The main thing you need to know is that DeKalb Public Library made promises to DeKalb property taxpayers in 2015, and now is considering breaking its promises. But I couldn’t resist putting together some FAQs for anyone who might like more details. How much did the expansion cost? Total cost was $25.3 million. At center…
Category: State Watch
Illinois Attorney General Removes ‘FOIA Shield’ of Personal Email
***Update 8/18: The Facebook discussion of this post has prompted me to expand and clarify it. What I’ve added, I’ve placed in italics.*** The Illinois Attorney General has issued a binding opinion concerning public employees’ use of personal email accounts when messages pertain to public business. What the opinion does is to remove doubt that…
Illinois’ Model Ethics Ordinance & City of DeKalb
…the Illinois model ordinance [for adoption by local units of government] is not even minimal. It only deals with political activities and gifts. There is nothing about conflicts; the word doesn’t even appear. To call it an ethics ordinance is like calling a burglary law a criminal code. ~ Robert Wechsler, CityEthics.org Minimal as it…
Municipalities Could Face Cuts in State Funding
The governor’s proposal to make huge cuts in funding to state universities is the big news today, but municipalities are facing a similar threat. At Monday’s council meeting, DeKalb’s finance director will present the mid-year budget report. The city appears to be pretty much on target for the current fiscal year, but administrators are concerned…
State of Illinois Changes Bond Counsel
This post updates one from August about Ty Fahner, partner of the law firm Mayer Brown, who told the Chicago Civic Committee the following last spring: Last March, during a Civic Committee discussion of the state’s public pension problems, Fahner claimed that some members had talked to bond ratings agencies about lowering Illinois’ bond rating…
DeKalb Public Library and Greed
In a post from January 10, I told you I’d continue trying to get information about the state’s Public Library Construction Grant Program since we knew so few of the institutions that won them. Part of the reason it has taken so long to get back to you is that I goofed up my chance…
Raise Taxes to Gussy Up the Muni Building? Really?
I can’t believe hikes in taxes are even up for discussion. Consultants estimated one option for renovating City Hall – including upgrades to the heating and cooling system, plumbing and fire protection system, among other things – would cost $3.7 million. City Council members also are exploring spending $7.5 million on renovations, with $5.5 million…
Freeport Township Board Exploring Legality of Property Purchase Made by Its Old Board
They are doing it by filing a lawsuit to let a judge decide. From the Journal-Standard: Freeport Township now looks to the court system to see if last year’s joint purchase of the property at 206 E. Stephenson St. with the Veterans Assistance Commission [of Stephenson County] was legal. “An opinion by attorney Greg Pelini…
Mercer County & the Role of Transparency in Good Government
Illinois’ Mercer County lies south of the Quad Cities and comprises part of its metro area. Perhaps you’ve heard that the county’s treasurer, Mike Bertelsen, has been arrested and charged with stealing at least $13,000 from the county’s 911 Fund, the result of investigations that followed a forensic audit in the county office. The Illinois…
The Civic Committee and the Pension Crisis
I haven’t seen this story anywhere else but at Rich Miller’s Capitol Fax. Let’s put it in a nutshell and provide lots of links for you to explore further if you wish. Tyrone C. “Ty” Fahner is a former Illinois attorney general, partner of an international law firm that does business with the State of…