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* Hannah Meisel at the Daily Line…
After a bill to raise Illinois’ minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025 passed the Illinois Senate last week on a party-line vote, Gov. JB Pritzker — who has been pushing Democratic leaders to get the measure passed before his Budget Address next week — boasted that SB 1 is endorsed by a key business group in Illinois.
“This bill has the support of the Illinois Restaurant Association and will allow restaurant workers and restaurant owners to succeed,” Pritzker told reporters at the Capitol last week, before ticking off the other merits of the bill.
Sam Toia, president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, had indeed signed off on the bill ahead of Wednesday’s committee vote to send SB 1 to the Senate floor.
But in Springfield Monday, downstate members of the Illinois Restaurant Association told The Daily Line that they weren’t asked, and that Toia doesn’t speak for them.
And, man, are they ever mad.
* Channel 20…
Across from the Illinois Governor’s mansion, you’ll find Loukinens’ on Fourth.
The restaurant opened in October 2017, but owners Kevin and Laurie Loukinen are concerned a $15 minimum wage hike could force them to close their doors.
“If I increase minimum wage at $15 an hour, then I have to increase supervisor pay, then I have to increase manager pay, then I have to match all the payroll taxes that go with that and all the property taxes that go with that,” Laurie Loukinen said.
Laurie Loukinen said she once asked Gov. JB Pritzker to not harm her business while he was eating at her restaurant with his wife.
“He was in this very dining room and I said, ‘Just tell me you’re going to do a good job and that you’re not going to kill me as a business for the sake of Chicago,’ and he stood right here in my dining room and he said, ‘I will not do that to you,’” Laurie Loukinen said. “And I take Governor Pritzker at his word.”
You gotta wonder how the governor’s next visit to that restaurant is gonna go.
Meanwhile, the owner of Obed and Isaac’s compared her stand against the minimum wage hike to Winston Churchill during World War II. I kid you not.
* This is not to make light of their arguments. The governor has said that he would listen to all sides and points to the Illinois Restaurant Association as supporters even though some restaurant owners are up in arms about this bill. They do have a right to be upset. And a regionalized system does make some sense…
The news conference was organized by the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, which is pressing lawmakers to enact a tiered minimum wage. Its proposal would have a $15 wage in Chicago, while the suburbs surrounding Chicago would have a $13 wage and the rest of the state would have an $11 minimum wage by 2025.
The differences are meant to reflect that it’s cheaper to live outside of Chicago and that other areas of the state do not have the same economic activity as Chicago. The states of Oregon and New York use a tiered approach, paying a higher minimum wage in a major urban area and lower wages in less-populated areas.
Frankly, though, if I was a Downstate worker making minimum wage, I’d be awfully upset that Chicagoans were paid more by law to do the exact same job for the exact same employer. A regionalized minimum wage would literally codify the alleged Chicago advantage that Downstaters so often complain about.
…Adding… ILGOP…
“Governor Pritzker is misleading the people of Illinois about his minimum wage plan by falsely claiming it’s the product of compromise and Republican input, even though no Republicans support it. If Pritzker thinks it’s a ‘Republican idea’ to phase in the wage hike over six years as opposed to three or enact insufficient tax credits for small business, he’s wrong. Pritzker pledged to listen to Republicans and compromise, but it turns out those were just empty, meaningless words.” - Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Aaron DeGroot
*** UPDATE *** It’s on a rail…
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* They can say whatever they want. Unless and until they can locate some legislators willing to actually sponsor legislation to impose a state tax on retirement income, it ain’t even gonna be discussed except in news reporting and columns…
A second public policy organization is calling for Illinois to tax retirement income and expand the sales tax to some consumer services as part of a sweeping plan to fix the state’s fiscal woes.
The recommendations from nonpartisan budget watchdog Civic Federation come one week before new Gov. J.B. Pritzker is scheduled to present his first budget proposal to lawmakers. The Democratic governor backs legalizing and taxing recreational marijuana and sports gambling, as well as overhauling the state income tax system in two years. But he hasn’t endorsed taxing retirement income or gotten specific on taxing services.
In its annual “budget roadmap,” the Civic Federation’s Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability says new taxes should only be considered as part of a multiyear plan that also limits state spending. It proposes limiting spending growth to 2.4 percent per year for five years.
The call to tax retirement income echoes a similar proposal last week from the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, which is made up of the city’s business elite. The Civic Federation has been pushing the idea for several years, though its recommendation hasn’t gained traction in Springfield.
Pritzker has said that sales taxes on services are regressive and he therefore doesn’t like them. Maybe we could see movement on that, but he defeated two Democratic primary opponents with the retirement income tax issue and I cannot see him ever flipping on that one.
Fiscally, it’s a good idea. Sound, even. Politically, it’s deader than a rock on a stump.
…Adding… Related…
* Illinois lawmakers flock to oppose retirement tax after proposal from business leaders
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* Tribune…
Billionaire hedge fund CEO Ken Griffin, who has given tens of millions to former Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and supported Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, is donating $1 million to Bill Daley’s mayoral campaign.
In a statement about the contribution, Griffin called Daley “a proven leader who understands the critical importance of working for all Chicagoans regardless of politics, race or background.”
“He will bring together a diversity of views across the city on our most pressing challenges of creating jobs, reducing violent crime, and improving our schools so we all can be proud to live and work in this world-class city that we call our home,” Griffin said. […]
“His investments in Chicago, in its cultural institutions, in its healthcare organizations, and in improvements that benefit all residents are a model of giving back to the community,” Daley said in a statement. “While we may not agree on every political issue, Ken’s commitment to Chicago is unquestionable and unwavering.”
* Susana Mendoza…
As co-chair of Bruce Rauner’s transition team, Bill Daley wrote the blueprint for the failed governor’s four years of crisis and destruction. It’s no surprise he’s earned the endorsement of Rauner’s biggest funder and enabler too. Chicago’s families can’t afford four years of a mayor who stood by silently while his friend Bruce Rauner launched attack after attack on our workers, cut critical social services, and assaulted women’s reproductive healthcare rights. I wasn’t afraid to take on Bruce Rauner on behalf of Illinoisans, and I’m not afraid to take on Bill Daley on behalf of Chicagoans. The last thing Chicago needs is Bruce Rauner’s mayor.
* Meanwhile…
Hardworking Chicago window washers are once again in the spotlight after NBC Chicago and Telemundo Chicago ran in-depth stories last night on the dangerous work they do every single day. Now, in the closing weeks of the mayoral election, SEIU Local 1 is running an ad on Spanish-language television detailing how mayoral candidate Susana Mendoza sold out our city’s brave window washers, their families and their communities when they went on strike in July of 2018.
“When we were on strike for a better future, Susana Mendoza sold us out,” said SEIU Local 1 window washer Francisco Guzman. “Voters need to know that Mendoza sides with her business owner donors over hardworking Chicago families and our communities.”
Instead of standing with our city’s brave window washers, who put their lives on the line every day to support their families, Mendoza sided with her buddy and major campaign donor Neal Zucker, CEO of window washing company Corporate Cleaning Services and employer of window washers. Zucker is a major Mendoza campaign donor who has contributed more than $30,000 to her political fund since 2014, including $10,000 immediately following the strike and $3,000 on Christmas Eve. CBS Chicago rated the claims in the ad, which ran for weeks on digital platforms, to be true.
The ad represents a significant five-figure buy on Univision Chicago and Telemundo Chicago and will run from Thursday until the runoff election on February 26. In the closing weeks of the mayor’s race, Local 1 window washers are letting voters know that Susana Mendoza cannot be trusted to stand with Chicago’s working families.
The ad is here.
…Adding… The Tribune endorsed Daley today.
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*** UPDATED x2 *** We need a capital bill
Monday, Feb 11, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sheesh…
* CBS 2…
City crews fixing a nearby light pole spotted the cracked beams Monday morning, and reported the problem.
Shortly before noon, the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications said all northbound lanes on Lake Shore Drive were closed between Monroe to Grand as a result, and advised drivers to use an alternate route.
The Chicago Department of Transportation said crews were “assessing the situation” on the bridge, and would issue an advisory once they determine how long it would take to make repairs.
Thank goodness it was caught in time.
…Adding… Northbound Lake Shore Drive will be closed in that area at least through tonight, the Sun-Times reports.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Another one today…
…Adding… A longtime reader/commenter sent this pic of Union Station today. Platform between tracks 2 and 4…
…Adding… Local 150…
This afternoon’s failure and emergency closure of a northbound Lake Shore Drive bridge was dangerous, inconvenient, costly, and – most tragically – it was completely avoidable.
Bridge failures are only one of the inevitable results when our critical infrastructure is neglected and left in disrepair. The decay of the Lake Shore Drive bridges is among the most advanced in the City of Chicago, but this is far from the only bridge that is teetering on the brink of failure.
According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, more than 2,300 Illinois bridges are “structurally deficient,” yet Illinois has been without a statewide infrastructure funding bill since 2009. ASCE gave an overall grade of C- to Illinois’ infrastructure, including road, rail, utility and other vital infrastructure
“When the state fails to invest in our infrastructure, we are neglecting a problem until it becomes a crisis,” said James M. Sweeney, President-Business Manager of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150. “This neglect can have deadly consequences, as we saw in the Minneapolis I-35 Bridge collapse, which killed 13 innocent motorists. How many must die in Illinois before our leaders treat this as the crisis that it is?”
“This is far from an isolated problem,” Sweeney continued. “The next time you drive under a bridge, look up and ask yourself how safe you feel.”
*** UPDATE 2 *** Reopened…
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* This is huge…
Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Kane County State’s Attorney Joe McMahon today filed a petition for a writ of mandamus in the Illinois Supreme Court challenging the legality of former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke’s prison sentence.
The mandamus petition challenges the prison sentence issued Jan. 18 by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Vincent Gaughan following Van Dyke’s conviction for the shooting death of Laquan McDonald. Gaughan sentenced Van Dyke to 81 months in prison based on his conviction for second degree murder and not the more serious charges of 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm.
Raoul and McMahon, the special prosecutor who tried the case against Van Dyke, will work collaboratively in asking the Supreme Court to review whether the sentence was proper under the law. In their filing, Raoul and McMahon asked the court to direct Judge Gaughan to vacate Van Dyke’s sentence for second degree murder, impose a sentence on each of the 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, and determine which of the aggravated battery with a firearm convictions involved “severe bodily injury” warranting consecutive sentences.
“After conducting a thorough review of the record in this case and the law, and in consultation with the special prosecutor, I determined that a mandamus action must be pursued in the Illinois Supreme Court,” Raoul said. “I appreciate the work done by the Kane County State’s Attorney throughout this case, and my office will continue to work with his as we seek the Supreme Court’s review.”
“It is important that a police officer was held accountable for criminal conduct,” said McMahon. “But we argued at the sentencing hearing that Jason Van Dyke should be sentenced for the aggravated battery with a firearm convictions. The ability for the prosecution to challenge a sentence is very narrow, but this might be one of those situations.”
If the petition is accepted by the court, Van Dyke’s attorneys will have seven days to file an objection, unless the court sets a different deadline. There is no timeframe for the court to rule on whether it will accept the petition and consider it.
…Adding… The writ is here.
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Elections have consequences
Monday, Feb 11, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This SJ-R editorial ignores some recent history…
What’s the rush?
That’s the question we have after a measure to increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour over the next six years zoomed out of the Illinois Senate in less than two days. The distressing answer appears to be that new Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker is putting politics above policy on a serious issue that has huge implications for the state’s economy. […]
Given how heavily Pritzker campaigned on raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, it was expected that a proposal to provide a bump would be brought up this legislative session. But the speed at which it has flown through the Senate — with the promise to do the same in the House this week — is troublesome. Business leaders say they have concerns about the proposal and ideas they want to be considered, but aren’t being heard. It’s disappointing that Pritzker — who wants this approved by the time he gives his first budget address Feb. 20 — is pushing for his first major legislative win at the cost of breaking his vow that he would seek compromise before decisions with far-reaching implications are made.
The legislative language for the pay increase was introduced Wednesday and the Senate voted on the measure the next day. Key details are always missed when any legislation is rushed. What repercussions are being overlooked here, and how much will those consequences cost taxpayers when it’s discovered? […]
Policy and politics are always intertwined at the state Capitol. Unfortunately for Illinois, the governor and Democratic leaders are pushing the political in their rush to hastily approve this bill.
A nearly identical bill passed both the House and Senate in 2017 only to be vetoed by the governor. We’re going to see a lot more of those vetoed bills come up for debate this session.
We’ve also had the benefit of watching Chicago’s minimum wage increases take effect and their impact on lower income neighborhoods.
…Adding… A commenter makes a good point…
Also it was punted on in 2014 because the Speaker wanted an advisory referendum, so this is 5 years late.
…Adding… Another good point in comments…
Just because the legislative calendar resets doesn’t mean everyone’s knowledge and recent history are wiped out.
So, it’s not like this isn’t some foreign concept.
* But, yeah, this was most definitely put on a fast track, partly because it was doable early on (because it had passed before) and partly to get it out of the way before the budget address, after which spring sessions tend to go in a million different directions (I’ve talked about other reasons with subscribers).
This early push has been smart politics by the governor. Whether it’s smart policy or not will be known once the raises start to kick in. But he campaigned incessantly on a $15 an hour minimum wage and, as the headline states, elections have consequences, particularly when you have a friendly General Assembly to work with.
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