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* Crain’s…
A former state senator from Elgin is suing for back pay, alleging the General Assembly violated the Illinois Constitution by forcing furloughs and eliminating cost-of-living adjustments for legislators.
Michael Noland, a Democrat who retired in January after losing a race for Congress, says in the lawsuit that the state constitution prohibits such mid-term salary adjustments.
The complaint, filed yesterday in Cook County, didn’t specify how much Noland lost as a result of eight bills passed between 2009 and 2016 that eliminated COLAs and five bills during the same period that mandated 36 furlough days.
Noland could not be immediately reached for comment. Michael Scotti, a private-practice attorney in Chicago representing Noland and a special assistant attorney general for the state, declined to comment. He said Noland would issue a statement later today.
I think he’s right on the constitutional issue, but I hope for his sake that he never plans on running for office ever again. But if he prevails, it sure wouldn’t hurt a lobbying career. I’m not at all saying he’s planning such a thing, mind you (he never registered with the state), I’m just sayin…
*** UPDATE *** Monique…
Noland in 2012 voted in favor of at least one of the bills to cut out pay raises. That measure passed the Senate without opposition, and Noland was quoted as supporting the legislation in a statement posed on the Illinois Senate Democrats website.
“We need structural tax reform to properly fund our most important priorities — like education, health care and the ongoing need for infrastructure,” Noland said at the time. “Until we do this, the least we can do is cut our own pay again. I know most working families in Illinois are not seeing raises this year, so we shouldn’t either.”
posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Jun 2, 17 @ 1:07 pm
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From the Tribune: “Lawmakers approved the popular pay cuts during the state’s ongoing financial crisis, though some have contended doing so is a political stunt designed to pander to voters. Noland in 2012 voted in favor of at least one of the bills to cut out pay raises. That measure passed the Senate without opposition, and Noland was quoted as supporting the legislation in a statement posed on the Illinois Senate Democrats website.”
Comment by ste_with_a_v_en Friday, Jun 2, 17 @ 1:32 pm
Noland, I hope you win. May the luck of the Irish be with you.
Comment by Ma Friday, Jun 2, 17 @ 1:33 pm
I also think he’ll win on the constitutional issue … but he might not get all the back pay. That one vote is going to be problematic for him, in that he voluntarily voted for it and given the presumption, absent a challenge, that any law passed by the GA is “legal/constitutional”. If the courts want to split hairs, they could contend that the challenge is not timely.
Comment by RNUG Friday, Jun 2, 17 @ 1:59 pm
I voted yes to take time off. I didn’t work those days but now I think I should be paid anyway. What we did was unconstitutional much like my voting year after year for budgets that I knew were unconstitutional because we used crooked math.
Comment by Arock Friday, Jun 2, 17 @ 2:06 pm
I often asked why he would run for Congress. He had a cushy gerrymandered seat and could have just sat in it. Instead he gets crushed in a federal race and sues for money he voted down.
Comment by ste_with_a_v_en Friday, Jun 2, 17 @ 3:11 pm