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The budgetary training wheels are about to come off

Wednesday, May 4, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* For the first time in a very long time, legislators are getting a real taste of budgetary responsibility. This will obviously take some getting used to, and some Democrats clearly aren’t yet prepared to bite the bullet…

Senate appropriations committees considered more than two dozen bills that Democrats said would cut Gov. Pat Quinn’s spending plan by $1.2 billion. The committees took no votes on the bills after Republicans complained they were not given enough time to analyze them.

But several rank-and-file Democrats on the committees made it clear they didn’t like what they saw and where budget negotiators chose to make cuts.

“There are too many uncertainties and too many vast cuts,” said Sen. Mattie Hunter, D-Chicago. “I haven’t been satisfied at all.”

“You can be cut on the pinkie or be cut on the jugular,” said Sen. Willie Delgado, D-Chicago. “You’ll bleed either way, but one is more serious.”

* The governor’s proposed spending for next fiscal year on personal services and operations would be cut by 5 percent, and contractural services would be cut by 7 percent in the Senate proposal. But there are other cuts that aren’t going over too well…

One such cut was a 25 percent, or close to $1 million, reduction to the Hope Institute for Children and Families $4.4 million state appropriation Quinn was asking for. The institute focuses on autism-related services.

Jacobs asked Georgia Winson, the executive director for the Hope Institute for Children and Families, what the cut would mean to their average client.

“It means for many children they would not receive an early diagnosis and one of the things our society is hampered with now is many kids who are late to diagnoses and treatment are served by very costly residential placements,” Winson said.

With the full $4.4 million in funding from the state, Winson said she could leverage that into $20.83 million non-state money, which could be used for early diagnosis and therefore keep kids with their families and out of group homes.

Jacobs asked her, if she was in his chair, where she would make the tough cuts.

“I have to say, I am relieved I am not sitting in your chair,” Winson said.

* Meanwhile, over in the House…

Illinois school districts may soon get the answer to their multi-million-dollar question: Exactly how much money are they getting from the state?

As the Illinois Legislature rushes to beat the budget deadline, lawmakers in the Illinois House are eyeing cuts to the majority of grants for local schools. General state aid also may be trimmed to make the House’ $6.9 billion school spending goal.

State Rep Will Davis, D-East Hazel Crest, said the state has to cut from schools, but lawmakers are limited in what can be cut. Although a good portion of the budget has been decided, Davis is staying mum on exact numbers.

“We’re kind of faced with a lot of, ‘Well, I don’t want to touch that. No we can’t touch that, no we can’t do that,’ and unfortunately if you add up all of the grant lines it won’t get you close to $230 million,” Davis said.

At the moment, the House’s primary and secondary education budget still is more than $230 million higher than its allotted budget, said Davis, who noted that he can’t cut mandated categories without risking federal matching money.Mandated categories cover everything from school buses and special education to free and reduced price breakfast and lunch programs.

That leaves the grants.

State grants subsidize a variety of programs, including state testing, vocational programs and bilingual education.

The Illinois State Board of Education receives about $548 million in grants annually, said Matt Vanover, spokesman for ISBE, who noted the elimination of many grants in recent years.

They’re learning. But time is short.

* Related…

* VIDEO: Rep. Will Davis on K12 cuts

* VIDEO: Rep Brauer on Illinois’s unpaid bills

* VIDEO: Frank Mautino budget process

* VIDEO: Larry Bomke on budget

* Vendors: Illinois needs to borrow to pay bills

* Quinn backs Springfield chamber plan for state short-term borrowing

* SEIU Healthcare Illinois Releases Ad Fighting For Disability Services

* Dave Bakke: Statehouse rallies for ralliers, not legislators

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Rate the ad - Read the poll - Will Quinn flip again?

Wednesday, May 4, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From ABC7’s Charles Thomas…

Plans to reform the state’s pension system are not sitting well with some unions representing state employees.

They’ve launched a television ad campaign about a reform movement that they say will rob them of money they’ve earned. Illinois’ largest public employee unions — representing hundreds of thousands of workers including teachers, police officers and firefighters — have joined forces for a major media campaign aimed at protecting their pension benefits.

The 30-second ads feature Illinois public employees or actors posing as such. One ad says: “I worked my whole life, I gave money from every paycheck, I never missed a payment because they promised us a modest pension.”

Public worker unions, under the banner We Are One Illinois, will spend over $1 million airing the commercials statewide. They want the public to meet the potentially newest losers in the so-called pension reform movement.

* That’s a pretty decent sized buy. Here’s one of the group’s two ads. Rate it…

The other, very similar ad is here.

* The unions also have a new poll which shows that only 48 percent of 807 Illinois voters know that public employees contribute to pension funds. Also, 29 percent thought that public employees have already seen their pension benefits reduced. They were also asked this…

As you may know, Illinois currently has a pension debt of seventy billion dollars in unfunded pension liabilities for public employees. Which statement comes closer to your point of view –(A) public employees should receive the pensions they were promised, despite these deficits, or (B) given the state’s budget problems, we just cannot afford to pay the full pensions of public employees?

60 percent thought public employees should receive the pensions. 34 percent said the state can’t afford it.

* And here’s a blast from the past. April 14, 2010, to be exact…

Following a signing ceremony in his Capitol office, Quinn also shot down suggestions raised by some that the state should go even further and change benefits for employees already on public payrolls. The changes Quinn signed Wednesday apply only to workers hired after Jan. 1, 2011.

“That’s the wrong way to go because it’s unconstitutional,” Quinn said. […]

The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago said it has determined that benefits for current employees could be changed, but only for future benefits. Any benefits earned up to that point could not be reduced.

But Quinn produced former Illinois Appellate Court Justice Gino DiVito to back his assertion that would be unconstitutional. DiVito said he and a colleague “reached the undeniable conclusion that the pension benefits of present employees, those who belong in a pension plan, cannot be diminished or impaired. All the General Assembly and governor could do is affect the pension benefits of future employees.”

Anybody wanna bet on whether Quinn changes his mind on this topic?

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition and a big Statehouse roundup

Wednesday, May 4, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

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*** UPDATED x2 *** Springfield Chamber proposes big borrowing plan as Senate soundly defeats bill to reduce local governments

Tuesday, May 3, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce announced a proposal today for a $6.1 billion state borrowing plan. The four-year bond would be used to pay off past-due state bills to vendors.

Chamber President Gary Plummer said slow state payments “have created a tremendous financial hardship” for his members and is slowing economic recovery in the state of Illinois. Plummer said he estimated the bonds would carry a 6 percent interest race, but said it could end up being lower than that.

Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka issued a recent report claiming that the state will end the fiscal year with $8.3 billion in unpaid bills.

The Springfield area is represented by three Republican legislators who have all said they were highly skeptical of any borrowing plans.

Video of Plummer’s statements…

Thanks to BlueRoomStream.com for the video.

*** UPDATE 1 *** From the governor’s office…

“The Quinn Administration applauds the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce for its support of a plan to immediately pay past due bills by restructuring these debts at attractive interest rates. Today, the Chamber proposed a four-year, $6.1 billion bonding plan to pay off state debts.

“The Springfield Chamber - an established and experienced organization - whose goal is to stimulate the economy, agrees with the Quinn Administration that debt restructuring makes good business sense and is paramount to stabilizing the budget. We encourage those who have provided services to the state to come forward and urge legislators to support debt restructuring, a sound and reasonable step needed to return the state to solid financial footing.”

[ *** End Of Update 1 *** ]

* In other news, the Senate overwhelmingly rejected legislation this morning by Sen. Terry Link to shrink the number of local governments in Illinois. The bill was apparently modeled on the US government’s military base-closure commission. From the legislation’s synopsis…

Creates the Local Government Consolidation Commission Act. Establishes the Local Government Consolidation Commission to create a recommended list of units of local government to be abolished or consolidated. Provides that the Commission shall submit its recommended list to the General Assembly by no later than April 1, 2012. Sets forth the requirements for the recommended list. Provides that the General Assembly may disapprove the list of the Commission in whole, but may not disapprove of specific types of units of local government or specifically named units of local government on the list, within 30 calendar days after each chamber next convenes after the list is submitted to the General Assembly, by adoption of a resolution by a record vote of the majority of the members elected in each house. Provides that if the recommended list is not disapproved by the General Assembly within the time period for disapproval, then the Legislative Reference Bureau shall prepare for introduction a revisory bill effecting the changes in the statutes as may be necessary to conform the statutes to the changes in law made by the recommended list.

Just one Republican voted for the bill, Sen. Tom Johnson. Only 14 of 35 Democrats voted “Yes.” 30 members of both parties voted “No” and two went “Present.”

Illinois has almost 7,000 taxing districts, by far the highest number in the country.

*** UPDATE 2 *** From Sen. Link…

“I’m not opposed to good, efficient government that provides service to the community,” Link said. “But Illinois has too many units of government many of which can levy taxes on their citizens. Today, local government lobbyists won in their effort to ensure that Illinois has more government than any other state in the union. While they celebrate, I intend on going back to the drawing board to continue my efforts in reducing inefficiencies.”
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*** UPDATED x3 - Levee topped in Olive Branch as Kirk lands in Cairo - Birds Point levee photo *** Ohio River recedes at Cairo, but problems persist all over southern Illinois

Tuesday, May 3, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

*** UPDATE 2 *** The river has topped the levee in Olive Branch…

A flooded Mississippi River has flowed over the top of a levee in southern Illinois.

Patti Thompson is spokeswoman for the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. She says officials received a report that water was higher than the levee at Olive Branch in Alexander County.

Thompson didn’t know if anyone was hurt or property damaged, but she says it appears the water had begun backing off.

The Wabash River on the eastern border of Illinois was also flowing over a levee in Lawrence County. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for the county.

* And despite what his press release said earlier today, Sen. Mark Kirk is now on a ground tour of Cairo. He didn’t just fly over. Good for him. A photo of Kirk in Cairo just after landing…

Kirk being briefed by Army Corps of Engineers, with the big Cairo sandboil in the background…

Checking out that big sinkhole…

*** UPDATE 2 *** Courtesy of Sen. Kirk, here’s the Birds Point levee, which was blown up by the Corps of Engineers last night…

*** UPDATE 3 *** A much better video of the Birds Point explosion…

[ *** End Of Updates *** ]

* As of 9 o’clock this morning, the Ohio River was at 60.45 at Cairo. That’s down from 61.72 feet at its peak yesterday before that Missouri fuseplug levee was blown. Here’s the chart…

The previous Cairo record was was 59.5 feet. There’s still a ways to go before the river even gets that low. At least four more days, according to that chart.

* If you haven’t yet seen the video of the Missouri levee’s demolition, click here. Boom!

Here’s the audio version…

Click to download

* Oh, ye of little faith…

Missouri officials fought hard to stop the plan, filing court actions all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Rep. Jo Anne Emerson, a Republican from nearby Cape Girardeau, stood beside Walsh as he announced his decision Monday, but she was clearly unhappy.

“We’re uprooting families that have been here six generations and you don’t even know if it’s going to work,” she said.

* A second blast at the southern end of the levee to allow outflow was delayed last night due to weather conditions.

* Illinois’ problems persist, however…

Hardin County volunteers were sandbagging in Elizabethtown as the Ohio River keeps rising, a sheriff’s dispatcher said Monday night. There has been no mandatory evacuation order, but some residents are leaving, she added. Illinois 146 was still open in Elizabethtown.

* The Little Wabash River is about to hit its second highest flooding stage in history…

Sandbagging occurred throughout low-lying areas of the city Monday, as well as along Possum Road just south of town. And officials were hopeful that this would keep the water at bay long enough for the river to crest and the flood to recede.

Hopes that the Wabash River had crested have proven premature. At Mt. Carmel, where flood stage is 19 feet, the Wabash was measured at 33.5 feet at 2 p.m. Monday and is expected to crest Thursday evening at 34.1 feet—just above the all-time record of 34 feet.

Downstream at New Harmony, Ind., where flood stage is 15 feet, the Wabash was measured at 23.29 feet at 4:30 p.m. Monday, with a crest of about 23.5 feet expected Tuesday evening.

And at Old Shawneetown, where flood stage is 33 feet, the Ohio River was measured at 54.86 feet at 4:30 p.m. Monday, with a crest of about 56 feet expected Wednesday evening.

* There’s also trouble in Alexander County…

Residents of Urbandale scrambled to gather be-longings and evacuate homes Monday as flash flooding overtook the small town that resides along the Ohio River be-tween Mound City and Cairo.

Sue Travis ran back and forth from her front door to her PT Cruiser, packing it with blankets and pillows, as water completely engulfed her backyard.

“None of this water was (here) at 9 this morning,” Travis said.

At the same time, Michael Woodworth was readying his family to evacuate to Anna. They had fled Cairo for Urban-dale last wee

* The rain continues unabated…

The month of May has only just begun, but it’s already shaping up to be a wetter-than-normal one.

In fact, the first two days of the month may have already topped the monthly average for Southern Il-linois.

“So far, we’re four inches and counting,” meteorologist Rick Shanklin of the National Weather Service in Paducah said Monday afternoon. “Normal rainfall in May is 4.82 inches and we may exceed that before the end of (Monday). In two days, we’ve basically made our average for the month.”

* The flooding is straining local resources to the limit…

Marty Nicholson with Alexander County’s emergency management office, said she hopes that the feds show up soon.

“There are so many costs right now. I just hope (we get) a federal disaster declaration to help pay for all of this,” she said.

Nicholson is quick to say that Alexander County is “already deep in debt” so it can’t pay for much. As the only paid employee in the county’s emergency management office, she said she’s taking time off from her other job to do her duty as emergency manager.

“I’m using my vacation days from the Cairo Police Department to be able to fight these floods,” she said.

Alexander County can’t even pay for meals for the emergency workers. Nicholson said volunteers are bringing in food.

“Ladies from the local churches down here are doing a fantastic job of feeding and taking care of us,” she said.

* And the Red Cross is still in dire need of volunteers…

The Red Cross is still in need of volunteers to give any amount of time they can to assist with needs of flood victims. As area rivers continue to rise and rain continues to pelt Southern Illinois, many residents are forced to leave their homes and stay in emergency shelters.

Red Cross volunteer Linda Parker is coordinating volunteer efforts during the flooding. Both trained volunteers and “spontaneous” volunteers (who have not had Red Cross training) will be welcomed, she said. Those willing to serve are asked to call the Red Cross office at 618-529-1525.

* Meanwhile, Gov. Pat Quinn smoothed over some ruffled feathers after he failed to visit Cairo last week…

State Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, said Quinn’s trip on Monday made up for hurt feelings from last week.

“It is important that the governor’s presence being made known in those areas where they are suffering the most,” Bost said.

Cairo Mayor Judson Childs said it was good to have Quinn and officers from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers standing behind him on Monday.

“I’m glad to look up at their faces,” Childs said. “When you have a team, when you are playing ball, you look around and you look for some support, and it makes you feel much better.”

* And Sen. Mark Kirk may be making the same mistake Quinn made last week by holding a presser in Marion and then flying over the real damage. From a press release…

Following a briefing by Illinois emergency management officials on Mississippi and Ohio River flooding, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) will hold a media availability at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday to discuss the need for federal assistance in flood-ravaged Southern Illinois towns. Senator Kirk also will take a helicopter tour of flooded Southern Illinois towns like Cairo

* Roundup…

* Ohio River Sets New Record, Mississippi Waters Still Rising

* Q & A about insurance in the wake of storms

* Ameren Illinois activates emergency operations center

* Illinois Prisoners Help In Southern Illinois Floods

* Equality residents cope with flooding

* Brookport-Paducah Bridge closed

* Flood gates being closed in Golconda

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Curran, Madigan reach out to Latinos

Monday, May 2, 2011 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The Lake County Sheriff has long been a lightning rod on the immigration issue. For instance, here’s a story from 2008…

Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran on Thursday released the results of an audit that showed a fifth of his jail population is undocumented and pressed for the power to deport them.

In the process, he took shots at Cook County, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and politicians in Springfield and Washington for not doing the same.

“The city of Chicago as well as the state of Illinois have shown little interest in cooperating with ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement],” Curran said. Later, he added: “Throw the bums out of Springfield and Washington but treat the illegal immigrants with love and respect.”

* No more, however. Curran has now switched sides…

A churchful of activists seeking state laws to protect undocumented immigrants got a boost from an unlikely source Saturday when Republican Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran told them he had seen the errors of his former pro-deportation stand.

“I was on the other side of this issue, so in essence, a persecutor at one time,” Curran told thousands of activists at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church in West Lawn, standing with House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton.

“I cannot think, in good conscience, that breaking up families is something that God is going to look favorably upon in America if we continue to go down that route,” he said as protestors erupted in applause. “My confirmation name as a Catholic is Paul. St. Paul was a persecutor at one point. There was a conversion story. We can stop this silliness of deporting people, breaking up families, and then claiming that we’re ‘pro-family.’ ”

* And even Speaker Madigan got into the act…

The event was held in the home turf of Madigan, who years ago refused to meet with some of these activists.

But on Saturday, Madigan told them he was on-board with their main requests, and they in turn praised him for his support and help in killing 14 “anti-immigrant” bills that have come up in the state legislature.

“We know that if we work together there will be a fair remap for the state of Illinois and we know that if we work together there will be an Illinois Dream Act,” the Speaker of the House said to raucous cheers.

“Everybody in America came from somewhere else. My family came from Ireland many, many years ago,”

He and Cullerton gave favorable forecasts for passage of the state’s Dream Act, which would create a commission funneling private scholarships to children of undocumented immigrants who were educated here. Efforts for a similar federal law, giving citizenship to foreign-born students who attend college or serve in the military, have failed.

* Check out Madigan’s speech…

Madigan Speaking at ICIRR New American’s Rally from ICIRR on Vimeo.

Madigan’s ward is seriously Latino these days and so is his House district. So, it makes sense for him to reach out to those he formerly snubbed. As the video shows, the crowd ate it up.

* Related…

* State leaders urge fair treatment of immigrants

* Rallying for DREAM Act, immigration reforms

* Immigration activists to march, though in smaller numbers - Frustrated with lack of progress at federal level, protesters focus on state bills

* VIDEO: Senate President Cullerton Speaking at ICIRR New Americans Rally

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