* Her duties are being taken over by another person? What exactly does the state’s COO do?…
(T)he Governor announced today Chief Operating Officer Linda Lingle is resigning from the Administration.
“I thank Linda Lingle for her service to the people of Illinois,” Governor Rauner said. “Linda made a commitment to help us with our transformation efforts, and she has done a great job of helping to move our state in a new, positive direction. Diana and I wish her nothing but the best in all of her future endeavors.” […]
Deputy Governor Trey Childress will add to his duties and take on the additional role of Chief Operating Officer. Childress previously served as the COO for the State of Georgia under two governors where he led government transformation initiatives, while overseeing the state’s various departments, agencies, and boards and commissions. He also served as the Director of the Governor’s Office of Planning & Budget, and was responsible for the State’s $32 billion budget. Childress earned a master’s degree in public policy and bachelor’s degrees in industrial and systems engineering and international affairs from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. He lives in Chicago.
* I ran into Messina the other night and we ended up having a few beverages. Seems like a decent sort. Phil Gonet, president of the Illinois Coal Association, once called him “extremely, extremely pro-business,” so he’ll be an unusual pick for IEPA. And Attorney General Lisa Madigan is definitely not a fan…
Governor Bruce Rauner announced today the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) Director Lisa Bonnett will resign from the Administration effective today. Governor Rauner has selected Alec Messina to fill the position.
Messina is currently the Policy Adviser for Environment and Energy in the Office of the Governor where he is the Governor’s liaison to six state agencies: the Illinois Commerce Commission, the Illinois Department of Agriculture, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois Pollution Control Board and the Illinois Power Agency. As a policy adviser, Messina assisted in the resolution of numerous regulatory and permitting delays, and coordinated legislative and regulatory development in the areas of environment and energy. In addition, Messina also was involved with the transition of the State 911 Program from the Commerce Commission to the Illinois State Police, as well as subsequent consolidation efforts.
Messina previously worked for the IEPA as Chief Legal Counsel from 2005-2010. In addition, he previously served as the Executive Director of the Illinois Environmental Regulatory Group, a non-profit trade association. He initially served as its General Counsel.
* A couple of readers have told me about a new robocall. One recorded it. It’s not pretty…
* Script…
Hi, my name is Karol, and I’m appalled that our state Representative Ron Sandack admitted in the Tribune that he accosted a female state worker on the House floor. Please call Ron Sandack at… and demand he apologize for his inexcusable behavior.
* The incident in question came at a particularly emotional moment on the House floor. The Democrats had just jammed through a budget and adjourned for the evening. Tensions were high. The alleged act can be seen by clicking here and going to the 51-minute mark.
There’s no candidate disclosure on that robocall, but Sandack’s Democratic opponent used several of the same words from the call in a post on his website last month. From what I can gather, this was not a Madigan operation thing. Likely the candidate himself.
* From Rep. Sandack…
As the House Republican Floor Leader I confronted Speaker Madigan’s lawyer and the House of Representatives’ Parliamentarian about the outrageous breach of procedural rules and etiquette the evening the House Democrats jammed a $7B out balance budget through the House. Debate was unceremoniously cut off, no vote verification occurred, and the Democrats immediately thereafter gaveled out of session after the vote, all in clear violation of House Rules. My conversation with the Parliamentarian was pointed and assertive, and rightfully so. The next day the House Democrats on their own motion reconsidered their actions and held another vote on their unbalanced budget bill. I spoke to the House Parliamentarian subsequently to advise I meant nothing personally, had no intention to startle, and was only speaking up for and defending my caucus in the face of some brazen procedural shenanigans that should never have happened.
I do know, by talking to all involved, that what Sandack says at the end was true. He did talk to her, they worked it out and moved along.
But, man. It’s only July 1st. Gonna be a long, hot summer.
Applause filled the lobby of the Illinois State Museum Thursday evening as state and local officials celebrated the reopening of the Springfield facility after a nine-month closure.
The museum at 502 S. Spring St. opens to the public at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, but Gov. Bruce Rauner, Springfield Mayor Jim Langfelder and other state officials gathered early to thank members of the Illinois State Museum Society, museum employees and Department of Natural Resources employees for their ongoing support. The gathering was held within hours of the legislature approving a six-month, stopgap budget.
“We in Illinois have been coming through difficult times, difficult days, as we struggle to get our state back on solid financial footing, to live within our means, restore value to taxpayers and grow our economy,” said Rauner. “These have been difficult days. Many of you have worked hard and sacrificed to protect this institution through this difficult time.”
The Republican governor announced he would close the museum and its satellite facilities to the public in late September as an attempt to save money during the state’s budget standoff. The museum’s primary Springfield site lost approximately half of its staff over the course of its closure and required the approval of a $5 admission fee to reopen. The admission fee does not apply to children age 18 and under, seniors and veterans.
I never quite understood what money the closing was actually supposed to save since unionized employees kept reporting to work.
State lawmakers on Thursday handed Mayor Rahm Emanuel broad authority to create special taxing districts to help pay for four major rail projects, but the mayor and his administration would not detail how much money would be diverted or how it would be spent.
The legislation, which lawmakers passed as part of a compromise on a stopgap state budget and an education funding bill, is designed to help City Hall come up with money it needs to match requirements to receive federal transportation grants and loans, Emanuel said.
But the measure also grants the mayor and City Council wide discretion to create the so-called tax-increment finance districts within a one-mile-wide swath of land along 46 miles of Chicago Transit Authority rail lines throughout the city. The districts, which could remain in place for up to 35 years, would siphon off 80 percent of property tax revenue within their boundaries (with the exception of taxes for Chicago Public Schools) and dedicate the money toward four major transit projects.
* Hmm. From Emanuel’s brief press statement…
Today marks the next chapter in the work we started shortly after I took office, to modernize the Red Line from 95th to Howard, and continue the process of extending it further south. With this bill, in just a few years we will have done what once seemed impossible, and we will improve the quality of life for hundreds of thousands of people that rely on the Red Line as part of their daily life.
Emanuel told reporters yesterday that this would allow the city to tap into $800 million of federal money for upgrading the Red and Purple lines and extend the Red Line south.
But at least they had something. No major media outlet did much of anything.
* Somebody else could’ve given them details, too. StreetsBlogChicago got some…
A new bill that would generate more funding for four large-scale Chicago transit infrastructure projects, without diverting tax revenues from schools, passed the Illinois House and Senate today. The original bill was introduced in January 2015, spearheaded by the Metropolitan Planning Council. It awaits Governor Bruce Rauner’s signature, who is expected to sign a budget today after a year of operating the state without a budget for a year – reducing funding for transit agencies, schools, and social services.
The funding would come from “transit TIF districts” that would have boundaries extended up to a half mile around Chicago’s Union Station (to fund the changes in its master plan), the CTA’s North Side Main Line, the CTA’s Red Line extension, and the CTA’s Blue Line Congress branch modernization and possible extension. The bill enables the Chicago City Council to pass a similar law to create the actual districts, but sets limits on how far the districts can extend from the proposed projects’ area.
They would work much like existing TIF districts, where the property taxes assessed on any incremental increase in property values since a district’s inception is deposited in a separate fund. This is a form of value capture in that an increase in property values spurred by the transit infrastructure is used to help pay for it.
Other key differences are that the transit TIF districts would expire in 35 years instead of the originally-proposed 50, and that instead of a blanket maximum length of six miles, each district has a specific maximum length. Fifty years was proposed because that is the useful life of a transit facility.
* Like the blogger’s post says, it’s essentially a reworking of a bill that Greg Hinz detailed last year. I told subscribers about it yesterday morning and gave them a House Republican analysis. Here’s part of it…
The transit TIF boundaries shall not exceed 9 miles and no more than 1⁄2 mile in any direction from the location of a mass-transit facility. “Your New Blue,” is a 4-year plan aimed to address the 25% ridership increase in the last 5 years. The project received $120 million in federal funding in 2015 to begin the first stage of the $492 million renovation. The initiative consists of upgrades for 13 blue line stations, which include changes to the following stations: Grand, Chicago Division, Damen, Western, California, Logan Square, Addition (completed in 2016), Jefferson Park, Irving Park, Montrose, Harlem, and Cumberland. Damen and California stations received rehabilitation in 2014. An estimated 1,300 construction, engineering, and design jobs will be created as a result of the project. […]
Blue Line Modernization: This is a 4-year plan aimed to address the 25% ridership increase in the last 5 years. The project received $120 million in federal funding in 2015 to begin the first stage of the $492 million renovation. The Blue Line Forest Park project is not eligible for large amounts of funding because of an IDOT collaboration along I-290.
The Red and Purple Line Modernization Program (RPM): The $570 bottleneck reconstruction is intended to enable CTA to service 7,200 additional costumers per an hour. Further construction includes modernizing the 90-year-old tracks between Lawrence and Bryn Mawr stops and adding disability modifications. Wilson and Clark/Division upgrades were completed in 2015. Total project cost is $1.9 billion for RPM. Although, RPM secured a Core Capacity Grant $900 million grant there is still a $711 million funding gap, which can be filled by an increased TIFIA Loan if a local funding source is identified.
Phase One includes the Red-Purple bypass, Lawrence to Bryn Mawr and signal reconfiguration. Construction starts in 2018 over a 4-year period and cost $2.1 billion. This specific project received a $1.2 million grant for a Transit-Oriented Development study. TIF increment will only cover 33% of the project for Phase One. Phase Two includes reconstruction from Thorndale to Howard over 4 years starting in 2022, with an estimated cost of $2.6 billion. Phase Three includes upgrades from Addison to Sheridan, Purple Line Howard to Linden, over 4 years starting in 2026. This project will need support from Evanston to incorporate Linden into proposed changes. Total cost projects to $3.2 billion, but without support of Evanston, its $1.5 billion.
Red Line Extension: In April 2014, Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) secured $70 million in federal funding through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act toward a $240 million renovation for the 95th Red Line Terminal. CTA also secured a $20 million TIGER grant, which $16 million went toward the 95th terminal project.
Faced with the awkward position of taking a victory lap over an outcome that wasn’t exactly what he had sought — and one that included none of his economic agenda — Rauner offered a jumbled assessment. He first hailed it as a “grand bargain” and a “grand compromise” before pivoting to a warning that the deal was incomplete and “not a solution to our long-term challenges.”
“This is not a budget. This is not a balanced budget,” Rauner said, standing outside his Capitol office surrounded by Republican lawmakers. “This is not a solution to our long-term challenges. This is a bridge to reform. That’s what this is.”
“I believe, and I firmly hope, that right now we’ve hit the bottom,” Rauner said. “This is the low point in the evolution of Illinois and now we begin to move up. Growth, value for taxpayers, better schools and a political system that is responsive and actually making good decisions for the long-term health of the state.”
The governor lauded Republicans for Thursday’s compromise and gave credit to two Democrats — Senate President John Cullerton and Mayor Rahm Emanuel — for “creativity” and “flexibility.”
Rauner pointedly made no mention of Madigan. […]
And the governor stressed that he has not abandoned his push for “fundamental reforms,” which he argues are crucial to make Illinois economically competitive.
“Let’s be clear,” Rauner said of the stopgap budget. “This is just a small step in the process of making Illinois strong and healthy and vibrant. This is a small step in the right direction. … This is a bridge to reform.”
“Reforms are essential, and our efforts to get significant reform for the people of Illinois will never cease.”
Despite the relatively quick passage of budget bills by both chambers on Thursday, the day did have its share of trepidation and drama. House Republicans requested a caucus just before lawmakers were set to debate on the appropriations bill to get the state running for the rest of the year.
At issue was a last-minute amendment filed by some members of the Legislative Black Caucus to receive $9.3 million in grants for the minority teacher scholarships, for diversifying higher education faculty, the Grow Your Own Teacher Program, and for providers for bridge programs.
The person I blame is right at the top.
Speaker Madigan has said more than once that he has trust issues with Gov. Rauner. And then, after Madigan cut the final deal on the budget and they closed off all additions, he popped an amendment without any notice to the other side which added millions in spending.
How does that possibly help this climate?
If you always portray yourself as a man of your word, then keep your freaking word. Simple.
On Wednesday, newspapers across the state, including The State Journal-Register, ran front-page editorials saying enough was enough and that lawmakers needed to end the budget stalemate. [Rep. Tim Butler] said he “didn’t get a lot of input from folks necessarily, but I thought the papers did the right thing.” […]
Sen. Sam McCann, R-Plainview, echoed Madigan and said lawmakers agreed on a spending plan “when we’re focused on a budget and not a lot of extraneous issues.”
He said the newspaper editorials didn’t generate additional calls to the office, but he criticized the idea because, he said, some of the same newspapers ran editorials that have also urged Rauner to not back down on his turnaround agenda.
“So the front-page editorials I found to be a bit hypocritical, quite frankly,” McCann said.
It was a nice little stunt, but by Wednesday morning things were already moving solidly in the right direction. Plus, I told subscribers a couple-three weeks ago that Madigan had told Rauner it was time to start working on a stopgap deal.
The one positive to come out of this is that the impasse finally opened some editorial writers’ eyes to both sides of this problem. They tend to treat politics like a cartoon, with one side being evil and the other side being righteous. We’ll see if that lasts.
Sen. Donne Trotter, a Chicago Democrat, offered an appropriately sober assessment of the six-month stopgap state budget deal the Legislature approved Thursday.
Trotter, who helped craft the long overdue spending plan, advised his fellow lawmakers not to get carried away patting themselves on the back.
“This is just us doing our job. We’re making like it’s a special thing,” Trotter said.
Indeed, after 18 months without any sort of a budget while social service agencies and state universities withered on the vine, it was easy to get overly-excited about the compromise struck by Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrats to keep the schools open another year and the government barely operating until January.
To that, I plead guilty as charged. In the cold light of day, the road ahead remains daunting for a state stuck in reverse. […]
The governor and the Legislature did their job Thursday, not as well as we might have liked but better than we’ve come to expect. No need to be grateful.
Agreed.
I’m very relieved that this nightmare will end for a few months, but it’s gonna start all over again in November.
* I, too, was impressed with Sen. Trotter’s remarks. Here’s more…
“This isn’t really a stopgap. It’s more like a pressure release valve. We’re allowing people just to breathe a little bit more. But we certainly are not undoing the damage that we’ve done to this state by not working together, by not doing our jobs.
“This is a beginning. We have a long way to go. And we know we have to do it for human services, for K-12, we have to do it for higher education, we have to do it for ourselves. We have a lot of work to do.”
* This got deliberately buried under yesterday’s big budget news…
A bill extending Illinois’ medical marijuana program by 2½ years has been signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
In addition to extending the pilot program, the bill signed Thursday by Rauner adds PTSD and terminal illness to the list of qualifying conditions.
Illinois’ medical marijuana pilot program got its start under former Gov. Pat Quinn and continued under Rauner, who for more than a year resisted expanding the program beyond the original 39 conditions and diseases listed in the law.
* Remember in 2014 when the Democrats passed what was essentially a six-month budget, kinda like the one they just passed yesterday and was immediately signed into law? In case you don’t, this is from the May 31, 2014 edition of the Chicago Tribune…
In the short term, however, the just-concluded spring session plays right into Rauner’s campaign message that taxpayers are the victims of a dysfunctional Springfield. Democrats couldn’t coalesce around a comprehensive budget to fund state government for a full 12 months, and House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton spent some time Friday settling old scores with Quinn, their party’s governor.
Rauner called the legislature’s spending plan a “phony budget.”
“The politicians in charge of Springfield again refused to make the structural reforms needed to fix state government. Instead, they passed the same type of broken, dishonest budget that career politicians in Illinois have been passing for years,” Rauner said in a statement.
But his campaign did not provide any specifics on what Rauner would have done differently, despite the candidate’s vow for months that he was developing plans on tax and budget policy that he has said will come “in due time.”
“In due time” never really has come.
* And here are a few dot points from Reboot at the time…
The state is more than $5 billion behind in paying its bills.
It has the worst credit rating of any state.
It has the worst unfunded pension liability of any state.
There was not enough support for raising taxes, nor was their enough support for a doomsday budget. Still, lawmakers approved a $35.7 billion budget.
Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton acknowledge that this budget borrows $650 million from special funds that will drive up the bills taxpayers ultimately must fund.
This budget postpones paying $380 million state worker health insurance bills that taxpayers ultimately must fund.
This budget diverts $650 million in funds that had been going to pay down unpaid bills that taxpayers ultimately must fund.
They couldn’t get it done back then, just like they couldn’t get it done this year. And that 2014 list looks eerily similar to the stopgap which just passed, and the state of the state is, in several respects, worse off (or no better) than it was back then.
The Illinois House and Senate on Thursday approved a stopgap budget that would keep state government afloat for six months, ensure schools open this fall and provide help to struggling Chicago Public Schools after Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrats who control the General Assembly struck a deal amid intense political pressure with the November election looming.
The overwhelming votes followed two days of closed-door negotiations, the first meaningful round of give-and-take on the budget as the state was about to enter a second straight year without a full spending plan come Friday.
Without a temporary budget in place, schools faced the possibility of not opening this fall, thousands of construction workers could spend the summer off the job, and the state’s unraveling network of social service programs faced further decimation.
“I suspect the reality is everybody wanted to get someplace and get us on the road to solving these problems. So I think the governor was very anxious to have a program in place to fund public education, so was everybody else,” said Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie, a Chicago Democrat and top lieutenant of House Speaker Michael Madigan. “So I think there was pressure everywhere you looked to do something, and I think this is that something.”
But amidst the back-patting and words of compromise, House Speaker Mike Madigan couldn’t resist taking a shot at the Republican governor.
After the stopgap budget passed his chamber 105-4, Madigan said that problem with passing budgets has been Rauner’s insistence on including “his personal agenda that hurts families.”
“Many previous efforts to implement a more comprehensive budget failed due to the governor’s insistence on the inclusion of his agenda that would drive down middle class wages and standards of living,” Madigan said.
“The difference today is that the governor has dropped his demand that his agenda be considered before a budget could be approved.”
Republican House Leader Jim Durkin said it would’ve been “atrocious” and likely spur a public revolt if lawmakers finished another fiscal year without a budget. He noted that even with the compromise, the ongoing budget standoff between Rauner and Democrats who control the Legislature will be an election-year issue.
“Mark my word that it will be articulated in the fall by various entities,” he said.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Rep. Kelly Cassidy had a pretty good constituent update, so I’m going to use it here…
This week we returned to Springfield and today passed a package of bills representing a compromise with the Governor and Republicans on a stop-gap budget for fiscal year ‘16 and the first six months of fiscal year ‘17. Most significantly there are no turn-around agenda items included in these bills and State operations will continue. Here is a summary of what is included:
K-12 Education:
Increases General State Aid by $361 million
Equity Grant to assist high poverty schools
$75 million increase to early childhood education
Full year of funding for fiscal year ‘17
Higher Education
$1 billion in funding for universities, community colleges, MAP Grants, adult education, career & technical education, Illinois Math & Science academy operations
Covers FY ‘16 & first half of FY ‘17
Developed by members of the budget working group
Human Services
Includes $667 million in funds from the Commitment to Human Services Fund for programs not currently operating under court order
Covers 65% of full funding for the 18 month period
Includes programs that were suspended, such as immigration services, autism programs, Teen Reach & other youth programs.
Agency Operations
Funded from the Budget Stabilization Fund ($275 million), General Revenue Funds ( $448 million) and Commitment to Human Services Fund ($31 million) for operational expenses. These amounts will pay for expenses such as utilities, FOID, medical care, gas, etc.
Capital
The bills include appropriations for IDOT projects, EPA projects and other development projects that have had to shut down mid-construction
Other State Funds
Includes items such as federal funds for the Area Agencies on Aging, LUST fund reimbursements, emergency response appropriations and other similar programs
These items are funded using existing funds only. We remain far short of what is needed for full operations and we will need to address our revenue short-fall before the end of the first six months of this fiscal year. Agencies that have gone without payments or contracts while providing services should expect to begin receiving payments under this plan.
Other items addressed today:
SB2822 Chicago Pension Parity - This bill will establish a one year (FY ‘17) requirement that the State make a contribution of $205 million to the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund, creating parity with downstate and suburban teacher pension funds.
SB 318 Chicago Property Tax Increase for Teachers Pension Fund - This bill would re-establish an annual property tax levy for the Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund. This levy would be capped at a rate of 0.383%, which is estimated to generate $250 million. The proceeds of the tax would be paid directly to the pension fund. The additional tax rate would not be subject to the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (the tax cap).
While today’s actions represent real progress, my wish would have been for us to have passed a full budget with sufficient revenues to operate for a full year. I will continue to advocate for a truly responsible solution to restore stability and fiscal health to the State.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The Illinois State Board of Education has run the numbers for the GSA funding formula increase. Click here to see the list by district.
*** UPDATE 3 *** Oy…
Just after stopgap state budget approved, Moody's downgrades NIU, SIU, EIU, Governor's State, & NEIU
* Legislators haven’t been paid since late March because Comptroller Leslie Munger decided to throw their paychecks into the pile of unpaid bills along with everyone else. It was, she said, a way of showing lawmakers how their inaction on a state budget was impacting social service providers, many of which were struggling to keep their doors open.
Legislators will likely receive their April paychecks next week because the state payments for bills from the end of April will also be going out the door.
Munger’s chief of staff just told me that the office will now look at the just-passed stopgap budget package and “reassess” Munger’s decision. He said they’ll be looking at upcoming payment delays and “who’s going to be waiting when,” with a particular emphasis on social service providers. If they think they’ll be able to catch up, then Munger could release the hold on paychecks.
* This has been a huge topic of discussion for legislators who don’t have outside jobs, independent wealth and/or employed spouses.
Sen. Kimberly Lightford spoke out today on the Senate floor, saying legislators are not vendors, they’re employees of the Senate and House. All other state employees are being paid by court order, of course…
Lightford: "as legislators we should get paid for the work that we do," it's "wrong for our income to be held for months."
Illinois traditionally trends Democratic in presidential election years, and Silver’s polls-only forecast shows the state would be the 10th-most lopsided of states going to Clinton, favoring her by at least 18 percent and putting her odds of winning its 20 electoral votes at 97 percent.
In electoral-vote rich states of California and New York, Clinton’s odds are rated even better, at close to 99 percent. But if the election were held today, Silver said, Clinton’s odds in her birth state of Illinois would be 98.7 percent.
No surprise there. What’ll be most interesting to people like me is how Trump will do in contested legislative and congressional districts.
* Related…
* Sneed exclusive: Ditka politely declines Trump’s invitation: In an email to the Trump folks, Sneed stated, “Mike Ditka said he’d love to speak although he hadn’t heard from you guys yet, how about a few words from your boss. It could be great!” Thus, in a three-way conference call orchestrated by Sneed at 2:15 p.m., Trump officially invited Ditka — a huge Trump fan — to speak at the Republican convention next month.
We got some snippets of information about the education bill that looks like it’s coming together and wanted to provide an update. (But keep in mind that we haven’t seen bill language for the formula changes and that none of this is a done deal until they pass it to the Governor’s desk and he signs it into law.) […]
First, the (as-yet-unseen) bill would give every school district the same amount as they received last year through the formula. Then, $250 million would be distributed through an Equity Grant, which would flow to districts based on their poverty concentration. Finally, every district would get at least what it would have received if the formula were fully funded next year, even if the first two pieces didn’t get them quite there. My math shows the total increased cost would be $328 million.
This isn’t a long-term solution to fix the deeply inequitable funding disparities in Illinois. Illinois’s school formula is one of the most regressive and unfair system in the country and we desperately need a comprehensive solution. But, without an education budget in place, the neediest students in the poorest districts will suffer the most. The Equity Grant proposal takes a step toward equity while giving the legislature time to come up with a new funding structure.
Below are two charts. The first shows where new dollars would be allocated if the current General State Aid (GSA) formula were fully funded. The second shows how the Equity Grant proposal increase is allocated. Funding the current GSA system results in a trendline that has no correlation to district need. The Equity Grant trend shows more dollars being delivered to schools with higher rates of poverty – exactly the direction that Illinois needs to move in.
The bill was released after the above was written. It’s an amendment to SB 2047.
Want to know more details about what this means for your own school district? Here’s our best guess. Keep in mind we haven’t seen language and there are a few variables that could change. (In fact, one variable will definitely change – we need to revise this using net GSA numbers for last year instead of gross GSA. It’s not a huge difference, but we’ll dig that up ASAP and update this.) In general, lower-income districts across the state will see the biggest per pupil gains, from Antioch far up north (+$788 per pupil) to Anna-Jonesboro far down south (+$600) and from Brooklyn in the Metro East (+$650) to South Holland in the South suburbs (+$491). Chicago Public Schools has the 111th biggest per pupil gains (+$291).
Will County Coroner Patrick O’Neil has been tracking heroin deaths for a long time, and sounded the alarm several years ago when he believed the problem was reaching epidemic proportions.
Initially, he saw five or six deaths in a year, but then he saw those numbers double, triple and quadruple.
This year, the county could have its worst year ever as far as deaths due to heroin and opiate overdoses. The reason? Fentanyl — a powerful synthetic opiate, blamed in the recent death of musician Prince, that is cheaper than heroin and is often mixed with it, or offered to an unsuspecting buyer in the guise of being heroin.
Last year, Will County recorded 53 overdose deaths linked to heroin and fentanyl — more than the 51 deaths caused by traffic accidents in the county. The numbers were even worse in Cook County, where the 526 heroin and fentanyl deaths last year were more than double the 240 traffic fatalities. […]
The state’s Heroin Crisis Act, which took effect Jan. 1, will, in part, increase access to naloxone, which local police departments and paramedics have credited with saving lives.
Without the access to naloxone — the new law also requires it be made available at pharmacies — Will County could “easily have over 300″ heroin related deaths, O’Neil said.
A small and obscure law firm backed by powerful forces sympathetic to what critics say is Gov. Bruce Rauner’s anti-union agenda is on the front lines of a groundbreaking government vs. labor mêlée underway in Illinois.
The Liberty Justice Center in Chicago is representing the Village of Lincolnshire in two lawsuits brought by organized labor against the municipality’s passage of an ordinance declaring a “right-to-work zone” for the private sector. In such designated areas, employees cannot be forced to pay union dues, even if a workplace within the zone is unionized.
Labor unions vehemently oppose right-to-work zones and top legal experts question the concept. As a result, municipal leaders trying to implement such zones are in for prolonged and costly legal battles at taxpayers’ expense, experts say.
Lincolnshire officials, however, took that risk because the Liberty Justice Center promised to represent them pro bono, says the northern Illinois suburb’s village manager.
Liberty Justice Center is also providing pro bono representation in a case with potentially even greater labor ramifications: Challenging unions’ right to collect “fair share” dues from state workers who opt not to join a public employee union.
Liberty Justice Center is funded by and shares offices with the Illinois Policy Institute, a self-professed free-market-oriented and fiscally conservative non-profit organization. The law center was founded in 2011 by IPI’s CEO John Tillman; conservative talk radio host Dan Proft; and Hinsdale real estate developer and attorney Patrick Hughes.
The Board of Directors that oversees a 72-bed shelter for homeless men in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago voted last night (Wednesday) to close its doors on July 31st because the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services said it was unable to process a contract until the State of Illinois passes a budget for the fiscal year 2017.
The shelter is run by the Interim Housing Program of North Side Housing and Supportive Services which was founded in 1983. It is located in the Peoples Church at 941 W. Lawrence Ave., and has been in operation for several years. It is open 365 days a year; and in the past year, more than 320 different men spent a total of 18,000 nights at the shelter.
Over half of the shelter’s funding, or about $255,000 per year, is provided by the Illinois Department of Human Services through contracts with the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services.
Richard Ducatenzeiler, Executive Director of North Side Housing and Supportive Services was notified by the City of Chicago that, “…until we know what is going to happen to the state budget we are not at this time processing the IDHS contracts.”
North Side Housing and Supportive Services, is a non-profit social services organization. In addition to the Interim Housing Program (shelter), North Side also provides case management, permanent supportive housing, and other supportive services for the homeless.
“Our other programs are funded by donations from individuals, corporations, foundations, and government agencies,” Ducatenzeiler said. “We have no extra funding. Without the state funding for the shelter, we are forced to shut it down until replacement funds can be found. The program will cease to operate on July 31st if no contract is executed.”
As flawed as it may be, that stopgap budget needs to pass.
