CBS-2 has a new story up about an Illinois company with “hundreds” of employees that is threatening to move to Wisconsin if the governor’s gross receipts tax becomes law. The company is currently headquartered in Huntley, but is building a new HQ in Crystal Lake.
Click on the pic for the story…
Also, the AP just moved a piece entitled: Gov.: Budget Puts Me ‘On The Side Of The Lord’
*** UPDATE *** Krol was at the event…
Making a rare public appearance and actually taking about a half-dozen questions from reporters (an even rarer feat), Blagojevich said nothing else is on the table this spring until he gets his business tax hike for health care and education passed. […]
The governor was asked if casinos are on the table this spring. Blagojevich said his answer to that question also applies to questions mass transit, questions about the road bill, capital bill.
“As far as I’m concerned, the big priorities are passing our tax fairness plan so we can give everyone access to affordable health care and fairly and properly fund our schools and give our kids a chance to learn what they ought to learn in school. That’s the priority. And unless and until we do that, as far as I’m concerned, nothing else is on the table.
“These two things, health care for everyone and education funding properly will give our kids a chance to go to good schools through the vehicle of tax fairness. Those things have to happen before I’ll entertain any other discussion on any other issues.†Later, Blagojevich said he’s not interested in “half a loaf†on both education and health care.
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Free the CMS 2 *** Updated x2 ***
Tuesday, Mar 20, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
[Updated - twice - with very important info and bumped to the top because I felt like it.]
How much more can the case against Dawn DeFraties and Michael Casey possibly fall apart? Every major witness has folded under cross-examination…
[Mark] Dawson earlier testified [for the state] about more than two dozen applications. He indicated in writing on some that he had been instructed by DeFraties or Casey to grade them and put them directly on the electronic statewide system ahead of others _ giving them a better and quicker chance at the state payroll.
But under cross-examination Monday by lawyer Carl Draper _ the attorney for the fired employees _ Dawson said he had never spoken to DeFraties or Casey about any so-called “special applications” and that it was inaccurate to put those notes on the applications. […]
Dawson said Monday that he knew through his immediate supervisor, Cynthia Dixon, that the applications had come from Room 503 in Springfield’s Stratton Office Building _ DeFraties’ and Casey’s office _ and that such applications should be graded first.
But he said neither DeFraties nor Casey told him to grade them differently. In fact, he said he graded them the same way as any other application that came in through the mail and that no rules or law stipulate in what order applications are evaluated. […]
Dawson, however, then acknowledged that Dixon’s concerns merely were to ensure that applicants’ experience and education was evaluated fairly and uniformly.
If the state has some secret Ace up its sleeve it better play that card soon because right now this is looking like a total frame job to me.
DeFraties was advised by more than one acquaintance of mine before she ever took the CMS personnel chief job that she better keep a complete and comprehensive paper trail of everything she did because if something went wrong they’d toss her over the side. She did, it did, they did. And now her lawyer knows as much or more than the state does about its own case.
*** UPDATE *** Oh, for crying out loud…
Later, an investigator for the state’s Office of the Executive Inspector General acknowledged that his case against DeFraties and Casey for allegedly manipulating state hiring rules was built on witness statements of “graders” such as Dawson that he never independently verified.
“I was relying upon the testimony and the interviews of the graders,” Richard Lantz said. “I believe the graders were telling the truth.” […]
Lantz, the inspector general’s investigator, said he did not research state hiring rules or interview CMS lawyers or other experts on how hiring is supposed to work. He said he didn’t check the accuracy of a log of applicants Casey allegedly kept, didn’t pursue whether the son of a Blagojevich aide was hired properly, and never looked into whether any false information was submitted on applications.
“That was something other than what our investigation was inquiring about,” Lantz said.
This is our vaunted Inspector General’s office? Their investigations look about as professional as their ethics exams. [Hat tip to a commenter.]
*** UPDATE 2 *** Yet another prosecution witness bites the dust…
A witness in the case of two Illinois state workers fired for allegedly tinkering with the job application process said today some applications were handled differently because of tradition — not because of pressure. […]
[CMS job-evaluation supervisor Cynthia Dixon] said applications that came from DeFraties’ office from 2003 to 2005 were evaluated ahead of others.
But — under cross-examination — she said that process had gone on for years.
She said the process continued because it always had been done that way. She said DeFraties did not instruct her on handling them.
Could the state’s case really be this horribly pathetic? Sure looks that way. [Emphasis added]
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Question of the Day
Tuesday, Mar 20, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson
Rich asked me to come up with the QOTD. Here’s a general one that I’ve been curious about…
Everyone agrees that this is the “Year of the Money.” Essentially every major state issue/responsibility/obligation is clamoring for attention. Everyone not only claims to want increased funding but say they need it. The next couple months will basically be a battle over how to raise the necessary money (if at all) and who to give it to.
Question: Looking at the big picture, how would you specifically rank the current priorities: Education, Health Care, Mass Transit, Capital Projects, Pensions, and Property Tax Relief? Assuming that there won’t be the money for everything, in what order would you prefer potential new revenue be doled out?
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How the race played out
Tuesday, Mar 20, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
Nielsen released an interesting study yesterday…
Advertising spending for the full year 2006 rose 4.6% over the same period last year due to gains across major media, according to preliminary figures released today by Nielsen Monitor-Plus, the advertising intelligence service of The Nielsen Company.
Advertising spending increased in most reported media, led by Internet (35%), the top 100 Spot TV markets (9.1%), Spanish-Language TV (8.1%) and Outdoor (8.1%).
National newspaper ad spending was up 2.9 percent, while local newspaper ad spending was down 3.6 percent.
Way down in the release, however, was an interesting analysis of political spending…
For the 2006 mid-term elections, a total of 2,629,685 local television spots ran representing 93% of all political ad expenditures, and that was up by 24% from 2002 mid-term elections.
41% of all political spots in 2006 were classified as negative. Leading the way in negative ads among the top advertisers was the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee with 89% and 85% of their ads being labeled as negative.
And here’s how our governor’s race played out, according to Nielsen…
Candidate ………. Number of Spots .. % Negative Spots
Rod Blagojevich …… 34,665 ……………….. 66%
Judy Topinka ………… 9,923 ……………….. 67%
Man, did she ever get buried. Also, the governor’s campaign has tried to say they ran a mostly positive effort. Not according to Nielsen.
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Here we go… *** Updated x1 ***
Tuesday, Mar 20, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Remember my Sun-Times column about the governor using black ministers to help sell his tax hikes and budget expansions? Well, it has begun [from a press advisory]…
Governor Rod R. Blagojevich on Tuesday, March 20, will receive the support of dozens of African American ministers who will meet with him at the First Church of Deliverance to endorse his FY2008 budget proposal, Invest in Illinois Families.
The ministers will also urge their congregations to join them in calling on members of the Illinois General Assembly to approve the Governor’s proposed budget, which will expand access to healthcare to all Illinoisans, make a historic investment in public education and ask big businesses to pay their fair share in state taxes.
* I’d like to have been a fly on the wall at this sit-down. But at least they’re talking. From Stella’s column…
Mayor Daley and Gov. Rod “Tax ‘Em High” Blagojevich dined together at the onesixty blue on West Randolph last Thursday evening.
* Subscribers saw more details about the governor’s response to this story, but Crain’s had a good roundup about what the business-backed Tax Foundation had to say yesterday…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s proposed $7-billion tax on business would dwarf the biggest tax increases enacted in other states over the past decade, a new study says.
The new taxes, including a $6-billion gross-receipts tax and a $1-billion payroll tax, would consume almost 1.3% of the state’s economic output, nearly three times more than a tax increase enacted by Indiana in 2003, according to the Tax Foundation, a conservative-leaning nonprofit think tank in Washington, D.C.
Gov. Blagojevich’s tax proposal would increase state revenue by nearly 27%, almost twice the 14% increase in revenue Nevada saw from a hike that state enacted in 2004. Four of the top 10 state tax hikes in the past decade increased revenues by only single-digit percentages.
“If the governor successfully enacts his gross-receipts tax plan, it is clear that taxpayers in the Land of Lincoln will be on the hook for the largest state tax increase of the decade,†the study concludes.
* More details of that study can be found at this link.
* Crain’s also had this…
The Blagojevich administration on Monday advanced a new reason why its proposed $6.3-billion tax on businesses’ gross receipts would be good for Illinois: “Not one nickel†would be spent on bureaucracy.
Speaking to the City Club of Chicago, Illinois Chief Operating Officer John Filan promised that all proceeds of the controversial levy proposal would be passed on to local schools, used to extend health insurance to the uninsured, funneled into infrastructure bonds and the like.
“Not one nickel of the new revenue is going within state government,†Mr. Filan said, adding, when questioned later, that while some additional administrators might need to be hired, the state would reduce its headcount elsewhere to compensate.
* And here’s a roundup of other budget stories and columns…
* Finance expert says new tax will face changes
* State chamber official blasts governor’s new tax
* Kadner: House committee to vote on school tax swap plan
* Momentum for Gov. Blagojevich’s FY2008 budget proposal continues to build [press release]
* Don’t bet on lottery to bail out state’s pension debt
*** UPDATE *** From a follow-up press release…
Close to 200 African Americans ministers support the Governor’s plan. Besides the dozens congregated at First Church of Deliverance, ministers in Peoria, Decatur, East St. Louis and other regions across the state will issue statements endorsing the Governor’s proposals. The ministers and their congregations will send postcards to members of the Illinois General Assembly urging them to support the Governor’s plan.
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Ameren talks tough, but the big squeeze is on
Tuesday, Mar 20, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
Ameren Illinois CEO Scott Cisel followed up his dramatic offer of re-regulation and dumping the controversial reverse power auction with what will assuredly be seen as a take it or leave it offer to the General Assembly…
Ameren’s Illinois electric utilities, besieged by angry customers and lawmakers over dramatic rate hikes, offered on Monday to reinstate a canceled relief package designed to ease the pain of ratepayers — but only if the Legislature stops threatening to roll back the new rates.
Not gonna happen. The “relief” package was way too small. There’s a legislative hearing scheduled for today, so expect the Ameren bigs to get grilled to a crackly crunch.
Meanwhile…
Ameren Illinois could not afford to return to electric rates charged before they were unfrozen in January while discussions about possibly re-regulating the industry occurred, a company official said Monday.
It also is unlikely, because operating costs increased too much while the rate freeze was in place, that re-regulation would enable the rates to fall that low again, said Scott Cisel, CEO of Ameren Illinois.
But re-regulation could be the best long-term solution for price stability, Cisel said during a conference call Monday with the media.
And I loved this one…
Cisel said the perception many customers have that Ameren Corp. is draining cash from its Illinois utilities to keep its profits high is incorrect. He said more than 70 percent of Ameren Corp.’s income is from its electric generation unit in Missouri, which cannot be expected to bail out the utilities in Illinois.
Except that Ameren’s Missouri rates are lower than ours, so we’re subsidizing them.
The Pantagraph took a different tack…
House Speaker Michael Madigan is predicting that high power bills could begin dropping in the “pretty near future.”
While he didn’t name a specific date for when consumers might see some relief from rates that have skyrocketed since a decade-long rate freeze ended Jan. 1, a spokesman for the Chicago Democrat said Monday that pressure is building on Ameren Corp. and ComEd to address the issue.
A key factor in Madigan’s assessment came Sunday when Ameren Illinois President Scott Cisel said it might be time for the state to again regulate utility companies. […]
“What we know is that the prices are way beyond the company needs to make a profit,” Brown said. “My guess is that we’ll be going back to rates probably around the freeze in the pretty near future. We’re getting closer to a real number.”
Squeezing major companies is a long process, and it ain’t over yet.
Alton Telegraph: Ameren officials could feel the heat on two fronts in Springfield today.
Sun-Times editorial: Electricity rate-fixing charges need to be investigated
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Morning Shorts
Tuesday, Mar 20, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson
* Meeks: Blacks need to be better served in job market
* State: elementary test contains errors
* Peoria business groups, advocate organizations, individuals endorse Blagojevich’s plan
* Illinois budget aide out to sell Blagojevich tax increase
* Business leaders speak against governor’s proposed tax
“I just don’t understand the logic in taxing someone who’s not making a profit,” he said, referring to the fact that the gross receipts tax would be based solely on receipts and not necessarily gains.
* Editorial: Don’t bet on lottery to bail out state’s pension debt
* Editorial: Tread lightly on Internet regulation
* Editorial: Well-intentioned smoking bill goes too far
Maybe we need a law spelling out exactly how long parents should require stubborn kids to sit at the table if they refuse to consume broccoli. Or could parents be prosecuted for feeding their kids too much junk food?
* What jurors won’t hear in trial
* Acquittal in parole vote for Aleman
* Oswego, ComEd can’t settle on lines
* Tribune Editorial: Safer roads for everyone
HB 1100, marketed as the Roadway Safety and Mandatory Insurance Coverage Act, would allow people who have no Social Security number to supply other documents and get a “driver’s certificate” instead of a license.
* State group eyes mental health care:
They’re not asking for more money in the next state budget, they said. Rather, it’s concerned it may actually lose money under Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s budget plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
* Public drinking ordinance relaxed on St. Patrick’s Day
* Homelessness among issues in second Springfield mayoral debate
* New county budget deficit looms: better than before, but still in the millions
* 25th ward candidate argues for a run-off
* NOW backs Fioretti again in 2nd ward, dismisses stalking claim
* Alderman Stone’s office vandalized
* Stroger seeking contracts probe
* County hospital contracts scrutinized
* New alderman Reilly isn’t sold on new helipad at Children’s Hospital
* Rolling Meadows campaign flyer with error withdrawn
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I’ve avoided this topic like the plague because I try to stay away from national issues. But now that Patrick Fitzgerald has been brought into the subject, it’s time we had a go at it…
U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald was ranked among prosecutors who had “not distinguished themselves” on a Justice Department chart sent to the White House in March 2005, when he was in the midst of leading the CIA leak investigation that resulted in the perjury conviction of a vice presidential aide, administration officials said yesterday.
The ranking placed Fitzgerald below “strong U.S. Attorneys . . . who exhibited loyalty” to the administration but above “weak U.S. Attorneys who . . . chafed against Administration initiatives, etc.,” according to Justice documents.
The chart was the first step in an effort to identify U.S. attorneys who should be removed. Two prosecutors who received the same ranking as Fitzgerald were later fired, documents show. […]
The March 2, 2005, memo from [US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’ chief of staff Kyle Sampson] came in response to a proposal floated by [then-White House counsel Harriet Miers] to remove all U.S. attorneys during Bush’s second term. Fitzgerald was placed in a middle category among his peers: “No recommendation; have not distinguished themselves either positively or negatively.”
Although the ranking meant Sampson was not recommending those prosecutors for removal at the time, two U.S. attorneys who received the same ranking were fired last Dec. 7: Daniel G. Bogden of Nevada and Paul K. Charlton of Arizona.
The guy convicts a former governor, dozens of political cronies, has the entire state’s political system in deep panic, but the chief of staff says he hasn’t distinguished himself? Apparently, those people had other, more “important,” priorities on their minds.
Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I said at a forum last year that Bush might try to remove Fitzgerald and was shouted down by some of the other panelists.
I want to make it very clear that I have no reason whatsoever to doubt that Fitzgerald was just doing his job, but since it’s now come out that political pressure was exerted on other US Attorneys to indict Democrats before the 2006 election, somebody ought to at least ask Fitzgerald whether he received any communications from the White House or other sources about the timing of last fall’s Tony Rezko indictment. Rezko, of course, was a close intimate of Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
The Rezko indictment seems valid to me, but it did happen just a few weeks before the 2006 election. Meanwhile, President Bush’s pal Mayor Daley had no such trouble in his own electoral run-up this spring.
Fitzgerald has been practically sainted here by the chattering class, but the questions wouldn’t be completely out of order.
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Simon vs. Cole update
Monday, Mar 19, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
As you’ll recall, I’ve been keeping half an eye on the Carbondale mayor’s race between incumbent Brad Cole and challenger Sheila Simon, the daughter of the late US Senator. Simon stomped Cole in the primary and now the two are facing off in the general.
The Republicans, including House GOP Leader Tom Cross, view this as an important race for a couple of reasons. Cole is seen as a valuable member of the GOP bench, and they’d like to have him appointed to or run for the House if Sen. Dave Luechtefeld retires and Rep. Mike Bost attempts to move to the Senate.
GOP staff has been sent in to help Cole, and the other day Cross, Luechtefeld and Rep. Bill Mitchell held a press conference with Cole to give him a bit of a boost…
Cross joined fellow GOPs, State Sen. Dave Luechtefeld, Carbondale Mayor Brad Cole and 87th district Rep. Bill Mitchell in Carbondale Saturday to call on Blagojevich to start showing some leadership, stop expanding programs the state can’t pay for and end the tirade against businesses they fear will drive more jobs out of Illinois.
Cole, who is seeking re-election for Carbondale mayor against Democratic opponent Sheila Simon in April, said Blagojevich has been the best business governor for Indiana, not Illinois, in his tenure in office.
Cole said the governor doesn’t seem to understand his proposed Gross Receipts Tax will come down on hundreds of small businesses across Illinois, including several dozen locally.
“If you look at any fast-food franchise in the area, they are going to be doing more than a million dollars in sales a year. Most of them are owned by local people, a mom and pop,” Cole said.
Meanwhile, a Facebook page has become an issue in the race…
A website that appeals to college kids is encouraging SIU students to vote for Brad Cole in the Carbondale mayor’s race.
His opponent Sheila Simon says the site is misleading.
The site, on facebook.com, claims Simon plans to raise the age for a person to enter a bar in Carbondale from 19 to 21, if she’s elected.
Simon says she’s never talked about changing the age policy in bars, and just wants voters to be accurately informed.
There are more than 500 members on the site, including Brad Cole.
Actually, he’s more than just a member, he’s an administrator. And raising the entry age to bars would be a huge issue in Carbondale.
Dave at Carbondaley Dispatch backs up Cole’s claims that he joined as an admin in order to “police” the page, and since the story broke they’ve taken down a lot of not so nice photos and comments about Ms. Simon. You need to be a member to see the site but Dave has posted a screenshot.
It’s really amazing what candidates can get nailed for these days.
Also, Simon’s campaign has had to deal with an unfriendly blogger the past several weeks. His most recent post (today) is about a lunch he had with Simon about six months ago, not long after she had announced for mayor…
After Sheila and Tom Redmond sat down and we had ordered, I asked Sheila the obvious question, “Why do you want to be mayor?” She responded, “I think the strongest person should take the heavy box off the top shelf.” I said, “what?” She repeated herself, exactly. I said, “what does that mean?” She went on, “you know, I think I’m a strong performer and have a lot to offer.” I said, “that is the reason you want to be mayor?” “Yes.” “OK.” I was surprised that she didn’t have a reason for being mayor that didn’t suck, but decided to move along.
He also wrote this today…
We have a funny exchange about the Northeast part of town. I told her a story about how I started to drive though the Northeast several times a day, over the course of several weeks the previous summer. When I was driving through, my greatest impression was of the young black men walking back to their houses with brown paper bags full of booze. It seemed like a shame to me then and a shame to me now. Sheila told me, “I have never seen that.” I told her, “you have to go look, when was the last time you were over there?”
And then in comments after someone accused him of being “racist,” he wrote…
There is a large difference between a college student doing the strip and people who don’t have a job, drinking all day. I think it is OK to discriminate based on people being lazy or stupid, that is called capitalism.
That one might sting.
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Question of the day
Monday, Mar 19, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
First, the setup…
Drug testing appears headed for the high school ranks in Illinois. In fact, the first steps on that slippery slope came last August, when IHSA administrators began formulating plans for a testing program.
In recent months, the push for drug testing has gained support from state senator Chris Lauzen (R-Aurora), who introduced the Fair Athletic Competition Act which could provide $250,000 to start a drug testing program if it becomes law.
The idea of drug testing is well-intentioned. So are the motives of those endorsing it. But subjecting a few athletes here and there to random raids — at an exorbitant cost — is barely even a partial solution in the mission to eliminate performance-enhancing drugs.
Testing would take place on athletes only after the state tournament begins, and perhaps not until the state finals. So had drug testing been in place this year, members from the eight boys teams in Peoria would be the only ones subject to random tests.
With 712 boys basketball teams statewide, what is being accomplished by drug testing a few participants from a pool of roughly 100 players?
Even if drug testing were to become a year-round practice done on a random basis for all athletes — the only way such a detection program can be truly effective — the return on such a huge investment could be negligible.
One positive test for steroid use out of 100 samples is a frivolous game of “gotcha.â€
Now, the question: Do you support random drug testing of high school athletes? Why or why not?
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Warning: Icky topic ahead… *** Updated x2 ***
Monday, Mar 19, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
OK, I will say right up front that this is an extremely icky topic. Nobody wants to think about stuff like this. But if it’s a proven fact that sexually transmitted diseases are being spread in prisons, it kinda boggles my mind that the state won’t allow condoms to be distributed…
Prisons have a rate of HIV infection nearly five times greater than the rate nationwide, yet they are among the few places in America where condoms are almost impossible to get.
Those unsettling facts have spurred a growing campaign by lawmakers and public health advocates who are concerned that prisons may be a prime breeding ground for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
The most recent effort to put condoms in Illinois prisons suffered a setback Thursday when a state House committee voted 6-5 against a bill that would authorize distribution of condoms to state inmates.
But officials with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, which argued for the measure, said they hope to find a compromise with the Illinois Department of Corrections, one of the bill’s main opponents.
Sexual contact is banned in prisons. I completely agree with it, for many reasons. But does this “no condom” policy make sense to you?
*** UPDATE *** VanillaMan makes an excellent point in comments…
Condoms can be used as weapons to strangle. They are durable and can be used also used as tourniquets for IV drug use.
*** UPDATE 2 *** “dan l” has another very good point…
The magic properties of “condoms as a weapon†also goes the same for shoe strings and pant legs. What’s the point?
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Surrender?
Monday, Mar 19, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
* As I told subscribers this morning, Ameren Illinois CEO Scott Cisel waved the white flag yesterday in an op-ed he penned for a few downstate newspapers.
The 1997 de-regulation law and resulting competitive model has not worked as intended - especially for Illinois’ downstate residential and small to medium sized non-residential customers. […]
[Cisel said he was willing to do several things, including] Modifying or replacing the current auction power procurement process. […]
Returning to a fully regulated model for residential and small to medium sized non-residential customers, that is known and proven, may provide greater price stability and long-term certainty of electric supply, while still giving large users the option of alternative suppliers. It also creates an opportunity for utilities to invest in new generation, creating jobs and growing our downstate economy.
Um, wow.
Still, as others pointed out, Cisel offered no immediate rate relief, and the General Assembly will likely force some before it’s over.
“If it doesn’t include a refund of the rates that were wrongly charged, it falls short of a solution,” said state Rep. Dan Beiser, D-Alton, who favors the three-year freeze on rates set by Ameren and Commonwealth Edison that the Illinois House approved two weeks ago.
Beiser, however, called the idea of returning to re-regulation “a very good concept to explore.” […]
David Kolata, the executive director of the nonprofit Citizens Utility Board, also slammed Cisel’s proposal for not offering refunds. As for re-regulation, Kolata called it “something that could work, but it has to be done in the right way.”
Interesting times.
* And if all Ameren’s bad publicity wasn’t enough, there’s this…
Ameren Corp. didn’t meet its own profit goals last year and sustained two power outages that left more than 1.5 million customers without electricity for days at a time.
But top executives still pulled down $762,000 in cash performance bonuses.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Friday that Ameren’s board of directors shuffled the numbers so that top executives could get the bonuses, even though they were not initially entitled to them under the company’s compensation plan.
* Meanwhile, the Peoria Journal-Star goes way over the top in a juvenile attack on Pat Quinn…
THUMBS DOWN! To Illinois Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, for mistaking populism for leadership. Quinn’s latest targets have been electric utilities and the Illinois Commerce Commission, which of course are Satan (never mind that the latter’s members are appointed by his boss, Gov. Rod Blagojevich, which must make him Satan’s apprentice).
Let’s see, has Quinn called on Blagojevich to act on the issue? Check.
Has the attorney general found evidence to claim that power companies colluded to force through higher rates? Check.
Has a large segment of Ameren’s customer base suffered miserably as a result of the rate hikes? Check.
Has Quinn ever called Ameren or ComEd “Satan”? Nope.
Conclusion: The PJ-Star had better never criticize bloggers for being “uncivil” if they’re gonna publish ridiculous editorials like that.
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Tax bashing
Monday, Mar 19, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
My syndicated column this week is about Barb Currie’s surprisingly harsh speech to the Taxpayers’ Federation of Illinois.
llinois House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie usually hangs back and lets others make news. Since getting the No. 2 job in the House Democratic caucus in 1997, she hasn’t been known for being way out front on major issues. And as far as I can remember, she’s never once publicly criticized Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
But that all changed last week when Currie gave an important speech to the Taxpayers’ Federation of Illinois blasting the governor, a fellow Democrat. She insisted that she was only speaking for herself, not House Speaker Michael Madigan, but all of Madigan’s top people were well aware of the contents of her address before she delivered it.
Currie’s speech is a must-read for those of us who are fascinated by the slow-motion train wreck that is the 2007 legislative session.
She had a couple of nice things to say, but let’s get to the negativity…
Currie made it crystal clear that the Legislature will not “be rushed into making a mistake from which it could take the state decades to recover.” And she warned the governor to not revert back to his old scapegoating habits from his often-controversial first term.
“If our efforts to spend the time it takes to get it right this time lead him to accuse us of indifference to the suffering of our fellow citizens or to portray us as mere pawns of special interest organizations, he will have done his cause no good,” Currie said, adding, “Proceeding at a deliberate, careful pace is not obstructionism. Taking our time to make sure we understand the details, grasp the implications and make decisions based on facts, not spin, is not obstructionism.” […]
“If he prefers to leverage public policy via press releases, vigils, protest marches, television advertisements and airplane fly-arounds, I don’t think lawmakers will buy,” Currie warned. “Demagoguery will not be well received by most members of the General Assembly.”
I’ve been thinking about this speech off and on for several days, and I’ve concluded that this was the most important part…
Currie seemed to indicate that the gross receipts tax proposed by the governor was too high. She pointed out that corporations would have to pay about $500 million more than they currently do to bring them back up to the same level they were paying in 1980, while directly contrasting that with the governor’s so-called “fairness” plan that raises $6.5 billion a year.
It’s not “fairness” if the big companies are forced to pay many times more than they would be if they were paying all of their corporate income taxes. This is more about a new revenue source than it is about “fairness.”
Meanwhile, Crain’s ran this piece about the governor’s often overlooked 3 percent payroll tax on businesses…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s plan to tax businesses’ payrolls to fund half his $2.1-billion health care reform would run afoul of federal law, legal experts say.
Under the plan, employers that spend less than 4% of their payrolls on worker medical benefits would be taxed, a spokeswoman for the governor says.
Lawyers say that approach could violate the 1974 Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). The federal law dictates how companies structure benefit plans so companies that do business in multiple states don’t have to grapple with a patchwork of local laws. ERISA trumps any state law. […]
Illinois officials say a payroll tax wouldn’t violate federal law because the state wouldn’t be dictating how employers should structure health benefits. The state simply wants companies to pay their share — even reimbursing a worker for out-of-pocket medical costs would count toward the 4% figure, says Bob Greenlee, deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. […]
But the Maryland appellate court concluded that giving employers the choice between meeting a minimum spending level or paying the state “effectively requires employers . . . to restructure their employee health insurance plans” and is “precisely the regulatory Balkanization that Congress sought to avoid” with ERISA.
Ralph Martire has been pushing for a tax swap forever. Just about all of his columns, speeches, etc. are about the subject. The governor’s gross receipts tax is competing for prominence now, and Martire is dumping all over it…
This is regressive, making low- and middle-income folks pay significantly more in taxes than they do today.
The way to raise revenue while achieving real tax fairness is to focus on income and sales taxes. This works better for two reasons. First, income and sales taxes are imposed only at the final stage of economic activity. Hence, these taxes are far less distortive of economic behavior. It’s also easier to identify who will actually pay what after the tax changes are implemented, which is crucial for creating tax fairness. Once income and sales taxes are assessed, property and other tax relief can be designed to ensure middle- and low-income families really won’t pay more. With the gross receipts tax, that’s not possible.
Comptroller Dan Hynes has several questions about the GRT, which he published as a Sunday Tribune op-ed…
Does the governor’s proposed $6 billion gross receipts tax accomplish the stated goal of tax fairness, or will it result in higher prices for consumers, job losses and businesses leaving Illinois? […]
But if health-care costs escalate, or GRT revenues underperform, will education be left underfunded? […]
Shouldn’t we fix our current Medicaid program before expanding it by $4 billion? […]
Which of his proposals will he cut in order to fund this property tax relief while also balancing the budget?
As I told Capitol Fax readers, Mayor Daley has adjusted his rhetoric somewhat on the governor’s GRT.
“I’m hoping the General Assembly looks at it very carefully and there’s some excellent, excellent points in it,” he said.
Still, he stumbled through the statement, made just prior to Saturday’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
“I’m supporting the governor’s plan, not 100, his plan, his concept with regard to funding education,” Daley said.
Clear?
And, finally, downstaters and Chicago legislators aren’t gonna be happy about this one…
Schools in Chicago’s collar counties would be the biggest beneficiaries of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s plan to boost total per-child spending by more than $800 million next school year, records show.
Districts in DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will Counties would get a combined $183 million more in per-pupil state aid if lawmakers approve the governor’s plan–a 28 percent increase over this year.
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Morning Shorts
Monday, Mar 19, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson
* New Chambers: Stalled plan for hospital aid costs taxpayers $12M
* Real ID program reason to worry
* Levin talks up GRT
* Manufacturer’s group upset with governor over tax plan
* Senator Brady gives his own State of the State message in Lincoln
* Editorial: Governor has failed to prioritize in budget
* Jack Lavin says more than half of state corporations ‘don’t pay a dime of taxes’
* Tribune Editorial: Student loan sale just an attempt at fast cash
* Tribune Editorial: Governor’s questionable friends
* Statehouse Insider: Random bits on Governor’s GRT plan
Blagojevich says big, bad corporations pay little or no state corporate income tax because the tax code is riddled with “loopholes.'’ “Loophole'’ is one of those loaded words that conjures visions of some cabal figuring out ways for faceless companies to stick it to the little guy.
* Editorial: Filling the pension gap
* Jury still out on Blagojevich’s pension plans
* Governor adds more money for schools in new budget
* Lawmaker questions sale of student loans
* Editorial: Let Governor spend his own money to promote plan
* Editorial: Illinois doesn’t need to launch class war
* Governor orders surveys about proposed healthcare plan
State Rep. John Bradley, D-Marion, said it was odd that the administration was only now collecting information about the health insurance needs of small business owners.
“Don’t you do that before you announce the plan?” said Bradley. “It’s an interesting approach to governance.”
* Black caucus wants new subsidy formula
A report looking at $1.2 billion in subsidies provided by the state from 1990 to 2004 found Chicago received only about 15 percent of the subsidies, though it’s home to 38 percent of the region’s population.
* Immigrants in Carpentersville feel sting of ‘English-only’ proposal
* Report: Illinois community college travel spending rules vary
* AG Madigan helps public get access to records
Madigan is one of only a handful of state attorneys general with a division devoted to opening up government agencies and helping people get the information they are entitled to by law.
* General public makes most requests for help in getting information
* Highlights of attorney general’s report on public records access
* Prisons a tough call for proposed smoking ban
* Smokers are fired up over the possibility of putting out their cigarettes under the proposed Smoke Free Illinois Act.
* IDOT dragging its feet on inspecting new Peotone area runway?
By building a runway less than a mile from the state’s proposed airport, Bult threatens to drive up land costs and make IDOT’s planning efforts more difficult, according to local residents.
* CTA better get use to it: Blue line repairs would take $100 million dollars and 3 years
“It makes me feel like the state Legislature has abandoned us,” said 55-year-old Michael Pagano, noting the lack of a long-term funding source for mass transit. “I guess I’ll have to bear with it until the state gets its act together.”
* Sun-Times Editorial: Slobs should help clean up CTA
* Editorial: Better oversight must go with transit funds
* Tribune Editorial: Judges and their donors
The real problem is not judicial campaigns that are privately financed but judicial campaigns, period. A better remedy is to turn these offices over to a merit selection process designed to minimize the role of politics in the courts.
* Lawmakers worry about declining quality of college education
* Tribune Editorial: Lip service to students
* Law would allow roadside memorials for drunk driving victims
* Dave Syverson’s bill ‘is something the city wanted‘
* Why lawmakers are looking at Facebook; other internet proposals
* Tough love approach to teen driving
* Med Mal issue far from dead
* Editorial: Too many Illinois don’t understand underage drinking
* Editorial: Quit idle political talk of closing prisons
Of course it was pure coincidence in 2004 that two of the prisons the governor proposed closing were in areas represented by Republican lawmakers - Pontiac, represented by state Sen. Dan Rutherford, and Vandalia, represented by Senate Republican Leader Frank Watson.
* Lawmakers preemptively target ‘remote control hunting’
* Schoenburg: Springfield aldermanic races, endorsements
* Quad Cities get word from D.C.: Money is tight
* Peraica spokeman rips Gorman
* Gorman actions demand response
* Stroger donor may get no bid deal
* Cuts may be coming at Oak Forest hospital
* Waste hauler with alleged mob ties doing state work
* Unincorporated residents suddenly ticketed for vehicle stickers
* Voter registration deadline nears
* Davis & Parker: Notable omission in Peoria PAC’s picks for council
* Election challenge is costly to taxpayers
* Pretty people and their politics: celebrity donations
* Unusual spending habits
* Glen Ellyn incident underscores tension wrought by suburban homelessness
* Krol: Must be something in the Dupage Co. water
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Obamarama - Friday caption contest
Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
After the bad press he’s received lately, I’m sure he probably wants one. Try to be funny.
*** UPDATE *** Completely off topic, but while we’re being funny, Adam Nagourney reports that John McCain stumbled a bit today when pressed for several minutes by a reporter in Iowa…
Q: “But you would agree that condoms do stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Would you say: ‘No, we’re not going to distribute them,’ knowing that?â€
Mr. McCain: (Twelve-second pause) “Get me Coburn’s thing, ask Weaver to get me Coburn’s paper that he just gave me in the last couple of days. I’ve never gotten into these issues before.â€
Then Nagourney writes…
This went on for a few more moments until a reporter from the Chicago Tribune broke in and asked Mr. McCain about the weight of a pig that he saw at the Iowa State Fair last year.
Wonder who that was? Perhaps these guys can fill us in.
*** UPDATE *** Looks like we have our answer…
[McCain has] also made what he calls “the obligatory visit” to the Iowa State Fair to view a 1,187-pound pig named Waldo and eat pork on a stick, all rites of passage for those who wish to become president.
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Question of the day
Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
In olden days, state legislatures elected US Senators and routinely passed resolutions like this directing their Senators on various issues. Those days are long gone, of course, but the resolutions pop up from time to time…
In a slap at President Bush, the Democratic-led Illinois Senate went on record Thursday opposing any additional troops being sent to Iraq.
“We have to send a message to Washington that it is time for us to get out,” said Sen. Rickey Hendon (D-Chicago), sponsor of the resolution. “We declared victory already. We’ve already made it clear the weapons of mass destruction no longer exist, if they ever did, so why are we still there? It doesn’t make any sense.”
His resolution, which passed without any objection from Republicans, was watered down from an earlier version. A call for an immediate withdrawal of troops was stripped from the resolution that passed Thursday.
Hendon said he was “shocked” no Senate Republican stood to oppose his proposal.
Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson (R-Greenville) ridiculed Hendon’s nonbinding resolution and said legislators had no business dictating war policy. “I’m sure the Pentagon will be calling Rickey to get his thoughts on how to handle the Iraq war.”
The full resolution can be found here.
Question: Regardless of your position on the war, do you think resolutions like this should be encouraged or discouraged. Why?
I know I’m taking a risk here, but please, let’s not get into a debate on the war. There are plenty of places for that, so take it somewhere else. I know there’s anger, but let’s do our best to avoid it. Also, if I’m not around and someone tries to gin it up with some goofy comment, please just ignore them. I’ll delete them later and put them into permanent comment moderation. Thanks.
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What are they up to?
Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
These guys are starting to pique my interest…
Americans for Prosperity made their second stop of a statewide “Mystery Pork Tour,” Thursday at JTM Concepts Inc., Rock Island.
AFP Illinois director Joe Calomino said the goal of the tour is to spotlight some of the most outrageous examples of projects throughout the state funded by pork-barrel spending.
“The state of Illinois has a pork-barrel spending problem — a trend toward government waste, fraud and abuse that the people of Illinois cannot afford,” Mr. Calomino said. “Our lawmakers must get spending under control.”
Their website can be found here. The group has chapters all over the place, and Illinois director Calomino has been around for a while. From his bio…
Joe Calomino began his career as a political strategist in the Illinois Secretary of State’s office where he served for eight years. During this time, Joe served as a regional campaign coordinator for the successful 1994 re-election campaign of Secretary of State George Ryan as well as Ryan’s successful 1998 gubernatorial election. […]
In the 2006 Republican gubernatorial primary, Calomino managed the campaign of first-time candidate Ron Gidwitz.
Calomino held a press conference a few weeks back about the heated driveway at the governor’s mansion…
He was joined at a news conference Thursday by representatives of the national office; state Rep. Michael Tryon, R-Crystal Lake; Greg Baise, president and CEO of the Illinois Manufacturers Association; former Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron Gidwitz; and others.
It’s occurred to me that one very good way to undermine support for a tax hike is to undercut government credibility with persistent allegations of gross mismanagement. Both Baise and Gidwitz have been lobbying hard against the governor’s gross receipts tax.
And then there’s this press release from the group…
This morning, Ron Gidwitz, 2006 Republican Primary Candidate for Governor and Chairman of the Illinois Coalition for Jobs, Growth and Prosperity, launches local chapters of Americans for Prosperity Foundation in the Quad Cities region.
Gidwitz, who is supporting the grassroots organizations mission of educating and empowering citizens to hold their elected officials accountable for how they spend our tax dollars, highlighted the states fiscal problems and called on citizens to “take back their governmentâ€.
Gidwitz unveiled a direct mail piece that will be mailed to approximately 100,000 households in several legislative districts throughout the state.
At a later stop in Moline Illinois, Gidwitz called on citizens to “contact 71st District Democratic Representative Mike Boland and ask him why he has regularly voted for higher taxes, raiding the pension funds earmarked for veterans and raiding funds for environmental purposes and roadwaysâ€.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Michael Madigan’s spokesman was asked by the Southwest News Herald about the governor’s tax plans…
“We’re waiting for the details,†said Steven Brown, a spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-22nd).
“The spending things are there but ever there was a time when (details on revenue are needed), this is it,†he said.
You may have seen a complaint by business that the gross receipts tax leads to “pyramiding.” Bruce Braker, the president of the Tooling & Manufacturing Association, explains…
Here is an example of pyramiding in the manufacturing process, assuming the Legislature enacts the 0.5 percent tax suggested by Blagojevich:
“Basic industry” sells $200 worth of raw materials to a “parts fabricator”: $1 tax.
“Parts fabricator” adds value and sells $400 product to “manufacturer”: $2 tax.
“Manufacturer” adds value and sells $800 product to an “integrator”: $4 tax.
“Integrator” adds value and sells $1000 product to a “wholesaler”: $5 tax.
“Wholesaler” adds value and sells $1,200 product to a “retailer”: $6 tax.
“Retailer” adds value and sells $1,600 product to “consumer”: $8 tax.
In this example, $26 in taxes was paid on a single product that was sold to the final consumer for $1,600. Thus, the effective tax rate was 1.7 percent, or more than 300 percent higher than the rate suggested by the governor.
And, finally, the Tribune points out some inconsistencies in the governor’s GRT proposal…
But an official at the Illinois Chamber of Commerce said Thursday that top Blagojevich aide John Filan told her that small businesses would have to pay the gross receipts tax after the corporate income tax is phased out in four years. Filan said the tax would be lower than the one imposed on big companies, or at a fixed dollar amount, said Connie Beard, an attorney and a top chamber official.
The letters didn’t mention anything about that.
“It offends me because they’re [implying] that all of these [small-business owners] aren’t going to be paying the gross receipts tax,” Beard said.
Blagojevich spokeswoman Becky Carroll said that Filan believes Beard must have misunderstood him and that he was simply listing various tax options for small businesses after the corporate income tax ends.
The administration intends to keep the corporate tax in place for small businesses for now, then get comments from the small-business community on which tax system it would prefer, Carroll said.
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Blagojevich bashing
Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
Yes, it’s the Blagojevich administration, but does every single campaign contribution have to be treated like some sort of federal crime?
The head of the state agency that provides student loans to college students says his ties to Gov. Rod Blagojevich had nothing to do with him getting his $180,000 job.
Andrew Davis, 50, said Thursday that it is “silly” to suggest that his contributions to the governor in 2000 and 2002 led to him being named as executive director of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission.
“If that were the case I’m probably owed 25 other jobs because I’ve supported lots and lots and lots of people and never received a quid pro quo beyond an autographed photo,” said Davis.
Davis was appointed to a seat on the commission by Blagojevich in 2005 and signed a three-year contract as executive director in January. State records show Davis and his companies have contributed at least $31,000 to the governor’s campaign fund.
[Emphasis added]
And then there’s this from the Decatur Herald & Review…
THUMBS DOWN! To the Illinois Executive Ethics Committee, which allowed the former Illinois Department of Transportation secretary to take a job with a company that had received $50 million in contracts during his time with the state. Tim Martin asked for a waiver of the ethics law, which prohibits state employees from starting private-sector jobs at firms with which they did business for one year after leaving a state job. But the ethics commission decided to waive that requirement. What’s the use of having a law if a commission is going to ignore it?
Um, guys, the law specifically allows for the waivers. The commission didn’t “ignore” the law. The commission applied it.
And while we’re at it, the same editorial page had this gem…
THUMBS DOWN! To Gov. Rod Blagojevich for stepping over the line by claiming God is on his side in his battle to reform the state’s tax system. Blagojevich told the Illinois Education Association last weekend that he wants to use some of the proceeds from the gross receipts tax to increase funding for education. He also told teachers he was expecting a battle in the legislature. “It will be Armageddon, but we are on the side of the Lord, and we will prevail.” Huh? Politicians are prone to exaggeration, but Armageddon, with the Lord picking sides? That’s over the top.
Blagojevich was actually quoting Teddy Roosevelt. Here’s what he told me in an interview last week…
You know, Teddy Roosevelt left the Republican convention because the machine renominated William Howard Taft, and Teddy Roosevelt didn’t get the nomination, so he bolted and he went to the Old Historic Chicago Coliseum in 1912 and rallied the troops behind his own Bull Moose Party, a progressive party.
And the last line of his speech was ‘It is Armageddon and we are on the side of the Lord.’ And I was dying to say it out there, cause that’s how I’m feeling.
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Biggest rip-off in Illinois history?
Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - Posted by Rich Miller
Like I wrote in this morning’s Capitol Fax, if AG Madigan is right, then this revelation is beyond huge…
Attorney General Lisa Madigan alleged Thursday that corporate manipulation caused the huge jump in electric rates that Illinois consumers are facing, and she asked federal regulators to suspend the rates and investigate.
Electric rates have soared since January, when a 10-year freeze on prices expired. The new prices were set through a “reverse auction” that was meant to keep rates as low as possible.
But Madigan says the auction yielded prices far higher than the actual cost of producing electricity. That’s because some 15 power companies manipulated the process, she claimed in a complaint to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Exelon Corp., the parent of power company ComEd, immediately denied the allegations.
More…
In a 31-page complaint filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Madigan lays out what she says is evidence that last year’s power auction involving Ameren and ComEd may have been fixed to ensure that specific wholesale suppliers got the most lucrative parts of that business _ at the expense of rate-payers who ended up with bills some 40 percent higher than they should be under a competitive market. […]
“The wholesale suppliers are charging prices that are at least double the marginal cost of generating electricity,’’ the complaint alleges. It goes on to allege that “there is evidence that some of the wholesale (power) suppliers manipulated prices in the auction,’’ possibly with secret side-agreements among the suppliers.
The complaint states that “quid pro quo arrangements’’ are a “likely’’ explanation for unexpectedly high power rates that resulted from the reverse auction, which was ostensibly designed to ensure that Ameren and ComEd got the cheapest possible power supply contracts from competing wholesale electricity providers.
It is “possible’’ that “departing bidders’’ were rewarded with side-agreements that their power would later be purchased “at favorable prices,’’ the complaint states. It cites a similar “market manipulation scheme’’ that was uncovered in the Enron corporate scandal.
[Emphasis added]
More…
State Sen. William Haine, D-Alton, praised Madigan’s action and suggested it could lead to the Illinois Senate passing a bill to return Ameren’s rates to last year’s frozen levels as soon as next week.
“If the auction was tampered with, obviously, it should be thrown out,” he said. “If there is fraud in the procurement process, it’s across the board. All of it is void. It’s the fruit of a poisoned auction, and as such, these contracts are voidable, which means we have a new ballgame in the procurement of electric power based upon lower rates.”
CUB’s response…
It’s abundantly clear that the auction and the rate hikes it produced must be scrapped.
True dat.
Meanwhile, Sen. James Clayborne picked a really bad day to complain that CUB and AARP, of all people, are not negotiating in good faith…
Some Illinois consumer advocates are being so inflexible in their demand that newly raised electric rates be legally forced back down that they’re endangering attempts at a compromise with the utility companies, the state Senate’s top utility negotiator hinted Thursday.
“I’m not going to say (they’re) obstructionist. I just feel like they haven’t come to the table in good faith,” said state Sen. James Clayborne, D-Belleville.
He said advocates, including the Citizens’ Utility Board and AARP, “aren’t cooperating like they’re supposed to” in closed-door negotiations that Clayborne is conducting, looking for a compromise to ease the impact of electric rates that skyrocketed this year after Ameren and ComEd deregulated in Illinois. […]
“If being uncooperative means not agreeing with the utilities … and representing the best interest of our members, then yes, we’re uncooperative,” said Donna Ginther, director of state affairs for AARP-Illinois.
The charge is ridiculous, particularly in light of Madigan’s investigation.
* Madigan’s press release
* FERC complaint
* Supporting exhibits
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Morning Shorts
Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - Posted by Paul Richardson
* Audit: Double fares might not even help RTA
His audit urged lawmakers to revamp the way mass transit is funded. The Regional Transportation Authority, which oversees the three transit agencies, relies on sales taxes in Cook and the collar counties — a formula that has remained unchanged since 1983.
* Auditor says state should give funds, require reforms for RTA
* Audit: RTA in serious financial trouble
* Audit finds public transportation in financial disaster
* Sun-Times Editorial: Mass transit funding needs new route map
* Chicago area mass transit needs overhaul:
The modern criminal code was just 72 pages when it was written in 1961. Now it would take the Rosetta stone to decipher the code’s more than 1,200 pages. Court appearances sometimes have to be continued to give judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys more time to sort through the often conflicting, redundant and outdated morass of laws.
* Tribune Editorial: Cracking the criminal code
* Republicans slam governor’s prison guard plan
* Federal judge appoints lawyers for fired grand jurors
* State law would force parents to lock up guns
“If they can get behind the wheel of a car and they manage to make poor judgments there I don’t know how you are going to sit there and tell us that we absolutely have to lock up every firearm in our house.â€
* Future unclear for teen driver ID signs
* State police again deny FOIA request
* State cuts leave offices empty
* Ex TV News anchor, Joel Daley, changes sides to work as federal courthouse spokesman
* Emmanuel tells D.C. freshman to avoid Stephan Colbert
* Lobbying revenues fail to outpace inflation
“It’s hard to know whether lobbying’s flat growth in 2006 was due to Jack Abramoff giving the industry a bad name or an election year in which Congress didn’t consider much legislation for lobbyists to cash in on,” said Sheila Krumholz, the center’s executive director.
* State wants to know sex offenders’ email address
* Fawell sentence reduced
U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer granted a four-month reduction to Scott Fawell’s 6¨-year sentence for racketeering committed while he served as chief of staff to George Ryan in the Illinois secretary of state’s office.
* City workers nabbed in joint city and federal payoff probe
* Presidential candidate Brownback to speak in Peoria
* Guilty plea in Hired Truck case
* Political donors to also be landlords in Cook Co.
* Early voting only 10 days away
* Subprime woes to claim Schaumburg jobs
* New Lennox mayoral candidates vow clean campaigns
* Friday Beer Blogging: Guiness Edition
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