* I’ve been stumped on a question today, so I came up with this: How about you use the comments to send a Valentine’s Day greeting to your favorite prominent Illinoisan?
* On the same day this week, Bill Daley was endorsed by the Chicago Tribune editorial board and received a $1 million campaign check from former Gov. Bruce Rauner’s top contributor Ken Griffin, Illinois’ wealthiest resident.
Those folks ain’t exactly friendly to a progressive state income tax. Just the opposite. Daley supported a progressive income tax during his aborted 2013 campaign for governor, so I wondered whether his new pals had changed his mind and what that could mean if he wins the mayoral race. Public opposition by Chicago’s mayor could greatly complicate Gov. Pritzker’s push to get the question on the ballot and approved by voters, after all.
So, I reached out to Daley’s campaign and received this back…
I support a progressive state income tax, and I am committed to making sure Chicago gets its fair share. Given the size of our budget issues, and the need for reforms, Chicago and state need to consider every option for new revenue, and we need to do it without increasing the burden on those least able to pay.
* This story popped late Monday and then I forgot about it after the Lincoln holiday. So, I’m a couple days late…
Businesses that gave tens of thousands of dollars last year to Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s political fund allegedly are “front companies” in an ongoing, multimillion-dollar “sham” involving profits from a state program, according to a pending federal civil lawsuit.
Investors in a Chicago firm called Vendor Assistance Program LLC filed the suit last year in Philadelphia. They claim their partners in VAP hid money in shell companies in Florida and Puerto Rico to avoid giving them their fair share of profits from a highly lucrative arrangement with the state of Illinois.
VAP was started in 2010 by Brian Hynes, a politically connected lawyer who’s now a central figure in a widening City Hall corruption scandal. Hynes is a longtime supporter of embattled Ald. Danny Solis (25th Ward) and co-founded VAP with Solis’ sister Patti Solis Doyle. As Illinois’ fiscal woes have deepened, the company has profited from a state initiative to speed payments to government vendors who are owed money.
Last month, WBEZ reported that Mendoza — who is running for Chicago mayor in the Feb. 26 election — gave away nearly $74,000 in campaign contributions from Solis-controlled political funds and another $67,650 that she got last year from five companies set up by VAP investors, including Hynes. […]
[The lawsuit] claims three of the five VAP-linked firms that gave to Mendoza are accused of being part of the “sham” to divert profits from former partners in Pennsylvania. […]
But in an interview with WBEZ on Friday, Hynes said it was “absurd” to suggest that he and his partners in VAP had set up front companies.
“We didn’t make decisions to make one guy’s distribution be less than it should be,” Hynes said.
Just keep in mind that anyone can sue anyone for pretty much anything - and say pretty much anything in their suits. Lots of sizzle in this story, so we’ll eventually see if there’s any real meat.
Also, while there is a new law requiring some transparency for the vendor payment program, the companies themselves are often troublingly opaque.
Let me offer some ideas and solutions to dig out of our mess.
First, when the fair tax becomes law, we will create a new revenue source dedicated specifically to pensions. The state will commit to using $200 million a year directly to pensions, over and above our legally required payments. This will not only help pay down the unfunded liability but will likely also lower the cost of our debt.
Second, we must infuse cash and assets into the system now to improve the health of the funds. We will be evaluating some of the assets that are owned by the State – they could be worth tens of billions of dollars – for potential transfer into the pension funds. I am pleased that experts like Jackie Avitia-Guzman and Jamie Star have signed on to help with these evaluations. These assets could be used in a way that is far more financially responsible for the state, to increase assets in the pension systems to offset liabilities and reduce the unfunded liability overall.
Third, let’s listen to experts and exercise good financial management. We can lower the cost of our pension debt and inject cash immediately into the system by issuing a small-scale pension bond of about $2 billion. The bond proceeds would be used for no purpose other than to be deposited directly into the funds — and would be used only for paying down our more expensive pension liabilities. No skimming off the top to pay this year’s pension payment. No using bond proceeds to pay for operating costs.
This protects taxpayers from the way these bonds were misused in the past, and it brings our pension funds closer to a healthy level. We would look to move forward with this bond only if the calculation makes sense for taxpayers — and if the interest rates are lower for the bond than what we are currently paying for the pension debt. It’s simply good financial management.
Fourth, the optional pension buyout programs passed in last year’s budget were short term in nature — which limits their effectiveness at reducing our future pension liabilities. We intend to extend these programs to provide certainty to retiring employees who may choose the option to receive more retirement income upfront. By doing so, we can expand the savings to the state overall. This is a responsible way to reduce liabilities without going back on the state’s promised retirement benefits.
Finally, during last year’s campaign Governor Pritzker proposed smoothing and flattening payments into the pension system in the context of contributing more cash and assets to the system. We propose a modest extension of our pension amortization schedule by seven years. We will still reach the target goal of 90% funding, but we will do so without massively crowding out investments our state needs to grow its economy. After almost a quarter century of losing ground, a seven-year extension is reasonable in the context of currently contributing billions more to our pensions systems.
Collectively, these five actions will expand our tax revenue base, invest in priorities that will grow our economy, and we’ll be able to put our pensions on a sustainable path that keeps our promises to retirees.
Now, no discussion of pensions would be complete without recognition that we have a pension crisis brewing among our local and county governments. We must explore smart ways to consolidate those pension funds. The state is home to 671 separate public pension funds. This results in a fractured system that often duplicates functions across funds, limits the smaller funds to a narrow range of lower return investments, and impedes their ability to negotiate lower fees.
Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes suggested the key to the plan is to extend the period of time the state has to reach full funding of its pension plays by seven years, to 2052. “Full funding” currently is defined has having 90 percent of the assets needed to pay promised benefits. […]
Hynes told me the deferral will buy the state time to examine asset sales and other matters—and give Pritzker some a bit of leeway in dealing with a projected deficit of $3.2 billion in the new fiscal 2020 budget he’s set to unveil next week, on Feb. 20. Specifically, extending the full-payment ramp to 2020 will reduce the amount the state has to contribute next year by about $800 million. The state “still will have to contribute $8 billion,” Hynes noted. But by deferring the payment owed, the state will run up increased interest costs on debt it legally will have to pay, Hynes conceded, declining to give a cost figure. […]
Hynes specifically refused to take a possible sale of the Illinois Tollway off the table. “That’s the kind of issue” that a new commission Pritzker appointed last week is considering, and “I don’t want to prejudge anything,” Hynes said.
….Adding… Senate President Cullerton’s spokesperson on the pension bond…
It’s an interesting concept. The Senate President looks forward to learning more about the idea and its specific safeguards.
Thursday, Feb 14, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Illinois has nearly 7,000 units of local government, the highest total of any state in the nation. These often-duplicative layers of government are one of the driving forces behind Illinoisans’ punishing property taxes.
Thankfully, the Citizens Empowerment Act (House Bill 307) would allow local voters to eliminate governments they deem unnecessary – reducing their property tax burdens through more efficient services.
The Illinois Municipal League released a letter this week urging legislators to push back on a one-size-fits-all statewide approach. The organization is pushing for a wage increase that takes into account the “significant economic differences” communities face.
“We ask you, as a legislator representing our cities, towns and villages, to recognize that while $15 per hour may be acceptable for some communities, it has a different and varying impact among regions throughout the state,” the letter reads.
IML Executive Director Brad Cole said municipalities big and small will feel the effect of a $15 minimum wage hike. He said beyond the impact on city budgets and employment, collective bargaining negotiations between cities and employees also could lead to higher wages.
The IML also states the increase would have a negative impact of employers and employees because of the differing economic states of the state’s region.
“An increase to $15 per hour, even over a long period of time, could have a negative impact on many employers and employees in our communities because the dynamics in major metropolitan areas simply do not exist everywhere and cannot be relied on to blunt this added cost.”
Funny how nobody is harping that the amounts the state pays to municipalities isn’t adjusted for region.
When the money flows to them, the small towns want financial parity with the big cities. When it’s minimum wage it has to be adjusted because things are less expensive in rural areas.
Yep. And they get even more bank for the buck on the 55/45 Downstate vs. Chicagoland spending split on IDOT projects.
The research shows the south region receives $2.81 in state funds for every $1 generated. The central Illinois region of 50 counties receives $1.87 back for every $1.00 sent to Springfield. All of the downstate regions receive more from the state budget than they pay in taxes. By comparison, Cook County receives 90 cents for every $1, and the suburban counties only 53 cents for every $1 generated.
The business groups have every right to make this regionalization argument. The IML, however, could eventually see its own logic thrown back in its face.
“We’ll call [the minimum wage bill] on the floor [Thursday] sometime after 1:30 in the afternoon, and my expectation is the bill will pass,” House Speaker Mike Madigan said. “My expectation is that there will be no Republicans in the House voting for the bill.”
Republicans, on the other hand, said the fast-tracked advancement of the measure puts an end to a short-lived era of good feeling between the parties at the Capitol.
“This is a change of attitude since last month,” Republican House Leader Jim Durkin said. “There was all these platitudes and statements that were made about how we were going to work together and solve these problems. That is not the case today. Republicans have been shut out in negotiating in the House, and we have had no voice with the administration.”
Democratic Gov.-elect J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday — the day after his comfortable win over GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner — that he is laying groundwork for bipartisan action when he takes office.
Pritzker told The State Journal-Register that on Election Night, he spoke with Senate GOP Leader Bill Brady of Bloomington and House GOP Leader Jim Durkin of Western Springs “to say that I look forward to working with them to solve the big problems, the big challenges we’ve got in the state, and I hope they’d be open-minded in working with me, and they both agreed that they would be.”
Pritzker also named Republican former Gov. Jim Edgar as one of the co-chairs of his transition team.
Pritzker has dispatched invites to Senate President John Cullerton; House Speaker Michael Madigan; House Minority Leader Jim Durkin and Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady — and their wives Pam, Shirley, Celeste and Nancy — to wine and dine at Pritzker’s Astor Street mansion.
One Pritzker confidant said the incoming governor envisions a return to what was once known as the “agreed-bill” process, in which all of the various stakeholders on an issue, such as labor and management, agree to sit down together to work to resolve a problem and that no legislation would move forward without such an agreement.
Such a process, still used regarding the state’s unemployment insurance trust fund, allows lawmakers to implement an agreement that is approved by all sides.
“Illinois has really only worked well when everyone works together on bipartisan solutions to the problems. It’s never really worked well, Illinois has never really prospered, with a ‘my way or the highway’ approach,” [Rob Karr, the president and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association] said. “We are confident in the early stages that he’s going to take that approach, and only time will tell.”
But the more politically active and Republican-allied Illinois Chamber of Commerce already is girding for the Democratic domination. A recent internet seminar promoted by the group warned that “the Pritzker administration is going to be aggressively pro-labor when it comes to creating new workplace laws and greater regulation that this state has (believe it or not) yet to experience.”
Another plan would let the incoming governor replace the Tollway board now chaired by former Republican DuPage County chairman and candidate for governor Bob Schillerstrom amid controversies over contracts and spending on expensive banquet tickets.
Republicans voted for both proposals, and a spokesman for House GOP leader Jim Durkin said he will support both “as a gesture of good faith moving forward,” helping clear the way for their likely approval in the coming days.
Illinois lawmakers unanimously approved of legislation that would gradually send more state income tax revenue to local cities and towns even though it would happen at the cost of the state’s woefully unbalanced budget.
Illinois collects personal and corporate income taxes and then sends just over six percent of that to local municipalities, totaling around $1.3 billion in personal and corporate income tax annually.
If signed into law, Rep. Anthony DeLuca’s bill would see the Local Government Distribution Fund increase from 6.06 percent to 8.5 percent in 2020, 9 percent in 2021, 9.5 percent in 2022, and remain at 10 percent after February 2023. The percentage of corporate income tax, which is a higher percent but accounts for less of the total distribution, would scale up to 10 percent as well. […]
Rep Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville, is concerned about the strain that sending hundreds of millions of dollars out of an already-unbalanced budget would affect the state.
“I understand that there’s this kind of balancing act but how do you deal with, potentially over six years, being a billion dollar-pressure to the state budget,” he said.
Wow. Unanimous vote on a very controversial topic. That certainly sounds newsworthy as heck.
Strengthened by unprecedented political support, Illinois House legislators are uniting in a new Progressive Caucus to provide a better direction for the state.
Leaders and members of the new Progressive Caucus in the House today used a Statehouse news conference to discuss its platform of principles and legislative agenda for the 2019 session:
Minimum wage: Working families shouldn’t have to work hard and live in poverty. Increasing the minimum wage from $8.25 to $15 an hour around Illinois, phased in over several years with tax credits and with other protections for small businesses, will help lift up Illinois families and improve our economy. This legislation already has cleared the Senate and will get a vote in the Illinois House today.
Adult use of cannabis: Legalizing marijuana use by adults, with tight regulations and sensible taxation, will reverse a trend of senseless incarceration for minor drug users and create economic benefits for Illinois.
Small donor match: The influence of big-dollar donors and candidates in Illinois politics must be curbed. Creating a donor-matching system where tax dollars can help support political candidates who raise campaign funds in small amounts and level the playing field.
Progressive Caucus members also plan to lead and weigh in on a number of other initiatives, including the push for a constitutional amendment to create a progressive income tax where wealthier Illinoisans pay their fair share to fund critical state programs and services, such as education, health care and social services.
Rep. Will Guzzardi, D-Chicago, a co-chair of the Progressive Caucus, outlined the caucus’ statement of principles and vision for going forward.
“It’s a new day in Illinois, and we’re excited to lead on this bold agenda,” Guzzardi said. “By enacting these policies, and by organizing around our shared vision, we’ll be able to move our state forward and pass legislation that will transform the lives of the people of this state. I’m excited to be a part of this Caucus, and to stand together with so many of my colleagues in this work.”
The Progressive Caucus members are: Co-Chairs Reps. Guzzardi, Theresa Mah, and Carol Ammons; Treasurer Rep. Celina Villanueva; Secretary Rep. Delia Ramirez; and member Reps. Kelly Cassidy, Sara Feigenholtz, Robyn Gabel, Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, Greg Harris, Rob Martwick, Joyce Mason, Aaron Ortiz, Lamont Robinson, Anne Stava-Murray, and Maurice West.
His movement attracted national attention, especially in 1986, when two LaRouche followers, Mark Fairchild and Janice Hart, unexpectedly won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor and secretary of state, respectively, in Illinois.
Adlai E. Stevenson III, the Democratic candidate for governor of Illinois that year, was appalled. He denounced the LaRouche group as “neo-Nazis” and refused to run with Mr. Fairchild and Ms. Hart, organizing a third-party bid instead. He, as well as the LaRouche supporters, lost to James R. Thompson, the Republican incumbent.
Some voters said they had voted for Mr. Fairchild and Ms. Hart because they had been endorsed by Mr. LaRouche’s National Democratic Policy Committee, which they thought was affiliated with the mainstream Democratic Party..
That’s not how I remember it. Most people had no idea what the National Democratic Policy Committee was because it spent no money. The two LaRouche candidates had “safe” last names compared to the “etnik” names of the party’s slated candidates, who didn’t campaign all that much. The media barely covered the LaRouche candidates at all and there was some legit resentment about Democratic secretary of state candidate Aurelia Pucinski because of her father Ald. Roman Pucinski’s involvement with the city council’s fight against Mayor Harold Washington.
Hart upset Aurelia Pucinski in the Democratic primary for secretary of state, and Fairchild beat state Sen. George Sangmeister to become the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor.
Hart was the more vocal of the two, but Fairchild posed the bigger political problem, since he was instantly paired with the party’s gubernatorial nominee, Adlai Stevenson III. Back then, candidates for governor and lieutenant governor ran separately in the primary, but as a ticket in the general election.
The 1986 election was supposed to be a grudge match of sorts for Stevenson. Four years earlier, he lost to Republican Gov. Jim Thompson by a mere 5,074 votes — one of the closest statewide elections in Illinois history.
But in 1986, he suddenly found himself hobbled to Fairchild and Hart and facing certain defeat — and months of disavowing their beliefs. Instead, Stevenson bolted the ticket and created the new Solidarity Party for a one-time political run. That meant there would be no Democratic candidate for governor on the ballot, leaving the party doomed.
Thompson won the race for governor, pulling in 52.7 percent of the vote to Stevenson’s 40 percent. The Democratic slate with no candidate for governor garnered 6.6 percent.
LaRouche’s candidates spent much of that election traveling through Europe touting their guy’s conspiracy theories.
Another day, another discussion about changing the way Illinois draws its legislative districts. All nineteen Illinois Senate Republicans are on hand for this.
“The ultimate authority in Illinois is the party in power, and it’s time to change that system. We stand here united to join our Democratic colleague Sen. (Julie) Morrison (D-Deerfield),” Senate Minority Leader Bill Brady (R-Bloomington) told a statehouse news conference, “to support Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 4, which takes the politicians out of drawing their own destinies and their own maps.” […]
In an e-mailed statement, the spokesman for House Speaker Mike Madigan reminds us that, in general, compliance with the Voting Rights Act has scuttled previous efforts, adding it’s unlikely Madigan has studied Morrison’s proposal yet.
As placeholders that wait in limbo until something substantive is amended onto them, shell bills exist to get around rules that establish a deliberative and transparent process for making new laws. They’re not just used for minor or parochial matters. Shell bills are the vehicles that have allowed quick passage of income tax hikes and state budgets, sometimes within a single day.
That flies in the face of good government and the Illinois Constitution, which requires “a bill shall be read by title on three different days in each house.”
The process is designed to invite airing of various viewpoints and to ensure interested parties see a proposal before it gets a final vote. It’s often said the wheels of government turn slowly, and in this case that’s how it should be. Passing a bill in a few days or even weeks, in a manner that allows for democratic debate, seems fast enough to us in all but dire emergencies.
Shell bills get around all that by going most of the way through the process with content that is sparse and laughably minute, like a series of bills introduced by Madigan Dec. 10 that appropriate $2 from the General Revenue Fund to each of several state agencies.
Later, lawmakers can amend the bill to make it something new and big and get it passed in a matter of hours, in some cases. It’s obviously unethical, and not made any more palatable by the fact Illinois is not alone in this particular charade.
* This hearing was canceled…
From: xxx xxxxx
Date: Wednesday, February 13, 2019 at 2:08 PM
Subject: House Bill 330 to be called on Thursday, February 24
IHSA Member School Administrators,
The IHSA has received word that the Illinois Elementary & Secondary Education Committee will call House Bill 330 tomorrow morning (Thursday, February 14, 2019).
This bill was filed by State Representative Thaddeus Jones and would prevent schools from being members of the IHSA, instead requiring them to participate in the newly created High School Interscholastic Association Commission, which would be governed by five appointees via the Governor, Speaker of the House, President of the Senate, Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, and Minority Leader of the Senate.
Despite numerous attempts, we have been unable to get a meeting or discussion with Representative Jones on the bill in order to get a better understanding of his issue or issues with the IHSA.
We received a brief explanation from someone associated with Representative Jones that said the bill was filed in response to “an email that was sent to the IHSA office, but never replied to.” A search by our IT department has been unable to identify said email or its contents.
Thursday, Feb 14, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
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A college student running to oust the prominent alderman of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s home ward sued the Chicago Teachers Union for defamation this week, adding another layer of intrigue and a second lawsuit to the campaign.
DePaul University student David Krupa sued the union and one of its members in Cook County court — while also naming Madigan, 13th Ward Ald. Marty Quinn and the influential 13th Ward Democratic Organization as potential defendants in one of Chicago’s latest cases of hardball politics.
Krupa and Quinn’s bitter battle over a city Democratic stronghold has already landed in federal court over alleged campaign violations. This week’s fight is over a Feb. 1 letter printed on CTU letterhead and addressed to 13th Ward residents from teacher Jeanine Muir.
Muir’s letter accused Krupa of unspecified “cyberstalking and cyberbullying” and urged residents to not vote for the 19-year-old candidate in the Feb. 26 election. Krupa on Wednesday described those allegations as “a completely fabricated lie.”
CTU spokeswoman Chris Geovanis said Muir reported the situation with Krupa to the school district and was merely looking to protect her students.
“She was satisfied the conduct was terminated,” Geovanis said. […]
Krupa’s suit also names Quinn’s wife, Beth, as an employee at Hale, something the alderman scoffed at.
“Naming my wife, who has served the children of Chicago as a dedicated speech pathologist for decades and has no involvement in my campaign, in a baseless lawsuit is a new low for Tony Peraica, the Republican Party and its latest pawn, David Krupa,” Ald. Quinn said in a statement.
“Suing two public school teachers is a new low,” Madigan echoed in his own statement. “Certainly they don’t have the Republican backing to defend themselves like David Krupa does. These outrageous lawsuits are a disservice to the residents of the 13th Ward who are trying to focus on the issues that matter most to them.”
I’m trying to learn what your savvy readers may prefer as a general ballot access framework for Illinois residents to become candidates for office. Would it be much trouble for you to run a quick poll?
Exelon is threatening to shutter three nuclear plants in northern Illinois, which together power the equivalent of 5.5 million homes in the region.
The Chicago-based parent of Commonwealth Edison and the largest nuclear power generator in the country issued the warning about the potential for “early retirement” of its Byron, Dresden and Braidwood nuclear stations in a Feb. 8 Securities & Exchange Commission filing. While Exelon has hinted in the past that Byron and Dresden are financially at risk for closure, it was the first time the company explicitly identified Braidwood as vulnerable. […]
“Dresden, Byron, and Braidwood nuclear plants in Illinois are … showing increased signs of economic distress, which could lead to an early retirement, in a market that does not currently compensate them for their unique contribution to grid resiliency and their ability to produce large amounts of energy without carbon and air pollution,” Exelon said in the filing. […]
In a statement to Crain’s, Exelon said, “We are working with Illinois policymakers and other stakeholders on solutions to not only maintain Illinois’ clean energy progress but to further advance efforts to reduce and eliminate carbon emissions in the electric power and other sectors.” […]
Nuke closures could threaten Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s goal of eventually powering Illinois only through sources that don’t emit carbon. Exelon has been successful arguing that carbon-free nukes are a crucial component of state plans to address climate change by “de-carbonizing.”
* Press release…
State Senator Sue Rezin, R-Morris, and State Representative David Allen Welter, R-Morris, have sent a letter to Exelon Corporation requesting a meeting to discuss the company’s statement in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission that they may close their generating stations at Dresden and Braidwood. In the letter, Rezin and Welter emphasize the importance of protecting local jobs and the region’s energy infrastructure.
“The news of a potential shutdown of two of our nuclear power plants is extremely concerning to me and no doubt to the individuals and families who would be directly impacted,” said Sen. Rezin. “Not only do these facilities stimulate Illinois’ labor income and employment, but they also provide huge amounts to the local property tax base, supporting our school districts, higher education and local government. It is my hope that Exelon answers our call for a meeting so that we can begin the process of establishing a path forward.”
“Just over two years ago, the state approved a multi-billion dollar package for Exelon to keep their nuclear power plants in the Quad Cities and Clinton open,” Representative Welter said. “The potential closure of Dresden and Braidwood jeopardizes thousands of jobs critical to families. Our local nuclear plants are an integral component of Illinois’ energy infrastructure. I am deeply concerned by Exelon’s statement and will fight to protect the future of workers at the Dresden and Braidwood stations.”
The Chicago Department of Public Health continues to make significant strides in protecting children, adolescents and adults against vaccine-preventable diseases and was once again recognized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for its immunization efforts. During the annual grantee meeting in Atlanta, GA, CDPH received awards in three categories:
• Healthy People 2020 Award for most improved average of coverage rates for nine vaccinations for children aged 19-35 months from 2014 to 2017. Chicago’s high measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine coverage (94% for ≥1 dose for 19-35 month olds) is critical when measles outbreaks continue to occur in Washington, New York and as close as the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign.
• Healthy People 2020 Award for most improved average of coverage rates for adolescents aged 13-17 years from 2014 to 2017. Chicago surpassed the Healthy People 2020 goal of 80% Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine series initiation in 2017 with 82% of teens having received at least one HPV vaccine. We are tied with Massachusetts for the 5th highest series initiation coverage in the country (after Washington, D.C., Rhode Island, Philadelphia and El Paso County, Texas).
• Recognition for programs with largest improvement in adult pneumococcal vaccination coverage with a more than 9 percentage point increase for adults aged 65 years and older from 2014-2017. Though adults can be historically hard to reach, making vaccines available to adults has been a priority for CDPH. The department spearheaded an effort to vaccinate high-risk adults with hepatitis A vaccine amidst a growing number of hepatitis A outbreaks, nationally and in other parts of Illinois. To date, CDPH has distributed over 3,000 doses of hepatitis A vaccine and administered over 2,000 doses with 11 vaccinating partners since 2017.
“Keeping Chicagoans healthy and ensuring they have access to quality preventive care is integral to keeping our City running,” said Mayor Emanuel. “These recognitions and record vaccination rates are a testament to Dr. Morita’s bold leadership and the Department of Public Health’s strategy, which is a model for the nation.”
“We are honored to be recognized as a model health department” said CDPH Commissioner Julie Morita, M.D. “These prestigious awards come with great responsibility and we reaffirm our commitment to increasing immunization rates and improving the lives of Chicagoans.”
HPV vaccine prevents cervical, other genital, head and neck cancers. In 2017, 67% of Chicago teens completed the HPV vaccine series (2 or 3 doses depending on age at initiation) which is 16 percentage points higher than the national coverage levels. In addition, Chicago saw increased rates for HPV coverage in adolescent boys from 41.6% in 2016 to 46.4% in 2017.
Seeking to protect the ability of all individuals to make their own decisions about the full range of reproductive health care, four Illinois legislators joined Illinois advocates to announce two bills set for introduction in Springfield this week. The Reproductive Health Act modernizes Illinois laws around reproductive health care by repealing an abortion law adopted in 1975, and replacing it with language that affirms the right of all people to have full access to reproductive health care in a post Roe world, following on the promise and commitment of Illinois legislators with the passage of HB 40. That law – although largely blocked by the courts – among other things, still proscribes criminal penalties for physicians providing abortion care to patients.
The second bill will repeal the dangerous Parental Notice of Abortion law, a measure enforced for the past five years after decades of courts blocking enforcement. In the years since this law has been enforced, young people who do not have an adult family member or guardian to turn to, are forced to go before a judge before getting the healthcare that they need from a healthcare provider.
The introduction of these bills follows the release of a report from Governor Pritzker’s Equality, Equity, and Opportunities transition team. The report reads in part: “The new administration should take action to keep abortion safe, legal, and accessible in Illinois. It should work with lawmakers to repeal the Illinois Abortion Law of 1975 and the Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion act of 1995 and replace it with legislation that keeps abortion safe, legal, and accessible.”
“The Governor’s transition team identified the reality that a person’s decision around abortion and reproductive health care is affected today by a law adopted in 1975,” said State Representative Kelly Cassidy, chief House sponsor for the Reproductive Health Act. “As a woman, a mother and someone who has been a long-time supporter of full access to reproductive care, from contraception, abortion, pregnancy and postpartum care, it is time to modernize and update these laws to reflect the equality of women in Illinois.”
“Keeping this old law on the books with the attacks on reproductive freedom coming from Washington, DC creates confusion and invites mischief,” added State Senator Melinda Bush who will lead the legislative effort for the Reproductive Health Act in the State Senate. “We know that there is a movement today to limit access to reproductive health care. We want to reflect our values in Illinois and trust women.”
The Reproductive Health Act recognizes that abortion care is health care, not criminal activity as designated by the current law. The bill seeks to treat abortion care like all health care, with regulations that reflect current medical standards. Among other items, the bill would:
• Repeal the largely enjoined Illinois Abortion Law of 1975, including the criminal penalties imposed on doctors who offer abortion care;
• Repeal the long-blocked Partial Birth Abortion ban;
• Remove out-of-step regulations on health care clinics that provide abortions – regulations applied only to such clinics as a means of limiting access to abortion; and,
• Lifts disciplinary penalties adopted decades ago aimed at physicians who provide reproductive health care to women.
The sponsors and advocates supporting the Reproductive Health Act note that the bill specifically affirms that individuals and families should be the ones to make the personal decision around the use of birth control, the decision to continue a pregnancy and the decision to seek or refuse an abortion.
Finally, the bill requires private insurance plans in Illinois to cover abortion care on the same basis as contraception, fertility and maternity care.
Constituents in the 118th district and across Illinois have watched in horror over the last few weeks as states like New York, Virginia, and Rhode Island have enacted or proposed legislation essentially legalizing abortion at any point during the pregnancy, even at the time of labor. 118th District State Rep. Patrick Windhorst is voicing his outrage.
“In just a few short years, the left went from ‘safe, legal, and rare’ to proudly promoting the killing of full- term babies right before birth,” Windhorst said. “I listened in shock as the Democratic Governor of Virginia went on live radio to advocate for their proposed bill and seemingly defended the killing of a baby with deformities AFTER birth. My heart sank as I looked at pictures of the Empire State Building illuminated in pink lights celebrating the signing of legalized infanticide in New York. It’s time for Illinois to decide who we want to be in the eyes of history and our Creator.”
Illinois’ current abortion law already reads similar to the laws passed in New York and proposed in Virginia and Rhode Island. Abortion in Illinois after the point of viability is only legal if it is, “necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother.” The definition of “health” does not appear in current statute and has been interpreted to allow late-term abortions for more reasons than preserving the mother’s life or physical health. The intentional vagueness and broad use of this terminology is what was just enacted in New York. Virginia goes even further to include “mental health.”
The “Illinois Anti-Infanticide Act”, filed as HB 2384, would prohibit abortion after an unborn child is viable except to save the life or serious physical health of the mother. “The Act would narrowly define health as serious physical impairments,” Windhorst said. “This act will save lives.”
Windhorst is pro-life and is the chief sponsor of a bill repealing HB 40, which provided taxpayer-funded abortions. As a member of the minority party in the House, Windhorst also understands the political realities of Springfield at this time and is seeking to amend Illinois’ current abortion law in a bipartisan manner to eliminate the barbaric act of infanticide.
* I had my doubts about this project. Heck, even Gov. Rauner repeatedly belittled the idea that Rivian would amount to anything. But…
General Motors and Amazon are in talks about investing in electric-vehicle-maker Rivian Automotive, which has a manufacturing plant in central Illinois, in a deal valuing the startup at $1 billion to $2 billion, said people familiar with the matter.
The Plymouth, Michigan-based startup is working on an electric pickup and SUV that would be built at its plant in Normal. Concept versions of the vehicles debuted at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November. Talks are progressing, and a deal could be announced as soon as Friday, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the negotiations are private.
Trucks and SUVs are gas-guzzling cash cows for Detroit automakers. An investment in Rivian could help GM get an electric pickup to market faster and help ward off upstarts such as Tesla. For Amazon, investing in Rivian would signal an ambition to shift a portion of the massive vehicle fleet that delivers its packages to zero-emission vehicles.
“Rivian is being cast in the same light as Tesla, a startup that’s outside the inner circle of the auto industry, and that’s appealing to GM,” said Jeff Schuster, senior vice president of forecasting at researcher LMC Automotive. “GM could clearly do an electric pickup itself — it has the technology and a strong base of pickup buyers. But they don’t have Rivian’s image and separation.”
After a bill to raise Illinois’ minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025 passed the Illinois Senate last week on a party-line vote, Gov. JB Pritzker — who has been pushing Democratic leaders to get the measure passed before his Budget Address next week — boasted that SB 1 is endorsed by a key business group in Illinois.
“This bill has the support of the Illinois Restaurant Association and will allow restaurant workers and restaurant owners to succeed,” Pritzker told reporters at the Capitol last week, before ticking off the other merits of the bill.
Sam Toia, president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association, had indeed signed off on the bill ahead of Wednesday’s committee vote to send SB 1 to the Senate floor.
But in Springfield Monday, downstate members of the Illinois Restaurant Association told The Daily Line that they weren’t asked, and that Toia doesn’t speak for them.
Across from the Illinois Governor’s mansion, you’ll find Loukinens’ on Fourth.
The restaurant opened in October 2017, but owners Kevin and Laurie Loukinen are concerned a $15 minimum wage hike could force them to close their doors.
“If I increase minimum wage at $15 an hour, then I have to increase supervisor pay, then I have to increase manager pay, then I have to match all the payroll taxes that go with that and all the property taxes that go with that,” Laurie Loukinen said.
Laurie Loukinen said she once asked Gov. JB Pritzker to not harm her business while he was eating at her restaurant with his wife.
“He was in this very dining room and I said, ‘Just tell me you’re going to do a good job and that you’re not going to kill me as a business for the sake of Chicago,’ and he stood right here in my dining room and he said, ‘I will not do that to you,’” Laurie Loukinen said. “And I take Governor Pritzker at his word.”
You gotta wonder how the governor’s next visit to that restaurant is gonna go.
Meanwhile, the owner of Obed and Isaac’s compared her stand against the minimum wage hike to Winston Churchill during World War II. I kid you not.
* This is not to make light of their arguments. The governor has said that he would listen to all sides and points to the Illinois Restaurant Association as supporters even though some restaurant owners are up in arms about this bill. They do have a right to be upset. And a regionalized system does make some sense…
The news conference was organized by the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, which is pressing lawmakers to enact a tiered minimum wage. Its proposal would have a $15 wage in Chicago, while the suburbs surrounding Chicago would have a $13 wage and the rest of the state would have an $11 minimum wage by 2025.
The differences are meant to reflect that it’s cheaper to live outside of Chicago and that other areas of the state do not have the same economic activity as Chicago. The states of Oregon and New York use a tiered approach, paying a higher minimum wage in a major urban area and lower wages in less-populated areas.
Frankly, though, if I was a Downstate worker making minimum wage, I’d be awfully upset that Chicagoans were paid more by law to do the exact same job for the exact same employer. A regionalized minimum wage would literally codify the alleged Chicago advantage that Downstaters so often complain about.
…Adding… ILGOP…
“Governor Pritzker is misleading the people of Illinois about his minimum wage plan by falsely claiming it’s the product of compromise and Republican input, even though no Republicans support it. If Pritzker thinks it’s a ‘Republican idea’ to phase in the wage hike over six years as opposed to three or enact insufficient tax credits for small business, he’s wrong. Pritzker pledged to listen to Republicans and compromise, but it turns out those were just empty, meaningless words.” - Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Aaron DeGroot
*** UPDATE *** It’s on a rail…
After a Democratic House caucus, Speaker Madigan says he expects minimum wage bill to pass House as is. Specifically stated regional wage will not be in bill.
* They can say whatever they want. Unless and until they can locate some legislators willing to actually sponsor legislation to impose a state tax on retirement income, it ain’t even gonna be discussed except in news reporting and columns…
A second public policy organization is calling for Illinois to tax retirement income and expand the sales tax to some consumer services as part of a sweeping plan to fix the state’s fiscal woes.
The recommendations from nonpartisan budget watchdog Civic Federation come one week before new Gov. J.B. Pritzker is scheduled to present his first budget proposal to lawmakers. The Democratic governor backs legalizing and taxing recreational marijuana and sports gambling, as well as overhauling the state income tax system in two years. But he hasn’t endorsed taxing retirement income or gotten specific on taxing services.
In its annual “budget roadmap,” the Civic Federation’s Institute for Illinois’ Fiscal Sustainability says new taxes should only be considered as part of a multiyear plan that also limits state spending. It proposes limiting spending growth to 2.4 percent per year for five years.
The call to tax retirement income echoes a similar proposal last week from the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, which is made up of the city’s business elite. The Civic Federation has been pushing the idea for several years, though its recommendation hasn’t gained traction in Springfield.
Pritzker has said that sales taxes on services are regressive and he therefore doesn’t like them. Maybe we could see movement on that, but he defeated two Democratic primary opponents with the retirement income tax issue and I cannot see him ever flipping on that one.
Fiscally, it’s a good idea. Sound, even. Politically, it’s deader than a rock on a stump.
* Deputy Gov. Dan Hynes was on Chicago Tonight yesterday and talked about pensions. In addition to some of the other ideas floated in the past week (consolidation, asset transfers), Hynes made this pitch…
We need to look at the funding schedule that was put in place 25 years ago, that at the time thought we would be spending about $4 billion on pensions and now it’s asking us to put $9 billion in. That is 20 percent of our revenues. And I don’t think the designers of that plan ever envisioned the state of Illinois putting 20 percent of its revenues into the pension systems. So we need to take a hard look at that.
Hynes also said that the “best place to start” when looking to consolidate pension funds was the 600-plus Downstate police and fire pension systems.
As Illinois marches toward legalizing recreational marijuana under Gov. J.B. Pritzker, market pioneers who shelled out big money to gain an early foothold in the state’s medical cannabis program are trying to keep the much larger recreational, or adult-use, business to themselves.
Companies that won Illinois’ 21 medical marijuana licenses in 2015 are lobbying for a clause in a forthcoming legalization bill—which many believe will pass this spring—that would deny new cultivation licenses. Such a provision would box out new competitors just as marijuana blossoms into a full-fledged consumer market.
“There’s a necessity for a slow rollout to see how adult-use market demand is able to be met,” says Mark de Souza, CEO of Revolution Enterprises, which won two medical cultivation licenses and owns downstate greenhouses. The former futures trader and self-described “free-market finance guy” insists constraints are necessary as the industry finds its footing. He argues no new licenses should be issued for 12 to 18 months after the recreational law takes effect, which would likely mean a moratorium through at least part of 2021.
Others see little more than an attempt to monopolize what is estimated to be a $1.6 billion Illinois recreational market. They say lawmakers who appease these companies in order to pass legislation quickly and begin collecting tax revenue are shortsighted. […]
“I’m not certain there’s going to be any need for additional cultivation licenses,” says state Sen. Heather Steans, who is crafting the recreational bill along with state Rep. Kelly Cassidy, a fellow Chicago Democrat. “We definitely don’t want an oversupply because we don’t want to encourage diversion” of marijuana across state lines to places where it remains illegal. Steans plans to commission a supply-and-demand study to determine how many licenses are needed.
Funny how businesses generally decry government interference—unless it helps their business.
Consider Illinois marijuana producers’ campaign for government aid. As my colleague Brigid Sweeney reported in this week’s issue of Crain’s, companies holding 21 licenses to produce medicinal marijuana want legislation legalizing recreational use to include a moratorium on new state licenses for commercial-scale production.
In other words, they want a government-mandated oligopoly on a recreational-use market worth an estimated $1.6 billion annually. The moratorium likely would last a year or more, plenty of time for incumbents to build the brand recognition, commercial relationships and scale economies to ward off new competitors.
They’ve apparently found a sympathetic ear among lawmakers crafting recreational-use legislation that Gov. J.B. Pritzker is expected to sign. Worried about “oversupply,” State Sen. Heather Steans plans to commission a study to determine how many commercial licenses Illinois needs.
That’s a question for markets to decide, not government. Restricting market access to a predetermined number of companies smacks of Soviet-style central planning. Imagine the reaction if state legislators presumed to decide how many soybean or corn farms Illinois needs.
There are legitimate concerns about market oversupply, so the red-baiting is way over the top here. The state government isn’t going to be purchasing excess supply, as the federal government does with dairy products, for instance. So, limits are reasonable. The same concept goes for casino licenses.
However, allowing the “market pioneers” to lock down a monopoly would not be a good thing. At all. They need to back the heck off.
* I asked Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago), one of the legalization sponsors, to respond to the initial article…
This article is maddening. We both [she and Sen. Steans] believe that we need the study to help us determine whether there will be need. The cultivators have significant capacity and can build plenty more to meet demand, but that’s not the same as whether we need more growers to help meet demand. Many of them are insisting on no more growers, but without clear data defining the demand, it’s impossible to say.
Because black and brown communities can lack access to capital — especially for cannabis-related businesses — the state could offer financing and technical training to help under-represented communities participate more fully in the legal cannabis industry, potentially through community-based incubators. This administration should lead the development of these incubators and ensure the technical support and capital participation of existing medical growers and dispensaries as a condition for expanded recreational licensing.
Nearly a quarter of workers in Illinois would see their pay almost double under a proposal nearing final approval in the state legislature, but inflation will take a huge bite by the time the state’s minimum wage reaches $15 an hour in 2025.
The statewide pay floor has remained at $8.25 since 2010, and new Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker made boosting it a central component of his successful campaign. The Senate last week approved a gradual hourly increase to $15, and the House is poised to send the legislation to Pritzker to sign before he presents his first budget plan on Feb. 20.
Illinois will join Washington, D.C., and at least four other states with a $15-an-hour minimum by 2025, an 82 percent spike in current base pay. But it may not be the momentous impact on low-wage workers that some supporters expected.
Using state labor and federal inflation statistics, The Associated Press projected that assuming the current inflation rate of 2.1 percent each year through 2025, $15 then will be worth the equivalent of $10.46 now. So instead of an 81 percent wage increase from $8.25 to $15, after inflation, low-wage workers will be taking home only 27 percent more than they are today.
That $10.46 projection didn’t seem right to me. So, I crunched the numbers myself. I subtracted the equivalent of 2.1 percent of value from each year in this chart…
* I talked with the minimum wage’s House sponsor Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) last night and he found basically the same thing. Using the AP’s formula of 2.1 percent inflation per year, Guzzardi also projected what the minimum wage will be in 2025 if no action is taken, something that was missing from the AP story…
Finally: today's minimum wage of $8.25/hr will be worth $7.24 in 2025, so I'm not sure this is a very good argument for "do nothing".
Low-wage workers need a raise. We're gonna make sure they get one.
* Too often, the media’s focus on the very real problem of people migrating out of Illinois centers around middle to upper class white folks who are angry at the government. That focus creates a narrative that Illinois has to avoid upsetting those people or the exodus will only get worse. Progressive income tax? People are going to leave. Higher minimum wage? People are going to leave.
But that narrative ignores this issue…
I'm at the very very very beginning of a new book project about Black people moving out of Chicago and I'm crunching some numbers. Here are the twenty community areas that lost the most Black people from 2000-2016. pic.twitter.com/UuNGy2qgXe
The new administration should invest in storm and wastewater infrastructure projects that help protect against property damage, limit soil erosion, and improve climate resiliency, particularly in communities that disproportionately suffer from the impacts of climate change. The state should also ensure there is an equitable distribution of funds across environmental justice communities. The state could leverage State Revolving Loan Funds for these efforts. There are two types of infrastructure projects that the state should prioritize:
• Gray infrastructure projects: improve stormwater and wastewater treatment plants to remove nitrogen and phosphorus.
• Green infrastructure projects: implement the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy, work with conservation districts to drive on-the-ground projects, cost share with conservation entities on edge-of-field practices, and use existing state funds to purchase land for conservation.
The new administration should prioritize the creation of clean energy empowerment zones in rural communities, transitioning communities, and communities of color to ensure all communities share in the economic and environmental benefits of Illinois’ shift to a clean energy economy. Through these zones, the state could provide community empowerment grants to facilitate locally-designed, community-directed clean energy initiatives, such as electric transit, wind and solar, and clean energy workforce development.
In order to address the leading source of carbon pollution in Illinois – the transportation sector – the new administration should expand access to electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure installed by qualified local union labor. The state should authorize funding for this infrastructure and support for electric distribution infrastructure to meet EV grid demands. The state could provide incentives for conversion of public transit and school buses, offer special rates to school districts that adopt EV buses, and encourage utilities to build out make-ready work as called for and provide EV supply equipment in communities without access. The new administration could expand this initiative by leveraging capital funds available through the VW settlement and reallocating those funds to clean technologies.
Expand Illinois’ energy storage leadership
Energy storage is key to a future where the world is powered by renewable energy. The new administration should leverage Illinois’ position as a leader in energy storage and help facilitate incubation of energy storage-related businesses growing out of research conducted across the state. The state could integrate R&D efforts with business creation and compete for federal and private sector clean energy storage investments in Illinois. The state could also incentivize projects that propose locating at retired or soon-to-be retired coal plants in order to spur economic development in those transitioning communities.
Support shovel ready solar projects for schools and state-owned properties
The new administration should implement the Solar for All program by initiating an additional 100 projects at publicly-owned properties in low-income communities. This would bring an additional 200MW of community solar to Illinois, create local union labor jobs, and generate electricity savings for buildings like public schools.
The state can help reduce violence in communities by strengthening existing safeguards towards gun violence prevention efforts, pursuing new safeguards, and investing in community resources to prevent crime. For example, increased regulations on gun dealers, stricter reporting requirements for lost firearms, and establishing stronger Firearm Owners Identification card (FOID) requirements (accounting for hate crimes, animal abuse, and domestic violence and expanding requirements to cover 3D-printed and “ghost” guns) could keep guns out of the hands of people likely to use them illegally. The state could also convene a multi-state task force to reduce the illegal flow of weapons across state borders. In addition, measures such as better allocation of police resources to every zip code and expedited forensics tasks such as DNA-evidence processing, rape kit administration, and ballistics testing could significantly improve violence prevention and resolution.
The state could promote grassroots efforts to reduce crime and prevent gun violence, such as expanding prevention programs and resources in the neighborhoods at highest risk for gun violence (e.g., funding grassroots non-profit violence prevention programs). Resources could be allocated to transformative “Community Justice Centers” to provide civilian responses to violent incidents, including giving civilians access to resources and referrals, and offering holistic support. Trust can also be strengthened between law enforcement and the communities they serve if Illinois State Police take a larger role in investigating “use of force” incidents.
Community-based organizations should also be supported by the state in their work to provide mentoring, tutoring, and job-search support. The state could empower local organizations to support people returning from incarceration, helping them meet their needs for housing, mental health counseling, job placement, and other social services.
Through thoughtful court and sentence reform, the state could move towards a system that reserves incarceration primarily for those who commit very serious offenses. The reform could focus on treatment and rehabilitation, while diverting individuals to alternative treatment centers (e.g., over 40 percent of admissions to Cook County jails were for drug offenses, many of whom could have been diverted to community drug treatment resources) and ensuring fairness and equity before and after trial.
To start, the state can increase felony thresholds for drug (e.g., Class 3 and 4 drug offenses diverted to drug treatment) and retail-theft offenses (e.g., raise retail theft threshold from $300 to a higher level), which can mitigate the punitive nature of current sentencing guidelines and decrease the number of incarcerated individuals. For those already incarcerated, the state can re-evaluate early-release eligibility to focus on rehabilitation. Potential initiatives could include bypassing parole and auto-expunging criminal cases for eligible cases (e.g., certain Class 4 felonies), using clemency power to commute certain sentences (e.g., incarcerated people in need of hospice care), and expanding eligibility for discretionary and reduced parole.
Prison population reduction strategies may be more effective when partnered with treatment through supportive transition programs that include housing and job placements. The state could mandate restorative justice as a holistic rehabilitative substitute for incarceration (e.g., pre-trial referrals to community centers for certain offense types). State agencies can support transformational alternatives to incarcerations by engaging community-based resources such as mental health and substance abuse treatment centers. As part of this transformation, key actors (e.g., judges, community residents, law enforcement, social workers) could be convened in working groups to recommend actions to protect and heal communities.
To ensure fairness and equity before and during trials, the state should facilitate equitable access to and adequate funding for resources such as public defenders. In addition, Illinois should reexamine current juvenile detention practices through trauma-informed ways (e.g., end detention for children under the age of 15) and end trial tax incentivizing pleas. The state could also examine current monetary bond practices and reduce or eliminate the use of fines and fees for offenses such as driving infractions. Finally, the state could eliminate automatic driver’s license suspensions for court debt and make probation and parole less punitive and more rehabilitative by eliminating reincarceration for technical parole violations. These changes would significantly reduce the burden on affected individuals.
The report also has a section on “evidence-based rehabilitation,” plus one on cannabis legalization and the new Office of Justice, Equity and Opportunity.
There is a path forward to move criminal justice in Illinois from one of retribution to one of economic and community restoration. These efforts can enhance resource allocation, lower recidivism, and improve outcomes for incarcerated individuals. The state could consider launching a few initiatives in the near-term which could serve as important first steps:
• Increased regulation on gun dealers and establishing a multi-state task force to reduce illegal weapons
• Medicaid access to ensure continuity of care and targeted employment and housing support provided to all individuals pre-release from IDOC
• Creating a workforce development and vocational training programs to support rehabilitation at IDOC
• Mandating training courses (e.g., social emotional learning) for stakeholders (e.g., law enforcement, correctional staff) dealing with high risk population
• Increasing certain felony thresholds (e.g., for drug offenses, retail theft)
• Evaluate and recommend changes to monetary bond policies
• Create a data repository to be used across all state and local agencies
Wednesday, Feb 13, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
North Carolina ditched its progressive income tax in 2013 and replaced it with a flat income tax. Since then, the state’s economic growth has zoomed past the national average.
All that growth means more money in the pockets of working families. After switching to a flat income tax, average annual wage growth in North Carolina accelerated more than 30 percent faster than the national average.
North Carolina’s rebound is no surprise. States without a progressive income tax see faster jobs growth, wage growth and GDP growth than states with a progressive income tax. At the same time, progressive income tax states see higher inequality that’s rising faster than states without a progressive income tax.
With Illinois already close to the back of the pack nationally for jobs growth and income growth, Illinois families seeking opportunity can’t afford a progressive income tax hike.
Billionaire hedge fund CEO Ken Griffin, who has given tens of millions to former Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and supported Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, is donating $1 million to Bill Daley’s mayoral campaign.
In a statement about the contribution, Griffin called Daley “a proven leader who understands the critical importance of working for all Chicagoans regardless of politics, race or background.”
“He will bring together a diversity of views across the city on our most pressing challenges of creating jobs, reducing violent crime, and improving our schools so we all can be proud to live and work in this world-class city that we call our home,” Griffin said. […]
“His investments in Chicago, in its cultural institutions, in its healthcare organizations, and in improvements that benefit all residents are a model of giving back to the community,” Daley said in a statement. “While we may not agree on every political issue, Ken’s commitment to Chicago is unquestionable and unwavering.”
* Susana Mendoza…
As co-chair of Bruce Rauner’s transition team, Bill Daley wrote the blueprint for the failed governor’s four years of crisis and destruction. It’s no surprise he’s earned the endorsement of Rauner’s biggest funder and enabler too. Chicago’s families can’t afford four years of a mayor who stood by silently while his friend Bruce Rauner launched attack after attack on our workers, cut critical social services, and assaulted women’s reproductive healthcare rights. I wasn’t afraid to take on Bruce Rauner on behalf of Illinoisans, and I’m not afraid to take on Bill Daley on behalf of Chicagoans. The last thing Chicago needs is Bruce Rauner’s mayor.
* Meanwhile…
Hardworking Chicago window washers are once again in the spotlight after NBC Chicago and Telemundo Chicago ran in-depth stories last night on the dangerous work they do every single day. Now, in the closing weeks of the mayoral election, SEIU Local 1 is running an ad on Spanish-language television detailing how mayoral candidate Susana Mendoza sold out our city’s brave window washers, their families and their communities when they went on strike in July of 2018.
“When we were on strike for a better future, Susana Mendoza sold us out,” said SEIU Local 1 window washer Francisco Guzman. “Voters need to know that Mendoza sides with her business owner donors over hardworking Chicago families and our communities.”
Instead of standing with our city’s brave window washers, who put their lives on the line every day to support their families, Mendoza sided with her buddy and major campaign donor Neal Zucker, CEO of window washing company Corporate Cleaning Services and employer of window washers. Zucker is a major Mendoza campaign donor who has contributed more than $30,000 to her political fund since 2014, including $10,000 immediately following the strike and $3,000 on Christmas Eve. CBS Chicago rated the claims in the ad, which ran for weeks on digital platforms, to be true.
The ad represents a significant five-figure buy on Univision Chicago and Telemundo Chicago and will run from Thursday until the runoff election on February 26. In the closing weeks of the mayor’s race, Local 1 window washers are letting voters know that Susana Mendoza cannot be trusted to stand with Chicago’s working families.
* Tomorrow is a state holiday and this little website observers all state holidays except when they conflict with session days. So, unless something really big breaks, I’ll talk with you Wednesday…
Susana Mendoza released a new ad that highlights her successful record of taking on Gov. Bruce Rauner to save taxpayers billions and help individuals hurt by Rauner’s two-year budget impasse. The ad underscores that Mendoza is bringing that same energy and determination to transform Chicago’s schools and make its streets safe.
She is described as an agent of change, creating a more transparent government.
A champion for those who couldn’t advocate for themselves.
Susana Mendoza, a tough as nails fighting mom, who took on Bruce Rauner to save taxpayers billions.
A financial expert who knows how to balance budgets.
Mendoza is running for mayor with a bold plan to transform schools and make our city safe.
Read her plan at susanamendoza.com.
Polling shows her falling behind. I don’t think that soccer ad did her a bit of good. Chicagoans appear to be looking for a strong leader. This spot may help her tap into the sentiment.
With highly selective editing, Preckwinkle’s ad uses video clips from a speech Mendoza gave on the Illinois House floor in 2011 in which she declares opposition to the death penalty to leave the impression that she actually remained an enthusiastic supporter of it.
While it is true that a decade earlier Mendoza backed an expansion of the death penalty, the speech from which the clips are taken made an entirely different point. She had changed her mind and wanted to end capital punishment in Illinois because the state had sentenced too many people to death row that later had been found innocent. Indeed, Mendoza then voted for a measure that abolished the death penalty.
None of that footage or context was used in the ad, which grossly misrepresents Mendoza’s position. We rate it Pants on Fire!
* Looks like the depositing state assets in the pension funds idea we discussed the other day is getting a close look…
Governor JB Pritzker today appointed leaders of two new taskforces created to make several specific recommendations to improve the standing of the state’s pensions funds.
“The enormity of Illinois’ pension problems at all levels of government cannot be overstated, and these two taskforces will provide concrete recommendations on two ideas that will improve the health of pension funds around the state: potential consolidation of funds to achieve the highest investment returns and transferring valuable state-owned assets to the pension funds to help address our nearly $134 billion in unfunded liabilities,” said Deputy Governor Dan Hynes, who will receive the recommendations. “Illinois has a long way to go to dig out of the fiscal mess we inherited, but with discipline and focus, we can take commonsense steps that will make life better for the hardworking people of this state and restore fiscal stability.”
Pension Consolidation Feasibility Taskforce
The state is home to 671 separate public pension funds, which each make decisions impacting their respective members. This results in a fractured system that often duplicates functions across pension funds, and that limits the smaller funds to a narrow range of potential investments. Smaller funds also pay higher fees because the amount in their funds is too low to meet institutional investor thresholds.
In total, these funds manage $170 billion in assets and have accrued liabilities totaling more than $355 billion. Of all those funds, 656 are suburban and downstate police and fire pension funds that are regulated by the Illinois Pension Code.
These liabilities have placed increased pressure on local governments and the State of Illinois, driving up property taxes and crowding out funding for critical public services. Consolidation could provide improved returns on investment, and increased efficiencies on investment and administrative fees; thereby increasing assets to pay for obligatory public workers’ pensions and alleviating the burden of growing property taxes.
The Pension Consolidation Feasibility Taskforce will be co-chaired by William Brodsky, former Chairman and CEO of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (now known as CBOE Global Markets); Pat Devaney, President of the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois; and Christine Radogno, former Illinois Senate Minority Leader. The taskforce’s mandate is to explore and make recommendations for consolidation of pension funds, beginning with downstate police and fire funds, as well as evaluating the state’s three pension funds, in order to achieve the greatest value for pensioners and taxpayers.
Pension Asset Value and Transfer Taskforce
Currently, the state’s five pension systems have unfunded liabilities of nearly $134 billion and growing, while the state owns and maintains tens of billions of dollars in real estate and infrastructure assets, according to the Department of Insurance’s biennial pension report. These assets could be used in a way that is far more financially responsible for the state, its pension systems and the taxpayers of Illinois.
The Asset Assessment Taskforce will be co-chaired by Jaqueline Avitia-Guzman and Jamie Star. The taskforce’s mandate is to analyze state assets across Illinois and make recommendations as to their best use to help stabilize the state’s finances. Recommendations could include, but are not limited to, the repurposing or sale of these assets or transfer to state pension systems to improve their levels of funding.
Background
Jaqueline Avitia-Guzman
Jackie Guzman is a finance executive with 20 years of experience leading, creating, and implementing financial and operational strategies for Fortune 500 companies located in the Chicagoland area. Currently, she serves as Head of Corporate Development for Sears Holdings Corporation where she is responsible for M&A, inclusive of joint ventures and divestitures. Prior to Sears Holdings, she was at the University of Chicago, pursuing an MBA, where she interned for two private equity firms in Chicago. Before business school, Jackie worked in the financial services industry. She received her master’s in business administration from the University of Chicago and her bachelor’s in economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign School.
William Brodsky
William J. (Bill) Brodsky has been a leader in the Chicago financial community since 1982. He is the Chairman of Cedar Street Asset Management LLC. After serving as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Office of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, (CME), he was President and CEO of CME from June 1, 1985 until February 1997 when he became Chairman and CEO of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (now known as CBOE Global Markets). He was in that position until May 2013, when he became Chairman, a position he served until his retirement in March 2017. He is the only exchange executive from Chicago to be elected as Chairman of the World Federation of Exchanges.
For over 20 years, he has served in various board positions at Northwestern Memorial Healthcare, including Chairman of the Investment Committee for 14 years, and later as Chairman of Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Since May 2013, he has been Chairman of Navy Pier, Inc. He is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago and the Civic Committee. Bill is an attorney and member of the Bar in both New York and Illinois.
Pat Devaney
Pat Devaney is the President of the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois. Devaney first started his career with the Champaign Fire Department and IAFF Local 1260 in 1995. He served as an elected firefighter pension fund trustee for a decade and has advocated for firefighter pension policies in Springfield for the last fifteen years.
Christine Radogno
Christine Radogno is a former Republican member of the Illinois Senate, representing a Legislative District in Cook, DuPage, and Will Counties from 1997 to 2017. Radogno served as the Minority Leader, the first female leader of a political party in the Illinois Legislature.
Prior to serving in the state senate Radogno served for eight years as a Village Trustee in LaGrange. Radogno received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in social work from Loyola University in Chicago. She was employed in the field of mental health before entering politics.
Jamie Star
James Star is Chairman of Longview Asset Management LLC, an investment firm that oversees public and private investments on behalf of individuals, trusts, and charitable foundations. In this role and his prior role as President and CEO, Mr. Star has managed portfolios of publicly traded securities and investments in private equity and hedge funds. He has also overseen direct investments in private companies. Prior to this, he ran a top-performing securities partnership. He began his investing career as a securities analyst and portfolio manager at Harris Associates, a leading advisor to mutual funds and private clients.
Mr. Star is a director of Equity Commonwealth, a publicly-traded real estate investment trust that owns commercial office space. He is also a director of Petsmart/Chewy, the nation’s largest on line and traditional retailer of pet products and services, and Teaching Strategies, a provider of educational assessment software and curricula. He is a trustee of several pension funds and a private trust company, and formerly served on the boards of two public mutual fund complexes and multiple private companies. His non-profit work includes service as a member of the Global Advisory Board of the Kellogg Graduate School of Management and as president of the Star Family Foundation, which he founded in 2012.
A lawyer by training, Mr. Star practiced corporate law at Kirkland & Ellis following his clerkship with a federal court judge. He is a graduate of the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, Yale Law School and Harvard College.
* Meanwhile, the Illinois Public Pension Fund Association warned against consolidation last week…
The studies also concluded that any move to consolidate all 641 downstate Illinois police and firefighter pension funds into one massive state pension system would be expensive and fraught with risk. Such a consolidation would require that almost all assets from each local fund be liquidated and then re-invested in the larger fund. This move could generate a one-time cost of up to $155 million in commissions, taxes, fees and potential market losses, which would increase the pension funds’ unfunded liability by that amount as well. It would take many years to recoup that cost in the minor administrative savings realized by consolidation.
Consolidation poses a particularly high risk if the transfer occurs during a period of stock market growth and the local pension funds miss out on the resulting gains from their existing investments, the studies found. In addition, economies may suffer when the local banks and asset managers who handle individual pension funds are set aside in favor of larger, out-of-state investment firms that would likely handle the consolidated pension fund.
The IPPFA would essentially be out of a job if the 641 funds consolidated. Its study is here.
NotifyChicago: All Northbound lanes on Lake Shore Dr are closed from Monroe to Grand due to a CDOT Structural Emergency on the Bridge. Seek alternate route.
City crews fixing a nearby light pole spotted the cracked beams Monday morning, and reported the problem.
Shortly before noon, the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications said all northbound lanes on Lake Shore Drive were closed between Monroe to Grand as a result, and advised drivers to use an alternate route.
The Chicago Department of Transportation said crews were “assessing the situation” on the bridge, and would issue an advisory once they determine how long it would take to make repairs.
Thank goodness it was caught in time.
…Adding… Northbound Lake Shore Drive will be closed in that area at least through tonight, the Sun-Times reports.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Another one today…
Oak Park, IL: Bridge crews were called to the Oak Park Ave bridge after 8:30 a.m. after chunks of the bridge began to rain down on vehicles passing below: -At least one vehicle had the rear window smashed -@IDOT_Illinois crews closed lanes to repair and clean-up the debris pic.twitter.com/RwppXKsU9w
…Adding… A longtime reader/commenter sent this pic of Union Station today. Platform between tracks 2 and 4…
…Adding… Local 150…
This afternoon’s failure and emergency closure of a northbound Lake Shore Drive bridge was dangerous, inconvenient, costly, and – most tragically – it was completely avoidable.
Bridge failures are only one of the inevitable results when our critical infrastructure is neglected and left in disrepair. The decay of the Lake Shore Drive bridges is among the most advanced in the City of Chicago, but this is far from the only bridge that is teetering on the brink of failure.
According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, more than 2,300 Illinois bridges are “structurally deficient,” yet Illinois has been without a statewide infrastructure funding bill since 2009. ASCE gave an overall grade of C- to Illinois’ infrastructure, including road, rail, utility and other vital infrastructure
“When the state fails to invest in our infrastructure, we are neglecting a problem until it becomes a crisis,” said James M. Sweeney, President-Business Manager of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150. “This neglect can have deadly consequences, as we saw in the Minneapolis I-35 Bridge collapse, which killed 13 innocent motorists. How many must die in Illinois before our leaders treat this as the crisis that it is?”
“This is far from an isolated problem,” Sweeney continued. “The next time you drive under a bridge, look up and ask yourself how safe you feel.”
*** UPDATE 2 *** Reopened…
BREAKING:: @ChicagoDOT says all northbound lanes on Lake Shore Drive have reopened. Story to come.
State Rep. Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville, has filed a resolution appealing to the United States Congress to separate Chicago from Illinois and making it a new state.
The resolution, filed Feb. 7, is co-sponsored by State Reps. Darren Bailey, R-Louisville, and Chris Miller, R-Robinson. Halbrook said Monday that the he filed the resolution to bring attention to the disconnect between the Chicago area and the rest of the state.
“The purpose of this resolution is to show the disconnect between the northeast corner of the state and downstate Illinois. They make financial decisions and policies that don’t follow what the rest of the state wants,” Halbrook said. […]
Halbrook said he has heard that some people from the northeast corner of the state say that Illinois could not survive without Chicago, and because of that sentiment, Halbrook said those from that area should be the “first in line” to advocate for the separation.
Um, I don’t get it. If you’re an Illinoisan and believe that pulling Chicago out of Illinois would hurt Illinois, why would you ever be for that?
Thursday, state Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) filed legislation (Senate Bill 1310) that gives the Illinois Department of Natural Resources authority to charge admission to Starved Rock. If enacted, any fees would take effect Jan. 1, 2020.
But Rezin emphasized in a Friday telephone interview that any fee would be “nominal” and applied to vehicles only — a strategy she said has worked well in other states — with unmanned kiosks where visitors can pay.
She said she insists on keeping park access free to local residents.
* I dunno. This could be considered commercial speech, and limits can be placed on that…
Gunsmiths in Illinois are concerned that a bill filed at the statehouse violates not just the Second Amendment, but also the First Amendment.
State Rep. Kathleen Willis, D-Addison, filed House Bill 2253 to address weapons that have been called untraceable firearms. Her bill would make possession of certain unfinished gun parts a crime unless the person has a Firearm Owners Identification card, or FOID.
Certain gun parts, such as a semi-automatic rifle receiver, where the ammunition is fired from, can be bought unfinished and sometimes without serial numbers. Finishing off certain parts without serial numbers would be a Class 2 felony under Willis’ measure.
Her bill also makes using a 3D printer to make a gun without a serial number illegal. The bill also prohibits disseminating digital blueprints for finishing off certain gun parts or printing guns unless specific provisions are followed.
In the past, a school day was mandated by the state to be five hours of direct supervision by a teacher, and how the state funded schools was based on student attendance during those days.
In August 2017, the evidence-based funding formula was signed in to law, shifting the way state money is allocated to school enrollment figures and the number of students in need of extra supports.
Because funding was no longer tied to attendance, the law also opened the door to more flexibility in terms of where and how students received instruction. […]
Fearing schools might take flexibility too far, the Illinois Senate Education Committee, chaired by Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, D-Shorewood, unanimously approved a measure to reinstate the five-hour mandate. Bertino-Tarrant is the former Will County regional superintendent of education.
Among those who’d rather not see the old rule brought back is Indian Prairie District 204 Superintendent Karen Sullivan, who at a recent legislative breakfast said students today are involved in internships, job shadowing, and online or blended courses. “All those things don’t fit into a five-hour, neat instructional day,” she said.
* Remember when Gov. Rauner declared the Sterigenics poisoning in and around Willowbrook was not a “public health emergency?” Some folks battling the company are saying that Gov. Pritzker should declare such an emergency. From state statutes…
“Public health emergency” means an occurrence or imminent threat of an illness or health condition that:
(a) is believed to be caused by any of the following … widespread exposure to an infectious or toxic agent that poses a significant risk of substantial future harm to a large number of people in the affected population.
Sec. 4. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following words and terms have the meanings ascribed to them in this Section […]
“Disaster” means an occurrence or threat of widespread or severe damage, injury or loss of life or property resulting from any natural or technological cause, including but not limited to fire, flood, earthquake, wind, storm, hazardous materials spill or other water contamination requiring emergency action to avert danger or damage, epidemic, air contamination, blight, extended periods of severe and inclement weather, drought, infestation, critical shortages of essential fuels and energy, explosion, riot, hostile military or paramilitary action, public health emergencies, or acts of domestic terrorism. [Emphasis added.]
* From the governor’s enumerated powers during a declared disaster…
20 ILCS 3305/7) (from Ch. 127, par. 1057)
Sec. 7. Emergency Powers of the Governor. In the event of a disaster, as defined in Section 4, the Governor may, by proclamation declare that a disaster exists. Upon such proclamation, the Governor shall have and may exercise for a period not to exceed 30 days the following emergency powers; provided, however, that the lapse of the emergency powers shall not, as regards any act or acts occurring or committed within the 30-day period, deprive any person, firm, corporation, political subdivision, or body politic of any right or rights to compensation or reimbursement which he, she, it, or they may have under the provisions of this Act:
(1) To suspend the provisions of any regulator statute prescribing procedures for conduct of State business, or the orders, rules and regulations of any State agency, if strict compliance with the provisions of any statute, order, rule, or regulation would in any way prevent, hinder or delay necessary action, including emergency purchases, by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, in coping with the disaster.
(2) To utilize all available resources of the State government as reasonably necessary to cope with the disaster and of each political subdivision of the State.
(3) To transfer the direction, personnel or functions of State departments and agencies or units thereof for the purpose of performing or facilitating disaster response and recovery programs.
(4) On behalf of this State to take possession of, and to acquire full title or a lesser specified interest in, any personal property as may be necessary to accomplish the objectives set forth in Section 2 of this Act, including: airplanes, automobiles, trucks, trailers, buses, and other vehicles; coal, oils, gasoline, and other fuels and means of propulsion; explosives, materials, equipment, and supplies; animals and livestock; feed and seed; food and provisions for humans and animals; clothing and bedding; and medicines and medical and surgical supplies; and to take possession of and for a limited period occupy and use any real estate necessary to accomplish those objectives; but only upon the undertaking by the State to pay just compensation therefor as in this Act provided
* The Question: Should the governor declare a “public health emergency” disaster in order to shut down Sterigenics? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please…
Abandoned by his mother, the baby boy — he was about 2 — ended up at an Indiana orphanage during the Great Depression.
His luck changed when a WWI veteran and his wife filled out the “boy or girl” portion of an adoption application with the words: “any child we can love.”
That veteran, William Earl Quigley, made his adopted son his namesake and gave him whatever else he could working as a handyman and farmhand in a rural area outside Indianapolis.
The origin story stayed with him always — from when he served in the Army during the Korean War era as a newlywed to the time he retired with a pension from AT&T — and formed the bedrock motivation of his life: “You work hard to give your kids a better chance than you had.”
On Saturday, after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease, Mr. Quigley, 92, died knowing he did just that.
His daughter Chris is a retired school superintendent. His daughter Linda was a social worker. His son Dan, who passed away two years ago, owned a used-record store. And his son Mike is a U.S. congressman.
“He didn’t like most politicians, so the irony that his son grew up to be one was not lost upon him,” said Mike Quigley, who represents Illinois’ 5th Congressional District.
* Congressman Bill Foster’s brother also passed away. Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel…
Fred Foster, who co-founded and helped grow Middleton-based ETC into a global, 1,000-employee company in the theater lighting business, has died at the age of 61.
Foster helped launch the company with his brother, Bill, and two friends in the mid-1970s. Today it is recognized globally for manufacturing lighting and rigging technology for entertainment and architectural use, with employees in 10 countries and more than 300 authorized service centers around the world. ETC stands for Electronic Theatre Controls. […]
In a statement Friday, the company called Foster “a visionary, an innovator, and a role model.”
“The ETC culture of family, support, and encouragement is attributed to Foster and his vision of a creating a people-focused environment. It’s difficult to put into words what it has been like to work for and with such an inspiring leader,” the company said.
Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Kane County State’s Attorney Joe McMahon today filed a petition for a writ of mandamus in the Illinois Supreme Court challenging the legality of former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke’s prison sentence.
The mandamus petition challenges the prison sentence issued Jan. 18 by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Vincent Gaughan following Van Dyke’s conviction for the shooting death of Laquan McDonald. Gaughan sentenced Van Dyke to 81 months in prison based on his conviction for second degree murder and not the more serious charges of 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm.
Raoul and McMahon, the special prosecutor who tried the case against Van Dyke, will work collaboratively in asking the Supreme Court to review whether the sentence was proper under the law. In their filing, Raoul and McMahon asked the court to direct Judge Gaughan to vacate Van Dyke’s sentence for second degree murder, impose a sentence on each of the 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, and determine which of the aggravated battery with a firearm convictions involved “severe bodily injury” warranting consecutive sentences.
“After conducting a thorough review of the record in this case and the law, and in consultation with the special prosecutor, I determined that a mandamus action must be pursued in the Illinois Supreme Court,” Raoul said. “I appreciate the work done by the Kane County State’s Attorney throughout this case, and my office will continue to work with his as we seek the Supreme Court’s review.”
“It is important that a police officer was held accountable for criminal conduct,” said McMahon. “But we argued at the sentencing hearing that Jason Van Dyke should be sentenced for the aggravated battery with a firearm convictions. The ability for the prosecution to challenge a sentence is very narrow, but this might be one of those situations.”
If the petition is accepted by the court, Van Dyke’s attorneys will have seven days to file an objection, unless the court sets a different deadline. There is no timeframe for the court to rule on whether it will accept the petition and consider it.
Monday, Feb 11, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Right now the next Big Tobacco industry is using Illinois’ sad finances as an excuse to put more drugs on our streets. As we fight to increase age limits for our kids to buy cigarettes and try to stem the tide of the opioid crisis, Big Marijuana is rushing to create an unchecked pot industry in our state. They don’t want you to ask questions, and they don’t want you to know the facts about the rush to legalization.
Fact #1: Marijuana potency has increased in some cases twenty-fold (up to 99% THC) since the 70s when Woodstock weed was about 5%. Fact #2: High potency marijuana is marketed through colorful candies, gummies, and sodas to tempt children. Fact #3: In Colorado, drugged driving went from killing one person every 6.5 days to one person every 2.5 days.
We must ask the tough questions during the rush to legalize the next big business in the state. There must be a better way to solve the state’s budget mess. Creating a new drug industry isn’t a smart one. Visit www.healthyillinois.org to learn more and stop the next Big Tobacco industry in Illinois.
Surrounded by criminal justice reform advocates at the Safer Foundation, Governor JB Pritzker took executive action establishing the Justice, Equity and Opportunity (JEO) Initiative that will be housed under and spearheaded by Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton.
The JEO Initiative will centralize the state’s criminal justice reform efforts by fostering coordination and collaboration among stakeholders, executive agencies and organizations from across the state. With the goal of creating a justice system that reflects Illinois’ values, the initiative will conduct research, pilot programs and advocate for legislation to ensure all branches of government are working proactively to expand fairness and equity.
“For Illinois to truly lead on criminal justice reform, we must bring real and lasting economic opportunity to every corner of our state. It’s no accident that this initiative puts Justice, Equity and, Opportunity side by side,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “With decades of experience working to bring reform to our system of justice in Illinois, I can think of no better person to spearhead this initiative than our Lieutenant Governor, Juliana Stratton.”
“Criminal justice reform has been a focus throughout my professional career and I thank Governor Pritzker for believing in me to lead this initiative, and I will proudly oversee these much-needed efforts,” said Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton. “This is needed because our justice system is not working. The JEO Initiative will move us from a strictly punitive system to one that examines the root causes of the issues we face while creating solutions that put community at the center.”
Addressing needed reforms at the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) will be a top priority of the initiative. Currently around 43,000 people are imprisoned in the IDOC prison system, which was built for about 32,000. Violent crime has increased 18 percent between 2016 and 2017. Illinois spends more than $1.3 billion a year on IDOC, with budgets increasing even as the prison population decreases. And nearly 48 percent of people released from prison will recidivate within the following three years.
The JEO Initiative will work to reverse those trends through the following components:
Within 90 days, the initiative will deliver a report to the Office of the Governor describing the goals and the deliverables for its first year.
On January 1 of each year, the initiative will deliver a report to the Office of the Governor describing their accomplishments, as well as the opportunities and challenges the Initiative encounters and the goals and deliverables for the upcoming year.
Spearheaded by Lt. Gov. Stratton, the initiative will have three full-time staff within the Office of the Lieutenant Governor.
* He’s the new Chicago bogeyman. From a press release…
Chicago mayoral candidate Lori Lightfoot released the following statement in response to recent news regarding Alderman Ed Burke.
“Every day, it’s a different mayoral candidate connected with Ed Burke in a different way,” said Lightfoot. “Just in the past few days, we’ve read about Gery Chico defending his decision to serve as Ed Burke’s chief of policy during Burke’s racist Council Wars, Garry McCarthy certifying six ex-Chicago cops as special police officers for Ed Burke, and Toni Preckwinkle ally Joe Berrios giving Ed Burke a property tax break just for asking.
“Voters don’t want a mayor bought and paid for by Ed Burke. While an endless stream of news stories shows mayoral candidates tied to Ed Burke and his broken political machine, I stand apart as an independent reformer ready to lead our city in a new, progressive direction.”
The past is always fair game, of course, and so she’s well within her rights to go after her opponents on this stuff. It would be malpractice not to do so.
But even if Burke wins reelection he’ll be a shell of his former self. And there’s nobody in the city council who can easily fill those shoes.
* Related…
* Sun-Times Endorsement: : Lori Lightfoot for mayor — and a new Chicago Way: Mayoral candidates and re-election-seeking aldermen have been tripping over each other in a rush to condemn Burke and propose ethics reforms. Lightfoot was way ahead of them. She targeted Burke for removal as Finance chairman even before the unprecedented Nov. 29 raid on his ward and City Hall offices. She also released an ethics plan that would prohibit aldermen from holding paid side jobs that conflict with the city’s interests.
* Lori Lightfoot’s new ad takes aim at the issue that’s redefined the Chicago mayor’s race: Public corruption: “Candidates try distancing themselves from Ed Burke,” Lightfoot says in the ad, titled “Light,” before photos of City Hall veteran Gery Chico, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza and former U.S. Commerce Secretary Bill Daley appear on the dimly lit screen. “The truth is, they’re all tied to the same broken Chicago machine. Except me.”
* Lightfoot TV ad shines light on ‘Burke Four’ she says are ‘like cockroaches’: According to Lightfoot, the commercial was filmed at the Palmer House Hilton in a room with an “escape exit” where Al Capone used to play poker; he could sneak out that secret door when his lookouts in the lobby told him the police were on their way up.
That’s the question we have after a measure to increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour over the next six years zoomed out of the Illinois Senate in less than two days. The distressing answer appears to be that new Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker is putting politics above policy on a serious issue that has huge implications for the state’s economy. […]
Given how heavily Pritzker campaigned on raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, it was expected that a proposal to provide a bump would be brought up this legislative session. But the speed at which it has flown through the Senate — with the promise to do the same in the House this week — is troublesome. Business leaders say they have concerns about the proposal and ideas they want to be considered, but aren’t being heard. It’s disappointing that Pritzker — who wants this approved by the time he gives his first budget address Feb. 20 — is pushing for his first major legislative win at the cost of breaking his vow that he would seek compromise before decisions with far-reaching implications are made.
The legislative language for the pay increase was introduced Wednesday and the Senate voted on the measure the next day. Key details are always missed when any legislation is rushed. What repercussions are being overlooked here, and how much will those consequences cost taxpayers when it’s discovered? […]
Policy and politics are always intertwined at the state Capitol. Unfortunately for Illinois, the governor and Democratic leaders are pushing the political in their rush to hastily approve this bill.
A nearly identical bill passed both the House and Senate in 2017 only to be vetoed by the governor. We’re going to see a lot more of those vetoed bills come up for debate this session.
We’ve also had the benefit of watching Chicago’s minimum wage increases take effect and their impact on lower income neighborhoods.
…Adding… A commenter makes a good point…
Also it was punted on in 2014 because the Speaker wanted an advisory referendum, so this is 5 years late.
…Adding… Another good point in comments…
Just because the legislative calendar resets doesn’t mean everyone’s knowledge and recent history are wiped out.
So, it’s not like this isn’t some foreign concept.
* But, yeah, this was most definitely put on a fast track, partly because it was doable early on (because it had passed before) and partly to get it out of the way before the budget address, after which spring sessions tend to go in a million different directions (I’ve talked about other reasons with subscribers).
This early push has been smart politics by the governor. Whether it’s smart policy or not will be known once the raises start to kick in. But he campaigned incessantly on a $15 an hour minimum wage and, as the headline states, elections have consequences, particularly when you have a friendly General Assembly to work with.
It’s not every day that a group of corporate chieftains makes a forceful and concerted argument for a tax increase. And yet, Chicago’s largest employers, members of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, did just that on Feb. 5, recommending to new Gov. J.B. Pritzker a plan to pay off more than $130 billion in state pension debt largely through a series of significant tax hikes.
Give the folks at the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago credit for a comprehensive approach to solving Illinois’ financial and economic crisis.
When the grand pooh-bahs of Chicago business offered their solution to the state’s pension crisis a few days ago, they were roundly attacked—by almost everybody. Liberals and conservatives alike had a grand time ridiculing the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago for daring to unveil a plan that did not fully follow their ideology.
That magazine has always had the Civic Committee’s back, including when the group was leading the charge for unconstitutional pension reforms.
Similarly, the new governor should take advantage of his honeymoon period in Springfield to work with Republican leadership to hammer out pension solutions—and those solutions should include tearing a page from Arizona’s playbook. That state, like Illinois, has a constitutional clause protecting pensions, but its leaders also managed to reach an agreement with unions on an amendment that eased funding woes.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s inaugural address was most noteworthy for what he left out.
He went on for 2,600-plus words without mentioning the most urgent and potentially destructive crisis facing Illinois. The new governor had nothing to say about $130 billion in unfunded pension obligations to state employees, a yawning black hole of debt that threatens to swallow the state budget and suffocate Illinois’ economy. […]
Any reduction in benefits would require a constitutional amendment and concessions by state employee unions that backed Pritzker in the campaign. That would be difficult, but not impossible. Arizona, which also has a constitutional clause protecting pensions, managed to reach agreement with employee unions on an amendment that eased funding woes.
Pritzker shows no interest in following suit.
Pritzker clearly campaigned in the opposite direction, but Crain’s and others were still demanding that he see things their way.
* So, kudos to the Civic Committee for starting to turn Crain’s around. Here’s this week’s editorial…
The Civic Committee’s plan notably does not call for constitutional changes that would generate savings by requiring workers to pay more, accept reduced benefits, or both. That’s unfortunate. But the organization seems to be betting that a nearer-term infusion of new revenue will buy the state the time it needs to pursue more fundamental reforms.
Yes, a better approach would be to amend the constitution to allow reductions in pension benefits. But such an amendment is a nonstarter under newly elected Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, who answer to public employee unions unwilling to countenance any benefit cuts.
The Civic Committee folks actually tried to base their plan on what Pritzker has hinted would be acceptable to him, at least in part. There are no nasty worker givebacks to rile labor unions and no talk of amending the Illinois Constitution, as other groups, including the Civic Federation, have recommended. Instead, consistent with recent trends on where the pension debate is headed, the Civic Committee proposed paying down the debt early by putting an extra $2 billion a year into the funds. Taxes would have to be levied to get that money, but over the next three decades, the committee estimates, such a move would save taxpayers a cool $46 billion.
There are indeed some worker givebacks in the plan centering around health insurance, but I get where he’s going.
* The Civic Committee’s basic idea is to pump a bunch more money into the pension funds to lower interests costs in the out-years, which is indeed what Pritzker has been talking about for months. They differ only in how to get there. Pritzker wants a progressive income tax, the Civic Committee argues for a flat tax.
Split the difference: How about a temporary flat income tax hike that’s guaranteed by law to sunset if and only if a progressive income tax is fully implemented? We’d find out in a hurry if the Civic Committee’s plan was merely floated to stave off a graduated tax scheme with that one.
Still, the proposal could be improved. It doesn’t go far enough in taxing services, for example, suggesting only that the sales tax be extended to enough services to raise $500 million. But Illinois could bring in $1.2 billion by taxing all the services taxed by Iowa, researchers at the Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting & Accountability estimate. The plan also proposes eliminating estate taxes and portions of the franchise taxes, which raise a combined $495 million. The group argues these taxes make Illinois an outlier among the states, but they smack of special pleading.
Whatever the case, if the Civic Committee’s greatest contribution to the debate is the abandonment by the chattering class of the fruitless Arizona-style plan (click here for why it’s fruitless) and the need for new revenues, then my hat is off to them.
As Pritzker prepares to deliver his first spending plan to lawmakers Feb. 20, his administration said it is facing a $3.2 billion hole for the budget year that begins July 1. That deficit is more than $400 million deeper than the Rauner administration estimated before leaving office. […]
Throughout his campaign, Pritzker repeated his plan to shift from a flat state income tax to a federal-style graduated system in which higher earners would pay higher rates. But that requires an amendment to the Illinois Constitution, which would take almost two years to get on the ballot for voter approval.
His other ideas for generating new revenue — legalizing and taxing recreational marijuana and sports betting — also would take time to implement and wouldn’t raise the substantial sums that an income tax change could. […]
A separate report released Friday from Pritkzer’s transition team raised the prospect of expanding the state sales tax to some services — a concept long discussed and disregarded. It even raised the prospect of a statewide tax on plastic bags such as the one imposed in Chicago.
Illinois should take measures to broaden their tax base by exploring new sources of revenue. This committee believes several areas could be particularly productive. The state could levy a sales or excise tax on products and services that have traditionally been exempted in Illinois but not exempt from taxation in neighboring states. These categories include new products (e.g., e-cigarettes, cannabis), products that carry a cost to society (e.g., plastic bags), and various services that have been traditionally exempt.
The legalization of untaxed industries — including sports betting, internet gaming, and cannabis usage — would generate additional annual revenues. New sources of revenue should be considered through both a fiscal and a fairness lens, and the state should prioritize progressive taxes that help the middle class and those striving to get there.
All of these revenue sources combined couldn’t plug the state’s $3 billion deficit. Service taxes would likely provide the most. The e-cigarettes tax is an interesting thought.
[Deputy Governor Dan Hynes] says details haven’t been ironed out about how a vaping tax might work. Taxation on vapor products varies across the country, with some states taxing a percentage of the wholesale value while others tax per unit or milliliter of e-liquid. Last year, Chicago passed an ordinance that hiked the city’s e-cigarette tax to $1.50 from 80 cents per container, and to $1.20 from 55 cents per milliliter of liquid nicotine.
The idea of a state tax on e-cigarettes emerged from the budget transition committee. “Every mom and dad who has a teenage adolescent child will stand up and applaud,” Hynes said.
The rapid growth of e-cigarette use, or “vaping,” among teens is generating concern among the health-care community. Taxing may help curb that use. Vaping is considered less harmful than smoking cigarettes, but its health risks are still not known.
Hynes reiterated that the e-cigarette tax combined with sports betting and legalized marijuana are ideas that won’t solve the state’s budget problems overnight. “It’s a multi-year, multi-budget solution. And so while we take those multiyear steps we have to be disciplined in spending. We have to keep control of spending and make inroads into reducing the deficit–and then get everyone united on the idea of the graduated income tax.”
Was Gov. J.B. PRITZKER trying to lower expectations for his first budget proposal or start setting the stage for a graduated income tax? Or both?
* Meanwhile…
.@JBPritzker about the FY 19 budget - "“I applaud the bipartisan working group and the General Assembly for passing a state budget." I voted against the unbalanced budget. The Pritzker Jobs Tax (aka progressive tax) would kills jobs and hurt families. We need to cut spending! https://t.co/myspuwrdx9
“I applaud the bipartisan working group and the General Assembly for passing a state budget–something Bruce Rauner has never done,” said JB Pritzker. “Instead of doing his job, this failed governor forced our state into a historic 736 days without a budget, decimating higher education and human services and doing damage that will take years to rebuild. Three and a half years into his term, I urge Bruce Rauner to resist his heartless instincts to play politics with people’s lives and sign a full budget for the first time. Hardworking Illinois taxpayers deserve more than going years without a spending plan, and when I’m governor, I will always work in good faith with lawmakers to get the job done.”
Two “dark money” groups are stepping up to separately promote and attack the new governor’s agenda.
“Think Big Illinois,” a brand new 501(c)(4) organization which doesn’t have to disclose its donors, will be supporting Gov. JB Pritzker, whose 2018 campaign slogans included “Think big.” The organization will be headed by Quentin Fulks, who served as Pritzker’s deputy campaign manager.
“A $15 minimum wage is the first in a series of progressive policies Think Big Illinois will advocate for in the coming months,” a press release says.
The group appears to be the likely conduit for Pritzker and others to fund a public push for the progressive income tax if it makes it onto the 2020 ballot. Both legislative chambers first have to approve the proposal with three-fifths majorities, and then voters get a crack at it. Neither step is guaranteed.
Defeating that progressive income tax proposal at the ballot box is now the main goal of another dark money not-for-profit group which has been around for years. The Coalition for Jobs, Growth and Prosperity launched a new website last week called “Ideas for Illinois.” The website is fairly innocuous so far, but the people who run it say their ultimate goal is to become the prime conduit for opposition to the governor’s progressive income tax if and/or when it reaches the ballot.
The coalition was founded by Chicago businessman Ron Gidwitz and former Illinois Manufacturers’ Association honcho Greg Baise in 2004, and has since raised $30 million for various projects. Gidwitz is now an ambassador, so he’s been replaced by his brother Jim. Day-to-day operations will be handled by Jason Heffley, who ran Republican Erika Harold’s attorney general race last year. Mike Zolnierowicz, who was Gov. Bruce Rauner’s first chief of staff and left during the first round of staff purges to work with Baise, will oversee the operation.
It’s expected that if Pritzker can get a “fair tax” on the ballot next year he’ll put his money where his mouth is to pass it. And as we saw last year, the man can spend money faster than anyone outside the Pentagon.
Baise will try to tap into the resulting reaction of fear and loathing by upper income types to try and counter Pritzker’s spending. It’s a pretty good bet that the money will be there. The top task of wealthy Illinoisans for the past decade, including Bruce Rauner’s election, was stopping a graduated income tax from being imposed here.
Gov. Pritzker ran on a promise of taxing the wealthy, so he likely interprets his 16-point win over Rauner as a mandate to get that done.
Baise’s group, however, ran some election day polling which asked voters: “Do you support a progressive income tax – that is, a tax system that imposes a lower tax rate on low-income earners, while those with higher incomes pay a higher tax rate?” According to the We Ask America poll, 53 percent of Illinois voters supported the tax.
Now, you may or may not agree with the poll’s wording. A slight change here and there and maybe the idea would’ve received more support (or less). The Pritzker campaign tested dozens of ideas before settling on the billionaire candidate saying he only wanted to raise taxes on people like him.
A state constitutional amendment requires the support of three-fifths of those voting on the question or a majority of those voting in the election, so 53 percent likely wouldn’t be enough. And Colorado voters rejected a proposed constitutional amendment just last year to increase taxes on people with incomes over $150,000 by a 53.5 to 46.4 margin.
The opponents’ attack will include the easy layup of exploiting Illinoisans’ distrust of their state government, particularly its inability to balance its budget over the years despite tax hikes. A hefty dose of messaging against the unpopular House Speaker Michael Madigan will undoubtedly be part of their play.
Baise and his associates do not want to get involved in Republican Party-type issues and just focus on beating back the progressive tax.
If President Trump is on the ticket next year, not a whole lot of money will be funneled into Republican state legislative races here because it would be so fruitless. And there are no statewide races except for US Senate. But a progressive income tax ballot question could very well open up a whole lot of wealthy wallets, so, if nothing else, they have a decent business plan.
