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Question of the day

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From the end of Brian Mackey’s interview of Gov. Pritzker

BM: For the people of Illinois, is it a net positive or a net negative that House Speaker Michael Madigan continues in power?

JB: Look, I am the leader of this state. I’m the governor of the stat. And I set an agenda, and I have gone to the legislature and to the leaders of legislature with that agenda. And for the most part, we have passed much of the agenda that I put forward for last year. And so I intend to keep working with whoever is holding those offices going forward.

I believe that it is a positive that I am getting my agenda through, and I’m looking forward to continuing the progress that we’ve made and to bring a greater optimism and success to our state, as we did over the last year.

* The Question: For the people of Illinois, is it a net positive or a net negative that House Speaker Michael Madigan continues in power? Make sure to explain your answer in comments, please. Thanks.

  52 Comments      


Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Campaign updates

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Judge rules ICC flubbed Lincoln Towing license revocation

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Tribune

Lincoln Towing Service may be off the hook for years of alleged towing violations after a Cook County judge Wednesday reversed the state’s decision revoking its license.

In his ruling, Cook County Circuit Judge Neil Cohen said the Illinois Commerce Commission “violated fundamental fairness and…due process rights” by failing to advise Lincoln Towing that it could lose its license as a result of the hearing process.

The ICC voted unanimously in September 2018 to revoke Lincoln Towing’s license in the wake of a 2016 investigation that found 831 alleged violations over an eight-month period. It ordered Lincoln to immediately cease towing operations and park its fleet of trucks.

#facepalm

  23 Comments      


You don’t see this every day

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Somebody actually took the time today to print this out and then go to a UPS store in Chicago to send me this fax…

I have no idea about the McPier thing, but I’ve asked and will get back to you if I hear back.

Also, I am pretty sure the governor has said he would try to convince people to move to Illinois from other states. So, here’s to success! A Hoosier could be moving here! Huzzah! /s

And, yes, I still fax the subscriber edition. You’d be surprised how many people still receive them and want them. So, let me be clear: I am not dissing faxes. It’s part of my publication’s name after all.

It’s just that I don’t receive many faxes any more. And I cannot remember the last time somebody went to the trouble to send me an anonymous tip via fax. Not a bad idea, actually. Very difficult to trace. Many thanks to whomever sent me this. I’m on it!

  20 Comments      


Oppo dump! Another homestead exemption issue

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From a GOP oppo dump…

[US Rep. Sean Casten] claims his condo on Massachusetts Ave as his primary residence while running for Congress in Illinois.

Sean Casten currently takes a homestead deduction on his Condo in Washington, DC. In order to take a homestead deduction in Washington, DC, a property must be the owners ‘primary residence’:

On January 2, 2019, Sean Casten purchased a Condo at 555 Massachusetts Ave NW in Washington DC.

(DC Office of Tax and Revenue, “Property Search – 555 Massachusetts Ave NW United 219,” Accessed 3/19/19)

Casten claimed the homestead deduction on his Washington, DC condo – claiming it as his primary residence.


(DC Office of Tax and Revenue, “Property Search – xxx Massachusetts Ave NW United 219,” Accessed 3/19/19)

According to the Office of Tax and Revenue for the government of Washington, DC, in order to take homestead exemption the property must be the primary residence of its owner. “The property must be the principal residence (domicile) of the owner/applicant.” (DC Office of Tax and Revenue, “Homestead/Senior Citizen Deduction”, Accessed 3/20/19)

The homestead deduction reduced Casten’s taxes by $636.23. (DC Office of Tax and Revenue, “Property Search – xxx Massachusetts Ave NW United 219,” Accessed 3/19/19)

Yep. Checks out.

Oops.

* I reached out to Casten’s campaign yesterday. Spokesperson Chloe Hunt’s initial response today…

As soon as Sean became aware of the error he immediately took action to remove the exemption, rectify the situation, and pay back the difference.

Casten’s letter to the DC tax office…

Office of Tax and Revenue, Real Property Administration
PO BOX 176
Washington, DC 20044

To the DC Office of Tax and Revenue,

I recently learned that through a clerical error, I have been receiving the Homestead deduction on a property I purchased in 2019. To address this error, I have filled out the FP-105 Cancellation of Homestead Deduction - Senior Citizen/Disabled Tax Relief form through your website, a copy of which is attached to this letter. I also submitted a payment through the online portal with the amount of property tax that was mistakenly deducted from my tax bill.

Thank you,
Sean Casten

They also sent along screen shots of the cancellation.

* But, I wondered, how was this a “clerical error”? The reply…

The exemption was applied to the property in 2016 at the request of a previous owner.

Following Rep. Casten’s purchase in 2019, he’s taken steps to remove the exemption and paid the full amount of the taxes without the exemption.

Stand by for a response which I am sure is coming.

  13 Comments      


Today’s number: 59,800 uncounted Illinoisans in 2010

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Ed McClelland at Chicago Magazine on the upcoming census

“We’re going full bore on this,” says CEO Maria Whelan, whose nonprofit connects families with childcare and preschools. “Every employee is going to be a babbling idiot about the census.” The state can’t afford a repeat of what happened 10 years ago: Kids younger than 5 were undercounted by 36,000, costing Illinois $2,700 per child each year in federal assistance.

In all, the United States Census Bureau estimates it missed 59,800 Illinoisans the last time around. As a result, the state lost $122 million in federal health funding, according to the George Washington Institute of Public Policy. So it’s no surprise that Illinois is spending more than it ever has on the census, including $29 million from Springfield, $4 million from Cook County, and $2.7 million from Chicago. Illinois’s investment is the third highest per capita, after California and New York. […]

A particular challenge for Illinois: its high percentage of hard-to-count residents, especially immigrants. The state has 1.8 million foreign-born inhabitants, the nation’s sixth-highest total. And immigrants account for the population increase in the few parts of Illinois that are growing, especially the Fox River Valley. (Latinos are now the largest ethnic group in Aurora and Elgin.) It’s not news that immigrants — even legal ones — participate in the census at a lower rate than native-born Americans. This year, though, getting them to fill out a form will be even tougher, thanks to fears stoked by the Trump administration’s efforts to add a citizenship question to census forms. While the Supreme Court rejected the question, just the fact that it was proposed has left many immigrants wary. Organizations that sued to keep the question off the census claimed it was intended to reduce the participation, and thus the political representation, of Latinos, who make up about 17 percent of Illinois’s population.

“We’ve got a lot to fight in terms of government mistrust,” says Jeanine Stroger, who is coordinating the Illinois Complete Count Committee for the Illinois secretary of state’s office. “That whole discussion left a chilling effect in the community.” Her office is distributing literature in five languages to municipal libraries, assuring residents that their individual census information will not be made public for 72 years.

  15 Comments      


*** UPDATED x1 *** Enviro leader criticizes governor

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Illinois Environmental Council executive director Jen Walling wrote a piece for her members about Gov. JB Pritzker’s first year in office. While much of it was laudatory, some was clearly not. I’ve taken out the praise and posted some of the criticisms

While I am appreciative for the improvements made by Gov. Pritzker, it is my responsibility to provide an honest assessment of our progress and the opportunities missed along the way. And while it is uncomfortable for me to admit, the truth is that those of us who care about protecting our environment are eager to see more action from the governor on his environmental commitments. I hope my comments are taken in the spirit they are meant: to provide transparency to the governor as a partner who shares our values and the people of Illinois who depend on us to advance policies that protect our communities and environment. […]

Unfortunately, 2019 fell short on energy issues despite the urgency of climate change. Illinois remains one of the only Democratically controlled state to not advance major clean energy legislation. The governor has yet to back the Clean Energy Jobs Act, a demonstration of leadership that would move the bill forward in the legislative process. Although he has announced that energy issues will be taken up in 2020, he has failed to name clean energy among his top priorities in recent interviews reflecting on his plans for this year. It is time for Gov. Pritzker to take action on climate change and leave dirty, corrupt energy companies in the past.

The governor missed an opportunity to stand up to President Trump by choosing not to adopt clean car standards before the repeal of the federal waiver. California, along with 13 other states have already adopted a LEV/ZEV standard, and Minnesota and New Mexico initiated the process in the wake of Trump’s actions. Illinois would have been one of the largest car markets to adopt these standards, meaning that more electric cars would be produced and sold. Gov. Pritzker’s IEPA has also failed to revise the Rauner Administration’s plan for the VW emissions scandal settlement. Without changes, our state will dedicate $18.6M – over 17% of the total – towards fossil fuel technology, the third highest of all states receiving the money.

In addition to reducing the amount of fossil fuels burned in Illinois, we must commit to keeping dirty fuel sources in the ground. Unfortunately, the Pritzker administration issued a permit on the dirty and dangerous Bull Dog Mine permit and is currently considering approving a permit to pump wastewater from Pond Creek Mine into the Big Muddy River. Instead of tying us to industry in decline that has a long history of polluting and then abandoning communities, Governor Pritzker should focus on building for the future.

That Bull Dog Mine permit languished for nearly a decade before being approved by the Pritzker administration.

Go read the rest if you want to see the praise.

…Adding… Related…

* Dems swept the Midwest. Why hasn’t it helped clean energy?: “Energy certainly isn’t Gov. Pritzker’s priority,” said Howard Learner, the longtime head of the Chicago-based Environmental Law and Policy Center, a Midwest environmental advocacy group.

*** UPDATE *** The Pond Creek Mine permit she wrote about has been approved by IDNR

Williamson Energy last month was granted the first of two application approvals for its Pond Creek Mine pipeline, which, if also approved by the Illinois EPA, would dump millions of gallons of mine wastewater into the Big Muddy River.

On Dec. 5, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources rendered its final verdict on Williamson Energy’s application, approving the development of more than 70 acres to construct a pipeline from its Franklin County Pond Creek Mine to the Big Muddy River. The company says it needs to pump seep water from mine shafts to ensure the safety of miners, according to public documents. These documents also show that before being diluted in holding ponds, the water will contain high levels of chlorides and sulfates.

  38 Comments      


Let’s not go through this again, please

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Another excerpt from Amanda Vinicky’s interview of Gov. JB Pritzker

Pritkzer’s original plan for this year’s budget included partially deferring the state’s pension payment, extending the deadline by which Illinois is set to reach 90% funding of its woefully underfunded pension systems, from 2045 to 2052.

After criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, and thanks to an infusion of unexpected tax money, that idea was dropped.

But it’s not off the table for the coming fiscal year, as long as it’s coupled with other changes such as transferring valuable state assets (the lottery, tollway or Thompson Center government office building are among the possibilities).

“We put out a number of things that we think you need to do, ways, tools, that you can use in order to help us manage our pensions in the state,” Pritzker said. “This component has to be done in conjunction with these other items. Because we’re trying very hard not to crowd out the important expenditures that need to be made.”

Pritzker and legislators are on the hook for finding $9.8 billion for the state’s pension systems in the next budget – a half-billion dollars more than the pension payment this fiscal year.

The only component of that “plan” that he was willing to flesh out last year was skimping on the state contributions. Pretty much everything else was super vague and iffy.

If he tries that same nonsense again, he’s gonna get the same push-back.

  23 Comments      


Pritzker won’t partake

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Amanda Vinicky asked Gov. Pritzker if he planned to purchase or consume cannabis now that it’s legal

AV: Do you plan to partake? Buy any?

JB: No.

You’ll recall that his lieutenant governor bought some edibles on January 1.

I’ll have more on Vinicky’s interview later today.

  21 Comments      


*** UPDATED x1 *** Candidate says she filed ethics violation and fraud complaint against Skillicorn

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Press release…

An ethics violation and fraud complaint was filed today with the office of the Illinois Legislative Inspector General against State Representative Allen Skillicorn The complaint, filed by Skillicorn’s primary opponent Carolyn Schofield, claims Skillicorn created a false attendance and voting record in Springfield on Saturday, June 1, 2019 while simultaneously campaigning for another elected office at an event in Harvard, Illinois, 220 miles north of the State Capitol.

“The current Representative for the 66th District never misses an opportunity to grandstand politically when elected officials violate ethics rules, when he himself had violated the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act on the final day of the spring legislative session,” said Schofield. “He created a fraudulent House transcript that made it look like he was in Springfield voting, when instead he was walking in the Harvard Milk Days Parade more than three hours away. It was a willful effort to mislead his constituents and represents a clear violation of the Ethics Act.”

Along with the complaint, Schofield submitted a copy of the official House of Representatives Journal for June 1, 2019, which shows that roll was called at 12:11 pm with 114 members taking a digital vote that they were present in the House chamber. Skillicorn’s voting switch was engaged and a “present” vote was recorded. At the same time, Skillicorn was photographed and appeared in videos 220 miles away at the Harvard Milk Days Parade.

“The indication of ‘present’ implies that Rep. Skillicorn’s switch was pressed or else the switch would have been turned off in his absence,” continued Schofield. “Records further indicate that 26 bills were called for a vote prior to a 3:01 pm recess that day. Of these 26 votes, Skillicorn was recorded as either a ‘Y’ or ‘N’ on 23 of the bills. Obviously, he couldn’t have been in two places at once.”

In addition to the House Journal for the day in question, Schofield submitted supporting documentation from the Harvard Milk Days Facebook page, a Facebook Live video from the parade and photos posted to the Facebook pages for the Algonquin Township Republican Party, on the pages of an individual who watched the parade, photos Skillicorn posted to his own political Facebook page, and photos posted to the McHenry County Blog.

“The fact that he was physically in Harvard, Illinois the afternoon of June 1 participating in a 1:00 parade when he was recorded as ‘present’ during June 1, 2019 roll call at 12:11 pm and recorded as voting on 23 votes prior to 3:01 pm, is a concern for ethics and public integrity,” Schofield added. “These deceptive actions represent a direct violation of the State Ethics Act. He needs to be held accountable for his decision to engage in political activity while creating a fraudulent record that he was being paid for, appearing to be taking votes in Springfield.”

* Hannah Meisel at the Daily Line followed up

“I can’t recall the exact time I left, but I left fairly early in the morning from the parade,” Skillicorn told The Daily Line, noting a floor speech he made that evening before voting against a bill that doubled the state’s gasoline tax to support transportation infrastructure in Illinois. “I didn’t miss any important votes. I did represent the people of the 66th District that day.”

When told the official Milk Days schedule indicated the parade began at 1 p.m., and that a Facebook live video posted at 2:07 p.m. on the official Milk Days’ Facebook page showed Skillicorn walking in the parade, Skillicorn said “I don’t think that could’ve been possible,” and provided the phone number of a volunteer with him at the parade that day.

Glen Swanson, himself the Algonquin Township Republican chairman, also told The Daily Linehe did not remember the exact timeline of the day, but vouched for Skillicorn, calling him a “workaholic” and accusing Schofield of only running for the House to “collect a paycheck.” […]

House Rules, which govern how business is conducted in the chamber, instruct that lawmakers must be counted as present in a quorum roll call vote before being able to vote on a bill, resolution, motion or other question before legislators.

“No member may vote on any question before the House unless on the quorum roll call before the vote is announced,” according to House Rule 49.

But the rules are silent on members falsely being marked as present when they are not, or what counts as “present.” A spokesperson for the House Republican Caucus did not return a request for comment.

So, Facebook’s time stamping was obviously malfunctioning, the official Milk Days schedule was totally wrong and we’re supposed to believe Sillicorn and Glen.

Right.

Gotcha.

He’s gonna need a better alibi than that.

Photos are here. Video is here.

*** UPDATE *** A commenter pointed out that Rep. Skillicorn’s alibi just crumbled further. Check out the tweet he sent before the parade…


  68 Comments      


A thousand words

Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Dave McKinney and I talked about the back-story behind this photo the other day, so I’m glad he tweeted it out…


He just stood there, as if he was posing. Usually, folks at the center of a big media firestorm tend to lay low. But he not only dined at a popular spot for political types and then stood for a brief interview with WBEZ, he let the photographer take 40-50 shots while he talked on the phone.

“Seemed oddly deliberate” is right. Was he sending some sort of message to the feds and/or anyone else? Or was he getting a little kick out of the attention? Or… ? I just don’t know. But this is highly unusual behavior.

  39 Comments      


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Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Wednesday, Jan 15, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller

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