* Whether you’re going somewhere fun or are stuck in an “In-district work period,” try to have a good time while the General Assembly is adjourned for two weeks. Blogging will probably be light next week. We’ll see.
* The House and Senate have both adjourned, so spring break (or, as Sen. Don Harmon called it today, “In-district work period”) has begun.
I know several folks plan to kick off their break by stopping by the retirement party being thrown for Lisa Guinan today at DH Browns. The party starts at 3.
If you don’t know Lisa, click here for the House Resolution congratulating her for her many years of dedicated service to the Illinois House of Representatives, particularly her time spent as the House GOP’s Floor Manager.
I’m not sure yet what I’m doing for spring break. I will be taking some time off, but I haven’t yet been able to make up my mind.
Friday, Apr 12, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Credit unions are focused on you – the member. A credit union is a cooperative financial institution, owned and controlled by the people who use its services - its member-owners. Credit unions serve groups that share a common bond - such as where they work, live, or go to church - and provide a safe, convenient place for members to save money and get loans at reasonable rates. For more information about the credit union difference, please visit: www.yourmoneyfurther.com.
* Sen. Melinda Bush (D-Grayslake) was not pleased when Gov. Pritzker did not appoint a single Lake County resident to the Tollway board. So, she introduced SB764…
Increases the number of directors of the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority appointed by the Governor from 9 to 11. Provides that, of the 11 directors of the Authority appointed by the Governor, at least one shall be from Cook County, at least one shall be from Lake County, at least one shall be from DuPage County, at least one shall be from Will County, at least one shall be from Winnebago, Boone, or McHenry County, and at least one shall be from Kane, DeKalb, Ogle, or Lee County. Provides that no more than 6 (rather than 5) directors shall be from the same political party. Provides that, within 30 days of the effective date of the amendatory Act, the Governor shall appoint one director from Lake County and one director from Winnebago, Boone, or McHenry County. Effective immediately.
Provides that a public university or community college may not inquire about or consider an applicant’s criminal history information at any time during the admission decision-making process, except as required by federal law or specified provisions of the Department of State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois or the Medical School Matriculant Criminal History Records Check Act, if applicable.
Aaron Woodruff, chief of police at Illinois State University, told us they’re not against second chances and notes that most who admit to a conviction on their college application still get admitted. But they want exceptions carved out in the law that would require applicants to disclose convictions for sex crimes and other violent offenses.
“The universities and police recognize that education can be a key component in rehabilitation, but we have to do it with some common sense,” he said, adding the campus law enforcement community hopes to negotiate a compromise with the bill’s proponents in the legislature.
Woodruff said police have found allies on this issue among women’s and LGTBQ organizations.
“They’re asking, ‘Why are we more concerned about someone convicted of a sex crime than other students on campus?’” he said.
The House will soon take up a measure to allow high school students old enough to vote to take time out of class to vote.
State Sen. Elgie Sims, D-Chicago, said his Senate Bill 1970 will help get young people to vote.
“We are trying to make sure that we encourage our young people to participate and exercise our civic duty,” Sims said.
Under state law, high school students who are 18 years old at the time of a general election can vote in the primary when they’re 17.
State Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, said there should be some way to ensure students leaving school to vote are actually casting a ballot.
* Other bills…
* Proposed parking fee for Starved Rock State Park rejected by Illinois Senate: Opponents questioned a provision that would have exempted residents of LaSalle County, where the park is located, from paying the fee. The vote on the bill was 29-8, but 30 votes are required to pass any legislation in the Senate.
A real estate developer has been indicted on federal charges alleging he steered legal work to powerful Ald. Edward Burke in exchange for help at City Hall with a permit and $2 million in tax-increment financing for a Northwest Side development.
The charges against Charles Cui, of Lake Forest, were the first to be brought in connection with the ongoing City Hall corruption investigation since Burke himself was accused more than three months ago of attempting to shake down two businessmen seeking to renovate a fast-food restaurant in the 14th Ward.
Cui, 48, was charged in an four-count indictment made public Friday with federal program bribery, using interstate commerce to facilitate bribery and official misconduct.
Burke was not named or charged in the indictment against Cui, but the charges make clear he was the alderman who was allegedly bribed.
Charles Cui, 48, allegedly steered the business to Burke after the city denied a permit for a sign for a retailer at the project site in the 4900 block of West Irving Park Road in the Portage Park neighborhood. The project includes a Binny’s Beverage Depot and a Culver’s restaurant, public records show.
That permit was critical to Cui, who was the managing partner of the company that owned the property. The company stood to have it tenant either cancel the lease or lose as much as $750,000 if it was unable to obtain the permit because the retailer could pay that much less in rent if it didn’t get the sign. […]
Burke motioned to approve the redevelopment project and voted for it at a City Council meeting in March 2016. The tax increment financing deal was worth $2 million for the project.
After the city denied the permit for the sign, Cui allegedly emailed Burke, asking him “to look into the matter.”
Cui’s email said the retailer “really needs it, otherwise they will cancel the lease, or ask for significant rent reduction,” according to the indictment.
*** UPDATE *** Mayor-elect Lightfoot…
Today’s charges add more definition to the utterly corrupt way in which Alderman Ed Burke has exploited his position and power. This is exactly the kind of conduct that the voters mandated must change. My commitment is that we will be vigilant in cleaning up corruption throughout all of City government. I was elected ten days ago to build a government where you don’t have to give to get—where Chicagoans can receive basic City services, and where being business owners can get signs and permits without bribes and delays.
We’re going to build a transparent and accountable City government that Chicagoans can trust to put their needs first. That’s why I’ve consistently called for critical ethics reforms, including banning profiting from public service. The public gave us a mandate for change, and we intend to deliver.
A former state senator was the subject of a grand jury subpoena in January that sought his emails and mileage reimbursement records as part of an apparent federal investigation, according to documents obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times.
The subpoena issued to the state Senate out of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois sought emails, tax documents, mileage-reimbursement records and any payments made to William Sam McCann during his time in office from 2011 to 2018, records show.
The reimbursements in question would have come from taxpayer dollars. […]
The subpoena, sent on Jan. 3, came at the behest of U.S. Assistant State’s Attorney Timothy Bass, who was the one-time lead prosecutor in former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock corruption case.
McCann, who has not been accused of wrongdoing, told WBEZ Thursday in a text message that he had not been made aware of the subpoena until learning of it through WBEZ. He declined further comment.
McCann expensed $26,061.74 in travel reimbursements during his tenure in the Senate, according to records from the Illinois Comptroller. McCann, a Republican from downstate Plainview, served from 2011 until January 2019.
Campaign finance records show he also received more than $36,000 in mileage reimbursements from his campaign fund in 2017 and 2018. That would translate to nearly 68,000 miles of driving, based on IRS approved mileage reimbursement rates at the time.
Before his successful 2016 legislative re-election bid, McCann’s mileage reimbursements arose as an issue and led to a complaint filed with the State Board of Elections. That complaint was later withdrawn.
* The Chicago Tribune has finally published a story on the House Republican secessionists. We’ve covered this a lot, so let’s just focus on Sen. Manar’s advice…
State Sen. Andy Manar, a Democrat from the southern Illinois community of Bunker Hill, had the regionalism game played against him as a lead architect of a historic change in school funding. Critics claimed it was a bailout of the Chicago Public Schools.
Manar said some of the problems his district faces are akin to what Chicago sees in some of its neighborhoods. Manar said understanding the similar nature of problems is needed to overcome the regional fissure.
“Lack of pharmacies, lack of doctors, lack of specialists, underfunded schools, vacant classrooms, unemployment, child abuse rates going up. Those things are happening in rural communities and urban communities alike,” Manar said. “Too often, when policymakers get into this building, it’s very easy to use geography to explain deep challenges that our state faces. That’s an easy explanation that plays to the cheers of the crowd.”
In the end, Manar said, the answer is to tone down the rhetoric, find common ground and get things done.
“Look, I could show up here every day and beat the crap out of the city of Chicago and get re-elected every four years. That would be easy to do, right? It would guarantee re-election,” Manar said. “But when you’re done as an elected official in the Senate, you probably wouldn’t be able to point to one single accomplishment for the people who sent you here to get things done.”
And, of course, he spoke about the graduated income tax. But he tries not to call it that.
It’s a “fair tax” — a more digestible term that no doubt helps to market his plan. But it’s not so easy. Pritzker has a swear jar of sorts in his office. He has to put in money every time he doesn’t use the preferred “fair tax” name.
“Someone else in my office suggested something like that, and I thought it was a good idea. It turns out I’m the guilty party for the most part because people ask me questions that have the words ‘graduated income tax’ in or ‘progressive,’ and then I sometimes will parrot it back, and then I catch myself,” Pritzker said. “So yes, but it’s really my own swear jar.”
* Ideas Illinois had a little fun with the swear jar…
This week Governor Pritzker acknowledged to the Chicago Sun-Times that his office has created a swear jar to train him and his staff to use the term “fair tax” when describing his Jobs Tax™ on middle class families.
“It is telling that Governor Pritzker is the biggest offender of his own swear jar while trying to convince himself that his jobs tax on middle class families is fair. His Jobs Tax™ swear jar is offensive to every small business owner and middle class family in Illinois,” said Executive Director of Ideas Illinois Jason Heffley.
“[Republicans] could have come to talk about any of those things [proposed individual and corporate rates],” Pritzker said. “I’m here. I sit in the governor’s office. My door is open. … The most important part, I think, is that I’m open to conversations about it. I have risen the subject where I could with Republicans. But coming with proposals and having real conversations and negotiations, that’s something that I welcome. But you can’t sit on your hands and say no to everything. That’s what Bruce Rauner did for four years and that clearly didn’t work.”
“What I’ve heard from both leadership and individual members of both the House and the Senate is that they appreciate me being here. It seems like they haven’t seen a lot from a mayor of Chicago, and Springfield is incredibly important to the entire state,” Lightfoot said. “I have a feeling I’ll be here with some frequency.”
Asked by reporters how the city will unwind from a pension disaster and bring in new revenue to support itself, Lightfoot tiptoed around specifics. Of a state gas tax that is being considered as part of a state capital plan, Lightfoot noted she is “following” developments.
“We are following it and will continue to follow it really closely. Both to make sure that we’ve got a realistic and sustainable funding source, but also the projects are really important,” Lightfoot said. “Chicago stands to benefit significantly, as does the rest of the state, from having a capital bill which hasn’t been in play, I think for 10 years. We’re going to look at what the options are and weigh in as appropriate as the legislation moves through the General Assembly.”
Lightfoot’s Springfield agenda includes a push for expanded gambling to provide more revenue for the city, and that includes a Chicago casino. The mayor-elect said it’s time to have “serious conversations” about it.
“The sad reality is if we don’t do something about this, we’re going to continue to lose tens of millions of dollars every single year to Indiana and Wisconsin. And that makes no sense to me,” Lightfoot said. “We’ve got to have serious conversations about a casino in the city of Chicago and elsewhere.”
State lawmakers, however, are scheduled to finish their legislative session May 31, just 11 days after Lightfoot takes office May 20. That leaves little time to make specific financial proposals, let alone win approval from the House, the Senate and Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
Lightfoot, however, said her initial trip this week was not the time to start making a specific pitch.
“What I have done is been very direct with them about the magnitude of the challenge that we have seen, and we’ll be talking more specifically about that in the coming days,” Lightfoot told reporters under the Capitol dome Thursday. “This is kind of the first couple dates, right? So, we’re getting to know each other, but I’m pressing on the issues that we have to address in this term.”
* Chicago Mayor-Elect Praises Illinois Move Toward ‘Fair Tax’: “You have taken the initial steps to move forward with the governor’s plan to institute a fair tax that ensures everyone pays their fair share but frees the more modest earners from aggressive taxation that has kept them from getting ahead,’’ Lightfoot said.
* To Help Chicago, Lightfoot Looks To Springfield — But Not On Violence: “The violence is something that we’ve got to take on and own as a city,” Lightfoot said. “I don’t think we need to — in the short term — look to Springfield to solve that problem. We’ve just got to do better in the City of Chicago.” Lightfoot says that will take the form of greater investment in communities and better practices by police. In the past, Chicago has been a driving force behind gun control legislation in the General Assembly.
* Lightfoot says budget shortfall more ‘dire’ than she thought, but how much more?: Budget Director Samantha Fields was asked what she told the mayor-elect that made Lightfoot believe the financial mess was worse than anticipated. “We highlighted a list of things we knew were outstanding — like Local 2 [firefighters contract], possible FOP contract and a number of other items that we’re projecting for 2020’s budget. And I think her team has done some of their own background and determined the range of those expenses,” Fields told the Sun-Times. Fields was asked to project the final shortfall with the cost of police and fire contracts, retroactive pay and debt service costs.
Illinois State Police (ISP) officials announce the arrest of Craig W. Dittmar (M/55) for his involvement in the March 28th, 2019, fatal crash which resulted in the death of Trooper Brooke Jones-Story.
On March 28th, 2019, at approximately 11:24 a.m., Trooper Brooke Jones-Story, #5966, was inspecting a commercial motor vehicle on United States Route 20 westbound, just west of Illinois Route 75 in Stephenson County. At approximately 12:20 p.m., Trooper Jones-Story was outside her squad car when she was struck and fatally wounded when a truck tractor semi-trailer combination struck her squad car and the semi Trooper Jones-Story was inspecting. The semi-trailer combination that struck and killed Trooper Jones-Story was being driven by Craig W. Dittmar of Stockton, Illinois.
On April 11th, 2019, the Stephenson County State’s Attorney’s Office approved charging Dittmar with two counts of Reckless Homicide (both Class 2 Felonies), and one count of Operating A Commercial Motor Vehicle While Fatigued - Causing Death (Class 3 Felony). An arrest warrant was issued for Dittmar and the bond for the warrant was set by the judge at $250,000 (10% applies). Dittmar was later taken into custody and lodged in the Stephenson County Jail where he is being held in lieu of that bond.
The ISP would like to remind the public of Scott’s Law, which requires vehicles to slow down, move over, and change lanes if possible, when they are approaching an emergency vehicle, or any vehicle with its hazard lights activated. The ISP urges the public to help save lives by making responsible driving choices and following the law.
Sixteen state troopers have been hit by vehicles, three of them fatally, since Jan. 1 of this year and continues an unexplained spike in crashes. State police said the crashes were related to violations of Scott’s Law.
Trooper Gerald Ellis was killed on March 30 when a wrong-way driver crashed into his squad car in north suburban Green Oaks. The wrong-way driver, identified as Dan Davies, was also killed in the crash.
On Jan. 12, Trooper Christopher Lambert was struck and killed on I-294 when he stopped to help at a three-car crash in the north suburbs of Chicago. Scott Larsen, 61, of Wisconsin, was charged with a count of reckless homicide of an officer and two counts of reckless homicide involving Scott’s Law.
About 500 violations of Scott’s Law have been logged this year, compared to nearly 200 during the same time period last year, according to state police. The law is named after Chicago Fire Department Lt. Scott Gillen, who was killed on an expressway in 2000.
* Gov. Pritzker sat down with Tina Sfondeles yesterday for a wide-ranging interview. One topic they discussed was legalizing cannabis. Pritzker predicted the final proposal will be a “very, very, strong good bill” and will pass. Here’s some of what he said on the topic..
“I have teenagers, and I was very concerned, just not knowing. I asked a lot of questions about how does this affect teen use,” Gov. Pritzker said. “And in Washington state — where that was the governor’s big concern there too — they did a very good job of showing there was no increase in teen use.”
As for the concerns of police associations across the state over how law enforcement will be able to determine whether a driver is impaired, he acknowledged there’s no current technology to measure impairment when it comes to cannabis.
“Necessity is the mother of invention, and it’s now clear that with 11 states already with legalized adult use cannabis, there are entrepreneurs out there that recognize that every police department is going to want something,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker said he has spent a “reasonable” amount of time studying other states that have legalized recreational marijuana, specifically Washington state. And he acknowledged there will likely be follow-up bills to the legalization measure. But he said legalization is crucial as a criminal justice reform element, to ensure the safety of cannabis in the state and to create jobs.
“This happened in medical cannabis. You start out and then you figure out this isn’t working out quite as well and you make tweaks along the way,” Pritzker said. “With legislation, nothing is perfect and so yes, along the way, it’ll improve.”
A measure from State Senator Melinda Bush (D-Grayslake) that provides greater protections for private sector workers who experience sexual harassment and discrimination passed out of the Senate without opposition this afternoon.
“Right now, Illinois workers who are harassed or discriminated against don’t have the protections they need to seek justice and hold perpetrators accountable.” Bush said. “This bill strengthens workers’ rights and includes reasonable requirements for employers that will create safer workplaces.”
The measure was drafted based on recommendations that were made last year during the Senate sexual harassment task force hearings.
“The Illinois Chamber participated in an open and thoughtful process on SB 1829, and we provided language we believe will help make a better workplace environment for employers and employees in Illinois,” said Jay Shattuck, executive director of the Employment Law Council at the Illinois Chamber of Commerce. “The Chamber will continue to work with the task force senators and other stakeholders to help make a safe, more dependable and productive work environment throughout Illinois.”
“Preventing sexual harassment and discrimination and ensuring our workplaces are safe is not only good for workers, it’s good for business,” Bush said. “I’m pleased that leaders in the business community came to the table and worked with me on this important legislation.”
“With the #MeToo movement, women and men stood up and said ‘enough is enough,’” said State Senator Toi Hutchinson (D-Olympia Fields). “People deserve to work in an environment free from discrimination and sexual harassment. It’s well past time that we strengthen protections for workers and ensure all Illinoisans can live and work in peace.”
Senate Bill 1829 is an omnibus bill, which:
· Limits the use of legal documents intended to prevent an employee from reporting sexual harassment, such as non-disclosure agreements, arbitration clauses, and non-disparagement clauses for cases involving harassment, discrimination and retaliation
· Makes harassment against contract employees illegal (currently, these employees do not have legal protection against sexual harassment)
· Clarifies that it is illegal to discriminate against an employee if they are perceived to be part of a protected class (i.e. gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity), even if they are not
· Allows victims of sexual harassment to take unpaid leave from work to seek medical help, legal assistance, counseling, safety planning and other assistance
· Prevents a union representative from representing both a victim of sexual harassment and the alleged harasser in a disciplinary proceeding
· Requires employers, labor organizations and units of local government to disclose the number of sexual harassment and discrimination settlements or actions against them to the Department of Human Rights
· Requires the Department of Human Rights to make a sexual harassment training program available for employers to provide to their employees
Bush introduced the measures after hearing from victims, advocates and members of the business community during the Senate Task Force on Sexual Discrimination and Harassment Awareness and Prevention’s hearings last year. She served as the co-chair of the task force.
* And from the other chamber…
Majority Leader Greg Harris, Assistant Majority Leader Natalie Manley and Majority Conference Chair Kathleen Willis released the following statement Thursday regarding Sen. Melinda Bush’s sexual harassment omnibus legislation:
“As members of the Legislative Ethics Commission, Representatives Manley and Willis believe that addressing an issue as critical as ending workplace harassment requires a thorough, thoughtful approach. Senator Bush’s legislation contains many elements which will be reviewed and evaluated alongside ethics and human rights issues proposed by members of the House in our effort to develop the most comprehensive legislation possible. Members from both sides of the aisle have been invited to be part of this process. We have discussed these intentions with Senator Bush and made a commitment to our Senate colleagues on the Ethics Commission to work with them in this process.”
* The Question: Would you add anything to or remove anything from this bill? Explain.
Thursday, Apr 11, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
On April 10th, the Illinois Power Agency held a lottery to award renewable energy credit contracts to community solar, large commercial and industrial projects. Community Solar is for the 75% of Illinoisans who can’t put solar on their roofs. Demand was exceptionally strong, but due to the limited program size, approximately 90% of permitted community solar projects failed to receive contracts. Now those projects and the $222 million in tax revenue they would have generated for their communities over the next two decades is in jeopardy.
Without a fix to the state’s renewable energy program, remaining projects may not be built.
Tim Nugent, president and CEO of the Economic Alliance of Kankakee County, said: “Rural communities need new sources of revenue right now, and solar is one way to do that. We’re interested in seeing more community solar projects move forward, because at this point we’re leaving money on the table.”
Vote YES on HB 2966/SB 1781 to fix Illinois’ clean energy cliff and let shovel ready projects move forward.
On pensions, Lightfoot does not support changing the Illinois Constitution’s pension clause to ease benefit mandates that are straining all levels of government. We hope to change her mind on that.
They’re gonna be sorely disappointed by today’s news.
I grew up in a union household and I also watched men in my town who had spent their whole lives working in steel mills lose their pensions.
Let me be clear about my first principles regarding pensions. Pensions are a promise. We cannot turn our backs on those promises. I’m committed to working collaboratively with all stakeholders and through the collective bargaining process to make sure we can meet our commitments.
There’s already a ban on private criminal detention operations in Illinois, but a state representative wants to go a step further to prohibit private civil detention facilities as well.
The Dwight Village Board last month approved an agreement with a private provider for a 1,200-bed facility for Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees.
Provides that neither the State, nor any unit of local government, any county Sheriff, or any agency, officer, employee, or agent thereof, shall: (1) enter into an agreement of any kind for the detention of individuals in a detention facility owned, managed, or operated, in whole or in part, by a private entity; (2) pay, reimburse, subsidize, or defray in any way any costs related to the sale, purchase, construction, development, ownership, management, or operation of a detention facility that is or will be owned, managed, or operated, in whole or in part, by a private entity; (3) receive per diem, per detainee, or any other payment related to the detention of individuals in a detention facility owned, managed, or operated, in whole or in part, by a private entity; or (4) otherwise give any financial incentive or benefit to any private entity or person in connection with the sale, purchase, construction, development, ownership, management, or operation of a detention facility that is or will be owned, managed, or operated, in whole or in part, by a private entity.
The bill passed the House with 85 votes, including House Republican Leader Jim Durkin. Other Republican “Yes” votes included: Brady, Bryant, Butler, Demmer, Hammond, Keicher, Marron, McAuliffe, McCombie, McDermed, Severin, Spain, Wehrli, Wheeler and Windhorst.
Lots of AFSCME members in some of those districts. The union hates privatized prisons (or privatized anything, for that matter).
I’m not sure this would’ve received all those HGOP votes under the previous administration.
…Adding… Campaign for a Welcoming Illinois…
The Campaign for a Welcoming Illinois applauds the overwhelming bipartisan majority of the Illinois House that approved the Private Detention Facility Moratorium Act (HB 2040).
HB 2040 upholds Illinois’ longstanding public policy opposing private prisons, extending it to civil detention functions like immigration detention. Private detention centers, such as the proposed immigration detention facility in Dwight, Illinois, profit from mass incarceration, primarily of immigrants and communities of color. Private prison operators maximize their income by keeping their facilities full while minimizing their expenses by cutting corners, even if that means putting lives at risk. They pursue their profit-maximizing goals without any public safety rationale even though better, more humane alternatives to detention are available.
We thank Rep. Kelly Cassidy for her strong and persistent leadership in moving this bill through, and we thank the hundreds of organizations and individuals, including our allies within the Campaign for a Welcoming Illinois and the #NoICEDwight campaign, who called their legislators, filed witness slips, and otherwise showed their support for HB 2040 and their opposition to private detention centers.
No one should profit off human misery. We look forward to working with the State Senate and with Governor Pritzker to ensure that this bill will become law.
…Adding… Press release…
The Illinois Business Immigration Coalition (IBIC) applauds the Illinois House of Representatives for passing HB2040, which garnered overwhelming bipartisan support and passed by 85 votes.
The bill will prohibit private civil detention facilities in Illinois, including the proposed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) immigrant detention facility in Dwight, Illinois. Immigrant detention centers do not keep our communities safe, and actually contribute to lower reporting rates of crime by immigrants due to the erosion of trust with law enforcement. Additionally, data demonstrates that the majority of immigrants detained or deported do not have criminal records, and in the past two years alone, Department of Homeland Security reported over 150% increase in the arrest and deportation of undocumented immigrants with no criminal record across the US.
International trade supports 1,711,100 Illinois jobs, or nearly 1 in 4 jobs. We rely on our global partnerships to grow our economy and workforce, and by passing HB2040, Illinois sends the message that we are a welcoming state and embrace the many contributions of our immigrant communities and will keep them safe.
IBIC thanks Chief Sponsor Kelly Cassidy and the Campaign for a Welcoming Illinois for leading this critical legislation.
IBIC encourages Illinois Senators and Governor Pritzker to ensure that this proposal is enshrined in law and that we continue to build a more welcoming and prosperous Illinois.
* The House passed its own version this week. We’ll see if this is a classic “criss-cross” play (when both chambers pass their own bills, but don’t act on the other chamber’s similar/identical bills) soon enough…
Illinois Senate passes SB10 by a 45-11 vote. The measure sponsored by Democratic Sen. Andy Manar establishes a minimum $32,076 annual salary for teachers in Illinois, rising to $40,000 by the 2023-2024 school year. Bill is similar to one vetoed by former GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner.
A set of measures designed to address Illinois’ teacher shortage crisis passed the state Senate Wednesday night, championed by State Senator Andy Manar, the plan’s sponsor.
manar andySenate Bill 1952 received bipartisan support and will go to the House for consideration.
The measure contains the following provisions:
• It reinstates the 6 percent cap for teacher salary increases to be covered by the state. Last year, lawmakers lowered the cap to 3 percent.
• It removes the requirement that teachers must pass a basic skills test to be licensed.
• It permits K-12 student teachers and early childhood student teachers to be paid.
• It creates a refund program for teachers in underfunded, hard-to-staff school districts to recoup the cost of the teacher performance assessment.
• It allows early childhood student teachers to be paid and receive credit
* These sorts of resolutions can sometimes be useful to help us get a sense of the chamber. And McSweeney is smart to start signing on Democrats to send a message to the governor…
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s plan to phase out the state’s private school tuition program has new opposition in the General Assembly after a number of Democrats joined a Republican’s bill to try to keep the program through its five-year pilot program.
House Resolution 289 isn’t binding, but it is a significant statement. It highlights a number of students who benefited from the Invest in Kids private school scholarship program and urges House and Senate leaders to allow the program to live out its five-year lifespan. […]
State Rep. David McSweeney filed the bill. He’s gathered a coalition of Democrats to support of the resolution that could present a roadblock to Pritzker’s plan to phase out the program.
State Rep. Michael Zalewski, D-Riverside; Kelly Burke, D-Oak Lawn; Anthony DeLuca, D-Chicago Heights; Rita Mayfield, D-Waukegan; Lisa Hernandez, D-Cicero; Robert Rita, D-Blue Island; and Jonathan Carroll, D-Northbrook had all signed on in support of McSweeney’s resolution as of Wednesday.
There could eventually be some horse-trading about this topic on the graduated income tax roll call.
…Adding… Press release…
The Illinois Senate has unanimously passed legislation championed by State Sen. John Curran (R-Downers Grove) that would protect Illinois residents, like those Willowbrook residents impacted by Sterigenics, from the hidden dangers of ethylene oxide. Curran has led the fight against Sterigenics since it was first discovered they were emitting dangerous levels of ethylene oxide into the community. The measures he introduced, and which passed in the Senate, fulfill the pledge he made to residents that the legislature would take action to protect the public’s health, which remains his number one priority.
“This legislation will allow us to create real standards for ethylene oxide levels and it will empower the Illinois EPA to enforce them,” said Curran.
Senate Bill 1854 prohibits any facilities from having any fugitive emissions of ethylene oxide 6 months after it takes effect. In addition, it requires the IEPA to study ethylene oxide levels throughout the state to set a baseline for the levels.
In addition, it would subject facilities to stack testing, which tests emissions at all release points at least once per year. The facilities would also be subject to ambient air testing, at random, four times per year. Any facility that emits Ethylene oxide at a level higher than standards set in the federal Clean Air Act or by the IEPA would be required to immediately cease operations until sufficient changes are made to reduce the emissions below both federal and state standards.
* I posted a story Monday about how CSL Behring had been trying without success to get IDOT’s approval to convert a three-way stop light in Bradley to a four-way light for 16 months. The pharmaceutical company is investing $1 billion into a plant expansion, perhaps doubling its 1,600 jobs in a part of the state that is in desperate need of economic expansion. And it’s not seeking any sort of tax breaks or government financing. Sen. Toi Hutchinson said later in the day that IDOT had agreed to put the stoplight (which CSL offered to pay for) on its expedited project list.
But a Kankakee Daily Journal reporter also posted this on Twitter…
Politicians say there is a permit request for traffic light in Kankakee County. But DOT spokeswoman says it has not been filed. State lawmakers and other officials say it has. Trying to figure out these different responses. @TDJnews
* Anyway, several commenters suggested Monday that Gov. Pritzker ought to high-tail it over to Bradley to make amends and straighten this mess out. That’s happening…
Gov. J.B. Pritzker plans to visit the CSL Behring plant in Kankakee County later this month, a local lawmaker said Wednesday.
The Democrat, who was elected last November, will visit CSL shortly after noon April 23, Rep. Lindsay Parkhurst, R-Kankakee, said.
“I have been requesting him visit CSL Behring since January,” Parkhurst said in a phone interview. “We’re trying to get the governor’s attention on what CSL Behring is doing in this community.”
* Remember yesterday when we discussed the proposed constitutional amendment that deleted existing language barring the imposition of more than one income tax at a time? A refresher…
Under the proposed language, [opponents] argued, the state would actually be allowed to levy multiple income taxes, each for a different purpose, which would effectively allow the state to tax the same income multiple times. […]
According to Harmon, the prohibition on levying multiple income taxes was simply a companion to the requirement for a single, flat tax rate. Without that prohibition, he said, the framers feared that lawmakers could levy a series of “flat” taxes on different levels of income – say, for example, one on income up to $30,000; another “flat” rate on income between $30,000 and $60,000, and so on – effectively creating a multi-tiered tax structure through a series of limited “flat” taxes on different levels of income.
By allowing the state to create a multi-tiered tax structure, Harmon said, the prohibition on multiple taxes would become unnecessary.
Furthermore, he said, if supporters of the proposed change had left in the prohibition on multiple taxes, critics would likely argue that a multi-tiered structure would violate that prohibition.
* Sen. Don Harmon was asked about it during yesterday’s Senate Executive Committee hearing…
“You don’t believe removing the language that says you can only have one tax on income is removing a protection for taxpayers?” [Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon] asked.
Harmon said that original language was only in there because the framers of Illinois’ constitution were afraid without it, legislators would create layered flat taxes, or a “synthetic graduated tax.”
“If you read … what that sentence means, it is intended to enshrine a flat tax and not give legislators an easy way around a flat tax,” he said. “If we (kept the language) … what we are essentially doing is creating a series of siloed flat taxes based on income level.”
Clear as mud.
SJRCA1 passed the committee on a party line vote.
* Meanwhile, this is a crystal clear admission about what the fight against a graduated income tax is really about…
Republicans, like state Sen. Dale Righter, from Mattoon, said they‘re worried this would make it easier for future legislatures to endlessly raise taxes.
“Politicians … are pretty good at the class-warfare game,” Righter said. “And if you can point to them and say, ‘Well we’re going to get more money for your schools but we’re going to make the guys over there pay for it,’ that makes it easier to do.”
Yes, it does. Jacking up rates on upper-income taxpayers is a whole lot easier than raising them on middle-income taxpayers.
“This is something many of us have been working on for the better part of a decade, and it is long overdue,” said state Sen. Don Harmon, an Oak Park Democrat who’s sponsoring the proposed amendment. “It is not a radical departure. It is, in fact, the common tax practice in most every other jurisdiction, and I believe that it will give us some nimbleness in our tax policy to allow us to close our structural deficit and begin to tackle the problems that Illinois faces.”
* In other news, Gov. Pritzker was asked Tuesday about GOP Sen. Dan McConchie’s proposed constitutional amendment to require a two-thirds super-majority vote in both chambers to increase state taxes and fees…
Well, there was actually no negotiation about that. It was just something that they introduced on their own. The fact is that they haven’t proposed to you about how they’re actually overcome the budget deficit of the state or how they’re going to pay the bills of the state. They’re just demagoguing the issue.
So, I asked McConchie’s spokesperson if the Senator had ever requested a meeting with the governor to talk about his proposal…
Sen. McConchie met with a few of the Governor’s people a couple weeks ago, where the Senator mentioned to them that he has never met with the Governor and they told him they’d be happy to set something up, but Sen. McConchie has never heard from them since.
*** UPDATE 1 *** The governor’s office tells me that Sen. McConchie has accepted an invitation to the governor’s mansion tonight.
*** UPDATE 2 *** From Sen. McConchie…
The rest of the sentence should be “along with everyone else in the Senate.”
Last month, Pritzker unveiled a plan he says would generate $3.4 billion in new annual revenue […]
Pritzker said that without a graduated income tax to generate new revenue, the only available options to address the state’s $3.2 billion budget deficit, more than $8 billion in unpaid bills and $134 billion in unfunded pension liabilities would be a 15 percent across-the-board spending cut or a 1 percentage-point tax increase on everyone.
He’s got a projected $3.2 billion structural deficit and his plan would raise a projected $3.4 billion. That doesn’t leave a whole heck of a lot of room for anything else, or for the unexpected.
Thursday, Apr 11, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
It’s simple. Credit unions are member-owned, so any earnings are simply returned in the form of lower loan rates, higher interest on deposits and lower fees. Credit unions create a fair financial alternative for the taxpayers of Illinois. Credit unions are not-for-profit financial cooperatives that don’t focus on increasing revenue or paying dividends to outside stockholders. Illinois credit unions are focused on the member-owners we serve. Visit www.asmarterchoice.org to learn more about the benefits of credit union membership.
* First we were told the governor’s budget would short the pension funds by “about $800 million a year” for seven years. Then we found out it was closer to $900 million. But Amanda Kass has crunched the numbers and determined that next fiscal year’s shorting alone will be $1.1 billion…
The State of Illinois’ pension contributions would be about $1.1 billion less in state fiscal year 2020 than required under current law, according to my analysis of Governor J.B. Pritzker’s introduced budget, as shown in the chart below.
The table above compares what Illinois is required to pay to each of the five pension systems in FY2020 under current law versus the contributions that are in Governor Pritzker’s budget proposal for FY2020. To be extra clear, I’m not comparing the actuarial recommended contributions with current law (actuarial recommendation is based on 100% target in 20-30 years; Illinois law is 90% target by 2045); for a comparison like that see Figure 3 in this report).
How is that $1.1 billion decrease accomplished? The details in the budget proposal are a bit thin (see pages 35-36 of the budget proposal), but they involve a number of pension related changes. The two main items are extending the repayment timeline past 2045 to 2052, and making an already existing pension acceleration program permanent. (The acceleration program is for Tier-1 members, and is currently temporary. You can read details of the program here.)
And, remember, he wants to do this every year for seven years.
* Um, you’re attending a press conference and you won’t take questions? Try again…
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is in Springfield today for a press conference with crime survivors emphasizing the need for more trauma recovery centers. Her office says she’s not taking questions. pic.twitter.com/VfI2O09aoN
Crime survivors from across Illinois will join at the Capitol to call for a new safety agenda at the first ever Survivors Speak Illinois, an event hosted by Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice. They will co-host a press conference and vigil with Deputy House Majority Leader Jehan Gordon-Booth (D-Peoria), and be joined by Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx.
Thursday, Apr 11, 2019 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
The Senate Executive Committee heard testimony yesterday on Gov. Pritzker’s “fair tax” constitutional amendment. But witness slips alone indicate average Illinoisans aren’t buying what the governor’s selling.
Given polling on this issue in key House districts held by Democrats, that’s not surprising. Pritzker and his tax plan are disliked.
“We are all Illinoisans and we all have the best interests of our constituents at heart. Working together, regardless of party or geography, I see new opportunities for all of us,” Lightfoot said from the speaker’s podium in the House chamber. “I-80 is just a stretch of pavement. It is not a border. We are all one state, and Illinoisans, wherever they live, want the same things for themselves and their families.” […]
Lightfoot did not lay out any specific initiatives, and afterward she said she would hold her cards longer on how she might seek budget and pension relief from state lawmakers during a legislative session scheduled to end May 31 — just 11 days after she takes office. She did, however, note many Illinois communities face similar challenges when it comes to pension funding, public safety and the need to rebuild infrastructure.
The mayor-elect also signaled to lawmakers that she comes to the office with a different background, having grown up in a low-income family in the segregated small steel town of Massillon, Ohio. Lightfoot will become the first person elected mayor not born in Chicago since Anton Cermak took office in 1931.
“I also wanted them to understand that, given my background, that I am like a lot of people from small towns all over this state who are struggling, looking for help and opportunity,” Lightfoot told reporters afterward. “When we solve those problems in Chicago, that certainly can be a template that can be used in other areas of the state, but also vice versa.”
* The people who believed that Lori Lightfoot’s campaign against Toni Preckwinkle somehow meant she’d be picking fights with every powerful machine character could’ve been disappointed yesterday…
Lightfoot campaigned against the Chicago political machine, so sitting next to House Speaker Mike Madigan — who is perhaps more emblematic of machine-style politics than anyone in the state — raised questions about how the two power players will work together.
“Look, the speaker occupies an important space in state government. I look forward and I have no question that we’re going to have a good productive working relationship,” she said.
She needs things from Springfield and almost everything she needs will go through Madigan’s office.
She’ll need Springfield’s help to advance parts of her agenda – whether it be gun control legislation, a bill for an elected public school board, money to help pay for infrastructure upgrades, pension relief, extra revenue or approval for a casino in Chicago.
Lightfoot said she recognizes there can only be one mayor at a time, but she’s “not going to wait until May 20 (her inauguration date) to be active and engaged in the General Assembly.”
Still, she said she’s not putting her “cards on the table quite yet” when it comes to what she’s looking for from Springfield when it comes to revenue.
“But we’re looking at a range of options,” she said. “And obviously there’s limited powers regarding revenue that a mayor can exercise. A lot of the powers that we can tap into flow from Springfield. So when we think about what our menu of solutions are, obviously Springfield looms large and we’ll make sure that we’ll come up with solutions we can get through the General Assembly, with the help of the governor and the leaders.”
She spent about 20 minutes meeting with Madigan, but a planned photo opportunity with perhaps the most powerful, yet unpopular lawmaker in the building was scratched without explanation.
No explanation needed, but she certainly wasn’t running late. In fact, she was early to almost everything yesterday. Statehouse types aren’t accustomed to that sort of thing. Everything, and I mean everything, runs late. “The hour of 2 o’clock having arrived” announced at 4:30 is the norm.
After the speech, lawmakers lined up to meet the Chicago’s history-making mayor-elect. Political observers kept a close eye on one meeting in particular: State Rep. Robert Martwick, who had a public confrontation with Lightfoot during the campaign, a moment that Lightfoot credited as a turning point.
“I don’t know if there’s a hatchet to bury,” she said. “I think he understood who I am and that he ought to be respectful of me as a woman and a person, and I’m sure we won’t have a repeat of the incident that happened previously.”
“I look forward to working with her, and I mean the city is going to have some immense challenges over the course of the next four years, she’s got a big job and I told her anything I can do to help, I’ll be there for her,” Martwick said.
“I want to have true parent representation on such a board. I don’t favor the Martwick bill. I think it’s highly problematic. And it also doesn’t address all of the details that are going to be necessary to flesh out, such as how are we going to get people on that board? What [is] going to be the criteria?” Lightfoot said. “I don’t want to turn an elected school board into another costly election, which is going to drown out the opportunity for parents to be participate in the process. That’s critically important to me. We’ve got to work out the details and the timing matters, but the details matter and I think getting that right is really important.”
Sounds like maybe a small-dollar, publicly financed election perhaps?
Betsy Dirksen Londrigan to Announce 2020 Run for Congress
Dirksen Londrigan Will Announce the Launch of Her Campaign to Represent Illinois’ 13th Congressional District and Protect Health Care from Congressional Republican Attacks
SPRINGFIELD, IL - This morning in Springfield, Betsy Dirksen Londrigan will announce the launch of her campaign to represent Illinois’ 13th Congressional District. The launch will take place at the Illinois AFL-CIO with members of the local community in attendance.
Dirksen Londrigan will discuss the need for new leadership in Congress and to protect the health care of Illinois families against ongoing attacks by Congressman Rodney Davis and Washington Republicans.
Thursday, April 11, 2019
11:00 AM - Dirksen Londrigan Campaign Announcement
Illinois AFL-CIO
534 S 2nd St, Springfield, IL 62701
“Health care is still the issue,” said Londrigan, 48. “As I traveled the district during the last 18 months, it’s what I heard over and over and over again. People want the protections that the Affordable Care Act provides, and they want to make sure that their kids get a good education. They want good jobs. But overarchingly, health care is the issue. And we still have an administration and a congressman that are trying to get rid of the ACA.”
Davis has favored repealing and replacing the health care act known as Obamacare but also said he had worked to make sure there were protections such as continued health coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.
Londrigan said the law “is not perfect” but wondered when opponents would “take the hint” that “people want their health care.” She also isn’t ready for a single-payer health care system. […]
“I was a first-time candidate who came real close to unseating a six-year incumbent, and we really built a movement,” Londrigan said. “I think that we tilled the soil profoundly in the 13th District and people … have gotten to know me. Clearly there are more people who need to get to know me and our campaign, and why I’m in this and why I’m going to fight for them.”
…Adding… ILGOP…
“In a lame attempt to distance herself from her past statements and the Democratic Party’s march towards Socialism, Betsy Londrigan says she’s “absolutely not” a Socialist, but voters in the 13th District won’t be fooled. Now that Londrigan is officially a Democratic candidate for Congress again, she must let voters know whether or not she will take part in the Democratic Party’s far-left, Socialist policy agenda - impeaching President Trump, the Green New Deal, Medicare for All, and a radical expansion of abortion.” - Illinois Republican Party Spokesman Aaron DeGroot
…Adding… NRCC…
“Illinoisans rejected socialist loser Betsy Dirksen Londrigan once and they’ll do it again in 2020. Her support of radical socialist policies like single-payer, late-term abortion and a Green New Deal are out of step with Midwest values and will once again render her unelectable.” -NRCC Spokeswoman Carly Atchison
With Tax Day just a few days away, Think Big Illinois released new ads in several districts showing the unfair burden middle-class families are currently facing, and how a fair tax would help lift that burden. These ads are part of Think Big Illinois’ latest efforts to give voters the opportunity to have their voices heard on a critical issue that impacts all Illinoisans.
The ads also highlight the much-needed revenue a fair tax will bring into the state, which will go toward addressing the $3.2 billion budget deficit and funding critical programs, including our schools. The fair tax will generate this funding while ensuring 97% of Illinoisans see no income tax increase, and forcing the wealthiest Illinoisans to finally pay their share.
The ads call on Representatives Monica Bristow, Jonathan Carroll, and Mary Edly-Allen to support a fair tax.
* The ads have a different tone than the previous spots, which called on viewers to “Tell [House Democratic member] to vote ‘Yes’ and put the middle class first.” It seemed almost Rauneresque. This one says “Call [House Democratic member]. Tell her to keep standing up for the middle class.” Much better…
* Script…
It’s tax time, and if you’re a middle-class family in Illinois…
That means once again, you’re getting ripped off.
Because in Illinois, middle-class families are forced to shoulder a disproportionate share of the tax burden.
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Under a fair tax, millionaires would be forced to pay their fair share.
To help address the budget crisis and fund our schools.
Call Monica Bristow.
Tell her to keep standing up for the middle class.
* The “Eastern Bloc” supposedly wants to kick Chicago out of Illinois, but four of its members posed with the incoming mayor yesterday…
Conservative members from east central and south eastern Illinois reach out to Chicago mayor-elect to start the discussion how to make Illinois the thriving economy it should be. pic.twitter.com/z98PlXKocC
* Mayor-elect downplays Chicago secession resolution: To those who have concerns about Chicago dictating policy to rural areas of the state, Lightfoot said she’s willing to talk. “I’m going to look for opportunities to reach out to people out below I-80 to make sure that we build good relationships and I think we started that today,” Lightfoot said. Halbrook said he’s willing to talk, but Chicago is going to have to come around. “They refuse to talk about reforms to grow the economy,” Halbrook said. “We have to grow the economy by bringing employers into our rural districts.”
* Effingham County Board Legislative Committee Votes to Put Separate State Question on 2020 Ballot: The Effingham County Board’s legislative committee has voted to place the separation of the bulk of Illinois from Chicagoland on the March 2020 election ballot as a constitutional question. Here’s the question as proposed by County Board member Heather Mumma: “Shall Effingham County Correspond With the Other Counties Of The State Of Illinois, Outside Of Cook County, Outside The City Of Chicago, And Outside Other Municipalities Of Cook County, And Exclude Any Collar Counties Outside Of Cook County That Wish To Be Excluded, About The Possibility Of Separating From Cook County, The City Of Chicago, And Other Municipalities Of Cook County To Form A New State, And To Seek Admission To The Union As Such, Subject To The Approval Of The People Of The United States?” The matter will be on the agenda at Monday’s full Effingham County Board meeting. The Board’s Legislative Committee, though, meets as a Committee of the Whole, so Monday’s endorsement seems likely. The decision would make Effingham County the first county in the state to take such action. Committee members also voted to consider Monday a resolution declaring the Firearm Owners Identification Card, or FOID card, is unconstitutional and should be eliminated. The resolution also demands the rejection of any legislation that would restrict the right to keep and bear arms.
A federal grand jury sent a subpoena for government records to the Illinois Senate for documents relating to Democratic Sen. Tom Cullerton, a three-term lawmaker who last year spearheaded the legislative response to fatal Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks at the state veterans’ home in downstate Quincy.
The Feb. 5, 2019, subpoena sought Cullerton’s personnel file as well as records regarding his legislative attendance; reimbursements for travel, lodging, meals, cell phone and vehicle allowances; and “all emails to and from” the senator between Feb. 1, 2013, and March 31, 2016. […]
During the three-year period in which investigators are seeking records, Cullerton — now chairman of the Senate Labor Committee — disclosed in his state economic interest statements that he had received income as an “organizer” for Teamsters Joint Council 25. […]
Annual spending reports the union filed with the U.S. Department of Labor for calendar years 2013, 2014 and 2015 showed Teamsters Joint Council 25 paid Cullerton $182,800 for that role, nearly doubling the senator’s cumulative pay from the state during that period, records show. […]
Government filings involving Coli and the February subpoena seeking state records related to Cullerton share an identical grand jury case number and the same federal prosecutor. That suggests the probe involving both cases is the same, according to a former federal law enforcement source interviewed by WBEZ.
