* Think tank’s audit finds suburban government websites lacking
Each piece of township government had its website quietly evaluated and scored on 10 criteria - including the online availability of officials’ contact information, public records, budgets, financial audits, taxes, salaries and benefits.
Between May 24 and June 2, Costin said, institute staff contacted each entity for the first time after its audit was completed to talk about the score - and ways it could be improved upon before a second audit was conducted six weeks later.
* Local Case-Shiller index up for 2nd straight month
* CPS students score higher on tests
The number of students meeting or exceeding state standards on the Prairie State exam rose to 29.4 percent, up from 27.9 percent last year. Average ACT scores inched upward — from 17 to 17.3 out of a possible 36. That’s the highest ACT score for CPS students in a decade.
And college readiness — students achieving an ACT score of 20 or better — rose by 2.6 percentage points, from 21.8 percent to 24.4 percent. In 2001, only 17.1 percent of CPS students hit that benchmark.
* Chicago public high school test scores post increase
* Got flood damage? Watch out for home repair scams
* Families closer to Burr Oak settlement
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Pamela S. Hollis has approved a settlement that routes $7 million in insurance money to Burr Oak and $150,000 to Cedar Park Cemetery in Calumet Park, Howard Korenthal, a court-appointed reorganization specialist who has been overseeing Burr Oak, said Tuesday.
* Public funds end up in Lake Co. sheriff’s campaign war chest
A $500 contribution from the Lake County Metropolitan Enforcement Group to Sheriff Mark Curran’s campaign fund was a mistake, both groups said Tuesday.
But Curran’s Democratic opponent in the November general election, Waukegan attorney Doug Roberts, said the fact Curran accepted public funds as a campaign donation in violation of the law is a telling fact about his opponent.
“He can’t be that stupid,” Roberts said after bringing the donation listed on Curran’s campaign disclosure forms to the attention of the media.
“Anyone who could look at that check and not realize it was public money and send it right back is not fit to hold any office in any jurisdiction in any state,” he added.
The money, paid with a MEG check, was written June 1 to pay for four MEG agents to play in Curran’s annual golf outing fundraiser, MEG Director Larry Lindenman said.
* Former Stroger campaign staffer gets county consulting job
A one-time campaign staffer for Cook County Board President Todd Stroger was awarded a $15,000 consulting job to help the county negotiate contracts with its labor unions.
Raymond L. Harris Sr., of Bolingbrook, worked on the Stroger campaign briefly, but that wasn’t the reason he was tapped, said Stroger spokesman Eugene Mullins.
“It’s not because he was a campaign worker — it was because of his extensive experience in labor relations,” Mullins said. “He has over 40 years experience, and he’ll be sitting at the table with the … bargaining units.”
Harris, who is retired from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, is described as an expert in labor negotiations — even working on 13 previous collective bargaining agreements in the county — in a recommendation letter written by the county’s human resources chief Joseph Sova.
* Cook County lists lobbyist work online
* Cook County lobbyist reports online
* Lobbying Cook Co. officials a million dollar business
“We know that a lot of lobbyists contacted 60 elected officials between January and June — some of them [elected leaders] more than 30 times,” said Cook County Clerk David Orr.
Orr worked with Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer to pass a stricter ethics ordinance that requires lobbyists to provide more detailed information about who they’re meeting with, the subject matter and how much they’re paid for the work.
The searchable database reveals that 188 lobbyists —representing 84 firms and five sole proprietors — registered in Cook County earned $1.1 million, down from $1.3 million reported between July and December 2009.
* Daily Herald: A welcome tool for open government
* $175K in county deals won’t get fed cash
* Cook commissioners question 24-9 contracts and lost grant money
* Attendance dropping as county fairs struggle to remain relevant amid suburbanization
“We’re in a more urban area than what we used to be,” said Jim McGuire, first-year president of the DuPage County Fair, which finished its run in Wheaton on Sunday. “That has been a challenge: to be able to put on a good agricultural fair, but to still keep it relevant and exciting to the community that we’re in.”
* Swimming ban lifted at city beaches
* Cook County, towns appeal for federal aid
* State offers low-interest loans to flood victims
* Cicero blames water agency for flooding
* [Park Ridge] Mayor: Floods could’ve been worse, city’s response could’ve been better
* Many At Breaking Point In Storm-Swept Westchester
* Cincinnati radio host Bill Cunningham to get syndicated TV talk show in Chicago
* Orlando reporter coming home to join ABC 7 news
* Mokena mayor head of Blue Island water department
* New Lenox lifts restrictions on campaign signs
* Panel backs funding for Ride in Kane
* $24.5 million makeover planned for Glendale Heights Civic Center Plaza
* Mississippi crests overnight in Q-C at 17.26 feet
* Times: One Q-C, one chamber
* Police may shift focus of anti-crime effort to new areas in Peoria
* [Peoria] County considers buyouts
* Macon County Clerk Steve Bean sounds off over budget decisions
* [Sangamon] County expecting another tight budget next year
* [Springfield] plans to buy, demolish vacant homes
