FAA deal would put some back to work in Illinois

By Jamey Dunn

An agreement on funding for the Federal Aviation Administration would bring some Illinoisans back to work, but if the U.S. Senate cannot reach a deal, continued deadlock could delay construction projects throughout the state.

Congress left for its summer break without approving an extension of funding for the FAA, resulting in the furlough of 4,000 employees and the shutdown of about 200 construction projects across the country. The U.S. House passed a bill containing the money, but the Senate did not vote on it. Senate Democrats took issue with a provision in the House bill that would cut subsidies for rural airports. Democrats also oppose Republican demands that union rights rollbacks be tied to any future long-term funding for the FAA. The last long-term funding for the administration expired in 2007, and Congress has been passing short-term extensions while it tries to work out a new plan.

In Illinois, 145 employees are off the job without pay until the money is approved. According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, most of them are engineering and technical support staff. “The Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) is disappointed Congress has not passed a new FAA authorization or an extension, which is costing the federal government $30 million a day while directly impacting airport projects that are critical to our nation’s aviation system,” Rosemarie Andolino, Chicago Department of Aviation commissioner, said in a prepared statement. “Here in Chicago, the FAA has stated that 145 FAA employees have been furloughed, directly impacting their livelihoods and that of their families.”

No capital projects have been halted in the state, but there is concern that if the Senate does not pass the funding, future projects could be held up. Without congressional approval, the FAA is unable to administer $2.5 billion in funds for construction projects nationwide.

“It is possible … that airport projects scheduled to start this year will be delayed, along with the ongoing review of projects for 2012 and beyond if FAA funding is not approved,” Guy Tridgell, a spokesperson for IDOT, said in a prepared statement. IDOT provided a list of projects scheduled to begin this year:

• Chicago Executive in Wheeling - partial taxiway construction.
• St. Louis Downtown in Cahokia - runway rehabilitation.
• Lake in the Hills - ramp construction, grading and drainage.
• MidAmerica in Belleville - cargo ramp expansion.
• Peoria International - rehabilitate pavements.
• Quad City International - convert runway to taxiway.
• Chicago Rockford International - rehabilitate runways 1-19 (phase 1).
• Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport Springfield - “Gulf” aircraft ramp construction (phase 1).
• Central Illinois Regional in Bloomington - perimeter fence construction.

According to IDOT the shutdown will not “have an immediate effect on the public’s ability to fly.” However, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt said the shutdown erodes the agency’s ability to do its work. “Every day this goes on, we fall further behind. We need our 4,000 FAA employees and tens of thousands of construction workers back on the job so we can get critical projects moving again while it's still construction season.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced this afternoon  that a deal has been reached and the House bill could be approved as early as tomorrow. Senators who have already left Washington, D.C., may not have to return. The Senate has not yet adjourned. If Democrats and Republicans can agree, a bill can be passed by unanimous consent, and only one senator would have to be on the floor.

IDOT unveils fix-it road plan

By Jamey Dunn

The Illinois Department of Transportation’s six-year construction plan focuses on maintenance and repair of the state’s existing bridges and roads.

According to IDOT Secretary Gary Hannig, two-thirds of the $11.5 billion “fix-it” plan will be spent on maintaining the state’s existing roads and bridges. The other third will be spent on relieving traffic congestion and new projects. “We will deal with congestion. We will deal with safety concerns. We will also work to preserve and maintain the existing highway footprint,” Hannig said at a Chicago news conference.

The state plans to improve 3,248 miles between fiscal year 2012 and fiscal year 2017 and revamp or replace 611 bridges. Almost 500 miles of road and more than 100 bridges will see construction in the next fiscal year. According to Hannig, Illinois has already worked on about 4,800 miles of road and about 500 bridges in the last two years.

Federal dollars will fund $7.2 billion of the plan, with Illinois putting up the rest of the money. Illinois' part willl include $2 billion from the state's embattled capital construction program, which was ruled unconstitutional by an appellate court. The state is moving ahead with construction while the Illinois Supreme Court considers the future of the program. Hannig said he was not concerned about the funding. “We’re moving forward with the program full speed ahead. It’s our belief that the court will rule in our favor.”

Hannig said IDOT took a conservative approach when estimating future federal funding levels by assuming that they would stay flat.

The plan will stick to the traditional spending levels of 45 percent going toward the Chicago area and 55 percent being spent downstate. A total of $8.3 billion will be spent on state highways, and $3.2 billion will be spent on local roads. “These major projects that have been on the drawing board, sometimes for years and years, we finally have a chance to get them done statewide—city, suburbs downstate, every part of Illinois,” Quinn said.

The road work is expected to create an estimated 155,000 construction jobs.

Quinn also said Illinois has received the “go ahead” to build an airport in the south suburb of Peotone, a project called for in the capital plan. He said the state has started buying land for the site.

IDOT has posted the six-year plan to its website, along with an interactive map.

Countdown to capital begins

By Bethany Jaeger and Jamey Dunn
Gov. Pat Quinn wants at least a portion of his statewide plan for major construction projects approved by the General Assembly before April 3. That’s the last session day scheduled before legislators are supposed to head home for a two-week spring break, and Quinn reportedly said today that he thinks they should bypass spring break to work on a capital plan.

The $26 billion plan, called Illinois Jobs Now, eventually would fund infrastructure, mass transit, railroad improvements, new school buildings, housing, conservation projects, and water treatment projects. Two new projects also would include an airport near Chicago’s south suburbs and the construction of the first veterans’ home within Chicago.

The proposed funding mechanisms, as usual, spark controversy. If Quinn’s budget plan were approved, vehicle-related fees would help fund road and bridge construction. (Driver’s license fees would increase from $10 to $20; license plate fees would go from $79 to $99; and vehicle registration fees would rise from $15 to $30.) Mass transit projects would be funded by title transfer fees, which would increase from $65 to $105.

Plans to build new schools, then, would be funded by shaving a portion of tax revenues typically given to local governments.

In addition to federal stimulus money, Quinn also proposes using about $150 million a year from the state’s dedicated Road Fund. That would allow the state to bond/borrow money to pay for projects specifically for roads and bridges.

That’s one portion of a capital plan that could be done by April 3. Senate President John Cullerton said it could be realistic for the legislature to approve increasing the amount the state may borrow for the purposes of kick-starting a road program and tapping into federal matching funds.

The part of the capital plan that will take the longest to negotiate is other sources of funding, especially if it's intertwined with an attempt to increase the state income tax rate or motor fuel tax rate. For instance, Cullerton said he still supports the idea of increasing the state’s 19-cent tax on each gallon of motor fuel, which hasn’t changed since 1990. He describes the motor fuel tax as a traditional way to pay for roads, and because it’s a so-called user fee, people could adjust their lifestyles if they didn’t want to pay more. (Senate Democrats are working on a plan that would increase the tax by about 16 cents, while the House is considering a bill to increase the tax by 8 cents.) According to Cullerton, an 8-cent increase could generate $500 million.

Sen. Martin Sandoval, a Chicago Democrat who chairs the Transportation Committee in his chamber, agreed that an increase in the gasoline tax has support in the legislature and would fund a “robust” capital plan. He’s sponsoring SB 200, which doesn’t have language, yet, but could be used to advance a motor fuel tax bill.

Sandoval is one critic of Quinn’s capital plan because, he said, he’s concerned it would be unfair to Chicago. “Mass transit takes a huge hit at a time when we’re preparing for the Olympics, at a time when we’re trying to protect the environment, at a time when we’re trying to put people back to work. Gov. Quinn is going in the wrong direction when it relates to mass transit.”

Under Quinn’s proposed budget, the Chicago-area Regional Transportation Authority would lose $32 million in grants for operating assistance. Public transportation also would lose about $42 million, but that’s based on decreased sales tax revenues. Downstate transportation districts, on the other hand, would see an increase of about $24 million.

Jennifer Morrison, managing director of the Transportation for Illinois Coalition, said that her organization was encouraged by Quinn's emphasis on a long-awaited capital plan but that the funding for mass transit, highways and local roads would be “way too small to make any meaningful impact.” She added that the budget plan is “more than a little unclear” about which revenue sources would be designated to which projects.

While neither Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno nor House Minority Leader Tom Cross supports Quinn’s fee increases, they said last week that they do hope to meet with the governor to work out a compromise.

Another part of the plan that will take a long time to negotiate is how the money would be distributed throughout the state. Not only could it differ depending on the source of revenue approved by the legislature, but it also could change if Democratic Rep. Kathleen Ryg of Vernon Hills has her say.

She wants the planning process to empower local stakeholders through various metropolitan planning organizations. House Bill 2359 would create a new advisory committee to the Illinois Department of Transportation when prioritizing road projects. Ryg said the new committee would help assure taxpayers and state officials that the limited amount of money available would be spent on the best use, particularly as a capital bill is drafted and new revenue sources are generated.

The recent appointment of Transportation Secretary Gary Hannig, a former state representative and budget expert for House Democrats, actually could help the measure advance. Ryg said this afternoon that she changed her bill from its original form in response to concerns expressed by Hannig shortly after his transition from the legislature to the state agency. Now Ryg's bill would ensure more representation for all areas of the state, including those that don't have metropolitan planning organizations.

Her bill also would change the way projects would get funded. Currently, engineers distribute money based on such factors as the condition of roads, the traffic flow and the population served. Ryg said her bill would fund the greatest maintenance needs first, and then the regional groups would advise the Transportation Department on other local needs. All areas of the state would be evaluated under the same set of new criteria.

Regardless of which revenue sources the General Assembly ultimately agrees upon, the influx of money has some legislators nervous about whether their districts will benefit. So watch for the concept in Ryg’s bill to serve as a potential “accountability” measure, meant to assure legislators that, at the least, their areas would be represented in the decision-making process.

Quinn taps key Democratic negotiator

By Jamey Dunn
Gov. Pat Quinn named Rep. Gary Hannig, a Litchfield Democrat and a deputy majority leader for House Speaker Michael Madigan, as director of the Illinois Department of Transportation. He replaces former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s appointee, Milton Sees, who served in the position since 2007.

Hannig, an accountant, had been a state representative since 1979 and served as the chief budget negotiator for the Democratic Caucus. Quinn said Hannig has the experience, expertise and integrity to lead the department.

Kent Redfield, a political scientist at the University of Illinois at Springfield, described the move as a positive step for the Quinn administration, potentially improving rather strained relations between the executive and legislative branches as they prepare to negotiate a long-awaited capital plan and a spending plan for federal stimulus funds. As Madigan’s second in command, Hannig is well-known and well-liked in both houses and on both sides of the aisle, Redfield said. “He knows the issues. He’s widely respected, and very, very experienced.”

Hannig said this morning that communication suffered under the Blagojevich administration because promises repeatedly were made and broken. He said he thinks that a little trust could go a long way. “I know them [members of the General Assembly] by name, and they know me, and I am not going to lie to them,” Hannig said.

Hannig said he has been meeting with Christine Reed, chief engineer and director of the department’s Highway Division, to prepare for the job and for handling federal stimulus funds. Hannig said that he thinks they make a good team because while he has budgeting experience, she has the engineering expertise.

Belt-tightening begins

Gov. Pat Quinn started the process of trimming the fat, ordering all state agencies to further cut their budgets by 1 percent and hold the line on travel, equipment, contracts and hiring. Agencies already were operating on a 3 percent reduction under former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. “We have to make sure that state government is lean and cuts costs wherever it can,” Quinn said this afternoon in the Capitol. He estimated savings at “hundreds of millions” of dollars.

But lean state agencies could challenge the state’s ability to compete for federal transportation funds, according the Associated Press. It reported this afternoon that the Federal Highway Administration sent a letter to Quinn to warn that the Illinois Department of Transportation may be too understaffed to carry out major road construction projects.

Quinn said this afternoon that he had not seen the letter but that Illinois would do whatever it takes to ensure the ready-to-go projects are, in fact, ready to go.

After meeting with House Democrats in the Capitol this afternoon, Quinn reiterated his priorities of health care, education, transportation and public safety; however, he also sent the message to legislators to be prepared to take some tough votes, keep their wish lists in check and consider the fiscal context under which decisions will have to be made.

He also set the tone of a more cooperative budget-making process. Democratic Rep. David Miller of Lynwood said his approach is less antagonistic than it was under Blagojevich. “My opinion will be evaluated for its merits,” Miller said. “It will be looked at closely, and if there are ways that I can come up with trying to decrease the cost to the state, streamline efficiencies, then [Quinn will] be very, very open to it.”

But according to Rep. Julie Hamos, an Evanston Democrat, Quinn simply set the stage for some more belt-tightening and reforms. “We don’t know exactly what that means. Are we cutting programs, or are we raising taxes? He didn’t get specific, but he did talk about being very realistic this year and the tough choices facing us.”

She said the effort to build uniform understanding of the dire fiscal straights — a nearly $9 billion deficit next fiscal year — is necessary. “If we are going to take the very difficult leap to raise taxes, we are all going to have to be on the same team. And we’re going to have to sell it to the people.”

Other than watching for proposals to reform the state’s tax structure, also watch for alternative borrowing schemes. We’ll have more on that in the near future.

Legal grounds

The Illinois legislature continued a trend by ignoring the governor’s requests and, instead, focusing on some hot-button issues that grab headlines before the November elections. Gov. Rod Blagojevich called a special legislative session for today to focus on education funding reform, but not a peep was heard during proceedings. “Today is a joke. No agenda. No bill. No plan,” said House Minority Leader Tom Cross. The legislature has nothing to do when no legislation is proposed, added Steve Brown, spokesman for House Speaker Michael Madigan.

Here are two other items that grabbed the spotlight:

A legislative review panel unanimously rejected Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s idea to move about 140 state jobs from Springfield to Harrisburg, three hours apart. But the vote isn’t binding, and the governor maintains that he intends to move the jobs as an economic boost to the southern Illinois town.

But the bipartisan, legislative Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability’s six-hour hearing last month and the “pounds of evidence” generated might not go to waste, says Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, an Evanston Democrat chairing the commission and author of the law setting a review process for closing state facilities. The legal and economic data provided as a result of this process could be used as evidence in court.

Legal challenges could come from the state legislators representing the Springfield area, as well as the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 or the local Teamsters union representing the affected employees in the Illinois Department of Transportation’s Division of Public Safety.

Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin adds that the unanimous vote by the commission demonstrates that the public review process works and that it sets a precedent for future moves. “We’re already hearing rumors of other moves, and I think this is just as important as the next one or the one after that,” Davlin said after the committee vote. “I think it’s obvious that this is what this commission was formed for, to take a look at the economic impact. And I think they spoke overwhelmingly.”

The panel voted 12-0 to recommend that the administration not move the Division of Traffic Safety from Springfield to Harrisburg and that it, instead, look for alternative locations within the City of Springfield that would be cheaper than its current lease.

“Does this decision legally inject or confirm what the administration does to the point where it can stop the administration from doing it? According to the law, the answer is no,” Schoenberg says. “However … given the overwhelming volume of evidence that we heard on the economic and legal issues associated with this proposal, I personally think it would be unwise and contrary to the public’s interest.”

Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington Republican on the commission, said the process has highlighted questions about the fiscal merit, the political motivations and the human impact on the employees.

The administration, however, is looking at other evidence to the contrary, suggesting the move will save money and help out an economically depressed area. Here’s the governor’s statement, provided by e-mail this afternoon: “We will be moving forward with the geographic relocation of IDOT’s Division of Traffic Safety to Harrisburg, as previously mentioned. We’ll be working with the employees who do not choose to relocate, within the terms of their contracts, to find positions for them in Springfield. We will follow all appropriate timelines and guidelines as we move forward.”

Watch this blog for more about legal questions surrounding the governor’s executive authority.

But as part of a checks and balances system established by the state Constitution, the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability may be unable to issue binding recommendations, Schoenberg said. What that means for the IDOT proposal, he said: “The facts of the case point heavily towards the commission’s recommendation. Ultimately, if the executive branch chooses to go in a different direction, there may be someone who takes an exception with that.”

No pay raises
The Senate finally agreed with the House to reject granting about $1.1 million in pay raises to legislators, executive officers and top agency officials. But they still got a 3.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment this fiscal year.

Senate President Emil Jones Jr. and Sens. Donne Trotter and Kwame Raoul, all Chicago Democrats, voted present. The remaining 47 senators on the floor voted to reject the raises recommended by the Compensation Review Board. Raoul voted present because, as he said during floor debate, the board was formed to take the issue of legislative pay raises out of the legislature’s arena. “It should not be my decision as to how much I am compensated.”

Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson called the Compensation Review Board a “cover” that fails to take the issue out of the legislative purview. “State government is in shambles. Nothing is getting done … It’s just not the time for anyone in state government to get a pay increase.”

In the balcony, a group of people wearing turquoise T-shirts visited to urge legislators to refund $43 million in budget cuts affecting substance abuse and treatment services.

Ready, set, repeat

Reminiscent of last year, a whole host of state policy issues remain up in the air throughout the summer. Inaction mostly rests on the shoulders of Democrats, who are repeating history by agreeing on practically nothing. The main culprits are Gov. Rod Blagojevich and House Speaker Michael Madigan, each of whom blames the other for lack of action. Meanwhile, Illinois is in its ninth year without a capital construction plan, campaign funding reform remains dormant, many state services and agencies are operating with stagnant or decreased funding and long-term costs of health care and pensions continue to compound.

Legislators and the governor will return to Springfield this week with lots to talk about, but little progress is anticipated. Here’s a chronological list of activities with some context.

Today: Comptroller Dan Hynes issued a statement that he would not cut the checks for pay raises for state legislators and officers if they are enacted because the General Assembly never gave him authority to spend the necessary money. “We cannot implement the pay raises without an appropriation. But more importantly, I am of the opinion that this is no time for pay raises,” he said in a release, citing budget cuts for social services and Medicaid providers. The House rejected the pay raises, but the Senate has yet to do so. In the larger scheme of things, the pay raises simply are a battle of public perception. While such state services as substance abuse treatment struggle to meet demand because of $43 million in budget cuts, it would look disingenuous if legislators received their annual 3 percent cost-of-living adjustments at the same time they receive significant pay raises, costing about $1.1 million just for constitutional officers, legislators and top state agency officials, according to the comptroller’s office. That doesn't count pay raises for judges.

Tuesday: Expect Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s idea to move about 140 state employee positions from Springfield three hours south to be rejected by a bipartisan legislative review panel. Expect that rejection to be followed by the governor’s statement that the move is going to go forward, anyway. Lots of union-backed employees will be up in arms again. Meanwhile, they’re still working under last year’s contract with the state while their union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31, remains gridlocked (click this link and scroll down) with the administration. Among the key sticking points are employee wages and employee contributions to health care and pension benefits.

Tuesday and Wednesday: Gov. Rod Blagojevich called legislators back to the Capitol to address two major issues: funding for education on Tuesday and funding for capital construction projects Wednesday. But neither session meets until late in the afternoon, giving legislators time throughout the day to attend various events at the annual State Fair in Springfield. Governor’s Day (a.k.a. Democrats’ Day) is Wednesday and Republican Day is Thursday. Watch for political fireworks off stage.

Ongoing: The governor says he’ll “rewrite to do right,” his slogan for changing agreed-upon bills to include his agenda. If the General Assembly rejects his changes, then the underlying bill dies. So far, he’s changed two bills. One would allow all adults up to age 26 to remain on their parents’ health insurance plans. The original intent was limited to college students who took a medical leave or who reduced their course loads to part time because of an illness or injury. They would have been covered for a year on their parents' plans. A second amendatory veto would extend property tax exemptions to all veterans with service-connected disabilities certified by the U. S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs. The original bill regarded a tax increment financing district in the Village of Downs. Blagojevich has said he will continue amending numerous bills in his Rewrite to Do Right campaign, “to take positive action on legislation that has been sent to him by the General Assembly,” according to a statement from Brian Williamsen, his spokesman.

August 29: Later this month marks the deadline for the governor to sign, change or reject ethics reforms sent to his desk in June. His office repeatedly has said he doesn’t think the ethics reforms go far enough. One potential amendment could include banning state contractors from donating to statewide political parties. The original legislation, which received unanimous approval by the General Assembly in May, only prevented state contractors holding contracts worth $50,000 or more from donating to statewide officeholders who sign the contracts.

Also coming up: One of the House Democrats’ point people on education, Rep. Mike Smith of Canton, announced that he’ll host a series of public hearings to consider a proposal to abolish property taxes for school funding by 2010. It’s been floated by Sen. James Meeks, a Chicago Democrat who previously threatened to run against Blagojevich for governor in the absence of education funding reforms. Meeks didn’t run, but he also didn’t get what he wanted. So here we go again. Add education funding reform to a huge pile of politically sensitive Statehouse issues that likely will grab some headlines but will remain stalled, at least before the November elections.

Which way?

The first time a state legislative panel has gone this far in carrying out a statutory process for closing a state facility isn’t a pretty one. Whether intended or not, one Illinois town has been pitted against another after Gov. Rod Blagojevich in June proposed moving about 140 Illinois Department of Transportation positions from Springfield three hours south to Harrisburg.

It was easy to see the tension during a lengthy public hearing in the state Capitol building Thursday night. A packed committee room literally was divided. Harrisburg residents sat on one side in purple T-shirts encouraging people to visit the southern Illinois town. Springfield state employees sat on the other side in lime green T-shirts saying the move is the “wrong way.” More supporters and opponents overflowed to the floor below, where they sat in folding chairs lined up in two more hallways and watched the committee hearing on giant screens.

The dilemma facing the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, the panel overseeing the process, is muddled. Facts have been complemented, and sometimes contradicted, by politics and emotions in the past few months.

Union-backed employees repeatedly have shared personal stories, including having to leave a grandmother with Alzheimer’s disease in a nursing home, forcing a teen-age son who lives between his mother’s and father’s homes to decide between the two and challenging people with disabilities who have support networks and medical experts in Springfield. The governor's office has said employees can choose to stay in Springfield and take jobs with equal pay and equal benefits, although the employees are skeptical.

Harrisburg officials said they feel left out and overshadowed by Springfield. “We’re depressed, not stupid,” said Harrisburg Mayor Valerie Mitchell.

They’re both victims, one set to lose either way. The motivation behind the move is the most contentious point, particularly whether the idea is rooted in economics or in politics.

GOP legislators representing the Springfield area allege the governor’s proposal was retribution for supporting a measure that would allow voters to recall elected officials, a measure perceived to be directed at the governor. Local officials list various state-owned facilities in Springfield that have space and could house the division. “We can move them a block or two and not 200 miles,” said Rep. Raymond Poe, a Springfield Republican, during the hearing.

The administration refutes the allegation and says the move is intended to give a boost to an economically depressed area of the state.

Sen. Christine Radogno, a Lemot Republican, said this proposal fails to consider economic development through private investment or tourism funding. Having spent the morning in Chicago at a leaders’ meeting about a statewide capital plan that would encourage such development, Radogno said during the hearing: “Guess what. It ain’t happening. It is so dysfunctional, the governance of this state, that we’re reduced to talking about economic development in terms of moving jobs around.”

“I want to help you,” she said to local Harrisburg officials, “but I’m not sure that, just again, moving government jobs around should satisfy us that we’re doing adequate economic development. That’s not economic development.”

Secretary of Transportation Milton Sees testified that it all started because of the need to replace old carpet nearly two years ago. Rather than continue to pay for an expensive lease to a California owner to house the Division of Traffic Safety, the department looked for ways to save money once the lease expired. Shortly after, Sees said the governor directed him to find a division that could serve in a stand-alone facility and relocate to an economically depressed area of the state. The focus shifted from finding space in Springfield to determining whether the Division of Traffic Safety could relocate to southern Illinois, eventually leading to Harrisburg. “They are starving for jobs, literally,” Sees said.

The transportation department already signed a contract to purchase space in the Harrisburg facility for $812,000, using money from the state’s dedicated Road Fund. IDOT’s chief counsel Ellen Schanzle-Haskins added that the department could break that lease at any time with five day’s notice. She also said the purchase is frozen until after the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability issues a recommendation, due September 11. The recommendation, however, is not binding. The governor could move the positions, anyway.

Transportation jobs still in limbo

By Bethany Jaeger
The hype over moving an Illinois Department of Transportation building from Springfield to southern Illinois goes beyond the roughly 110 jobs at stake. It begs the question whether the administration will be sincere in following a statutory process for closing state facilities and whether politics will overshadow policy in the decision.

The governor announced this afternoon that he intends to move the department’s Division of Traffic Safety from Springfield to Harrisburg in Saline County. The press release says the move would save $12.8 million over the next decade, while allowing much-needed economic development in southern Illinois. Several local officials, on the other hand, argue that there are numerous options for cheaper office space in Springfield and no reason to move the workers, who travel throughout the state for their work, away from the centrally located city.

The governor made it sound as though the move was final, but there’s a process that must take place under state law before the state can close a facility. Skeptics don’t buy the logic and question the motivation. Whether politics or cost-savings are behind the move, it’s the process that deserves attention.

The public body in charge of overseeing that process is the bipartisan legislative Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability. Dan Long, executive director of the oversight panel, says the State Facilities Closure Act is pretty clear: “No action may be taken to implement the recommendation for closure of a State facility until 50 days after the filing of any required recommendation.”

The administration has to file its recommendation to close the Springfield facility by July 1. That hadn’t happened by Friday morning, even though the governor officially announced Harrisburg would receive the IDOT Division of Traffic Safety shortly after. An IDOT spokesman said the intent is to file the necessary paperwork by the deadline. A public hearing has to be held, currently scheduled for July 31 in Springfield. Then the administration can’t actually close the Springfield facility for 50 days, which lands on September 11. The governor’s press release says the move would take six to nine months.

“If they’re acting already to move before the 50 days after the recommendation’s filed, I think it’s a violation of the act,” Long said. If that happens: “I suppose someone could go to court and challenge it.”

A legal challenge could come from anyone from the commission itself, to the legislators who serve on the panel, to the legislators who represent Springfield, to the public employee unions that represent the IDOT employees.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 represents the 110 of the workers affected by the move, according to spokesman Anders Lindall. Management would remain in Springfield. Lindall said he won’t speculate about the administration’s intent but did say, “We’re troubled by the way this entire process has proceeded so far.”

He compared the move to previous attempts to close Stateville Correctional Center in Joliet and another correctional center in Pontiac. “What’s common to each of them is that it seems very clear that there’s no logic or planning or sound policy behind any of them. Whether it’s political or whether it’s meant as a threat, I don’t know. But I do know that we don’t think it’s appropriate for anyone to threaten people’s lives and livelihoods, to threaten their jobs. And that’s what’s happening here.”

One political undertone involves the ongoing negotiations between AFSCME and the administration. They have to agree on a contract that spells out the amount state employees make and the amount they have to pay for health care and retirement benefits for the next four years. Threatening any state employee jobs could be perceived as a threat to compromise — or else.

Another political undertone involves the legislators whose districts would lose the Springfield jobs. The move first was announced the day after Springfield Sen. Larry Bomke, a Republican, voted in support of a measure that would have allowed the public to decide whether to recall public officials, commonly seen as a swipe against Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Bomke said the motivation seems clear to him: Retribution for the recall vote.

“I don’t think [the governor] likes Springfield,” he said. “I don’t think Springfield cares much about him.”

But Bomke said he felt skeptical that the move will actually happen. “This governor has a tendency to make announcements and then not follow through. So I’m hopeful this will be another case of that.”

Rep. Rich Brauer, a Petersburg Republican, described the plan as an “ill-informed idea that should be dropped,” as it would move some data entry employees with disabilities away from their homes and potentially affect their health care options. But, he said, “Unfortunately, the process isn’t binding. It’s going to take public opinion to change the fact that he has a lot of leeway on where he wants [to station them] and the fact that state government is here in Springfield.”

The question is whether the process will work as intended. After the public hearing, the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability has to review the information gathered and issue a recommendation about whether to close the facility and move the jobs. The commission’s opinion, as Brauer pointed out, is not binding. The governor could still move the jobs. But in the past, the governor has followed the commission’s recommendations.

The governor’s press office did not return repeated phone calls or an e-mail.

Bomke said the governor has thumbed his nose at the law before (mainly in his push for health care expansions), and this time also would come with consequences. “If he does, then it gives us clear grounds to sue him,” Bomke said.

Would he do that? “Absolutely. In a heartbeat.”

Note: The State Journal-Register posted this article saying IDOT employees who don't want to move to Harrisburg would be offered same-level jobs within the agency.

Human rights, ethics and impeacment

Illinois’ first openly gay legislator and the man who championed the state's law to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation died yesterday. Larry McKeon was 63.

The Democrat announced his retirement in 2006 after 10 years in the House, where he represented northern Chicago neighborhoods. But Rep. Gregory Harris, who replaced McKeon, says his work resonated statewide. “I think a lot of people expected him to come down here and sort of be a single-note guy. He proved that he had the ability to represent the City of Chicago, he had the ability to represent the people of his district, he had a strong voice for people who were dispossessed and underserved all across this state — and really distinguish himself as a leader on a lot of key issues.”

House Speaker Michael Madigan described McKeon as a “tireless advocate on a wide range of social, health care and human rights issues,” including services for people with HIV and AIDS, as well as housing, mental health and developmental disabilities.

“He never shied away from confronting tough issues or seeking to bring disparate forces together,” Madigan said in a statement. “I admired his tenacity and his intellect.”

Born in Idaho, McKeon earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California State University at Los Angeles and worked toward his doctorate at the University of Chicago. His 42 years of public service included working as a special adviser to Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, a lieutenant in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and an infantry officer in the U.S. Army.

He was diagnosed with AIDS and colorectal cancer in 2005. (See Illinois Issues magazine, September 2006, page 35.)

Civil unions
Harris also said he expects to call a measure that would allow civil unions in Illinois, which would grant legal rights related to emergency medical decisions, nursing home and hospital visits and funeral arrangements. In a Statehouse news conference, Harris joined senior citizens in advocating for the measure. He also said it would apply to same sex couples, although it's not the same thing as same sex marriage. He tried to advance HB 1615 last year but didn't get very far.

This is different. He said same-sex marriage is "off the table" this time around.

"There’s clearly not support for that. What I did hear from people is that they understood that committed couples need certain basic legal rights and responsibilities related to hospital visitation and health care decision making and funeral arrangements and those kinds of basic life issues. And that’s what civil unions is addressing.”

Ethics on the move
Sen. Don Harmon, sponsor of long-awaited ethics reform, said he hopes to call the “pay-to-play” legislation Thursday on the Senate floor. After a Senate committee advanced the measure this afternoon, Harmon said he couldn’t imagine too many people voting against it. We’ll have to see that to believe it.

“Impeachment” is a buzzword around the Capitol
by Patrick O'Brien
Four state lawmakers and about 150 state workers rallied on the steps of the Capitol today and called for the impeachment of Gov. Rod Blagojevich. In a rally organized by Springfield radio station WMAY, central Illinois Republicans criticized the governor over the slow pace of budget talks and the proposal to move 150 state jobs in the Illinois Department of Transportation from Springfield to southern Illinois.

Sen. Larry Bomke, a Springfield Republican, already sent a request for an impeachment trial to House Speaker Michael Madigan. Bomke accused the governor of playing political games with workers’ lives.

Note: Yesterday, the House approved a measure that would supplement the Illinois Department of Transportation budget. The agency is struggling to meet demands after the particularly harsh winter and increasing gas prices. The measure, sponsored by the governor’s floor leader, Democratic Rep. Jay Hoffman of Collinsville, includes extra money for the IDOT branch in Springfield.