Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Corruption thread

Posted in:

Illinois

Carl Nyberg may be onto something here.

Illinois should pass a law that if you turn-in the ghost payroller you get a bounty, say 30% of the money the ghost payroller pilfered.

Then the government gets to sue the ghost payroller, the supervisor and the political patron to recover the money, the bounty and court costs.

Post your own innovative ideas for catching the bad apples and reforming Illinois in the comments. And, let’s not get into the name game, shall we? Just post ideas, not complaints.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 8:01 am

Comments

It’s certainly a good start. Unfortunately, it’s another case of treating the symptoms instead of the disease. Corruption like this runs high and low through government and other institutions. It’s not significantly different than what has gone on at many colleges where alumni arrange pay/perks for athletes. I think in addition to the bounty, a lifetime ban should be handeded out against contracting with or being employed by the state to those found guilty. I wish we could just get some decent people running the show…

Comment by Spiro Agnew Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 8:42 am
That would be great! It’s too bad it’s not in effect now, because then Patrick McDonough (the whistle-blower in the Hired Trucks Scandal, who had to fight to try to get his job back from the City of Chicago) would be able to match his opponent in the race for Democratic State Central Committeeman in the 9th Congressional District (Bill Marovitz, the husband of Playboy publisher Christie Hefner and a former State Senator) dollar for dollar.

At least the voters in this district have a choice between the status quo in the Illinois Democratic Party and some actual change.

RANDALL SHERMAN

Secretary/Treasurer, Illinois Committee for Honest Government

Comment by Randall Sherman Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:01 am
I wonder how theft of time (and money) resulting from ghost payrolling compares with simple theft of time connected to inflated overtime claims and getting to work late and leaving early without being docked. I suspect the latter.

The governor’s office is aware of the huge theft of time which goes on every day in state government, not just among staff providing direct services but, even more flagrantly, among
management employees, often patronage employees. To some extent, this is because of severe overstaffing of management results in large numbers of staff who have little or nothing to do. So they gradually start coming in later and later, leaving earlier and earlier, and taking more and more time for lunch. Their immediate superiors, themselves underworked, are not in a position to challenge this.

Management employees are not under a contract (yet). They could be required to sign in and out electronically at state offices, starting tomorrow. This doesn’t mean they will be doing anything while they are there, but at least it means they won’t be doing all their work “at home.”

Chicago, where the overstaffing is greatest (of course) is also the biggest offender in this area. Go into a public aid office or DCFS office any day of the week, at start of business.
There may be a few staffers about to answer the telephone, but most managers won’t have “made it in yet.” Ditto at 5 pm. They’ll already be gone.
Electronic (thumbprint) signout would be a good idea too.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:14 am
I would be rich!!!

Comment by Cook County Employee Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:33 am
For people that don’t know, non-major party candidates are required to submit significantly more signatures to get on the ballot in Illinois.

Here’s a proposal.

If only one major party files for an office before the primary elections, the signature threshhold for non-major party candidates shall be reduced to the same level as for major party candidates.

This would make it more likely that offices will be contested throughout the state.

Comment by Carl Nyberg Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:38 am
There already is a principle of law called “qui tam” which applies to rewards for whistleblowers. Basically, it derives from the Norman code from which English common law comes.. whoever recovers money on behalf of the King is entitled to share in the bounty.

I do not know if there is a statutory enactment in Illinois governing ghost payrollers specifically, but the common law principle is there.

Maybe the 1/3 that lawyers usually get for winning a case?

–HD

Comment by HoosierDaddy Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:52 am
Look at 735 ILCS 5/20â€‘101, et. seq., the Recovery of Fraudulently Obtained Public Funds Act.

The Act allows the State, units of local government and citizens to sue ghostpayrollers for their ill-gotten gains. The ghostpayroller may be liable for up to 3 times the amount of the fraud.

The Act allows citizens to recover attorneys fees, but unfortunately it does not allow them a percentage of the proceeds. In addition, the Illinois Supreme Court gutted the Act to the extent is allows state taxpayers to sue. Local taxpayers are still allowed to sue.

In terms of recovery by a victorious citizen, an amendment to the Act would plug that hole. A good idea would be to copy the recovery language from the State’s Whistleblower Reward and Protection Act which allows a citizen to recover anywhere between 15% to 30% of the proceeds.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 10:43 am
The whistleblower that rats out a crooked politician or government employee should receive as a reward 25% of whatever that politician or govt. employee received each year in the way of salary. This reward is too be paid upon the conviction of this govt. employee or politician.
Also, no individual convicted of a felony should ever be hired by any municipal, stae, or federal government. Let these “reformed” ex-cons get a job in private industry. Local, state, and federal govt. does not need the added responsibility of babysitting these ex-felons in order to be assured that they have indeed “changed their ways”.

Comment by Beowulf Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 10:47 am
Guys (and ladies),

You might want to take a look at HB618 which I filed 02/03/05 that provides for qui tam recovery for whistleblowers. From the synopsis:

Amends the Whistleblower Reward and Protection Act. Provides that the State of Illinois shall also receive an amount for reasonable expenses that the court finds to have been necessarily incurred by the Attorney General, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, and the amount received by the State of Illinois, exclusive of any proceeds, reasonable expenses, reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs that have been awarded to a Qui Tam plaintiff or any entity other than the State of Illinois or a State agency, shall be deposited in the Whistleblower Reward and Protection Fund created under the Act.

Unfortunately, I had to table the bill after being informed that it would not be released from Rules.

Comment by Hon. John Fritchey Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 10:59 am
Q. How can you tell if a Ghost Parolee had a good career?

A. At his retirement party every one is wondering who he is.

Comment by The Pope of Chili Town Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 11:01 am
Well, I can’t go along with blanket banning of all convicts from state service; especially low-end jobs like road flaggers, maintenance staff, greenskeepers, etc. I think as long as there are safeguards and checks in place, and you don’t put them in a job related to their crime, it might be all right, you’d have to explore it case by case to see if it made sense. You wouldn’t make a convicted sex offender a DCFS casewrker or a forger a payroll clerk, but there is plenty of work they could find that would let them make an honest living. If they can’t find work, they just re-offend, which is no good for anyone and more expensive too.

Some of the arguments you will get against this whistleblower bounty is that state workers shouldn’t need to get a reward for doing their duty, and that there is potential for the rule to be abused as a way to harrass managers. I would disagree with that. It takes a lot of courage to turn in the boss: you are risking your own employment and all kinds of retribution when you narc on a rulebreaker who ranks above you. I think manager’s attendance records should be kept and made public record. I got a boss I see maybe twice a month, and I’ve called him and found him at home during work hours. Once in a while, there are excuses for such a thing, sickness, family problems, etc. But in this case I’m convinced the guy is either working a second job on state time or otherwise gaming the system.

Please DO put us all on an electronic time clock: we all have to wear stupid security badges to get in and out of state buildings already, that software is already in place to automatically take attendance, just needs to have the function actvated and the data routed to the H.R. people… hell, they might covertly be doing it NOW… Bring it on, I can’t wait until they see all the extra overtime they will have to pay me that I don’t bother putting in for now. Especially doing the stuff the boss calls in at 4:45 to ask for, while he’s “in transit”. To somewhere work-related, I’m sure.

Comment by Slats Grobnick's cousin Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 11:16 am
How about an incentive not to be corrupt. Perhaps we should not create separate prisons for white collar criminals.

Comment by Levois Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 11:34 am
Why stop with public sector employees? Let’s also apply the whistleblower to companies that have public contracts, after all, why should the taxpayers pay so that some exec at Microsoft can spend all day golfing?

I’m betting that if you could devise a simple method of estimating ghost payrolling, you would find that ghost payrolling is a much bigger problem among private sector white collar employees than public sector white collar employees.

However, I do have a very simple, albeit simple suggestion. Why is CapitolFaxBlog the defacto Suggestion Box for improving state government and rooting out corruption? Why not put a Virtual Suggestion Box on that state’s homepage, a distibute the results daily to the Gov’s office, the legislative leaders and the media? Individuals can file anonymously or by name, but if they offer a novel idea that is used, they should be entitled to compensation through the Merit Compensation Board, whether or not they are a state employee.

Comment by Yellow Dog Democrat Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 12:53 pm
Ban contract lobbying. If contracts are supposed to be doled out based on merit, then everything needed to make the contract award determination should be spelled out in the RFP and contained within the four corners of the bid. What then, do we realy need contract lobbyists for?

Comment by Jackalope Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 2:46 pm
a contract lobbyist is a lobbyist on a contract, not a lobbyist for a contract, although i guess they could be both

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 3:20 pm
This is a good idea until some people find out how to corrupt this idea in an effort to make money…nothing is beyond corruptions reach I’m afraid.

Comment by Krenzler Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 4:15 pm
Okay folks and I am dead serious when I make this suggestion: My idea is to abolish all these campaign finance laws and stop being naive and pretending that we are going to have “clean” and “honest politcs” in Illinois. I have been active in campaigns since 1976 and every four years people run on the issue of “cleaning up Illinois politics”. It is time to be realistic and accept the fact that shadiness is ingrained in Illinois culture and inevitable. No laws or politicians are going to change that. Call me cynical. But remember what Paddy Bauler cheeringly said “Chicago ain’t ready for reform!” Time to stop being pious and self-righteous. We should abolish the campaign finance regulations,make ballot access laws 10 times easier, and let nature take it’s course.

Comment by Fearless Freep Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 7:27 pm
I disagree with Fearless Freep.

Illinois already has a virtually regulation free system of campaign finance. One simple rule, disclosure. Nature has taken its course in Illinois and the result is not too pretty.

I come out at the other end of the spectrum. Adopt an Arizona type system of Clean Elections. Public financing for candidates that want to accept public money and a private, federal type system for candidates that don’t want the public money.

Regardless of the system, Illinois’ free for all or a Clean Election system, it helps to have an aggressive press corp and a relentless federal prosecutor for those politicans that try to game the system whatever the rules.

Comment by Navin Johnson Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 8:42 pm
Public financing of elections?? How about public financing of our schools, pensions, jails, and debts first?? My tax dollars should not have to pay for somebody’s ego trip. Public financing is just as absurd as this notion that Illinois is capable of having “clean” politics, if we just pass enough laws.
One more thing: open ballot access like the states of New Hampshire or Iowa. We need to get back to the days when there would be 7 or 8 third parties on the ballot for every presidential election. Make all petition requirements for ALL parties MINIMAL and/or a $500 filing fee. I cannot guarantee that voters will vote more intelligently than before but it would be healthy for democracy.

Comment by Fearless Freep Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 8:56 pm
Fearless,

Again, Illinois already has a joke of a system in terms of campaign finance and the courts at 219 S. Dearborn are having a hard time keeping up. I fail to see how scraping the few rules will improve the situation.

Kind of like proposing tax cuts, watching the governmental debt explode, and then calling for more tax cuts to deal with the debt.

The Arizona system was appoved by voters via referendum. What is the harm in letting Illinois voters speak on the issue directly? Maybe the the majority of Illinois voters are happy with our virtually regulation fee system of campaign finance but I’d like to find out for sure.

I agree with your ideas on opening up ballot access. Campaign finance reform, mine or yours, won’t bring about change by itself. It has to be coupled with other reforms to ensure competition in more legislative districts and statewide.

In terms of being forced to finance someone’s ego trip, I’d argue we are both doing that already and an anything goes system of campaign finance reform will do little to reel in egos or the expenditure of public dollars.

Comment by Navin Johnson Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:12 pm
Disclosing every dime isn’t going to help much. I have seen so many, many candidates say “my opponent takes PAC money!!” And you know what? It falls on deaf ears. Voters don’t care; they elect and re-elect these people all the time. Illinois voters are not puritans by any stretch. Some talk the talk, but look at the election results. Campaign finance laws are inherently ineffective because there will always be LOOPHOLES. Navin, I am talking about ethics rules - Go to http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/publications/pdf_publications/ipub2617.pdf. Now tell me how on earth do you figure that Illinois has “loose” ethics laws?

Comment by Fearless Freep Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 9:46 pm
Time sheets for legislative employees cannot be viewed by the public using the Freedom of Information request process.

So, much for Illinois being on the cutting edge of legislative ethics. (A more detailed discussion between a former legislative staffer and myself can be found at Illinoize under Lincoln’s plaque or an explanation at McHenryCountyBlog.com .

Comment by Cal Skinner Tuesday, Feb 14, 06 @ 10:05 pm
Thanks for the info Cal I didn’t realize that about the timesheets. I am sure they’re padded anyway. And Cal your blog’s Message of the Day on Feb.9th, the letter to the editor by Jim Nowlan. That hits the nail on the head. Instead of waving our fists in the air under the pretense of “honest” government, we as Illinois voters need to more honest with ourselves.

Comment by Fearless Freep Wednesday, Feb 15, 06 @ 6:21 am
Performance audits of every division in every agency. Weed and trim out those with negligable returns vs. costs. Instead of making across the board cuts, put the resources in those areas that are actually accomplishing something and get rid of the others.

Turn over some state jobs to the private sector. The state garage system for maintaining official state trucks comes to mind. State employees have told me that this is a tremendous waste and causes them endless frustration.

Cut out the patronage hiring. I hear the word, “party hack” way too often.

Comment by vole Wednesday, Feb 15, 06 @ 6:59 am
Feerless,

Your original post used the phrase “campaign finance” twice and didn’t talk about ethics. Your second post did not cite ethics either.

There are very few areas of law that have no loopholes. If we scrapped laws on the basis that there is a loophole, then most law as we know it would cease to exist. Among the first would be ethics laws which are notorious for loopholes.

You link to a list of Illinois ethics laws. The length of a law is not a direct corollary as to whether it is effective or ineffective. Kind of like grading papers by throwing them down the stairs and giving the highest grade to the paper that falls the furthest (i.e. heavier and longer papers get higher grades). Length does not equal merit.

To wrap this up with a suggestion, tighten Illinois very loose financial disclosure laws. The federal model would be a good example. Many things that U.S. Senators and Congressmen are required to disclose are NOT part of Illinois disclosure system.

Comment by Navin Johnson Wednesday, Feb 15, 06 @ 11:11 am
State employees already take an annual ethics test. This test tells them that it is their duty to report any thing like this. The test says that if you know it is wrong and don’t report it, then you too are in violation of the ethics.

Comment by Mr . Ethics Wednesday, Feb 15, 06 @ 11:40 am