” House Speaker Michael Madigan opened his press conference today by recalling that he labeled Gov. Bruce Rauner’s original budget a “reckless spending plan” because he used $2.2 billion in phantom anticipated pension savings to fund his budget.
Madigan used today’s press conference to unveil the Democratic budget plan. The proposal “will be consistent with our view of what the State of Illinois should do for Illinoisans who need the government will be helpful for them.” He admitted that there will be a revenue “shortfall” with the budget, but committed to working with the governor to find a solution.
Madigan said he’ll need “a little over $3 billion” in revenues to make the budget balance. “We’ve built cuts into our spending plan,” he added, including human services, higher education and general services. There will be increases for pension payments, Department of Corrections and K-12 education.
“The most important thing for the governor and the Legislature to do right now is to prepare a spending plan,” Madigan said, adding that he didn’t think it was “appropriate” to attach non-spending demands to the appropriations process, and pointed to the governor’s press release today as an example of non-budget issues that aren’t appropriate for the budget-making process.
“I would just disagree with his method,” Madigan said. “Several of those non-budget issues have been rejected [in the House]. They’ve lost. And now it’s time to move onto a spending plan.”
“They will say what they want to say, and it would be unfortunate if they took the focus off the budget making and engaged in a bunch of political rhetoric.”
Asked about the governor’s reported plans for post-session TV ads, Madigan said Rauner will do what he was going to do after the session ended and said the Democrats would do what they were going to do. “I’m going to continue to do my work,” he said.
Asked about Rauner’s contention that some of his Turnaround Agenda could save the state money, Madigan said: “That’s pretty much of a David Stockton theory. Do you remember David Stockton?” Stockman was Ronald Reagan’s supply-side budget director.
“He has his views about what should be done by the government,” Madigan stressed about Rauner, saying others have different views. He then reiterated his demand that non-budget issues should be off the table during a budget process.”
“Issuing threats is really not helpful to this process,” Madigan concluded.
* House Speaker Michael Madigan is set to hold a media availability today. Watch it here. But the governor’s office “responded” before Madigan’s press conference even began…
Statement attributable to Lance Trover, Director of Communications, Office of the Governor
“Speaker Madigan and the politicians he controls are walking away from the negotiating table and refusing to compromise on critical reforms needed to Turnaround Illinois. Instead, they appear ready to end the regular session with yet another broken budget or massive tax hike -and no structural reforms. The Speaker and his allies in the legislature are sorely mistaken if they believe the people of Illinois will accept doubling down on a broken system that has failed Illinois over the last dozen years.”
Whew.
Stay tuned for updates from MJM’s presser, which, as of 3:50 has not yet begun. Rauner’s statement was sent at 3:30.
When Gov. Bruce Rauner and state legislators were faced with filling a $1.6 billion hole in the state’s current budget, they turned to the same pot of money that’s been used in the past.
They decided a major part of the solution would be to take $1.3 billion out of the hundreds of special funds that are part of the state’s financial structure.
It was the first time Rauner used the technique of sweeping special state funds to help pay for other state operations. His office did not respond to questions about whether the governor might use the technique in the future.
However, Rauner did show a willingness to dip into special state funds again this spring to restore cuts made to human services programs known as the “Good Friday cuts.” The cuts later were restored when regular state revenues came in higher than expected.
When lawmakers decided to sweep $1.3 billion from special state funds to plug a hole in this year’s state budget, funds that pay for road construction took a hit.
Three funds provided $350 million of the total. The state’s road fund was hit up for $250 million, the most taken from any fund.
“We are always opposed to diversions,” said Michael Sturino, president and CEO of the Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association.
The Illinois Department of Transportation said the fund sweeps would not affect road projects in the current year. But as Sturino pointed out, the money is not going to be repaid to the funds which means that much less that will be available in the future.
* The Question: Your thoughts on fund sweeps? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
During his six years in Congress, Rep. Aaron Schock could count on commodity trader Darren Frye and his wife, Becky, for campaign cash, transportation and use of an upscale condominium in Chicago, according to records and sources.
But now that Schock has resigned from Congress and is under federal investigation, his dealings with donors such as the Fryes could prove far from beneficial to him.
Schock’s use of the Fryes’ condo and travel services may run afoul of campaign laws and House ethics rules, according to legal experts.
In addition, some of the Fryes’ campaign contributions have raised questions about possible “donor swapping,” a practice that falls into a gray area in the law and can allow political candidates to effectively collect more from a single donor than is legal.
Keep in mind that the Frye’s haven’t been accused of wrongdoing, but go read it all.
As state lawmakers find themselves in their typical late May posture of trying to pass a budget, a new political dynamic hovers over the proceedings: more than $34 million in campaign cash under the control of Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and his allies.
Rauner already has sprinkled a total of $400,000 in contributions to every Republican legislator as he talks about the need for the GOP to “stay unified” at the end of session. Democrats have made those campaign donations an issue, citing what they say are the bad optics of Rauner doling out money at the same time he’s asking Republicans to take tough votes for what he calls his “Turnaround Agenda.”
But Rauner has plenty of money left to unholster against the Democratic-controlled General Assembly should the session go into overtime and stretch into the summer. The implied threat is that incumbents not supportive of the governor could face a barrage of TV and radio attack ads and negative mailings, if not find opponents fielded against them in next year’s legislative races.
Already, an advertising agency that handled Rauner’s multi-million dollar campaign commercials last year has been inquiring about buying broadcast air time, said one media representative who was not authorized to speak publicly. The ad agency declined to comment.
I spent the better part of last Wednesday asking folks around the Statehouse if they had anything positive to tell me. I went looking for anything that might indicate a silver lining to this increasingly nasty spring legislative session.
Mostly, people just laughed at me.
Other than some individual personal developments, there just wasn’t much positivity around. The governor’s chief of staff Mike Zolnierowicz and his incomparable wife Barret were about to have a new baby. They’re great people and that’s wonderful news, but it also means that “Z” was not going to be able to work on solving the problems for a few days.
A gaming expansion bill appeared to be progressing. But I’m told the governor is in no mood to sign it as long as his “Turnaround Agenda” is being ignored by the majority Democrats.
The Senate Democrats, meanwhile, were expected to move legislation to help Chicago out of its horrific fiscal mess, but there’s still the problem with the governor’s refusal to do anything for the Democrats until he gets what he wants.
So, I came up with nothing.
The governor’s list of demands had been whittled down, but he still wasn’t backing off his insistence that the General Assembly give him at least some anti-union “right to work” local zones. He wanted a “causation” standard for workers’ compensation and a property tax freeze, which in even watered-down forms continued to be a nonstarter.
The list of demands went on and on, but in exchange, the governor was willing to support $3.5 billion in new revenues, which doesn’t sound too bad until you realize that he also wanted the Democrats to agree to $3 billion in spending cuts. The governor’s folks thought they were being generous by offering more revenues than cuts, but the Democrats pointed out that getting their people to vote for both tax hikes and huge spending cuts was pretty much impossible.
Instead, the Dems talked last week about sending the governor an unbalanced budget, telling him to cut as much as he could and then they’d come back and help provide the revenue to make the monster balance. They wanted to put the cuts on Rauner’s head, and his head only.
But it was more likely that Rauner would just simply veto the budget bill in its entirety and harangue the Democrats via a massive TV ad campaign for once again producing an “irresponsibly unbalanced budget.” And I’m hearing that when the clock strikes June 1st, the governor’s list of 80 demands and concessions goes out the window and he will put his entire agenda back on the table and withdraw all the concessions, including (and especially) much-needed new revenues.
So, in an admittedly desperate attempt to find something positive to write about, I maneuvered two people, one from each side, to a table last Wednesday night to see if they could hash out one little thing.
Take it from me, these guys are all talking past each other. They just don’t understand each other, and really don’t even comprehend one another, although it did appear that the governor’s people were slightly more willing to cut a deal and they appeared to “get” the Democrats at least a bit more than the Dems appeared to “get” the governor.
The Rauner folks know, at least somewhere deep down, that attacking unions is an existential issue for the Democratic Party. The Dems ain’t gonna move a millimeter on that one. But the Rauner folks have been pointing out that raising taxes is also a potentially existential issue for Rauner and the GOP. He can’t just break his promise to reform government and the economy and then hand the majority party a gigantic tax hike. He’ll get slaughtered for that. Maybe the Dems know that and want to force him to cut his own political throat, or, being Democrats, they just don’t comprehend how tax-averse he is. But as long as he’s willing to go part way on revenues, they’re going to try and push him to go the full boat.
And then I got home Wednesday night and read Gov. Rauner’s op-ed in the State Journal-Register. “If legislators are willing to reform how we do business, they will find me an eager partner,” the governor wrote. “If they are not, then they should expect a very long extra session because I will keep fighting for major reforms.”
Like I said, I got pretty much nothing in the way of good news. Sorry.
Let’s start with what, surprisingly, is the easier part: money. Right now, Illinois has a roughly $6.6 billion hole in that budget, and the only ways to solve it are to raise taxes, cut spending or do some of both.
Rauner has offered to put anywhere from $3.2 billion to $3.5 billion in tax increases on the table (the figure depends on whom you believe). That number could be pushed somewhat higher. That depends on whether the governor is willing—in addition to partially restoring the income tax hike—to add some of the $2.2 billion in potential service-tax revenues that two civic groups proposed recently. Look for Rauner to move a bit more.
On the cut side, Democrats reportedly are willing to part with $1 billion in spending. That, too, likely is an initial bargaining position. No one yet is detailing who would lose, but insiders suggest that the University of Illinois will take a hit, reimbursement rates for physicians participating in Medicaid will drop and local municipalities will lose a portion of what they get from the state’s income tax (though not as much as Rauner originally proposed). Toss in some sweeps of “excess” revenues from special state funds, and the two sides are a mere billion or so away from a balanced budget. Shazam!
Pensions, too, aren’t where the real divisions lie now thanks to the Illinois Supreme Court, which pretty much gave the state one option: Pay up. Lawmakers could try a variation on the “consideration” plan pushed by Senate President John Cullerton, in which some benefits go up and others fall. But the savings will be modest and can’t be counted now.
Agreements on a couple of other issues are needed to give this big, end-of-session deal lift-off velocity. Lawmakers need to pass Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s pension reform plan, which pairs benefit cuts with more money from the county, and let the courts deal with it. Mayor Rahm Emanuel really does need a casino to pay police and fire pensions. And the fiscal cliff that will require the city to pay a whopping $550 million more a year in pension contributions starting Jan. 1 needs to be smoothed down. Does it really matter whether the retirement systems are fully funded in 2040 or 2050?
Then throw in a capital spending bill to give everyone some ribbons to cut. Funding source: possibly an increase in the gas tax.
But, as Greg points out, there’s still that Turnaround Agenda problem. And it’s a big one.
* I just rolled in from a weekend at the Summer Camp music festival in Chillicothe. Wow. I’ll tell you more about it some other time because I gotta get the Fax out to subscribers ASAP. But for now, here’s a live version of a Trigger Hippy song I’ve posted before. “Rise up Singing”…
* The House and Senate are convening Monday afternoon, so I expect to be back online just before then. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Sorry to shut ‘er down so soon, but I’m totally outta here, man…
* If Arlington Park wants table games, all the other tracks will want them as well. The gaming expansion bill could get much bigger…
Arlington Park officials want to add table games to the gambling options at the track in addition to the slot machines they’ve sought for years, a suburban lawmaker said.
Previous proposals called for the addition to 1,200 slot machines at the Arlington Heights horse racing track. State Sen. Matt Murphy, a Palatine Republican, said adding table games is being discussed.
“It’s on the table,” Murphy said.
As video gambling machines in bars and restaurants become more common, the track might need table games to keep up with the competition, Murphy said.
What they essentially want are full-blown casinos at the tracks.
* Who’s more to blame for the current Statehouse gridlock and pending overtime session? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
Donald Stolworthy, acting director of the Illinois Department of Corrections, submitted his resignation to the Republican governor this week, but will remain on the state payroll while a search for a replacement is underway.
“We have accepted the resignation of Acting Director Stolworthy. At our request, he has agreed to help during the transition period to continue our transformation of the Department of Corrections while we identify the leader that will succeed him,” Rauner spokeswoman Catherine Kelly said in an email Friday.
Stolworthy was named to the $150,200 post on March 8 after serving as an official in the U.S. State Department’s prison bureau. The 54-year-old Arlington, Virginia resident replaced S.A. “Tony” Godinez, who had overseen the agency since 2011.
The governor’s office provided no reason for Stolworthy’s pending departure.
* Senate President Pro Tempore Don Harmon responds to Gov. Rauner’s SJ-R op-ed, in which the governor threatened a long overtime session unless Democrats agree to support his reforms…
After reading Governor Bruce Rauner’s opinion piece I agree with the governor on some of the problems the state faces: Our pensions need to be funded and our property taxes are too high.
Unfortunately, we don’t begin to agree on solutions.
Let’s start with pensions. I voted for a major reform two years ago. The Supreme Court just struck it down, ruling that once someone is hired by the state, pension benefits cannot be diminished.
Yet the governor continues to call for diminished benefits “going forward.” We need pension reform, but we’ll never get there with a governor who ignores the Constitution, the Supreme Court and reality.
Yes, property taxes are too high. They’re also extremely unfair to hard-working families who end up getting hit much harder than the wealthy.
I’m working on a solution to provide tax fairness for the middle class.
My solution is a fair income tax, one where higher rates would apply to higher incomes and lower rates would apply to lower incomes. It’s logical and allows middle class families to keep more of their hard-earned money. Nearly every state that borders Illinois already has such a system.
What solutions does the governor offer? None that work for the working families.
He slashes funding for our communities and freezes property taxes. That results in fewer firefighters and police officers, slow snow removal and more pesky potholes.
Illinois deserves better.
It’s clear who Governor Rauner is looking out for and it’s not regular families.
Rauner’s looking out for his Wall Street friends, the corporate millionaires and billionaires who don’t want to pay their fair share.
More alarming is that the governor refuses to move forward on a balanced budget until we approve his agenda. He’s holding the entire state hostage until he gets what he wants, and in the meantime he’s putting real families and real programs in jeopardy. This isn’t leadership. This is bullying.
His plan cripples unions and lowers the wages and benefits of working families.
He wants to make it easier for employers to refuse to pay injured workers.
He wants to make it harder to collect unemployment if your company lays you off.
He wants to keep the minimum wage lower than the cost of living.
That’s class warfare, aimed squarely at the middle class. The only people who benefit from Governor Rauner’s agenda are his corporate pals.
I’m willing to work with the governor to balance the budget.
What I won’t do is dismantle the middle class, no matter what the governor threatens.
The middle class is not a “special interest.” The middle class is the key to a healthy, thriving Illinois.
“Are you stoned or just stupid?” freshman State Rep. Chad Hays (R-Danville) asked Democrat colleague State Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-Belleville) on the House floor Friday morning, when Hoffman presented one piece of legislation after another concerning workers compensation reform, for which he then urged a “No” vote.
“I didn’t put these proposals forward, the governor did - these are your proposals, not ours,” Hoffman said. “You can’t handle the truth. The governor hasn’t put a proposal forward, and we’re not working on the budget. Rome is burning.”
Friday morning, Hoffman proposed changes to the workers’ compensation system that would require the company to be at least 50 percent the cause for injuries, that American Medical Association’s injury guidelines to be used, and other proposals that had been discussed in legislative working groups.
But he asked that his colleagues vote no on each reform. Every one of the amendments the lawmaker proposed failed, just as he asked.
* Things are most definitely getting hairy…
When a long time Dem State Rep screams "Rome is Burning" about IL, he might want to self-report, not as mere fiddler but an arsonist. #Cmon
* Speaker Madigan coined a new phrase after his millionaire’s tax proposal was defeated yesterday…
All Republicans voting on the proposed amendment voted against it. Three Democrats also voted against the measure: Jack Franks of Marengo, Ken Dunkin of Chicago and Scott Drury of Highwood.
Even though three Democrats voted against his proposed amendment, House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, blamed members of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s party for its defeat.
“The passage of this was in the hands of the Rauner Republicans,” Madigan said. “The roll call was very clear. The Rauner Republicans voted against the resolution. They don’t even want to give the voters of the state the opportunity to vote on this question. It’s very regrettable.”
“As an individual, when I earn more I accept that I will pay more,” state Rep. Carol Sente, a Vernon Hills Democrat, said. “The approximate $1 billion per year in additional revenue is direly needed by our state to fund education.”
* But the Republicans got in some solid licks yesterday…
Rep. Ron Sandack, R-Downers Grove, took the opportunity Thursday to quiz Madigan about past votes by lawmakers that added to the state’s poor financial shape, including decisions to borrow money to make pension payments or skip payments altogether.
“Now, essentially the problem makers wish to be the problem solvers by asking taxpayers to come out of their pockets yet again without doing the real work necessary to solve our state’s financial problems,” said Sandack, who argued the tax would encourage high earners to leave the state.
Madigan said he had “no reason to disagree with your version of history” but said he was offering voters the chance to raise more money for local schools, which districts could use to ease their pension obligations.
* Under current state law, if you have any THC in your system and you’re involved in a car crash, you can be sent to prison - even if you hadn’t ingested any THC in weeks. The new marijuana decrim bill amends that ridiculous statute…
One little-reported provision of the measure would change the state’s zero-tolerance law for driving with marijuana in one’s system.
Marijuana remains in the body much longer than alcohol, after the effects of pot’s psychoactive component, THC, have worn off. So instead of drivers being deemed intoxicated with any amount of pot in their systems, the new limit, if the bill becomes law, would be 15 nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood, or 25 nanograms per milliliter of saliva.
Cassidy said the standard is based on federal studies that looked at when impairment occurs.
Police would still be able to use field sobriety tests to establish impairment regardless of blood levels, just as with alcohol.
Democrats have begun to craft their own budget without Rauner’s input. They’re looking to spend $36 billion on government operations next year, according to a Democratic source with knowledge of budget talks. That figure is the same amount lawmakers signed off on last year, which Rauner’s office has said was $1.6 billion out of whack. That shortfall will only grow next year after the January rollback of portions of an income tax increase, and questions remain about where the state will get the money to cover that level of spending.
While Democrats have made no secret of their desire to raise taxes to avoid deep cuts, they say a conversation on how to bring in more revenue likely won’t happen before the May 31 budget deadline.
There will be some “natural” revenue growth next fiscal year, but there’s no doubt that the Democrats’ budget will be way out of whack. Subscribers know even more about that gaping hole.
Gov. Bruce Rauner spent his first months in office fixing the phony budget his predecessor signed.
He’s made it absolutely clear he won’t play that game. If anyone needed a reminder, Rauner offered it Thursday in an oped in the Springfield Journal-Register. “I might be new around here, but I understand what I was sent to do. It was not to accept the dismal failure that our state government has become.”
Last year’s budget deal was, indeed, phony. It took $1.6 billion in patches to make it balance this fiscal year.
$1.6 billion is a big hole.
But compare that to Gov. Rauner’s proposed state budget, which built in a $2.2 billion hole with a completely phony pension savings, well over $700 million in phantom employee heath insurance cost savings, and around $100 million in illusory savings from human services.
Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton complain that budget negotiations with Rauner have been fruitless.
From what we hear, it’s because they won’t give. On anything. Behind closed doors, Rauner has taken his most controversial proposals off the table. He’s pushing for workers’ compensation reform, term limits, an honest effort at restructuring state government. He will be flexible on their wishes, which would include more spending than he proposed in his budget.
The Democrats haven’t budged. That’s true. It’s their usual play.
But Rauner has most definitely not taken all of his “most controversial proposals off the table.” Subscribers know more about this. He has moved some, but, man, there are still a whole lot of things that Democrats cannot and will not agree to.
This is not a cartoon, even though some (*cough*Tribune*cough*) would like to portray it as such. And I’m sure we can expect more editorials like this as the summer progresses.
With just 10 days remaining in the spring legislative session, Gov. Bruce Rauner has finally put large parts of his so-called Turnaround Agenda into bill form, a move that follows months of criticism by Democrats who argued there was no way to vet his plans.
Rauner aides shared copies of five pieces of legislation with reporters late Thursday, including measures that would make changes to workers’ compensation insurance for employees hurt on the job, overhaul the system for awarding judgments in civil cases and freeze local property taxes. Also drafted were two constitutional amendments that would set term limits for lawmakers and statewide officials and change the way legislative boundaries are drawn.
Administration officials say the legislation will be formally filed Friday, but would not say who they’ve recruited to sponsor the measures. The governor’s office said it decided to release the information after Democrats walked away from the bargaining table.
* The administration won’t be filing a “right to work” zones bill, however…
Not included in the stack of new bills is legislation to create right-to-work zones where union membership would be voluntary — a proposal that has drawn heavy protests from organized labor and that House lawmakers soundly defeated during a symbolic vote last week.
But the legislation will include measures to allow some local governments to opt out of collective bargaining with public-employee unions and prevailing wage agreements, which set a minimum level of salary and benefits for work on government projects. Rauner has said the agreements drive up the cost of public construction projects.
A spokesman for Rauner declined to comment on the proposals Thursday. But Rep. Ed Sullivan, a member of House Republican leadership, said the package represents Rauner’s attempts to compromise with Democrats who control the Legislature following weeks of closed-door, bipartisan meetings. […]
Democrats, who hold supermajorities in both chambers, said they would review the bills, but offered no guarantees they would advance.
It’ll be interesting to see what the Dems do with the term limits and redistricting proposals. No way does MJM want to deal with term limits on the floor. Everything else could likely be killed off without much worry.
Sources say the move by Rauner’s administration is to respond to complaints by Democrats that the governor has failed to give them specific language he wants included in reform measures he’s pushing.
“Democrats have all but abandoned his working groups,” one source with knowledge of the proposals told the Sun-Times. “This is his response to the Democrats’ failure to cooperate and meaningfully find common ground on his agenda items.” […]
One Republican said the six so-called “vehicle bills” to be filed Friday should at least get an airing on the committee level.
“I welcome that opportunity. Look, from a minority perspective in the House, we’re fighting off bad bills and fighting off bad bills brought ostensibly in the name of the governor. They were examples of political theater only,” said state Rep. Ron Sandack, R-Downers Grove. “I’d like to have a real debate. I think the issues are important enough to have a serious discussion.”
If they want committee hearings, though, maybe the Dems will oblige.
* Meanwhile, House Speaker Michael Madigan has filed a package of amendments dealing with workers’ comp. A vote on tort reforms had been planned today, but that’s being pushed off until next week.
The business community is asking for “Present” votes from members…
Illinois job creators have consistently called for comprehensive and meaningful reform of the Workers’ Compensation Act that will significantly reduce costs for employers – private and public sector - while protecting the rights of legitimately injured workers and ensuring their access to quality health care. Despite the 2011 reforms, Illinois still has the 7th highest cost of workers’ compensation in the United States and it is consistently cited as one of the primary reasons that companies move out of state or choose not to invest capital and grow jobs in Illinois.
“At this time, we are asking all House lawmakers to vote present on the workers’ compensation amendments filed yesterday until our elected officials have reached comprehensive agreement on reform. Illinois employers stand ready to work with leaders on both sides of the aisle.”
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce
Illinois Chamber of Commerce
Illinois Manufacturers’ Association
Illinois Retail Merchants Association
National Federation of Independent Business
Associated Builders & Contractors
Home Builders Association of Illinois
Illinois Self-Insurers Association
Mid-West Equipment Dealers Association
Mid-West Truckers Association
Technology & Manufacturing Association
Friday, May 22, 2015 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
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As a thank you for their ultimate sacrifice to our country, credit unions from across the state unite to sponsor wreaths to decorate the gravesites of veterans from each branch of the military during the holidays. This past year, through member donations collected at their branches and with funds directly provided by the credit unions themselves, nearly 570 gravesites were decorated with wreaths sponsored by Illinois credit unions at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, as well as at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C. True to their mission, groups of volunteers from Illinois credit unions also participate in the ceremonial act of placing wreaths at the gravesites.
As not-for-profit financial cooperatives with a mantra of “People Before Profits”, credit unions are a highly valued resource by nearly 3 million Illinois consumers — and remembered for their efforts in serving their communities this Memorial holiday and every day.
* Nothing so far from the governor’s office or the AFL-CIO, but The Tribune has a long story today about how the governor is pushing local governments to pass resolutions supporting his “right to work” agenda and other issues.
Only a fraction of the village and county boards across the state even took up the symbolic resolution of support that Rauner aides drafted. Most of the places that approved it are small, and the resolution sometimes ran into problems in larger locales that outright rejected, set aside or altered the measure to strip out the anti-union language. […]
Of the three dozen or so that have approved it, most have populations under 10,000 or are counties with less than 50,000 people. Rockford, Illinois’ third-largest city, adopted the resolution, as did McHenry County. And a few medium-sized suburbs have passed the measure, including Elk Grove Village and Round Lake Beach.. […]
Naperville isn’t known as a Democratic stronghold, but hundreds packed into the municipal center in late April when the council planned to vote on a modified version of Rauner’s resolution that contained softer language about collective bargaining. Dozens spoke against it during an extended public comment period that led the council to put off the matter.
Some council members said they had received personal phone calls from the governor on the eve of the vote, but were confused by the resolution and felt rushed to support something they didn’t fully understand. The Naperville situation highlighted what Democrats including Madigan say has been a flaw in the governor’s approach: His delay in putting out legislation detailing out how his proposals would work.
