More appointment drama
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Bruce Rauner’s lawyers sat down with Gov. Pat Quinn’s lawyers the other day…
Rauner’s attorneys met with the general counsel of the governor’s office and an ethics officer. According to a Rauner spokesman, they made three points, including asking that Quinn appoint Topinka top aide Nancy Kimme for the term expiring January 12.
Rauner attorneys also “made comprehensive legal analysis of our position, which is that there are two vacancies and Bruce can fill the second,” spokesman Mike Schrimpf wrote. “Asked if they had any conflicting legal authority to point to, they were unable to do so.”
Actually, what I heard from both sides was that the Quinn lawyers merely listened to the reasoning, thanked them for providing it and departed.
Everybody just needs to chill out a bit here.
* Meanwhile…
Lame-duck Illinois governors would be prohibited from duplicating the political power play that Pat Quinn used to muscle his former campaign manager into the job of executive director of the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, under a crackdown proposed Thursday.
State Sen. Julie Morrison, a freshman who represents the north suburbs, was so offended by the 4-to-3 vote that installed 30-year-old Lou Bertuca in the $160,000-a-year job, she wants to do the legislative equivalent of blocking the plate.
“The executive director of the Illinois Sports Finance Authority is among the highest-paid state employees. A governor who’s leaving office shouldn’t be able to use the position as a cushy landing spot,” Morrison was quoted as saying in a news release.
Morrison’s bill would prohibit the state agency that built and manages U.S. Cellular Field and rebuilt Soldier Field from appointing a new executive director during the 60-day period after an election and before a lame-duck governor leaves office.
As I said yesterday, Quinn has unintentionally framed this Topinka replacement debate by pulling that power play at the Sports Facilities Authority. Lou’s a good guy, but, c’mon, man. When Tier One targets from your own party start introducing press release bills to clean up after your messes, you can be pretty sure you’re on the wrong track.
* It’s difficult to argue with this Tribune editorial...
If the old Pat Quinn were around, he would be booking a hotel conference room for a Sunday morning press conference to scream about the shenanigans of a lame-duck governor.
That Quinn would roast the lame-duck governor for sliding his former campaign manager into a $175,000-a-year job with a two-year contract. That Quinn would complain about the lame-duck governor cutting a questionable Lottery contract settlement on his way out the door.
If only that Pat Quinn were around to raise hell.
Instead, it’s Gov. Pat Quinn whose administration is behaving like its plucking all the B and R keys off the computer keyboards right before Bruce Rauner moves into the mansion in Springfield.
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Sebastian’s restaurant to close December 20th
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I was just at lunch with an old pal at the Lake Pointe Grill when one of the owners approached and said they were closing their popular downtown restaurant Sebastian’s on the 20th of this month.
Bummer. I liked the place. It won our Golden Horseshoe Award last year.
Maybe we should toast its demise Friday the 19th after work? Maybe our own little Springfield holiday party? Your thoughts?
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Today’s number: $400K
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* If anyone still has doubts about whether US Sen. Mark Kirk is running for reelection, they should take a look at this from his campaign…
Rich-
I wanted to let you know first that Senator Kirk held a record setting fundraiser this week with pro–Israel supporters in NYC that raised over $400k in a single event. He will have over $2mill cash on hand now.
The event invitation is here. It was hosted by some pretty major heavy hitters, including the Managing Director of Goldman Sachs, the Managing Partner at Clarion Capital, etc.
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Caption contest!
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Let’s lighten things up a bit. The Illinois Third House is a sort of trade organization for Illinois lobbyists. They elect a “Speaker” every year, complete with gavel. The group held its annual holiday party yesterday and announced the new Speaker, Keith Sias of the Illinois Credit Union League. I’ve known Keith forever and have always been amazed at how much he works.
Anyway, here’s Keith with the longest serving Speaker of the Third House, Dick Lockhart. Dick also lobbies for the ICUL. Lockhart is flying to Belgium today to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge, during which he was taken prisoner by the Germans…
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Question of the day
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Tribune…
Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn can fill the vacancy created by Topinka’s death. But Quinn leaves office in a month, and Republican Bruce Rauner will take over as governor. The question: Would a Quinn appointee serve as comptroller only until Jan. 12, when a new term begins and Rauner would get to choose a comptroller, or would Quinn’s selection get to serve the new term as well?
The state constitution speaks to the succession for comptroller in a couple of places. The succession clause states that “the appointee shall hold office until the elected officer qualifies or until a successor is elected and qualified.”
But another section limits the terms of statewide officeholders to four years “until their successors are qualified.” […]
Ann Lousin, an expert on the state constitution at Chicago’s John Marshall Law School, said neither the charter nor state law lays out a clear contingency for replacing Topinka so close to the start of her next term.
“The scenario that would be the least likely to lead to litigation would be for Quinn to appoint someone to serve just to Jan. 12, or even just let Topinka’s deputy fill the post until then, and then let Rauner appoint somebody for four years on Jan. 12,” Lousin said.
* The Constitution…
If the Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller or Treasurer fails to qualify or if his office becomes vacant, the Governor shall fill the office by appointment. The appointee shall hold office until the elected officer qualifies or until a successor is elected and qualified as may be provided by law and shall not be subject to removal by the Governor.
* The difference of opinion here is whether there is one vacancy (JBT’s death) or two (JBT’s death and inauguration day). One vacancy means Quinn’s appointment would serve until January of 2019, two vacancies would mean Rauner would appoint a new comptroller next month.
We’ve had lots of discussions about this issue, so let’s vote on it.
* The Question: One vacancy or two? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
polls
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* AP…
The Illinois Commerce Commission has approved rate increases for the state’s two main electric utilities.
The commission this week authorized an 11 percent overall raise for ComEd and 17.4 percent overall raise for Ameren Illinois… The amount customers will pay depends on different factors, including their location and how much electricity they use, commission officials said. The increases will affect delivery charges or how much consumers pay to have electricity delivered. […]
The commission approved the increases after reviewing the utilities’ expenditures over the last year, officials said. The new rates were set using a formula created by a state law that allows utilities to recover costs for specific investments in infrastructure, such as smart meter and smart grid technology.
* The Citizens Utility Board, which is in general support of the smart grid, was shocked at the amount…
“Today, ComEd and Ameren received a total of about $382 million in rate hikes (reportedly $245 million for ComEd and about $137 million for Ameren). CUB is disappointed in these increases, especially as they will hit consumers in the heart of what could be another expensive winter. Illinois’ new way of setting electric rates—by formula—limits how much consumer advocates and regulators can reduce proposed increases. CUB does plan to file petitions for rehearing to lower the increases as much as possible. However, our focus is also on holding ComEd and Ameren accountable and pushing them to live up to their promise of building a better power grid that maximizes consumer benefits. Illinois consumers deserve to see results.”
Background:
• These rate hikes take effect in January 2015. CUB is still crunching numbers to determine how this will impact individual bills. The increases affect delivery charges—what customers pay to have the electricity delivered to their homes. Those charges take up about a third to a half of the bill. The rest of the bill is taken up by the cost of the electricity itself. That supply rate is determined through a power-buying process managed by the Illinois Power Agency (IPA), a state agency, or by an alternative supplier, if a customer is with one.
• Since this increase involves delivery rates, all customers will pay the higher rates—even those with an alternative supplier.
• The delivery increases are in accordance with passage of the 2011 “Energy Infrastructure and Modernization Act,” or the “smart-grid bill.” The new law uses a formula to determine ComEd and Ameren rates annually for the next several years to pay for about $3.2 billion in system upgrades.
• ComEd’s initial rate-hike request was about $275 million and Ameren’s was about $206 million. Both companies filed the requests last April.
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Topinka memorial service announced
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From a press release…
A public Memorial Service honoring longtime state leader Judy Baar Topinka will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, December 17 at the Local 150, 6200 Joliet Rd., Countryside.
Fellow state leaders, colleagues and family will share stories and celebrate the life of Comptroller Topinka, who was the first woman in Illinois history to be elected to two Constitutional Offices and the first state Treasurer to be elected to three consecutive terms. Between her time in the General Assembly and in statewide office, Topinka served Illinois for more than three decades.
SCHEDULE FOR WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2014:
WHAT: TOPINKA MEMORIAL SERVICE
WHEN: 9:30 a.m.
WHERE: Local 150 - 6200 Joliet Rd., Countryside
* I stopped by JBT’s annual staff holiday party in Springfield last night. As you might imagine, her people are devastated. I felt so bad for them, but they tried like heck to smile through their tears because they knew their boss would’ve wanted it that way.
Judy’s only son Joe also attended and continued his mom’s tradition of visiting with every person at every table in the room.
I’ve defended Gov. Pat Quinn’s unfettered right to appoint Topinka’s replacement, at least until January 12th. Beyond that, the lawyers are gonna have to figure it out. But I sure hope he takes Topinka’s staff into account when he makes his decision. Many of them volunteered for their employer’s campaign. They worked their tails off, decisively won the election and now they’re staring at the abyss.
* Meanwhile…
The clock is ticking as state leaders face a dilemma in how to replace Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka in her current and future terms. […]
Comptroller’s office spokesman Brad Hahn says the office is still processing checks to schools and state agencies that the Riverside Republican approved before her death. But he says operations can continue only for “several” days. A new comptroller must be named to approve future payments.
As I told subscribers today, I was told last night that an appointment could be held off until after Wednesday’s memorial service. There’s no need to rush here.
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Good morning!
Friday, Dec 12, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* You’re in for a real treat this morning with Keller & The Keels. Wake up…
I like your biscuits in my gravy, ma’am
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