But she’s here to teach everyone else
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This is a big reason why Rep. Jeanne Ives (R-Wheaton) hasn’t yet passed a single bill. From Illinois Review…
A property tax relief bill that passed the Illinois House last week remains a topic of discussion among Republicans that voted against it. State Rep. David McSweeney’s (R-Barrington) legislation places a one year restriction on the ability to levy general revenue budgets on a specific list of small townships in specific Chicago area counties. […]
Speculation is that McSweeney folded into the bill specific demands by Speaker Madigan, which were intended to blunt crticism of key Democrat lawmakers. […]
“We need tax relief that applies across the board,” Ives told Illinois Review. “Rep. McSweeney’s bill applies to the smaller population townships, and not across the state. And the bill could save affected taxpayers only $1.00 and it would be for just for one year.” […]
As the bill moved along in the process, Rep. McSweeney made changes or promises of change that eliminated more and more townships from being under the tax levy restriction. After removing the bill from the House agenda on March 6th, McSweeney withheld any activity on the bill until the day after the party primaries, when he amended the bill to exempt five other townships, including Orland, Bloom, Rich, Stickney, and Calumet in the south suburbs. […]
“Unfortunately, it was a bad bill,” Rep. Ives said. “It implemented the property tax freeze for only one year. Property tax freezes remove local control of property taxes and hand it to the state. The better way to reduce property taxes at the state level is to reduce or eliminate unfunded mandates.”
* Yeah, it was a small bill that didn’t provide more than a speck of property tax relief, but it got a big camel nose under the tent. You pass this one, then maybe other townships are forced to follow. Who knows where it could stop?
Also, publicly blasting a fellow conservative Republican for working with the majority to pass a tax relief bill is kinda goofy and bad form.
Not to mention that Ives appeared to be on several sides of the issue. It’s too narrow, my constituents who aren’t getting it will complain. It doesn’t last long enough, freezes aren’t the way to go.
Please, pick a lane.
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Question of the day II
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Today’s question is more of a caption contest, so let’s do a serious one now. The Daily Herald has a story on the Northeastern Illinois Public Transit Task Force report from last week…
“Hiring based on political considerations is corrosive to good government,” the task force stated.
The report also focused on the RTA, refuting advice from Chairman John Gates to give the agency greater authority over the CTA, Metra and Pace.
Task force members pointed out hiring Madigan’s son-in-law Jordan Matyas in 2011 as an RTA lobbyist and later chief of staff at a time when there was talk in Springfield of abolishing the agency.
“We cannot credibly vouch … that the answer to decades of patronage that involved dozens of officials from both parties is to place (Metra) under the more rigorous oversight of an agency who chose to select the speaker’s son-in-law as chief lobbyist,” the task force concluded.
Ouch.
Former US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald was the task force’s ethics chairman. Fitzgerald has never been a big MJM fan, to say the least.
* Gates responded…
Asked about the harsh task force language concerning the RTA, Gates said, “It was a really cheap shot.”
He insisted Matyas was selected months after a bill was defeated that would have given the governor appointing authority over the RTA chair.
Matyas “came in through the front door,” was one of at least two candidates he interviewed and “ has done a terrific job,” Gates told reporters after an address to the City Club of Chicago.
* The Question: “Hiring based on political considerations is corrosive to good government.” Agree or disagree? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
survey tool
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Fun with numbers and facts
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* “State’s big payout from video gaming still less than predicted” was a recent Sun-Times headline.
Well, yeah, there’s a reason for that. Chicago hasn’t opted into video gaming. Otherwise, the machines are doing pretty well…
State officials predicted each machine would net between $70 and $90 in revenue every day. The average so far is $94, records show.
By the way, Gov. Quinn said today that he thinks “we’re moving the right direction” on some gaming reforms he’s demanding before Chicago can have a casino.
* And speaking of Gov. Quinn…
[Gov. Pat Quinn] was asked about his opponent Bruce Rauner’s contention that Indiana is thriving as a state, more so than Illinois.
“I don’t think anyone can compare to Illinois when it comes to investing in roads,” Quinn said. “We are the best. I think our businesses understand that in order to do business in the world economy you’ve got to have good transportation.”
Then Quinn slammed Illinois’ neighbor for how it dealt with brutal weather conditions over the past winter.
“With respect to Indiana, I saw that I-65 was closed down for a couple of days during the severe winter,” Quinn said. “We don’t close down roads in Illinois.”
* Umm. From a January 6, 2014 IDOT press release…
Dangerous Weather Force Road Closures Statewide; Motorists Still Urged to Stay Off Roads in Some Areas
Black Ice a Major Concern Due to Freezing Cold Temperatures
CHICAGO – The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) announced today that motorists should be mindful of dangerous road conditions and black ice on roadways in areas throughout Illinois. Motorists are also encouraged to stay home and avoid travel until roads are safe. For those who have to travel, check www.gettingaroundillinois.com for the latest road closures and road conditions. Currently, dozens of Illinois roads statewide are closed due to snow and ice. [Emphasis added.]
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The Vallas front
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The Sun-Times reports that Gov. Pat Quinn’s running mate Paul Vallas thinks Republican Bruce Rauner’s term limits proposal will survive challengers and make it onto the ballot…
The former Chicago Public Schools CEO also said the proposed term-limit referendum has a good chance of landing on the November ballot, and of being approved by voters.
That’s how he said he would place his bet — if he were a betting person.
“I’m not a betting person, unfortunately,” Vallas said.
* Vallas also said he was against House Speaker Michael Madigan’s idea to make local school districts start paying for teacher pensions…
“I don’t support that at all,” said Vallas, former Chicago Public Schools CEO.
Chicago schools already pay the employers’ share of teachers’ pension costs, but suburban and downstate schools don’t. Making the change has been pushed hard by House Speaker Michael Madigan but hasn’t found traction in Springfield as suburban and downstate Republicans in particular have feared loading more costs onto already cash-strapped school districts.
“For every rich district that can afford it, there’s a poor district that can’t,” Vallas said.
* In other news…
Paul Vallas, Gov. Pat Quinn’s running mate has been hired by DSI Civic Financial Restructuring firm, whose president and CEO, Bill Brandt, donated $100,000 to the Quinn campaign last Dec. 31—a move that may well trigger some political ripples in the heated governors race.
Brandt, who is also chairman of the Illinois Finance Authority, a non-paid position, told me Vallas would not be working on any Illinois deals and will be a salaried employee. With Brandt on the IFA, the firm had not been “seeking” or “working on” Illinois business. […]
In a release, DSI, based in Chicago with offices in other cities, said Vallas “brings a solid grasp of state and municipal issues that complement the senior management team” of DSI.
DSI said in its release its built a wall around Vallas to avoid conflicts and his “practice will adhere to the firm’s present policy of only working on out-of-state projects. These protocols preclude DSI Civic from seeking or working on distressed municipal matters, or with troubled governmental units, within the state of Illinois, and have long been in place due to Mr. Brandt’s position as Chairman of the Illinois Finance Authority, as well as John Filan’s former role of COO of the State. “
Since they’re not getting state business anyway, it’s probably no big deal, other than it sure looks like another business as usual hire.
…Adding… Rauner campaign’s response…
“Paul Vallas just helped Pat Quinn complete the transformation from self-styled reformer to another back-scratching Illinois politician in record time,” Rauner spokesman Mike Schrimpf told Early & Often. “Over the last five years, Pat Quinn has given special deals and appointments to Brandt and Filan. Now, they’re returning the favor in a Blagojevich-style move.”
* So, if you’re keeping score, that’s one comment in favor of Bruce Rauner, one comment opposing Speaker Madigan and a sweet insider job.
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* Despite some media attempts to blame the stall of Rahm Emanuel’s pension proposal on mysterious behind the scenes maneuvering, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, especially when it involves a property tax hike…
Gov. Pat Quinn on Monday made clear he’s not on board with Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s proposal to hike property taxes as a way to solve a looming pension crisis in the City of Chicago.
In a news conference today on the Near West Side, Quinn repeatedly referred to Emanuel’s plan as only a “sketch” but said he would not back a plan that relied heavily on property tax hikes.
“What I saw last week wasn’t a plan, it was a sketch,” Quinn said. “It was a sketch that would relegate property owners in Chicago, families and businesses to a future of higher and higher property taxes. I don’t think that’s a good way to go.”
“They’ve got to come up with a much better, comprehensive approach to deal with this issue,” Quinn continued. “But if they think they’re just going to gouge property tax payers, no can do. We’re not gonna go that way.”
I’m told we can expect another amendment soon, perhaps today, that will strip out the property tax language. Nothing has surfaced yet as I write this, however.
…Adding… They mayor tries to dodge responsibility for the language…
“We finally have a model that brings both reform and revenue together,” Emanuel said at an unrelated news conference when asked whether state lawmakers can be spared having to vote on a version with the property tax language in it. “It was never anyone’s intention to have Springfield deal with that. That’s our responsibility. But I do believe, to actually give the 61,000 workers and retirees the certainty they deserve, you need reform and revenue. And we’ll deal with our responsibility.”
“We will work through the issues,” he said when asked again whether he’s willing to take the tax language out of the state bill.
* Meanwhile…
A leading credit rating agency has called legislation to overhaul to Chicago’s pension funds a “positive development” but says it won’t solve all the city’s problems.
The analysis by Moody’s Investor Service was released Monday. It says the proposal is “modestly credit positive” because it tackles the city’s massive and growing underfunded pension liabilities.
* But…
…Moody’s continues, the proposal calls for hitting a funding target of 90 percent in the city’s municipal and laborers’ retirement system in 40 years, not the normal 30 years that actuaries recommend. Because of that and other factors, unfunded liability in the two pension funds, which Moody’s sets at $13.8 billion in 2012, would resume rising after a brief dip. While the unfunded liability eventually would drop if plan assumptions are met, “if annual investment returns fall short of the assumed 7.5 percent, the risk of plan insolvency may well reappear.”
Moreover, Moody’s adds in what definitely is a gray-Monday report, “the proposal does not address” a shortfall in police and fire funds for which the city faces a $600 million increase in contributions next year under current state law.
Despite all those sour words, Moody’s, which rates city debt Baa1 with a negative outlook, just a couple of levels above junk, terms Mr. Emanuel’s proposal “modestly credit positive.” But Moody’s says that “even with reform, pensions will continue to weigh heavily on Chicago’s credit quality.”
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Question of the day
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* As I told you last week, our famed commenter Oswego Willy was at the Cubs home opener. He sent along a photo posing with Tom Ricketts himself…
Yep. That’s exactly what OW looks like.
* The Question: Caption?
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The bureaucratic mindset
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The Sun-Times and the Medill Data Project compared charter schools in Chicago to Chicago neighborhood schools…
◆ On the math portion of the Illinois Standards Achievement Test, 7.3 percent of CPS neighborhood school students exceeded standards, while 5.3 percent of kids at the privately run schools did so.
◆ Among charter or contract elementary students, 7.9 percent exceeded standards on the ISAT for reading, compared with 9.8 percent of students at neighborhood schools. The ISAT in math and reading is given to third- through eighth-graders.
◆ Neighborhood and privately run high schools both saw just 1.6 percent of their students exceeding standards for reading on the Prairie State Achievement Examination, which is given to high school juniors.
◆ Charters and contract schools edged out neighborhood high schools — 1.3 percent to 0.7 percent — when it came to exceeding standards on the math portion of the PSAE last year.
Obviously, there’s very little difference here, which will cause some to scream “Then why do we need charter schools at all?”
I make no apologies for disliking the industrial education model. I prefer choice. I think people ought to have choices.
And, like with neighborhood schools, not all charter schools are meh. Some are quite good. Sometimes, experiments fail. We shouldn’t be afraid to experiment. What’s needed is an overall improvement in all schools.
* But not like this…
“Our top priority is ensuring our students graduate 100 percent college-ready and 100 percent college-bound,” [Barbara Byrd-Bennett, Mayor Emanuel’s schools chief executive] said.
First of all, that’s just not true or else lots, lots more would be done to improve the schools. Secondly, this over-emphasis on taking tests (with the resultant uproar over what are likely quite meaningless results) and driving kids to attend college is philosophically wrong-headed, whether in Chicago or the suburbs or Downstate.
* Don’t get me wrong here. I do not think kids should be discouraged from attending college, but why saddle a student with tens of thousands of dollars of debt just for the sake of having a so-so degree from a so-so university?
Why not foster the development of more high schools, charter or otherwise, that focus on tech/trade careers? Do you know how much operating engineers make?
* When a system’s entire focus is “100 percent college-bound” you’re not giving students nearly enough choices. Period.
Chicago has dropped its “zero tolerance” rules for those who cause a bit of trouble at schools. They realized that treating everybody and every incident the same was doing more harm than good. Schools do this all or nothing stuff way too much, and it always, always backfires.
Teach them to be good citizens. Teach them how to comprehend language and to do math. But give them choices in how to get there.
/rant
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A tough nut to crack
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From a press release by the Pension Fairness for Illinois Communities Coalition, which is a group of mayors demanding pension benefit reductions for police and firefighters…
According to a 2013 study by the bipartisan Commission of Government Forecasting and Accountability (COGFA), unfunded liabilities for police and fire pension funds statewide have “skyrocketed eight-fold” since 1991, growing from $953 million to $7.58 billion by 2010. This dramatic increase has occurred despite taxpayer contributions growing nearly four-fold since 2000 ($172.1 million to $629.2 million) according to Illinois Department of Insurance data. […]
It’s not hard to see how costs add up and strain municipal budgets as years of overly generous benefit increases have also led to the instability of public safety pension funds. Those added benefits received approval but municipalities were never provided additional funding to adequately cover the increased costs.
For instance, in Illinois, police officers and firefighters can retire at age 50, and collect up to 75 percent of their earnings with a 3 percent annual compounded cost-of-living increase, for the rest of his or her life. Furthermore, surviving spouses will continue to receive 100 percent of the pension benefit for the rest of their life beyond that.
In addition, the state has a remarkable 660 individual police and fire pension boards with a total of 3,300 trustees, the most of any state. These pension boards, comprised of a majority representing public safety employees with limited professional expertise to oversee investments, provide little – if any – accountability for taxpayers, which leads to inefficiencies when it comes to managing a combined $10.7 billion in assets.
* From the SJ-R…
With a population of nearly 200,000 and a booming Hispanic population, Aurora is now the state’s second largest city. It faces a required increase of more than $1 million into the police and fire pension funds each year for the next 25 years.
The city has $220 million in unfunded debt between the two funds but also has one of the better funding levels at around 60 percent. Nonetheless, Weisner said it means they have not been able to hire new police and firefighters and have laid off some city workers.
“Without some reform there’s going to be cities that basically, I believe, will be going under,” he said.
* But this headline is right below that story in the SJ-R…
Springfield firefighters scramble to battle 3 fires in hour’s time
If you thought passing pension reform over the objections of AFSCME and the teachers was tough, you ain’t seen nothing until you try to defeat the firefighters. They are well organized and hugely popular with the public.
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Is she really a Democrat?
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Rick Pearson at the Tribune takes a look at the claim made by Bruce Rauner’s wife Diana that she’s a Democrat…
Since 1995, 77 percent of the more than $500,000 she’s given has gone to Republican candidates and causes, federal and state records show. […]
But state campaign finance records show that since 2009, when Bruce Rauner first contemplated and then rejected making a 2010 bid for governor, Diana Rauner made $238,150 in political donations, with 91 percent going to GOP candidates or conservative groups.
Among federal donations during that time frame, Diana Rauner gave $158,800 to candidates and committees, with 98 percent to Republicans. Several of the donations occurred when Bruce Rauner gave similar-size contributions to the same candidates.
* The Rauner campaign’s response…
spokesman Mike Schrimpf said Diana Rauner “voted Democrat throughout the last decade and every time for Barack Obama” on the statewide ballot.
“If that doesn’t make you a Democrat, I don’t know what does,” Schrimpf said in a statement.
Except she didn’t vote in the 2012 primary, when Obama ran for reelection and she contributed to three GOP presidential candidates, including Mitt Romney. She also didn’t vote in the 2010 primary, the last time Gov. Pat Quinn faced voters.
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* Senate Bill 3411 was introduced in mid February. From its synopsis…
Provides that a county or municipality may not require a law enforcement officer to issue a specific number of citations or warnings within a designated period of time. Provides that a county or municipality may not, for purposes of evaluating a law enforcement officer’s job performance, compare the number of citations or warnings issued by the law enforcement officer to the number of citations or warnings issued by any other law enforcement officer who has similar job duties.
* The bill has eleven bipartisan co-sponsors (including Sen. Kirk Dillard), but the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police pushed back hard…
The Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police is concerned about the negative impact on public safety that is likely to result if Illinois Senate Bill 3411 (SB 3411) is passed. While law enforcement executives strongly agree with eliminating the imposition of arbitrary traffic ticket quotas, the bill would also eliminate vital data-driven performance measures used to assist in the performance appraisal of police officers. Under the provisions of this bill, Illinois would stand to lose millions of dollars in federal highway traffic safety funding for DUI saturation patrols, restraint enforcement details and speed reduction campaigns.
If the bill passes, for example, an officer who refuses to make DUI arrests or who doesn’t write a ticket to a motorist for passing a stopped school bus could not be disciplined or have it documented in their performance evaluation. SB 3411 would intrude on the management rights of local law enforcement executives to decide what is in their communities’ best interests. Police Chiefs would lose their means to properly supervise officers using objective data that demonstrates that officers are meeting the expectations set by our communities.
* So an amendment was filed. The amendment expands the idea to the Illinois State Police and the state Conservation Police and adds this language which appears to address at least some of the chiefs’ complaints…
This [ticket quota] prohibition shall not affect the conditions of any federal or State grants or funds awarded to the municipality and used to fund traffic enforcement programs. […]
Nothing in this Section shall prohibit a municipality from evaluating a police officer based on the police officer’s points of contact.
For the purposes of this Section, “points of contact” means any quantifiable contact made in the furtherance of the police officer’s duties including, but not limited to, the number of traffic stops completed, arrests, written warnings, and crime prevention measures. Points of contact shall not include either the issuance of citations or the number of citations issued by a police officer.
Thoughts?
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Driving turnout
Monday, Apr 7, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
Worries about low Democratic turnout in an off-year election for an unpopular governor and Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner’s millions in campaign spending are obviously driving driving much of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan’s personal legislative agenda this year.
“If you’re an African-American on the South Side, what motivates you to vote for Pat Quinn when you wake up election morning?” was the blunt assessment of one longtime Madigan associate last week.
For example, Madigan signaled last week that despite his past reluctance to raise the minimum wage and longtime alliance with the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (which is leading the charge against it), he’s not opposed. Calling the idea a matter of “fairness” and “equity,” Madigan told reporters last week “I think you’ll find the opposition to raising the minimum wage comes from people that have done pretty well in America, and for some strange reason they don’t want others in America to participate in prosperity.”
Asked if he was referring to Rauner, Madigan asked “Who?”
Rauner claims to support an increase in the state’s minimum wage if it’s tied to business reforms, but Rauner previously “adamantly” opposed raising the wage and even once said he’d favor cutting it by a dollar an hour, to match the national minimum.
Madigan made his comments shortly after the House Judiciary Committee unanimously approved Madigan’s constitutional amendment to bar anyone being denied the right to register to vote and to vote based on race, gender, sexual orientation, income, national origin or religion.
Several Republican states have attempted to suppress Democratic turnout by requiring voters to produce a government ID before casting their ballots. “According to the Brennan Center,” Madigan told the committee last week, “approximately 25 percent of eligible African-Americans and 16 percent of Hispanics don’t have photo IDs.” That’s probably the first time that the Speaker has ever publicly referenced the liberal group.
Madigan’s proposal passed unanimously, despite some misgivings by Republicans. One GOP member of the committee, Rep. Dwight Kay, is actually sponsoring legislation to require voter identification this year, but he did not oppose Madigan’s measure.
And the Speaker’s proposed constitutional amendment to place a three percent surcharge on income over $1 million retroactive to this past January 1st was moved forward on the House floor last week. No Republicans have yet to emerge as supporters, so Madigan will likely need all 71 of his members to pass the proposal, which requires a three-fifths super majority.
According to numerous sources, Madigan’s leftward lurch toward Gov. Quinn took Rauner and his GOP campaign by surprise. They believed that Rauner’s personal relationship with the Speaker over the past few years would help salve the wounds and that the old school politician Madigan would understand the necessities of politics. Instead, Madigan apparently took great offense at the constant attacks (at one point, Rauner vowed to “go after” Madigan’s friends and allies to get at the Speaker), and the overwhelmingly negative reaction among trade unions to Rauner’s harsh anti-union rhetoric has only fueled the Speaker’s resolve.
Madigan has long been known as a politician who prizes pragmatism above ideology, but he’s been about as loyal an ally to the trade unions as anyone in Illinois history. Even that’s not solely about ideology, however. Those unions provide a lot of money and foot soldiers to Madigan’s organization.
Rauner also apparently didn’t use a back door channel to Madigan during the primary, which meant there was little to no ongoing communication between the men. Things obviously got out of control.
Madigan’s moves have definitely not gone unnoticed by Rauner. Behind the scenes, some are saying that Rauner will counter this by contributing big bucks to House Republican coffers.
That doesn’t seem to concern the Madigan folks. The Democratic legislative district map is pretty darned solid (as I reported in a recent Crain’s Chicago Business column, in 2012, House Democratic candidates received 53 percent of all the votes cast in all House races statewide, yet they won 60 percent of the House races), and they’ve been successfully fending off the House Republicans for years.
But Madigan’s poll numbers aren’t good at all, to put it mildly, so there are plenty of other weapons in Rauner’s arsenal. This could very well escalate into an all-out war. And Rauner has the bucks to do it.
Discuss.
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Reader comments closed for the weekend
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I bumped into Rep. Chad Hays last night and he told me about a new music festival that’ll be held this September 11-14 near Danville at the 3,000 acre Kennekuk County Park.
The promoters of the Phases of the Moon Festival are spending seriously big bucks to bring in Bob Weir and Rat Dog, Widespread Panic, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Leon Russell, Gov’t. Mule, the Chris Robinson Brotherhood and many, many, many more. And this list is just the first round of announcements. I’m told even more announcements are on the way.
I’m so there. Peoria has a similar event, but it’s always during session, so I can’t go. This one is not to be missed.
* Tedeschi Trucks will play us out…
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Julie Brady
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I didn’t know her, but everyone who did said she was a fantastic woman and a great mother. My deepest condolences to the family…
In a sad note amid this political season, I have to report the death of Julie Brady, wife of former Illinois GOP Chairman Pat Brady.
Ms. Brady, the former Julie Blink, was 51, and died after a lengthy illness. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin Law School, she met her husband while both were working for the U.S. Department of Justice.
“She was an honors graduate,” Mr. Brady told me today in a brief phone conversation. “She was honors in everything.”
Ms. Brady’s illness began before and continued through the flap over Mr. Brady’s decision to publicly endorse legal marriage in Illinois — a decision that eventually resulted in his ouster as chairman.
Visitation and services will be Monday at St. Patrick’s Parish, 115 N. Fourth St., St Charles. Survivors include four children.
Word of her death emerged in a note from Mr. Brady’s successor as chairman, Jack Dorgan. GOP gubernatorial nominee Bruce Rauner released a statement terming Ms. Brady “a remarkable woman who cared passionately about Illinois and our children.”
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* From a Pat Quinn budget office press release…
Two bond rating agencies have released their reviews of Illinois’ finances ahead of next week’s scheduled sale of $250 million in General Obligation bonds that will finance roads, bridges and schools around the state.
While they say the state still has much work to do, they note the hard work the state government has done to cut costs, pay down old bills, and pass a comprehensive pension reform plan.
“We are pleased that the bond rating agencies recognize the difficult work the Governor and the General Assembly have done to cut spending, pay down the bills and pass comprehensive pension reform,” Acting Budget Director Jerry Stermer said. “It’s clear the rating agencies agree the Governor’s proposed budget would bring long-term fiscal stability to Illinois.”
* Not everything the raters had to say was positive, but considering how New York has trashed us in the past, I suppose beggars can’t be choosers. From Fitch…
KEY RATING DRIVERS
BUDGET TEMPORARILY STABILIZED WITH TAX INCREASE: Temporary increases in both the personal and corporate income tax rates, coupled with statutory spending limits, have closed a significant portion of the structural gap in the state’s budget through the current fiscal year 2014.
NEED FOR LONG-TERM SOLUTION REMAINS: Due to the temporary nature of the enacted tax increases, the state will need to find a more permanent solution to the mismatch between spending and revenues. The Negative Outlook reflects the critical need to address this issue. The governor’s recommended budget for the coming fiscal year would make these tax increases permanent and provide a basis for the state to achieve fiscal balance.
LARGE BALANCE OF DEFERRED PAYMENTS REMAINS: The state has a large general fund accounts payable backlog, which although reduced still totaled $4.2 billion at the end of fiscal year 2013. The state prudently used higher than forecast income tax collections in fiscal 2013 to pay down a portion of the accounts payable balance.
LONG TERM LIABILITIES HIGH: The state’s debt burden is above average and rose during the recession with issuance for operational purposes. Continued borrowing is expected under the $31 billion capital plan. Further, unfunded pension liabilities are exceptionally high and are expected to remain so, even if pension reform survives legal challenge.
ACTION ON PENSIONS: Passage of pension reform legislation was a positive indication of the state’s willingness to take action on this complicated issue after many failed attempts. Legal protection of pension benefits is particularly strong in Illinois and, as expected, legal challenge to the reform has been filed.
ECONOMY STRONG BUT RECOVERY SLOW: The state benefits from a large, diverse economy centered on the Chicago metropolitan area, which is the nation’s third largest and is a nationally important business and transportation center.
RATING SENSITIVITIES
Maintenance of the ‘A-’ rating will require timely action in advance of the expiration of temporary tax increases in fiscal 2015. Deterioration in the state’s financial position, as evidenced by excessive use of non-recurring revenues or additional payment deferrals, would likely lead to a downgrade. In addition, stabilization of the rating will reflect the extent to which pension reform enhances the funding levels of the pension systems and controls the growing impact of pension payments on the budget.
* From Moody’s…
SUMMARY RATING RATIONALE
The rating is supported by the state’s general obligation (GO) pledge. Despite substantial pension reforms adopted in December, Illinois remains the lowest-rated US state, at A3 with a negative outlook. Reform enactment launched the legal process that will determine whether constitutional protections prevent the state (and local units) from lowering liabilities through plan changes that affect existing pension participants. Courts may invalidate the reform package altogether, or block pieces of it. If allowed, the reforms could put Illinois on track to manageable long-term pension funding, although the retiree benefits burden will still be heavy compared with many other states. Also pressuring Illinois’ finances is a history of operating deficits, negative GAAP-basis fund balances and payment deferrals. As offsets to its challenges, Illinois has a large and diverse economy, with above-average wealth, and its powers over revenue and spending are strong. State law gives the highest priority to the payment of general obligation debt service. […]
OUTLOOK
Illinois’ negative outlook reflects our expectation that the state’s financial position could deteriorate further if the state’s 2011 tax rate increases are allowed to expire without offsetting steps next year. Pension reforms passed in December could improve the state’s credit standing, by reducing accrued liabilities, but they may be rejected after legal challenges from employees and retirees.
WHAT COULD MAKE THE RATING GO UP
–Implementation of a credible, comprehensive long-term pension funding plan, after favorable court ruling
–Substantial progress in reducing payment backlog, with adoption of a legal framework or plan to prevent renewed buildup of bills
–Establishment of a pattern of structurally balanced budgets
WHAT COULD MAKE THE RATING GO DOWN
–Failure to address impending revenue loss from partial sunset of 2011 tax increases
–Significant further deterioration in pension funded status
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Fun with numbers
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* ABC 7…
Chicago’s first-quarter murder total this year hit its lowest number since 1958, police say.
The first three months of the year saw 6 fewer murders than the same time frame in 2013–a 9 percent drop–and 55 fewer murders than 2012, according to a statement from Chicago Police.
There were 90 fewer shootings and 119 fewer shooting victims, drops of 26 and 29 percent respectively, according to police statistics. Compared to the first quarter of 2012, there have been 222 fewer shootings and 292 fewer shooting victims.
* BizPac Review sucks its thumb…
So what’s changed that could possibly account for such a dramatic fall in a city that was fast becoming known for its homicide rates — especially in its notorious South Side neighborhoods?
In July, the Illinois legislature overrode Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s veto to make The Land of Lincoln the final state in the country to have a concealed firearm carry permit law.
This is a classic case of correlation not being causation. The first 5,000 concealed carry permits weren’t mailed until February 28th, two months into the quarter.
Not to mention the coldest winter on record kept people cooped up inside. And the indisputable fact that the Chicago police have been doing a much better job at stopping crime over the past two years.
Don’t take any credit yet, gun-lovers.
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Today’s numbers are shrinking
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Daniel Kay Hertz documented Chicago’s shrinking middle class since 1970 by measuring each Census tract’s median family income as a percentage of the median family income for the Chicago metropolitan region as a whole. The gray areas are defined as middle class on the map tracts. Check it out…
If the gif images aren’t advancing on your browser, click here.
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Caption contest!
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Oswego Willy won’t be commenting much today because he’s at opening day. He sent over a photo…
I told him to watch out for falling concrete.
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Question of the day
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Bruce Rauner scored just 17 percent of Sangamon County Republican primary votes last month. He has slammed Republicans who work with public employee unions as “corrupt,” which would include all three of the GOP legislators who represent Springfield, which is chock full of state employees. Sen. Kirk Dillard, who was backed by those unions, won the county with a whopping 62 percent of the vote.
But Rauner will soon travel to the belly of the beast, so to speak…
GOP gubernatorial nominee Bruce Rauner will speak at a Sangamon County Republican Foundation event in Springfield on April 8.
Rosemarie Long, who chairs the county Republican Party, said the first-ever recognition evening for major supporters of the foundation will be at the Sangamo Club. Drinda O’Connor is treasurer of the foundation, which provides support to local Republican efforts.
Bill Cellini was the foundation’s former chairman, and stepped down as its treasurer in 2012.
* The Question: What will Bruce Rauner say to Sangamon County Republicans? Snark is heavily encouraged, of course. Have fun.
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* Senate Republicans were really upset yesterday…
Gov. Pat Quinn engaged in a “sneaky abuse of power” when he sidestepped the Illinois Senate in an attempt to keep two controversial appointees on the job, Republicans said Thursday.
A week after the Democrat from Chicago used an unprecedented parliamentary maneuver to extend the tenures of two agency heads, GOP senators called on the Attorney General’s office to weigh in on the move and filed legislation designed to close a loophole in the Senate rules that govern gubernatorial appointees.
“This is really a slap in the face to the Senate,” said state Sen. Michael Connelly, R-Lisle.
* But this is what Gov. Quinn said yesterday…
“Well, the Senate President asked for more time and we were happy to give it to him.”
Audio…
It can’t possibly be a “slap in the face to the Senate” by the governor if the Senate President is the one who asked Quinn to do it. Pretty much every story written on this topic has made it appear as though Quinn did an end-run around Cullerton, when in fact, as subscribers already know, this was a negotiated deal.
* However, there is a good argument here…
State Sen. Tim Bivins’ amendment would prevent an extension of the 60 session days of consideration the Senate has by law to confirm appointments made by the governor. Senate Republicans are also sponsoring a modification of the Senate rules, and have asked Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan to issue an opinion on the current law.
“This flies in the face of the constitution and its intent,” Bivins, of Dixon, said of Quinn’s actions. He noted that under the constitution, “the potential exists to make all appointments in this manner.” […]
The governor’s withdrawing the names of Hamos and Flores from consideration by the Senate and then moving to re-nominate them allows the time clock on the appointment process to restart, giving supporters of the an extra 60 [session] days to secure votes in their favor.
A governor could conceivably do this forever to get around the “advice and consent” clause of the Constitution. That’s a problem.
* However, the Illinois Constitution is weighted heavily in favor of the governor…
The Governor shall nominate and, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, a majority of the members elected concurring by record vote, shall appoint all officers whose election or appointment is not otherwise provided for.
Any nomination not acted upon by the Senate within 60 session days after the receipt thereof shall be deemed to have received the advice and consent of the Senate.
The General Assembly shall have no power to elect or appoint officers of the Executive Branch.
Unlike the federal branch, our state Constitution deems appointees confirmed if there is no Senate action. If the Senate chooses not to act, you can’t really compel it to do something here.
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Today’s quote
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Dispatch-Argus reporter Eric Timmons interviewed Paul Schimpf, the Republican candidate for Illinois attorney general…
Mr. Schimpf faces tough odds in taking on incumbent Attorney General Lisa Madigan.
He called the “biggest threat” to the nation the “toxicity and venom in our politics” and promises to steer clear of mudslinging, even if that irks party officials.
“There are some consultants in the Republican Party that are saying you need to attack her (Ms. Madigan) personally and make the argument that she should be in jail,” he said. “I don’t believe that, and I’m not going to do that.”
Those are some pretty intense consultants.
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It’s about the tax hike
Friday, Apr 4, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* After talking about “intrigue” and “mysteries” for days, the Chicago media finally woke up to what has really gone wrong with Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s pension reform bill. I mean, just look at this story from two days ago…
Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday trotted out his running mate Paul Vallas to hammer Republican challenger Bruce Rauner’s position that the state income tax rate should rolled back, saying doing so would result in huge cuts to education and spikes in local property tax rates. [Emphasis added.]
* Much of last week’s budget address was about how Illinois’ high property taxes were holding the state economy back…
In Illinois, more is collected in property taxes every year than in the state income tax and state sales tax combined. In fact, Illinois has one of the highest property tax burdens on homeowners in the nation - more than 20 percent above the national average. The property tax is not based on ability to pay. The property tax is a complicated, unfair tax, hitting middle class families the hardest.
* Flash-forward…
If the mayor’s pension reform plan is approved by state lawmakers, the governor and local aldermen, the city’s share of property would increase over 30 percent by the year 2020.
* So, bingo. Now everybody knows what’s up. It’s the taxes, man…
Gov. Pat Quinn finds himself in a bit of a political pickle: he’s running for re-election on a pledge to cut property taxes, but Mayor Rahm Emanuel wants to raise Chicago property taxes as part of a plan to shore up the city’s ailing government worker pension systems. […]
Signing a city pension bill that would end up with a Chicago property tax increase would run counter to Quinn’s campaign message ahead of the Nov. 4 election.
* The Governor made it pretty darned certain yesterday where he stands…
I wanna make it clear: I believe in reducing the burden of property taxes in our state.”
* And it’s not just Gov. Quinn…
“Right now, a lot of people are concerned about the property tax part of the bill,” said Rep. Mike Zalewski, a Riverside Democrat who supports the bill. “It all came up all of a sudden, and a lot of us were thrown off.” […]
“We’re nowhere right now. I think our members had reservations about granting a new levy authority for the city of Chicago,” said [House GOP leader Jim Durkin], who added that the legislature needs to help Chicago find a way to resolve its financial problem.
* More…
Municipal pension funds are created and governed by state law, so the General Assembly must approve changes. The Chicago plan would increase employee contributions and reduce benefits to retirees. But lawmakers don’t want their fingerprints on any city council vote to raise taxes.
“A lot of us would like to see the aldermen take that vote before we do ours … ,” said Chicago Democratic Rep. Kenneth Dunkin, leader of the Legislative Black Caucus. “We’re starting down here, but there are no assurances the city of Chicago, the aldermen, will follow suit.” […]
“There’s really no reason for any mention of real estate taxes in that pension bill … ,” said Rep. Ron Sandack, a Downers Grove Republican. “For me, I’m not going to vote for a pension bill that has any mention of even a permissive, suggestion of raising taxes. That’s for them.”
* But there’s a problem…
Matt Brandon, secretary-treasurer of SEIU Local 73, said his union, which has about 10,000 members affected by the city pension plan, believes the property-tax guarantee should remain in the package.
“There has to be a revenue guarantee to make this bill the bill we sat down and agreed to with the city of Chicago,” Brandon told Early & Often.
“If what happens with this bill eliminates the revenue guarantee that all of the unions sat there and negotiated with the city, no, we can’t support this bill because that’s the only way we get the pensions 90-percent funded by 2054,” Brandon said.
* SEIU is also trying to calm some nerves. The CTU went after Rep. Christian Mitchell (D-Chicago) hard in the primary, but the SEIU’s Brandon is attempting to assure nervous legislators that his union will have their backs…
Brandon, however, tried to calm that sentiment by telling reticent city Democrats his union — and others backing the mayor’s plan — would be with them come election time if they vote for the city pension package.
* But SEIU’s message may not be getting out…
Emanuel said he had agreement from 31 labor unions involved, but representatives from three — including the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and the Chicago Teachers Union — oppose it. Those are powerful voices, said Nekritz, and lawmakers haven’t been lobbied by the groups Emanuel says are in favor.
“We’re not hearing anything from them to say, `Yes, do this’… ,” Nekritz said. “That sends a message.”
* But notice how toned down Rauner’s reaction is…
A spokesman for venture capitalist Bruce Rauner, Quinn’s Republican opponent in the November election, said in a statement that Rauner disagreed with the mayor’s proposal.
“Bruce has always maintained that true pension reform requires moving towards a defined contribution style system and believes that should also be part of the solution for Chicago,” said campaign spokesman Mike Schrimpf.
Compare that to his rants on the state pension reform bill and this is unbelievably mild.
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* From a press release…
Rauner Releases Second Ad of General Election
- Highlights bi-partisan support, will take on both political parties -
Citizens for Rauner launched a new television advertisement today featuring Bruce’s wife, Diana, and highlighting his willingness to take on both parties to fix Illinois.
Watch it by clicking here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqzFaWpDLOI&feature=youtu.be
The Rauner campaign’s first ad of the general election was a Spanish-language ad released two weeks ago.
“NUTS”
BR: I’m Bruce Rauner
DR: I’m Diana Rauner
BR: I’m pragmatic
DR: He’s cheap
BR: We don’t agree on everything
DR: Like politics
BR: What to eat
DR: And that shirt
BR: What?
DR: It’s old and ugly
BR: I’m a Republican
DR: I’m a Democrat
BR: I love her anyway
DR: I’m voting for him anyway because I know Bruce will take on both parties to fix Illinois.
BR: And drive the career politicians nuts. I will. I’ll drive them nuts.
DR: I know, honey. I know.
* It views much better than it reads. Mrs. Rauner is really quite good at this. Have a look-see…
*** UPDATE *** Here’s the cable TV portion of the buy. Notice the networks, including Food Channel and HGTV. This ain’t a Fox News kinda thing…
Citizens for Rauner
Republican candidate for Governor of Illinois
Agency: Access Media, Los Angeles
Total schedule: $82,256
Flight Dates: 4/4/14 - 4/10/14
Networks: BRVO, FOOD, HGTV, TVL, USA
Dayparts: 4-7P, 7P-Midnight
Syscodes / zones / $ by zone
5170 / Chicago Interconnect / $68, 880
9804 / DirecTV / $7,917
9810 / DISH / $5,459
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Biz leaders want tax hikes for infrastructure
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Herald-Whig…
Higher fuel taxes could help pay for new road construction under a plan proposed by an Illinois transportation group.
The Transportation for Illinois Coalition unveiled the proposal Tuesday in Springfield. Members say it would provide stability and $1.8 billion annually for construction on roads, bridges, railways and airports.
Coalition chairman Doug Whitley said the plan is needed because a five-year capital construction program, Illinois Jobs Now, is coming to an end this year and the Illinois Department of Transportation is funded at a level that only allows maintenance.
Under the group’s plan, the Legislature should raise vehicle registration fees, impose a 4-cent increase in the gas tax, a 7-cent increase in diesel fuel taxes — coupled with the elimination of the state’s commercial distribution fee — and end ethanol credits for gasoline.
That’s an awful big ask.
* WUIS…
The state’s gas tax has stayed the same for more than two decades. This plan would raise it by 4 cents a gallon and 7 cents for diesel fuel. Jennifer Morrison is with the Transportation for Illinois Coalition, which includes business and labor groups. Combined with an increase in vehicle registration fees and a new sales tax on services like auto repair and oil changes, she says the state’s transportation system can avoid total disrepair.
“If we don’t do anything … That would mean one in every three miles would be in unacceptable condition,” she said.
Doug Whitley, president of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, says without a long term plan, drivers could be in danger. He points to road and bridge failures.
“What happened in Minnesota, what happened in Washington is disastrous and we don’t want that,” he said.
Much more info can be found by clicking here.
* Bruce Rauner’s response…
Rauner also said he wanted the state to spend more on infrastructure improvement, although he also said he didn’t think Illinois’ motor fuel tax would need to be increased.
“I don’t think so today, based on what I’ve seen,” he said.
George Ryan said the same thing in his 1998 bid. Just sayin…
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Question of the day
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From a press release…
Supporters of a bill that would remove criminal penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana in Illinois released the results of a statewide poll showing strong support for such legislation. The Illinois House Restorative Justice Committee approved the bill last week, and supporters are now calling on members of the House to approve the proposal.
The Public Policy Polling survey shows 63% of Illinois voters support making possession of an ounce of marijuana a non-criminal offense punishable by a fine of up to $100. Only 27% oppose the proposal. The poll found majority support across all reported genders, races, and political party affiliations. The survey, which polled 769 Illinois voters from March 28-30, is available at http://www.mpp.org/ILpoll.
HB 5708, introduced by Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago), would eliminate criminal penalties and the possibility of a criminal record for possession of up to 30 grams of marijuana. It would establish a new class of offense called a “regulatory offense,” which would prohibit arrest or jail time, limit fines to no more than $100, and require the ticket to be removed from a person’s record after the fine is paid, which would prevent individuals from losing employment and housing opportunities.
* According to the poll, even 56 percent of Republicans support this concept. Here’s the actual poll question…
Under current Illinois law, it is a criminal offense for a person to possess marijuana, and he or she can be sentenced to up to a year in jail for possessing an ounce of marijuana. Would you support or oppose a change in the law to make it a non-criminal offense to possess an ounce or less of marijuana for personal use, punishable by a fine of up to $100, but without jail time?
* Let’s ask the same question. Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
online survey
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Rahm’s rocky road
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* As you all know by now, there was no progress yesterday on Rahm Emanuel’s pension reform proposal…
The rapid rollout strategy was aimed at giving legislators little time to get cold feet and blunting labor union lobbying against the changes. But several Chicago lawmakers raised concerns, Democrats blamed Republicans for not getting on board, and the blitzkrieg approach failed — at least for a day. […]
Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said the speaker was “still working the roll call” and was trying to achieve bipartisan support for the bill. But many Republicans remained critical, including Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, who mocked Raoul’s explanation that the bill was fast-tracked because Chicago was in the midst of a crisis.
“This state is always in a crisis,” Radogno said. “When will it end?”
Not only did a vote sputter in the House, but the Senate wasn’t embracing the pension plan either. […]
Democratic Rep. LaShawn Ford said African-American lawmakers were split on the pension bill, adding that he opposed it because his West Side community had “already paid the cost to the city” with closed public schools.
* This is part of what really went down…
Madigan’s legislation would authorize the City Council to levy $50 million more during each of five years, starting in 2016, to devote toward city pension costs. By year five, that tax levy would stand at $250 million more than today, but Republicans added up all of the revenue collected during that period and dubbed Emanuel’s handiwork as a $750 million property-tax increase that they wanted no part of.
“A $750 million property tax-increase is the last thing we need in Illinois,” said Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, who voted against Madigan’s legislation in committee. “This is outrageous. This is going to kill jobs. I oppose this tax increase.”
During committee, Madigan said he was prepared to amend his legislation to soften the property-tax mandate on the City Council by making it merely an option, not compulsory. That amendment wound up being tacked onto his bill Wednesday afternoon.
The original legislation, crafted by the mayor, ordered the city council to pass the tax hike. No way, man. No way.
* Also…
One House Democrat from the city told Early & Often that no one had formally reached out from the mayor’s staff to make a personal pitch for the bill, an oddity given the magnitude of what Emanuel is asking state lawmakers to do on his behalf in Springfield, particularly if Republicans are MIA on the bill. […]
When it became clear the big lift to pass the bill wouldn’t be shared with Republicans, rank-and-file city Democrats appeared to get cold feet with the property-tax component. Others privately expressed worry about opposition to the bill from the Chicago Teachers Union, which last month nearly unseated state Rep. Christian Mitchell, D-Chicago, in a bitter primary in which his December support for a state pension package became a central issue.
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Beyond the rhetoric
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From Tom Kacich at the News Gazette…
One of the first things he’d do as governor, Republican nominee Bruce Rauner said Wednesday, is appoint a task force to study Illinois’ state and local government structure with an eye toward reducing their numbers and size. […]
Among his top priorities, Rauner said, is to “form a task force immediately on day one. It’s not going to be long-lived. It’s going to be about a six-month task force composed of county (board) chairmen, mayors, city managers and school superintendents, to form a task force with me and (lieutenant governor nominee) Evelyn Sanguinetti with a goal of meeting to talk about how we bring efficiency through the layers of government throughout the state of Illinois. Today our spending problems and our tax problems are not only at the state levels. They’re at the county level, the school district level and the city and municipal level. […]
Asked if he wanted to eliminate 3,000 units of government, he answered, “What we have to look at is, how can we be more competitive and efficient? I can’t name numbers today. I know we have thousands more units and you’ve got to ask yourself, common sense would say, why? We’re not that different than other states. Why do we need 3,000 more units of government than any other states? That doesn’t make sense.”
Although Illinois does have more units of local government than any other state — 6,963 as of June 30, 2012, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report — it has only 1,816 units more than Texas. But Texas is almost five times larger than Illinois and has about twice the population.
Rauner spokesman Mike Schrimpf said Rauner was referring to other Midwestern states, none of which has more than 3,752 units of government (Missouri).
Missouri’s population is half the size of ours, so they actually have more governmental units per capita than we do.
* But there’s no doubt that Illinois has far too many local governments. And a task force has already taken a close look at the problem. The bipartisan Local Government Consolidation Commission was created in 2011 and released its findings yesterday. From its summary…
By reviewing reports from around the country conducted on the topic of local government and consulting with experts who worked on such reports, the Commission realized that simply reducing the number of local governmental units does not necessarily result in a reduction in costs to the taxpayer. Current findings suggest that successful models of cooperation and consolidation in local government aim to achieve greater economies of efficiency and increase the effectiveness of government at all levels. When the goal is improving the efficiency of service while maintaining service quality and controlling costs, cooperation proves much more successful than efforts focused on reducing the number of local governments in an area.
Additionally, findings suggest that cooperation and consolidation must be approached on a case-by-case basis, as different local units of government have different needs. Working on a case-by-case basis allows cooperation and consolidation advocates in government to better understand the needs and reservations of the residents within the district. Residents often take pride in where they live, changes to the structure and operation of their government must be approached with open communication between all involved parties. Open communication can allow all sides to be aware of the other’s stance, making the end result more acceptable to all. As votes are often required to actually consolidate, working towards a result voters support is essential. [Emphasis added.]
* The commission worked very closely with DuPage County Board Chairman Dan Cronin, who has made headway into reducing the number of governments in his county. Cronin is a Rauner supporter, so perhaps the candidate could reach out. Back to the commission’s report…
As a result of the findings, Chairman Cronin recommended that there be greater oversight by the county with regard to special districts to which the county appoints members. Counties currently do not have the authority to affect these special districts without state action. Most local districts come into existence through local referendum and can only be undone by local referendum. Chairman Cronin believes that if the County had greater control over these special districts, they would be able to put in place better practices and hopefully find ways to save taxpayer dollars.
* And a bill has not only been filed, but has cleared the House. From Rep. Jack Franks…
Additions to Illinois’ nearly 7,000 units of local government will come to a stop under legislation passed through the House on Wednesday by state Rep. Jack D. Franks, D-Marengo.
“Illinois stagnant economy is hindered by local government intrusion into taxpayers’ pocketbooks and lives,” Franks said. “The addition of layer after layer of local government in our state is similar to a gambler who, after losing hand after hand, continues to bet more in the hopes that, on the next hand, he will hit the jackpot. To me, the lesson here is very clear – when you’re in a hole, stop digging.”
House Bill 3251 places a four-year moratorium on the Illinois General Assembly’s authority to create any new units of local government. However, it does allow a government body to be created as a result of the consolidation of two or more pre-existing units.
The Local Government Consolidation Commission, chaired by Rep. Franks, also released its final report Wednesday. The report details the meetings, findings and recommendations of the commission, and represents research and work toward building a consensus between the many members on addressing the excess of local government bodies in Illinois.
The commission’s recommendation to grant various municipal governments the authority to annex, consolidate or dissolve has been filed by Rep. Franks as House Bill 5785. That measure awaits a vote of the full House following passage by the Counties and Townships Committee.
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Fun with money
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Approximate projected net cost of the Democratic plan to mail $500 property tax “rebate” checks to every homeowner before the November election: $700 million.
* Approximate projected net revenues from House Speaker Michael Madigan’s 3 percent tax surcharge on income over a million dollars, which is all earmarked for education: $1 billion.
Couldn’t they just give schools another $700 million and forgo creating a top state income tax rate of 8 percent?
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Caption contest!
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Illinois Senate Republican Fan Page on Facebook…
Sen. Bivins listens intently as his democratic colleague explains legislation in the Criminal Law Committee.
Tim is one of the funnier guys in the General Assembly. So, maybe we should have a little fun with him today…
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* Gov. Pat Quinn is out on the circuit today…
GOVERNOR’S PUBLIC SCHEDULE
**Thursday, April 3, 2014**
CHICAGO – Governor Pat Quinn will visit DePaul University to discuss his plan to make higher education more affordable and accessible by doubling the state’s investment in the Monetary Assistance Program (MAP) over the next five years.
Quinn is also planning stops in Urbana and DeKalb.
* From the Bruce Rauner campaign…
Quinnocchio Goes To College
- Quinn’s History on MAP Grants Doesn’t Match His Rhetoric –
Quinnocchio predicts that when Pat Quinn meets with DePaul University students this morning about MAP grants he won’t tell them about his previous cuts to the program. […]
Quinn Eventually Signed A Budget That Actually Cut MAP Funds For FY2013. “The budget he signed last month cuts MAP funds by 4 percent, according to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission.” (Christopher Wills, “Quinn Signs Bill Ending Legislative Scholarships,” The Associated Press, 7/11/12)
Funding For Needy Illinois College Students Was Just $370.8 Million In FY2013 - When Adjusted For Inflation, That Is The Lowest Funding Level For MAP In More Than A Decade. (Table 2.0a, 2013 Illinois Student Assistance Commission Data Book, Accessed 3/27/14)
Only 37.4% Of Eligible Students Who Applied In FY2013 Received A MAP Grant - The Lowest Proportion Of Applicants To Receive Grants Since FY1999 At Least. (Table 2.0a, 2013, Illinois Student Assistance Commission Data Book, Accessed 3/27/14)
Quinn Cut MAP Funding In Half In 2009
Quinn And General Assembly Democrats Slashed MAP Funding In Half In The Initial FY2010 Budget. “About a quarter of Illinois’ college students depend on the so-called MAP grants. But lawmakers and Gov. Pat Quinn decided earlier this year, in the midst of a state budget crisis, to fund only about half of the $440 million program — enough to get students through the first half of the school year.” (Jodi. S. Cohen, “College Funding Program On Empty,” Chicago Tribune, 10/11/09
* Rauner was in Champaign County yesterday and talked about the need for more spending on higher education…
“Under Pat Quinn’s administration state support for the (University of Illinois) and other universities has been cut. That’s wrong. We should be increasing our investment in education. Education’s the most important investment we can make together as a community.”
He also said he’d undertake a closer review of university spending as governor.
“Much of the spending at the University of Illinois and in other universities has grown very highly in the administrative cost structure whereas spending inside the classroom and on research hasn’t necessarily kept pace. I’d like to see us re-prioritize, invest in the classroom for the students and invest in the research and the potential economic development and be more efficient in the administrative layer.”
Thoughts?
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Propeller heads?
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Tribune…
Mayor Rahm Emanuel [yesterday] dismissed a state task force report that called for one mega mass transit agency combining the CTA, Metra and PACE as written by “propeller heads.”
The characterization came today when the mayor was asked if the single transit agency is a good idea.
“No, and in capital letters. Let me just be really clear: This is what happens when you lock up a lot of propeller heads in a room for a short period of time. First they say we have an unaccountable, nameless, faceless bureaucracy. Hold on, we’d like to replace it with the new version of a unaccountable, nameless, faceless bureaucracy,” Emanuel said after today’s City Council meeting.
“I’ve had my views on the importance of being a propeller head. I think I’ve given you my views of that. It is a non starter with this,” the mayor added.
* But the Tribune editorial board was quite impressed with the recommendations this week…
•There’s no strategic plan to expand the transit system or increase ridership. The CTA, Metra and Pace aren’t working together to make buses and trains more accessible and convenient. The “legacy system” is still Loop-centric, while other employment corridors are woefully underserved. Only 12 percent of suburbanites can get to work on mass transit in less than 90 minutes.
•Capital spending is all about catch-up. There’s a $20 billion backlog just to bring the system into a “state of good repair,” according to the Regional Transportation Authority, which is supposed to provide oversight for the three transit agencies but — here’s another task force finding — doesn’t. Transit spending is based on returning revenue to where it was raised, not on building a system that serves the region.
•Much of this can be blamed on an entrenched “culture of division.” The system is governed by four boards, with 47 members appointed by 21 elected officials. Instead of thinking regionally, board members defend the parochial agendas of the politicians who appoint them.
The task force recommends transitioning to a single oversight board — but not the RTA. A 2008 transit reform bill, passed mostly to address the CTA’s chronic budget emergencies, was intended to give the RTA the teeth to force the transit boards to work together, the report notes. The RTA was supposed to develop a strategic plan and to set and enforce performance standards. That didn’t happen. “The agency’s lackluster response to the new authority given to it in 2008 does not inspire confidence,” the task force report says. It also criticizes the RTA for employing Madigan’s son-in-law as its chief of staff.
Members of the new board would be appointed by local governments and the state. Candidates would be vetted by an independent panel to guard against cronyism and conflicts of interest. They wouldn’t be salaried — until recently, they qualified for state pensions — and they could be removed more easily if, for example, they signed off on another hush-money severance deal.
Discuss.
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The times are changing
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Check out this roll call…
Sen. Iris Martinez, D-Chicago, proposed a bill permitting minors with seizure disorders, including epilepsy, to take a derivative of medical cannabis. It passed 49-5 in the Senate and goes to the House. […]
Sen. David Luechtefeld, R-Okawville, whose grandson has as many as 100 seizures in a day, said he was torn about the bill because was concerned about the long-term side effects of marijuana on children.
Martinez responded that the marijuana extract given to seizing children had “no real side-effect,” especially compared to the FDA-approved drugs already on the market for epilepsy. She said that where current drugs fail to cut down on the number of seizures a kid has, marijuana oil has been proven to significantly reduce seizures “in an enormous way.”
But Sen. Tim Bivins, R-Dixon, said he wouldn’t vote for the bill because it didn’t specify how the medicine would be taken. Bivins said he opposed the idea of allowing kids to smoke the drug.
Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-East Moline, came to the defense of the bill, saying the important thing is that marijuana actually works at reducing seizures.
Luechtefeld ended up voting for the bill. Sen. Bivins voted “Present.”
Voting “No” were Republican Sens. Bill Brady, Kyle McCarter, Christine Radogno, Dale Righter and Chapin Rose.
But twelve Republicans voted “Yes.”
Twelve.
Progress is being made, folks.
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Support clean energy: Fix the RPS
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
The Illinois renewable portfolio standard (the RPS) was passed into law in 2007 and requires 25% of the state’s power to come from clean sources by 2025. The RPS made Illinois a leader in renewable energy development between 2008 – 2012. Yet a glitch in state law has broken the RPS, halting renewable energy development and leaving Illinois behind as the market grows.
Maintaining a strong RPS is #1 priority for growing clean energy businesses in Illinois. Legislation now pending in the General Assembly would fix the RPS and jumpstart billions of dollars of clean energy development.
Click below to meet Illinois clean energy workers and find out more about the important role this industry plays in our state’s economy. Let’s make Illinois a clean energy leader again – support the RPS fix!
WWW.CLEANJOBSILLINOIS.COM
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Credit Unions - Protecting consumers during times of need
Thursday, Apr 3, 2014 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Credit unions live out their ‘People Helping People” philosophy everyday and truly in times of disasters. The cooperative structure of credit unions, not their size or range of services, is the reason for their tax exemption – and why nearly three million Illinois residents call them home. Owned and democratically controlled by the people who use them, credit unions help members reach day-to-day financial goals and provide unwavering support during crucial times. After finding itself at the epicenter of the November 17 tornadoes, CEFCU’s Washington branch immediately served as a command center. The next day, the credit union donated $100,000 to the local Red Cross and collected funds at all Illinois member centers. Staff also contributed personal funds. Recognizing that the security of personal financial information was potentially compromised, CEFCU offered one free year of credit monitoring to all members impacted by the storms. CEFCU also established a response team for comprehensive member service, hosted a homeowner seminar, waived fees, rushed check orders, replaced debit and credit cards overnight at no charge, and opened its Washington branch two Sundays to provide extended service hours. People before profits – the one credit union principle that remains constant – and highly valued by their members.
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Radogno turns thumbs down
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* It’ll be up to the Democrats to move this thing forward…
Illinois’ Senate Republican leader says she’s advised her caucus to oppose a plan from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to bail out two city pension systems.
Christine Radogno of Lemont told a Senate committee Wednesday that the state is in “continual crisis mode” with spending and revenue. She says she wants to see a long-term plan from the city dealing with its other troubled pension funds.
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Vallas finally enters the arena
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Tribune…
Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday trotted out his running mate Paul Vallas to hammer Republican challenger Bruce Rauner’s position that the state income tax rate should rolled back, saying doing so would result in huge cuts to education and spikes in local property tax rates.
Vallas, the former Chicago Public Schools CEO, contended that lowering the income tax rate would leave at least $1 billion less for school districts across the state – a situation Vallas said would be “absolutely devastating.” […]
Rauner argues the increase should be allowed to expire as scheduled, but so far has not detailed how he would make up for the revenue loss beyond saying there’s room to cut in the state budget.
Vallas said that stance is disingenuous, and accused Rauner of “deferring the tough questions until after the election.”
* Sun-Times…
“I know the impact that major cuts have on the education budget,” Vallas said at a downtown hotel, repeating his credentials as a school superintendant for 17 years. “And these type of draconian cuts which is what would occur if the rates were reduced under the Rauner plan, would have a devastating impact. There’s no way around it.
“Either you don’t understand the budget or in effect, you’re deferring the tough questions until after the election,” he said. […]
Vallas, who also ran school districts in Philadelphia, New Orleans and Bridgeport, Conn., said Rauner’s proposed income tax rollback to 3 percent would result in more than a billion dollars in cuts to education funding. Chicago Public Schools alone would lose some $233 million, according to the campaign’s analysis.
“No district will be able to absorb that impact without borrowing, which is bad, finding some way to raise property taxes, which is even worse, or going out and making draconian cuts to critical programs,” Vallas said.
* Video…
* As noted earlier, Rauner’s campaign sent “Quinnocchio” to the Vallas event. The campaign then responded to what Vallas had to say…
“Pat Quinn broke his promise, raised taxes and still cut education funding by $600 million,” Rauner campaign spokesman Mike Schrimpf said in an email. “Paul Vallas laid off 130 public school teachers and staff while pocketing over $310,000 in taxpayer money for himself. Misleading the voters has been a hallmark of Quinn’s for the last four years and with that kind of record, it’s no surprise the Quinnocchio ticket is now making things up about Bruce.
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Today’s number: 44 cents
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From a press release…
Earlier this year, a bipartisan State Senate committee, created by State Senator Andy Manar (D–Bunker Hill), issued a report acknowledging Illinois’ outdated school funding system and recommending changes be made to the system to better reflect students’ needs.
On Wednesday, Manar, along with other Senate Democrats, introduced the School Funding Reform Act of 2014, a proposal to streamline the current hodgepodge of funding sources into one funding formula that would account for school districts’ funding needs.
“Illinois has the second-most inequitable school funding system in the nation. Our current funding system is doing a disservice to taxpayers, school districts and, most importantly, our children,” Manar said. “The funding system we are proposing will better address student needs, such as socio-economic background, language ability or special learning needs, while also accounting for a school district’s ability to raise funds locally.”
The current funding formula, unchanged since 1997, only distributes 44 cents for every $1 invested in education on the basis of district need. The other 56 cents is distributed to schools through archaic and complicated grants, not based on need.
Under the new funding system, 92 cents of every $1 invested by the State in the K-12 education system, with the exception of funds for early childhood education, construction projects and high-cost special education, would flow through a single funding formula that provides a simple, straight-forward and equitable means to distribute education funds for Illinois school districts.
According to Manar, the new formula would also increase stability and transparency regarding how much state money is provided, how it gets to school districts and how it is spent.
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An American tradition gone awry
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Illinois Review…
This is opening week for America’s 2014 baseball season, and there’s no place where patriotism is more in vogue than at Chicago’s White Sox season opener Monday at U.S. Cellular Field.
Over 100 members of the United States military stretched out this 250 foot flag in front of 40,000 baseball fans. […]
Monday, the game’s opening routine was inspirational seeing the flag and American baseball fans of all political views singing with their hands on their hearts, “the land of the free, and the home of the brave.” Then finishing with the inevitable, “Play ball!”
* Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to be inspired by the pre-game festivities because of another American tradition: Poorly executed security rules…
Fans arriving at U.S. Cellular Field on Monday were greeted by long lines and metal detectors when they tried to enter the stadium to watch the Chicago White Sox take on the Minnesota Twins on opening day.
Major League Baseball has told its 30 teams they must implement security screening for fans by 2015, either with hand-held metal detection or walk-through magnetometers. The White Sox checked fans by hand-held or walkthrough metal detectors depending on where they tried to enter the stadium.
That, and a sellout crowd of 37,422, contributed to lengthy delays trying to see Chris Sale and the White Sox face the Twins.
The White Sox didn’t hire nearly enough security guards, so thousands were still outside waiting in endless lines during the singing of our National Anthem.
* I arrived about an hour early, but got stuck driving through a parking lot near the stadium surrounded by a mass of people trying to get inside. I couldn’t move more than a few feet for a half an hour because nobody was directing foot or auto traffic, except a couple of guys who were sitting on a golf cart doing essentially nothing.
Yeah, I was upset at missing part of the game, but I was really steamed that we were all - drivers and pedestrians - put in a needlessly dangerous situation and I was scared to death that I was going to run over somebody’s foot, or worse. People were literally squeezing by my car and jumping in front of me as I was stuck in the morass.
So, perhaps a legitimate concern for security turned into a potentially dangerous situation elsewhere. Not cool, Mr. Reinsdorf. Not cool at all.
Also, dude, you’re losing money when fans can’t get into your park. There were still people lined up at Gate 3 during the 3rd inning, for crying out loud.
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Stop the satellite TV tax!
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
The cable TV industry is asking lawmakers to place a NEW 5% tax on satellite TV service. This proposal is an unfair, unjustified tax increase on the 1.3 million Illinois families and businesses who subscribe to satellite TV.
Satellite TV taxes will hurt Illinois families and small businesses
• Residential satellite TV subscribers will see their monthly bills go up 5%.
• This tax will impact every bar, restaurant and hotel that subscribes to satellite TV service, which will translate into higher prices, decreased revenues, and fewer jobs.
• Rural Illinois has no choice: In many parts of Illinois, cable refuses to provide TV service to rural communities. Satellite TV is their only option.
This is not about parity or fairness
• Cable’s claim that this discriminatory tax is justified because satellite TV doesn’t pay local franchise fees could not be further from the truth. Cable pays those fees to local towns and cities in exchange for the right to bury cables in the public rights of way—a right that cable companies value in the tens of billions of dollars in their SEC filings.
• Satellite companies don’t pay franchise fees for one simple reason: We use satellites—unlike cable, we don’t need to dig up streets and sidewalks to deliver our TV service.
• Making satellite subscribers pay franchise fees—or, in this case, an equivalent amount in taxes—would be like taxing the air. It’s no different than making airline passengers pay a fee for laying railroad tracks.
Tell your lawmakers to STOP THE SATELLITE TV TAX!
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SEIU predicts pension reform passage
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The Chicago pension reform bill is about to start moving as I write this. There’s a noon committee hearing scheduled.
One of the more interesting developments in this legislation was SEIU’s reaction…
.Christine Boardman, president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73, said she supports the “basic constructs” of the pension deal that impacts 10,000 of her members.
“We’re in support of the increase in employee contributions. We’re in support of the Emanuel plan to try to fund it through property tax increases. The bill is going to pass. I know that. You know that,” she said.
“We’re not gonna work against the bill. We’ve told that to Speaker [Mike] Madigan. We’re gonna be neutral, only because of the effect it has on retirees.”
* To the bill, with new stuff bolded…
There shall be printed on each [property tax] bill, or on a separate slip which shall be mailed with the bill: […]
there shall be a separate statement of the dollar amount of tax due which is allocable to the Pension Stabilization Levy under Articles 8 and 11 of the Illinois Pension Code
So, Chicago property taxpayers will get to see how much they’re paying toward this pension fix.
* Also in the bill…
for payment years 2016 through 2055, the annual amount determined by the Fund to be equal to the greater of $0, or the sum of (1) the City’s portion of the projected normal cost for that fiscal year, plus (2) an amount determined on a level percentage of applicable employee payroll basis (reflecting any limits on individual participants’ pay that apply for benefit and contribution purposes under this plan) that is sufficient to bring the total actuarial assets of the Fund up to 90% of the total actuarial liabilities of the Fund by the end of 2055.
* Some Republicans are saying that the above language means there is a mandated property tax increase in the legislation. Yes, there are definitely minimums set, so taxes will absolutely have to rise because of the statute. But aldermen are gonna have to put a little skin in the game as well…
For levy years 2015 through 2020, the city council of the city shall levy a separate tax annually upon all taxable property in the city that shall be known as the Pen Stabilization Levy and shall be at a rate that, when extended, will produce an amount that is no less than one-half of the city’s required contribution amount under subsection (a-2) for each year.
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Madigan talks minimum wage, voter suppression
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Those of us who looked at the past to justify a belief that Speaker Madigan would be cool to the idea of raising the minimum wage were just plain wrong…
In a sign Democrats are sticking to their 2014 election playbook, House Speaker Michael Madigan signaled Tuesday a minimum wage increase could be on the horizon in Illinois.
With President Barack Obama, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and Gov. Pat Quinn all singing the praises of boosting the minimum wage above $10 per hour, Madigan — who is chairman of the Democratic Party in Illinois — suggested it might have the juice to move through the General Assembly’s lower chamber this spring.
“There’s strong support for the minimum wage in the House,” Madigan told reporters. “I think that it’s a matter of fairness, it’s a matter of equity.”
* Sun-Times has a great take…
Saying he was “adamantly, adamantly opposed” to increasing the state’s minimum wage, [Bruce Rauner] suggested rolling back the current rate in Illinois during a candidates forum in December.
In January, Rauner reversed course and outlined a scenario in which he could favor an increase in the wage, so long as it was paired with a series of business-friendly reforms in state workers compensation and tort laws.
“I think it’s a matter of fairness. It’s a matter of equity,” Madigan said. “I think you’ll find the opposition to raising the minimum wage comes from people who have done pretty well in America. For some strange reason, they don’t want others in America to participate in prosperity.”
Asked if he was describing Rauner, Madigan shot back a one-word response before walking away: “Who?”
* Meanwhile, I haven’t seen much conservative anger about this Madigan proposal, but maybe it’ll happen in time…
Current laws against discrimination aren’t good enough, says the speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives. Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) is sponsoring a constitutional amendment which today (Tuesday) unanimously passed a House committee. “Eight states have attempted to enact photo ID laws,” he told the committee.
“According to the Brennan Center, approximately 25 percent of eligible African-Americans and 16 percent of Hispanics don’t have photo IDs.” If both chambers approve, this would be a question on the ballot in November and could help turnout in a year that includes the race for governor.
* Again, let’s go to the Sun-Times…
David Morrison, policy advisor for government watchdog group, Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, testified on behalf of Madigan’s measure and said it would simplify the process to seek justice because aggrieved voters would be able to point directly to a violation of the state constitution.
“If anyone today did feel like there were an undue burden on their right to vote, this would give them a right to challenge it,” Morrison said. “Not only would get you a trial court action, but constitutional challenges are appealable directly to the Supreme Court.”
But Ron Sandack, R-Downers Grove, who voted for the measure, questioned the need for Madigan’s change in the state constitution.
“Is there an instance of voter suppression or access denied to register or cast a ballot here in Illinois?” Sandack asked the speaker.
Madigan couldn’t cite an example but said he wanted to prevent potential examples from cropping up.
The proposal received unanimous support in the committee.
* Tribune…
The measure seeks to counter a U.S. Supreme Court June 2013 ruling that dislodged part of the 1965 Voting Rights Act and prompted eight states to attempt to restrict access to polling booths, Madigan said. States have required some voters to show photo identifications, a move that Madigan said has “disproportionally” impacted minorities and the poor.
If it makes the fall ballot and is approved, the amendment would prohibit both future General Assemblies and local election authorities from imposing various restrictions, the speaker said.
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I just don’t understand this story
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I really don’t see why this is a problem. A guy gets a ticket. He pays the ticket. He thinks the law is wrong, so he tries to change the law. But when the guy is a lobbyist with the NRA, well, we just can’t have that…
After a state conservation officer ticketed the National Rifle Association’s Illinois lobbyist last December for breaking a hunting law, the gun-rights advocate dutifully paid his $120 fine.
But Todd Vandermyde, one of Springfield’s most powerful and effective lobbyists, didn’t stop there.
A month later, he worked with one legislator to rewrite the law he broke.
And not long after that, he enlisted help from House Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, to carry legislation that, at least initially, would have greatly restrained the authority of Department of Natural Resources police officers to venture onto private property.
* If you read the whole story, Vandermyde was hunting on private land. He had a loaded crossbow while on an ATV. You’re not supposed to do that, even on private land. So, he got a ticket from a conservation officer. On private land, mind you.
Vandermyde’s crossbow bill was pretty uncontroversial. It passed the House last week 84-28.
And, frankly, DNR needed some restraining, if you ask me. Too many of their officers think they don’t need a warrant to go into somebody’s house because state law doesn’t specifically require one. That’s just plain goofy and even DNR is not opposing the Durkin bill, which will require a warrant before conservation officers can enter someone’s house or yard.
…Adding… Some of you aren’t reading carefully enough. The Durkin bill does not apply to private hunting grounds, only to someone’s house and yard. Plus, it’s long-standing constitutional policy that a cop can bust someone even in a yard or a house if the cop witnesses a crime being committed.
* And then there’s this…
“Look, I like Todd. I do, in spite of myself,” said state Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago, a gun-control advocate and a lead architect of the state’s same-sex marriage law. “But if I got a ticket and changed the law because I got a ticket, people would be screaming bloody murder. I don’t think it’s any different when someone with the level of influence and access that he has does it, too,” she said. […]
Cassidy stood by her belief that Vandermyde, in trying to change law because of his own misfortune, was wrong and ridiculed his comparison to her work on behalf of same-sex marriage.
“It’s a little different to change the law when you’re being discriminated against than to change a law when you break it,” she said. “There’s a little difference.”
That last statement is just not true. The entire civil rights movement was fueled by people deliberately breaking stupid laws.
There was a problem, it’s being fixed. What’s the big deal?
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[The following is a paid advertisement.]
In any discussion of the treatment of mental illness, patients and their families should come first. But according to recent editorials in the Chicago Sun-Times and the Chicago Tribune, Senate Bill 2187 fails that test.
SB 2187 – sometimes called “RxP” – would allow psychologists with no medical training to prescribe medications to patients. Current Illinois law allows only people with medical training – doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants – to prescribe.
“It would create too many medical risks without doing enough to make drug treatment for mental health more widely available,” the Sun-Times wrote on Feb. 20, 2014. “We need to provide much better mental health care for our citizenry. But expanding prescription-writing rights is not a safe way to do it.”
Why does medical training matter? Physical illnesses and mental disorders are often intertwined. Additionally, psychiatric medication, such as drugs for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, can interact negatively with medication for chronic illnesses. Finally, many drugs are powerful and can create risky side effects. To understand these complexities, psychiatrists go through four years of medical school and four additional years of residency, on top of their college training in the sciences. They learn to treat the whole patient – not just the brain.
“We didn’t support this effort in the spring and we still don’t because this bill does not require sufficiently stringent training and oversight,” wrote the Chicago Tribune in its March 22, 2014 editorial.
To become involved, join the Coalition for Patient Safety, http://coalitionforpatientsafety.com.
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* AP…
The Supreme Court struck down limits Wednesday in federal law on the overall campaign contributions the biggest individual donors may make to candidates, political parties and political action committees.
The justices said in a 5-4 vote that Americans have a right to give the legal maximum to candidates for Congress and president, as well as to parties and PACs, without worrying that they will violate the law when they bump up against a limit on all contributions, set at $123,200 for 2013 and 2014. That includes a separate $48,600 cap on contributions to candidates.
But their decision does not undermine limits on individual contributions to candidates for president or Congress, now $2,600 an election.
Chief Justice John Roberts announced the decision, which split the court’s liberal and conservative justices. Roberts said the aggregate limits do not act to prevent corruption, the rationale the court has upheld as justifying contribution limits.
The full decision is here.
* New York Times…
The decision chipped away at the central distinction drawn by the Supreme Court in its seminal 1976 campaign finance decision, Buckley v. Valeo.
Independent spending, the court said in Buckley, is political speech protected by the First Amendment. But contributions may be capped, the court said, in the name of preventing corruption. The court added that aggregate contribution limits were a “quite modest restraint upon protected political activity” that “serves to prevent evasion” of the base limits.
Wednesday’s decision only concerned contributions from individuals. Federal law continues to ban contributions by corporations and unions.
The court led by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. has been consistently hostile to campaign finance limits in its half-dozen decisions in argued cases on the subject so far. The five more conservative justices have voted together in all of those cases, though Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. have taken a more incremental approach than the bolder one called for by Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Anthony M. Kennedy.
Wednesday’s decision may increase overall campaign spending, but it may also rechannel some of it away from “super PACs” and toward candidates and parties.
* Washington Post…
This [restriction] meant that donors weren’t able to spread around donations to multiple party committees and candidates and would have to be more selective about whom they contributed to.
In its decision, the court compared the overall contribution limits to restricting the number of candidates a newspaper can endorse.
“Contributing money to a candidate is an exercise of an individual’s right to participate in the electoral process through both political expression and political association,” the justices wrote. “A restriction on how many candidates and committees an individual may support is hardly a ‘modest Restraint’ on those rights. The Government may no more restrict how many candidates or causes a donor may support than it may tell a newspaper how many candidates it may endorse.” […]
Most Republicans, though, praised the ruling for allowing Americans to have more voice in the political process through political donations.
“Today’s Court decision in McCutcheon v. FEC is an important first step toward restoring the voice of candidates and party committees and a vindication for all those who support robust, transparent political discourse,” said Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee.
*** UPDATE *** From the Sunlight Foundation…
In the current election cycle, those nearing the limits include 11 donors who derive their wealth from private equity and investment firms. During the first three quarters of 2013, there were 13 who gave solely to Republican candidates and parties and four who gave only to Democrats. Only three of the donors contributed to candidates of both parties, but they heavily favored (95 percent or more) one party over the other. While just three led companies that are currently lobbying the federal government, 17 of them made large contributions to super PACs. And many of them are trying to influence the government.
Go read it all.
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Fun with numbers
Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the Bruce Rauner campaign…
CHICAGO – Quinnocchio will highlight Pat Quinn’s education funding cuts.
WHEN: 10:30 a.m.
WHERE: Hotel Allegro
171 W. Randolph St
Chicago, 60601
The Old Promise: “We have to invest in education. We have to be custodians of the future.” (Quinn video statement to ABC 7 on December 30, 2009: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kisEvjk7Nt4)
The Reality: Pat Quinn has cut elementary and secondary education funding by more than $600 million. (CGFA 2014 Budget Summary p. 165)
* That COGFA budget summary is here. From a graph on page 165 of appropriations to the State Board of Education from FY06 to the current fiscal year…
Keep in mind, however, that this graph excludes teacher pension funding, which has ramped up every year. The state, not local school boards, covers those payments.
* And here’s another graph from the same COGFA document which represents the annual change in state revenues over the same time period…
Anybody wanna guess what would’ve happened to education funding if the tax hike that Rauner despises and pledges to eliminate hadn’t passed in 2011?
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