State Senator Dave Syverson helped write the gaming bill and used his local clout to steer the city of Rockford to approve just one casino developer. The investor group that won the city's approval has political and financial ties to Syverson.https://t.co/4atrrlgHVn
State Senator Dave Syverson (R-Rockford) went all in for a casino project that would directly benefit his business partner and top campaign donors.
Public records and communications obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show Syverson was in close personal contact with local and county officials during the pivotal moments leading up to the city’s decisive vote to award the casino project to an investor group that included his friends, campaign donors and associates. […]
Syverson chafed at Mayor Tom McNamara’s insistence that city aldermen abstain from talking to anyone about gaming until the city rolled out its own presentation. […]
Syverson claims he complained to the Gaming Board and sought a ruling that would allow him to speak directly to the Rockford City Council, even as they were under a prohibition to speak to any lobbyists or agents of the casino operators. […]
On Saturday, September 28th, 2019, the local newspaper reported Mayor Tom McNamara wanted to send the Illinois Gaming Board multiple options, and rank them in order of preference, in order to have a backup plan in place.
“The mayor’s initial preference, and might have been his preference if we had three viable applicants, was to send more than one down so that we had backup if any of them did not make it,” Holzwarth said.
That weekend, ahead of a pivotal city council vote, Syverson used his state Senate letterhead and communications staff to lobby support for the city to select just a single developer, and urged the public to consider what he saw as disqualifying differences between his business partner’s bid and the other developers’ application, which he discounted as merely a “dream.”
The Syverson business partner referenced above is Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen, whose wife Karen is a casino investor. There’s more, so click here.
Today, Cook County State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx filed motions to vacate more than 1,000 low-level cannabis convictions. The State’s Attorney’s Office is providing this relief for Cook County residents in advance of the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act taking effect on January 1, 2020. The new law makes cannabis legal in Illinois and requires the expungement of minor marijuana offenses.
The convictions vacated today were for non-violent Possession of Cannabis cases under 30g. Today’s filings, initiated by Foxx, make it as though these convictions never happened. They will now be expunged and permanently removed from criminal records.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office (CCSAO) handles approximately 19,000 petitions for conviction relief each year, averaging approximately 1,500 each month. Today, the CCSAO processed more than 1,000 convictions in one court call.
“Today, we made history and took the first step in the single largest and most equitable piece of criminal justice reform Illinois has ever seen,” said Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. “As prosecutors who implemented these convictions, we must own our role in the harm they have caused – particularly in communities of color – and play our part in reversing them. Clearing records is not only a critical part of righting the wrongs of the failed war on drugs, but an intentional step to give people the chance to move forward, which benefits all of our communities.”
Despite being low-level and non-violent in nature, these cannabis convictions can create barriers to employment, housing, and education, as applicants are often asked if they have ever been convicted of a crime.
In January of 2019, State’s Attorney’s Foxx announced that her office would be pursuing conviction relief for low-level, non-violent cannabis offenses. In the months that followed, she worked closely with legislators to ensure that the new law included the broadest and most equitable conviction relief possible.
“Statewide, hundreds of thousands of Illinoisans are held back by their low-level cannabis-related records, a burden disproportionately shouldered by communities of color. And hundreds of thousands of others have had to watch their friends and loved ones struggle because of an arrest or conviction they got for something that will be legal starting on January 1st,” said Governor J.B. Pritzker. “This is to say nothing of the fact that arrest rates and prosecution have never reflected consumption rates across racial lines.”
“We will never be able to fully remedy the depth of that unfairness and the damage it visited upon so many families. But we can govern our state with the courage to admit the mistakes of our past—and the decency to correct the record and set a better path forward,” Pritzker added.
In August, State’s Attorney Foxx announced an innovative partnership with a non-profit organization, Code for America, to process these records quickly, efficiently, and at no cost to individuals seeking relief. With the aid of Code for America’s technology, the CCSAO can securely evaluate eligibility for record clearance by reading and interpreting conviction data in just a few minutes. This faster approach to conviction relief allows the CCSAO to focus more of its limited resources on the drivers of violent crime.
The convictions vacated today will now be expunged and removed from individuals’ records as though they never happened. Once that record has been removed, the Clerk of the Circuit Court will mail or email notice to the individual’s last known address. Cook County residents or former residents whose convictions took place in Cook County can update their address at www.cookcountyclerkofcourt.org/address.
* Excerpt from governor’s remarks…
Today marks another important step in righting the injustices of the past. The 1,000 names that State’s Attorney Foxx began to read in that courtroom represent 1,000 real people who will be given a second lease on life. And this is only the beginning.
Before we take questions, I want to remind everyone that yesterday kicked off the application window for a new group of cannabis dispensaries and a chance for new entrepreneurs to succeed in this new market. Social equity applicants will be eligible for the 75 licenses that will be granted in the next few months – and they’ll be able to get business loans to get off the ground, funded by the existing industry. Applicants have until January 2nd to submit their applications for a cannabis dispensary. Now and in the coming weeks, our Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity will be hosting workshops across the city of Chicago and throughout the state to answer questions and assist applicants. In fact, I was pleased to see that we had a full house at their workshop in Englewood on Monday night.
And before I introduce the next speaker, I want to take a moment to recognize the solemnity of the proceeding we witnessed today in Judge Evans’ courtroom. We honored the victims of the War on Drugs and we will continue to do so in the days and months ahead.
* The 2019 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Illinois Senate Democratic Campaign Staffer goes to Miles Sodowski…
Not content with doing a great job on the legislative side with marijuana and everything else, Miles also works incredibly hard on the campaign side. His most recent campaign victory with Aud Crowe is proof of this. Having a first timer Democrat in downstate Illinois is tough these days but he never shirked the hard work necessary to win.
* The 2019 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Illinois Senate Republican Campaign Staffer is a tie: Jake Ford and Adam Zmarzlinksi…
Jake Ford and Adam Zmarzlinksi never flinched when asked to get petitions for the caucus this year. Rain, snow and wind storms didn’t stop them from getting the job done. I respect their dedication and expect to see great things from them next year.
Congrats to everyone!
* On to today’s category…
* Best government spokesperson
* Best government staff/official
The categories can apply to any level of government, whether legislative, executive or even local as long as there’s some state connection. Elected officials and agency directors are not eligible. As always, explain your nominations or they will not count and do your very best to nominate in both categories. Have fun!
Hoping for another productive legislative session, Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday vowed to tackle pensions, early child education, criminal justice reform and health care next year — as well as the elusive Chicago casino.
“I’m very hopeful that in the session of the Legislature that is coming up starting in January that we’ll begin to put together a bill, and get it passed,” the rookie governor said when asked about a Chicago casino. […]
“Criminal justice reform is an area that I’ve already done a lot on in the spring session last year, but now I think we’ll be revisiting some of the issues that came up over the last few years that never got passed,” Pritzker said. “I’m also very focused on making sure that we’re expanding opportunities for working families to get ahead of — you know, I‘ve talked a lot about lowering the cost of healthcare, lowing the cost of childcare, lowering the cost of education, so that we can raise the standard of living and people who are working in our state.”
And the billionaire Chicagoan remains bullish about finally winning the casino Chicago has been pursuing off and on for more than a quarter of a century.
* McGuireWoods Consulting published its own 2020 session preview. Here’s part of it…
Vaping
2019 saw a breakout of respiratory illness among vape users. With 5 deaths this year, Illinois leads the nation in vaping-related deaths. In response, law makers in Springfield have sought to enact various new regulations on vaping and vaping products. House Bill 3887, which would create the Flavored Tobacco Ban Act, prohibiting the sale of flavored e-cigarette and tobacco products was filed in September. Although a hearing was held, the legislation failed to move forward, but will likely come up again next year. Governor JB Pritzker has stated his support for a ban on flavored vaping products.
Ethylene Oxide
Ethylene oxide, a chemical used by medical device cleaning facilities and various manufacturers was thrown into the political spotlight in this year. One facility, Sterigenics, was shut down in February 2019 following an EPA report showing higher cancer rates in the areas surrounding the facility. The first ethylene oxide related bills to come through the legislature were passed in the spring. SB 1852 and SB 1854 were passed with broad bi-partisan support and have been touted as the most stringent ethylene oxide regulations in the country. Despite this, some members of the public and of the legislature believe the new laws do not go far enough. During veto session, two additional pieces of legislation were introduced including HB 3888, a bill to completely phase out the use of ethylene oxide in the state. While HB 3888 passed the Senate, both bills have been postponed and will be taken up again once the legislature comes back into session in January. The Governor has vowed to sign the legislation if it passes.
Gig Economy Taxation
A bill presented by State Representative Will Guzzardi aims to require online based companies, like Uber, to treat staffers as employees and not as independent contractors. This would require the companies to comply with minimum wage and other employee protections and would require their incomes to be taxed at a normal rate. This bill is based off of a similar one that California passed in September and is expected to come up in the 2020 session.
As the state embarks on a historic $45 billion capital program, Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation today to strengthen a pillar of Rebuild Illinois and increase diversity in apprenticeships for construction and the building trades.
“Rebuild Illinois is the largest, most robust capital plan in state history. We’re working with our partners to make sure every community in the state benefits from these good jobs – especially those who have been left out for far too long,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “We’re putting Illinois’ government back on the side of working families, designing a state that is economically prosperous not just for the few, but for every Illinoisan, no matter the color of their skin or their zip code.”
The Illinois Works Jobs Program will help ensure that Illinois residents from all communities not only benefit from capital projects, but also have access to careers in the construction industry and building trades. Today’s effort includes especially those who have been historically underrepresented in those trades.
The law makes a $25 million investment and works through community-based organizations to recruit new apprentices to work on the construction projects and sets strong apprentice participation goals of 10 percent on public works projects. Through this pre-apprenticeship program, bid credit program and review panel, the new law ensures the Illinois Works Jobs Program can deliver on its goal of building and maintaining a diverse workforce on Rebuild Illinois projects.
“In order to build a healthy and comprehensive economy, we must supply minority businesses with full and fair access to local and state contraction opportunities,” said Sen. Napoleon Harris III (D-Chicago). “I applaud Gov. Pritzker for seeing the significance of this measure and hope to see local governments taking advantage of the business enterprise program to decrease the inequality gap for minority, veterans and female-owned businesses.”
“This legislation creates economic opportunity for working people that have typically been left out of the construction industry,” said House Assistant Majority Leader Will Davis (D- Homewood). “The Rebuild Illinois capital program makes an unprecedented investment in our state, and we’re making sure that benefits all of our communities.”
Senate Bill 177 takes effect January 1, 2020.
This is a pretty important new law because African-American politicians and groups have been complaining about the lack of diversity in trade union membership for decades. So, the Black Caucus and the governor pushed the idea to pump $25 million into apprentice recruitment with a concurrent goal of 10 percent apprentice employment on public works projects and some oversight, study and enforcement mechanisms.
We have so many people that helped us with this project. We would like to thank Steve and Karen Stivers, Marty Smith, George Abrahams, Anna Sharratt, Adrienne Alexander, Dave Lowitzki, Ty Petersen and Joanna Klonsky for sharing our survey. And the biggest thank you to Rich Miller from Capitol Fax whose post got over half of the responses to our survey. We would also like to thank our parents, Anders Lindall, Julie Sampson, and Mike and Anika Byrley who have supported us so much throughout the project and our whole lives.
They received 600 completed surveys, so that means over 300 of y’all responded to the call. I really do have the best readers. Thanks for helping those kids.
When we asked about the Green New Deal, Baby Boomers supported it by a 10-point margin (51% support to 41% oppose) and Gen Xers by 9 points (49-40). But Millennials held the most progressive view, supporting it by 19 points (54-35).
Regarding open borders, Baby Boomers opposed them by 12 points (41% support to 53% opposed). Gen Xers weren’t much more liberal, opposing by a 10-point margin (41-51). Millennials again were more progressive, opposing by 7 points (43-50).
When we asked about socialism and capitalism, there was a much bigger difference. In all, 43% of Millennials supported socialism with 53% opposed. That -10 margin was far more favorable than Baby Boomers (32-59, a -27 margin), with Gen X just as conservative at 32-62, a -30 margin. We guess that’s because Millennials identify socialism with Democratic Socialist countries like Sweden and Norway with high levels of happiness, free college and medical care, and familiar stores like Ikea, but Boomers and other older people associate socialism with the Soviet Union and the Cold War.
On the other hand, Baby Boomers supported capitalism by a whopping 75 points (82-7). Dropping about 20 points behind that was Gen X, with a 59-point margin (75-16). Millennials still had a favorable of capitalism but much less than Boomers, only +41 (65-24). Total opposition to capitalism almost quadrupled among Millennials versus Boomers.
Crazy video: Watch as Park district truck slides off into Lake Michigan. The two employees inside got out safely. @ABC7Chicago pic.twitter.com/tPVNL5R8jQ
Through 25 years in the public eye, Patti Vasquez has worn a lot of hats: comedian, consultant, political activist, and until June, WGN radio host. Through all of it, she’s used her mother’s maiden name, Vasquez, rather than her father’s surname, Bonnin.
That wasn’t a problem until August, when Vasquez, 48, announced her run for the 19th District state house seat currently occupied by Lindsey LaPointe, who was tapped to fill the vacancy in July.
Now, faced with a requirement to use her legal name on the ballot, Vasquez risks forfeiting years of hard-earned name recognition against an incumbent.
Even stickier, her solution — to appear as Patricia D. Bonnin “Patti Vasquez” on the ballot — has led to accusations that she’s using two names to pander to different sets of voters: Vasquez for Latinos, and Bonnin for whites.
But the truth is more complicated: Vasquez’s half-brother was Michael Bonnin, one of 33 young men killed by John Wayne Gacy — a fact she’s kept private until now. At the time of his disappearance in 1979 at age 17, Vasquez was four, living with their shared father and her mother, his second wife, in Norwood Park. When they found his body in the crawl space of Gacy’s house, she was seven.
Leading up to Gacy’s execution in 1994, Vasquez was just beginning her comedy career, performing at open mic nights around town. “That first summer I did standup was when he was being executed,” she says. “It was insane how many comics had a joke about it. There were nights when I had to leave the room.”
And so, to detach herself from the Gacy tragedy and not allow it to define her, Patti Bonnin became Patti Vasquez. And when her comedy career gave way to one in radio, the name stuck. “I knew our name was going to be in the paper again,” she says. “I didn’t want [the murder] to precede every conversation and interview I gave.”
Wow.
* Other political stuff….
* Objections filed against two dozen suburban candidates: Two of the three Democratic challengers — Inam Hussain and Mohammed Faheem — who are seeking to unseat 8th District congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi face objections. Catalina Lauf is the lone Republican 14th congressional district candidate in a seven-way primary race to face an objection, according to the Illinois Board of Elections. Democratic congressional challengers Andrew Tarnasiewicz-Heldut and Adam Broad, in the 9th and 10th districts respectively, also saw their petitions challenged. Both incumbent 22nd District state Sen. Cristina Castro and challenger Rae Yawer had objections filed against them. They are Democrats.
* Petition objections fly while Villanueva files for Sandoval’s seat: Of the 13 petition challenges filed against Senate candidates, nine were filed in the race for the 40th Senate District, currently occupied by State Sen. Patrick Joyce (D-Essex), who was appointed last month to fill the seat vacated by Toi Hutchinson, who went to work in Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration. Joyce is running to retain the seat, along with Legislative Black Caucus Foundation Executive Director Monica Gordon, Chicago Heights City Clerk Lori Wilcox, Kankakee County Democrats spokesperson Marta Perales, and former Rich Township High School District 227 Board MemberDavid Morgan. Cook County GOP Co-Chair Eric Wallace is running as a Republican. Wallace, Wilcox and Gordon each received a petition challenge, while Perales received two and Morgan received a grand total of four. … In the 9th House District, where seven Democrats have filed to replace retiring State Rep. Art Turner (D-Chicago), a challenger named Archibald Walker filed petition objections to four candidates, including Turner’s brother Aaron Turner, entrepreneur Sandra “Sandi” Schneller, political consultant Ty Cratic and Nicole “Nikki” Harvey. Harvey also received another petition challenge. Others running for the 9th District seat include Maurice Evans, SEIU Healthcare activist Lakesia Collins and Trina Mangrum, chief of staff to Ald. Jason Ervin (28).
Illinois received a “C-” for making critical information about how governments are subsidizing business projects with taxpayer dollars readily available to the public online, according to a new report from Illinois PIRG Education Fund and Frontier Group. Following the Money 2019, the organization’s tenth evaluation of online government spending transparency, gives 17 states a failing grade, while only four states received a grade of “B” or higher.
Illinois received an “C-” grade because researchers could not find any statewide grants report, nor reporting on whether or not economic development subsidies are producing the promised benefits, among other scoring criteria.
“As taxpayers, we should be able to see how government spends our money down to the dime,” said Abe Scarr, Illinois PIRG Education Fund Director. “That includes the billions of dollars that state and local governments give away each year to lure businesses into their backyards.”
U.S. PIRG Education Fund and Frontier Group’s Following the Money reports have evaluated states on online spending transparency since 2010. While many states have made progress towards providing citizens access to government spending information online, this year’s report finds economic development reporting is still lagging behind.
“It’s often easier for citizens to see when a state hands a company $50 for printer ink than when it hands a company a million dollars to relocate its headquarters,” said R.J. Cross, report lead author and policy analyst at Frontier Group. “States have moved light years ahead in the last decade when it comes to providing information on basic government spending online. But when it comes to economic development subsidies, most are still in the dark ages.”
The report graded each state’s transparency efforts from “A” to “F” based on the availability of online reports detailing how much the state spends through tax breaks and direct grant programs; the availability of information on individual payments to companies on the state’s transparency site; and the existence of state laws that require ongoing reporting of information on economic development subsidies to the public.
“Transparency checks corruption and enables citizens to hold their elected officials accountable,” finished Cross. “Without access to information, it’s impossible to know how fully these corporate subsidies are serving the public’s interest.”
According to the report, Ohio is the only state to receive an “A” grading. Three states, including Wisconsin, received a “B.” Illinois was one of 15 states to receive a “C-range” grade. Indiana and Minnesota were among 14 states to receive a “D” grade. Seventeen states, including Michigan, failed.
I’ve asked the governor’s office for comment and will let you know if and/or when they respond.
Sources who have been interviewed by federal agents told The Hill that authorities are also looking into the relationships between several small towns around Chicago and people in Madigan’s orbit. In September, the FBI raided government offices in McCook, Lyons, Schiller Park and Summit, all towns in Sandoval’s state Senate district.
All four towns have insurance contracts with Mesirow Insurance Services, a Chicago-based company that employs Andrew Madigan, the Speaker’s son.
One source interviewed by federal agents, who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, said agents asked about several Madigan allies who lobbied for ComEd and about the relationships between the suburban cities and the Speaker’s political operation. The agents specifically asked about Andrew Madigan, the source said, and whether the towns were told to sign contracts with his firm in exchange for legislative favors in Springfield.
“They know it’s happening, it’s just really difficult to prove,” the source said.
One thing the Madigan people point out is that stories like this one never report what the people who were interviewed actually said to the feds.
Also, a strong hunch is one thing, proving it is true in a court of law is quite another task.
But, and this is a very important but, if the feds are indeed taking a look at the House Speaker’s only son, then hold onto your hats.
* Dragging ComEd execs to a hearing to explain what the heck is going on may not be the end-all be-all, but it’s more than anyone at the Statehouse has come up with so far…
The hit to Commonwealth Edison’s political agenda from the federal investigation into its lobbying is being felt now in the city of Chicago in addition to Springfield.
With ComEd’s franchise agreement up for renewal for only the third time in more than 70 years, Mayor Lori Lightfoot is calling now for a public airing before City Council into ComEd’s political behavior as it and parent Exelon have secured a series of lucrative legislative victories in Springfield over the past eight years.
“I think there’s got to be a level of accountability that ComEd has to make publicly to make sure that we understand the magnitude of the problem there because clearly it’s a problem; it’s not just news reports and smoke,” Lightfoot said today in a taping of Bill Cameron’s “Connected to Chicago” program, which airs this coming Sunday morning on WLS. “There’s something real there, and there’s got to be a measure of accountability to the public on that. So we haven’t fully thought out what that would look like, but my expectation is we’re going to call them for some kind of hearing and make them answer some questions in the public about the broader framing of what they were doing, how they were using their shareholders’ dollars and give us assurances that we can be comfortable doing business with them.”
It’s unclear whether Lightfoot actually has the appetite to seek to end the city’s agreement with ComEd. But she can certainly call ComEd officials on the carpet for a City Council hearing to make them sweat a bit while answering questions.
FYI, the committee says they are an "independent organization" (🤔…even though it's chaired by Pritzker's former deputy campaign manager… and the governor will 100% be the top donor to this committee.)
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Gov. J.B. Pritzker just pumped $5 million into the “Vote Yes for Fairness” committee that’s out pressing for a graduated income tax amendment to the state Constitution — an early signal of an all-out political campaign willing to compete for air time while presidential candidates duke it out.
The Legislature gave their blessing to changing the tax code earlier this year but voters must still support altering the constitution in November 2020 before it can take effect. If approved, taxes would be raised on income greater than $250,000.
Quentin Fulks, who heads Vote Yes for Fairness, has said the committee will spend whatever it takes to secure a graduated income tax amendment. It’s a matter of communicating the message to voters — and that takes money.
Enter Pritzker, whose $5 million donation recorded with the state board of elections may be a drop in the bucket of what will ultimately be spent on the campaign to push the amendment since opponents have launched their own efforts attacking the graduated income tax.
The Vote No on Blank Check Committee headed by Greg Baise claims amending the state’s tax structure would only lead to future tax increases.
1) Obviously, it’s not first appearing in that publication.
2) Pritzker didn’t “just” pump that money into the committee, the contribution was made a week ago and the disclosure was made over the weekend and everybody who writes about politics apparently missed it until that legislator’s text. Oops.
3) Good point by Kyle…
And when I first read this today my reaction was - meh. Second thought - 5m is actually a lot of money —-campaigns have gotten so obscene it doesn’t feel like it is anymore. https://t.co/Ae6WHg6FQY
Well…some bad news from the congressional campaign trail. I think my “frontrunner” designation by Politico came to a rapid halt today. Two objections were filed which will likely bounce me from the Illinois ballot.
Like much of my political involvement over the years, there is an interesting back story. Because so many of my FB friends are politically active around the country in different states, I thought I’d share what happened.
In Illinois, to get on the ballot you have to collect signatures of qualified voters on paper petitions. All of those petitions are notarized and bound together in “book form” and filed with the State Board of Elections. If you don’t have enough valid signatures, or there are other flaws in your paperwork, an objector can file to remove you from the ballot. This afternoon was the deadline to file objections.
Although I got started pretty late in this race, I was in decent shape (I thought) on signature collection. That was until my team that had collected the largest number of signatures failed to show up the weekend before filing. Somehow, the young man who had hundreds of signatures in his possession became unreachable for almost a week. He has claimed his phone “broke”.
The good news is that I hadn’t paid for all of those signatures yet. The bad news for me is that I had paid some of the bill…but that makes it bad news for the young man and anyone who worked with him to defraud me. Or put him up to it.
So, stay tuned to see if this was a setup. Hopefully, I’ll get to the bottom of who violated the law to abscond with the petitions. If it’s who I think it was, there will be some fascinating legal twists and turns. Once political dirty tricks cross a certain legal line, they can have serious civil and criminal exposure.
Never a dull moment in Illinois politics!
Thanks for all your support and well wishes the past two months.
He only filed about 83 pages of signatures, at max 10 per page (several were incomplete). He needed 1,373 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.
I have been the only political reporter at several of Gov. Pritzker’s press conferences this year. He’s up against coverage of Mayor Lightfoot - and several media outlets are simply understaffed. Just noting the stark difference to coverage of Bruce Rauner. He’s probably jealous.
* Back in the day, I used to run a weekly feature on this little website called “Friday Topinka Blogging.” It was basically just a silly photo of Judy Baar Topinka designed to poke the online trolls who hated her so much.
I was thinking about how much fun those posts were because today is the fifth anniversary of JBT’s death. So, I went looking for some other pics.
* Text from a Democratic pal regarding the Golden Horseshoe awards…
Honestly, that entire Issues staff deserves a Horseshoe They’ve pulled together when the whole world was shooting at the Speaker (and indirectly each of them); pulled off record number of wins; and worked together to change their internal environment. They’re holding each other accountable and changing their environment from within to make it more professional and more welcoming. Those staffers are so hard working and collectively don’t get the credit they deserve.
Somebody’s gotta win, though, and the 2019 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Illinois House Democratic Campaign Staffer goes to our 2018 winner, Tiffany Moy…
She’s smart, chill, and endlessly capable.
We met on a campaign that was challenging for a number of reasons, and we didn’t always see things eye to eye. But she never took her eyes off the prize, and we could not have won without her.
Since then, she has been a consummate professional. She never drops the ball, she never loses her temper, she never complains — I can’t imagine a better colleague and fellow soldier.
She makes me look forward to the next race.
* The 2019 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Illinois House Republican Campaign Staffer goes to Matt Eddy…
It is surprising what he has done with and for Reps. Bryant, Severin, and Windhorst. He is on House communications staff staff, but spends his FREE TIME OFF PAYROLL, constantly planning for the next campaign. Basically he is all over southern Illinois, would hate to see his gasoline bills. Does all this and has two small children and he is active in their lives too. His wife must be a real jewel to let him put so much time in for the cause.
Several of you nominated Jayme Odom and she is indeed awesome, so she deserves honorable mention.
* Today’s categories…
* Best campaign staffer - Illinois Senate Democrats
* Best campaign staffer - Illinois Senate Republicans
Remember to explain your votes or they will not count. Also, do your very best to nominate in both categories. Thanks and have fun!
* I wanted to do a bit of research for a story I’m working on this afternoon, so I clicked on the bookmark and surfed to the main candidate filing page on the Illinois State Board of Elections’ website. Alas, the dreaded “overlay” appeared. If you’ve ever had to deal with that website you know what I’m talking about. Here’s what the page is supposed to look like…
* You cannot make this overlay go away. You can click on the page or try to scroll down, but the overlay prevails. It has to disappear on its own, or you accidentally click on another link and then have to start all over again.
Here’s what the page says in the bottom left-hand corner while the overlay is visible…
I decided to wait it out today and activated a timer. After two minutes and ten seconds I accidentally clicked another link while trying to make the overlay go away and my experiment ended.
This doesn’t happen every time, but it happens often enough that it DRIVES ME NUTS.
The Illinois Coal Basin, one of the most important coal‑producing regions in the U.S., will likely see declining production and mine closures as the industry continues to contract in the wake of coal-fired power plant retirements and falling exports, concludes a report published today by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
The report, Dim Future for Illinois Basin Coal, details how coal companies in Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky, which are already facing challenging prospects, will most likely fade away over the next two decades. A significant number of the coal-fired power plants supplied by the three‑state Basin are already scheduled to be shut down by utilities while others are being run less and less often, trends that will likely continue.
“From the beginning of 2019 through 2024, at least 15 American plants that buy Illinois Basin coal—in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina and Tennessee—will be fully or partially retired,” said Seth Feaster, an IEEFA data analyst and lead author of the report. “That number, which reflects formal announcements by utilities, is likely to grow as the economics of coal-fired generation continue to deteriorate relative to renewables and gas.”
“Meanwhile, demand for Illinois Basin coal is shrinking in key overseas markets too, a trend driven by market forces similar to those at work in the U.S.: foreign competition, and increasingly attractive forms of alternative power generation,” Feaster said.
The report offers a company-by-company overview of the Illinois Basin coal industry, noting the coal-mining companies that stand to be affected include (in order of production level): Alliance Resource Partners, Murray Energy and its partner Foresight Energy, Peabody Energy, Hallador, Arch Coal and White Stallion.
IEEFA also notes that the rising number of mine idlings or closures in the past year or so by Alliance, Foresight/Murray, and Peabody may be insufficient to match falling demand from power plants or declines in exports in the wake of recent diminishing international market prices.
Report conclusions:
* The Illinois Basin’s customer base in the U.S. continues to shrink as utilities move toward other forms of generation.
* Export-market demand is trending downwards and will continue to do so because the same policy and market forces at work in the U.S. are also transforming power-generation business models in other countries and regions.
* More Illinois Basin mines will close in the months and years ahead as the coal industry continues its structural and permanent decline.
* Communities and areas that prepare for and are proactive in embracing the energy transition will fare best.
The report urges policymakers in Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky to prepare for impacts on industry workers and local households, community tax bases, businesses and the regional economy as a whole, as well as provide leadership and sound policy initiatives to take advantage of the changes that are taking place in the energy industry.
Twenty years from now, most of the Illinois Basin coal industry will be gone. Currently one of the major U.S. producing regions of thermal coal for domestic and foreign electricity generation, by 2040 it will have largely faded away as utilities shift to cleaner, cheaper generation resources.
* Rep. Keith Wheeler (R-Oswego) asked the Legislative Research Unit, which is now part of the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, to look into how much was swept or transferred out of any state funds which pay for the FOID card program, background checks for gun-related purposes and concealed carry licensing.
LRU produced this chart on spending from the State Police Firearm Services Fund. Click the pic for a better view…
Man, that’s a lot of money being left on or swiped from the table that could be used to better administer those programs.
1.) The State Police have consistently not used all the money available in the Firearm Services Fund over the five years covered in this report. On average the State Police have not used $2,698,753 per year for the identified purposed in this report: administration of the FOID Program, background checks for firearm-related services, and conceal-carry licensing.
a. Revenue – Spending = unused funds (averaged for the 5 years)
2.) The average ending balance of the Firearm Services Fund over the five years covered in this report is $6,847302. This number includes five years of fund sweeps totaling $13,210,268. If the fund sweeps are added back into the total ending balance for the five years covered in the report, the Firearm Services Fund would have an average ending balance of $9,489,355.
3.) The State Police Services Fund receives $1 of every FOID Card fee. This fund is used to administer the Firearm Transfer Inquiry Program (FTIP). The five years that this report covers there has been $15,296,510 swept from this fund.
4.) Total fund sweeps/transfers into the General Fund of $13,210,268 from the State Police Firearm Services Fund and $15,296,510 from the State Police Services Fund over the five years covered in this report total $28,506, 778.
5.) When the conceal Carry act was being written, the sponsors of the bill purposefully made the fee $150 so the State Police had enough money to run the FOID System and the CCW System. Former Gov. Quinn was starving the FOID system and FOID card turnaround was pushing six months or more. The intent of the high CCW fee was to make the systems self-reliant.
a. By not using the fees generated by FOID and CCW the State Police opened themselves up to the General Assembly sweeping the perceived excess funds.
6.) According to this report, the FY2018 BIMP, which authorized interfund borrowing and fund sweeps, required that money be transferred back to a fund from which it had been swept or borrowed if that fund has “insufficient cash” to support appropriated spending.
a. The State Police did not declare insufficient cash to maintain the mission of the Firearm Services Fund or the State Police Services Fund otherwise the fund sweeps of $13,210,268 and $15,296,510 would have been paid back.
b. P.A. 100-23 (2017), adding 30ILCS 105/5h.5(b) and 30 ILCS 105/8.52(b)
7.) If the FOID card fee was increased by $10, and all the revenue generated went to the Firearm Services Fund, the fees generated would equal approximately $2,300,000 a year for ten years. Put another way, the State Police are not spending fees presently collected that would equal a $10 increase in the FOID fees per year. These statistics do not include average ending balances that have not been spent or average ending balances with Fund Sweeps not spent.
* ISRA press release…
“Five years of fund sweeps is unacceptable and needs to be addressed immediately. Beyond the delays and problems in the FOID and ICCL program, these fund sweeps are hampering citizens from exercising their Constitutional Right. Our office gets daily calls from people who are having difficulties navigating the FOID card process so it’s no wonder we see these problems, given a significant portion of the money intended to fund the program has been raided for other state programs,” [Richard Pearson, Executive Director of the Illinois State Rifle Association] said.
Efforts by anti-gun groups to push legislation that would more than double the FOID card fee was a call to action for ISRA to get unbiased data on how the FOID and Concealed Carry programs have been managed and how they are funded. The anti-gunners insisted the program was underfunded and therefore the FOID fee must be raised. The experienced ISRA lobby team worked with Rep. Wheeler (R-Oswego) to have the Legislative Research Unit produce an unbiased accounting of the revenues generated by the FOID card and ICCL fees.
“We pursued this investigation because we wanted honest gun owners to know the truth about what was happening to the fees that they pay for the right to own a firearm in Illinois,” Pearson said. “We worked with Rep. Wheeler to secure a report from the Legislative Research Unit on what was happening to the user fees and now we know. There is no shortage – just money being taken from these accounts to be used for other things.”
Blagojevich swore Cullerton in as Senate president on Jan. 14, 2009, and, almost immediately, the Senate began preparing for the governor’s impeachment trial. Even though Blagojevich was a Democrat, he could count on little support from his fellow Democrats in the legislature during the impeachment. The House approved charges against him on a 117-1 vote, with the only dissent coming from Blagojevich’s sister-in-law. Two weeks later, the Senate voted unanimously to remove Blagojevich from office. Cullerton called it a “shameful low” in Illinois’ history.
“I personally voted to remove Mr. Blagojevich, the former governor, from office today for three reasons,” Cullerton said after the vote. “He has demonstrated a clear inability to govern. He has shown disdain for the laws and the processes of the state. And he has deliberately and pathologically abused his power without regard for the people he was elected to serve.”
Cullerton now says the impeachment trial also set a tone of bipartisan cooperation in the chamber. Both he and Radogno, the Senate Republican leader, had just assumed the top spots in their caucuses when the trial began. Illinois had not had an impeachment trial since the days of Abraham Lincoln, so the staffs had to work together to develop the procedures for how to handle the governor’s trial. […]
But it also helped that both caucus leaders were new, Radogno says. “There had been a bitter, unproductive relationship between previous leaders,” she says. “We said, point blank, we’re not going to perpetuate that kind of dysfunction. It’s not good for the institution… We did try to conduct matters in a way that was obviously partisan, but at least respectful.”
* Excerpt of HB92’s synopsis, which was signed into law in July and takes effect next June…
Provides that whenever a peace officer is aware of a warrant of arrest issued by a circuit court of the State for a person and the peace officer has contact with the person because the person is requesting or receiving emergency medical assistance or medical forensic services for sexual assault at a medical facility, if the warrant of arrest is not for a forcible felony, a violent crime, or an alleged violation of parole or mandatory supervised release, the peace officer shall contact the prosecuting authority of the jurisdiction issuing the warrant, or if that prosecutor is not available, the prosecuting authority for the jurisdiction that covers the medical facility to request waiver of the prompt execution of the warrant. Provides that the prosecuting authority may secure a court order waiving the immediate execution of the warrant and provide a copy to the peace officer.
One woman was pinned to the emergency room floor by officers after her rape kit was done. Another woman was handcuffed to her hospital bed before the exam could begin. Both were sexual assault survivors who went to an Illinois emergency room seeking help. Both were arrested instead.
Police officers who respond to emergency room calls can and do jail sexual assault survivors who have warrants out for their arrest, even after offenses like unpaid parking tickets, shoplifting or failure to appear in court.
“This doesn’t seem fair, nor the right time,” said Sarah Layden, director of programs and public policy at survivor support nonprofit Resilience. […]
In one case report by ICASA, a woman went to an emergency room for a rape exam and medication to prevent exposure to HIV. Instead, police officers found a drug-related warrant and arrested her as she wept. “Once the officers placed her under arrest, she changed her mind about everything,” her advocate told ICASA. “She was crying and saying that she should have never come to the hospital.”
* Greg Bishop has a large roundup of new laws, but here’s an excerpt…
In Illinois, more than 250 new laws take effect Jan. 1 that will affect parents, employers, drivers, students and those in the criminal justice system.
For parents, one new law allows minors 12 and older to get preventative STD treatments such as HIV PrEP medications without parental consent. ID cards for minors will cost $5, not $10. If your child is a paid performer, a new law requires at least 15 percent of gross earnings be deposited into a trust fund they can access when they turn 18.
If you’re out and need to use a baby changing table, one new state law requires every public building with public restrooms to have at least one safe, sanitary, convenient and publicly accessible baby diaper changing station accessible to women. Also, any single-occupancy bathrooms in public must have a sign that notes “restroom” and not any specific gender.
If you have cats, you’ll have to get rabies inoculations.
The mansion, which had fallen into disrepair after years of deferred maintenance and neglect, reopened to the public in July 2018 after a $15 million renovation, which was led by former first lady Diana Rauner.
M.K. Pritzker said she was grateful to Rauner for doing “an amazing job renovating the Governor’s Mansion.” […]
To get the mansion ready for the holiday season, Mrs. Pritzker worked with the Illinois Department of Corrections to give women inmates the opportunity to put their skills to use. This included helping assemble floral arrangements displayed in vases around the mansion and the gingerbread village.
“What they’ve produced here is as good as anywhere I’ve seen in the United States and all of the women that helped should be very proud of their work and so should their families,” Mrs. Pritzker said. “I think it’s just incredible and I’m just so very proud of them.”
Kristen McQueary’s recent column (“The fall and rise of former state Rep. John Anthony,” Nov. 26), in which she declares former state Rep. John Anthony’s redemption from his #MeToo moment, denies the reality of his victims and raises important questions: Why is there such a disproportionate concern for the lives and well-being of perpetrators of abuse — and why do victims never seem to receive the same? […]
McQueary minimizes the story of what led to Anthony’s downfall while fawning over his rise from the ashes. The editorial page regularly uses Hampton’s name as a cudgel against House Speaker Michael Madigan. But these writers don’t care whether Hampton’s abuser, Kevin Quinn, repents. They don’t care about Anthony’s victims, and they have no expectation that he does the work to earn redemption. They care about ideology and they’re willing to exploit anyone’s pain they can to promote it.
The paper asked Cassidy to limit her submission to 400 words, so she rewrote it.
* Here is her op-ed as originally submitted…
Kristen McQueary’s love letter to former Representative Anthony, in which she declares his redemption from his #MeToo moment, reaches a new low in tone deafness. What is our obsession with what comes next in the lives of perpetrators of abuse like Anthony? Why is there such a disproportionate concern for their lives and wellbeing–and why do victims never seem to receive the same?
Time and again, we are subjected to questions of what constitutes an appropriate punishment for men caught up in public cases of abusing women in the workplace. The pearl clutching concerns over so called “cancel culture” have grown incredibly tiresome. When will we start talking about what the appropriate remedies are for the women subjected to this abuse? We should be focusing our energy on contemplating the long term trauma that can result from being abused within a power dynamic as complex as a political workplace.
And yes, let’s also have the conversation about what redemption looks like. I am certain there are men among my colleagues who look back and cringe at some of their past actions and wonder what they can do to make it right, and men caught up in cases who truly want to repair the harm they’ve done. But redemption is not a right or guarantee–one must do the work to earn forgiveness, to recognize the harm they’ve caused and to commit to working to repair it. As I tweeted the night the article posted, the bare minimum looks a little like this: 1) acknowledge the harm done and accept consequences, 2) seek guidance on changing your behavior and do the work, 3) NEVER DO IT AGAIN, and 4) help others learn how not to repeat your mistakes.
McQueary proclaims Anthony redeemed–because she says so. Did she call any of the victims? Did she ask Anthony whether he had apologized to any of them? Whether he had pursued therapy to address the underlying behavior behind the “mistakes” he says he has made? Did she ask the victims how they felt about whether he was deserving of redemption? If she did, none of that information made it into her column.
The women who have come forward about sexual misconduct they’ve endured are expected to just go back to their everyday work lives, frequently still in close proximity to abusers, without a system in place to address the damage done. As high profile sexual harassment victim Alaina Hampton has shared, even notes from therapy to address the harms done can be subpoenaed if the victim is seeking damages for emotional distress and mental health trauma, creating a chilling disincentive to getting help. Tie that with the effect of feeling shunned at work lest others be seen as a whistleblower too, and we have a perfect storm of challenges facing folks who come forward to bring an end to the abuse.
Every time I see a story mentioning one of the higher profile #MeToo stories in the press, my first thought is to check in on the victim in the story. Because, make no mistake, even when someone has no regrets about coming forward, new mentions bring new traumas.
McQueary goes to great lengths to minimize the story of what led to former Rep. Anthony’s downfall while fawning over his rise from the ashes. The women in that story had to see their stories belittled, minimized and disregarded in order to praise the man who changed their work experience forever.
For this to come from an editorial page that uses Alaina Hampton’s name every chance they get as a cudgel against Speaker Madigan and his allies is repulsive. These writers don’t care what happened to Alaina and they don’t care whether Kevin Quinn repents and finds a new life. They don’t care about the victims of former Rep. Anthony, and they clearly have no expectations that he does the work to earn redemption. They care about ideology and they’re willing to exploit anyone’s pain they can to promote it.
The phrase “a new low in tone deafness” was removed at the Tribune’s request, Cassidy said, because it “violated their standards.”
* We’ve talked before about how Chinese-Americans have been involved with the various local suburban cannabis opt-out pushes. Agree with the citizen activists or not, this is a fascinating development because it could lead to greater political involvement and influence down the road. From last night…
Palatine village council members Monday night voted to allow marijuana retailers in the town. […]
Roughly 40 speakers gave their opinions on the marijuana issue to the village council. Similar to previous meetings, those in favor of allowing the pot retailers cited the potential for additional sales tax revenue.
“Palatine has an opportunity to keep sales tax dollars in its village,” said James Dittrich, a lifelong village resident and zoning board of appeals member.
Opponents reiterated concerns that weed businesses would lead to declining property values, harm children and be an improper revenue source. Resident Vicky Wilson cited several suburbs that have exercised local control by opting out and asked Palatine to do the same.
* Greg Sargent at the Washington Post asked economist Gabriel Zucman to crunch some numbers…
The top-line finding: Among the bottom 50 percent of earners, average real annual income even after taxes and transfers has edged up a meager $8,000 since 1970, rising from just over $19,000 to just over $27,000 in 2018.
By contrast, among the top 1 percent of earners, average income even after taxes and transfers has tripled since 1970, rising by more than $800,000, from just over $300,000 to over $1 million in 2018.
Among the top 0.1 percent, average after-tax-and-transfer income has increased fivefold, from just over $1 million in 1970 to over $5 million in 2018. And among the top .01 percent, it has increased nearly sevenfold, from just over $3.5 million to over $24 million.
I’m emphasizing the phrase “after taxes and transfers” because this is at the core of Zucman’s new analysis. The idea is to show the combined impact of both the explosion of pretax income at the top and the decline in the effective tax rate paid by those same earners — in one result.
They’ve pulled together when the whole world was shooting at the Speaker (and indirectly each of them); pulled off record number of wins; and worked together to change their internal environment. They’re holding each other accountable and changing their environment from within to make it more professional and more welcoming. Those staffers are so hard working and collectively don’t get the credit they deserve.
