* The Senate convenes Sunday at 2 o’clock, so I’ll crank up the blog an hour or so before that happens. They’ll probably caucus shortly thereafter and start voting after 3 and maybe as late as 5. We’ll see.
Meanwhile I’ve had several requests for an Oscar the Puppy pic this week. The little guy is fascinated with the parrot who lives at the local car wash…
Plaintiffs are individuals with developmental disabilities living at home or in intermediate care facilities for the developmentally disabled (“ICF-DD”) who want to live in community integrated living arrangements (“CILAs) or other community settings. The intervenors are individuals with developmental disabilities living in ICF-DDs and want to remain in those facilities. Plaintiffs and intervenors assert that the State is in violation of the Consent Decree by failing to provide resources of sufficient quality, scope, and variety to provide developmentally disabled individuals with community-integrated care to the highest degree possible. The plaintiffs and intervenors must demonstrate a violation of the court order by clear and convincing evidence.
Since the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Olmstead v. L.C. ex rel. Zimring, “[s]tates are required to provide community-based treatment for persons with mental disabilities when the State’s treatment professionals determine that such placement is appropriate, the affected persons do not oppose such treatment, and the placement can be reasonably accommodated, taking into account the resources available to the State and the needs of others with mental disabilities.” 527 U.S. 581, 607 (1999). In Section 4 of the 2011 Consent Decree at issue here, Illinois committed to providing these services.
Plaintiffs and intervenors presented evidence in the form of a report by economist, Elizabeth T. Powers, declarations from ICF-DD and CILA providers, and representatives of developmentally disabled individuals impacted by the Consent Decree. The State pays private organizations with state and federal money to provide CILA and ICF-DD services. In Illinois, approximately 11,000 individuals with developmental disabilities live in CILAs and 5,000 in ICF-DDs. The evidence presented demonstrates that the actual costs of operating CILA and ICF-DD facilities has increased substantially since the entry of the Consent Decree and wages for Direct Support Professionals (“DSPs”) has stagnated causing a staffing crisis that is inhibiting care and negatively impacting the individuals protected by the Consent Decree.
Defendants assert that the provision of services has not been reduced by the State and thus the State contends that it remains in substantial compliance. Further, defendants assert that the FY 2018 budget allocates an additional $53.4 million to these services. Plaintiffs’ economist, Powers, advises that a 25% wage increase for DSPs would reduce turnover by a third. Defendants contend that such an increase is not financially feasible considering the State is facing $14 billion in bills that are in arrears after the two year budget impasse.
Relying on O.B. v. Norwood, 838 F.3d 837 (7th Cir. 2016), defendants argue that this Court is does not have the authority to order an increase in wages. This Court agrees. In that case, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals stated that “if the shortage is of nurses willing to work at the reimbursement rates set by HFS, we could not order the agency to eliminate the shortage by raising those rates.” O.B., 838 F.3d at 842. Plaintiffs and intervenors seemed to recognize this limitation, albeit reluctantly, asserting instead that the relief they are seeking is a plan from defendants to bring the State into compliance with the Consent Decree.
At the hearing, the Court also heard from the Court Monitor, who reports that defendants are not in substantial compliance with the Consent Decree. The Monitor reports that budget impasse of the preceding two years has resulted in a tangible reduction of services to plaintiffs and intervenors due to the rising costs and frozen funding. Moreover, the State has not presented any plan for compliance beyond a $0.75 hourly wage increase for DSPs for FY2018 (from the allocation of $53.4 million in the new budget). […]
Accordingly, this Court finds that defendants are not in compliance with the Consent Decree by failing to provide the resources of sufficient quality, scope, and variety based on the ample evidence presented to the Court that individuals protected by the decree have experienced a reduction of services and have suffered substantially as a result. The dire financial situation of the State of Illinois and the attendant competing demands for resources are not lost on the Court. The Court directs that State to devise a plan to address the issues causing the reduction in services and to bring the State into substantial compliance.
So, no specific actions ordered, but a demand issued that the General Assembly and the governor come up with a plan. Not gonna be cheap. I’ll open comments when I reopen the blog on Sunday.
…Adding… Press release…
Disability consultant Ed McManus applauded the ruling. McManus operates a Wilmette-based consulting firm representing 30 provider agencies around the state.
“The State agreed six years ago to provide good services to our vulnerable people with developmental disabilities, but it has failed to do so,” McManus said. “The plaintiffs’ lawyers were able to show the court how serious the situation is—there is a severe staff shortage because providers can’t afford to pay workers decent wages. Hopefully the State will start to meet their obligations.”
It looks like Illinois is finally getting back its most important job-creating incentives tool.
More than three months after Edge program—Economic Development for a Growing Economy tax credits—expired, caught up in the partisan warfare over the state budget, lawmakers on Aug. 13 are set to take final action to restore the program. And I’m told that everybody involved, including Gov. Bruce Rauner, is on board.
Scheduled for a vote in the Senate is a measure sponsored by Rep. Michael Zalewski, D-Chicago, that would somewhat reduce the value of the payroll tax credit and focus the program more on helping bring new jobs to impoverished area, but still put the development tool back in the state’s toolbox. […]
Sources tell me Rauner, who’d wanted changes in the old policy, is now happy enough that he’ll sign the bill.
In fact, Bush said the GOP governor got everything he wanted except a clause allowing recipients to sell or transfer Edge credits to someone else. “We certainly can work that out at a later time,” she said.
I’m not a huge fan of the program. It essentially allows companies to pocket their workers’ state payroll tax. But when you’re as sorry as this state is at economic development, you gotta do what you gotta do. And it has worked in the past.
Chicago Alderman Ameya Pawar, one of several Democrats vying for his party’s nomination to run for Illinois governor against incumbent Republican Bruce Rauner, doesn’t think the drug war was a failure.
“The war on drugs was a success,” he said in a speech on criminal justice reform given last month. “Because the war on drugs was never actually on drugs. It was against black people.”
Pawar used that address to explain the true history of the modern drug war, which President Nixon utilized to crack down on the anti-war left and African-Americans.
As part of his campaign, he’s vowing to end Illinois’s participation in that drug war through a battery of policies: making minor possession of controlled substances no longer a felony, legalizing and taxing marijuana, expanding addiction treatment, establishing a truth and reconciliation commission to air police-community grievances, and, most radically, using his commutation powers as governor to simply commute the sentences of nonviolent low-level drug offenders.
* The Question: Do you support the concept of a governor commuting sentences for low-level, nonviolent drug offenders? Click here to take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
Here's @GovRauner, who previously advocated for a soda tax, decrying the tax's impact on food stamps, which he's currently plotting to cut https://t.co/A8Rn6e6lI6
Advocates for human services are worried that Gov. Bruce Rauner is planning to eliminate food stamps for as many as a quarter-million low-income Illinois residents.
And according to some advocates, Illinois Department of Human Services workers report that the state has begun using new administrative measures to throw eligible food stamp recipients off the rolls.
At issue is a large category of recipients in the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, called “able-bodied adults without dependents.” Various estimates put their number as high as 240,000.
Under Clinton-era welfare reform, they were limited to three months of SNAP benefits every three years. But states with limited job availability could apply for waivers to that restriction, and Illinois has had a waiver since the beginning.
Rauner favored dropping the waiver in previous years, but was talked out of it by moderate voices in his administration, advocates say. But those moderates have been replaced by staunch reactionaries from the Illinois Policy Institute, who have echoed conservative talking points against people who they believe should be gainfully employed.
All you gotta do is click here to see how obsessed the Illinois Policy Institute has been on the SNAP issue over the years. And if you click here, you’ll see the group advocating for exactly the change that Rauner is now implementing.
* Chicago Magazine interviewed the Illinois Policy Institute’s John Tillman…
How did it happen that you lost so many of your people to the state government?
I don’t prefer the term “lost.” I think the state of Illinois is lucky to have these incredibly talented people. These are very difficult jobs, and I think this whole uproar about the staff shakeup is way over the top. Gubernatorial administrations have had turnover from the beginning of time. Perfectly normal. The people who are in there now will one day be out. The governor is advancing his vision and his mission and the staff’s job is to advance the governor’s agenda, not the other way around.
I’ve been covering this state government since 1990 (oy) and I have never once seen such an abrupt staff change that didn’t have anything to do with the end of a term. This is just not normal. The only comparable event was after Rod Blagojevich was arrested.
And as far as the staff advancing the governor’s mission goes, it sure looks like the governor is changing directions with his new staff in place. Like for instance, on school funding reform (click here), refinancing the debt owed to vendors and providers (click here) and food stamp eligibility (click here).
The people who left IPI to go to the Rauner administration generally have no government experience. Is that a problem?
The idea that you have to literally work in government as a government employee to have government experience is false. Every one of these people have been involved in the legislative process as advocates, have been involved in negotiating and talking to legislators and promoting legislation. More importantly, those who are experienced in government have driven the state into the ground. And I think it’s time for a change.
* This is a good time to clear the air on some things. I have a ton of respect for what Tillman has been able to accomplish. He took a small wonky group and turned it into one of the most feared organizations in this state. The fact that his group has been able to connect with so many people should be a model for everyone else (although, I’m not at all a fan of their methods, including the way they seem to enjoy ginning up anger and hate).
And while I take strong issue with their insistence that their fantasy state budgets are realistic, or that “right to work” is a good thing, or that the crushing impasse was really no big deal, I do happen to agree with them on several other points, like criminal justice reform or ridiculous over-regulation of food trucks, etc.
That’s really the genius of the group. The Policy Institute completely stays away from traditional social issues and focuses solely on fiscal and economic issues. That confuses the heck out of liberals who don’t pay close attention to this stuff. The Institute isn’t officially pro-gun, or pro-life or anti-gay, so they don’t look like extremists to most eyes. And they hate taxes. Everybody hates taxes, including lots of Cook County liberals screaming about the new pop tax right now. And liberals are overjoyed with conservative support for criminal justice reform.
But now that they’ve linked up so tightly with a hugely unpopular governor, things might change for them, and not for the better. The governor’s new Policy Institute staff is hampering, even hurting him, but the governor’s not so great reputation is also now splashing on the Institute. If he fails, they’re really gonna be hurt by that.
* Interesting how they’re trying to de-emphasize the Cook endorsement…
Today, JB Pritzker was endorsed by the Cook County Democratic Party and 23 Democratic county chairs from across the state. The chairs represent every region of the state, showing support from the Northern, Western, Central, Metro East, and Southern regions of Illinois.
The county chairs supporting JB Pritzker and Juliana Stratton’s statewide campaign include the chairs of Adams, Alexander, Bond, Calhoun, Christian, Greene, Hamilton, Jackson, Jasper, Johnson, Kane, Macon, Massac, McLean, Menard, Richland, Saline, Sangamon, Shelby, St. Clair, Tazewell, Union, and Williamson counties.
“Today, I’m proud to receive the endorsement of Democrats from Cook County and county chairs from across the state,” said JB Pritzker. “As governor, I will stand with Illinois working families as we fight for our shared Democratic values. It is time for Democrats to unite against Bruce Rauner. After holding the state budget hostage for over two years, this failed governor has proven that the damage is done and that he is unfit to lead our state. Juliana and I are proud to be running a statewide, grassroots campaign that will defeat Rauner in 2018 and support candidates up and down the ticket. We look forward to meeting Illinoisans in every county and getting our state back on track.”
“After more than two years of destruction to Illinois caused by Bruce Rauner’s ideological war on the middle class, Democrats must nominate a candidate in 2018 who will put the interests of working families first,” said Calhoun County Democratic Party Chairman Paul Herkert. “JB is best suited to not only defeat Bruce Rauner, but to reverse the severe damage he has caused our state.”
“The 2018 elections will be crucial for Illinois’ middle class families,” said Adams County Democratic Party Chairman Keith Neiwohner. “It is vital that voters elect to the office of governor a person possessing the qualities of independence, integrity, and honesty to oversee the state government. With so much at stake, the Democratic Party must have candidates with strong records of fighting for the middle class. JB’s candidacy will be an asset to all families in Illinois.”
“Governor Rauner’s anti-working class agenda has devastated communities across Illinois, and has been particularly harmful to the men and women of Sangamon County,” said Sangamon County Democratic Party Chairman Doris Turner. “I believe that because of JB’s experience and vision he is the best person to serve as the next governor of Illinois, and I believe that JB’s supporters and his organization make him the candidate who can beat Bruce Rauner in the upcoming general election. I look forward to working with JB to fight for working-class, Democratic values, and I am fully committed to helping elect JB Pritzker to be Illinois’ next governor.”
MORE Insider Support for Pritzker
Pritzker Gets Endorsement of Most Crooked Organization in IL Politics
No group in Illinois politics reeks of crooked insider dealing more than the Cook County Democratic Party.
Just last month, the Chicago Tribune exposed how Mike Madigan-ally Joe Berrios, the Cook County Assessor and Chair of the Cook County Democratic Party, runs what is essentially a property tax racket – giving the wealthy huge tax breaks at the expense of low-income Cook county residents.
The billionaire has gotten nearly a quarter million dollars back in property tax breaks and refunds from Joe Berrios, taking money from Chicago Public Schools and other city services by claiming that a $3.7 million Chicago mansion is “uninhabitable”.
It’s no surprise that Joe Berrios would endorse J.B. Pritzker – they’re two crooked Chicago insiders cut from the same cloth.
After all, billionaire J.B. Pritzker has proven he’s willing to play along with Berrios’ property tax schemes and profit from Cook County’s unjust property tax system.
Whew.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Sen. Daniel Biss…
“Today’s endorsement, while not surprising, was a vote for more of the same. More backroom deals and more closed door coronations to replace one billionaire with another. For far too long, families like mine have felt the pain of a system rigged against us, and we’re ready to choose something new. Today’s vote doesn’t change that.”
*** UPDATE 2 *** Chris Kennedy…
“Today I asked the Cook County Democratic Party for an open primary to bring our state and our Party into the 21st century and let the voters decide the outcome of this election. It turns out the Cook County Democratic Party is more interested in preserving the status quo. So, in the backroom of a restaurant, they anointed their choice for governor.
Democracy only works when everyone can participate in the process. I will never stop fighting until our state government is working for the people. I will run a campaign that will take this decision about Illinois’ future from the backroom to voting booths across our state, and Democratic primary voters in Illinois will send a message that they want radical change.”
It is still very early in the race for Governor of Illinois and it is one that will require endurance. It is only August 11th. I will continue to work hard everyday and remind the people of this great state that they have a choice. There is a downstate candidate that knows what hard work is and is not afraid of challenges. Cook counties endorsement was not a surprise and we will move forward as planned.
* Related…
* Sun-Times: J.B. Pritzker gets Cook County Democrats’ endorsement for governor
As school districts across the state issue uncertain budgets in the shadow of Governor Rauner’s veto of historic education funding reform, today CPS published a budget that will maintain critical investments that are helping students reach new academic heights.
“Every district in Illinois is facing unnecessary – and unconscionable – uncertainty about how much funding they will receive from the State, thanks to Governor Rauner’s veto of a historical education funding reform bill,” said CPS CEO Forrest Claypool. “Despite this uncertainty, CPS schools will open on time and stay open – a statement that, unfortunately, many other districts cannot make. Let no one forget the single most important part of this debate: ensuring that all students have the resources to get the education they deserve. That is at the heart of this debate. And it is at the heart of all our work.”
Today, CPS is releasing a $5.7 billion budget framework that outlines how the district will move forward to ensure that Chicago’s children can continue their blazing academic progress. When the dust has cleared in Springfield, like many other districts, CPS will release a budget that incorporates any changes or revisions required, if necessary at that time.
This budget assumes that the State will enact education funding reform along the lines of Senate Bill 1, which is the only evidence-based funding model that has won approval from the General Assembly. Under this model, 268 districts would receive more money per pupil than Chicago. CPS would receive $300 million in additional funding in FY18, despite the fact that independent fact checkers say that if Chicago students were treated equally, CPS should receive $500 million.
This budget also assumes that CPS will receive an additional $269 million in local resources to address its remaining budget gap, and is working with the City of Chicago to identify potential sources.
Indeed, 855 districts’ budgets are in limbo and many districts are in jeopardy because Governor Rauner refuses to acknowledge that his politically motivated claims about a CPS bailout are categorically false, as proven time and again by independent fact checkers.
This budget will build on management reforms and efficiencies that have saved hundreds of millions of dollars and allowed more resources to be directed to classrooms, where they matter most. Over the past two years, this administration has made significant strides in managerial and administrative efficiencies, creating structural budget savings of $145 million, including closing roughly a quarter of the positions in Central Office.
In addition, in FY18, CPS will continue its previously announced capital projects, as well as investing $139 million more to make critical facility repairs.
The proposed FY18 budget will be made available for public comment the week of Aug. 21, when the district will hold four meetings to discuss the budget and proposed capital plans. Capital hearings will be held Aug. 21 at three locations from 6 to 8 p.m. Registration begins at 5 p.m., and locations will be announced shortly. Budget Hearings will be held Aug. 23 at CPS, 42 W. Madison. Hearings will be held at 12:30 and 3:30 p.m.
The final budget is expected to be presented to the Board for a vote at its August meeting, which is scheduled for August 28.
For additional information on the FY18 budget, an extensive budget book is attached to this release. The same information will be available at www.cps.edu/budget later today.
There was no “extensive budget book” attached, however.
A change slipped into this year’s budget, coupled with Gov. Bruce Rauner’s proposed changes to a school funding bill, could add another major financial challenge for area school districts.
As part of the spending plan in July, lawmakers approved shifting the state’s portion of pension costs for all future teachers to local school districts. And as part of his amendatory veto of Senate Bill 1, Rauner removed language that would take those added costs into account when determining districts’ financial positions — data that’s used to determine how much they receive in state aid. […]
“We’re talking about millions of dollars — additional millions of dollars — in pension costs,” Peoria Public Schools Superintendent Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat said at a news conference Wednesday to urge local lawmakers to reject Rauner’s proposed changes. “That would be very difficult.” […]
Canton District 66 Superintendent Rolf Sivertsen said he didn’t have an immediate calculation of the cost to his district, but estimated that the effect would run into the millions of dollars. […]
“If there is no levy with it, it’ll be financial ruin, and the governor will own that,” Sivertsen said. […]
If the governor’s amendatory veto is approved, efforts to move toward more adequate and equitable school funding will be “obsolete the very day that Tier 3 is created,” Michael Jacoby, executive director of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials, wrote in an emailed response.
* This morning, I received a tip that I should file another Freedom of Information Act request with the Illinois State Board of Education for e-mails between ISBE and the Illinois Department of Revenue because there might be another one. The previous response is here.
Here’s what ISBE sent me this morning. It’s an e-mail from Education Superintendent Tony Smith to Department of Revenue Director Connie Beard sent on Tuesday night, after I submitted the FOIA. Gov. Rauner’s education czar Beth Purvis is copied as is Smith’s assistant…
From: Tony Smith
Sent: Tuesday, August 08, 2017 6:24 PM
To: Connie Beard
Cc: Dr. Beth Purvis; Kimberly Clark
Subject: Governor Rauner’s AV to SB1
Hello Director Beard,
I’m writing to you directly to request your help. The State Board of Education is in the process of finalizing a model of Governor Rauner’s Amendatory Veto to SB 1. We completed and sent a version on Monday afternoon and then we received an email this morning informing us the data we received from the Department of Revenue was not accurate. We have to create a new file. We are unable to complete the file requested by the Governor until we receive confirmation from the Department of Revenue that the changes to CPS TIF data reported today to ISBE staff do not affect the data for any other district.
As you know policy makers urgently need this information to make informed decisions on school funding. Please let me know if there is anything you need from ISBE to facilitate getting the data as soon as possible.
Thank you for any assistance you can provide.
Sincerely,
Tony
Since my FOIA included e-mails up to and including today, and the response was sent to me at about 10:30 this morning, has ISBE ever heard back from Revenue? I checked with ISBE’s spokesperson and was told “I don’t have the answer for that.” I checked in with IDOR and haven’t yet heard back. I’ll update if they respond.
But, you know, no pressure or anything. The Senate isn’t scheduled to vote on the governor’s AV until Sunday. Tons of time, right?
I’ve also filed another FOIA for ISBE correspondence with the governor’s office.
Burr Ridge doctor Robert Marshall just announced he's running for gov, 9th candidate. Wants to legalize marijuana and gambling in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/QMiolNBolL
* Marshall was a Burr Ridge trustee from 1989-1993, ran for Congress as a Republican in 1998 and lost to Bill Lipinski in the general, then ran for US Senate as a Democrat in 2010 and got 6 percent of the vote and ran for Congress as a Democrat last year in Peter Roskam’s district but got stomped by Amanda Howland in the primary.
What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?
Dividing the State of Illinois into extra states, specifically 4 separate independent states. We should do this to increase our political power at the Federal level and in the Electoral College.
Ending the so called “War on Drugs”. Marijuana should be legalized on a nationwide basis. State and local municipalities can choose to opt out of this program if they so choose. Treatment programs should be expanded for drug addicts.
Decrease Medicare age to 62 and also start a dental program for seniors comparable to the Medicare program.
Increase the minimum wage to $15.00, require two weeks of paid leave.
EDITORIAL: Thank you, Wisconsin, for the beautiful gift
Friends in the Wisconsin Legislature, we beg you: Sign that bad deal with Foxconn.
It’s the neighborly thing to do.
Best we can tell, it’s a crap shoot as to whether luring the giant electronics company to Wisconsin would work out well for you, given the billions of dollars in tax breaks your governor has promised, but it would be terrific for Illinois. It would cost our state nothing, yet up to half of the new jobs could go to our residents, while O’Hare Airport would get the new international travel business.
The best thing that ever happened to Illinois might be losing Foxconn to you, Wisconsin. Much appreciated.
Truth be told, this whole sad spectacle of Midwestern states fighting each other for economic development, each trying to outdo the other in prostrating itself before some international conglomerate, is foolish, and the Foxconn deal is proof. If Illinois and Wisconsin had joined forces from the beginning to bring this manufacturing plant to the region — maybe even pulling in Indiana as a partner — the final deal with the Taiwan company might have been less of a give-away, and the risks would have been shared.
To be a player in the global economy, size matters. Working together, the Midwest is better positioned to leverage its strengths, including a highly trained work force, superb universities and a central location. But because Illinois, Wisconsin and the rest of the old Rust Belt states fail to do so, big companies like Foxconn play them off each other. The result is the kind of questionable deal Gov. Scott Walker has cut for Wisconsin.
The Sun-Times is right on all points. And our governor should’ve led the charge for a regional deal. It’s high time that Great Lakes states stop fighting each other and start working together.
Concern about the political effects of a deeply unpopular county pop tax — on top of recent state and city tax increases — on Thursday hung over the first day of Cook County Democrats’ endorsement session for next year’s primary election.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle took the podium to make the first pitch of the day, asking the party she vice-chairs for an endorsement for re-election next year. The beverage tax that she broke a tie vote to approve in November has been collected for just more than a week, but state Rep. Luis Arroyo asked her whether she would repeal it.
“My answer is no,” Preckwinkle responded. “We had a choice last fall, either raise revenue, or make 1,100 cuts in personnel and lay off 1,100 people, and I thought then, I think now, that would severely impact the quality of services.” […]
Preckwinkle afterward avoided addressing potential political fallout of the tax and instead defended its passage. Other Democrats expressed worries, though, that the controversial drink tax could combine with a state income tax hike and increases in city property taxes to sow the seeds for a potential voter tax revolt against Democrats in November 2018.
Northwest Side Ald. Nicholas Sposato, 38th, said he expects some backlash against the pop tax “down the road in the election next year.” People complaining to him about the tax “are blaming Preckwinkle and the Democrats,” he said, adding that the income tax increase would compound the problem.
Rauner told WVON that it’s “another terrible instance. These politicians just keep taxing. They’re putting taxes on the people of Illinois. This terrible sugar tax is outrageous. Toni Preckwinkle should have never done it” and that “the whole system is broken. This is just more of the problems of these politicians thinking taxes are the answer. Taxing and spending is a disaster and the sugar tax has to be fixed.”
The Republican governor had previously flirted with a state soda tax as part of a potential budget compromise, and backed a GOP proposal that relied on a state income tax increase similar to the one that became law in July over his objections.
He did more than just flirt with the idea. He pushed the Senate hard behind the scenes for months to approve a sugary drink tax.
On Thursday, state Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, filed a resolution asking the General Assembly to urge the Cook County Board to immediately repeal the tax because of its negative impact on the “already over-taxed residents” of Cook County. […]
Rep. Mary Flowers, D-Chicago, is the resolution’s chief co-sponsor, making it a bipartisan effort.
* Related…
* Feds, McDonald’s, 7-Eleven Aim to Pop Illinois Soda Tax: Meanwhile, a growing number of class actions are being filed against retailers. At least two lawsuits contend that large retailers collect the tax on products exempted from taxation.
* Crain’s Chicago Business: Here’s our 2 cents on Preckwinkle’s penny-an-ounce pop tax: If Preckwinkle were reinforcing the barricades for a good cause—namely, paying down debt after reining in costs—we might cheer her on, as we have after she trimmed the notoriously bloated county government, rolled out needed criminal justice reforms and realized efficiencies in hospital operations. But over the years, the no-nonsense reformer has morphed into someone reminiscent of the Strogers, whose multigenerational reign over Cook County helped create the bloat, malaise and waste that she so effectively campaigned against in 2010.
* Feds, state lawmaker attack Cook County soda tax, its implementation: On Thursday, state Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, filed a resolution asking the General Assembly to urge the Cook County Board to immediately repeal the tax because of its negative impact on the “already over-taxed residents” of Cook County.
When it comes to hiring women to top posts within Pritzker’s businesses, however, the billionaire is, well, lacking.
A look at some of the upper-echelon positions in Pritzker-run firms shows a complete absence of women.
Pritzker Group Private Capital’s web site lists nine individuals with the titles “managing partner”, “investment partner” or “venture partner.” All are male. The investment team lists 22 people in total. Just one, a paralegal, is female. And of 15 senior advisers listed, just one is a woman.
Pritzker Group Venture Capital’s web site lists eight individuals with the titles “founder,” “managing partner”, “partner” or “venture partner.” Again, all are male. There is one woman listed as vice president and another as senior associate.
Asked about the dearth of women in top jobs at Pritzker firms, a spokeswoman referenced an industry-wide problem.
A study of women in venture capital reported in Techcrunch indicates that women make up just 7 percent of partners in the top 100 firms. That’s a low percentage, but Pritzker’s record of having no female partners still manages to fall below it.
When it comes to backing women founders, Chicago venture funds Pritzker Group and Lightbank lead the country.
That’s the word from Jeremy Stanley, the top data scientist at Instacart, who analyzed 700 venture fundings between 2009 and 2013 as reported to the Crunchbase database. Stanley went looking for the firms most supportive of female founders in the wake of a recent scandal in which a San Francisco venture capitalist was accused of making unwanted sexual advances toward women founders.
Pritzker Group Venture Capital finished first. The firm, started by J.B. Pritzker and his brother, Tony, has backed companies such as Chicago-based Eved, GiveForward, Built In and Sittercity, as well as Jessica Alba’s Honest Co. in Santa Monica, Calif. […]
Says Matt McCall, a partner at Pritzker Group: You can’t have 43 percent of business school classes be made up of women and have them account for only 10 percent of companies funded. “I’ve been saying for a while that this is the era of the female entrepreneur.”
* On to the next smallish oppo dump…
MMPI under Kennedy had predominantly male leadership, of the 12 people at SVP level or higher in 2010, nine were male.
You know, we’ll have to wait and see. I don’t know who the nominee’s gonna be on the Republican side. Look, I’m a Democrat and, I think, you know, I tend to lean toward voting for the President [Barack Obama]. But I think this is gonna be a long campaign, we’re gonna learn a lot during this campaign. And ultimately, I think, you know, as in every election, it’s gonna be a choice between two people and two parties that you’re not a hundred percent behind either one. You just have to pick sort of the best of a mediocre, you know, set of choices. [Emphasis added.]
* WGN TV asked him about that yesterday. His response…
Well, actually I supported President Obama in ‘08 and ‘012, um, and, you know, it was just a theoretical remark. President Obama chose me to help lead the White House summit on early childhood for him in 2014, uh, at which he and I attended… [Emphasis added.]
The full interview, which is otherwise pretty positive, is here.
* The Tribune’s Kristen McQueary has defended Gov. Rauner time and time again over the past two and a half years. She even said not long ago that she sometimes “felt as an editorial writer that I was telling stories that his people should’ve been telling.”
When Illinois legislators return to Springfield to address school funding reform, they should override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s amendatory veto of the bill or pass a new version with a veto-proof majority.
In summary: Rauner botched this one.
The governor has not made, and cannot seem to make, a compelling case for the breadth and scope of his changes to a bill that represented a decade of research on a broken school funding formula. Instead he has delivered only mixed messages and tumult.
Rather than use a scalpel on the bill as he and his education secretary, Beth Purvis, signaled he would do, Rauner used a cleaver. […]
Continually, Rauner’s focus seems to be at the wrong end: protecting wealthy school districts from losing what they have instead of advocating for low-income school districts and what they need.
A group of parents from across Illinois are taking the fight for fair education funding to court and suing to ensure state education dollars are distributed under a reformed funding formula as required by state law.
“Last month, I came to Springfield to call for fair education funding, and while legislators did their job, our schools are still being held hostage to political games,” said Mary Beth Linse, a speech pathologist and parent from Ingleside who is among the plaintiffs in the case. “Every student, every school and every community needs fair funding. We want to make sure the state keeps its promise and enacts reforms that will give all students the opportunity for a great education.”
Linse is joined as a plaintiff in the case by Amy McNeil, parent of two special-needs students from Carterville, and Lisa Kulisek, a parent of two Chicago Public School students. The parents are asking a court to take steps that will ensure no funds are distributed under the current, broken funding formula, giving lawmakers more time to implement funding reform as required under the state budget. While legislators have passed reforms to the state’s funding formula that provide fair funding for every school in the state without picking winners and losers, Gov. Bruce Rauner’s amendatory veto has blocked implementation of reforms.
“The reforms our children need made it all the way to the governor’s desk, and it would be a disservice to them if the broken funding formula were allowed to remain in place despite the clear intent of the General Assembly,” McNeil said. “The law of our state says it’s time to fix the broken funding formula, so we are asking the courts to uphold that law.”
“We would like to force the governor and the General Assembly to do their job and work together to approve an evidence based model that provides adequate funding for Illinois’ schools,” Kulisek said. “Our children, and particularly poor children, deserve a quality education and should not be pawns in a political game.”
(1) Compel the comptroller to pay the remaining FY17 money owed school districts for mandated categorical grants. The comptroller paid out $429 million today, but over $500 million still hasn’t been distributed. And in the event the Illinois State Board of Education submits vouchers for FY18, the plaintiffs want the judge to require the comptroller to pay the remaining FY17 dollars before paying anything for FY18.
(2) Prohibit the Illinois State Board of Education from attempting to distribute school funding using a model other than an evidence-based model established by state statute. There are apparently some rumors going around that the governor and ISBE are contemplating either creating their own method to distribute funds or attempting to distribute funds using the old formula (we talked about a possible lawsuit on this very topic earlier this week.)
Ugh. I sure hope he’s going to be OK. I’ll let you know if there are any official updates.
…Adding… The press release announcing the ribbon cutting included a quote from Director Poe that was obviously written before the event, but no update on his condition.
Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Raymond Poe said he is OK after taking a tumble during Thursday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony to open the Illinois State Fair.
Poe was standing in a line with Gov. Bruce Rauner, Mayor Jim Langfelder and several other officials holding the blue ribbon in front of the Main Gate as Rauner clipped the ribbon.
As the crowd applauded Poe turned around and apparently lost his balance and fell backward.
Rauner’s amendatory veto of SB1 hurts our public schools even more. Because what he isn’t telling you is that behind closed doors he’s working to privatize those funds and redistribute them to private schools in the area. He is calling for a $100 million school voucher program.
This school voucher program is being decided on behind closed doors and just proves what we’ve known all along — Rauner doesn’t care about the families of Illinois, he only cares about his own interests. Whether it’s a budget for the state or school funding, Rauner does not care about the damage he’s causing our state.
Rauner wants to rob our public schools to enrich private schools. We cannot let this happen.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel dodged questions on school vouchers Thursday even as negotiations continue on a new statewide funding formula — talks that, at Gov. Bruce Rauner’s request, include vouchers. […]
Emanuel was asked where he stands on school vouchers before heading off to O’Hare for a flight to the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s meeting in New Orleans.
“My primary focus is on public education,” the mayor said.
Pressed on whether he opposes vouchers, Emanuel said, “I have a history and my record is clear as it relates to public education. And my record is clear as it relates to vouchers and using public money for private schools.”
I wish the media would stop calling this a voucher program. These aren’t vouchers. This is a private school scholarship fund underwritten, as proposed, by 100 percent state income tax credits.
* The Cardinal lobbied the mayor a few months ago about this topic…
Cupich, who invited Emanuel and his wife, Amy Rule, to Rome to witness his elevation to cardinal in November, emailed Emanuel in April about the plan. He said he supported U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ proposal to give credits to taxpayers who donate to a fund that covers private school tuition.
“I am convinced that this would be an enormous boost to the Chicago schools and the thousands of parents who use our schools,” Cupich wrote in the email sent April 11.
Emanuel responded in an email back the next day, saying, “Of course we will discuss,” as first reported by WBEZ.
Enrollment at Chicago’s Catholic schools has been dropping for several years, leading to closures of several schools — including St. Benedict High School in North Center — and the merger of four Far Northwest Side Catholic schools into Pope Francis Global Academy.
* Now that JB Pritzker has chosen Rep. Juliana Stratton as his running mate, whom should the other Democratic candidates choose? And please don’t forget to explain your answer. Thanks.
* From Hari Sevugan at 270 Strategies, who is with the Daniel Biss campaign…
JB’s campaign was using Hustle to get me to come to an event. The idea is to use texts to allow real people to organize through one-on-one conversations. Instead, it looks like I got a bot. I wrote “new phone. who dis?” And got an instant reply with “great. RSVP here.”
Given how much money JB has and is spending, you’d think they could do better than this.
* The screen cap…
To me, anyway, it’s not so much that they’re using a bot, but that their bot doesn’t appear to be properly programmed. He didn’t reply with a “Yes,” so why the follow-up text?
Cook County’s sweetened beverage tax could land the state in hot water with the feds, resulting in roughly $87 million in federal food stamp money being withheld if the problem isn’t fixed, Illinois officials said Thursday.
The problem: While Cook County has informed retailers that purchases made with federal food stamp benefits are exempt from the soda tax under federal law, it’s also allowed retailers to tax those purchases and provide refunds as a workaround for stores that haven’t been able to properly update their point-of-sale systems.
As a result, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Services, the federal agency overseeing the food stamp program — officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP — earlier this week warned the Illinois Department of Human Services that federal money could be withheld. The state passed along that warning to the county on Wednesday.
*** UPDATE 1 *** The US Department of Agriculture’s letter to IDHS reveals that it “advised Cook County via phone call on on June 28, 2017 that this option for managing the tax was unacceptable.” Click here to read the letter.
A spokesman for the Illinois Retail Merchants Association says IRMA also told the county this same thing and used it as part of its lawsuit.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From the county president’s office…
The Cook County Department of Revenue has been in collaboration with the retail community since the approval of the Sweetened Beverage Tax last November. We have worked with the retail community to address their concerns and have implemented regulations to provide further guidance.
The regulation addressing Sweetened Beverage purchases made with SNAP benefits was put in place to further address the tax-exempt nature of sweetened beverage purchases made with SNAP benefits. In drafting the regulation, the Department of Revenue discussed the regulation changes with the USDA on June 27th. After speaking with USDA on June 27th, the County was not aware that Regulation 2017-3 was unacceptable. We believed that USDA was taking our regulations under consideration and would communicate back with the County if there was a concern.
If we were specifically told that the Regulation 2017-3 was unacceptable, we would have worked with USDA, just as we had been doing since January, to further modify as needed. It was never our intention in drafting the sweetened beverage regulations to put federal SNAP funding for the state in jeopardy, nor do we think Regulation 2017-3 jeopardizes the State’s participation in SNAP. At this time, we believe we are in compliance with existing SNAP rules. We do however recognize that USDA’s powers against the State in this regard are substantial and we will work collaboratively with both the State and USDA to address USDA’s concerns.
* You’ll recall that the Illinois State Board of Education claimed this week that the Department of Revenue staff reported “a significant error in the TIF EAV data that the Department of Revenue submitted to the State Board of Education for modeling.” I immediately FOIA’d the board for all e-mail correspondence. This is their reply today…
Dear Mr. Miller:
This letter is in response to your request for information under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. Your request was received on Aug. 8, 2017.
You have requested all e-mail correspondence on August 7 and August 8, 2017 between the Illinois Department of Revenue and the Illinois State Board of Education.
The attached document (18-029-miller-doc.pdf) has been provided in response to your request.
* This is the sum total of all e-mails between ISBE and the Illinois Department of Revenue about the mistake in Revenue’s calculations, according to ISBE…
Jason
It has been brought to my attention that the queries that were built for the Chicago TIF values were not correct. I pulled these distributions from cook county and I think what was sent to you for U299 did not include all city of Chicago TIF’s. Please give me a call.
Brad Kriener
Illinois Department of Revenue Property Tax Division
Democratic Comptroller Susana Mendoza is again raising the pressure on Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, calling on him to move forward with a proposal that would allow the state to borrow $6 billion to begin paying down Illinois’ massive pile of unpaid bills. […]
At an unrelated news conference at the Thompson Center, Rauner said the borrowing plan was “not an optimal answer” and suggested he’s looking to work on new plans. Democrats who control the General Assembly, though, might not be interested in renegotiating a budget they approved to break the stalemate last month.
“We will be working with the General Assembly on proposals to actually have an appropriation to pay down debt and have a plan to reduce it and also to have reforms so we don’t stay in this position — where we actually have truly balanced budgets today and going forward,” Rauner said.
Rauner was unable to win changes including freezing property taxes, curbing workers’ compensation costs and weakening union rights. He said, though, that his proposals are “the only answer for our indebtedness, and going out and borrowing more is not going to help the problem.”
There is $6 billion in new financing authority in the budget package, but even optimistic projections say the state could only borrow maybe $3 billion.
That being said, it almost sounds like the governor wants to use the state’s bill backlog as “leverage” to finally get some of his reforms passed.
With a history of unbalanced budgets and the budget impasse, the state has accumulated $11 billion in unpaid bills. The Governor is willing to work with the legislature to sell bonds or take other actions to reduce the backlog of bills owed by the state in conjunction with an overall balanced budget agreement. Financing would enable the state to stop accruing high interest on some unpaid bills.
So, he was all for a borrowing program for unpaid bills back then. And he was right because, as the comptroller often notes, the state is paying $2 million a day in interest on its unpaid bills.
“The comprehensive balanced budget we are offering today will provide care for our state’s most vulnerable citizens,” said Deputy Republican Leader Patti Bellock. “With last week’s court ruling on the $2 billion backlog of unpaid Medicaid bills, it is critically important we take immediate action to address this backlog. Our plan includes more than $4 billion in bonding to help pay off old bills. We must address this crisis now. The consequences of not taking action now would be devastating to human services.”
So, why the sudden change in tone?
As we’ve already discussed today, the governor’s policy director Michael Lucci used to be a commenter on this blog when he was with the Illinois Policy Institute. He was a bit of a hothead and occasionally liked to personally insult me, so I eventually got tired of dealing with him and put him into automatic comment moderation. As a “free market” enthusiast, you’d think the Looch would respect a private company owner’s modest rules about decorum.
* Anyway, before Lucci was hired as Rauner’s chief policy guy, he was the Illinois Policy Institute’s chief policy guy and posted several comments on this site about state debt.
This is how Lucci responded July 5th to Rep. Greg Harris’ contention that money should be borrowed to pay down that mountain of overdue bills…
Harris’ plan is to borrow more from the banks and sweep funds to pay $8 bil from the backlog of bills.
In other words, put the debt on a different credit card and drain your liquidity.
This is exactly what a debt crisis looks like.
In other words, he prefers owing money to struggling social service providers and business owners at insane interest rates rather than borrowing money on the market.
* On July 5th, when Gov. Rauner vowed to stop a veto override and shrugged off warnings that Illinois could be downgraded to junk bond status, Lucci wrote…
Illinois is in a debt crisis.
In a debt crisis, what is good for Wall St. is bad for the people.
It’s worth noting that Dems carried 5 pieces of legislation to bail out the banks this spring. So we know where they stand.
* Also on July 5th, on a post I did about looking at the tax hike in a different way, Lucci wrote…
Illinois has a debt crisis, and this tax hike is addressing a cash-flow issue. And you’re cheerleading it. And it solves nothing but a political cash-flow issue. The debt crisis worsens by the day.
But glad to see another “tax-eater” (that’s you, Rich) is getting to work campaigning on behalf of the tax increase. Someone’s gotta do it.
So, the debt caused by the impasse is merely a “political cash-flow issue.”
Lucci isn’t wrong about the state’s long-term debt, of course. The state absolutely has to get a handle on that and this budget didn’t do it. Heck, as I’ve said before, it didn’t even adequately address the shorter-term debt from the impasse and didn’t adequately fund government’s current spending levels.
But, from his comments (and there are more), he seems to not care a whit about the plight of providers, vendors, state leaseholders, etc. who are owed billions of dollars by the state government despite contracts signed by the governor, nor about the huge resulting state interest payments.
So, pardon me if I’m a bit suspicious about how the governor seems to now be brushing aside questions on refinancing that debt.
* Related…
* GOP Lawmaker Urges Rauner To Resolve Bill Backlog with Bonds: “Unless there’s some alternative, then I strongly encourage the governor to take advantage of the borrowing authority that he has and lower those old bills and start eating away at these outrageous interest charges that we have built up.”
* You just knew this was coming. From the Illinois Republican Party…
Pritzker Chooses Madigan Ally as Running Mate
Pritzker Doing Everything Possible to Cozy Up to Madigan
“J.B. Pritzker’s decided that funneling over $1 million to Mike Madigan and his allies wasn’t enough to prove his loyalty to Madigan. Pritzker’s going even further by choosing a Madigan ally as his running mate.
Juliana Stratton owes her political career to Mike Madigan. Stratton took millions from Madigan-backed groups to win a state house seat and had Mike Madigan’s top political operative run her campaign. J.B. Pritzker is making it clear that he will allow the governor’s office to be annexed over to Speaker Madigan.” – Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Steven Yaffe
Just last year, Pritzker gave LIFT, a Madigan-aligned front group, nearly $1 million dollars in an attempt to increase Madigan’s power and block efforts to reform Illinois. And Pritzker secretly funneled another $200,000 to Mike Madigan and his hand-picked candidates for the state house.
Now Pritzker is doubling-down on his alliance with Madigan, picking a running mate that owes her political career to Madigan.
Juliana Stratton Owes Her Political Career to Mike Madigan:
Stratton’s 2016 Primary Campaign Was Run By Marty Quinn, Madigan’s Top Political Operative. “As hard as it is for me to believe—and I still can’t get over it—one of the most powerful operatives in Illinois house speaker Michael Madigan’s mighty Democratic Machine is a mild-mannered alderman who rarely says a word during City Council debates. That’s alderman Marty Quinn-of Madigan’s home 13th Ward, on the southwest side. In the March primary, Quinn oversaw three legislative campaigns on Madigan’s behalf, including Juliana Stratton’s successful run against state rep Ken Dunkin—one of the most expensive and high—profile legislative campaigns in state history.” (Ben Joravsky, “Quiet In The City Council, Marty Quinn Is Madigan’s Behind-The-Scenes Muscle,” Chicago Reader, 4/5/16)
Stratton’s Campaign Was Funded By Madigan’s Allies. “Stratton has raised $1.2 million, about two-thirds of it from organized labor, which opposes Rauner’s push for legislation to weaken collective bargaining rights. She’s also received contributions from downtown law firms that donate heavily to political funds controlled by Madigan, who has led the resistance to Rauner’s efforts to tighten rules on civil lawsuits.” (Monique Garcia and Kim Geiger, “Rauner, Madigan Feud Flows Down,” Chicago Tribune, 3/10/16)
During The Campaign, Madigan’s Spokesman Claimed “We Have No Involvement In That Race” – 30 Minutes Later A Van Was Seen Arriving At Madigan’s 13th Ward Office To Drop Off Juliana Stratton Campaign Signs. “On Thursday afternoon, Madigan spokesman Steve Brown was asked about the Dunkin-Stratton contest and what role the speaker played in getting the Obama endorsement. ‘We have no involvement in that race,’ Brown said. A half-hour later, a delivery van pulled up to Madigan’s Southwest Side 13th Ward office and two men unloaded hundreds of blue-and-white yard signs with the message ‘President Barack Obama endorses Juliana Stratton.’” (Monique Garcia and Kim Geiger, “Rauner, Madigan Feud Flows Down,” Chicago Tribune, 3/10/16)
* Considering that the chairman of the county party is also the county assessor, I’m betting this guy ain’t getting onto the slate..
Today Fritz Kaegi, progressive candidate for assessor in the March 2018 Democratic primary election, presented his credentials to the Cook County Democratic Committeemen and asked for their support, along with the support of Democratic voters of Cook County. The session was held at the Erie Cafe in Chicago.
Kaegi told the Committeemen, “the assessment system we have right now in Cook County is making things worse. We’ve seen the local coverage. We know the outcomes are unjust. Every time we tell people they should appeal– it is an admission of failure. We can immediately reduce regressivity by getting the assessments right in the first place.”
Kaegi continued “Massive benefits go to downtown corporate, high-rise property owners whose lawyers fund the campaigns of those overseeing the process. Voters in Cook County know this system not working and we owe it to them to do better.”
Finally, Kaegi laid out his vision for the office, “There’s a better way. Eliminate pay to play. Use a less regressive model. Pay attention to the effect of foreclosures, underwater mortgages, and vacancies on neighborhoods. Tell people how you arrived at their assessment. Focus your resources on getting it right the first time. Because the true measure of the office is how it’s doing for the person who doesn’t appeal.”
* Assessor Joe Berrios has taken so much heat and the property tax issue is so white hot that he is undoubtedly vulnerable to a challenge. His daughter, former Rep. Toni Berrios, was soundly defeated in 2014 partly because of her last name.
Kaegi reported raising about a hundred grand last quarter and loaned himself another $30K. He spent about $47K, mainly for a consultant, a couple of staffers and VAN access.
Now, while Berrios does appear to be quite vulnerable, that doesn’t mean Kaegi is the one to defeat him. We’ll just have to see how this unfolds.
On the day Gov. Rauner’s void in leadership caused the state to miss General State Aid payments to K-12 schools for the first time in its history, Comptroller Susana Mendoza directed the payment of $429 million in Mandated Categorical grants to help provide needed cash flow to schools.
Our office has been preparing for this contingency. Failure to sign General State Aid funding legislation allowing payment to school districts statewide meant monies reserved this week for that purpose, combined with additional cash management strategies, could be utilized to pay the grants already owed to those districts. Categorical payments cover transportation, special education and other costs.
Comptroller Mendoza strongly urges the legislature to override Governor Rauner’s veto of Senate Bill 1 so that Illinois schools can finally be equitably funded. The Categorical payments are no substitute for the General State Aid that parents, school administrators and, most importantly, the students, deserve to keep schools open through the entire school year. They will provide some relief, but this does not solve the current K-12 funding crisis the Governor’s veto of Senate Bill 1 has created.
The Looch is loose. @GovRauner's deputy policy director is engaging in Twitter fights alleging he's been censored…in the comments section. https://t.co/teMH6EyNhV
* Huh? Let’s back up a bit. After Dusty Rhodes tweeted yesterday about how Gov. Rauner’s amendatory veto would hurt local school districts, Gov. Rauner’s Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Michael Lucci weighed in…
BIMB costs shifts for TRS. SB1 picks up norm cost + legacy debt for CPS. Pension switcheroo. Bailout Chicago & tax the rest. #twillhttps://t.co/v0k5gWLJIK
Sorry you haven't had the chance to repeatedly block my comments from your site lately, @capitolfax. I'll come back 2 you later. https://t.co/Kwy3YmCMS3
You sure you want to talk about your record of being right all the time when you didn't know how many votes it takes to accept an AV? #twillhttps://t.co/IA4deK6Tgn
“I’m glad they’re holding meetings, I hope that they vote to uphold my amendatory veto. It’s the right thing to do I think SB-1 as it originally passed is unfair to children around the state,” Rauner said.
However, some administrators disagree.
“It seems like each one of the amendatory vetoes is going against exactly what SB-1 was designed to do, which is to provide equity for all students in the state of Illinois,” said Chris Bobek, business director of the Grayslake District 46.
“It looks like at a very rough and light estimate instead of getting an additional half million dollars we would definitely be losing at least that half million dollars. Most likely more,” said Supt. Nathaniel Cunningham, of the Crete-Monee District 201.
One of his changes could have a big impact on schools hiring new teachers: Thanks to a new state pension law, school districts will now have to pay their pensions. But Rauner’s amendatory veto cut the part of SB 1 that would’ve recognized those pension payments as part of a school’s cost of doing business.
Under the new formula, that’s known as the “adequacy target.” It’s calculated for each school district based on student demographics and other needs. The amount of new state dollars each district receives would be based on how capable it is of meeting its adequacy target. So shifting pension costs to districts, and then not counting those costs in their adequacy targets, would impact the amount of state aid a district gets.
Mike Jacoby, executive director of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials, explained it this way: “So the AV language, eliminating any of the reference to normal cost in the adequacy target, means that those are costs the district is going to have on all new teachers that will never show in their adequacy target.”
The more new teachers a district hires, the more it will be affected by these two measures. At a hearing today in Chicago, several suburban superintendents told lawmakers they’re worried about those costs. Andy Henrikson, superintendent of Mundelein Elementary District 75, says he’s constantly losing staff to neighboring districts that offer higher salaries.
“The shift in pension costs of new teachers will affect districts like mine more than it will affect the wealthier districts,” he said.
* Related…
* Lawmakers hear how education-funding impasse will affect schools: Rauner, during an unrelated event in Chicago, said he did not think he sabotaged an opportunity to change the state’s education funding system. He called on lawmakers to back his veto and suggested he was open to other ideas.
* Rauner urges quick approval of amendatory veto — Dems favor override: Also on Wednesday, the Illinois House held a lengthy committee hearing in Chicago on an amendment that replicated Rauner’s amendatory veto. That was filed in order to have public hearings about the changes. And Democrats may choose to vote on that amendment next week. If it fails, it would show that lawmakers don’t support Rauner’s changes.
* This is either the closest thing we’ll ever see to a Bruce Rauner admission that he made a mistake or just a bit of gubernatorial misdirection…
Lawmakers are not expected to uphold the changes the governor made with his amendatory veto, but he is pushing for them to do just that, despite lingering uncertainties.
Rauner has been asked to explain why he didn’t discuss his proposed changes earlier. For weeks, he toured the state urging Democratic leaders to send him the education bill, so he could issue an amendatory veto. He didn’t specify what changes he wanted to make, but repeatedly blasted the existing bill as a “Chicago bailout.”
On Wednesday, reporters asked the governor whether it was a mistake to not have publicly discussed changes earlier — especially since an analysis by the Illinois State Board of Education is being re-tabulated based on a data error. State aid payments to school districts were to be sent out on Aug. 10 — but the state needs an “evidence-based” school funding formula approved before it can release those funds, per an agreement Democratic leaders inserted into a budget package.
“I’ll never claim to be a perfect person. Never have been, never will be. I don’t know anybody who is perfect,” Rauner said. “We can all try to do better. But let’s be clear. There is no legitimate reason for the General Assembly to have sat on that education bill for two months doing nothing. No excuse. From here we need to try to move quickly,” Rauner said, urging lawmakers to uphold his amendatory veto.
It’s difficult to disagree with the governor on the Senate’s decision to hold the bill for so long. But it’s also difficult to understand why he didn’t release his AV language weeks ago so that we’re not sitting around waiting for the Illinois State Board of Education to revamp its numbers after the Department of Revenue’s mistake.
* Meanwhile, the Ottawa Times editorial board takes up the issue of ISBE’s policy of allowing only the “sponsor” of a school funding reform bill to release the board’s numbers crunching…
When we called the state board’s PR person, she acknowledged an open records request would force the state board to release the documents, but that process can take five business days — a long time when financially struggling schools are set to open in a few days.
We wonder why the board must show such deference to politicians.
Here’s a better idea: Show deference to taxpayers — the folks who pay state board employees to do the analysis.
As soon as the board completes a study, it should post the results on its website. It can give a courtesy call to the governor to let him know it’s online. And he can view it there along with the rest of us.
When analyzing school funding bills, the state school board should see itself as a version of the Congressional Budget Office. In Washington, this agency scores legislation without any special courtesy for either Democrats or Republicans.
On the one hand, I agree. On the other hand, however, ISBE is often asked to score preliminary proposals. Those proposals are quite often revamped when ISBE’s results show problems.
* I think if I had to choose a running mate for Pritzker, or any other Democratic gubernatorial candidate for that matter, it would be Rep. Stratton (D-Chicago).
1) She’s a woman, obviously. It’s an all-male field right now and lots more females vote in Democratic primaries than men.
2) She’s an African-American female. African-Americans make up a huge chunk of the Democratic primary electorate and black women are the party’s most hardcore of hardcore supporters.
3) She’s relatively new to politics. Rep. Stratton hasn’t really been around long enough to do something stupid or ethically questionable.
4) She works hard and she’s already vetted. Remember, she was the victor of an incredibly hard-fought, multi-million-dollar Democratic primary last year against Rep. Ken Dunkin. She was tireless, and if there was something there, we’d probably already know about it.
5) She was personally endorsed by President Barack Obama in the 2016 primary. How many Illinois lt. governor candidates can say that?
6) She’s smart, is an accomplished public speaker and has an engaging personality. Nuff said.
All of those advantages in the primary can also be applied to the general.
Yeah, she was backed by Speaker Madigan against Dunkin, but Pritzker is going to be tagged as the Madigan candidate no matter what, so does it really matter?
And, yeah, she’s a “Chicago Democrat.” That will help in the primary, but could have an impact in the general. Even so, Pat Quinn failed to adequately turn out the city and he lost.
Anyway, maybe I’m wrong. Correct me if you think I am. I’m all ears.
…Adding… Something else to consider for the primary is that SEIU and AFSCME were huge supporters of her race against Dunkin last year. Neither of those unions have yet made an endorsement and they aren’t exactly big fans of billionaires. So, she at least gives Pritzker a shot with them.
Does this win the primary for Pritzker? Of course not. There’s a long way to go, campers, but she’s a solid choice all around.
* Related…
* Sneed: Pritzker poised to get Cook County Dems’ endorsement for gov
* Lynn Sweet: Pritzker gets boost from Stratton pick for running mate: Though Obama is not expected to get tangled up in the large field running for Illinois governor, the Pritzker/Stratton ticket can certainly talk about – it would be political malpractice if they did not – the the Obama endorsement for Stratton that helped her defeat now-former State Rep. Ken Dunkin, D-Chicago in March 2016.
*** UPDATE *** The campaign has released a new video…
