* Since their last pay raise, Illinois lawmakers have had to twice endure actions by statewide elected officials to halt their paychecks. Gov. Pat Quinn vetoed legislator pay out of the budget in June of 2013, an action overturned by a judge in September of that year.
And then in April of 2016, during the budget impasse and an election campaign, appointed Comptroller Leslie Munger announced that she would no longer issue paychecks to legislators. Those checks were finally released in March of 2017 after a judicial ruling.
* And now, after all that and not receiving a single pay raise since 2008, some folks are complaining about the legislative pay increase in next fiscal year’s budget. From Pritzker’s post-session press conference Sunday…
Reporter: This is all people will be talking about, though. This is all taxpayers will say, they gave themselves a pay raise.
* Pritzker was asked today if he would veto out the raises included in the budget…
"Look this was a highly negotiated budget" so @GovPritzker says he will sign it, "as-is." He will NOT use line-item veto power to reduce/reject pay raises going to #Illinois legislators - their first pay bump in a decade. https://t.co/0qK45VhILM
The usual suspects will howl and moan and rend their garments about this, but such is life. Sometimes you just gotta take the heat because a deal is a deal. We’ve had three anti-Springfield governors in a row, so we’ve grown accustomed to leaders who play to the galleries at the expense of the legislature. Those days appear to be over - at least for now.
* Broad categories of how the new infrastructure money will be spent over the next six years, according to the Senate Democrats…
$33.2 billion for transportation projects
$3.5 billion for education projects
$4.3 billion for state facility projects
$1.9 billion for economic development/community development
$1.2 billion for environmental and conservation projects
$465 million for Healthcare and Human Services
$420 million for broadband expansion
* I asked the Illinois Environmental Council for a breakdown of their capital projects. Here’s a quick summary…
Transportation
Approximately 22.5% share for mass transit.
20% of the revenue from the gas tax increase will go to transit annually.
$50 million annually for bike and pedestrian infrastructure.
Sustainable Agriculture
There is a $37 million reappropriation for the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program and $20 million of new funding in the capital plan.
Open Space
$10 million for the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund
$25 million of new appropriation for land acquisition for Open Lands Trust
$23 million for Open Space Land Acquisition Developmen.
$50 million for parks
Clean Energy
$70 million for renewable energy and energy efficiency programs. This is sufficient funding for 5% of state building energy usage.
$70 million for electric vehicle infrastructure in low income communities.
Clean Water
$200 million for the Water Revolving Fund
$10 million for flood mitigation
$2.5 million for Brandon Road planning
$20 million for dam removal
$25 million for green infrastructure grants
$23 million for U.S. Army Corp of Engineers on ecosystem restoration projects
The full list of the IEC’s budget and capital plan wins is here.
The bill includes $50 million annually for walking and bicycling projects. Funds will be administered statewide through a competitive grant process using the existing Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP), which is currently entirely federally funded.
The additional funds from the state will double the size of the program and could fund 125 new projects every year. […]
Eligible projects include pedestrian refuge islands, new trails and upgraded crossings, protected bike lanes, and other safety infrastructure. The bill includes reforms to the program that make it easier for low-income communities to apply and secure funding.
The capital bill also includes sustainable funding for public transit for the first time ever. Transit receives $4.7 billion over six years and $281 million annually in capital funds after that. Public transit receives 23 percent of the transportation funding in the bill.
The group lauded the inclusion of the following items in the bill:
New service to Rockford
New service to Moline
Track improvements for Chicago – Champaign – Carbondale
Track improvements in Springfield
Expanded Metra service into Kendall County
Funding for the CREATE program to relieve freight rail congestion
[…]
Pace
“This will be the largest one-time capital infusion in Pace’s history and allows us to maintain the robust system we currently operate and lay the foundation for future growth,” said executive director Rocky Donahue in a statement. “Projects such as the I-55 Express Bus Garage; ADA Communications Technology Upgrade; River Division Expansion; and a new northwest region garage in Wheeling will now become reality thanks to our legislators. We’re excited to get to work.”
$105.3 million for a health sciences building and other improvements at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
$96 million for an expansion of MetroLink from Scott Air Force Base to MidAmerica Airport
$37.5 million for main complex renovation and repairs at Lewis and Clark Community College
$24.4 million for the U.S. 67 Delhi Bypass in Jersey County
$24 million for miscellaneous capital improvements at SIUE
$2 million for East St. Louis for demolition of derelict buildings and abandoned properties
* Other stuff…
* U Of I President ‘Delighted’ By New State Budget: The capital projects funding includes $98 million for a computer, design and research center at the Chicago campus; $100 million for a mathematics, statistics and data science collaborative at the Urbana-Champaign campus, and $35 million for a new library at the University of Illinois at Springfield, according to Killeen. Another $500 million was re-appropriated for construction and planning of the Discovery Partners Institute, and 15 research hubs at each university and satellite campus. Killeen said capital projects funding will also be used to pay for “very needed renovations that have sort of languished.”
* Will County big winner after busy end to session: The new state capital bill includes $848 million for Interstate 80, although it was unclear whether the funding included replacement of the Des Plaines River bridges. The capital bill also includes $19.8 million for Joliet Junior College and $55 million to for a new Illinois State Police facility, said state Sen. Pat McGuire, D-Joliet. … McGuire said the state police project includes replacement of both an aging crime lab on Woodruff Road in Joliet and the District 5 headquarters on Route 53. The facilities would be consolidated.
* Sen. Fowler Says His District Did Well in Legislative Session: Senator Dale Fowler of Harrisburg says the budget includes lump sum money for ports across the state, including his proposal for a facility at Cairo. “I believe it’s going to be in July, we’re going to start our meetings on how we’re going to move forward with continued design and engineering of the process and get shovels down in Cairo.” As far as the capital bill goes, Fowler says his district will receive as much, if not more, than any other in the state. “My district alone, the 59th district, is scheduled to receive over $270 million in capital spending funding for roads and bridges that so desperately need repair and well over 100 projects that are designed for my district.”
* Illinois Lawmakers Approve Sports Betting; Chicago And Southern Illinois Get A Casino: State Rep. Terri Bryant (R- Murphysboro), said prisons and universities have been looking for ways to fund their crumbling infrastructure. “At SIU Carbondale, we have four buildings that have to have new roofs, because they’ve had to move computers out of an entire room, simply to be able to keep those computers from having water drip on them from the ceiling.” Bryant voted in favor of the plan.
* New UIS building funded in capital bill re-imagines library: The center will replace Brookens Library and will house the Center for Online Learning Research and Service (COLRS), the Center for Academic Success (CAS) and Information Technology Services.
* Macoupin courthouse gets $1M boost: The courthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places and has been named one of Illinois’ great places by the American Institute of Architects. Years of delayed maintenance on the building, however, have left it in need of repairs.
* Manar wants to make sure Ward 3 gets targeted help: As part of the $45 billion construction program passed by the Illinois General Assembly and awaiting the governor’s signature, there is a $500,000 grant designated for “costs associated with infrastructure improvements within Ward 3” in the city of Springfield. Also included is up to $400,000 for “costs associated with roadway improvements of Adloff Lane,” which is also in Ward 3. “I am very excited for Ward 3, Springfield and the state of Illinois,” said Ward 3 Ald. Doris Turner. “This was an epic legislative session.” … Up to $122 million for rail improvements for Springfield is also in the legislation.
* Peoria Mayor Reacts to Capital Bill: Among the projects approved for the Peoria area are: up to $1 million to Peoria Public Schools to improve Garfield school; $250,000 to the Tri-County Urban league for building repairs; $250,000 to tuckpoint and repair windows on the Peoria Labor Temple
A woman claiming Illinois Democrats, led by House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, have denied her jobs after she complained a Madigan operative sexually harassed her, is trying to force a reluctant Chicago Teachers Union to turn over documents to aid her lawsuit.
In March 2018, Alaina Hampton filed suit in Chicago federal court against Madigan, his campaign organizations and the Illinois Democratic Party. Hampton alleged defendants inadequately addressed her complaints she was harassed by Democratic Party staffer Kevin Quinn, then retaliated against her for lodging the complaints.
As part of the retaliation, Hampton alleged the Chicago Teachers Union did not hire her to help with a political campaign, and the union is refusing to provide documents she claims may prove retaliation was at play. […]
Hampton said she and teachers union lobbyist D’Javan Conway exchanged text messages in which Conway indicated the union was “eager and ready” to have Hampton work with them on Johnae Strong’s campaign for state representative of the Fifth Legislative District in the 2018 election. The union and United Working Families, a grassroots political group, endorsed Strong for the seat.
However, Hampton said Conway eventually told Hampton union officials had learned she was “on the outs” with Marty Quinn, the suit said. Hampton said the union then ended communications with her.
Accordingly, on March 15, 2019, Ms. Hampton issued very narrow and limited subpoenas to the CTU Respondents seeking relevant information regarding the CTU Respondents’ interactions and communications with each other, Ms. Hampton, Ms. Strong and individuals associated with the Defendant political committees regarding Ms. Hampton in order to determine what, if anything, transpired between the time in which CTU first indicated a desire to retain Ms. Hampton’s services in connection with Ms. Strong’s potential campaign and the time in which Ms. Strong withdrew her candidacy.
To date, however, the CTU Respondents have refused to search for and produce any responsive documents. Ms. Hampton has made every possible reasonable attempt to resolve this matter, as required under Rule 37, to no avail.
As such, Ms. Hampton now moves to compel the CTU Respondents to produce the very limited but highly relevant categories of documents that they have inexplicably refused to produce and for an award of reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs.
Bill Brady, Republican leader of the Illinois Senate, once opposed gaming, now wets his beak just like a Chicago alderman. The @chicagotribune's Kristen McQueary @StatehouseChick burns him for it. deservedly https://t.co/vk2h7L1Zu1
Newly installed Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has been calling out elected officials who leverage their public service roles for personal profit.
“No official in this city — elected or appointed — should ever profit from his or her office,” she said last week while calling on now-indicted Ald. Edward Burke, 14th, to resign.
Do you think Sen. Bill Brady, Republican leader of the Illinois Senate, was listening?
A May 28 report from ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ named several politicians profiting off Illinois’ video gambling industry. The state legalized video gambling in 2009 — allowing legal payouts at those video poker and slot machines inside bars and restaurants — and although revenue got off to a slow start, insiders are now making millions from the losses of players. One of those insiders is Brady, a conservative Republican from Bloomington who ran for governor three times. […]
So how does a member of Senate leadership, someone who at various times sat on at least two legislative committees overlapping with the gambling industry, slide into a role where he’s profiting handsomely? That’s a question deserving of a review by the state’s legislative inspector general.
You may find video gaming to be distasteful, but before it was legalized the Outfit made a huge amount of money off the industry. I’d much rather have it legalized, licensed, vetted and regulated.
But did Brady “profit from his office” as the Tribune suggests? Well, did he actually vote for a bill or participate in legislative negotiations that directly helped the video gaming industry, as Ald. Burke has done with some of his own clients?
Brady is listed in internal gaming board records as a “person with significant influence or control,” or PSIC, for Midwest Electronics Gaming, one of the state’s largest video gambling companies. Midwest, operating primarily in central Illinois, made $16 million from video gambling last year and $80 million between 2012 and 2018.
Brady’s designation as a PSIC means he receives a percentage of the proceeds from video slot and poker machines under a revenue-sharing agreement with Midwest. Although the terms and the locations of the machines are not disclosed, any tax increase on video gambling revenue would have a direct financial impact on him.
Taxes were, indeed, raised on video gaming companies this spring. But the companies also got an extra position at each location.
Due to a conflict of interest on a portion of this bill, I will be voting ‘Present’ on this measure. I’d like to also indicate that in any discussions I’ve had with the leaders or others, I have recused myself from any negotiations.
If he’s telling the truth, and so far nobody has disputed him, then that’s fully within the law, even if he did obfuscate his involvement with the gaming company on his economic disclosure forms. That disclosure law is in dire need of revisiting. But it is what it is and I don’t see where an IG investigation is gonna find lawbreaking unless there’s something out there we don’t already know.
The Tribune column above mentions that until all outside income is barred, the General Assembly will be ripe with potential conflicts of interest. That’s true, but that would also mean getting rid of a citizens legislature, and I’m not sure that’s worked out so well with Congress.
No officer, member, or spouse or immediate family member living with such person shall, during the officer or member’s term in office or within a period of 2 years immediately leaving office, hold an ownership interest, other than a passive interest in a publicly traded company, in any gaming license under the Illinois Gambling Act, the Video Gaming Act, the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975, or the Sports Wagering Act.
Any member of the General Assembly or spouse or immediate family member living with such person who has an ownership interest, other than a passive interest in a publicly traded company, in any gaming license under the Illinois Gambling Act, the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975, the Video Gaming Act, or the Sports Wagering Act at the time of the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly shall divest himself or herself of such ownership within one year after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly.
Illinois Republican Party Chairman Tim Schneider has a message for any voters who are unhappy with the way the latest legislative session went in Springfield.
“If you don’t like the outcome of this session, remember that the Democrats hold all the cards — at the moment,” Schneider said in a press release. “If you don’t like the outcome of this session, the only solution is to work. Work for local, legislative or statewide candidates who take on the mantle of reform.”
The flurry of bills signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker after being passed by his Democratic majority during the final hours of the session were particularly disheartening for GOP leaders who, Schneider said, could do little to stop them.
“Governor Pritzker and Speaker [Mike] Madigan set the parameters,” Schneider said in the release. “They determined what policies to enact and what reforms were ignored. They didn’t need a single Republican vote.”
Maybe they didn’t “need” a single Republican vote, but they sure got a lot of them. And the Republicans could do little to stop the Democrats? In reality, the Republicans extracted more pro-business reforms out of the Democrats than Bruce Rauner did in four years as governor.
From House GOP Leader Jim Durkin…
“The end of this legislative was another historic moment for the House Republicans. Not only did we pass a bipartisan, balanced budget without any tax increases, but we also achieved significant business reforms for our communities that will boost the economy across our state. As I’ve said before, we can get great things done for Illinois families as long as we respect the principles and priorities of each caucus. In doing so, we have passed historic education reform, two bipartisan, balanced budgets and now important reforms that will grow jobs. I am proud to have worked with the legislative leaders and the Governor to finally do what’s right for Illinois families and businesses.”
Reforms include:
· Creation of the Blue Collar Jobs Act – which will attract large scale construction projects.
· Creation of a Data Center Tax Incentive – which will enhance the state’s ability to locate data centers in Illinois by providing tax incentives.
· Reinstatement of the Manufacturer’s Purchase Credit – to encourage further investments in manufacturing in Illinois.
· Elimination of the antiquated Illinois Franchise Tax.
· Elimination of cap on the Retailer’s Discount.
· Tabling of Senate Bill 1407 – a bill that aimed to impose wage and regulatory requirements on refineries, ethanol plants, and chemical facilities.
The first year of a five-year phase-out of the franchise tax will reduce taxes for 300,000 businesses, supporters said. The Blue Collar Jobs Act will give tax credits for construction projects.
* The House Republicans introduced the Blue Collar Jobs Act last year. From the synopsis…
Provides that the Act may be referred to as the Blue Collar Jobs Act. Amends the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act. Creates a High Impact Business construction jobs credit and an Enterprise Zone construction jobs credit against the taxpayer’s Illinois income taxes based on the incremental income tax attributable to laborers or workers employed at certain construction sites located in Enterprise Zones. Amends the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit Act. Creates a New Construction EDGE Credit based on the incremental income tax attributable to laborers or workers employed at construction sites associated with EDGE projects. Amends the River Edge Redevelopment Zone Act. Creates a River Edge construction jobs credit based on the incremental income tax attributable to laborers or workers employed at certain construction sites in a River Edge Redevelopment Zone. Requires contractors and subcontractors associated with projects that receive credits under the amendatory Act to file certified payroll information with the Department of Labor and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
Some of that stuff was phased in, but they got pretty much all they asked for.
…Adding… As hardcore Raunerite “Lucky Pierre” and other commenters have mentioned, the legislative Republicans also convinced the governor to back off his demand that the private school scholarship program be phased out. That was a huge win on its own, particularly considering how much the teachers’ unions wanted that program eliminated.
Up next, [Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot] said, will be a study to figure out where the casino should go. “I’m not going to get into speculation about where it should be,” Lightfoot said while talking to reporters after announcing her new picks for the Chicago School Board. “A lot of that is also going to be dictated by what we see in the results of the feasibility study. So we’ll stay tuned on that issue.”
As for the timeline, the mayor didn’t get into specifics, but she rejected a theory that it could be two or three years before Chicago has anything up and running
“No, I don’t think so,” she said. “I think we’re very purposeful and intentional about putting in very tight timelines so that we can get a feasibility study back in a short period of time. And then if we needed to make adjustments in the legislation, then we’ll be primed to do that before, during the veto session this fall.”
In addition, within 10 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly, the [Gaming] Board, with consent and at the expense of the City of Chicago, shall select and retain the services of a nationally recognized casino gaming feasibility consultant. Within 45 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly, the consultant shall prepare and deliver to the Board a study concerning the feasibility of, and the ability to finance, a casino in the City of Chicago. The feasibility study shall be delivered to the Mayor of the City of Chicago, the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Ninety days after receipt of the feasibility study, the Board shall make a determination, based on the results of the feasibility study, whether to recommend to the General Assembly that the terms of the license under paragraph (1) of this subsection (e-5) should be modified. The Board may begin accepting applications for the owners license under paragraph (1) of this subsection (e-5) upon the determination to issue such an owners license.
In addition, prior to the Board issuing the owners license authorized under paragraph (4) of subsection (e-5), an impact study shall be completed to determine what location in the city will provide the greater impact to the region, including the creation of jobs and the generation of tax revenue.
The licenses authorized under subsection (e-5) of this Section shall be issued within 12 months after the date the license application is submitted. If the Board does not issue the licenses within that time period, then the Board shall give a written explanation to the applicant as to why it has not reached a determination and when it reasonably expects to make a determination. […]
Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law
Those aren’t absolute timelines, but the city could conceivably have something up and running more quickly than 3 years because the law also allows for a temporary location.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday he would prefer a newly-allowed Chicago casino be located separately from the downtown business district and away from McCormick Place.
While stressing the decision on locating the casino belongs to Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the City Council, the governor said his preference is for the casino to be put in an area that hasn’t benefited from downtown’s building boom.
Pritzker would not name potential sites, but his comments would appear to help the prospects of the old Michael Reese Hospital property at 31st Street and the lake or the former South Works property at 83rd Street and the lake. Another possibility is the Illinois International Port District land on the Southeast Side.
“I will say that we don’t want to, let’s say, compete with what I think is important about downtown, which is, you know, this is a business town, right? And McCormick Place is a business showplace, and it’s different than other places, right?” Pritzker told the Chicago Sun-Times Editorial Board.
“You go to Las Vegas for your convention and you know that the people who are coming are not really spending all their time in the show, but love to go because of all the entertainment and everything else. I think in Chicago people come here to do business, and so you want to make sure that they’re separated, let’s say,” he added.
* The Tribune has a pretty good roundup of under the radar bills passed in the past several days. Here are a few of the bills from its list…
– Hotels and motels would be required to train employees on how to recognize instances of human trafficking and workers would be required to report it under a measure that received final approval Wednesday in the Senate. The bill also would require additional training for law enforcement officers and includes stronger penalties for businesses that “knowingly benefit” from ventures involving involuntary servitude.
– Local law enforcement agencies would be prohibited from entering into agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to enforce federal immigration law under legislation that received final approval Thursday in the Senate. No such agreements currently exist in Illinois, but the bill’s sponsors voiced concerns in light of President Donald Trump’s hard-line stance on immigration. […]
— Smoking would be prohibited in any vehicle carrying someone younger than 18 under a bill that received final approval Saturday in the House. The restriction would apply regardless of whether the vehicle is in motion or stopped or whether the windows are down. Police wouldn’t be allowed to stop drivers solely for this violation, but it would carry a fine of up to $100 for the first offense. […]
— Potential employers would be prohibited from requiring job applicants to disclose their salary histories or seeking the information from an applicant’s current or former employer under a measure that received final approval Wednesday in the House. Supporters said the bill is designed to address the wage gap between men and women. Lawmakers passed two earlier versions during the previous administration, but then-Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed both.
* Related…
* Illinois Capital Bill Includes $50 Million For Arts And Culture Projects: The capital bill passed by the Illinois House and Illinois Senate yesterday includes a new $50 million funding source for arts and culture capital projects, nearly four times more than the last capital bill in 2009. This funding will enable critical infrastructure improvements, building expansions, and other important initiatives.
* Illinois Governor Agrees to Fund Scholarship Program He Once Opposed: Rabbi Shlomo Soroka, Agudath Israel of Illinois’ director of government affairs, told Hamodia that the Governor’s about-face represents a major victory for the broad advocacy effort of which he was a part. “It’s a very positive development,” he said. “Not only was scrapping this program one of the Governor’s campaign pledges, his budget proposal was a first step in doing that and despite a lot of pushback, he was not backing down. It took a lot of effort on our part and a lot of mobilizing grassroots advocacy, but it was saved, and the Governor certainly deserves a lot of credit for being open to learning about the benefits for children, despite his original position.”
Casino Expansion: One Time Revenues (License/Application/Position Fees): $360 million in FY20
One-Time Reconciliation Payments: $630 million (not to be collected until FY23)
One-Time Revenues from bidding of the six new casinos: conservative estimate of $200-$300 million per license, for six licenses. Total revenues could be realized all in FY20 ($1.2 billion - $1.8 billion), or could be spread out over several years.
Recurring Revenues: $170 million annual for slots, $17 million for table games at full implementation.
Racetracks: One Time Revenues (License/Application/Position Fees) of $220 million
Recurring Revenues: Awaiting either GOMB or CoGFA analysis.
Sports Betting: One time revenues for licensing fees $240 million at full implementation.
Recurring revenues: $60 million - $100 million at full implementation (this does not include the Lottery Kiosk Pilot Program as Illinois would be the only state to separate that out from other providers at 35% tax rate).
Video Gaming: Projected to bring in an additional $40 million to state, $8 million to municipalities in year 1, $50 million state; $10 million munis going forward. This does not include natural growth from additional terminals which could maximize revenues up to $150 - $200 million at full implementation (stakeholder estimate that does not factor in cannibalization of the market).
One Time Revenue Estimate Totals: $2.7 billion at full implementation. This could all be realized in FY20 with the exception of $60 million in online sports wagering licenses due to the penalty box.
Recurring Revenue Estimate Totals: $470 million at full implementation. This does not include the Lottery Sports wagering pilot program.
You can’t bond one-time revenues, of course, but $2.7 billion will eventually fund a lot of vertical construction projects. And we’ll see what the recurring revenue total eventually winds up being and if they ever decide to bond that money. Frankly, having $400 million or so in recurring revenues would be better spent on pay as you go projects every year. That means a new capital bill every year, which is how things used to be done.
* Got bogged down while trying to put together a couple of big posts, then looked up and saw the time. Oops. Please keep it Illinois-centric and be kind to each other and I’ll see if I can put together a couple of smallish posts soon. Thanks
Expect a hiring boom from the state’s marijuana producers by the end of the year—and a likely boost in union membership.
The law that legalizes recreational marijuana use, which the General Assembly approved Friday, has two distinct features: a quick timeline and clear language that encourages union jobs. Existing players in the state’s medical-cannabis market plan to move into the bigger recreational business, resulting in a hiring surge that will dwarf the industry’s initial wave. […]
Cresco Labs will double its Illinois headcount from about 300 today, Bachtell said.
“To supply the adult use-market will require significant investment,” said Dina Rollman, GTI’s senior vice president for government and regulatory affairs, though she declined to quantify it. “There will be massive increases in headcount at production facilities and dispensaries. We’ll increase hiring at the facility level and corporate offices.” […]
Cresco and MedMen say they expect their employees eventually will be unionized. (MedMen, which is based in Los Angeles, already has workers in California and New York represented by the United Food & Commercial Workers union.)
The Illinois cannabis legislation contains multiple references to labor-peace agreements, which will be part of the selection criteria for applicants for new licenses for distribution centers. The intent of the legislation was clear: “to have good, well-paying union jobs in this industry,” Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch, a Democrat from Westchester, testified just before the vote May 31 in the Illinois House.
* Parental notification was not repealed this spring and the RHA’s sponsors would definitely push back hard on the “brutal ways to the moment of birth” claim. But the congressman is actually saying that people are fleeing his state because teenagers can’t buy cigarettes? Seriously?…
Illinois Govt wrapped up session after they raised taxes w/ no property tax relief, increased spending, legalized abortion in brutal ways to the moment of birth & got rid of parental notifications, then raised the tobacco age to 21. It’s no wonder people are fleeing our state.
Yes, yes, yes. Your favorite horse track will likely have a sportsbook and basically a casino. They just don’t fall under the “sports venues” category.
The bill allows: -Casinos in Chicago, Waukegan, south suburbs, Rockford, Danville and Williamson County (So-IL) -Allows slots at O'Hare and Midway airports -Slots @ horse tracks -New horse track in Palatine -Video gaming facilities can add machines, gamblers can bet more on 'em https://t.co/EaRZFC1yTS
Gaming bill language has been filed. Chicago, Waukegan, Rockford, Danville would all get a license each to operate a casino. One license for one township in Cook County (Bloom, Bremen, Calumet, Rich, Thornton, or Worth Township), and one license for Williamson County.
The southern Illinois casino is going to Walker’s Bluff.
…Adding…The bill also authorizes up to 50 video gaming terminals during the Illinois State Fair in Springfield and up to 30 during the DuQuoin State Fair. Beer tents can have up to 10 terminals each.
The massive gambling bill that included a major casino in Chicago and smaller ones in the south suburbs and Waukegan also would open up slots for Chicago’s airports and the state’s horse racetracks, and legalize sports betting. It awaits Senate approval.
The Chicago casino would be privately owned, and the city would get one-third of all tax revenue from it. The casino would have up to 4,000 gambling positions — slot machines or seats at a gaming table — while other new and current casinos could increase their gambling positions from 1,200 to 2,000. It also would allow horse tracks to have 1,200 gambling positions.
For sports betting, licenses would go to all existing and newly authorized casinos as well as horse racetracks and sports venues with license fees ranging from $3.2 million to $10 million.
For the first year and a half, bettors would have to create an account at a licensed gambling facility and then could make deposits online afterward. After 18 months, three online licenses would be created at $20 million per license. Fantasy sports wagering firms could partner as an online vendor at casinos, racetracks or sports venues.
A lottery sports wagering program also would be created.
Sports leagues would not get any of the cut, and wagering on Illinois college teams would be prohibited by the legislation.
The bill, which the governor is expected to sign into law, grants retail casinos an 18-month head start on the mobile market. The casinos will be able to begin accepting bets almost immediately whereas all other entrants—such as DraftKings and FanDuel—will have to wait until late 2020 or early 2021 to begin operations. Eilers & Krejcik Gaming estimated that DraftKings and FanDuel accounted for 79 percent of New Jersey’s mobile betting market in April. Illinois will limit online-only sports books to three licenses, each to be sold for $20 million. Mobile betting is widely projected to capture at least three-quarters of the betting market.
DraftKings CEO Jason Robins criticized the bill on Twitter, writing, “While it is good to see sports betting bills passed, excluding DraftKings and FanDuel is like passing a ride sharing bill that excludes Uber and Lyft. Very disappointing that Illinois customers will not have the best options available to them for 18 months.”
While the leagues will not receive any kind of royalty or integrity fee, they will receive direct revenue from a provision requiring official league data for all in-play and prop bets. Illinois is now the second state to mandate this, following Tennessee’s new law in May.
Large sports venues such as the Bears’ Solider Field and the Cubs’ Wrigley Field would be able to apply for licenses to install betting kiosks on site. The only other current U.S. legislation to enable installations at stadiums, arenas, and ballparks is the one passed by the District of Columbia, though its regulations have not yet been finalized. Capitals, Wizards, and Mystics owner Ted Leonsis has championed legalized sports betting and plans to install a sportsbook at his Capital One Arena. Currently, the only sports venues where a fan can legally bet are the ones with mobile sports betting, such as in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
SB 690 enables the Illinois Gaming Board to issue six different types of licences to operators seeking to offer sports betting in the state: a master sports wagering licence, occupational licence, supplier licence, management services provider licence, tier two official league data provider licence, and central system provider licence.
Each license will be applicable to a certain service or offering in the state, with the fee for a master licence to be set at 5% of the holder’s total handle from the following calendar year, up to a maximum of $10m
Additionally, the legislation permits a new harness track to be built in one of seven townships located within Cook County, which includes Chicago and both Chicago-area tracks. The new venue couldn’t be situated within 35 miles of either existing racing facility without the track granting permission. Harness tracks Maywood and Balmoral both ceased operations in recent years. Only a truncated harness meeting remains at Hawthorne. […]
The new legislation will fortify horse racing in the state because it specifies minimum racing dates for tracks that take on a casino license. If one casino license is issued to a Chicago track, that track must run 110 days the year it’s awarded, 115 the next, and 120 per year afterwards. If two casino licenses are issued to Chicago tracks those numbers rise to 139, 160, and 174. Fairmount would be required to run at least 700 races per year if it receives a gaming license. The legislation also boosts purses for Illinois-bred horses and monetary awards paid to the state’s breeders.
Within the capital measure to fund vertical projects, which include buildings, such as schools and recreational facilities, $150 million would come from an increase in video gaming terminal taxes; $10 million from sports wagering revenue; $500 million from upfront license fees from casino and sports betting; $30 million from a tax on parking garages and lots; $68 million from an increase on the real estate transfer tax on commercial properties; $45 million from removing the sales tax exemption on traded-in property valued above $10,000; and $156 million from an increase on the cigarette tax by $1 per pack.
State Senator Terry Link, a Democrat from Vernon Hills, has pushed for years to expand casino gambling. He finally got his wish Sunday, on his wedding anniversary.
“For the sake of my marriage, for the sake of the state of Illinois, vote this out with your green lights,” Link said.
The bill passed the Senate 46-10-2. Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady voted “Present”…
State Sen. Bill Brady of Bloomington has financial ties to the company that operates half the video gambling terminals in Bloomington-Normal.
State records show Ellsworth-based Midwest Electronics Gaming has brought in $18 million from video gambling terminals in Bloomington-Normal over the last two years. That’s the firm ProPublica reported has financial ties to Brady, the Senate minority leader.
State and municipal records show Midwest Gaming licenses 174 terminals at 39 establishments in the Twin Cities. That’s about half.
When the gambling expansion bill was approved by the Illinois Senate last week, state Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, was a “present” vote. […]
“In this case, I have an equity interest in a hotel in Danville, Illinois. And, when Danville was thrown into the bill, my ethics officer advised me that I should declare a conflict by voting present,” Brady said.
* Gov. Pritzker posted several signs around his ceremonial office for his post-session press conference. I call dibs on this one…
We legalized adult-use cannabis, creating the most equity-centric system in this nation which will right historic wrongs and reinvest in the communities that have suffered the most because of the War on Drugs. pic.twitter.com/4grMqIzG5E
— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) June 2, 2019
* But, Illinoisians? No thanks…
We gave 1.4 million people a raise by putting all our minimum wage workers on a path to a $15 an hour living wage. pic.twitter.com/V9vT1QtGLb
— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) June 2, 2019
Lawmakers took action to help save the teaching profession and repealed the 3 percent salary threshold on teacher salaries and reinstated the 6 percent salary threshold. The change was attached to the budget implementation bill.
Illinois Education Association (IEA) President Kathi Griffin, along with members, delivered 55,000 petitions calling for the repeal to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office just last week. IEA members also have sent thousands of emails and made hundreds of phone calls to lawmakers urging them to repeal the 3.
“This shows that our members’ voices were heard loud and clear in Springfield. Educators from around the state stepped up to save our profession and protect our students,” IEA President Kathi Griffin said. “It’s amazing to see how powerful we can be when we are united. We have a strong collective voice and we will continue to use it to advocate for our students and public education.”
Last year, deep within the budget implementation bill, lawmakers passed a provision that limited bumps in salary to 3 percent for members of the Teachers’ Retirement System or State Universities Retirement System for those in the last 10 years of their career, unless the employer wanted to pick up the excess pension cost. The 3 percent was simply a cost shift putting the financial burden on local taxpayers and college students instead of the state. The threshold had been 6 percent prior to that.
This law unfairly penalized veteran educators and could have significantly reduced lifetime earnings for all teachers. Because educators can qualify for a pension after five years and can leave their school district at any time, school board attorneys had been arguing for a 3 percent limit on all salary increases across the entire length of an educator’s teaching contract, creating havoc in districts in the midst of negotiations.
“We want to thank our lawmakers for standing with our educators and doing the right thing for our students and public education,” Griffin said. “Restoring the 6 percent threshold means we are allowing districts to attract the best and brightest to their schools. Our students benefit when we value and fairly compensate our teachers.”
The 6 percent salary threshold is expected to take effect effect as soon as Gov. Pritzker signs the budget package. You can find more information about the push to repeal the 3 here.
The language deleting the 3 percent limit is on pages 351 and 352 of the Budget Implementation Act, which passed the House 97-17-1 and passed the Senate 52-6.
“Those 6 percent-plus salary increases cost local taxpayers more than $38 million over the past decade in payments to the Teachers’ Retirement System alone,” reported the conservative lobbying group Illinois Policy recently.
“That policy … means a career worker with an average salary of $73,000 will earn approximately $250,000 more during the course of her retirement” over what it would have been without the boost.
Finally, the legislators, watching a growing share of state spending going toward pension funding, declared in 2005 that end-of-career salary spikes could not exceed 6 percent. Any school district that boosted pay for retiring teachers above that amount would have to pay extra into the TRS.
Teachers unions, once again showing their negotiating brilliance, soon persuaded many school districts that they must give 6 percent annual increases to retiring teachers. What was supposed to be a ceiling became a floor. […]
Just a year ago, the Legislature, again trying to slow increasing pension costs, lowered the 6 percent level to 3 percent.
The limit doesn’t mean that local school districts can’t give increases to impending retirees larger than 3 percent. It just means school districts that do will have to pay the extra costs to cover the higher pensions.
The Senate Sunday passed the infrastructure bill to double the state’s gas tax and increase vehicle registration fees the day after the House rushed the bill through in overtime. […]
State Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City, who voted against it, said the GOP votes provided cover to the Democrats in districts Republicans should be winning.
“And I just don’t really see anything substantial on the table there to put 20 votes on the table for a gas tax increase,” Wilhour said.
Nothing substantial, eh?
Rep. Wilhour’s Beecher City is in Effingham County, which is in IDOT District 7. District 7 received about $600 million in road and bridge projects in the capital bill. If you click here you can see the district’s projects. The district received about the same as District 2 (Rock Island, DeKalb, Kankakee).
District 8 (Metro East to Marion) received a couple of hundred million more than Wilhour’s District 7 (and Wilhour’s House district reaches into that IDOT district), and District 4 (Peoria) did slightly better than 7.
So, Wilhour’s sparsely populated IDOT district was basically tied for fourth out of 9, with District 1 receiving the most at $3.1 billion. But that’s Chicago and the suburbs, which has 65 percent of the state’s population.
All in all, I think he did pretty well. His region gets a bunch of state money and he didn’t vote to pay for it.
* Rob Karr at the Illinois Retail Merchants Association pushed two revenue producing plans last month which made it into Senate Bills 689 and 690. Here is his explanation of what they do…
1. Marketplaces. Beginning January 1, 2020, marketplace facilitators (think Amazon, Walmart, eBay, Facebook, etc.) have to collect and remit the Illinois Use Tax (6.25%) from all the sellers who sell through the marketplace. Keep in mind that 5% of the 6.25% goes to the state, .25% goes to counties and 1% goes into a fund and is divided among all municipalities by population. Winners here would be the state and, to a small extent, units of local government. They win because compliance will go WAY up. For example, IDOR currently only has 2,900 remote retailers registered and collecting. One marketplace has over 1 million sellers and only 38,000 are in Illinois. Pennsylvania did just this marketplace piece and will collect over $250 million in a full fiscal year.
2. Remote sellers. Beginning July 1, 2020, any remote seller (think Wayfair, Zappos, etc.) must collect and remit the Illinois Retailer’s Occupation Tax (ROT) in effect wherever the product is being shipped. As an example, if someone in Chicago purchases something from a remote retailer, that remote retailer must collect the city of Chicago’s ROT which is currently 10.25%. The winner in this example would be not only the state but the City of Chicago and the RTA. The RTA gets 1.25% of the City’s 10.25%. But not only does Chicago win, all muni’s with a locally-imposed ROT win because compliance shoots way up. Additionally, every muni wins because more remote retailers are collecting meaning the 1% divided by population increases.
Per the SCOTUS South Dakota v. Wayfair decision, the Court is going to judge any collection requirement through the lens of simplicity. Our proposal as contained in SB 690 gives remote sellers a choice: they can collect and remit on their own or they can utilize a Certified Service Provider (CSP) to do the work for them. CSPs (think Intuit, Turbo Tax, Tax Cloud) do the administrative, collection and remittance work on behalf of the remote retailer. The CSP’s services are free to the remote retailer but the CSP, because they are doing the work, keep the Retail Discount. CSPs are doing this work in the 24+ marketplace states and doing some sort of work in every state so none of this is new. So, not only does our proposal make it simple (the CSP will do the work) we make it free to the remote retailer.
Remember that IDOR only has 2900 registered remote retailers. CSPs report they have over 6,000 retailers selling into South Dakota using their services who are not required to collect and remit but do so because it’s just easier.
Thanks to the SCOTUS’s Wayfair decision, everyone wins here, Rich. Retailers win because the competitive advantage remote retailers is erased. Local governments win two ways – their 1% share divided by population grows and, if they have a locally-imposed ROT, they get all of it. Over 50 counties have passed a sales tax for school construction. They win because they can pay their bonds off faster, expand their projects, or both. Counties that have imposed a sales tax for public safety benefit for the same reason. In Chicago, the RTA benefits as noted above.
Nothing changes for an Illinois retailer or someone with a warehouse/distribution center in Illinois. Nothing.
IRMA estimates the two changes will produce $460 million in annual revenues by the second year of full implementation ($230 million the first year).
The governor and his top staff showed again last week that they can make things happen under the Statehouse dome.
To corral 73 votes for a graduated income tax constitutional amendment in a 74-member House Democratic caucus accustomed to extreme coddling and over-protecting its more politically vulnerable members was quite something. Nobody was left off the hook.
The one they missed remains a mystery to pretty much everybody. Rep. Andre Thapedi (D-Chicago) left the chamber during the “fair tax” debate and never returned, vanishing into thin air. He didn’t tell the governor’s office that he’d be skipping the vote and some of his colleagues didn’t even realize he’d left while others could only hazard a guess as to why.
Gov. Pritzker’s effort to make Illinois a progressive Midwestern oasis took a huge leap forward with the passage of that constitutional amendment. Generations of Illinois politicians have tried and failed to get the issue onto the ballot. One of Bruce Rauner’s top priorities when he decided to run for governor was stopping a graduated income tax. And, now, not even five months after the near-billionaire Rauner’s involuntary departure, the voters will soon be given a choice, courtesy of the billionaire Gov. Pritzker.
Both Rauner and Pritzker had and have sweeping, even radical visions of how they wanted to change their state. Where Rauner mostly failed, Pritzker has mostly succeeded. That doesn’t mean Pritzker has chosen the right path, mind you. The Republicans warn (and some Democrats privately fret) that his economic agenda of a $15 an hour minimum wage, a progressive income tax, higher taxes for infrastructure construction and a blizzard of pro-union laws will make the state uncompetitive with its neighbors. But it’s too late to turn back now.
Pritzker vowed to make Illinois law the most pro-choice in the country, and as I write this, he is succeeding. The Reproductive Health Act is ostensibly designed to wipe out the state’s abortion laws that were knocked down by courts in years past to make sure they couldn’t somehow be reactivated if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
You can probably gauge how pro-choice the Pritzker-backed RHA is by looking at the intensity of the opposition. It’s reviled by pro-life activists to the point where a conservative southern Illinois minister giving the morning invocation in the House chambers last week actually called on God to “judge Illinois for the sanctioned destruction of the innocent unborn” two days after the House passed the bill.
The measure even caught the eye of President Donald Trump, who posted a link on his Facebook page to an article about the bill and wrote “The Democrat Party is unhinged! Their radical position on abortion is horrible!”
Yeah, I’m thinking that’s a pretty solidly pro-choice bill.
And then there’s the cannabis legalization bill, which unlike all the others listed above had some bipartisan support in both chambers last week.
Not only is possession of up to 30 grams of weed legalized, but the law will grant clemency to people who were busted for possessing up to that same amount in the past. It contains programs for communities that have been hit hard by the ridiculously punitive “war on drugs.” There’s also a grant and loan program for people in those communities who want to become involved in the cannabis business. And a community college program is created to help folks, including minorities, train for jobs in the industry.
No other state that has legalized cannabis has done anything like this.
None of the above could’ve happened without this particular governor’s support.
Democratic legislators know that Pritzker will have their backs should any of this spring session’s votes haunt them in the next campaign cycle. He has enough money under his couch cushions to fund their campaigns.
Pritzker also truly believes in this stuff. Where others settled for tiny increases in the minimum wage, Pritzker is nearly doubling it. When his most recent Democratic predecessors either rejected income tax hikes or insisted they be “temporary,” Pritzker went all out and proposed permanently raising taxes on the top 3 percent of earners. Gov. Pat Quinn reluctantly signed a way too restrictive medical marijuana bill into law. Pritzker enthusiastically pushed for legalization.
This much change this quickly can frighten people. So, we’ll see what the future holds. But for now, the governor and his supporters can bask in a bit of glory.
* Pritzker, Democrats take victory lap while Republicans find reasons to celebrate: As on the House floor Sunday night, Republicans lent their votes to a bill that doubles Illinois’ gas tax for the first time in nearly three decades, from the current 19 cents per gallon to 38 cents, and indexes the gas tax in the future to inflation. The tax revenues will also go toward the state’s Road Fund, where it can’t be touched thanks to a Lockbox Amendment voters approved in November 2016. “I certainly understand why some people might be concerned about voting yes for this,” Brady said during debate on the horizontal capital funding bill late Sunday afternoon. “But I will be voting yes. Our citizens deserve a safe, viable transportation system.”
* SJ-R Editorial: Legislative session one to remember: But a few days of overtime should not overshadow the fact that this legislative session was successful — if you define successful as setting a new trajectory for the state. We’re not saying we agree with everything lawmakers have done during the past five months. But after years of partisan bickering and failures when it came to shoring up the state’s finances, actions taken during 2019 are poised to turn Illinois in a more positive direction. Vital to that effort will be a statewide construction plan. There is no doubt our buildings, roads, bridges and other infrastructure need attention now. Ironing out all the details — including how to raise the billions needed to pay for it — are among the issues lawmakers must address this weekend, and they seem ready to do so.
* Bernie: A new attitude — and one-party dominance — eased the tension: “He’s open to talking to people who disagree with him,” Manar said of Pritzker. “He’s not into punitive response for the slightest disagreements that he has with people of his own party or the other party. That’s as opposite of Bruce Rauner as you could imagine.”
* In overtime, lllinois House OKs new taxes for public works program and a gambling expansion that includes a Chicago casino: The legislative session went into overtime despite the return of one-party Democratic rule in Springfield, with lawmakers addressing new Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s aggressive agenda after four years of dysfunctional government under his predecessor, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. While Pritzker wasn’t able to accomplish his ambitious agenda by the scheduled deadline, Democrats praised the governor for ultimately being able to check off many items, and Republicans gave him credit for brokering bipartisan agreements on the budget and infrastructure plan. “The governor has asked a lot, and he’s also accomplished a tremendous amount,” House Democratic leader Greg Harris of Chicago said, citing legislation legalizing recreational marijuana, raising the minimum wage and protecting abortions rights. “Any one of the things Gov. Pritzker and the General Assembly have done this year in other years would have been considered monumental.”
* Finke: Democrats control it all, but can’t finish on schedule: Well, Gov. JB Pritzker can claim victory on any number of issues for his first session. We won’t enumerate them because as this is being written, the session still isn’t over. Instead of adjourning on schedule on Friday, the General Assembly expected to work through the weekend to get its work done. It’s not like going into overtime alone is going to be a permanent blot on Pritzker’s record. But he did predict the session would end on time when skeptical reporters started asking if all of those remaining big issues could be addressed quickly.
