Great luncheon w\ Tara Barney and Quad Cities Chamber. Thanks Todd Maisch for great IL update. "Grand Bargain?" On life support… pic.twitter.com/pARrSoMLjw
Tuesday, Mar 28, 2017 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
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Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner promised voters after being elected in 2014 that he was in for the long haul in regards to government reform, and he reaffirmed it at the Piatt County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner on March 21 in Monticello.
“I’m very energized by the battle,” Rauner said of the disagreements over proposals that range from a real estate property tax freeze to pension reform; issues that have led to legislative gridlock when it comes to approving a state budget.
“It’s really hard, but you know, we’re making progress and we’re going to change our state dramatically, so that the government works for you, the people of Illinois, not for a corrupt political machine out of Chicago,” he added in a 10-minute speech at the annual dinner.
He pointed to progress made in cutting $800 million in state spending, upgrading computer systems to make state offices more efficient, ethics reform in state hiring and proposed union reform, which he discussed at the Monticello gathering.
* I called Steve and asked if he’d share his audio recording. Many thanks for sending it over.
As you can tell by the story above, much of what the governor said has been said many, many times before, but I did find this passage a bit interesting…
So, we’re making the changes we need. It’s too slow. It’s trench warfare, basically. Battle here, gain two feet, lose a foot, gain five feet, lose two feet. I mean, it’s a tough battle.
But, we’re winning and we’re going to transform the state.
* If you’ve never listened to a Rauner campaign speech, or haven’t in a while, here’s the raw audio…
Despite the release of a highly favorable poll [this week by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute], one of the sponsors of a plan to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in Illinois says she won’t press for a vote on the measure until at least next year.
“Our members need some time to get more comfortable with this,” said state Sen. Heather Steans, who last week along with Rep. Kelly Cassidy introduced legislation to allow those of at least 21 years of age to grow or buy up to an ounce of marijuana without legal sanction.
“(But) this [poll] will help,” Steans said. “Public sentiment has been moving pretty fast.” […]
Steans said she expects subject matter-only hearings to be held later this spring in both chambers. And while sponsors will consider accelerating their timetable, social questions such as this generally need some time, Steans said, pointing to years of intense debate before the state legalized same-sex marriage.
A Chicago legislator wants to link charter-school expansion to a school district’s ability to pay for them, an effort aimed at slowing the spread of the privately run, publicly funded schools in the city.
The bill introduced Friday by state Rep. Will Guzzardi, D-Chicago, would block the opening of any new charter campuses in any school districts with the Illinois State Board of Education’s two lowest financial ratings. The Chicago Public Schools system has been on that list for years.
“Our priority must be investing in the schools we have,“ Guzzardi said Monday outside Prosser Career Academy High School on the Northwest Side, where he was accompanied by other lawmakers, members of the Chicago Teachers Union and parents from the neighborhood.
“If your district is broke, take care of the schools you have before you open new schools,” Guzzardi said. “This isn’t about shutting down any charter schools that are already here.”
* Press release…
New legislation aimed at protecting the environment in rural Illinois was unveiled at the in the Illinois Senate today. State Senator Dave Koehler (D-Peoria) unveiled a package of legislation that would make changes to the regulations governing Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, or CAFOs.
CAFOs are farm facilities with a large concentration of animals such as hogs. Recently, a plan for a CAFO that would hold 20,000 head of hogs in rural Fulton County was withdrawn after a considerable pushback from the public.
Joined by farmers from all across the state, Koehler introduced the legislation to bring transparency to the process of planning and expanding hog farms.
“People in rural Illinois deserve to know what exactly is going to be built in their backyard,” Koehler said. “Registering these facilities and getting wastewater management on file are just of few of the steps we can take to make sure the public health of rural Illinoisans will be protected.”
Illinois legislators are considering a “right to know” bill that would let consumers find out what information about them is collected by companies like Google and Facebook, and what kinds of businesses they share it with. Such a right, which European consumers already have, has been a longtime goal of privacy advocates.
Two other proposals face a crucial Illinois House committee vote this week. One would regulate when consumers’ locations can be tracked by smartphone applications, and another would limit the use of microphones in internet-connected devices like mobile phones, smart TVs and personal assistants like Amazon’s Echo.
Should they be passed into law, these rules could end up guiding the rights of consumers far beyond Illinois — because they would provide a model for other states, and because it would be difficult for technology companies with hundreds of millions of users to create a patchwork of state- and country-specific features to localize their effects.
Congress is pushing to overturn regulations imposed by the Federal Communications Commission under the Obama administration that limit the collection of data by broadband providers like AT&T and Comcast. The Senate approved the rollback last week, and the House is expected to follow this week.
Illinois also has another dimension: class-action lawyers… (L)awyers at Edelson PC, a Chicago-based class-action firm that has become notorious among tech companies for its prolific filing of privacy suits, have gone on offense with a lobbying campaign of their own. Firm lawyers have also helped found a new nonprofit group, the Digital Privacy Alliance, as an advocate for privacy legislation in Illinois and elsewhere.
Go check out the front group’s website and you’ll see they’re behind this “Right to know” bill, among other legislation in a package being pushed at the Statehouse.
* From another NY Times story on Edelson and his firm…
[Edelson’s] firm, which is based in Chicago, has become one of the most prolific filers of privacy class actions, a growing legal area that tech companies describe with a litany of unprintable terms. Asked to sum up the tech community’s feelings about Mr. Edelson, Sam Altman, president of Y Combinator, a technology incubator that invests in very young companies, said the lawyer was regarded as “a leech tarted up as a freedom fighter.” […]
The firm started suing technology companies in the early 2000s, before data privacy was a national debate. Mr. Edelson claims to have won more than $1 billion in settlements in all, a number that is difficult to confirm because many of those agreements are private. Today he views these cases the same way Apple views its collection of iPhones and other iThings: as a line of products to be refined, repackaged and resold. Text messages are a product line. Online video is a product line.
Edelson PC contributed about $100,000 during the campaign last year, focusing on the two Democratic legislative leaders.
* Look, you won’t get an argument from me against prohibiting bad conduct and protecting consumers from real problems. And I intend no offense to Mr. Edelson and his firm - you gotta do what you gotta do (and he’s stopped some pretty egregious practices over the years). But Chicago now has a thriving tech community. Let’s not screw things up with a new state law that let’s them be sued into oblivion by trial lawyers.
* This NPR story on Cairo is a very good read, so go take a look at the whole thing…
There is a lot of talk right now about how best to try and bring back struggling small towns, especially in the rural Midwest which Donald Trump carried easily. Many of these places would also see steep cuts in aid if the president’s budget gains traction in Congress. Visit Cairo, and at times it feels like a town on life support.
“You know, you say to your government, we want to clean it up,” Matthews says. “But we need help.”
In Cairo, there is a lot of anger and many people feel slighted. A few years back, then-Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn visited with reportedly great fanfare at the time and designated Cairo as a port authority. The idea was that the town could once again take advantage of all the barge traffic on the rivers. The governor left town, and so did the promise of funds.
A frustrated Tyrone Coleman, Cairo’s mayor, says the town is well positioned to take advantage of the expected increased barge traffic due to the Panama Canal expansion. After all, it’s what put the city on the map in the 1800s.
“Strategically, geographically, this is one of the most untapped resource areas in the country,” Coleman says.
Lately some state lawmakers have made renewed commitments. In a statement, Gov. Bruce Rauner’s office says he is working to make Cairo and other small Illinois towns competitive. But in Cairo, that’s a tough task.
* By the way, the area’s new state Senator, Dale Fowler, has been making Cairo a priority…
* Fowler makes sixth trip to Cairo since election, discusses river development: “All I saw was potential,” Fowler said of his first trip. He has been back five more times, including Friday with Cairo Mayor Tyrone Coleman, Illinois Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno, of Lemont, and a busload of other local leaders. The group hit the highlights of town — Fort Defiance, the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers and Magnolia Manor.
* Editorial: Fowler’s presence in Cairo a sign of hope: Over the years, leaders have come to the city with promises. Driving through Cairo, it’s evident most of those promises were empty. But, Cairo Public Utility Manager Larry Klein, who said in Sunday’s story that he’s seen at least 50 similar trips by politicians, this feels different. He saw something that he called “a ball of fire” in Fowler.
* The Bond Buyer writes about the ever escalating feud between Gov. Rauner and Mayor Emanuel in the wake of the governor’s recent veto of the Chicago pension bill and its impact on the state’s bond rating…
“I just think the politics just over the last week have gotten so fractious it’s hard to imagine more bad things not happening to the city and state’s credit profile,” said Matt Fabian, partner at Municipal Market Analytics. “The level of chaos is rising and Chicago will be dragged into that and it undermines the city’s narrative” that it’s turned a fiscal corner.
A sweeping bipartisan Senate budget fix has stalled and Rauner’s feuding with Democrats has escalated of late with harsh words exchanged with Mayor Rahm Emanuel and state Comptroller Susanna Mendoza. […]
If the state’s budget impasse drags into a third fiscal year July 1 its investment grade rating is at risk and that would have a trickle down impact on the city, Fabian said.
* Meanwhile, this is from the publication’s Illinois reporter…
S&P Opines in brief report: Chicago Pension Measure Veto Is A Surmountable Hurdle, But Challenges Persist.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel hasn’t even said for sure that he’ll seek a third term in 2019, but Gov. Bruce Rauner predicted Monday the mayor won’t be around for a fourth.
The governor’s prognostication that “the current mayor is not going to be mayor in 2023” came at an event about the stalled effort to create a toll lane on the Stevenson Expressway, as Rauner talked about his veto last week of Emanuel’s proposed changes to the city’s pension funds for municipal workers and laborers. […]
“Who’s not going to be mayor in 2023?” Rauner said. “The current mayor is not going to be mayor in 2023. That’s why they did it. All this is, all this is a system to dump the problem into the next elected official, no change, no protection of taxpayers, no fundamental reform.” […]
“At the rate he’s going, Bruce Rauner should be more concerned with who’s governor in 2019 than he is with who’s mayor in 2023,” [Emanuel campaign] spokesman Pete Giangreco said.
* With many thanks to the fine folks at BlueRoomStream.com, we will have a free live stream this Thursday afternoon March 30th for Steve Schnorf’s “celebration of life.” The event will begin at 2 o’clock in Room 212. The room holds almost 200 people, but we figured we’d better have a video feed for those who either couldn’t make it to town or couldn’t get into the room. A reception of sorts will follow at about 3, and will be held directly across the hall in Secretary of State Jesse White’s office. Thanks to everyone who helped out on this.
From the family…
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Steve’s memory to:
The Marjorie Baker Schnorf Teaching Scholarship
EIU Office of University Development
600 Lincoln Ave.
Charleston, IL 61920
or
Rochester Public Library District
1 Community Dr.
Rochester, IL 62563
Speakers at the 2 o’clock event will include Steve’s widow Jane, Jim Kiley, former Gov. Jim Edgar, Speaker Michael Madigan, Sen. Donne Trotter, former Gov. George Ryan, myself, his three daughters (Quin, Rebecca and Elizabeth) and his granddaughter Jaelyn.
Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza announced on Tuesday that state revenues will allow her office to pay another $94 million in past-due bills to Home Service Care providers who care for the elderly.
Since taking office in December, Comptroller Mendoza has now paid a total of more than $235 million in past due bills owed to vendors for the state’s Department on Aging, she announced Tuesday at the West Point Plaza senior apartments on the Near West Side.
“Our actions prove our commitment to Illinois seniors, the Department on Aging, the Community Care Program (CCP), and our citizens who rely on the program to stay in their homes and avoid being placed in a nursing home,” Comptroller Mendoza said. “We’re doing what we can to help, but this isn’t a long-term solution. To ensure our state’s neediest people are cared for, we need Governor Rauner to meet his most basic constitutional duty to propose a balanced budget for the General Assembly to act on. While people in Illinois continue to suffer, he continues to shirk his responsibilities and refuses to take ownership of the crisis.”
While the comptroller is prioritizing human services and programs like CCP, her office can only pay the bills it receives. Because the Governor shirked his constitutional duty to propose a balanced budget for the General Assembly to act on — and has twice vetoed funding for these social services — there is no spending authority to pay bills owed to these providers for services not covered by Medicaid. Nearly $200 million in bills for such services are sitting at the Department on Aging due to the lack of a budget.
“It’s time for Gov. Bruce Rauner to stop using seniors as pawns in his vicious budget game, where he is exploiting their pain and suffering to get what he wants on his political wish list,” said Tanya Moses, home healthcare worker in the Community Care Program.
Ashley’s Quality Care, which provides home care services for seniors, is just one example of the consequences of this inaction. The Canaryville home care provider is owed about $800,000 in non-Medicaid payments from the state. The lack of funding has forced them to reduce the number of seniors they care for from 900 to 300 in the last two years.
To add insult to injury, Gov. Rauner’s administration has prohibited Community Care vendors from participating in third-party loan programs managed by the administration and widely used by vendors like the highly-paid consultants Governor Rauner wants to prioritize. At a time when many social service providers have exhausted their lines of credit from banks, these programs could give them access to operating funds they need to keep their doors open.
“It really shows where The Governor’s heart is when he has opened up the Vendor Assistance Program to some of America’s largest corporations but has denied offering the same kind of life preserver to our frail elderly,” said State Rep. Gregory Harris. “I think it’s small business in Illinois we should be helping. Big insurance companies and multinational corporations should have the capacity to take care of themselves.”
*** UPDATE 1 *** From the ILGOP…
“Susana Mendoza taking credit for releasing these funds is like an arsonist posing as a firefighter. She’s throwing water on a fire she started by starving providers in the first place.”
Pretty tough case to make against a liberal, female Democrat. Just sayin…
*** UPDATE 2 *** A buddy of mine who represents a company that loans money through the Vendor Assistance Program just called to say that Comptroller Mendoza could change some paperwork coding for social service providers on her own to get them into the bill-paying program. Mendoza’s Republican predecessor apparently refused to do so. So, it’s not Rauner’s fault, it’s actually hers.
Time to put away the press releases and get to work.
*** UPDATE 3 *** The comptroller’s office says they will hear out the company rep, but they’re pretty adamant that they can’t change the coding on these vendors and is likely a misinterpretation of the rules. It’s up to CMS, they say, and the agencies, which submit the coding to the comptroller.
The Illinois Department of Public Health has rejected intractable pain and autism spectrum disorder as medical conditions that could be treated with medical cannabis.
The petition to add intractable pain to the medical marijuana program was submitted in July 2015 to the Medical Cannabis Advisory Board.
Department of Public Health Director Nirav Shah on Monday noted in rejecting the petition that none of the information submitted demonstrated an individual diagnosed with intractable pain could benefit from medical cannabis.
So, instead, we condemn these people to a life of opioid use? Seriously, if the pain is truly intractable, then why deny suffering patients something that can help?
Shah’s rulings have been overturned numerous times in court. Let’s hope this one is as well.
The Chicago region’s deeply entrenched patterns of segregation extract a steep price in lost lives and unrealized economic growth, according to a study to be unveiled Tuesday.
The seven-county area’s murder rate could be cut by 30 percent, its economy could churn out an additional $8 billion in goods and services and its African-American residents could earn another $3,000 a year if it could reduce racial and economic segregation to the median level for the nation’s largest metro areas.
And 83,000 more residents could have earned bachelor’s degrees, spurring another $90 billion in collective lifetime earnings.
Those were the findings of a study by the Metropolitan Planning Council, a Chicago-based public policy research group, and the Urban Institute, a Washington think tank.
The Metropolitan Planning Council, together with Urban Institute and a team of regional policy advisors, analyzed segregation patterns in the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the country. We examined three types of segregation: economic segregation, African American-white segregation and Latino-white segregation. We then examined what impacts we would see if the Chicago region reduced its levels of segregation to the median levels of segregation of the nation’s 100 biggest metros.
* The full report is here. From the “Next Steps” section…
For now, we know that we can create a more robust regional economy by making our city and suburbs less racially and economically segregated. The second phase of this initiative will identify how we can accelerate our rate of desegregation and create a more inclusive, prosperous path forward for all. That work will include developing a projected baseline scenario for the Chicago region that assumes the continuation of our current patterns of racial and economic segregation and an alternative vision that incorporates policy changes in housing, transportation, public safety, health and education.
Chicago’s present-day segregation did not occur overnight and it was not a process that occurred “naturally.” Private and public policies and programs built our divides: Restrictive housing covenants. Urban renewal. Redlining. Predatory lending and the massive foreclosures that followed. Illegal discrimination against housing voucher holders. It is not merely by chance that public school quality closely follows the racial composition of the student body, or that after the housing bubble, property values have recovered or even risen in well-to-do, largely white communities while they remain well below for much the South and West sides of Chicago.
* The Center for Tax and Budget Accountability tallies up what Chicago stands to lose if US Attorney General Sessions makes good on his pledge to cut off Justice Department grants to so-called sanctuary cities…
A review of Chicago’s 2017 grants suggests that the city received about $24.5 million from the DOJ in this fiscal year, including:
$9.6 million in Justice Assistance Grants, which fund a variety of programs in the Chicago Police Department;
$7.3 million in grants from the COPS Hiring Program;
$1.4 million in grants for body-worn cameras; and
$154,000 in grants for programs that address violence against women.
Not all of this money may be immediately threatened, however. Some grant programs, like COPS, are subject to Congressional appropriation, and may therefore require Congressional action to change.
Examples include a joint Chicago/Cook County Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant of $2,333,428; the Cook County Justice and Mental Health Collaboration, $243,012; and the Cook County South Suburban Safe and Thriving Communities Project, $1 million.
Besides Chicago and Cook County declaring sanctuary status, Evanston and Oak Park have sanctuary ordinances; Melrose Park has one in the works.
Evanston Police and the Northwestern University Police Department won $139,277 for a Body Worn Camera Implementation Program.
* A letter sent today to Gov. Bruce Rauner from House Speaker Michael Madigan…
Governor Rauner:
Yesterday my staff and CMS had another productive discussion about the sale of the Thompson Center in Chicago. As you know, I have publicly acknowledged a desire to work with you on legislation authorizing the sale of the Thompson Center. Over the course of staff discussions, both your staff and mine determined the legislation proposed by Leader Durkin does not adequately plan for the sale and inadvertently interferes with the zoning authority of the City of Chicago. Your staff previously acknowledged that the legislation needed to be rewritten, and it was further conveyed, again yesterday, that legislation is not ready to move forward at this time.
Around the same time as this productive meeting, you stated publicly that I have held up the sale of the Thompson Center and that reporters should ask me why I’ve been blocking progress on this part of your agenda. With all due respect, I believe it is disingenuous of you and beneath your office to make such false statements to the media when you know or should have known that I have pledged my cooperation, that our staffs are working together on this initiative, and that we are working toward the same goal with your administration in good faith.
As you are aware, your administration included the sale of the Thompson Center in your proposed FY18 budget, with an anticipated sale price of $300 million. I have directed my staff to provide any assistance necessary so that we may pass legislation advantageous to the State of Illinois, while providing the least disruption to CTA commuters utilizing the lines that feed into the Thompson Center. I am advised CMS is in negotiations with the City on issues related to the CTA station and the easement, as well as zoning matters, and it is these discussions that have led to the stalling of the legislation, not my actions or the actions of the House.
Despite your inability to provide an accurate account of the facts or acknowledge my public and private comments, my staff will continue working cooperatively with your staff and CMS to develop a plan to maximize the ability of the State to sell the property, with a goal to passing legislation no later than May 31st.
With kindest personal regards, I remain
Sincerely yours,
Michael J. Madigan
Speaker of the House
Your thoughts on this?
*** UPDATE 1 *** From Eleni Demertzis at the governor’s office…
Speaker Madigan and his majority have had two years to do anything productive for the people of Illinois, but instead he’s held up every proposal to create jobs, provide property tax relief, balance the budget and improve education. Two years of holding up the people of Illinois — and now just more excuses and distractions to hold up something as simple as selling the Thompson Center. As usual, positive changes in government take place when the Governor can make things happen on his own — and change hits a brick wall whenever the Speaker has the ability to block it.
Yeah, things are sure looking brighter these days.
To be clear here, the governor’s CMS director said during a House committee hearing that the administration can sell the Thompson Center without the General Assembly’s involvement. It just can’t make the sale on the administration’s preferred timeline unless legislators approve. Rauner wants to use proceeds from the sale to help balance next fiscal year’s budget.
*** UPDATE 2 *** House Republican Leader Jim Durkin told reporters this morning (click here for raw audio) that objections to the Thompson Center sale legislation by CMS is “news to me.” He’s had the bill out there since 2015, he said, and hadn’t heard of any problems identified by the administration.
Leader Durkin claimed that Madigan was engaging in stalling tactics to prevent the governor from getting any wins.
Rauner has been counting on the proposed sale to generate $220 million for the state, plugging a hole in his budget, as well as tens of millions of dollars in future property-tax revenue for the city. But to get that kind of money, he wants to ramp up zoning on the site, clearing the way for a huge development, perhaps the 115-story tower that one developer envisions.
One Rauner official who asked not to be named conceded that talks with the city are continuing about tripling the size of what now legally can be built on the site, as well as access to the CTA station in any new development.
But the city agrees in principle with selling the property, and any remaining issues with language can be resolved after the General Assembly passes legislation authorizing the sale, that source said.
However, it appears the speaker wants those issues settled first—and doesn’t like Rauner attacking him in the process. He wrote, “I believe it is disingenuous of you and beneath your office to make such false statements.”
* Let’s circle back to yesterday’s Democratic gubernatorial candidate speeches and then look at the GOP react. Sun-Times…
Pritzker took digs at Rauner, saying he’s standing up for the Koch brothers, not the working people of the state: “He didn’t shake up Springfield. He instead tore it down.” And he also vowed to invest in the Democratic party’s infrastructure to try to combat the heavily funded Illinois Republican Party.
State Sen. Daniel Biss, D-Evanston, said he’d help to build up the party with a new surge of activism that is coming out of anti-President Trump efforts. […]
“Divide and rule is exactly what Bruce Rauner is doing. We’re entering our third year without a budget. And the way our governor makes it seem it’s like a game of chicken,” Pawar said. “Like he’s taking a principled stance against overspending and the only reason we somehow don’t have a budget is because the other side won’t flinch. But the truth is Bruce Rauner wants to lose this game of chicken. He has to lose this game of chicken in order to win re-election. He wants chaos. He does not want a budget.”
Pawar may be on the right track with that argument, but I think he needs to punch it up a bit.
“This is going to be a campaign that’s about building the party. It’s going to be a campaign that’s about building new networks of activists and bring them into the party. And I’m not going to be able to write a $50 million check. I mean I can write it but it won’t’ help. He’s what I can do. I can bring a lot of new people in,” Biss said. “Those are people to make small and medium donations that ought to be the lifeblood of our party,” said state Sen. Daniel Biss, D-Evanston.
Chicago Ald. Ameya Pawar offered: “The only way forward is to require us to come together around a vision. Make sure that people who make more, pay more. That the rich pay their fair share, and be honest about our obligations to our retirees. While Bruce Rauner preaches austerity, our job is to be bold and push progressivism.”
While all of the other candidates were from the Chicago metropolitan area, Madison County Superintendent of Schools Bob Daiber said he is Democrats’ best bet because he can win downstate – the large swath of Illinois that backed Rauner over former Gov. Pat Quinn in 2014.
“Why can I win? I will tell you that Bruce Rauner is in office today because Pat Quinn only carried one other election authority other than Cook County, and that was East St. Louis, where I’m from. I can carry downstate Illinois. My challenge is to get a percentage of the vote out of Cook County, and I will carry the rest of the state,” Daiber said. “Honestly, I don’t intend to get Cook County’s endorsement. I don’t even know how you could endorse me. I’m here today to introduce myself to you so you know who I am.”
The honest admission prompted applause, and at least one official to say “I like him.”
Chicago City Treasurer Kurt Summers admitted all the potential candidates are similar on the issues, He said what is important is who’s discussing issues people care about and how authentic they are.
Ald. David Moore, who also serves as the committeeman of his 17th Ward, asked Pawar if he is running for governor to gain name recognition in anticipation of a campaign for Chicago mayor in 2019.
“This isn’t a game to me,” Pawar said. “If this isn’t it, I’m out.” […]
[Pritzker] also said that if Democrats want to be competitive against Rauner, they should be prepared to go up against Rauner’s powerful communications infrastructure, which Pritzker dismissed as “fake news.” […]
Biss last week launched his campaign in a Facebook Live video criticizing disconnected “billionaires and machine politicians,” but he didn’t pursue that line of criticism when he stood before the party leaders on Monday.
And former Merchandise Mart President Chris Kennedy said he thinks Rauner wants to run for president on a campaign of busting unions. In response, a GOP spokesman said that’s laughable and Rauner’s focused on Illinois.
“Today’s audition exemplifies everything wrong with Mike Madigan’s political machine,” said Steven Yaffe, spokesman for the Illinois Republican Party. “Democratic candidates had a chance to stand up to the status quo, but chose to talk about tax increases without reform. Instead of seeking to fix Illinois, the Democratic candidates made clear they will continue the broken system run by the Speaker.”
Asked about the governor’s race Monday at a separate event, Rauner labeled the Democratic candidates as “a continuation of the status quo.”
“They’re not proposing any new ideas to grow jobs. They’re not proposing any new ideas to protect taxpayers. But they’re proposing tax hikes, income tax hikes. And they’re proposing to continue to work for the political machine that’s dominated Illinois for decades,” he said. “That’s not going to make things better.”
With the Cook County Democratic organization scheduled to meet in August to consider an endorsement, Kennedy told reporters afterward that he didn’t think slate-making was as “meaningful as it was 50 or 60 years ago when people in the backroom could control the outcome of an election.”
Still, he stopped short of saying whether he would seek their endorsement.
* I told subscribers about these ads earlier today. From a press release…
State Solutions, an affiliate of the Republican Governors Association, launched a new television and digital advertisement effort today in Illinois, highlighting Governor Bruce Rauner’s push to balance the budget, reform government and improve the state by capping spending, freezing property taxes, creating term limits on politicians and adding jobs. […]
“Governor Rauner is working hard to enact a balanced budget that protects taxpayers and grows jobs,” said State Solutions spokesman Jon Thompson. “The same duct tape solutions - higher taxes, more spending and no real reforms - that Illinois politicians have used in the past won’t fix the state. It’s time for a true spending cap, a real property tax freeze, and reforms to repair the state’s broken political system and add jobs.”
Illinois Working Together Campaign Director Jake Lewis released the following statement in response to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s new television ads:
“Governor Rauner’s new television ad blitz is just another reminder of the governor’s wrong priorities, putting political games ahead of getting the job done for the people of Illinois. Not only has Rauner never passed a budget, the most basic responsibility for any governor, but he has never even proposed a balanced budget as required by the Illinois constitution. Rauner’s “balanced budget” claims have already been deemed “pants-on-fire” false by Politifact Illinois.
“What Rauner fails to mention in his ads are his accomplishments in more than two years as governor — because he has none. Rauner’s wrong priorities have resulted in disruptions to school funding, cuts to services for seniors, and an Illinois economy hobbled by uncertainty. Enough with the political games, governor. Do your job.”
I hope and believe that messaging to the people of Illinois about what’s going on and what’s at stake will help us get an agreement in the General Assembly, help us get a balanced budget with structural changes to grow jobs, protect our taxpayers, get term limits.
I think it’s very important that the people of Illinois understand what’s going on, they understand what’s at stake and I’ve personally worked hard in my role to communicate with the people of Illinois. I’ve done it directly by going to meet with people around the state in groups of from two to two thousand, to talk with them about what’s at stake. I’ve met with you, members of the media on a pretty regular basis to talk about what’s going on and what’s important and asking you to communicate back to the people of Illinois. I’ve used social media, tried to use social media to communicate the important issues that’s going on in the state of Illinois.
And now, and from time to time, we have used and we will use paid media to communicate to the people of Illinois what’s importantly at stake, the changes to fix the broken system that we’re advocating, term limits and property tax freeze and balanced budgets with more jobs. We can’t tax our way out of our problems, we gotta grow. We need regulatory changes to be competitive and grow jobs. It’s important that the people of Illinois understand what we’re working for and that’s what we’re trying to do is help them understand.
* I dunno. Maybe he was shaking because of the uncomfortable message he delivered to the party bosses? Whatever it was, he’s gotta get this sort of basic stuff under control…
His hands shook as he spoke, and he accidentally dropped the microphone when he finished, but Chris Kennedy tried to play it cool Monday as he made his pitch to Cook County Democratic leaders, downplaying — and even joking about — the value of their endorsement in the governor’s race.
“Slating? I don’t know. Is this like the Town and Country Restaurant? I mean, what are we talking about here in the back room of a restaurant?” Kennedy said. “If you think the people of the United States would put up with that, it’s not going to happen. It ain’t going to happen. I love you all. I mean no disrespect.” […]
“I just don’t know that it’s as meaningful as it was 50 or 60 years ago where people in the back room could control the outcome of an election,” Kennedy said. “I don’t believe that exists in the United States anymore. … I would say that having a huge social media presence. I’d say having the endorsements of people on Facebook, and LinkedIn, or Twitter or Snapchat is probably more important than what goes on in the back of a restaurant.” […]
Kennedy’s remarks also left Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios — the Cook County Democratic Party’s head — trying to defend the party: “This is not the party of 30 years ago and anybody who think it is is totally wrong.” […]
Kennedy, the son of Robert F. Kennedy, spoke for just over seven minutes — his hands visibly shaking during some of the speech. He dropped the microphone, which made an audible thump when it hit the floor.
Ticking off Joe Berrios isn’t the worst thing Kennedy has ever done. That man is just not beloved outside the room he shared with Kennedy and the other candidates today.
Howard Goldstein spent Thursday doing what he always does—volunteering with the Red Cross, serving food to his fellow veterans.
Little did he know, that Bruce Rauner, the governor of Illinois was waiting in the wings.
Striding toward the assembled volunteers in the food pantry at Hines V.A. Hospital, Rauner greeted each one. Then he called Goldstein forward, brought out a large proclamation, and revealed that he had declared Thursday, Howard Goldstein day in Illinois.
“Week in and week out for years and years, he’s helped volunteer with the Red Cross,” said Rauner. “He’s helped volunteer to help veterans, he’s helped so many organizations, here in Illinois and all walks of life. Howard’s an inspiration for all of us.”
Goldstein seemed genuinely shocked by the honor, pausing to thank the governor before escorting more veterans through the food line.
“I believe in giving back to the community so you just volunteer and do what you can,” he said. “I try to keep myself busy and stay out of trouble.”
There were also divisions among the wealthier contenders. Businessman Chris Kennedy, an heir to the wealthy and iconic political family who last week put $250,100 into his own campaign and as a result lifted contributions limits in the race, implored Democrats not to back billionaire investor and entrepreneur J.B. Pritzker. Kennedy did not mention Pritzker’s name but likened him to Rauner, a former private equity investor he called a “billionaire bully.”
“It’s criminal what (Rauner) has done to the Republican Party. He has silenced it. There is no dissent. Don’t let that happen to our party. Don’t put somebody in charge of our state who does not need all of you, who is not dependent upon all of you for re-election. Because if you do that, you will turn the Democratic Party in this state into what the Republican Party has become,” said Kennedy, who afterward told reporters he was referring to Pritzker.
“Don’t kid yourself that we can outsource that task (of taking on Rauner), that we can simply go to somebody and say, go to another billionaire and say, if you will be our protector, if you will fight our fight for us, we will make you our king,” he said.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced Monday a crackdown on “sanctuary” cities and states – of which Chicago is one – with a pledge to “claw back” or cut all Justice Department federal funds from localities sheltering illegal immigrants.
Sessions made the announcement at the start of the daily White House briefing, which is a surprise only in its timing. President Trump had earlier made the threat to yank federal funds.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel has staunchly defended Chicago as a sanctuary city that welcomes immigrants.
Citing criminal acts by several illegal immigrants, Sessions said sanctuary city policies violate “federal law. The president has rightly said this disregard for law must end.” […]
Sessions said he is “urging” the localities to “rethink these policies” because “these polices make our cities and states less safe.”
OK, so what do these Justice Department grants pay for?
Most recently, its Office for Victims of Crime announced a grant of almost $8.5 million in support for victims of last year’s mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando.
Laurie Robinson, a former assistant attorney general under Presidents Clinton and Obama who headed the Office of Justice Programs, which oversees grants, said the statute implementing SCAAP gives an attorney general broad power to decide who gets money.
“They could cut off drug programs, domestic violence grants, violence against women grants,” she said.
Other grants won’t be as easy to end. Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services program distributed $208 million in 2015 to local agencies. But that money is distributed using a formula established by Congress, meaning an attorney general can’t revoke grants without lawmakers’ approval.
* The CTBA took a look not long ago and found that if the feds stopped “funding related to immigration and law enforcement,” it would cost Chicago $78 million. The group didn’t break that out further, however, to just law enforcement dollars.
The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program, which injects funds to local law enforcement agencies, including at least $9.6 million to the Chicago Police Department, has also been in the chopping block.
* But it’s an interesting development. Public Radio…
The Grand Bargain is a package of interlocking legislation designed to break the state budget impasse in Illinois. How important is school funding to that deal? Important enough that leaders titled it Senate Bill One.
Under the plan filed by Sen. Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill), the state would freeze funding at current levels. Any additional dollars would be distributed based on each district’s demographics and unique needs, channeling the bulk of the money toward low-income districts.
Technically titled Amendment 1 to Senate Bill 1, it’s a plan designed to address the notorious inequity that has plagued the state’s school funding system for decades.
“You know, the impact of this bill will be measured mostly by how much new money is put behind it,” Manar says. “Because if there’s no new money, nobody changes.”
The plan uses ideas from the so-called “evidence-based model” first touted by Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington). He issued a statement today saying he’s “cautiously optimistic” about Manar’s amendment. “Senator Manar and I have recently worked through a number of complicated issues to address the inequities in our current formula,” Barickman’s statement says.
Illinois lawmakers are again considering proposals that would allow some participants in state government’s pension systems to take a lump-sum payout in lieu of regular annuity payments.
Buyout plans are part of pension discussions in both the House and Senate, all of which are in preliminary stages. But Rep. Robert Martwick, D-Chicago, chairman of the House Personnel and Pensions Committee, thinks the ideas have merit.
“I’m a fan of the buyout,” Martwick said of various House proposals. “I think those are truly what would be constitutional because they amount to a true free consideration.”
In other words, he said, participation in them is voluntary and there is a “tangible benefit” for those who partake. […]
Under Batinick’s proposal, a participant’s payout is based on the net present value of a person’s pension. That means the amount of money the pension system needs now to cover a person’s estimated retirement benefit, assuming that amount will grow over the years. Anyone thinking of participating in the buyout would have to get a calculation of the net present value from the appropriate pension system. The amount would be reduced by a certain percentage as a condition of getting the buyout.
In response to the recent court ruling authorizing the prioritization of state legislators’ pay over other outstanding obligations, State Representative Mark Batinick (R-Plainfield) filed legislation last week, House Bill 4026, to give the Comptroller greater discretion when issuing salary payments for members of the General Assembly.
Batinick said this would allow the Comptroller to prioritize Illinois’ other fiscal obligations over legislators’ and Executive Branch officers’ pay. House Bill 4026 is co-sponsored by Rep. Allen Skillicorn (R-East Dundee). The bill follows the introduction of similar legislation filed in the State Senate by Senator Dan McConchie, SB 989.
“There is no reason why we as legislators should be prioritized over the hundreds of vendors, social service providers and agencies who have been waiting months for payment from the state,” said Rep. Batinick. “This bill seeks to right that wrong by allowing the Comptroller to place the interests of vulnerable children, seniors and families ahead of legislators.”
* A group called Republicans for Fair Taxation, which isn’t registered with the State Board of Elections, is running a robocall in at least one state Senate district today…
Boy, oh boy. Lawmakers really messed up. Get this: Sen. Brady is pushing to divert local property tax dollars to Springfield for the budget crisis. That’s money for local schools, for our kids. Thought he was a Republican.
Brady’s also pushing to bailout Chicago schools, giving them $215 million. Who’s he representing? Them? Or us?
He wants to raise taxes? Come on. We can’t trust establishment Republicans like Brady. They say one thing, do another when no one’s looking. Brady let us down. Again. Paid for by Republicans for Fair Taxation
Um, huh? Diverting local property tax dollars to state coffers? No such plan.
…Adding… Comments and text messages indicate that numerous Republican Senate districts were hit with that same robocall today.
* As mentioned below, the Cook County Democratic Party is hosting gubernatorial candidates today…
"According to Bruce Rauner and the Illinois GOP, Mike Madigan is actually my biological father," J.B. Pritzker says to laughs. pic.twitter.com/hchpbpsH8w
Attorneys for the state of Illinois asked a judge Friday to dismiss an education funding lawsuit brought by Chicago Public Schools as part of the district’s efforts to plug a gaping budget hole.
The state argued that CPS’ complaints about pension funding and Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto of a bill to send CPS $215 million are issues to be settled by the legislature, not the courts.
The filing also addressed the district’s argument that the state should be found in violation of the Illinois Civil Rights Act for maintaining a “separate and unequal” system for funding school districts and pension obligations.
The Illinois Civil Rights Act “cannot override the State’s pension laws, the legislature’s funding decisions, or the governor’s lawful veto,” the state said in its request for a dismissal. “Plaintiffs’ claims fail for multiple reasons and should be dismissed.” […]
Attorneys for the state argued CPS “will not suffer irreparable injury” if the state doesn’t provide $215 million and has no grounds under state civil rights law to force through a new piece of legislation, or create a new stream of money that’s not already required by law to fix its complaints about education funding.
* CPS response…
“The State’s thin argument hinges on its claim that pensions shouldn’t be considered teachers’ compensation. This is simply preposterous.
“In reality, the State admits that the numbers CPS provided the court are correct, and then begs the court to exclude the fact that Illinois makes teacher pension payments on behalf of primarily white students and then denies those same resources to Chicago’s students of color – and that’s the heart of the State’s racial discrimination.”
Thomas Ioppolo, of the Illinois attorney general’s office told a Cook County chancery division judge that there are “a lot of issues of sovereign immunity, and separation of powers and whether a local entity like the Chicago Board of Education can even be a proper plaintiff under the Illinois Civil Rights Act.” […]
In the lawsuit, filed last month, the school board demanded the state be found in violation of the Illinois Civil Rights Act for maintaining what the lawsuit called a “separate and unequal” system for funding school districts and pension obligations.
Chicago Public Schools upped the stakes of the lawsuit Monday when it warned that the school year could end June 1 — nearly three weeks early – and summer school programs could be cut without a preliminary ruling in the school board’s favor from Judge Franklin Ulyses Valderrama.
CPS said it wants the judge to rule on its preliminary motion by May 1.
Part of this lawsuit basically boils down to whether the state should count teacher pension funding as education funding. If you do, then lots of minority kids in Chicago appear to be getting the short end of the stick.
* The Hill, which is based in Washington, DC, takes a look at an Illinois gubernatorial candidate’s ties to the Illinois House Speaker. If that sounds like an odd angle for that particular publication, it kinda is.
The super PAC’s contributors list doubles as a who’s who of donors in Madigan’s circle, including the speaker himself. Madigan has been the state House speaker since 1983 and also serves as the state party chair, so he has his fingers on the pulse of all things Democratic in the Land of Lincoln.
Madigan’s campaign committee gave the group $500,000, the largest donation from his campaign to a political organization aside from the state Democratic Party, according to data compiled by The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform.
The campaign committee for Illinois attorney general Lisa Madigan, speaker’s daughter, gave another $150,000.
A host of other well-connected Democrats are also on the group’s donor list too.
There’s the $10,000 donation from Roger Kiley, Madigan’s former law partner, according to the Chicago Tribune, and the former chief of staff to iconic Chicago Mayor Richard Daley.
Then there’s a $1.5 million check from Democratic mega-donor Fred Eychaner, as well as two $10,000 checks from Cook County assessor Joe Berrios and his campaign account. Both Eychaner and Barrios are considered reliable Madigan allies.
Now, to be sure, Madigan did play a role in the PAC’s fundraising - a major role, according to people I talked to last week in anticipation of doing a story of my own this week. He couldn’t play an issues-oriented role because of the legal “firewall,” and he couldn’t directly fundraise, but he could certainly “encourage” people to listen to Biss’ pitch. Biss worked with some folks last year who are now with other gubernatorial candidates, so that might be where The Hill’s story originated.
Anyway, keep all this in mind as Biss rails at Madigan and bemoans the fact that Chris Kennedy busted the caps in the race. The dude’s own PAC raised $10 million last year from a host of politically connected and wealthy people, including Kennedy and JB Pritzker. There’s nothing at all inherently wrong with that. But he did what he did.
*** UPDATE *** From Sen. Biss…
Daniel Biss, Democratic candidate for governor, released the following statement today in response to Chris Kennedy lifting contribution caps late Friday with a contribution of over $250,000 to his campaign:
“If Democrats want to out-Rauner Rauner, we’re going to lose. Sending the message that only the rich or only the machine have access to this government just exacerbates the broken culture in Springfield that voters are yearning for us to fix.
“People in Illinois are hurting because of the failed policies of the last two years and the failed politics of the last 30, which have allowed billionaires and insiders to control our government for their own benefit.
“We can’t keep doing things the same way and expect different results. If we want to start solving problems for the rest of us, we need to build a movement to take our state back from money and the machine.”
* Meanwhile…
Cook County Democratic Party hosting gov candidates forum this morning: Kennedy, Pritzker, Pawar, Summers, Biss, Daiber to speak. pic.twitter.com/dhTmT0L0KS
What: Governor Rauner Joins Illinois Department of Transportation Secretary Randy Blankenhorn to Urge Lawmakers to Act on the I-55 Managed Lanes Project
Who: State Rep. Jim Durkin, Road Builders Association, Metropolitan Planning Council, Illinois Chamber of Commerce, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, American Concrete Pavement Association and American Council of Engineering Companies
Where: 8630 Joliet Rd., McCook
Date: Monday, March 27, 2017
When: 11:00 a.m.
Note: For background, please read Secretary Blankenhorn’s op-ed on the I-55 Managed Lanes Project here.
Under rules established in 2011 by the General Assembly, the one thing standing in the way for Illinois to proceed is a joint resolution by the House and Senate so IDOT can start listening to proposals from investors.
That is, just to get the OK to begin the procurement process and entertain proposals. If there are no solid proposals, IDOT cannot move forward.
Despite the interest from the investment community and the mounting travel times felt by commuters, the Illinois General Assembly has refused to vote on a joint resolution for almost a year.
Meanwhile, the clock ticks. Without a vote by April 1, the project no longer is feasible for the private sector. Investors will walk away. The cost to pursue this project in the future will only increase.
April 1st is Saturday.
*** UPDATE *** From Speaker Madigan…
“Where possible, we have been willing to work with the Governor on various parts of his agenda this spring including selling of the Thompson Center in Chicago and the reorganization he wants to do within state government. Our concern with private investors being involved in a toll lane is that, once again, it seems as though Governor Rauner is more interested in helping his wealthy friends. Despite multiple requests for information over several months, IDOT hasn’t prepared a plan that would lay out the costs, results, and anticipated tolls. IDOT hasn’t provided any evidence demonstrating that this project will save taxpayer dollars or result in better maintained roads. We continue to await this information.”
* The Senate Democrats are doing a pretty good job lately of getting stories out there that aren’t being covered by “real” reporters. For instance…
In November, River Valley Metro made the difficult decision of eliminating two bus routes and ending Sunday and holiday service due to the state’s budget impasse. The Kankakee-area transit agency was owed thousands of dollars from the state with no prospect of receiving funding any time soon.
“At some point, we will run out of options and be forced to shut down,” River Valley Metro CEO Rob Hoffmann said at the time.
While River Valley Metro did finally receive a state payment late last year, the funding was not enough to restore cut services. In addition, the agency remains uncertain when they will receive their next payment, making it nearly impossible to hire and retain employees or make strategic plans for the future.
“We are having a heck of a time just hiring employees,” Hoffmann said. “The uncertainty surrounding our state funding is leading to a perception that we will eventually shut down completely.”
Today, the state owes more than $12.8 billion in unpaid bills to small business, non-profits and agencies like River Valley Metro.
“We need a budget, period,” State Senator Toi Hutchinson (D – Chicago Heights) said. “At some point, certain agencies and programs will be so damaged that they will be beyond repair. Do we want to wait to get to that point when we have nothing left?”
The state budget situation is also endangering funding River Valley Metro receives from federal grants and programs. Due to service cutbacks, River Valley Metro lost out on one federal program worth more than $150,000.
* Rep. Jaime Andrade (D-Chicago) has been driving for Uber to make ends meet while his and other legislators’ paychecks were held up by two successive state comptrollers. This was his reaction to the legislator pay ruling last week…
Andrade insists the move did little to drive his colleagues to cooperate with Rauner.
“It was actually the opposite,” Andrade said. “It was just a political ploy . . . the public loved it, that the (legislators) didn’t get paid. If you would poll the regular residents I’m sure they’d say, ‘They’re all rich; they’re all lawyers. Don’t pay ’em.’
“They’re people. We’re getting paid. It’s still a sad day because nothing gets solved. Now people are more upset that the legislators got paid.”
He’s right on every point. Holding up those checks didn’t work for Gov. Quinn and it didn’t work for Gov. Rauner. It’s just a cheap populist stunt. And like most cheap populist stunts, the populace eats it up.
“Lawmakers just made a big pot of money while they weren’t doing their jobs — while they weren’t passing a balanced budget,” Rauner said Friday. “This just shows how rigged our system is. Our taxpayers in Illinois are being abused, and our most vulnerable residents are being hurt.”
They only made a “big pot of money” because they’ve received just one check since June. But, whatevs.
Diiiiiiiinnnnggg. We are conducting a hearing test. It is a test to see if Illinois House and Senate members are as tone deaf as we suspect.
We’re assuming some aural disability because that is all that would explain them spending the people’s time declaring October as Zombie Preparedness Month. Their resolution states that “while a Zombie Apocalypse may never happen, the preparation for such an event is the same as for any natural disaster.”
Our assumption is reinforced by the fact that they have time to consider whether pot should be legalized for recreational use in Illinois.
And, again, by them being so deaf to their constituents’ concerns and needs that they would unleash House Speaker Mike Madigan’s attorney and his minion, Illinois Comptroller Susana Medoza, on the pressing question of state lawmakers getting their pay on time. They not only undid the old Republican comptroller action to make state lawmakers and elected officials wait in line with everyone else owed $12.6 billion by our deadbeat state, they got a Chicago judge to order they be bumped to the head of the line.
Me first. Did zombies eat their brains? Are they high? Are they just deaf?
* The Daily Herald called Comptroller Mendoza’s promise to withhold the checks “Fake Spin”…
If, by now, you’re scratching your head over who is on what side in this debate, or how effective the paycheck threat can be, we don’t blame you. After all, if Springfield made sense, maybe the bills would be paid and a budget would be passed.
One thing that does seem clear, however, is that Mendoza’s commitment to pay-them-last is bullhorn loud but razor thin.
When a Cook County judge ruled last week that “there may be discretion by a comptroller as to certain expenditures but as to expenditures that are compelled by Illinois law, that discretion doesn’t exist,” Mendoza instantly caved.
Rather than seeking, as would be expected, a stay of the ruling while appealing the decision, Mendoza immediately released the legislators’ back pay.
In fact, it sounds like the paychecks are already going out.
It’s maddening but not surprising. In Illinois, clout wins. Politicians win. Rank-and-file citizens are at the back of the line. Yet voters keep sending the same pols back to Springfield.
It’s not getting better. The Democrat-controlled General Assembly is halfway through the spring session and doing little at this point to deal with the crisis. Of the roughly 50 calendar workdays since lawmakers were sworn into office in January, they’ve been in Springfield less than half of the time. That’s the schedule set by Democratic leaders. That’s how seriously they’re taking the state’s mayday. In other words, not. Both the House and Senate are taking a two-week spring break in April.
Legislators, grab some beach. You must be so exhausted.
We wish we could offer some measure of genuine astonishment at their behavior. But history has shown they’re right on track: No balanced budget, no progress, no conscience. (A recent Reuters report noted that the fiscal year that ended last June was the 15th straight year Illinois wound up in the red.)
Large majorities of Illinois voters support marijuana decriminalization and legalization for recreational use, according to the results of the latest poll from the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
The Simon Poll was conducted Saturday, March 4th to Saturday, March 11th. The sample included 1,000 randomly selected registered voters and a margin for error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Sixty percent of the interviews were with respondents on cell phones.
Three-quarters, 74 percent, of voters support or strongly support decriminalization of marijuana where people in possession of small amounts for personal consumption would not be prosecuted but may be fined. One in five voters, 21 percent, oppose or strongly oppose decriminalization and 5 percent answered otherwise. In 2016, Governor Rauner signed a law decriminalizing up to 10 grams of marijuana. Under the new law people caught with up to 10 grams can face fines of $100 to $200 and potential municipal penalties instead of facing a class B misdemeanor and potentially six months in jail and $1,500 in fines.
Support is also strong for legalization of marijuana for recreational use. Two-thirds of voters, 66 percent, support or strongly support legalization of recreational marijuana if it is taxed and regulated like alcohol. A notable 45 percent of voters support legalization strongly. Only 31 percent of voters oppose or strongly oppose and 3 percent answered otherwise.
“Illinois voters are growing increasingly comfortable with the idea of decriminalizing marijuana,” said Jak Tichenor, interim director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, “and we now have evidence that most see it as a potential revenue source for the state.” A March, 2016 Simon Poll showed 51 percent opposed recreational use of marijuana while 45 percent approved. When coupled with the idea of regulating and taxing it like alcohol, this year’s poll showed a 21 percent increase in the number of people who approve recreational use.
Decriminalization by Region. In Chicago, 80 percent of voters support or strongly support decriminalization statistically the same as their neighbors in suburban Cook and the collar counties who support or strongly support at 79 percent. In the rural regions outside Cook and the collar counties, 63 percent of voters supported or strongly supported decriminalization.
Opposition or strong opposition by voters in Chicago is 16 percent, in suburban Cook and collar counties is 17 percent, and 31 percent outside Cook and the collar counties.
Decriminalization by Political Party. Among Democrats, Republicans and independents, Democrats support is strongest with 81 percent stating they support or strongly support decriminalization. Only 15 percent of Democrats oppose or strongly oppose decriminalization and 4 percent answered otherwise. Independent voters followed Democrats with 76 percent of independents supporting or strongly supporting decriminalization and 17 percent opposing or strongly opposing. Two-thirds, 66 percent, of Republicans support or strongly support decriminalization and 30 percent oppose or strongly oppose.
Decriminalization by Age Group. Illinois voters younger than 35-years-old show the most approval with 83 percent supporting or strong supporting decriminalization. Fifteen percent are opposed. Voters thirty-five to fifty-years-old support or strongly support at 81 percent, and oppose or strongly oppose at 15 percent. Three-quarters, 77 percent, of fifty-one to sixty-five- year-old voters support or strongly support decriminalization. One in five, 19 percent, oppose or strongly oppose. Two-thirds, 67 percent, of baby boomers and the greatest generation sixty-six and older support or strongly support decriminalization while 28 oppose or strongly oppose.
“These data show that virtually all Illinoisans have opinions on cannabis decriminalization and legalization. Few people seem indifferent on these issues,” said Delio Calzolari, associate director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute and one of the designers of the poll. “A vast majority appear to philosophically agree with decriminalization like the steps taken last year, although the definition of decriminalization and amounts in question are debatable. There is also overwhelming support for new cannabis public policy for recreational use shown.”
Recreational Legalization by Region. In Chicago, 74 percent of voters support or strongly support legalization of marijuana for recreational use if taxed and regulated like alcohol. In suburban Cook and the collar counties support or strong support is 70 percent. In the rural Illinois outside Cook and the collar counties, 54 percent of voters supported or strongly supported legalization. Opposition or strong opposition by voters in Chicago is 22 percent, suburban Cook and collar counties is 27 percent, and 43 percent outside Cook and the collar counties.
Recreational Legalization by Political Party. Among Democrats, Republicans and independents, Democrats support is strongest among the three groups with 76 percent stating they support or strongly support recreational legalization if taxed and regulated like alcohol. Only 21 percent of Democrats oppose or strongly oppose recreational legalization and 3 percent answered otherwise. Independent voters followed Democrats with 68 percent of independents supporting or strongly supporting recreational use and 27 percent opposing or strongly opposing. A slight majority of Republicans, 52 percent, support or strongly support legalization while 46 percent oppose.
Recreational Legalization by Age Group. Illinois voters younger than 35-years-old show the most favorability to legalization of recreational marijuana if taxed and regulated like alcohol. Four in five, 83 percent, support or strongly support the proposition. This percentage is identical to the same support for decriminalization. Seventeen percent are opposed. Voters thirty-five to fifty-years-old support or strongly support at 77 percent, and oppose or strongly oppose at 22 percent. Among fifty-one to sixty-five-year-old voters 69 percent support or strongly support legalization and 28 percent oppose or strongly oppose. Baby boomers and the greatest generation sixty-six-years-old and older are split on the issue with 51 percent stating they support or strongly support legalization of recreational marijuana if taxed and regulated like alcohol and 45 percent stating they oppose or strongly oppose.
Shortly after Donald Trump was elected, political types said women were coming out of the woodwork wanting to run for office.
A pro bono consulting group popped up in Illinois in November called Rodham Consulting, a nod to presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s family name. Political professionals wanted to lend their advice and assistance to those newly energized women. Within just a few days, 122 potential candidates, advisers and others had signed up to participate.
Millions of women marched in Washington and other cities after Trump was inaugurated. The Chicago march was so large that police shut it down. There was clearly something new in the air.
But here we are in late March, and no Illinois women have yet come forward to say they definitely want to run for governor against Republican Bruce Rauner.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, a moderate downstater, for a while talked about running but ultimately decided to stay in Congress.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly of south suburban Matteson floated her name months ago, but most observers figure she’ll stick with her super safe congressional seat.
Colleagues of state Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago) have long believed she might run for governor. She has the policy chops for the job and she’s also a strong fundraiser. But Steans is supporting J.B. Pritzker’s Democratic gubernatorial bid.
So, as Women’s History Month winds down and Trump’s unpopularity ratchets up, the list of announced or almost announced Democratic candidates for governor includes five people, all men: Pritzker; Chris Kennedy, the son of slain presidential candidate Bobby Kennedy; Chicago Ald. Ameya Pawar; state Sen. Daniel Biss of Evanston and Madison County Regional Superintendent of Schools Bob Daiber.
I’ve been going to Illinois Statehouse committee hearings longer than I care to remember - something like 27 years. Last week, however, was the first time I can ever recall having to fight back tears during a hearing.
The House Appropriations - General Services Committee heard testimony last week from Kenea Williams, a state employee who works at the Murray Developmental Center in Centralia. She has fifteen-month-old twins named Kobe and Kade. They were born premature and Kobe has something called broncho pulmonary displasia. His little lungs are scarred and he requires supplemental oxygen just to live.
Long story short, the company that supplied the oxygen tanks for Kobe dropped out of the state’s group health insurance system because the state isn’t paying its bills during our long governmental impasse and they wanted their equipment back. Ms. Williams testified last week that Reps. John Cavaletto (R-Salem) and Charles Meier (R-Okawville) helped convince the company to continue supplying oxygen equipment to Kobe until this July.
But for whatever reason, company execs changed their minds and they sent some employees to retrieve the equipment in January. When a frightened Williams refused to answer her door, the employees apparently called the local county sheriff. Two sheriff’s deputies arrived, listened to the desperate mom tearfully plead her case and thankfully decided not to intervene. Ms. Williams has since found a new supplier for a home oxygen system.
So, think about this for a second. The state is deducting health insurance premiums out of Ms. Williams’ paychecks twice a month without fail. But there is no state appropriation for group health insurance in this fiscal year’s horribly inadequate stopgap budget, so lots of state vendors aren’t getting paid. The bill payment cycle for some of these insurance plans is currently about two years, so providers, like the company which supplied the oxygen tanks for Kobe, are understandably dropping out.
I’m told that the Illinois Department of Central Management Services played a very big role in finding another oxygen tank supplier for that little baby, who was also at the hearing last week with an oxygen tank and a tube taped under his little nose. Many kudos to everyone who helped keep that child alive, including those sheriff’s deputies.
But, people, c’mon. This story, while it currently has a happy ending, is just so beyond the pale.
If a private sector company withheld insurance payments from workers and didn’t pay the money it owed to the insurance provider, the state would clamp down super hard on that employer. But Illinois doesn’t even bother paying its end, and, in fact, the state hasn’t fully funded that insurance program in years.
This is basically fraud.
Others testified at the committee last week that some dentists are demanding payment up front from state employees. So, the patients are paying for insurance, but they can’t get treatment unless they pay in advance and then, presumably sometime down the road, the insurance company will reimburse them once the companies get paid by the state. A lobbyist for the Illinois State Dental Society recently told legislators that the state owes 9,000 dentists a total of $174 million.
Let’s just hope heart and cancer surgeons don’t start making patients pay in advance.
Legislators are basically doing the same thing to the worker health insurance fund that they used to do to the pension funds. They promise good benefits at a very reasonable cost to the employee, but then don’t provide nearly enough state funding needed to make the payouts.
Only, with the healthcare fund, it’s worse. The pension funds have always had enough cushion in them to forestall an immediate meltdown. They could pay retirees without any money from the state for a while.
But the health insurance fund has a $3.5 billion negative balance. And that deficit will only continue to grow because the only money currently going into the fund is from state employee payroll deductions.
“I pay my premiums,” Ms. Williams told the House committee last week. “I do my part. Now I feel like the state needs to do their part. They need to pay their bills.”
So, how about the governor and the General Assembly get a real budget deal done before we, as a state, collectively kill a supposedly fully insured baby? Is that really all that much to ask?
Kennedy reported a $250,100 contribution to himself. So, all gubernatorial candidates can now take whatever they want from contributors from here on out. The official clock started ticking on March 20th, a year before the 2018 primary. Large contributions before that date (including Gov. Rauner’s $50 million contribution to his campaign last December) did not blow the caps.
Kennedy also reported some smaller contributions today totaling $73K.
Ameya Pawar reported about $70K in contris to his account yesterday. And JB Pritzker finally reported his $200K contribution to his exploratory campaign fund this week.
*** UPDATE *** Sen. Daniel Biss is fundraising off of Kennedy’s contribution…
When I announced on Monday, I said we’d need to be ready to take on money and the machine. I just didn’t expect to be proven right so soon.
The only thing standing in the way of big money influencing our politics are contribution limits. This is why it’s so noteworthy that late on Friday, and exactly one week before the quarterly filing deadline, Chris Kennedy gave more than $250,000 of his personal wealth to his campaign.
With that one contribution, Kennedy has blown the fundraising caps in this race — which means there are no longer any limits to what donors can contribute.
This is great news for money and the machine — which means it’s terrible news for Illinois.
This is more of what we DON’T need — the rich and powerful exploiting loopholes in the law to maintain their hold on our state government. I got in this race to change that — and it’s why I need you to step up and stand with me now. Together, if each of us steps up, we can overcome money and the machine.
