* The Senate left town yesterday, the House adjourned hours ago, the comments are slow except for an argument about Jesuits in the open thread, and I have some plans. So, I’m knocking off early. Let the good times roll…
Let the stories be told
Let them say what they want
Locked into a tough primary race for re-election, U.S. Rep. Marie Newman has signed on to legislation that would ban the increasingly controversial practice of members of Congress trading stock in individual companies.
But Newman’s conversion to that issue is recent—very recent. Only in the last month have Newman and her husband voluntarily ceased the practice themselves, this after trading stock worth $5.8 million in 2021. That was enough to rank her ninth among the 535 members of the House and Senate, right behind House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is eighth. […]
Newman’s campaign says her family’s investment decisions did not affect her public conduct, and there is no direct sign to the contrary. But in 2021, she and her husband, Jim Newman, engaged in numerous trades that involved companies with major issues before Congress.
For instance, according to disclosures tracked by Washington, D.C., website Capitol Trades, they bought or sold tens of thousands of dollars of stock in Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, the three pharmaceutical firms whose anti-COVID vaccines were purchased in large numbers by the federal government after receiving approval from Congress.
* I’ve been asking the Democratic Party of Illinois and others who’ve pledged not to cross the WTTW picket line how far they would go with this, particularly whether they would take questions from WTTW reporters. I asked because I remembered a presidential candidate refused questions from an NBC reporter during a strike at that network several years ago. Most said they were waiting for word from IBEW Local 1220, and now here it is via the state party…
Those honoring the picket line are asked to not have any direct on the record communications with WTTW reporters via phone, email, etc. However, if there is a public press event (e.g. a press conference), WTTW reporters cannot be barred from attending those events.
If candidates choose to answer WTTW’s questions at those public press events, the union will not consider that crossing the picket line, I was also told.
DPI’s spokesperson said today that if candidates ask, they’ll forward the union’s guidance. The governor’s spokesperson says they will comply with the union’s request.
…Adding… Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s spokesperson says she will be complying with the union’s request.
* Gov. JB Pritzker endorsed US Rep. Danny Davis this morning, but the Davis campaign hasn’t yet sent out any sort of notice. They promised me something almost two hours ago, so here’s the take from Davis primary opponent Kina Collins…
Today, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announced that he will be lending his support to Congressman Danny Davis in his re-election. Rep. Davis is being primaried by Kina Collins, a national gun violence prevention advocate, with deep roots on the West Side of Chicago. In response to the endorsement, progressive frontrunner Kina Collins released this statement:
“Over the last year, Danny Davis has shown the voters of IL-7 that he has some powerful friends, but once again, he is more interested in using his favors to strengthen his own grip on power than in securing attention and support for the people in the communities he is supposed to be fighting for. This endorsement is just the latest example.
“The reality is that Rep. Davis is finally starting to recognize how much trouble he’s in. He is inviting big establishment supporters to visit our community months before election day and expects their names to be enough to convince our communities to vote for him. We see Rep. Davis using his political power — not for us, the residents of this district, but to try and save himself.
“We don’t want an establishment-backed candidate who only calls in his political favors to save his seat. The residents in IL-7 deserve someone who can fight and deliver for our district.
“Our district deserves real transformative change and someone with a vision that is ready to fight for them. I am that person for IL-07.”
In the last few months, Kina Collins has earned the endorsement and support from powerhouses including Indivisible, National Organization for Women, The People’s Lobby, Sunrise Movement Chicago, Justice Democrats, and many more. Kina’s broad coalition of endorsements includes many progressive grassroots organizations that are ready to see true leadership in IL-07.
* I told you about this yesterday, but here is Politico’s story…
An unusual petition challenge could see two Democratic Illinois Supreme Court candidates kicked off the ballot.
Lake County Judge Elizabeth Rochford is challenging the petitions of Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering and Kane County Judge Rene Cruz in the Democratic primary battle to fill the vacant 2nd District Supreme Court seat. A few candidates in other Supreme Court races are facing similar challenges.
The challenges have nothing to do with authenticity, which is usually the beef in these cases. Instead, it’s about how many signatures are actually required.
According to Rochford’s elections attorney, Michael Dorf, Rotering and Cruz used numbers from the State Board of Elections that “miscalculated the signature requirements. They read the law in a different way than it should be read,” he told Playbook. Instead of the 334 they thought they needed, Dorf said 791 signatures should be required. Dorf is a high-profile election attorney who represented Lightfoot’s campaign to get on the ballot in 2019.
He says his team followed the statute, used county records that make up the 2nd District, and “did the multiplications and division by one-third” to come up with the numbers.
Rotering’s election attorney, Ed Mullen, says he’s confident “the plain language of the statute” and “relevant legal precedent… support the minimum signature calculation.” Cruz’s attorney didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
On Tuesday, the challenges will be assigned to Election Board hearing officers who will rule on the challenge — which could be appealed by either side and then head to court. If Rochford’s campaign is victorious in kicking her challengers off the ballot, she would bypass a primary and slide into the general election in November.
* HGOPs…
It has now been several weeks since federal prosecutors dropped a 22-count indictment against former Speaker Michael Madigan, following a string of investigations, indictments, arrests, and cover-ups. For many Illinoisans, the stain of corruption on our politics feels like something we may finally be able to remove, but House Democrats who were “made by Madigan” are finding the stain a stubborn blemish they seem unable to hide.
“After years of accepting millions from former Speaker Madigan, Democratic incumbents cannot shake the ghost of their former leader,” said Jayme Siemer, Executive Director of the House Republican Majority. “Now that these made-by-Madigan Democratic House members have primary opponents, will they finally step away from their indicted former leader?”
Among some top Primary Election races, House Democrats have a Madigan problem.
Fran Hurley:
Accepted $201,977 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker FIVE times.
Curtis Tarver:
Accepted $37,167 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker TWO times.
Natalie Manley:
Accepted $584,870 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker FOUR times.
Justin Slaughter:
Accepted $53,065 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker THREE times.
Mike Zalewski:
Accepted $203,934 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker SEVEN times.
Thaddeus Jones:
Accepted $248,732 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker SIX times.
Kathleen Willis:
Accepted $614,156 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker FOUR times.
Led charge against Ethics Reform legislation on the House Floor.
Sonya Harper:
Accepted $76,335 in campaign contributions from Madigan.
Supported Madigan for Speaker THREE times.
Democrats have been silent on these tainted funds, with no indication members will donate these funds to charity, a practice often used by politicians to dispose of funds taken from undesirable sources.
Jesse Sullivan’s campaign released the following statement ahead of an upcoming Prisoner Review Board parole hearing for convicted murderer and rapist Curtis Brownell:
“In 1977 Curtis Brownell kidnapped, raped, and killed Louise Marie Betts. Four months later, he was caught attempting to do the same to a pregnant woman, who he kidnapped, raped, and attempting to kill by running over her over with his car. In addition to these gruesome crimes, he’s admitted to sexual abuse of a child.”
“Because Brownell’s crimes were committed prior to 1978, he is entitled to a parole hearing every 3-5 years. Given the questionable judgement that J.B. Pritzker’s appointed Prisoner Review Board has shown in the past, we urge the Board to stand with the families of his victims and to reject parole for Curtis Brownell. He presents a clear and present danger to society, and he should not be released.”
* Cases are up by a few hundred, or 7.7 percent from last week. Hospitalizations, a lagging indicator, are still dropping, down 11 percent. ICU usage decreased 27 percent and ventilator usage was down about 5 percent. Deaths fell by 11 percent. Test and case positivity rates are both up slightly from last week, but we’re talking fractions of a point. New vaccination doses are down again, this time by 7 percent. IDPH…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 8,039 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including an increase of 109 deaths since March 18, 2022.
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 3,061,224 cases, including 33,307 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Since March 18, 2022, laboratories have reported 563,249 specimens for a total of 56,891,628. As of last night, 470 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 64 patients were in the ICU and 33 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from March 18-24, 2022 is 1.4%. The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from March 18-24, 2022 is 1.6%.
A total of 21,315,893 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of last midnight. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 7,513 doses. Since March 18, 2022, 52,589 doses were reported administered in Illinois. Of Illinois’ total population, more than 76% has received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, more than 68% of Illinois’ total population is fully vaccinated, and almost 50% is boosted according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
All data are provisional and will change. Additional information and COVID-19 data can be found at https://dph.illinois.gov/covid19.html.
Vaccination is the key to ending this pandemic. To find a COVID-19 vaccination location near you, go to www.vaccines.gov.
While numbers are still low in the city of Chicago in terms of new COVID cases, there is an uptick in cases that has been noted by health experts. As of Thursday, the city is averaging 177 new cases of COVID per day, a 29% increase over a week ago when the city was at 137.
Omicron’s more contagious subvariant, BA.2, has more than doubled in prevalence over the past two weeks in the U.S. and now represents more than 34% of Covid-19 infections that have undergone genetic sequencing, according to data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week.
BA.2 has been steadily growing as a proportion of the Covid variants circulating in the U.S. since Feb. 5, when it represented about 1% of genetically sequenced virus samples, according to the CDC. BA.2 probably already accounts for 50% of new infections in the U.S. because many people are taking tests at home that aren’t picked up in the official data, according to Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.
Data from Walgreens, which conducts testing at its pharmacies nationwide, shows BA.2 as the dominant variant, at 51% of all positive Covid cases for the week ending March 19.
Though BA.2 is rising in the U.S., leading public health officials are not expecting another dramatic surge in new cases, largely due to the level of immunity the population has from vaccination and the fierce outbreak during the winter omicron wave.
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that elected public officials and their campaign committees may, in limited circumstances, use campaign funds to pay criminal defense attorney fees. […]
They partially rejected the committee’s argument that payment of criminal defense fees is always permissible solely because the General Assembly did not specifically include them in the list of prohibited expenses. But it also partially rejected Sigcho-Lopez’s argument that the legal fees were a prohibited “personal debt.”
Instead, they found that because the General Assembly had not specifically prohibited the payment of criminal defense attorney fees from campaign funds, it is reasonable for the Board of Elections to rule on a case-by-case basis.
On the other hand… (w)e cannot ignore that not all allegations by political rivals are sound and that baseless allegations are at times asserted against public officials because of their very capacity as public officials. See Williams v. Graves County, No. 5:21-CV-21-TBR, 2021 WL 2828517 (W.D. Ky. July 6, 2021) (plaintiff’s civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) (18 U.S.C. § 1962 (2018)) allegations were conclusory and unsupported by specific plausible factual allegations supporting a claim for any of the predicate offenses); Green v. William, No. 1:17-cv-266-PLR-SKL, 2017 WL 6892910 (E.D. Tenn. Dec. 15, 2017), report and recommendation adopted, No. 1:17-cv-00266, 2018 WL 387630 (E.D. Tenn. Jan. 11, 2018) (complaint’s rambling allegations mentioning, among other things, extortion and bribery by public officials failed to show entitlement to relief); Huffmaster v. Foster, 565 F. Supp. 2d 693, 698 (S.D. Miss. 2008) (allegations by politician that other members of his political party committed acts of mail fraud, wire fraud, and bank fraud were insufficient in that politician’s complaint did not specifically identify anything any of the defendants was alleged to have done to support the claims); Hawkins v. Schirack, 659 F. Supp. 1, 3 (N.D. Ohio 1986) (because routine check would have disclosed no basis in fact for public official’s suspected involvement in illegal contract allegations but would have disclosed that the amended complaint was filed for harassment purposes by political rival, public official was entitled to award of reasonable attorney fees).
In such a case, the payment of legal defense fees from campaign funds may be appropriately considered as a payment “in connection with the nomination for election, election, or retention of any person to or in public office” … Therefore, in limited circumstances, pursuant to the plain language of the campaign disclosure and regulation provisions of the Election Code, the Board may appropriately allow the use of campaign funds to pay for legal expenses in defending such allegations. […]
Until the General Assembly amends the statute to, for example, specifically prohibit payment from campaign funds for legal fees incurred in defense of criminal allegations against a public official or candidate, the issue requires the Board’s consideration on a case-by-case basis, applying the plain language of the applicable statutory provisions. In this case, despite the parties’ arguments regarding legal defense fees incurred as a result of public corruption allegations, the record here reveals that Solis had not been indicted on criminal charges but only that he had worked with federal investigators using his official capacity to expose public corruption.
Notice that all four cases cited above were civil cases, not criminal. Also note that the justices used the lack of a criminal indictment as reason to allow Solis to use his campaign money for attorneys.
What this may imply is that somebody who is indicted maybe can’t use campaign money for defense attorney fees, but they left it up to the State Board of Elections to decide things on a case by case basis.
The State Board of Elections is the same bunch of people who, as one elections attorney said today, “can’t handle deciding whether to issue a $50 or $500 fine, and you’re going to allow them to ask people to provide them with protected attorney-client information? It’s insane.”
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx will start asking judges to give early release to some long-serving inmates sent to prison by former administrations under a new resentencing initiative.
The state’s attorney’s office this week filed three resentencing motions, with two more planned for later in the month. Advocates said the hearings, expected next week, will make Cook County the first jurisdiction in Illinois to take advantage of a new state law that empowers prosecutors to identify prisoners whose sentence “no longer advances the interests of justice.”
(a) The purpose of sentencing is to advance public safety through punishment, rehabilitation, and restorative justice. By providing a means to reevaluate a sentence after some time has passed, the General Assembly intends to provide the State’s Attorney and the court with another tool to ensure that these purposes are achieved.
(b) At any time upon the recommendation of the State’s Attorney of the county in which the defendant was sentenced, the State’s Attorney may petition the sentencing court or the sentencing court’s successor to resentence the offender if the original sentence no longer advances the interests of justice. The sentencing court or the sentencing court’s successor may resentence the offender if it finds that the original sentence no longer advances the interests of justice.
(c) Upon the receipt of a petition for resentencing, the court may resentence the defendant in the same manner as if the offender had not previously been sentenced; however, the new sentence, if any, may not be greater than the initial sentence.
(d) The court may consider postconviction factors, including, but not limited to, the inmate’s disciplinary record and record of rehabilitation while incarcerated; evidence that reflects whether age, time served, and diminished physical condition, if any, have reduced the inmate’s risk for future violence; and evidence that reflects changed circumstances since the inmate’s original sentencing such that the inmate’s continued incarceration no longer serves the interests of justice. Credit shall be given for time served.
(e) Victims shall be afforded all rights as outlined in the Rights of Crime Victims and Witnesses Act.
(f) A resentencing under this Section shall not reopen the defendant’s conviction to challenges that would otherwise be barred.
(g) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit the power of the Governor under the Constitution to grant a reprieve, commutation of sentence, or pardon.
* Excerpt from an op-ed by Alan Spellberg, who left the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office last year...
I believe that judges should deny the petitions and refuse to order resentencing pursuant to the statute because it violates the separation of powers as it improperly delegates the Governor’s exclusive clemency authority to the judiciary. Article II, section 1, of the Illinois Constitution provides that “[t]he legislative, executive and judicial branches are separate. No branch shall exercise powers properly belonging to another.” Furthermore, Article V, section 12 provides that “[t]he Governor may grant reprieves, commutations and pardons, after conviction, for all offenses on such terms as he thinks proper. The manner of applying therefore may be regulated by law.” In construing these provisions, the Illinois Supreme Court has consistently and repeatedly held for nearly 130 years that judges improperly encroach upon the Governor’s exclusive authority whenever they attempt to reduce a convicted defendant’s lawfully imposed sentence based upon post-conviction behavior and circumstances. […]
More recently, the Illinois Supreme Court stated in People ex rel. Madigan v. Snyder, 208 Ill. 2d 457, 472 (2004), that “[o]ur constitution confers the pardoning power upon the executive branch of the State government, and the Governor alone can prevent the infliction of punishment after a legal conviction.” (Emphasis added). Likewise, in People v. Howard, 363 Ill. App. 3d 741 (1st Dist. 2006), the Appellate Court held that the ability to consider a defendant’s post-conviction circumstances as a basis for reducing a valid sentence falls exclusively within the Governor’s clemency power and is beyond the authority of the judiciary. Id. at 751-52. The Howard court explained that “‘[t]o hold *** that the court has power to amend a [valid] sentence after the prisoner has served a part of it would infringe upon the exclusive power of the governor under the Constitution to commute sentence’” (Id. at 751 (quoting People v. Fox, 312 Mich. 577, 581-82, 20 N.W.2d 732, 733 (1945)), because “‘[t]he judicial process ends at sentencing, at which point the executive branch of government takes over and the defendant is directed to the correctional and rehabilitative process. . . . The judiciary phase of the criminal process–imposing a penalty–is complete’”). Id. at 752 (quoting State v. Stenklyft, 281 Wis. 2d 484, 544, 697 N.W.2d 769, 798 (2005)).
* The argument surfaced in a Cook County courtroom yesterday when SA Foxx’s prosecutors presented their first resentencing case…
“It’s constitutional? Takes away the governor’s only right? What he does is resentence people through clemency,” [Cook County Associate Judge Stanley Sacks] said. “… Isn’t that something for the governor to do?”
“That’s one avenue, but that’s mercy. There’s also justice,” said Assistant State’s Attorney Nancy Adduci, who explained that the new law simply “revest(s) jurisdiction” back to the courts so a judge can consider a new sentence.
The effort is also a “re-entry initiative,” Adduci said in court. Prosecutors have identified people who could help them understand the challenges they face upon release from prison; Miles has agreed to collaborate in that effort, and prosecutors have petitioned for his resentencing in part as an incentive for that cooperation, she said.
“We’re trying to improve the fairness of the system,” Adduci said in court. Miles’s sentence was fair at the time Sacks handed it down, she said, but “people change, circumstances change.”
“The question is, has the person been rehabilitated, and can the person help us understand the concept of re-entry … help us understand what people need when they re-enter society,” she said.
“I’m not a social worker,” Sacks said. “All I know is, he commits burglaries … oh, he’s changed in custody? We’ll see.”
Foxx argued resentencing inmates would address “the fact that many Black and Brown people are still incarcerated today under failed policies of the past, even though they have been rehabilitated and pose little threat to public safety,” and save the state money that could be used elsewhere.
But none of the three men prosecutors have motioned for resentencing are expected to be incarcerated past next year. […]
Prosecutors actually had to withdraw one of the three motions Thursday at a different hearing because the defendant will likely be released before the judge would make a ruling.
Assistant State’s Attorney Nancy Adduci told Judge Timothy Joyce that prosecutors had since received “new information” that Roland Reyes was expected to get out of prison as early as next week after serving his full sentence for an aggravated robbery conviction.
She’s causing all this uproar over three people who are getting out soon anyway?
*** UPDATE 1 *** Foxx is getting plenty of attention, but a white, tough on crime state’s attorney in Will County actually brought the first such case and almost nobody has noticed…
Cole, 38, is the first person in Illinois to have his prison sentence reconsidered in part with new powers granted to prosecutors under SB2129 — an amendment to the state’s criminal code that Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law last summer. It allows prosecutors to ask judges to revise sentences when “the original sentence no longer advances the interests of justice.” […]
Still, the law is being cited for the first time, in Cole’s case, by Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow — a seven-term incumbent Democrat with a tough-on-crime reputation.
In 2003, a jury convicted Cole of first-degree murder and attempted murder stemming from a shooting at a busy intersection in Joliet, just 6 miles from Stateville’s doors, according to court records. Cole was driving a car with another man, Travaris Guy, in the passenger seat. They were stopped at a traffic light next to another vehicle when Guy shot at the people inside — killing 39-year-old David Woods and wounding his 19-year-old daughter, according to court records. […]
“Guy’s testimony established that he acted with an unreasonable belief of self-defense so that the shooting was not a first-degree murder,” Glasgow wrote in his motion asking Will County Judge Daniel Kennedy to recall Cole’s case. “Obviously, this evidence was not available to Cole during his trial, and the result is that Cole is serving a sentence for a first degree murder that never occurred.” […]
The court hearing in late February that cut Cole’s sentence by two-thirds was brief. Cole spoke tearfully about his past and the future.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From Restore Justice…
Our view is that the Resentencing Initiative codified already existing revestment powers.
The group sent along a link to this story from 2019, before the bill was passed and signed into law…
The first inmate released based on a petition from the Illinois Prison Project walked out of the Lake County jail Wednesday after a judge agreed to shave the end of his sentence, due in part to the inmate’s failing health.
Larry Hayes, now 82, has early dementia and worsening glaucoma, according to family members and Jennifer Soble, executive director of the Chicago-based Illinois Prison Project. […]
Michael Melius, chief of prosecution protocol and conviction review for the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office, said that after Soble petitioned for Hayes’ release, the case was reviewed by State’s Attorney Michael Nerheim, who then asked Melius to review it as well.
Melius said it was decided not to object to the petition in the case of Hayes due to his age, physical status and the fact that he had served the vast majority of his sentence, factoring in the time off for good behavior. He had been scheduled for release in December 2020.
“It wasn’t like someone just saying, ‘I’m old and I want to get out,’” Melius said, in stressing such releases are not routine.
Lawmakers at the state Capitol have been working to find a solution to a $4.5 billion problem. The state’s unemployment insurance trust fund, the pool of money used to pay out unemployment insurance benefits, sank $4.5 billion into debt during the pandemic.
On Thursday, the Senate gave final approval to paying $2.7 billion of funds from the federal government’s American Rescue Plan Act to address the problem, though it still leaves the fund $1.8 billion in the hole.
The funding is coming through a piece of legislation, SB 2803, sponsored by Rep. Greg Harris, D-Chicago, and Sen. Linda Holmes, D-Aurora. Both hold leadership roles in the General Assembly’s budgeting and financial process.
The bill passed the House of Representatives on a 68-43 vote Wednesday night with solely Democratic support. It passed the Senate Thursday afternoon on a 39-16 vote. It now goes to the governor for final approval.
The measure also would use about $1.4 billion in surplus state funds to pay off old employee health insurance bills, shore up a college savings plan that has been headed toward insolvency and make additional deposits into the state’s woefully underfunded pension plans. […]
But Republicans, who since last spring have repeatedly criticized the majority party for not addressing the unemployment fund debt in the current year’s $42 billion operating budget, maintained that only about $1.2 billion of the federal relief money has actually been spent. That would leave enough to cover the full unemployment fund debt if the other allocations were abandoned. […]
Ongoing negotiations with business and labor groups over separate legislation to fill the remaining insurance fund hole have touched on the possibility of issuing bonds that likely would be repaid through increased payroll taxes on businesses and reduced or shortened benefits.
Republicans urged reallocating other ARPA funds, particularly a $1 billion sum allocated last year to capital projects, to pay down the entire debt to stave off the negative consequences for employers and workers.
Republican Senators, in a Thursday news conference after the vote, did not identify any other ARPA funds that they would like to see reallocated to be put toward the trust fund. […]
Democrats called their action a fiscally prudent measure that goes a long way to addressing the trust fund problem while allowing other necessary expenditures of ARPA funds.
“You know as well as I do that we’ve used the ARPA funding during this emergency to support those institutions and those businesses who have been on the frontlines and delivering health care in our communities,” Harris said in response to Republican criticisms Wednesday.
He pointed to spending for hospitals, nursing homes and purchases of personal protective equipment, as well as trust fund payments to gig workers and increased unemployment payments to workers which were paid by the federal government.
The Gray TV Illinois Capitol Bureau asked Democratic leaders if they considered running two separate bills to have more bipartisan support. Gov. JB Pritzker said it doesn’t make sense to see Republicans vote against a bill that could help address debt and help businesses in the long run.
“On the Republican side, it seems like they have perhaps more support from big business,” Pritzker said Thursday. “And I would just say that businesses across the state, small and large, benefited mightily from the work that was done through this bill to reduce their tax burden.” […]
Sen. Win Stoller (R-Peoria) said this will still create one of the “largest tax increases on employers in Illinois history.” He said the move to only use $2.7 billion from the ARPA funds to address the debt will cause significant benefit cuts for unemployed Illinoisans. Stoller said the state will try to borrow money to get out of the problem through bonding and create more debt.
“That’s one, actually, that we know how to do in this state, and that’s going into debt,” Stoller said. “Even with all of our practice going into debt, we’re even screwing that up. If we had decided to bond just six months ago, and had gone down that path, we would be facing an interest rate of about 1.5 percent.”
Pritzker said he’ll sign the partial payment as soon as the bill hits his desk, even as early as Thursday evening, saying it will be “between labor and business to decide how we’re going to pay off any deficit that exists.”
State Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, said Republicans support paying down debt, but they want to pay down the whole debt. Not doing so could lead to tax increases on businesses, benefit cuts for the unemployed and continued interest payments that taxpayers would be responsible for.
“They’ve had $16 billion [of federal COVID-19 tax funds] over the last two years and they couldn’t fix this,” Rose said during a news conference.
It’s now up to business and labor groups to negotiate how to plug the gap.
* On to press releases. The most important is this one from the Joint Employers…
The Joint Employers have released the following statement regarding today’s vote to ease the deficit facing the state’s unemployment insurance trust fund:
“Today’s vote will inject $2.7 billion from the American Rescue Plan (ARPA) into the Illinois Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. Illinois employers appreciate the Governor and members of the General Assembly for taking this positive step in addressing the massive $4.5 billion in outstanding debt. We’re hopeful that negotiations will continue to resolve the remaining balance of this unprecedented deficit.”
The Joint Employers include the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, Illinois Chamber of Commerce, Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Businesses of Illinois and the Associated General Contractors of Illinois.
* Comptroller Mendoza…
“I’d like to join business and civic groups around Illinois praising the General Assembly and Governor Pritzker for a great step in the right direction to responsibly pay down $4 billion of Illinois’ bills with the passage of SB 2803 today.
• The bill spares Illinois businesses an onerous tax hike by devoting a larger-than-expected $2.7 billion in federal ARPA funds – more than our neighboring states – toward paying off Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund advances.
• It allocates $900 million to address legacy debt for state employee health insurance – money that previous administrations have kicked the can on from one budget to the next.
• It provides $300 million extra to the state’s pension funds, which will reduce the pension shortfall by $1 billion between now and 2045.
• And there’s $230 million to pay off the College Illinois tuition program, saving taxpayers $75 million.
This is the kind of responsible budgeting that will keep those first-in-20-years credit upgrades coming for Illinois.
I will continue to work with Illinois’ congressional delegation on their effort to extend the interest waiver on the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, saving state taxpayers an estimated $70 million or more in interest.”
* Senate GOP Leader McConchie…
“Illinois has long been known for its financial issues, and today’s decision to leave a large hole in the unemployment trust fund is just another example of how Democrats continue to mismanage this state. Despite this payment, Illinois still has the fourth largest deficit in the country and is left with the second largest shortfall in state history. The impact this will have on employers across the state will be devastating. To no fault of their own, they were forced to lay off workers and close their doors, and will now be on the hook to pay for the unemployment costs ensued by the pandemic and the fraud that engulfed the Department of Employment Security. These industries and their workers deserve better, but they were failed today.”
* DPI…
Today, the Illinois Senate joined the Illinois House of Representatives in passing SB 2803 to pay off over $4 billion in debts, support working families, and help get our state’s finances back on track. Statehouse Democrats passed the legislation without a single Republican vote, which will help pay down Illinois’ unemployment insurance trust fund debt by using funding provided by the American Rescue Plan…which Congressional Democrats also passed without a single Republican vote last year.
“First, Congressional Republicans voted against the American Rescue Plan to deliver relief to small businesses, working families, and state and local governments. Now, statehouse Republicans—including 2022 statewide candidates Darren Bailey, Tom Demmer, and Avery Bourne—have voted against using those dollars to pay down our state’s debts in a fiscally responsible way,” said Jake Lewis, Deputy Director of the Democratic Party of Illinois. “Bruce Rauner’s fiscal mismangement racked up billions in unpaid bills and nearly plunged our state into junk status. Thankfully, Democrats are working to put Illinois’ finances back on track and move our state forward—no thanks to a single Illinois Republican.”
* Sen. DeWitte…
On Thursday, Senate Democrats passed an ill-advised and incomplete plan to address the state’s multi-billion-dollar Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund deficit. Following the party-line vote, State Senator Donald DeWitte (R-St. Charles) issued the following statement:
“It’s incredibly disingenuous for Governor Pritzker and his Democrat legislative leaders to paint this vote as a victory. This action will lead to the largest tax increase on jobs in Illinois history. Employers who have been treated poorly and with complete disregard throughout the pandemic will be left holding the bag and left responsible for filling the remaining multi-billion-dollar deficit in the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund.
“Responsible states across the nation took their federal ARPA funds and prioritized the replenishment of their states’ unemployment insurance funds, but not Illinois. Governor Pritzker and legislative Democrats made a conscious choice to use the majority of the ARPA funds on pork projects and other election year gimmickry to buy support and votes from constituents in an election year.
“Yet again, Governor Pritzker and the Democrats are turning their backs on the business community. Their action guarantees a significant tax increase on every Illinois job through higher employment insurance costs, and a decrease in benefits for every Illinois worker. Especially as we head towards what many believe will be another recession, when unemployed workers turn to Illinois’ unemployment system, their benefits will be reduced due to the greed shown by the majority party. Even if the majority party chooses to borrow funds to plug some or part of the remaining hole, the result is the same: a huge tax increase and millions and millions in new interest costs.”
* DGA…
Last night Richard Irvin’s running mate and Ken Griffin’s handpicked Lt. Gov. candidate Avery Bourne voted against legislation to pay off $4.1 billion in debt and accomplish several key goals laid out by Gov. JB Pritzker in his budget proposal.
Since March, Irvin’s Rauner Reboot costar has refused to engage in good faith on legitimate solutions to help working families deal with the challenges caused by the pandemic, and yesterday’s vote is no exception.
Bourne won’t address the multi-billion-dollar deficit in the unemployment insurance trust fund, and she’s made it clear that she’d rather see working families and small businesses suffer than work with the governor to find bipartisan solutions to the challenges Illinoisans face today.
Meanwhile, after decades of fiscal mismanagement, Gov. Pritzker is righting the wrongs of previous administrations. He passed balanced budgets, eliminated the state’s nearly $17 billion backlog in unpaid bills, and continues to lead Illinois on a path toward fiscal stability.
“Between misleading voters on the campaign trail, avoiding reporters, and voting against legislation that will lead to fiscal stability, Richard Irvin and Avery Bourne will have a lot of explaining to do ahead of the messy GOP primary,” said DGA Senior Communications Advisor Christina Amestoy. “No matter what they say, the Republican gubernatorial candidates are not in the party of fiscal responsibility.”
* Sen. Bryant…
On March 24, Senate Democrats rammed through legislation that underfunds the state’s massive $4.5 billion Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund deficit that State Senator Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) is calling both ill-advised and financially irresponsible.
Senate Bill 2803 appropriates only $2.7 billion from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 funds for the state’s UI Trust Fund. Sen. Bryant noted that the late additions in the bill, including roughly $1.4 billion of the state’s General Revenue Fund for paying old health insurance bills, a $300 million boost to pension payments, and paying more than $200 million in College Illinois debt, were positive proposals that could have easily gained bipartisan support if they had not been lumped with the shortchanging of the UI Trust Fund.
“This proposal will still leave our state’s UI Trust Fund with a $1.8 billion debt that will force businesses to fill that hole by either paying the highest business tax increase in recent Illinois history or cutting benefits to workers. Instead of using our federally gifted funds to fix this problem, we continued to delay which allowed the debt to grow,” said Sen. Bryant. “By shortchanging the UI Trust Fund, we are going to harm the people who need the most help within our state. This will hurt our hospitality and restaurant industry, an industry who is still struggling to recover from the Governor’s imposed shutdowns, more than anyone else.”
The state of Illinois received $8.1 billion of ARPA funds from the federal government, which was designed to be used to for COVID-19 relief and help with economic recovery. The federal government approved ARPA funds to be used on items like the UI Trust Fund, which prompted several states to use their APRA dollars to fully fund their own deficits.
“What Democrats did today is simply not right. It’s wrong for our state to lay the burden of fixing this problem on our state’s employers when they did absolutely nothing to create the debt. It’s even more disgraceful that Democrats decided to force this upon them when our state was given nearly double the amount of funds needed to replenish this deficit.” continued Sen. Bryant. “We could’ve and should’ve avoided this by allocating some of the billions of federal dollars we got from the federal government last year. However, when we asked Democrats and the Governor to put the federal dollars into the trust fund, they chose to ignore us and claimed we had plenty of time to address the problem. Now, a year later, we are being told by those same people that we are out of time and that this is the best that our state can do.”
* Quotes from Gov. Pritzker’s press release…
“We are continuing our responsible use of federal dollars by providing $2.7 billion in tax relief to businesses and benefit protections for workers,” said Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park). “At the same time, our investments in college savings, health insurance and the retirement security of teachers, prison guards, state troopers and university workers will again demonstrate strength through stability for the hard-working people of our great state.”
“This is what fiscal responsibility looks like,” said House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch (D-Hillside). “We’re putting $4 billion toward our state liabilities and saving taxpayers more than a billion dollars. It’s disappointing that every Republican voted against this responsible legislation, but I’m proud Democrats are united in building a strong financial future for Illinois.”
“This General Assembly has made a firm commitment to paying down debt,” said Assistant Majority Leader Senator Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago). “By dedicating $2.7 billion to the unemployment trust fund, we are not only doubling down on that commitment, we are protecting employers from higher taxes and employees from benefit cuts.”
““I’m proud of this unprecedented change to catch up on some outstanding debts to continue improving our state’s credit standing,” said Leader Linda Holmes (D-Aurora). “Allotting $2.7 billion to the Unemployment Trust Fund, as well as substantial earmarks for group health insurance bills, the College Illinois Program and extra pension payments, is a big step to boost our fiscal standing. It also provides a sense of security for Illinois residents, including current and retired state workers and their families.”
“With this legislation, the State of Illinois is living up to its obligations, paying off billions in debt and making sure working families aren’t left footing the bill,” said Majority Leader Greg Harris (D-Chicago). “This is what responsible leadership looks like and I’m grateful to Governor Pritzker and Democrats in the General Assembly for coming to the table and getting this done.
With our budgets balanced and our bills paid, Illinois is on its best fiscal footing in years,” said Assistant Majority Leader Jay Hoffman (D-Belleville). “This legislation builds on that incredible progress, paying off billions in debt, some of it many years-old, and leaving our state better off for future generations.
“I’ve always been a strong advocate of balanced budgets, and today Illinois Democrats have done even more than simply balance our budget – we’ve paid down $4.1 billion in debt,” said Assistant Majority Leader Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston). “Our efforts today mean taxpayers will save billions over the long run, and comes with the peace of mind that we’re putting our fiscal house back in order.”
“This is a $4.1 billion down payment on the future Illinois residents deserve,” said Assistant Majority Leader Marcus C. Evans, Jr. (D-Chicago). “We’ve put the state in the best fiscal position it’s been in since the 21st century – and we did so while continuing to prioritize the other key investments we’re making in a strong state.
“At a time when Illinois families are experiencing rising costs in their everyday lives, it’s never been more important to put the interests of taxpayers first – and that’s what Democrats in the statehouse did today,” said Assistant Majority Leader Elizabeth Hernandez (D-Cicero). “We’re paying off $4.1 billion now, saving hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars and putting Illinois families first.”
“This bill is the right thing to do for businesses, labor organizations and everyday Illinoisans,” said Senator Elgie R. Sims Jr. (D-Chicago), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “I want people to know that if they need temporary help providing for their families, no matter the reason, Illinois has their back. Paying down debt, making additional pension payments and fully funding Illinois Colleges is the fiscally responsible move that could lead to another credit upgrade.”
“I’ve said before that it’s a hard truth for some, but Illinois’ fiscal condition is in its best shape since September of 2001, and I’m incredibly proud to be part of the team that is making this historic debt payment,” said Representative Michael J. Zalewski (D-Riverside). “Everyone from ratings agencies to the Civic Federation is right to praise Illinois for the steps we’re taking to put our fiscal house in order, and I’m committed to continuing this work with next year’s budget.
“Democrats in the statehouse are proving that we can invest in justice, education, and opportunity while also being responsible with our resources,” said Representative William Davis (D-East Hazel Crest). “Illinoisans can be proud to know that our state is in its best fiscal shape in decades – and we’ll use the rest of session to bring more progress to working people.”
*** UPDATE *** The governor signed the bill just now…
Governor Pritzker today signed SB2803, which pays off $4.1 billion in debt and saves taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars in interest payments. The Governor and Democratic leaders in the General Assembly gathered Thursday to celebrate the passage of the unprecedented measure, noting that watchdog groups like Civic Federation are praising the fact that Illinois is “in a much stronger financial position than it has been for many years” under Governor Pritzker’s prudent leadership and partnership with the General Assembly.
What I said is students should not be indoctrinated and that parents should have a voice in their education in the state of Illinois. We should make sure that we give parents the opportunity to to participate in their youth’s education.
Hannah Meisel followed up to ask if he thought kids were being indoctrinated here. Irvin ignored her question.
— Lobbyist reform: Ald. Silvana Tabares (23rd) has 15 aldermen on board for an ordinance that would clamp down on lobbying in city government. As we mentioned yesterday, the move was prompted by reports that City Clerk Anna Valencia failed to disclose her husband’s income as a lobbyist.
Valencia called the ordinance “a political stunt” since Tabares has endorsed her opponent for the secretary of state race, Alexi Giannoulias. Hanah Jubeh, Giannoulias’ campaign manager, responded that Valencia is “finger-pointing” instead of “taking responsibility.” NBC 5’s Mary Ann Ahern has more
It’s clever. You gotta give ‘em that.
* US Rep. Mary Miller has been endorsed by the Club For Growth. Here’s the Rodney Davis campaign’s response…
Carpet-bagging politician Mary Miller is touting the endorsement from a Washington, DC, group opposed to the Farm Bill, even as her family businesses have raked in over $1 million in government subsidies from Farm Bill programs over the years. The Club for Growth is the most prominent advocate for defeating the Farm Bill, calling it in 2018 “…nothing less than socialism with a Republican seal of approval on it.” Why would Mary Miller tout an endorsement from a group so hostile to her own constituents? Does Mary Miller agree that the Farm Bill is nothing less than Socialism?
“Like a true politician, Mary Miller has mastered the art of saying one thing and doing another. She has personally profited off Farm Bill programs to the tune of $1 million even as she touts the endorsement of a group who opposes the Farm Bill. By bragging about receiving the endorsement of Club for Growth, Miller is telling Illinois farmers that she wants to go back to Washington and work with a group who is actively opposed to the interests of the Illinois agriculture community. Miller should be ashamed for aligning herself with a group so outwardly hostile to our way of life. She should renounce her endorsement from Club and publicly reject any financial support they may be willing to offer.” - Davis campaign spokesperson Aaron DeGroot
Club for Growth, a DC based dark money organization, has been one of the leading opponents of the Farm Bill, federal legislation with vital programs that support the American farmer, agribusiness, and rural America as a whole. Club for Growth opposed the Farm Bill in 2018 and 2014 and is expected to oppose it again next year.
Club for Growth also runs a DC-based Super PAC that will be one of Miller’s biggest backers in her campaign for Congress. Miller said she was “honored” to be endorsed by Club for Growth. They are opposing Rodney in part because of his support for legislation like the Farm Bill, which delivers for Illinois Farmers.
Meanwhile, Mary Miller’s family business has received over $1 million in government subsidies from Farm Bill programs over the years. Mary Miller and her husband Chris are officers and co-owners of Miller Bros Farms, which is incorporated in the state of Delaware, a domestic tax shelter.
Chris Miller, has received $942,419 in USDA subsidies. Mary’s businesses Miller Bros. Farms, Inc. and Miller Bros Inc, have received $104,742 and $34,871 in USDA subsidies, respectively.
Rodney Davis is a strong supporter of the Farm Bill and the benefits it provides to Illinois farmers. As a member of the House Ag Committee, Rodney served as a Farm Bill conferee in 2013 and 2018, negotiating a successful Farm Bill and improving its programs twice. Rodney regularly meets and talks with Illinois farmers and members of the Illinois Farm Bureau and advocates for their concerns in Congress. He knows how vital Farm Bill programs are to farmers in Illinois and across the country. He is a proud recipient of the Illinois Farm Bureau ACTIVATOR endorsement for the 2022 Primary election.
Democratic Rep. Brad Schneider of Illinois violated a federal conflicts-of-interest law by disclosing two personal stock trades about two months past a federal deadline, according to financial records reviewed by Insider. […]
“Representative Schneider inadvertently did not hit the ’submit’ button when entering a stock transaction in December,” spokesperson Maggie Harden told Insider in a statement. “He discovered the error last week and immediately submitted the data and paid the associated late fee. The mistake has now been fully resolved.”
* I told you yesterday that it looked like US Rep. Mike Quigley is testing the waters for the 2023 mayor’s race with a new poll. From Greg Hinz’s subsequent report…
Lightfoot shrugged off news of the polling by Quigley. “What I focus on every day is doing my job. The politics will take care of itself,” she said when asked about the polling at a press conference. “I’ll make my case to the people. The voters will be the ultimate decision makers.”
Today, Alderman Gilbert Villegas announced the endorsements of four new members of Congress from across the country. U.S. Representatives Salud Carbajal (D-CA 24), Joe Neguse (D-CO 4), Kai Kahele (D-HI 2), and Richie Torres (D- NY 15) released the following statement in support of his campaign.
“In an uncertain world with ordinary people facing tremendous economic challenges, voters need a proven fighter like Gilbert Villegas in Congress. Gilbert’s service in the Marine Corps, leadership in the Teamsters union, and service to the people of Chicago in the City Council give us confidence he’ll focus on the right priorities and get things done for the people of Illinois. We’re proud to support his campaign,” said U.S. Representatives Carbajal, Neguse, Kahele, and Torres.
Villegas released a response in reaction to the endorsements.
“It’s incredibly humbling to receive the support from so many incredible public servants from across this great country.” said Alderman Gilbert Villegas.”Our campaign is gaining momentum every day because we’re staying focused on the issues that matter most to the voters.”
The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced today that the unemployment rate fell -0.2 percentage point to 4.8 percent, while nonfarm payrolls increased by +19,600 in February, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and released by IDES. The January monthly change in payrolls was revised from the preliminary report from +8,600 to +10,800 jobs. The January unemployment rate was unchanged from the preliminary report, remaining at 5.0 percent. The February payroll jobs estimate and unemployment rate reflects activity for the week including the 12th.
In February, the industry sectors with the largest over-the-month gains in employment were: Trade, Transportation and Utilities (+8,300), Manufacturing (+4,800), Leisure and Hospitality (+4,800) and Educational and Health Services (+4,300). The industry sectors that reported monthly payroll declines were: Professional and Business Services (-3,400) and Financial Activities (-400).
“Illinois’ economic outlook remains positive,” said Deputy Governor Andy Manar. “The Pritzker Administration and IDES are dedicated to helping employers and workers connect across any industry and in every corner of the state. To find the latest opportunities and resources, businesses and job seekers can visit Get Hired Illinois or IllinoisJobLink.com today.”
“Illinois continues on a positive economic trajectory, with unemployment rates going down and job numbers going up in key industries, such as transportation, manufacturing, and hospitality,” said DCEO Director Sylvia I. Garcia. “Under Governor Pritzker’s leadership, DCEO will continue to make economic recovery our highest priority with a focus on workforce development and attracting and supporting businesses that create good-paying jobs.”
The state’s unemployment rate was +1.0 percentage points higher than the national unemployment rate reported for February, which was 3.8 percent, down -0.2 percentage point from the previous month. The Illinois unemployment rate was down -2.1 percentage points from a year ago when it was at 6.9 percent.
Compared to a year ago, nonfarm payroll employment increased by +244,800 jobs, with gains across all major industries. The industry groups with the largest jobs increases were: Leisure and Hospitality (+96,600), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (+41,400), and Professional and Business Services (+41,300). In February, total nonfarm payrolls were up +4.3 percent over-the-year in Illinois and up +4.6 percent in the nation.
The number of unemployed workers was down from the prior month, a -2.8 percent decrease to 308,600, and was down -28.8 percent over the same month for one year ago. The labor force was up +0.4 percent over-the-month and up +2.0 percent over-the-year. The unemployment rate identifies those individuals who are out of work and seeking employment. An individual who exhausts or is ineligible for benefits is still reflected in the unemployment rate if they actively seek work.
* Press release…
In a report released today, the Civic Federation offered its support for Governor JB Pritzker’s proposed FY2023 budget. The budget benefits from extraordinary revenue growth as the State has recovered strongly from the pandemic, with surpluses projected for FY2022 and FY2023. As detailed in the analysis, Governor Pritzker has prioritized the use of much of the surpluses to pay down debt, increase reserves, make supplemental payments and advance other priorities that the Civic Federation supports. The State is in a much stronger position than it has been for many years, as recognized by two recent credit rating upgrades, and the backlog of unpaid bills is the smallest it has been in many years. The full report is available at civicfed.org/FY23ILRecommendedBudget.
“The Civic Federation is pleased to support Governor Pritzker’s budget recommendation for the coming fiscal year, including responsible allocation of billions of dollars in federal aid and the prudent use of surplus funds to begin to chip away at some of Illinois’ staggering longtime financial burdens,” said Civic Federation President Laurence Msall. “Before the window of opportunity opened by this stability slams closed, the Governor, Illinois General Assembly and all leaders in Springfield must develop a comprehensive plan that will stabilize the State of Illinois’ finances in the long-term and prepare for future unexpected economic adversity.”
The Federation strongly supports Governor Pritzker’s proposal to use higher-than-expected State revenues to make supplemental pension payments beyond the statutory minimum, a step which has never been taken since implementation of the 50-year statutory funding plan in the 1990s.
“The Governor’s proposal is in stark contrast to gimmicks and dubious accounting changes that have historically been implemented to make or reduce already insufficient statutory payments,” said Msall.
In addition to the aforementioned supplemental payments and proposed rainy day fund contributions, the Civic Federation can support three of the four tax relief proposals included in the budget recommendation. Proposals for suspension of the sales tax on food and drugs, a property tax rebate and some license-fee waivers are narrowly targeted, have limited revenue impact and will sunset after one-year. The fourth proposal—a freeze in the scheduled cost of living increase in the motor fuel tax—provides minimal benefit to consumers and risks significant loss of current and future revenue while potentially setting a negative precedent for further tax freezes or even reductions at the expense of critical transportation improvements.
Civic Federation recommendations for the State of Illinois, all of which align closely with the primary recommendation to establish a long-term financial plan, include eliminating Prompt Payment Act interest penalties in favor of more market-based rates, using a portion of American Rescue Plan funding to pay down outstanding Unemployment Trust Fund liabilities, establishing a rainy day fund equal to 10% of General Funds revenues and various transparency and modernization initiatives.
“At the risk of sounding like a broken fiscal record, everything comes back to long-term planning for the State of Illinois and its local governments,” said Msall. “The COVID-19 pandemic is not yet over, there are significant disruptions in the international economy right now and we cannot be certain when another disruption will emerge. These would cause uncertainty for even the most fiscally stable of governments. Accordingly, it is vitally important that State leaders make plans and investments to ensure that Illinois is in a strong position to weather whatever storm comes next.”
JUSTICE OVERSTREET delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.
Justices Garman, Michael J. Burke, and Carter concurred in the judgment and opinion.
Chief Justice Anne M. Burke and Justices Theis and Neville took no part in the decision.
Byron Sigcho-Lopez, the alderman for Chicago’s 25th Ward, filed a complaint with the Illinois State Board of Elections (Board), alleging that his predecessor’s campaign committee, the 25th Ward Regular Democratic Organization (Committee), unlawfully paid personal legal fees from campaign funds. The Board dismissed Sigcho-Lopez’s complaint, and Sigcho-Lopez filed for administrative review in the appellate court. On administrative review, the appellate court affirmed the Board’s dismissal. 2021 IL App (1st) 200561. This court allowed Sigcho- Lopez’s petition for leave to appeal (Ill. S. Ct. R. 315 (eff. Oct. 1, 2020)), and for reasons other than those set forth by the Board and the appellate court, we affirm the appellate court’s judgment and the Board’s dismissal. […]
Until the General Assembly amends the statute to, for example, specifically prohibit payment from campaign funds for legal fees incurred in defense of criminal allegations against a public official or candidate, the issue requires the Board’s consideration on a case-by-case basis, applying the plain language of the applicable statutory provisions. In this case, despite the parties’ arguments regarding legal defense fees incurred as a result of public corruption allegations, the record here reveals that Solis had not been indicted on criminal charges but only that he had worked with federal investigators using his official capacity to expose public corruption. Considering the evidence before the Board, we find that the Board’s conclusion—that Solis’s legal fees amounted to a proper expenditure not prohibited as “satisfaction or repayment” of a personal debt (10 ILCS 5/9-8.10(a)(3) (West 2018)) but incurred “to defray the customary and reasonable expenses of an officeholder in connection with the performance of governmental and public service functions” (id. § 9-8.10(c))—was not clearly erroneous. Thus, we affirm the Board’s decision, finding that the complaint was not factually and legally justified.
There was no dissent.
…Adding… I was scheduled to appear on Jak Tichenor’s Illinois Lawmakers show earlier, so I didn’t have much of a chance to read through this carefully worded opinion before posting it. The justices focused primarily on what the campaign finance statute forbids. For example…
Whether legal defense fees amount to a personal debt that does not defray the customary and reasonable expenses of an officeholder in connection with the performance of governmental and public service functions must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
In the case sub judice, the parties ostensibly agree that campaign fund payments expended for personal use are prohibited by the Election Code. Sigcho-Lopez argues that legal fees expended for the criminal defense of public corruption charges amount to personal debt prohibited as a campaign fund expenditure, and the [25th Ward Regular Democratic Organization] argues that legal fees expended for the criminal defense of public corruption charges are not personal in nature because the public corruption charges would not exist irrespective of the public official’s position.
* The justices chose to “apply the plain language of the relevant campaign disclosure and regulation provisions of Illinois’s Election Code”…
In doing so, we reject the Committee’s argument that legal fees incurred as a result of public corruption and criminal activity, resulting in conviction even, may be subsidized by campaign funds because they are not personal debt incurred irrespective of the officeholder’s position. We cannot ignore that a public official’s actions that result, for example, in convictions of official misconduct or corruption are “clearly committed for their own interests.” … The essence of a conviction for official misconduct, conflict of interest, or public corruption is that the public official has attempted “to personally enrich himself or another by an act exceeding his lawful authority as a public servant.” […]
(W)e also reject the contention that, because an officeholder could not engage in public corruption absent his position as officeholder, his personal legal defense fees for proven official misconduct or public corruption may be subsidized by campaign funds as an expenditure “to defray the customary and reasonable expenses of an officeholder in connection with the performance of governmental and public service functions.”
* The court then noted a New Jersey Supreme Court decision which ruled that using campaign funds to defend against corruption charges was not an ordinary and necessary expense: “A grand jury indictment is not a customary, or usual, or normal incident of holding public office, nor does it occur in the regular course of events,” that court decreed…
This court agrees. Allowing campaign monies to subsidize public corruption amounts to an unreasonable interpretation of the Election Code.
* But…
On the other hand, we also reject Sigcho-Lopez’s contention that legal fees incurred to pay for a public official’s criminal defense against investigations or charges of public corruption amount to a per se prohibited personal debt pursuant to the plain language and spirit of section 9-8.10(a)(3) of the Election Code (10 ILCS 5/9-8.10(a)(3) (West 2018). We cannot ignore that not all allegations by political rivals are sound and that baseless allegations are at times asserted against public officials because of their very capacity as public officials. […]
Therefore, in limited circumstances, pursuant to the plain language of the campaign disclosure and regulation provisions of the Election Code, the Board may appropriately allow the use of campaign funds to pay for legal expenses in defending such allegations. See Wright, 174 Ill. 2d at 404 (holding ordinance invalid to the extent it attempted to indemnify officials convicted of crimes for their attorney fees and costs incurred in their unsuccessful criminal defense but making no express determination regarding the authority of any municipality or home rule unit to indemnify its officers and employees for legal expenses incurred in a successful defense); see also State v. Ferguson, 709 N.E.2d 887 (Ohio 1998) (although public officeholder may generally not use campaign funds to pay for legal defense against criminal charges, use of campaign funds to pay attorney fees incurred in connection with dismissed indictment that failed to state prosecutable violation was not prohibited attorney fees).
Clear as mud?
…Adding… Press release…
The following is a statement from Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th Ward) in response to today’s Illinois Supreme Court ruling in Byron Sigcho-Lopez v. Illinois State Board of Elections, 2022 IL 127253:
“If the law allows corrupt politicians to use campaign funds for legal defense fees, then it’s time to change the law.”
…Adding… Press release…
In response to the Illinois State Supreme Court’s decision today to dismiss cases in which campaign funds are used for criminal defense fees until specific legislation prohibiting the practice is put into law, State Representative Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst), issued the following statement:
“With this decision, the Supreme Court has made it abundantly clear that the General Assembly needs to act immediately. We have seen millions in campaign funds expended by Mike Madigan on his own legal defense for his corruption indictment. Madigan may be the most prominent, but he is certainly not the only politician to selfishly do so. The people of Illinois deserve better.
Officials using their campaign funds for their own defense after they are tangled up in public corruption scandals is yet another example of how insider power and privilege in Illinois protect their own. I filed legislation, HB 2929 because we cannot allow campaign donations to finance corrupt politicians’ efforts to keep themselves out of jail.
Unfortunately for the people of Illinois, like numerous other pieces of legislation filed by myself and my colleagues to tackle out of control corruption in Illinois, Democrats have refused to allow these bills to be heard and voted on. Democrats have stifled every attempt made this spring to restore public trust.”
* This bill is still on First Reading in the originating chamber. Long way to go. But it’ll get some local attention…
In an effort to improve consumer protections in health care and hold health insurance companies accountable, the Illinois Department of Insurance (IDOI) worked closely with Representative Sue Scherer and Senator Doris Turner on legislation to further enhance consumer protections within the state’s Network Adequacy Transparency Act (NATA). The landmark law ensures consumers have access to a network of health insurance providers that meets proper time and distance standards.
HB5729 will give IDOI the authority to put in place more stringent time/distance standards than current federal requirements for many specialties to ensure consumers can access in-network providers close to home. Under the bill, the Department will pursue emergency rules to update time/distance network adequacy standards to help protect consumers’ access to care. The bill also provides for greater transparency in IDOI’s enforcement efforts, removing a confidentiality requirement for market conduct exams to allow the Department to inform consumers that an insurance company is undergoing an exam, while keeping details confidential until exams are finalized. Market conduct exams are the Department’s primary enforcement tool to review the practices of insurance companies regulated by the Department.
“Sen. Turner and Rep. Scherer have worked tirelessly to make sure that their constituents get the care they deserve, and I appreciate their willingness to work with my Department of Insurance to ensure that our laws are strong enough to protect consumers’ care,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “This legislation will make our system operate more transparently and give people and regulators more tools to hold health care insurers accountable.”
“I care deeply about improving and expanding access to healthcare for my constituents. I’m glad to partner with the Department to help protect and inform Illinois insurance consumers. This legislation enhances penalties to ensure compliance with state laws,” said Representative Sue Scherer. “Also, it creates more generous provider-to-patient ratios for network adequacy than are currently recommended under federal regulations for many specialties.”
“The new law will provide necessary oversight with the creation of a Network Adequacy Advisory Council, comprised of consumer, provider, and insurer representation,” said Senator Doris Turner. “The council will regularly update network adequacy requirements, including reviewing time and distance standards, and ratios to apply to all provider networks. This is what health insurance consumers need, and our state leaders will deliver.”
Earlier this week, the Department issued fines totaling $339,000 for Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), the parent company of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois for violating the material change notice requirement in the state’s Network Adequacy and Transparency Act. The Department found that the company did not properly file updated network adequacy filings following the termination of its contract with Springfield Clinic.
“The new law provides for additional consumer protections when a provider contract ends, and it strengthens network adequacy requirements with robust penalties for noncompliance” said IDOI Director Dana Popish Severinghaus. “We want to protect patients from having to travel far from their homes or wait too long to receive care. The Department can now establish strict wait times, and if the wait time to see a particular provider is excessive, the insurer must pay for the patient to see an out of network provider at an in-network rate. Current statutory requirements are also improved upon for both issuers and providers to update their provider network directories with accurate information.”
[US Rep. Rodney Davis] has signed on as a co-sponsor of legislation that would require providers to follow notification laws in a minor’s resident state when the minor travels to another state for an abortion.
Illinois recently repealed its notification law, which required the parents of a minor be informed their child was seeking an abortion. Notification will not be required after June 1.
About 1,180 of the 46,243 abortions performed in Illinois in 2020 were for girls 17 and under — 1,092 age 15 to 17 and 88 under 15 years old, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. That number was down from 1,343 for the same age group the year prior. […]
“The extreme abortion expansion laws pushed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Illinois Democrats are a disgrace,” Davis said. “I am proudly pro-life and strongly support the rights of parents to be involved in their children’s lives. This legislation I’m supporting would make sure that when a minor crosses state lines into Illinois to receive an abortion, their home state’s parental involvement in abortion laws are upheld.”
That’s how many children in Illinois sank back into poverty after monthly federal child tax credit payments ended in December, according to one estimate. Another estimate pegged the number at 150,000. Nationwide, 3.7 million children are in families that lost these payments of $250 to $300 a month depending on the age of the child.
“Giving families that extra boost each month works,” as Joanna A. Ain, associate director of policy for Washington, D.C.-based Prosperity Now, told us. Her group and others have been pushing Congress to resurrect the monthly payments and make them permanent, a move we endorse. They aren’t hopeful Congress will act anytime soon, nor are we.
Reinstating this vital lifeline for some of the country’s neediest people is unlikely because it’s tied up with President Joe Biden’s massive Build Back Better initiative, which is all but dead.
There is something state lawmakers can do, however: Pass a state child tax credit. This was a key component of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s platform when he was running for governor and later when he tried unsuccessfully to get the income tax referendum on the ballot.
* Press release…
A measure by State Senator Dave Koehler (D-Peoria) to offer nutritional, plant-based lunch options to students across the state advanced out of the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday.
“Students may require plant-based meal options for religious, health-based or other, personal reasons,” Koehler said. “Our schools should be prepared to offer nutritional options for students with dietary restrictions.”
House Bill 4089 requires school districts to provide a plant-based school lunch option that complies with federal nutritional standards to any student who submits a prior request.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture encourages the use of fresh fruits and vegetables in school meals, and offers a Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program to grant access to students at least twice a week at times during the school day other than meal periods. The USDA encourages schools to develop innovative and varied methods to offer the fruits and vegetables to students, and a plant-based lunch option would be one way of doing so.
Plant-based school lunch options would also suffice as Halal options for Muslim students so long as there are no alcohol or alcohol byproducts, such as vanilla extract or other extracts, used in the preparation of the meal.
“All students deserve the opportunity to have a well-rounded, nutritional meal at school that meets their dietary needs,” Koehler said. “For some kids it may be the only substantial meal they get that day, and they need to be able to make the most of it.”
The legislation now awaits further consideration.
*** UPDATE *** Likely about to become a law…
A plan will be presented this fall to replace dismantled vehicle emissions inspection stations in Chicago after a measure spearheaded by State Senator Robert Martwick (D-Chicago) passed the House Wednesday.
“This legislation will help restore a much-needed service to the residents of Chicago and the near suburbs,” Martwick said. “People shouldn’t have to drive for miles and wait in long lines to test their vehicles.”
Senate Bill 1234 would require the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to submit a written report to the General Assembly by Oct. 1 2022, which would include a plan to replace the dismantled emissions inspection stations within the city of Chicago. The plan would help establish a pilot program or permanent replacement program as well as a timeline to implement the plan.
The measure is designed to address the lack of available vehicle emissions testing stations in Chicago following the closure of four stations in 2016. Test sites in Bucktown and Harwood Heights were closed leaving the city of Chicago without a testing station. Two suburban facilities in Elk Grove Village and Tinley Park were also closed.
“The closure of these stations in 2016 created a burden for our residents, and I’m glad that we are one step closer to creating a plan that will make emissions testing more convenient for the residents of Chicago and the near suburbs,” Martwick said.
Senate Bill 1234 passed the House Wednesday with bipartisan support. It now heads to the governor’s desk.
* Suburban House Democrat proposes lifting ban on nuclear expansion to build microreactors: Rep. Mark Walker (D-Arlington Heights) sponsored a measure that would allow data centers, factories, or other large energy consumers to install smaller nuclear microreactors on site to help lighten the load on the rest of the energy grid that is becoming increasingly reliant on wind and solar energy.
As you likely know, on Wednesday, March 16, members of IBEW Local 1220 called a strike against Window to the World (“WTTW”) Communications, the Chicagoland PBS affiliate. IBEW represents over two dozen workers responsible for various productions and shows on the channel, including the nightly local affairs program Chicago Tonight.
WTTW is currently inviting Democratic candidates in the 2022 primary elections to participate in their “2022 Primary Election Voter Guide.” We have been informed by the Chicago Federation of Labor and the Illinois AFL-CIO that participating in WTTW programming while the strike is ongoing would be considered crossing a picket line.
DPI Chair Rep. Robin Kelly has sent a letter expressing our support for IBEW Local 1220 and requesting Democratic candidates be given an opportunity to participate in programming, including the “2022 Primary Election Voter Guide,” after the strike is resolved. Until then, while the Democratic Party of Illinois supports the general mission of public television and understands the need for campaigns to communicate with voters this election cycle, we hope that you consider the seriousness of crossing a picket line before choosing to participate.
Workers are the backbone of the Democratic Party, and we will continue to stand with labor unions in the fight for fairness for all working people.
* Chair Kelly’s letter to WTTW…
March 24, 2022
Sandra Cordova Micek
President and Chief Executive Officer Window To The World Communications
Dear Ms. Micek:
As you know, on Wednesday, March 16, members of IBEW Local 1220 called a strike against Window to the World (“WTTW”) Communications. IBEW represents over two dozen workers responsible for various productions and shows on the channel, including the nightly local affairs program Chicago Tonight.
In recent days, we have become aware that WTTW is inviting Democratic candidates running in the 2022 primary elections to participate in their “2022 Primary Election Voter Guide” programming. We have been informed by the Chicago Federation of Labor and the Illinois AFL-CIO that participating in WTTW programming while the strike is ongoing would be considered crossing a picket line, and we have in turn notified Illinois Democratic campaigns.
While we support the general mission of public television, the Democratic Party of Illinois stands in solidarity with IBEW Local 1220 in their fight for a fair contract. Our hope is that a fair contract agreement can be reached soon, and that Democratic candidates who would like to participate in WTTW programming, including the “2022 Primary Election Voter Guide,” without crossing the picket line will be given an opportunity to do so once the situation is resolved.
Sincerely,
Rep. Robin Kelly
Chair, Democratic Party of Illinois
As the first strike in WTTW-Channel 11’s history enters its second week, politicians are being urged to honor the picket lines — both real and virtual. In an email to political candidates Wednesday, the Chicago Federation of Labor asked them not to participate in remotely recorded Zoom interviews on the public television station while the strike goes on. Local Union 1220 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, representing more than two dozen technicians, graphic artists and floor crew members, walked out March 16 over work jurisdiction and job protection issues. Among those who declined to appear on the “2022 Primary Election Voter Guide” was Chicago Alderman Pat Dowell, who’s running to succeed U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush in Congress. “Whether in person or online I will not cross a picket line at WTTW,” Dowell said. “I encourage other candidates not to be a part of the WTTW Voter Guide until the workers’ demands are met.” On-air employees and producers at the station, represented by Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, continue to do their jobs under contracts that bar sympathy strikes. A Window to the World Communications spokesperson said: “The company stands ready to return to good faith negotiations with the bargaining team’s representatives as soon as possible.” The last work stoppage at a Chicago station resulted in an 11-week lockout for camera operators, news writers and other technical workers represented by the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7 in 1998. It was part of a nationwide labor dispute at the ABC Television Network.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Speaker Welch’s office…
In response to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1220 members striking against WTTW-Channel 11, Illinois House Speaker Emanuel ‘Chris’ Welch and the Democrats for the Illinois House released the following statement:
“IBEW represents over two dozen workers responsible for many of the stories and television productions that help to inform and shape our communities. These workers, and union workers everywhere, are the backbone of our state and our party. We stand in solidarity as they advocate for fair collective bargaining. We ask all Democratic Candidates running for the House to stand with us and not cross the picket lines. We will continue to stand with unions and the men and women of IBEW Local 1220 in their fight for fairness for working people.”
*** UPDATE 2 *** Gov. Pritzker’s campaign…
In response to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1220 members striking against WTTW-Channel 11, Governor JB Pritzker released the following statement:
“I’ve always supported the right for workers to organize and bargain collectively. Until WTTW-Channel 11 can come to an agreement on a fair contract, I stand in solidarity with the men and women of IBEW Local 1220 and will honor their strike.”
…Adding… Comptroller Mendoza…
I stand in strong solidarity with members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1220 in their fight for a fair contract. I encourage WTTW to settle this dispute fairly and quickly. In support of our working men and women on the picket line at WTTW, I will respect the picket line and will not cross it.
In response to Tuesday’s vote in the Illinois Senate to reject Jeff Mears’ appointment to the Prisoner Review Board, Illinois Prison Project Executive Director Jennifer Soble released the following statement:
“With Tuesday’s vote, some lawmakers made clear their intention to eviscerate the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. It’s the latest in a constant drumbeat of vitriol and hyperbole meant merely to incite fear and scrounge up election-year favor. Human lives are not political bargaining chips.
“An unencumbered Prisoner Review Board is vital to a functioning legal system. Among its many duties, the PRB processes and makes recommendations on requests for clemency — a mechanism enshrined in the Illinois Constitution and intended by our state’s framers as an important check on the legal system. It’s meant to bring justice to people sentenced to unjustly long prison terms, and to recognize growth and transformation in a system that does neither. It works in concert with the legal system, not in opposition to it.
“Before lawmakers began dismantling it, the PRB was the most diverse in Illinois’ history. For the first time, it truly reflects the lived experiences of people across our state and was composed of people with varied and important experience from all aspects of the criminal legal system. The recent attacks on the PRB not only leaves it too small to carry out some of its most crucial functions, but is also an attack on diversity and equality in government.
“I urge lawmakers to fully empower the PRB to carry out its duties as generations of lawmakers intended, not to cripple it for political gain.”
* Press release…
Today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois responded the recent debate and inaction in the Illinois Senate regarding the confirmation of members to the Illinois Prison Review Board. The following can be attributed to Ben Ruddell, Criminal Justice Policy Director for the ACLU of Illinois:
The Prison Review Board (PRB) plays a critical role in our state’s criminal legal system and in the lives of thousands of Illinoisans each year. It offers individuals who have already served significant time in prison a meaningful opportunity for consideration of release and a chance to make a positive contribution to their families and communities upon release. That system should not grind to a halt because of a recitation of offenses of those who stood before the PRB versus the life changes and proof of rehabilitation that led to grants of clemency (and parole). Illinois should not permit Willie Horton era fear mongering to be advanced over the need for justice and compassion in our system. Illinois must take the action needed to prevent the suspension of the meaningful work that the PRB does to foster justice and equity in case outcomes and right size our state’s prison population. Doing harm to individuals across Illinois in a vain attempt to look tough on crime has failed for years. It must end.
We encourage the Senate to vote – up or down – on the members of the PRB by assessing the qualities and traits that each candidate brings to the work – not on mischaracterizations of their voting records. We need a functioning PRB.
* The governor was asked about the PRB issue yesterday and he mostly blamed the Republicans, who hold a mere 18 seats in a 59-seat chamber…
I think what the Republicans are trying to do now is to essentially break down a function, an important function of government. They want to do away with it, just like during the Rauner years. So much was done to break down the functions of government, agencies of government. This is not right. And as you may know, if we don’t appoint enough members to the PRB, if they’re not approved, the PRB will not be able to have a quorum. And that quorum wouldn’t therefore be able that lack of a quorum wouldn’t therefore be able to keep people in prison, who are brought back when they violate their parole conditions. So this is a huge problem. And I think that it’s something that the Senate has to take into account as they look at the rest of the appointees
But Pritzker was then asked if it bothered him that “even some Democrats in the Senate are a little concerned about some of your nominees”…
It does. It bothers me that they’re listening to the Republican rhetoric, which is, once again, false. They’re telling false stories. It’s a lot of Facebook fakery about these folks who are nominated. These are people who have served well and honorably in their positions as we’ve appointed them, and deserve to be approved. […]
The stories that they’re telling are false about the people that are being brought up before the Prisoner Review Board. It’s easy to say this person did something wrong, we ought to keep them in prison, why would you offer parole to somebody? But the reality is that that’s exactly the function. Every person that gets brought up before the Prisoner Review Board is somebody who’s done something wrong in their lives. Sometimes they committed a violent crime, sometimes a non-violent crime. But whatever, they get brought up before the parole board when it’s appropriate, the Prisoner Review Board. And they have to make decisions, and they can’t always make the decision that the Republicans would like to have made. They should make rational decisions based upon the facts.
State Sen. Jason Plummer, R-Edwardsville, serves on the Executive Appointments Committee and said Republicans are not spreading fake news. They’re highlighting high leniency rates of the nominees serving on the board leading to convicted criminals being let free.
“The governor has been playing games with this for over a year and the games have caught up with him,” Plummer told The Center Square. “The fact of the matter is he’s been skirting the constitutional process because he’s not comfortable that the Senate Democrats will even support his nominees because they’re so troubling.”
Republicans have highlighted for months how the governor has appointed members to the PRB, withdrawn them after the Senate doesn’t take them up, and then reappoints them, starting the clock over for when they must be approved.
Plummer said that wouldn’t be a problem if the governor put his ego aside and filled vacancies with appointees that get bipartisan support.
“And to sit down and work with the legislative branch to put forward people who represent mainstream values of Illinoisans,” Plummer said. “This isn’t a Republican or Democrat issue. This is just a common sense issue and the governor is failing this common sense issue.”
…Adding… Press release…
Restore Justice Illinois urges members of the Illinois State Senate to approve Governor JB Pritzker’s nominees to the Prisoner Review Board (PRB). The PRB is a vital component of state government, performing functions authorized by law and demanded by the Illinois Constitution. These duties include consideration of parole for people convicted before 1978 and vetting of clemency petitions in order to make recommendations to the Governor.
Earlier this week, state senators failed to confirm one Prisoner Review Board appointee, Jeff Mears, who had served in the role for one year. Now, five more of the Governor’s appointees await confirmation and could come before the Senate Executive Appointments committee on Monday, March 28 at 3:30 p.m. To perform their core functions, the PRB needs a quorum of eight members out of the total 15. If the Senate fails to approve the five members, it will only have three; each of the five remaining appointees must be confirmed for the Board to function.
At stake in the coming hearing are the fates of hundreds of individuals who await their last chance at early release. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, many incarcerated people and their families are desperate to reduce the final years of lengthy sentences to prevent what was a term-of-years sentence from becoming a death sentence due to inadequate access to health care and the risks inherent in congregate living situations.
Concerns voiced by some members of the State Senate are focused on votes taken by individual members in high-profile parole cases from the 1970s. Members are not being challenged on grounds relevant to their performance of the constitutionally mandated functions of parole and clemency reviews.
“No one is alleging Mears or others are corrupt. No one is saying they are not doing their jobs. This is not a ‘me too’ moment, nor is it an attack on member qualifications. No. These attacks are being made by politicians playing a game of arm-chair quarterback with real people’s lives,” Restore Justice Founder and Executive Director Jobi Cates said. “PRB members have a grave, even sacred duty to review the individual in front of them, weighing their rehabilitation and potential for redemption against the severity of their offense and likelihood of re-offense. To second guess decisions made after deep and serious review and debate to score political points is simply reckless.”
In addition to examining clemency applications and making recommendations to the Governor based on an intensive review of these applications, PRB members assess and vote on parole opportunities for people sentenced before 1978. In 1978, Illinois joined a minority of states that abolished discretionary parole. After abolishing discretionary parole, the Illinois prison population skyrocketed from roughly 6,000 incarcerated people in the 1970s to more than 48,000 at the peak in 2014. Since 2015, leaders in both parties, including Governor Bruce Rauner, Governor Pritzker, and members of the Illinois General Assembly have all prioritized reducing the prison population.
To make decisions, the PRB studies, considers, and debates all aspects of a person’s case and criminal history, and they consult with mental health experts. They seek input from victims, examine the person’s prison behavioral record, identify the likelihood of the person reoffending, and consider the person’s release plan. Victims are allowed to support or oppose release, and an opponent of the release is allowed to participate in the hearing.
There are currently 27,500 people in Illinois prisons, fewer than 50 of whom are parole-eligible. Those individuals have a legal right to a fair, thorough, and timely review. And, 20% of the people incarcerated in Illinois state prisons are elderly, some rehabilitated simply through the process of aging. It is not in Illinois’ interest to deny these people a chance to make a case for sentence reduction. People who serve long sentences for serious crimes rarely re-offend, and imprisoning eldelry people costs the state millions of dollars a year. Let’s instead allow the PRB to assess whether someone is capable of returning home and rejoining their community.
In a crowded race, candidates vie for any advantage they hope will mean the difference on Election Day — such as being listed first on the ballot.
Whether that coveted position will turn the tide for Darren Bailey remains to be seen, but the state senator from southern Illinois was celebrating Wednesday after he won the lottery for the top spot on the June primary ballot for governor.
“GOOD NEWS: we’re first on the Republican Primary ballot to fire JB Pritzker,” the Xenia Republican shared on Facebook and Twitter following the lottery. […]
“It’s tradition. It’s part of the summer camp aspect of campaigning,” [Christopher Mooney, a political science professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago] said. “But does it have an impact on average? No, it doesn’t. But again, in an individual case, who’s to say? We don’t know.”
Jesse Sullivan got the last spot on the ballot.
* Kina Collins fundraising email…
With the help of over 100 volunteer petition circulators, our campaign submitted six times the minimum number of petitions required to get on the ballot. But to be first on the ballot in Illinois, you have to win a lottery. Literally.
Well, guess what? We WON the lottery. Yesterday, we found out that my name will be listed first on the ballot on June 28th. Above the incumbent! This is a huge opportunity for our campaign. Studies suggest that being first on the ballot can add as much as 10% to a candidate’s vote share.
Texas primary and runoff elections provide an ideal test of the ballot order hypothesis, because ballot order is randomized within each county and there are many counties and contests to analyze. Doing so for all statewide offices contested in the 2014 Democratic and Republican primaries and runoffs yields precise estimates of the ballot order effect across twenty-four different contests. Except for a few high-profile, high-information races, the ballot order effect is large, especially in down-ballot races and judicial positions. In these, going from last to first on the ballot raises a candidate’s vote share by nearly ten percentage points.
Governor’s races are high-profile, high-information contests and Collins is running against a legendary political figure. The study found a big impact on down-ballot races with “high rates of voter abstention.” This is mainly due to voter fatigue as they move down the ballot. Local judges are often at the bottom, so that’s where the biggest voter abstentions are and where ballot position is most important.
…Adding… Alexi Giannoulias fundraising email…
This month has been a defining moment for our campaign for Secretary of State. We filed our petitions and are now officially on the ballot, winning the FIRST position on the ballot. I’m immensely grateful for all the overwhelming support we’ve received as we head into the final 100 days of the primary campaign. We could not have achieved this momentum without your early support of our campaig
This is, of course, another high profile, up-ballot race.
The Illinois House has approved legislation to fill most of a huge hole in the state’s unemployment trust fund with leftover money from the last federal COVID relief bill, the American Recovery Plan Act.
But Springfield Republicans say the figure agreed to in the bill is too stingy and would force a “back-door tax increase.” And with negotiations between labor and business groups over how to refill the remaining $1.7 billion hole at least temporarily stalled, the money will have to come from a combination of tax hikes on employers and benefit cuts for workers, they contend.
The legislative action came Wednesday night on a largely party-line 68-43 roll call, when the House voted to allot $2.7 billion of the state’s remaining $3.5 billion in ARPA funds to fill a $4.5 billion gap in the trust fund that covers unemployment claims within the state. The Senate had passed $2 billion earlier, but called that a placeholder.
A spokesman for Gov. J.B. Pritzker confirmed that he supports the $2.7 billion figure allocated in the legislation, but House GOP leaders and gubernatorial hopeful Richard Irvin charged that the state should allot all $3.5 billion in available ARPA money.
Pritzker and the Democratic-controlled General Assembly previously allocated about $4.6 billion from the federal relief plan for a variety of purposes such as grants for hospitals, violence prevention programs and infrastructure projects.
But Republicans, who since last spring have repeatedly criticized the majority party for not addressing the unemployment fund debt in the current year’s $42 billion operating budget, maintained that only about $1.2 billion of the federal relief money has actually been spent, leaving enough money to cover the full debt in the unemployment fund.
[…]
Illinois and a host of other states borrowed from the federal government in the early phase of the pandemic to keep unemployment checks going out to out-of-work residents as businesses shut down, in large part due to Pritzker’s executive orders.
Lawmakers are up against an April 1 deadline to allocate the federal relief dollars to the unemployment fund. If they don’t act by then, rules from the U.S. Treasury Department would prohibit Illinois from reducing the amount or length of unemployment benefits until 2025.
As of Wednesday, the state had already accrued $41 million of interest on the debt at a rate of 1.59 percent. That interest was due to be paid by Sept. 30, according to the U.S. Treasury.
By November, without action, that interest was expected to grow to $80 million, Hoffman said. Interest can’t be paid through ARPA, so it would require a General Revenue Fund allotment, he added. Taking action by November would diminish that amount, he said.
The measure also allocated $898 million to pay off old group health insurance bills, an added $300 million to pension payments beyond statutory levels and $230 million to pay off the unfunded liabilities of the College Illinois savings program – all cornerstones of Gov. JB Pritzker’s debt retirement initiatives put forth in his budget proposal. Those allotments will come from the state’s General Revenue Funds from an anticipated Fiscal Year 2022 surplus.
The pension spending would create $1 billion in savings to the state’s pension system over its life, while the group health insurance payments would save over $100 million in interest and the College Illinois payment would create a $75 million savings, according to estimates from House Democrats.
* Gov. Pritzker…
Illinois is putting our fiscal house in order and paying off our debt. I applaud House Democrats for prioritizing legislation that will use our resources in the most fiscally responsible way: SB2803 will pay down more than $4.1 billion in debt. I especially appreciate the tireless work to dedicate additional revenues to one-time efforts that will produce a stronger budget for years to come, and I extend my gratitude in particular to Leaders Greg Harris, Marcus Evans and Jay Hoffman and Reps. Will Davis, Robyn Gabel, Lisa Hernandez and Michael Zalewski for advancing this priority.
I’m disappointed that Republicans are putting their politics ahead of fiscal responsibility while Democrats in the General Assembly are taking the lead to put our fiscal house in order.
SB 2803 Key Facts
• As amended in the House, SB 2803 accomplishes several key goals the Governor laid out in his State of the State and budget proposal, paying off $4.1 billion in debt:
• Dedicates a substantial amount of remaining ARPA recovery fund dollars to ($2.7 billion) to stabilize the state’s unemployment insurance trust fund, helping small businesses
• Eradicates unfunded liabilities in the College Illinois! program, which has been on the brink of insolvency
• Pays of nearly $900 million in legacy debt for employee health insurance
• Makes an extra payment of $300 million to the state’s pension funds, reducing liabilities over $1 billion
* Rep. Mark Batinick…
In response to the Illinois House’s passage of Senate Bill 2803 on Wednesday night, State Representative Mark Batinick (R-Plainfield) released the following statement:
“House Republicans have had a plan for a year: plug the $4.5 billion hole in our Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and solve the problem. The plan passed tonight was rushed and only fixes a little over half the problem and spends the rest on Democrat pork projects.
“The reality of the situation is there is still a $1.8 billion shortfall in the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund that will need to be plugged. How will it be plugged? Either through tax increases on jobs or benefit cuts on people who receive unemployment insurance.
“The fiscally responsible route we could have taken would have been to pass legislation paying off our debt in full to avoid these two consequences. This would have also avoided unnecessary interest penalties and prepared us financially in case there’s another emergency. The legislation passed out of our chamber tonight instead will help fulfill Governor Pritzker’s spending wish list and leave taxpayers on the hook for the remaining balance in the fund.”
* Richard Irvin…
Aurora Mayor and candidate for Governor Richard Irvin released the following statement after the House voted to pass JB Pritzker’s latest tax hike on Illinois families:
“After trying to pass the largest tax hike in our state’s history, the Tax-Hiker-In-Chief is trying once more to tax Illinois families and businesses out of this state. Thanks to his reckless disregard for shoring up the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, Illinois employers and workers will have to make up the difference, resulting in billions of dollars in tax increases and benefit cuts. Tonight’s vote is yet another example as to why voters don’t trust Pritzker and Springfield politicians to do anything right, and exactly why we must take our state back.”
Illinois workers will see cuts to their unemployment benefits, and the fund will continue to accrue millions in interest charges. Many other states across the country used federal stimulus funds to repay loans to their unemployment systems, but under Pritzker’s lead, Illinois spent those dollars elsewhere. Despite warnings and urging from lawmakers to utilize federal ARPA money to replenish the fund, he instead willfully chose to use the money for election-year gimmickry and increased state spending that will now result in raising taxes on the residents of Illinois.
If we don’t pass a law regarding ARPA funds use for unemployment insurance by the end of the month, the ability to reduce benefits – and use ARPA dollars – comes off the table.
Labor doesn’t want to reduce benefits. But Democrats are advancing legislation to try to make sure the traditional balance used to solve these problems remains viable.
The GOP is going to all vote no, which would have the effect of stringing out the process and likely, ironically, reduce options and put far more dire consequences on business.
…Adding… This is how Speaker Chris Welch is framing the issue for his constituents back home…
House Democrats vote to pay off over $4 billion in debts
On party lines, the Illinois House approved a measure to get the state’s fiscal house in order and pay off over $4 billion in debt. This proposal includes:
• $2.7 billion in the unemployment trust fund that took a serious hit during the coronavirus pandemic
• $300 million in extra pension payments which will yield more than $1 billion in savings
• $900 million toward the group health bill backlog likely saving taxpayers $100 million in interest payments
• $230 million toward the College Illinois program to ensure 25 thousand families have funding for education
“This is exactly what fiscal responsibility looks like,” said Speaker Welch. “It’s disappointing that every Republican voted against paying off our debt, but I’m incredibly proud Democrats are united in building a strong financial future for Illinois.”
…Adding… Sullivan campaign…
Jesse Sullivan, Republican candidate for governor, released the following statement in response to the House passage of SB 2803:
“J.B. Pritzker has never met a tax hike he doesn’t like. And his failure to pursue commonsense budgeting is now costing Illinois families and businesses millions of dollars. The governor could have fixed this problem more than a year ago by using federal aid money to replenish our unemployment insurance trust fund, as more than 30 states have done. Instead, he went on a corrupt spending spree, including $1 billion in capital projects controlled by Democrats. Taxpayers and small businesses deserve better.”
…Adding… The Senate just passed the bill 39-16. From Leader McConchie…
Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorn Woods) issued the following statement after the Illinois Senate passed legislation that failed to fully fund the Unemployment Trust Fund:
“Illinois has long been known for its financial issues, and today’s decision to leave a large hole in the unemployment trust fund is just another example of how Democrats continue to mismanage this state. Despite this payment, Illinois still has the fourth largest deficit in the country and is left with the second largest shortfall in state history. The impact this will have on employers across the state will be devastating. To no fault of their own, they were forced to lay off workers and close their doors, and will now be on the hook to pay for the unemployment costs ensued by the pandemic and the fraud that engulfed the Department of Employment Security. These industries and their workers deserve better, but they were failed today.”
Republican candidate for Treasurer Tom Demmer today launched a new digital ad taking Democrat Mike Frerichs to task for supporting a tax in retirement income in the run-up to the 2020 election. Frerichs was supporting Gov. JB Pritzker’s radical graduated tax amendment that would have increased taxes on Illinois families and then Frerichs took it a step further by saying it could ultimately be used to tax retirement income.
Demmer’s new ad, titled “Taxing”, outlines Frerichs past tax increase history along with his most recent support of considering taxing retirement income.
“Our State Treasurer is supposed to protect your retirement—not tax it. As Treasurer, I’ll be on your side,” said Demmer.
In addition to the new digital ad, Demmer also launched a new online petition where voters can demonstrate their opposition to the Frerichs plan of taxing retirement income. The online petition can be viewed here.
