Intense rhetoric between Chicago democrats and Illinois’ republican governor is nothing new, but some parents are upset it is now being played out in a letter sent home with their kids. Chicago Public Schools officials sent home a letter with all 381,000 students blasting Gov. Bruce Rauner and ignoring any role democrats may have played in the state’s budget woes.
The “Dear Parents” letter begins by stating “Governor Bruce Rauner, just like President Trump, has decided to attack those who need the most help.” Twice the letter accuses Gov. Rauner of “cheating” children. Once it says the governor “stole” from kids. The letter goes on to cite Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool’s often repeated claim that the governor broke a promise by blocking Chicago from receiving $215 million for city schools.
One CPS parent who contacted WGN wrote: “This is so inappropriate. How can he send political propaganda home?” The letter, paid for by taxpayers, does not mention democrats who have been in control of the city and state legislature for decades.
Government watchdog groups questioned the district’s decision to use such strong partisan language in a letter sent home with kids. “Invoking partisan politics – especially at the national level – is not the most effective way to build trust with parents and students,” said Sarah Brune of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform.
We’re arrived at a whole new level of weirdness, campers.
A day after Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool heightened his war with Gov. Bruce Rauner by blaming him for the school district’s latest financial woes — and likening him to President Donald Trump — Rauner’s education secretary on Tuesday fired back — essentially telling Claypool to look in the mirror.
Education Secretary Beth Purvis released an open letter to CPS parents, placing the blame for the financial mess squarely on CPS’ “continued mismanagement” and calling the latest cuts “curiously timed.”
The letter to parents comes after CPS officials encouraged parents to bombard the governor with phone calls in support of “fair funding.” It also comes during a high pressure week in Springfield, as Illinois Senate leaders try to pass a package of bills meant to end the state’s budget crisis.
In the letter to CPS parents, Purvis called the freezing of as much as $69 million in spending “a shock to all of us.” And she noted that CPS doesn’t have to make its full pension payment until June 30. […]
“Why would CPS arbitrarily create a crisis and hurt its students and teachers rather than work to pass the Senate’s balanced budget reform package?” Purvis wrote.
* You’ll get no argument from just about anybody that CPS finances are a mess and have been for a very long time.
And yesterday’s timing may very well be suspicious. CPS’ numbers are so opaque (and I’m being kind) that it’s impossible to determine if all these cuts are necessary or if they’re cutting items for maximum media impact and are using the Rauner bogeyman to mask their own incompetence and/or failure…
“He’s clearly adopting Donald Trump’s tactics of attacking vulnerable citizens in order to score political points,” Claypool told reporters. “Just like Trump, [Rauner is] attacking children of immigrants, he’s attacking racial minorities, attacking the poor here in Chicago. In this case it’s children which is particularly shameful.”
Yeah, that’s gonna invite a retaliatory response, which is what Purvis did today.
But, look, if CPS didn’t make cuts and no budget deal is reached by June 30th, then the district may not be able to make its pension payment in four and a half months and that would be a very, very bad thing. These cuts are, ostensibly, at least, meant to avert a potential catastrophe in just a few months. I mean, would you bet on Springfield averting your own personal bankruptcy before June 30th? Of course not. So, on that level, the cuts can be seen as prudent.
* I agree with Purvis that Emanuel and Claypool ought to be far more supportive of the Senate’s work. Don’t just sit up there in Chicago and scream. Activate the troops before Rauner’s allies at the Illinois Chamber, the Illinois Policy Institute, Americans for Prosperity and Liberty Principles PAC kill the Senate plan. Do something positive. If you’re too afraid of Madigan, then push hard for a plan in his chamber. The Rauner veto is a dead horse. It can’t be undone. The only choice anyone has now is to move forward.
And while we’re at it, maybe the governor could say something about his allies’ trashing of the Senate plan? A public brush-back pitch, perhaps? Or maybe pick up the phone to call off the junkyard dogs? Or maybe (gasp!) start working on behalf of the Senate plan like his education secretary wants CPS to do? Unlike Claypool or Emanuel, after all, he actually plays a direct constitutional role in this here crisis.
* You will recall that yesterday Attorney General Lisa Madigan urged Gov. Bruce Rauner to do three things “to protect all Illinois residents from the harm caused by the executive actions” of President Trump…
* Refuse to enter into any agreement that would use Illinois law enforcement authorities as federal immigration officers. Deputizing Illinois law enforcement as immigration officers would not only divert already scarce resources away from public safety efforts and raise serious legal questions, but also undermine the values on which the country was built.
* Strengthen the work performed by the Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Services within the Illinois Department of Human Services, which assists immigrants and refugees settling in Illinois through training, health screening, citizenship classes and other services. From October 1, 2016 through January, 31, 2017, 1,001 refugees arrived in Illinois.
* Commit to strong enforcement of Illinois’ anti-discrimination laws and bolster efforts to fight hate crimes against all residents across the state, including immigrants and refugees. Illinois’ hate crime statute provides both criminal and civil protections to those who have experienced hate-based harassment, injury and property damage.
* The governor’s office responded after I’d left the office…
The attorney general’s press release is detached from reality and is clearly an attempt to distract from her efforts to stop the pay of state employees and force a crisis in Illinois. The governor has no intention of deputizing the Illinois State Police as immigration officers, has signed legislation to strengthen Illinois’ hate crime statute, and supported the resettlement of thousands of refugees over the last two years.
Well, that’s good to know. State cops have better things to do with their time, particularly in the Chicago area.
* But Sen. Toi Hutchinson (D-Olympia Fields) sent me an e-mail not long ago saying she’d asked staff about the impact that the impasse has had on services for immigrants and refugees. She forwarded me their reply…
Due to the budget impasse and the Administration’s decision to not issue certain contracts, the following programs did not receive funding in FY 16: Welcoming Centers, Immigrant Integration Services, and Refugee Social Services. This equates to $7.7 million that was issued in FY 15, but not in FY 16. These programs were funded in FY 17 due to the Stop Gap Budget, but providers endured a whole year without funding, and services were cut that help immigrants and refugees successfully integrate into the State and become legal citizens.
The stop gap, of course, has now expired.
“So,” Hutchinson wrote, “for all the folks who want to make sure that we cut, here’s one more example of things that got cut. This needs to end.”
A class-action lawsuit filed Monday in St. Clair County alleges the company that managed Illinois’ lottery defrauded businesses that sold scratch-off lottery tickets and individuals that purchased the same tickets.
The suit accuses Northstar Lottery Group of manipulating the number of tickets available for purchase.
The complaint alleges that Northstar designed and operated games so that when it calculated that a particular game was financially beneficial to its profit interests, it would stop sales of tickets for that game and actively collect tickets that had been sent to its vendors for sale. Northstar would then simply start a new game and the process would repeat with the new game.
“We allege that when Northstar realized that it was ahead of the consumer in a particular game, meaning it had sold a number of tickets that did not include the winner, it would stop the game and lock in its profits. The winning ticket never got sold,” said Derek Brandt, one of the attorneys on the case, with Brandt Law of Edwardsville. […]
Gov. Bruce Rauner fired Northstar as the state’s private lottery manager in 2015.
I appreciate Rich’s column. Governor Rauner believes there are things that need to be done to set Illinois on the right path. I think most of us would agree with him on many of them.
At the same time, most of us find some of them unnecessary and beyond the pale. AFSCME needed to be taken to task and their unreasonable expectations rebuffed. But they neither needed nor deserve to be crushed.
In spite of what some posters on this site believe, Mike Madigan is not just an effective leader but also a decent and compassionate man and has been so the entire time I have known him. He does his job well and he will not be pushed around any more than any other leader. In the past, however, he was willing to step up and do deals with the other side because of the pragmatic need to get those deals done.
I digress by reminding us of Rich’s point that “lead” is the root of the word “leadership.”
I’ve known President Cullerton, Leader Durkin and Leader Radogno for years. In my opinion it’s been 30 years or more since we’ve had such a strong leadership group in the General Assembly.
These people can solve this problem, but it won’t be easy. There will have to be significant cuts in spending, there will have to be significant revenue increases and there will have to be significant concessions in areas such as workers’ compensation.
Let me digress briefly once more by saying that I know the labor leaders will have to make all this happen within their ranks and I know they are both capable and willing to do their part.
I hope this is not too offensive to too many people, but it’s the message I believe I have to deliver. Once again, thanks Rich.
* Doug Wilson at the Herald-Whig took at look at some of what the Illinois Policy Institute’s budget proposal would do to the Quincy area. First up, doing away with municipal government revenue sharing…
Quincy Mayor Kyle Moore said that would cost the city an estimated $3.8 million a year.
“This would obviously be devastating to city services, especially since our share (of) the corporate personal property replacement tax was reduced by $400,000 last fiscal year,” Moore said.
“We’ve worked hard to be conservative stewards of tax dollars … and decreased operating costs by $1.5 million in the last few years. This practice has allowed us to only minimally increase the tax rate when absolutely necessary,” [Mike Elbe, president of John Wood Community College] said.
“If you completely freeze property taxes and combine that with existing lack of state support, it will significantly limit the college’s ability to fund the array of workforce and college transfer programs that currently serve our students and district. The remaining source of funding is student tuition, which is capped at certain levels to maintain accessibility to high-quality education.”
Matt Bierman, interim vice president of administrative services at Western Illinois University in Macomb, said the school already has faced a huge funding shortfall because of the budget battle. An audit of WIU released last week shows that the school has been forced to cut employment and find other ways to eliminate costs.
“We were shorted by about $30 million in 2016 over what we got in 2015. So last year we spent about that much from our reserves,” Bierman said.
I get why university and college presidents are so reticent to talk about this stuff. They don’t want to scare off current or prospective students. But that was a bit on the weak side.
All in all, though, a pretty solid piece. And there’s more, including local legislative react, so click here.
* This Tribune story about a stalled project at Olive-Harvey College on the city’s South Side of a “Transportation, Distribution and Logistics Center” to train folks for “careers in automotive technology, applied engineering, the repair and maintenance of heavy equipment and supply chain management” is an interesting read.
The story is kinda all over the place, however, so here’s a straighter timeline.
* The project was a partnership between the state and City Colleges announced way back in March of 2012 - almost five years ago - by Gov. Quinn and Mayor Emanuel. The groundbreaking ceremony was held in 2013. The state share was $31.6 million with City Colleges putting in $13.2 million.
When the budget passed by the General Assembly was vetoed by Gov. Rauner in 2015, the state halted construction on the 60 percent-completed center because it claimed it didn’t have appropriation authority.
In March of 2016, City Colleges and the mayor announced they were taking over the project. By that time, the project needed an additional $23 million to finish, which included $4 million in new costs because the facility was damaged during the eight-month delay.
But the same day of the takeover announcement last year, the Capital Development Board sent the city a letter saying state law required it to supervise construction that involve state funds…
“One possible solution is for you or the city to repay the state’s taxpayers for any expenditures to date,” [Jodi Golden, executive director of the state’s Capital Development Board] wrote. “We welcome additional solutions, but must insist on a formal resolution prior to the resumption of any construction in order to comply with state law.”
The City Colleges takeover was no more.
Then, this past August, CDB informed City Colleges that it had funding for the project and also told contractors to get back to work. But that turned out to be a “premature” statement, Golden admitted to the Tribune. Construction didn’t commence.
Last month, CDB formally shelved the project again.
To date, the state has spent $24 million and City Colleges has spent about $2 million, according to the Tribune.
“We wouldn’t even be having this conversation had the state managed to live up to the commitment they made, not once but twice, to finish the project that they negotiated in the first place,” Emanuel spokeswoman Lauren Huffman said Monday in a statement. “This is how the state of Illinois treats higher education, and students around the state - at City Colleges, at Eastern, Western, Southern and throughout the University of Illinois system, and at Chicago State - are bearing the brunt as a result.”
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration said in a statement Monday that the city has said it plans to work with City Colleges to allocate resources to help the Capital Development Board finish the project.
“We are hopeful that City Colleges will partner with the state and we can get this project moving again,” his office said.
* Look, if there are no appropriations, how is the thing supposed to be built? Speaking of which, why did CDB say it had the money last August when it didn’t? Or did it have the money? And color me a tad skeptical of the city’s 2016 announcement that it would complete the project on its own. With what cash?
This is the sort of wholesale failure caused by the impasse and the inability of leaders to work with each other.
But what’s done is done. Instead of pointing fingers, the mayor needs to get involved and help pass a budget. You know, those bills that contain appropriations for things like construction projects.
For instance, where is Mayor Emanuel on the Senate’s grand bargain? Or is he more allied with the House Democrats?
* What we’ve come to in this state is the constant use of bogeymen to mask and/or excuse failure. Gov. Rauner does it with Speaker Madigan on an almost hourly basis. Mayor Emanuel has taken to doing the same with Gov. Rauner.
* From Dan Proft, in his capacity with Liberty Principles PAC…
Governor Rauner’s posture on current Senate budget negotiations notwithstanding, I have heard from many significant donors on the broad outlines of the deal Sens. Cullerton and Radogno are attempting to forge and push through the Senate. Those donors have made it clear to me that Republican senators who want to negotiate the terms of surrender to Sen. Cullerton and Speaker Madigan–and that is precisely what Sen. Radogno is doing at present–should be removed from the battlefield in favor of those who are willing to fight for the most overtaxed families and overregulated businesses in the country.
* Local 150 of the Operating Engineers International Union commissioned a poll of 600 likely Illinois Republican Party primary voters by Anzalone Liszt Grove Research, which is a Democratic pollster. The poll was taken January 4-8 and has a margin of error of +/-4.0 percent. 45 percent of respondents were reached on their mobile phones.
• Primary voters are net favorable towards labor unions. A plurality of voters are favorable towards labor unions (46% favorable / 40% unfavorable), driven by stronger support Downstate (49% favorable / 35% unfavorable). This includes many self- described conservatives (41% favorable / 47% unfavorable) who are 61% of GOP primary voters as well as moderates (54% favorable / 31% unfavorable) who make up almost all of the rest (34% of GOP primary voters).
• Support for labor unions is correlated with GOP dislike of Bruce Rauner. Bruce Rauner receives almost unanimous support from the roughly half of GOP primary voters who dislike labor unions (83% favorable / 12% unfavorable), but the half who is favorable towards unions is less positive towards the Governor (68% favorable / 26% unfavorable).
• GOP primary voters hold many pro-labor positions in opposition to the Governor. As with support for unions generally, support for the pro-labor position correlates with personal unfavorability towards Bruce Rauner. […]
• GOP primary voters also support increased spending on infrastructure and anti- outsourcing laws. We have seen similar levels of support for both policies statewide and among Democrats, though these numbers seem to have increased among Republicans since Donald Trump’s nomination and election.
Now, I’d like to ask you your impressions of some people active in politics. As I read each one, just tell me whether you have a very favorable opinion, a somewhat favorable opinion, a somewhat unfavorable opinion, or a very unfavorable opinion of each. If you don’t recognize them, just say so. Here is the first one…
The following findings are based on a poll of n=600 likely Illinois primary-election voters, defined as having voted in at least one of the past four statewide Republican primaries (2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) and saying they are likely to vote in a 2018 Republican primary election. Respondents were contacted via landline and cellphone. The expected margin of sampling error at the 95% confidence level is +4.0% and higher for subgroups.
Madigan’s Mayor Strikes Again
Rahm lectures West Coast Elite while his political fixer foments a crisis at CPS
While his handpicked political fixer was ordering $46 million in avoidable new cuts to Chicago schools, Mayor Rahm Emanuel was hanging out in California spouting political advice and inadvertently revealing the sad truth that his cuts are all about trying to gain a political advantage.
“Rahm Emanuel could have spent the last two months working to pass the agreed-to comprehensive pension reform deal that would have benefited Chicago Public Schools, but rather than do what is right, Rahm focused on how to cut services and blame someone else,” said Illinois GOP spokesman Aaron DeGroot. “Madigan and the Mayor are playing from the same divisive playbook, trying to create a crisis and hurt people instead of working to find common ground. It’s time for Mayor Emanuel to stop playing the part of Madigan’s junior partner and actually work to get results for his city.”
From his perch at Stanford University yesterday, Mayor Emanuel espoused a political world view of trying to foster disagreement and division. During Emanuel’s political lecturing, his hatchet man was busy slashing school budgets and trying to create a crisis for his boss who infamously advised to never let a serious crisis go to waste.
In case you don’t have your decoder ring handy, the unnamed “handpicked political fixer” and “hatchet man” is Forrest Claypool, to whose campaign committee Bruce Rauner gave $250,000 back in the aughts.
Failure to embrace pending legislation in the Illinois Senate to address the state’s longstanding budget problems would represent a “significant missed opportunity” and risk a credit rating downgrade and hurt economic growth prospects, S&P Global Ratings said on Monday.
S&P, which rates Illinois BBB with a negative outlook, said legislation boosting revenue and ending the state’s budget impasse could improve the near-term fiscal outlook, although a rating upgrade would be at least two years away. […]
S&P chastised Illinois for a fiscal crisis it called “a man-made byproduct of policy ultimatums placed upon the state’s budget process.
“We believe Illinois’ distressed fiscal condition and dysfunctional budget politics now threaten to erode the state’s long-term economic growth prospects,” S&P Managing Director Gabriel Petek said in a statement. [Emphasis added.]
That’s pretty darned direct, scary and spot freaking on.
* Cullerton’s ‘grand bargain’ push: ‘If not this plan, then what?’: Cullerton has always admitted the plan is in flux. A school funding formula bill is still being drafted, after having incorporated suggestions from Gov. Bruce Rauner’s school funding commission. Cullerton said it has the “principles” needed to get support. And a minimum wage hike bill has been eliminated from the plan — due to pressure from national unions to bump the hike to $15 an hour. The sale of the James R. Thompson Center — a plan being pushed by Rauner’s administration and Republican leaders — has also been added to the plan’s revenue bill. An analysis by the state’s Department of Central Management Services found the sale could bring in $220 million — if the building is demolished and rebuilt. It also could bring in $45 million a year in Chicago property taxes, since it will no longer be a state-owned building. And Cullerton told reporters on Monday that the leaders will likely have a “structured roll call” — which would spare some legislators from taking unpopular votes. It would allow senators in safe districts who are likely to be re-elected to take some of the toughest votes.
* Cullerton: ‘If not this plan, then what?’: But though Cullerton got some help from a big New York bond rating agency, the comprehensive package of $6.5 billion in tax hikes, pension changes and spending cuts continues to catch heavy fire. As Cullerton conceded, “We’ll find out in the next few days” whether the plan will fly politically as a solution.
Illinois Senate leaders are poised to add a contentious issue to their already complicated attempt to break the budget stalemate in Springfield as they turn their attention this week to changing the formula used to funnel state tax money to schools.
Senate President John Cullerton said Monday that his Democratic lawmakers would be briefed Tuesday on the schools plan as part of the broader, 12-bill package that Cullerton and Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno have been pushing as a way out of the state’s 19-month budget impasse. […]
Sen. Andy Manar, a Democrat from Bunker Hill who has long pushed for an education funding overhaul, said that while the schools portion of the package is still in flux, it is likely to mirror the commission’s suggestion that each school district should have its own specialized funding goal. That target would be set using criteria such as the number of children living in poverty and how much money is available from local property taxes, an acknowledgment that it often takes more resources to bring many children in those areas of the state up to speed than in wealthier areas.
But the legislation also would include a so-called hold harmless provision, which means districts wouldn’t receive less state money in the future than they do now, at least at the start. Just how much more money lawmakers would pump into the education system is still up for debate, but any increase likely would have to be phased in over time given the state’s deep budget problems.
Sen. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, a major proponent of school funding reform, would only say Monday that, “I’ve been working on it every day since the commission finished its work and that continues. I believe the direction coming from both leaders is clear. They want to try to get a bill passed.”
Rauner said he’s still digesting the report from the commission. He also said it wasn’t the commission’s job to draft a bill that could be considered by lawmakers.
“What they did was lay out the parameters for a bill to get drafted,” he said. “I’ll talk to the General Assembly about who should draft. My sense is, I think the senators, I don’t know, I think they’re working on something. If they’d like our administration to draft something, we can do that.”
“The hotel industry wanted to throttle Airbnb. [But] nobody signs on to a loss. Nobody willingly. . . . I always before we negotiate draw out on a piece of paper, their wins, my wins. Can I give ’em what I think are their wins. Can they give me my wins? And then, how close are we to that kind of ideal paper at the beginning when we get to the end,” the mayor said.
“We did it recently with the teachers. There are things in there the teachers can claim to their members they won fair and square. Not a problem,” he said. “There’s things we won fair and square. Otherwise, it’s not a very good negotiation or a contract. If you try to make the other side lose, it’s not usually a good way to get a deal done and they won’t sign onto it. And if they do sign onto it, it’s because you crushed ’em. And trust me, they’re gonna come back and get you. What goes around comes around.”
Stop the blame game. “Democrats love doing a firing squad in the circle. Stop it: ‘They’re too moderate.’ Forget about it. This guy [Trump] and these people are about to do something on the tax code, the regulatory environment and things that are more threatening than what a fellow Democrat might slightly disagree with you on,” Emanuel said.
Pick your battles. “Not every pitch has to be swung at. … We don’t have the power to swing at everything, so you have to pick what is essential,” the mayor said.
Go slow. “Time is not the incumbent party’s friend. Time is the opposition’s friend. Slow. Go slow. They want to rush. We want to go slow. Real slow.”
Drive a wedge every chance you get. “Whenever there’s a disagreement among Republicans, I’m for one of those disagreements. I’m all for it,” the mayor said. “The President wants Russia? I’m with John McCain and Lindsey Graham. I’m for NATO. Why? Wedge. Schisms have to be wedges. Wedges have to be divides and divisions. …We’ve got to lower the President? Why? Because they are strong enough to get him than us. We’re not strong enough.”
“Democrats are at the lowest level since 1928 in the House of Representatives and the lowest level since 1925 in the state houses. … It is hard to imagine it getting lower,” the mayor said.
“It took us a long time to get this low. It ain’t gonna happen in 2018. Take a chill pill, man. You’ve got to be in this for the long haul. And if you think it’s gonna be a quick turnaround like that, it’s not. You have to be part of this for the long haul. … You’re gonna have a success here and a success here, and then you’ll build a critical mass. But it’s worth fighting for. And I think this country is worth fighting for.”
Rauner said it is “fundamentally wrong” that some people are arguing that state employees not get paid even though they are on the job every day. Attorney General Lisa Madigan is seeking to dissolve a court order that said workers would get paid even without a state budget in place. The state Supreme Court ruled last year in another case that workers cannot get paid without an appropriation approved by the legislature. […]
Still, Rauner said, “[State legislators] get paid no matter what. And they work part time And many would argue they’re not really doing their jobs, but they made sure they get paid no matter what.”
Rauner said that even if the order is dissolved, Comptroller Susana Mendoza should continue to pay workers.
“It is not right to cut off state employee pay when they are working,” he said.
OK, first of all, state employees won’t be working if they aren’t being paid. You can’t force someone to work without paying them. Google: “1865.”
And if Comptroller Mendoza paid state bills without an appropriation or a court order, she could be impeached. But what does the governor think? Should she pay the social service groups that have contracts but no line items? He apparently hasn’t yet been asked that question. But he was asked this…
Asked if human services programs and higher education should also be put under a continuing appropriation to ensure they will be paid without a budget, Rauner said only, “There are many things that get continuing appropriations.”
Gov. Rauner’s administration is raising concerns about a plan the House Democrats are pushing to free up money for employee paychecks after Democratic Attorney General Lisa Madigan asked a court to block salaries unless lawmakers approved a spending plan.
The Democratic legislation has “a lack of clarity,” according to a review by the governor’s budget office that was included in an analysis of the bill prepared for Republican lawmakers. Among the issues raised is uncertainty about whether the bill earmarks enough money to cover all employee salaries and a lack of funding for contractual workers.
The analysis also noted that some paychecks would be covered by dollars taken from the state’s road fund, which can no longer be tapped to pay for services that aren’t related to transportation under a constitutional amendment voters approved in the November election. However, the analysis notes that restriction could be addressed if the road fund money was used to pay salaries of police and workers in the transportation department.
The evaluation comes as the GOP pushes an alternative plan to keep paychecks flowing by changing state law to ensure salaries are paid regardless of whether or not lawmakers have agreed on a budget plan.
The bill is here. As an example, the Department of Corrections is appropriated just $258,200 for payroll.
* It is unclear if the amounts in the bill are meant to be an amount needed for the remainder of the fiscal year, and are in addition to amounts that have already been allocated under court order, or if the amounts represent spending including sums allocated under the court order.
* The amounts for some agencies, including the Department of Corrections and the Attorney General, represent a small portion of actual funds needed.
* Some agencies lack appropriations entirely, including DCFS, DJJ and the State Board of Elections. This appears to be because such expenditures would be covered by separate consent decrees.
* Narrative language does not allow payments for contractual personnel services, which are utilized by some agencies.
* Narrative language leaves ambiguity regarding if payments are limited to payroll or could include payments for group insurance claims.
The HGOP proposal, which is basically a continuing approp through the end of the fiscal year, is here. The analysis is here.
* Some Capitol Fax subscribers received an e-mail today from Dianna Donaker entitled “Documents” with a pdf attachment. This is a personal G-Mail account of someone who works for a company I use for bookkeeping.
I am told the account was hacked. Do NOT open the e-mail or the attachment.
We’re working right now to figure out if the attachment contained a virus or is benign. I’m sorry for any problems this might create. I’ll let you know more when I know more.
*** UPDATE *** From the company that handles bookkeeping…
The attachment does not contain a virus. This is a phishing scam trying to get Google login info. It asks you to login to view the doc.
Attorney General Lisa Madigan today sent a letter to Gov. Rauner condemning the federal executive orders on immigration and urging him to use his authority to protect all Illinois residents from the harm caused by the executive actions. While there is a temporary halt to the immigration travel ban, other provisions of the Orders could greatly impact the lives of Illinois immigrants.
The president issued several Executive Orders on immigration. The executive orders instructed the Secretary of Homeland Security to seek agreements with states and localities to authorize local law enforcement to serve as immigration officers. They also directed that sanctuary jurisdictions are not eligible to receive certain federal grants. Another order suspended immigration from seven nations for 90 days and suspended the admission of all refugees for 120 days.
In her letter, Madigan stated that the Executive Orders have threatened the future of immigrants and refugees who have settled in Illinois and who greatly contribute to the state. The Attorney General urged the governor to refuse to agree to deputize Illinois law enforcement to work as federal immigration officers, policing immigrants in the state. Madigan also urged the governor to strengthen the state’s efforts to ensure immigrants and refugees can safely settle in Illinois and protect them against hate crimes. […]
The Attorney General urged the governor to pledge to protect immigrants and refugees in several ways:
* Refuse to enter into any agreement that would use Illinois law enforcement authorities as federal immigration officers. Deputizing Illinois law enforcement as immigration officers would not only divert already scarce resources away from public safety efforts and raise serious legal questions, but also undermine the values on which the country was built.
* Strengthen the work performed by the Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Services within the Illinois Department of Human Services, which assists immigrants and refugees settling in Illinois through training, health screening, citizenship classes and other services. From October 1, 2016 through January, 31, 2017, 1,001 refugees arrived in Illinois.
* Commit to strong enforcement of Illinois’ anti-discrimination laws and bolster efforts to fight hate crimes against all residents across the state, including immigrants and refugees. Illinois’ hate crime statute provides both criminal and civil protections to those who have experienced hate-based harassment, injury and property damage.
Immigrants make up about 14 percent of Illinois’ population or nearly 1.8 million residents, making Illinois sixth among all states in the number of foreign-born residents. Cook County ranks the third largest U.S. county in its number of foreign-born residents. The benefits of immigration to Illinois are immense. A recent study found that Illinois businesses owned by immigrants produced $2.6 billion in business income in 2014, with immigrants composing 22 percent of the entrepreneurs in Illinois and immigrant-owned businesses employing over 280,000 people.
* Related…
* ADDED: Press Release: Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed an amicus brief today in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco in support of a lawsuit challenging the federal Executive Orders on immigration as illegal and unconstitutional.
A top ally of Gov. Bruce Rauner warned members of the largest state employee union to be “careful” about “crossing” the Republican governor by going on strike, suggesting that individual jobs are more important than the group’s political standing in Springfield.
The comments by House Republican leader Jim Durkin come as members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 are voting on whether to authorize a walkout amid a prolonged contract battle with Rauner.
“They are dealing with a person who’s a very determined individual, and he’s a tough person. And he drives a bargain,” Durkin said during a Friday taping of WLS-AM 890’s “Connected to Chicago” that airs at 7 p.m. Sunday.
“But the fact is, if you cross him, I think you have to be careful. That’s a situation, if you do that, you’re crossing a governor who’s, I think he’s going to do what he thinks is best at the end of the day, which is not going to be in the best interests of AFSCME members and their families and loved ones,” Durkin said.
And he should know. /snark
Durkin’s people would like me to remind y’all that while he did say some blunt things, he is on record more than once supporting legislation to pay state workers during the impasse.
Still trying to close a $215 million budget gap they blame on the governor, Chicago Public Schools officials are trying to chip away at that hole by freezing $51 million in spending, officials announced Monday.
About $28 million of the $51 million in planned savings will come by CPS halting planned expenditures on new textbooks, more technology, field trips, hourly employees and other items. An additional $5 million in planned spending on teacher training also is being frozen.
No school is supposed to lose more than 5 percent of its initial budget this year, but CPS wouldn’t immediately release any school-by-school figures. Schools that have squirreled away money for supplies or to get a jump on equipment for next year likely have the most to lose.
Another $18 million in savings is set to be realized by CPS scaling back funding to the 100-plus charter schools it helps bankroll. Those schools will have to decide how to adjust their budgets accordingly. […]
“Unfortunately, there is still more we must do to close the $215 million hole Gov. Rauner blew in our budget,” [CPS CEO Forrest Claypool] wrote in a letter addressed to Local School Council members tasked with approving individual school spending.
Notice they didn’t blame the House Speaker for not trying to override the bill in December. And, yes, I know the override woulda failed, but my point is what’s done is done and we’re in a new spring session and it’s time to move forward already.
Chicago Public Schools faced a shortfall in its operations budget of roughly $500 million at the close of its past fiscal year, leaving the financially troubled district with a significant bill to cover even as it struggles to balance this year’s spending plan.
The budget shortfall was reported in a recently issued financial postmortem for 2016 that also repeated a long-held conclusion: CPS either needs an infusion of new money or will have to make major cuts if it is to keep operating as it has been. […]
Even if CPS manages to make up for state aid that hasn’t arrived and pulls together other savings to balance a $5.5 billion operating budget, which relied on ambitious assumptions, more than $100 million from last year’s shortfall remains.
…Adding… Yeah, this message from Claypool will help…
Governor Rauner, just like President Trump, has decided to attack those who need the most help. Governor Rauner and President Trump regularly attack Chicago because they hope to score political points. It is shameful.
Most recently, Governor Rauner broke his word by blocking Chicago from receiving $215 million for our schools. That $215 million was supposed to be a first step – just a first step — toward treating your children fairly. That $215 million was supposed to be a first step toward providing your children with their fair share of the dollars Illinois spends on children in the rest of Illinois. But Governor Rauner broke his word and did not take even that first step.
*** UPDATE *** Um, dude, he can’t “reverse his veto.” What’s done is done…
Claypool: We ask the governor to reverse this veto immediately. We ask parents to call Rauner's office to demand fair funding.
As Missouri’s right-to-work legislation is signed into law today, Illinois is now surrounded by states with right-to-work laws, and the Illinois Chamber of Commerce is calling on Illinois lawmakers to respond with a strong pro-growth policy agenda.
“As of today, Illinois is now surrounded by states that have right-to-work laws. As pressure increases from other states, it is essential that Illinois responds with a strong pro-growth agenda for jobs and the economy in our state,” said Todd Maisch, Illinois Chamber of Commerce President and CEO. “That doesn’t mean that Illinois has to adopt a right-to-work law. But it does mean that Illinois needs to take strong action on pro-growth policies to help us compete. Other states are becoming more attractive for employers, and Illinois should respond on behalf of our economy.”
The Illinois Chamber of Commerce is calling on state lawmakers to address five key state policy areas that can help accelerate the Illinois economy in 2017. They are:
Enacting pro-growth economic reforms - Illinois tax policy cannot be developed without regard to its effect on Illinois businesses, workers and our economy. Instead, any revenue discussions must be balanced by including corresponding pro-economic growth reforms to help employers and workers. For example, the state could establish tax credits to help small businesses shoulder the cost of bringing on new employees. In addition, the state must immediately restore the Illinois Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit Program (the EDGE tax credit) that helps attract investment and job creation and retention in the state.
Reforming Illinois’ unfair workers’ compensation system - The current workers’ compensation system in Illinois is tilted far out of balance. Employers throughout the state continue to call for reform of the system because it hurts the ability of Illinois employers to create – and even maintain – jobs here. Reforming the system can restore balance, reduce employers’ costs for insurance, and no longer allow workers’ compensation costs to be an obstacle to growing a business in Illinois.
Rejecting anti-competitive proposals – Lawmakers should do no further harm to our state’s jobs climate. Proposals that pile more requirements on employers in our state adversely affect Illinois businesses and make our state less competitive with others. These shortsighted proposals would only move Illinois in the wrong direction and lawmakers must reject them.
Working together on common sense regulatory issues – When state Democrats and Republicans worked together, they have enacted important regulatory reforms for the state. In fact, the Illinois Chamber has led initiatives that reduce costs and make government more responsive. In 2017, legislators can finally modernize the state’s outdated telecommunications law to drive more investment in modern technologies and networks to benefit those who rely on them: Illinois businesses, consumers and public safety officials.
Focusing on education outcomes and workforce preparation - While K-12 education funding gets most of the headlines out of Springfield, Illinois must avoid being dragged into an education debate that strictly focuses on who pays more, who pays less, whose communities receive more and whose receive less. Illinois must ask tougher questions if we are to improve our economy, respect taxpayers and live up to our obligations to the next generation. State policymakers must be focused on improving educational outcomes and supporting students interested in careers that do not require a four-year college degree. Those goals must be in sight before we begin a new discussion about education funding, not the other way around.
“These reforms will re-establish balance and help Illinois become more competitive. By enacting them in 2017, we believe Illinois can better compete with other states and begin living up to its full economic potential,” Maisch said.
Notice how they dumped on the governor’s education funding reform commission?
Also, Maisch mentioned a progressive tax proposal that was recently introduced in the Senate as being a non-starter. He also dissed the “opportunity tax” idea and dismissed the Senate’s grand bargain for not doing nearly enough. “We are open to the idea of additional revenues. We are. But that seems to be the first thing people want to talk about,” he said.
Maisch told reporters that the Senate’s proposal is “out of whack,” and “out of balance.”
“My members will tell me when they think there’s a package that’s worthy of their support,” he said.
* Subscribers can watch the press conference with their special password. Click here.
* Meanwhile…
Cullerton says grand bargain plan now only has 12 bills; no minimum wage.
* Senate President John Cullerton himself brought up the rumors about a possible retirement during his City Club appearance today when he was asked what he would say when he comes back to give another speech a year from now….
IL Senate President Cullerton: I am returning next year…disputing retirement rumor
* I asked longtime commenters and pension experts RNUG and Arthur Andersen to take a look at the Illinois Policy Institute’s latest pension proposal.
Let’s start with RNUG. You can see all of his work by clicking here (that link also includes the group’s full explanation, by the way). But this is his summary…
The Bad (from a taxpayer and / or employee perspective)
1) In terms of fixing the pension underfunding, it is a “kick the can” plan not much different than the Edgar Ramp.
2) It is a Defined Contribution plan that shifts both investment and retirement risk to the employee. Your 401K is all you have; no AAI, and if you invest poorly, no one to bail you out.
3) Most likely, it will force local schools districts to raise local / property taxes.
4) Universities may have to raise tuition.
5) Community colleges will, most likely, have to do a mix of 3 and 4.
6) Encourages employee turnover because there is no significant benefit / reason to stay employed at the State.
The Good (from a taxpayer and / or State perspective):
1) For about 8 – 9 years, State contributions to the pension funds will be lower than under the current Edgar Ramp.
2) It transitions the State out of the Defined Benefit business, reducing the risk to the State. As part of this, it eliminates
any AAI.
3) Encourages employee turnover, which might l;ower salary levels because people will have less longevity.
4) Shifts future liability for all TRS and a portion of SURS from the State to the local entities.
5) If Tier 2 is completely abandoned, removes future risk of Tier 2 violating “Safe Harbor” rules
6) Effectively gets the State out of the pension business by 2047 or so.
* And AA gives us his “first read observations”…
1) They aren’t saving $1 billion in 2018, they’re shifting it from the State to schools and universities. Where we stand today, which ones can afford to pick up that cost?
2) The “extrapolation” of TRS figures to SERS and SURS is seriously flawed. The three funds have very different member bases, salary schedules, and demographics. No actuary would tell you that is a sound method.
3) Fixing Tier 2 has to be done, and sooner rather than later. Their approach is off the mark. The fix for Tier 2 is either reduce the member contribution or increase the benefit. Their plan doesn’t do either one.
4) Their proposed contribution rates are a bad idea. The rates are different for the 3 systems because the benefits are different. Charging an SERS member 8% for a benefit that is lower than the SURS/TRS member is just a different flavor of the Tier 2 problem. On the other hand, the proposed 7 percent employer contribution is too low to cover the current employer’s normal cost, or the employer’s share of currently accruing benefits. Working from memory, I think TRS’ is around 17-18 %, with the employee’s share being 9%, leaving the employer cost around 8-9 percent.
5) It’s settled fact that 401(k) plans are more expensive to administer. (Not a biggie, relatively, but it should be considered.)
6) The SURS experience is instructive. When offered the choice, less than a third of SURS members selected the 401(k)-type benefit option. This option is a popular choice among faculty who don’t expect to spend a career in Illinois, so the “portability” is desirable. I don’t know that this experience is typical among other employee groups-I doubt it.
Conclusion-typical IPI half-baked baloney. About the only positive thing I can find to say about it is that nothing is blatantly unconstitutional.
*** UPDATE *** You can read Cullerton’s speech as prepared for delivery by clicking here.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* Senate President John Cullerton is speaking to the City Club today. From his office…
Declaring “failure isn’t an option,” Illinois Senate President John Cullerton today will address the City Club of Chicago in an effort to rally public support for a sweeping balanced budget deal designed to end a devastating financial impasse that has dragged on for nearly two years.
“If we can pull this off, we’ll pay businesses on time, fully fund MAP scholarships, ensure state workers get paid and government doesn’t shutdown, assemble a complete budget for the first time in two years and put Illinois on the path to a balanced budget,” Cullerton is expected to say in the speech.
“We’ll also save billions on pension costs, give voters the power to reduce Illinois’ ‘most in the nation’ number of local governments and give schools relief from state mandates.
“It’s an intricate and delicate give-and-take designed to create a plan that can win bipartisan support among lawmakers and hopefully get the governor’s signature.”
The Senate President is scheduled to deliver his remarks at noon today.
* I’m told that this passage from one of my recent newspaper columns will be featured in his speech…
[Over the past two years], sexual assault victims were frozen out of counseling, homeless teens and domestic violence survivors were kicked to the curb, breast cancer screenings were eliminated, and large and formerly stable charities like Lutheran Social Services of Illinois as well as small and vulnerable service providers laid off thousands of staff members and discontinued programs.
* Except for the governor, few have questioned Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s legal reasoning in her motion to lift a judicial order mandating state employees be paid without a formal appropriation. Instead, the objection has mainly centered around AG Madigan’s timing. Why did she wait so long? From her SJ-R oped…
Consequences of budget inaction have already been catastrophic: As attorney general, my goal is always to allow the executive and legislative branches of government to do their jobs without legal intervention. While the “stopgap” budget was in place through the end of 2016, it was my hope that the governor and the legislature would work to enact a budget that funded state operations for the remainder of this fiscal year.
But the “stopgap” budget expired, and Illinois now has no spending plan in place. As a result, the governor and the legislature face the urgent need to enact a budget. To abide by the Supreme Court’s decision and the state Constitution, I have asked the court to make clear that any spending plan must provide explicit authority to pay state employee salaries.
I recognize the difficulties the governor and the legislature have faced in enacting a budget. I do not want state employees to be harmed by this crisis. This is why I recommended that the court provide additional time to put the budget in place to avoid undeserved hardship to state employees. The governor and legislature can resolve this situation at any time, and they have had a year and a half to do that.
To be sure, there have been signs of progress, but there also have been repeated setbacks. This court filing should give the budget process the momentum it needs.
By asking the court to uphold the Constitution, we will finally solve this destructive crisis - not create one.
Rauner: One eye on Trump, another on 2018 election
Rauner has worked to balance his approach to Donald Trump’s presidency, being a Republican governor in a state that went heavily for Hillary Clinton.
For example, on the executive order regarding the travel ban, a Rauner spokeswoman said in a statement that the governor opposes a ban that targets a religion and thinks the courts should determine the legality of Trump’s executive order. But Rauner has supported limiting the number of Syrian refugees coming to Illinois.
In that statement, Rauner is speaking to the unpopularity of it and the controversy of it without fully condemning it.
I’ve also been told over and over this week that Rauner won Illinois in 2014 by doing well in Chicago suburbs, which is where Trump did poorly. So Rauner’s trying to draw a distinction between himself and the new president.
* And that last bit about the suburbs is the main political reason behind this bill…
While the likelihood of a Roe repeal in the immediate future is up for debate, a law on the state books has some advocates alarmed that such a move could spell quick trouble here: Illinois has a so-called trigger law for abortion, meaning the instant Roe were to be repealed, all abortion in which the mother’s life is not endangered could potentially cease to be legal in the state.
One of only a handful of states with such a law on the book, Illinois passed its measure just two years after the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v Wade decision. At the same time, some legal experts have argued that Illinois’ trigger lacks real power. According to the Tribune, in 2006, laws like Illinois are “statements of policy, not actual bans,” as noted by attorneys on either side of the debate. Illinois’ law lacks specifics and the state’s abortion ban that preceded Roe was repealed, the Trib notes.
Still, it’s a surprising statement, considering the abortion advocacy network that extends from the present moment (groups like the Midwest Access Coalition, which helps abortion seekers from more restrictive states come to Chicago) to decades back (the iconic Jane Collective helped provide the service to women in need in the early 1970s, when abortion was illegal.) And some Illinois lawmakers want a change of text regardless.
A bill in the Illinois state house, sponsored by Representative Sara Feigenholtz, would change the law and remove the trigger effect.
We’ve talked about this bill before. There’s disagreement over whether the trigger means anything, but putting it on Rauner’s desk would force him to take sides.
* But there’s also this provision…
HB 40 also removes discriminatory provisions from Illinois law that denies insurance coverage of an abortion to many women who depend on Medicaid and State Employee Health Insurance.
“Every woman, regardless of whether she has private or government health insurance should have affordable and comprehensive health care coverage,” said Brigid Leahy, Director of Public Policy for Planned Parenthood of Illinois. “Women should not be denied abortion coverage because of how much they earn. Access to full coverage enables a woman to make personal health decisions based on what is best for her and her family,” added Leahy.
If passed, Illinois would join 15 other states that provide women with health assistance funds that cover the full range of pregnancy-related care including a woman’s decision to end a pregnancy.
* Comptroller Mendoza went off on Gov. Rauner during an appearance on Rick Pearson’s WGN radio show yesterday…
“We are now going into a third year without that balanced budget proposal. He hasn’t done it once. He hasn’t done it twice. As a result of that, my office is responsible for having to pay $11.2 billion in bill backlogs. That’s how bad of a situation we’re in. We’ve had six downgrades to our credit since Gov. Rauner has taken office,” Mendoza said.
“Our state has never been worse off financially, yet this governor’s personal finances have more than tripled since he was sworn in,” she said, noting his adjusted gross income for 2015 was $188 million compared with $58.5 million in 2014. “You have to acknowledge there is a massive disconnect between the reality that he’s living in and the reality of your average person in the state of Illinois.”
* And here she is responding to the governor’s contention that she should continue paying state workers without a court order or a legal appropriation…
“It’s really clear. I would be in violation of the law if I continued to pay, and, you know, the governor, I think, has a habit of not paying attention to the state constitution,” she said. “He basically went out of his way to put this on me to somehow deflect to me and to ask me, basically demand, that I break the law. And that’s not going to happen. I mean, like, he’s not above the law. I’m not above the law. The law is the law.”
She said Rauner was trying to posture that, “Oh, Comptroller Mendoza, it’s her fault that the state’s goes into crisis or it’s the attorney general’s fault.
“It’s like, enough of the blame game, enough of the deflection. Take some responsibility. Lead this state. You’re now going into your third year. You’re not a rookie to this anymore. You can’t call yourself an outsider. It’s as insider as you get, and it’s time for him to do his job,” she said.
One of the governor’s worst habits is he loves to tell people how to do their jobs. The comptroller should pay a certain type of bill without an appropriation, the attorney general should drop her legal motion, newspaper headline writers should write more favorable headlines, AFSCME should help him implement his last and final offer, the House Speaker should pass his legislation, etc., etc., etc.
He does all of this to deflect blame from himself and he’s mostly gotten away with it, mainly because Speaker Madigan is so fabulously unpopular.
* Remember when he spent a small fortune on TV ads attacking Madigan after the 2015 spring session failed to produce a budget? Part of that was certainly designed to degrade the Madigan brand and make Democrats nervous. But it was mainly about blaming Madigan before that failure was hung around his own neck.
As Illinois prepares to celebrate 200 years in existence, a local legislator wants to give the state a corrected state seal as a birthday gift.
House Bill 479, sponsored by Rep. Tim Butler, R-Springfield, seeks to change the date on the outside ring from Aug. 26, 1818, which is when the first state constitution was signed, to Dec. 3, 1818, when Illinois officially became a state.
Butler believes, although important, the first constitution’s date should be removed for the actual day Illinois became a state.
President Barack Obama’s birthday may become the next state holiday, if some Illinois Democrats have their way.
House Bills 231 and 503 and Senate Bill 55 all make Obama’s birthday, Aug. 4, an official holiday.
Both House bills would make Aug. 4 a “legal holiday,” in which state government offices shut down, and schools and businesses have the option of closing. The Senate bill’s “Barack Obama Day” would be commemorative only.
“I teach economics for a living in a high school, and I wanted my first set of bills to include items that are what I call “basic economics in action,” said the West Leyden High School teacher, in Northlake. “When I came to the concept of scarcity being something that gives things value, this idea was what came to mind.
“Our list of official designations is long enough that it, in my opinion, has decreased the value of official state designations in general. I hope that paring it back provides more value to the ones that remain.”
To put sum up his sentiment in layman’s terms: less is more.
In 2015, Sen. Sam McCann, R-Plainview, sponsored successful legislation that was prompted by a group of fourth-graders at Chatham Elementary School to make sweet corn the official vegetable of Illinois.
McCann in a written statement defended the use of the various state symbols.
“Firstly, I have great respect and admiration for my colleague, Sen. (Tom) Rooney. I’m sure that it is being put forth with the very best of intentions,” McCann said. “But generally I feel that the state symbol bills that advance in the legislature grow organically within the communities and regions around the state. ”
However, McCann acknowledged that lawmakers might want to focus on something bigger, like passing a state budget, before adding any more state symbols.
When: 11:30 am, Monday, February 06th
What: ILGOP Chairman Schneider holds press call to discuss Madigan Family attempt to block employee pay
Call in information: Call-In: 1-857-216-6700, Passcode: 905279 [Numbers updated]
Today, the Illinois Republican Party added Attorney General Lisa Madigan to BossMadigan.com after her action to shut down state government.
Check out the page and watch the ILGOP’s new digital ad here: BossMadigan.com/Lisa-Madigan/
No one has benefited more from Mike Madigan’s political machine than Lisa Madigan. Mike helped jumpstart Lisa’s political career when she was just 32 years old and was elevated to the state senate. Just four years later, Mike helped make her Attorney General. She’s now been the state’s top prosecutor for more than a dozen years.
While corruption ran wild through Illinois, Lisa Madigan did little. Even as patronage scandals circled the Speaker’s office, Lisa could find no wrongdoing. Still, Lisa was held to be above politics.
Until now.
After months and months of waiting, Lisa suddenly and without warning filed a court motion to block state employees from getting paid.
Her action could force a major crisis of state government and hurt thousands of Illinois families. With a government shutdown, the lives and livelihoods of those who rely on and provide vital government services would be in danger. Not surprisingly, this is the exact type of crisis Mike Madigan wants.
It’s now clear: Lisa Madigan is working for the Speaker, not the people.
ILGOP Chairman Tim Schneider Statement on Madigan Family Attempt to Block Employee Pay
“Lisa Madigan is playing politics with state workers, their families, and millions of Illinoisans who rely on government services. It’s clear that Mike and Lisa Madigan are working together to protect the status quo and stop reform by causing a crisis.” - Illinois Republican Party Chairman Tim Schneider
U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam (R-6th) is scheduled to attend a closed meeting of the Palatine Township Republican Organization Saturday morning and will likely be greeted by protesters demanding a public meeting with area residents to address concerns about the Trump Administration.
Roskam is scheduled to appear at the Palatine Township Republican Headquarters, 765 N. Quentin Rd., Palatine, from 9 to 10 a.m.
Activists from three Palatine-area groups — 6th District of Illinois - Holding Peter Roskam Accountable, Action 6th District Illinois and Palatine After March Action Group, formed since President Trump’s inauguration — are organizing the protest outside the Palatine Township Republican Organization meeting set for tomorrow.
“I’m going to put them on the parkway, they’re not coming into my meeting and we’re not going to answer their questions,” Palatine Township Republican Committeeman Aaron Del Mar told the Journal & Topics Thursday. “We’re not going to infringe on their freedom of speech. I bet there’s going to be three people (protesters). I bet we have 100 people at our meeting.” [Emphasis added.]
About 400 protesters jeered U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam of Wheaton outside in freezing temperatures on Saturday while he met with about 100 members inside the Palatine Township Republican Organization office in Palatine.
* 400 is quite a bit more than 3, last time I checked. Click here for ABC News raw video which features protesters gamely chanting “We are more than three.”
Liberals probably ought to embrace the “snowflake” slam. Snowflakes are complicated, no two are alike, they can be easily blown away, but enough of them together can create real problems…
* People swamp Congress with calls in era of Trump: The past few weeks have caused headaches for members of Congress and their staff. But so far, the deluge of calls has not caused much of an issue for U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis. Ashley Phelps, a spokeswoman for the Taylorville Republican, said Friday that they have seen a small uptick in phone calls, mostly centered around possible repeal of the Affordable Care Act and recent executive orders signed by President Donald Trump concerning immigration.
Union ally Will Guzzardi, a Democratic state representative from Logan Square, also urged [Chicago] teachers to save some anger for Springfield.
“The reason you all are on furlough here today and not in classrooms teaching our children, the most immediate cause is Gov. Bruce Rauner,” he said. “So in addition to demanding that Chicago Public Schools do right by our students, I need your help in demanding that Gov. Rauner give a fair shake to the black and brown students in Chicago.”
Catherine Kelly, a Rauner spokeswoman, deflected the blame, noting the governor is “someone who’s been in office for two years.”
“We would encourage Rep. Guzzardi to work with his colleagues to ensure the framework by the bipartisan, bicameral School Funding Commission is passed into law, so that we better fund our low-income students and the schools that serve them,” she wrote in an email.
No bill has been introduced.
So, they’re gonna use the “framework” as a fig leaf? Pretty thin stuff there, considering that it’s nowhere close to being ready to put into actual legislation.
The Illinois School Funding Reform Commission wrapped up its work last week and delivered its report on revamping K-12 school funding on time.
That was the good news. The bad news, at least in the eyes of some people, is that the commission delivered its report. Because in their eyes, the last thing Illinois needs is another report that says the way the state pays for public education is flawed and needs to be fixed. What Illinois needs is a concrete proposal that actually fixes the problem, something that has eluded the state for literally decades.
Pretty much everyone went out of their way to praise the work of the commission and say it was an example of what can happen when people work together in a bipartisan way. Unfortunately, this bipartisan cooperation didn’t produce anything that legislators can actually debate, let alone vote on. There still has to be a bill drafted that incorporates all the ideas of the “framework” laid out by the commission.
If you want to buy a new lawnmower and your spouse doesn’t approve, do you yell at her for months on end? Do you retaliate by refusing to buy her a birthday present? Do you bad-mouth her all over town?
Of course not. You find a way to overcome her objections. Is it too expensive? Find a less pricey model. Is your preferred choice too big for the garage? Suggest a smaller one. Is she upset about something else you’ve done? Apologize profusely and vow never to do it again.
These basic principles are taught in standard sales training. To succeed, salespeople have to constantly overcome objections. Some are easily anticipated, some are not. When I was in sales training many years ago, my teacher strongly encouraged me to use his lessons in all aspects of my life. It’s why I’ve always said that the best training for reporters is to do commission-only sales for a while because chasing down stories requires overcoming a whole lot of obstacles.
My good friend Steve Schnorf and I talked about this valuable lesson just the other day. Steve was budget director for two Republican governors. You’d never know to look at him that he once held such a high-level government post, particularly if the big man rode by on his beloved Suzuki Volusia 800, with his long beard and long hair blowing in the wind. He’s a man’s man. A party-loving, road-tripping, music-loving bohemian. But he’s also a gentlemanly, kind, super-intelligent and pragmatic human being—the rarest of combinations these days.
Steve was diagnosed in December with terminal pancreatic cancer, and his treatments are causing that long gray mane of his to fall out of his head. We’ve spent quite a bit of time together since his diagnosis. Last Wednesday night, we chatted about how he’d used those sales techniques in his years in government. You have to look for ways to overcome obstacles if you want to get to a solution.
So, obviously, one of Steve’s greatest regrets as he prepares to depart this world is that he was never able to
Please click here to read the rest before commenting, please. Thanks.
Missouri will no longer require workers who benefit from collective bargaining to pay union dues. That means Illinois is going to be surrounded by so-called right-to-work states.
Experts aren’t sure what that means for the economy in formerly big-labor states. Gary Burtless is a labor economist with the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C. He says right-to-work states have weaker unions, but he’s not sure which leads to which.
“Whether they’re weaker because they were weaker to begin with, and the right-to-work law just is the proof that they’re weak politically as well as economically weak is the question.”
The political ramifications are more straightforward. Unions are among the main financial backers of the Democratic Party.
The best way to weaken an opposing party is to dry up its funding source. Here in Illinois, the Republicans have made the Democrats’ money toxic by tying it all to Speaker Madigan. Not quite the same thing, but you get the general gist.
Kentucky went Republican in November and that state passed a so-called “right to work” law in January. Iowa has had a “right to work” law since those statutes were first allowed by Congress. Indiana passed its law in 2012 and Wisconsin passed a broad law in 2015 after earlier passing a more narrow one.
The latest Illinois credit rating downgrade from Fitch Ratings is chock full of phrases that could be used in the next campaign cycle against the governor and other incumbents.
The one that’s made the most headlines is “Unprecedented failure,” as in Fitch’s downgrade “reflects the unprecedented failure of the state to enact a full budget for two consecutive years and the financial implications of spending far in excess of available revenues, which has resulted in increased accumulated liabilities and reduced financial flexibility.”
But that’s just stating the obvious. Pretty much anybody paying half attention out there knows the people who run the government are participating in an “unprecedented failure.” This has never happened before in Illinois, or in any other state for that matter.
However, here’s another Fitch phrase: “Fundamentally weakened,” as in “Even if the current attempts at a resolution to the extended impasse prove successful, Fitch believes that the failure to act to date has fundamentally weakened the state’s financial profile.”
In other words, digging out from under this impasse is going to be a long, hard, painful slog. And the longer the impasse lasts, the more difficult that process will become.
As the state’s economic activity appears to slow, a third Fitch observation is worth noting here: “Illinois has failed to capitalize on the economic growth of recent years to bolster its financial position.”
While other states were piling up surpluses during the national economic recovery, Illinois was creating a mountain of debt mainly because Democrats allowed the 2011 tax hike to partially expire and the Republican governor wouldn’t negotiate a new revenue and spending deal until he got his precious economic reforms. So if the national economy does enter a recession in the coming months, Illinois will be in a truly horrible spot.
One more phrase from Fitch: “Very weak,” as in “Illinois’ operating performance, both during the great recession and in this subsequent period of economic growth, has been very weak.”
Starting in 2002, Illinois has elected three governors in a row who can’t seem to get their arms around the job. And, instead of helping them do their jobs, legislative Democrats, particularly in the House, have preferred to fight and obstruct them. Even the income tax hike turned out to be a failure because it was temporary, expiring midway through a fiscal year while a Democratic governor was heading out the door. “Very weak,” indeed.
And speaking of weak, Gov. Bruce Rauner indicated to the Chicago Tribune last week that he plans to propose a budget much like the one he unveiled last year. In other words, yet another punt.
Last year, the governor punted on $3.5 billion in cuts needed to put his proposal into balance. Instead of outlining the actual cuts, and therefore wearing the political jacket for suggesting those cuts, he simply said he was willing to work with the General Assembly on finding where to cut or the GA could give him the authority to make the cuts on his own—without first explaining where he would cut.
If cuts became necessary, the governor told his legislative audience last year, “I would ask the legislature to work with us to make these tough decisions. If you are not willing to do that, then give the Executive Branch the flexibility to reallocate resources and make reductions to state spending as necessary.”
And this is what Gov. Rauner told the Tribune last week: “Either the General Assembly authorizes me to make cuts, not my first choice but I’ll do that, or let’s work together to do a balanced budget with cuts and, what I prefer is, a balance of cuts, some revenues and major structural change.”
State law forbids governors from using revenue streams that aren’t currently in place to balance their budget proposals. Rod Blagojevich did that time and time again, coming up with tax or fee plans that magically balanced his proposal. But every reform has its downside, and the downside to this one is that instead of using phony revenues to balance a budget plan, Gov. Rauner has used phony cuts.
The root of “leadership” is “lead,” and that, by definition, means going first. Our state Constitution, however flawed, built that leadership into its two main budgetary mandates. First, the governor proposes a balanced budget, then the General Assembly passes a balanced spending plan. Neither have worked out too well of late, or for quite a while. But the state constitutional convention delegates obviously wanted governors to lead.
Instead, we get six downgrades in the last two years.
NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith is prepared to tell potential free agents not to sign with the Bears should a new Illinois bill that targets athletes be passed.
This bill would remove workers’ compensation for athletes in the state of Illinois beginning at the age of 35. For a professional athlete, this would be considered injury care in retirement. […]
“This bill being sponsored by (senate Republican minority leader Christine Radogno) is being designed to target professional athletes and take away their right to health care that every worker in the state of Illinois is entitled to,” Smith told the Spiegel & Parkins Show.
“The Bears’ owners are behind it as well, to beat the expense of the players who actually do all the work. … They’re pushing the bill. Our understanding is they’re the people who have lined up the lobbyists to promote the bill.”
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has hired former state Comptroller Leslie Munger to serve as a deputy governor.
In a statement released first to The Associated Press on Friday, Rauner says Munger will focus on long-term budgeting and work with human services organizations hit hard by the state budget impasse. […]
Munger will serve in addition to current Deputy Governor Trey Childress and will earn $135,000 annually.
Thoughts?
…Adding… Press Release…
Governor Bruce Rauner on Friday announced that former Illinois Comptroller Leslie Geissler Munger has been named Deputy Governor, bringing a unique mix of business, human services and government experience to assist in addressing financial challenges facing the state and its nonprofit organizations.
“Leslie’s vast business, human services and government experiences make her uniquely qualified to serve in this important role,” Governor Rauner said. “We are thrilled that she has agreed to return to public service and bring people together to find long-term solutions for our state and its residents.”
Prior to serving as Comptroller, Munger was a brand management executive with Unilever HPC/Helene Curtis where she led the $800 million U.S. Hair Care business and prior to that she did brand marketing for Procter & Gamble. She previously led recruiting at McKinsey and Company, Inc.
Munger is also a 20-year volunteer and former board member with a nonprofit serving intellectually and developmentally disabled adults. She knows from experience about the challenges facing human services organizations and prioritized their state payments during her time as Comptroller.
As Deputy Governor, Munger will add her voice to the state’s budget discussions and work with nonprofit leaders to address their challenges and increase their financial security.
“I love Illinois, I was born and raised here, educated here, and my husband and I chose to raise our family here,” Munger said. “I am excited to use my skills and experience to help get our state back on track, and I am grateful for the opportunity to work to bring financial strength to state government and ensure that Illinois lives up to the promises it has made to our human service organizations.”
Munger earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and her M.B.A. from the Kellogg Graduate School of Business at Northwestern University.
* Another e-mail from JT went out yesterday afternoon…
Dear Colleagues,
I’ve continued to receive many questions from employees regarding the State’s Last, Best, and Final offer. In particular, these questions have asked about the State’s subcontracting proposal.
Let me begin by saying that the State has no plans to engage in mass privatization of state employee jobs. Any statements you have heard to the contrary are not correct.
Second, unlike the last AFSCME collective bargaining agreement, the State has offered protections against subcontracting that borrow from AFSCME’s contracts with other public employers. These protections give state workers a more meaningful role in subcontracting discussions, potentially leading to better outcomes for employees. Under the last contract, state employees did not have this ability.
You can read the specifics of the State’s subcontracting proposal on page 186 of our last, best, and final offer, which is posted on the TeamIllinois website.
Please refer to the State Employee FAQs page for information on subcontracting and other labor issues, as well as to submit questions.
Sincerely,
JT
John Terranova
Deputy Director
CMS Office of Labor Relations
* I asked AFSCME’s Anders Lindall for a response to one particular passage…
You asked for a response to “JT’s latest email to state employees [which says]: ‘unlike the last AFSCME collective bargaining agreement, the State has offered protections against subcontracting that borrow from AFSCME’s contracts with other public employers. These protections give state workers a more meaningful role in subcontracting discussions, potentially leading to better outcomes for employees. Under the last contract, state employees did not have this ability.’”
This is more Rauner/Terranova misinformation.
Here’s the truth: If the state wants to privatize, the union contract now requires subcontracting to meet a standard of “greater efficiency [or] economy”. Rauner wants to do away with that or any standard. Instead, under his “final offer”, the administration could, “at [its] discretion”, allow employees to bid against private contractors—but even then, the administration could reject any bid without justification or appeal.
The existing “efficiency or economy” standard helps to protect the public from outsourcing deals that waste tax dollars or let private entities cut corners to maximize profits. An example: When the state hired a corporation called Maximus to scrub the Medicaid rolls, AFSCME found that privatization would cost $18 million a year more than doing the work with state employees. In addition, Maximus was wrongly stripping Medicaid recipients of their medical coverage (likely because it employed untrained call center workers it hired on Craigslist). We showed that the “efficiency or economy” standard was not met and Maximus was dropped, potentially saving millions of dollars for taxpayers.
In general we believe that public oversight, accountability and transparency are important whenever privatization deals are considered. We think Rauner’s push to delete the “efficiency or economy” language could permit privatization without any safeguards. But we have said time and again that we’re willing to consider the administration’s proposals on this and any other issue, and to modify the proposals we’ve made previously, in an effort to find common ground. The only way to do that, though, is through negotiations, and as you know, the Rauner administration has refused to even meet with our bargaining committee for more than a year.
…Adding… And about the claim that the Rauner proposal borrows from AFSCME’s contracts with other public employers, here’s Anders…
I don’t know where they got their language from. I do know that AFSCME has thousands of contracts with employers all across the country; some have stronger subcontracting provisions than the current state of Illinois contract does, some weaker. We think the current standards are good for Illinois, but the governor can suggest changes by coming back to the bargaining table — which he refuses to do.
Before diving into politics, Gov. Bruce Rauner made his bones as a private equity investor. But the Republican said Thursday he earlier had been interested in bones of a different type.
During a visit to a Rockford elementary school, Rauner told students that his third-grade dream was to become an archaeologist.
“Boy did I ever want to dig up dinosaur bones,” he said. “I thought that was going to be so great.”
The governor touted the importance of hard work in school and told students they would be interested in different things as they grew up — just like he was. Besides archaeology, Rauner said he considered being a police officer, doctor and scientist before eventually settling on economics in college.
Rauner wanted to work with dinosaurs as a kid. Instead, he got Madigan.
Anyway…
* The Question: What did you want to be when you were a kid?
Rep. Rodney Davis, barely into his third term in Congress, is back in a familiar position: targeted in the 2018 election by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
He also has had constituents conduct a sit-in at his Champaign office, a former foe talking about running again and a sister, who lives in Springfield, encouraging voters to contact their congressman to voice support for former President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act.
Davis is an outspoken opponent of Obamacare who said last month that Republicans would “repair this broken law and … replace it with something better.” […]
Davis had protesters camped out in his Champaign office Monday who were unhappy about his stance on health care policy.
Tom also reported that David Gill is considering a sixth attempt at a congressional bid.
* Today, Kacich received a long e-mail from Rep. Carol Ammons (D-Urbana) saying she’s “open” to a possible bid. From the end of her e-mail…
Ammons wrote that, “I think it speaks volumes that after, as you pointed out in your column, less than 90 days since his re-election, Congressman Davis has already been identified as a target in the 2018 election.
“There is clearly a dangerous leadership vacuum in Washington and a troubling absence of compassionate public and community service. I, along with many of my fellow constituents in the 13th, are very frustrated and concerned by Davis’ unquestioning support of Trump and his executive orders. The 13th Congressional District is a diverse and varied demographic; Davis is disregarding the concerns and voices of at least half of his constituents. His decision to ignore the questions of voters by repeating unsubstantiated and false talking points lends to the extreme and partisan gridlock that we are experiencing in our state and nation.”
Underestimate her at your own peril. But Trump beat Clinton 50-44 in that district. He only lost three partial counties: Champaign, McLean and Sangamon. University communities and African-American voters were the main reason.
The Local Laborers Union 362 hall in Bloomington Thursday night was at capacity as residents gathered to learn how to push progressive values “in a time that’s antagonistic to them.”
That’s according to organizer Bob Broad. The event was called “INDIVISIBLE: Fighting the Trump-Rauner Agenda.” Broad explained it’s part of the national Indivisible movement.
From a reader…
Unbelievable turnout in Bloomington last night for the third BloNo area Indivisible training. People were sitting on the floor in multiple rows, people were standing along every wall. People came from Pontiac and rural McLean Co.
Her photo…
That’s two big rallies in just a couple of days in that town.
* Also, somebody is doing a good job trolling Davis online and at public events with a “Flat Rodney” cardboard cutout. From the Washington Post…
Opponents of Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) are trolling him over his town halls — or lack thereof
I’ve always wanted to be in 2 (or 5) places at once like both voting in DC & being back in #IL13. Looks like I’ve shaved off a few lbs too! https://t.co/FTlNX5lobN
Hays was even skeptical of Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s move last Thursday to ask a St. Clair County court to lift an order that pays tens of thousands of state workers despite the lack of an approved budget. Lisa Madigan said she did it in order to force a long-sought budget deal.
“The speaker’s daughter (Lisa Madigan) could have done this any time in the last two years,” Hays said. “This is about how daddy wants to be in charge.”
But maybe Lisa Madigan is like most of the rest of us and is tired of watching Springfield stall while it should be working. Maybe she wants to push legislators, including her father, and the governor to get going on a budget deal before the clock runs out on a court injunction on Feb. 28.
* From the Northeastern Illinois University President…
TO: University Community
FROM: Richard J. Helldobler, Interim President
DATE: February 3, 2017
RE: Preparations for a salary-savings program
Today I write to you with strong feelings of discouragement and frustration. It had been my hope that our state leaders would have found a way forward to providing us with either additional stop gap funding or a resolution to the budget impasse. Regrettably, that is not the case, and there does not seem a solution in the near future.
It has been 19 months since we have operated without a state spending plan, and as a result, Northeastern Illinois University is experiencing the worst budgetary climate it has ever experienced in its history. In spite of all this, we remain strong in our resolve to serve and provide our students with a quality education.
As I have communicated in the past, the University will complete the spring semester and hold the May Commencement ceremony. However, without stop gap funding or an adequate appropriation, we must find ways to stay afloat beyond that. A salary-savings plan, or furlough program, we have determined, is the most fair and least intrusive way for Northeastern to survive financially through the summer months until fall tuition dollars become available.
So, we have begun preparations to negotiate and roll out a salary-savings plan, or furlough program, starting in the spring semester. Those who took part in the program last spring know that a furlough plan was negotiated and is a mandatory unpaid leave of absence. Last time, we required one furlough day each week. For this spring, we have not yet determined what those requirements will be. To prepare for any negotiated plan, we have reached out to each of the five collective bargaining units that represent Northeastern employees, letting the leaders know that we would like to begin to negotiate the details and discuss how to implement such a program. I anticipate that these negotiations could last about four to five weeks, which would be roughly the amount of time before we would have to begin any agreed-upon plan to garner enough salary savings to remain solvent through the summer.
In addition to the unions, we have had discussions with other leaders at the University in the spirit of shared governance to alert them to our next moves given the budget outlook. These discussions included representatives from the Civil Service and Administrative and Professional Councils, Student Government Association, University Budget and Planning Council, University Advisory Council and the Faculty Senate.
For those of you who are Administrative and Professional or non-negotiated employees, I invite you to join me and the vice presidents at an open discussion on Tuesday, Feb. 7, from 3:05 to 4:05 p.m. in the Auditorium of the Main Campus. We can talk about our preparations and what a salary-savings program might entail for you. As always, if we are not able to talk to you in person, we invite you to submit your input or questions to the University Feedback Form. Additionally, this meeting will be available via livestream at the following link while the event is taking place: http://connectcast.tv/neiustream.
We are doing everything we can both in Springfield and here in Chicago to advocate for higher education funding and manage our finances judiciously. If you are so inclined, on Wednesday, Feb. 8, the University will provide bus transportation to and from Springfield from the Main Campus so that any interested student, staff or faculty member can participate in the Statehouse Rally to Save Higher Education. Please refer to the Jan. 31 Targeted Announcement about this event. I will be on the bus and hope to share the ride with many of you.
The only thing that will keep us from a salary-savings plan, or furlough program, is receiving adequate funding from the state. At the moment, that prospect looks grim. However, should we receive appropriate funding prior to the implementation of the plan, or after beginning the plan, we will hit the pause button, assess our financial situation, meet with appropriate leadership and discuss options.
These are very difficult financial times for Northeastern, but we will do what needs to be done to continue to provide for our students an exceptional learning environment. It is my hope that you will remain engaged in the process moving forward, whether through your union, various councils or faculty or student governance bodies. We need you at the table for these important discussions.
I want to express my sincere gratitude to you and each and every student and member of our faculty and staff for your continued commitment to Northeastern.
Thank you.
*** UPDATE *** From the University Professionals of Illinois, which is a branch of the IFT…
Dear UPI Members:
We will be sitting down at the table with the administration with regard to cost-saving measures.
We have, however, already communicated our perspective to the president and provost: furloughs are a very bad idea because they hurt the entire university; furloughs harm our students individually and retention generally; UPI agreed to furloughs last year with the proviso that we would not do so again.
As with any negotiations, our position will develop in consultation with our membership and we will be calling on all of you.
Please remember that we have the support of organizations throughout the state and in Chicago. Most importantly, we will work with our partners in the student body and with other unions and councils across the university to help craft the best political response to Illinois’s failure to represent and foster the livelihoods of the state’s people.
In solidarity and in support of the arts and sciences and professional schools at our university,
By my count, that’s 12 downgrades during Pat Quinn’s six years in office and two upward recalibrations. At the current rate, and if nothing changes, Gov. Rauner will surpass Quinn’s downgrade numbers by the end of his first four-year term.
* With that in mind, this is what candidate Rauner said about Quinn’s downgrades in 2013…
llinois’ credit rating just got downgraded again, the 12th time since Pat Quinn became governor. Unacceptable.
Rumors abound State Sen. Christine Radogno, a Republican, who is working together with Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago) to break the budget logjam by securing votes for the so-called “grand bargain,” is planning to pull the plug in June and/or may be heading for a state appointment by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
Or is she so disgusted and frustrated with the fractious negotiations, she is planning not to run for re-election in 2018?
• Radogno’s comment: “Opponents of the plan are getting desperate!”
* More from COGFA’s latest report with emphasis added by me…
Although Illinois’ job and wage figures have increased over the last several years, the growth may best be classified as disappointing, especially when compared to the job figures of other states across the nation. From a national perspective, Illinois has been slower than most in its recovery from the Great Recession. […]
Contributing to this slow recovery is the fact that many of the jobs that have been added in Illinois have been comparatively lower paying jobs. To understand this a little better, a closer look at the different subsectors of jobs in Illinois is necessary.
Over the last eight years (comparing average employment pre-recession totals of 2008 with 2016), the biggest improvement in the number of jobs in Illinois has been in “Education and Health Services” (up 14.0%). However, as shown below, this subsector is one of the lowest paying subsectors in terms of weekly earnings, with an average weekly earnings value of $809. Illinois’ largest employer of jobs is the “Trade, Transportation, and Utilities” subsector, employing over 1.2 million people. But, this subsector also has one of the lowest average weekly earnings totals in the State (2016 average weekly earnings value of $807).
Equally troublesome is the fact that those subsectors with the highest weekly earnings were the subsectors that have lost the most jobs over the last eight years. For example, the subsector with the highest weekly earnings is “Construction”, paying, on average, $1,334 per week. However, construction jobs are down 16.8% over the last eight years in Illinois. The next highest paying subsectors are “Financial Activities” ($1,330 per week) and “Information” ($1,130 per week), but employment in these categories are down 5.5% and 14.7%, respectively, since 2008. […]
The highest paying subsector is the “Construction” subsector. Although this category of jobs only grew slightly in 2016 (+2,000 jobs or 0.9%), employment in this subsector has grown 7.8% over the past five years (Dec. 2016 vs Dec. 2011). But, while this rate of growth for a high-paying sector may, at first, appear encouraging, Illinois’ gain in construction jobs, compared to other states, has been disappointing (ranked 38th). Even more disappointing is comparing the number of construction jobs in Illinois today compared to 15 years ago. Construction jobs are down 25.5% in Illinois over this time period, ranking Illinois 50th in this rate of change. […]
Another area of employment that continues to struggle in Illinois is manufacturing. Comparing December figures, employment in manufacturing fell 1.9% between 2015 and 2016. This rate of change ranked Illinois 39th in the nation. This rate of decline in manufacturing jobs in Illinois is similar to its five-year rate of change of -1.8%. This ranks Illinois 40th in the nation for percentage change in manufacturing jobs for this time period. This is especially of concern when Illinois’ biggest competitors have seen their comparable job totals in this subsector improve at a notably higher rate than Illinois during this time frame (Indiana ranked 10th with a growth rate of +10.3%; Michigan ranked 3rd with growth rate of +14.8%; Ohio ranked 16th with growth rate of +6.4%).
Overall base revenues fell $167 million in January. As in prior months, continued weaker income taxes along with poor federal sources more than offset gains experienced by the other revenue sources, adding further concern to observations made in last month’s briefing. January did have one more receipting day than the same prior year period.
The poor year for gross corporate income taxes continued with monthly receipts falling $60 million, or $52 million net of refunds. Gross personal income tax receipts dropped by $57 million, or $70 million net of refunds and diversions to the Fund for Advancement of Education and Commitment to Human Services Fund. Other sources dropped $18 million in January, while public utility tax receipts fell $12 million for the month. Interest income dipped a modest $1 million.
While overall revenues declined, a number of sources managed to post gains. Sales taxes grew $49 million, which represents two consecutive months of good growth. Corporate franchise taxes unexpectedly surged, jumping $29 million. Insurance taxes rose $17 million, cigarette taxes by $5 million– making up for an earlier shortage, inheritance taxes grew by $4 million and vehicle use tax by $1 million.
Overall transfers fell $20 million in January. Lottery transfers dropped by $13 million, while other miscellaneous transfers dipped $7 million. Federal sources experienced another weaker month, this time falling $99 million below last year, reflecting reimbursable spending levels from the general funds.
Year To Date
Through January, base receipts are off $1.031 billion, or 5.9%. The past months performance did little in the way of alleviating concerns over FY 2017 revenues spelled out in last month’s briefing, particularly the disturbing observations made regarding the “Big Three”. While sales tax now has managed to post back to back months of decent performance, those gains were more than erased with continued drops in both personal and corporate income taxes.
To date, gross corporate income taxes are off $444 million, or $390 million net of refunds. Gross personal income tax is down $245 million or $332 million if refunds and diversions to the education and human service funds are included. As mentioned, sales taxes may have done better in Dec/Jan but have still only grown $94 million or 2.0%. Overall transfers are down $81 million and only the one-time nature of a SERS repayment has allowed all other sources to post a $66 million combined increase.
With continued dramatic falloffs month after month in federal sources, receipts are behind last year’s dismal pace by $388 million. Absent an infusion of resources that could be committed to reimbursable spending, the outlook for a meaningful recovery for federal sources is grim.
The problem with federal reimbursements is pretty obvious. The state can’t put up enough of its own cash to leverage all available federal dollars, so we’re literally leaving money on the table.
Over the past fiscal year, the lack of an enacted budget has resulted in the State Employee Group Insurance Program (SEGIP) building up a large backlog of unpaid claims.
As of the end of December, approximately $3.91 billion in SEGIP claims were being held by the state from various insurers, organizations, and companies. Of this total, the largest portion was approximately $1.99 billion of HMO/Medicare Advantage claims. The second largest portion, Open Access Plans, totaled $743 million. The third largest portion of the overall claims hold came from CIGNA, which had $605 million in claims currently held by the state.
Concurrently, the estimated time for claims to be held was 303-675 days for Managed Care/Medicare Advantage, 468- 524 days for Open Access Plans, and 398- 608 days for CIGNA… Without additional funding, claims will continue to build up and estimated claims hold times will increase due to no appropriation for Group Insurance.
* Comptroller Susana Mendoza addressed this backlog issue during an interview with Jordan Abudayyeh. Mendoza read a letter from an SIU professor who was denied a doctor’s appointment in St. Louis because the state isn’t paying its health insurance bills…
“They say they are no longer seeing people with state of Illinois insurance because it does not pay out. Some of my colleagues have faced similar issue[s] very recently. It’s highly problematic. Everyone here goes into St. Louis to treat more serious health issues. I’m incredibly angry. This is illegal and unethical. We are all paying for services not being given. As politicians play political games, now our health and lives are on the line. We think you should know,” the Comptroller read.
Mendoza says she has to make decisions everyday on who gets paid when, juggling the needs of people around the state.
“I still feel that anybody who can go to bed at night knowing that this is happening and is just going to hold off for whatever their pet projects are, is just somebody who is disconnected from reality. And it’s not a political thing, this is a reality and I’m a person who’s in a position to see the consequences [of] this inaction at play,” said Mendoza. “So, yes, I am upset. I’m justifiably upset. People should be worried if I’m not upset and I want to make things better. I would like the Governor to do his job and actually govern, to lead, to not put blame on everybody else, to not just if you disagree with him, oh then you know, you must be speaking on behalf of some other democratic leader. That’s nonsense. I speak for myself. So do so many other Illinois residents who are yelling and feel that they’re not being heard. I’m at least trying to listen to folks. And I want to be their voice at a time where we’re faced with our worst fiscal crisis. And you know, you haven’t heard the comptroller speaking on behalf of other people, until I got here. But I’m really sick and tired of hearing all of these people complaining because they’re hurting and they’re suffering, and [if] somebody is going to speak out it’s going to be me,” Mendoza said.
Governor Rauner’s spokesperson, Catherine Kelly, sent the following statement in response to Comptroller Mendoza.
“Comptroller Mendoza spent 10 years in the General Assembly voting for the very unbalanced budgets, pension holidays and borrowing that have led to our staggering financial challenges. Instead of playing politics as usual, it would be helpful if she joined in a constructive conversation about balancing our budget and growing our economy. In the meantime, we ask that she stand with the Governor in opposing the Attorney General’s efforts to stop state employees from being paid.”
I recently received a similar letter from an SIU professor, by the way.
* Remember the Ohio pastor who told President Trump that he’d talked with “top gang thugs” in Chicago who said they’d commit to lowering Chicago’s “body count, [if] we come and do some social programs”? Yeah, well, not so much…
FOX 32: So, there are no gang leaders offering to reduce the body count in exchange for federal funds?
“No! I mean, c’mon now! (laughs) No!” Pastor Darrell Scott said. […]
Pastor Darrell Scott also told FOX 32 a lack of sleep caused him to tell President Trump that Chicago gangs had offered to “lower the body count.” He said he actually spoke to one former gang member, and not to any gang leaders.
* Scott also tweeted this…
NOT "Gang Thugs", FORMER street guys that are now community activists. MY BAD! No harm or disrespect intended! (I'm a former street guy too)
Frankly, it sounds like a bunch of bull to me and to other activists who have worked with street folks for years. […]
“There are no major gang leaders in the city of Chicago,” noted Hal Baskin, a grass-roots activist in Englewood who was once a gang-banger.
“My reality — and I have been at this for 45 years — talking about bringing the body count down in exchange for social programs, you and I know that is a ridiculous idea,” he said. […]
Tio Hardiman, president of Violence Interrupters, said he doesn’t blame the pastor for wanting to help, but agreed there isn’t any real gang structure in Chicago.
“Chicago is too divided politically, religiously and on the streets and that’s why we can’t stop the violence,” he said.
Either way, let this be a lesson. Whenever somebody says they have a simple solution to a horribly complex problem, that person is lying or incredibly misinformed.
FOX 32 asked one of Chicago’s smartest anti-violence crusaders what he would tell the president if he were invited to the White House.
“I’d tell him that we can’t just look in one area. When you look at public safety, it’s linked to public health. It’s linked to education. It’s linked to a whole number of things. It’s linked to jobs,” said Christopher Mallette, Executive Director of Chicago Violence Reduction Strategy.
A man was killed and his coworker wounded in a Logan Square neighborhood shooting early Friday on the Northwest Side, according to Chicago Police.
About 2:30 a.m., they were driving in the 3700 block of West Fullerton when a black four-door vehicle pulled alongside them and someone inside it opened fire, police said. […]
It was the city’s first fatal shooting since Tuesday night, a span of nearly 55 hours that marked Chicago’s longest stretch without a gun homicide so far this year.
In response to questions on social media, Scott said the people he spoke with include the Rev. Corey Brooks of New Beginnings Church, Kublai Toure, a longtime activist and former Chicago firefighter, and Torrence Cooks.
* Phil Kadner has been writing about high local property taxes and low state education funding for decades. He had some hope that the governor’s education funding reform commission would finally do something more than present yet another blue ribbon report that winds up collecting dust on some warehouse shelf. But then the commission released its report and Kadner is not a happy camper…
So the governor appointed members to the commission, the Democratic leaders of the Senate and House appointed members to the commission, and the Republican leaders of the Senate and House appointed members of the commission. The Illinois education secretary chaired the commission.
And more than 30 hearings and meetings were held where people spent a lot of time talking and discussing the need to do something.
They agreed, to their everlasting credit, that something indeed ought to be done, thereby joining the long list of state legislators and governors who have agreed something ought to be done since the 1990s.
What these people failed to do, however, was agree on language for a law that would actually increase school funding, reduce property taxes and provide an adequate level of education for all children in this state.
The recommendation to wait 10 years to adequately fund the schools is outrageous. Generations of students have gone through Illinois schools lacking the financial support they deserved according to the state constitution.
Imagine if the governor had appointed a Future of Nuclear Power commission and after 6 months of hearings and work the commission issued a report concluding that, indeed, there are nuclear plants in Clinton and the Quad-Cities that face uncertain futures if we don’t do something about it.
