* I’ve been hearing he’s wanted this for a while now, but I didn’t know if he could pull it off. Looks like he’s a small step closer…
Current Illinois State Senator and International Director of Each One Feed One, Kyle McCarter has been recommended for appointment as U.S. Ambassador to Kenya.
Republican members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation delivered a letter to President Donald Trump May 11th recommending Sen. McCarter.
“I’m honored and humbled to have the unanimous recommendation of our Republican Congressional Delegation to serve the United States of America in this new role.” McCarter said. “Our country has a long friendship with Kenya that began soon after the country won its independence in late 1963, and my family’s personal friendship goes back over 30 years. If President Trump selects me for this role, I would be honored to serve,” McCarter said.
The letter from the Illinois Republican Members of Congress notes Senator McCarter’s long history of working in Kenya, including founding the Each One Feed One International charity in Tharaka, Kenya.
“Through his work in Kenya, he has experience negotiating with tribal chiefs and other dignitaries, along with logistical and other administrative experience working with the Kenyan government. Additionally, he has experience working with USAID and other organizations, including Compassion International within Kenya to provide health care for over 3,000 Kenyan children.”
Senator McCarter and his wife, Victoria have worked in Kenya for over 30 years. Each One Feed One International’s efforts in Kenya include an elementary school for children K-8 and assistance for hundreds of abandoned, abused and orphaned children. The charity also provides a medical clinic with comprehensive health care and support to those suffering from HIV and malaria. Additionally, the clinic provides baby immunizations and well-baby education, and treats as many as 18,000 patients a year.
The Illinois Congressmen wrote that McCarter would ensure U.S. taxpayer dollars are well-spent in the country, and he will bring accountability to the aid program benefiting Kenyans.
“…his experience on the ground in Kenya has provided him heightened insight into the governmental operations and other political, economic, and social realities of both Kenya and the larger region of East Africa. He has outlined specific ideas for reforms of USAID spending, including curtailing waste, fraud, and abuse within the program,” the letter stated.
The letter from the Illinois Republican Congressional Delegation was presented to the White House on May 11th. The Ambassador post requires a Presidential nomination as well as U.S. Senate confirmation.
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* From a letter sent today to Speaker Madigan from House GOP Leader Jim Durkin…
Dear Speaker Madigan:
I appreciate your recognition of the fact that the impasse is hurting the people of Illinois, and agree that enacting a state budget is the top priority of the Illinois General Assembly. I would add that any approved budget must be balanced and extend a full year, putting Illinois in a much better long term financial position.
As I have said time and time again, the House Republican caucus is willing to work with Democrats, but both sides must respect each other’s priorities. An article in the Chicago Tribune today points out that 44 percent of the jobless people in Illinois have completely quit looking for a job, which is 11 percent higher than the national average of 33 percent. That number is unacceptable. Illinois can and must do better through pension reform, property tax relief and the enactment of reforms to encourage economic development and job creation.
On March 24, I introduced a comprehensive pension reform proposal, HB 4027, and offered 26 votes, which is our pro-rata share of votes, to support a structured roll call on this important issue. On Tuesday, Leader Barbara Flynn Currie introduced identical legislation to HB 4027. I am not concerned over who gets the credit, but ask you to commit to providing the necessary 34 votes from your caucus to get the bill passed and over to the Senate.
Past experience has shown House Democrats use working groups to slow the process and eventually walk away from the negotiating table. However, in a good faith effort I am prepared to appoint Representatives Patti Bellock, Dan Brady, Tom Demmer and Norine Hammond to work with your appointees and the Governor on important issues like pension reform, property tax relief and job growth.
We request in advance the specific proposals the House Democrats would like to discuss.
Sincerely,
Jim Durkin
House Republican Leader
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Et tu, Diana?
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Check out the retweeter…
* But, to be fair, Mrs. Rauner’s group also retweeted this right after…
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Candidate question 3 - Municipal bankruptcy
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I asked all the Democratic gubernatorial candidates this question the other day…
Do you think municipal governments in Illinois (including school districts) should be allowed to declare bankruptcy? Why or Why not?
Answers are in order of received.
* Superintendent Bob Daiber…
No
Allowing municipal units of government to declare bankruptcy in Illinois could impair employees from receiving their full pay and benefits that may have been negotiated through a collective bargaining agreement. Furthermore, allowing bankruptcy to be declared would cast a poor image of that region whether it is a community or school district. I do not believe this is the right approach to rebuild Illinois.
* Sen. Daniel Biss…
Municipal governments are not private corporations. While it sometimes makes sense for a private company to enter into bankruptcy, restructure, and replace its decision-makers, government’s ultimate decision-maker is the public, which is irreplaceable. That’s why municipal bankruptcy is very different than corporate bankruptcy, a distinction that Governor Rauner does not understand.
The answer to the question, then, is no. Local governments should not be allowed to walk away from their obligations to their residents. Assets held in the public trust should not be sold off to Wall Street bondholders and corporate special interests. What Illinois should do instead to support struggling local governments is fix our broken revenue system, beginning by amending the constitution to allow for a graduated income tax to make millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share.
* Ald. Ameya Pawar…
Absolutely not. As we proved in Chicago, when everyone comes together and makes the tough choices to reform the way government works, we can reverse decades of fiscal mismanagement and make our municipalities stronger.
Unlike the strong-arm tactics of Bruce Rauner, who is holding municipalities and school districts hostage until they agree to destroy labor protections, I will work to ensure the state is a true partner with local government and reinvest in our public institutions and communities across Illinois.
* JB Pritzker…
No. Bruce Rauner’s failed leadership has destabilized our state and our infrastructure. Providing more opportunities for local government bodies to file bankruptcy can lead to increased instability and diminish borrowing power.
* Chris Kennedy campaign…
No he does not support the option of local municipal bankruptcy because it is expensive, unproven and often doesn’t yield the results intended.
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* From the Southern Illinoisan…
In a special meeting, the Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees on Wednesday authorized a plan to allow the Carbondale campus to borrow from the Edwardsville campus until which time the state of Illinois approves a full annual state appropriation to the SIU System. […]
As to the borrowing authorization, the board’s affirmative vote on the resolution allows Carbondale to borrow up to $35 million in unrestricted funds from the Edwardsville campus. Under the terms of the borrowing arrangement, the Carbondale campus’s leadership is directed to develop a financial sustainability plan of necessary reductions to address the fiscal crisis facing the Carbondale campus, excluding the School of Medicine.
Dunn said the approved resolution attempted to address some of the concerns that have been expressed by constituency group leaders on the Edwardsville campus since Dunn announced the borrowing proposal in a System Connection letter this past month. For instance, it set a cap on the amount that can be borrowed from Edwardsville — $35 million — and reemphasizes a requirement that Carbondale come up with a plan to reduce costs by July. […]
If there is no state budget by the beginning of the 2018 fiscal year on July 1 or other actions taken to “sufficiently sustain Carbondale operations,” the resolution calls for SIU System President Dunn to make a recommendation that the board declare a “short term fiscal emergency” for the Carbondale campus, excluding the School of Medicine. […]
The Carbondale campus has depleted all of its available sources of unrestricted funds as the state’s budget impasse has dragged on for close to two years. As of February, the campus had an unrestricted cash deficit of $23.2 million. The School of Medicine had a positive balance of $59.2 million. Without a state budget, it is projected the Carbondale campus will exceed the available unrestricted funds of the School of Medicine in May 2017. The School of Medicine, primarily based in Springfield, sits under the umbrella of the Carbondale campus.
* Related…
* WIU to demolish long-vacant 20-story Higgins Hall in July: When Higgins was built, Roselieb said, Western Illinois University’s enrollment was much higher. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Roselieb said, enrollment at all public universities in the state started a downward trend that continues today. As a result, Western doesn’t need the number or residence halls that it once did.
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Our sorry state
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Illinois Policy Institute…
Go to uhaul.com and check the price for a one-way truck rental moving from Chicago to Dallas on Saturday, July 1st. You’ll find that the current price for a one-way move is $1,650 for a 20 foot truck.
Now put the trip in reverse, making the one-way move from Dallas to Chicago instead of from Chicago to Dallas. The price for the reverse move with the same truck, the same mileage and the same date is $460.
This example shows how supply and demand affect prices, and it reveals a troubling reality for Illinois. After years of crippling outmigration, still more Illinoisans are planning to bolt this summer.
The price for a truck to leave Chicago is high because so many families are planning to get out. The price for a truck to move into Chicago is low because relatively few families are moving in to replace those who leave.
Moving companies like U-Haul need to factor these differences into their pricing model to protect their profitability, and to ensure that they don’t end up with an oversupply of Chicago-based trucks sitting in a Dallas parking lot.
You can check other cities and see similar results. There is high demand for a summer move from Chicago to cities like Denver, Nashville, Charlotte, Orlando and Indianapolis.
And here’s the kicker: U-Haul prices show that Illinois is even losing to recently bankrupt Detroit. The price for a 20-foot truck moving from Chicago to Detroit is $610. But the same truck moving from Detroit to Chicago costs only $185.
It’s like one last moving tax on beleaguered families as they leave Illinois. The demand to get out of Illinois is so high that you have to pay premium rates for a truck to Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Indiana and even Michigan.
Some claim this is a phenomenon happening all across the Midwest, and that the entire region is rapidly depopulating to the south and west.
Not so fast.
Run the same experiment between Indianapolis and Dallas and you will see a very different result.
The one-way move from Indianapolis to Dallas is nearly $1000, while the one-way move from Dallas to Indianapolis is nearly $900. In other words, Dallas wins the pricing battle with Indianapolis, but not by much.
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* Part of this job is showing up, so give him credit for that…
…Adding… From the DGA…
“Today Bruce Rauner came face-to-face with the consequences of his failed leadership,” said DGA Communications Director Jared Leopold. “Illinois families need a fully functioning university system to make sure their children are prepared for tomorrow’s jobs, but Rauner’s budget failures resulted in slashed school budgets and laid off staff. His continued inaction threatens the futures of Illinois families and the state’s economy. Illinois students deserve a budget that funds education. ”
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It’s just a bill
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The Rauner administration says this legislation will cost $300 million…
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and others on Wednesday delivered thousands of postcards to Gov. Bruce Rauner in support of legislation that would raise the minimum wage for workers who care for patients with developmental disabilities.
Last year, Rauner vetoed increasing the wage to $15 an hour because he said the state didn’t have the money. Direct support providers now make $8.35, 10 cents higher than Illinois’ minimum wage. […]
By a 36-20 vote Wednesday, the Illinois Senate approved Senate Bill 955, which increases the caregivers’ wage to $15 an hour. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Heather Steans, D-Chicago, now goes to the House. A similar bill sponsored by Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Evanston, is in a House committee. […]
Dykstra argued that because of low pay, a third of his available jobs are vacant.
“In my entire 50 years of working in this field, I have never experienced such a staffing crisis. Providers cannot hire sufficient numbers of direct support staff primarily because of the low entry level (wage),” Dykstra said. “Direct support staff is the backbone of our organizations. At Trinity Services, we should have 539 direct support staff. Today, we have 172 staff vacancies. We’re starting to discharge individuals because we don’t simply have enough staff.”
* We’ve discussed before how the administration will sit on invoices for months, then submit them to the comptroller and almost immediate complain to the media that the comptroller’s office is holding up payment. This isn’t new. It’s something that governors do when they’re trying to avoid responsibility. So, this is a good idea…
[Comptroller Susana Mendoza] is pushing legislation, which has passed the state House of Representatives, that would require state agencies to provide monthly reports to the comptroller on the amount of bills being held, the liabilities for which there are appropriations and liabilities subject to prompt-payment penalties. […]
Mendoza’s office said the intent of the legislation would be to reveal any potential financial liabilities and to identify late interest penalties that maybe adding up.
“Agencies are sitting on bills that we don’t know exist,” Mendoza told the BND editorial board.
Some are bills that could be sent and agencies sit on them; some bills are for services that haven’t yet had money appropriated for the work by the General Assembly, but agencies still entered into contracts for the service, said Jamey Dunn, the deputy director of communications for the comptroller’s office. […]
Presently, agencies are only required to report pending bills on Oct. 1 of each year for the total amount of bills being held as of the previous June 30.
* Just legalize it and get it over with already…
The Illinois medical marijuana law should be expanded to help curb opioid addiction in the state, advocates told a Senate panel Wednesday.
Illinois patients must have one of about 40 qualifying conditions to purchase medical marijuana from a licensed dispensary, ranging from cancer to post-traumatic stress disorder. The law requires doctors to certify that a patient has one of these conditions without recommending marijuana.
Charles Bush-Joseph, an orthopedic surgeon at Rush University Medical Center, told senators there are thousands of patients who could either come off narcotics or reduce their dosage if granted access to medical marijuana.
A Senate committee didn’t discuss a specific proposal to expand Illinois’ marijuana law, so it’s not set to happen soon. Lawmakers fought for years before approving the state’s program in the first place and have debated expanding it before too.
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* This could be good. NBC 5…
After a war of words over Chicago Public Schools funding, Gov. Bruce Rauner and Mayor Rahm Emanuel will stand together Thursday to announce hundreds of jobs coming to the South Side of the city.
The two are slated to announce the expansion of a Flex-N-Gate facility that’s expected to create at least 300 new manufacturing jobs. […]
Thursday’s announcement is common ground for Emanuel and Rauner after a lengthy, public vocal battle between the two.
“The state of Illinois has to do the most fundamental. Pass a budget, balanced budget, fully fund education. We are seeing the consequences of a governor who has never ever in his entire 22 months as governor once introduced a budget,” Emanuel said.
Emanuel’s office said there would be no media availability after the event. Rauner’s office didn’t say one way or the other, which usually indicates he’ll answer questions.
* Anyway, part of this Rauner administration response from Eleni Demertzis was quoted in the above article. It’s not exactly on-topic, but good enough for our purposes…
CPS’ crisis is not due to the budget impasse, it’s due to decades of fiscal mismanagement. Instead of pointing fingers and blaming decades of fiscal mismanagement on a governor who has been in office for two years, CPS officials and the Mayor should be here in Springfield demanding that the comptroller prioritize our schools and urging lawmakers to pass a balanced budget that includes pension reform that will in return secure the $215 million in funding for CPS.
The mayor should be more involved. I agree.
But I don’t know how they can continue to blame the comptroller for not paying bills with an empty bank account. Well, actually, I do know how they can do this. Anything and everything that distracts from the governor’s own culpability is thrown at the media.
*** UPDATE *** Not exactly friendly…
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* More from Speaker Madigan’s WGN Radio interview…
“The Rauner proposal would say, let’s change history. … Prior to (Franklin D.) Roosevelt’s election, the federal government wasn’t greatly involved in the management of the economy. But when Roosevelt became the president in 1933, the federal government became very active using the Federal Reserve and the Treasury and the Congress in managing the economy,” Madigan said.
“From 1933 until today, both Democratic and Republican presidents and members of the Congress have always worked to raise wages, raise the standard of living,” he said.
“Here in Illinois, the Rauner proposal is: Let’s change that history. Let’s not have the government working to raise wages and the standard of living. Let’s have the government to work and lower wages and the standard of living by bringing down the benefit level in workers’ compensation, taking away the right to bargain collectively if you work for a government and if you work in the construction industry, taking away a prevailing wage. That’s the proposal. And it would be a proposed change in history. I don’t support it,” he said.
I think the governor most certainly came into office wanting to change history. But that ain’t so easy without a compliant General Assembly.
Conversely, you could say that Madigan is blocking the door to any changes, some of which are needed.
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[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Proponents of HB 2774 & SB 1502, the so-called “Right to Know” bills, claim that the legislation will prevent companies from being able to sell your data – but this isn’t the truth. Instead, it will force businesses both large and small to collect and disclose more data about their customers.
The legislation will NOT prohibit companies from selling or sharing information. It would instead require companies, businesses and organizations to create expensive and complex IT systems to capture even more data on users. Personal consumer information is already protected by terms of service agreements and enforced by the Federal Trade Commission and the Illinois Attorney General.
HB 2774 & SB 1502 are not only unnecessary and duplicative, but will also place a costly burden on Illinois small businesses and start-ups, damaging our growing tech economy. That’s why the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Illinois Restaurant Association and numbers of other organizations vehemently oppose these bills.
Let’s work together to keep Illinois businesses and consumers’ data safe and secure. Vote NO on House Bill 2774 & Senate Bill 1502.
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Dems hold abortion bill from Rauner
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release…
Senate gives Rauner more time to ponder choice
SPRINGFIELD – Saying the governor needs time to reconsider his pledge to veto House Bill 40, legislation that protects women’s reproductive rights in Illinois, Senator Don Harmon Wednesday night slowed the bill’s trek to the governor’s desk.
“This measure is too important to immediately put it in the hands of a governor whose public opinions about women’s access to safe, affordable reproductive health care have been inconsistent at best,” said Harmon, an Oak Park Democrat and president pro tempore of the Illinois Senate.
Harmon is the chief co-sponsor of House Bill 40. Senator Heather Steans, a Chicago Democrat, is the lead sponsor. Gov. Bruce Rauner has threatened to veto the measure, even though he pledged to support it when he was a candidate for governor.
“Wednesday night, in consultation with Senator Steans and the advocates, I filed a motion to reconsider the Senate’s vote to pass House Bill 40, which means we will temporarily hold the bill in the Senate,” Harmon said. “This motion merely allows the Senate to protect the bill from Gov. Rauner’s threatened veto until he comes to his senses. It does not jeopardize the bill’s ability to become law.”
Earlier Wednesday, the Senate voted along party lines to approve the measure, which would protect women’s rights in Illinois in the event the U.S. Supreme Court should strike down or alter the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion in the United States. House Bill 40 also bars insurers from refusing to cover reproductive health care for women on Medicaid and state workers on the state’s health insurance plan.
Steans said she supports Harmon’s move to hold the bill and encourages Rauner to rethink his position.
“I want to give this legislation the best possible chance of becoming law. I know the governor has reservations and is feeling pressure from opponents to veto it,” she said. “But signing this bill into law is the right thing to do, and I urge Gov. Rauner to remain true to himself on this matter. Sen. Harmon’s motion generously gives the governor time to remember all the reasons why he originally supported it.”
Terry Cosgrove, president and CEO of Personal PAC, a reproductive rights advocacy group, said holding the legislation for now is preferable to an immediate veto, as promised by the governor.
“Illinois lawmakers sent a strong message of support for women’s reproductive rights by approving HB40. It would be careless to waste their votes by sending the bill to Gov. Rauner’s desk today only to watch him veto it,” Cosgrove said.
“In the meantime, I urge the men and women of Illinois to contact the governor to let him know why it’s important that he sign this bill into law and remind him that it will help to ensure generations of women have access to reproductive health care free of government interference.”
Holding the bill means they can send it to Rauner when doing so would have maximum impact. Perhaps when the Supreme Court gets an abortion case. Or during a particularly difficult election moment.
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* After months of grand bargain negotiations and yet another fruitless day on the Senate floor, Senate President Cullerton delivered a blistering denunciation of Gov. Rauner yesterday…
Senate President John Cullerton says his Democrats have gone as far as they can go in meeting Governor Bruce Rauner’s non-budget demands.
He says Rauner and his team “don’t know how to govern.”
“At some point in time, you have to just agree: ‘OK, let’s make a deal,’” Cullerton said. “And you have to understand the other side and understand how far they can go. And what’s at stake here is a disaster, after the next 20 days, if we don’t have any revenue.”
* More…
“These guys don’t know how to govern,” Cullerton told reporters after the shortened Senate session. “They haven’t had a lot of practice. At some point, you have to agree and you have to make a deal.”
* Another one…
“This isn’t the private sector where I can just go around and fire people if they don’t vote for something. I’ve got to convince them to vote for it. There’s principles involved in this thing. We have interest groups that are working against us,” said Cullerton, who has been in the legislature since 1979. “I understand this because I’ve done this a lot. But the governor doesn’t apparently.” […]
“If we send a weak package over to Mike Madigan, we know it’s going to come back weaker,” said Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington.
Cullerton, however, said there may not be much more room to cut a deal. “You can only go so far and have votes to pass these bills,” he said. “And we believe we have just about exhausted those efforts to compromise.”
* And Sun-Times political editor Scott Fornek wrote the best headline of the year above Tina Sfondeles’ story: “Cullerton puts self in Rauner’s shoes, then kicks him in pants”…
Minutes after Illinois Senate President John Cullerton said Democrats had “exhausted” efforts to compromise on reforms and accused Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration of not knowing how to govern, he walked into the governor’s office for a planned meeting.
It was a sign of the delicate and at times acrimonious nature of budget talks with just 21 days before the end of the legislative session.[…]
“We have made numerous changes to these bills than when they were filed, all going towards accommodating Republicans and the governor’s office but you can only go so far and still haves the votes to pass these bills,” Cullerton said. “And we believe that we’ve just about exhausted those efforts to compromise on the reforms.”
* Eleni Demertzis from the governor’s office responded to Cullerton…
The problem with Springfield politicians is they have been cutting bad deals for taxpayers for decades. It’s why people and jobs are fleeing. It’s time to get it right.
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Grand bargain stalls again
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Finke…
With just about three weeks left in the spring legislative session, Illinois Senate President John Cullerton said Wednesday it was time to try again to pass a “grand bargain” to resolve the state’s two-year budget stalemate.
But the chamber could approve only one minor component before the effort again sputtered to a halt. Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno refused to call for a vote the workers’ compensation reform and property tax freeze bills she is sponsoring.
Radogno, of Lemont, said the bills weren’t ready. Cullerton, a Chicago Democrat, said they would have passed had Radogno allowed a vote.
As a result, the budget impasse continues.
Wednesday’s vote was the first on the bargain since March 1, when Democrats said Gov. Bruce Rauner pulled Republican votes off the compromise. Many of the bills in the package cover reform measures Rauner wants, along with a spending plan and a tax hike bill.
* Garcia and BeMiller…
The actual voting was anticlimactic but showed the deep divide that still remains. Cullerton began by calling a relatively uncontroversial portion of the package that would allow towns to create special funds to pay off debt. It passed. But when he moved on to more divisive bills to freeze property taxes and change workers’ compensation rules, Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno declined to call the measurers for a vote.
Radogno said conversations on the measures were ongoing, adding that the package is an all-or-nothing deal.
“While I appreciate the fact that you want to move on things, I wish we can do it all at once,” Radogno said. “I don’t want them to fail, I want to come to an agreement.” […]
Cullerton said it’s important to get the measure over to the House so lawmakers there can contemplate their own changes before month’s end. That’s if the House decides to take up the measure at all, given that Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan has not been included in talks and has appointed his own people to work on the budget and negotiate with Rauner on his agenda items.
Republicans counter that a deal in the Senate is near, saying they want to get the proposal in the best shape possible before sending it to the House, where they fear Democrats who control the chamber will water down their ideas.
* Bishop at the Illinois Policy Institute’s news service…
Senators started voting on the measures earlier this year but stopped when Republicans said the package wasn’t ready.
Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, said Wednesday it’s time to move forward.
“Kind of like what happened in my family when I grew up as the oldest of nine kids. We had one bathroom and at some point you’ve got to do your business or you don’t, and it’s time to move on because somebody else needs the room,” Cullerton said. “So we have to move on.”
But Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, said there are still some bills that aren’t ready.
“The property tax issue is still a sticky point,” Radogno said. “I agree with that, but property taxes are extraordinarily important to every single one of our constituents and getting a property tax freeze that works and is meaningful to them is a critical part to that.”
* O’Connor…
Democrats say workers comp changes would impoverish injured workers and that Rauner isn’t considering money-saving reforms they made in 2011. A permanent freeze on property taxes would cripple schools, they say. They’ve offered further reforms on the worker payout and a two-year freeze on real estate taxes.
That’s not good enough, said Radogno, a Lemont Republican, after she declined to allow Cullerton to call for floor votes on her legislation covering the issues.
“We need to keep tax increases as low as possible,” Radogno said. “A property tax freeze will be painful for the locals (municipal governments) buy if we don’t do this, people will continue to leave the state.”
* Sfondeles…
On the Senate floor before the vote, Cullerton noted the “grand bargain” hit an “impasse” on March 1 — when Republican votes, sans Radogno, were pulled off and the finger was pointed directly at Rauner. The state hasn’t had a full budget since July 2015.
“The whole idea of the grand bargain was to adopt those reforms early on in the session and then move it to the House and focus on the budget,” Cullerton said. “I don’t think we can wait any longer. The patience of the public is wearing, and so today I’d like to start calling these bills again.” […]
Radogno later told reporters Republicans are concerned about keeping the tax increase as low as possible. In terms of the workers’ compensation bill, she said discussions have been stuck since March regarding American Medical Association guidelines. Rauner has said he wants to grant arbitrators the ability to use those guidelines as the sole factor to determine how much an injured worker is paid.
She said negotiations are “very close” on talks regarding the school funding formula and refinancing debt. […]
“Now we’ve settled on yet another number [for the property tax freeze]. We’ve been talking about four. What are the conditions attached?” Radogno said. “Again this is something that’s been going on yesterday and today. … I think it’s premature to pull the plug.”
I’ll have more on yesterday’s developments in a bit.
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Adventures in privatization
Thursday, May 11, 2017 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Former Gov. Pat Quinn, among others, was enamored with the idea of privatized state lottery management. And now even the program’s director thinks it may not be a good idea…
Seven years after Illinois heralded privatization as the cure for lagging lottery sales, the state’s latest lottery director now says he’s not sure the model works.
The private firm hired to manage the Illinois Lottery never met its lofty bid projections, and for 2½ years the state has said it’s been working to replace it. But the process has dragged on, even as Tribune investigations have exposed questionable actions of and payments to the firm.
Some lawmakers have questioned the lottery’s oversight of the firm, why it’s taking so long to replace the firm and whether the privatization model is even right for Illinois.
At a state Capitol budget hearing Wednesday, Sen. Heather Steans, D-Chicago, asked the lottery’s acting director, Greg Smith, about the latter. Smith wouldn’t directly say if he thought privatization was wrong in Illinois, citing the pending replacement process. But, in general, he offered a far less glowing assessment of privatization than previous lottery directors and other state officials.
“I know that two other states, New Jersey and Indiana, that all are under private management have experienced significant difficulties, and it may not mean that private management is the best approach for lotteries,” Smith said.
* Related…
* Gauen: Even if Illinois lottery cheated, can anyone prove being harmed?
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* A Tribune bombshell…
A Tribune investigation of two other Cook County child fatalities since November 2015 found incomplete inquiries and nonexistent follow-ups as DCFS closed probes in the homes shortly before youths were beaten or starved to death. Investigators did not interview key witnesses, the Tribune found. They missed obvious signs of abuse and failed to gather medical reports and other evidence.
The Tribune investigation also found that after these three deaths occurred, DCFS pushed to close Cook County cases even faster, offering financial incentives to investigators who completed probes within 14 days. And the Tribune also found that, last year, investigators confirmed fewer cases for neglect or abuse compared with the previous year. […]
The Tribune investigation found that in the fall of 2016, Sheldon pushed investigators to speed up abuse and neglect investigations in Cook County, according to internal agency documents and interviews. Sheldon said his goal is to focus workers on the most serious allegations and free them from spurious cases that can be easily dismissed.
Some DCFS frontline investigators in Cook County tell the Tribune they now face unrealistic deadlines and new pressure to close cases even when young people are left in harm’s way. […]
Several DCFS employees told the Tribune that supervisors offered overtime pay, as opposed to comp time, to child protection investigators who met agency goals for closing cases in 14 days. Those employees and other government officials said they are concerned by what they view as a financial incentive that could skew workers’ handling of investigations. […]
As cases were closed more rapidly last year, DCFS saw a drop in the percentage of investigations in which abuse and neglect allegations were confirmed, according to a Tribune analysis of agency data since 2015. […]
Sheldon also disputed a January 2017 report from DCFS Inspector General Denise Kane that some investigators are handling perilously high caseloads, which Kane wrote is creating “a toxic work environment in which it is foreseeable that some investigators will take dangerous shortcuts that can lead to lethal errors.”
You can’t run government like a business. I wish people would get that through their thick skulls. These aren’t telemarketers who are taking too much time between phone calls. These investigators are there to protect some of the most vulnerable people in our state - abused and neglected children.
And this isn’t really about the budget. DCFS can go to the federal judge overseeing its consent decree at any time and ask for more staff.
Go read the whole thing. But be warned, it’ll turn your stomach.
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