Here’s my dad way back in the day with his brother Denny…
Dad’s the one on the left. Sharp. I’m named after him, but I was never quite as cool as he was in those days.
* My dad has this kind of annoying habit of falling in love with a song so much that he will listen to it all day and all night for weeks on end. At one point, a brother of mine made Dad a 90-minute cassette tape with just this one particular song playing over and over and over and over again. You did not want to be in Dad’s car when that tape was playing and I have avoided it ever since (the song, not the car). But it’s always been a funny story to tell and I decided to listen to it again today for the heck of it. This one’s for you, Daddy-O…
* As you are well aware, Gov. Pritzker has been taking massive heat from Republicans and even some Democrats and the news media over his appointments to the Illinois Prisoner Review Board and what that PRB has done about prisoner releases. But he seems undeterred. From an appointments press release…
Carmen Terrones will serve as a Member of the Prisoner Review Board. Terrones is currently an Independent Consultant at Connecting Communities where she works to increase the potential of underserved communities by fostering empowerment and exposure to restorative justice principles and practices. Prior to this, Terrones served as a Senior Associate at Haywood Burns Institute in California, working primarily with their Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative Portfolio. Her work for the justice system began in Illinois as Terrones worked for both and the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice and the Cook County Juvenile Probation Department in several different capacities. Terrones serves her community as a board member for Restorative Justice Hubs, Corazón Community Services, Centrally Human, TecHive, the Institute on Public Safety and Social Justice- Adler University, and The Annie E. Casey Foundation Applied Leadership Network. She began her formal education in the field at Western Illinois University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Law Enforcement and continued on at Walden University in Minneapolis, where she earned a master’s of psychology.
That’s quite an impressive resume, but we’ll see what the Senate does.
* And they buried this person’s McLean County Board position in the release…
Matthew Coates will serve as a Member of the Prisoner Review Board. Coates recently begun his role as the Director of Communications at Bloomington Public School District 87. In this role, he develops and maintains informational communication in support of the district’s programs. Prior to this position, he was a Restorative School Specialist at Project Oz, a Clinical Coordinator of Youth Services, and a Comprehensive Community based Crisis Counselor at the Children’s Home Association of Illinois. Coates is currently a member on several boards including: Project Oz, McLean County, Illinois Collaboration of Youth Policy Committee, and Breaking Chains Advancing Increase School of Arts. In 2021, he earned a certificate in Leadership with Mclean County Chamber of Commerce and is a graduate of Peoria County Citizen’s Leadership Academy. His robust educational experience began at Illinois Central College where he earned an associate degree in Liberal Arts & Sciences in 2008. He went on to earn his Bachelor of Science Degree in Communication at Illinois State University, graduating in 2011. Coates graduated top of his class at Bradley University, earning a master’s degree in Leadership in Nonprofit organizations.
He was a restorative school specialist for Project Oz between August 2018 and February, where he served as a “social-emotional support coach” for students and faculty at Bloomington High School through Project Oz’s Youth Empowered Schools program, according to his resume.
In his roughly five-minute pitch to executive committee members, Coates referred to his time assisting neighbors while growing up in Peoria, such as shoveling snow or playing with and helping neighborhood kids.
“Since I was a child, my upbringing consisted of watching my parent help people,” Coates said. “In various different ways, we were a pretty tight-knit community in my neighborhood growing up and that’s something that’s just — ‘That apple doesn’t usually fall too far (from the tree).’”
* As I told you late yesterday, Gov. Pritzker kicked in his second $500K installment to the Democratic Party of Illinois. And now this…
Hope they list that as an in-kind to Paul. /s
Also, it occurred to me that I haven’t done any “Shenanigans!” blog posts this cycle because every day brings at least one. Shenanigans is now our default mode, I suppose.
* Sen. Celina Villanueva (D-Chicago) reported receiving $61K in campaign contributions on the same day her opponent was endorsed by the Tribune. Her primary opponent hasn’t reported any contributions in the last month and a half. Villanueva should renew her subscription.
* The other day, I had you rate a broadcast TV ad from Rep. Mike Zalewski (D-Riverside) that tried to tie his opponent to Mike Madigan. This is a new rebuttal cable TV from Zalewski’s opponent Abdelnasser Rashid…
Mike Zalewski was a lobbyist for ComEd. Then Mike Madigan appointed him state representative and Zalewski voted to raise utility rates to record levels. This year? Zalewski introduced a law to raise the gas tax while we suffer at the pump. We can’t afford Mike Zalewski.
The corrupt Madigan Zalewski machine will say or do anything to win. Zalewski lies about Rashid having a Republican donor. The donor is actually a Democrat who gave to President Obama, Senator Durbin and Congressman Garcia. You just can’t trust Mike Zalewski.
A whole lot coming at you in that spot.
* As subscribers know, the Senate Democrats have funneled a ton of cash and other advantages to newly appointed Sen. Eric Mattson (D-Joliet) in his primary race against progressive Democrat Rachel Ventura…
Today, Democratic Candidate for State Senate Eric Mattson announced the endorsement of U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL).
“Eric Mattson is prepared to be a voice for the people in Springfield,” said Senator Duckworth. “As a career firefighter, he’s served his community as a first responder, volunteer and union leader. Throughout the pandemic his leadership and dedication helped the members of his community get vaccinated, protecting themselves and others. Mattson is the public servant the people of the 43rd District deserve in Springfield.”
“I am grateful to have the support of Senator Duckworth,” said State Senator Eric Mattson. “As a veteran firefighter of 26 years, and am honored by the Senator’s service and sacrifice for this country, and I look forward to working with her to bring jobs and opportunities to the 43rd.”
* Remember this Greg Hinz piece about attorney general candidate Steve Kim’s ties to the Saudi Kingdom?…
In a phone interview, Kim said the sole function of Global Business Ventures was to link American firms to good international investments. Beyond that, he said he never received “any compensation” from the Saudi government, and that he left Global Business Ventures awhile ago—“maybe a year or two; I don’t remember”—and gave up his “very small” equity interest for free.
A spokesman later added that Kim’s major opponent in the June 28 Republican primary, downstate attorney Thomas DeVore, has not displayed the temperament voters should expect in an attorney general.
Steve Kim says he thinks I don’t have the temperament for the Attorney General office. It that the best he’s got. Lol!! It seems he believes fighting directly and indirectly to protect the rights of millions of kids, tens of thousands of small businesses and tens of thousands of public employees gives me a bad temperament. It seems he thinks spending thousands of hours over two years educating and empowering everyday citizens gives me a bad temperament. He’s right I have a street fighter temperament as that’s what it takes to fend off the tyranny of Pritzker and his minions. Mr. Kim is the same old, same old type of establishment politician that has already been rebuked by the people of Illinois in two failed statewide elections. He is tied at the hip to the Richard Irvin establishment RINO’s and there is zero chance he would ever take the fight to corruption and government overreach in this state. Him and Jimmy Boy Durkin are cut from the same cloth and Mr. Kim would be emboldened to the Republican establishment just ask Kwame is emboldened to the Democrat establishment.
It seems the reckless roadshow, snake oil salesman, grifter with a bad temperament is my new call sign. LOL
These people are ridiculous and have no idea how to save this state. If the people want more of the same, elect these RINO’s. If you want to create real change, you might consider electing patriot street fighters who will fight for your families when it’s not popular!!
There are 17,520 total hours in two calendar years. He must be quadruplets.
— Leading candidates in IL-03 gearing up for a close race: “This is a race that pits a sitting Chicago alderman against a sitting state representative from the city, each trying to balance their progressive credentials with the need to appeal to typically more conservative DuPage County voters out in the western part of the new district,” reports ABC 7’s Craig Wall.
— Sen. Dick Durbin has endorsed Nancy Shepherdson for 5th District State Central Committeewoman seat. Shepherdson is an incumbent (redistricted into the 5th) who’s in the race with state Rep. Margaret Croke — who’s endorsed by Gov. JB Pritzker — and MWD’s [sic] Mariyana Spyropoulos
— Bernie’s back: Sen. Bernie Sanders hosts a “Get Out the Vote” rally Saturday at 9:30 a.m. in Humboldt Park. Sanders, who endorsed Delia Ramirez for the IL-03 race, is in Chicago for the annual “Labor Notes” conference that brings together workplace organizers and union representatives from across the country. … Sun-Times has more here. … The “Get Out the Vote” rally is free but RSVPs encouraged here.
— Richard Uihlein and Elizabeth Uihlein have each donated $2,900 to Catalina Lauf’s bid for Congress in the IL-11 Republican primary. […]
— Precious Brady-Davis, candidate for commissioner at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, is out with a new video. If she wins she’d be the first trans woman of color to be elected in Illinois. The ad’s tag line, “nothing is more precious than water.”
That Precious Brady-Davis video is pretty well-done.
* CD3…
Today, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) is endorsing State Representative Delia Ramirez for Congress in Illinois’ 3rd District.
Delia Ramirez is running for an open seat in the newly-drawn district, which now covers Chicago’s Northwest Side and suburbs. It contains a Latino plurality and is strongly Democratic.
Polling shows Delia Ramirez is the frontrunner in four-way primary, where she leads 19% to 11% over Chicago Alderman Gilbert Villegas. In addition to the PCCC, Ramirez has been endorsed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the Working Families Party, and the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC. If elected, she would be the first Latina in Congress from the Midwest.
“Delia Ramirez doesn’t just wage uphill battles against establishment lawmakers—she wins meaningful change for the people,” the PCCC said in an email to its membership. “Delia Ramirez leads on issues that are central to the working families she represents, like lowering prescription drug prices and fighting for a $15 minimum wage. Instead of taking corporate PAC money, she has pushed to end the revolving door between lawmakers and lobbyists. This is the kind of transformative leadership we need in Congress.”
“I am proud to receive the endorsement of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which is building grassroots power across our country to pass Medicare for All, Paid Family Leave, and the expansion of Social Security so that everyone in our country can have the care that they need when they need it,” said Delia Ramirez (IL-03). “I look forward to working with them to continue to charge the path for bold progressive policies in Congress.”
The daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, Delia Ramirez’s focus on bold, transformative solutions to homelessness and poverty is inspired by her childhood experience volunteering at a soup kitchen. As a nonprofit executive, community organizer, and Illinois state legislator, she has consistently prioritized housing insecurity. Delia Ramirez passed the COVID-19 Emergency Housing Act to protect renters from eviction and homeowners from foreclosure, and secured funding for a tenant and landlord pandemic relief fund.
The PCCC has raised over $35 million for progressive candidates and committees this past decade. The PCCC will fundraise for Delia Ramirez from its nearly-million members nationally and will recruit volunteers and local endorsements from its 15,000 Illinois members.
In 2007, Chicago officials and civic leaders had an idea: to create a nonprofit organization that would bring Olympic sports to the city’s youth, promote Chicago as an international sporting metropolis and, in turn, boost the city’s chances of securing the 2016 Olympic bid.
When Chicago infamously lost its bid for the games, backers of World Sport Chicago insisted the nonprofit would still carry on a legacy — bringing sports and the “ideals of the Olympic movement” to underserved youth.
In 2015, Kambium Buckner — current Chicago mayoral candidate, state representative and former employee with the Chicago Cubs — took over the nonprofit, and promised to use WSC to give kids in “forgotten pockets” of the city “opportunities and chances to succeed and to survive.”
But a WBEZ analysis shows that, while Buckner carried out that mission for several years, World Sport Chicago slowly dissolved, its finances diminished and money spent on programming for kids decreased during his tenure. This all came as documents show Buckner’s salary nearly tripled, from $137,352 to $364,159 in just four years, before the organization was “involuntarily dissolved” by the state last year.
Buckner is among seven others vying for the 2023 mayoral seat. He announced his campaign in May with a “four star” plan that includes “safety and justice,” improved education, economic recovery — as well as stabilizing the city’s long-troubled finances. In his campaign literature, he has touted his time at World Sport Chicago, saying he brought sports to 70,000 students.
* CD14…
Senator Sue Rezin (SD38), a leading conservative voice in Illinois’ legislature, endorses Kendall County Board Chairman, Scott R. Gryder, frontrunner for nomination of the Republican Party to challenge Lauren Underwood for Illinois’ 14th Congressional District.
Calling Gryder the candidate “best equipped to take on Lauren Underwood in November,” Senator Rezin highlighted Scott’s “proven track record of strong leadership and sound fiscal policy.”
Contrasting Underwood’s “far left, progressive ideologies,” Rezin believes Gryder will “bring his common-sense conservatism to Washington, D.C. and will focus on stopping wasteful spending, protecting patients’ rights, standing up for our veterans, and securing our borders.”
Upon receiving the endorsement of Senator Rezin, Gryder released the following statement:
“My campaign for Illinois’ 14th District is being waged on behalf of the hard-working families struggling under the policies and failures of leadership exhibited by Lauren Underwood and her allies in Washington, Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi. It’s time for a change, and I am honored that Senator Sue Rezin, a conservative leader we know and trust believes my pro-growth, pro-family, pro-freedom approach is the right choice for our district and our future. I thank Senator Rezin for her friendship, her confidence in my leadership, and her support as I prepare to take on Lauren Underwood.”
* How’s he gonna withhold the salaries of state’s attorneys?…
That was sent to a Downstate D3 voter, by the way.
…Adding… [I’ve pulled this release down for now.]
*** UPDATE *** I had quickly posted a press release and then thought about it and quickly took it down. The release was from the Kari Steele campaign claiming “At least two of Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi’s senior officials have broken the law on the County’s residency requirements for employees, which mandates that employees live in Cook County.” This is from the assessor’s office Chief Legal Officer Tatia Gibbons…
The courts have ruled that the law cited here is unenforceable against the majority of county employees. In order to treat all employees similarly, the Assessor chose to adopt the same approach for all employees. This decision was made by the Assessor after consulting with the County Independent Inspector General to ensure that this was an appropriate course of action.
* First, take a look at this ad for judicial candidates Howard Brookins and Tom Nowinski…
Not bad.
* Now, I don’t usually post low-level circuit court ads, but the pitch was interesting. As you probably know, early voting turnout, in Cook County at least, is in the absolute tank right now. This person’s pitch was that the voting population will be heavily skewed to older Democrats, who tend to vote no matter wha, and that’s who they’re targeting here with their broadcast buy. And, because the primary is so late, TV ad rates have dropped for the summer. Here’s the pitch, slightly edited by me with updated information and a deletion of a bad word…
A real broadcast TV buy - 390 gross ratings points for 55 and older. That age group will be at least half the Dem primary electorate.
The money total is at least $150,000 (trying to add more, but that much has been wired). The buy starts this weekend.
Here’s why, I think, it’s an interesting story.
Normally these judges have so few options running countywide and reaching a half a million voters or more. But this year is different because the TV sweeps period is over and rates are cheaper. Admittedly, there are less eyeballs around because it’s summer, but we are about to have our first primary in June in our history. Turnout could be [very] low and if it is, those are older people, more likely to be Black, and less likely to be jet-setting out of town. So, they’ll catch daytime TV and some news.
Howard and Tom teaming up like this gets a lower cost to each candidate, but also something kind of memorable. This ad stands out in the crowd and it also repeats their names four times with “Democrats” on the screen the whole time.
So, something like this never happens but for the fact that our primary was moved. It’s rate the ad and rate the strategy.
You can feel free to rate both the ad and the strategy, and/or talk about what you think turnout will be and who will vote and what that could mean.
* Let’s circle back to Gov. Pritzker’s one-hour Q&A during yesterday’s Crain’s Fast 50 Business Luncheon. The moderator was referring here to policies like abortion rights…
Q: You’ve been a pretty staunch advocate that you think Illinois is on the right side of these policies. And that that’s actually a net benefit to us in attracting people and companies. But you’ve also got things like Caterpillar moving its headquarters down to Texas, which, you know, is moving in the opposite direction. And people really ask the question when it comes to economic development, when it comes to headquarters moves, is the bottom line wins over everything? Do you still think that those policies, you know, pay off for us economically?
Pritzker: Well, let me remind you that, just like with population, you have some people that leave a state, other people that come to a state. You’re looking for a net positive. And that’s what we’ve had with our population growth. The same thing is true about job growth, the availability of jobs. We’re going to have ebbs and flows of business and companies.
But the goal here is to make sure that we’re attracting people and businesses. The policies that you’re referring to, I’m not suggesting that these are economic development policies, but fighting for a woman’s right to choose, fighting for LGBTQ rights, fighting for individual rights and civil rights. I mean, these are fundamental beliefs of mine. I think this is what the people of Illinois believe in as well. That’s why I’m fighting for them.
Do they - this is the question that I answered in a Chicago Tribune interview - Do they also help us attract people and businesses? Yes, they do. That the very people who are coming into the high-growth businesses that we’re stoking the fires of in Illinois, biotechnology, technology, I’ve talked about some of them today. The people that are looking for those kinds of high-talent jobs, these are people who don’t want to live in Texas because they’ve taken away a woman’s right to choose. They don’t want to live in Missouri, they don’t want to live in Oklahoma, they don’t want to live in Florida, where they’re taking away people’s rights. And so they’re going to their companies in Texas and Florida and elsewhere and they’re saying to their bosses, ‘What do I do when I need to go exercise my reproductive health,’ for example.
Now, companies sometimes are creating programs, ‘We’ll fly you out of state’ - you may have read about this - ‘to help you get the rights that you deserve, right to get the treatment that you need.’ But eventually, you’ve got to, you know, you want to put your business where not only your employees are satisfied with and happy with the environment they’re living in, but also where you’ve got a bunch of highly talented workers already pre-existing.
That’s what Illinois is, right? We’re a state that stands up for people’s rights. And we’ve got a bunch of highly talented workers. So yeah, I do think in the long run it benefits the state of Illinois.
Does it happen overnight? Like everything, right, creating one tax incentive or creating a benefit for individuals and protecting people’s rights. That’s something that seeps into the groundwater, in my view, for workers and for companies.
And eventually, and I can say this about the film industry, we just announced about an hour or two ago, that Illinois now has had a record amount of revenue produced as a result of film and television and advertising investment that’s been made in the state of Illinois. So, you know, more than ever before, we’re having people come here. One of the reasons for that, and I hear this from producers, is because their talent wants to be in Illinois. They don’t want to be in Georgia, where they’re taking away people’s voting rights and their LGBTQ rights and their reproductive rights. They don’t want to be in those places. They do want to be here. And that’s just a kind of leading indicator, if you ask me.
Q: They’re also very big fans of incentives, as I recall, right?
Pritzker: And we have a competitive incentive here with other states. So yeah, I mean, look, I get it, I was a businessman before I was governor. I get it, people want incentives. But it is, what I am hearing is good. We’re competitive in our incentives. And so that’s a reason for people to consider here. But the thing that really confirms it for them is that the people who are working for them are here, want to be in Illinois while they’re making these productions, and that we have the talent. DePaul is producing talent. We’ve got Cinespace and other studios that have been created in Illinois. We’re a great environment for that industry. And again, it’s the highest it’s a record amount of revenue that’s been created as a result of our … film and TV tax [credit].
A strike by the workers who produce gravel and other essential materials for roadwork is raising concerns it could hamstring a crucial construction season.
About 300 members of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 hit the picket lines June 7 at 35 Chicago-area facilities owned by Lehigh Hanson, Vulcan Materials Co. and Holcim, union officials said.
The labor action is causing shortages in vital supplies and already impinging on some road projects at what is typically the busiest time of the year, industry experts explained. […]
Local 150 representatives said a lack of building materials had caused work on a I-90 project near the Jane Byrne Interchange scheduled for Friday to be postponed.
* From Barry N. Voorn, Ozinga Ready Mix Concrete Inc. General Counsel…
You may have received a letter from Operating Engineers, Local 150 stating that they have a primary labor dispute with Ozinga Ready Mix Concrete, Inc. based on what Local 150 claims are unfair labor practice charges by Ozinga. I wanted to give you a history of this matter and to let you know that Local 150’s claims are baseless and how we plan to handle this matter going forward.
As you may be aware, Local 150 has been on strike against the Chicago Area Aggregates Producers Association (”CAAPA”) since June 7th. CMPA is made up of Vulcan, Lafarge Holcim and Lehigh Hanson. Once the strike started Local 150 began picketing CAAPA members at most if not all of their locations. At some of these against sites, Ozinga has operations on property of Vulcan and Lafarge Holcim that the Company leases and we set up a set up neutral gates at our entrances at these sites. Local 150 ignored the gate system that Ozinga put in place and picketed our operations in South Elgin, McCook and Marengo despite the fact that we had established a neutral gate.
Based on this action, Ozinga filed unfair labor practice charges against Local 150 alleging that their pickets were unlawful. The Company took picture of the picketers who were open about their pickets at the McCook site. Based on this action, Local 150 filed charges against Ozinga for what they claim is “surveillance.”
We believe that the unfair labor practice charges filed by Local 150 are without merit and that they have filed these charges to attempt to bring further pressure on their CMPA negotiations and in retaliation for Ozinga filing Charges against them. We believe that any picketing or threats to picket are unlawful and further violate the National Labor Relations Act and we will be filing additional charges as well as a potential lawsuit under Section 303 of the Labor Management Relations Act for any damages.
Local 150 violates the National Labor Relations Act if it threatens to picket your Company to force you to cease doing business with Ozinga or if it makes other threats or acts in a coercive manner toward your Company with an object of stopping you from doing business with Ozinga. Local 150 also violates the law if they cause your employees to strike or refuse to perform work in order to force your Company not to do business with Ozinga. This can subject Local 150 to monetary damages for your Company as well as Ozinga.
If any business agent of Local 150 threatens your Company with a strike or picket or engages in such activity to try to stop you from doing business with Ozinga, such actions may violate the National Labor Relations Act as well as Section 303 of the Labor Management Relations Act which may entitle your Company to collect damages from Local 150. If Local 150 or its agents engage in such activities, I would appreciate talking to you about any such actions. Thank you for your consideration and please do not hesitate to call me with any questions.
* I asked Local 150 for a response…
Ozinga is a customer of Vulcan, and therefore is prohibited from using a neutral gate by Vulcan’s own rules (attached). By using it, Ozinga taints that gate and makes it a legitimate site for picketing. This is fairly simple, and has been law for more than 60 years.
When Ozinga prepared unfair labor practice charges against Local 150, they sent those charges to the Teamsters they employ more than 12 hours before they sent them to Local 150. It appears that these charges were filed for little reason other than to intimidate the Teamsters from honoring the strike. This opens Ozinga to potential lawsuits.
We filed unfair labor practice charges against Ozinga for unlawfully surveilling a picket line without a legitimate purpose. For an employer to surveil a picket line, here has to be a reason other than legitimate section 7 protected activity, like violence, blocking, etc. None of these things have occurred on picket lines, and so there was no basis to surveil these employees.
While we have filed unfair labor practice charges against Ozinga, we are not currently on strike against it. We have reached out to managers and supervisors notifying them of the charges we filed against Ozinga, which is completely legal.
Ozinga’s letter is an effort to bully smaller employers and frighten us with damage lawsuits.
Ivan Claudio Gonzalez, 40, of Chicago, IL, passed away on June 14, 2022. Ivan has been a policy and political consultant for the past 18 years in the State of Illinois. Since 2016, Ivan served as the Chief of Staff to Illinois State Senator Omar Aquino, where he managed day-to-day operations of the senate district office, legislative agenda, and community relations for the senator. Ivan was widely loved by his family and friends for his kindness, generosity and infectious laugh. He was known for having a positive impact on the lives of many who crossed his path.
He is survived by his father Mario Gonzalez, his mother Rosa Gonzalez, his sister Vanessa, his brother-in-law John Velez, and his nieces Liliana and Daniela Velez.
Memorial visitation will be held Friday, June 17th, from 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm with a service at 6:00 pm to watch the livestream via Zoom click here at Smith-Corcoran Funeral Home 6150 North Cicero Avenue, Chicago, IL 60646. For information 773-736-3833
I was just out with Ivan a few weeks ago in Chicago. He was such a fun, hard-working guy and those who knew him are devastated by his unexpected passing.
His passing has left a massive void in all of us. He was widely loved by his friends and family. His humor and kindness brought joy to every room he walked in. No matter the challenge - Ivan was always there to lend a hand. He was a caring soul who lived life to the fullest. We are very saddened by his passing and have set up this GoFund Me to provide some financial support to his family in this difficult time. We hope you find it in your heart to donate, for the many times Ivan made you laugh.
* GOP purity test in DuPage County? Republican candidates for County Board chair question each other’s Democratic ties: If elected to the top job, [Hart] said, he wants to keep taxes flat, make it easier for companies owned by women, minorities and veterans to do business with the county and ensure the sheriff and state’s attorney get what they need to combat rising crime. DiCianni, 55, is a former mayor of Elmhurst who has helped to get several state laws passed, including a measure that requires insurers to cover autism treatment and one that allows police to track cognitively impaired people through GPS wristbands if they go missing.
* Daily Herald Endorsement: Hart for DuPage County Board chairman: Hart also took on a significant role in dealing with the opioid crisis in DuPage. He is the co-chairman of the Heroin/Opioid Prevention and Education Taskforce. The joint operation of the county board and board of health recommends policies, initiatives and programs to battle the opioid epidemic.
* GOP rivals for DuPage County Board chair trade barbs in high-stakes primary: If elected, Hart pledged to meet individually with every board member, regardless of their political affiliation, to understand their priorities. Hart said he can apply his expertise in management consulting — bringing together “diverse stakeholders that often don’t disagree” — to the chairman’s job. … During his mayoral tenure, the city’s credit rating was upgraded and Elmhurst Hospital was rebuilt. DiCianni won his county board seat in 2012. “It’s about who can lead, who’s put the time in and who’s got the credibility to bring these relationships that have been forged over years to the table to bring the county to the next level,” he said. DiCianni, who touts a list of municipal backers, aims to unify mayors in DuPage, a group that’s “always been divided.”
Brett Nicklaus, a certified financial planner from Dixon, and incumbent Win Stoller, who lives in Germantown Hills, go head to head in the Republican primary for this newly redrawn district, for which no Democratic candidate has been slated. The 37th District now includes parts of DeKalb, Whiteside, Ogle and Lee counties. […]
Stoller, a CPA with an accounting degree and a former auditor with Price Waterhouse, points to his financial acumen as a way to put the state on a more solid financial track, even in times when federal money is not there to help. He said he does not intend to campaign negatively. And he told us he intends to “work both sides of the aisle, in a bipartisan way, to get things done and help small businesses.”
Taking him at his word on that, and noting his broad experience, Stoller has our endorsement.
Maybe the Tribune shouldn’t have taken him at his word. He definitely has a huge amount of quite impressive experience, but Sen. Stoller’s CPA license expired 13 years ago.
And I’m thinking this may not have been a misquote or misunderstanding. Sen. Stoller has claimed more than once that he is a CPA.
Fraudsters stole more than half the money paid out by the state from a special pandemic unemployment fund, pilfering nearly $2 billion in federal money that was supposed to help out-of-work Illinoisans, according to a state audit released Thursday.
The audit offers the first estimate for Illinois’ share of the mammoth fraud that swept the country during the pandemic as states were hit with a deluge of unemployment claims. The audit covers much of the period the program was in use, from July 2020 through June 2021. […]
“The fraudsters illicitly got federal money — not state — because the Trump administration designed a uniquely flawed system,” the agency said.
But a Tribune investigation published a year ago found the problems in Illinois were exacerbated by IDES’ failure to follow federal recommendations to adopt free fraud-fighting tools made available before the pandemic, while also being slow in developing other processes to ferret out fraud.
The audit didn’t review those failures, let alone determine how much they may have boosted the fraud tab. But the audit found that, of the $3.6 billion in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance paid out from July 2020 through June 2021, nearly $1.9 billion was tied to fraud, the vast majority in the form of identity theft.
CBS 2 asked the Illinois Auditor General if the issues it found with the PUA system in Illinois could be preventing IDES from figuring out how much money was lost to fraud.
“While we cannot speak with any certainty to the cause of the Department’s challenges regarding calculating the extent of fraud, it is our opinion that the inability of the Department to provide complete and accurate PUA claimant data to our auditors indicates that it would be very difficult to calculate, with any certainty, the extent of fraud in the PUA system,” the auditor general’s office said.
* Leader McConchie…
Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie issued the below statement following the release of the Auditor General’s June 16 audit of the Illinois Department of Employment Security:
“This report is just further evidence of the mismanagement within IDES that has been so clearly evident throughout the pandemic.
“Governor Pritzker had a responsibility to the people he put out of work. While thousands were waiting for a dysfunctional and chaotic system to issue them the benefits they were owed, fraud was running rampant throughout the system leaving hundreds of thousands of residents victimized by fraudulent claims.
“The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program was so poorly run that the Auditor General’s office couldn’t even conduct a proper audit to determine the amount of fraud that occurred. The saddest thing is, Illinoisans are on the hook for this disaster.
“Had Pritzker prioritized the issue and not been so focused on arbitrarily shutting down businesses and then criminalizing them for noncompliance of his mandates, these problems could have been mitigated.”
* Governor’s office…
Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic, every state in the nation was plagued by fraudulent attacks on their unemployment system by organized criminals, with recent federal estimates claiming at least $163 billion in national unemployment fraud. The federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, that is the subject of this audit, was the epicenter for this fraud. The fraudsters illicitly got federal money – not state – because the Trump administration designed a uniquely flawed system.
Since the Trump administration launched the PUA program in Spring 2020, IDES has sounded the alarm over insufficient and flawed federal guidance. This included the Trump administration stripping IDES of its best tools to stop fraud, such as requiring income or employment verification before paying out claims.
The PUA program is 100% federally funded and the findings highlighted in the audit do not impact the state’s UI Trust Fund. The system used to manage the PUA program is independent of the system used to manage regular UI benefits that are funded under state law. From the start of the pandemic through the end of 2021, IDES stopped roughly $40 billion in fraudulent payments across state and federal programs. IDES has saved tens of billions in government funds through enhanced integrity measures, including implementing new login software that utilizes security industry best practices and launching new data analysis tools to verify applicant identities and claims.
Background:
• As the audit itself notes, ‘Unlike in regular UI, the PUA program does not provide for a database of earnings and wages to support the program, and consequently, there are unique and pervasive opportunities for fraud within PUA.’
• Federal watchdog reports and information from other states emphasize that UI fraud was concentrated in the PUA program due to poor federal guidance.
• As the GAO timeline shows below, the program was changed hastily and repeatedly to respond to states’ concerns. Numerous recent federal reports describe at the length the poor guidance from the previous federal administration. See the following:
- Testimony of Larry D. Turner, Inspector General, USDOL: Pandemic Response and Accountability: Reducing Fraud and Expanding Access to COVID-19 Relief through Effective Oversight
- USDOL OIG: OIG Oversight of the Unemployment Insurance Program
- Government Accountability Office: Pandemic Programs Posed Challenges, and DOL Could Better Address Customer Service and Emergency Planning
- Government Accountability Office: Pandemic Unemployment Assistance: Federal Program Supported Contingent Workers amid Historic Demand, but DOL Should Examine Racial Disparities in Benefit Receipt
Furthermore, evidence shows that UI fraud in other states was also predominantly concentrated in the PUA program – often at a scale larger than what was seen in Illinois. For example:
- California shared it lost at least $20 billion to fraud. California estimated that 95% of confirmed fraudulent payments were associated with PUA. (EDD, AP)
- Michigan lost roughly $2.8 billion to “imposter” fraud, and $5.7 billion to “misrepresentation” fraud. Of the dollars lost to fraud, 97% came from federal programs. (UIA Audit; NPR)
- Pennsylvania lost $6 billion to fraud. 94% of those dollars were from federal programs. (CBS Pittsburgh; WFMZ)
- A small number of additional states have released estimated fraud totals, such as Arizona ($4.4 billion, September 2021), Florida ($1.9 billion, July 2021), Texas ($2.5 billion, November 2021), and Kansas ($700 million, August 2021). The USDOL Office of the Inspector General estimates that at least $163 billion in pandemic UI benefits could have been paid improperly across all states.
* Actually, the story is from yesterday, but I didn’t get to it. Here’s Jennifer Smith Richards, Chicago Tribune, and Jodi S. Cohen, ProPublica…
From the moment Amara Harris was accused of stealing another student’s AirPods at Naperville North High School, she has insisted that it was a mix-up, not a theft.
She told a school dean that she thought the AirPods were her own, having picked them up a few days earlier in the school’s learning commons, where she said she thought she had left her own set. Her mother repeatedly told officers that her daughter hadn’t stolen the wireless earbuds, records show.
Still, the school resource officer wrote Amara a ticket in 2019 for violating a municipal ordinance against theft. Paying a fine would have made the matter go away, but Amara says she won’t admit to something she didn’t do. For two and a half years, she has repeatedly gone to court to assert her innocence, even delaying her plans to attend on-campus classes at her dream school, Spelman College.
Now, in a rare and dramatic example of the impact of school ticketing, the case is headed for a jury trial, with the next court date on Tuesday. As Naperville continues to prosecute the case, Amara and her mother have racked up far more in legal bills than the city’s highest fine would have cost them.
“I am innocent. I am fighting because I don’t want this to happen to anyone else,” said Amara, now 19. “Why would I say I’m innocent to everyone but then I lie in court and say I’m guilty? It doesn’t make sense to me.”
This spring, in the investigation “The Price Kids Pay,” ProPublica and the Chicago Tribune exposed the widespread practice of school officials and local police working together to ticket Illinois students for misbehavior at school, resulting in fines that can cost hundreds of dollars. Reporters documented about 12,000 tickets issued for possession of vaping devices and cannabis, disorderly conduct, truancy and other violations from August 2018 through June 2021.
Ticketing students for their behavior in school skirts a state law that bans schools from disciplining students with monetary fines. Immediately after the report was published, state officials including Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the state schools superintendent said they intended to put a stop to the practice.
The superintendent, Carmen Ayala, chided schools for outsourcing discipline to police and urged them to stop. The Illinois attorney general’s office, concerned that school ticketing was violating the civil rights of students of color, launched an investigation into a large suburban high school district and said it might investigate others.
But none of the state officials addressed how to deal with pending cases of students who, like Amara, had already been ticketed.
“The governor says he wants this to stop, he wants this to end,” said Amara’s mother, Marla Baker. “We are in the middle of it.”
Amara’s family, like so many others, was thrown into a system that uses a lower standard of proof than a criminal court. People ticketed for ordinance violations can be held responsible if the allegation is deemed more likely to be true than not, and the ticket itself is considered evidence. At every turn, the system and the officials in it encourage families to admit liability and pay a fine. And most do.
