Question of the day
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* State Sen. Napoleon Harris (D-Harvey) kicked off his US Senate campaign today…
But in responding to reporters’ questions about international events, Harris at times appeared ill-prepared.
While his campaign issued a handout in which Harris voiced support for “shifting the focus of our foreign aid from the Middle East back to the Americas,” the candidate did not directly respond to a question about how that position would affect U.S. aid to Israel.
“Right now, we’re still developing all of our policies in regards to foreign policy. But I think what’s important is to realize we have a lot of work to do at home, and the intent is to make sure that first we take care of home and our neighboring countries,” he said.
When asked about Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s Monday call to temporarily stop accepting Syrian refugees in Illinois, Harris said, “I haven’t heard about Gov. Rauner’s comments on that” and said the governor should “get a balanced budget.”
* The Questions: Other topics that Sen. Harris might want to avoid?
Snark is heavily encouraged.
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* Rep. Ken Dunkin on last week’s Child Care Assistance Program deal he says he helped cut with Gov. Bruce Rauner…
“Child care was at the center of the table right now, close to a billion dollars in funding. To have that program up and running, up at least at 85 percent, and until we receive a budget, a full budget, it will be back to the full restoration of 185 percent above the poverty level. That’s a success.”
To explain, the governor slashed the program’s maximum eligibility from 185 percent of the federal poverty level to 50 percent. Democratic legislators negotiated a deal to raise that requirement to 162 percent of FPL, and then, according to Rep. Dunkin and others, it would return to 185 percent when a budget deal was finally completed.
* Well, JCAR met today to vote on the new rule and Democratic members attempted to get the Department of Human Services on record as saying the bar would be raised to 185 percent of FPL once a budget agreement is reached. It didn’t go as expected…
* I just talked to Sen. Toi Hutchinson, who actually did negotiate the CCAP compromise.
“That is not what I agreed to,” she said about today’s DHS claims.
It was her understanding, Hutchinson said, that the rate “would go back to 185″ once there is a budget. “It didn’t have anything to do with a bipartisan commission determining the rate,” she said.
“At this point I am waiting for the governor’s office to clarify,” she said.
Hutchinson had agreed to hold the bill to codify the 185 percent level, but that bill died in the House (when Dunkin didn’t vote either way), so she no longer has any leverage. “We don’t have anything other than the governor’s word,” she said.
*** UPDATE 1 *** After some initial confusion, Team Rauner has responded on the record…
The deal stands. 185% when there’s a budget with recommendations for further policy changes coming from the bipartisan commission.
I asked if what Bassi said was in error…
I think the statement I just sent speaks for itself
*** UPDATE 2 *** Sen. Hutchinson called the Rauner folks just before they issued the statement to me. She said it was important that the administration went on the record today with the clarification, adding “This is an exercise in trust, and that’s the only thing that’s going to get us out of this.”
Yep.
*** UPDATE 3 *** A text from Rep. André Thapedi, a member of JCAR who pressed DHS about the 185 percent issue…
Rich, I saw the statement on the blog. I have taken enough depositions and tried enough cases to know that proffered statement is not an unequivocal answer to my straightforward question. There is no unequivocal commitment to 185% of the FLP when the budget is done. That leads me to believe we won’t be seeing the 185% anytime soon, if ever. I hope the governor’s people will clarify this as I have people in my district scared to death and looking for answers and certainty.
André
*** UPDATE 4 *** Emily Miller at Voices for Illinois Children…
After initial confusion, Voices for Illinois Children was relieved to read the governor’s office clarification that the agreement made to fully restore child care stands. Upon passage of an FY16 budget, child care assistance will be fully restored to all families up to 185% of the federal poverty level.
While it was unfortunate that the Department of Human Services’ representative wasn’t clear on the Governor’s position at the JCAR hearing on child care today, it’s fair to say that everyone involved is very busy and invested in this process, and in this instance, perhaps lines of communication got crossed.
The next step is to work together, try to trust one another, and hold each other accountable so that lawmakers and the governor can pass a fully funded, year-long budget invests in children, families and communities. At that point, child care eligibility will be restored to 185% of the federal poverty level, which is a good thing for working families.
*** UPDATE 5 *** Press release…
Following is the statement of SEIU Healthcare Illinois Child Care Vice President Brynn Seibert regarding confusing testimony today by Bruce Rauner administration officials that appeared to renege on a deal to restore the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) eligibility requirements.
“Today’s JCAR hearing confirmed our worst fears about the hastily-conjured “deal” Bruce Rauner hatched last week—that his face-saving political gesture provides no ironclad assurances that child care in Illinois will be restored to full health when a budget deal is struck and after suffering needless and devastating cuts.
“Today, not only was the Rauner administration unable to identify supposed savings, or quantify the very real human costs of his cruel actions, or even answer a simple “yes-or-no” question about repairing CCAP, but there remains no way whatsoever to ensure the central part of the Rauner “deal,” announced by his close friend and key ally Ken Dunkin, that the program will return to an eligibility threshold of 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level.
“Nobody should be prepared to take Rauner at his word, given that he’s left child care in Illinois in tatters. Administratively, in the courtroom and at the bargaining table, Rauner has brought ruin and instability to the Child Care Assistance Program. Today’s administrative hearing provided another shameful heaping of the same.”
*** UPDATE 6 *** Rep. Ken Dunkin via text message…
However folks are trying to twist some statements from a DHS lawyer at JCAR is not my concern. The Governor just reassured me, again his commitment stands on child care. We go back to 185 at budget and take recommendations for policy changes from commission.
…Adding… Another text from Rep. Dunkin…
162 is what Toi & Jehan agreed on. I will make sure we are at 185 when we get a Budget.
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* Tony Arnold…
The son of longtime U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Chicago), Flynn Rush is considering getting into the family business. In what would be his first campaign for public office, Rush’s son is considering taking on one of the most established Democrats in Springfield.
Flynn Rush recently filed paperwork with the State Board of Elections to run in the Democratic primary against State Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie, who has represented Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood since 1979. She’s the person House Speaker Michael Madigan often relies on for important legislation.
Flynn Rush didn’t return WBEZ’s calls for comment. But his uncle, Marlon Rush, did. Marlon said his nephew is still thinking about challenging Currie, and hasn’t made a final decision. He said the younger Rush thinks not all people of the district have been represented during Flynn Currie’s tenure in Springfield.
“He has a second nature to be concerned for all people,” Marlon said of his nephew. He went on to say that Flynn Rush has worked on previous campaigns of his father, working in polling places and talking with community groups.
Leader Currie’s district was 50 percent black, 22 percent white and 22 percent Latino in the 2010 census.
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Missing the point
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Well, yeah…
“States lack legal authority to refuse to accept refugees (or any other immigrants) that are admitted by the federal [government],” [Adam Cox, a New York University Law School professor who is an expert in immigration and constitutional law] wrote in an email.
* And, of course…
“There are no barriers, no requirements in the Refugee Act of 1980 that indicate a governor has to give permission to resettle in a state,” [Anna Crosslin, the president of International Institut] said. “That’s all a federal process.”
That’s pretty obvious. We can’t just shut our state borders.
* But the states do have some leverage…
That’s not to say that states can’t make it difficult for Syrian refugees to settle once they are admitted to the United States. Once refugees are on their way to the United States, the State Department works with nine nongovernmental agencies that contract with the federal government on resettlement. Together they decide where to place refugees around the country, based on factors like the availability of jobs and housing and whether there is a local community from their home country that may be helpful, explained Kathleen Newland, a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute.
“States do have a role in the refugee resettlement process post admission, and it would certainly be possible for them to obstruct the resettlement process,” she said.
States could instruct their employees not to cooperate with the resettlement program, or they could freeze state-level refugee benefits or federal refugee benefits distributed by the states.
Yep.
* Meanwhile…
All of the attackers from Friday’s massacre in Paris so far have been identified as European Union nationals, according to a top EU official. The announcement further casts doubt on the validity of a Syrian passport found near the bodies of a slain attacker.
“Let me underline, the profile of the terrorists so far identified tells us this is an internal threat,” Federica Mogherini, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, said after a meeting with EU foreign ministers. “It is all EU citizens so far. This can change with the hours, but so far it is quite clear it is an issue of internal domestic security.”
The majority of attackers were identified as French or Belgian nationals. An Egyptian passport was also found, but the Egyptian Ambassador to France said it belonged to a critically wounded victim and not a perpetrator. The Syrian passport caused a ruckus, with some politicians in Europe and the U.S. calling for a halt to Syrian refugee resettlement. An increasing number of state governors are trying to defund the settlement program. American officials told CBS News that the passport might be fake, while British-daily the Independent reported that a man was arrested in Serbia while carrying a Syrian passport with matching details to the one found in Paris.
* Related…
* ADDED: The Economist: After refugees are referred by an American embassy or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, they are screened by Department of State Resettlement Service Centers all over the world. They undergo multiple investigations of their biographies; biometric checks of their fingerprints and photographs; in-depth interviews by highly trained Department of Homeland Security officers; medical screenings as well as investigations by the National Counterterrorism Center and by intelligence agencies. The entire process can take longer than three years. If a potential terrorist is determined to enter America to do harm, there are easier and faster ways to get there than by going through the complex refugee resettlement process.
* ADDED: Sen. Dick Durbin: “I want to add my voice to others here today in sharing my deepest condolences and solidarity with the people of that great nation,” said Durbin. “Some have reacted to the tragedy in France by calling for us to suspend refugees coming to this country. Many of these people have not reflected on the refugee situation in our country. Each year, the United States accepts about 70,000 refugees from around the world. These refugees are each carefully investigated, reviewed, and vetted. That process takes anywhere from 18 to 24 months before a refugee from any part of the world is allowed to enter the United States. We do everything humanly possible and take extraordinary efforts to make certain that dangerous people do not arrive on our shores. That vetting process must continue, and when it comes to suspicious circumstances, must be doubled in its intensity to make certain that our nation is safe. But those who are focusing on that as the answer to what happened in Paris are very shortsighted.”
* ADDED: McCarthy at counterterrorism workshop: Tactics must change: “I think the nature of hostage situations has also changed, because [the Paris gunmen] took hostages, but what were they doing? They were killing them. So we can’t use those tactics that we’ve used in the past where we surround, contain, talk, try and negotiate. We’re going to be in a combat situation if these things happen and we have to adjust our strategies in that way.”
* Chicago mayor says his Paris trip for climate meeting is still on despite ‘vile attack’
* Gutierrez rips Rauner move to ban Syrian refugees
* Alderman Rips Rauner in Letter to Obama
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* Either the Democrats get in front of this issue, or they’re gonna get run over by it…
More than 400,000 Illinoisans have signed petitions to put the Independent Map Amendment on the November 2016 ballot.
These petition signers want to give voters a choice between an independent commission drawing state legislative maps in a fair and transparent manner and the current system where politicians draw the maps to maximize partisan advantage and protect incumbents.
The non-partisan Independent Maps coalition announced Tuesday that it has collected 402,109 signatures and is now more than two-thirds of the way to its goal of collecting 600,000 signatures.
“Just like in Ohio where on November 3rd a redistricting reform initiative passed 71-29 percent, Illinoisans are clamoring for change in the way state legislative maps are drawn,” said Dennis FitzSimons, Chair of Independent Maps. “After seeing 60 percent of state legislative races go uncontested in November 2014 because of slanted maps drawn to discourage competition and protect incumbents, voters want to fix a rigged system.” […]
“We reached the 400,000 mark about five months earlier than the 2014 campaign, and we will continue collecting signatures until it is time to deliver our petitions to the State Board of Elections next May,” he said. “To put an amendment before voters, the Illinois Constitution requires a minimum of 290,216 valid signatures, and our goal is to collect more than twice that number as insurance against petition challenges by the entrenched interests who oppose reform.”
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Today’s number: $835,000
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Keep this in mind when you’re thinking that the Democrats are preparing to cave on union issues…
House Speaker Michael Madigan on Monday reported another $321,000 in campaign contributions to his personal campaign fund and the Democratic Party of Illinois fund. An operating engineers political fund contributed nearly $106,000 of that total, and three personal injury law firms contributed nearly $65,000. Unions and the trial lawyers are siding with the Democrats, as Republican Gov. Rauner wants to scale back collective bargaining rights and approve changes to the civil lawsuit system.
The operating engineers fund has doled out nearly $835,000 since Jan. 1, most of it to Democratic lawmakers. One of the law firms, Power Rogers & Smith, has given nearly $95,000 in the same period. Corboy & Demetrio has given around $90,000. Keefe & Keefe has given more than $115,000.
…Adding… A commenter makes a valid point…
This is about more than money. Members of organized labor live in these districts, attend our functions, know the issues in a very personal and technical manner, and have the same philosophy on the issues as Dem lawmakers.
They are not only members of the same team, but have been for decades.
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* Unintended consequences of the governor’s Turnaround Agenda? Maybe. Here’s Parkland Community College President Tom Ramage…
Ramage said he hopes Parkland’s board of trustees opts next month to raise the college’s property tax rate to the maximum to capture as much money as possible before statewide tax caps go into effect.
He said the board can raise two small funds — tort and immunity, and protection, health and safety — to get more property tax money.
Ramage estimated that the tax increase to the typical homeowner in the Parkland district would be about $15 next year.
“If we’re looking at a tax cap going in to next year, it seems to me that we would want to maximize to the extent possible the amount of revenue we bring in now while we have a chance. That needs to be passed by the trustees. They need to agree or to not agree to that,” Ramage told a meeting of the college’s faculty and staff Monday morning.
“If they do agree, it’s up us to tell our neighbors and our friends and our parents and our kids and whoever, why their tax bill for Parkland College went up 15 bucks. Because it will never go up again, is the answer to that story, if tax caps happen.”
He called it “a one-time opportunity to cushion the effect of tax caps.”
Ramage said Parkland has benefited from natural growth in the assessed valuation of the property within its 10 counties.
“If this law is passed this year, the effect on Parkland would be that the amount of money in actual dollars that Parkland takes in this year in property taxes would be frozen, perhaps indefinitely,” he said. “The legislation says two years but it is a very, very difficult thing to get property tax caps removed once they’re in place. You might imagine why. It sounds like a good thing to the general citizenry.”
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A moderate mushroom revolt
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* A week ago yesterday, I told subscribers about how some House Republicans were pushing Gov. Bruce Rauner to come up with some compromises on child care, elder care and municipal government funding, among other things. That push got lost in the shuffle when Democratic state Rep. Ken Dunkin sided with the governor on crucial floor votes. Reboot picks up the trail…
Gov. Bruce Rauner finally might be heeding messages from more experienced Republican legislators. And those lawmakers are listening to their constituents. […]
Dunkin might take the credit, but House Republicans were telling Rauner and his aides that he had choked off too much state aid for child care by shrinking the eligibility requirement too dramatically. Some of them were going to have trouble staying with the governor if the House Democrats called a bill to try to take power away from governors to rewrite such eligibility rules.
Rauner got the message. He’d lost that battle already, or was about to, so he compromised and declared victory early Monday morning by agreeing to ease up on the requirements. When Democrats pushed ahead with an attempt to take away the power anyway, Republicans saw the danger in that and stayed with Rauner, who got Dunkin to go along, blocking the move. […]
State Rep. David Harris, a conservative Arlington Heights Republican who previously served 10 years in the 1980s and 1990s and has four years in the House now, said, “There were a number of us who were concerned about child care. There also was the sensitivity of the issue.” […]
State Rep. David McSweeney, a wealthy conservative from Barrington who isn’t as reliant on Rauner’s financial aid, agreed: “I applaud him for doing it, but let’s move on” to the budget and pensions. […]
Harris said seven or eight Republicans told the governor’s office they could no longer hold back from voting for a bill sponsored by Democratic state Rep. Marty Moylan of Des Plaines to release funds to pay municipalities the motor fuel tax receipts that are not part of the annual budgeting process, but instead are held in a special fund, as well as gambling proceeds and the 911 fees held in special funds.
Moderate, practical House Republican members are crucial to solving this mess. They’ve been forced to take innumerable bad votes by the House Speaker and their governor all year, and many have had more than enough, thank you very much.
More like this, please.
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Ken Dunkin roundup
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* CBS 2…
The Democratic state lawmaker who thwarted House Speaker Michael Madigan’s plan to overrule Gov. Bruce Rauner on two crucial votes this week said he hopes his action helps bring more compromises in Springfield.
Rep. Ken Dunkin (D-Chicago) admitted he hasn’t spoken to Madigan in a while.
“I miss the speaker. He should call more often,” he said.
* A letter to the Sun-Times’ editor written by somebody from Gurnee…
With no budget, and the Hatfields and McCoys of Springfield in full attack mode, a politician finally has the guts to stand up to the almighty House Speaker and do the unthinkable: risk his political future by making a bi-partisan gesture to end the gridlock.
What does Rep. Ken Dunkin get for his efforts? A Democratic colleague throws his nameplate across the House floor to the side of the Republicans. And the president of a powerful union attacked him for using people as pawns.
Someone actually has the guts to stand up for what is right, to end the unfathomable gridlock we are in, to stand up to the most powerful man in Illinois saying “I don’t work for Madigan”, and this is what he gets? When you can’t get any respect for doing the right thing from your own party, nor from the media, nor the very people you are working for, something is wrong to the very core of our government. No wonder this state is so messed up. Here’s a slogan I would rally behind: Dunkin for Speaker.
But alas there is something else too broken to fix. The most powerful man in the state is still elected by a handful of residents. The speaker position should be a statewide elected position. The power of that office extends across the state from Antioch to Jacksonville; why shouldn’t all of our residents have a say in who wields the sword?
* Eric Zorn’s two cents…
The only thing that’s clear is that this rogue legislator has, in effect, for no obvious good reason, called Madigan out. And that if Madigan, who also serves as the state’s Democratic Party chairman, can’t respond to this insult by backing a successful challenge to Dunkin in the March primary, he’s in bigger trouble than he thinks.
* Dispatch-Argus editorial…
Instead of embracing the governor’s efforts, they called bills designed to embarrass him and his Republican legislative supporters. Fortunately, the bills fell one vote short In the House. That was thanks to Rep. Ken Dunkin, D-Chicago, who reportedly still is feeling the heat for his efforts to find common ground with Gov. Rauner.
But rather than damn his actions, his colleagues and their constituents should be following his lead. As Rep. Dunkin said last week, “Leaders are not talking with each other. They haven’t talked since May, as I understand it. That’s insane. And so they want to vilify me, for what?”
To win the political finger-pointing game, of course.
The crucial question is: Is it working?
With the governor’s wise moves and the majority’s cynical response, our hope is that legislative leaders may have lost the crucial public relations battle that obviously is playing the leading role in when and how a deal is reached and what it will contain.
* Listen to Dunkin interviewed on WVON by clicking here. However, be forewarned, there’s a bad word near the end.
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* We’ve crossed over into the surreal…
TO: Governor Bruce Rauner
Speaker of the House Michael J. Madigan
Senate President Cullerton
FROM: Jeffrey B. Ford, President, at the request of The Board of Directors of the Illinois Association of Problem-Solving Courts (ILAPSC)
RE: Effects of Budget Delay
DATE: November 12, 2015
We write to express our concerns about the effects which the delay in passing a state budget has on our membership and the clients they serve. The ILAPSC is a multi-disciplinary, statewide organization whose mission is to provide education, assistance, training and development through collaboration of behavioral health and justice systems. Our Board consists of four judges, one state’s attorney, one current and one retired public defender, two TASC directors, four members of court services, three directors of Problem-Solving Courts in their counties, one drug court coordinator, one representative from NAMI, a county mental health board director and one mental health court graduate. Geographically we are from as far north as McHenry and Winnebago Counties, as far west as Rock Island and Madison Counties, as far east as Cook and Champaign Counties and as far south as Marion and Wabash Counties. Our recent conference was attended by 483 people with even more diversity in occupations and geography than our board.
Currently, the State of Illinois has 62 Drug Courts, 25 Mental Health Courts, 18 Veterans Courts and 2 DUI Courts. Each Problem-Solving Court partners with the social service agencies in their area to provide the treatment and social support that each defendant needs to succeed. The Problem-Solving Court Team, including appropriate professionals from local service agencies, works out an individual treatment plan for each defendant. Most of these agencies depend on state funding for many of the services they provide.
It is important to note that we make no statement regarding the politics and policy differences involved in the budget delay. We understand that you are working diligently to try to resolve these differences. However, while this process continues, important aspects of daily life in Illinois are threatened. The work of each of Illinois’ Problem-Solving Courts (PSCs) is to help our citizens avoid incarceration by monitoring their progress while they receive treatment, counseling and other services. Research has shown that if the correct population is targeted by PSCs, these Courts can save money and reduce recidivism. By funding the services necessary to continue the work of Illinois’ PSCs, we become, as a state, smart on crime.
Unfortunately, because of the delay in passing a State budget, many of these agencies are being forced to cut services, lay off staff, close intake and even, in some cases, close their doors altogether. Many are expending their cash reserves to continue to provide the services their clients need while others are forced to take out lines of credit. Because banks will only offer lines of credit if they are assured they will be honored, the current budget delay calls into question the social service agencies’ ability to repay those loans.
The Governor has a stated goal of reducing the prison population by 25% over the next ten years, and has appointed a commission to recommend ways to make this happen. We applaud this effort. But the Commission’s own Initial Report notes, “Alternatives to incarceration, as well as efforts to reduce recidivism, will require a focus on community treatment programs, particularly those involving substance abuse and mental health.” The report also states that over the past several years funding for state mental health and substance abuse treatment has been declining. The report was issued July 1 of this year, well before the lack of a state budget reduced that funding even further.
Without the financial support of a full and comprehensive budget, Illinois’ PSCs cannot do their job. Instead of saving money and reducing crime, the current situation will (1) increase costs associated with crime (including costs to victims, the costs of the justice system and the costs of incarceration), (2) increase the number of children involved in the juvenile justice and foster care systems and (3) some of our citizens will continue to sink further into addiction and mental illness.
As State leaders, we call upon you to redouble your efforts to bring an end to the budget delay, work together to repair the damage done and strive to bind up the State’s wounds caused by this delay so that all the citizens of Illinois can go on with their lives.
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Question of the day
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the twitters this morning…
* A text from a pal…
Madigan’s City Club speech was sold out 5 minutes after going on sale. Is he the new Taylor Swift?
* An e-mail from another pal shortly before noon…
Tickets sold out in 5 minutes…
It took Donald Trump 11 minutes…..
Waiting list almost 1,000
* The Question: Topics that Speaker Madigan should probably avoid during his City Club address?
Snark is heavily encouraged, of course.
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*** UPDATE 1 *** From a Republican member of the working group…
“These represent items that a bipartisan, bicameral group of independent legislators said ‘Here are some things to get the conversation started.’”
So, just to be clear, not everybody in the working group agrees with all of these things, and as I told subscribers weeks ago, the governor and some Republicans wanted more reforms before agreeing to any new revenues.
*** UPDATE 2 *** OK, so from what I’m told, the Democrats presented the Republicans with these items, but they were rejected by the governor and the GOP as being “not enough reform” for the amount of revenue involved.
[ *** End Of Updates *** ]
* As I told you in the previous post, the IllinoisGO “mega deal” list looked very similar to me as the proposals from a bipartisan group of legislators which ended up going nowhere when the governor turned thumbs down. Here is that list…
Spending and budget reforms
1. $36B FY16 spending level – below the General Assembly budget passed in May – with reductions in group health, transfers & discretionary spending this year and over $900m additional operational reductions in FY17
2. Pay off bill backlog over 5 years
3. Make full pension payments
4. Ensure childcare, community care and other social service programs are funded
5. Provide stability and certainty for at least 5 years
6. Enact an emergency reserve fund
7. Eliminate future rolling of bills
Revenue
1. Pass a revenue plan that provides $3B in FY16 and grows to $5B
2. Broaden sales tax base to cover services similar to Wisconsin
3. Tax retirement income over $50,000
4. Increase personal income tax rate to 4.5%
5. Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) 50%
6. Raise corporate income tax rate to 6.75%
7. Eliminate 3 corp. tax credits (domestic production, noncombination rule and offshore drilling) & make R&D credit permanent
8. Eliminate corp. franchise tax and lower LLC fees
9. Recouple inheritance tax with the federal government
10. Repeal E-10 subsidy (ethanol)
Capital Plan
1. Develop a capital program to fund much needed water, sewer, road, public transit, school and other public infrastructure needs.
2. Create a vehicle miles travelled pilot
3. Apply any road portion to local roads as well as state roads w/criteria for accessing state dollars
Substantive Reforms
Local control
1. Allow (but not require) all school districts to bargain over 3rd party contracting, layoffs, class size, school year & technology (like CPS)
2. Enable school districts to enter into 3rd party contracts
3. Modify arbitration selection process
4. Make contracts subject to appropriation
5. Enable a “reset” for healthcare & prohibit employers from awarding plans that would impose the “Cadillac tax”
6. Broaden local preference for Project Labor Agreements and ensure PLAs apply to construction only (not maintenance) projects
7. Set $150,000 threshold for prevailing wage (PW), enabling diversity in participation, and clarify homes in TIF districts are not subject to PW
8. Allow municipalities to form health care co-ops
9. Create disincentive for schools to pickup employee share of pension costs
Property tax freeze/education funding reform
1. Enact a 2 year property tax freeze excluding public safety
2. Establish pension parity for CPS w/sunset & alter CPS pension ramp
3. Sunset General State Aid formula 6/1/17 and create a stakeholder committee to propose new formula by 12/31/16 and identify needed $ to prevent any district from losing.
Business/regulatory reforms
1. Implement substantive Workers compensation reforms
2. Modify Unemployment insurance to alter the def’n of misconduct, eliminate the social security offset, & extend “speed bumps”
3. Raise the minimum wage to $11 over time (Lightford bill)
4. Mandate reporting from contractors on minority workforce participation
Pension reform
1. Establish a tier 3 cash balance plan
2. Fix Tier 2 to link salary cap to social security wage base
3. Address pension spiking
4. Modify police and fire pension ramp schedules
Keep in mind that this was a bipartisan working group. Some Democrats are obviously willing to go much further with labor union-related reforms than House Speaker Michael Madigan will admit.
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IllinoisGO floats mega deal
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Greg Hinz…
A top political operative with ties on both sides of the aisle is shopping a big-picture compromise plan to resolve Illinois’ budget war, and while it includes something to offend almost every interest group, its author says it’s received at least some positive feedback from Springfield powers.
The plan comes from Greg Goldner, a former campaign manager for ex-Mayor Richard M. Daley and then-Congressman Rahm Emanuel whom some in Springfield nonetheless consider a front for GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner, even though he now runs the well-funded Democratic group Illinoisans for Growth and Opportunity.
The proposal, quietly discussed with political leaders in recent days, calls for an increase in the state income tax, extension of the sales tax to cover more services and a tax on some form of retirement income. […]
I won’t be surprised if Madigan balks, particularly since the speaker has personally accused Goldner of preparing to field candidates against Democrats in the upcoming primary.
Goldner denies doing that, at least so far. “We have not recruited candidates—to date,” he put it.
It’s not a horrible plan (from what I can gather, the revenue stuff looks very much like a bipartisan proposal by mostly female legislators which went nowhere when the governor turned thumbs down), but it has the worst possible supporter considering the times. Despite what Goldner claims about his candidate recruitment, he might as well just let Ken Dunkin sponsor his bill. Sheesh.
* Most of the dot points…
INCREASE REVENUES, CUT SPENDING & LIMIT GROWTH […]
• Increase the Personal Income Tax. +$3.3B/YR Increasing the personal income tax rate to 4.75% from the current level of 3.75% would generate roughly $3.3 billion in additional net revenue per year. Assuming passage of a bill before the end of the taxable year, this tax should be applied retroactively from July 1, 2015, for FY 2016. While the Civic Federation recommends 4.25%, given the massive scale of the problems for FY 2016 due to the failure to pass a budget, this rate would be insufficient at this time. [Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, 9/09/15]
• Increase the Earned Income Tax Credit to Offset Broad Tax Increases. -$136M/YR To offset the regressive impact of higher income tax rates and a broader sales tax on low income residents, the state should gradually increase its Earned Income Tax Credit to 15% of the federal amount by FY 2018 from the current 10%. Using the estimated FY 2016 federal EITC of $2.7 billion, increasing the state EITC by five percentage points would cost approximately $136 million in addition to the current credit.
• Increase the Corporate Income Tax to 5.75%. +350M/YR Increasing the corporate tax from its current 5.25% to 5.75% would bring in an additional $350 million a year. The tax should be applied retroactively from July 1, 2015, for FY 2016.
• Maintain the Local Distributive Share Rate at 8% (Personal) and 9.14% (Corporate) After the Tax Increases. -$296M/YR Keep the portion of the state personal income tax for local governments at 8% and the corporate income tax at 9.14%, the current allocations through the Local Government Distributive Fund (LGDF), after the tax increases. In 2011, the local distributive share was held constant, despite the income tax increase. The City of Chicago estimated that it would have received more than $400 million in total additional revenues if local governments had not been excluded from sharing in increased income tax revenues from 2011 until 2015. Under a 4.75% tax rate, preserving this 8% and 9.14% shares for local governments would generate an additional $296 million for local governments beyond current levels.
• Eliminate Corporate Loopholes. +$400M/YR Limiting EDGE tax credits, eliminating tax breaks for companies investing out of state by decoupling Illinois’s exemption from the federal domestic production deduction, taxing income held offshore as domestic income, taxing companies in Illinois for offshore drilling, and closing accounting loopholes like requiring combined reporting would generate $400 million a year.
• Expand the Sales Tax to Consumer Services. +$2.1B/YR Illinois ranks last among the 45 states that levy a sales tax on services in the number of service industries it taxes. Expanding the sales tax base to include consumer services - while continuing to exclude professional and business-to-business services - would generate nearly $2.1 billion more. This would also increase funding to local governments by an additional $529 million, as 1.25% of the purchase price collected is distributed to local governments. B2B transactions are excluded because they encourage “tax pyramiding,” while only six of 45 states tax any professional services, as it is complicated and cumbersome to do so.
• Immediately Cut $1 Billion from Expenditures. -$1.7B While Moody’s recommends $1.7 billion of expenditure cuts for FY 2016, less than half the $3.7 billion of savings in the governor’s proposed budget that were not related to employee benefit reductions, $1 billion is more practical immediate goal. Cuts should hold harmless education funding and funding for human service providers, which was not funded through a mandatory appropriation or court order, and thus have already been subject to massive cuts, the failure to receive due payments, and uncertainty for FY 2016.
• Restrict Discretionary Spending Growth. +$260M/YR The state should restrict discretionary spending growth from the 2.7% level shown in its three-year projections to 2.0%, closer to the rate of inflation. This could reduce total state spending by $1.3 billion over five years. Funding for K-12 education should not be subject to mandatory cuts.
• License Chicago to Operate a Casino. +$200M/YR The state should license the City of Chicago to operate its own casino, with proceeds earmarked to pay for City pensions. The casino would also generate $200 million in gambling taxes for the state.
INVEST IN EDUCATION […]
• Increase State K-12 Education Funding With Revenues from a Retirement Tax and Commit to Reforms. Numerous studies have ranked Illinois last, or nearly last nationally in state education funding. According to statistics compiled by the National Education Association, in 2013-2014 the average portion received from the state to fund K-12 schools was 46.4%, whereas Illinois provided only 19.6% of total funding. The U.S. Census reports that on average, U.S. states provide $5,650 per student on education, while Illinois provides only $5,021. Increasing education funding from the state by $1.05 billion from a retirement tax would not even put Illinois as “middle of the pack,” but is a good start.
• Tax Some Retirement Income to Benefit K-12 Education. $1.05B/YR (revenue neutral) Illinois is one of only five states with an income tax that does not tax any retirement income. This tax base would also expand over time at a higher rate than regular income. Eliminating the full deduction for retirement income on a graduated basis for adjusted gross incomes over $50,000 would raise $1.05 billion in new revenue at a 4.75% income tax rate, while protecting low and fixed income seniors. The whole of this tax should go to education.
• Reform Education Funding to Make the System Fair. Illinois has the most unfair school funding system in the nation, with students living in poverty receiving nearly twenty percent less than more affluent students. A single, fair, and need-based funding formula should replace the current opaque and complex system, which has not updated since 1997. A bipartisan committee will study how best to develop a new system for school funding for two years, while at the end of those two years, the existing and outdated GSA formula would be abolished.
• Provide Relief for Chicago Public Schools and Create School District Mandate Parity. -$200M/YR over 2 YRS Require the state to pick up the $200 million annual “normal costs” of Chicago teachers’ pensions for two years, at which time the state-wide education funding reform process will consider the future treatment of Chicago Teacher’s Pension Fund. School districts comprise approximately 60 percent of an Illinois property tax bill. In addition to increasing public support for schools, all districts should be given the relief from mandates that the City of Chicago has been given, to achieve savings for taxpayers and improve outcomes for children. Repealing the statute that severely restricts third-party contracting and providing schools relief from other unfunded mandates will free up additional resources to invest in the classroom.
IMPROVE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS AND INSTITUTE REFORMS […]
• Pass the Cullerton Pension Reform Plan. +$1B/YR State workers should choose between two options: keep the 3% annual compounded interest on cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) and give up the ability to count pay raises toward pensions or continue counting salary increases toward pensions and take a decreased, non-compounded COLA. This will generate an estimated $1 billion in savings a year. [Chicago Tribune, 5/13/15]
• Study the Consolidation of Local Pension Funds. Because state law requires municipalities of 5,000+ residents to create employee pension funds, Illinois has more than 600 individual, locally-controlled pension funds for cops and firefighters outside the city of Chicago. Consolidating these funds across Illinois can save money on administrative costs, similar to the way municipal workers’ retirements are structured. [WBEZ, 5/12/14; CGFA Report, January 2013; Msall, Chicago Tribune, 9/17/15]
• Create a Realistic Repayment Timeline for the State’s Five Pension Funds. For years, state legislators borrowed against what was owed to the pension systems to subsidize operating expenses. This practice became law and established a “Pension Ramp” that provided for an “incredibly back loaded repayment schedule, which grew in unattainable, unaffordable annual increments.” The current repayment schedule, arbitrarily established by Springfield, is unsustainable and unaffordable. While borrowing and pension holidays in part created this mess and are not the answer, the state must create a new, realistic repayment timeline as it is obligated by the Constitution to pay for its pension commitment. There are excess revenues in this plan that should be devoted to appropriate legacy pension debt payment, as determined by legislative action. [Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, 9/09/15]
• Create a Realistic Repayment Timeline for Fire and Police Pension Funds Across Illinois. Locally controlled police and fire pension payment schedules were also arbitrarily dictated by the General Assembly, including the City of Chicago and Cook County. Legislators should reconsider these schedules, as in the bill passed by the General Assembly this session that deferred from 2040 to 2055 the date by which the police and fire funds must have at least 90 percent of the assets needed to pay promised retirement benefits.
• Increase the State’s Minimum Wage. Increase the state minimum wage to $11 an hour by 2019. The minimum wage would increase to $9 immediately, with the wage go up by 50 cents annually until it hits $11 in 2019.
• Reform Workers Compensation in a Bipartisan Manner. -$300M/YR The Illinois workers compensation system ranks the seventh most expensive in the country by the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services study, indicating the need for further reform. To control costs, the state should look at tighter causation definitions and applying the rates of reimbursement recommended by the AMA. Reform would save the state roughly $300 million per year on its own expenses. […]
• Reform the Collective Bargaining Scope for Public Employees. The state should reform our collective bargaining laws, allowing units of government to curb rising public employee costs by limiting collective bargaining for specific personnel issues, including health benefits and work rules.
Discuss.
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* Gov. Bruce Rauner…
“Our nation and our state have a shared history of providing safe haven for those displaced by conflict, but the news surrounding the Paris terror attacks reminds us of the all-too-real security threats facing America. We must find a way to balance our tradition as a state welcoming of refugees while ensuring the safety and security of our citizens. Therefore, the state of Illinois will temporarily suspend accepting new Syrian refugees and consider all of our legal options pending a full review of our country’s acceptance and security processes by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.”
On the one hand, I can see the worry about terrorists slipping in with the refugees.
On the other hand, however, those refugees are leaving Syria to flee those very same terrorists.
Ugh.
…Adding… We’re not talking big numbers. From September…
So far in 2015, 94 refugees from Syria have been resettled in Illinois, 62 of them in Chicago, according to data from the Refugee Processing Center, operated by the U.S. State Department. That’s about three times the placements in all of last year, with 24 Syrian refugees resettled in Illinois, 18 of which were in Chicago. Those numbers, though, don’t include Syrians seeking asylum, a separate process.
…Adding More… According to CBS, other Republican governors have done the same, including in Indiana, Michigan and Alabama.
…Adding Still More… A state by state look is here.
*** UPDATE 1 *** I just had a long conversation with someone in the administration. I think people on both sides should probably stand down. The key word here is “temporarily.” They just want to pause this while they get some more assurances from the federal government about who is being brought in, what their backgrounds really are, etc.
Also, they’re very sensitive to the fact that some of these refugees are Christians fleeing radical Islamic tyranny - which some of the far right commenters here and elsewhere should probably try to consider.
Again, it’s a pause, not a full stop.
…Adding… TPM…
To be clear, states still retain the power to deny their own resources to the federal government, so they could potentially make settlement of refugees more difficult than it would be if the states cooperated. Nevertheless, an act of Congress — the Refugee Act of 1980 — has given Obama broad discretion to allow refugees to be admitted into the United States.
And that’s what we’re looking at here - state IDHS resources.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Sen. Mark Kirk vs. Congressman Tammy Duckworth in Crain’s…
“The Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and FBI Director James Comey have cautioned that terrorist infiltration of Syrian refugees is possible based on our limited ability (to) screen all Syrian refugees,” Kirk said in a statement. “No refugee related to the Syrian crisis should be admitted to the United States unless the (Obama) administration can guarantee, with 100 percent assurance, that they are not members, supporters or sympathizers of ISIS.” […]
“We should differentiate between the refugee crisis and those who do the work of ISIS,” [Duckworth] told reporters, noting that her northwest suburban district now is home to 700 refugees. U.S. security personnel know what they are doing, she continued, noting that 20 percent of them are children. “If we don’t deal with the refugee crisis, some of those kids will grow up to be terrorists,” she said.
Duckworth said she “could not imagine” taking her infant daughter, Abigail, packing up their things, and walking across the country to a dingy in the ocean “because that’s safer” than staying home.
“We are better than that as a nation,” she said, noting that she’s supported a plan to allow up to 200,000 to come to America. “We should keep the refugees.”
*** UPDATE 3 *** US Senate candidate Andrea Zopp…
“I believe that this is a humanitarian crisis, and we can’t turn our back on our values. With over a decade of experience in law enforcement, I know better than most that we need to do the proper background checks, but banning Syrian refugees from Illinois makes no sense. This is another example of Governor Rauner ignoring those in need.”
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What could possibly go wrong?
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Southern…
In a growing number of cash-strapped Southern Illinois counties, state’s attorney’s offices are entering into contracts with third-party debt collectors to encourage payment of alleged delinquent court fines and fees – sometimes for violations that occurred decades ago.
Alexander County, facing $1.6 million in debt, is the latest to enter into a contract with Credit Collection Partners, which has told the county they could be owed in the neighborhood of $2 million in unpaid court fines and fees dating back to at least 1986, and even further back in some cases.
Since early 2013, that Taylorville-based agency has taken on debt collection services for more than 40 Illinois counties, including in this region, in addition to Alexander: Perry, Johnson, Saline, Franklin, White, Gallatin, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash, Hamilton and Marion counties.
Company representatives defend the practice, and the 30 percent fee they charge as allowed under Illinois law, saying they are helping counties collect money owed to the taxpayer from people who have refused to pay legitimate fines and fees assessed by the court for their offenses, be they traffic, misdemeanors or felonies.
But others are questioning the appropriateness of this company and others collecting debts, on behalf of counties, that are decades old – up to 40 years old in some cases. In the court system, statutes of limitations on civil and criminal proceedings exist for a variety of reasons, including that failure to charge or sue someone within a prescribed time makes it too difficult for the person to defend themselves against stale evidence and failing memories, in addition to a general fairness issue.
Can you imagine trying to prove you’d paid a fine decades ago? At least one woman just went through that with a southern Illinois county. Go read the rest.
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*** UPDATE *** Take a look at the newly highlighted text below. A bone of contention in this suit is a workers’ comp claim filed by Stephanie Yencer-Price. Ms. Yencer-Price was one of the plaintiffs in the landmark Harris v. Quinn case.
Yep, she didn’t want to pay union dues, but now the union is fighting for her right to file a workers’ comp claim.
Seems fair. /snark
* Also, an attorney for the workers just called and asked a valid question: If the state isn’t on the hook for these workers comp claims, then who is? The folks who qualify for these attendants are generally poor and disabled. It’s not like they can pay the claim.
So, what happens when an attendant is injured and can no longer work?
It’s the emergency room and welfare, apparently.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* Illinois Policy Institute…
[On November 13th] the Illinois Department of Central Management Services (CMS) filed a lawsuit against Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan alleging she is refusing to discharge her duty to properly defend the state against certain workers compensation claims.
The complaint, styled Tyrell v. Madigan, is linked here. The lawsuit was brought in the name of Tom Tyrell in his capacity as Director of CMS. It pertains to home care workers called “personal assistants.” […]
The central assertion is that Madigan is refusing to put up an obvious and easily supported defense on behalf of taxpayers — that personal assistants are not employees of the state. CMS recites, in the complaint, a list of reasons to support its position, including the recent United States Supreme Court Decision in Harris v. Quinn. That decision, as CMS describes in the complaint, held that personal assistants are private sector employees for all purposes except collective bargaining over wages.
“In addition to refusing to perform her personal, professional and constitutional duties in accordance with law,” the complaint says, Madigan has refused requests by CMS for appointment of a special assistant attorney general to properly defend the claims.
The lawsuit asks the court, essentially, to throw Madigan off the case and appoint a special assistant attorney general to do the job.
…Adding… I’m told that AG Madigan was on the other side of this issue before Gov. Rauner took office.
…Adding More… From CMS…
Hi Rich,
I saw your post and wanted to flag that during previous Administrations, the AG took the view that the personal assistants are not state workers. Here is some info on background on the case:
Tom L. Tyrrell, CMS Director v. Lisa Madigan, Illinois Attorney General
Tom Tyrrell, in his official capacity as CMS Director, administers the Workers’ Compensation program for state employees in the State of Illinois. The Attorney General is preventing him from denying the workers comp claim of a personal assistant who has acknowledged that she is not a state employee and a Sangamon County court has previously ruled was not a state employee.
Personal Assistants are hired by individuals, not by the State, to provide in-home care. One such Personal Assistant, Stephanie Yencer-Price was allegedly injured while performing services to her employer. She then filed a claim for Workers’ Compensation benefits.
Yencer-Price was one of the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit that reached the Supreme Court and where Yencer-Price argued and the Supreme Court decided in the Harris v. Quinn decision on 6/30/14 that Yencer-Price and other personal assistants are not state employees.
On July 18, 2014, an attorney in the Attorney General’s Office, Amy Oxley, sent an email in response to a worker’s compensation claim by another personal assistant that the Attorney General’s Office would dispute all such claims because of the Supreme Court ruling “that indicates that Personal Assistants, like the petitioner, are not employees of the State of Illinois.”
On July 28, 2014, the Workers Compensation Bureau Chief in the Attorney General’s Office, Jill Ottee, sent an emails directing that all attorneys file Motions to Dismiss in each of their personal assistant cases because the Supreme Court had ruled that personal assistants are not state employees.
On August 6, 2014, Assistant Attorney General Amy Oxley filed a motion to dismiss in Yencer-Price’s workers’ compensation case and stated that the Supreme Court had “analyzed the same factors and evidence that the Commission reviewed in past cases involving personal assistants and determined that as a matter of law, personal assistants are employees of the customers and are private employees” (emphasis in brief). She added “the Supreme Court’s legal determination of the employment status of personal assistants is now controlling authority on the issue.”
On January 20, 2015, in a separate subrogation case pending in Sangamon County involving Yencer-Price, Assistant Attorney General Kmett reversed course and said they were withdrawing their motion to dismiss in the workers’ compensation case because they had “determined” that the Supreme Court ruling in Harris does not “apply to whether or not personal assistants were employees for workers’ compensation purposes.”
On April 20, 2015, the Sangamon County Circuit Court rejected the Attorney General’s argument in the subrogation case and found that “there was no employer/employee relationship between the State of Illinois and Ms. Stephanie Yencer-Price on the date of the accident.” The Attorney General did not file an appeal.
CMS directed the Attorney General to assert this defense in Yencer-Price’s pending Workers’ Compensation case or requested if the AG would not assert such a defense, that they allow CMS to retain its own outside counsel. On August 24, 2015, the Assistant Attorney General refused to allow CMS to be separately represented and refused to raise the defense in Yencer-Price’s case.
On November 3, 2015, Assistant Attorney General Oxley sent an e-mail to CMS saying that Yencer-Price’s workers compensation hearing had been requested and further stated that “the Office of the Attorney General will not be raising the defense of no employer/employee relationship at trial.”
CMS, therefore, was compelled to file this lawsuit against the Attorney General seeking to have its own representation so that it can assert this defense that has previously been recognized against this very same personal assistant.
In analyzing this issue, CMS and Director Tyrrell consulted numerous legal sources, all of which clearly support the determination that Personal Assistants are not employees of the State. Among these sources are (1) the United States Supreme Court decision in Harris v. Quinn, in which the Court explained that Illinois Personal Assistants are not state employees for purposes of Workers’ Compensation program; (2) recent decisions from Illinois courts confirming that Personal Assistants are not state employees; (3) the Attorney General’s own successful arguments in prior cases that Personal Assistants are not state employees; and (4) numerous statutory and administrative references confirming the same. The overwhelming weight of authority place beyond doubt the correctness of CMS and Director Tyrrell’s determination.
Pointing to the obvious ethical conflict that would make it impossible for the Attorney General to serve as CMS’s lawyer before the Commission, CMS requested that the Commission appoint separate counsel to represent CMS before the Commission. This is standard practice in cases when the Attorney General has an ethical conflict that makes it impossible for her to render adequate representation to her client. The Attorney General opposed the request to appoint separate counsel for CMS, insisting that the Attorney General be allowed to represent CMS even though she is refusing to defend CMS’s decision to deny benefits to the Personal Assistant.
By filing this lawsuit, Director Tyrrell is asking for nothing more than what appellate courts in Illinois have already agreed is a government official’s right in cases of clear conflicts with the Attorney General. Just earlier this year, the Fifth District appellate court, relying on precedent from the First District court of appeals, concluded that the Comptroller may speak in court through her own counsel in a case where the Attorney General refused to represent the Comptroller’s position. Director Tyrrell is only asking for the ability to articulate to the Commission how and why he reached the conclusion that the Personal Assistant’s claim for Workers’ Compensation benefits should be denied because she is not an employee of the State of Illinois.
What Director Tyrrell cannot do is stand idly by while the Attorney General is misrepresenting his interest in court. That is especially here, where the Attorney General’s position would mean paying out Workers’ Compensation benefits in situations where the State is not the responsible party. Illinois taxpayers cannot afford to spend money the State does not have on claims that the State is not legally obligated to pay.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.
Best regards,
Meredith Krantz
Deputy Director & Public Information Officer
Illinois Office of Communication and Information
Department of Central Management Services
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Today’s number: 48 percent
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Tim Landis at the SJ-R…
An annual telecommunications update from the Illinois Commerce Commission this summer found that 48 percent of state households relied on wireless-only service at the end of 2014, continuing a decades-long trend that has continued to accelerate. Landline use dropped nearly 36 percent from 2005 to 2014 to approximately 5 million, even when Internet- and cable-based service was included.
In contrast, the ICC estimates that there are nearly 13 million wireless subscribers in Illinois.
The number of POTS lines — the regulatory acronym for “plain old telephone service” — in AT&T territory is dropping by 1,000 a day, according to company estimates. The state’s other major carrier, Verizon Communications, sold its Illinois landlines in 2010 to Frontier Communications. The Federal Communications Commission in August set consumer notification guidelines for carriers planning to end traditional copper-line service. […]
Illinois’ switching is ahead of the nation, according to the CDC, which reported that 41 percent of households nationwide were wireless-only last year. […]
AT&T estimates that only 18 percent of Illinois customers remain on dial-up lines. The company also is pushing for Illinois to join 17 of 21 states in AT&T territory that have authorized telecommunications companies to phase out the old networks once the FCC sets rules for the process. […]
“Those individuals that have traditional landlines have them for a reason,” said Julie Vahling, associate state director for AARP Illinois. “They may live in an area that has poor cellphone coverage, or they may have a medical condition, and they want that reliability.
Thoughts?
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* My Crain’s Chicago Business column…
Political campaigns are, by necessity, winner take all. Somebody wins, somebody loses.
But nobody ever “wins” everything when governing. It’s a constant series of compromises. And very often when you try too hard to win, you end up losing.
Exelon is a prime example.
Last spring, the Chicago-based energy company, which owns six nuclear power plants in Illinois, swooped into the Statehouse, hired a bunch of Springfield lobbyists and unveiled shiny new legislation.
Exelon claimed that several of its nuke plants were unprofitable and that it would have to shut them down soon, so it proposed a large, consumer-financed $300 million subsidy program for low-carbon sources of electricity, like wind, solar and—nuclear.
But as Steve Daniels wrote in Crain’s back in March, “The bill’s language is so restrictive on which sources could bid for the cash that Exelon’s nukes are virtually certain to get the lion’s share.”
In other words, Exelon wins, everybody else loses.
The non-nuke alternative-energy folks had their own, far more inclusive bill, but Exelon refused to cut a deal—right up until the end of the spring legislative session, when the company was told it would have to wait.
Then on Nov. 7, Daniels wrote about how Exelon’s nuclear plants were suddenly profitable or at least projected to break even.
If the company hadn’t tried to win at the expense of everyone else, it might have consumer subsidies right now. Exelon got greedy and blew it.
Until not that long ago, I would’ve said that Gov. Bruce Rauner was making the same mistake.
Go read the rest before commenting, please. Thanks.
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State money has nothing to do with this
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Galesburg Register-Mail…
As a result of the state budget crisis, adults will soon have no place to prepare for the GED exams.
On Jan. 1, Carl Sandburg College will suspend its adult education, English as a second language and literacy programs, as these programs are funded by grants that are tied up in Springfield.
“We’re the sole provider, so they’re not going to be able to go anywhere else for coursework,” Sandburg President Lori Sundberg said.
Sandburg is still a testing site for the GED.
Most other community colleges have suspended or will be suspending their adult education courses, Sundberg said, so students are left with nowhere to turn.
Sandburg offers two adult education courses that prepare students for their High School Equivalency certificate — adult secondary education, which used to be known as GED, and adult basic education, which used to be known as pre-GED.
“We haven’t taken any new students since October since we knew that we were going to be suspending,” Sundberg said. “We made a commitment to finish out all the students that we had, but we didn’t take any new students.”
The adult education program is federal money which for whatever reason didn’t get included in the federal appropriations package several weeks ago.
And as I’ve already told subscribers, there’s a bipartisan bill designed to fix this particular problem. HB 4321 is backed by the governor, but hasn’t yet moved out of the House Rules Committee.
This situation is just ridiculous.
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* The good news…
Thousands of people with mental illnesses have been barred from owning guns in Illinois in recent years under measures put in place amid a wave of deadly mass shootings across the country.
* The truly bad news…
But the Illinois State Police weren’t tracking whether they reported what [the mentally ill] did with their guns [after they were declared ineligible to own them] — a requirement under the law. The agency began to do so only weeks ago — after being asked by Sun-Times reporters why it wasn’t already doing that.
The laws also allowed for the seizure of those guns.
But that seldom happens, records show. The state police say local police are in a better position to do that. Local police, in turn, point the finger right back at them.
As a result — despite laws that have been called among the nation’s best at flagging people who shouldn’t be allowed to own guns because of mental illness — authorities say they don’t know how many of them remain armed. […]
“We can’t just go in to somebody’s house and take their guns” [said Hoffman Estates Sgt. Kasia Cawley]/
Actually, under the law, they can. The local police can seek a warrant to search the homes of people who haven’t reported the whereabouts of their guns after having their FOID cards revoked. They can then seize any guns they find.
Pardon the expression, but this is insane. Go read the whole thing.
* And I’m not saying that this incident is a direct consequence of police inaction, but it’s worth a look…
A 28-year-old woman apparently shot herself in the head late Sunday after she opened fire and critically wounded a father and daughter in a southwest suburban Bridgeview home, police said.
Neighbors called police at 11:32 p.m. when they saw a person dressed in black, carrying a gun and walking around the house in the 7200 block of South Roberts Road, according to Bridgeview Police Chief Walter Klimek. The person, who was thought to be a woman, then entered the house and the neighbors reported that they heard gunfire.
Officers responded to the home and looked through a window to see a person lying in a pool of blood in the kitchen, Klimek said. The 5th District SWAT unit, which is comprised of members from police departments from the 5th District Circuit Court area, was then called to the scene.
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* Today’s is Faisal Khan’s last day as the city council’s inspector general. He’s going out with a bang…
FBI agents seized a trove of investigative documents, computers and files from legislative inspector general Faisal Khan’s office on Friday, its last day overseeing Chicago elected officials.
“We received a subpoena of the FBI to take custody of our files and our computers with the understanding [that] we are working with them on a number of investigations,” Khan told POLITICO on Sunday. “In order to protect the integrity of these cases, we had to take the extraordinary step to make sure they don’t end up in the wrong hands.”
Khan said some of the officials he investigated were “devoid of ethical morals and values.” […]
While trashed by aldermen, investigators were routinely meeting with the U.S. attorney’s office, the Department of Treasury and other federal entities, sources tell POLITICO. At least three cases that originated with the office have evolved into full-blown federal grand jury investigations, sources say. And at least three aldermen are undergoing scrutiny and have hired attorneys.
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Your (now rare) “right to work” roundup
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Bernie…
In what struck me as an interesting use of advertising dollars, the Illinois Policy Institute recently ran radio ads in Springfield saying that Illinois should become a right-to-work state.
“In right-to-work states, workers decide for themselves whether to financially support a union,” states an ad playing recently on WTAX-AM 1240. “And union executives work for members, not the other way around.”
“Michigan and Indiana workers have seen their incomes rise faster than Illinoisans’ since their states enacted right to work,” the ad states, and there are many other statistics presented about great times in right-to-work states versus Illinois.
Why interesting? Well, even Republican Rauner wanted Illinois to go only to a system of right-to-work zones as he traveled the state extensively after taking office. And now he’s dropped that demand from his “turnaround agenda,” though other aspects of his plan, such as allowing local governments to decide whether they will bargain collectively with their employees, still would erode some union rights.
KRISTINA RASMUSSEN, executive vice president of the policy institute, said both Indiana and Michigan “have seen a manufacturing boom since going right-to-work,” with personal incomes increasing. “Meanwhile, Illinois has been losing factory jobs.”
Discuss.
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Tables turned on Madigan
Monday, Nov 16, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
“He seems so done with it all,” said one top Republican earlier last week about House Republican Leader Jim Durkin. “He hates this,” said a close Durkin pal not long afterward.
The overtime session’s constant battles with the House Democrats and super-strict marching orders from Governor Bruce Rauner were wearing Durkin down, said some folks who know him. “This summer was pretty nasty,” he admitted to reporters last week.
But that changed by Tuesday. Asked to describe the progress of the previous few days on a scale of one to 10, a cheery Durkin replied, “Eight, nine, 10.” He seemed back on his game.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Michael Madigan clearly had a very bad week.
Madigan, who has long been considered the most successful Democratic politician in Illinois history, had hoped to finally knock down Rauner’s solid GOP legislative wall on Tuesday and force House Republicans to defy their governor by voting to rescind Rauner’s slashing of the state’s child-care program and social services for the elderly and disabled.
But the rug was pulled out from under Madigan. With the approval of Democratic Senate President John Cullerton, some Democratic legislators cut a deal with the governor to restore funding to those programs in exchange for killing the legislation. Madigan’s bills went nowhere.
So instead of a defeated Durkin, we saw an angry Madigan. And while the speaker was obviously upset at one of his own members – Representative Ken Dunkin – for working with Rauner and killing the bills in the House by refusing to vote, Madigan was also said to be pretty steamed about a possible conspiracy involving Rauner, Cullerton, and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
A top Madigan ally pointed to the personal relationship between Rauner and Emanuel, the number of contributors to Emanuel’s campaign who also gave to Rauner’s, and the allegedly Democratic IllinoisGO PAC, which was founded earlier this year to promote “pro-growth” Democratic policies but looks to many like a Rauner front group.
The source also highlighted Emanuel’s ties to IllinoisGO’s top consultant, Greg Goldner of Resolute Consulting – whom Madigan called out by name during a press conference earlier this year for using the same rhetoric as Rauner in his PAC’s mailers targeting Madigan’s members. The Madigan people say the PAC is backing 15 candidates against House Democrats, although people who know better than I can find no actual evidence of this.
And it’s no secret that Emanuel lives in Cullerton’s district, and that the two men are close.
That’s a lot of paranoia for one day, but, man, were they ever upset.
The mayor’s people flatly denied that they had anything to do with Madigan being triangulated by Rauner and Cullerton. Yes, Emanuel canceled a scheduled city-council hearing on the funding crisis at the child-care program, which was designed to put even more pressure on Rauner. But that was done because Rauner had asked that they show a little good faith after Emanuel spent a solid week attacking the governor in the media.
As for Goldner, they said, he’s a Mayor Daley guy and isn’t really an Emanuel guy. “Greg has been out of favor with the mayor and his team for a long time,” insisted one longtime Emanuel insider last week.
And they insisted that there’s no way they’re involved with Democratic primaries against any of Madigan’s members. They know that Madigan would declare all-out war on them, and they ain’t suicidal.
And Cullerton was probably just doing what Cullerton always does; the man truly loves making deals.
Rauner had threatened to sit for two months on the bill to fix the child-care program if it was sent to his desk and then veto it in January, which would’ve undoubtedly put hundreds of smaller child-care providers out of business in the meantime. A deal with Cullerton’s blessing made sure those providers stayed afloat, and it was backed by the provider community.
The legislative bottom line is that Madigan has been thwarted at pretty much every turn by Rauner. The overtime session has succeeded at collapsing the governor’s poll numbers, but Madigan hasn’t been able to take advantage of that in his own chamber, with his own super-majority.
The one thing that Madigan hates above anything else is showing weakness. He most definitely didn’t look strong last week. He’s simply not accustomed to that. His next move should be fascinating.
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