* So, Mrs. Rauner’s group is pleading with people to support the House’s budget on Monday? Did she “cave” to Speaker Madigan, too? Such a bizarre time we live in…
IL House likely to take floor votes on state budget on Memorial Day. Call your Rep. now & urge support of a full-year, fully-funded budget! pic.twitter.com/BnqGxSqZY5
Gov. Rauner also claimed that the Senate Democrats “caved in” to “the Speaker’s pressure” on the grand bargain. Rauner claimed yet again that Madigan sent interest groups to the Senate to kill the grand bargain.
“We need the members of the General Assembly in the Democratic caucus to not be afraid to stand up to Speaker Madigan,” Rauner told reporters.
I asked for a response from the Senate President’s office.
* From John Patterson, spokesman for Illinois Senate President John Cullerton…
“I don’t know if the governor realizes it yet, but the Senate balanced and approved the budget he proposed. He has an odd way of saying ‘thank you.’”
*** UPDATE *** Press release…
Senator Don Harmon, an Oak Park Democrat and president pro tempore of the Illinois Senate, issued the following statement about the Senate’s votes Friday to significantly reform Illinois’ workers’ compensation system:
“Senate Democrats sent a strong message today that, while we are open to working our partners in the business community to reform the state’s workers’ compensation system, we are not willing to do so entirely on the backs of Illinois workers. We were able to identify sensible reforms on both sides of the equation – the employer side and the employee side – that will help to bring costs down without inflicting additional and unnecessary financial harm on injured workers.
“Workers’ compensation reform is one of Governor Rauner’s demands to sign our balanced budget. We have delivered on that demand and many others. It’s time for him to deliver on ours – that he signs our budget so we can move the state forward.”
Rep. Enyart responds by hiding behind the telephone – sticking taxpayers with the bill
Mike Bost, candidate for the 12th Congressional District, announced that he would take a leadership role on behalf of the constituents of the 12th district by holding a town hall forum on the VA on Wednesday, June 4, 2014 at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 1601 W. White Street in Marion from 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm. The decision to hold the forum comes as Congressman Bill Enyart has routinely ignored his constituents by denying them the opportunity to voice their opinion on the national VA debate.
“With the VA dominating the agenda in Washington and across the country right now, constituents should have the opportunity to have their voices heard,” said Mike Bost. “I am hosting this forum because I’d like to explain my thoughts on the matter but more important hear the public’s. To me, hearing from local voices matter and is a key requirement of a responsive congressman.”
Congressman Bill Enyart has yet to hold a single town hall forum after a year and half in office. After learning of Bost’s town hall forum, his congressional office quickly announced a teletown hall on the same night – calling it a “unique event.” Teletown halls allow Congressman Enyart’s staff to handpick the questions he’s asked while forcing the taxpayers to pay for it in response to a political campaign. Congressman Enyart claims to be a leader for the area but he seems to be following one instead.
“Congressman Enyart and I have a different view of representation. I provide open forums to take questions while he hides behind a telephone in a scripted setting while billing the taxpayers for it,” added Bost. “With Congress not in recess this week, the only thing stopping Congressman Enyart from holding a public town hall forum is his willingness to do so. Constituents deserve better from their representative.” [Emphasis added.]
Nowadays, Bost opts to use telephone town halls to communicate with constituents, along with speaking to constituents in person in small, private meetings, which sometimes are open to the media. […]
“Every one of them that calls our office that says we want this type of town hall, the problem is they are now organized at a national level to cause chaos,” Bost said in a recent interview with the BND. […]
Bost also has chosen to hold telephone town halls, where he takes questions for about an hour after calling constituents who have signed up to participate.
His office says about 85,000 people are called for each telephone town hall.
Responding to nearly two years without a state budget, The Baby Fold will discontinue residential treatment center services, the Normal-based human services agency announced Thursday.
The program, which was reduced from serving 28 children to 14 children in 2015, will cease operations June 30.
Including all its programs, Baby Fold serves more than 1,000 vulnerable children and families.
“We will be working diligently to arrange new placements for the children over the next 30 to 60 days so they can be well-settled prior to the next school year,” Baby Fold President and CEO Dianne Schultz said in a prepared statement.
“I am saddened by the circumstances surrounding the state budget impasse that have made this decision necessary,” Schultz said. […]
The residential treatment center is for children who have been removed from their homes because of trauma, abuse or neglect and have significant mental health issues. The program in Normal is believed to be the only one of its kind in Central Illinois.
Ugh.
…Adding… Andrea Durbin at the Illinois Collaboration on Youth sent me the link to the above story and has given me permission to post her e-mail…
As with much of the recently-announced Lutheran Child and Family Services closures, this is not only due to lack of payment but also due to insufficient payment. Our elected officials need to have the political courage to face reality and address the continual erosion of the human services safety net with a real budget.
I know you know this, but I can’t help saying it again. It is unconscionable that abused and neglected children may go without effective treatment so we can have a political fight.
“The program in Normal is believed to be the only one of its kind in Central Illinois.”
Today, the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois announced their endorsement of JB Pritzker for Governor at a press conference in Peoria. The endorsement comes after careful consideration of every candidate in the race and their commitment to fighting for Illinois working families.
The Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois represents 15,000 fire fighters and 221 local chapters across the state. They are Illinois’ first responders, keeping our state safe from harm.
“I am so proud to receive the endorsement of the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois and their 15,000 hard working members across our state,” said JB Pritzker. “Our fire fighters put their lives on the line every day to keep our families and our state safe, but they have been let down by their governor. Bruce Rauner has failed to pass a budget for 695 days and his special interest agenda is a direct attack against working families. Our fire fighters deserve a governor who stands with them and I will always work to protect the right to organize, fight for safe working conditions, and ensure our children have access to high quality education. It is an honor to have our state’s heroes standing with me in this campaign and I will always stand with them as governor.”
“JB Pritzker has the competence and the compassion to be the governor Illinois working families need and we are so proud to endorse his campaign,” said Pat Devaney, President of the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois. “JB is committed to lifting up Illinois working families and making sure our economy works for everyone. He has a record of creating opportunity and fighting for quality education for all Illinoisans. This is a stark contrast to the willful neglect of Bruce Rauner, who has failed to pass a budget and shows contempt for Illinois working families. Illinois needs a governor who is ready to fix Rauner’s mess and we are proud to support JB Pritzker to lead our state.”
Governor Rauner and Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau joined homeowners Ken and Andi Borucke to urge the General Assembly to pass true, lasting property tax relief.
“Illinois home and business owners pay the highest property taxes in the nation. The median average for property taxes in Illinois is $3,995 compared to $1,085 average property taxes in Indiana,” said Governor Rauner. “We can’t just keep sticking it to the taxpayers without any real property tax relief.”
Under the governor’s proposal, property taxes would remain frozen unless voters chose to raise them through a referendum.
“In Orland Park, we remain committed to keeping your taxes as low as possible while still maintaining the quality of services you expect and deserve,” said Mayor Keith Pekau. “I am glad the Governor is pushing for property tax relief to help our residents.”
This week, Governor Rauner announced that any budget agreement that increases revenue must include real and lasting property tax relief. In making the announcement, he stressed that Illinois needs to make changes in order to grow the economy, create jobs and get state finances back on track.
“We love Illinois, but one thing we’ve never loved is our property taxes,” said homeowner Andi Borucke. “The current system doesn’t work and hurts working families like ours that have done everything right. We deserve to have more a voice in our property tax system. We keep paying more and more money, but see little value in return.”
* DGA…
Today Governor Rauner continues his campaign “negotiation” tour with a stop in Orland Park, 181 miles away from the State Capitol and a possible budget solution.
While Rauner postures in front of cameras, Illinois state institutions continue to suffer the disastrous effects of Bruce Rauner’s failed leadership. The “Women’s Center” in Carbondale, open for 45 years, announced staff cuts and said it could shut down programs in September. And Northeastern Illinois University announced it would be continuing its furlough program and faced serious program cuts.
The fact is simple – Governor Rauner is failing his responsibilities as Governor. From the Sun-Times Editorial:
“Rauner is running political ads, the goofy ones with the duct tape, laying the groundwork for his re-election next year. But he is not governing. As we said in a previous editorial, the first and most basic job of a CEO — and a governor is a CEO — is to produce a budget. The buck stops there.”
It’s time for Governor Rauner to go back to Springfield and finally pass a budget.
“Governor Rauner is marching Illinois towards an unprecedented third year without a budget,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “And instead of exhibiting real leadership and working out a deal, Rauner is pulling stunts as far away from Springfield as possible. Illinois needs a Governor who’s going to deliver a budget, not one who’s going to chase cameras across the state.”
…Adding… From comments…
Uh, someone tell DGA the House just went home and session tomorrow is cancelled.
From 2010 to 2014, Chicago and 73 of the suburbs saw their populations increase.
But the trend reversed from 2014 to 2016. In that time, Chicago and 61 suburbs saw their populations shrink.
So far, the numbers are small. In 2015, the 91 communities lost 0.1 percent of their collective population, or nearly 3,700 residents. Last year, they lost an estimated 0.2 percent, which represents nearly 10,000 residents. […]
Decreases were sharpest in the Cook County suburbs closest to the Chicago. Towns including Rosemont, Des Plaines, Elk Grove Village, Mount Prospect and even Hoffman Estates experienced declines of a full percent or more during the past two years.
Yesterday, the governor’s office blamed Mayor Rahm Emanuel for Chicago’s population loss. You gotta wonder whether he feels the same about Mayor Stephens, et al. So, I asked. Awaiting a reply.
Among larger downstate cities, Bloomington and Champaign added population from 2010 to 2016, according to the census figures, while Springfield, Rockford and Peoria lost residents.
Two college towns were both net gainers over time.
* This Tribune piece is very well-written, well-researched and timely. So you should definitely go read the whole thing…
Democrats and some Republicans are pushing ahead with an attempt to overhaul the way state government doles out tax dollars to elementary and high schools, setting up a potential showdown with Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner over funding for Chicago Public Schools.
Few issues have kicked around the Capitol for as long as the education funding formula — a controversial system that’s proven resistant to major change thanks to a combination of political and financial factors.
Rauner hasn’t offered his own bill, deferring to the education task force that was supposed to produce legislation but instead came up with a broad framework for fixing the formula. His education secretary, Beth Purvis, says the governor has been “pretty clear about what he would like to see in these bills” and noted that it’s not up to the governor to write legislation.
Historically, though, Rauner has not been shy about introducing legislation when he has an idea that he’d like to see enacted by lawmakers. That Rauner’s left the process up to the General Assembly has some critics questioning how badly he wants to see the formula changed.
Historically, Rauner has avoided drafting his own legislation like the Plague. He steers clear of ownership on controversial stuff. It’s why he has never introduced a balanced budget or unveiled his own detailed criminal justice reform bills. And it’s why legislators are constantly wondering if he’s truly serious about moving forward with things, like education funding reform.
Ending what the campaign considers to be an introductory phase, Democratic governor candidate Chris Kennedy is set to speak Tuesday to offer his vision for the state.
The early afternoon speech Tuesday at the Harold Washington Cultural Center will take place the day after the 100th birthday of Kennedy’s uncle, the late President John F. Kennedy.
Campaign aides said Kennedy will talk about how the state “needs a complete break from the status quo” and will try to distinguish his candidacy, announced in February, from his Democratic rivals, namely J.B. Pritzker. […]
Kennedy also is expected to call for property tax and education funding changes. He has been hitting his rival, Pritzker, over a controversial tax assessment reduction for a mansion he purchased next to his own Gold Coast mansion. He also has been seeking to tie the issue of the state’s property tax system to the unfairness of education funding.
* Meanwhile, Kennedy’s campaign manager Brendan O’Sullivan sent out a fundraising e-mail this morning with the headline “Rauner doesn’t want a budget”…
Last week, Illinois Senate Democrats called for a vote on a budget deal. Then, that same day, Governor Bruce Rauner’s billionaire pal Ken Griffin put $20 million into Rauner’s campaign coffers.
Why the same-day timing?
As Politico reported yesterday, “if Republicans weren’t already clear on the message to stay in line during those votes, that probably did it.”
Rauner doesn’t want a budget. And Griffin’s money showed up just in time to serve as a threat to Illinois Republicans not to vote against his interests.
Let’s show Bruce Rauner and Ken Griffin that we won’t let their money bully or intimidate us. Please contribute now to invest in electing new leadership in Illinois.
As we approach the two year mark without a budget, Rauner is reportedly spending his time trying to recruit candidates to run against Comptroller Susana Mendoza and Attorney General Lisa Madigan in 2018.
He’s also trying to silence members of his own party through financial bullying and economic intimidation. And he’s doing it to try to tear down the very programs, institutions and policies that we, as Democrats, have dedicated our lives to building up.
Rauner threw a million people out of state programs in the first 18 months, and he has not asked any of his fellow billionaires to make a single sacrifice.
Some Democrats believe that best way to combat Rauner’s campaign war chest is with another billionaire who self-funds his campaign. But we should not elect a candidate to represent our party who does not need our money, our ideas or our support.
Instead, the path to fixing our state lies in building a movement of thousands of Illinois residents committed to restoring the American Dream.
O’Sullivan, by the way, used to run Senate President John Cullerton’s campaigns. I’ve been told, however, that Cullerton is not taking sides in the governor’s race. One of his own members, Daniel Biss, is also in the contest.
Pritzker Campaign Introduces Tick Tock The Budget Clock
Tick Tock Will Join Bruce Rauner For Breakfast Today At A Private Golf Course, Rich Harvest Farms, Then Later At An Orland Park Press Conference
Chicago, IL – Today, on day 695 without a budget, the Pritzker for Governor campaign is introducing Tick Tock the Budget Clock. Tick Tock joins Crisis Creatin’ Rauner, a multimedia campaign designed to highlight the budget crisis of Bruce Rauner’s own making and the families, schools, and social service agencies that continue to pay the price.
As the hours and days tick up, Tick Tock’s presence will serve as a constant reminder of the damage Rauner’s crisis is creating in Illinois. The fact is, it is past time that Illinois families receive a budget from their failed governor and Tick Tock won’t let Rauner forget it.
“Time is running out for Bruce Rauner to take responsibility for the crisis he has created and even though he runs away from reporters, Bruce Rauner won’t be able to hide from Tick Tock the Budget Clock,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “As the clock counts up, this historic budget crisis of Rauner’s own creatin’ is doing irrevocable damage to our state. Rauner deserves a constant reminder of how his failed leadership has hurt working families across Illinois – and Tick Tock will remind him of the alarming mess he has created every step of the way.”
It’s an anti-Bruce Rauner move right out of the Rauner playbook. Rauner’s campaign team, some of whom worked for former Sen. Mark Kirk, love these characters. During Kirk’s 2010 campaign, they sicced a shark to follow around his opponent, then-state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, to remind him of a loan to the mob-associated Michael “Jaws” Giorango. In 2014, the Rauner campaign came up with “Quinnochio” to badger then-Gov. Pat Quinn outside of events. That character was dressed up as Pinnocchio. If you’ve forgotten, here’s Quinnochio on youtube. They also slapped a mask on another staffer who dressed in an orange jumpsuit to represent imprisoned ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich. […]
We’re confident the Rauner camp will come up with a rebuttal caricature in short order. But, gee, we can’t imagine what this race will look like when we’re actually within the same calendar year of an election.
…Adding… The Pritzker campaign seemed quite pleased this morning at all the attention their new mascot got from the TV types (those teevee people love them some visuals, no matter how silly they might be). But the Republicans sent me their own Tick pic…
True, but so was Quinnochio and they did it anyway. This stuff works.
…Adding Still More… Check out the video clip to see how the Chicago TV cameras gravitated to the new mascot today. Like I said, this stuff works, even if it is goofy…
The attached letter was sent by the Speaker after reviewing the recent report of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club. It is a recounting of the Speaker’s effort to address a variety of issues. I thought it might be of interest.
* The letter…
May 25, 2017
Chairman Frederick H. Waddell
Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago 21 South Clark Street, Ste. 4301
Chicago, IL 60603
Dear Chairman Waddell:
I appreciate your recent report and its detailed recommendations on the state budget. I agree that our state is a vibrant place with much to offer as a center for innovation and growth, but the budget crisis is holding us back. I have stated repeatedly that the budget is the most important issue facing our state, and I wanted to make sure you and your colleagues are aware of what steps House Democrats have already taken to put Illinois on more sound financial footing.
Between Fiscal Year 2012 and Fiscal Year 2014, Democrats made significant progress in paying down the state’s backlog of old bills. Under Democratic budgets, the state’s debt dropped from over $8 billion in 2013 to $4.5 billion in July 2015. In fact, as a candidate Rauner criticized Illinois’ bill backlog in May 2013. However, Governor Rauner’s impasse has completely reversed the progress we made; after nearly two years without a budget, the backlog of unpaid bills has now grown to over $14 billion.
In recent years, House Democrats have pushed for cost-saving reforms to state pensions and the Medicaid system. We have also taken steps toward greater pension parity for Chicago; during the 99th General Assembly, House Democrats advanced Senate Bill 2822, which provides state funding for Chicago teacher’s pensions. Unfortunately, Governor Rauner vetoed this legislation.
House Democrats also implemented significant reforms to the workers’ compensation system, and we are beginning to see the impact. Costs, injuries and claims have call dropped significantly since our law passed in 2011, and Illinois now has a lower frequency of medical payments per claim than Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin. While the governor has prioritized further changes to the system, we have engaged in this dialogue. We have offered additional reforms that will make sure employers see the benefit of reform. This month, we passed House Bill 2525, which codifies causation standards to make sure only legitimate workplace injuries are compensable, and requires workers’ compensation insurers to pass these savings on to employers.
We’ve passed significant reforms to the criminal justice system that will help reduce costs. Last year, the House passed bipartisan legislation that expands the Department of Corrections’ ability to offer early release to some non-violent offenders, and give judges more flexibility in sentencing for some non-violent crimes.
House Democrats have led efforts to empower taxpayers to consolidate local government. In the 99th General Assembly, we passed House Bill 229, which expands a pilot program that will empower taxpayers to consolidate duplicative or unnecessary taxing bodies.
We continue to work toward education funding reform. A House Democratic plan would help students across the state and put all Illinois schools on an equal footing. But the Republican proposal is not a fair proposal for all our students; it slashes funding for the Chicago Public Schools. I would be interested in knowing which proposal you and your colleagues would prefer.
While we continually strive to address Illinois’ challenges, there are some proposals that have failed to find consensus within the General Assembly. Reductions to the Local Government Distributive Fund is one suggestion in your plan that has already been met with concern by Democrats and Republicans, who fear the loss of revenue for local governments will only force higher property taxes and cuts to public safety, health and other community services.
I remain committed to working in good faith with the governor to pass a full, responsible budget, and address the other major issues facing the state. Last week, I assigned four members of the House Democratic leadership team to meet with Governor Rauner and discuss his off-budget agenda items. Unfortunately, to date, the Governor has chosen not to meet with these members.
I hope you will join me in urging the governor to take up House Democrats’ offer and help us end this budget crisis.
With kindest personal regards, I remain
Sincerely yours,
MICHAEL J. MADIGAN
Speaker of the House
*** UPDATE 1 *** I’m told on background by the Rauner folks that during his 40-minute meeting with the governor last month, Speaker Madigan came right out and asked Rauner to cancel their meeting with the Civic Committee, which was scheduled for the following week. Rauner refused to comply, and then Madigan canceled. The Raunerites believe that Madigan only sent this letter today because they “outed” his refusal to meet with the Civic Committee.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Steve Brown in comments…
Gotta love those “deep background” update.
Now just a couple of facts.
The Speaker met with the Civic Committee in mid April
The group offered to bring themselves into the budget impasse. A similar offer was made by the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.
Given on-going activities in Springfield it did not appear necessary to engage either offer.
Today’s attempted history rewrite is both false and another glimpse to thinking of the administration.
*** UPDATE 3 *** Gov. Rauner told reporters today that Madigan’s letter is “intentionally misleading.”
“He refused to meet with the Civic Committee and me,” Madigan said, claiming that since then Madigan has refused to meet with the governor. “The Speaker has shown no interest in compromise for two years, zero interest.”
Gov. Rauner also claimed that the Senate Democrats “caved in” to “the Speaker’s pressure” on the grand bargain. Rauner claimed yet again that Madigan sent interest groups to the Senate to kill the grand bargain.
“We need the members of the General Assembly in the Democratic caucus to not be afraid to stand up to Speaker Madigan,” Rauner told reporters. “Speaker Madigan does not want any changes whatsoever. Zero. He just wants Republicans to support a massive tax hike that just sticks it to taxpayers with no property tax relief.”
“The Civic Committee has provided a comprehensive Framework for our State’s governmental leaders to solve our budget crisis. It is now their responsibility to compromise and pass a comprehensive budget package which will move our State forward. The people of Illinois are depending on it.”
- Kelly Welsh – President, The Civic Committee of The Commercial Club of Chicago
Every once in a while this happens in the capitol basement women's bathroom. Laden with metaphors about state government waste. pic.twitter.com/uykvw37TXJ
* The dustup started this afternoon when Rep. Steve Andersson (R-Geneva) rose to call for compromise. Andersson reminded the chamber about the 33 House members who signed a letter encouraging the Senate to wrap up the grand bargain. And he said it was now time to work on what the Senate had sent the House. Some of it was bipartisan, he said, some partisan. But the Senate, he said, was very close to a deal. “Let’s pick up where they left off.”
Andersson said the chamber’s appropriations committee leaders were meeting, which he called a “good sign.”
Rep. Andersson also addressed yesterday’s blowup on the floor about who should be invited to negotiate with the governor’s chief of staff.
“It’s not the time to debate who last invited whom to the table, Andersson said. “Just come to the table.”
“And my call, most importantly, is to compromise,” he said. “Let’s push our leaders as hard as we can.”
Andersson is the GOP’s floor leader, so he may have struck a raw nerve with Lang. “It’s one thing to say you want to do a budget, it’s another thing to do one,” Rep. Lang said.
Lang went on to say that today Gov. Rauner “invited 13 House Democrats to a meeting to discuss all these issues, completely ignoring the letter that Leader Currie, Leader Hoffman, Leader Turner and I sent to him offering to sit down and get these things accomplished, completely side-stepping the negotiating team that’s been created here in the House on our side of the aisle to meet with the governor.
“Instead the governor has chosen, very carefully it appears, 13 Democratic political targets to meet with. I think that says a lot about his resolve and it says a lot about his desire to work with this General Assembly as a co-equal branch of government.”
Lang then encouraged Republicans to “pull away” from the governor and work things out. “That’s when the crisis will end.”
* However, I’m told that the 13 Democrats were simply invited by the governor’s legislative shop to a briefing about where the Senate situation stands.
We live in a divided state. The rich live near the rich and the poor live near the poor.
The poor no longer have access to the tax base that the wealthy have access to. As a result, their schools will never be as good as the schools in wealthy communities if Illinois continues to rely on property taxes to pay for education.
We can’t allow that to happen anymore. We need to fix the way we fund our schools.
Reforming our property tax system and changing the way we fund education in Illinois is a central part of fixing the mess in our state.
Property taxes are determined by how you appraise the property – which means the wealthy and connected who can hire lawyers can do a better job of getting the value of their homes or commercial properties knocked down. And in the end, our public schools suffer. That’s a terrible system.
If you don’t pay your income tax, you’ll go to jail.
If you want to contest your property taxes, all you have to do is get a good lawyer, if you can afford it.
That’s not how we should operate in this country. We’re condemning the next generation to a life of economic oppression and segregation, and it doesn’t have to be that way.
We can do better by learning from lessons and better practices from around the country. We shouldn’t look to Springfield or to the Thompson Center for great ideas. We should look to other states. Look outward and forward, not inward or backward.
It’s time for bold action and fundamental change. If you agree, please sign up now to join our campaign for Illinois governor.
Thank you,
Chris
That looks to me like he might be thinking about adopting the old Dawn Clark Netsch tax swap plan. I asked the campaign what he’s proposing to actually do about property taxes and received this reply…
In a stunning display of partisanship, Democratic Rep. Robert Martwick – a supporter of billionaire J.B. Pritzker – last week announced that he would kill his own bill, HB 2517, that would crack down on the kind of vacancy fraud the billionaire is engaging in to wrongly slash his property tax burden.
After House Minority Leader Jim Durkin signed on to the Vacancy Fraud Act, Capitol Fax reports that Martwick issued a statement saying he would not call the bill, calling the bipartisan backing he received “political gamesmanship”.
This week, DNAinfo reports that Rep. Martwick “launched into a ‘tirade’” after finding out that his bill was receiving bipartisan support.
Only a Madigan-Pritzker politician would attack bipartisan reform.
But the Illinois Republican Party is holding Martwick and Pritzker accountable, releasing robocalls today into his district highlighting his capitulation to the broken status quo.
Martwick should stand by his legislation, even if it bothers his political bosses Madigan and Pritkzer.
Martwick’s bill has been languishing in the Rules Committee since late March and its passage deadline has long since passed, so he didn’t actually kill it.
The May 22nd DNAInfo story mentioned in the press release is just plain goofy…
An effort to reduce the number of vacant storefronts in Chicago neighborhoods stalled in Springfield last week amid a political brawl sparked by the race for Illinois governor.
Martwick even says in the story that the bill wasn’t ready to move.
* But politics is politics, so let’s move on to the robocall…
* Script…
Hi, this is Caroline, and I’m calling regarding our State Representative, Robert Martwick.
Martwick has sold taxpayers out to his political boss Mike Madigan’s billionaire financial muscle, and recently revealed tax cheat, JB Pritzker.
Martwick used to support legislation that would crack down on property owners collecting unfair tax breaks on vacant properties. He used to be for the common man.
But the moment billionaire JB Pritzker was exposed using this property tax scheme to cut property taxes on Pritzker’s mansion by $240,000 while making all of us pay more, Martwick immediately flipped his position out of blind loyalty to Madigan and his new friend Pritzker.
Martwick isn’t working for you or me anymore. He’s out to serve the same corrupt system that rewards the well-connected while you pay the price.
Paid for by the Illinois Republican Party.
Not a bad message at all, despite the underlying facts. Props for that.
* I told you yesterday about the ILGOP’s robocalls on the Senate’s tax hike and budget votes. The robocalls were blasted statewide and into targeted House districts (click here for the list).
Well, the Pritzker campaign is launching its own robocalls into the same House districts that the Republicans targeted, which ought to make some House incumbents happy. I’m told they’re also doing a statewide blast.
Here’s the press release…
Today, on day 694 without a budget, the JB for Governor campaign released a new statewide robo call highlighting Rauner’s failure to lead our state. The robo call joins the multimedia Crisis Creatin’ Rauner campaign, holding Rauner accountable for this crisis of his own making and the families, schools, and social service agencies that continue to pay the price.
“Illinois families across the state deserve to know that this budget crisis is a crisis of Rauner’s own making,” said Pritzker campaign communications director Galia Slayen. “Illinoisans are hurting and he refuses to act on day 694 without a budget. Instead of bringing people together to negotiate, Rauner is too busy playing politics and standing in the way of compromise. Bruce Rauner has failed our state and working families have had enough.”
Illinois is approaching 700 days without a budget under Bruce Rauner. 700 days.
Social service agencies are shutting down, schools are scraping by, and working families are suffering, but Bruce Rauner doesn’t care, he continues to hold our state hostage.
Just like he has since the day he took office, Bruce Rauner would rather play politics instead of doing the job he was elected to do.
Don’t believe Bruce Rauner’s lies, it’s time to hold him accountable. Illinois deserves a budget and we deserve it now.
The Republicans have had this particular playing field all to themselves this year. The playing field has now expanded.
* Bernie’s column quotes Sen. Andy Manar, but he’s far from the only member of his caucus who believes this. These are all widely held notions..
Does [the Senate’s tax hike/budget bill votes] make the Democrats political targets?
“I’ve come to the determination that there’s always going to be criticism … no matter what we do,” said Sen. ANDY MANAR, D-Bunker Hill. “That comes with the turf of being an elected official. … I don’t lead with the idea that I’m here for self-preservation. I’m here to weigh the pros and cons of every issue … and then be accountable for the decision that I make to voters. … Our budget protects education. It protects health care. The governor has proposed devastating cuts to higher education. We protect higher education. … And we live within the governor’s spending limits that he put in his own budget in February.” […]
And in an interview Wednesday with the Illinois News Network — an independent project of the right-leaning Illinois Policy Institute — Rauner called the Senate action “a massive mistake. … The Democrats have been on a mission to just raise taxes without any significant reforms for years.” He said the “biggest failing” was the lack of property tax relief.
Property taxes go to local governments, not the state, but Rauner has been pushing for a freeze.
But, Manar said earlier, “It’s always a changing demand from the governor. We could have passed a property tax freeze bill yesterday, and it would have been something else today.”
I agree totally with the first part. Sometimes, you just gotta do what you gotta do. Rauner’s coming after them with tons of dough anyway, so whatevs.
But if they thought Rauner was bluffing on the property tax freeze, they should’ve called him on it and passed something that was more in line with the governor’s demand.
Legislation that would allow telephone giant AT&T to direct its resources away from landlines and into newer technology passed the Senate Wednesday.
The bill sponsored by Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago, passed easily by a vote of 57-2 now goes to the House.
The legislation would allow the phone company to free itself from a legal obligation to provide landline service in areas with old technology. AT&T has said almost 90 percent of its customers have gotten rid of landlines in favor of wireless technology or internet-based communication.
Cunningham said a compromise was reached with the bill’s critics who had concerns that residents wouldn’t be notified in a timely matter.
Supporters of legislation to crack down on repeat gun offenders continued to tweak the measure Wednesday to try to win over reluctant African-American lawmakers who fear the proposal will land more minorities in jail without addressing underlying causes of violence.
A deal has yet to be reached on the measure, which is being pushed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson. One version has cleared the Senate but faces a tougher hurdle in the House. In that chamber, debates on gun restrictions often fall among economic and regional divides, as Downstate lawmakers push to protect the rights of hunters amid the concerns of city and some suburban legislators who want to tackle gun crime.
Under the changes proposed by House Republican leader Jim Durkin of Western Springs, the state would set up a trial program for first-time, nonviolent offenders charged with certain weapons crimes that is focused on rehabilitation and keeping them out of the prison system.
Durkin’s amendment says the program is designed to recognize that some people, “particularly young adults in areas of high crime or poverty, may have experienced trauma that contributes to poor decision making skills, and the creation of a diversionary program poses a greater benefit to the community” than a jail sentence.
For years, there have been on-and-off efforts to abolish the role of lieutenant governor in Illinois.
While supporters say the savings from such a move would be significant, detractors have maintained the office has its own important focus and its absence could also create problems in the event a governor was unable to complete a term.
Sen. Sam McCann, R-Plainview, believes he has a way to appease both sides. He has introduced legislation that, if approved by voters as a constitutional amendment, would streamline the offices instead of scrapping one for the other.
Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 15 would ask voters during next year’s election whether the lieutenant governor and governor’s operations and staff should be merged and have a single appropriated budget.
DAVE DAHL: You talk about finger-pointing. When you were a candidate, you said, “I’m going to take the arrows.” And you’ve been governor now for more than two years, I’m not sure I can identify an arrow that you’ve taken, as opposed to: it’s the unions, it’s the speaker, it’s the comptroller, it’s the Democrats. Where am I wrong on that?
GOV. RAUNER: Well, you know what I’ve been governor, Dave, for two years. It’s really dog years, it’s like fourteen years, but it’s two years. And we’ve changed great things on issues that we can control. We’ve brought down spending in government, we’ve cut spending, we’ve got new contracts with government unions — 18 new union contracts that are innovative and save taxpayers’ money. We’ve transformed the technology use inside our government. We’ve transformed criminal justice. We formed Intersect Illinois and recruited thousands of new jobs here to Illinois. We’ve done great things.
But where Speaker Madigan’s majority can block us, they’ve blocked us at every step. Their answer is not what’s good for the people of Illinois, it’s whatever can block the governor. And that’s what the speaker has done — and his allies. They blocked the Fair Foundation for here in Springfield to fix up the fairgrounds. They blocked the Thompson Center sale up in Chicago. They blocked the I-55 managed lane on the highway. They blocked a balanced budget. They blocked workers’ comp reform.
They don’t want to change the system because they created it over the last 35 years. They don’t want to admit that the system is broken. They don’t want to change it. They and their buddies in the political class are making a lot of money in the current system, but your average family — and I just saw that our middle class is down dramatically over the last 30 years in Illinois, middle class down dramatically in Illinois because the political class and Speaker Madigan are doing well and the working families aren’t.
That’s why we’ve got to change and we’ve got to stay strong on it.
DAHL: In two plus years, can you name a time where, “You know what, I messed up,” or “the buck stops with the governor,” or “that’s on me” or “I took an arrow?”
RAUNER: Boy, well in terms of taking arrows, I take arrows every day. We’ve got, all of us have a duty to change the system and provide a better future for the people of Illinois. That’s why we’re in office. And this should be public service. This should not be a way for elected officials to make money, accumulate power from their position.
I’m a volunteer, Dave, and I believe in term limits. I’m fighting for term limits. I would term limit myself at two terms no matter what else happens. And I’m not taking any pay, I’m not taking any pension. People should be in office for public service. And as part of public service what we should do every day is to think about: what’s the right answer for our children and our grandchildren? What’s the best answer for Clifford and his classmates in school? What’s the best answer for the young people of Illinois?
And what’s not the right answer is more deficit spending. What’s not the right answer is more debt. And it’s immoral that over the last 35 years under Speaker Madigan’s control we’ve got 180 billion dollars of debt. That is immoral. That is not fair to our kids — my kids, your kids, Dave — and we’ve got to change the system. And those folks who say: well let’s just raise taxes, like the Senate did yesterday, and things will be okay, we’ll get a balanced budget. You know what? The budget will be out of balance within a year or two, and we will have pushed more jobs out, we will have raised the cost of living on the families of Illinois, and we will continue our broken system. We cannot allow that to happen.
*** UPDATE *** From the Democratic Governors Association…
“Today Bruce Rauner confirmed that while he’s been sitting in the Governors chair for two years, he has not acted like one,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “Governors pass budgets, stand up for their citizens, and take responsibility for their own failures and Bruce Rauner has not performed any of those tasks. Governors lead, and Bruce Rauner’s failure to do so is causing the state to slide backwards. Illinois families deserve accountability.”
WHAT: JB Pritzker to join the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois in Peoria for a press conference announcement.
WHEN: Friday, May 26 at 11:00 AM
WHERE: Peoria Labor Temple
The ad claims that Pritzker “has been a champion for getting innocent men and women the justice they deserve.” It doesn’t say what he’s actually done on that front, or if he helped the man in the ad, however. I’ve asked for an explanation.
Pritzker on Thursday also unveiled a new TV ad and the campaign’s first radio ad. The TV ad focuses on Dana Holland of Sauk Village, who was wrongfully convicted of armed robbery, attempted murder and sexual assault and sentenced to 118 years in prison. After serving 10 years, Holland was released with the assistance of Northwestern University’s Center on Wrongful Convictions.
Pritzker and his wife gave $100 million to Northwestern’s law school, which included endowing the wrongful conviction center.
“I will never forget the people who stood by me, refusing to let my life be thrown away. People like J.B. Pritzker,” Holland says in the one-minute ad.
* And then there’s this…
Today, the JB Pritzker for Governor campaigned released its first radio ad, “Trust,” featuring Barbara Bowman. The new ad highlights JB’s commitment to working with educators like Bowman to ensure quality early childhood education for all Illinois children. In conjunction with the radio ad, the campaign is also releasing the next in its JB & Me video series featuring Bowman.
On the campaign trail, Pritzker has been trying to appeal to progressive voters who favor tax-the-rich policies to keep governments well-fed. Theme: Make the rich guys pay more! And in a May 13 appearance in Oak Park, Pritzker reportedly told the crowd that he opposes Rauner’s long fight to freeze property taxes.
Except, oops. Pritzker has managed to save nearly $230,000 on his own property taxes through a peculiar special designation from the highly political Cook County assessor’s office. The primary election campaign ads from other Democrats running for governor, or the general election campaign ads from Rauner, practically write themselves: J.B. Pritzker won big savings on his property taxes — but he wants yours to keep rising!
It’s not just that Pritzker won a reduced assessment of his own Gold Coast mansion (12,500 square feet). Several years ago he bought the mansion next door (6,387 square feet). He then allowed Mansion Two to fall into disrepair — and got a property tax break there too. […]
Among the reasons claimed by Team Pritzker: The house the Sun-Times dubbed “J.B.’s Trash Pad” evidently has no working bathrooms; somebody disconnected all the toilets. Wonder why.
* Related…
* ILGOP press release: Pritzker, Kennedy OPPOSE Property Tax Freeze, But BACK Tax-Hike Agenda
Thursday, May 25, 2017 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
According to a recent statewide poll, 76% of Illinois voters oppose “Right to Know” legislation because it will capture additional consumer data and eliminate anonymous use of the internet.
Of those Illinois voters that had an opinion:
- 90% oppose a law that would require websites to link names and browsing history – eliminating anonymous use.
- 77% oppose a law that prevents consumers from using anonymous accounts for emails and apps.
- 77% oppose an increase of data privacy regulations if these new policies were created by special interest groups that would directly profit from lawsuits.
“Right to Know” is a privacy policy in name only. In reality it would reverse many of the privacy protections already put in place by companies who handle your sensitive data.
“Illinois consumers can and should be protected from violations of their online privacy, but the legislation currently under consideration will simply make life harder for consumers and Illinois businesses.” – Omar Duque, President & CEO, Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (Chicago Sun-Times, April 11, 2017)
Senate Bill 1502 does not protect Illinois consumers. It hurts Illinois businesses.
Vote No on “Right to Know.”
Even during an unprecedented 23-month long budget impasse, the state of Illinois is somehow managing to make millionaires out of first-time commercial real estate buyers.
Michael Grazi, a 49-year-old Brooklyn native, is cautiously optimistic that he’s on the verge of striking it rich — if the state ever gets around to paying its bills.
Grazi bought an empty Springfield warehouse at a tax auction in 2014 for $760,000. After three years of failing to find a tenant for what Grazi claims is his first-ever real estate deal, the Bruce Rauner administration accepted his offer and signed a 5-year lease worth $2.04 million. The deal goes into effect on June 1st, 2017. […]
CMS claims between 80 and 100 DoIT staff will eventually occupy the building next to Harbor Freight after renovations are completed. Currently, those staff are working out of Building 30 at the State Fairgrounds. The DHS warehouse staff moved in from a former Department of Corrections property in Dwight, Illinois. The IDOT pole barn contains documents previously stored in various government agencies. None of the three properties are fully occupied, although CMS Director Michael Hoffman has insisted they will reach capacity later this summer. […]
Grazi claimed he was in line to win the DHS lease, but says he lost out to the Cellini family at the last second. CMS records show Grazi did apply for the IDOT deal, but he is not listed in the DHS paperwork.
Yikes.
And why the heck are we spending money to move employees from a government-owned building to a leased building?
*** UPDATE *** Gov. Rauner was on Tom Miller’s radio program today and was asked about the lease. Rauner blamed the procurement process. I kid you not…
It’s because of our procurement system. We’re blocked on what we can buy and how we can do. Our procurement system is broken. That’s why the procurement reforms we were able to get through the Senate will help make that better. We can save money. Our bureaucratic purchasing process with all the restrictions in it, costs, wastes taxpayer money about a half a billion dollars a year.
So, less hoops to clear will mean fewer needless and potentially shady leases?
Right.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* The Senate held a hearing on this issue today and our buddies at BlueRoomStream.com provided us an embed…
Chicago Public Schools will look to borrow $900 million in the coming weeks — adding to the district’s $9 billion debt — but it remains unclear if anyone will actually give them all the money.
The loans are $500 million more than what Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office announced last week when a financial rescue plan was outlined. That’s because the district is looking for loans not only to get through this school year, but also to start off next year with a financial cushion.
District officials told board members Wednesday that the district would likely “just run out of money” if it didn’t take out these loans.
“The consequences would be dire financial straits in June,” said Senior Vice President of Finance Ronald DeNard. “[The borrowing is] very critical to our cash flow.”
The board unanimously approved two different borrowing packages on Wednesday. The first, which Emanuel announced last week, allows the school district to borrow $396 million against unpaid state grants. The other allows the district to borrow $215 million.
District officials also said they will try to borrow an additional $285 million that it got the authority for last year and didn’t use.
Emanuel said he would wait until the Illinois General Assembly adjourns its spring session before identifying a local source of revenue to generate the $400 million to $600 million in annual revenue CPS desperately needs.
In other words, the mayor doesn’t want to show his hand too soon and let Springfield off the hook.
“If you think in the final seven days that I’m gonna tell Springfield everything I’m gonna do while they’re negotiating an education budget, you’ve got to get yourself another negotiator. That would be the dumbest thing you could do,” the mayor said.
“I’m supposed to … give them a road map of how to take them off their responsibility, which is in the [state] constitution, to fund education? The state of Illinois that is dead-last in funding education? The state of Illinois that is dead-last in actually paying their bills once they make their pledges? The state of Illinois that has one of the worst formulas [for] funding education for poor kids? I’m supposed to tell them what I’m gonna do so they don’t do their job? Not a chance.”
CEO Forrest Claypool indicated he would continue to fight for fair funding against Rauner, whom he frequently blames for CPS’ budget troubles.
And yet, Claypool did not mention that late last week that his general counsel quietly refiled a civil rights lawsuit against the governor, a stark contrast to the publicity he sought with press conferences and tours of African-American churches for its original iteration. The original suit was dismissed in late April by a Cook County judge who invited CPS lawyers to take another stab at it.
The lawsuit also was one source of contention between Claypool and his longtime friend, Emanuel, who believed the case a lost cause, as the Sun-Times has previously reported.
Illinois’s nearly two-year budget impasse has created a buying opportunity for municipal-bond investors willing to bear the risks, according to Citigroup Inc.
With the Democrat-led legislature and Republican Governor Bruce Rauner unable to forge agreement on how to close the state’s chronic budget deficits, Illinois’s 10-year bonds yield 4.43 percent, or 2.45 percentage point more than top-rated municipal borrowers, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That’s the biggest premium since the indexes were started in January 2013.
That may mean it’s a good time to buy, according to Citigroup. Despite the governmental gridlock, the fifth most-populous state has “strong fundamentals” and the power to tax and grow its way out of the financial hole, the bank said in a report to clients this week, citing the diverse economy and strong legal security backing its debt. While Illinois hasn’t had a full-year budget in place since June 2015, it hasn’t missed any bond payments and state law has required it to continue making monthly deposits to its debt-service funds.
“The state’s credit rating and bond prices have suffered and may present opportunity for a bold investor,” analysts Vikram Rai, Jack Muller and Loretta Bu, said. “We strongly encourage investors to take advantage of the cheapness of the front and intermediate IL GOs.”
Makes sense. The problem proved to be manageable before the last tax hike partially expired.
Chicago lost population for the third year in a row last year, the only one of the nation’s top 20 municipalities to hold that streak.
According to new estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the decline of 8,638 in the year ended June 30, 2016, was rather small, just 0.3 percent of the total population. But combined with other Census data, the figures suggest that while the city is adding Asians, Latinos and whites, African-Americans continue to depart in large numbers, perhaps propelled by better job prospects and safer communities elsewhere. […]
According to the new estimates, Cook County, too, has lost people for three years, and at a faster rate: down about 21,000, or 0.4 percent in the past year. DuPage, Lake and McHenry counties also saw their populations dip, as did Cook suburbs including Arlington Heights, Evanston, Schaumburg, Skokie and Tinley Park. […]
And cities on the edge of the metro area that saw strong population gains prior to the sub-prime mortgage recession have been able to regain just a fraction of their prior magic. For instance, Naperville, Joliet and Elgin in the last year saw gains of just 0.2 percent to 0.3 percent.
Chicago’s population plunge continues to be a result, mostly, of losing residents to other states. About 89,547 residents left Chicago and its surrounding suburbs for other states in 2016, a number that couldn’t be offset by new residents and births, according to an analysis of census data released in March. The number of people leaving the Chicago region is the highest since at least 1990.
More than any other city, Chicago has depended on Mexican immigrants to balance the slow growth of its native-born population. During the 1990s, immigration accounted for most of Chicago’s growth. After 2007, when Mexican-born populations began to fall across the nation’s major metropolitan areas, most cities managed to make up for the loss with the growth of their native populations. Chicago couldn’t.
The entire Midwest has been losing residents, census data show. Detroit lost 3,541 residents from 2015 to 2016, and Milwaukee lost 4,366. But job and business opportunities are still stronger in neighboring Midwestern states than in Illinois, sending more Chicagoans to other parts of the Midwest than vice versa, experts said.
The greatest number of Illinois residents in recent years went to Texas, followed by Florida, Indiana, California and Arizona, according to 2013 Internal Revenue Service migration data.
Both Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office and Gov. Bruce Rauner’s office suggest political factors might be related to the population issues.
“Chicago’s population grew each of the first three years the mayor was in office, but since taking office the governor has driven uncertainty in every corner of the state, and Chicago has not been immune from the effects,” mayoral spokesman Grant Klinzman said. “The fact that the State of Illinois is leading the nation in population loss and the loss of college students is a direct result of a lack of leadership by Governor Rauner and the instability he has created.”
Eleni Demertzis, spokeswoman for Rauner, pointed to some factors specific to Chicago.
“Let’s review what’s happened in Chicago the past two years under Mayor Emanuel: The city’s property taxes and fees have skyrocketed; it has surging violence; and it has threatened to close schools due to decades of fiscal mismanagement,” she said.
So, the governor’s office finally admits that a top dog can make matters much worse over the course of two short years?
* Well, the group finally decided to drill down into the actual numbers this week instead of just posting blatant click-bait…
Illinois’ budget mess is the stepchild of Illinois’ pension mess, and for that perhaps nothing incites more steam-coming-out-of-the-ears fury from critics than the volume of six figure annual retirement payouts—topped by one at $581,000—pledged to former public workers.
Yet a BGA analysis of 2017 data from major pension funds for state and municipal employees vividly illustrates the disconnect between high-rolling pensions, legally protected but irksome as they may be, and the deep financial plight experienced by many of those funds.
Simply put, the state’s 17 major pension funds are slated to pay out more than $17.3 billion in benefits to some 483,000 retirees and survivors this year, totals that underscore the broad reach of pension checks for former public employees. Those payments do not come direct from tax money, though there is an indirect correlation that can render the public confused and budget makers dyspeptic.
Just four percent of all beneficiaries this year are in line for pension paydays exceeding $100,000, with the biggest checks largely going to once high-paid former school administrators as well as doctors and dentists at public teaching hospitals. Payments for the overwhelming majority of pensioners, most of whom don’t qualify for Social Security, are far more modest.
The median pension in 2017 for retired suburban and Downstate teachers stands at $52,016, the analysis shows, while the median for general state workers is $28,946. For university workers, the median pension stands at $26,101, while for non-public safety municipal workers outside of Chicago it is $9,064.
* Gov. Rauner took mostly softballs from TV interviewers yesterday, but Emilee Fannon at WCIA threw him a curve…
Despite donating $2.5 million to Liberty Principles PAC, Governor Bruce Rauner denies he has any knowledge of a controversial, privately-funded newspaper organization run by the same political operative.
Dan Proft is a conservative radio talk show host who runs the Liberty Principles super PAC. Proft also launched a private news publishing group, which is not required to disclose it’s donor or “investor” list.
Last week, Democrats accused Proft’s ‘Local Government Information Services’ of spreading “fake news” in an alleged plot to sabotage the effort to alter the education funding formula. They claimed without providing any evidence that the erroneous, outdated information published in these papers was planted by the Rauner administration.
— IL Working Together (@IllinoisWorking) May 25, 2017
*** UPDATE *** Pritzker campaign…
Today, on day 694 without a budget, Bruce Rauner finds himself embroiled in controversy over conservative fake news and the millions of dollars he spent to fund it.
Yesterday, Rauner took a break from attending concerts and chatting on Facebook, to sit down for an interview with WCIA’s Emilee Fannon. It didn’t go well. Fannon pressed Rauner on his connection to Dan Proft and Local Government Information Services, a Proft run company responsible for spreading fake news to Illinoisans. Rauner’s response:
“I’m not familiar with it.”
There are a few problems with that:
Bruce Rauner donated $2.5 million to the organization he says he is not familiar with. Local Government Information Services is just the latest iteration of Liberty Principles PAC. Rauner donated $2.5 million to the PAC back in June, which accounts for much of their funding. The PAC is known for, among other things, disseminating fake conservative news.
Bruce Rauner’s administration potentially leaked false information to the organization he says he is not familiar with. Just last week, the Rauner administration was caught leaking misleading and confidential state records to the conservative organization in order to prevent compromise on school funding reform.
Bruce Rauner has consistently benefited from the organization he says he is not familiar with. 694 days into the state’s budget crisis and it’s no surprise the real news hasn’t been too kind to Rauner. But Proft’s fake conservative news remains on his side. Proft’s organizations have consistently worked to advance Rauner’s interests in state legislative races and spreads fake news to his benefit.
“Bruce Rauner can’t get any good news as he continues to decimate our state’s economy so he decided to create his own,” said Prizker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “After spending millions of dollars to fund conservative fake news that lies to Illinois families, he says ‘I’m not familiar with it.’ Illinoisans have learned not to expect too much from Rauner, certainly not a budget or a firm grasp of the truth.”
TO: Representative Jeanne M. Ives
FROM: Mark Dyckman General Counsel
Illinois Department of Revenue DATE: May 24, 2017
RE: Senate Bill 9 Constitutional Issues
This memorandum is in response to your request that the Department discuss constitutional issues associated with the tax provisions of Senate Bill 9. These issues are explained below.
1. Service tax provisions. The bill inserts 5 discrete services in the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act (ROT) (storage; laundry and dry cleaning; private detective, private alarm, and private security service; structural pest control service; and tattooing and body piercing). These servicemen are taxed on 100% of the selling price and enjoy an exemption for sales to businesses making purchases of service for the benefit of the business (other than resale). All other servicemen in Illinois continue to be taxed under the Service Occupation Tax Act/Use Tax on only the tangible personal property transferred incident to service; they enjoy no business exemption.
It is the Department’s opinion that there is a substantial risk that the service tax components violate the uniformity clause of the Illinois Constitution (Art. IX, Sec. 2). In order to survive scrutiny under the uniformity clause, a non-property tax classification must (1) be based on real and substantial differences between those taxed and not taxed; and (2) must bear some reasonable relationship to the object of the legislation or to public policy. Illinois service tax classifications have previously been invalidated under the uniformity clause, notably in the case of Fiorito v. Jones, 39 Ill.2d 531, 236 N.E.2d 698 (1968). In that case, existing service taxes were replaced with a tax on only 4 itemized service categories. The Illinois Supreme Court could find no reasonable differences between servicemen who were taxed and those who were not taxed. Senate Bill 9 carries similar risks since it chooses only 5 categories of servicemen from the thousands of servicemen in Illinois and taxes them differently. A court may struggle to find the “real and substantial differences” that justify this differential treatment. Any service tax that simply picks and chooses services at random to be taxed or exempt from tax runs this substantial risk of being unconstitutional.
While not focused on in Fiorito, it is also possible for uniformity violations to be found within specific classifications made in a bill. For instance, the bill continues to tax retailers making sales of tangible personal property to other businesses for business purposes (e.g., a retailer selling security cameras to a business). However, the bill does not tax servicemen (now included in the ROT) when they make sales of service for business purposes (e.g., a serviceman selling alarm services to a business).
2. Entertainment Tax Fairness Act. The bill creates a new 1% tax on subscribers of entertainment (paid video programming through numerous methods including cable). It is our opinion that this tax could be challenged under the Federal Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA). ITFA, in part, prohibits states from imposing discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce. A discriminatory tax under ITFA is a tax that is not generally imposed and legally collectible by a State on transactions involving similar property, goods, services, or information accomplished through other [than electronic commerce] means. SB 9 imposes tax on subscribers renting movies on an internet or cable platform. However, when a subscriber rents the same movie from a video store, he or she incurs no tax liability. As a result, the bill appears to impose a discriminatory tax because it taxes transactions made through electronic commerce more harshly than those made through non-electronic commerce. The Illinois Supreme Court used a similar analysis to strike down Illinois’ first “Amazon law” related to click-through nexus for certain internet links in Performance Marketing v. Hamer, 2013 IL 11496 (2013). The General Assembly corrected that constitutional infirmity in subsequent legislation. It is the Department’s opinion that there is a substantial risk that these provisions violate ITFA.
3. Video Service Tax Modernization Act. SB 9 creates a new 5% tax on providers of direct-to-home satellite service, direct broadcast satellite service, and digital audio-visual work. The bill does not tax cable companies. It is very likely that this tax will be challenged by satellite service providers. Across the country, satellite companies have argued that such laws are discriminatory because they do not tax cable companies. While results have been mixed, challenges have been consistent. As noted in the discussion of Fiorito, above, such a challenge could be asserted under the State Constitution’s Uniformity Clause.
Senate Democrats noted Rauner had recommended service taxes.
“Yikes! How’d the governor take that news? Sales taxes on services have been part of his economic agenda going back to 2014,” said John Patterson, spokesman for Illinois Senate President John Cullerton. “I’m sure he can get this resolved with his Revenue Department.”
