A bad bill in Springfield would raise our electricity bills to protect Exelon’s bottom line. The Legislature should either rewrite it significantly or flick the off switch altogether.
There is a feeling here of a company trying to socialize the risks while keeping the profits private.
Good old Exelon. The company has come up with legislation to subsidize its nuclear reactors, get electric users throughout the state to pay for it and claim it’s in the interest of clean energy.
State lawmakers need to see this bill for the dirty trick it is and kill it.
Just say no to the Exelon bailout. Vote no on SB1585/HB3293.
BEST Coalition is a 501C4 nonprofit group of dozens of business, consumer and government groups, as well as large and small businesses. Visit www.noexelonbailout.com.
A proposal in the Illinois Senate would make sure students are completely recovered from concussions before returning to athletics or the classroom.
Each year, there are 200,000 concussion-related emergency room visits for children and teenagers in the U.S. For one Chicago lawmaker, that’s not just a statistic.
Both of Democratic Sen. Kwame Raoul’s kids have sustained concussions. Raoul says his teenage daughter, Mizan, is still recovering from one she received one when she was playing basketball in January. At first, nobody realized it was a concussion. […]
A proposal Raoul is sponsoring would expand high school concussion policies to elementary and middle schools. It also requires guidelines for when students can return to school and athletics after sustaining a concussion.
Raoul said the legislation is not a mandate with any sort of penalties. Each district would form a concussion plan and team based on resources available.
Schools currently have to follow Illinois High School Association regulations when deciding if a player can return. However, those rules only apply to high schools, while Raoul’s bill would extend to both middle and grade schools.
IHSA associate director Kurt Gibson, who has previously said he was skeptical of the bill, said he is now a supporter since it requires each district to come up with a concussion policy based on their resources.
State Representative Natalie Manley (D-Joliet) is sponsoring legislation that would prohibit Illinois from double taxing income that is earned in another state when the taxpayer’s home office is based in Illinois.
“Right now Illinois residents are taxed on most income received in other states, rather than just income earned in Illinois,” said Manley. “This wouldn’t be an issue if the other states didn’t also tax those wages, but they do. Our working families are being hit hard enough with the many different taxes that are imposed upon them, and the last thing we should be doing is taxing them twice on the same income.”
Manley introduced House Bill 675, to prevent the double taxation of certain income for Illinois residents. Under current law, if an Illinois resident earns income from another state then that person is required to pay taxes in both states under certain circumstances. The legislation would instead only tax the wages earned in Illinois based on the number of work days the employee is performing services in Illinois. Out-of-state earnings would be excluded from Illinois income taxes.
“We are the only state that implements this double taxation, and it hurts our taxpayers,” Manley said.
I say it looks like a press release because the bill didn’t make it out of the House by last Friday’s deadline and is now in Rules.
Illinois is joining several other states in passing legislation that would dramatically increase the potential liability for marketers in the event of a data breach. The Illinois Senate voted 35-13 to approve a bill (SB1833) drafted by the Illinois Attorney General that would add “consumer marketing information” to the definition of personal information under the state’s data breach law. It would require notification if there is a breach of “information related to a consumer’s online browsing history, online search history, or purchasing history.” Illinois Bill SB1833 now moves to the Illinois House of Representatives, where it will likely have substantial support.
At first blush this certainly sounds appealing considering all the data breaches that have occurred in recent times; however, for those that market products on the internet, the inconsistent laws across the country are truly a field of potential liability landmines. […]
This unprecedented expansion of the scope of the current data breach law could cost Illinois companies millions of dollars each year to protect non-sensitive information that poses no material risk of identity theft or financial harm to residents. In addition, consumers could eventually succumb to “notice fatigue” if they receive notices about breaches that involve no serious risk of harm to them.
When Chicago’s most powerful alderman began pushing for legislation that could mean big money for a major industry, it seemed only a matter of time before Edward Burke got a generous campaign contribution from someone who stood to benefit.
The City Council proposal that would promote the ethanol business has not yet been approved.
But the check for Burke, the Council’s $10 million man, is not stuck in the mail.
The Archer Daniels Midland Co. — the local agribusiness giant that’s among the world’s biggest ethanol producers — recently gave $20,000 to a political committee led by Burke.
Aaron Schock once broadcast his worldly travels on Instagram for all to see.
But two weeks after a campaign donor filed a federal lawsuit against the former congressman, an attorney for the donor said Wednesday he can’t track the Peoria Republican down.
Attorney Daniel Kurowski told U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood he hasn’t managed to serve Schock with the lawsuit brought April 15 by his client, Howard Foster of Chicago, who gave $500 to Schock’s campaign in 2012. […]
Kurowski said his firm tried to serve Schock at a Peoria address that Schock previously listed on forms with the Federal Election Commission. But Kurowski said the property is now vacant. He also said attorneys who appear to have represented Schock in the past have not responded to his firm’s inquiries.
* The Question: Where in the world is Aaron Schock?
Snark is suggested, unless you actually know where he is.
The game between the White Sox and Orioles will be observed, just not by paying fans.
After the Orioles announced that Wednesday’s game would be closed to the public due to security concerns stemming from this week’s violence in Baltimore, the Orioles prepared for a full press box, with 92 seats for the writing press assigned to media members and outlets.
Scouts and an undisclosed number of employees also are allowed to attend, according to an Orioles spokesman.
Grounds crew members worked on the field as usual about four hours before the game, but the videoboard and scoreboard showed blank black screens. The dry erase board in the press box sporting the day’s lineups already had an attendance of zero written in marker.
It is believed to be the first major-league game ever to be closed to the public, according to a Baseball Hall of Fame representative and an MLB historian. But the game will be televised by the teams’ local TV outlets.
The team didn’t want to divert police and military resources away from potential trouble spots.
t will look weird, to be sure, with nothing but more than 45,000 seats surrounding a major-league field, two teams, four umpires, a couple of coaching staffs and scouts. Media will be present in the press box, most of them silent — except for broadcasters such as Ken Harrelson and Steve Stone, the Sox’ TV broadcast team.
As quiet as it will be, it’s not out of the question that players will hear Harrelson making a call, especially if it’s that patented “You can put it on the board, yes!” he’s known for.
“We’re right behind home plate, so I imagine some of them will hear some things,’’ Harrelson said. “With that little circle we’re backed in now, it’s like a megaphone going out.”
Harrelson has never called a game in an empty stadium. Nobody ever has, for that matter, not in major-league baseball. After having the games on Monday and Tuesday postponed because of rioting in Baltimore, MLB and the Orioles, citing safety reasons, decided to play the last game of the series at 1:05 p.m., in daylight hours instead of at night. The game will be televised in the Chicago area on Channel 50.
I drove through the city to the park and it was eerie. People were walking around the downtown streets, but there was very little traffic. It seemed like a Sunday morning, until I pulled into the warehouse lot and there were three Humvees filled with soldiers driving out of the lot.
Baltimore continues to recover from Monday night’s riots, and on Wednesday, some normalcy may be restored.
City school students will return to class, the Orioles will play, and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is holding a free concert.
Police arrested 10 people a variety of charges, including looting and disorderly conduct, including seven for breaking the newly instituted citywide curfew after it began at 10 p.m. Tuesday, Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts said. A group faced off with police in West Baltimore. […]
The post-curfew arrests were in addition to the 235 during the riots Tuesday that prompted Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake to announce the weeklong curfew and Gov. Larry Hogan to declare a state of emergency and request the U.S. National Guard to assist in policing the city.
McCarter said his focus is on eliminating waste and fraud, and believes the cost savings from those cuts will offset the pain from the budget cuts. […]
McCarter said the state can’t borrow more money and shouldn’t raise taxes. […]
As far as the students’ concerns about the impact of a 30-percent funding cut to SIUE, he said he believes more students attending will make the difference. […]
To get out of the budget crunch, McCarter said, Illinois’ culture is going to have to change. He said he believes the state should not provide welfare programs — that it is the job of churches and private organizations to care for the needy.
In Illinois, McCarter said, they have created an “entitlement culture” that has “enslaved millions.” Instead, he said, he’d like to see tax incentives for private organizations to take up the role of government in caring for the needy.
In Indiana, he said, they dealt with budget problems by shutting down all rest areas for a year and stopping all services at driver’s license facilities that could be provided via the Internet.
Undefined waste, no tax hikes, a hoped-for student population explosion, abdicating service to the most needy, and closing down rest areas.
A behind-the-scenes budget battle is brewing over a proposal that would limit the amount of money siphoned from Illinois taxpayers to fill local government coffers. The Local Government Distributive Fund, or LGDF, takes a portion of Illinoisans’ state income taxes and then sends it to counties and municipalities.
As a result of this system, there are some clear winners and losers. That’s because the LGDF doles out money to counties and local governments based on population. In fiscal year 2014, the state took $1.25 billion in income-tax revenues – which was the equivalent of 6 percent of total income-tax revenues – from taxpayers to send to 102 counties and 1,298 municipalities in Illinois.
The state collected almost $103 million in personal income taxes from DuPage County taxpayers for the LGDF fund. But municipal-level governments across the county plus the county government received a combined total of just under $81 million in LGDF payments, according to the Illinois Department of Revenue.
That means DuPage County gets back just 79 cents for every dollar it pays into the LGDF. While DuPage County receives a smaller proportion of LGDF funding than its taxpayers contributed, other counties across the state receive more than their taxpayers contributed.
The Institute’s solution? No, it’s not about basing revenue sharing on per capita revenue.
A recent proposal by Gov. Bruce Rauner would be an important first step in eventually doing away with this scheme and allowing Illinoisans to keep more of their hard-earned income.
The state income-tax rate is 3.75 percent (down from 5 percent in 2014) while the amount distributed via the LGDF is the equivalent of 8 percent of total income-tax revenues (up from 6 percent in 2014). Instead of putting 8 percent of state income-tax revenue into the LGDF, the governor’s proposed budget would distribute 4 percent to counties and municipalities.
No one wants to see their budget cut, but the state’s fiscal crisis is not going to leave any area of government immune from belt-tightening. This proposal represents an average amount equal to a 3 percent reduction in counties’ total general-fund budgets, but it also sets the stage for devolving power from Springfield back to units of local government.
In tandem with LGDF reform, local governments should insist upon reducing the burden of unfunded state mandates, more control over property-tax rates and other local tax rates, and generally returning more control to local governments – where they rightfully belong.
So, lemme get this straight. Slash their revenue sharing, freeze their local property taxes (as Rauner wants, but is not mentioned above), trim their unfunded mandates and that somehow means power will magically “devolve” from Springfield back to local government and they’ll have more control over their local property tax rates - which were frozen by the state?
Look, times is tough all over. I get that. Local governments may very well have to take a hit. But nobody will ever convince them that taking away their state revenue sharing dough is a good thing, long term or short term - even with the reverse class warfare rhetoric.
Five new acts have joined the Illinois State Fair Grandstand lineup, including The Fray, Meatloaf and Styx.
The Fray, a rock/pop group from Denver, will make a stop in Springfield on Thursday, Aug. 20, with opening act Andy Grammer. […]
The rock acts Meat Loaf, Styx and Tesla also are joining the lineup for the 2015 Illinois State Fair. Meat Loaf is best known for hit songs “Paradise by the Dashboard Lights,” “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” and “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That).” He will headline the concert Wednesday, Aug. 19. […]
Other Grandstand acts announced so far include: Sammy Hagar and The Circle with Collective Soul on Aug. 14; Justin Moore with Josh Thompson and Jon Pardi on Aug. 16; Rascal Flatts with Scotty McCreery and Raelynn on Aug. 18; Hank Williams Jr. with .38 Special on Aug. 21; Austin Mahone with Kalin & Myles and Laura Marano on Aug. 22; and Brantley Gilbert with Colt Ford and Michael Ray on Aug. 23.
* The Fiscal Year 2015 budget fix is still reverberating…
Katharine Gricevich told the Senate higher education committee Tuesday the $8.4 million cut made by Gov. Bruce Rauner as part of a budget fix means about 3,000 eligible students won’t receive grants this fiscal year through the state’s Monetary Award Program. She is the commission’s director of government relations. […]
About 128,000 students are expected to receive MAP grants this year.
The state has slashed more than $50 million of their Medicaid funding for the rest of this fiscal year. The cuts stem from legislation that was passed to try to fill this year’s budget hole, but health care providers say federal guidelines prohibited some of the cuts to nursing homes.
“We have staffing standards from the state of Illinois, we have mandated services from the federal government that we have to provide,” said Steve Wannemacher of the Health Care Council of Illinois.
Nursing home officials said they’re scrambling to figure out how to make their funds stretch through June. They’re look to make cuts in areas like administration, transportation and dining.
Pat Comstock, executive director of the Health Care Council of Illinois, said nursing homes expected to see a $27 million reduction as a result of what state lawmakers approved.
“Our members were prepared for that,” she said.
But when the Rauner administration announced the additional cuts late last week, the total hit to nursing homes had risen to $55 million.
The administration said that some areas of the budget could not be reduced because of federal restrictions or court mandates. As a result, other areas had to take a deeper reduction, and one of those was Medicaid reimbursements for nursing homes. Nursing homes face a 12.6 percent reduction in rates.
“Medicaid is the core of our business,” Wilson said.
None of this is welcomed news. None of this can be celebrated.
But, man, there’s a $6 billion Fiscal Year 2016 budget hole staring this state in the face. So, if you think the screaming is loud now, just wait a few weeks.
David Gill, who has run for Congress four times, says he’ll probably make it a fifth in 2016.
This time, he said, he intends to run as an independent, not a Democrat.
Gill filed a one-page statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission on April 7.
Ironically, he probably would have been elected to Congress in 2012 if not for the candidacy of independent John Hartman. Gill lost to Republican Rodney Davis by 1,002 votes, or less than half a percentage point, in November 2012. Hartman got 21,319 votes in the race, or about 7 percent of the votes cast.
* The News-Gazette editorial board looks at the impact Gill’s candidacy could have on incumbent GOP Congressman Rodney Davis…
If he stays true to his plans, it sets the stage for Gill and the eventual Democratic nominee to split the anti-Davis vote, ensuring the Republican’s re-election
Why is that a likely scenario? That’s what happened when in 2012 when Gill lost his close race to Davis. A third candidate, independent John Hartman, a liberal like Gill, collected roughly 21,000 votes in a contest Gill lost to Davis by 1,002 votes. Gill and Davis disagree about whose campaign Hartman hurt more, but Hartman’s presence on the ballot clearly had a decisive impact.
Gill, an honorable and sincere person, remains haunted by the thought of what might have been in 2012. He pines to serve in the national legislature and help promote the policies he believes to be in this country’s best interests.
But an independent candidate’s path to electoral success in a two-party system is a tough one. More likely, he will play a spoiler. That’s why Davis and local Republicans can only be pleased with Gill’s plan for 2016.
There are a ton of college students in that district and they turn out in presidential years. The News-Gazette is probably right.
* We’re coming a bit late to this story. Sorry about that…
An independent review of the Illinois state treasurer’s office released Monday found problems with internship hiring that favored those with political connections and other programs in need of overhaul.
Democrat Mike Frerichs, having reached the symbolic benchmark 100 days in office, released the results of the audit he promised after becoming the state’s chief investment officer in January. He said he will closely review the report’s recommendations and emphasized initiatives on which he has embarked. […]
The report highlighted a paid internship program that gave positions to young people with connections to influential politicians, campaign donors and lobbyists. The “clout-heavy” program had no formal procedures for how the interns were recruited or managed, the audit said. […]
The report also found that a scholarship framework funded by fees from the office’s college savings program lacks basic management rules. Frerichs’ office said 300 scholarships averaging $1,000 were awarded after 2006 without proper record-keeping, management and distribution.
Between May and September 2012, Rutherford’s office spent $158,504 to pay 51 interns. From May to September 2013, the office spent $170,936 to pay 58 interns.
Rutherford announced his candidacy for governor in June 2013. A 2014 report in the Chicago Sun-Times that looked at the identities of the interns found that many were referred by elected officials, lobbyists, donors and political workers.
Rutherford denied that clout had anything to do with who received summer jobs. Unfortunately, there was little documentation to conclude that it didn’t, either.
The same can be said for the home-based “community affairs” treasurer employees who, according to Frerichs, were not properly supervised, who cost the state more in mileage reimbursements than office-based workers would have, and who were not effectively sited around the state. Without proper recordkeeping, it’s impossible to gauge their value or to know what they were doing on state time.
But the review also noted that Frerichs may want to consider increasing the number of employees in cash management (now one) and investment (four) “as Illinois appears to have fewer employees dedicated to these functions than other states.”
It also suggested that the office’s information technology is outdated.
“The systems in place today were created 15-20 years ago through internal staff design and development. These systems were built based on the business processes that existed at the time, were designed and developed individually, and enhanced over time as resources were available,” Plante Moran said. “This has created systems that operate in silos, do not share data, and are not allowing the business to become more efficient through the use of technology.”
Frerichs says an audit – conducted by a firm which volunteered its services – showed not enough accountability in the unclaimed property program and not enough oversight of treasurer’s employees working from their homes. And then there’s another problem.
“The office was named” in the sexual harassment suit against Frerichs’ predecessor, Dan Rutherford. Frerichs continued, “I’ve inherited this. We’re working with the attorney general’s office, trying to reach a resolution soon – we’re trying to – well, that’s probably all my attorney wants me to say about pending lawsuits, litigation.”
* Mark Brown writes about the newly revamped proposal to put a legislative redistricting reform proposal before the voters next year…
(Y)ou can expect Illinois Democrats, who currently control both chambers of the Legislature, to dig in against the commission proposal.
There will be those who don’t want to do anything right now that might help new Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner tip the balance of power away from the Democrats, just as there will be those who think this is a great way to mess with House Speaker Madigan.
A redistricting commission wouldn’t even be appointed until 2021, with its first map to take effect the following year.
It would be extremely shortsighted to judge long-term structural changes on the basis of getting back at individual personalities, who may or may not still be in power then.
I would argue that the Democrats need to start thinking ahead. If Gov. Rauner is reelected, he will almost certainly refuse to sign any Democratic-drawn map. That’ll push the issue to a drawing, where each party will have a 50-50 chance of creating the new district boundaries.
Petition-driven efforts to ask voters to change the state’s governing document are extremely limited by the Illinois Constitution.
In striking down the redistricting proposal last year, [Judge Mary Mikva] ruled that provisions that would prevent any of the commissioners from holding various appointed or elected offices for 10 years was an unconstitutional limitation on qualifications to serve in the legislature. That provision was removed in the renewed effort.
To get on the ballot, the proposal would require the valid signatures of 290,216 Illinois voters. A State Board of Elections review of signatures in the previous effort found it likely that the proposal lacked the number needed. This time around, supporters have hired a paid petition-gathering group that has shown success in getting signatures.
“We know we’re going to have challenges in the court system on the constitutionality of the amendment. We know we’re going to have challenges to the petition signatures. We’re very confident we’ll get through that,” FitzSimons said. “Can things go wrong? Things can always go wrong. But again, building on the earlier campaigns, we definitely feel we have an advantage.”
Former Gov. Dan Walker, who served in the state’s top job for a single term from 1973 to 1977, died early Wednesday at a veterans hospital in Chula Vista, Calif., according to his son, Will. He was 92.
Will Walker, of Crystal Lake, said old age caught up to his father.
“Ultimately, it was heart failure that got him,” the younger Walker, of Crystal Lake, told The State Journal-Register.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Gov. Rauner…
“Diana and I are saddened to learn of the passing of former Governor Dan Walker. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends during this difficult time.”
*** UPDATE 3 *** Pat Quinn…
Gov. Pat Quinn has issued the below statement on the passing of Gov. Dan Walker:
“As a member of the United States Navy, Gov. Dan Walker served our country with courage and distinction in World War II and the Korean War.
“He fervently believed in the power of democracy and the importance of including everyone in our democracy. He loved his family and leaves behind many friends. His patriotism, service and compassion will never be forgotten.
Wednesday, Apr 29, 2015 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
With a philosophy of “People Helping People”, credit unions as not-for-profit financial cooperatives, have established themselves as trusted sources to teach members and the community about maintaining healthy financial habits.
April marks a time when Illinois credit unions ramp up their efforts — particularly with youth — about this significant need. One key example is Great Lakes Credit Union.
Via hosting creative real-world simulation financial education programs, Great Lakes in the past year reached more than 3,700 students, with the financial tools they need to succeed. And they are not alone. As a premier host of Financial Reality Fairs for more than 10 years, Illinois credit unions most recently conducted more than 350 Financial Reality Fairs involving 18,000 students. In the true sense of community, these Fairs are held at schools, churches and libraries.
Great Lakes Credit Union also partners with other local organizations to educate youth on the importance of establishing a banking relationship as part of the job search process. To further expand its impact, the credit union reaches youth where they are with self-guided online modules that help create bright financial futures.
Financial education – a vital life skill for members – and a fundamental tenet of the credit union mission.
* The Illinois AFL-CIO claims that Elk Grove Village passed a “modified version of the anti-worker resolution despite a standing room only crowd protesting the move.”
Consideration to adopt Resolution No. 20-15 (attached) supporting portions of Governor Rauner’s “Turnaround Agenda” for government empowerment and reform.
(By approving this Resolution, Elk Grove Village is supporting certain reforms in State government that will encourage local control, reduce costs on local governments, empower local voters, and increase competitiveness in our community.)
I couldn’t find the resolution online.
*** UPDATE *** From IUOE Local 150…
Attached is the resolution approved last night in Elk Grove Village. The mayor repeatedly stated at the meeting that this was not the Governor’s resolution and that it had been substantially altered, though the portions considered to be veiled attacks on unions still appear in this version.
The resolution’s text…
WHEREAS, municipal government is the closest unit of Illinois government to their
residents and thereby the most responsive; and
WHEREAS, municipalities are front-line providers of critical government services to
residents and these services include police and fire protection, snow removal, refuse collection,
infrastructure, water, sewer and utility services among countless others; and
WHEREAS, unfunded mandates including the imposition of excessive pension benefits,
prevailing wage requirements, workers’ compensation laws, injury apportionment and
impairment laws, and certain labor laws and other such unfunded mandates have dramatically
and materially increased the costs to local taxpayers by billions of dollars; and
WHEREAS, addressing these matters will, through reducing the cost of providing local
necessary and essential government services, reduce the burden on local taxpayers, including
reducing the burden of property taxes and fees; and
WHEREAS, granting local elected officials and voters at the local level the choice to
create local empowerment zones may assist in making Illinois more attractive for future business
investment and enhanced job growth; and
WHEREAS, while local empowerment zones may not be the appropriate decision for
every community, the Village of Elk Grove is supportive of allowing voters and local officials,
who are in the best position to understand their local issues, to determine the future direction of
their community.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Village of Elk Grove Village
strongly endorses major reforms in State government achieved through aspects of Governor
Rauner’s Turnaround Agenda that will encourage local control, reduce costs on local
governments, and increase competitiveness in our and surrounding communities.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* From a union official…
Rauner resolution tabled in Mahomet — at the start of the meeting. They took public comment afterward anyway, because so many people had showed up. All speakers were opposed. I am told, “One guy in a suit signed in to speak, listing a Springfield address. After it was tabled he left without speaking. We think he was from the governor’s office.”
Kane County Board Chairman Chris Lauzen insisted Tuesday — again and again — that the county board committee of the whole was not discussing a resolution supporting Gov. Bruce Rauner’s turnaround agenda.
Instead, he said, he wants the board to craft its own resolution that is positive in tone, calling for changes in how the state addresses its financial problems. He said it should be built by consensus and not be divisive.
“I don’t think that it is any secret that what Gov. Rauner has proposed is controversial, but what we are doing today is very different than that,” Lauzen said.
But many of the people in the audience, which spilled out of the room and its lobby, then down the stairs, still protested. Some said parts of the proposal were code for what Rauner has proposed, such as allowing counties and towns to establish empowerment zones with right-to-work regulations and to opt out of having to pay prevailing wage rates for public projects. Both are seen as anti-labor union measures. Leadership from several unions, including operating engineers, the Fox Valley Labor Council, an AFSCME retirees’ local chapter and two local teacher unions, spoke to the board.
Union officials lodged their opposition Tuesday to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s proposed right-to-work zones as part of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s effort to send a message to state lawmakers that City Hall opposes the idea.
The testimony came at a City Council hearing on a symbolic resolution sponsored by Emanuel to oppose the zones. It’s the latest bit of political posturing between Emanuel and Rauner on the topic. […]
After the hearing, Ald. Patrick O’Connor, Emanuel’s floor leader, said the council hopes to persuade Rauner to “rethink this.”
“Shouldn’t we all just be about creating more jobs, more good-paying jobs, more jobs that allow people to step up into the middle class, as opposed to basically saying, ‘I can offer you a whole bunch of, like, half jobs, but I can’t offer you a good job?’” said O’Connor, 40th.
The Cook County Board will take up a nearly identical resolution today.
* And from the Illinois Policy Institute’s news service…
The Governor got an earful during his presentation in front of an Illinois Department of Transportation listening tour stop in Springfield. Governor Bruce Rauner was addressing the IDOT gathering about his “Turnaround Illinois Agenda” when Sean Stott, the Director of Government Affairs for Laborer’s International Union, got up to say a few words. Afterwards Stott said the Governor’s statements on right-to-work zones are factually inaccurate.
“The federal government has said and the courts have ruled repeatedly for decades that local governments cannot establish local right-to-work zones as he would promote.”
But Governor Rauner says the federal law is clear.
“We’re highly confident that federal labor law allows local governments to decide for themselves labor issues if the state authorizes them to do it.”
Rauner says he’s pushing for a statewide law that would allow local governments the option of becoming a right-to-work zone and he expects any measure on right-to-work issues will be litigated. The Governor also says that he’s working with legislative leaders to hash out some of the proposals and hopes to have the package of bills introduced in the next few weeks.
Meanwhile nearly 30 local governments have approved non-binding resolutions supporting the Governor’s “Turnaround Illinois Agenda”. That’s according to the the Governor’s office. The resolution, shopped out by the Illinois Municipal League and other government association groups, includes employee empowerment zones which are also referred to as right-to-work zones. The resolutions also include proposed reforms to workers’ compensation, insurance costs, business regulations and issues concerning project labor agreements and prevailing wage. Unions oppose the resolutions saying implementation of the measures would mean disintegration of the middle class. But Governor Rauner says the reforms are necessary to make the state’s business climate more friendly.
At Forbes, Richard Epstein, a professor at both the University of Chicago Law School and New York University School of Law, said [Attorney General Lisa Madigan] has fundamentally mischaracterized federal law.
Epstein explained that the U.S. Supreme Court generally presumes that federal law does not preempt state law unless one of three conditions exists: there is an explicit conflict between federal and state law; the state law would frustrate a federal program; or the federal government has completely occupied the field in question.
Epstein explained that “[n]one of these is remotely plausible” in the case of local Right-to-Work laws because “the federal government has explicitly recognized the state’s authority on this key point” by explicitly allowing states to enact Right-to-Work laws. So there is no conflict between federal and state law; there is no federal program that would be frustrated by local Right to Work; and the federal government has explicitly declined to occupy the entire field.
Whether a state adopts a statewide law or just allows local governments to adopt their own Right-to-Work laws is irrelevant. “In general,” Epstein wrote, “the federal government has no power to tell states how it is that they should divide up their powers of government.”
It also shouldn’t matter that Illinois has no state law specifically authorizing local governments to enact Right-to-Work laws (although Rauner wants such a law). The Illinois Constitution allows home-rule units to exercise any governmental power the state government has not explicitly reserved to itself. Therefore, because state law does not explicitly forbid home-rule units from adopting Right-to-Work laws, they may do so.
Sen. Mark Kirk (Ill.) was a lonely Republican voice outside the Supreme Court on Tuesday, looking over the crowd waving rainbow flags and throwing his support behind marriage equality.
Other Republican lawmakers, such as Reps. Bill Flores (Texas) and Steve King (Iowa), also showed up as the Supreme Court justices inside heard arguments in Obergefell v. Hodges, the case expected to settle whether same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry. However, they spoke against legalizing same-sex marriage. […]
“After my stroke I learned a lot about love and death,” [Kirk] told The Huffington Post after his speech. “I realized that life gets down to who loves you, who you love, and the government has nothing to do with that decision.”
“For me, the real legacy of our party is freedom on top of freedom,” he added. “To remember the Abraham Lincoln legacy that the only way to solve a freedom problem is to provide more freedom to people. That your basic right of association as an American is a right to associate with whomever you want, and the government should not be able to block that.”
1) I’m happy to see the governor has started to discover one of the greatest “real world” benefits of trade unions: They train a highly skilled workforce who make living wages and keep this state in the game. Anyone who has ever driven down I-55 has seen those big union training centers. Our regional economy (including Northwest Indiana’s) absolutely depends on that training.
2) Now, if the governor would only pause for just a moment to consider that maybe we need more of this, not less. “Right to work” would mean less. And then who’ll do all that training, and will it be any good?
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A bad bill in Springfield would raise our electricity bills to protect Exelon’s bottom line. The Legislature should either rewrite it significantly or flick the off switch altogether.
There is a feeling here of a company trying to socialize the risks while keeping the profits private.
Good old Exelon. The company has come up with legislation to subsidize its nuclear reactors, get electric users throughout the state to pay for it and claim it’s in the interest of clean energy.
State lawmakers need to see this bill for the dirty trick it is and kill it.
Just say no to the Exelon bailout. Vote no on SB1585/HB3293.
BEST Coalition is a 501C4 nonprofit group of dozens of business, consumer and government groups, as well as large and small businesses. Visit www.noexelonbailout.com.
In Bruce Rauner’s Illinois, the common villain behind crushing pension debt, municipalities sliding toward bankruptcy and businesses bypassing the state is organized labor.
“Government union bosses” are also the reason that Chicago Public Schools are likely to go bankrupt, the Republican governor said recently. And residents of the city, which Rauner says faces greater financial peril than Illinois, can blame them if property taxes skyrocket, he says.
In a little more than 100 days as chief executive of the nation’s lowest-rated state, Rauner has begun an election-worthy campaign tying much of Illinois’s financial misery to the actions of organized labor. If union power isn’t rolled back in a state where one in seven workers is a member, Illinois is doomed, he says.
“We’re slowly, slowly starting to become southeast Michigan,” Rauner, 59, a former private-equity executive, said April 15 in a not-so-veiled reference to Detroit’s record $18 billion bankruptcy. […]
“Our government unions are very, very powerful,” Rauner said in a speech Monday to the Great Lakes Economic Forum in Chicago. “We’re 93 percent unionized — the most unionized state government in America.”
“Very high cost, very much featherbedding and overstaffing,” he said.
And again with the Detroit card? Has he ever been to Detroit? People have been playing that card since Harold Washington was mayor. Yes, the city has big problems, but Detroit it ain’t, and neither is Illinois.
With a series of titanic budget votes coming up fast, Gov. Bruce Rauner went into full campaign mode today, depicting himself as a man on a sacred mission to break the hold that “corrupt” insiders and labor unions have on the state’s government and economy.
Speaking to a friendly business group here in Chicago, the state’s new GOP governor appeared to pull no punches and signaled no interest in compromise—and, if anything, he seemed to lengthen the list of things on his agenda.
“We have a moral duty to act,” Rauner told the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing. “We have a duty to minimize how much we have to take from you. . . .That money belongs to taxpayers.”
Right now, Rauner said, “the unions control everything. There is not a school district in America that can withstand a strike of over a week.” The result, especially here in Illinois, is “higher taxes. Deficit spending. It’s a conflict of interest we’ve got to take care of.”
Alluding to “tough votes” that will occur within a month or two in Springfield, Rauner said “special interests” are “yelling and screaming and trying to intimidate the process.” But they have so weakened the Illinois economy that a “crisis has created the opportunity for structural change.”
He loves him some drama, man.
…Adding… A commenter points to the Waukegan teacher strike last year, which lasted a month.
Management pushing to make our workplaces less safe and much less fair.
After several rounds of negotiations, there’s little common ground to be found. The Union is pressing for stronger safeguards against irresponsible privatization, while the Rauner Administration is pushing to wipe out any limits on privatization at all. In fact, the Administration is pushing for changes that would allow the employer to lay off bargaining unit employees and bring in vendor employees to… do their work.
The Administration is proposing dozens of other changes to key sections of the contract aiming to undo decades of progress in shaping safe, fair and humane working conditions. They want to do away with any limits on forced overtime, to eliminate bumping and other layoff rights, to require longer hours and less overtime pay—and much more.
While no economic proposals are yet on the table, the Administration included over $700 million in cuts to the group health plan in its FY 16 budget based on a drastic restructuring of health insurance benefits that could cost each employee thousands of dollars annually.
The governor is claiming that state employee salaries are too high and pensions too generous. In fact, neither our wages nor benefits are out of line with other states or with our skills and education. We ‘re on the job every day providing services that citizens depend on, while the governor is travelling the state trying to stir up animosity toward unions and working people.
We’re standing together for a fair contract! We’re standing up for our union rights!
Unity Day — Thursday, April 30 We’ll be wearing green clothes, or wearing union t-shirts, or wearing the new ‘100%’ union buttons. We’ll have union signs or banners. Check with your local union for the “unity day” plan for your worksite
Gonna be a long, hot summer for Roberta Lynch et al.
Tuesday, Apr 28, 2015 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
From the sub-zero temperatures and unyielding snow of winter to the blazing hot summer temperatures that are just around the corner, the state of Illinois knows a thing or two about extreme weather.
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During the 2014 Polar Vortex, when coal, natural gas, and wind facilities did not perform well, nuclear plants maintained a capacity factor between 95 and 98 percent, allowing businesses and residents the ability to keep their lights and heat on during that period of extreme weather.
But half of our state’s nuclear energy plants may be shut down prematurely because of outdated energy policies. According to the State of Illinois, the cost of these premature closures would be enormous and include:
• Decreased Electric Grid Reliability
• Forcing Consumers to Pay For Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars In New Transmission Lines
• Elimination of Nearly 8,000 Jobs
• The Loss of $1.8 Billion Annually in Economic Activity
• The Destruction of State and Local Tax Bases
• Increase in Carbon Emissions and Dirtier Air
• Higher Consumer Energy Costs
If we lose these plants, things could get really uncomfortable.
Members of the Illinois General Assembly: Vote YES On HB 3293 / SB 1585
I’m a longtime reader (not a subscriber though, I know, shame on me). You’ve touched on an issue in several posts but I’d love for you to dive into it more, that is…
Why do you think Rauner isn’t engaging the media?
I have several theories but I’d like your take. Here’s my short list:
1. He just isn’t good at handling the media’s line of questioning and/or is stiil learning.
2. He’s very big on controlling his message and doesn’t see the media as being able to help him carry that message.
3. He views them as the enemy that’s only going to support the unions and the Dems.
4. He’s naturally a private person and doesn’t see the value in opening up. (That would seem to make sense knowing how little we learned about him during the election.)
5. He doesn’t want to get pulled away from his message, that is union busting and the budget.
Anyway, thanks for all your work. All the best, keep it up.
* The Question: Why isn’t Gov. Rauner talking much to the media lately? Take the poll, click as many answers as you think may apply and then explain your vote(s) in comments, please.
*** UPDATE *** The governor will take some questions today in Springfield…
What: Governor Attends Workers Memorial Day Event with IDOL Director Chaviano
Where: Essentra Specialty Tapes
7400 Industrial Dr, Forest Park
Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Note: No additional media availability.
What: Governor Attends IDOT Listening Tour Event with Secretary Blankenhorn
Where: Hoogland Center for the Arts
420 S. Sixth St.
Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Time: 2:30 p.m.
What: Governor Discusses Turnaround Agenda at IL Association of County Officials Spring Conference
Where: Hilton Springfield
700 E. Adams St., Springfield
Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Time: 5:45 p.m.
Note: No additional media availability.
* The IFT continues to aggregate “right to work zone” resolution votes. From yesterday…
Jefferson County - (38,827) - no vote
Lexington (McLean) - (2,060) - tabled
Lindenhust (Lake) - (14,462) - tabled
In addition, Morton Grove passed a resolution last night which omitted the more blatant anti-union stuff. Click here to read it, starting on page 35.
* That Jefferson County non-action was interesting…
An effort to bring an employee empowerment zone to Jefferson County didn’t get off the ground.
Hundreds of union workers showed up to protest the proposal Monday evening. County Chair Bob White says Governor Rauner is calling for the zones across the state, which would give communities more local control over union contracts.
White called for a motion to vote on the proposal twice, but no other board members would make the motion.
The meeting had to be held in the county building’s lobby to accommodate the huge crowd…
So far, I haven’t heard anything from the governor’s office. I’ll let you know.
Chicago aldermen and union representatives will get to voice their opposition to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s proposed right-to-work zones Tuesday at a hearing on a symbolic measure that’s the latest bit of political posturing on the issue.
The mayors further complained about Rauner’s statewide tour asking local towns to sign onto his Turnaround Agenda, arguing he has failed to provide details on what exactly it is and what it would do. Tully said in his experience, the details from the governor’s Turnaround have “evolved,” leaving him at a loss over what he’s asking his community to sign on to.
Hanover Park Mayor Rodney Craig said he was equally at a loss for details.
“Up to date, it’s like a shuffling of the deck. We don’t see the cards, and basically we’re asked to respond to a number of platitudes,” said Craig. “If they can’t put it in clear writing, give me the clear facts and legislation then we’re going to struggle with that. . . . We’re happy to work with him, [but] we’re struggling with the facts that don’t exist.”
Village of Mahomet (Champaign County)
Tuesday, April 28 at 6:00 p.m.
503 E. Main Street, Mahomet
Kane County Board
Tuesday, April 28 at 4:00 p.m.
719 S. Batavia Ave, Geneva
Cook County Board
Wednesday, April 29
* Related…
* Let’s kill all the unions: Unions have been gradually losing public support as they have lost membership. From the 1930s through the 1960s, about two-thirds of Americans approved of labor unions in Gallup polls. That proportion has fallen to barely over half in 2014. Since the 1960s, the proportion of workers in unions has fallen from one quarter to one tenth.
Tuesday, Apr 28, 2015 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
My name is Susan Males. In 2011, I was a healthy, vibrant woman in her mid-40’s. I was experiencing some irregular heartbeats and it was recommended that I have a cardiac catheterization procedure to determine the cause.
I was assured by my referring doctor that this procedure was done by the cardiologist daily. They told me I’d show up to the hospital in the morning, they would do the procedure and I’d be home resting comfortably by lunch time. There was no talk of what could happen, no talk of any risks to this procedure.
I only briefly met the cardiologist who would be doing my procedure. I put my faith in this doctor because he did so many of these “routine” procedures on a daily basis. I trusted him and assumed he knew what he was doing.
As I awoke after the procedure, I was very, very nauseous with an excruciating headache and my vision was very foggy, to the point where I could not see. My “routine” procedure had turned into something much more. I later learned I suffered a stroke after the procedure and it took over 12 hours for someone to recognize the signs. Had the hospital’s staff recognized that my symptoms were consistent with a stroke, my condition could have been treated and I would have returned to my normal self.
Unfortunately, my vision loss is permanent, preventing me from being able to drive and my future earnings potential has been limited.
I turned to the civil justice system to seek recourse. I wanted to hold the doctors and hospital accountable for their lack of response to my stroke symptoms. Using the civil justice system allowed me closure to this difficult time in my life, and has given me the resources to help me live my life the best I can.
I really don’t want to be a class warrior, but what I continue to see going down is that rich people, no longer satisfied with the privileges of being rich, are going for complete control. […]
Rauner’s anti-union agenda… relies on buying into the concept that life will be better for working people in Illinois if they just give the corporate community what it wants: an easier path to lowering wages and benefits. […]
But if you think Sam Zell donated $4 million for your benefit, then you must also be one of those delusional types who think the deck is somehow stacked in favor of working people in this state.
I was asked the other day why I cared so much about this particular topic. My response was that unions are far from perfect, and maybe even terribly flawed and in need of reform and maybe even reined in a bit on some particular issues.
But they are the only folks who can and are effectively standing up to the power of the super-wealthy in this country. As we’ve seen time after time here, the Democrats regularly cave. The unions don’t. Wipe them out and it’s game over.
We’ll have your daily “right to work” roundup later this morning.
The Carbondale City Council could pass its 2016 fiscal year budget tonight.
The budget includes a 0.25 tax increase as an insurance policy against looming cuts in Gov. Bruce Rauner’s proposed state budget. Carbondale’s budget also has an anticipatory 15 percent budget cut built into it. […]
Carbondale City Manager Kevin Baity said, if the cuts are more than 15 percent, the city must come up with more revenue. […]
Baity said the budget proposed general fund is balanced with revenues exceeding expenditures by $9,469, and it is set up so the city did not have to cut any essential services.
* Mayors all over the state are gearing up to oppose the governor’s proposed FY 16 cuts…
Mayors from Downers Grove, to Lynwood to Hanover Park, complained that they already made drastic cuts that lawmakers in Springfield failed to make in the years following the recession and the housing bubble burst.
Downers Grove Mayor Martin Tully said the state now wants to dip into a $1.2 billion Local Government Distributive Fund, money that covers 10 percent to 15 percent of local municipality budgets and are dedicated to essential services such as police, fire, garbage and snow removal. They launched a new website, ProtecttMyTown.com, for residents to quickly send letters to state lawmakers or the governor’s office about the potential impact of the cutbacks. Rauner’s proposed cuts were part of his plan to deal with a $6 billion shortfall after allowing the state’s income tax increase to expire. […]
“I’m gonna tell you, it’s like the state’s failing, and they want to take the municipalities down with them,” said [Hanover Park Mayor Rodney Craig]. “I’m not going to stand for that.”
I support ensuring that local tax dollars remain in my community to pay for essential needs like adequate police and fire protection, street repairs, snow removal, garbage collection and many more services that I rely on my municipality to provide every day.
Proposals to divert this revenue away from municipalities unfairly shift the tax burden onto my community and directly onto local taxpayers like me.
It’s a no-win situation for municipalities that don’t want to impose severe cuts in services that we have paid for and expect, or to increase property taxes to make up for the lost revenue. Either of these outcomes would negatively impact our communities and our quality of life.
Our community has been fiscally responsible and balanced its budget every year. I urge you not to shift an additional tax burden onto my community.
Thank you for your consideration and for registering my comment in opposition to reducing the Local Government Distributive Fund and other revenues rightly intended for use by local governments to provide essential services in their communities.
The effort is backed by several prominent mayors’ groups statewide, including the Northwest Municipal Conference and DuPage Mayors and Managers, showing they’ll be fighting the proposal hard for the next month.
They’re up against dozens of other interests all working to protect their share of the state’s tight budget. Mayors preserved their share in a short-term spending fix approved by lawmakers earlier this month.
But that came at the expense of schools and human services programs. Perhaps most notably, Rauner cut spending for a key autism program, a move that has been the subject of pointed questions from lawmakers.
“Overspending and insider deals put in place by career politicians have created a $6 billion budget hole while the amount of money transferred to local governments over the last decade has skyrocketed by 42 percent,” Rauner spokeswoman Catherine Kelly said in a statement. “The status quo is broken and unsustainable.”
Criticizing the new governor puts most of these officials in a difficult place politically. Rauner, who promised to shake up state government, won the collar counties by overwhelming margins last November.
“We want to see where this all pans out. Right now we’re facing a clear and present danger,” said Downers Grove Mayor Martin Tully.
It’s with a heavy heart that I inform you that Don is in the final stages in his battle with a virus that has overwhelmed his body. He is now receiving palliative care in the hospital with the love and support of Naydene and his daughters. Our thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family and I’m sure yours would be most welcome.
Despite these most difficult times Don has expressed his concern that the battles we have long fought not be set aside. I will continue to do my best to carry on Don’s legacy in advocating for people with disabilities and representing those agencies who serve them.
While Don is in the waning moments of his life, he will long remain with us in our hearts.
The man is a tenacious legend in these parts. His loss will be incalculable.
Don isn’t accepting visitors, but Vickie says if folks want to send cards or notes they can mail them to his office: 310 East Adams, Springfield, IL 62701.
— Reamortize its pension debt from a 30-year payback to 43 years, and level annual pension payments at about $7.3 billion. They’re scheduled to be $6.8 billion in the next fiscal year.
— Increase the personal income tax rate from the current 3.75 percent to between 4.25 percent and 4.5 percent. The rate was 5 percent until Jan. 1.
— Expand the sales tax to include consumer services.
— Start taxing retirement income on a graduated scale.
The amortization plan is a real problem because it immediately increases costs by half a billion dollars a year. The income and service tax arguments are both politically doable because the Dems would back the income tax and the governor has already proposed a service tax (although his campaign service tax plan mainly relied on revenues from trial lawyers).
But that retirement income tax is a legislative non-starter.
Influential Senate President John Cullerton on Monday suggested the state should start taxing retirement income. Illinois does not currently tax pensions or retirement funds such as 401(k) plans, but Cullerton suggested that the idea be in the mix as part of an effort to change the state’s outdated tax system.f
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton is backtracking on a suggestion to tax retirement income, a statement to which many seniors didn’t respond well.
Keep in mind that Cullerton proposed merely taxing annual retirement income above $100,000. But the liberal lion ran away screaming less than 24 hours later.
The new revenue, Martire said, would total $4 billion to $4.4 billion.
“It’s a lot of money but it’s less than 1 percent of our state’s economy,” he said. “That’s all it takes to solve our problems. So, you need to get after it and lobby for it.”
If he can come up with a new amortization plan which doesn’t immediately increase costs and finds a replacement for those retirement tax revenues, he’ll have much more of an impact.
A Southeast High School Spartans hooded sweatshirt retails for $26.99 at the Walgreens at Fifth Street and South Grand Avenue.
Also for sale is a Southeast performance T-shirt for $16.99, a Springfield High School hooded sweatshirt for $26.99 and a Springfield High regular T-shirt for $12.99.
There’s nothing stopping Walgreens, or any other store in town, from selling Springfield School District apparel, School Superintendent Jennifer Gill told school board members last week.
There’s also nothing in writing ensuring that the district, individual schools or booster clubs get a cut of the profits made off apparel sold by retailers, she said.
What the heck, man? Why isn’t the IHSA all over this? And why would stores rip off schools like that?
* From Cook County Commissioner John Fritchey’s Facebook page…
Granted it’s not the best picture of us but it was still a pleasure to have Illinois Comptroller Leslie Munger stop by my office to chat about various issues and how we can work together in our respective capacities.
* The governor has been touting some horribly biased polling results which purport to show that the public favors his “Turnaround Agenda.” The Illinois AFL-CIO has now countered with its own statewide poll. You could argue that its questions are somewhat biased, but they’re not nearly as biased as Rauner’s polling was. Check it out…
Governor Rauner says the State of Illinois has been spending too much money over the past decade and therefore must make drastic across the board cuts to the state budget, including education. Others say these drastic cuts could be avoided by rolling back tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy. Which is closer to your view: that we should make across the board cuts to the state budget, or that we should roll back tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy?
Should Make Across the Board Cuts to State Budget 37%
Should Roll Back Tax Breaks for Corporations and the Wealthy 56%
Not sure 6%
Governor Rauner has been a staunch opponent to labor unions that represent state workers, saying that they have too much power. Others say unions are necessary because they provide a voice for workers, improve public service, and fight for the middle class against politicians and corporate greed. Which is closer to your view: that unions have too much power, or that they are necessary to fight for the middle class?
Unions Have Too Much Power 42%
Unions are Necessary to Fight for the Middle Class 56%
Not Sure 3%
Governor Rauner says public sector unions should not be able to make campaign contributions to the elected officials who negotiate their contracts. Others say that as long as billionaires and corporate CEO’s have a right to make huge campaign contributions, workers should have a right to participate in the democratic process through their union. Which is closer to your view: public sector unions should not be able to make campaign contributions, or public employees have a right to participate in campaigns through their union?
Public Sector Unions Should Not Be Able To Make Campaign Contributions 41%
Public Employees Have a Right to Participate in the Democratic Process Through Their Union 55%
Not sure 4%
Illinois law does not require anyone to join a union, but allows labor and management to agree that union represented employees must pay at least a fee sometimes called ‘fair share’ to cover the costs associated with bargaining the contract that benefits all employees. Some people believe that all employees who receive benefits as a result of collective bargaining should be required to pay something toward the costs of negotiating those benefits and administering union contracts. Governor Rauner does not agree that everyone represented by a union should pay something toward negotiating those benefits and administering union contracts. Do you agree or disagree that everyone represented by a union should pay something for negotiating and administering union contracts?
Agree 55%
Disagree 33%
Not sure 12%
The Illinois prevailing wage is a rate based on local wage standards for workers on public works construction projects. Governor Rauner wants to allow the state to pay workers lower wages than the prevailing wage in local areas, since it would save the state money. Others say the state should not undercut local, middle class wage rates because it drags down everyone’s incomes and hurts local business. Which comes closer to your view: that the wage standard should be set locally with a prevailing wage, or that the state should pay below the local prevailing wage?
Wage Standard Should be Set Locally with Prevailing Wage 68%
State Should Pay Below Local PrevailingWage 23%
Not sure 9%
Workers’ compensation costs, including medical expenses and payments to injured workers, were substantially reduced in 2011 by the State Legislature; however there is no evidence that insurance companies reduced insurance premiums accordingly. Do you support or oppose tougher regulation of insurance companies so that this does not happen again?
The crosstabs show that the governor’s base is mostly sticking with him, but not on everything…
* Methodology…
Public Policy Polling surveyed 642 registered voters in Illinois between April 10th and 12th on behalf of the Illinois AFL-CIO. The survey’s margin of error is +/-3.9%.
During a hearing before lawmakers Wednesday, the new head of the state’s economic development agency offered up a recipe for how he’s going to lure more companies to Illinois.
Jim Schultz, an Effingham entrepreneur tapped by Rauner to run the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, said Illinois has many “hidden assets” that he’s going to use in his quest to replace jobs lost in recent years. […]
He said he wants to go to drought-affected California and tell manufacturers what Illinois can offer.
“Come to our state, I’ll give you our water. We have unlimited water,” Schultz said, pointing to the Mississippi, Illinois and Ohio rivers. […]
“We have so many great hidden assets. We just haven’t optimized them,” Schultz said. “My focus is to go out and market this state.”
1) It’s nice to finally see a Rauner appointee not running down this state.
2) Water is, indeed, a major Illinois asset. Check out this list of the nine most drought-endangered states. Lots of Illinois competitors on there, including Texas.
* The lesson here is that the governor and his people don’t always have to harp on the union issue when it comes to economic development. As I told subscribers several days ago, the governor’s anti-union local resolution efforts are doing for unions what they haven’t been able to do for themselves: get organized locally.
Adams County Board members voted April 15 to table their resolution supporting Rauner’s “Turnaround Agenda” after union members wanted to speak and the board’s one-week-early sign-up period for speakers was challenged. Board Chairman Les Post expects the vote will occur next month.
So what will this vote do?
It won’t really put any pressure on the Legislature. Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton, a pair of Chicago Democrats, have control over whether a right-to-work bill comes up for a vote. They’re never going to allow a vote.
What it will do is energize the unions, which will want to get more politically involved and get their people in office.
* Related…
* Cahill: How exactly is privatization better, Mr. Governor?
When the governor bemoans the state’s “vast bureaucracy,” he’s not just talking about unionized state workers. He’s also talking about Illinois’ huge network of not-for-profit human service providers.
At the Department of Human Services, for example, most programs will continue to provide services because money can be moved around to cover the cuts. But for seven programs within the department, such maneuvers aren’t possible and spending on services will be slashed by $1.1 million, department spokeswoman Veronica Vera said. Among those is a domestic violence shelter program that will lose $419,300 and a program for expectant parents that will lose $225,900. […]
Jeri Linas, the executive director of Chicago’s Teen Living Programs, said she is expecting her organization to face cuts but hasn’t yet learned just how much.
With locations in Bronzeville and Washington Park, Teen Living provides housing and support services for homeless youths in Chicago. The agency gets about $275,000 from the state, some of which pays for staff members who help young at-risk clients find jobs, enroll in school and get subsidized housing. […]
“The double whammy is, some of us who have contracts utilize funding from the state as a match for federal funding,” Linas said. “So when you cut a program’s budget … the risk of an agency closing its doors is very real.”
* There’s no question that Illinois needs much better oversight of these not-for-profits. There’s also no question that the groups can provide services much more cheaply than the state - they raise a significant amount of money on their own and they don’t employ higher-priced state workers. And there’s no question that most of those groups have political sponsors.
So, it’s a delicate balancing act. Some groups need to be weeded out. Others may no longer be providing a necessary service. Slashing funding for autism programs was stupid on all counts. Initially, that showed Rauner was willing to take on this “vast bureaucracy” no matter what the political price. He’s since been forced to backtrack.
This can’t be done with an axe, no matter how much some folks are eager for that to happen.
* Gov. Bruce Rauner was asked a question about his Wikipedia entry last week by a student journalist…
“You played the English horn in college and won several honors for outstanding performances in playing this instrument. Do you still play this instrument?” Gordon asked. […]
Rauner, however, said the entry isn’t true.
“This is a good life lesson for all of us,” the governor told the class. “I never — I didn’t play the English horn. This is a good lesson and it’s OK. I get asked that question a lot, and I go ‘I didn’t play the English horn.’
“We changed it. In fact, we had it removed from the website twice and someone puts it back. And I’m like, ‘You’re kidding me!’” he said. […]
“I actually played the trumpet and I played the baritone,” he said. “I can’t say I was award winning. I was pretty good, but I wasn’t award winning.”
Indeed, if you take a look at the Wiki revision history, you’ll see somebody has been attempting to claim he played or plays either the English horn or the French horn.
* The Question: Your theory about this weird but very real Wikipedia conspiracy?
* He plays the English horn in his spare time.
* French horn musician.
* In order to help himself cope with his divorce 22 years ago, Rauner has found solace in playing the French horn.
* At Dartmouth, he also studied [English horn], played in the orchestra and won several statewide honors.
The paper reports that the English horn reference was added again this morning, then changed.
* Remember last week when I told you that Sam Zell’s wife Helen had contributed $1 million to IllinoisGO, an ostensibly “Democratic” PAC that many folks believe is really guarding Gov. Bruce Rauner’s left flank?
Well, not to be outdone, Sam Zell himself just contributed $4 million to Gov. Rauner’s Turnaround Illinois committee, which is an independent expenditure PAC.
A Gov. Bruce Rauner appointee to the Illinois Gaming Board heads a group that has taken money from the Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, the state’s most lucrative casino.
In naming Illinois State Police special agent Hector Alejandre last month to the board that regulates the state’s casinos, Rauner said Alejandre “will bring a law enforcement perspective to the position.”
The governor noted that Alejandre is the president of the Hispanic Illinois State Law Enforcement Association, or HISLEA, a nonprofit organization of Latino police officers.
The group — which holds safety seminars and provides college scholarships — has taken $5,500 in donations from Rivers since 2012. The money went toward scholarships and programs, according to Juan Valenzuela, a spokesman for the group.
* From a Sen. Michael Connelly (R-Wheaton) press release…
“The Saturday before the local election I found in my mail a promotional piece touting the College of DuPage. The notion that a government body sees no issue with mailing a taxpayer-funded mail piece, a mere 3 days prior to this month’s election is absolutely ridiculous,” Connelly said. “Taxpayer funds should never be used to either explicitly or implicitly influence an election.”
Senator Connelly successfully advanced Senate Bill 914, which bans all units of local government from sending any promotional materials from Jan. 1 to the date of the consolidated election. The measure is similar to already long-established bans that are in place for Illinois constitutional officers and legislators.
If local government officials, employees, or contractors engage in the behavior, they could face termination from their jobs and be charged with a Class 4 felony.
* The CoD board was under siege before the election because of corruption allegations and federal investigations. Several board members were facing strong electoral opposition. The mailer was blatant pre-election propaganda…
According to campaign records with the Illinois Elections Board, Illinois State Senator James Clayborne from East St Louis, the number two man in the state senate, spent some $42,000 on chauffeured limousines between 2003 and 2014.
Fox 2 also discovered Clayborne spent $50,000 in campaign funds during those years on overseas travel to a dozen nations.
The senator represents some of the most impoverished areas of the metro east.
When asked to explain himself, Clayborne said, “Campaign dollars are donations. They’re not public dollars.”
But clearly the public cares how candidates spend dollars. The Illinois Policy Institute helped with this investigation.
“Campaign money should go towards campaigning,” said executive director Kristina Rasmussen.
Actually, state law allows legislators to use campaign money to pay for legislative functions. It saves taxpayers some money. But that many limo rides? Sheesh.
* This topic comes to us via a highly biased piece in the Chicago Monitor. I’m posting it only because I didn’t see any other stories online…
On Wednesday, the Illinois Senate voted to punish companies that boycott Israel… by requiring Illinois retirement funds to expend resources blacklisting, monitoring and withdrawing funds from such companies. The House adjourned on Friday without calling its own identical bill that had already been voted out of committee. The Senate Bill will now go to a House Committee for hearings before it goes to the whole House for a vote.
The Illinois Coalition to Protect Academic Freedom and Free Speech (member organizations listed below) was formed in response to this anti-boycott legislation introduced in the Illinois State Senate. This same coalition defeated bills in the Illinois legislature last year that sought to penalize Illinois higher education institutions, teachers, and other academics if they supported the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel. Many of the same Illinois senators and representatives that voted against these anti-boycott bills in committee last year have voted for these bills this year.
* The difference this time around is that the bill is strongly supported by Gov. Bruce Rauner…
Requires the Illinois Investment Policy Board, by April 1, 2016, to make its best efforts to identify all Iran-restricted companies, Sudan-restricted companies, and companies that boycott Israel and to assemble those identified companies into a list of restricted companies. Defines “Iran-restricted company”, “Sudan-restricted company”, “company that boycotts Israel”, and “restricted companies”. Requires the Illinois Investment Policy Board to review the list of restricted companies on a quarterly basis. Requires State-funded retirement systems and the Illinois Board of Investment to identify restricted companies in which it owns either direct holdings or indirect holdings and, under certain circumstances, to divest from those restricted companies. Prohibits State-funded retirement systems and the Illinois Board of Investment from acquiring securities of restricted companies. Provides that the cost associated with the activities of the Illinois Investment Policy Board shall be borne by the boards of each pension fund or investment board created under the State Universities, Downstate Teachers, or Investment Board Article. Provides that actions taken in compliance with the amendatory Act are exempt from any conflicting statutory or common law obligations, including fiduciary duties. Provides that beginning January 1, 2016, certain Sections of the Code that prohibit investment in certain companies that do business with the Government of Iran and the Republic of the Sudan shall be administered in accordance with the amendatory Act. Contains a statement of legislative intent. Contains a severability clause. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.
* The measure passed the Senate 49-0, with three Democrats voting “Present” (Landek, Raoul, Van Pelt) and six Democrats and one Republican not voting (Bennett, Brady, Collins, Hutchinson, E. Jones, Sandoval, Stadelman).
The Middle East can bring out teh crazy in some people, so I’m only going to say this once: Confine yourselves solely to the content of the bill. Extremists will be deleted and then banned for life. No exceptions. No further warnings will be issued. This is a state politics blog, so let’s keep it that way. Thanks.
…Adding… The legislation may come up tonight…
Israeli Consulate holds Israel Independence Day celebration with Consul General of Israel to the Midwest Roey Gilad hosting Gov. Bruce Rauner as keynote speaker
WHAT: Israel’s 67th Anniversary reception and concert
WHEN: 6:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Monday, April 27, 2015
WHERE: Standard Club, 320 S. Plymouth Court
WHO: Consul General of Israel to the Midwest Roey Gilad
Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez
Cong. Bill Foster
City of Chicago Aldermen and other elected officials
Members of the Consular Corps
Israeli ensemble Baladino and Chicago-based Fifth House Ensemble
WHY: To celebrate Israel’s 67th Anniversary
If it was part of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s agenda to court the press during his speech at the Society of American Business Editors and Writers conference in Chicago, it didn’t quite work out.
Rauner, a businessman who made his fortune in private equity, gave the keynote speech on Saturday, the final day of the conference, to a nearly-full ballroom, pitching his ambitious agenda to transform Illinois.
He opened his speech with a request to reporters to help him pass his reforms, asking for the press’s support three times during his 15-minute speech. […]
After the governor wrapped up his speech, he declared he wouldn’t answer any questions from the audience. An audible groan rippled through the crowd. As he left, several reporters followed him into the hallway. […]
According to [Marty Wolk, president of SABEW], it was a difficult process to get Gov. Rauner to appear at the event. He explained that all speakers know beforehand that their comments are on the record and are expected to take a few questions, given their audience is a room full of business journalists.
“An hour before he arrived, his advance person said no questions from the podium, but that he would be available for 15 minutes afterward to meet people,” Wolk said. Rauner left immediately after his speech.
“For a public figure to say, ‘I want you to help me sell this story’ and not understand it’s a two-way conversation, and not take questions? It fundamentally misunderstands the role of media in this age. In any age,” Wolk said.
Macon County Chairman Kevin Greenfield said there are no plans to discuss or vote on Gov. Bruce Rauner’s “Turnaround Agenda” resolution.
“The community is upbeat and things have been going well enough that there’s been a lot of positive attitude going around,” said Greenfield, R-Decatur. “The last thing I want to do is bring about a resolution that could divide the county up and really rile up people.” […]
The decision by Macon County officials comes despite Republicans holding an 11-10 advantage on the county board. In addition, Rauner proved popular in the area in the gubernatorial election, receiving 61.24 percent of the 33,773 votes recorded in Macon County.
However, the county board has rarely acted in an overtly partisan manner in recent history, with members of both parties coming together to pass budgets and handle other, seemingly heated issues.
[ *** End Of Update *** ]
* Nothing yet from the governor’s office, but here’s the IFT’s aggregated roundup (mostly from the IL AFL-CIO) of upcoming Rauner resolution votes…
* Jefferson County
Monday, April 27 at 7:00 p.m.
100 S. 10th St., Mt. Vernon
* Lexington (McLean County)
Monday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m.
329 W. Main St., Lexington
* City of Chicago Committee on Workforce Development and Audit
Tuesday, April 28 at 11:00 a.m.
City Council Chambers
* Village of Mahomet (Champaign County)
Tuesday, April 28 at 6:00 p.m.
503 E. Main Street, Mahomet
* Kane County Board
Tuesday, April 28 at 4:00 p.m.
719 S. Batavia Ave, Geneva
* Cook County Board
Wednesday, April 29
Chicago and Cook are taking up anti-Rauner resolutions. Kane is expected to take a pass on the whole thing.
Stephenson County Chairman Bill Hadley, also a Republican, said Friday he’d just received the governor’s resolution, which he’s going to send to the board’s Finance Committee and then to the full board for a vote in May.
“There’s some things in there I like, but I have the same concerns that the Winnebago County Board had. They took all the anti-union stuff out,” Hadley said.
Boone County Board Chairman Bob Walberg said he got the Rauner resolution too late to put it on last month’s agenda.
“We’re going to send it to a committee, and bring it out of committee and decide whether to endorse it or not. I don’t know how it’s going to turn out,” said Walberg, a Republican who believes the governor is trying seriously to get the state back on the road to fiscal solvency.
“I went into one department. I looked around, and there’s a lot of people and papers moving around. There’s a lot of papers on the walls in the back room,” Rauner said. “I said, ‘You know, somebody told me computers got invented a couple of years ago. This looks like we could digitize this and maybe make it more productive and more efficient.’”
But, as Rauner related it, the employees said that wasn’t possible. Why? Because — wait for it now — the unions won’t allow it. Specifically, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. […]
“And people knew the numbers,” Rauner said. “Very quickly somebody got back to me and said, ‘Governor, we could spend approximately $1.7 million on a computer system. We could save $8 million a year.’ ”
The rub, though, is that making the change would cost 120 jobs, and therefore the union won’t agree to the change. According to Rauner.
But the Rauner administration wouldn’t tell Finke which agency Rauner was referring to. AFSCME is skeptical, to say the least…
“This sounds like pure fiction,” spokesman Anders Lindall said. “There is no work rule preventing digitization. Gov. Rauner is making claims without bothering to talk to the union or find out the facts.”
Illinois Republicans have unveiled legislation backed by Gov. Bruce Rauner they say will clean up state hiring rules that allow a governor to hand out jobs to loyal lieutenants instead of hiring strictly on merit. […]
But majority Democrats in the General Assembly are wary. The bulk of McConnaughay’s measure is devoted to limits placed on collective bargaining units, going so far as to remove some employees from labor unions and empowering the government to transfer or dismiss those found to have been improperly hired at IDOT. They warn that the bill could lead to more politics in state hiring.
It also includes a “hiring reform” section which directs agencies under the governor to correct faulty job descriptions, revise procedures for determining exempt positions and seek to decertify union coverage where appropriate. […]
The proposal “would result in stripping thousands of public employees of their right to be represented by a union,” AFSCME Council 31 spokesman Anders Lindall said, “with the perverse result, given the bill’s supposed purpose, of giving agencies even greater leeway to circumvent the merit system.” It would do “nothing to prevent future political hiring scandals,” he said.
* Let’s hope they do better than last time. There is no doubt that we need a new, less partisan and far less goofy remap process here. From a press release…
Independent Maps, a non-partisan statewide coalition, will hold a news conference Tuesday to brief reporters on the start of a campaign to win voter approval of a state constitutional amendment creating a non-partisan independent commission responsible for drawing Illinois General Assembly districts.
The coalition will have one year to collect 290,216 valid signatures on petitions to place the Independent Map Amendment before voters in November 2016. The Independent Maps coalition will build on the statewide network of thousands of volunteers involved in the 2014 campaign for an independent redistricting commission.
WHO: Dennis FitzSimons, Chair of Independent Maps, and the coalition’s board of directors, which includes prominent members of both major political parties, as well as leaders from the clergy, academia and philanthropic organizations. FitzSimons is Chairman of the Robert R. McCormick Foundation and a former Chairman and CEO of Tribune Company.
WHEN: 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 28
WHERE: Hotel Allegro, 171 W. Randolph, Cinema Room, 3rd floor, Chicago.
The Illinois House Monday took a first step toward possibly ending the dizzying proliferation of specialty license plates in the state.
By a 108-1 vote, the House approved a bill that calls for creation of a universal specialty plate that can then be sold to support a variety of charitable causes.
If the bill eventually becomes law, the state would no longer issue new plate designs for charitable causes approved by the legislature.
“It’s hard for police officers to keep up with every plate on the street,” said Rep. John D’Amico, D-Chicago, sponsor of House Bill 1081. “It seems like we constantly have more and more plates coming before us. This would stop these plates from growing out of control.”
Before leaving town last week, members of the House voted 110-5 to create a special license plate that will raise money to pay for planting milkweed along Illinois highways.
The reason: Monarch butterflies, which are the official state insect, need the plant to survive.
“Today’s vote in the House was an overwhelming victory and demonstrated broad bipartisan support for the Illinois state insect,” noted Rebecca Riley, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council.
A couple of weeks ago, I started noticing that House Speaker Michael Madigan wasn’t voting on most legislation during his chamber’s floor debates. Madigan was feeling under the weather that week, and was ill enough that a leadership meeting with the governor couldn’t be scheduled until a few days later, so I let it go.
But the pattern continued the following week. A spot check of roll calls showed Madigan was listed as present and accounted for, but hadn’t voted either for or against much of anything.
What the heck?
Madigan’s historical voting record is all over the map because, in the past, he has tended to vote for all of his Democratic members’ bills unless he has a strong ideological position in opposition, or if he has a conflict of interest.
Madigan spokesman Steve Brown told me the speaker decided in January that he only wants to make “informed” votes. There are just so many bills out there and not enough time to consider each one, Brown said.
Huh?
Madigan and his top staff examine each and every bill and amendment back and forth, upside down at least once a week, and often several times a week. So if any legislator is informed, it’s Michael J. Madigan.
Brown also agreed with my own observation that Madigan could be patterning his behavior after the U.S. House speaker, who traditionally votes on only the rarest of occasions. Madigan did vote for a recent fiscal 2015 state budget fix, but that’s probably because he was a party to the agreement. He has voted on a handful of other bills, but there doesn’t seem to be much of a pattern.
Brown said it was conceivable that Madigan would also step in and vote if one of his members needed an extra push to get his or her bill to the minimum majority of 60.
It’s possible, I suppose, that Madigan doesn’t want to tip his hand to the governor, or anyone else for that matter, about where he actually stands on legislation. But I was told by others that this has nothing to do with the new governor, although they refused to say what was really going on.
Keep in mind, this is a guy who is legendary in Springfield for his mildly eccentric habits. He eats an apple at noon every day. He eats dinner at precisely 7 at night — almost always at one of two Springfield restaurants (unless he’s in the rare mood for a steak, and then he and his people head out to that spot), and he eats the same meal and drinks the same wine every time. A severe crisis erupted at one of those restaurants several years ago when weekend staff accidentally served all of Madigan’s special wine to some tourists.
There is, or at least seems to be, a reason for every single thing he does. He makes no moves without considering all the possible angles. It took him eight hours to issue a press release after Rod Blagojevich was arrested, for crying out loud.
So, after 44 years in the Illinois House, for this man to suddenly and without a credible explanation decide to stop voting on almost all legislation is simply bizarre.
And his top lieutenants are enforcing Madigan’s new policy with a vengeance. I’m told a couple of staffers were upbraided last week when they pushed Madigan’s roll call button on some legislation. They were reportedly told in no uncertain terms to never do that again.
Some have darkly speculated without evidence that maybe some investigators are poking around Madigan’s voting record. But, really, if something is up (and there is zero evidence of that) then why change his behavior now, after it’s too late? That just doesn’t make sense.
Maybe he’s just trying to play with everybody’s head. I just don’t know. Whatever is going on, Madigan certainly wouldn’t allow any of his members to behave this way. I can just see it now:
Madigan: “Why aren’t you voting?”
Member: “I only want to make informed votes, Mr. Speaker, sir.”
Madigan: “Then read the analyses that my staff writes for you and pick a button. Better yet, just let my staff ‘inform’ you of your best voting options. Your constituents sent you here to vote on legislation, not sit there like an armless bump on a log with zero political future because I’m going to find somebody else to take your seat if you don’t start voting right now.”
Member: “Yes, sir. It’ll never happen again, sir. I’m sorry, sir. May I please shine your apple, sir?”
