*** UPDATE - 6:35 pm *** OK, so, the governor’s press office just called to say that the amendatory veto message they sent out for SB170 which imposed strict conflict of interest standards was e-mailed in error. That’s not actually what the AV does. What the AV really does is not known to me at the moment. So, I deleted the first part of the post.
Oops.
* 5:48 pm - [Deleted content…]
* The other AV was of SB90, which originally removed the requirement that Secretary of State driver facilities have deputy registrars and allows driver facilities to be permanent places for voter registration. From Quinn’s veto message…
My specific recommendation is to give voters the right, through binding referendum, to establish a Veterans’ Advocate as an official of local government to coordinate veteran services, act as a liaison between units of government and veterans, and promote measures by which local governments and agencies may assist the veteran population in the areas of job creation, education, housing, health care, and other issues as the Veterans’ Advocate deems appropriate.
The Quinn folks were definitely worried today about the “Indiana took our jobs” story today, so this might be seen as a nice little diversion.
As with most radical amendatory vetoes, these probably will never again see the light of day.
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* Democrats close to Rahm Emanuel’s operation have leaked a few poll results from the survey we discussed a bit last week. The poll, conducted for Emanuel August 17-22, is of 600 likely voters. Let’s start with job approvals…
Job approval - 79 percent
Job disapproval - 16 percent
Racial breakdown of the job approval numbers…
Whites
83
14
African-Americans
78
15
Latinos
78
16
Not much to say other than those are pretty darned solid numbers all the way around. Yes, it’s still very early in his term, but engaging Emanuel in a political war would hardly be well-advised at the moment.
* Click the pic for a larger version of the character traits test…
Again, not somebody who can be easily messed with.
* This matches up pretty well with an Anzalone Liszt Research poll taken for the Teamsters Union June 7-12, which gave us a snapshot of his first month in office. From the pollster…
Rahm’s numbers have only strengthened and are now 77% favorable and 13% unfavorable. The biggest movement has been with white voters who have moved from 68% favorable to 79% favorable and whose unfavorable rating of him have dropped from 21% to 12%. I would think that both the 650 new cops on the street and the auterity measures with the budget have moved white voters, although all subgroups made gains.
Anzalone Liszt had Emanuel at 71 percent favorable and 15 unfavorable after the election in late April.
* The history of Gov. Pat Qunn’s approval rating is here.
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* As expected, Gov. Pat Quinn just couldn’t help himself today.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel has said that he wants a Chicago casino to help invest in infrastructure improvements. Hizzoner laid out several serious problems that the casino money would help address…
Emanuel today said Chicago’s construction needs go far beyond the $1 billion Quinn said the state infrastructure plan has earmarked for Chicago roads, bridges and mass transit.
“It’s very simple. I think all of you saw the car that fell through. It’s not just a pothole. It’s because the pipes and water system in Chicago, parts of Chicago, a hundred years old,” Emanuel said. “The capital shortfall at CTA alone is in the multi-billions. That doesn’t count what I have to do for the roads, the 25 new schools, the 40 miles of new water infrastructure.”
Quinn, clearly in campaign mode, pivoted on Emanuel’s sinkhole example…
“There is a role for municipalities to pay attention,” Quinn said. “We’re not going to have a situation where every community in Illinois that wants to fill its sinkholes or potholes wants a casino. I mean, come on.”
* And then Quinn expanded the playing field and whacked Emanuel on another topic…
“They’re reviving the drive, and who do you think is paying for it? The state of Illinois is the big investor in that,” Quinn said, while also taking a swipe and Emanuel for placing his name on construction signs in the city, a practice Quinn banned at the state level.
“My name ain’t on that road, and I don’t want it to be, but the fact of the matter is we’re putting, I think, $300 million into a major endeavor to fix up a thoroughfare in the city of Chicago that needed radical improvement.”
If he was this focused during last year’s campaign, Quinn might have won more than four counties.
*** UPDATE *** Raw audio of the governor’s remarks…
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* Indiana handed out several million dollars to take a small manufacturer away from Illinois…
Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels joined executives from Illinois company Modern Drop Forge Tuesday to announce it is building a new facility in Merrillville, Ind.
Daniels said his state has offered Modern Drop Forge an incentive package worth $5.5 million over the next few years. The company will open a new manufacturing facility, creating up to 240 jobs by 2014. […]
Daniels invited the company executives to a mock citizenship naturalization ceremony Tuesday to welcome them to the state.
How cute. A “citizenship naturalization ceremony.” Excuse me, but when, exactly, did Indiana secede?
* Anyway, Indiana’s subsidy works out to just under $23,000 per job, spread out over three years. Then again, Daniels has grossly inflated job creation numbers in the past, so those numbers should probably be taken with a big grain of salt. Indiana has much lower workers’ comp costs than Illinois does, and that was one reason why the company moved…
Blue Island Mayor Don Peloquin says in this company’s case, workman’s comp differences alone will save several hundred thousand dollars a year.
“They’re looking at dollars. If it costs this much here under the workers comp law, when they go to Indiana, they drop it by 30 or 40 percent. They save that much money,” Peloquin said. “There’s very little a local mayor can do.”
* Illinois’ higher costs of doing business means that our subsidies probably have to be higher. For instance, Motorola’s state subsidy to remain in Illinois works out to about $44,000 per employee spread out over ten years. Even so,Mayor Emanuel just announced 200 new subsidy-free jobs for Chicago. Most of Emanuel’s job announcements, in fact, have involved no subsidies.
* Gov. Pat Quinn said he offered an incentive package to Modern Drop Forge, but no luck…
Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn said he wanted Modern Forge to stay in Illinois and the state made a “generous” offer to the company to stay, but Quinn said it’s the company’s choice to leave.
* Meanwhile, Quinn was on Chicago’s South Side today, touting a new public works project that will benefit Ford, which is also kicking in some cash…
A new construction project on the Southeast Side will alleviate the frustration of motorists caused by lumbering freight trains — and create 1,200 new jobs, officials say.
The $146 million project will lower the intersection of 130th Street and Torrence so two new bridges carrying the Norfolk Southern railroad tracks can pass over it, Gov. Pat Quinn announced Tuesday morning. The streets and the tracks currently intersect, resulting in hours of delays for about 32,000 motorists a day, officials said. […]
The project is partially funded by Ford Motor Company, which has an assembly plant nearby that regularly experiences 20-minute delays as employees and trucks carrying goods wait for trains to pass.
“Every minute counts,” said Ford spokeswoman Mary Culler. “We cannot be competitive without state-of-the-art infrastructure.” […]
The state of Illinois is paying $64.8 million of the price tag, and Norfolk Southern, federal government, city and Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District are contributing as well.
* The Quinn administration is doing everything it can to tout new jobs today, including this IDES press release…
The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) and Aon Corporation (NYSE:AON) have come together to place more than 100 job seekers in good-paying jobs at the Chicago-based professional services firm. The collaboration highlights Governor Pat Quinn’s efforts to grow jobs and connect qualified job seekers with ready-to-hire employers.
“Aon is a leading Illinois company, and a perfect match for Illinois’ highly skilled workers,” said Governor Quinn. “This is a great example of how our state and private businesses can work together to connect businesses, workers and jobs.”
“We sought the assistance of the Department of Employment Security to help us identify qualified and talented candidates, and they exceeded our expectations in a quick and efficient manner,” said Greg Besio, Aon’s chief human resources officer.
Working with the IDES’ Employment Services division, Aon was able to hire benefits advisors to work out of its Aon Hewitt office in Lincolnshire. The temporary employment is expected to last through mid-December and pay between $17 and $20 an hour.
* In other business-related news, both the RTA and the City of Chicago filed lawsuits today against Kankakee and Chanahon over lost sales tax revenue. The governments are upset that these small towns have allowed sham sales tax havens to be set up, which the towns profit from. Here’s the mayor’s press release…
The City of Chicago today filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Cook County seeking damages from the City of Kankakee, Village of Channahon and three brokers over a sales tax kickback scheme that is diverting sales tax revenue from the City of Chicago.
“Companies are gaming the system and cheating Chicago’s taxpayers,” said Mayor Emanuel. “I have to be the voice for the taxpayers and I will not tolerate this.”
The City alleges that Kankakee and Channahon have attracted a large number of corporations and an enormous amount of revenue by offering Illinois retailers kickbacks of sales tax revenue if they purport to process their retail sales through brokers set up in those municipalities. The brokers “accept” sales in Kankakee and Channahon on behalf of the retailers. Although this practice was prohibited by the Illinois legislature in 2004 but both municipalities continue to enter into such arrangements.
This practice is so profitable that Kankakee and Channahon now lead the state in annual retail sales per capita at $78,000 and $62,000 respectively—tenfold the per capita sales of Chicago and roughly double the per capita sales of municipalities that are home to major retail shopping malls.
I get the part about the ridiculous sham sales offices designed to avoid the Chicago-area’s high sales taxes. The state definitely needs to get rid of those.
But Kankakee does a lot of business with out of state companies which have no Illinois facilities and need a local sales tax nexus. Those out of state agreements are certainly inflating the tax receipt numbers used by Chicago. I may have more on this in a little while, so check back.
Chicago’s lawsuit is here. The RTA’s lawsuit is here.
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Question of the day
Tuesday, Aug 23, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller
* A couple/tree weeks ago we rated the job performance of Gov. Pat Quinn, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and House Speaker Michael Madigan. Let’s continue our work.
* The Question: On a scale of one to ten, with one being the worst and ten the best, how would you rate Senate President John Cullerton’s job performance? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments. Thanks.
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Knocking Down the Profit Margin Myth
Tuesday, Aug 23, 2011 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
SB 1652 Does NOT Guarantee 10% Profit
Myth: Opponents of SB 1652 have falsely claimed that the bill locks in guaranteed utility profit margins.
Here’s the Truth: SB 1652 sets a “target” profit margin of 10.25 percent return on equity. This is lower than the national average for utilities over the last 10 years and would be the second lowest ROE that the ICC has given ComEd in the last 30 years.
But it can still be reduced in the following ways:
1. ICC disallows costs during the annual rate proceeding. The ICC retains authority to disallow utility costs. Today, the ICC routinely disallows tens of millions of utility costs in every rate case and has authority to do so under SB 1652.
2. Utility fails to meet new performance standards. SB 1652 contains comprehensive performance metrics and a utility’s ROE is reduced if it fails to meet targets. These include performance on reliability and customer service.
3. Lower than expected demand on the system. During an abnormally cool summer or poor economic conditions, demand falls and revenues contract. This drives down the amount of revenue collected by the utility resulting in less income.
There are no guarantees of profits in 1652. For more information on all the benefits of grid modernization, visit www.SmartEnergyIL.com.
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* After falling for 16 straight months, Illinois’ unemployment rate has risen each of the last three months. Could January’s income tax hike have caused this? Nope, says the governor’s budget office…
Kelly Kraft, a spokeswoman for Quinn’s budget office, said there is “no connection” between the tax increases and the unemployment increase.
Others aren’t so sure…
Shattuck said the tax increase, and Illinois’ overall business climate, are part of the uncertainty employers hate.
“That’s why there are so many businesses hoarding cash; they want to be able to pay the bills,” Shattuck added.
We actually gained 1,100 manufacturing jobs in July, according to the state. Mining, information and financial activities jobs all rose as well.
One reason the unemployment rate kept rising is that 5,500 government jobs disappeared in July. “Trade, Transportation, & Utilities” jobs dropped by 7,900 and “Leisure and Hospitality” jobs fell by 6,700. We also lost 4,300 construction jobs and 4,100 jobs in “other services.”
* But the reality is, the people who run most businesses are not exactly flaming liberals, and they ain’t happy…
A company based in the south suburbs is expected to announce Tuesday that it is relocating, taking 250 Illinois jobs to Indiana.
After 96 years in Blue Island, the Modern Drop Forge Co. is reportedly moving 30 miles east to Merrillville, Ind.
“The taxes are very high and Illinois is not friendly to business anymore,” said one employee with the company.
Sources say Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels will announce Modern Drop Forge Co., which makes precision tools and metal components, including for Harley Davidson motorcycles, is the latest Illinois company to be lured away by lower taxes and business costs.
* Indiana has been particularly aggressive at recruiting our companies…
The Hoosier State’s Economic Development Corp. launched its “Illinnoyed” campaign, putting 15 billboards up along the state line. It also had an online advertising campaign through Crain’s Chicago Business; EDC spokeswoman Katelyn Hancock said she was told it was the third-most successful online campaign in Crain’s history.
Thirteen businesses representing about 1,000 jobs have committed to moving from Illinois to Indiana this year as a result of the marketing campaign, she said, and she expects more to come.
“Our efforts are still being reaped,” she said. “It takes a long time to relocate.”
Indiana’s unemployment rate also clicked up a bit in July, but its rate is 8.5 percent, a full point below ours.
…Adding… With a hat tip to a commenter…
Over the year, 24 states experienced statistically significant changes in employment, 23 of which were increases. The largest increase occurred in Texas (+269,500), followed by California (+189,600), New York (+106,600), and Ohio (+74,100). The only state with an over-the-year statistically significant decrease was Indiana (-28,300). [Emphasis added.]
Illinois gained 51,100 jobs in the same period.
* Meanwhile…
Archer Daniels Midland Co. is closing a soybean processing facility in Galesburg immediately.
Decatur-based ADM issued a statement late Monday confirming the facility would close, according to WGIL Radio. The closure will cost Galesburg 31 jobs.
ADM says it expects a number of those jobs to be transferred to a different facility.
Oy.
It’s been one hit after another for that town.
* Back to taxes…
Shattuck said this summer’s legislative hearings into Illinois’ business climate may provide enough stability to convince employers in Illinois to start hiring.
“We’re trying to come up with ways to advance the business climate without costing the state any money,” Shattuck said. “But if we’re going to lower the tax increase that means other incentives have to go away. But which ones?”
*** UPDATE *** From a press release…
Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced today that EMC Corporation will open a new office and add 200 new jobs in Chicago over the next two years, as the city’s technology sector gets an added boost from a leading provider of information infrastructure and cloud computing technology.
“I am pleased to announce that EMC has decided to open a new office here in Chicago, and to create 200 important jobs for Chicagoans,” said Mayor Emanuel. “EMC is a global leader in information technology, and will drive forward Chicago’s technology economy and presence in this space.”
The new office in Chicago is expected to be open by the end of the first-quarter 2012, and will support EMC’s numerous Chicago-based customers.
* Related…
* Olin Brass says law helps their business
* The Murky Future Of The Workers’ Comp Reform Law
* Food prices could rise as corn harvests suffer
* Survey: Small raises for salaried workers in 2012: After increasing salaries by 2.6 percent this year and last year, companies are planning a 2.8 percent bump in 2012, benefits and human resources consultancy Towers Watson reported Monday.
* Union agrees to pay cut in Lyric Opera contract
* Google takeover pays off for Motorola employees, too
* Ford, Toyota to work together on hybrid trucks
* Quinn names interim superintendent of Lottery
* LaHood: Rail plan going to be ‘right’ for Springfield
* Plan to reuse prescription drugs stuck on final hurdles - Legislation stalled by concerns about safety, liability
* Landmarks Illinois leader stepping aside Nov. 1
* Fitch Downgrades N.J. Bond Rating: New Jersey has skipped or greatly reduced its payments into the pension fund, contributing to the unfunded liability. The new law requires the state to make its payments, which currently total more than $3 billion a year, but is phasing the requirement in over seven years. This year’s pension payment, one-seventh of the total, was about $500 million.
* S&P replaces president after U.S. downgrade
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Here we go again
Tuesday, Aug 23, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The back and forth sniping between Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Gov. Pat Quinn just won’t end. You already know the background. Here’s the latest…
Emanuel said he wants the money a casino would generate to pay for major, job-creating infrastructure projects around the city, including modernizing antiquated underground water pipes that damage streets when they burst. Chicago, he said, can’t count on Washington or Illinois lawmakers to come up with all the necessary money.
“There is no other place but the casino to make the investment in Chicago’s economic competitiveness,” Emanuel said at a City Hall news conference touting his accomplishments as he marks his 100th day in office this week. […]
The governor’s office shot back at Emanuel after the mayor made his comments Monday, pointing out that Chicago has been the recipient of infrastructure projects because of a statewide capital construction program that Quinn championed.
“Gov. Quinn does not think that the state or the city can gamble its way to prosperity. He has led with other ways to keep the region competitive and put more people to work, most notably the capital plan, which is serving as the largest infrastructure investment in city history and has provided more than $1 billion for Chicago school, road and other local projects to strengthen our economic recovery,” Quinn spokeswoman Brooke Anderson said. [Added another paragraph because some people were getting the wrong idea about Emanuel’s comment.]
It’s like the governor’s office is in campaign mode. Never let a statement go unanswered.
The risk here is that Chicago ends up with its casino, but the mayor is still very unhappy. An unhappy mayor is not something that the governor will want to deal with. Such a situation will lead to all sorts of legislative and media problems. Chicago legislators could be pulled off Quinn’s initiatives in retaliation, for instance, and the Chicago media almost always takes the mayor’s side against any governor.
* And this may not abate any time soon. Check out Gov. Quinn’s media event plans today…
Governor Pat Quinn will announce a major Illinois Jobs Now! capital construction project that will improve regional transportation and create jobs in Chicago.
Yeah. Just rub it in some more, governor.
Sheesh.
Call a truce, willya?
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Could Thome come back to the White Sox?
Tuesday, Aug 23, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Jim Thome has reportedly been placed on waivers by the Minnesota Twins. The Cleveland Indians and the Philadelphia Phillies are reportedly interested in picking him up. Thome played for both teams. The Tribune speculates that the White Sox might also be interested…
Although they haven’t publicly said anything, the White Sox could be another team with interest in Thome.
Manager Ozzie Guillen has said he regretted letting Thome go late in the 2009 season. Thome went to the Dodgers, then signed with the Twins before the 2010 season.
Because he’s a fully vested veteran, Thome has a no-trade clause, which means he has the right to approve a potential trade and can reject claims from any teams that might seek to claim him off waivers.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported Monday that if any major league team claims Thome on waivers, the Twins have until Wednesday to seek a trade instead. If the Twins don’t receive a trade offer they deem worthy enough, they can pull Thome off waivers and reinstate him to the team.
Thome, who hails from the Peoria area, hit his 600th home run last week. Gov. Pat Quinn is reportedly considering declaring a “Jim Thome Day” soon.
What do you think? Should the Sox try to get him back?
…Adding… Considering how shabbily the Cleveland fans treated Thome after he came to Chicago, I really hope they don’t get him back. Those bums don’t deserve him.
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