$10 million borrowing for first round of water system projects

From the 2011 Water Quality Report:

In April 2010, the Village hired a consultant with expertise in financial planning for water utilities to complete a water rate study. The study identified the annual estimated expenditures needed to operate the system and compared them with the annual revenues projected to be collected with the current water rates. They determined if the Village maintained water pricing at the current level, there would be a $2.75 million deficit by 2011 which would increase to almost $5 million by 2015. As a result, the consultant recommended that water fund revenues increase by 14% per year over a three year period, beginning in 2010. This measure was determined to be necessary to ensure that adequate funding is available for the current and future operation of the Village’s water system. The complete Final Water Study Report can be found on the Village’s web site. 

At their meeting on November 9, 2010, the Village Council approved a measure to restructure water fees and the manner in which water bills are calculated. Downers Grove water customers saw these changes reflected in bills received after January 1, 2011. There are three main reasons for the change: 
• The price of water that the Village buys from the DuPage Water Commission has significantly increased and is expected to continue at a rate of 10% per year. 
• Large portions of the system have reached the end of their useful life. This includes water main pipes that deliver water to homes and businesses, as well as water towers, fire hydrants, water valves, and meters. A significant investment is needed to avoid disruptions in water service due to failed equipment. 
• Water consumption has declined by about 1% annually over the past five years and is projected to continue along this trend in the future. 

The Village’s water system consists of 7 water towers with a storage capacity of 8 million gallons. The Village also has 3 stand-by wells that are tested and maintained regularly in case of an emergency. In addition to the water towers, the Village also maintains 233 miles of water mains, 3,144 fire hydrants, 2,940 valves, and almost 16,000 water meters. Last year the Village pumped an average of 5.3 million gallons of water per day.

There was much discussion and deliberation over the massive increases in charges to residents and businesses included in the Water Utility Council voted Yes to pass in November of 2010. Costs for the system of pipes, pumps and towers that deliver potable water, and for the actual water used were dissected and parsed. The desired result was a viable and sustainable Water Utility fee structure would guarantee the system would be financed properly moving forward. Those charges will increase compounded at ~14%/year for the next five years minimum, so what is expensive now will be more expensive in the future. So it goes. A significant investment is needed to avoid disruptions in water service due to failed equipment and leaking pipes.

The study itself identified an annual need for about $4 million a year for system maintenance, rising to
about $5 million a year by 2020. It appears rather than prioritize projects based on scope and need to meet the available funding provided by the Utility, staff moved ahead with several big projects now rather than build up the available funds and pay for them as cash becomes available for projects.

At one point in the Water Utility Study (p.14) two options were presented: double the water rate in a few years, or borrow money to finance the intial maintenance work needed now. This $10 million debt issuance would be the first of two recommended by the consultants. Round Two of borrowing, if needed, would be in 2015 to the tune of about another $6 million. At that point the system should be in reasonable enough shape that ongoing Water Utility revenues can pay both for the principle and interest of the debt, and for the continued maintenance of the water system infrastructure.

It’s important to note that the revenues are dedicated and designated for this debt issuance. These are not debt issuance backed by property taxes, they will be backed by Water Utility revenue. Borrowing always crates an “empty” interest expense; money that buys nothing. All the more reason to get out from under the debt ASAP. The sooner the system is stabilized and self-funding on an annual basis, the sooner the cost curves flatten out to a degree.

The Water Utility will be used to fund a 3R Reserve (Repair, Replacement and Rehabilitation) that will accomplish the financing past 2020. By then, the Village should have about $20 million built into the reserve for projects, and won’t have to waste money on interest-only expenses related to borrowing.

Council approved the $10 million debt issuance unanimously 6-0. Commissioner Neustadt was not in attendance, and did not vote.

Village to roll out three new Utilities

The Utility Utility. The Water Utility and Stormwater Utility are but the entry point of a potential revenue bonanza for the Village. One problem holding things back? The costs associated with staff time and consultant studies continue to expand, eating up precious core service budget resources.

According to the nationally recognized Lirpa One Consulting Group, the obvious solution is the Utility Utility to pay for costs incurred researching, developing, consulting, and administering all the new utilities. The costs will be shared among all areas of the community that might derive future benefit for the Utilities created by the the Utility Utility process. Once funding for this utility is in place, it will be a simple matter to take anything and put it into the Utility creation process.

Two Utilities already in process:

The Sunshine Utility. The Village will charge each property owner based on the sunshine received. Staff indicated they have the GPS maps and know exactly how big each lot is. it would be a logical compliment to the Stormwater Utility, and it would fairly assess the enjoyment of sunny pleasant weather. Credits against the utility could be generated by arranging to be in the shadow of large buildings immediately next door that block out the sun.

The Smile Utility. It’s well know smiles use less energy than frowns, and that reduced demand has increased costs to the Village, especially when so many people smile, even further reducing energy consumption. To compensate, a Smile Utility will be a simple, resident based fee. By installing cameras in all comers of the Village, anyone smiling will be mailed a ticket for saving energy by not frowning. It’s expected this Utility will allow the Village to cash in on community activities such as Rotary GroveFest, which is coming in June (21st through the 24th-mark your calendars) and expected to once again generate many thousands of smiles.

Sore Winner (Pt.1)

First things first. The primary is over and Ron Sandack is the Republican nominee for Representative of District 81. Now we move on to crush any Democrat silly enough to stick their foot in the race, and work hard to elect “other” to the White House in November. Because after the primary we close ranks, right? That’s what Radogno said way back when.

Sandack doesn’t seem to remember what Radogno said way back when. He’s on a winner warpath to conclusively prove nothing more than Debbie Boyle smacked the smug off his face by responding to his initial attack campaign. You heard that right: Debbie Boyle responding to Ron Sandack’s  initial attack campaign.

Set the scene in it’s proper chronology.

February 20th Ron “solicits” comments about Debbie Boyle on his face Book site, and relishes the negative slams by people. All good fun and games unbtil two people question why.

 (Name redacted) “is not the only person posting here who is expressing discomfort with this post, Ron. Just sayin’ that if you are soliciting your friends publicly for input, then maybe you ought to listen carefully to what they are saying.”

Another supporter:

“However, it seems many of those who commented answered the first not the latter. I don’t disagree with your comments at all. I do, however, think the entire post paints you negatively - because name calling is what it resulted in, regardless of the word used.

“And that is a radical shift for you in my experience…”

His response (emphasis mine):

“I am listening, (name redacted), and further responding in fact. Perhaps you do not care for the manner in which I sought people’s impressions? That’s fair and certainly your right, but your takeaway or impressions notwithstanding, I asked what people thought of certain facts. Those facts are as follows: My opponent does not show up to public events, including a joint candidate endorsement interview– which the paper tried to schedule at her convenience. That’s not negative campaigning … rather relevant facts. I did not call her names nor did I ask that others do so. Shining a light on her (non) practices is fair so that people know what is happening (or not happening). Voters can characterize, or determine, what to make of it. Again, serving as a State Rep. is a public job. Not appearing for public vetting opportunities is absolutely fair game… or don’t get in the game.”

Fair enough. Slamming someone repeatedly, at every opportunity, for screwing up and not responding to initial requests for an interview are fair game. No question the Daily Herald and the NACOCPAC/Skarr interviews were total screw-ups. They made multiple requests that were left unanswered. She did not deserve any consideration from them, and she got none. Fair enough that Ron crowed about those. You jump on an opponents mistakes.

And we knew from experience Advocates is superb at the whispering, tweeting, on-line comments smear campaign. It happens every election season, with the believers acting as myrmidons (my new word learned from this election).

Then comes the mailer, making attacks of fact and fantasy. Handlers. Tax and spender. Sued the school district for special treatment. Threatened to sue a second time so she could vote to benefit family members. Her support of Republican planks made her Sandack-lite.

An Advocates playbook writ large.

The handlers is a fantasy slam oft repeated by Sandack. Cicero Dan Proft, Brian Krajewski. Anyone, just a woman being her own boss? Unthinkable. Slam away. That’s fair game every strong woman in politics has to deal with.

Anyone who knows her knows she doesn’t do “Handle”. You don’t run her, you don’t intimidate her. Sean Coughlin found that out the hard way twice at the train station.

And really, relying on angry 99 BOE member Terry Pavesich for the flat out lie that Boyle was threatening to sue a second time time so she could vote on a benefits package for all teachers? Hey Ron, go ahead and post up the records on that one. Because everyone would like to see that pig grow wings and fly.

UPDATE- I was asked to prove Pavesich was the source. Here is the first mention of a threat to sue, made in public, made by Pavesich. Yeh, I taped it.

Ron threatening, and attempting to bully, residents. This is what factual supporting documents look like.

Let’s see the letter or email where she threatened to sue. Put on your big boy pants and let’s see your supporting documents, statements by the candidate, court case proceedings, whatever it is that led you to publicly declare that Debbie Boyle would sue again. You’re repeating a fabrication-no, let’s call that lie out for what it is, a lie, and for repeating it to every household in the district.

Just for the record? I can show you your email letter, the one you wrote resident Laurel Bowen threatening her and a resident who lives on Brookbank with legal action.

The Republican Party as Sandack-lite? That is bold, I’ll give him that.

So Sandack was having a smooth sail, having friends slamming away, sending out his attack piece first, relying on his shills to do the diurty work while he pretended to take the high road.

The only problem with that was Boyle put on her big girl pants, took the gloves off, took the piles of research many people did on Ron, and three days later smacked him back. Hard. Repeatedly. Did he put on his big boy pants? No he stayed in his diapers and cried foul, played the victim card, yet never conclusively disproved a single fact claimed. Not one. How bold.

So says Sandack: “That’s not negative campaigning … rather relevant facts...Shining a light on her (non) practices is fair so that people know what is happening (or not happening).”

He didn’t say squat, so she smacked him again with “Your Choice” Still no reaction, so she smacked him again. He kept playing the victim, and simply ignored who started it all.

And Ron won. I know, hard to tell from the way he’s still complaining, the way he’s now on the attack again in the ‘day after’ articles about his victory. He was a graceless as ever when Boyle called him to congratulate him on his win, first talking smack that she would never call, and then when she did as soon as all the votes were in election night, bitching about her smacking the smug off his face during the campaign.

Hey Ron, your Advocates pals introduced the playbook, you tried to use it without getting your hands dirty, and now you’re whining about getting slapped around. You ran and hid behind every politician, every lobbyist, every PAC, and in the process exposed just how bought you are.

Good luck with your high hopes for higher office, when you’ve shown yourself such a prima dona with such thin skin. A friend relates they got a robocall after the election asking why they voted for Boyle. Her response? “They didn’t have a number for ‘Because I think he’s an asshole’, so I just hung up.”

Many of Sandack’s supporters have expressed confidence he will represent all residents fairly. He might keep that in mind in light of the comments he has made so far, and he might keep it in mind with the impression he’s left more than a few voters.

Does a uniter continue the fight once won?

Put on your big boy pants, Sandack.

As always, don’t expect to have any private email exchanges or conversations.

Obscure endorsement…

…that took 6 years to make.

I’ve received more than a few emails and phone calls asking for my take on the Boyle/Sandack election. Most of you, if you’ve gotten here, for better or worse know who I am I’ve tried to keep my focus on other things than wading into the tit-for-tat, but here’s my two cents.

I don’t have a ready way to sort my friends to differentiate between Democrats and Republicans. With the sorry state both parties have left Illinois residents in, we should all be in our own party and vote all those bums out. Besides, when you parse it down, we share similar values that cross party lines both ways-help the people who need help, and spend our limited money wisely. There should be a way to fix our state and still provide for those in need, yet Springfield, year after year, fails us all. Through it all they take care of themselves, and that’s it.

Another year wasted, with no bills filed that directly addresses our real problems with real solutions. It’s reprehensible. Now we’re expected to think all of them deserve to go back and keep mucking things up. NOW they’re all concerned, and say they have the cred and records that we need to fix the problems. Please, save it.

The research that went into vetting both candidates has been extensive.

What has been found about Debbie Boyle is she sued the school district six years ago. Now some of you have dismissed her from that point on. That’s when I first met her, blogging about my own campaign experiences. People who know me know I dig into stuff that doesn’t look right. That’s how I first met Elaine Johnson, and how TribLocal first approached me, and then Patch.

What I found was a Mom who wanted to get the same treatment for one of her three children as was routinely granted others. Not for every other, but for almost every other; it wasn’t a big deal. The the well known $25,000 I found to be unsupported by direct costs. That same year several others got that same treatment she was denied. It took seven or eight hours of lawyer time-of needlesss lawyer billing-that could and should have been avoided by the school board.

Some of my friends will never forgive or forget what they read about that, and so be it. Read on.

That experience of butting heads with the Democrats entrenched in our high school board was turned into a meme, and used by those same folks for the last six years to vilify and pillory her. Boyle has kept her poise in the face of that hateful treatment. She is now Vice President of our school board. She got busy helping elect fellow Republicans, and creating a fragile yet workable majority that deposed the Democrat Party State Central Committeewoman who was President, Julia Beckman.

The only budgets she’s been allowed to vote on have included 0.35% and 2.5% property tax increases. This last vote included paying off $712,000 of debt early to eliminate interest-only payments, and funding a complete replacement of South High’s heating system out of cash flow instead of debt, also eliminating interest payments. That strikes the right note with most taxpayers D or R- if you have to spend our tax dollars, spend them with maximum effectiveness. The state needs that attitude.

Debbie’s proud to have worked with her fellow board members to end salary spiking for administrative personnel this year. The work on teacher salary spiking has just begun-that may be a tough fight against an entrenched mentality, or an easier agreement between sober perspectives. I wish her well trying to turn that ocean liner.

That’s pretty much it. Debbie Boyle is a Mom, a supporter of youth sports, of her church, and because of the public scrutiny put on her every action the last six years, no corner has been left unexamined.

When vetting Sandack, residents found his direct conflicts were numerous, and his past was not as

examined and dissected as anyone thought. Certainly not like Boyle’s.

In the teeth of the recession he lowered staff count and staff budget, yet:- Raised property taxes 17%, as per our property tax bill,

- Raised the total tax levy 50% to over $18 million, as per the levy requests filed with the County Clerk’s office.

- Borrowed $25 million for storm water projects in 2008 (which I support), yet years later several millions of that are still sitting idle today generating interest costs, as per Village Budget documents. (who supports that?).

- Raised Total Appropriation by 30%, from $100 million to $130 million, as reported to the state comptroller

That’s unacceptable of any Republican during a recession. Sandack agrees now, and tweets and links to articles. He could have walked the walk for eight years and did the opposite. Voted to raise taxes, borrowing, and spending every vote. Every vote. Even his own campaign manager Bob Barnett voted against his 7,8,and 9% pay raises handed out during his time as Mayor of Downers Grove. The current Mayor Tully, in his first budget, will reduce our property taxes by a modest amount.

So Boyle has worked within an initially hostile framework to bring consensus change, and has helped forge that fragile majority of board members who understand the money supply is not infinite.

Sandack has a voting record going back to his first council days. He voted to take extra dollars every way offered, every time. It’s in his public record.

I’m baffled when this person or that person is called Boyle’s “Handler”. When you get to know Debbie, you’ll understand the farcical nature of such a claim. I was one of the Republican Precinct Committeemen who voted to endorse her, and everyone who says that was rigged or directed by anyone is wrong.

Strong Republican women scare some people. I think we need more of them in Springfield.

Where Sandack poses himself as an independent candidate, he has garnered endorsements from all the politicians who have buried our state in the current crisis. Republicans and Democrats alike are to blame. I am suspect of anyone who touts during a primary that he’s one of the group that continues destroying our state, yet advertises for the same primary that he is not.

Yes, I’ve seen all the research, and if anyone wants the court cases where Ron, as a Teamster Pension Fund Trustee, as plaintiff, sued companies? I can get it and forward it to you. They’re public records.

Personally I’m most offended by three items.

One-

Sandack took an early “Reagan oath” and then went on to first encourage others to pillory his opponent, and then to insinuate that she was just a tool and witless fool doing the bidding of men, and that she was just a lite-version of himself. Always about Ron.

If that’s not an attack ad I don’t know what is. What Sandack didn’t bargain for was a strong woman who was used to being bullied. So here she is with reams of research on Sandack, and having taken another round of “she sued”, and the cheapest of shots: she’s just a silly empty headed woman,  just there to serve evil men.

She put on her big girl pants and took his best shot and dished it right back in spades. She has flayed him alive for the past he never talked about, the supporters he didn’t want us to see, and the votes he tries to disown.What did Sandack do? Did he put on his big boy pants and take it like a man? No, he complained and played the victim card.

Two-

The Stand for Children endorsement and $5,000 contribution to Sandack. The founder, Jonah Edelman, is on video tape explaining how the press totally missed when they decided Madigan would still be running the state, and how they decided to endorse Republicans that will play ball with Madigan. I suppose if anyone wants that I can forward the links or the transcript. All in the public domain.

Boyle proved she can construct a majority to change a seemingly invincible group that controlled our high school district. I would rather see her working on that in Springfield, than someone who has already sold out to Madigan.

Three-

As mayor Sandack voted Yes to the Illinois Indoor Clean Air Act, which ended smoking on private property where the public gathers: bars, restaurants, casinos. It revitalized our downtown as families can now go out without having to inhale other’s smoke. For this election Sandack’s taken money from CNA and Altria, both with ties direct and indirect to tobacco and cigarette companies. Now Sandack opposes the Illinois Indoor Clean Air Act. Money talks.

I asked Boyle about that. Her response was pretty abrupt and true “I’m a Nurse. Smoking, and breathing in second hand smoke, kills people.” Are our lives as cheap as a couple thousand dollars in campaign contributions? Boyle understands the health issue involved. Sandack is selling us out.

There’s more, but even what I’ve written so far is long.

Facts are facts. If the best the other side has, is a six year old meme started by high school board members, fearful of Boyle getting elected? That she currently works full time as a nurse/clinic manager and can’t take time off to run to every open mic and pointless predetermined endorsement?

I’ve helped her, and seen her at front doors listening to people. She made the decision at the start she would not be getting the endorsements and publicity Sandack has worked so hard on the last several years, so they were never a high priority. She’s had to play against a stacked deck before, and she knows a tilted playing field should be avoided. So she’s gone door-to -door with helpers like me, making her case one family at a time.

She put on her big girl pants and when Sandack took his best shots at slamming her, she came right back and slammed him. Hard. And he cried foul. Who do want in Springfield, a fighter, or a complainer?

When she’s elected Debbie said she’ll be our full-time rep. Sandack said for him it’s a part-time job. Boyle says she wants to serve us, and Sandack keeps up a nonstop parade of money and endorsements that show we mean nothing to his bigger plans. Who do you want working for you based on that?

This isn’t an official statement from a PR person or from the Deborah L. “Debbie” Boyle campaign, just my observations. I know both candidates, and have known them for several years, and support Debbie Boyle and I hope you do too.

Sincerely,

Mark Thoman

Note: Normally a post of mine would be peppered with links to everything I’m saying. The links all exist.

Here We Go Again

Advocates style campaign season kick-off soils AOL’s DGPatch

Every candidate has it’s supporters. In this election some residents keep trying to pitch the State House 81 election as another round in an endless battle of Sandack vs. Krajewski. This is a lie- I’m the guy that did what they twitter and blog and insinuate, and gossip about. I wrote that up in Patch a while ago to set that record straight. Truth doesn’t seem to play a part in the narrative when it comes to that; doesn’t fit the meme

Who started it?

The DGTRO PC’s know Ron Sandack. Brian Krajewski gave Sandack his leg up into local politics by approving his appointment to the Liquor Commission, and then supporting him for Council Commissioner. DGTRO PC’s know Ron’s political confidant and political pal Bob Barnett, too. Krajewski approved Bob being named to the Liquor Commission in 2002, and Bob was briefly a PC himself. As well, Council Commissioner Sean Durkin got his start in DG politics thanks to Krajewski appointing him to Sue McConnell’s empty seat when she took a job in Hawaii.

Both Sandack and Krajewski helped get Barnett endorsed by the DGTRO when he ran for Council in 2009. More than a few PC’s saw Sandack’s supporters, anonymous ads and commenters, and the Advocates all trash Krajewski, a lifelong resident of DG, when Ron ran successfully for Mayor, so it was not a unanimous thing. That played into the official endorsement vote this year, BTW.

Here’s some disclosure- I trashed Krajewski too. Look back at 2005-2006. I was all over that ethics issue. I voted for Sandack for Mayor. I never realized I walked into a local war Advocates had been waging on anyone who was not for what they were for. To boot, I found I was already on the enemy list and didn’t even know it.

Welcome to DG politics.

The gerrymandered remap trigger

I hoped Patti Bellock would run in House 81. Fiscal conservative, social moderate, very tough to beat because she resonates with the voters here. Nice lady who was remapped out of our area. Ron Sandack announced he was running for House 81 almost before the map was certified. All summer he lined up impressive support of local politicians, even made his formal announcement at Village Hall with a bunch of them lined up next to him. He even asked me to endorse him. Twice. I said no, let’s wait and see who the field is the first time. I said that to other PC’s too; wait, and see what the options are. Deb Boyle had not announced then. She waited to see what Bellock would do. When Patti said she was running where Mike Madigan had mapped her, Boyle decided to commit to running in the primary.

CHSD99

This fall I made calls and got turnout that translated into an endorsement for Deb Boyle. Here’s why I did it for her. I had some disagreements with Boyle past choices, I didn’t like that she sued the district, but that made me look into it instead of just accepting what I’d been told.

The harder I looked the more I saw paw prints of political hackery, political payback, and another who had stood up to the Advocates. Nepotism Policy? Uniquely crafted by then Board member Megan Schroeder to keep Deb Boyle from serving the school district if elected to the board. Why? Because she had challenged the long held policy of allowing students to attend “the other high school”? Her child’s would have been one of many allowances that year. Not unique, especially when it came to sports or family members. It had happened dozens of times before, not always, but almost always, approved.

She sued the school. That’s the meme you’ll hear repeated non-stop between, well since 2007 until the sun cools or until the Advocates dissolve. Someday someone will write about the ill fated convention (what convention?); the abrupt need for a new principal at North (here one day, gone the next with no explanation?); which board suck-up and Superintendent favorite didn’t get the North Principal job (which teachers could have had something to do with that?) and why the records of executive session meetings were sealed and then destroyed at the first opportunity (routine for the old board who specialized in back room shenanigans). The why and what that led to all this. It isn’t pretty, it is petty, and the meeting minutes being destroyed is not a coincidence. You can’t take all these different false threads and weave a new cloth of deceit if there’s records around showing what you did.  So they covered their tracks. Who? The CHSD99 Board of Education that existed in 2006.

The board, controlled by the Advocates, said no, your son can’t attend North and play football for his uncle and grandfather, and if you don’t like it, sue us. Boyle asked for arbitration, and the Advocates-controlled board said no, and if you don’t like it, sue us. So she did, but she was not allowed to bring into the case the background, all those other requests that had been granted, some the same year. The judges comments in the ruling were illuminating, but you’ll never hear about that from any Advocates backer; that doesn’t fit the narrative.

Uniquely held to a different standard, Boyle fought the double standard. One policy for all she said, not one policy for everyone but me. That still doesn’t sit well with some people, until they start thinking about the implications of 2 different sets of rules. One for all of us, and one for just you.

Welcome to DG politics.

Boyle moved on and the Advocates, with their willing and unwitting supporters, have blasted away at her ever since. I’ve written about this before; all the ginned up self righteousness they could all muster at every opportunity to decry Deb Boyle. To this very day they still link back to anonymous websites and planted letters to the editor as justification, and repeat the memes almost word for word. Practice makes perfect. When she ran for the high school board to change it from the inside, the first time she lost. By fewer than 30 votes, and after the most acrimonious election campaign season, for both the Village and for CHSD99. Not as acrimonious as Patch is right this instant, but a pretty seminal signal politics in DG took a turn away from what had been, up until the 60′s, described to me as “several hundred residents getting together and deciding who would officially be to blame for everything that goes wrong.”

Game change

Most people at that point throw up their hands and walk away. A bunch did who simply didn’t want the hassle of fighting such a well organized and determined group. But Boyle ran again and won a seat on the same CHSD99 Board of Education the following election in 2009. That inflamed the Advocates on the board, especially Megan Schroeder, Julia Kennedy-Beckman, and Terry Pavesich. That Advocates controlled board blocked whatever Boyle wanted to do. Publicly kept records of meetings? Televised meetings? Those were things to be talked about at election time, but never to be done. End huge pay hikes at the end of careers? Salary spiking’s the way they’ve always done it. They even made it policy. Tax hikes? They ask for the maximum every year, and say if they don’t they’ll lose that money forever. Budget votes? They refused to let her vote on almost everything.

It didn’t stop with Boyle either. Former BOE member Bob Lemke tried to bring up insurance alternatives that would save taxpayers money. He was interrupted and shouted down, a violation meeting rules. Reliable shill Lucy Lloyd filed FOIA’s and complaints of alleged conflict of interest against Lemke. Because now you’re a Advocates enemy, former Board member Bob Lemke. Want to keep a popular young teacher with a bright future educating children? Now you’re an Advocates enemy, Board member Bill White. Like everyone else who they have judged enemy, once you cross that line, it’s scorched earth from that point on. Forever.

Welcome to DG politics.

The endorsement vote

And now Deb Boyle has the temerity to run in the House District carved out for Ron Sandack. Why won’t this woman learn to get out and stay out! And so it begins again, another sordid chapter of Advocates stained politics in Downers Grove.

It’s no coincidence that House 81 is dominated by Downers Grove, but it’s only my opinion it’s payoff to Sandack for not running against Christine Radogno. Mike Madigan controlled the remap and Mike Madigan doesn’t do favors like that, to Republicans no less, without them being paid for. What was the price Ron paid? Just conjecture, but Sandack was one of four baffling Republican votes to permanently end the Death Penalty. His explanation hit all the talking points put forward by the Democrat Party, and he’s since said he supports the Death Penalty. Don’t be shocked when Advocates start coming out supporting Ron.

Here comes the DGTRO endorsement vote in September. Sandack had already made several votes expected of a Democrat, not a Republican. Radogno, the month before, lays down that she supports Sandack, and after the primary the PC’s will support Sandack. Not her exact words, but that’s how it came down. The very next month we vote, and way more than 75% of the DGTRO PC’s vote to endorse Deb Boyle. That got attention. Boyle wasn’t supposed to be that well liked, there was supposed to not be that big a majority. Not enough to give an endorsement to another candidate. Yet, that’s what happened.

The Precinct Committeemen of the DGTRO would rather see Deb Boyle get elected than Ron Sandack. How do you think Ron took that? For one, he talked several folks into running for PC. Good. For any who were able to properly fill out a petition, and might get elected, once they see for themselves, they’ll begin to question what they’ve been told. Won’t be the first or last time.

DGTRO PC’s, welcome to DG politics.

The petition packets

I helped Deb Boyle get her needed signatures. Not Krajewski; me. Look at the packet. I was in the parking lot at the Library, I was at the train station, I walked house to house. So did a lot of others. I pulled Ron’s packet. It was a mess. He even Notarized 12 of his own petitions. Is that even legal? He should be ashamed of himself for submitting such shoddy work, but he didn’t submit it. It was submitted for him. Sandack had 1,192 signatures with well over 500 valid ones.

Boyle didn’t submit hers either. I did. Sandack hired a high powered researcher from a top downtown law firm to comb Boyle’s packet with all the tools at her disposal. They found over 800 good signatures, over 85% Republicans. That got attention.

Endorsements

Illinois Liberty PAC interviewed both candidates. They’re an interesting group, not content to lobby or buy votes one at a time, they want candidates willing to get things done, not just complain about how bad things are and endlessly link to stories about how bad it is. That means people that will walk the walk, not just talk the talk. They want people who care about our state, not their next political office, or who they’ll be having drinks with tonight at Saputo’s.

The ILPAC is the political action spin off of the  Illinois Policy Institute, a fascinating group that actually does hard research on budget and policy. I’ve followed them from (almost) Day One. They publish that information, as well as solutions that can be implemented; done it for years. Their annual budget reports should be required reading for every taxpayer and legislator in Illinois.

The Illinois Liberty PAC panel interviewed both candidates looking to help fill this open seat with someone who will put goals ahead of ambitions, fight to change the very system itself that has brought the state to the precipice. Both Sandack and Boyle wanted this endorsement. It means something. Sandack even had his Springfield and Wheaton political pals lobbying for him.

After multiple discussions, they chose to endorse and support Deb Boyle. Why? Look at Boyle’s issues: budget, pension, Medicaid, education. Look at Boyle’s history. Standing up for what she believes. They looked at the Nepotism issue, they looked at the lawsuit, they dug into the backgrounds of both candidates. After all the lead up, all the events scheduled, all the lofty talk and tweets, Sandack has some more sand thrown into his smoothly oiled gears. Illinois Liberty PAC supports someone who is willing to work for the people, for change, willing to work to fix the state.

Now everyone and everything about Illinois Liberty PAC is the enemy too.

Illinois Liberty PAC, welcome to DG politics.

Adam Andrejewski is the guiding force behind For the Good of Illinois. He came out and endorsed Ron. There were no interviews, there was no explanation of why AA’s organization could endorse someone they held up as an example of a poorly performing Senator. Ron even voted for a bill that would have block AA’s efforts to research and publish salaries and pension perks of public employees.

AA’s still a good guy. Everyone can be deceived. Another who walked into the middle of a war.

Adam, welcome to DG politics.

Uncivil discourse

That brings us to the here and now of Downers Grove Patch as a comment battleground. This used to happen on DGreport all the time. I commented on Patch after reading yet another dreary chain of reader comments where one commenter attacks another commenter. Not the candidate, not facts as presented, not even classic ad hominems. Attacks on commenters. Residents. Neighbors. Not public officials or those seeking election. Folks who live here and dare express an opinion publicly.

How has Downers Grove gotten to the point where, in every local election, neighbors attack neighbors? Why does this happen? It’s always the same. Thrashing and trashing. Then the push back, then the open warfare of name calling, casting aspersions, lying and calling others liars. And the sideshow of twits and shills.

Did all this happen before Advocates came to be? Is this what Downers Grove has become? Is this how we want the surrounding communities to see us?

DGPatch deleted heated comments. As I write this they are sketchy on enforcing their policy of prohibiting links to anonymous websites, but given the avalanche of comments, anyone would be hard-pressed to keep up. It’s their turn to walk unknowingly into the middle of an Advocates war that has been going on for years. They’re not alone. They’re just the latest.

Patch, welcome to DG politics.

The shape of things to come

A gentleman who I respect very highly once gave me the background history of the first effort to write a Comprehensive Plan for Downers Grove. The Herculean time and effort put in, in the late 50′s and early 60′s,  mortally wounded some members the Kiwanis organization that did the ground work and laid the foundation. Their day jobs and friendships suffered. Some say Kiwanis here have never fully recovered, but they did it because they knew they had to. They committed to helping the community navigate the future. It was a part of DG history I never had heard before.

Another gentleman I respect equally as highly has begun to open up about the genesis of the Advocates. He is hesitant and reticent, but I have pressed him that it’s time to tell that story, because so far all we’ve really heard is the spin. We’ll see where that goes.

Someday someone will write about the why behind all this. All this venom. If not me, someone else. I may be too far inside the curve to keep a reliable perspective, because I walked into it years ago without even knowing it.

Welcome to DG politics.

Full Disclosure: Unlike some shills on Twitter, blogs, commenting on other websites, I’ve been pretty up front about who I am and why I blog. Everyone knows by now I’m a Republican Precinct Committeeman, that I ran (and lost) for our Village Council twice, that I have followed and written about local politics, the school boards, and local political parties. That I am involved in a couple volunteer efforts.

And yes, I am helping Debbie Boyle.

Free Trees

I helped give away free Christmas trees last night. There’s some happy people in DG because of this.

Cool for many reasons, among them: there are still Knights of the Templar walking among us (!), and there has to be more people this year who look at $50+ for a tree and wonder how to prioritize that into a shrunken Christmas budget.

The Village is trying out for the part of Scrooge again this year. They never stopped it when the trees were at the Mason Lodge a couple doors east, but this year the DGTRO agreed to help, and it moved to the wall next to the Curtiss Street HQ. Much better location.

So just coincidence this year here comes Code Enforcement to scuff their shoes around the periphery, trying to come up with a reason to stop this display of holiday good will.

The best they could come up with is move them back a foot or two, they can’t encroach on public property, the empty grass lawn on the corner.

The trees are there tonight and Friday night. If you know someone who might be in need, tell, them, stop by, bring them by. Merry Christmas one and all!

You Can Fool Some of the People Some of the Time…

http://wakingamericaup.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/reporters-challenge-to-candidates-petition-challenge/#comment-353

..but it’s starting to look like you can’t run doodly past Waking America Up. Defiantly and unapologetic-ally conservative, this recent post outs one Lucy Lloyd, shill and cut-out for Megan Schroeder and her Advocates pals.

After reading Lloyd’s calumn I have to wonder why Wurster and Krajewski even bothered answering the phone when she called.

Cross check the Voter History for Mr. Peters III- he’s never pulled a primary ballot here, and voted once in 2010. The DGTRO has open precincts that need PC’s. If any of them bothered ever coming to a meeting they’d have found that out.

Waking America Up left out that Ms. Lloyd was also Campaign Manager for Megan Schroeder’s infamous Advocates 2007 election, and has been a reliable shill for Advocates causes and candidates ever since.

They also left out that Julia Kennedy-Beckman is the Democratic Party State Central Committee Representative for the 13th District. She’s a fixture at every Advocates function, in addition to being a founding member. They don’t have her name listed anymore. Rewriting history maybe.

PS- Because some jackass will bring this up later like it’s a deep dark secret, I vetted Deb’s packet, I even went through it and had Deb delete invalid signatures. I filed her packet that Monday morning at 8:00am, and met some folks, like Ms. Boyle, who were looking to bring change, to stop how our state is run into the dirt. No Sandack people were anywhere to be seen. Who filed for him?

I pulled Ron’s packet and vetted it. It was a mess, but as near as I could tell he actually had 500 valid signatures. Ron had a research professional from a top downtown law firm pull Boyle’s. Ron’s been planning this run since this summer, lining up big wheel support. Boyle waited to see if Patti Bellock would run in 81.

Maybe voters should look at both packets to help decide who takes this more seriously.

UPDATE- I was emailed that Ms. Lloyd no longer lives in Downers Grove, nor in House District 81, nor in Illinois.

Three Strikes Is Too Many; SEVEN TIMES Is Too Much

The following is directly copied from a paid advertisement.

Three different times, the Illinois legislature has rejected a proposal put forward by out-of-state energy company Tenaska to build the Taylorville Energy Center. This “clean coal” plant would leave Illinois families, businesses and government agencies paying up to SEVEN TIMES today’s market price for electricity. When the legislature meets November 29, Tenaska will try once again to get Illinois consumers to foot the bill for their coal plant, which Illinois doesn’t need.

Please take a moment now to contact your legislator and let them know you oppose the Taylorville Energy Center. Here are the facts:

• The Taylorville Energy Center would cost Illinois electricity consumers $286 million per year.

• Illinois businesses and industry would bear the risks and absorb most cost overruns, making it harder to create jobs.

• Tenaska wants Illinois consumers to pay even if the Taylorville Energy Center never produces more than a single megawatt of power.

• The plant would add only two-tenths of one percent to the overall amount of power generation capacity available to Illinois

Your voice matters in stopping this legislation. Thanks for letting your legislator know that you oppose the Taylorville Energy Center. Visit www.STOPCoalition.com to learn more.

Just Give It To Us Straight

We’re big boys and girls, we can handle it.

Last night a County Board member, from District 3, asserted in front of the DGTRO folks in attendance that DuPage County had reduced it’s spending by $45 million dollars. This struck me as an odd statement, so I looked it up.

In 2005 the Total Appropriation for DuPage County was $608,910,218. In 2010 the Total Appropriation was $689,093,552. That’s a net increase $80,183,334, a 16.4% increase that out-stripped the chained CPI for the same six year period of 12.5% (BLS’s table HERE). You can access Consolidated Annual Financial Reports HERE to verify it for yourself. CAFR’s are useful things; uniform reports filed at the State that allow for apples to apples comparos of results. Budgets are intentions, CAFR’s are results. CAFR’s make it hard to hide promises and boasts that aren’t true.

Credit where credit is due: the efforts to hold the line on taxes at the County level have worked better than any other level of govt. They’ve plenty of good things they can accurately report on.

Accuracy. One of the continuing items that nags at supporters of either political party is a basic lack of accuracy by our elected officials. It feeds suspicion that either a) they are not in command of basic facts, b) they don’t understand the difference between things like cuts, savings, and spending reductions, or c) they’re liars. I doubt that County Board member is a liar.

It’s not just DGTRO members at a monthly meeting that deserve the unvarnished truth when we’re getting supposedly reliable information from our elected officials, all residents deserve it all the time. Accurate information is paramount. Continuing the norm of blowing smoke up our figurative skirts doesn’t accomplish that.

SB1652

Selling out cheap. 

SB1652 supposedly guarantees Illinois power delivery moves into the 21st Century, just like California and most of the Northeast. Nevermind the states that have moved forward on Smart Grid type technologies now have the highest electricity rates. Never mind the obvious logic that if it would make power delivery more efficient and cost effective, power companies looking to lower cost and increase returns would find the financing to impliment it. Nevermind most states that have stood pat, like Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa, and Missouri, have industrial rates 24-25% lower than Illinois, making them even more competetive for manufacturing and the jobs that follow. Never mind that ComEd, serving over 3.7 million customers at 10.9 cents/KwH, rakes in over $4.5 billion in annual revenue. By the way, size doesn’t matter: Naperville Electrical Department (NED) serves 56 thousand accounts, at 8.82 cents/KwH, almost 20% cheaper than ComEd.*

Is private risk for private profit a foreign concept in Illinois? Baseball teams get lavish deals on taxpayers tabs. The Chicago Park District gets a football stadium built with state tax dollars. Power companies have taxpayers pay ahead on rquired upgrades to their systems instead of taking on the risk and debt themselves. Our leaders socialize the costs out of our wallets, yet still privatize the profits back to the companies we pick up the tab for.

Why stop there, though? The Illinois GA this week also guarantees a profit every step of the way for these private companies. No risk, yet guaranteed private profit. Wouldn’t we all like that kind of investment? I bet the teachers would right about now. That such a skewed result of legislation gets the limelight, while no budget fixes, or pension fixes that actually address the problem remain completely unaddressed, doesn’t matter. What matters in Illinois? That both sides of the General Assembly aisle got to slop at the trough of lobby money. For less than a penny on the dollar, Ameren, Exelon, and ComEd have locked in billions of future profits, by simply buying the votes of most of the Illinois General Assembly.

The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform collates and creates a sortable database of who buys what in Illinois. so far just in 2011 the three power companies have walked the halls of Springfield and handed out the goodies, the grease that keeps incumbent campaigns running, that keeps caucuses loyal, and that keeps business as usual churning away.

Results for 2011

Ameren gave $ 103,408.00
Ameren CILCO gave $ 1,000.00
AMEREN ILLINOIS PAC gave $ 2,500.00
Ameren CILCO gave $ 19,700.00
Ameren CILCO c/o Michael Sullivan gave $ 2,000.00
Ameren CIPS PAC gave $ 3,000.00
Ameren Government Relations Dept gave $ 1,000.00
Ameren IL PAC gave $ 8,250.00
Ameren IL. PAC gave $ 1,000.00
Ameren Illinois gave $ 94,651.00
Ameren Illinois PAC gave $ 151,399.00
Ameren Illinois Utilities gave $ 1,000.00
Ameren PAC gave $ 1,500.00
Ameren, IL gave $ 1,000.00
AmerenCilco gave $ 500.00
AmerenIllinois gave $ 3,500.00
AmerenIllinois PAC gave $ 1,000.00
Amerenn CILCO gave $ 2,500.00

Sub total all Ameren: $398,908

Results for 2011
ComEd gave $ 10,117.00
ComEd PAC gave $ 77,550.00
ComEd PAC Attn. Cheryl L. Hyman gave $ 8,000.00
ComEd PAC. gave $ 250.00
ComEdPAC gave $ 47,200.00

Sub total all ComEd: $143,117 

Results for 2011
Commonwealth Edison Co- Affiliate of Exelon Corp, PAC gave $ 500.00
Exelon gave $ 9,250.00
Exelon Gen Pac gave $ 500.00
Exelon Generation gave $ 1,000.00
Exelon Generation Co gave $ 500.00
Exelon Generation Company gave $ 9,750.00
Exelon Generation Company LLC gave $ 5,000.00
Exelon Generation Company PAC gave $ 8,500.00
Exelon Generation Company, LLC gave $ 4,750.00
Exelon Generation Copmpany gave $ 250.00
Exelon Generation PAC gave $ 4,000.00
Exelon Generaton Company PAC gave $ 1,000.00
Exelon PAC gave $ 8,750.00
Exelon-Commonwealth Edison Company gave $ 2,000.00
Exelonpac gave $ 1,000.00

Sub total all Exelon: $56,750

Total all contributions for 2011 only: $598,775

House votes are here, Senate votes are here.

US Senator Kirk’s Debt Report

“While Illinois is an American state with substantially stronger institutions than Europe, its debt load per person is higher than for citizens in Spain, Portugal, Ireland or Greece.”

Click on the cover page to read the report.

The First Lady, Someone Who Has Eaten Countless Meals, Weighs In

from	Michelle Obama info@barackobama.com
reply-to		info@barackobama.com
to		Mark Thoman <markthoman@gmail.com>
date		Wed, Sep 28, 2011 at 1:31 PM
subject		These dinners
mailed-by		bounce.bluestatedigital.com
signed-by		barackobama.com

Mark –

Not everyone knows how to prepare for a dinner like this. As someone who’s eaten countless meals with my husband, I want to tell you the one thing to do if you’re selected to join him…

Just relax. Barack wants this dinner to be fun, and he really loves getting to know supporters like you.

I hope you’ll take him up on it before Friday’s deadline.

 

BGA and Illinois Review Get Play’d

How did Tip put it? All politics are local?

www.dgreport.com has over 150 posts first-hand witnessing the arrogance and abuse of power of the CHSD 99 Board of Education and the majority members of that board over the years. It all happened specifically after long time Board member and President Bruce Beckman stepped down after 20 years of service, and before current Board President Bill White was elected to the middle chair.

During that in-between time the former Superintendent got stiff final year pay raises (from $187.2K in 2005 to $256.5K+ in 2008) to goose his pension; the local teachers union made campaign contributions to the majority board members election fund; FOIA’s were routinely denied; no one knows how many times the OMA was violated; reporters verbally harassed when they wrote articles the board majority disliked; a board member silenced for trying to talk about cheaper insurance options; residents denied the chance to speak at meetings; few accurate recordings or minutes kept of public meetings; Township Democratic Party newsletters stacked in the School Districts Administration building during School Board meetings, and more. The Board President during all of this was/is Julia Kennedy-Beckman, the Democratic State Central Committee 13th District Representative.

An Unusual Come-On

Mark, can we meet for dinner?

from Barack Obama info@barackobama.com reply-to info@barackobama.com to Mark Thoman <markthoman@gmail.com> date Wed, Sep 14, 2011 at 12:51 PM subject Mark, can we meet for dinner? mailed-by bounce.bluestatedigital.com signed-by barackobama.com

Mark – Supporters like you are the reason I’m here, and the values we share have always made our organization more than just a political campaign. So whenever I can, I want to take the opportunity to meet you. Last month, that meant I got to talk to folks in Iowa about small-business opportunities, and sit down with a group of volunteers from around the country who helped build this campaign in their communities this summer. Today, I want to ask if you’ll join me and three other supporters for a meal and conversation sometime soon.

McCartney 8/1/2011 Wrigley Field

Went to hear McCartney last night. For 69 years old the guy had an incredible back up band that carried the old Beatles multi-part harmonies really well, and they shredded the rockers.

Monday set (unless otherwise noted, REALLY tight and true):

Waking Up America

I haven’t been blogging for quite a while. I don’t know if I’ll ever get back into it with the fervor I had. When I went over to Elaine Johnson’s DGreport it attracted attention from all kinds. Elaine has since gone on to a real full time job at the helm of Downers Grove Patch and is doing a great job. Patch is pretty mainstream, and has sevral writers worth reading. Wendy Foster, Tony Cesare are but two of the many I happily follow.

This site, Waking Up America, is by a fellow DG’er, and it’s mainly political commentary, consistently conservative when it shows. Apparently part of the DuPage County Tea Party (gasp, they must be awful people!). He’s been at it since 2009, making him a veteran local voice. He’s not a tool, and doesn’t appear to be a shill for anyone. I don’t agree with some of what he writes, but find his posts thoughtful and an enjoyable read.  If you used to read this or DGreport, you might take a look. He doesn’t make a point of hiding or identifying himself, so I won’t either.

mark4dg.com

I’m running for one of three seats for Village Council in the election scheduled for April 5, 2011.

I’m asking residents to vote for me based on a pledge to continue work on the budget, fix the streets, and get better transparency into the why of how decisions are made.

You can scan this site and get a reasonable idea of where I come from on many issues important to local government.  You can also look at DGreport.com, where I also posted.  Our Village faces many of the same issues every local government does; not enough money, too much infrastructure in need of repair and updating, and decisions effecting both happening away from the public eye.

By accident or design is immaterial.  It is what it is, and for my Village to survive and prosper, things can change for the better.  I hope to be part of that hard work; to not just vote, but to do the research needed to fully explain the why and how that leads to that vote, and to do so in the public eye.  All of us deserve no less.

Should DuPage end Townships?

The village council approved putting three advisory questions on the ballot this November.  One advisory question asks, in essence, whether Townships could be eliminated.

Good idea or not?

Townships where they exist are required by the state to perform three functions: maintain Township roads and bridges, provide temporary aid to the needy, and provide property assessments.

Eliminating Townships, by state statute, can only be accomplished by a binding voter referendum within a county.  It cannot be done via state-wide referendum.  So the question might be posed instead: “Should Townships in DuPage County cease to exist?”

DISCLOSURES:  I’m a republican precinct committeeman.  I am related to a former Naperville Township Assessor (Mom).

I’ve sat on this post since May, not quite sure what to do with it.  What follows is some background information that can serve as a jumping off point for further investigation and discussion.  No claims to completeness, and no conclusions.  I didn’t find what I expected.  Right up front, any public officials want to comment please do.  Any emails sent on this one will be published in full.

History

40% of states (20 of 50) have state-wide or partial township layers of government.  In Illinois 85 of 102 counties are subdivided into 1,432 Townships.  LaSalle County has the most (37).  The City of Chicago opted out of Townships yet the balance of the county has Townships (30).  Putnam County has the fewest Townships (4).  DuPage is at the lower end of the scale with nine Townships.

Most of the 102 counties in Illinois are largely rural farm land except Cook and the 8 collar counties.  Counties that voted to create Townships starting in 1849 (authorized by the Township Act of 1847) were carved up into roughly 36 square mile areas to more efficiently provide a local level of service, typically performed by the resident farmers themselves, and similar to what settlers were used to as a form of government.  The services that non-Chicago Cook and collar county Townships provide (to residents not in a municipality) can include trash collection, recycling, public ROW tree maintenance, brush collection, fire protection, schools, temporary aid for the poor, and ditch, road and bridge maintenance.  Police protection is sometimes provided by state or county, sometimes by a municipality (particularly in non-Chicago Cook County).

In farm based Townships the needs for government are few.  Duties are in many cases still taken up by the resident farmers themselves, such as volunteer Township Fire Departments, clearing and maintaining drainage ditches, and re-graveling roads.  Some heavy farm counties have very small staffs and budgets.  For perspective, Downers Grove has more people and a significantly larger budget than 50 counties in Illinois.

In Cook and the collar counties, endless farms and an elevator every sixteen miles are not the norm.  County governments are strong and provide many of the services farm-based Townships perform.  Additionally, in DuPage much of the County is under the jurisdiction of municipalities.  Schools, policing, fire protection, trash, water and sewer, are all offered either by the county or by municipalities.

Illinois has a history of creating separate taxing districts rather than expanding budgets within existing units.

Example: Within some of the 1,433 Townships exist 1,397 Road & Bridge Districts as separate taxing bodies.

Example: There are 850 Drainage Districts that exist within municipalities, Townships or Counties and 111 Housing Authorities, none of which are required to file Annual Financial Reports with the State Comptrollers Office.

We have taxing districts that, at least at the surface, defy logic:

Example: DuPage County taxpayers pay taxes for a County Airport Authority that runs a conference center, a golf course, and commercial real estate development.

Example: Taxpayers in various parts of Illinois pay for nine different Port Districts.

Example: River Forest Township exists completely within the municipal borders of River Forest the Village.  It has zero miles of roads, no unincorporated area, no unincorporated population, and the Cook County Assessor does assessments.  Ditto for Oak Park Township, Berwyn Township, and Evanston Township.

Example: Illinois has 329 Multi-Township Assessment Districts as overlays on Townships, already sharing one of the biggest functions (assessing and keeping property tax records) of Townships.

Roads and Bridges

Roads appear to be a significant cost function of Townships, including DuPage County Townships.  Historically that has entailed maintaining a system of gravel farm roads based closely on the grid system of the Township itself, so farmers can get crops to market.

A drill-down of some municipal budgets shows while roads are a significant cost factor, most municipalities do not fund road maintenance and construction at a level that would match townships on a per mile basis.

• In Downers Grove Township there are 74 miles of roads, mostly curbless with ditch drainage.  In 2008 the township budgeted $2,163,125 for roads, or about $29,231/mile.

• The village claims roughly 160 miles of roads.  Roads under Village jurisdiction vary in load capability.  Most of the miles are residential streets, but the Village also is responsible for streets in Ellsworth Business Park for example, designed for heavier traffic and loads, that can be more expensive to build and maintain.  The 2008 AFR filed with the state indicates General Fund Streets and Highway expenditures totaled $6,471,737, or $40,448/mile.

• The county Division of Transportation maintains approximately 220 miles of arterial highways and 92 miles of multi-purpose trails in DuPage County.  County roads here in DuPage tend to be arterial roads designed for higher traffic levels and heavier loads.  There are no General Fund expenditures listed for county, rather there are Special Revenue budget expenditure for Streets and Highways listed in the 2008 AFR filed with the state as $21,188,877.  Ignoring the county bike and walking trails that works out to $96,313/mile.

Temporary aid for the needy

Providing temporary assistance for the needy appears to be a minor function for several Townships including DG Township; $65K represents a small fraction of their total budget.  Some Townships on the north side of DuPage County spend much higher dollar amounts, but all combined are dwarfed by the county budget, which is fairly labyrinthine.  Many social services are administered by the County; housing assistance, food and clothing vouchers, medical, dental and vision care, and services to the elderly (a significant part of a county budget).

Assistance provided at the Township level is designed as temporary, until the state or county can properly be brought into the assistance process, so a low dollar figure does not necessarily mean few people receive help.

Township assistance, partly due to its temporary nature, initiates very fast but does not last very long; it’s mainly there to keep people in need going until they can apply to county and enroll in public aid at that level.  County aid at its fastest takes two weeks to begin because of state requirements for interviews and evaluations prior to acceptance into any aid program.

In Downers Grove Township there is a food pantry, housed within the Township building, that can provide immediate food for those in need.

Property Assessment

In many of the farm counties outside notable population centers like Rockford, Peoria, Springfield, etc., the fabric of government itself is the Township and the Farm Bureau.  In these areas, Townships often either adopted similar assessment systems, or consolidated assessment functions, usually combining six or more townships under one Assessor’s Office.  In some areas, those unified systems later became de facto County Assessor functions, and that in turn was the primary county government function, providing assessment service to the townships.  In these farm counties, parcel sizes are most commonly chunks of acreage: 160 acres, 80 acres, 40 acres, and 5 acres (homestead carve-outs).  There are 640 acres in a square mile.

In Cook County and the City of Chicago governments dominate the political landscape and have a strong single County Assessor.  And plenty of documented corruption.  Sparsely populated farm Counties where Townships follow closely similar rules and regulations for records keeping and assessment tend to be small and efficient.

DuPage County is highly populated, and highly fragmented.  It includes, but is not limited to the following independent taxing bodies:

• 39 municipalities in whole or in part
• 37 school districts
• 24 Park Districts
• 18 Fire Protection Districts
• 9 townships
• 1 airport

128 taxing bodies, and that’s not counting them all.

DuPage County has a high number of taxed property parcels, a less centralized government, and Townships that have evolved differently and independent from each other.  DuPage County Townships are unlike most (but not all) other Counties, in that they do not have a unified assessment system that is the same from Township to Township.

Nor does it have a County Assessor.  DuPage County has a central Supervisor of Assessments office.   The SoA was created by state law to provide statistical assessment performance data to the Illinois Department of Revenue.  They also provide statistical analysis of assessment data to the Township Assessors and the DuPage County Board of Review.  They keep the records of Exemptions, and are probably best known (and function misunderstood) for publishing assessment change notices in newspapers, and mailing property tax notices to taxpayers.

In DuPage County, each of the Township Assessors specifies and maintains their own computer based valuation system in addition to physical records that detail the history of the Township for property taxes.  The type and specification of the physical property data, as well as how that information is classified, updated, stored and maintained by these systems varies from township to township.  There are common components to some of these systems, but no two of them are identical.  Software consolidation/migration of nine separate systems into one universal application, ending with a unified system, currently do not have an estimated cost or time frame.

This distinction places DuPage County in a unique situation compared to counties that provide a centralized valuation system for their respective townships.  Developing a “one-size fits all” valuation system that would produce acceptable results in a diverse 330,000-parcel jurisdiction would be a major undertaking.  It would take several years to recover the additional costs associated creating a new countywide valuation system.  There would also be operation trade-offs for such a consolidation such as lack of flexibility of a centralized system to timely respond to local issues.

Another cost factor would occur in acquiring and/or converting existing property characteristics data needed to produce reliable assessments.  This software/conversion process is typically many more times expensive than the system/hardware acquisition costs.   The cost of acquiring the total hardware/software solutions required would be only one part of the overall true cost to the taxpayers for undergoing such a conversion project.

Staff and physical office space is another budgetary issue that would impact centralization of assessment method and process.  Currently, county offices are filled to capacity, so the assessment/appeal function would require either additional space near the County complex, or more realistically satellite offices, preferably located near where the property exists.  Adding space near the county complex or splitting the Supervisor of Assessments Office into multiple locations introduces its own inefficiencies and costs.

The strong central government in Cook County has created its own problems, and those spread throughout the Cook County Assessors office.

Corruption in Cook County: Anti-Corruption Report Number 3, published February 18, 2010 by the University of Illinois at Chicago Department of Political Science and the Better Government Association, is only the latest of a series of reports documenting problems of a County-wide Assessor function within the report.  During the 1950’s Cook County Assessor Frank Keenan and his two brothers were convicted on corruption charges, and in the 1970’s P.J. Cullerton became the poster boy for all that is wrong with county-wide corruption in centralized assessment.

By separating assessment functions to independent Township entities here in DuPage, and then coordinating the results with the Supervisor of Assessments, DuPage County has, by design or accident, avoided the corruption of process and people that are associated with centralized government assessment functions in Cook County.

Annual costs per employee

When Annual Financial Reports filed with the State Comptroller office are examined for number and total cost of employees including benefits, Downers Grove Township had lower per employee payroll costs than DuPage County.  Both the Township and the County had lower per employee payroll costs than the Village.

2006 represents a shortened budget year, when the village switched to a calendar year.  Village personnel have a $20,000 to $26,000 benefit cost attached to each salary, highest of the three levels of local government.  The municipality provides the most services to the taxpayers.

At all three levels, personnel costs appear to be near the middle of the pack-Downers Grove costs are average for a municipality, Downers Grove Township costs are average for a Township, and DuPage County costs are average for a county per employee.  Verifying that in exact detail is outside the scope of this post.

Any local, township, or county official who may have comments on this post, or can provide additional information, are invited to either post them here as a comment or send them as an email.  Any responses will be considered public responses for publication here as a comment.

Sources:

(60 ILCS 1/) Township Code, Illinois Compiled Statutes

Township Officials of Illinois

DuPage County’s Official Website

The Case Against Houlihan

DuPage County Supervisor of Assessments Office, Craig V. Doval,  County  Supervisor of Assessments

Illinois State Office of the Comptroller, Local Government Division

Corruption in Cook County: Anti-Corruption Report Number 3, published February 18, 2010

Township Government: Essential or Expendable? The Case of Illinois and Cook County, 2008,  David K. Hamilton

Streamlining Local Government, 2007, Indiana Commission for Local Government Reform.

RIP John Wooden

John Robert Wooden

October 14, 1910–June 4, 2010.

The greatest of them all.

Required Reading

Read it and weep.

The rights protected by this paragraph may not be diminished by contract or other agreement, and nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to diminish any greater or additional protection provided by Federal or State law or by contract or other agreement.

Reconcile yourself a huge new bureaucracy, a heaping steaming pile of new taxes directly on the middle class,  rationing of drug research, forced unionization of nurses.  With student loan goodness.  This 2,309 pages of legislation does not address the central problem of skyrocketing health-care costs, ands skyrocketing health care insurance costs.

Oh, and if you don’t already have it and have a doctor for it, Medicare is history.  Bon appetit…