State parks could remain open, but historic sites definitely would not. And substance abuse treatment services would receive the $55 million they need to remain active and to secure federal matching funds. But the state attorney general, other constitutional officers and legislative commissions weren’t so lucky.
In short, the battle ain’t over, even though the legislature’s annual fall veto session is.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed legislation Thursday restoring, according to his office, about $180 million that had been vetoed as part of his $1.4 billion budget cuts earlier this year. That leaves about $55 million unfunded from what the legislature wanted to restore this fall. The General Assembly approved a plan to transfer money from special dedicated funds to save state parks and historic sites, programs that deal with substance abuse and developmental disabilities, and funding for constitutional officers. Blagojevich approved half of the plan in September, leaving the restorations up in the air. And some of the budget restorations for state parks could remain up there, as the governor left himself some space to maneuver.
Blagojevich announced the $180 million in restorations minutes after the House and Senate adjourned their annual fall session Thursday evening. Through a news release, Blagojevich said certain special funds are restricted by the federal government and could jeopardize future federal funding if swept.
“If you discount those federal funds that are restricted, then that only leaves a certain amount available,” said Katie Ridgeway, a spokeswoman for Blagojevich’s budget office.
She added that the bigger picture is that these cuts are accompanied by a $2 billion deficit, for which the governor introduced a four-point economic plan. The House started early Thursday by discussing one part of the plan to let the governor reserve up to 8 percent of the budgets approved for numerous state services, but the bill wasn't called for a vote. Ridgeway said the governor will continue to work with the legislature to find more agreeable language, but she would not specify whether those changes would address some lawmakers’ concerns that the governor could withhold 8 percent of the budgets for some state services and not others. (See background here.)
The legislature is not supposed to return until January 12, meaning the governor’s economic plan won’t advance unless Blagojevich calls lawmakers back into special session before then.
What’s funded by SB 1103:
The governor’s release says he restored $175.9 million, much of it for substance abuse treatment centers, front-line staff for the Department of Children and Family Services and a reduced fare subsidy for the Chicago-area Regional Transportation Authority. Other beneficiaries include state parks front-line staff, water and soil conservation, higher education, mental health and developmental disabilities.
What’s not funded because of the veto of SB 1103:
The governor did not spare the $2.4 million for the Historic Preservation Agency’s front-line staff, which means the 32 employees already laid off won’t get their jobs back. And without the staff, about a dozen historic sites scheduled to close Nov. 30 will close for the remainder of the fiscal year, says Dave Blanchette, agency spokesman.
Another significant portion of the $55 million vetoed by the governor is from Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office. Functions affected range from personnel to state law enforcement and contributions to the state employees’ retirement system.
The attorney general’s chief of staff, Ann Spillane, didn’t buy the governor’s explanation and said through e-mail that the restorations would have come from “money generated exclusively through this office’s litigation — and Illinois law requires that this money can only be used by the attorney general’s office. The governor’s decision to veto this funding is nothing more than petty politics. And his explanation for the veto is false. In this current economic crisis, when the attorney general’s office is working to help Illinois homeowners stay in their homes, it is a disgrace to let the governor’s politics get in the way of this critical work.”
Ridgeway would only say that the governor made difficult decisions and set a priority of protecting core services.
The secretary of state, also, maintained significant losses. Others include the lieutenant governor, the treasurer and the auditor general. The legislative branch wasn’t immune, either. Cut were budget items for legislative research, printing and audits, as well as funding for two commissions that project economic activity and review the governor’s administrative rules.
A brighter spot: New leaders
Thursday was a historic day in the Senate. Wednesday night’s rare, simultaneous internal elections of new leaders for the Democrats and Republicans undoubtedly will change the dynamic of leadership in the Capitol. Sen. John Cullerton of Chicago is slated to become the next Senate president and leader of the extraordinarily large Democratic Caucus. Across the aisle, Sen. Christine Radogno of Lemont will replace Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson as the first female caucus leader of either party. They start in January.
The mood in the Capitol Thursday felt lighter. People smiled, mingled, debated some serious legislation and congratulated each other. Perhaps the most touching moment came when Watson returned to the chamber floor for the first time since experiencing a stroke last month. Shortly after the stroke, he announced he would not seek re-election as minority leader but would continue to serve as a senator.
He spent four days in the hospital, 18 days in recovery and numerous days in therapy, but on Thursday, he Watson was walking, talking, laughing and crying. He broke down as he recalled the way he felt when he realized he had the symptoms of a stroke: slurred speech and difficulty walking. “I thought of [former Sen.] John Maitland and my dad,” he said, unable to finish his sentence through the tears. Both had serious strokes with lasting side effects.
Watson is undergoing intense therapy three hours a day, three days a week. He said he had low cholesterol, low blood pressure and didn’t smoke, although his family history increased his risk. He urges awareness. “People need to take care of themselves. They need to recognize that something like this can happen at any time. You need to take care of your diet, take care of your weight, take care of your blood pressure, take a baby aspirin every day.”
The previous night, Watson cast an important vote for Radogno over Sen. Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale. “She was my deputy leader,” Watson said. “I supported her and wanted to see her become leader. She did such a good job on the campaign side and on the policy side. And that’s important.”
Radogno, a moderate Republican, says she sees her role as a continuation of Watson’s. “One of the things that Sen. Watson did very well is keep the caucus together. And I think that’s probably the primary job that the leader has because when you’re in the minority, if you’re fractured, you’re even less effective. It’s going to be a challenge because we do have diversity within our caucus, but I think everyone in our caucus recognizes that we need to stick together. And I think it’ll be easy for us to do on both issues that are in the forefront right now, which are the tax issues and fiscal issues.”
We’ll have much more from Radogno in the coming months of Illinois Issues magazine.
Cullerton says he, too, will foster a more inclusive atmosphere in the Capitol, where the governor, House Speaker Michael Madigan and outgoing Senate President Emil Jones Jr. have been in years of gridlock. “I’m not going to fight with the speaker. I’m not going to fight with the governor. And hopefully, I can be a good go-between to try to bring about positive change.”
He already appointed Sen. James Clayborne, the runner-up in the Democrats’ internal elections, as his majority leader to signal a fresh start. “Even though we ran against each other, we remain friends,” Cullerton says of Clayborne. “He’s a very talented guy. He comes from another part of the state from me, and we need to make sure the downstaters feel like they can work with a leader from Chicago, which we can. So it’s important to have him as a person and the symbolism of having somebody from downstate in majority leader.”
Watch Illinois Issues for more about Cullerton’s first priority: advancing a long-awaited capital bill.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Keep your sights on 2011
The state’s bipartisan legislative Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability projected the state’s budget shortfall between $2 billion and $3 billion for the current fiscal year, FY09. And that striking deficit includes a one-time windfall when the state collects on a lease of the 10th casino license.
Yesterday, Gov. Rod Blagojevich pitched a four-point plan. Tonight, Rep. Gary Hannig, the chief budget negotiator for House Democrats, said he plans to discuss legislation Thursday that would advance one of the governor’s proposals. (Watch for the new language in an amendment of SB 2083.) It would allow the governor to withhold 8 percent of general revenue funds in “reserve.”
This and previous governors have applied that power to state agencies under the governor’s control in the past, but the new proposal would expand that authority and allow Blagojevich to impound some additional funding for K-12 education, higher education and state pension funds. It also potentially would allow Blagojevich to collect some tax revenues typically shared with city and county governments.
The same power to reserve up to 8 percent also would be extended to other statewide officers. The governor already applied a 3 percent reserve on state agencies and cut funding for constitutional officers earlier this year. The potential for further reserves begs the question of how state managers would be able to cut more programs or institute more furlough days than they already have.
Hannig said the current proposal also would allow Blagojevich to apply the reserves unevenly, potentially requiring 8 percent reserves, say, for higher education but not for K-12 education. The House will have to flesh out the details of this serious but controversial proposal, Hannig said. “Our view in the House is in light of the fact that we’re scheduled to go home tomorrow and not return until January 12 that we shouldn’t just ignore the governor’s proposal.”
Hannig pointed out: “The language says he may. So he may not.”
Hannig’s budget negotiating counterpart in the Senate, Sen. Donne Trotter, agreed. “He doesn’t have to do this against any agency. This is an alternative to us getting dollars from the feds or selling the license, so it’s a contingency plan.”
While the House could move the bill Thursday, Trotter said the Senate could still act on it by week’s end or in the first two days of session in January.
Either way, the FY09 budget is in bad shape, and the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability projected that FY10 will be worse. The first thing that sticks out, Hannig said, is a massive payment to the state’s five pension systems for public employees. He anticipates an additional $1.2 billion payment, and if revenue projections are accurate, the state might not even garner $1.2 billion in growth for FY10.
“If we don’t do something, we may not even be able to make the pension payment next year, let alone anything else,” Hannig said.
To avoid ending on a bad note, take the advice of Scott Pattison, executive director of the National Association of State Budget Officers. He spoke to Statehouse reporters during a national conference in North Carolina last week and said: Look forward to FY11, when things actually might start to look better. Hannig agreed with that projection and compared post-FY11 to a spring day after the long, dark days of winter.
Yesterday, Gov. Rod Blagojevich pitched a four-point plan. Tonight, Rep. Gary Hannig, the chief budget negotiator for House Democrats, said he plans to discuss legislation Thursday that would advance one of the governor’s proposals. (Watch for the new language in an amendment of SB 2083.) It would allow the governor to withhold 8 percent of general revenue funds in “reserve.”
This and previous governors have applied that power to state agencies under the governor’s control in the past, but the new proposal would expand that authority and allow Blagojevich to impound some additional funding for K-12 education, higher education and state pension funds. It also potentially would allow Blagojevich to collect some tax revenues typically shared with city and county governments.
The same power to reserve up to 8 percent also would be extended to other statewide officers. The governor already applied a 3 percent reserve on state agencies and cut funding for constitutional officers earlier this year. The potential for further reserves begs the question of how state managers would be able to cut more programs or institute more furlough days than they already have.
Hannig said the current proposal also would allow Blagojevich to apply the reserves unevenly, potentially requiring 8 percent reserves, say, for higher education but not for K-12 education. The House will have to flesh out the details of this serious but controversial proposal, Hannig said. “Our view in the House is in light of the fact that we’re scheduled to go home tomorrow and not return until January 12 that we shouldn’t just ignore the governor’s proposal.”
Hannig pointed out: “The language says he may. So he may not.”
Hannig’s budget negotiating counterpart in the Senate, Sen. Donne Trotter, agreed. “He doesn’t have to do this against any agency. This is an alternative to us getting dollars from the feds or selling the license, so it’s a contingency plan.”
While the House could move the bill Thursday, Trotter said the Senate could still act on it by week’s end or in the first two days of session in January.
Either way, the FY09 budget is in bad shape, and the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability projected that FY10 will be worse. The first thing that sticks out, Hannig said, is a massive payment to the state’s five pension systems for public employees. He anticipates an additional $1.2 billion payment, and if revenue projections are accurate, the state might not even garner $1.2 billion in growth for FY10.
“If we don’t do something, we may not even be able to make the pension payment next year, let alone anything else,” Hannig said.
To avoid ending on a bad note, take the advice of Scott Pattison, executive director of the National Association of State Budget Officers. He spoke to Statehouse reporters during a national conference in North Carolina last week and said: Look forward to FY11, when things actually might start to look better. Hannig agreed with that projection and compared post-FY11 to a spring day after the long, dark days of winter.
Turn of events
Democratic Rep. Art Turner of Chicago is one of three finalists to lead the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The center plans to replace Mike Lawrence, the executive director who retired, in January.The other two finalists include veteran journalists, William Freivogel, director of SIUC’s School of Journalism and a longtime journalist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and David Yepsen, a political columnist with the Des Moines Register.
Matt Baughman, who has been with the institute for a decade in various capacities, is serving as interim director.
Turner, who is in Springfield this afternoon for an abbreviated fall session of the General Assembly, says if chosen, he would resign his legislative post and move with his family to Carbondale. We'll have more soon.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Nervous energy and four-point plans
The national economic doom and gloom is starting to cast ominous clouds on existing state budget problems, leading Gov. Rod Blagojevich and other state officials to propose some ways to adjust. So far, it seems as though the state is running in place. There’s no indication that the General Assembly and the governor are going to start getting along any time soon to follow through on some of these proposals. The legislature returns for its annual fall session Wednesday and Thursday. Friday is still up in the air.
The governor's proposal foreshadows this month's closure of numerous state parks and historic sites, as well as reduced human services, that resulted from $1.4 billion in budget cuts. While the first two rounds of money already have been transferred from special dedicated funds to help restore some of the funding, the governor hasn’t yet signed legislation authorizing the spending. He has until December 5 before it automatically becomes law.
In the meantime, Blagojevich released a four-point plan that includes borrowing money, asking the feds for some bailout money and withholding more state money. Announced through a news release, part of the plan would create a new law for emergency budget management. He seeks authority to hold as much as 8 percent of general revenue funds in reserves for state agencies, education, higher education, state pension funds and local government funding. That would be on top of the 3 percent reserves he already requested. Another portion of his new plan seeks as much as $3 billion in federal aid during the next three years.
Part of his proposal also relates to Comptroller Dan Hynes’ idea announced last week. It would allow the state to borrow money, which is nothing new. But instead of having to pay back the loan by the end of the state’s fiscal year (June 30), the state would have 12 calendar months to repay the loan. The premise is that because the comptroller would have more time to repay the loan, his office would have more flexibility in cash flow.
The proposal would need legislative approval by a three-fifths majority of each chamber so it could immediately take effect.
Right now, cash flow is a huge problem because the state can’t pay about $4 billion of its bills, including Medicaid payments to medical providers. The comptroller wrote in a letter to state officials to announce that the backlog could top $5 billion and inflict 20-week delays for payments by March. “To characterize this as an imminent crisis risks understatement,” he wrote.
Hynes’ spokeswoman, Carol Knowles, says the comptroller’s office is getting continuous complaints that unpaid bills threaten everything from police officers being unable to fill their gas tanks to prisons being unable to pay their vendors for food deliveries. Bills are paid as cash flows in, but the comptroller’s office also has to have enough money on hand to pay such long-term obligations as employee payroll and general state aid for schools. “It’s a very delicate balancing act,” she says, “and the larger the bill backlog is, the more difficult it is to answer the emergencies when they arise because it gets to the point where everything is an emergency.”
Senate Republicans describe the governor’s four-point plan as “begging and borrowing.” Sen. Christine Radogno, deputy minority leader from Lemont, says while she could support further belt tightening for state agencies or regular short-term borrowing as legitimate cash-management tools, she wants specifics that aren't available from the governor's press release. And she says she has concerns about short-term borrowing that crosses over into the next fiscal year, as proposed by Hynes. “I’m certainly willing to look at any proposal of the comptroller or the governor, but we just need to be careful not to fool ourselves and the taxpayers,” which, she says, are the same taxpayers who are footing the bill for the federal government’s $700 billion bailout package approved last month.
Cindy Davidsmeyer, spokeswoman for Senate President Emil Jones Jr., says he acknowledges that the state is facing a huge crunch, and he looks forward to hearing more details as they come out. House Speaker Michael Madigan’s spokesman, Steve Brown, says only that the plan is under review.
Education re-reform
Also Tuesday, a new diverse, well-funded education policy group announced efforts to issue comprehensive reforms by this spring, although it’s unlikely that the group’s recommendations would be ready to go by the time the legislature is supposed to enact a state budget for fiscal year 2010.
Founders of Advance Illinois, a nonprofit based in Chicago, plan to travel around this state and others to gather evidence during the next six months. The goal is to take a broad and long-term view of ways to reverse some of Illinois’ worst academic trends that hamstring its students and workforce.
“The bottom line is … that Illinois schools are performing, despite the fact that we’re the fifth largest economy in the country, at an average to below-average level,” says Robin Steans, executive director of Advance Illinois and sister of state Sen. Heather Steans of Chicago. “On any academic measure or any attainment measure you might care to look at, we’re trailing the nation. At all grade levels in all subject areas.”
Ellen Alberding, president of the Joyce Foundation, serves on the board and says the Chicago-based foundation funds educational policy efforts throughout the Midwest. Illinois’ condition sticks out, she said after the news conference, because a large gap exists between educational attainment of low-income minority students and higher-income white students. According to information released by the group Tuesday, Illinois ranks 6th in the nation for having one of the largest achievement gaps between African-American and white students. Alberding also said she was struck by a study of Chicago students that shows only 10 percent of eighth graders who score well on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test later score 20 or above on the ACT, which indicates that most students in the study were ill prepared for higher education.
“It’s outrageous that the state has its expectations so low,” she said.
The Joyce Foundation supports the new effort along with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Chicago Community Trust, the Grand Victoria Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the McCormick Foundation and the New York-based Wallace Foundation.
Board members include a vast political mix, starting with co-chair and former Gov. Jim Edgar. The Republican unsuccessfully pitched a plan in the 1990s to reduce local property taxes and increase state income taxes as a way to reform education funding. He said Tuesday that he still believes the state relies too heavily on local property taxes to fund education, but the group would not focus on funding reforms. It only would announce recommendations for funding reforms as part of a more comprehensive plan, he said.
Deflecting the focus away from the question of whether taxes would increase, however, will be a challenge.
The other co-chair is former U.S. Commerce Secretary Bill Daley, the Democratic brother of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and a rumored candidate for governor in 2010. Also among the board members is former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert, a Republican who helped lead negotiations between Blagojevich and legislative leaders to draft a capital program for road and school construction projects. That plan stalled. Former state Sen. Miguel del Valle, a Democrat and current city clerk of Chicago, used to chair the Illinois Senate Education Committee. Del Valle said Tuesday that Advance Illinois “is the most promising” of all the efforts he’s seen to reform public education.
The governor's proposal foreshadows this month's closure of numerous state parks and historic sites, as well as reduced human services, that resulted from $1.4 billion in budget cuts. While the first two rounds of money already have been transferred from special dedicated funds to help restore some of the funding, the governor hasn’t yet signed legislation authorizing the spending. He has until December 5 before it automatically becomes law.
In the meantime, Blagojevich released a four-point plan that includes borrowing money, asking the feds for some bailout money and withholding more state money. Announced through a news release, part of the plan would create a new law for emergency budget management. He seeks authority to hold as much as 8 percent of general revenue funds in reserves for state agencies, education, higher education, state pension funds and local government funding. That would be on top of the 3 percent reserves he already requested. Another portion of his new plan seeks as much as $3 billion in federal aid during the next three years.
Part of his proposal also relates to Comptroller Dan Hynes’ idea announced last week. It would allow the state to borrow money, which is nothing new. But instead of having to pay back the loan by the end of the state’s fiscal year (June 30), the state would have 12 calendar months to repay the loan. The premise is that because the comptroller would have more time to repay the loan, his office would have more flexibility in cash flow.
The proposal would need legislative approval by a three-fifths majority of each chamber so it could immediately take effect.
Right now, cash flow is a huge problem because the state can’t pay about $4 billion of its bills, including Medicaid payments to medical providers. The comptroller wrote in a letter to state officials to announce that the backlog could top $5 billion and inflict 20-week delays for payments by March. “To characterize this as an imminent crisis risks understatement,” he wrote.
Hynes’ spokeswoman, Carol Knowles, says the comptroller’s office is getting continuous complaints that unpaid bills threaten everything from police officers being unable to fill their gas tanks to prisons being unable to pay their vendors for food deliveries. Bills are paid as cash flows in, but the comptroller’s office also has to have enough money on hand to pay such long-term obligations as employee payroll and general state aid for schools. “It’s a very delicate balancing act,” she says, “and the larger the bill backlog is, the more difficult it is to answer the emergencies when they arise because it gets to the point where everything is an emergency.”
Senate Republicans describe the governor’s four-point plan as “begging and borrowing.” Sen. Christine Radogno, deputy minority leader from Lemont, says while she could support further belt tightening for state agencies or regular short-term borrowing as legitimate cash-management tools, she wants specifics that aren't available from the governor's press release. And she says she has concerns about short-term borrowing that crosses over into the next fiscal year, as proposed by Hynes. “I’m certainly willing to look at any proposal of the comptroller or the governor, but we just need to be careful not to fool ourselves and the taxpayers,” which, she says, are the same taxpayers who are footing the bill for the federal government’s $700 billion bailout package approved last month.
Cindy Davidsmeyer, spokeswoman for Senate President Emil Jones Jr., says he acknowledges that the state is facing a huge crunch, and he looks forward to hearing more details as they come out. House Speaker Michael Madigan’s spokesman, Steve Brown, says only that the plan is under review.
Education re-reform
Also Tuesday, a new diverse, well-funded education policy group announced efforts to issue comprehensive reforms by this spring, although it’s unlikely that the group’s recommendations would be ready to go by the time the legislature is supposed to enact a state budget for fiscal year 2010.
Founders of Advance Illinois, a nonprofit based in Chicago, plan to travel around this state and others to gather evidence during the next six months. The goal is to take a broad and long-term view of ways to reverse some of Illinois’ worst academic trends that hamstring its students and workforce.
“The bottom line is … that Illinois schools are performing, despite the fact that we’re the fifth largest economy in the country, at an average to below-average level,” says Robin Steans, executive director of Advance Illinois and sister of state Sen. Heather Steans of Chicago. “On any academic measure or any attainment measure you might care to look at, we’re trailing the nation. At all grade levels in all subject areas.”
Ellen Alberding, president of the Joyce Foundation, serves on the board and says the Chicago-based foundation funds educational policy efforts throughout the Midwest. Illinois’ condition sticks out, she said after the news conference, because a large gap exists between educational attainment of low-income minority students and higher-income white students. According to information released by the group Tuesday, Illinois ranks 6th in the nation for having one of the largest achievement gaps between African-American and white students. Alberding also said she was struck by a study of Chicago students that shows only 10 percent of eighth graders who score well on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test later score 20 or above on the ACT, which indicates that most students in the study were ill prepared for higher education.
“It’s outrageous that the state has its expectations so low,” she said.
The Joyce Foundation supports the new effort along with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Chicago Community Trust, the Grand Victoria Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the McCormick Foundation and the New York-based Wallace Foundation.
Board members include a vast political mix, starting with co-chair and former Gov. Jim Edgar. The Republican unsuccessfully pitched a plan in the 1990s to reduce local property taxes and increase state income taxes as a way to reform education funding. He said Tuesday that he still believes the state relies too heavily on local property taxes to fund education, but the group would not focus on funding reforms. It only would announce recommendations for funding reforms as part of a more comprehensive plan, he said.
Deflecting the focus away from the question of whether taxes would increase, however, will be a challenge.
The other co-chair is former U.S. Commerce Secretary Bill Daley, the Democratic brother of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and a rumored candidate for governor in 2010. Also among the board members is former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert, a Republican who helped lead negotiations between Blagojevich and legislative leaders to draft a capital program for road and school construction projects. That plan stalled. Former state Sen. Miguel del Valle, a Democrat and current city clerk of Chicago, used to chair the Illinois Senate Education Committee. Del Valle said Tuesday that Advance Illinois “is the most promising” of all the efforts he’s seen to reform public education.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Veto session preview
As we head into the first week of the Illinois General Assembly’s fall session, the biggest questions are who will be selected to lead the Senate Democrats and the Senate Republicans? Leaders of both caucuses are stepping down, opening the door for a rare change in leadership that has potential to drastically change the atmosphere in the Capitol.
See this month’s Illinois Issues magazine for information about the Democratic race for Senate president.
So far, two Senate GOP members are openly seeking the minority leadership position, while two others are mentioned as potential candidates if the caucus can’t agree. Sen. Christine Radogno of Lemont and Sen. Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale both represent suburban Chicago districts in mostly DuPage and Will counties. Both have described themselves as fiscal conservatives who can work with different factions within the Illinois Republican Party. And both say they have a good understanding of issues throughout the state.
Radogno says she’s “definitely” interested in becoming Senate minority leader. Although she says she had absolutely no intentions to become a career politician, she now fills the caucus’ No. 2 position and serves as its budget negotiator. She also ran for statewide office in 2006 but lost to Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, the current state treasurer.
Radogno didn’t agree or disagree with former Gov. Jim Edgar’s statements that the Illinois GOP needs to move toward the middle for it to revive its stature. She simply says: “I think what we need to focus on are the issues that we all agree on. And those, quite frankly, are the very ones that are on voters’ minds right now, and that is jobs, the economy and policies that allow people to succeed. That would be making sure they have job opportunities so that people can make their own way.”
Her name also has been mentioned as a potential gubernatorial candidate in 2010. Radogno doesn’t rule it out. “It’s hard to never say never. Right now, my interest is clearly legislative,” she says, adding, however, that, “it may make it more challenging to run for governor if I were leader.”
Dillard also uses the word “definitely” in describing his interest in the position. “I definitely know that I am the best person to move my caucus and the state’s business forward in Springfield.” He says the principles in which he ran Edgar’s office as his chief of staff and in which he used to run the DuPage Republican Party are the blueprint for the way he would operate as a Senate leader.
Dillard sought the leadership position before, but the caucus selected outgoing Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson. Watson announced last week that he would not seek the position after having a minor stroke last month.
“Sen. Watson was my friend. And I tried to help him in any way that I could, from fundraising on down,” Dillard says, but, “no matter who the new Senate leader is in the Republican Caucus, it is imperative that we remain cordial and cohesive because when you only have 22 members, you have no room for dissention.”
Some dissention did occur when Dillard, who says he has a personal relationship with President-elect Barack Obama, appeared in a TV ad for the Democrat during the campaign season. But Dillard cites his relationship with Obama as helping to break the logjam of recent ethics legislation, in which Dillard says he was one, with Comptroller Dan Hynes’ leadership, who encouraged Obama to call Senate President Emil Jones Jr. to call the bill for a vote. Dillard also cites his legislative work with Obama to revise the state’s death penalty statute.
Dillard also won’t rule out a run for governor, but he says he won’t run in 2010. “I’m 52 years old. I have time.”
Two other names mentioned as possible compromise GOP candidates are Sen. Dave Luechtefeld of downstate Okawville and Sen. Dale Risinger of Peoria.
We’ll see if commitments to the leadership candidates solidify this week and next. Republicans have an internal caucus meeting scheduled for November 19.
Veto session
The Illinois Senate will return to the Capitol on Wednesday and is scheduled to meet through Friday, although that could change. The House canceled the first week of session and won’t convene until November 19. Action during the so-called veto session could be somewhat light but significant if the General Assembly considers allocating more money to such state agencies as the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Veto session serves as a good time to review the state’s fiscal realities, including whether revenues match up to spending. They don't, according to the Illinois Department of Revenue. They're $800 million out of whack. This comes on top of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s $1.4 billion budget cuts that are causing state parks and historic sites to close this month, although the General Assembly approved ways to restore about $221 million to keep those sites open and to save some social services from closing. Blagojevich still hasn’t signed Senate Bill 1103, which would release the money. He has until December 5 to do so before it automatically becomes law.
Tenaska update
Watch for Senate action that would take one more step toward the state’s first clean-coal power plant. Senate Bill 1987 would kick off a study to estimate the cost and design of the proposed Taylorville Energy Center, but it also would set the framework for the state’s long-term energy portfolio. Future power plants would have to use Illinois coal and advanced technology to reduce pollution, and the door would open for a system of carbon tax credits as one more way to reduce pollution. Tenaska Inc., a Nebraska-based energy company, announced today that it already purchased half of the land for the energy center.
Medical malpractice update
This Thursday, the Illinois Supreme Court will consider the controversial medical malpractice law that limits the amount juries can award for pain and suffering caused by malpractice. See the background here.
My update
I’ll be on an airplane headed for North Carolina for the annual CapitolBeat conference for Statehouse reporters Thursday, so, unfortunately, I’ll catch up with these updates next week.
See this month’s Illinois Issues magazine for information about the Democratic race for Senate president.
So far, two Senate GOP members are openly seeking the minority leadership position, while two others are mentioned as potential candidates if the caucus can’t agree. Sen. Christine Radogno of Lemont and Sen. Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale both represent suburban Chicago districts in mostly DuPage and Will counties. Both have described themselves as fiscal conservatives who can work with different factions within the Illinois Republican Party. And both say they have a good understanding of issues throughout the state.
Radogno says she’s “definitely” interested in becoming Senate minority leader. Although she says she had absolutely no intentions to become a career politician, she now fills the caucus’ No. 2 position and serves as its budget negotiator. She also ran for statewide office in 2006 but lost to Democrat Alexi Giannoulias, the current state treasurer.
Radogno didn’t agree or disagree with former Gov. Jim Edgar’s statements that the Illinois GOP needs to move toward the middle for it to revive its stature. She simply says: “I think what we need to focus on are the issues that we all agree on. And those, quite frankly, are the very ones that are on voters’ minds right now, and that is jobs, the economy and policies that allow people to succeed. That would be making sure they have job opportunities so that people can make their own way.”
Her name also has been mentioned as a potential gubernatorial candidate in 2010. Radogno doesn’t rule it out. “It’s hard to never say never. Right now, my interest is clearly legislative,” she says, adding, however, that, “it may make it more challenging to run for governor if I were leader.”
Dillard also uses the word “definitely” in describing his interest in the position. “I definitely know that I am the best person to move my caucus and the state’s business forward in Springfield.” He says the principles in which he ran Edgar’s office as his chief of staff and in which he used to run the DuPage Republican Party are the blueprint for the way he would operate as a Senate leader.
Dillard sought the leadership position before, but the caucus selected outgoing Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson. Watson announced last week that he would not seek the position after having a minor stroke last month.
“Sen. Watson was my friend. And I tried to help him in any way that I could, from fundraising on down,” Dillard says, but, “no matter who the new Senate leader is in the Republican Caucus, it is imperative that we remain cordial and cohesive because when you only have 22 members, you have no room for dissention.”
Some dissention did occur when Dillard, who says he has a personal relationship with President-elect Barack Obama, appeared in a TV ad for the Democrat during the campaign season. But Dillard cites his relationship with Obama as helping to break the logjam of recent ethics legislation, in which Dillard says he was one, with Comptroller Dan Hynes’ leadership, who encouraged Obama to call Senate President Emil Jones Jr. to call the bill for a vote. Dillard also cites his legislative work with Obama to revise the state’s death penalty statute.
Dillard also won’t rule out a run for governor, but he says he won’t run in 2010. “I’m 52 years old. I have time.”
Two other names mentioned as possible compromise GOP candidates are Sen. Dave Luechtefeld of downstate Okawville and Sen. Dale Risinger of Peoria.
We’ll see if commitments to the leadership candidates solidify this week and next. Republicans have an internal caucus meeting scheduled for November 19.
Veto session
The Illinois Senate will return to the Capitol on Wednesday and is scheduled to meet through Friday, although that could change. The House canceled the first week of session and won’t convene until November 19. Action during the so-called veto session could be somewhat light but significant if the General Assembly considers allocating more money to such state agencies as the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Veto session serves as a good time to review the state’s fiscal realities, including whether revenues match up to spending. They don't, according to the Illinois Department of Revenue. They're $800 million out of whack. This comes on top of Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s $1.4 billion budget cuts that are causing state parks and historic sites to close this month, although the General Assembly approved ways to restore about $221 million to keep those sites open and to save some social services from closing. Blagojevich still hasn’t signed Senate Bill 1103, which would release the money. He has until December 5 to do so before it automatically becomes law.
Tenaska update
Watch for Senate action that would take one more step toward the state’s first clean-coal power plant. Senate Bill 1987 would kick off a study to estimate the cost and design of the proposed Taylorville Energy Center, but it also would set the framework for the state’s long-term energy portfolio. Future power plants would have to use Illinois coal and advanced technology to reduce pollution, and the door would open for a system of carbon tax credits as one more way to reduce pollution. Tenaska Inc., a Nebraska-based energy company, announced today that it already purchased half of the land for the energy center.
Medical malpractice update
This Thursday, the Illinois Supreme Court will consider the controversial medical malpractice law that limits the amount juries can award for pain and suffering caused by malpractice. See the background here.
My update
I’ll be on an airplane headed for North Carolina for the annual CapitolBeat conference for Statehouse reporters Thursday, so, unfortunately, I’ll catch up with these updates next week.
Friday, November 07, 2008
10-4 on 11/4/08
I’m about post-election analyzed out for the week. You can listen and/or watch my interpretations and the perceptions of other political junkies from panels and interviews in which I participated this week:
And here's a recap of the most common and obvious questions discussed:
What does President-Elect Barack Obama’s win mean for Illinois?
What is the future of the Illinois GOP?
Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar says his party needs to move toward the center, particularly when recruiting gubernatorial and U.S. Senate candidates. That’s with the understanding that some politicians should continue representing their conservative Illinois districts.
Edgar also says the thing that concerns him the most is that to be a viable political party nationally, the GOP has to secure the Hispanic vote. “We’re going to have to show a little more sympathy and understanding and try to bring Hispanics in more party roles and run them for office and show that we appreciate them being part of the Republican Party.” Either way, the state GOP will have to overcome perceptions of the national Republican Party, which Edgar says took most of the blame in the court of public opinion for killing immigration reforms a couple of years ago.
Political scientist Paul Green of Roosevelt University says the Democratic wave rippling through the nation is sustainable, and it’s not exactly created by what the Democrats are doing. “It’s what the Republicans are not doing. You have a Republican Party that’s fighting against itself.”
He, like Edgar, says the middle is where the GOP needs to aim if it wants to attract and retain new individuals in Cook and Lake counties. He points to the reelection wins of two moderate Republicans in the Chicago suburbs: Rep. Rosemary Mulligan of Des Plaines and Rep. Beth Coulson of Glenview. Both survived targeted races. “And they’ve been able to withstand the Democratic Party because their issues and their positions are much more aligned with the people living out there,” Green says.
He adds that his philosophy on what the Republicans should do resembles what he wrote for Illinois Issues in 1978: Downstate holds the key to victory. Right now, he says, downstate is irrelevant. If Democrats carry Chicago, suburban Cook County and a few of Chicago’s surrounding counties, then there aren't enough people downstate to help Republicans win a statewide election.
“So the Republican Party has to decide does it want to remain divided, or does it want to find itself back to where it used to be — a party of small government, lower taxes and business growth? If they do that, they have a chance to rebound. If they keep talking about abortion and guns and gays and stem cell research, they are going to keep losing.”
Will Con-Con 2008 turn into Con-Con 2010?
Read Wednesday’s post to see what Con-Con supporters say. They are unlikely to pursue legal action to reverse or redo Tuesday’s 68 percent “no” vote. But they likely could pursue legal action to clarify the process of future referenda.
- WILL-AM Focus 580
- The Illinois Government and Public Affairs luncheon with Gov. Jim Edgar and political scientist Kent Redfield, courtesy of the Illinois Channel
- WUIS 91.9’s State Week in Review (Scroll down to see the November 7 link.)
And here's a recap of the most common and obvious questions discussed:
What does President-Elect Barack Obama’s win mean for Illinois?
- Read Illinois Issues’ PRE-election analysis here. Stateline.org reporter Dan Vock reminds readers that while Illinois officials form their wish lists, this state won’t get its fair share of construction dollars or other earmarks unless the state General Assembly and the governor finally approve a capital plan. Also, Obama has "railed against earmarks," Vock writes.
- In the next year, we'll also watch for Obama’s presidency to affect Illinois tourism and Illinois scrutiny. And he could increase awareness about life in urban areas, as well as the effort to protect the Great Lakes and, maybe, just maybe, the effort to bring FutureGen to Mattoon. Whether that all translates into more money for Illinois, however, will be interesting to watch.
- If Obama continues to recruit Illinoisans to his cabinet in Washington, D.C., then the vacancies left by those state and Chicago officials will enhance the domino effect already in play.
- Obama ’08 completely changed the ground game and the technological savvy required of political campaigns.
What is the future of the Illinois GOP?
Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar says his party needs to move toward the center, particularly when recruiting gubernatorial and U.S. Senate candidates. That’s with the understanding that some politicians should continue representing their conservative Illinois districts.
Edgar also says the thing that concerns him the most is that to be a viable political party nationally, the GOP has to secure the Hispanic vote. “We’re going to have to show a little more sympathy and understanding and try to bring Hispanics in more party roles and run them for office and show that we appreciate them being part of the Republican Party.” Either way, the state GOP will have to overcome perceptions of the national Republican Party, which Edgar says took most of the blame in the court of public opinion for killing immigration reforms a couple of years ago.
Political scientist Paul Green of Roosevelt University says the Democratic wave rippling through the nation is sustainable, and it’s not exactly created by what the Democrats are doing. “It’s what the Republicans are not doing. You have a Republican Party that’s fighting against itself.”
He, like Edgar, says the middle is where the GOP needs to aim if it wants to attract and retain new individuals in Cook and Lake counties. He points to the reelection wins of two moderate Republicans in the Chicago suburbs: Rep. Rosemary Mulligan of Des Plaines and Rep. Beth Coulson of Glenview. Both survived targeted races. “And they’ve been able to withstand the Democratic Party because their issues and their positions are much more aligned with the people living out there,” Green says.
He adds that his philosophy on what the Republicans should do resembles what he wrote for Illinois Issues in 1978: Downstate holds the key to victory. Right now, he says, downstate is irrelevant. If Democrats carry Chicago, suburban Cook County and a few of Chicago’s surrounding counties, then there aren't enough people downstate to help Republicans win a statewide election.
“So the Republican Party has to decide does it want to remain divided, or does it want to find itself back to where it used to be — a party of small government, lower taxes and business growth? If they do that, they have a chance to rebound. If they keep talking about abortion and guns and gays and stem cell research, they are going to keep losing.”
Will Con-Con 2008 turn into Con-Con 2010?
Read Wednesday’s post to see what Con-Con supporters say. They are unlikely to pursue legal action to reverse or redo Tuesday’s 68 percent “no” vote. But they likely could pursue legal action to clarify the process of future referenda.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Con-Con question remains unclear
The ballots are in, but legal concerns are ongoing. Sixty-eight percent of Illinois voters on Tuesday rejected the call for another constitutional convention. The results don't satisfy a group of supporters who still want clarification about the process of putting that question before voters, as constitutionally mandated every 20 years. At this rate, the 2008 question could drag out until 2010.
Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn says he is considering whether to file a new complaint over the handling of the referendum or to continue seeking the Illinois Supreme Court’s clarification on the issue. Quinn says voters in numerous counties did not receive their blue pieces of paper, as mandated by a judge last month.
From the beginning, Quinn and others who supported the call for a convention expressed concerns that the language was misleading, which was affirmed by two court decisions. He says if opponents can defeat this referendum, then opponents of future referenda could do the same.
“My major concern above all else is that this not become a precedent and a habit of the legislature when they hear about something they don’t like on the referendum ballot, that they put together an ‘explanation’ — in quote marks — to help the voters along, when, in fact, it’s designed to steer the voters against it,” Quinn says. “If that becomes a pattern of behavior in Illinois, then it really will be a blot on our democracy.”
The Chicago Bar Association, meanwhile, does not plan to file another lawsuit over the results of the referendum, says Steve Pflaum. He's the association’s general counsel and a partner with McDermott Will & Emery in Chicago. However, the association does plan to ask the Illinois Supreme Court to review a lower court’s opinion to determine whether the ballot was unconstitutional and whether the remedy of a so-called corrective notice was inadequate.
The association, like Quinn, wants to clarify the process. “Our primary objective at this point would be to try to establish the legal principals that govern these Con-Con referenda so that when we do it again 20 years from now that we won’t have this kind of confusion and these kinds of problems,” he says. He adds a big however. “If the court agrees with us that the separate ballot requirement that is expressly contained in the Illinois Constitution was violated here, then it’s quite possible that the court would conclude that it would be necessary to redo this Con-Con referendum.”
Pflaum estimated that the association wouldn’t file the appeal with the Supreme Court for another month. And if the high court ruled that the referendum had to be redone, he says it most likely wouldn’t happen until the 2010 General Election.
The association also is asking voters who did not receive their blue notices with their ballots to fill out affidavit forms to help plaintiffs gather evidence.
The Alliance to Protect the Illinois Constitution, which formed a well-funded campaign to defeat the referendum, issued this statement from its executive director, Nancy Kaszak, last night: “This campaign was a unique opportunity for organizations and individuals from across the political spectrum to come together and provide real leadership. Voters saw through the rhetoric and rejected opening up our state's foundational document to wholesale re-write. We look forward to working with leaders of every political persuasion to solve the challenges facing Illinois.”
Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn says he is considering whether to file a new complaint over the handling of the referendum or to continue seeking the Illinois Supreme Court’s clarification on the issue. Quinn says voters in numerous counties did not receive their blue pieces of paper, as mandated by a judge last month.
From the beginning, Quinn and others who supported the call for a convention expressed concerns that the language was misleading, which was affirmed by two court decisions. He says if opponents can defeat this referendum, then opponents of future referenda could do the same.
“My major concern above all else is that this not become a precedent and a habit of the legislature when they hear about something they don’t like on the referendum ballot, that they put together an ‘explanation’ — in quote marks — to help the voters along, when, in fact, it’s designed to steer the voters against it,” Quinn says. “If that becomes a pattern of behavior in Illinois, then it really will be a blot on our democracy.”
The Chicago Bar Association, meanwhile, does not plan to file another lawsuit over the results of the referendum, says Steve Pflaum. He's the association’s general counsel and a partner with McDermott Will & Emery in Chicago. However, the association does plan to ask the Illinois Supreme Court to review a lower court’s opinion to determine whether the ballot was unconstitutional and whether the remedy of a so-called corrective notice was inadequate.
The association, like Quinn, wants to clarify the process. “Our primary objective at this point would be to try to establish the legal principals that govern these Con-Con referenda so that when we do it again 20 years from now that we won’t have this kind of confusion and these kinds of problems,” he says. He adds a big however. “If the court agrees with us that the separate ballot requirement that is expressly contained in the Illinois Constitution was violated here, then it’s quite possible that the court would conclude that it would be necessary to redo this Con-Con referendum.”
Pflaum estimated that the association wouldn’t file the appeal with the Supreme Court for another month. And if the high court ruled that the referendum had to be redone, he says it most likely wouldn’t happen until the 2010 General Election.
The association also is asking voters who did not receive their blue notices with their ballots to fill out affidavit forms to help plaintiffs gather evidence.
The Alliance to Protect the Illinois Constitution, which formed a well-funded campaign to defeat the referendum, issued this statement from its executive director, Nancy Kaszak, last night: “This campaign was a unique opportunity for organizations and individuals from across the political spectrum to come together and provide real leadership. Voters saw through the rhetoric and rejected opening up our state's foundational document to wholesale re-write. We look forward to working with leaders of every political persuasion to solve the challenges facing Illinois.”
The search for Obama's replacement
Gov. Rod Blagojevich will rely on his senior advisers to pick the best person to fill the U.S. Senate seat that will be vacated by President-Elect Barack Obama. In a news release, the governor said that the “calendar won’t dictate our search.”
The appointee will serve until 2010, when the seat opens up for another six-year term.
The governor could choose anybody, ranging from himself to one of the Democratic members of the U.S. House to outgoing Illinois Senate President Emil Jones Jr. But Blagojevich told reporters in Chicago that he’s not interested in that job.
Speculators also have considered that Blagojevich would pick one of his potential gubernatorial opponents, including such state officers as Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Comptroller Dan Hynes or Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias. Tammy Duckworth, Illinois’ director of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, also has been mentioned. But it’s all speculation about what an unpredictable governor would do. Illinois Issues magazine will have more in the coming months.
The appointee will serve until 2010, when the seat opens up for another six-year term.
The governor could choose anybody, ranging from himself to one of the Democratic members of the U.S. House to outgoing Illinois Senate President Emil Jones Jr. But Blagojevich told reporters in Chicago that he’s not interested in that job.
Speculators also have considered that Blagojevich would pick one of his potential gubernatorial opponents, including such state officers as Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Comptroller Dan Hynes or Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias. Tammy Duckworth, Illinois’ director of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, also has been mentioned. But it’s all speculation about what an unpredictable governor would do. Illinois Issues magazine will have more in the coming months.
The Democratic wave — UPDATED again
Update: I was interviewed by WILL-am's Focus 580 this morning. Listen here.
There were two questions heading into Election Day in Illinois. The first was how far the Democratic wave would overcome traditionally Republican areas. The small tide in the Chicago suburbs swept away at least one and potentially two suburban Republican incumbents in the House. The Dems gained another open seat in Peoria. But Republicans also held on to a number of open seats and even gained one in southern Illinois. The Democratic majorities in both chambers, on the other hand, remain in tact. The second question was how the GOP would rebuild before 2010.
One change is that Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, who suffered a minor stroke in October, told his members Tuesday that he would not seek the leadership position again. We’ll consider who could take his place in another blog. The Senate’s makeup remains the same, with 37 Democrats and 22 Republicans. The Democratic Caucus, however, hasn’t unified to make use of its so-called supermajority in the past two years. The retirement of Senate President Emil Jones Jr. in January will open the door for change there, too.
The House Democratic Caucus increased its majority from 67 to 69 members out of 118. And they could gain one more, pending official results in what turned out to be a barn burner. If the Democrats gain 70 members, they're one member away from the magic number needed to approve major spending, borrowing and other legislation without Republican votes.
Keep an eye out for these official results:
Illinois’ Obama
Personal story: I have a distinct memory of U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama. When I worked as a health reporter in Decatur, Obama visited a local community college during his first year as a U.S. senator. He met with military veterans and talked about their health care, among other things. After the event, Obama made himself available to a handful of reporters. He answered our questions, and then most of the reporters except me said thanks and walked away. I asked for one more question. He said I could ask as many as I wanted and suggested we walk into a neighboring room so he we could hear each other better. We walked into the next room, and he pulled two folding chairs over for us to sit. Except he turned his chair around so that he straddled the chair and rested his elbows on its back. He stayed until I asked all of my questions. Unfortunately, I don’t remember his exact answers. But what stuck out were his mannerisms and his willingness to answer as many questions as I had. No staffers tried to cut off the conversation and whisk him away to his next appointment.
Some of my fellow reporters haven’t had as good of luck when trying to break through the communications lines of Obama’s presidential campaign. I can only hope that a President Obama would remain as genuine, considerate and open as he was in the that instance.
There were two questions heading into Election Day in Illinois. The first was how far the Democratic wave would overcome traditionally Republican areas. The small tide in the Chicago suburbs swept away at least one and potentially two suburban Republican incumbents in the House. The Dems gained another open seat in Peoria. But Republicans also held on to a number of open seats and even gained one in southern Illinois. The Democratic majorities in both chambers, on the other hand, remain in tact. The second question was how the GOP would rebuild before 2010.
One change is that Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, who suffered a minor stroke in October, told his members Tuesday that he would not seek the leadership position again. We’ll consider who could take his place in another blog. The Senate’s makeup remains the same, with 37 Democrats and 22 Republicans. The Democratic Caucus, however, hasn’t unified to make use of its so-called supermajority in the past two years. The retirement of Senate President Emil Jones Jr. in January will open the door for change there, too.
The House Democratic Caucus increased its majority from 67 to 69 members out of 118. And they could gain one more, pending official results in what turned out to be a barn burner. If the Democrats gain 70 members, they're one member away from the magic number needed to approve major spending, borrowing and other legislation without Republican votes.
Keep an eye out for these official results:
- House 66: GOP Rep. Carolyn Krause is retiring. The race is still too close to call this morning, but Democrat Mark Walker leads Republican Christine Proncho, as of this morning. If Walker is declared the winner, among the dynamics in play was the “Obama factor,” where a record number of Democratic voters cast ballots for President-Elect Barack Obama of Chicago.
- House 85: Rep. Brent Hassert, a Romeoville Republican in Will County and a member of the House Republican’s leadership team, lost to Democrat Emily Klunk-McAsey. The Democratic campaign machine was in the works, with the help of the Obama factor; Hassert was active in gaming and revenue issues.
- House 43: Rep. Ruth Munson, an Elgin Republican, initially appears to have lost to Democrat Keith Farnham. A Green Party candidate, Dane William, got 3 percent of the vote. [UPDATE 5 p.m.: Munson's campaign office confirmed that the representative conceeded to Farnham this afternoon. The office cited the vote: Farnham's 12,589 to Munson's 12,911, a 322 difference. The county clerk will have to count provisional ballots and absentee ballots within 14 days of the election.] Munson currently serves on committees related to business, technology, trade and pensions. The district is vulerable to the Democratic wave. A Democrat took the Senate district from Republicans when former Sen. Steve Rauschenberger retired. And the House district adjacent to Munson’s transferred from Republicans to the Democrats when Rep. Fred Crespo defeated veteran GOP Terry Parke in the last election. The Obama factor was at play.
- House 92: GOP Rep. Aaron Schock ran for Congress and won that seat last night. He will be replaced by Democrat Jehan Gordon, despite some alleged credibility problems released about the candidate during the campaign. Gordon beat out Republican Joan Krupa. Before Schock, the Peoria district historically was Democratic territory.
- Senate 59: Sen. Gary Forby, a Benton Democrat in the southern tip of Illinois. He barely won against Republican Ken Burzynski, the brother of state Sen. Brad Burzynski of Clare. It was the most expensive race for legislature in the state. The Campaign for Political Reform reported that a total of more than $2 million was spent by both sides. Forby fought hard during the electricity rate debate but was the sacrificial lamb in a political move by Senate President Emil Jones Jr. That opened the door for his Republican opponent to say Forby failed to get lower Ameren rates for his constituents.
- Senate 42: Sen. Linda Holmes, an Aurora Democrat, kept her seat. It was another expensive race exceeding $1.5 million, according to the Campaign for Political Reform. Holmes edged out Terri Ann Wintermute of Bolingbrook. Holmes took over the suburban seat when Republican former Sen. Ed Petka retired; Holmes got a lot of financial support from Sen. John Cullerton, one of the Democrats in the running to replace retiring Senate President Jones.
- House 17: Rep. Beth Coulson, a Glenview Republican in northern Cook County, and active voice for human services and environmental issues. She pulled out the win.
- House 46: Rep. Dennis Reboletti barely won in 2006. He took the seat after former Rep. Lee Daniels retired.
- House 48: GOP Rep. Jim Meyer is retiring. Republican Michael Connelly won the race against Democrat Joe Heneghan.
- House 96: GOP Rep. Joe Dunn is retiring from the DuPage and Will County district that includes Naperville. Republican Darlene Senger barely beat out Democrat Diane McGuire in a race where about $1 million was spent.
- Senate 26: GOP Sen. Bill Peterson is retiring from the seat, which represents the northwest suburbs of Chicago in Lake and McHenry counties. Republican Dan Duffey comfortably won against Democrat Bill Gentes.
- House 107: Democratic Rep. Kurt Granberg retired. He'll be replaced by Republican John Cavaletto, who challenged Granberg in a tight race in the last election. Cavaletto defeated Democrat Patti Hahn Tuesday.
Illinois’ Obama
Personal story: I have a distinct memory of U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama. When I worked as a health reporter in Decatur, Obama visited a local community college during his first year as a U.S. senator. He met with military veterans and talked about their health care, among other things. After the event, Obama made himself available to a handful of reporters. He answered our questions, and then most of the reporters except me said thanks and walked away. I asked for one more question. He said I could ask as many as I wanted and suggested we walk into a neighboring room so he we could hear each other better. We walked into the next room, and he pulled two folding chairs over for us to sit. Except he turned his chair around so that he straddled the chair and rested his elbows on its back. He stayed until I asked all of my questions. Unfortunately, I don’t remember his exact answers. But what stuck out were his mannerisms and his willingness to answer as many questions as I had. No staffers tried to cut off the conversation and whisk him away to his next appointment.
Some of my fellow reporters haven’t had as good of luck when trying to break through the communications lines of Obama’s presidential campaign. I can only hope that a President Obama would remain as genuine, considerate and open as he was in the that instance.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Money matters
The ongoing federal probe into alleged pay-to-play politics in Illinois demonstrates attempts to influence state business by donating to political campaigns. But the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform released another round of campaign contribution totals this week that seem to reinforce the fact that money drives politics behind the scenes, as well.
The Illinois Senate Democrats will pick a replacement for Senate President Emil Jones Jr., who retires in January. Since Jones announced his retirement, a lengthy list of candidates has started campaigning to replace him. The caucus will need 30 votes to select a new president. Watch for more about the candidates in the November edition of Illinois Issues magazine. UPDATE: Here's the story.
One way those candidates are trying to differentiate themselves is through cash. The more money they can raise for their political campaigns, the more they appear capable of strengthening an already extraordinarily big Democratic Caucus (of 59 total senators, 37 belong to the Senate Democratic Caucus).
According to two nonpartisan think tanks, the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform in Chicago and the Sunshine Project in Springfield, Senate presidential candidates have doled out more than $1 million to their party candidates and incumbents.
The top two givers are Sen. James Clayborne of Belleville and Sen. John Cullerton of Chicago, two who repeatedly have been mentioned as front-runners in the race to replace Jones.
Clayborne has given $418,000 to other Senate Democrats, while Cullerton has doled out $336,000. According to the Campaign for Political Reform, Clayborne has transferred money from his own political committee, Friends of Clayborne. Top donors to that fund include the Illinois Education Association, AT&T and Ameren Corp.
Cullerton has used money from his committee, Citizens for John Cullerton, but he also formed a new committee, the Senate Democratic Victory Fund. Top donors to both funds include Chicago Wolves chairman Don Levin; Sen. Heather Steans of Chicago, her husband Leo Smith and her parents; and the Illinois Hospital Association. We’ll talk more about the Democrats who are receiving these funds in another blog.
Political insiders are used to Jones raising that much money or more ($3.6 million in 2006), but when these new candidates aren’t even president yet and are raising those amounts, the totals are striking. But it’s also part of the legislative process in Illinois.
“The leader is supposed to help raise a lot of money, and that’s part of their job,” says David Morrison, assistant director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. “Part of what Cullerton and Clayborne are doing here is showing that they can shoulder that kind of burden, [that] they help their colleagues in that regard.”
Yet, this is one time when Morrison — ironically for a campaign finance reformer — says it’s not all about money. This internal election is about context. So even though these numbers look big, there are many other factors that are in play for whom the next Senate president will be.
But the money is still important. It’s not just who is giving, but why are they giving? Morrison says it’s hard to tell if the Senate presidential candidates are attracting new donors, getting increased donations from patron donors or if it’s a combination. It’ll be easier to tell when the next detailed campaign finance reports are due in January. One thing is for sure, he says: “There’s a lot of money flowing around.”
The Illinois Senate Democrats will pick a replacement for Senate President Emil Jones Jr., who retires in January. Since Jones announced his retirement, a lengthy list of candidates has started campaigning to replace him. The caucus will need 30 votes to select a new president. Watch for more about the candidates in the November edition of Illinois Issues magazine. UPDATE: Here's the story.
One way those candidates are trying to differentiate themselves is through cash. The more money they can raise for their political campaigns, the more they appear capable of strengthening an already extraordinarily big Democratic Caucus (of 59 total senators, 37 belong to the Senate Democratic Caucus).
According to two nonpartisan think tanks, the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform in Chicago and the Sunshine Project in Springfield, Senate presidential candidates have doled out more than $1 million to their party candidates and incumbents.
The top two givers are Sen. James Clayborne of Belleville and Sen. John Cullerton of Chicago, two who repeatedly have been mentioned as front-runners in the race to replace Jones.
Clayborne has given $418,000 to other Senate Democrats, while Cullerton has doled out $336,000. According to the Campaign for Political Reform, Clayborne has transferred money from his own political committee, Friends of Clayborne. Top donors to that fund include the Illinois Education Association, AT&T and Ameren Corp.
Cullerton has used money from his committee, Citizens for John Cullerton, but he also formed a new committee, the Senate Democratic Victory Fund. Top donors to both funds include Chicago Wolves chairman Don Levin; Sen. Heather Steans of Chicago, her husband Leo Smith and her parents; and the Illinois Hospital Association. We’ll talk more about the Democrats who are receiving these funds in another blog.
Political insiders are used to Jones raising that much money or more ($3.6 million in 2006), but when these new candidates aren’t even president yet and are raising those amounts, the totals are striking. But it’s also part of the legislative process in Illinois.
“The leader is supposed to help raise a lot of money, and that’s part of their job,” says David Morrison, assistant director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. “Part of what Cullerton and Clayborne are doing here is showing that they can shoulder that kind of burden, [that] they help their colleagues in that regard.”
Yet, this is one time when Morrison — ironically for a campaign finance reformer — says it’s not all about money. This internal election is about context. So even though these numbers look big, there are many other factors that are in play for whom the next Senate president will be.
- Jones’ retirement: It means the person whom businesses donated to in the past is no longer the person who will funnel the funds to other Democratic members. Without knowing who will serve as the hub for accepting donations and funneling them to other Democrats, donors have to take their chances.
- The Obama factor: It translates into record numbers of Democrats who will come out to vote for U.S. Sen. Barack Obama for U.S. president and who likely will continue voting Democratic down most of the ticket. Democrats are expected to have a good year, so money in some ways is less important this year than it was in 2004 and 2006, when Jones was trying to build on a majority of seats in the chamber.
- Personality: Then there’s a question of which qualities that Senate Democrats want in their next leader. The most common characteristic cited is someone who can compromise and refresh the atmosphere in the Capitol, thereby breaking the stalemate of Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his ally Jones against House Speaker Michael Madigan.
But the money is still important. It’s not just who is giving, but why are they giving? Morrison says it’s hard to tell if the Senate presidential candidates are attracting new donors, getting increased donations from patron donors or if it’s a combination. It’ll be easier to tell when the next detailed campaign finance reports are due in January. One thing is for sure, he says: “There’s a lot of money flowing around.”
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Operation Board Game snags another piece
The U.S. attorney’s office in Northern Illinois is advancing its way around Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s inner circle, and Thursday’s indictment of GOP political bigwig William Cellini could be just another attempt to recruit one more person to testify against the governor, says Kent Redfield, political scientist with the University of Illinois at Springfield.
U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald indicted Cellini today on four charges of federal corruption. The 21-page indictment spells out a classic pay-to-play scheme of trading political campaign cash for state business. But Cellini’s attorney, Dan Webb of Winston & Strawn in Chicago, already combats the charges as “unfair and unjust” and based on shaky evidence.
The feds allege that Cellini was one of many people who conspired to rig state boards to hire investment firms that would, among other financial benefits, donate to the political campaign of Public Official A, previously identified as Blagojevich. The scheme allegedly happened between spring 2003 and summer 2005. Other conspirators already charged include Blagojevich insider Tony Rezko, former state board member Stuart Levine, attorneys Joseph Cari and Steven Loren and construction contractor Jacob Kiferbaum. Cellini’s indictment lists two more: Co-Conspirator A and a Teachers Retirement System Staffer A, yet to officially be identified. Co-Conspirator A is widely thought to be Christopher Kelly, who already was indicted on separate charges of tax fraud.
Cellini’s indictment alleges that he participated in a scheme to pressure Chicago businessman Thomas Rosenberg to give money to Blagojevich’s political campaign. The alleged ultimatum was that Rosenberg’s company, Capri Capital, had to raise money or donate to Blagojevich’s political fund to get a $220 million business deal with the Teachers’ Retirement System. The system oversees and handles investments for public pensions of teachers and administrators outside of Chicago. Private investment firms handle TRS assets. Through a statement, TRS administrators declined to comment but said the staff will “continue to uphold their fiduciary duty to our participants.”
According to Cellini’s indictment, the schemers decided it was too risky to continue pressuring Rosenberg when he threatened to go to authorities. But after that, Cellini, Rezko and others “discussed the possibility of removing the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois in an effort to stop any investigations into the co-conspirators and others,” according to the indictment.
Webb’s statement describes Cellini as “completely innocent of these charges, and he will fight this case because he has done absolutely nothing wrong.” It highlights the point that while a grand jury found Rezko guilty of 16 counts of corruption, they found him not guilty on one of the most serious charges of attempted extortion, relating to the charges involving Rosenberg. It states that Rosenberg testified in Rezko’s trial that “Bill Cellini never asked him for any money and that Rosenberg never paid any money to Cellini or anyone else.”
Redfield says if the assumption is that the U.S. attorney’s ultimate goal is to get all the way to Blagojevich, indicting Cellini makes sense. But there's no guarantee it'll work.
“At this point, Cellini thinks that this is not a slam dunk,” says Redfield. “And he’s willing to be indicted rather than to cooperate.”
And if the federal grand jury agrees with prosecutors’ assessment of Cellini’s involvement in the scheme, why would a successful, wealthy political insider at all levels of government work to secure funds on behalf of Blagojevich, a Democratic governor? Redfield says it’s all about power. “I don’t think it was so much about fighting for the governor as it was about power in the board and playing the game. He was as mover and shaker when [Jim] Thompson, [Jim] Edgar and [George] Ryan were governors. That’s what he knows and what he does … Power is addictive.”
U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald indicted Cellini today on four charges of federal corruption. The 21-page indictment spells out a classic pay-to-play scheme of trading political campaign cash for state business. But Cellini’s attorney, Dan Webb of Winston & Strawn in Chicago, already combats the charges as “unfair and unjust” and based on shaky evidence.
The feds allege that Cellini was one of many people who conspired to rig state boards to hire investment firms that would, among other financial benefits, donate to the political campaign of Public Official A, previously identified as Blagojevich. The scheme allegedly happened between spring 2003 and summer 2005. Other conspirators already charged include Blagojevich insider Tony Rezko, former state board member Stuart Levine, attorneys Joseph Cari and Steven Loren and construction contractor Jacob Kiferbaum. Cellini’s indictment lists two more: Co-Conspirator A and a Teachers Retirement System Staffer A, yet to officially be identified. Co-Conspirator A is widely thought to be Christopher Kelly, who already was indicted on separate charges of tax fraud.
Cellini’s indictment alleges that he participated in a scheme to pressure Chicago businessman Thomas Rosenberg to give money to Blagojevich’s political campaign. The alleged ultimatum was that Rosenberg’s company, Capri Capital, had to raise money or donate to Blagojevich’s political fund to get a $220 million business deal with the Teachers’ Retirement System. The system oversees and handles investments for public pensions of teachers and administrators outside of Chicago. Private investment firms handle TRS assets. Through a statement, TRS administrators declined to comment but said the staff will “continue to uphold their fiduciary duty to our participants.”
According to Cellini’s indictment, the schemers decided it was too risky to continue pressuring Rosenberg when he threatened to go to authorities. But after that, Cellini, Rezko and others “discussed the possibility of removing the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois in an effort to stop any investigations into the co-conspirators and others,” according to the indictment.
Webb’s statement describes Cellini as “completely innocent of these charges, and he will fight this case because he has done absolutely nothing wrong.” It highlights the point that while a grand jury found Rezko guilty of 16 counts of corruption, they found him not guilty on one of the most serious charges of attempted extortion, relating to the charges involving Rosenberg. It states that Rosenberg testified in Rezko’s trial that “Bill Cellini never asked him for any money and that Rosenberg never paid any money to Cellini or anyone else.”
Redfield says if the assumption is that the U.S. attorney’s ultimate goal is to get all the way to Blagojevich, indicting Cellini makes sense. But there's no guarantee it'll work.
“At this point, Cellini thinks that this is not a slam dunk,” says Redfield. “And he’s willing to be indicted rather than to cooperate.”
And if the federal grand jury agrees with prosecutors’ assessment of Cellini’s involvement in the scheme, why would a successful, wealthy political insider at all levels of government work to secure funds on behalf of Blagojevich, a Democratic governor? Redfield says it’s all about power. “I don’t think it was so much about fighting for the governor as it was about power in the board and playing the game. He was as mover and shaker when [Jim] Thompson, [Jim] Edgar and [George] Ryan were governors. That’s what he knows and what he does … Power is addictive.”
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
A new direction
Mike Lawrence, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, is retiring from the institute November 1. He started in 1994 as associate director and became director in 2004, shortly after the unexpected death of former U.S. Sen. Paul Simon.
"You can’t really replace in some senses either Paul Simon or Mike Lawrence, but we’ve got to find someone who will carry on. And we have some very capable, accomplished people in the pool," says John Jackson, political science professor at the university and head of the search committee to replace Lawrence.
An interim director will be announced shortly, and the search committee expects to publish the top three candidates some time in November. A new director may not start until January, according to Jackson.
The new director will take over as the economic downturn continues to manifest itself in new ways. Lawrence told us in the spring that one reason he felt comfortable retiring is because Simon's goal of building a $10 million endowment had been accomplished and then some. But Jackson says just as universities throughout the state are experiencing lower returns on their investments, so too is SIUC. “The endowment is fine," Jackson says. "It’s the income off the endowment that’s not quite what it had been. So right now, we have what we hope is a short-term cash flow problem. Not huge, but it’s a headache for us.”
While Lawrence is packing his books into boxes, the university will continue to benefit from the stamp that Lawrence put on the institute and its agenda, Jackson adds. "He’s focused us more on Illinois issues, Illinois concerns, and I think that has been his forte because that’s where his network and his contacts were."
Before spending a decade with the Edgar Administration, Lawrence spent 25 years as a journalist, including 20 years with Lee Enterprises and its Statehouse bureau that he helped start and another year as Statehouse bureau chief for the Chicago Sun-Times. He plans to return to writing political commentaries, which he has said he stopped after being pressured to do so in the interest of the institute and of the university. He remains vice chair of the Illinois Issues Advisory Board.
We wish him the best of luck and look forward to seeing his byline again.
"You can’t really replace in some senses either Paul Simon or Mike Lawrence, but we’ve got to find someone who will carry on. And we have some very capable, accomplished people in the pool," says John Jackson, political science professor at the university and head of the search committee to replace Lawrence.
An interim director will be announced shortly, and the search committee expects to publish the top three candidates some time in November. A new director may not start until January, according to Jackson.
The new director will take over as the economic downturn continues to manifest itself in new ways. Lawrence told us in the spring that one reason he felt comfortable retiring is because Simon's goal of building a $10 million endowment had been accomplished and then some. But Jackson says just as universities throughout the state are experiencing lower returns on their investments, so too is SIUC. “The endowment is fine," Jackson says. "It’s the income off the endowment that’s not quite what it had been. So right now, we have what we hope is a short-term cash flow problem. Not huge, but it’s a headache for us.”
While Lawrence is packing his books into boxes, the university will continue to benefit from the stamp that Lawrence put on the institute and its agenda, Jackson adds. "He’s focused us more on Illinois issues, Illinois concerns, and I think that has been his forte because that’s where his network and his contacts were."
Before spending a decade with the Edgar Administration, Lawrence spent 25 years as a journalist, including 20 years with Lee Enterprises and its Statehouse bureau that he helped start and another year as Statehouse bureau chief for the Chicago Sun-Times. He plans to return to writing political commentaries, which he has said he stopped after being pressured to do so in the interest of the institute and of the university. He remains vice chair of the Illinois Issues Advisory Board.
We wish him the best of luck and look forward to seeing his byline again.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Are pensions safe in a Con-Con?
Illinois voters have eight days to decide whether they want the state to call a constitutional convention. For those who want to know the pros, cons or the logistics, look at Illinois Issues magazine, which has published numerous articles in print and online throughout the past year (see the list below). But one specific question burning in the minds of many current state employees, a.k.a. voters, is whether a convention would rip away their pensions and retiree health benefits.
In fact, that fear will lead many of those employees to vote “no” on the referendum. People on both sides of the Con-Con debate agree that the state’s obligations to its existing employees, particularly those who are not fully vested in the pension system, is open to interpretation.
It’s generally agreed that the state’s future public employees would be vulnerable to change. Potential reforms include increasing the retirement age before a person could tap into his or her benefits, limiting automatic yearly pension increases and increasing the employee contribution rate by at least 1 percent. Again, these are for new hires only. See more here from a 2005 report by the Governor’s Pension Commission.
Existing employees are different. On one hand, courts have ruled — and the Illinois Constitution of 1970 declares — pensions are contractual relationships between the state and its employees. The state Constitution, Article 13, Section 5, reads:
Even if the state charter changed, legal challenges likely would cite protection under the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 10 (scroll down to see “Section 10”) that says states cannot breach contracts, including pension obligations.
Elena Kezelis, former chief counsel for then-Gov. Jim Edgar, says she interprets the Constitution as protecting those who are fully vested in the pension system as having unalterable rights. She points to the back of the state Constitution, where a “savings clause” would protect every contract in place if a new document were approved. If another convention were called and pension benefits were revised, then she says that provision would grandfather in the existing pension contracts. Prudent drafters would include that kind of language again, she says.
The question is, she says, how delegates and how courts would define the point at which current state employees are vested into a contractual right that cannot be taken away from them.
Bruno Behrend, co-founder of the Illinois Citizens Coalition that supports a constitutional convention, says he agrees with the same interpretation: Pension benefits of vested employees could not be taken away. And he says he doesn’t think delegates would erase that constitutional guarantee because the goal of a convention would be to draft a new constitution that would win voter approval. Taking away benefits that have been promised to existing employees wouldn’t go over so well with voters, he says. Instead, he supports pension reforms aimed at making the state more accountable in chipping away at some $100 billion in pension debt.
One main force behind a campaign to oppose a convention disagrees with the interpretation that the pensions of active public employees are safe. Among the reasons the Illinois Federation of Teachers union opposes a convention is that there's no telling what would happen, according Steve Preckwinkle, IFT's political director. “Our belief is that if Article 13, Section 5 of the Constitution were to be either eliminated or modified in certain ways that the pension security of active government employees throughout the state at all levels of government could be jeopardized.”
The IFT also is the top donor to a statewide campaign to defeat the November 4 referendum. It and affiliate members have contributed $300,000 to the Alliance to Protect the Illinois Constitution, according to the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, a Chicago-based think tank that keeps track of campaign contributions. The second top donor is the Illinois Education Association, donating $225,000.
Ann Lousin, who opposes a convention, says pension reforms are a “perfect example of how a lack of political will on the part of officeholders can lead to a constitutional crisis.”
She is a former research assistant for the 1970 Con-Con, a former parliamentarian for the House in the 1970s, a former chair of the Illinois State Civil Service Commission and a current law professor at John Marshall Law School in Chicago. In a recent paper for the Social Science Research Network, Lousin points out that the intent of the 1970 Constitution, Article 13, Section 5, is unknown and that there’s little legislative or court record on the subject. She says case law from the New York Constitution of 1938, upon which the Illinois section is based, suggests that the contractual guarantee applies only to the pension, not to such companion benefits as health care. And, she says, because legislators lack political will, they fail to fully fund the five state pension systems. That will result in dire consequences in the not too distant future. “By most estimates, the crisis will come by 2020 or 2025 when an Illinois pensioner will not receive a pension check.”
It's easy to assume that with or without another constitutional convention, public employee pensions are at risk in the future.
If you want more information about a constitutional convention, consider these stories that have published on this blog or in Illinois Issues magazine in the past year:
In fact, that fear will lead many of those employees to vote “no” on the referendum. People on both sides of the Con-Con debate agree that the state’s obligations to its existing employees, particularly those who are not fully vested in the pension system, is open to interpretation.
It’s generally agreed that the state’s future public employees would be vulnerable to change. Potential reforms include increasing the retirement age before a person could tap into his or her benefits, limiting automatic yearly pension increases and increasing the employee contribution rate by at least 1 percent. Again, these are for new hires only. See more here from a 2005 report by the Governor’s Pension Commission.
Existing employees are different. On one hand, courts have ruled — and the Illinois Constitution of 1970 declares — pensions are contractual relationships between the state and its employees. The state Constitution, Article 13, Section 5, reads:
Membership in any pension or retirement system of the state, any unit of local government or school district, or any agency of instrumentality thereof, shall be an enforceable contractual relationship, the benefits of which shall not be diminished or impaired.
Even if the state charter changed, legal challenges likely would cite protection under the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 10 (scroll down to see “Section 10”) that says states cannot breach contracts, including pension obligations.
Elena Kezelis, former chief counsel for then-Gov. Jim Edgar, says she interprets the Constitution as protecting those who are fully vested in the pension system as having unalterable rights. She points to the back of the state Constitution, where a “savings clause” would protect every contract in place if a new document were approved. If another convention were called and pension benefits were revised, then she says that provision would grandfather in the existing pension contracts. Prudent drafters would include that kind of language again, she says.
The question is, she says, how delegates and how courts would define the point at which current state employees are vested into a contractual right that cannot be taken away from them.
Bruno Behrend, co-founder of the Illinois Citizens Coalition that supports a constitutional convention, says he agrees with the same interpretation: Pension benefits of vested employees could not be taken away. And he says he doesn’t think delegates would erase that constitutional guarantee because the goal of a convention would be to draft a new constitution that would win voter approval. Taking away benefits that have been promised to existing employees wouldn’t go over so well with voters, he says. Instead, he supports pension reforms aimed at making the state more accountable in chipping away at some $100 billion in pension debt.
One main force behind a campaign to oppose a convention disagrees with the interpretation that the pensions of active public employees are safe. Among the reasons the Illinois Federation of Teachers union opposes a convention is that there's no telling what would happen, according Steve Preckwinkle, IFT's political director. “Our belief is that if Article 13, Section 5 of the Constitution were to be either eliminated or modified in certain ways that the pension security of active government employees throughout the state at all levels of government could be jeopardized.”
The IFT also is the top donor to a statewide campaign to defeat the November 4 referendum. It and affiliate members have contributed $300,000 to the Alliance to Protect the Illinois Constitution, according to the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, a Chicago-based think tank that keeps track of campaign contributions. The second top donor is the Illinois Education Association, donating $225,000.
Ann Lousin, who opposes a convention, says pension reforms are a “perfect example of how a lack of political will on the part of officeholders can lead to a constitutional crisis.”
She is a former research assistant for the 1970 Con-Con, a former parliamentarian for the House in the 1970s, a former chair of the Illinois State Civil Service Commission and a current law professor at John Marshall Law School in Chicago. In a recent paper for the Social Science Research Network, Lousin points out that the intent of the 1970 Constitution, Article 13, Section 5, is unknown and that there’s little legislative or court record on the subject. She says case law from the New York Constitution of 1938, upon which the Illinois section is based, suggests that the contractual guarantee applies only to the pension, not to such companion benefits as health care. And, she says, because legislators lack political will, they fail to fully fund the five state pension systems. That will result in dire consequences in the not too distant future. “By most estimates, the crisis will come by 2020 or 2025 when an Illinois pensioner will not receive a pension check.”
It's easy to assume that with or without another constitutional convention, public employee pensions are at risk in the future.
If you want more information about a constitutional convention, consider these stories that have published on this blog or in Illinois Issues magazine in the past year:
- The language of the referendum resulted in the blue piece of paper voters will get on Election Day.
- How a 2010 convention could differ from the 1970 convention
- Pros and cons of a convention: Q&A with Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn and Dawn Clark Netsch
- Con-Con basics (PowerPoint presentation)
- Q&A with a 1970 delegate (print only; See Illinois Issues, January 2008, page 13)
- Separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches (print only; See Illinois Issues, January 2008, page 19)
- The revenue article and tax reforms (print only; See Illinois Issues, February 2008, page 27)
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Only half way there ...
... With a long way to go.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich approved a way to restore money that was cut from the state budget earlier this year, but human service providers, state parks and historic sites and hundreds of state employees are still in limbo.
Blagojevich signed into law a deal between the House and the Senate that authorizes the governor to transfer about $221 million from special dedicated funds that have “excess” money. (For example, a plumbing licensure fund has about $750,000 available from fees paid by people applying for a plumbing license.) The transferred money would go into a new fund, called the FY09 Budget Relief Fund, which serves as a lockbox that can only be used to restore money to human services, state parks and historic sites and constitutional officers who had to lay off employees or require paid days off.
But that's only half the solution. The other half is an appropriations bill, SB 1103, which authorizes the comptroller to write the checks. Without spending authority, the “fund sweeps” money just sits there.
The governor's office issued this statement: “The governor did sign the funds sweep bill, but the budget office and agencies have expressed concern over certain funds that are included in the bill. With that in mind, there is no certainty at this time how much money will actually be available and, thus, it would be preliminary to say how far this money will go.”
Rep. Gary Hanning, a Litchfield Democrat and House member who negotiated the deal, said the bill was in the public domain in the House for a week, and it sat in the Senate for two weeks. Democrats and Republicans of both chambers had an opportunity to voice concerns and ask for changes, some of which were accommodated before they sent it to the governor.
“All through that period of time, the governor and his people sat silently by and never weighed in one way or the other, so we assumed that they were OK with this bill,” Hannig said.
The governor's office offered another statement that his office made its concerns known in September, and the rest is up to the controller to decide which funds can be moved over.
Carol Knowles, spokeswoman for Comptroller Dan Hynes, said the measure, which the governor signed into law without changes, spells out which funds to sweep, how much to sweep and when to sweep. “There is no ambiguity what the law states,” she said. The transfers should be completed within the next day.
But even if the governor signs the spending bill without making any changes, he's not compelled to actually spend the money. To do that, he would have to send a voucher over to the state comptroller, who would then write the check. “He could sign the bill, but if he doesn't send over the vouchers, the comptroller still can't issue a check,” Hannig said.
The governor has until the first week of December to act on the spending bill. It could come up in the annual fall session — if there even is a “veto” session (because the House and Senate already acted on all but a few of the governor's various vetoes last month).
One more note: Before this mess started, the governor sought authority to transfer about $530 million (scroll down) from special funds. But his proposal would have let him sweep the money at any time in any amount up to about $530 million, Hannig said. The House changed the proposal to limit the spending to $221 million and to identify which funds could be swept and what the money could be spent on.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich approved a way to restore money that was cut from the state budget earlier this year, but human service providers, state parks and historic sites and hundreds of state employees are still in limbo.
Blagojevich signed into law a deal between the House and the Senate that authorizes the governor to transfer about $221 million from special dedicated funds that have “excess” money. (For example, a plumbing licensure fund has about $750,000 available from fees paid by people applying for a plumbing license.) The transferred money would go into a new fund, called the FY09 Budget Relief Fund, which serves as a lockbox that can only be used to restore money to human services, state parks and historic sites and constitutional officers who had to lay off employees or require paid days off.
But that's only half the solution. The other half is an appropriations bill, SB 1103, which authorizes the comptroller to write the checks. Without spending authority, the “fund sweeps” money just sits there.
The governor's office issued this statement: “The governor did sign the funds sweep bill, but the budget office and agencies have expressed concern over certain funds that are included in the bill. With that in mind, there is no certainty at this time how much money will actually be available and, thus, it would be preliminary to say how far this money will go.”
Rep. Gary Hanning, a Litchfield Democrat and House member who negotiated the deal, said the bill was in the public domain in the House for a week, and it sat in the Senate for two weeks. Democrats and Republicans of both chambers had an opportunity to voice concerns and ask for changes, some of which were accommodated before they sent it to the governor.
“All through that period of time, the governor and his people sat silently by and never weighed in one way or the other, so we assumed that they were OK with this bill,” Hannig said.
The governor's office offered another statement that his office made its concerns known in September, and the rest is up to the controller to decide which funds can be moved over.
Carol Knowles, spokeswoman for Comptroller Dan Hynes, said the measure, which the governor signed into law without changes, spells out which funds to sweep, how much to sweep and when to sweep. “There is no ambiguity what the law states,” she said. The transfers should be completed within the next day.
But even if the governor signs the spending bill without making any changes, he's not compelled to actually spend the money. To do that, he would have to send a voucher over to the state comptroller, who would then write the check. “He could sign the bill, but if he doesn't send over the vouchers, the comptroller still can't issue a check,” Hannig said.
The governor has until the first week of December to act on the spending bill. It could come up in the annual fall session — if there even is a “veto” session (because the House and Senate already acted on all but a few of the governor's various vetoes last month).
One more note: Before this mess started, the governor sought authority to transfer about $530 million (scroll down) from special funds. But his proposal would have let him sweep the money at any time in any amount up to about $530 million, Hannig said. The House changed the proposal to limit the spending to $221 million and to identify which funds could be swept and what the money could be spent on.
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
Big Ten Battleground
In honor of the second presidential debate tonight, take a look at this Big Ten Battle Ground Poll. It surveyed 600 residents of eight Midwestern states in the Big Ten Conference last month, and it’ll do another round in about two weeks. Other than Illinois, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama’s home turf, six states were statistically tied between Obama and his Republican opponent, Arizona Sen. John McCain. Indiana was the only state that leaned toward McCain.
But that was three weeks ago. Things have changed in Obama’s favor, says Brian Gaines, political science professor with the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Gaines is participating in the polling project with professors from seven other universities.
“In the last three weeks, there has been a pretty clear swing to Obama almost everywhere,” he says.
It comes down to economics. In tough times, voters tend to look to Democrats to get them out of it, he says. And the recent financial crisis that put Washington, D.C., on the hot seat put Obama in the driver’s seat.
Now, most Midwestern states are Obama’s to lose. But it’s not a shoo-in. The September results show that Obama had an advantage among Midwestern women, with double-digit leads over McCain in Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. McCain led in five states among Catholic voters, with large margins in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Economic pessimism and widespread angst that the country is going in the wrong direction resonates with white- and blue-collar voters. White-collar tended to lean to McCain, while more blue-collar participants said they supported Obama. The exception was Ohio, where analysts said Obama has to stem the deflection of Democrats who helped U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton win that state's Democratic primary.
While Ken Goldstein, co-director of the polling project and political science professor at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, said debates don’t normally get much credence in election results, Obama’s newness on the national scene gives voters the opportunity to see whether he lives up to the presidential image. Watch the video of the analysis here. The consensus was that these debates could be a huge factor in this election.
New Big Ten survey results will be available October 23.
But that was three weeks ago. Things have changed in Obama’s favor, says Brian Gaines, political science professor with the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Gaines is participating in the polling project with professors from seven other universities.
“In the last three weeks, there has been a pretty clear swing to Obama almost everywhere,” he says.
It comes down to economics. In tough times, voters tend to look to Democrats to get them out of it, he says. And the recent financial crisis that put Washington, D.C., on the hot seat put Obama in the driver’s seat.
Now, most Midwestern states are Obama’s to lose. But it’s not a shoo-in. The September results show that Obama had an advantage among Midwestern women, with double-digit leads over McCain in Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. McCain led in five states among Catholic voters, with large margins in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Economic pessimism and widespread angst that the country is going in the wrong direction resonates with white- and blue-collar voters. White-collar tended to lean to McCain, while more blue-collar participants said they supported Obama. The exception was Ohio, where analysts said Obama has to stem the deflection of Democrats who helped U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton win that state's Democratic primary.
While Ken Goldstein, co-director of the polling project and political science professor at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, said debates don’t normally get much credence in election results, Obama’s newness on the national scene gives voters the opportunity to see whether he lives up to the presidential image. Watch the video of the analysis here. The consensus was that these debates could be a huge factor in this election.
New Big Ten survey results will be available October 23.
Monday, October 06, 2008
Blue notes
Voters can expect to receive a controversial blue piece of paper with their ballots next month. They also can expect to see special notices posted in the voting booths, absentee ballots, newspapers and on Web sites.
That is, unless things change -- again -- in the legal debate about a mandatory referendum asking voters whether Illinois should convene another constitutional convention to open the state charter.
As of today's court order, that blue notice will explain that the referendum contains what a Cook County judge deemed “inaccurate” and “misleading” information that a person who skips the question on the ballot counts as a “no” vote.
The Chicago Bar Association, Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn and other proponents of the commonly called Con-Con filed suit in Cook County also argued that the explanation of the November 4 referendum -- written by a committee of legislators and certified by state election officials and the secretary of state -- was biased against a convention because it included the fact that the 1988 referendum failed by a 3-1 margin.
Cook County Circuit Court Judge Nathaniel Howse Jr. ruled in their favor and, after multiple, day-long meetings with both sides, ordered local authorities to hand out and post notices to tell voters to disregard the inaccurate sentence.
David Orr, Cook County clerk, said it could have been worse, but the “mistake” is making it very difficult for everyone else in the state as elections near.
“That's life when it comes to elections, but it couldn't have come at a worse time for us in terms of preparations,” Orr said. “But at this point, I think it's done.”
Maybe not, Con-Con supporters said.
Bruno Behrend, cofounder of the Illinois Citizens Coalition that supports the call for a convention and who is involved in the case, said he's not satisfied.
“We just ask people to try and do the intellectual exercise: Read this language on the ballot, understand that it's wrong, and try to craft an order that ameliorates it. No matter what your view on the outcome of the election, you can't.”
He says the proponents could try one more time to rectify the situation through an appeal, asking the judge to require election authorities to print an entirely separate ballot for the Con-Con referendum. He says they acknowledge the cost, although undetermined.
“The only justification we can really say is, 'What is the cost of an unfair election?'” Bruno said.
We'll learn more Tuesday. In the meantime, check out these resources from Illinois Issues magazine about a constitutional convention:
- Pro vs. Con of a Con-Con. Listen here.
- Presentation of Con-Con basics
- Con-Con revisited by Patrick Guinane
- Con-Con separation of powers debate by Aaron Chambers (In Illinois Issues magazine print only, February 2008, page 27).
And one comprehensive resource is from the state's Legislative Research Unit.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Warning: Rocky road still ahead
State parks and historic sites would stay open. Substance abuse prevention and treatment services would avoid losing $55 million in state funding and the same amount in federal funding. State funding for human services would return to the levels approved by the legislature in May. The same would apply to the constitutional officers, which could hire back employees already laid off. Mass transit districts would receive more than $36 million in reimbursements for having to provide free rides to seniors and people with disabilities. But there’s a big “if.”
That will happen if Gov. Rod Blagojevich signs a plan approved by both chambers. The House approved the budget restorations earlier this month, and the Senate followed suit on Tuesday. But there’s no telling how long this could take. The Senate could send the approved measures to the governor’s desk right away, or it could wait for whatever reason. And once the governor does get the measures, he still has 60 days to sign them into law, veto them completely or send them back to the legislature with changes. Given the timeline or lack thereof, it’s questionable whether state parks and historic sites will close in October and November as scheduled.
All agree that the ball is in the governor’s court.
Rep. Mark Beaubien, a Barrington Hills Republican and budget negotiator for his caucus, expressed a concern about Blagojevich's next move. “Now he has the ability to take the veto pen and play games and eliminate programs to try to make different people look bad.”
Brian Williamsen, a Blagojevich spokesman, said the governor’s office has to review all of the details and added that it’s too early to speculate on a timeline. Williamsen could not say whether the governor would delay closing parks and historic sites if the House and Senate plan had potential to become law.
The House and Senate agreed to sweep unused money from the special state funds to collect about $221 million, which is included in SB 790. The package also would create a new fund, dubbed the “Budget Relief Fund,” so that the money could not be used for anything other than restoring the budget cuts spelled out in the spending bill, SB 1103.
The 15 votes against the fund sweeps were among Senate Republicans, who said there is no guarantee that the governor will sign the measure and, if he does, that he’ll release the money as intended.
The deal to accept the House’s version of the plan came only after much of the day was spent behind closed doors negotiating an even larger plan that would have increased funding for various programs, but the wish list ballooned out of control and eventually collapsed at the last minute. Literally at the same time, the Illinois Department of Revenue issued new information that revenue projections are coming in lower than anticipated. Income and sales tax revenues, as well as other tax revenues, are coming in below the levels on which this year’s budget was predicated. The difference: $200 million.
That slightly deflates the cushion that the governor has when distributing money throughout the fiscal year. But Rep. Gary Hannig, a Litchfield Democrat and budget negotiator for his caucus, said the $221 million in budget restorations that advanced to the governor’s desk Tuesday pay for themselves by transferring the same amount from special funds.
Sen. Donne Trotter, the Senate Democrats' budget negotiator, looked to the regularly scheduled fall session in November. “If there’s still an appetite to do more, then we can do more at that time.”
But the question of what the governor would do loomed like a black cloud. “There [are] no assurances — nothing that I can give — other than we know that there is a need, a necessity to get this done,” Trotter said. “And I think that we saw that, at least, in a rare occasion, the entire Senate that is present today voted for it. So we know at least what the legislators would like to see done. … It’s up to him of what he’s going to do otherwise.”
Which message are you sending?
Building on yesterday’s ethics reforms, the state Senate advanced a more sweeping measure that the governor tried but failed to advance through his executive powers. All GOP senators voted in support of the measure, five Democrats voted present and one Democrat voted against it.
Sen. Don Harmon, voted “present." The Oak Park Democrat sponsored yesterday’s successful pay-to-play ban, but he opposed the measure containing the governor’s proposals today because it sends the wrong message. He warned that approving a bill that almost everyone agrees is fatally flawed would undermine the behind-the-scenes negotiations already happening between both chambers and the governor’s office. He said it also could give the impression that the Senate is more interested in claiming that it advanced comprehensive ethics reforms than it is in ironing out the complicated and significant details with the House.
“Let’s negotiate this bill before we start throwing bombs across the building,” Harmon said before the Senate voted to approve the measure.
Fifty senators disagreed with Harmon and said approving the new reforms contained in SB 780 sends a different message: The Senate is ready to enact comprehensive reforms that could help regain the public’s trust during these troubling times. (That message is more likely to sound better on campaign literature landing in voters’ mailboxes from now until the November 4 elections.)
The legislation would enact more limits to political campaign contributions and shine more sunlight on who makes money off of whom. It would prohibit businesses with significant state contracts from donating to legislators and statewide political parties, prevent legislators from working in numerous government jobs as a second source of income, require more disclosure of legislators’ lobbying activities and reform the way the legislature enacts its own pay raises.
Through a news release, the governor applauded the Senate’s action. “This vote sends a message to the people that the tired tradition of double dipping, the fraudulent way pay raises are doled out and the deceitful way legislators who moonlight as attorneys can hide their clout-heavy client list should be a thing of the past.” His news release urged the House to continue the momentum and approve the more sweeping ethics reforms.
The Campaign for Political Reform, a Chicago-based good government group, testified against the legislation last night, saying it was fatally flawed and constituted more “political rhetoric” during the election season. But Cindi Canary, director of the think tank, said she has been working with other legislators and the governor’s office for the past few weeks on the governor’s ethics language.
The Senate president addressed the whole chamber but, at more than one point, seemed to speak directly to Harmon and Sen. Ira Silverstein, a Chicago Democrat who also voted “present.” (In the Illinois legislature, a “present” vote is intended to demonstrate opposition a flawed bill but support of the concept.) Both Harmon and Silverstein also happen to be among the names floating around as contestants to be the next Senate president when Jones’ term ends in January.
Jones said senators who oppose SB 780 want to either protect someone else or preserve their fundraising abilities so they can run for higher office. Silverstein later said that Jones’ comments are part of a political game and won’t hurt other negotiations. “But enough is enough,” he said. “You have to stand up for what you believe in.”
The only senator voting against the legislation was Sen. Mike Jacobs, an East Moline Democrat who often speaks out against Blagojevich. He repeated earlier sentiments that “the cancer of Illinois is the governor.” Jacobs made the point that the governor’s ethics legislation approved by the Senate today would not target the actions of convicted felon and political insider Tony Rezko, found guilty of 16 counts of federal corruption. It also wouldn’t have stopped another political insider and hefty campaign contributor, Ali Ata, from testifying that he donated to the governor’s campaign in exchange for a high-powered state job.
Sen. James DeLeo, the Chicago Democrat sponsoring the governor's ethics bill, defended the measure and said it wouldn’t stop drug dealing or bank robbing, but it would improve the transparency of state government.
That will happen if Gov. Rod Blagojevich signs a plan approved by both chambers. The House approved the budget restorations earlier this month, and the Senate followed suit on Tuesday. But there’s no telling how long this could take. The Senate could send the approved measures to the governor’s desk right away, or it could wait for whatever reason. And once the governor does get the measures, he still has 60 days to sign them into law, veto them completely or send them back to the legislature with changes. Given the timeline or lack thereof, it’s questionable whether state parks and historic sites will close in October and November as scheduled.
All agree that the ball is in the governor’s court.
Rep. Mark Beaubien, a Barrington Hills Republican and budget negotiator for his caucus, expressed a concern about Blagojevich's next move. “Now he has the ability to take the veto pen and play games and eliminate programs to try to make different people look bad.”
Brian Williamsen, a Blagojevich spokesman, said the governor’s office has to review all of the details and added that it’s too early to speculate on a timeline. Williamsen could not say whether the governor would delay closing parks and historic sites if the House and Senate plan had potential to become law.
The House and Senate agreed to sweep unused money from the special state funds to collect about $221 million, which is included in SB 790. The package also would create a new fund, dubbed the “Budget Relief Fund,” so that the money could not be used for anything other than restoring the budget cuts spelled out in the spending bill, SB 1103.
The 15 votes against the fund sweeps were among Senate Republicans, who said there is no guarantee that the governor will sign the measure and, if he does, that he’ll release the money as intended.
The deal to accept the House’s version of the plan came only after much of the day was spent behind closed doors negotiating an even larger plan that would have increased funding for various programs, but the wish list ballooned out of control and eventually collapsed at the last minute. Literally at the same time, the Illinois Department of Revenue issued new information that revenue projections are coming in lower than anticipated. Income and sales tax revenues, as well as other tax revenues, are coming in below the levels on which this year’s budget was predicated. The difference: $200 million.
That slightly deflates the cushion that the governor has when distributing money throughout the fiscal year. But Rep. Gary Hannig, a Litchfield Democrat and budget negotiator for his caucus, said the $221 million in budget restorations that advanced to the governor’s desk Tuesday pay for themselves by transferring the same amount from special funds.
Sen. Donne Trotter, the Senate Democrats' budget negotiator, looked to the regularly scheduled fall session in November. “If there’s still an appetite to do more, then we can do more at that time.”
But the question of what the governor would do loomed like a black cloud. “There [are] no assurances — nothing that I can give — other than we know that there is a need, a necessity to get this done,” Trotter said. “And I think that we saw that, at least, in a rare occasion, the entire Senate that is present today voted for it. So we know at least what the legislators would like to see done. … It’s up to him of what he’s going to do otherwise.”
Which message are you sending?
Building on yesterday’s ethics reforms, the state Senate advanced a more sweeping measure that the governor tried but failed to advance through his executive powers. All GOP senators voted in support of the measure, five Democrats voted present and one Democrat voted against it.
Sen. Don Harmon, voted “present." The Oak Park Democrat sponsored yesterday’s successful pay-to-play ban, but he opposed the measure containing the governor’s proposals today because it sends the wrong message. He warned that approving a bill that almost everyone agrees is fatally flawed would undermine the behind-the-scenes negotiations already happening between both chambers and the governor’s office. He said it also could give the impression that the Senate is more interested in claiming that it advanced comprehensive ethics reforms than it is in ironing out the complicated and significant details with the House.
“Let’s negotiate this bill before we start throwing bombs across the building,” Harmon said before the Senate voted to approve the measure.
Fifty senators disagreed with Harmon and said approving the new reforms contained in SB 780 sends a different message: The Senate is ready to enact comprehensive reforms that could help regain the public’s trust during these troubling times. (That message is more likely to sound better on campaign literature landing in voters’ mailboxes from now until the November 4 elections.)
The legislation would enact more limits to political campaign contributions and shine more sunlight on who makes money off of whom. It would prohibit businesses with significant state contracts from donating to legislators and statewide political parties, prevent legislators from working in numerous government jobs as a second source of income, require more disclosure of legislators’ lobbying activities and reform the way the legislature enacts its own pay raises.
Through a news release, the governor applauded the Senate’s action. “This vote sends a message to the people that the tired tradition of double dipping, the fraudulent way pay raises are doled out and the deceitful way legislators who moonlight as attorneys can hide their clout-heavy client list should be a thing of the past.” His news release urged the House to continue the momentum and approve the more sweeping ethics reforms.
The Campaign for Political Reform, a Chicago-based good government group, testified against the legislation last night, saying it was fatally flawed and constituted more “political rhetoric” during the election season. But Cindi Canary, director of the think tank, said she has been working with other legislators and the governor’s office for the past few weeks on the governor’s ethics language.
The Senate president addressed the whole chamber but, at more than one point, seemed to speak directly to Harmon and Sen. Ira Silverstein, a Chicago Democrat who also voted “present.” (In the Illinois legislature, a “present” vote is intended to demonstrate opposition a flawed bill but support of the concept.) Both Harmon and Silverstein also happen to be among the names floating around as contestants to be the next Senate president when Jones’ term ends in January.
Jones said senators who oppose SB 780 want to either protect someone else or preserve their fundraising abilities so they can run for higher office. Silverstein later said that Jones’ comments are part of a political game and won’t hurt other negotiations. “But enough is enough,” he said. “You have to stand up for what you believe in.”
The only senator voting against the legislation was Sen. Mike Jacobs, an East Moline Democrat who often speaks out against Blagojevich. He repeated earlier sentiments that “the cancer of Illinois is the governor.” Jacobs made the point that the governor’s ethics legislation approved by the Senate today would not target the actions of convicted felon and political insider Tony Rezko, found guilty of 16 counts of federal corruption. It also wouldn’t have stopped another political insider and hefty campaign contributor, Ali Ata, from testifying that he donated to the governor’s campaign in exchange for a high-powered state job.
Sen. James DeLeo, the Chicago Democrat sponsoring the governor's ethics bill, defended the measure and said it wouldn’t stop drug dealing or bank robbing, but it would improve the transparency of state government.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Pay-to-play ban becomes law
Monday did become Ethics Day. After three years of back-and-forth, the Illinois House and Senate finally agreed and enacted landmark ethics reforms that will become effective January 1. The governor and some legislators already are trying to expand the so-called pay-to-play ban, but that could take just as long as the first effort. In the meantime, Monday’s action is likely to generate a lot of campaign mail as incumbents and candidates enter the home stretch before the November 4 elections.Meanwhile, as I write this, budget negotiators from both chambers and both political parties are meeting behind closed doors to hash out a plan that would prevent state parks and historic sites from closing this fall, as well as prevent hundreds of state employees from losing their jobs. Whether they will strike a compromise, however, won’t be known until Tuesday, when both chambers will reconvene in another off-season legislative session.
All day Monday, which included multiple special sessions called by Gov. Rod Blagojevich, served as a perfect example of how everything will change in January. In addition to new ethics laws that will affect the governor’s fundraising abilities, January marks the end of Senate President Emil Jones’ reign. Throughout the day, there was an acute awareness that Jones is on his way out of office with numerous individuals interested in taking his place. More on that later.
One set of ethics reform down, more to go
The Illinois Senate agreed with the House to override Blagojevich’s changes to HB 824, meaning new campaign contribution rules will take effect in the new year. Businesses holding state contracts worth more than $50,000 will not be able to donate to the political campaigns of the officeholder who signs the contract.
The Senate president said the new law contained in HB 824 doesn’t go far enough. “It turns hard money into soft money,” Jones said, later adding, “They’ll still be able to give the soft money through the back door.” He meant that instead of donating directly to the officeholder, state contactors will still be able to give money to statewide political parties that turn around and filter the money to the officeholder who signs the contract, anyway.
Jones supports the governor’s proposals, which would expand the so-called pay-to-play ban. The governor’s amendatory veto language was inserted into a new bill. It would:
- Ban businesses that hold significant state contracts from donating to legislators and statewide political parties, as well as statewide officeholders;
- Prohibit legislators from working second jobs in any unit of government, with some exceptions;
- Clarify the process by which legislators vote to accept their pay raises.
Cindi Canary, executive director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform and a main force behind HB 824, said it felt odd, but she had to oppose the new measure during a Senate committee Monday evening. She said the more expansive ethics legislation is “not ready for prime time, yet.”
She said she supports the concept but believes the governor’s proposal isn’t the right vehicle for enacting contribution limits on legislators. Banning state contractors from donating to elected officials who have no control over state contracts could invite a legal challenge based on the First Amendment that protects free speech, she said. She also questioned the fallout of prohibiting active state legislators from also working in some public sector jobs but not others. And she said the one aspect that would be ready to go if it were proposed as a stand-alone measure is the portion that would clarify the system of approving legislative pay raises.
Sen. James Clayborne, a Belleville Democrat, agreed with Canary and said the governor’s proposals need some more work, but he voted to advance the measure to the full chamber in hopes of working through more changes before a final vote.
Restoring budget cuts
Meanwhile, budgeteers are working behind closed doors in an effort to compromise to restore some of the governor’s $1.4 billion in budget cuts, which are resulting in plans to close 11 state parks and 13 historic sites, lay off hundreds of public employees and drastically reduce state funding for such human services as substance abuse treatment and prevention.
Earlier this month, the House approved two measures that would sweep about $221 million from special funds to plug some but not all of the budget holes. (See the spending portion in SB 1103.)
Sen. Donne Trotter, a Chicago Democrat and budget negotiator, said the Senate Democrats found $42 million of that $221 million that they would like to spend in a different way than approved by the House. That includes $37 million the House included to reimburse mass transit districts for the free rides granted to seniors and people with disabilities enacted earlier this year. The Senate Democrats would take that out and shift the funding, for instance, to increase the amount of money for college grants through the Monetary Award Program. The House also would restore funding for constitutional officers at 100 percent of the original funding level, while the Senate Democrats would restore them at 75 percent.
Republicans are involved in the budget negotiations. According to Patty Schuh, spokeswoman for Senate Minority Leader Frank Watson, the GOP Caucus prioritizes restoring funding for state parks, historic sites and human services. But members argue that it doesn’t make sense to restore funding to the parks and historic sites and then sweep money from the special fund dedicated to the Department of Natural Resources.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Will Monday be Ethics Day? UPDATED
The Illinois Senate will return to Springfield to consider major ethics legislation, presumably in time to avoid a constitutional challenge about when an ambiguous 15-day clock expires.
Senate President Emil Jones Jr., who previously said he would not reconvene his chamber until after the November elections, said in a statement that he now is calling his members back to the Capitol to act on ethics reforms “only at the request of my friend Barrack Obama.”
Here’s the statement from the U.S. senator’s campaign: “Sen. Obama called Sen. Jones [Wednesday] to offer his strong support for the ethics reforms pending before the Illinois Senate and urged him to pass them at the earliest possible opportunity.”
Note that the date has not been set for that regular Senate session; however, the chamber will be back — and so will the House — Monday, September 22 because Gov. Rod Blagojevich called a special session to focus on ethics. But the governor’s proclamation requires the General Assembly to focus on Blagojevich’s version of ethics reforms, which the House already defeated last week.
But, as is common in Springfield, some legislative ideas come back from the dead. Rep. Jay Hoffman, a Collinsville Democrat and Blagojevich ally, has introduced another bill, HB 6699, that would do the same thing as the governor’s amendatory veto of HB 824. The governor wants to clarify the process of accepting legislative pay raises so lawmakers had to vote “yes” on public record, stop legislators from “double dipping” by working in another unit of government at the same time they’re serving in the General Assembly and require more detailed disclosure of lobbying work done by legislators or their spouses. See the background in our previous blog posts.
Cindy Davidsmeyer, Jones’ spokeswoman, said the Senate president last week promised Sen. Don Harmon, an Oak Park Democrat, that he could call the unanimously approved HB 824 for a vote to override the governor’s changes. If that happens as expected, then businesses holding state contracts worth more than $50,000 could not donate to the political campaigns of the governor.
But Davidsmeyer said the vote to override the governor’s changes would have to be done in a regular session, which has not yet been set because some Senate members have conflicts with Monday’s special session.
She could only say that the Senate could take up a “variety of issues,” and there’s plenty to choose from. The chamber could consider actions taken by the House last week, including restoring budget cuts so that 11 state parks and 13 historic sites wouldn’t have to close this fall, as well as restoring cuts to human services and state offices that could result in hundreds of layoffs of state employees. The Senate also could consider the governor’s changes to Senate bills, including the another ethics bill, SB 2190. The governor would ban state legislators and officers from accepting political donations from government employees at any level, punishable by as much as a $10,000 fine for each offense.
Obama's campaign followed up with this: "Sen. Obama is pleased that Senator Jones has decided to take immediate steps to move ethics reform forward, and he plans to monitor the bill's progress next week."
Senate President Emil Jones Jr., who previously said he would not reconvene his chamber until after the November elections, said in a statement that he now is calling his members back to the Capitol to act on ethics reforms “only at the request of my friend Barrack Obama.”
Here’s the statement from the U.S. senator’s campaign: “Sen. Obama called Sen. Jones [Wednesday] to offer his strong support for the ethics reforms pending before the Illinois Senate and urged him to pass them at the earliest possible opportunity.”
Note that the date has not been set for that regular Senate session; however, the chamber will be back — and so will the House — Monday, September 22 because Gov. Rod Blagojevich called a special session to focus on ethics. But the governor’s proclamation requires the General Assembly to focus on Blagojevich’s version of ethics reforms, which the House already defeated last week.
But, as is common in Springfield, some legislative ideas come back from the dead. Rep. Jay Hoffman, a Collinsville Democrat and Blagojevich ally, has introduced another bill, HB 6699, that would do the same thing as the governor’s amendatory veto of HB 824. The governor wants to clarify the process of accepting legislative pay raises so lawmakers had to vote “yes” on public record, stop legislators from “double dipping” by working in another unit of government at the same time they’re serving in the General Assembly and require more detailed disclosure of lobbying work done by legislators or their spouses. See the background in our previous blog posts.
Cindy Davidsmeyer, Jones’ spokeswoman, said the Senate president last week promised Sen. Don Harmon, an Oak Park Democrat, that he could call the unanimously approved HB 824 for a vote to override the governor’s changes. If that happens as expected, then businesses holding state contracts worth more than $50,000 could not donate to the political campaigns of the governor.
But Davidsmeyer said the vote to override the governor’s changes would have to be done in a regular session, which has not yet been set because some Senate members have conflicts with Monday’s special session.
She could only say that the Senate could take up a “variety of issues,” and there’s plenty to choose from. The chamber could consider actions taken by the House last week, including restoring budget cuts so that 11 state parks and 13 historic sites wouldn’t have to close this fall, as well as restoring cuts to human services and state offices that could result in hundreds of layoffs of state employees. The Senate also could consider the governor’s changes to Senate bills, including the another ethics bill, SB 2190. The governor would ban state legislators and officers from accepting political donations from government employees at any level, punishable by as much as a $10,000 fine for each offense.
Obama's campaign followed up with this: "Sen. Obama is pleased that Senator Jones has decided to take immediate steps to move ethics reform forward, and he plans to monitor the bill's progress next week."
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