* Click here for the full opinion…
In 2018, the Supreme Court reversed its prior position and held that compulsory fair‐share or agency fee arrangements impermissibly infringe on employees’ First Amendment rights. Janus v. AFSCME, Council 31, 138 S. Ct. 2448, 2461 (2018). The question before us now is whether Mark Janus, an employee who paid fair‐share fees under protest, is entitled to a refund of some or all of that money. We hold that he is not, and so we affirm the judgment of the district court.
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Question of the day
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* News-Gazette editorial…
Arroyo’s departure from the House is no great loss. But that does not detract from the fact that he’s being punished based on accusations, not convictions for criminal wrongdoing.
FBI tape-recorded conversations between Arroyo and a cooperating witness don’t appear to leave Arroyo solid ground on which to assert his innocence. Still, even though Arroyo was effectively thrown out of the Legislature and not into jail, it’s never a good day when accusation is tantamount to guilt.
That regrettable stance was enthusiastically embraced by Madigan, who said “the allegations contained in this criminal complaint go beyond anything that could be considered a lapse of judgment or minor indiscretion.”
* The Question: Do you agree or disagree with House members who said they would eject Luis Arroyo from the chamber if he didn’t leave on his own? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
survey hosting
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Schakowsky again endorses Newman
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release…
Today, Marie Newman, Democratic candidate for Congress in Illinois’ Third District, announced that she had earned the endorsement of Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky.
“Congresswoman Schakowsky’s leadership is an inspiration and I am truly thankful for her endorsement and her support of our campaign to elect a progressive Democrat with a real plan in Illinois 3rd District,” said Marie Newman. “Congresswoman Schakowsky has long led the fight for bold progressive action in Illinois, and I look forward to standing with her in Washington as we fight for policies that will truly improve everybody’s every day.”
“With Marie in Congress, we will grow our ability to secure big wins for working families, to protect women’s rights and fight climate change. I am proud to stand with Marie. Her election helps Democrats build a party that is willing to take bold steps to bring affordable health care, including prescription drugs, protect and expand Social Security and Medicare, and raise the wages of working Americans,” said Jan Schakowsky.
* Greg Hinz…
Other local congressmen have not yet made any endorsements. But Newman is supported by three presidential candidates—Sens. Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren—and by freshman U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Also seeking the 3rd District seat on the Democratic side are attorney Abe Matthew and film production company owner Rush Darwish.
Lipinski, in a quick phone call, made it clear he does not appreciate Schakowsky’s intervention. “Jan Schakowsky and AOC don’t represent the views of the 3rd District,” he snapped. “Their extreme views won’t play well here. I doubt AOC ever has been in the district. Jan may have been once, to ask my dad (former Rep. William Lipinski) for something. This (internal fighting) is not what Democrats should be doing.”
…Adding… Rush Darwish campaign…
Rush Darwish supports Representative Schakowsky’s Medicare for America bill, as it provides Medicare for all who want it, while allowing people to keep or purchase private health insurance if they so choose. This choice is a fundamental American right, one that Marie Newman wants to take away from her potential constituents, putting her at odds with Schakowsky over healthcare policy. Rep. Lipinski, on the other hand, doesn’t even believe that healthcare is a human right, as he voted against the Affordable Care Act.
We understand that Rep. Schakowsky developed a personal friendship with Marie Newman last election cycle, when Schwakowsky endorsed Newman. Clearly, this recycled endorsement is based on a personal relationship and not on good public policy.
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Open thread
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Today is root canal day. Hooray! I’m not sure when I’ll return, so monitor the live coverage post for updates and please be nice to each other while keeping the conversation Illinois-centric. Thanks.
…Adding… All’s well that ends well…
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“This could literally put an end to us”
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Mark Maxwell yesterday…
Luxury private jet companies were hoping state lawmakers might bail them out of four-year-old unpaid sales tax bills. Instead, billionaire Governor J.B. Pritzker greeted their pleas for mercy with a stiff arm on Monday.
“I am going to veto that bill if that lands on my desk,” Pritzker pledged, explaining that the plan the House passed last week “would forgive $50 million of taxes that are owed by people who are in this private jet industry.”
A special sales tax exemption for private jet facilities expired in 2014, and the companies said that caught them off guard.
“We did not collect those taxes from our customers,” West Star Aviation CEO Jim Rankin confessed. “We didn’t know we had to. Nobody did. Therefore, if we have to go back and pay that, we are going to have to pay that ourselves as a company. You can imagine how difficult that would be if a retail outlet had to go and pay sales tax when they did not collect it from their customers to begin with.”
The total money owed the state by all these companies is estimated at $50 million.
* Today…
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Don’t believe everything you read
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This blatant falsehood has popped up in my Facebook feed. Turns out, it’s hostile foreign propaganda…
The cellphones known as 5G, or fifth generation, represent the vanguard of a wireless era rich in interconnected cars, factories and cities. Whichever nation dominates the new technology will gain a competitive edge for much of this century, according to many analysts. But a television network a few blocks from the White House has been stirring concerns about a hidden flaw.
“Just a small one,” a TV reporter told her viewers recently. “It might kill you.”
The Russian network RT America aired the segment, titled “A Dangerous ‘Experiment on Humanity,’” in covering what its guest experts call 5G’s dire health threats. U.S. intelligence agencies identified the network as a principal meddler in the 2016 presidential election. Now, it is linking 5G signals to brain cancer, infertility, autism, heart tumors and Alzheimer’s disease — claims that lack scientific support.
Yet even as RT America, the cat’s paw of Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, has been doing its best to stoke the fears of American viewers, Mr. Putin, on Feb. 20, ordered the launch of Russian 5G networks in a tone evoking optimism rather than doom.
* In a similar vein, I’ve seen this Twitter ad numerous times the past few days…
* Dr. Bruce Solka, a retired senior principal scientist at Unilever Corp., took on this claim. His conclusion…
Although both of these papers show a few ppb ethylene background in their subjects before oxidation tests or surgery the authors do not comment on that background. The systemic background may be due to inhalation of the ubiquitous 5 to 20 ppb background ethylene in ambient air. In any case ethylene (and hence ethylene oxide) quantities in the human body seem to be very dependent of various disease or stress conditions. This may suggest that concentrations of such a compound may not be the best means to support establishment of disease risk factors.
* From Jen Walling at the Illinois Environmental Council…
To me, I think they have a hard time getting over the fact that the [Willowbrook-area] readings were all near zero [for EtO] after Sterigenics closed.
Yep.
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Yes, it can happen here
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Western Illinois University’s racial tension and its eventual ouster of the university’s first African-American president Jack Thomas wasn’t covered very well by local media. But the Chronicle of Higher Education has published a deep dive that’s well worth a full reading…
Elitism. Incompetence. Kanye. There were lots of reasons people say they soured on Thomas. But the incident that infuriated many of his critics, and directly preceded the “Fire Jack” campaign, was Thomas’s decision to fire Brad Bainter.
Bainter, who is white, is a former WIU Leatherneck basketball star who went on to serve as the university’s vice president for advancement and executive officer of its foundation; his wife is director of alumni programs. Thomas cited administrative costs as the rationale for eliminating Bainter’s job. Bainter, though, had close professional relationships with some of Thomas’s opponents.
In dismissing Bainter, Thomas had disrespected a Macomb favorite son. “That was kind of the final straw, because Brad’s a local kid,” said W. Garry Johnson, an emeritus vice president for student services who worked at Western for 33 years. Firing Bainter was “the dumbest thing that could have ever happened,” Johnson said, because it alienated any remaining supporters Thomas might have had.
The backlash was swift. Days later, the executive committee of the university’s foundation board sent a letter to Western’s trustees, calling for Thomas’s ouster and Bainter’s reinstatement. Soon after, the Alumni Council followed suit with a resolution.
As the town rose up against Thomas, state officials sounded an alarm about the racial overtones of the campaign to remove him.
In early June, Jesse H. Ruiz, deputy governor for education, warned Western’s trustees about the bigotry that was flooding his inbox. He forwarded to the board one of “many” racist emails that he had received about the president, this one accusing Thomas of admitting low-income students as part of a “social experiment of using WIU as a form of welfare.”
“Many of the free and reduced students have brought with them criminal elements and family members who ride their coat tails which has negatively effected [sic] this community,” the person wrote.
In reality, total crime in the city dropped by about 60 percent from 1991 to 2015, according to the latest federal data.
In his email to the trustees, Ruiz urged the board to “stand up to these misinformed and misguided attacks.”
* The article also quoted WIU senior Janiya Haynes…
She noticed a group of men in a red pickup truck at a nearby intersection. They yelled a racial epithet at her, Haynes said, and warned that black people “shouldn’t be out at night.”
* In response, Heather McMeekan, the president of the Democratic Women of McDonough County, has published an open letter to Macomb’s mayor and city council…
The entire article about our community was profoundly distressing, embarrassing, and consistent with the experiences of members of our organization, campus, and community. It shows a community that has chosen to ignore these issues for far too long. However, we wish to address specifically the abhorrent behavior described in the article by unknown person or person(s) in a “red truck” targeting some members of our community for behavior ranging from verbal harassment to explicit threats.
I personally witnessed a truck with that description displaying flags consistent with the White Supremacist movement in the Aldi’s parking lot in February of 2018. I have sent that photo to the Office of Public Safety Director Derek Watts and WIU’s President, Dr. Martin Abraham.
Our organization has members who have students, friends, or family members who have reported to us having had similar experiences with a truck matching that description. We have also had community members reach out to our organization over the past year with similar accounts, which we always encourage all to report to the police. However, in every single case, those reporting such incidents to us also have reported lack of trust in the police to properly investigate such incidents without retaliation against those making the complaint. Therefore, this behavior targets those already perceived as being marginalized and who also express the belief or perception they aren’t safe from our own police.
* The truck…
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* Hannah Meisel at the Daily Line…
Illinois will need to contribute $9.8 billion to its five state pension systems during the 2021 fiscal year, according to new actuarial estimates published last week, representing a $538 million increase in pension costs from what the state is paying to the five systems in the 2020 fiscal year.
The total amount of pension costs included in the current fiscal year’s budget is $9.2 billion — which represents 22 percent of the total amount of state spending in the current $40.7 billion budget. The Governor’s Office of Management and Budget estimates the state budget for the 2021 fiscal year will grow to $42.2 billion, and the estimated $9.8 billion in pension contribution costs for the state’s five pension systems would represent 23 percent of the state’s operating budget.
When debt service payments for past pension bonds — including pension funding bonds from the 2003, 2011 and 2020 fiscal years — are included, along with the state’s contribution to Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund normal costs, the total amount of pension costs the state expends represents over a quarter of the state’s overall operating budget. Illinois is projected to spend $708 million in debt service for its pension bonds in the 2020 fiscal year.
* The breakout…
General Assembly Retirement System: $27.3 million
Judges’ Retirement System: $148.6 million
State Employees’ Retirement System: $2.5 billion
State Universities Retirement System: $1.99 billion
Teachers’ Retirement System:
Based on Illinois statute: $5.1 billion
Based on TRS Board Actuarial Funding Policy: $8.3 billion
GOMB’s latest five-year forecast projected state pension fund spending would rise by $498 million next fiscal year, about $40 million below what will actually be required. GOMB has projected a General Funds deficit of $1.768 billion next fiscal year.
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“A state-supported scam”
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Scott Reeder…
Just call it a state-supported scam.
Once upon a time, parking enforcement was the purview of meter-maids on scooters tooling from spot to spot.
Today, it is big business.
For example, in 2008, Chicago received $1.15 billion when it signed a 75-year lease with a private outfit called Chicago Parking Meters LLC.
Within a decade, they have already collected revenue greater than their initial payment by jacking up parking fees and zealously enforcing meter times. And please note they have 64 years remaining on the lease.
It seems rather unfair that when folks fall behind in paying this outfit owned by a Wall Street bank and the Middle Eastern emirate of Abu Dhabi, they can have their driver’s licenses suspended by the state of Illinois.
Why should the power of the state be used to benefit a particular money-making enterprise?
Imagine a landlord or credit card company telling someone who has fallen behind on payments that if they don’t pay up, the state will suspend their driver’s license.
Not only would that be unfair, it also wouldn’t make much sense. After all, how is someone supposed to pay what they owe if they don’t have a way to drive to work?
But that is exactly what the state of Illinois does in helping companies and cities collect parking fees.
Illinois is one of 44 states that have policies of suspending driver’s licenses over unpaid fines, fees or court debts.
Last week, the Illinois General Assembly passed a measure that would end the practice of suspending licenses for unpaid parking fines. The measure awaits Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s consideration.
A high percentage of those suspensions affect drivers from low-income, black neighborhoods in Chicago and its suburbs ProPublica Illinois has reported.
Many of those affected have been unable to drive legally for years but do so anyway. If pulled over, they face further fines, fees and even jail time. This can exasperate a cycle of poverty that many spend decades trying to escape.
The bill on the governor’s desk also restores driving privileges for some 55,000 individuals whose licenses are currently suspended.
Passing this measure, is a smart move on the part of lawmakers. And I’m hopeful Pritzker will sign the measure.
But the underlying policy of paid, on-street parking needs to be examined. The practice deters people from doing business in central city locations and places downtown businesses at a disadvantage.
Communities such as Rock Island have moved away from this antiquated practice.
Beginning in 2016, it removed its parking meters and increased the time limit on most downtown parking spots from two to four hours.
Too often, cities have viewed parking policy as merely a means to generate revenue rather than an asset that should be promoted and used to make for a more vibrant, user-friendly community.
Debt-based license suspensions don’t protect or promote safer communities. They are indicative of an intrusive government that is callous toward the most vulnerable among us.
The Illinois Legislature made a step in the right direction by passing this measure. No one should have a license suspended for any non-safety related matter.
* Related…
* Lightfoot’s decision to eliminate library fines triggers 240% increase in book returns
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Corruption roundup
Tuesday, Nov 5, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Dave McKinney, Dan Mihalopoulos and Tony Arnold at WBEZ…
Veteran lobbyist and City Club of Chicago President Jay Doherty has stopped working for embattled, longtime client Commonwealth Edison, according to a disclosure document he filed Monday with Illinois officials. […]
Also Monday, records show Doherty informed state officials he was no longer going to lobby for Fer-Pal Construction. WBEZ reported last week that both Doherty and the firm co-owned by influential Chicago Ald. Gilbert Villegas — who is Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s floor leader — had been lobbying for Fer-Pal.
ComEd signed Villegas’ lobbying company, Elgin-based Stratagem Consulting Group, in January to a one-year, $5,000-a-month deal. But the utility, which has a monopoly over virtually all of northern Illinois, cut ties with Stratagem last month and executives have not explained why they did so.
He still appears to be lobbying with Jordan Matyas at Catalyst Consulting Group, however. Matyas is Speaker Madigan’s son-in-law.
* Rachel Hinton at the Sun-Times…
Cook County Democratic Party leaders voted unanimously Monday to ask former state Rep. Luis Arroyo [the 36th Ward Democratic committeeman] to step down from their ranks — and plan to send a letter to indicted Ald. Ed Burke requesting he relinquish the party post he’s held for more than half a century. […]
On Monday, the Cook County Democratic Party’s 10-member Executive Committee voted to formally request the resignations of Burke and Arroyo because they had been charged with crimes, Delmarie Cobb, a spokeswoman for the party, said.
The vote was unanimous, although Ald. Carrie Austin, the 34th Ward committeeman, did not attend the meeting or vote. Austin herself was named in a federal grand jury subpoena earlier this year, prompting FBI agents to remove files and equipment from her Far South Side ward office. Like Solis, she has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
* Dan Petrella and John Byrne at the Tribune…
On Friday, Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, the 35th Ward Democratic committeeman, called on Arroyo to step down before the vote to replace him. “I’m not going to be part of the process where he’s filling the vacancy,” said Ramirez-Rosa, who has about 11% of the vote.
Sen. Robert Martwick, who has about 9% of the vote as 38th Ward committeeman, said he “certainly would not participate in him choosing his successor.”
Ald. Ariel Reboyras, who as 30th Ward committeeman controls the second-largest share of the vote at nearly 19%, said he will take part, regardless of whether Arroyo is involved. As treasurer of the Cook County Democratic Party, Reboyras was among the executive committee members who voted to request Arroyo’s resignation.
So, if Arroyo stays, he could cut a deal with Reboyras to appoint his replacement.
* John Byrne at the Tribune…
Chicago’s new 25th Ward alderman filed an election complaint Monday saying his predecessor, Daniel Solis, improperly used hundreds of thousands of dollars from the ward’s Democratic organization to pay lawyers to represent him in a federal investigation of his spending.
Solis is at the center of the spiraling FBI probe at City Hall. He secretly wore a wire while cooperating with federal investigators after they confronted him with evidence of his alleged wrongdoing they had compiled during a two-year investigation, according to a federal affidavit in the case. […]
Now, Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, who took over from Solis representing the ward that includes Pilsen, Chinatown and part of the South Loop, filed a complaint with the Illinois Board of Elections, arguing Solis violated the Campaign Disclosure Act by transferring $220,000 from the 25th Ward Regular Democratic Organization to cover his legal costs. […]
Sigcho-Lopez said Solis hasn’t been fulfilling his duties as committeeman, so he shouldn’t be allowed to tap into the party funds. “More than anything else, it raises attention of this common practice,” Sigcho-Lopez said. “The election law says you can use the political fund for legal fees, but the legal fees have to be relevant to your office or the purpose it was collected for.”
* Related…
* ‘What’s wrong with you guys?’ Arroyo scolded tollway after it dumped his donor
* Hastert hush-money sex abuse lawsuit trial delayed until spring
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Open thread
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’ll see you tomorrow. Please be nice to each other and keep it Illinois-centric. Thanks. And keep an eye on the live coverage post for any updates.
A bit of news before I go. Background is here if you need it. Mark Maxwell…
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Caption contest!
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’ll be leaving work a bit early today to get to this event…
The public is invited, so if you’re in the neighborhood stop on by.
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Question of the day
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Back in 2009, after Gov. Rod Blagojevich was impeached and removed, the Illinois Reform Commission published several recommended legal changes, including…
At this juncture in the State’s history, establishing a well-rounded campaign finance regulatory framework has never been more important. Accordingly, we recommend:
1) requiring year-round, real-time submission of campaign disclosure filings;
2) requiring disclosure of campaign contribution “bundlers;”
3) requiring greater disclosure of those making independent expenditures on behalf of a campaign;
4) imposing limits on contributions to political campaigns from all sources;
5) banning campaign contributions from lobbyists and trusts, and extending bans on contributions from state employees, entities seeking state contracts and entities engaged in regulated industries;
6) holding primary elections in June;
7) enacting a pilot project for public financing of judicial elections in 2010, with an eye toward expanding the program to elections of statewide legislative officials and Constitutional posts;
8) enhancing powers of the Illinois State Board of Elections; and
9) creating more robust discovery and enforcement mechanisms.
Some contribution limits were put in place. More disclosures were required. But not much else.
* The Question: What campaign and government reforms should the state implement? Make sure to explain your response.
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Cannabis roundup
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times…
Having a pot-related arrest or conviction used to be a liability for Illinoisans seeking employment. Now, a criminal record might lead to a job in the legal industry.
HempStaff, a Miami-based recruitment and training agency, launched a new division last month to help cannabis firms in Illinois and five other states hire employees that meet certain social equity requirements, including those with pot offenses on their records.
A news release from HempStaff said the company hopes to help those folks “find their dream opportunities.” But there’s also benefits for employers.
Under Illinois’ legalization law, budding “ganjapreneurs” vying for licenses to sell and grow recreational weed can get an edge in the application process if most of their employees have been arrested for or convicted of a cannabis offense that’s eligible for expungement, live in an area “disproportionately impacted” by past drug policies or have an affected family member.
* Tribune…
Illinois gave two more marijuana facilities approval to grow weed for recreational customers, with just two months to go before sales start next year.
The licenses went to Wellness Group Pharms in Anna and GTI Rock Island, which is run by Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries. Both already grow cannabis for medical patients, and join seven other facilities that got the state’s OK in September to also grow recreational pot.
The state law allows the existing 21 grow facilities to be the first to produce recreational pot, and it was largely expected most would opt to do so. But the companies need state approval. The licenses, which will continue to be issued, will help determine which products customers see on store shelves when recreational sales start next year.
The law does not allow any more large cultivators to supply the Illinois market until 2021 at the earliest, and then only if demand warrants them.
* Speaking of demand…
Get ready for some very long lines if you’re planning to buy marijuana in Chicago on Jan. 1, when recreational sales become legal.
Under new rules issued [last week] for a lottery process that will be used for new dispensaries, only the 11 existing medical locations are likely to be available to serve recreational customers on New Year’s Day.
Once it became clear that the city was going to take a go-slow approach to marijuana, including controversial zoning laws that prohibit retail sales from much of downtown, cannabis companies have been quietly speculating that there might not be any new dispensaries open in the city by Jan. 1.
A lottery held Nov. 15 will determine the order in which existing medical license holders can seek new recreational-dispensary locations in seven districts of the city. Winners would then have to submit applications to the Zoning Board of Appeals to receive special-use permits to open a dispensary. Before receiving approval, license seekers would have to hold public meetings to get community input on opening a retail dispensary.
* Related…
* Law firms getting over their fear of cannabis
* Illinois marijuana law aims to undo harm of war on the drug
* Where to buy recreational cannabis in Central Illinois? Some cities are still deciding
* Illinois colleges face medical cannabis conundrum
* Barrington officials not hearing a whole lot from residents, stakeholders on cannabis dispensaries: Village leaders
* Sycamore City Council to look at recreational marijuana again
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It’s just a bill
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Daily Herald…
While some towns want state lawmakers to take quick action on a recommendation to combine suburban and downstate police and firefighter pension funds in an effort to boost returns and cut costs, not all municipalities are on board.
Senate President John Cullerton introduced a bill Tuesday to consolidate the 649 suburban and downstate police and fire pensions. Gov. J.B. Pritzker followed with a statement praising Cullerton’s move in the first half of a six-day fall veto session that ended Wednesday. […]
Barrington Hills is asking lawmakers to take their time and not pass the proposal during the veto session. The session’s second three-day leg runs Nov. 12-14.
In part, Barrington Hills’ resolution says the Pension Consolidation Feasibility Task Force’s recommendation would be a complex financial, economic and operational undertaking requiring “proper and comprehensive analysis and review by all stakeholders” and should not be pursued until the regular legislative session starts next year.
* Capitol News Illinois…
Chicago Teachers Union representatives are asking lawmakers for legislation that would force Chicago Public Schools to direct more of its state funding to services aimed at low-income students, English language learners and students with special needs. This comes amid a strike now stretching into its second week.
Kurt Hilgendorf, a lobbyist for the union, told a legislative committee Monday Illinois’ new Evidence Based Funding formula is designed, in part, to direct more state resources to the neediest districts. But, he said, there is no requirement that districts — Chicago Public Schools in particular — direct resources to the neediest schools in those districts.
“There is no equity provision for funding CPS students in a student-based budgeting model,” he told an elementary and secondary education appropriations panel. “Each student is assigned a base funding regardless of the need of that student.”
House Bill 3917 would require that the funds CPS receives for those high-needs students be distributed among all the schools in the district in proportion to the number of high-needs students they serve. It would apply to only the Chicago district.
* Press release…
State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) introduced a bill [last] week that redefines felony murder charges in Illinois.
The language of current state law allows prosecutors to charge someone with first-degree murder if a death occurs during the commission of another offense when acting alone, or if a third-party individual causes a death when acting within a group. The new legislation would ban prosecutors from being able to do so.
“Incarceration rates are disturbingly high as it is,” Peters said. “These laws do nothing to improve safety in our community and are not an effective way to combat the unforgivable crowding of our jails and prisons. They are quite simply not a reflection of any sort of justice we should strive for as a society.”
The bill is an initiative of Restore Justice and was filed in response to an incident in Lake County where five teens were charged with first-degree murder after a failed home burglary in which the homeowner shot and killed a sixth teen.
Senate Bill 2292 was filed with the secretary of the Senate on Monday. It is currently awaiting assignment to a committee, which likely will not occur until full session resumes in January.
* ProPublica Illinois…
Illinois lawmakers approved a bill Tuesday that would eliminate driver’s license suspensions for unpaid parking tickets, putting an end to a decades-old practice that has hurt tens of thousands of motorists across the state.
The bill now awaits Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s signature. A spokeswoman for the governor said he looks forward to reviewing “this meaningful legislation.” Rep. Carol Ammons, a Democrat from Urbana-Champaign who co-sponsored the measure, said that the governor has told her he supports the bill’s intent and that she expects him to sign it.
* Other stuff…
* Legislation proposed to ban criminal background checks on public speakers following Tribune stories
* Illinois leaders demand answers about ambulance diversion by hospitals: ‘Something has to be done.’
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Corruption roundup
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* You really should read beyond the excerpts posted here because there’s a lot more to all of them. From WBEZ…
Commonwealth Edison cut ties with a lobbying firm co-owned by a top Chicago alderman a month ago, just as a federal criminal investigation into the power company’s state lobbying activities intensified.
ComEd ended its Springfield lobbying contract with Elgin-based Stratagem Consulting Group on Oct. 3, WBEZ has learned. The firm is co-owned by 36th Ward Ald. Gilbert Villegas, Jr., who is Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s floor leader, trusted with guiding major legislative initiatives through the City Council. […]
But on Friday, [Villegas] also told WBEZ that he did not do any work for ComEd personally under that deal. Villegas was not a registered lobbyist for the company in Springfield. Stratagem’s lobbyists for ComEd were Villegas’ business partner, Elgin City Council member Baldemar Lopez, and another man. […]
Stratagem signed a one-year lobbying contract that was to pay $60,000, Lopez said. The deal with ComEd ended early, Lopez said, because, “They were doing some restructuring of their lobbying activities.”
Asked if those changes were prompted by the federal probe, Lopez replied, “I would assume.”
* Tribune…
State Rep. Luis Arroyo’s foray into the shady world of sweepstakes machines is at the center of the federal bribery case alleging he agreed to pay off a state senator in exchange for support on legislation that would benefit the largely unregulated industry.
Now other players linked to the alleged scheme are emerging, including businessman James Weiss, the son-in-law of former Cook County assessor and county Democratic Party boss Joseph Berrios, and an ex-Chicago cop who was fired for consorting with a drug trafficker, the Chicago Tribune has confirmed through state records and a source with knowledge of the probe.
The FBI raided Weiss’ business offices Friday after the charges were filed against Arroyo under seal, the source told the Tribune.
State business records show Weiss is connected to the former cop, John Adreani, through a complex web of corporations, many of which list the same address in a south suburban strip mall as their headquarters.
* Sun-Times…
A businessman whose lobbying efforts to legalize sweepstakes machines are part of the federal criminal case against state Rep. Luis Arroyo also runs a political action committee with close ties to Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan.
James T. Weiss — a son-in-law of Joseph Berrios, the former Cook County Democratic Party chairman and county assessor — owns and operates sweepstakes machines. Weiss also runs the Alliance of Illinois Taxpayers, which has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars, largely from personal injury law firms allied with Madigan. Other donors include individuals with ties to Madigan’s political organization.
Weiss is chairman and treasurer of the PAC. His mother Mary Murray is president. The secretary is John Hynes, a Chicago firefighter who is part of Madigan’s political organization and a friend of the speaker’s son Andrew Madigan. […]
The PAC has raised $630,000 since it was created seven years ago and has given money to help elect candidates including Cicero Town President Larry Dominick. The PAC also spent nearly $20,000 on fliers in 2016 to defeat state Rep. Kenneth Dunkin after the Chicago Democrat broke ranks with Madigan and sided with Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner on key votes. […]
Weiss and his mother also run two Bridgeport charities, aided by powerful political allies including Cook County Commissioner John Daley and his nephew Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson (11th), Andrew Madigan and former state Rep. Dan Burke, D-Chicago, brother of Ald. Edward M. Burke (14th). One of the charities, Benton House, is a former settlement house that operates an emergency food pantry. The other is a scholarship fund.
Background on Benton House…
For 13 years, the Internal Revenue Service hounded a politically connected Bridgeport charity to pay back taxes, slapping it with a series of liens totaling $109,000, records obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times show.
At the same time, the charity, Benton House, let its buildings fall into disrepair, resulting in repeated citations from City Hall inspectors for building code violations.
It got so bad that Benton House’s then-board president, Chicago police Officer Anthony Skokal, and executive director Mark Lennon borrowed $120,000 from another Bridgeport institution, Washington Federal Bank for Savings, to pay the back taxes and make repairs, personally guaranteeing to repay the money. […]
Now, the Murrays run both charities, relying on powerful political backers to support them including Cook County Commissioner John Daley and his nephew Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson (11th), Andrew Madigan, son of Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, and state Rep. Dan Burke, D-Chicago, brother of Ald. Edward M. Burke (14th).
* More…
* Speaker Madigan’s son got Alsip business, hit up mayor for campaign cash for his dad: A fundraising invitation for an event benefiting Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan came as Andrew Madigan’s insurance firm was angling for business from the south suburb.
* Luis Arroyo: the slow rise and sudden fall of a low-profile, clout-heavy state rep: Much like state Sen. Martin Sandoval, another Chicago legislator facing intense federal scrutiny though not yet charged, a common reaction to state Rep. Luis Arroyo’s arrest in political circles was: ‘What took them so long?’
* Cook County OK’d insider deal for Ald. Carrie Austin’s top aide: Chester Wilson’s delinquent property tax tab on a South Side building topped $200K. County land bank erased that — and gave the property to a Wilson business partner for $40,000.
* Former candidate for state representative charged with theft and money laundering, Lake County authorities say
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26 ISP squad cars hit this year
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* CBS 2…
An Illinois state trooper posted a passionate plea online, urging drivers to pay attention.
It comes after two troopers were taken to the hospital after a crash during a traffic stop along Interstate 57 early Sunday.
ISP say troopers were working a traffic stop on I-57 near 115th early Sunday morning when a red car slammed into one of their squad cars.
The crash sent the trooper’s vehicle into a second squad car. Two state troopers and two other people were all taken to the hospital. The troopers have been released and the other people have minor injuries.
* This is getting way out of hand…
* At least enforcement is up…
Move over. Slow down. The concept isn’t that difficult.
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Our sorry state
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Kate Thayer at the Tribune…
Premature birth rates and other factors related to maternal and infant health remain “alarming” in the United States, according to the March of Dimes, a nonprofit that supports research, education and advocacy related to those issues. The group Monday released its annual report card, which assigns letter grades to states, counties and large cities, using data from the National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Illinois received a D+, as did Chicago, where 10.7% and 10.6% of all births in 2018 were premature, or occurred earlier than 37 weeks gestation. The letter grades are assigned based on the organization’s determination of how far rates are from a goal of 8.1% or less. The national average is about 10%, according to the CDC, a rate that after declining from 2007 to 2014 has increased for the last four years.
The March of Dimes report shows that while rates slightly improved over the previous year in Chicago, as well as in some of the collar counties (where they ranged from 9.4% to 10.4%), Illinois’ statewide rate increased from 10.4% in 2017 to 10.7% last year — the highest premature birth rate in 10 years, according to the report. The state is ranked 39th out of the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. […]
(P)premature birth rates among African American women in Illinois were 52% higher than all other women in the state.
The report card is here.
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* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
The first day of the 2019 veto session on Monday was unlike any other that most people have ever seen.
First, we learned that Rep. Luis Arroyo, D-Chicago, had been arrested on public corruption charges. About an hour later, federal prosecutors claimed that Arroyo had attempted to bribe a state senator, who has been cooperating with the feds since 2016.
An alleged venal criminal in the House and a government mole in the Senate. That can tend to disrupt your day.
Even so, the House Democratic caucus meeting early that afternoon was almost completely routine. House Speaker Michael Madigan went over several mundane topics with members and then finally wound up an hour later by reading a statement to his members about Arroyo.
Madigan’s central message was that Arroyo must resign from the House or face a potential expulsion. One member of his caucus thanked him for the statement. Other than that, the meeting was routine. Members talked incessantly amongst themselves about Arroyo but were mainly mum in caucus.
Things were a little different in the Senate Democratic caucus meeting. Sen. Melinda Bush, D-Grayslake, angrily demanded that corrupt members should be forced out if they don’t leave. Sitting in that room was Sen. Tom Cullerton, D-Villa Park, who was indicted on over 40 federal counts during the summer. Tom Cullerton was re-elected just last year, so he can continue attending session unless he’s eventually convicted of a felony or is also expelled.
Also in that caucus meeting was Sen. Terry Link, D-Waukegan. The Sun-Times and the Tribune both reported that Link was the one who helped the feds sting Arroyo. Link, 72, the most prominent gaming expansion supporter in the Senate, repeatedly denied being the mole, and each of the newspapers relied on a single source for their stories. But the unnamed senator said on a government recording that he was in the “twilight” of his career, his first meeting with Arroyo was in Lake County and they talked about a gaming-related bill. If it’s not Link, the government sure seemed to go out of its way to draw a map to his house.
Regardless, this might put a damper on Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s gaming bill if Sen. Link is still involved. People may be hesitant to enter a negotiating room believing that someone in the venue might be manipulating them into saying something that the FBI could interpret as a potential criminal offense.
And then there are the lazy criminals who think the only way to get things done is by bribing people. That’s apparently the category that Arroyo falls into, if the government transcript of his conversation with the cooperating witness is accurate and in context.
”This is, this is the jackpot,” Rep. Arroyo said to that unnamed senator as he handed over the first of what he thought would be 12 $2,500 monthly checks.
Seriously? The jackpot? $2,500? That’s only 30 grand over the life of the one-year bribe. Either Arroyo figured the unnamed senator was desperate for cash or that the senator was recklessly corrupt. And “recklessly corrupt” is definitely what I would call someone who threw away their future by handing over a $2,500 check to an FBI informant.
Line 2 of the “List of Items to be Seized” in the September federal search warrant of Sen. Martin Sandoval’s Statehouse office read: “Items related to CW1, Lobbyist A, and/or Lobbyist B.” CW is fed-speak for “cooperating witness.”
The unnamed senator is described in the Arroyo criminal complaint as “CW-1.” The cooperating witness “became a source for the FBI” in 2016. The feds must have let that person off the hook for something else because the complaint says the person had to be “admonished multiple times” to report his/her involvement in any “unauthorized” illegal activity. And then the witness allegedly filed false income tax returns and the FBI “closed” him as a source. They apparently gave the senator an opportunity at redemption, or at least a sentence reduction, with the Arroyo sting.
The herd mentality requires a rejection of informants. This particular informant, mole or whatever else you want to call it, was obviously no angel. But he did help nab someone who apparently thought he could bribe a state senator into carrying legislation to legalize sweepstakes games. There is a strong positive to what the cooperating witness accomplished here.
By the end of the week, Arroyo had resigned. In his resignation letter, he practically begged his colleagues to let his district keep the pork projects he had inserted into the infrastructure program. Maybe somebody should take a look at those.
We’ll get to several other stories on this topic soon.
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* My Crain’s Chicago Business column was submitted before we found out that the SEC is also investigating Exelon/ComEd…
Does Chicago-based Exelon even want to be in the energy production business in Illinois anymore? If you just listen to what the company’s CEO says, you might wonder.
A few years ago, Exelon threatened to close two of its six active nuclear power plants and eventually persuaded the General Assembly and Gov. Bruce Rauner to hand it a $200 million-per-year ratepayer bailout.
And then this year on Halloween, Exelon CEO Chris Crane said the company could shut down its other four nuke plants if the Legislature doesn’t give it lots more ratepayer money next year.
For years now, Exelon and its subsidiary ComEd have held sway over Springfield. The companies accomplished this with what seemed at the time to be brilliant lobbying strategies. Its last bailout, for example, was enmeshed with a proposal strongly supported by environmental groups and green energy companies. It was one of only a handful of truly bipartisan bills passed during Rauner’s sharply divisive term.
But this year, some of the companies’ top lobbyists and consultants found themselves on the wrong end of federal search warrants, and Exelon itself was hit with two subpoenas related to its lobbying operation and its dealings with Sen. Martin Sandoval, a Chicago Democrat whose house, district office and Capitol office were raided in September.
Please click here to read the rest before commenting. Thanks.
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Yes, it can happen here
Monday, Nov 4, 2019 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Saturday report in the Naperville Sun…
A group of children and adults celebrating a birthday at a Naperville restaurant last weekend were asked to move to different tables because of the color of their skin, two men who were part of the group said.
Justin Vahl and Marcus Riley said they visited the Buffalo Wild Wings on 75th Street east of Route 59 to celebrate a child’s birthday about 8:30 p.m. Oct. 26.
As employees set up the tables to seat the group, a host asked Vahl about his ethnicity, and later a manager asked the group to move to another location because a nearby customer didn’t want to sit near black people, the men said.
A manager at the restaurant Friday directed any questions to Buffalo Wild Wings’ corporate communications team.
* AP…
Justin Vahl says he was at a Naperville restaurant Oct. 26 with children and adults when a host asked him about his ethnicity. Later, a manager asked the group to move because a regular customer didn’t want to sit near black people.
Vahl, of nearby Montgomery, says he’s multiracial. His wife, Mary, first shared the story on social media. After several managers tried to move the group, they left for another restaurant.
* React from a Republican Naperville House member…
* Daily Herald…
On Sunday, Buffalo Wild Wings issued a statement saying it fired the employees.
“We take this incident very seriously and after conducting a thorough, internal investigation have terminated the employees involved,” it said. “Buffalo Wild Wings values an inclusive environment and has zero tolerance for discrimination of any kind.” White said he had been told the same about the managers on duty Oct. 26.
Another manager at the Naperville location on Sunday also said the customers who didn’t want to sit near the multiracial group no longer are welcome there.
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