Rich, Thompson is in the process of hiring support staff at this time and there is already some people already there. It is also rumored nthat people from Pontiac will be able to transfer to Dwight which is 20 miles or so from Pontiac and some will transfer to Stateville and other places. It is a total mess and very incomptent.
- Secret Square - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 12:55 pm:
We hear about the programs suffering the most severe cuts (as we should); but what programs DIDN’T get cut, or only had minimal cuts?
As I’ve said before, if the budget shortfall was only 2 or 3 percent of the entire budget, why not just cut everybody by a flat 2 or 3 percent, which can probably be accommodated, instead of inflicting double-digit cuts on some agencies and none on others?
By way of a little perspective… I saw a story online earlier today (on Yahoo News; don’t recall offhand what publication it came from) listing the states with the worst FY 09 budget deficits right now, in terms of percentage of the total budget. Illinois isn’t even in the top 10 — California, New Jersey, Florida, Rhode Island, Georgia, and Maryland are all worse off in that regard. Some of these states have imposed across-the-board budget cuts to ALL agencies. Why couldn’t we have done something similar?
- Secret Square - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 1:01 pm:
Other states with worse FY 09 budget deficits than us include New York, Nevada and Arizona (the latter two states have been hit especially hard by foreclosures, as has Florida). So, it isn’t just a “blue state” or “rust belt” phenomenon.
- Team Sleep - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 2:19 pm:
We have officially reached a point which I hoped we wouldn’t reach until people my age are running the show: not one politician at our state level or our federal level seems to take responsbility for anything.
Where your testicular virility, Rod?!
And Rich, you can’t take this post down. Blago already said that.
- Princess - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 2:44 pm:
secret square “Some of these states have imposed across-the-board budget cuts to ALL agencies. Why couldn’t we have done something similar? ”
Because Rod did not want to. Much more affective to cause as much pain and news grabbing and frosting on cake is he gets a chance to punish spefics in regions/districts?
I think Rod should have to come on down to Springfield and get a front row seat at a few of the lay-off meetings going on. Let him get a chance to see real faces and meet real people behind the just the numbers he seems to view them as.
It’s an emotional experience. I must say though that the ladies stuck running the DNR meetings once they understood how things had to be done according to contract, have been pretty okay with it all. They are seeing human faces and hearing human voices and suddenly it isn’t just numbers on a sheet sitting there in chairs in front of them.
Breaks one’s heart when the later employees (less senority)there are no position options left. Or to listen to the guys in the chair have to make a decision between saving himself or knocking out the newer employee who likely has a young family to take care of. But what the heck, hey, they are just numbers on a sheet and pawns in the never ending games of are state’s leader.
It is very cruel now to keep extending the game . These guys have been at this for weeks n weeks , have finally had their ‘we might do this to you’ meeting—it’s time Rod to either do it or sign the bill. Release these people from the emotional stressful existance you’ve bottled them up in.
- Secret Square - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 3:17 pm:
War Dog, I thought Dwight was only for women inmates. How could Pontiac inmates possibly transfer there? Or do you mean people who WORK at Pontiac could transfer there?
- Secret Square - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 4:02 pm:
Given that many prisons are dangerously overcrowded (E. Moline is supposed to be more than 400 inmates over its official capacity), I would think just the overflow from other prisons would be enough to fill Thomson without having to shut down ANY other prison.
- iknow - Thursday, Oct 9, 08 @ 7:55 pm:
there are medium security inmates at the “farm” at pontiac and these are the inmates being transferred. the inmates are being re-classified for the transfer to minimum security, which is not wise. taylorville is the departments gang free facility, will be interesting if any mistakes are made in sending inappropriate inmates there. idoc has a bunch of jobs posted for thompson, also had a bunch of parole agent positions posted, wonder if this was in anticipation of some early releases; however they failed to realize that they would have to have cars, guns, computers, etc. for those agents and did not have the money so the positions were pulled. this an obvious reflection on who’s running the department, inexperienced people who bow down to the knee jerk orders from the governors office with out considering the consequences. the department could save alot of money if all the deputy directors, chiefs, etc. parked their cars and were not allowed to drive for personal reasons (i would like to see an audit of that!).