Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has filed legislation that would block a controversial pay raise for lawmakers and one of his co-sponsors expects an almost-immediate vote.
Rep. David McSweeney said Tuesday that the legislation would block the 2 percent cost-of-living increase that lawmakers are due. McSweeney is Republican from Cary and a co-sponsor of the Democratic speaker’s legislation. McSweeney said he believes the full House will vote later Tuesday.
On Twitter Tuesday, Rep. Ron Sandack, R- Downers Grove, said: “House Reps tried for TWO weeks to advance our bill to suspend the Dems’ COLA raise. My, how things change, yes? #Duh”
And Rauner’s spokesman, Lance Trover, said in a statement, “As we approach the end of the month, Speaker Madigan and the politicians he controls have one final chance to side with Republicans and make a clean up or down vote on stopping themselves from getting an automatic pay increase.”
Madigan previously would not comment on the raises. But last week he told reporters the pay raise wasn’t in his spending plan.
“We did not appropriate for the pay raise or the COLA adjustment,” Madigan said.
The Illinois House today approved legislation to repeal the automatic cost-of-living adjustment that lawmakers recently received according to State Rep. David McSweeney (R-Barrington Hills), one of the lead co-sponsors of the legislation. Legislators recently received a two percent automatic cost-of-living adjustment, which amounts to about an additional $1,563 annually. HB 576 eliminates the automatic COLA. The Senate must now pass the bill.
“Repealing the automatic pay increase is the right thing to do,” McSweeney said. “Giving legislators a pay increase when we have not passed a permanent budget is unconscionable. Now that we have rejected the pay increase, let’s finish doing our job and pass a permanent budget without raising taxes.”
Legislators are required by law to accept the COLA, which began on July 1st. McSweeney has already donated the full yearly amount of the COLA to charity. He donated $781.50 to the McHenry County Pioneer Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping economically disadvantaged and disabled people achieve their full potential as individuals. He also donated an additional $781.50 to the Night Ministry, a non-profit group that helps homeless children and adults.
McSweeney has voluntarily cut his own pay and district office budget by 10%. He’s also not going to accept his paychecks until the state budget crisis is solved. Earlier this year, McSweeney introduced House Bill 1313 which eliminates COLA’s for legislators and forces them to take furlough days.
* Amanda Vinicky reports that the Illinois attorney general’s office has filed a request to extend the August 6th deadline to appeal the state Supreme Court’s pension ruling to the top court in the land…
[AG Madigan’s] office on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court for an extension, so it’ll have until Sept. 10 to [file an appeal].
John Fitzgerald, an attorney for retired public school teachers, says they’ll fight it.
“This is entirely a matter of Illinois State Law. There is no basis for the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.”
The Attorney General’s petition says the pension case “raises important questions” about states’ rights to use police powers to modify contracts, like public pensions.
“The principal questions presented are (1) whether the reserved powers doctrine prevents a State from abdicating its police powers authority to modify its own contractual obligations in extreme circumstances that imperil the general welfare and (2) if not, whether the Illinois Supreme Court identified the correct standard by which the validity of a State’s exercise of its police power is judged.”
Discuss.
*** UPDATE *** From the AG’s office…
We have asked for an extension of the deadline to file a cert petition, which is a fairly routine request. With the decision in the City of Chicago’s pension case late last week, we are continuing to consider all of the arguments and the best next step.
Doesn’t sound like any final decisions have been made.
* There is some chatter behind the scenes, but it doesn’t mean anything as long as Sen. Kirk is moving forward with his campaign. And he’s definitely doing that…
Pssst!
Sneed hears rumbles top Republican Party stalwarts are worried U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., who suffered a massive stroke in 2012, may not have the energy to win re-election.
“The last race for the U.S. Senate seat between Kirk and Dem senatorial hopeful Alexi Giannoulias was a bruiser, and the next race will be heavily funded by the Democratic Party,” said a top GOP source. (U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill. and attorney/former Urban League President Andrea Zopp have entered the Dem primary fray.)
Kirk, who had to learn how to walk again and has struggled with speech issues, has dealt recently with verbal gaffes, one of which required him to offer a one-line apology recently after he was caught on a hot microphone referring to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a bachelor, as a “bro with no ho.”
More recently, Kirk’s performance while questioning Consumer Financial Protection Bureau chief Richard Cordray at a Senate Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs Committee hearing was described as “disastrous” by a top Republican insider who asked not to be identified.
* From the Kirk campaign…
The Kirk For Senate campaign launched a new ad, titled “Headed to Trial”, in response to Rep. Duckworth’s second negative ad in just the last two months. The new video highlights Rep. Duckworth’s upcoming trial as the motive behind her torrent of negative advertising aimed at Senator Kirk.
“Next month, Rep. Duckworth and her taxpayer-paid legal team are scheduled to be in court facing charges that Duckworth violated the state ethics act by attempting to silence whistleblowers during her time as Director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs,” said Kevin Artl, campaign manager for Kirk for Senate. “The launch of the negative ad by Rep. Duckworth is meant to distract the public from her own mounting legal troubles as yet another member of the Blagojevich administration is headed to trial.”
Background on the upcoming Duckworth Trial:
In 2009, two employees of the Anna Veterans Home sued Tammy Duckworth as an individual in Union County Circuit Court for violations of the State of Illinois Officials and Employees’ Ethics Act. Duckworth is accused of silencing a whistleblower, wrongful termination, humiliating an employee and approving inaccurate performance reviews that rendered the plaintiffs ineligible for bonuses or raises. The first pre-trial hearing of this case is set for August 4, 2015.
“Words have ceased to have meaning now that Mark Kirk has called another campaign ‘desperate.’ Let’s consider just the past week: in response to his over-the-top reaction to the Iran nuclear agreement, Kirk was called the ‘love child of Ted Cruz and Michele Bachman’ in one editorial and ‘a political loose cannon’ in another; a second prominent political handicapper moved the race to ‘Lean Democratic’ from ‘Toss-up;” and Republicans are now talking openly about his ‘disastrous’ campaign. I could go back further to his sexist and racially insensitive comments about a ‘bro with no ho’ and people ‘driving faster through’ African American neighborhoods, but you get the point. Senator Kirk’s campaign is in free fall, and no amount of misdirection can change the fact that Illinois families are tired of his reckless and obnoxious rhetoric.” — Matt McGrath, Democratic Party of Illinois spokesman
A panel of appellate judges in the state’s Fifth District has unanimously upheld a temporary restraining order issued by a St. Clair County Circuit Court that has enabled public service workers in state government to be paid on time and in full even in the absence of an enacted state budget for the fiscal year that started July 1.
The case was brought against the State of Illinois by unions representing state employees. The unions argued that failure to pay state workers on time and in full would be an unconstitutional impairment of contract—violating the unions’ respective collective bargaining agreements that establish employee wages and pay schedules.
The appellate panel today upheld the TRO and remanded the case to St. Clair County Circuit Court for trial. The judges wrote:
“State employees have a protectable right to be paid for work they perform. … State employees will suffer irreparable harm if the TRO is not granted. As the unions stated in their motion requesting the TRO, no one knows when the budget impasse will end. … The loss of pay will, at the very least, cause State employees and their families a good deal of stress. Some may be unable to make payments on their homes, cars, or other debts.”
“Public service workers in state government keep us safe, protect kids, care for veterans and people with disabilities, and provide many other vital services, and it’s right that they will be paid on time and in full for the work they do,” AFSCME Council 31 executive director Roberta Lynch said. “Now instead of holding public services hostage, Governor Rauner should drop his extreme demands for policy changes that are unrelated to the budget and would hurt the middle class, and turn his attention to working with legislative leaders to pass a fair budget without preconditions.”
Today the city of Chicago’s pension-cutting legislation was ruled unconstitutional and void in Cook County Circuit Court. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 31, one of four unions joining 14 city employees and retirees as named plaintiffs in the suit (Jones v. MEABF) issued this statement:
“Today’s ruling that overturns city pension cuts and protects the life savings of city workers is a win for all Chicago. All city residents can be reassured that the Constitution—our state’s highest law—means what it says and will be respected, while city employees and retirees can be assured that their modest retirement income is protected.
“Public service workers in city government help children in our libraries and schools, provide health care in neighborhood clinics, keep our streets and water supply safe and clean, and do much more. Their modest pension benefit is just $32,000 a year on average, and they aren’t eligible for Social Security.
“In light of Judge Novak’s ruling and the recent state Supreme Court ruling that made clear there is no exception to the Constitution’s pension protection clause, we urge the city not to take up further time and expend additional taxpayer dollars on an appeal of today’s decision.”
But city officials made it clear they intend to appeal to the state Supreme Court.
“We have always recognized that this matter will ultimately be resolved by the Illinois Supreme Court,” Corporation Counsel Stephen Patton, the top city attorney, said in a statement. “We now look forward to having our arguments heard there.
“We continue to strongly believe that the City’s pension reform legislation, unlike the State legislation held unconstitutional this past spring, does not diminish or impair pension benefits, but rather preserves and protects them. This law not only rescues the municipal and laborer pension funds from certain insolvency, but ensures that, over time, they will be fully funded and the 61,000 affected City workers and retirees will receive the pensions they were promised,” Patton said.
While Emanuel is defending the laborers and city workers case, he’s already acknowledged the new legal landscape created by the state Supreme Court ruling in his proposed fix for the police and fire pension funds. His plan would not diminish benefits for police officers and firefighters. Instead, the city would stretch out the payment schedule so that initial increases in taxpayer contributions would be reduced. Police and fire pension funds are short about $10 billion and stand to go broke in less than a decade.
The approach also would provide the mayor with some short-term budget relief as the city considers new pension funding sources that could include a significant property tax increase. Lawmakers approved the city pension bill May 31 but have yet to send it to Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner amid the state government stalemate.
A measure that adds companies that boycott Israel to the state’s existing divestiture requirements was signed by Governor Rauner today, making Illinois the first state in the country to enact anti-BDS legislation.
Sponsored by state Rep. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago), Senate Bill 1761 creates the Illinois Investment Policy Board, which will maintain a list of restricted companies for the state-funded pension systems and Illinois State Board of Investments (ISBI).
“Israel is one of our closest allies, and we have a responsibility to protect the economic wellbeing of all of our friends,” said Feigenholtz. “This law ensures that our state invests in a way that is aligned with our interests and moral obligations.”
The pension systems and ISBI could not invest in any restricted company, which includes companies that boycott Israel or have relations with Iran or Sudan. Pension systems currently investing in companies on the restricted list would be required to divest. Divestment is not required if the total investment in a restricted company is less than 0.5% of the market value of all assets of the pension system or ISBI.
“With every investment we’re making a statement about the kind of society we want to live in,” said Feigenholtz. “This legislation uses taxpayer dollars in a conscious, responsible manner and makes it clear that Illinois stands with Israel.”
…Adding… From the governor’s office…
Flanked by bipartisan legislators, Jewish community leaders and the Consul General of Israel to the Midwest, Gov. Bruce Rauner today signed historic legislation making Illinois the first state in America to divest its public pension funds from companies that participate in the Boycott, Sanctions, Divestment (BDS) movement targeting Israel.
The Illinois law is the first state-based measure to take specific concrete action against boycotts of Israel. The legislation, which was modeled after past measures relating to Iran and Sudan, requires state pension systems to terminate direct investment in companies that boycott Israel and issue warnings to fund managers when such companies are held indirectly inside larger portfolios. The statute defines “boycotting Israel” as “engaging in actions that are politically motivated and are intended to penalize, inflict economic harm on, or otherwise limit commercial relations with the State of Israel or companies based in the State of Israel or in territories controlled by the State of Israel.”
“We need to stand up to anti-Semitism whenever and wherever we see it,” Gov. Rauner said. “This historic legislation is an important first step in the fight against boycotts of Israel and I hope other states move quickly to follow our lead. I want to thank Sen. Silverstein, Rep. Feigenholtz and all the sponsors of this legislation for working with our Administration to take a stand against BDS.”
The anti-BDS measure, SB 1761, was initiated by Gov. Rauner and sponsored by Sen. Ira Silverstein (D-Chicago) and Rep. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago). It passed 49-0 in the Senate and 102-0 in the House.
Some hospitals serving low-income communities are in imminent danger of closing, according to Shriver Center’s court filing. The filing further states that If those hospitals close because of the state’s failure to pay bills, it would violate a decade-old court order. The Shriver lawyers argued that order requires the state to complete Medicaid payments to hospitals in Cook County, even though Gov. Bruce Rauner and lawmakers have not approved a spending plan authorizing the state to reimburse those hospitals.
The court filing specifically named The New Roseland Community Hospital. It said delayed payments “will force Roseland Community Hospital, in less than a week, to begin the process of closing its hospital.” Roseland Community Hospital is dependent on the Medicaid program for 71 percent of its funding and it anticipates a $2 million shortfall in July and a $2.4 million shortfall in August, according to the Shriver Center’s filing.
Roseland Hospital said in a written statement that it has enough funding to make payroll on July 31st and it will be implementing a voluntary furlough, layoffs and service line suspensions before August 1.
“The families of those who are going to die because of this political budget impasse will not give a damn about party lines,” said Tim Egan, New Roseland President and CEO, in an emailed statement. “Just as bullets don’t recognize political boundaries, grieving families, critically injured patients and an abandoned community will not care about Republicans or Democrats. They will just know that the State of Illinois failed them. And the State of Illinois will have failed the New Roseland Hospital, its patients and its employees over a political stalemate.”
The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services is a named defendant in the lawsuit. John Hoffman, a spokesperson for the department, said in response to the filing, “While we believe this motion incorrectly interprets the consent decree, this does highlight the importance of the General Assembly passing a balanced budget so our most vulnerable citizens will know they can continue receiving the care they need in the long run.”
…Adding More… Illinois Hospital Association…
“IHA and the hospital community appreciate the action taken by the Shriver Center seeking to assure access to health care services for Illinoisans who are insured by the Medicaid program – children, seniors, families and persons with disabilities. Access to health care should not be a bargaining chip in the budget debates in Springfield. Just like state employees, physicians, nurses, pharmacists, aides and other health care workers need to be paid during the budget impasse. IHA continues to urge legislators on both sides of the aisle and the Governor to find a reasonable and workable state budget solution so Illinoisans are able to receive the health care they need.”
