Today’s quotables
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Former Mayor Daley is having “memory” problems, at least while he was deposed during a lawsuit over a politically and Daley family-connected restaurant contract in Millennium Park…
Novack: Do you recall asking them to move the bar from the front of the restaurant to the back of the restaurant because you thought that would be more family-friendly?
Daley: I don’t recall.
Novack: Do you recall that you actually attended the announcement of the opening of the restaurant?
Daley: I don’t recall if I did or not.
Novack: OK. I’ll show you . . . a picture of a bunch of people standing in front of some buildings. Do you recognize yourself in that picture?
Daley: It’s kind of blurry. I guess it’s me, if it is.
Novack: And you are there, aren’t you, for the opening of the ice rink . . . and the restaurant being open for the first time?
Daley: I don’t know what it was for, but — I don’t recall.
Novack: In other words, is it your testimony that the first time you knew that they [Horan and O’Malley] were associated with the restaurant was that day?
Daley: I don’t know what I knew.
A quick visit to a doctor might be in order. Or not.
* Bill Cameron reports on a speech given by Sen. Bill Brady…
“Don’t underestimate Pat Quinn. He may be a buffoon when it comes to leading and on policies, but he is brilliant when it comes to manipulating the populist card in a Democratic state,” Brady said.
Brady was in Oak Brook with Republican candidates for the Chamber of Commerce when he made the comments about Quinn.
Ouch.
* And speaking of Oak Brook, Treasurer Dan Rutherford was all upset this morning about the price of his conference hotel room…
OK, fine, dude, you worry about and even pick up pennies. But how many fundraising calls could you have made while you composed six outraged tweets today and monitored online feedback?
Sheesh.
* Let’s end on an up note. After a months-long refurbishing project, commuters are gushing about the Red Line, and for good reason…
The red line hasn’t moved this fast on the south side since 1969 when it first opened.
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Question of the day
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Aside from pension reform and gay marriage, there are some other issues coming up in the veto session and Jamey Dunn provides a quick rundown…
* Gambling expansion It seems unlikely that lawmakers will vote on a gaming bill during the veto session, but there is a House hearing on the topic scheduled for Wednesday. Quinn has not said that he would give a gaming bill the same treatment as an ADM tax break if it landed on his desk before pension reform. However, he has warned lawmakers in the past not get distracted by the “shiny object” of a gambling expansion when he feels they should be working to get pension changes passed. He has vetoed two gambling bills in the past and said last year that he could only approve one if it had strict regulations and the money went to education.
* Budgetary issues Several House budget committees are holding hearings on potential supplemental appropriations. It is the time of year when agencies tend to come to lawmakers looking to patch budget holes. Union leaders may also be seeking an appropriation for workers’ back pay from raises there were promised but did not receive. Quinn’s budget staff has said that workers should get the money under a new deal the state made with the unions. However, House Speaker Michael Madigan seems less than warm to the idea. Since there are no bills drafted and in committee, it seems more likely that such budget issues might be tackled in January. Quinn may also be reluctant to sign more spending unless pension changes pass. There is a bill for employee back pay, Senate Bill 2603. It had not been posted to an appropriations hearing as of Monday. Union officials are working to lobby lawmakers. “A circuit court judge has already ruled that the money must be paid. Now Gov. Quinn has agreed, too. But it is up to the state legislature to appropriate the funds that are needed,” says a call to action to its members from the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Council 31.
* Paint disposal One hearing that may lead to legislation down the road is scheduled for November 4. Lawmakers are looking to create a program to ensure that paint is properly disposed of in the state. Holmes, who sponsors the Paint Stewardship Act, said the committee is seeking input and hopes to get an end product that sellers and industry can agree to. Under such a plan, a small fee would be added to the cost of paint, and the money would be used to set up the program. Holmes cautions that the idea is still in a very early stage and could see major changes as the process continues. “What we want to do is have everyone on board with it,” she said.
* Retiree health care The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability is scheduled to hold a hearing on state retiree health benefits on Wednesday morning.
* Other veto session preview stories…
* Quick facts about veto session agenda
* Lawmakers could face lively veto session — or not - Brauer expects ‘deadly dull’ two weeks
* 3 more knotty issues - Lawmakers also facing gun law, tax breaks, gambling
* Several gun rights bills could be considered during veto session
* Illinois Law Would Heavily Restrict Possession of Firearms Outside Home
* Timing hurdle to gay marriage vote - Sponsor still looking for support, but casting ‘yes’ vote now could bring lawmakers primary challenges
* Pro-Gay Marriage Rally Tuesday
* Black Pastors kick off pro-traditional marriage initiatives for veto session
* 2014 deadline among hurdles in lawmaker session
* Pension deal remains elusive - Politics still has upper hand as conference committee works out plan
* Casino vote unlikely in veto session
* Illinois racing faces its own fiscal cliff
* The Question: Why veto session proposal interests you most and why?
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Decision doesn’t decide much in the long term
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* It may be only a temporary reprieve…
By avoiding the fundamental constitutional question, last week’s Illinois Supreme Court 6-1 ruling against the state’s “Amazon tax” has left the controversial issue of Internet sales taxes up to Congress or the U.S. Supreme Court to sort things out once and for all.
In other words: Don’t expect those Internet marketers that fled the state when the law was enacted two years ago to be flocking back anytime soon.
The state’s highest court found Illinois’ Internet sales tax void and unenforceable because it conflicts with a federal law that temporarily blocked new state or federal taxes aimed at online retailers or Internet providers, the first court in the country to take that stance. But others say a conflict with federal law merely makes the state tax unenforceable.
For unstated reasons, the court did not address a lower court ruling that found the state tax in violation of the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
* Courts usually try to keep their opinions narrow, so that may be why the Supremes acted the way they did. But the that federal law sunsets in a year. So, we end up right back where we started…
All of the justices sided with Burke except Justice Lloyd Karmeier, who wrote the dissenting opinions.
The court avoided the larger constitutional question of whether the tax is allowable under the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Karmeier argued that this was a mistake because he said that the issues will likely end up in court again.
“A new commerce clause challenge is certain to follow. A year from now we could therefore find ourselves in precisely the same position we are in today, facing the same commerce clause challenge brought by and against the very same litigants. The delay will have accomplished nothing. The issue has been fully briefed and argued and is ripe for a decision now. We should make one,” he wrote
So, if Congress fails to act, there would be no controlling federal statute to prohibit the state law, so it could take effect again.
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Behind the semantics
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Senate President John Cullerton will undoubtedly set tongues wagging with his declaration yesterday that the pension funding issue is not really a “crisis”…
“People really misunderstand the nature of this whole problem. Quite frankly, I don’t think you can use the word ‘crisis’ to describe it at the state level,” Cullerton said in an interview on WGN-AM radio.
“It’s something we have to deal with, but it’s not something that we’re on the verge of bankruptcy on,” Cullerton said.[…]
Cullerton said that under a 1996 law aimed at gradually boosting the amount of money put into the state’s pension funds to eventually get them funded at 90 percent of their liability, payments to the retirement systems are already near their highest level and require only small annual future increases to stay on track. As a percentage of state general revenues, pension payments would continue to be about one-fifth of the state’s general revenues through 2044, his office said. As a percentage of state general revenues, pension payments would continue to be about one-fifth of the state’s general revenues through 2044, his office said. […]
“These pension (proposals) we’ve talked about will save annually anywhere from $750 million to $1.5 billion. So you’re still going to have real huge cuts that we’ll have to make if we don’t raise that income tax higher than what they’re scheduled to go down to,” he said.
* Cullerton’s mistake was attempting to argue semantics. He’s a lawyer, so that’s what they do. And since words matter to those most committed to this issue, the outrage will be utterly predictable. Reboot Illinois is already astonished that Cullerton would say such a thing…
For years, I have accepted as fact that Illinois’ ever-increasing pension costs (now consuming more than 20 percent of state revenue) constitute a crisis for state finances.
In general, I’d say a state that is $5.4 billion behind in paying its bills (as of this morning) and is devoting more than 20 percent of its budget to public employee pensions and has the second highest unemployment rate in the nation is in a state of financial crisis. I’d reinforce this point by noting that this is a state that in 2011 raised its income tax rate from 3 to 5 percent to pay down that bill backlog only to see virtually all the new money go toward required pension payments.
OK, once again, with feeling, legislators did not raise the tax rate solely to pay down the bill backlog. A small part of the tax hike was earmarked to pay interest and principal on borrowing that was supposed to be used to pay down the backlog, but that bond was never issued.
And as Cullerton rightly points out, we’re currently pretty much at the top of the pension payment ramp. So the “ever-increasing” rhetoric is just that.
* Either way, though, challenging a totally accepted media narrative ain’t ever easy and will usually fail without a lot of paid advertising behind it. Cullerton loves to do this sort of thing, but he would’ve been better off without trying to define some terms and focusing instead on the reality.
I mean, seriously, when is the last time you read a news story or an editorial that points out state pension payments are finally leveling off? So I’m betting that Cullerton’s needless semantics argument will be what everybody covers.
* But the reality is this: No pension reform currently under serious current consideration would save more than about $1.5-$1.8 billion a year for all but the last few years of the 30-year plan (it may be a little higher than Cullerton’s estimate). Not one. And while $1.5-$1.8 billion is most definitely a lot of money to take out of the state’s spending base, it doesn’t come close to the $5.4 billion budget hit from the partial expiration of the temporary income tax hike. And, of course, that assumes any new pension proposal will be declared constitutional - which is a big “if.”
So, even the harshest pension reform plan would only lower state payments by a four or five percentage points in relation to state revenues. The problem is apparently “solved” when 15-16 percent of annual General Revenues are going to pensions until 2044, but remains a crisis when the share is 20 percent?
On the other hand, allowing the state income tax hike to expire would impose a permanent 15 percent or higher hit on General Funds revenues in 2016, the first full year of the expiration. And yet the enormous “squeeze” felt by state programs from that event is barely mentioned at all by those pushing the hardest for pension reform.
Make no mistake, major pension reform would help the state absorb the hit from the loss of the tax hike revenues. But it’s still gonna be a huge freaking hit and will produce a far more intense budget “crisis” than the one produced by pension funding.
* The full Cullerton interview is here…
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Common sense rule portrayed as somehow racist
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* A recent hyperventilating race-baiting column in The Guardian about Erika Harold’s primary challenge of freshman Republican Rodney Davis has set off something of a political firestorm in Illinois…
When it’s convenient to their diversity “story-telling”, the Republican National Committee loves black Republicans. After Mitt Romney got whacked in the 2012 presidential election because he ignored minority voters, the RNC pledge it would engage with minority voters and support more candidates of color.
To keep up appearances, the RNC hired a handful of blacks this year and featured the black Republican house speaker from Oklahoma, TW Shannon, as a speaker in its Rising Stars Program at the RNC’s summer meeting in Boston. But when it’s time to support actual black candidates in primaries against white candidates, the RNC treats black Republicans like the plague. […]
The former Miss America 2003 and Harvard Law School graduate, Harold had the audacity to challenge white, male, first-term Representative Rodney Davis in a GOP primary for Illinois’ 13th congressional seat – and is witnessing the party machine’s discrimination up-close and personal.
The Illinois Republican party refused to give Harold access to the GOP data center. Formerly called the “voter vault”, the data center is where the RNC stores voting information for all voters in the country, which it makes available to the 50 state parties for free. Candidates are given access to the database to target donors and voters.
In response to Harold’s request, the state central committee, which governs the Illinois GOP, issued a new policy at its 5 October meeting. The new policy stated that challengers to any Republican incumbent would not be given access to the voter database. However, the policy did permit county chairs to give access to county voter data at their own discretion.
How convenient for the white incumbent, Davis.
* Oh, please. This is not new. Yeah, it was recently formalized as policy by the Republican State Central Committee, but it’s a long-standing practice and it makes a lot of sense. The Champaign News-Gazette’s Tom Kacich explains it well. Emphasis added…
He said the vote formalized what had been a “longstanding policy. No challenger has ever had access,” said [15th Congressional District’s GOP committeeman].
Part of the reason, he said, is that some of the data was generated by the Davis campaign.
The information not only includes primary and general election voting records, but data on issues important to individual voters.
“Let’s say that you contact a voter and that voter is really concerned about gun control. You put a code next to that voter’s name about gun control and when you talk about gun control you target that voter,” Clarke explained.
Davis’ campaign would have input some of that information last year, said Clarke, who was among the candidates in the spring of 2012, along with Davis and Harold, for the nomination to become the Republican candidate for Congress in the 13th District. The county chairmen eventually chose Davis.
“We can’t give Davis’ opponent the information that he collected,” Clark said. “That’s why if it’s an open seat, they will give all Republicans access to the information. But if it’s a challenger running against an incumbent, they will not get access.
“If we did it the other way and gave Erika Harold access, she would be the first person to ever get access to somebody else’s data. And what would happen is that nobody would use the voter vault anymore.“
Clarke is right on all points.
* Unfortunately, members of the News-Gazette’s editorial board appear not to read their own paper...
It’s not personal, it’s business. The GOP already has an incumbent U.S. House member from the 13th District, U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, and it’s not happy she’s rocking the boat by challenging him in the March 2014 primary election. They fear it might cost the party a congressional seat.
Party leaders most recently made their unhappiness known when the GOP’s state central committee voted unanimously to deny her access to the GOP’s “voter vault” database. That’s the inside information the party gathers on voters in the district and their political preferences.
They denied Harold the information because she’s running against Davis and told her she would have to seek the information she’s requesting from individual county party chairmen. One chairman, John Parrot of McLean County, requested his county’s voter information that is stored at party headquarters so he could pass it on to Harold. As of late last week, he said he has yet to receive a response.
Well, maybe Harold can’t get the information from individual county chairmen even though the state central committee representatives said she can. It wouldn’t be the first time people in politics haven’t told the truth.
Democracy is a beautiful concept, but politics can be an ugly business. Davis already has all the advantages — incumbency, a ton of campaign cash and the backing of most of the party people who matter. Party leaders didn’t send for Harold, and for now that’s why she’s not welcome.
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Yet another “defining” issue?
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From a recent interview of Bruce Rauner…
I got so frustrated with the pace of school reform that I formed a PAC four years ago, and got a piece of legislation drafted, that took away tenure for ineffective teachers, took away the teachers’ ability to strike in Illinois because its a nuclear bomb on our taxpayers, and it’s a public safety issue for kids, and put in a rigorous school accountability system.
Got the bill drafted, it was pending in the legislature, Madigan, Daley - it was bi-partisan support, and we lost most of the bill. And you know who fought us the hardest in the legislature in the end when it got killed? Republicans in the legislature who take teacher union money.
This is the challenge we’ve got, but you know what? I’ve never taken a nickel from a government union boss, I can stand up to them. I don’t need their …I’m financially independent … I will take on the teacher’s union, AFSCME and SEIU. They’ve got a stranglehold on the state.
* Illinois Review followed up by checking some GOP campaign finance disclosures…
State Rep. Sandy Pihos received a $25,000 check from the IEA in September, just before she introduced legislation to reduce state educational grants going to Chicago schools. With a growing controversy over how Illinois education funds are distributed, the IEA, which represents the vast majority of Illinois’ teachers outside of Chicago, has millions at stake. Pihos is influential as the Republican spokesperson on the House Elementary & Secondary Education, as well as serving on the House Approp-Elementary & Secondary Education committees. […]
State Sen. David Luechtefeld, a former teacher, principal and high school basketball coach, is the Minority Spokesman on the Senate Education Committee. The IEA has given him over $115,000 in campaign donations over the years.
Other GOP lawmakers who have received at least $5,000 of support from the IEA include State Reps. Keith Sommer, Chad Hays, David Reis, Mike Bost, John Cavaletto, David Leitch, Adam Brown, Dan Brady, and Dennis Reboletti; and State Senators Dale Righter, Sam McCann, Chapin Rose, and DuPage County’s Kirk Dillard.
Dillard, who received $250,000 from teachers unions in his 2010 gubernatorial bid, is the only current Republican lawmaker to receive support from the radically left-wing Chicago Teachers Union.
* The IR’s conclusion…
The amount of money and diversity of recipients speaks to the depth and breadth of political influence the teachers unions have in the state. No matter who the governor is in 2015, one of their most formidable opponents will be the many teachers unions. Time will tell if a gubernatorial David will ever be able to fell this union goliath.
Time will also tell if Rauner can make support from public employee unions an effectively divisive issue in a GOP primary. Polling indicates that the idea has traction.
But does the Republican Party really need yet another issue that supposedly defines who is and who is not a “real” party member? And can anybody say with a straight face that Keith Sommer, Adam Brown, Dale Righter and Sam McCann (among all those others) aren’t “true” Republicans?
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Hugh Hill
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I grew up watching Hugh Hill on Channel 7. I had the opportunity to meet him when I first started out in the early 1990s. He did not disappoint. He asked pointed questions and often seemed to know more about what was going on behind the scenes than many of the reporters who worked the Statehouse full time, even with his occasional pre-broadcast naps in the pressroom kitchen.
Robert Feder has a great obit…
They don’t make reporters like Hugh Hill anymore.
A giant of Chicago journalism for 43 years, he practically invented the role of political reporter on local television news and played it longer and with more gusto than anyone.
Hill, who died Friday at 89, interviewed every U.S. president from Truman to Clinton and covered every Chicago mayor from Daley to Daley. His in-your-face style of interrogation and remarkable institutional memory made him a legend.
* Feder also ran some excerpts from a 1988 interview…
On the key to his success: “I get by because I know what I’m talking about. It’s been my life. I love the business of television news. I think knowledge is power in journalism as well as any other line. If you know more than the next guy, you’re better off, and you’re worth a lot more to the station or to the newspaper you’re working for, And I have more knowledge about the field of politics than anybody in journalism in Chicago. I have an uncanny memory and can remember a lot of things. And I do a hell of a lot of research and a lot of reading. I mean, I work hard.” […]
On working in a young person’s business: ”If there were something I could do that’s as much fun as broadcasting, then I’d go and retire to it. But there is no such thing. This is more fun than I could ever possibly hope for. Sure, it’s a job and you make good money. But I do it because I love it and I wouldn’t ever want to do anything else. It’s very, very tiring and exhausting physically. But mentally, it’s great. It’s an exercise in real journalism. It’s the essence of broadcast journalism.”
In most cities, TV news has always been little more than fluff. Chicago is different, particularly when I was growing up. My parents were always bemused at my fascination with Chicago TV news when I was still in grade school, but I think I recognized then how solid those broadcasts were. Fahey Flynn and Joel Daley were outstanding anchors, and I watched them whenever I could.
But Hugh Hill and Dick Kay (over at Channel 5) made an indelible mark on my young self. I once told that to Dick, but I was always a little intimidated by Hill, so I never got around to telling him what he meant to me growing up. I’m sorry for that now, but it just goes to show you what kind of man he was. People trembled in his wake.
He stomped on the terra.
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The haves and have-nots
Monday, Oct 21, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
Let’s take a quick look at the campaign finance disclosure reports filed last week by some statewide candidates, shall we?
Bill Brady — It goes without saying that the $66,104 Brady reported raising during the third quarter was beyond pathetic. But here’s how bad the Republican gubernatorial candidate’s performance really was — even Sheila Simon outraised him.
Simon, a notoriously poor fundraiser, pulled in more than $106,000 during the quarter. And if it wasn’t for the $200K in leftover funds from his 2010 governor’s race, Brady would’ve reported having just $73,000 at the end of the quarter. He also spent a bit more than he took in, which isn’t very difficult considering his paltry take.
Kirk Dillard — The burn rate in Dillard’s gubernatorial campaign fund is pretty significant. Dillard raised $263,000, but he spent $290,000 and ended the quarter with a mere $205,000 in the bank, the lowest of any other gubernatorial candidate.
That’s a big overhead nut to make with such a small cushion and poor fundraising.
Bruce Rauner — The multimillionaire Republican candidate for governor spent more than $27,000 just on payroll taxes during the third quarter, which gives you an idea of the sort of organization he has built. By comparison, Gov. Pat Quinn spent $19,000 on payroll taxes during the quarter, Dan Rutherford reported spending $11,000, Brady $1,609, and Dillard reported none.
Rauner also reported spending $800,000 on advertising, including direct mail, which is slightly less than he spent in the previous quarter. None of his opponents spent more than a few dollars on ads, and those were mainly small newspaper or online placements. Since he launched his campaign, Rauner has spent $274,000 on consultants, with $103,000 spent just last quarter. Rauner raised about $1.1 million for his campaign fund, spent the same and ended with $594,000 on hand.
Rauner’s political action committee, which is seeking a constitutional amendment on the ballot next year to impose legislative term limits, has paid $114,000 to a California firm called Arno Petition Consultants.
A California petition company called Arno Political Consultants has stirred quite a bit of controversy in the past with its petition-gathering practices, so we should keep an eye on that. Rauner’s term limits PAC also has spent $38,000 in legal fees and is renting space from a group called “Catholic Vote.”
The term limits PAC raised $606,000 during the quarter, spent $152,000 and had $459,000 in the bank.
Dan Rutherford — The Republican state treasurer reported raising $66,000 in small “unitemized” contributions for his governor’s race, more than any gubernatorial candidate in either party.
Unlike Dillard and Brady, Rutherford has built a solid statewide network to raise money from, so Rauner’s support by all the big-money types hasn’t really hurt Rutherford. He raised $337,000 during the quarter, spent $147,000 and had $1.2 million in the bank at the end of the quarter.
Pat Quinn — The governor is sitting on the largest war chest of any gubernatorial candidate at just under $3 million. His disclosure report also revealed that Quinn has put Joe Slade White back on the payroll.
White designed Quinn’s inexpensive-looking but effective 2010 general election ad campaign. White was paid $10K on Sept. 10, a week before Bill Daley dropped out of the Democratic race, so Quinn obviously was gearing up to run some ads against Daley. Quinn spent a total of $51,000 on consulting services and $34,000 on salaries during the quarter.
Tom Cross — The GOP state treasurer candidate opened up a new campaign account in September that pulled in $176,000 and reported no expenditures. Cross’ state representative fund reported $155,000 in receipts, $195,000 in expenditures and $150,000 in the bank.
Mike Frerichs — The Democratic state treasurer candidate raised $208,000 and had an impressive $769,000 cash on hand, more than three of the five gubernatorial candidates. The guy is a fundraising machine.
Judy Baar Topinka — The incumbent comptroller raised $105,000 during the quarter, about the same as her Democratic rival Simon. However, Topinka is sitting on $876,000, while Simon has $295,000 in the bank.
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Caption contest!
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Henry Bayer has been reelected…
Henry is often ascerbic, but he’s unapologetically and unabashedly pro-union and has built one of the most impressive public employee organizations in the country.
* Let’s congratulate Henry on his reelection with a little caption contest, shall we?…
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Fun with numbers
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This would be very troubling if true…
State Sen. Dave Luechtefeld (R-Okawville), is voicing concern over increasing violence in the state’s Department of Corrections, noting the number of inmate-on-staff assaults are up more than 20 percent in the most recent fiscal year that ended June 30.
“530 officers and other frontline staff were assaulted during Fiscal Year 2013, that number is a sharp increase from the previous 428. By looking at the Department’s figures we also see that this is the highest number of hits since FY 2004,” Luechtefeld said. “Our primary concern is for the staff at these institutions and we will remain steadfast in our support of their safety and ensuring that our correctional centers do not revert back to a more turbulent and violent time.”
Using the Illinois Department of Correction’s (IDOC) own numbers, Luechtefeld found the number of inmate-on-staff assaults at the state’s correctional centers is at the highest rate of assaults in 10 years.
* There are big problems with this analysis, however. According to Corrections, they count assaults differently today than they did in FY2004. Back then, minor things like spitting on a guard were not listed as assaults. Now they are. IDOC also has two classifications of assaults, regular and “serious.” The “serious” assaults are similar to what they counted as assaults ten years ago. Also, there are more inmates now than back then.
* IDOC’s full response…
Serious assaults on staff in Illinois prisons were down in FY13 and serious assaults of all types were down 35 percent in the same period. As for the FY13 overall assault total being “…highest since FY04,” please keep in mind we now have 10.5 percent more inmates than 10 years ago.
Most important, unlike FY04, IDOC now chooses to classify even very minor physical occurrences such as spitting, throwing food or an I.D. as an assault if they so much as touch a guard’s shoe. Also, when guards break up inmate fights, that could be an assault on staff. All of this inflates assault numbers.
Why do we practice these classifications? Because it increases safety and security by creating an atmosphere of zero tolerance. Inmates know that even the slightest behavior issue will hurt their earned time. Calling them out on small matters keeps them in line, which is why overall serious assaults are down 35 percent. By the way, inmate-on-inmate serious assaults were down 51 percent from FY12 to FY13.
Regarding Pontiac Correctional Center, only 21 percent of assaults there (75 of 345) over the past three calendar years were serious. As for former Tamms inmates, it will take some time to individually check each of those 345 mostly minor incidents, but according to the Warden, an Assistant Warden and numerous staff at Pontiac, former Tamms inmates are no more involved in assaults than are other inmates. In fact, early indications show they are less involved.
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Websites behaving badly
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’m not the only one with site problems today. Steve Rhodes…
The Sun-Times website has been driving me crazy for weeks now, as it frequently does, by freezing my browser as it loads . . . and loads . . . and loads. I don’t know if they’re running some hellacious script over there, but I’m not going back for awhile.
The Tribune and the Sun-Times websites were both crashing my browsers today. Insane.
* Also, Gatehouse’s awful pop-under which displays their “Up to the Minute” page has got to be revamped. It causes a huge memory leak that inevitably crashes my browser if I don’t close it right away. I cannot tell you how many incomplete blog posts I’ve lost because of that stupid page.
A week or two ago, I woke up in the morning to find that everything on my computer was unbelievably slow. I finally realized that one of those moronic “Up to the Minute” pages had been left open all night. I have a Mac. It takes a lot to stop a Mac. But Gatehouse (SJ-R, PJStar, RRStar, etc.) routinely does so. Enough, already.
Hey, if I want to see a site’s latest posts, I’ll just refresh my browser, OK? Stop causing harm.
* And while I’m at it, my paid Crain’s subscription works fine on my home computer, but their site won’t let me access their subscriber content on my laptop. Ugh!
* Are there any particularly nasty website problems out there that you’d like to talk about?
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* Back in 2011, the governor and all four legislative leaders signed on to a bill pushed by the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. The idea was to protect physical retailers from being undercut by online retailers who don’t charge sales taxes. It flew out of both chambers and was quickly signed into law.
Here’s a basic summary of the law from an Illinois Supreme Court ruling today which struck the statute down…
(O)ut-of-state internet retailers and servicemen are required to collect state use tax if they have a contract with a person in Illinois who displays a link on his or her website that connects an Internet user to that remote retailer or serviceman’s website. There is no requirement under the Act that sales be made to Illinois residents to subject the out-of-state retailer or serviceman to Illinois use tax obligations, and there is no requirement that the computer server hosting the Illinois affiliate’s website be located in Illinois. Both new definitions are limited, however, to referral contracts that generate over $10,000 per year.
As a result, Amazon immediately announced that it was ending its Illinois affiliate program and many of those larger affiliates fled to other states.
* All for naught, however. The Court’s conclusion…
The parties’ joint stipulation of facts states that an Internet affiliate does not receive or transmit customer orders, process customer payments, deliver purchased products, or provide presale or postsale customer services. Further, an Internet affiliate displaying a link on its website does not know the identity of Internet users who click on the link, and after a user connects to the retailer’s website, the affiliate has no further involvement with the user.
It is clear, therefore, that there is no interaction between an affiliate and a customer, and no “active” solicitation occurs on the part of the Internet affiliate. The click-through link makes it easier for the customer to reach the out-of-state retailer, but the link is not different in kind from advertising using promotional codes that appear, for example, in Illinois newspapers or Illinois radio broadcasts.
In short, under the Act, performance marketing over the Internet provides the basis for imposing a use tax collection obligation on an out-of-state retailer when a threshold of $10,000 in sales through the clickable link is reached.
However, national, or international, performance marketing by an out-of-state retailer which appears in print or on over-the-air broadcasting in Illinois, and which reach same dollar threshold, will not trigger an Illinois use tax collection obligation. The relevant provisions of the Act therefore impose a discriminatory tax on electronic commerce within the meaning of the [federal Internet Tax Freedom Act].
The federal law referenced in the opinion expressly prohibits “discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.”
*** UPDATE *** From IRMA…
“It’s disappointing that the Illinois Supreme Court did not address the constitutionality of the issue, but rather erred in its conclusion that the act violated the Internet Tax Freedom act.
“We haven’t given up. There are other avenues for appeal we hope the state will take.
“This underscores the need for action in Washington to quickly pass the Marketplace Fairness Act.
“Working with a hodgepodge of laws around the country is intolerable, and brick and mortar retailers continue to be at a substantial disadvantage to their online competitors.”
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* Daily Herald…
A new conservative group will meet Saturday in Lake County to talk to potential primary challengers to Republican state Rep. Ed Sullivan of Mundelein, one of three Illinois Republicans who have pledged to vote for same-sex marriage.
The meeting is being arranged by Illinois Families First, a Chicago-based political action committee led by conservative Paul Caprio, who on Wednesday called Sullivan a “Cadillac representative of everything that is wrong with this state.”
Caprio said the group will be prepared to spend a lot of money to defeat Sullivan in a Republican primary but won’t coordinate with the potential candidate, possibly setting up a high-profile battle over same-sex marriage in the suburbs. […]
“I’m willing to lose my job over this issue,” Sullivan said Wednesday. “But it won’t be without a fight.”
Rep. Sullivan says on his Facebook page that the candidate will likely be Bob Bednar of Mundelein. Bednar won a primary last year for Lake County Recorder of Deeds, but got stomped 59-41 in the general.
If you have some time, go to Sullivan’s FB page and check out the flame war in his comments. Wow.
* In other Sullivan-related news, Caprio’s Illinois Families First has been spending cash against Rep. Sullivan. From the Twitters…
* I told subscribers about this earlier in the week…
State Sen. Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale says there’s no relation between a $12,300 donation his campaign for governor made to the conservative Family PAC and an effort by the group’s director, Paul Caprio, to find a primary election opponent for Republican state Rep. Ed Sullivan of Mundelein.
Caprio has vowed to work against Sullivan, who supports same-sex marriage.
The late-September donation from Dillard is labeled as “marriage telemarketing/grassroots” in campaign records. Dillard spokesman Wes Bleed says the money was to be used to help the campaign network with Family PAC supporters and not to work against Republican candidates.
That’s not the explanation that Caprio gave me, but whatever.
Dillard raises almost no money, yet he still finds a way to give $12,300 to Caprio’s group. Priorities, priorities.
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Quinn again shuts off UNO money
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times…
For the second time this year, Gov. Pat Quinn has suspended state funding to the scandal-scarred United Neighborhood Organization, the biggest charter-school operator in Illinois.
A Quinn spokeswoman said Thursday the state has frozen the final $15 million of a $98 million state school-construction grant that the Illinois Legislature promised UNO in 2009 to help build a network of charter schools.
“As a result of our own internal review conducted earlier this year, we have not approved any new projects, and we have suspended future capital projects,” spokeswoman Sandra M. Jones said. […]
Quinn restored the state funding in early June, saying he was confident UNO had implemented reforms, including the appointment of a new board chairman. Longtime UNO boss Juan Rangel stepped down as board chairman but has remained as the charter operator’s $250,000-a-year chief executive. Rangel served as Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s 2011 campaign co-chairman.
Less than three weeks after the state restored funding, Quinn’s Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity — which oversees the grant — got a letter from the SEC requesting documents about UNO.
* Quinn had cited the appointment of Martin Cabrera Jr. as the reason why he restored funding. Cabrera is a close ally and business partner of powerful Chicago Ald. Ed Burke, who personally asked Quinn to restore UNO’s funding. Burke was a major contributor to Quinn’s 2010 campaign.
But Cabrera Capital Markets, which Martin Cabrera founded and runs, was one of two underwriters for a $37.5 million 2011 UNO bond issue. And when the SEC came calling, Cabrera beat a retreat and abruptly resigned as UNO’s chairman.
Cabrera Capital Markets has become a major national player. The company has nine office locations, including NYC and LA, and it was one of Facebook’s underwriters for the social network’s 2012 IPO.
* Needless to say, an SEC investigation into a bond deal for a charter school outfit which has gazillions of political ties to every major Democratic political player in this state could turn out to be very enlightening indeed.
However, allow me once again to complain about the federal government’s priorities here. We get an SEC investigation into a relatively minor bond deal, while the banksters who shoved the world’s economy off a cliff are still walking free. And while the US Attorney for southern Illinois uses the Sherman Antitrust Act to shut down and prosecute a Metro East tax sales ring, the Justice Department refuses to even consider the possibility of prison for the eager, knowing and willing participants in the greatest financial scam the planet has ever seen.
I’m not complaining about the local investigations one bit. I just wonder why it’s always the little fish who are targeted, while the monster fish swim away.
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Davis’ lead grows over Harold
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Harold could destroy her political future if she winds up getting thumped this badly next March…
A recent poll of Republican voters in the 13th Congressional District gives incumbent Rep. Rodney Davis a 4-to-1 lead over his Republican challenger, Urbana attorney Erika Harold.
The poll of 859 Republicans, taken Oct. 10, showed that Davis was the choice of 63.15 percent of the likely Republican voters, to 15.95 percent for Harold. About 21 percent of those polled were undecided. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.34 percent.
A poll taken exactly four months earlier, on June 10, by the same Springfield polling firm, We Ask America, found that Republicans favored Davis, 53.55 percent to 16.38 percent.
“This is going to be a very tough road for a challenger in a Republican primary,” said Gregg Durham, the CEO of We Ask America. “Republicans seem to be favoring the incumbent, and for a challenger with limited means who is not willing to throw bombs — I think she’s more or less said she’s going to run a positive campaign — absent a major scandal, it’s hard to find a path to success for her.” […]
“I wouldn’t suggest right now that these will be the final numbers,” he said of the poll, “but I would suggest that I’ve never seen someone with these type of numbers win, absent a major scandal.”
Durham is spot on.
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Illiana approved
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Daily Herald…
Amid a split among suburban leaders, the controversial Illiana Expressway received a shot in the arm Thursday when a planning board endorsed the road, marking a significant political victory for Gov. Pat Quinn.
The Illiana is a proposed tollway linking I-55 in the south suburbs with I-65 in Indiana that would be built as a public-private partnership. While Quinn and the Illinois Department of Transportation are backing it as a vital piece of infrastructure, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning warns it will cost taxpayers up to $1.1 billion.
CMAP’s powerful Metropolitan Planning Organization policy committee voted 11 to 8 in favor of putting the roadway on the GO TO 2040 plan, which now makes it eligible for federal funding. The MPO includes county board chairman, transit agencies and transportation industry representatives.
* Tribune…
The toll road through Will County would connect Interstate 55 at Wilmington, I-57 near Peotone and I-65 near Lowell, Ind. Supporters said it would create 9,000 short-term jobs and generate thousands more over the next three decades.
In a separate vote, the Policy Committee also gave IDOT the authority to spend more than $80 million for more engineering and land acquisition. IDOT has already spent about $40 million in planning work on the project. […]
Voting in favor of the Illiana were the county chairmen or their representatives from Will, DuPage, Kane, Kendall and Lake counties, along with officials from the Illinois Tollway, Metra and Pace.
Opponents included representatives from Cook and McHenry counties, the city of Chicago and the CTA and the Regional Transportation Authority.
The RTA has, as a matter of routine, dissed the south suburbs for years on transit projects. Now its hostility has extended to privately backed toll roads. Sheesh.
* What’s next…
Now, the project is set to go out to bid in early November, according to Illinois Transportation Secretary Anne Schneider, who chairs the policy committee. The state is looking for proposals from investment firms that are partnered with engineering and contracting companies.
Schneider said the Federal Highway Administration also needs to approve environmental studies before construction begins on the highway, which she hopes will happen by the end of 2014 or early in 2015.
* However, litigation is almost guaranteed…
Chicago’s Environmental Law and Policy Center, an Illiana foe, is “reviewing all of our legal options,” according to deputy executive director Kevin Brubaker.
20 Comments
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Question of the day
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* SJ-R…
Proponents of a gay marriage bill said Wednesday they want to see the legislation addressed during the General Assembly’s veto session that begins next week.
However, they would not discuss specifics of how many votes they believe there are for the bill in the Illinois House after a summer-long effort to build support.
“We don’t comment publicly on roll call,” John Kohlhelpp, campaign manager for Illinois Unites for Marriage, told The State Journal-Register editorial board. “We take that from our sponsor (Rep. Greg Harris, D-Chicago). He says we are within striking distance.” […]
[Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago] said it is imperative that Illinois legalize gay marriage “to address the harm that’s been done since we failed to pass in the spring and the world changed when the (federal) defense of marriage act was struck down.”
* The Question: Should the sponsors bring the gay marriage bill to the House floor for a 3rd Reading vote even if they’re not sure if they have enough votes to pass it? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
survey hosting
And if the poll gets freeped like the last one on this topic, I’ll just shut it down and we’ll rely solely on commenters.
54 Comments
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And we’re back
Friday, Oct 18, 2013 - Posted by Rich Miller
* According to my web hosting guys, my server became corrupted last night. They’re not sure how yet, but this being Illinois I’m guessing corruption is everywhere and the possibilities are almost infinite.
Anyway, here’s an #OscarThePuppy video to tide you over while I get a post together. Oscar isn’t supposed to play with newspapers because he shreds them, but they’re one of his favorite things. He usually does really well with the “Drop it” command when it comes to his toys, but not so much with newspapers, as you’ll see…
…Adding… A recent aftermath of Oscar’s love for newspapers and magazines…
Heh.
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