* The governor recently asked him to stay on, so this is, by far, the biggest Rauner defection of the week. Boom…
Xpress Professional Services, Inc. (XPS) today announced that Mike Zolnierowicz of Chicago will head up XPS’ political operation starting Monday, July 17 and will concentrate on building the firm’s strategic political service. According to XPS Chief Executive Officer Greg Baise, Zolnierowicz’ background in political campaigns and his administrative experience as Chief of Staff for Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner dovetails perfectly with XPS’ business portfolio.
“Mike Z has proven himself both on the campaign trail and at the administrative helm of state government,” Baise said. “His understanding of the political environment extends beyond Illinois’ border, and his list of accomplishments is second to none in this very complex arena.”
After serving as Deputy Campaign Manager of Governor Bruce Rauner’s election campaign, Zolnierowicz—known simply as Mike Z to most in the political world— served as Transition Director for Governor Rauner’s incoming administration (First transition of Democrat Governor to Republican Governor in 30 years), and served as Rauner’s Chief of Staff from inauguration until June, 2016. He left that position to serve as Chief Strategic Advisor for GOP political operations through the 2016 elections where he presided over the increase of six GOP seats in the Illinois House in a campaign cycle President Trump lost Illinois by 17 points. Z was also the Chief Strategist for the statewide safe roads ballot initiative that won approval with 80% in 2016. In 2016 Z was featured in Crain’s Chicago “40 Under 40” series. Zolnierowicz managed
Congressman Rodney Davis’ first Congressional race in 2012 and served as deputy chief of staff for U.S. Senator Mark Kirk. He graduated from Downers Grove North High School and graduated Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude from Hope College.
Mike Z will join another Kirk alum, Eric Elk, who heads up XPS’ Fulcrum Illinois division.
Founded in 2004, XPS, Inc. is an independent for-profit subsidiary of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association that has conducted campaign communications in eight states and specializes in measuring and shaping public opinions for both elections and issued-based efforts.
Zolnierowicz did not return messages seeking comment, but sources close to him say he was disturbed at a series of high-level Rauner staff changes this week, ending up this afternoon with the termination or resignation of most of the governor’s policy staff. Most of those positions reportedly will be filled with personnel from the Illinois Policy Institute, a liberatarian Chicago think tank which strongly opposes tax hikes and says the state’s budget woes can be solved via spending cuts and slashed benefits for state and local government workers.
* Rep. Sam Yingling (D-Grayslake) is sending a robocall into his district urging residents to call Gov. Rauner…
* Transcript…
Hi, this is State Representative Sam Yingling.
This morning, following the historic floods in our area, I asked Governor Rauner to declare a Lake County a disaster area, but as of now he has ignored my request.
Our district really needs him to act now in order for our neighbors to gain access to federal resources.
If you have a moment, please call the Governor and urge him to do his job and declare a Lake County a disaster area.
The purge within Gov. Bruce Rauner’s government continues today. Even as the governor was touring flood plagued Lake County—a little late, in the opinion of some—most of what left of his policy staff was being axed or hitting the road before they could be canned.
Here’s who’s out, according to multiple reliable sources:
• Corrections and criminal justice adviser Jennifer Grady-Paswater;
• Jason Heffley, who handled environment and energy and helped cut the recent Exelon nuclear funding deal;
• Brian Oszakiewski who came from the staff of U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Chicago, and who handled transportation;
• Daniel Suess, who made policy recs for smaller state agencies.
Says one Rauner insider with a bird’s eye view of all of this: “The IPI (Illinois Policy Institute) folks have fully taken over. This government is going to be a petri dish for them for the next year and a half,” until Rauner’s term is up.
Brian O turned in his resignation earlier today. He walked out on his own and isn’t looking back. The other dismissals reportedly came after the governor finished his Lake County photo op.
Heffley is a huge talent, by the way. And he has a family.
…Adding… From a Jennifer Grady-Paswater friend…
She had a great gig at ISP and was really respected but left it to help Rauner with his criminal agenda. Without her help, many of the reform bills wouldn’t have moved. It’s a real shame.
That’s the thing that grates about this purge. These folks aren’t being fired because they’re incompetent. They’re all talented folks. They’re being shoved aside because they don’t align with the “new ideology.” And, in the past, including in this administration, when people were moved out of the governor’s office a spot was found for them in an agency, or on the campaign or whatever. Not under the new regime. They’re being dumped into the cold.
“This is a clear signal John Tillman, the CEO of the Illinois Policy Institute, has a firm grip on the new regime in the Rauner administrative,” a top Sneed source said.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Rauner spokesperson Eleni Demertzis has just resigned. Unlike some of the others, Eleni walked out on her own terms.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Allie Bovis, who oversees agency communications and was the traveling press secretary today for the governor’s trip to Lake County, has submitted her resignation effective next Friday. She’s also leaving on her own terms.
Both Demertzis and Bovis will hopefully be fine. They are top notch and should be able to get private sector gigs rather quickly.
*** UPDATE 3 *** Jared Dubnow, who is the governor’s Director of Operations, is reportedly leaving and will be going to DCEO. He made the trains run on time, but before that he was the governor’s top advance man and was Rauner’s “body man” during the campaign.
REPORTER: Have you been too preoccupied with reorganizing your staff and not focusing on this?
RAUNER: Not whatsoever. We have been monitoring this situation very closely, if I was needed here or requested here I would be here. I’m here today to say thank you ’cause we got awesome first responders.
2) Rep. Yingling received this phone message from a Rauner staffer at 10:50 this morning telling him that the governor was on his way in a few minutes…
I apologize for the last-minute notice. I’m sure you saw we had some staff changes, so things are fluid right now
That’s interesting. Folks focused on, um, administration personnel issues.
But we’re always building and enhancing, uh, the best team we can possibly have. I’m incredibly proud we’ve got an outstanding team. I think we’ve got the best team to lead uh, the, um turnaround and restoration and transformation of the state of Illinois.
And then he went on another one of his patented long soliloquies about the problems in Illinois, including saying property taxes “are too dang high and we’re gonna work to bring ‘em down,” before reporters got him back on topic…
We are always trying to recruit and retain the best people in America to serve the people of Illinois. That’s all that matters.
* Related…
* Mark Brown: Rauner won’t talk about Trump but borrows from his playbook
Moody’s: New revenues will begin to flow, but disparities and uncertainty remain for Illinois and its municipalities
Despite improved revenue prospects following the passage of its first comprehensive budget since fiscal year 2015, the State of Illinois (Baa3 review for downgrade) and its municipalities face lingering credit challenges, according to Moody’s Investors Service in a new report examining the budget’s implications.
“Illinois projects its income tax increases will generate an additional $4.7 billion in fiscal 2018,” says David Levett, a Moody’s assistant vice president and analyst. “The funds will help ease a long-running cash crunch that has driven up a $15 billion backlog of unpaid bills and placed growing pressure on other issuers in the state.”
The budget legislation authorizes supplemental cash resources totaling $7.5 billion, primarily consisting of the ability to issue as much as $6 billion of general obligation debt, to help pay down the state’s unpaid bills. However, the state’s ability to generate sustained surpluses to prevent further growth in its backlog remains unclear.
Among downstream issuers that receive state aid, K-12 public school districts face the greatest uncertainty since they will not receive revenue appropriated by the new budget until a separate, evidence-based funding model is enacted. The General Assembly passed a bill on May 31 that would adopt such a funding formula, but the governor does not support the bill in its current form. Any delay would further pressure school districts, including Chicago Public Schools (B3 rating under review)
“School districts with low property tax wealth or high poverty face the greatest risk from a state funding disruption because of their material dependence on state aid,” said Levett. “School districts with high property wealth and healthy reserves will be minimally affected.”
For public colleges and universities, the passage of a budget relieves some immediate operating and liquidity pressures by backfilling a material portion of a funding gap for fiscal year 2017. The comptroller has announced the release of $523 million, using existing education funds, to the state’s colleges and universities to cover MAP and operational funding. However, the ongoing timing of additional and future payments from the state is uncertain given the state’s massive bill backlog.
Smaller, regional public universities in Illinois are also confronting material challenges that linger following two years without a full budget. Their competitive positions have been impaired due to reputational damage, program and staff reductions, and notable enrollment declines that will continue this fall.
Community colleges, which had more flexibility to weather pressures during the two year impasse, will benefit from the renewed flow of funding for scholarship programs and state appropriations Although the state’s budget cuts some revenues for Illinois’ cities and counties, state aid distributions should become more timely, reducing uncertainty for local governments.
Extended delays in Medicaid payments from the state during the budget impasse had a limited effect on the majority of rated NFP hospitals, but came as hospitals continue to experience lower Medicare reimbursements and declining rate increases from commercial insurers. Illinois hospitals will thus benefit from the increase in unrestricted cash and investments as the state makes its payments. The June 30 ruling expediting state Medicaid payments will also benefit Illinois’ hospitals.
We’re gonna make sure that it’s done on a basis that’s fair for taxpayers all across the state and it doesn’t benefit only one community at the expense of residents of other communities.
Please share with me your best ideas for transforming Illinois through better public policy and improved operations by Friday at 3:00 p.m.
* The Question: There’s not much time left, so what are your “best ideas for transforming Illinois through better public policy and improved operations”?
It should go without saying that Wordslinger is a frequent critic of the House Democrats’ messaging. He ain’t Steve Brown.
Sheesh.
* The poor darlings were apparently stung by this Wordslinger comment on a story yesterday aimed at them…
If I could be radically candid, don’t tell me your problems, tell me your solutions that you can accomplish through the democratic processes as set forth by the Constitution and statute.
You’re in an action position now, not a coffee klatch. The taxpayers are compensating you very well. Get to work.
As a candidate for governor, Democrat Chris Kennedy has called for a sweeping overhaul of a property tax system he calls “a racket” that enables politically connected lawyers to arrange lucrative breaks for their clients.
But as the part-owner and manager of a four-acre parcel near the Merchandise Mart, Kennedy leveraged the very system he now condemns to shave $1.5 million off property tax bills for the lot, known as Wolf Point, just as he and partners were priming it for a $1 billion high-rise development.
An investigation by the Better Government Association found that Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios had initially calculated a $23.5 million fair market value in 2012 for the then mostly undeveloped Wolf Point property. That was up sharply from the pre-2012 valuation by the assessor’s office of $13.5 million.
Instead, Kennedy appealed the valuation through the law firm of Thomas Tully, himself a former Cook County Assessor, who since 2012 has donated more than $135,000 to political funds tied to Berrios.
The appeal filed by Tully centered on an argument that the assessor had mistakenly thought a revenue producing three-story parking garage occupied the Wolf Point property. Such a structure had once existed but had long since been demolished and replaced by a surface parking lot.
In the appeal, Tully said it was proper to only consider revenue produced by the surface lot in calculating the property’s value for tax purposes. Berrios’ office agreed, choosing not to factor in the development potential of a property that the Kennedy group had already begun trying to exploit by 2012.
So, is there hypocrisy here? Some, but Kennedy did have a fiduciary responsibility to his investors at the time. And it’s not like he was ripping out toilets to game the system. The property was clearly being assessed too high. And Kennedy’s first hand experience ought to give him some credibility to talk about the system’s many problems. Instead, the BGA goes for “sizzle” stories.
Forecasters say flooding in north-suburban Chicago could worsen over the weekend as water flows down rivers into the state from Wisconsin.
The National Weather Service says the Des Plaines River and Fox River could crest on Saturday even though the area isn’t getting fresh rainfall. The flooding prompted Lake County to issue a disaster declaration.
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, state Emergency Management Agency Director James Joseph and Lake County officials plan to survey flood damage Friday in Gurnee.
Rauner is slotted to visit the county today for a 10 a.m. briefing according to Lake County Chairman Aaron Lawlor. Lawlor said the call from Rauner’s office didn’t come until nearly 6 p.m. on Thursday. […]
Rauner was getting trounced in the local media for failing to visit, fly over, make a statement or even send a Tweet, after an unprecedented amount of rainfall in northern Illinois caused flash flooding, leaving subdivisions under water, shutting down a major amusement park, flooding a community college and even prompting the evacuation of a local hospital. Just over the border, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is showing him up. Rauner won’t even see Illinois’ damage until today, Walker already declared a state of emergency in Kenosha, Racine and Walworth counties and deployed 100 members of the National Guard to assist with resident checks and other flooding-related complications.
* And from a press release…
Senator Melinda Bush (D-Grayslake) and Representative Sam Yingling (D-Round Lake Beach) issued a joint statement in response to the governor’s visit to Lake County to tour flood sites:
“Lake County residents have been working to pick up the pieces after major flash floods hit the area. The governor has not declared a state of emergency for Lake County, so residents with devastating property damage and no flood insurance have been unable to get access to low-interest loans that help people rebuild.
“Today, the governor will be in Lake County touring flood sites. The devastation experienced by our constituents over the last few days needs to be seen to be understood. Clean up from this historic flooding is going to take all of us working together.
“With more flooding expected to occur this weekend, we urge Governor Rauner to do what Governor Walker has already done, declare a state of emergency and call in the National Guard to provide much-needed relief to flood victims. Lake County residents need this help immediately.”
…Adding… The governor is not scheduled to view any areas of Rep. Yingling’s district and neither Bush nor Yingling have yet been contacted by the governor’s office. Very, very bad form.
…Adding More… A phone message left for Rep. Yingling by a Rauner staffer at 10:50 this morning, a half an hour or so after I posted that first “Adding”…
Hi Representative. This is [name] calling from the Governor’s office. I just wanted to let you know that he is going to be in Lake County this morning. He will be stopping in Gurnee at Warren Township High School to survey the flood damage and he’ll also be in North Chicago at the Strawberry Condominiums from 11:30 to noon. I apologize for the last-minute notice. I’m sure you saw we had some staff changes, so things are fluid right now. Hope you are staying dry. And let me know if you would like more details for this morning’s events. Otherwise just want to let you know he’s around your area. Have a nice weekend, thanks, bye.
* We’ve talked a little about this before, but here’s Greg Hinz…
Democrats may have provided most of the votes to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto of the state’s new budget and income tax hike, but the Dems in the process picked up an idea that GOP fiscal conservatives have been pushing for years: reduced money for municipalities and other local governments.
My reference is to a little-noticed provision in the budget implementation bill, or BIMP, that imposes a 2 percent “collection fee” on sales taxes gathered for the locals by the Illinois Department of Revenue.
The handling charge will apply to sales taxes levied by local governments, including not only obvious targets such the city, Cook County, Schaumburg, Evanston, et al., but also the Regional Transportation Authority and levies by the Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority on automobile rentals and hotels, according to an analysis by the Illinois Municipal League.
The levy will not apply to the 1.25 percent local share of the state’s mandatory 6.25 percent sales tax, only to additional levies beyond that figure that are imposed by local governments. But it’s still an estimated $60 million-a-year hit, says the league, which is not at all happy about the loss.
This idea was first floated by the governor’s office.
A decision to move the annual Illinois State Fair Twilight Parade Aug. 10 is being criticized by defenders of a decades-long tradition.
The parade for years has headed north up Ninth Street/Peoria Road. This year, it will start in Lincoln Park and then go north through the park to Sangamon Avenue, bypassing Ninth Street/Peoria Road altogether.
“Personally, I’m not in favor of it,” Mayor Jim Langfelder said Thursday. “It comes down to the tradition of the parade route. I’m not sure if they realize the thousands of people who come out and enjoy the parade.”
Rebecca Clark, communications manager for the Illinois Department of Agriculture, said there are advantages to moving the parade. She said the starting point in Lincoln Park provides handicapped-accessible bathrooms, more shade from the mid-summer heat, and water fountains for parade participants and spectators. […]
Clark said there will also be cost-savings because fewer streets will need to be blocked off. The fair is charged by the city for the blocked-off streets, she said, a cost that is expected to drop from about $10,000 to less than $5,000.
Saving money is good. And, who knows, maybe it’ll be a better parade. Wait and see.
The Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees on Wednesday reviewed a financial sustainability plan for the Carbondale campus that recommends the closure of seven programs and the consolidation of some departments.
Even with state appropriations restored after the passage of Illinois’ first full budget in two years, administrators say the sweeping structural changes are needed to account for SIUC’s dwindling student enrollment.
The financial sustainability plan recommends the closure of the following programs “based on a significant history of low enrollment and substantially weaker comparative performance on other metrics”:
Illinois lawmakers who recently ended the longest fiscal standoff of any state since the Great Depression are counting on an ironic strategy to dig out of mountains of debt: borrowing even more money.
It’s an unorthodox approach, considering deficit spending largely created the mess, and Illinois’ worst-in-the-nation credit rating makes borrowing inordinately expensive. However, supporters say it’s the best way to begin to erase $14.6 billion in overdue payments to vendors and service providers.
Bills that are 90 or more days past due incur 12 percent in late-payment fees. By paying off a chunk of that at a time with the sale of bond proceeds, the state could cut that rate in half.
“We are being smothered by our liability and our indebtedness, not only in the state and trying to deal with the budget, but with the people we owe money,” said Democratic Sen. Donne Trotter, of Chicago, the assistant majority leader who sponsored the measure.
Trotter said it currently takes Illinois about 200 days to pay a bill, but his plan would reduce that to as few as 60 days.
The Democratic-controlled General Assembly endorsed the budget — and a $6 billion borrowing scheme — over Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s vetoes. However, it’s unclear whether Rauner will actually use the borrowing authority given to him. He has said nothing about it in the 10 days since the budget was passed, and his spokeswoman, Eleni Demertzis, declined to comment on Thursday.
It’s not necessarily “unorthodox.” For two years, the state spent more than it was taking in, under judicial orders and executive branch contracts and leases. Revenues now balance with spending, but businesses and not-for-profits are owed billions. Continuing to borrow from them is irresponsible and forces continued and unnecessary hardships. It’s therefore better (and in many cases cheaper) to borrow on the bond markets.
Even as parts of the Chicago area clean up from torrential rains that deluged waterways, streets and basements, the worst could still be yet to come for some areas as stormwater flowing from the north could bring with it record flooding in the coming days.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources said Thursday that unprecedented water levels flowing downstream from Wisconsin are expected to cause problems in northern Illinois in the coming days — even if there’s no additional rainfall.
“Flooding of this magnitude has not been seen before,” a statement from the department warned. [Emphasis added.]
* You would think the governor’s new crack PR team would be all over this. As the old saying (from Gov. Rauner himself) goes: “Crisis creates opportunity.” Yeah, he just vetoed the budgets for IEMA, ISP and IDNR, so that might be tough to explain, but I doubt any local reporters will bring it up.
As a former Rauner staffer said today, going to Lake County would allow Rauner to look like he’s “in control” and “gubernatorial,” and could help deflect questions about his recent staff hires.
The governor has only one event on his schedule today, an appearance this afternoon with the First Lady at Chicago’s Lurie Children’s Hospital (no media availability, by the way). But even if he wants to avoid Lake County to let people do their work, he hasn’t sent out any statements about the flooding, even though Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital was evacuated yesterday. I mean, he hasn’t even mentioned the floods on his Twitter page.
…Adding… As a buddy of mine points out, he could also just fly over the area in the state helicopter.
* To give you an idea of the usual protocol, this is what the governor’s office sent out on May 1st…
Governor Rauner this morning activated the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in Springfield to ensure state personnel and equipment are ready to be quickly deployed if needed to help local emergency responders with flooding-related public safety issues in several areas of the state.
“Several inches of rain has caused our rivers to swell, which has caused flooding in some communities. In order to expedite any state assistance to protect residents and critical infrastructure, I activated the State Emergency Operations Center with personnel from several key agencies to quickly react to any requests,” said Governor Rauner.
Representatives from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA), Illinois State Police (ISP), the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), Illinois Department of Public Health, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the American Red Cross (ARC) have reported to the SEOC to coordinate deployment of state resources and personnel to assist communities preparing for or already battling floodwaters.
Nothing like that was issued either today or yesterday as far as I can tell.
Shortly before 3 o’clock, I asked the governor’s office whether the State Emergency Operations Center had been activated and what else the governor is doing. I delayed this post for an hour to allow them time to respond. I’ll let you know if they ever reply.
…Adding… From a “senior Illinois Republican leader”…
He’s replaced major leaguers with single A amateurs. What do you expect from them?
*** UPDATE 1 *** From a link posted in comments…
* Gov. Scott Walker called for National Guard in southern Wisconsin to help with flooding cleanup: Gov. Scott Walker declared a state of emergency and called up the National Guard to assist residents in parts of Racine, Kenosha and Walworth counties in dealing with flooding after yesterday’s historic rains. Eighty-five National Guard members were helping at various areas in southern Wisconsin, including Burlington, which was heavily flooded.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Mary Ann Ahern tweeted she’s hearing Rauner may show up in Lake County tomorrow, days after the flooding started on Wednesday.
During his 2014 campaign, Bruce Rauner repeatedly bragged about the “superstars” he would bring into state government. With these “superstars,” he claimed he would “drive a result” and revitalize state government with an outsider perspective.
Fast forward to present and Rauner’s new team of “superstars” is actually a group of radical right-wing Illinois Policy Institute staffers with limited government experience and fantasy budget proposals. The only result they’re going to achieve is further devastation and more crises as schools and working families continue to pay the price.
“The only thing this new team will be super at is dragging Illinois down a right-wing path of economic destruction,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “In the backward fantasyland they’ve proposed, Illinois children will be left with shuttered school buildings and public universities will shut down. With these ‘superstars’ charting the course, it’s clear that Bruce Rauner is looking to retire with a bang.”
We need to assemble the most talented team of leaders and executives who’ve ever turned around a state government, and that’s what we’re going to do. That’s what I’ve done my whole life. Every time we start a business or invest in a business or build a business, we try and put the most talented team that really knows that industry or that sector. That’s what we do. That’s what I’ve done for 32 years. I’ve assembled dozens and dozens and dozens of super talented teams. That’s how we succeeded. Evelyn and I are committed to assembling talent. The most talented people from around Illinois we want to bring them into here, into Springfield to turn the government around.
You know, Mitch Daniels is my role model. Mitch Daniels brought in 30 superstars from the private sector around Indiana and around America into Indianapolis and had them put in charge of the government to run the government efficiently and effectively and transparently, and that’s exactly what we want to do here.
Now be careful. If you raise your hands during this, I may actually recruit you to come in and work for the government, so be slow to raise your hand. But I want to assemble… we’re very blessed. We’ve already had many executives come to us and say ‘Bruce, like your leadership, like your message, love the state of Illinois, and I’d be willing to work for a dollar a year too. I’ll give back for a few years. We’ll come in, and we’ll work for the government and help transform it.’ We need expertise in pensions, expertise in Medicaid, expertise in tax strategy, expertise in business policy, expertise in workers comp.
We need brilliant people who are doing it for the right reasons to drive a result.
I wonder whatever happened to all those business executives who said they’d work for a dollar a year?
* The Illinois Policy Institute has a new post entitled “Understanding why the new budget fails Illinoisans.” Here’s point 5…
It sets up Illinois for another unbalanced budget in 3 years
Illinois’ budget will still end up underwater in just a few years, even with $5 billion in tax hikes.
Even if all the 2018 budget’s assumed savings are successfully implemented, the state will be back to deficit spending again by 2021 based on conservative projections of the state’s revenues and expenditures.*
Pension costs could rise due to new actuarial assumptions or a downturn in the stock market. Department spending on core government services could eat into planned budget balances. Tax revenues could fall as more people leave to avoid paying the 32 percent income tax hike.
Deficits will occur because the budget doesn’t fix the state’s true problem: out-of-control government spending.
*The Illinois Policy Institute assumes both revenues and expenditures will grow 2 percent annually. If the presumed savings ($1.1 billion of pension savings and $814 million of “unspent appropriations”), revenues or additional expenditures (up to $700 million in additional annual debt service to pay down the backlog of bills) are off in any way, the state could be deficit-spending as soon as fiscal year 2019.
Good point. But if our governor actually proposed and then worked to pass a legitimate and reasonable budget for once, he could get in front of problems by controlling some state spending. He also doesn’t have to spend all the money appropriated in the new budget. He can choose to not sign leases and contracts, and he can work to lower those and other costs.
That’s what governors are supposed to do, not just sit back and let everything run on auto-pilot and then demand that the General Assembly craft a budget plan for him - and then veto the end product when that finally happens.
Rauner’s New Right-Wing Staff Not as Silent as the Governor on Health Care
Will Rauner’s Right-Wing Reset Include Siding with IPI, and Calling for Ending ACA’s Expansion?
This morning, the Senate Republicans released their newest version of Trumpcare, and will look to vote on the measure in the coming days. Last time the Senate offered legislation it failed in part due to pressure from Republican and Democratic Governors…not named Bruce Rauner
Despite the calls for leadership from the public and press, Rauner refused to comment on Trumpcare. Rauner was ridiculed for his silence. The Sun-Times called Rauner “AWOL” while Lynn Sweet wondered if Rauner had any “guiding principles.” Greg Hinz of Crain’s Chicago said Rauner’s silence was “lame” while other Governors forcefully spoke out.
Trumpcare has the potential to devastate Illinois’ budget and people. Its cuts to Medicaid would blow a $40 billion hole in the state’s budget. Rauner, fresh off his latest bipartisan budget defeat, has chosen to ignore this ax hanging over the fiscal future of the state.
One Illinois group has an idea, though; The Illinois Policy Institute has called for ending the Medicaid Expansion in Obamacare, currently providing coverage to 650,000 Illinois residents, to cut the budget.
Does Governor Rauner agree with his new staff that Obamacare’s Medicaid Expansion needs to be rolled back?
“For months, Rauner kept his silence on Trumpcare for political expediency,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “He has failed to lead in the Trumpcare debate and abdicated responsibility for standing up for the welfare of Illinois’ residents. Trumpcare would drive up premiums for middle class families while stripping protections for people, and blowing a hole in the state budget. While other Republican Governors have stood up and made their voices heard, Rauner’s silence on Trumpcare helps it succeed.”
Central Illinois state legislators returned to a familiar target early and often while addressing Twin City business leaders on Thursday at Illinois State University.
“(House) Speaker (Michael) Madigan inserted a clause into the budget bill that holds schools hostage,” said State Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet. “No one in this room would ever say, ‘This is a legitimate negotiating tactic, let’s hold schoolchildren hostage.’ … Those type of tactics from the speaker not only aren’t right, but make it almost impossible to find some sort of consensus.”
Rose joined Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady, State Sen. Jason Barickman and State Rep. Dan Brady, all Bloomington Republicans, in blaming Madigan, a Chicago Democrat, for many of the state’s ills during a forum with the McLean County Chamber of Commerce at the Hancock Stadium Club.
* As the Pantagraph story clearly notes, “No one in this room” included Bill Brady. It just so happens that Sen. Brady sponsored the Republicans’ “Capitol Compromise” budget package. The appropriations bill in that package included this language…
The following amounts, or so much thereof as may be necessary, are appropriated to the Illinois State Board of Education for Evidence-Based Funding, provided for in Section 18-8.15 of the School Code:
Payable from the Education Assistance Fund ………71,349,300
Payable from the Common School Fund ………….3,611,012,300
Payable from the General Revenue Fund ………..1,863,211,200
Payable from the Fund for the Advancement of Education:……….641,000,000
* Now, look at the approp bill that passed both chambers and became law…
The following amounts, or so much thereof as may be necessary, are appropriated to the Illinois State Board of Education for Evidence-Based Funding, provided for in Section 18-8.15 of the School Code:
Payable from the Education Assistance Fund……..243,349,300
Payable from the Common School Fund………….3,611,012,300
Payable from the General Revenue Fund………..2,203,098,300
Payable from the Fund for the Advancement of Education……….619,000,000
Those highlighted “for Evidence-Based Funding” passages are what Rep. Rose was talking about. Billions of dollars can’t be spent on K-12 until the state has an evidenced-based funding law on the books. SB 1, which hasn’t yet been sent to the governor, includes that needed language.
* Not only that, but Sen. Rose himself publicly supported Brady’s bill. If you click here, you’ll see a Sen. Rose press release touting his support for the “Capitol Compromise.”
* But despite its obvious shortcomings, the above Pantagraph story is hugely insightful. Buried way down is this passage…
“No one’s more disappointed than the four of us” about the lack of reforms, said Bill Brady.
He added education funding reform “is a leverage point we have that we hope we can use to get the reforms that were on the table.” The budget requires a new state funding formula for K-12 schools before they receive any more money — the tactic Rose criticized.
So, it appears that Sen. Brady wants to do exactly what Sen. Rose said no one should ever do. According to Brady’s own words, he wants to use the pending crisis of schools not opening because of the current lack of an evidenced-based model as “leverage” to pass the governor’s reforms.
* This money has been piling up unused in special state accounts for months. The House Democrats included the cash in their “Lifeline Budget” in May, which the governor opposed and which went nowhere in the Senate. Appropriations from that fund were included in the bipartisan budget deal that the governor vetoed but Comptroller Mendoza supported, so she took the opportunity to announce the disbursement…
Using over $695 million in existing education funds, Illinois Comptroller Susana A. Mendoza announced today the first release of funds to state colleges and universities in more than seven months.
The recent override of Governor Bruce Rauner’s veto of the state’s first comprehensive budget in over two years provided appropriation authority to utilize existing higher education funds.
State colleges and universities had not received funding since the expiration of the “stopgap” budget on Jan. 1, 2017.
Comptroller Mendoza met with Eastern Illinois University President David Glassman Thursday morning as her office expedited a payment of $5.7 million to the school. EIU, Western Illinois University in Macomb and Chicago State University had been among those hardest hit by the budget impasse.
President Glassman showed Comptroller Mendoza some of the deferred maintenance on campus. Like other Illinois universities suffering through the last two years without a state budget, Eastern had to lay off more than 400 staff, Glassman said.
The release of $327 million for the MAP program will go toward an estimated 110,000 students from all over Illinois who qualified under the need-based award program for the 2016-17 academic year that just ended this Spring. These funds will fulfill the state’s commitment to those students attending public and private universities, colleges and community colleges who had to worry all year long whether the state would honor its commitment.
Comptroller Mendoza had been urging legislators and the Governor to deliver these funds for several months as the budget impasse stretched into its second year.
“The state’s institutions of higher education were devastated by the budget crisis and their mistreatment proved to a be a breaking point for legislators on both sides of the aisle. Delivering this money will provide immediate aid to students, parents, faculty and administrators who have struggled for more than two years to pay their bills.”
“Like the many legislators who supported a bipartisan budget solution last week, my office is committed to helping our colleges and universities recover from the unprecedented – and unnecessary – wreckage,” Comptroller Mendoza said.
Under Governor Rauner, state funding to public colleges and universities over the last two years was cut more than 60 percent. During this time, the credit rating of five major state colleges and universities dropped to junk status.
The funds released today will provide for payments that were owed to universities, colleges and to students eligible under the need based Monetary Award Program (MAP). They will benefit Chicago State University; Eastern Illinois University; Governors State University; Illinois State University; Northeastern Illinois University; Northern Illinois University; Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and Edwardsville; the University of Illinois system and its schools in Chicago, Springfield and Urbana-Champaign; and Western Illinois University; as well as other schools with MAP grant students in attendance. State universities will receive $327 million in funding. The remaining $36 million will be delivered to state community colleges.
Overall, the new bipartisan budget provides about $1.1 billion to higher education for the past fiscal year.
Additionally, the Comptroller has directed her Office to work with the universities and colleges to begin issuing another $160 million to public universities and community colleges for operational support from the state. Payments have already begun to be released as vouchers are submitted to the Office.
Many public institutions had to exhaust their local reserves to the point that it has threatened their ability to even make debt service payments. The release of these payments will ensure that these institutions can open the fall semester on time without disruption to staff and operations.
“Our schools and our students need stability. These desperately needed past-due payments will bring more stability to operations going into the fall semester and provide a reassurance to the accrediting and credit rating agencies that state funds are on the way,” Comptroller Mendoza said.
Our state’s public institutions provide benefits that extend well beyond their campuses. Every $1 invested in Higher Ed generates $4 in economic activity for the state.
* Related…
* Chicago Tonight: Comptroller Susana Mendoza on State Budget
* What does $15 billion in overdue bills mean for doctors and hospitals in Illinois?: Having a budget doesn’t put everyone at ease. Dr. Timothy Wall’s pediatric practice is one of the largest private providers of Medicaid managed care in DuPage County, and insurers owe it more than $1 million. He’s put off vaccinating children after their first birthdays because the insurers stopped paying for the expensive shots, and he’s stopped taking patients covered by Family Health Network, one of the biggest Medicaid insurers in the state. He might do so soon for patients covered by Meridian, another large carrier.
About 185 low-income, older adults who receive state assistance to remain in their homes in McLean County will transition to another service provider as YWCA McLean County ends its long-standing, state-assisted home care services.
Home-care services for 24 private-pay older adults will remain.
“It’s true that we now have a state budget,” Liz German, YWCA McLean County vice president of operations, told The Pantagraph on Wednesday. “But the damage has been done. We can’t turn back the clock.”
YWCA is owed $500,000 by the state and $300,000 of that is for state-assisted home-care services, German said.
YWCA’s last day providing state-assisted home care services for people 60 and older will be Aug. 5, German said.
The agency has been been providing state-assisted home-care services for 45 years and has been the largest provider in McLean County, said Vicki Hightower, YWCA senior director of adult services. Two companies — Addus HomeCare and Help At Home — also accept state-assisted home-care clients in McLean County. Several companies work with private pay clients, who aren’t affected by the transition.
* From the Pritzker campaign…
“As Rauner staffs up with a radical right-wing team determined to cause more devastation, our most vulnerable communities are still reeling from the damage of round one,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “Rauner’s actions are salt in the wound and Illinois seniors, children, and families can’t afford his callous leadership any longer.”
* Related…
* Women’s Center in Carbondale still in need of state funds despite end of budget impasse: “How long are we gong to be able to survive? Because we don’t know when the money is going to start coming,” said McClanahan The Women’s Center took out a $250,000 loan because of the budget stalemate. “That’s money we are going to have to pay back with interest,” said McClanahan
Some Illinois and Washington party officials think the contest might run well in excess of $300 million, blowing away the current record-holder for statewide office — the $280 million California governor’s race between former eBay executive Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown in 2010. […]
The $250 million to $300 million figure includes expected spending from candidates, super PACS and outside groups. […]
Several people close to Rauner said he was willing to withdraw as much as $150 to $200 million from his own personal fortune, and that he was determined not to let Pritzker outspend him. […]
One thing is clear, [said Curt Anderson, who helped to run Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s race in 2010, when over $150 million was spent]: it would be a mistake to begin airing slash-and-burn commercials anytime soon — a step, he said, that would badly turn off voters.
Um, Curt, they’ve already started.
*** UPDATE 1 *** If you click here, you’ll see Pritzker explaining why he isn’t raising money…
“One of the things you may or may not like about my candidacy is I’m not raising money. The reason that I chose not to do that was predominantly because Bruce Rauner, who people think self-funds, actually takes tens of millions of dollars from the Koch brothers. His largest contributor, $20 million, Ken Griffin, the wealthiest man in Illinois… And there’s going to be much more, probably the Uihleins and probably lots of others because they did this in 2016. And I want you to know that when I stand up in front of you and tell you that I’m for a progressive income tax, and that I’m gonna fight for 15 and that I’m gonna make sure we legalize marijuana, that those are the things I really believe and there’s nobody who’s gonna call me in the middle of the night who backed me, who wrote me a check or something, who’s gonna say to me ‘You can’t do that thing you said you were gonna do because we won’t back you in the next election.’”
*** UPDATE 2 *** From the Illinois chapter of Americans for Prosperity…
Rich,
I hope you ask Pritzker what he means by his statement that Rauner has actually taken tens of millions of dollars from the Koch brothers.
Is he saying that Rauner is taking illegal unreported contributions? As the person who has run a Koch-affiliated organization, Americans for prosperity, in Illinois, I can say that his comment is completely false.
Perhaps he should be a bit more careful before leveling accusations of illegal Blago-like activity.
Regards,
David From
On it.
*** UPDATE 3 *** From the Pritzker campaign…
“We appreciate David’s feedback, but unlike Bruce Rauner, our campaign doesn’t take cues from shady, dark money networks and radical anti-union crusaders. Since AFP is having trouble connecting point A to point B, we’re happy to spell it out. Rauner’s new extremist ‘superstar’ team comes from a Koch funded policy institute. Rauner’s donors come from the Koch network, with Ken Griffin and his $20 million leading the charge. And, Rauner’s agenda of forcing pain to make anti-union gains is right out of the Koch playbook. You don’t get a state government this devastating for working families without the Koch brothers lurking in the background.”
*** UPDATE 4 *** From AFP Illinois…
Rich,
I’m sure you’re not interested in an extended back-and-forth. But but for your future use, I wanted to set the record straight on a few things the Pritzker campaign said in their response:
1- IPI does not receive Koch network funding. They raise plenty of money on their own but do not receive Koch money.
2- Ken Griffin is not a Koch Bros. They do not direct Griffin’s political giving. And he does not direct Koch funding.
i’m sure the Pritzker crew will try to make these claims again as part of their boogie man narrative.
Thanks for posting the initial response.
Regards,
David From
*** UPDATE 5 *** From Galia Slayen of the Pritzker campaign…
When attempting to “set the record straight,” David might find it helpful to consult the actual record:
The Illinois Policy Institute Received Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars From The Koch Brothers, Koch Groups, And Koch-Related Donors Like The Knowledge And Progress Fund. According to the Center for Public Integrity, the Illinois Policy Institute received funding from the Donors Trust that was funded by The Knowledge and Progress Fund, The Charles Koch Foundation, and Koch-Related Donors. [Center for Public Integrity, accessed 7/10/17]
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner is hardening his anti-tax stance as he readies a re-election bid following a major legislative defeat, replacing key staff with leaders of a conservative group that blasted the Republican just a few weeks ago for even considering a tax hike to end a years-long budget impasse.
Rauner’s new chief of staff and a top policy aide, among others, come from the Illinois Policy Institute, a think tank that has advocated for deep cuts to the Medicaid program for the poor and mass layoffs of state workers to fix the state’s finances without new taxes. The overhaul also has included Rauner’s communications director and other communications staff and longtime loyalists, and more changes are expected this week.
If you’re a solid anti-taxer, that’s a pretty darned good lede. If you’re more moderate than that, then it is probably a bit disconcerting.
Illinois Policy Institute CEO John Tillman said appointing former organization President Kristina Rasmussen his chief of staff is an “unmistakable signal” that Rauner intends to fulfill a promise to make Illinois “prosperous and free.”
“With the governor’s decision to add Kristina to his team, Illinois taxpayers and families have an effective and proven champion on their side,” Tillman said.
We’re all gonna be prosperous and free now that our champion is on our side. Hooray!
Some people will rejoice, others may scratch their heads and wonder what that dude is talking about.
“Everyone was in shock,” said a Rauner staffer who asked to remain anonymous.
“I mean everyone came to work Monday morning. But when we were told Richard [Goldberg] was out, we had a feeling if he could do that to him — who was a leader and fiercely loyal — who wouldn’t they do that to?
“Over the next 24 hours everyone was a wreck,” the source added.
“Staff fear was at its height. Doors were shut. People were crying. We then watched one person’s head roll after another. When you see a friend you respect who has worked so hard get dismissed just like that, it’s very difficult.” […]
“It’s been tough. The morale is bad. People are afraid. It has been a coup d’etat type of environment. The conservative Illinois Policy Institute has taken charge.”
Sneed hears Rauner and his wife, Diana, were planning on making these changes earlier — especially in the communications department — but surprised some of their advisers on how quickly they moved to do so.
…Adding… Something Sneed left out was that Goldberg insisted on staying in the office all morning until he had the opportunity to walk the entire 16th floor and personally thank every staff member for their hard work on the governor’s behalf. That classy move may have led to some of the crying.
The administration of Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner issued layoff notices to eight employees of the Illinois Department of Transportation Wednesday, saying there was a “lack of work” for them to do, but also saying the action is part of “cleaning up past hiring mistakes and personnel practices.”
Don Craven, a lawyer representing the members of Teamsters Local 916, said the union would “take all appropriate actions to defend the rights” of the members.
Notices informed the workers their last day would be Aug. 15. Those being laid off include the wife of the business manager of Laborers Local 477, and the wife of Bill Houlihan, state director for U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. Bill Houlihan is also an elected member of the Democratic State Central Committee. […]
Another layoff notice was sent to Cindy Houlihan, 60, of Springfield, whose salary is listed as $85,464 annually. She said she has been on disability due to multiple sclerosis since April, but has hoped to return to work. She said her job has been statewide coordinator of the adopt-a-highway program. She didn’t comment directly on the layoff notice. Comptroller’s records show she worked for the state since 1998.
* Also, by way of contrast, I’m told that Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady has asked Phil Draves to stay on as chief of staff and asked Patty Schuh to remain as press secretary.
* Related…
* Bernard Schoenburg: Some new hires, like Rauner, challenge public unions
* In late June, Chris Kennedy called out what he believed at the time to be a Republican “tracker” at one of his events. But he did it in a pretty unusual way. Kennedy said people need to “show up” in politics and get involved, “like this young fella over here,” he said while pointing at the young man tracking him.
The audience laughed, but Kennedy said, “At least he’s showing up, he’s doing something.” Video…
The campaign didn’t share the video at the time because, a spokesperson said, “We weren’t sure it was a Republican tracker, but have since confirmed that he is.”
* Last night, Kennedy ran into the tracker again at the Independent Voters of Illinois’ Independence Day Dinner Candidate Forum. They reportedly chatted for a minute, with the tracker asking if Kennedy could hold an event in Malibu so he could get a free trip out there. Kennedy asked the tracker if they could take a pic of Kennedy posing as a tracker. “He was nice enough to go along with it,” a Kennedy campaign spokesperson said…
Sources tell NBC 5 that the governor may opt not to veto all of it, but may instead choose to use an amendatory veto on provisions involving a pension fix for the city of Chicago.
While House Speaker Mike Madigan was able to corral the votes, including numerous Republican defectors, to override Rauner’s veto of the budget bill, doing so on SB-1 may be a much harder sell.
If he just vetoed the Chicago stuff, it would, indeed, make an override more politically difficult. I think they’re looking at other options.
The Democratic plan would provide more money to all school districts, with CPS getting at least $286 million more for pensions and general state aid. The competing Republican plan would take away grant money going to CPS and spread it to suburban and downstate districts, with city schools seeing either a $38 million funding cut or $177 million in additional money, depending on whether pension help materializes.
Adding to the complicated dynamics: Rauner’s recent decision to replace his senior staff with people from a conservative think tank that opposes the underlying concept of both school funding formula bills. That means the governor’s office could end up being an incubator for a third competing plan, albeit one that would have the greatest difficulty winning buy-in from lawmakers at the Capitol.
* The Pritzker campaign dug down a bit…
With an influx of new radical staff coming directly from the Illinois Policy Institute, it’s worth taking a look at where the right-wing propaganda machine stands on this bill.
A March 2017 post on their website declares, “evidence-based education funding doesn’t work.” After the bill passed, they posted another article urging Rauner to veto the bill and perpetuating the myth that it is a Chicago bailout.
Rauner and the new far-right members of his administration staunchly opposing SB 1 — legislation that will allow schools to open in the fall — leaves the state on the verge of a new crisis. .
“When you have a track record as bad as the governor’s, you need to create something to alarm people,” Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Kennedy said. “He’s taking a page out of Donald Trump’s book, a page of divide and conquer and hatred. He wants to separate our state and say that downstate is against Chicago.”
*** UPDATE 1 *** From Emily Bittner at CPS…
Rich:
Three points on the Trib’s stories on ed funding this morning.
1 - The state increased funding for downstate and suburban teacher pensions by $500M this year alone and no one in Chicago called that a “downstate bailout.” The VAST majority of this money is going to the state’s unfunded liabilities, i.e, making up for the State’s own past skipped payments, which were more severe than Chicago’s.
From TRS on next year’s increase for downstate and suburban teacher pensions: “The total projected employer contribution for 2018, including State, Federal, and School Districts, is $4.72 billion. Of this amount, $1.05 billion, or about 22%, is for the employer portion of the normal cost and 78% is for unfunded actuarial accrued liability. The required State contribution for 2018 is $4.56 billion, an increase from $3.99 billion for 2017.”
In other words, 78 percent of this underfunding is directly because of past underfunding from the state – exactly what the Republican objection to funding Chicago teacher pensions is. Pretty hypocritical to fund suburban and downstate unfunded pensions but not fund Chicago’s lesser liability.
2 - Downstate and suburbandistricts are feeling tremendous pressure and uncertainty about whether they’ll open on time and stay open. I want to reiterate the mayor’s point that CPS is opening on time and staying open.
3 - Deep in the main bar on SB1 is this important point: if school funding were treated equally, Chicago students would get about $500M more from the state.
From the Trib: Republicans count only general state aid and grant funding, which includes the extra $250 million for CPS. Viewed through that lens, CPS gets 23.6 percent of all the money the state provides for K-12 education, even though the district’s nearly 382,000 students represent just 18.8 percent of Illinois public school students.
But city school officials say that calculation is misleading because it fails to include what the state spends on teacher pensions. That’s $4 billion, about a third of the total education pie. Include that money, and CPS gets just 15.3 percent of state education dollars.
CPS CEO Forrest Claypool said he’d gladly give up Chicago’s extra grant money if the state covered his district’s pension costs the same way it does for other school districts.
“Pension subsidies are no different than general state aid or any other form of educational assistance,” Claypool said during a recent interview. “They all go to the same thing, primarily paying for the salaries and retirement benefits of teachers.”
That Claypool would make that trade is not so surprising. The math shows that CPS would have received about $500 million more from the state during the last school year. (emphasis mine.)
This single point cuts through the confusion and clutter on education funding – if you add up all the sources of funding and treat all the districts the same, Chicago students are getting dramatically shortchanged by $500 million. This is grossly unfair, but all the more pernicious because of its racial implications–which are at the core of CPS’ civil rights lawsuit.
Thanks,
Emily
*** UPDATE 2 *** From Adam Collins in the mayor’s office…
We’ve known for a while that the governor didn’t care about the social safety net for those living in poverty around the state, but we hoped he might still care about the education of black and brown children living in poverty around the state. Guess that’s out the window now too as Rauner pivots from the right-wing to the far right-wing.
* From John Tillman at the Illinois Policy Institute…
In the past several days, the Illinois Policy Institute has been accused of introducing elements of incivility, aggression, and discord into Illinois’ public discourse. The accusers are uniformly tax-hiking lawmakers and their enablers in media.
Their accusations are false.
We are on record urging the members of our community to act with decency, civility, and candor — and we have an unblemished record of doing the same ourselves. This is not pro forma: it is central to our identity and mission.
In the aftermath of a destructive 32-percent income-tax hike, in a state budget that achieves nothing beyond worsening the already-staggering burden on Illinois families and taxpayers, the Springfield elites are desperate to talk about absolutely anything else. They know they are the epicenter and cause of a series of cascading failures that have engulfed our once-great and once-prosperous state.
The real threat is not to lawmakers who enact policies that drive out our jobs, impoverish our communities, and diminish our dreams. The real threat is to average Illinoisans who suffer the consequences of those lawmakers’ serial failures to responsibly govern. Illinoisans have a lot to be upset and even angered about. Yet even now, with one of America’s great states brought to the brink of insolvency and ruin, the overwhelming majority of Illinoisans are still showing more respect for their lawmakers than their lawmakers have shown them.
Click here for a reminder about their decency and civility.
Do not believe the recent poll that Chris Kennedy paid for to make his numbers look bigger than everybody else. Pritzker and Kennedy are not the only candidates in the race for Governor on the Democratic side. Tio Hardiman is currently polling at 18 percent and the numbers will continue to grow.
I’m not sure how he paid for that alleged poll because his campaign committee has been shut down since 2014.
* Moving right along…
(2/2) @GovRauner, we stand ready and willing to work with you to negotiate on your non-budgetary demands and #LiftUpIL.
A high-ranking official in a Chicago-area labor union threatened a local business with economic loss if it didn’t pay him quarterly cash payments of $25,000, according to a federal indictment returned today.
JOHN T. COLI SR. used the threat of economic harm to extort quarterly payments of $25,000 from a local company, according to the indictment. The attempted extortion occurred from approximately October 2016 to April 2017, while Coli served as President of Teamsters Joint Council 25, a labor organization that represents more than 100,000 workers in the Chicago area and northwest Indiana. The organization has approximately 26 local union affiliates, including Teamsters Local Union 727, where Coli also served as Secretary-Treasurer during the time period referenced in the indictment.
The indictment was returned today in U.S. District Court in Chicago. It charges Coli, 57, of Chicago, with one count of attempted extortion and five counts of demanding and accepting a prohibited payment as a union official. The indictment seeks forfeiture from Coli of at least $100,000.
Arraignment in federal court in Chicago will be held at a future time to be set by the Court.
The indictment was announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and James Vanderberg, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General in Chicago.
According to the charges, Coli accepted a $25,000 cash payment on July 7, 2016; two cash payments totaling $25,000 on Oct. 4, 2016, and Nov. 29, 2016; and $25,000 cash payments on Dec. 22, 2016, and April 4, 2017. The indictment does not identify the individual who made the payments nor the company Coli allegedly extorted.
Coli previously served as International Vice President of the Central Region of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the indictment states.
The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Attempted extortion is punishable by a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Each count of demanding and accepting a prohibited payment is punishable by up to five years in prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amarjeet S. Bhachu and Abigail Peluso.
Despite the budget, “The state almost certainly (will) suffer an extended hangover” from two-year impasse that preceded it. “Revenue spent on servicing and retiring the roughly $15 billion in unpaid bills is unavailable for contribution to the state’s severely underfunded pension systems or to fund state services. It also crowds out fiscal capacity the state might otherwise use to accommodate a reduction in tax rates.”
“Nevertheless,” it concludes, “despite being fractured and delayed, passage of the budget represents an affirmation of lawmakers’ collective willingness to prioritize the state’s fundamental claims-paying ability at an investment-grade level.”
S&P’s action won immediate praise from Senate President John Cullerton. Said his spokesman, “The entire point of this balanced budget was to end the chaos and move the state toward the stability it desperately needs. Those efforts appear to have been recognized and appreciated, but obviously more work is needed to get Illinois back to greatness.”
No word yet from Rauner, who in recent days has lost or pushed out almost all of his media team, or House Speaker Michael Madigan.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Press release…
Speaker Michael J. Madigan issued the following statement Wednesday after Standard & Poor’s reacted positively to passage of a bipartisan balanced budget:
“S&P’s action today is a strong signal that the balanced budget enacted by Republicans and Democrats is an important step in the right direction. At the end of June, I wrote to the rating agencies and asked that they temporarily withhold judgment and give legislators more time to enact a budget, and I’m grateful for the legislators on both sides of the aisle who used this time to work together and make the difficult decisions needed to start getting Illinois back on track.
“There is more work to be done, and it’s clear from S&P’s statement that rating agencies, like all Illinois residents, are hoping Governor Rauner will work in good faith with legislators to address these challenges rather than rejecting compromise by turning further to the extreme right.”
*** UPDATE 3 *** Comptroller Susana Mendoza…
We can all be thankful that S & P recognized the brave votes by legislators of both parties to put our state back on the right path to fiscal responsibility. The markets can be confident the state will meet its obligations on debt service and pensions. Much more work is needed to fix the state’s finances — and Democratic and Republican legislators proved last week they can work together — with or without the governor — to get necessary reforms done.
Nothing yet from the governor’s office, which has been silent pretty much all week.
The 2011 tax hikes passed on a straight party-line vote, with Democrat majorities in both chambers and a Democrat in the governor’s seat.
This time, 15 House Republicans rolled over for Madigan, allowing him to protect vulnerable Democrats. A lone Republican cast a “yes” vote on Madigan’s tax hike in the Senate, Dale Righter of Mattoon. Righter’s was the deciding vote that sent the tax hike to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s desk. He was also the deciding vote to override the governor’s veto.
Analysis of the House’s last-minute amendment to the budget revealed Righter was showered with $4.8 million in earmarks for his district.
Madigan wins again.
* From Dan Proft’s East Central Reporter newspaper…
State Sen. Dale Righter (R-Mattoon) made a trade.
He’d cast the decisive vote and give the Chicago Democrats what they wanted– large individual and business income tax hikes and a $700 million bailout for Chicago’s bankrupt public schools– if they would just agree to send a few more state dollars to his district.
And so it was.
Page 508 of House Speaker Michael Madigan’s 638-page budget lays out the $4,757,100 that Eastern Illinois University (EIU) in Charleston will receive “for remodeling of the HVAC in the Life Science Building and Coleman Hall.”
EIU will also get $59,282 “for upgrading the electrical distribution system” and and $10,790 “for renovating and expanding the (EIU) Fine Arts Center.”
All told, Righter received a little less than $5 million for EIU. And his vote will result in $5 billion more in tax dollars sent to Springfield from voters in his district and across the rest of Illinois.
This project was originally appropriated in FY 2010 but is not yet funded. This request is to recognize the inflation needs for the project from the original request date.
The HVAC systems in the Life Science building (1963), the Life Science Annex building (1964), the Coleman Hall East building (1965) and the Coleman Hall West building (1968) are original equipment and are failing to provide adequate levels of comfort in seasonal service. Air handling units that fail to deliver acceptable indoor air quality compromise the normal delivery of education to our students. In addition, poor temperature control and air delivery are energy inefficient. Also, the building heating and chilled water distribution systems have experienced numerous leaks due to internal and external corrosion and thinning of pipe wall thickness. The deterioration has made the piping systems virtually impossible to repair due to insufficient pipe material remaining to thread. During the past several leak events, faculty offices had to be evacuated and important academic work interrupted. In the event of longer - term system outages, research occurring in the Life Sciences complex could be compromised. The building infrastructure requires an entire mechanical upgrade. [Emphasis added.]
* This story is making the rounds on social media, but it’s not accurate…
When state lawmakers approved the Illinois budget last week that included a provision to raise the state income tax rate to one of the highest rates in the history of Illinois, state lawmakers, under the direction of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan (D), snuck in another tax increase, that will hit you every time you fill up your car or truck.
Yes, a gas tax increase of 5 cents a gallon. Rockford Senator Dave Syverson, took to social media on Monday night to remind his constituents that “back door gas tax increase” was approved. So how does this work, according to Syverson, the back door gas tax is:
a tax at the wholesale level, which raises the retail price. This move will add approximately 5 cents a gallon. ($95 million total)
Yet another reason why this budget plan was wrong.
So, if you fill up a 20 gallon tank when you go to fill up, it will add a $1.00 on to the average fill up. If you fill your car. If you fill up once a week, this new back door tax will add about $52 to you gasoline bill, every year. Truck divers and transportation companies will notice it even more as their gas consumption levels are much higher. Those costs, of course will be passed on to the cost of good the consumer will pay.
* This new law is actually about ethanol blends, not “pure” gasoline.
Current state law taxes “gasohol” (10 percent ethanol blends) on only 80 percent of the sales price. Biodiesel and E85 (85 percent ethanol) are exempt from all sales taxes.
All three sales tax incentives were scheduled to expire on December 31, 2018. If no legislative action was taken by then, all three fuels would be taxed at 100 percent of sale price.
The new law accelerates the sunset of the gasohol tax break to July 1 of this year. So, from here on out, 10 percent gasohol blends are taxed at 100 percent of purchase price.
So, if you don’t use gasohol (E10), you won’t see any price increase.
According to the Department of Revenue, 4.6 billion gallons of gasoline were sold in Illinois last year, compared to 5.1 billion gallons of gasohol and 517 million gallons of E85. Thanks to an eagle-eyed commenter, I now realize I misread that particular chart. That’s the fuel blending amounts. Thanks!
* The new law also extends the total sales tax exemption on biodiesel and E85 through the end of 2023. The ag community understandably likes the idea of extending these exemptions…
“One of those being that the biodiesel sales tax incentive was extended until 2023,” said Mark Gebhards, Illinois Farm Bureau’s executive director of governmental affairs and commodities. “The E-85 sales tax incentive was extended as well until 2023.”
The revenue bill also included a sunset provision on the E-10 sales tax incentive.
“So that was the trade-off of giving up something that at least from the renewable fuel industry, they feel that E-10 is well on its way and didn’t need the incentive that was needed for E-85 and biodiesel,” Gebhards said.
The city of Chicago may be able to end junk status on much of its debt—potentially saving $100 million or more in interest charges each year—thanks to a clause that was quietly tucked into the state’s new budget.
The provision will allow home-rule entities such as Chicago to separate out money they get from the state from other receipts and use that dedicated revenue to pay for new debt, or to pay for retiring old debt.
The city now gets well over $1 billion from the state each year, including $630 million in sales taxes collected by the Illinois Department of Revenue on the city’s behalf, the $368 million city share of local income tax receipts, and $71 million in motor fuel taxes.
City officials hope the provision will allow them to save as much as 3 full percentage points—300 basis points—compared to what junk-level city general-obligation debt now costs. With more than $8 billion in outstanding general-obligation debt, the city would save $30 million a year on each $1 billion that could be refinanced, assuming it indeed can sell such “statutory lien” debt at the lower rates. […]
The Illinois Municipal League was aware of the provision and “didn’t have any issue with it,” according to Brad Cole, the league’s executive director. The provision mostly will affect Chicago, though some other large cities around the state could take advantage of the clause, he added.
Built into legislation that passed last week is a $293 million increase in the bonding capacity for the Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority. The agency maxed out its borrowing limit two years ago.
Despite a gargantuan long-term debt burden that totaled $3.7 billion as of June 2016, McPier officials plan to take advantage of the new line of credit immediately to change the way they pay for the 1,205-room Marriott Marquis hotel going up on the Near South Side convention campus.
The agency plans to sell the bonds “as soon as possible” and will use $250 million of the proceeds to repay its construction loan for the Marriott, said McPier Chief Financial Officer Larita Clark.
* Family PAC describes itself as the “leading pro-family, anti-tax political action committee in Illinois.” From a member action alert…
Michael “Hinky Dink” Kenna, a Chicago Alderman of old, once said: “Chicago ain’t ready for reform.” Last week, aided and abetted by 10 “sellout” Republican House members, Illinois Democrats proved that “Illinois ain’t ready for reform”…despite the near bankruptcy status of state government.
Governor Rauner for 2 ½ years has demanded fundamental reforms in the way Illinois does business…runaway pension costs…an end to collection of public employee union dues by the state…ridiculous workmen’s compensation laws created to benefit trial lawyers, etc., etc., etc., etc.
Rauner was doggedly consistent. He would consider a modest tax increase in return for these and other badly needed reforms so that Illinois finally could be moving in the right direction and stop the mass exodus of taxpayers and businesses from our state.
As a result of the perfidy of 10 House Republicans who caved in to the “fake” budget and 32% tax increase dictated by Mike Madigan…the Governor’s veto of the tax increase was overridden by a single vote.
Here are the Republicans who must take personal responsibility for the “Illinois Train Wreck:” […]
Family-Pac worked to sustain the Governor’s veto. Last Wednesday, we made 25,000 calls to voters in these districts demanding support for the Rauner veto. Our Family-Pac lobbyist, Rev. Bob Vanden Bosch, encouraged pro-family legislators to support sustaining the Rauner veto. The “sellout” Republicans ignored us and their own constituents.
But don’t give up all hope for Illinois at least not yet. Here’s why: 1) We now have a great opportunity to replace each and every one of these “sellouts” with real pro-family conservatives next March (if not sooner). 2) In 2018, as the Madigan “fake” budget falls apart, Madigan will need to again seek help from Republicans as Illinois falls further into financial crisis.
Please call each of the “sellout” Republicans who made the “Illinois Train Wreck” possible. Say one word, “sellout,” and hang up the phone.
When the times get tough, the tough get going…so let’s get going. Grassroots power can still save Illinois.
Blessings,
Paul Caprio, Director of Family-Pac
Gee, that’ll be such fun for the secretaries who answer the phones.
Also, notice how Paul says Rauner would accept a “modest” tax increase, but then describes that exact same income tax hike as a “32% tax increase dictated by Mike Madigan.”
Not only that, but the bipartisan plan that passed didn’t include other revenue streams that the governor wanted, like a new tax on services and a tax on cable TV and streaming and a sugary beverage tax.
* From the Illinois Policy Institute’s news service…
Three-quarters of Illinois’ state lawmakers will be accepting their per diem for last month’s 10-day special session, which will cost taxpayers at least $145,000.
According to a response to an Illinois News Network Freedom of Information Act request, of the 177 state lawmakers, only 46 denied the .39 cent-per-mile travel reimbursement and a $111 a day per diem for the special session that started June 20 and ended June 30. Although lawmakers were in Springfield for a few days in early July, they were not eligible for the per diem because that was not special session called by the governor.
Because the per diem and travel reimbursement vouchers have not been sent from the House and Senate to the comptroller’s office, the comptroller’s doesn’t have an exact total of what ultimately will be paid out to lawmakers from the 10-day special session.
But, excluding the 39 cent per mile travel reimbursement – which only covers one round trip per week – all state lawmakers who will accept the $111 per day per diem will cost taxpayers at least $145,410 for last month’s special session.
In the Senate (6 Democrats, 10 Republicans): Neil Anderson, R-Rock Island; Jason Barickman, R-Bloomington; Daniel Biss, D-Evanston; Dale Fowler, R-Harrisburg; David Koehler, D-Peoria; Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill; Iris Martinez, D-Chicago; Sam McCann, R-Plainview; Laura Murphy, D-Des Plaines; Christine Radogno, R-Lemont (retired); Sue Rezin, R-Morris; Tom Rooney, R-Rolling Meadows; Paul Schimpf, R-Waterloo; Heather Steans, D-Chicago; Jil Tracy, R-Quincy; and Chuck Weaver, R-Peoria.
In the House (2 Democrats, 28 Republicans): Patricia Bellock, R-Hinsdale; Avery Bourne, R-Raymond; Daniel Brady, R-Bloomington; Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro; Tim Butler, R-Springfield; John Cabello, R-Machesney Park; Jerry Costello, D-Smithton; C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonville; Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs; Mike Fortner, R-West Chicago; Randy Frese, R-Paloma; Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville; Sheri Jesiel, R-Winthrop Harbor; Sara Wojcicki Jimenez, R-Leland Grove; Jerry Long, R-Streator; Michael McAuliffe, R-Norwood Park; Tony McCombie, R-Savanna; David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills; Charlie Meier, R-Okawville; Thomas Morrison, R-Palatine; Michelle Mussman, D-Schaumburg; Lindsay Parkhurst, R-Kankakee; Reginald Phillips, R-Charleston; Nick Sauer, R-Lake Barrington; Dave Severin, R-Benton; Allen Skillicorn, R-East Dundee; Keith Sommer, R-Morton; Ryan Spain, R-Peoria; Daniel Swanson, R-Woodhull; and David Allen Welter, R-Morris.
A union-backed bid to buy the Chicago Sun-Times is moving forward, according to sources involved in the deal.
Wrapports, which owns the newspaper, had given the union-backed group a Monday deadline to put “north of $11 million” in an escrow account, according to Bill Brandt, a restructuring expert and one of the private investors on board with the bid.
“The money is there,” Brandt said late Monday. “I believe there will be a transfer of ownership.”
That money is not the sale price of the paper, Brandt said.
“The real issue was what does it take to make sure that you can operate the paper and pay off its obligations in the future,” he said.
The sale price has been reported as being a dollar.
The potential ownership group includes several local labor unions, including the CFL, and about eight individual investors, including corporate restructuring expert Bill Brandt.
“I think it’s a worthwhile challenge,” Brandt said. “It’s a money-losing venture, but this is one of those things where you take a gulp and you do it for the good of the city. Chicago needs two newspapers.”
Eisendrath and Brandt declined to identify the other investors, but Brandt said the group included several people “well-known in the political scene.” […]
On Tuesday, Sun-Times publisher and editor-in-chief Jim Kirk sent an email to his staff that reminded them, “…This is not the last step in the process. The parties continue to negotiate to see if a deal can be completed. In addition, the offer from Tronc still remains active.”
An investment group led by former Chicago Ald. Edwin Eisendrath along with a coalition of labor unions is poised to acquire the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Reader, Eisendrath and others familiar with the transaction said on Wednesday.
The deal was expected to be completed by Thursday morning, with a press conference to take place at some point that day.
There’s a sense among some Rauner loyalists that the governor, discouraged by defeat in the Illinois legislature, is now being influenced to go to the right rather than the middle. “It was one thing when nobody cared what they have to say it will be interesting to see how they perform outside the simulator,” an insider said.
That is a very good point. Rauner’s new hires are mostly from outside government. They’ve spent their careers criticizing government, particularly Illinois’ government, from the relative safety of a “think tank.” And now the government’s success (and failure) is all on them.
And I’ll bet you a dollar that Rauner is surprised to hear this new and growing media hot take that he’s behaving like someone who just suffered a traumatic defeat. Just days ago, the view was Rauner “won” the budget fight because he was handed new revenues to run his government as well as the popular political issue of opposing a tax increase.
Before joining the Rauner administration in 2015, Clark was Cook County Commissioner Tim Schneider’s chief of staff. Schneider is the chairman of the Illinois Republican Party and a fierce Rauner loyalist, so this is a most interesting development and we’ll see how it plays out.
…Adding… From a buddy on the Clark ouster…
The guy who carried Bruce’s water getting local governments to endorse the turnaround agenda.
*** UPDATE 1 *** As you can see, Mary Ann has deleted the tweet. I’m told that her report may have been premature. Stay tuned…
Looks like I was told info before it happened, but stand by earlier tweet #ILGov18
* I cannot ever remember a time when this much focus has been placed on a governor’s staff changes. But it’s most certainly news and therefore political fodder. From the Pritzker campaign…
The Rauner administration is going through a tumultuous transformation following a resounding defeat of the failed governor’s agenda. Rauner ousted top advisers who have been loyal for years and replaced them with a group of fresh faces with radical conservative views.
Let’s meet the new and radical hires making their way to the top of the Rauner administration:
* Kristina Rasmussen was named Chief of Staff. She comes to the Rauner administration following eight years at the Illinois Policy Institute, most recently as the president and CEO. The right-wing think tank is known for proposing radical cuts to state services and programs in their fantasy budgets.
* Michael Lucci is in as Rauner’s new Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy. He also comes directly from the Illinois Policy Institute, previously the Vice President of Policy. In that role, he wrote 147 propaganda posts decrying fair policies like a progressive income tax while pushing top items on the Koch brothers’ agenda like right-to-work.
* Laurel Patrick will serve as the administration’s Director of Communications. She left her short post at the D.C. version of the Illinois Policy Institute — the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity — and previously worked for union-busting Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.
“Bruce Rauner is cleaning house and welcoming a who’s who of radical right-wing extremists into the governor’s office,” said Pritzker campaign spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh. “This is the Donald Trump playbook of playing to the worst extremes of your base when you have nothing left to lose. It will have deep and damaging repercussions for the people of this state.”
* DGA…
The Democratic Governors Association releases the following statement, attributable to Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro, regarding the news that Governor Rauner spent most of Tuesday firing old staff and hiring right-wing Illinois Policy Institute staffers into his administration:
“Bruce Rauner’s operation is in chaos. Fresh off a stunning bipartisan rebuke of his uncompromising policies, Rauner has turned inward, firing seemingly everyone to be replaced by right-wing ideological staffers. These moves should be concerning for Illinois families. Rauner has surrounded himself with the same uncompromising group of people who would rather see the state fall off a fiscal cliff than pass a bipartisan budget. Two and a half years in and Rauner has doubled-down on the same failed leadership style that earned him the nicknames ‘Governor Junk’ and ‘Most Vulnerable Incumbent.’”
*** UPDATE *** From Ameya Pawar…
“Gov. Bruce Rauner is clearly losing his grip on the system he has propped up to benefit the billionaire class and corporate special interests after he lost the Illinois budget battle last week. Now, he’s trying to compensate for that loss by replacing his staff with even more conservative political ideologues who only seek to destroy our public institutions and preserve the system that only benefits the wealthy.
“When Bruce Rauner promised to shake-up Springfield, we didn’t expect just how far he would go to put his extreme agenda over the health and welfare of our state. Gov. Rauner clearly has no interest in governing. Instead he is doubling down on a failed agenda and waging war against working families, collective bargaining, livable wages and social services in Illinois. Any facade of executive leadership, collaboration and compromise has been thrown out the door.”
Thank you for welcoming me to the team yesterday. I’m honored to join you as we position Illinois to become the most prosperous, compassionate, and free state in the nation.
As we discussed, there are four critical areas I’d like you to focus on in the coming month.
1. Please share with me your best ideas for transforming Illinois through better public policy and improved operations by Friday at 3:00 p.m. I follow the approach of Completed Staff Work; this will give you guidance on how to present your ideas.
2. We’re going to share incredible stories of the men, women, and children who deserve a revitalized Illinois. More information will follow, but here’s a good overview of where we are headed.
3. I’m looking for your excellence. How can you approach an aspect of your work in a new and better way today?
4. Mutual respect paired with radical candor will make this an even greater place to work.
I would like to announce two staff members joining us today:
Michael Lucci as Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy (Chicago)
Laurel Patrick, Director of Communications (Chicago)
Tomorrow we’ll welcome Jean Hutton as my Special Assistant.
My commitment to you is to share an updated organizational chart soon so you have clarity on where changes are happening.
Again, thank you for the warm welcome
~KR
* Lucci, of course, is the Vice President of Policy for the Illinois Policy Institute, and will now be Gov. Rauner’s policy director. Read more about Lucci by clicking here. He’s also an occasional commenter on this blog.
Laurel Patrick was Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s spokesperson before eventually moving to the economic-right Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity. Patrick replaced Brad Hahn, who was let go today. This is how Patrick describes herself on Linkedin…
Dynamic strategic communications and public relations professional with expertise in crafting messaging for high-profile elected officials and state agencies for political, legislative, and policy purposes.
Serve as an articulate spokesperson with extensive experience in media relations, message development, crisis communications, and team management. Skilled at creating communication teams, strategic plans, and building successful coalitions and partnerships with stakeholders, donors, and media partners to an organization’s mission and goals.
And Jean Hutton, Rasmussen’s new “special assistant,” is the Illinois Policy Institute’s Director of Operations. Click here for her background.
* Staff also received these three links this morning via that e-mail…
“The extreme right is taking over the governor’s office and Bruce Rauner is building a team to pursue a scorched earth policy in Illinois,” said Jordan Abudayyeh. “Rauner’s new radical right wing hires will destroy social services, attack working families, and tank the Illinois economy until they either get their way or drive this state into the ground.”
…Adding… “Could.” Right…
* Tribune: Rauner staff changes could signal a sharper tone
The shakeup in Governor Bruce Rauner’s office continues as NBC 5 has learned Brad Hahn was fired Tuesday morning.
Hahn had served as deputy chief of staff for public engagement and communications director. He has been a longtime GOP staffer, working for both Comptroller Judy Barr Topinka and Leslie Munger.
When Hahn was hired last year, he was part of the 23 people who worked for Munger and were then hired by the Rauner administration when Munger lost her bid for re-election.
Insiders said the morale inside the Rauner office and campaign is very low among those who do not agree with the governor’s decision to shift his strategy to a more conservative tone.
Brad was top notch, but he never really fit in with the governor’s style. And now that Rauner’s office is becoming an adjunct of the Illinois Policy Institute, he’s probably much better off.
*** UPDATE *** Rauner spokesperson Catherine Kelly was just fired. What’s so unreal about this is that CK was a loyal Raunerite. She busted her tail for the governor.
CK was expected to be leaving perhaps as early as next month anyway because her husband has a job in another state. But this action today was unexpected.
* Joe Cahill explains this pension funding gimmick well…
State contributions to pension plans will decline $1.5 billion in fiscal 2018, by far the largest single spending cut in the budget. And some $900 million of that reduction reflects wishful thinking about future investment returns at state employee pension funds.
Last year, overseers of the Teacher’s Retirement System and other large state employee retirement funds joined counterparts at public pension systems around the country in reducing assumed investment returns to around 7 percent from unrealistically high levels that prevailed for several years. It was a prudent step, based on actual long-term investment performance and current economic trends.
But it had the unpleasant effect of revealing that Illinois’ pension gap was even larger than previous estimates. A lower assumed rate of return means the pensions need more money now to generate enough investment earnings to cover future pension payments. And that, in turn, means legislators must allocate more current funds to pension contributions, not less.
Less is what the pension funds will get under the new budget, which delays implementation of the more-realistic investment return assumptions. Rather than impose the new rates of return immediately, as they should, lawmakers are phasing them in over five years. This allows them to contribute less while claiming to meet pension funding obligations.
Ironically, this is a rare area of agreement between arch-foes Madigan and Rauner. The governor excoriated Madigan’s 32 percent income tax hike, but uttered not a peep about his pension legerdemain. Perhaps that’s because he proposed “smoothing” in reduced rate-of-return assumptions in his own budget blueprint earlier this year.
Yep. He did. Remember how the governor railed against TRS for lowering their estimated rate of return?
So Illinois spent two years setting itself on fire in order to do . . . what, exactly? Income tax rates now stand at 2014 levels. Pensions are still underfunded. The major “Turnaround Agenda” ideas the governor ran on—”right to work,” workers’ comp reform and term limits—were kicked to the curb over time like so much roadkill. The state, meanwhile, has been the customer from hell to social service agencies and small businesses alike, demanding services and refusing to pay for them, racking up millions in unnecessary interest charges and forcing private-sector layoffs along the way.
Rauner presided over all of this—and, at key moments in the spectacle, could have prevented it. Not a good look for a man who ran as a business-minded pragmatist, a dealmaker who would put the needs of regular Illinoisans first and reject petty partisan politics.
In the end, Rauner’s stance on the budget compromise revealed how political this supposed “non-politician” has actually become. Despite knowing the damage that further ratings downgrades would do to the state, despite understanding the real damage being done to universities, businesses and municipalities by the ongoing standoff, despite recognizing that there is no way cuts and reforms alone will dig Illinois out of its financial hole without new revenue, the governor vetoed the budget legislation when it came to his desk. He did this knowing the chances were very, very good that his veto would be overridden.
There were plenty of political benefits for the governor in this irresponsible move: The guy who said he wasn’t a career politician gets to appease his base, which is howling to the point of threatening violence against lawmakers who voted yes on the budget. He also gets a workable budget that will hold the wolves of Wall Street at bay at least for a time. And as an added sweetener, he also gets plenty of partisan fuel for a re-election campaign he once told us he’d be happy to skip if it meant he could get the job done in Springfield for the people of Illinois.
Legislators who imposed this year’s increase despite Gov. Bruce Rauner’s opposition hope that by next year’s elections you’ll once again forget. Forget that they voted to raise your taxes before they passed major reforms. Forget how they set this state to shrivel as its neighbors thrive. Forget how they sabotaged Illinois.
Over the past two years we’ve also been seeking common ground on the fiscal and structural changes necessary to restore our state’s fiscal health. This challenge is not just about one year’s budget; it is about reforming our state so that our economy grows faster than our government spending. Structural reforms that encourage job growth, provide property tax relief and make government more efficient are essential to our long-term fiscal health.
Yet instead of passing a budget with reforms that would move Illinois forward, the legislature collapsed under the pressure of entrenched interests and passed a 32 percent income tax hike.
Clearly the deep financial hole Illinois has dug for itself cannot by filled by cuts alone. In addition, legislators were looking at Illinois’ bond rating being lowered to junk status, a measure that would have cost the state even more when borrowing funds.
With unfunded pension liabilities, school districts and universities swimming in red ink, there is still plenty of work to do.
As much as we hate having our taxes raised, tough choices had to be made — this wasn’t going to be easy.
Bryant stepped up to make a choice that we believe benefits the state in both the long and short term. Voters are free to agree or disagree with her vote. But, they are obligated, morally and legally, to express that disagreement in a civil manner.
* The Question: Your tax hike winners and losers? Don’t forget to explain your answers.
* The Chris Kennedy campaign just finished a call-in for political reporters about its latest poll. As we’ve already discussed, Kennedy’s poll has the candidate ahead of JB Pritzker 44-38. Here are a few notes…
* 45-5 positive/negative for Kennedy.
46-12 positive/negative for Pritzker.
Pawar and Biss are in “low single digits.”
In a December poll, Kennedy was leading Pritzker 34-18.
* 3 of 5 voters know both of the candidates. 80 percent know Pritzker. 70 percent know Kennedy. Among the “know both” it’s 49-37 for Kennedy.
After 4 pro-Kennedy statements were read, Kennedy’s lead went to 66-20.
* They mentioned two big problems for Pritzker in the polling. The FBI tapes of Pritzker talking to Blagojevich, for example, led to 55 percent of respondents saying they have “major doubts about supporting JB Pritzker.” That number was 60 percent on Pritzker’s property tax issues.
By contrast, the top testing negative on Kennedy was 21 percent: “He talks tough on property taxes but benefited” from property tax breaks.
A property tax issue polls worse than an FBI tapes issue. Think about that for a second. People are up in arms about property taxes, man.
* Consultant Eric Adelstein repeatedly said during the briefing that the campaign is confident that it will have the resources to get its message out and compete.
*** UPDATE *** Yesterday was the A-1 filing deadline day, and Kennedy reported a mere $438,834.92 in large contributions. That’s not good at all. [For some reason, my previous search included stuff that shouldn’t have been in there. This is a revised post.] He had $907K on hand at the beginning of the last quarter. We’ll see what their burn rate is by July 17th, when D-2s are due.
In October, the DNC will give a $10,000 monthly grant to each state party, running through the 2018 midterms — a one-third increase over its 2016 commitments, which came when the party’s presidential campaign was winning the money wars. […]
The DNC is also launching a State Party Innovation Fund, with $10 million earmarked for grants that state parties can compete for by organizing and modernizing; funds, according to the party, will be devoted to “innovation, best practices and organizing in base, rural, millennial and youth communities, in addition to help with building technical infrastructure.”
Among the aids already available: Knock 10, a phone app designed to streamline the process of door-knocking to encourage extremely early voter persuasion. (A common post-election critique of Hillary Clinton’s campaign was that it failed to do early persuasion, letting a voter advantage slip away in the three states that decided the election.) “Anyone can use the app, but only Democratic state parties get the data back and already state parties have begun to take advantage of this app to get more people involved in their communities,” said the DNC in a statement.
I’m not exactly holding my breath that DPI will compete for those new innovation funds, either. It’s notorious for being the most Luddite organization in the land. And it’s a state party in name only, existing mainly to win Illinois House races.
I mean, can you imagine this conversation?…
Staffer: Mr. Speaker, the DNC has this cool new phone app called Knock 10.
Speaker: What is a ‘phone app’?
Staffer: It’s a software application for mobile phones.
Speaker: As you are aware, I have no knowledge of mobile phones. I prefer my rotary.
Staffer: But lots of people have mobile phones, Mr. Speaker, sir.
Speaker: I have a Knock 10 idea for you, young man. Please leave my office immediately and go knock on ten doors in Mr. Moylan’s district.
A simple question — weighed down by a clunky domain name — is drawing attention to the serious lack of estrogen in Illinois’ gubernatorial race.
AreThereAnyWomenRunningForILGovernor.com attempts to nudge some women into the race for Gov. Bruce Rauner’s seat and calls on Democratic leadership to diversify its 2018 offerings.
The site, once you take the clickbait, delivers you to a giant red NO. The answer’s fairly self-evident, but it sits atop a handful of statements that link to organizations encouraging women to seek higher office. […]
Illinois has a long and storied history of exclusively white male governors, four of whom went to prison. (Lock him up!)
I don’t know. Maybe it’s time to mix things up a little.
Illinois Democrats: Zero women are running for governor. What’s your plan to support women leaders in our state?
(sign your name if you agree–all are invited to sign)
We are disturbed that of all the Democratic candidates running for Illinois governor, zero are women. Zero.
Of these eight straight, cisgender men, six are white. This is a problem.
Make no mistake: We will fight like hell to elect whichever candidate wins the Democratic nomination, because no one could be more harmful for Illinois women than Bruce Rauner. But it is time to acknowledge the obstacles hindering women from running for office in our state–from the overwhelming presence of big money in elections to a lack of leadership from the Democratic Party in recruiting and training women and people of color to run.
So, Democratic Party leaders: What is your plan to address the hurdles keeping women, and especially women of color, from advancing in elected office in Illinois? We commit to fighting for those needed changes from the grassroots level.
A hoped-for academic pipeline at Springfield’s medical school to produce a steady stream of cancer doctors for patients in central and southern Illinois was quashed by the two-year state budget crisis.
Even though the crisis was resolved last week after the Illinois House and Senate overrode vetoes of Gov. Bruce Rauner, a proposal to establish an oncology training program now could take years to be resurrected.
The Springfield campus of Southern Illinois University School of Medicine had hoped to welcome the first two doctors this summer for a planned three-year fellowship program in oncology-hematology, according to Dr. Aziz Khan, executive director of SIU’s Simmons Cancer Institute.
But that plan — which would have cost about up to $450,000 per year for trainees’ salaries and benefits — was put on hold two years ago, Khan said. That’s when finances began to tighten for the medical school and the two Springfield hospitals that provide the school millions of dollars in financial support each year.
“This is a big loss, I feel, for the community,” Khan said.
* Greg Hinz asked Civic Federation President Laurence Msall and Illinois Taxpayers’ Federation President Carol Portman three questions about the budget. Here are the first two…
Question one: Democrats say the $36 billion spending plan they enacted last week is “balanced.” Rauner says it’s $2 billion out of whack. Who’s right?
Msall notes that the bulk of the $2 billion is due to extra spending in fiscal 2017 that was not financed then or in the fiscal 2018 spending plan that just was adopted by override. “We believe a calculation on of the operating surplus or deficit should be based on the current year’s results,” he adds. “The prior year’s results are reflected in the backlog of bills.”
So, one vote for the Democratic position—and Portman tends to agree. “We’ve frequently spent more than we’ve brought in and not cleaned it up before carrying on into the next year. That doesn’t make it OK,” she says. “But that doesn’t mean the FY18 budget package as passed doesn’t balance, if it truly spends no more than we expect to bring in for the fiscal year. . . .I’d say both sides are right—they’re just using a different definition of ‘balanced.’ ”
Question two: Democrats claim their version cuts spending by $1 billion or more below the budget Rauner introduced. True?
Msall sides with Rauner on this one. “The spending is roughly equivalent, even though on paper the governor’s budget is $37.3 billion and the General Assembly’s $36 billion. The (General Assembly’s) budget appears to be smaller mainly because of transfers out” from the general funds to other funds that spend the money themselves. That reduced general funds spending, but not total spending.
Yeah. They used the exact same accounting gimmick that Rauner and the Republicans used in their “Capitol Compromise” proposal.
* Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago) offered this explanation to the SJ-R…
Harris, however, says that with a change in how the state disburses the income tax and a boost from a tax hike on workers’ salaries, Springfield will come out with 6 percent more this year in its share of income tax.
Harris said the gains will happen because the state will accelerate payments to local governments by directly transferring the money to them instead of having them wait in line for a transfer from the state’s general revenue funds. Municipalities will receive their share within 60 days, Harris said. With those faster payments, cities would see 14 payments instead of 12 this year.
So, they moved money intended for the Local Government Distributive Fund out of GRF and into a new fund that directly transfers payments to the locals. That will, indeed, speed up payments and has the added “benefit” of taking the money off budget and making it look like locals get an increase when it was really just money that was owed to them.
However, expediting these payments means the comptroller can’t use her discretion to delay writing LGDF checks while she pays for something else more pressing. And that means there will be more cash flow pressures every month. Things could get super tight.
In a Garin-Hart-Yang survey conducted June 26- 29, Chris Kennedy maintained a strong lead over billionaire J.B. Pritzker, despite Pritzker spending over $8 million on a television and direct mail blitz, nearly 10 months out from the Democratic primary. Kennedy led Pritzker 44% to 38% in the trial heat. Among voters that knew both candidates, Kennedy held a larger lead 49% to 37% in the trial heat, suggesting that Kennedy has room to grow as more voters hear his message.
“Democratic primary voters want radical change in Springfield, and they aren’t falling in love with Pritzker’s big wallet,” Brendan O’Sullivan campaign manager said. “Big money talks, it doesn’t listen, and voters are tired of billionaires in both parties trying to buy their votes. It’s why Chris has maintained a strong lead even in the face of record spending against him. Voters are respond to Chris’ message of being independent of the party machine, fighting for real reforms to make Springfield work for Illinois families, and restoring the promise of the American Dream for everyone in the state.”
OK, but Kurt Summers’ poll taken in early March had Kennedy at the very same 44 percent. Pritzker was polling at just 11 percent, so he’s more than tripled his support since then. It’s cost him a pretty penny to do that, but money is apparently no object. And keep in mind that Pritzker has not run any ads against Kennedy, which could be coming.
* And we’ll see what Kennedy’s quarterly fundraising reports show. Sen. Daniel Biss may be hard to top…
We have a first look at gubernatorial candidate Daniel Biss’ second quarter numbers; the Democrat says he’s preparing to report more than $1 million raised between April and June. The Biss campaign believes that will place him right up with Chris Kennedy (perhaps even surpassing Kennedy?) for second-quarter fundraising.
Breaking it down: Biss’ camp is basing this on the large-dollar contributions they’ve received. Biss’ campaign says so far he’s in the lead with an expected $560,000 raised. The largest donation, according to Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, is $100,000 from the Senate Democratic Victory Fund. A statement from the group said Biss had donated that amount to the fund last November and that it is not endorsing.
Kennedy, as of Sunday, had roughly $400,000 in large-dollar contributions and Pawar had $79,000. Of course, billionaire J.B. Pritzker far outpaces the Democratic field because he is self-funding. He has given $14 million to his own campaign thus far.
Totals: “Biss now sits with over $2.3 million cash on hand,” a release from his campaign states. “The second quarter haul came from more than 2,700 donors representing over 230 cities and towns across Illinois. Two-thirds of Biss’s Q2 donations were for under $100, and 95% of them came from in-state.” Full second-quarter filings are due July 17.
*** UPDATE 1 *** On background, I’m told by the Kennedy folks that the poll “is not good for JB.” Pritzker, they say, has a “low ceiling” and “explosive negatives. The electorate, they claim, “wants to go with Kennedy by every measure.”
They’re having a press briefing at 1:30, so we’ll know more then.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Pritzker campaign…
“It’s exciting to see Chris Kennedy’s own internal polling numbers confirming the surging support and enthusiasm that JB has been feeling around the state,” said Pritzker campaign manager Anne Caprara. “A 27-point polling jump in three months would be exciting for any campaign, but it’s particularly encouraging given the strong recognition of the Kennedy name. JB is proud to be growing his support with Illinois’ working families and grateful to Chris Kennedy for letting people know.”
Could ERIKA HAROLD, the former Miss America who ran for Congress from the 13th Congressional District in the 2014 primary, be a Republican candidate for attorney general?
MARK MAXWELL, Springfield bureau chief for WCIA-TV, recently said on Twitter that Harold is the state GOP’s leading candidate for that office, held since 2003 by Democrat LISA MADIGAN.
Harold got 41 percent of the vote in a three-way primary race in the 13th in 2014, losing to U.S. Rep. RODNEY DAVIS, R-Taylorville. The 13th includes part of Springfield.
I left messages for Harold — who practices law in Champaign — and got a reply back from a spokesman for the state GOP, who sent a quote from Davis.
“Erika Harold is exactly who we need to take on the Chicago machine,” the congressman said. “A Harvard-educated lawyer and a national leader combating school violence, Erika Harold tells the hard truths and always stands up for those in need. I know she’ll take on the corruption in state government.”
As the state’s chief investment officer, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs today laid out the steps Gov. Bruce Rauner must take to prevent Illinois from sinking into junk bond status now that a budget package has been approved.
“The credit-rating agencies have indicated that the new revenue and spending cuts alone are not enough to insulate the state against further credit downgrades, including junk bond status,” Frerichs said. “I understand that Gov. Rauner disagrees with the elected members of the House and Senate. However, should he not take these necessary steps, he is inviting the credit-rating agencies to plunge Illinois into junk bond status, the results of which will lead to higher property taxes.”
To avoid becoming the first state in history to be assigned junk bond status, the Governor must:
· Travel to New York, speak directly with the three ratings agencies, and convince them that he embraces the decision of the Legislature and will implement the budget package.
· Immediately take visible, responsible steps to implement the $6 billion in bonding authority, which will yield $3 billion in additional federal dollars to pay down the $15 billion bill backlog.
· Make sure that local schools open on-time. K-12 education funding in the budget package is predicated upon a separate agreement that state dollars will be distributed on an evidence-based model. Lawmakers passed legislation that does so. However, the Governor has promised a veto. Vetoing this agreement, or in the alternative, not striking a different deal, will create more instability, which the rating agencies are expecting Illinois to avoid. It also will threaten local schools from Cairo to Chicago and be a complete disaster for parents.
· Clearly and proactively communicate the new tax rates with Illinois employers to eliminate any confusion. Doing so will ensure that revenue estimates and cash-flow expectations are met.
· Eliminate the divisive rhetoric that is impairing our state from moving forward. This divisiveness counters the civility and bi-partisanship the rating agencies wish to see.
“This mix of revenue and cuts is far from perfect. It is, however, now the law and if implemented it is a critical first step to addressing Illinois’ deep, structural challenges,” Frerichs said. “It is clear that we will not begin to climb out of this debt if the Governor does not take the necessary steps to lead us away from the abyss.”
Earlier this year, Frerichs warned that the inability to reach a budget agreement would invite further credit downgrades that would increase the cost of necessary borrowing. Frerichs also warned of impending junk bond status and, if reached, how that would exasperate the financial markets because some investors are restricted from doing business with entities that have junk bond status. This is true even though entities that purchase Illinois debt have iron-clad constitutional guarantees that they will be paid.
Illinois also uses toxic credit-swap agreements. Junk status invites termination of these agreements. Termination penalties of up to $107 million, in addition to interest rate penalties, could be demanded by the lending agencies.
Illinois has endured eight credit downgrades since Gov. Rauner took office in January 2015. All involved the state’s bill backlog, now estimated to be $15 billion, the budget impasse, and other factors.
The budget package approved by Democrats and Republicans is the first in two years. It was enacted over the Governor’s opposition and plans to spend $36.1 billion in the fiscal year that began July 1, 2017. Currently, the state spends $39 billion annually, so the package represents a $3 billion spending cut. The cuts, combined with new revenue and federal matching dollars, could allow for up to $8 billion of the bill backlog to be addressed.
However, it will take several years, including the likelihood of several more challenging budget packages, for Illinois to eliminate the bill backlog and return to a more acceptable payment cycle of 30-90 days.
“The low rating from the rating agencies is reflective of the fact that Madigan’s 32 percent permanent tax increase will not solve the problems created by decades of unbalanced budgets, unfunded pension liabilities, borrowing and high debt,” Eleni Demertzis said.
“Even with the tax increase, this budget remains $2 billion out of balance for fiscal year 2018. The best thing we can do is to work collaboratively to pass truly balanced budgets that pay down our debt, reform our pension system, and make the changes necessary to drive economic growth in our state.”
What happens when a Democrat in the Illinois House won’t kneel before Boss Madigan?
Punishment, isolation and mockery.
State Rep. Scott Drury, of Highwood, is paying for not voting for Madigan for speaker of the house, where Madigan has reigned for decades.
The former federal prosecutor has been stripped of his position on a judiciary committee. His ethics legislation, he understands, will die. And he’s been mocked by Madigan’s smarmier mouthpieces.
“I’m being punished, it’s fair to say,” Drury told me in an extensive interview on my podcast, “The Chicago Way,” on WGN-AM.
Also toying with throwing his hat into the ring is Lake County lawmaker Scott Drury of Highwood. If the 58th District representative takes the gubernatorial plunge, he can expect Madigan to ignore him about like the Trump administration ignores climate change.
That’s because Drury was the lone House Democrat who voted against re-electing Madigan speaker of the House to a record 17th term in January when the 100th General Assembly was reorganized. It was Drury’s finest “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” hour.
It was also a lesson to the former U.S. attorney and his fellow lawmakers to find out what happens when a Democrat crosses cold-hearted Madigan’s iron rule in the House: Drury is now what only can be considered akin to an exiled member of the old Soviet Politburo. Instead of being sent to Siberia, he has to toil in Springfield with little serious committee assignments.
When readers last heard of Democratic state Rep. Scott Drury of Highwood — it was late January — he was being punished by House Speaker Michael Madigan for opposing Madigan’s re-election as the man in charge of the Illinois House of Representatives.
After Drury declined to support Madigan’s re-election as speaker — the only one of 67 House Democrats to do so — Madigan stripped Drury of his seat on an important committee where he served as vice chairman. The move not only cost Drury a coveted spot on a key committee, but also a roughly $10,000 stipend for serving in a leadership role.
A Democratic state representative said he’s being bullied for not voting for Mike Madigan as the House Speaker.
Rep. Scott Drury voted “present” earlier this month for Speaker. He also voted against the House Rules. After that, he noticed something strange: he didn’t receive a gift bag like other Democrat House members.
“I later learned that it was a deskclock that was engraved, touting Speaker Madigan’s lengthy tenure as Speaker of the House,” Drury said.
Madigan has been Speaker all but two years since 1983.
* I re-posted all of those clips because now I’m wondering if the same voices of outrage will rise to the defense of Rep. Steve Andersson, who was kicked out of House GOP leadership yesterday for supporting a budget package funded with a tax hike.
After years of ugly gridlock and weeks of groups and political leaders whipping up an already-disgusted populace over a 1.2 percentage point income tax increase, lots of legislators were understandably on edge last week.
Rep. Will Guzzardi, D-Chicago, tweeted ahead of the votes to override Gov. Bruce Rauner’s vetoes of a budget package that it was “hard not to think about the (recent Virginia) congressional shooting showing up to work today.”
And so people were naturally a bit rattled when a woman triggered a more than two-hour delay of those override votes as police and a hazardous materials team frantically combed the Statehouse.
The woman, described by a friend as a “wonderful” person and “beloved” by many, threw some sort of substance at or into a few offices, including the governor’s. A couple of her friends said she might have been attempting to perform a “good luck” ritual.
Depending on your outlook, her possible good luck ritual either worked or failed. We now have a tax increase and a sort of balanced budget, and everyone can take a breather for a while. On the other hand, we now have a tax increase and a sort of balanced budget that are fabulously unpopular and will require more work to fix.
Next fiscal year’s budget is really not going to be pretty, but trouble will start even before then. Moody’s already has declared that it could downgrade the state to junk bond status even with the tax increase. If that happens, it will damage the government’s ability to borrow to pay off some of the $15 billion in debt that has been piling up during the two-year impasse.
And even if Illinois isn’t immediately downgraded, the state will hover on the precipice of junk status for the foreseeable future, perhaps for years. There just isn’t enough money on the revenue side of this plan and too much on the spending side to ensure balanced budgets into the future and to pay off that mountain of backlogged bills.
What lawmakers did was fix the state government’s immediate problem. A broader deal would have been preferable, but that obviously wasn’t possible. And there isn’t a person around Rauner who doesn’t think that he now has a dual political advantage of new state revenues to spend along with his popular opposition to the tax increase.
So, now what? There’s a belief by some that House Speaker Michael Madigan has the very thing he has wanted for more than two years: A working bipartisan super-majority to override the governor at will.
But that, I think, is a misinterpretation of what happened. Madigan didn’t create that super-majority, his members did. If it had been left up to Madigan alone, the tax increase probably would have failed. His members were the ones who reached out to their Republican colleagues to negotiate a budget and a tax increase. And when Madigan tried to send them home for a few days, they insisted he keep the House in session and call the votes.
When Republicans started dropping off the roll call last week after taking tremendous heat, Madigan could have let the override fail and made Rauner be forever tagged as “Gov. Junk.” But his members wanted it to pass, so he rounded up more Democratic votes, including a couple of his own targets — something that never happens in that caucus.
Madigan’s members will be hugely important to any further veto overrides, but those breakaway House Republicans will be even more crucial.
And that leads us to the education funding reform bill. As I write this, the Senate has not sent the bill to the governor, who has vowed to veto what he calls a “Chicago bailout.” While that bill helps more truly needy districts in the long run than the governor’s plan, it does contain more money for Chicago Public Schools.
After taking unimaginable heat for voting for a tax increase, it seems doubtful that those same 10 Republicans will then turn around and vote for a “Chicago bailout” that will be portrayed as stealing money from their own students. Without those votes, a veto can’t be overridden.
Both the Democratic and Republican school funding plans require state aid to be distributed via a new formula. No new formula, no school funding. No school funding, lots of schools don’t open after summer vacation. And just like that, we’re in another full-blown crisis.
Maybe that woman could be brought back to the Statehouse for another good luck ceremony, only without the haz-mat teams this time.
This column was written last week before the governor hired the Illinois Policy Institute’s chief operating officer to be his new chief of staff. As such, I’m now much more on the fence about what will happen with SB 1.
