Author: Newsdesk

Posted by Hal Dardick at 5:42 p.m.

Mayor Richard Daley said today he’s open to looking at allowing energy-generating wind turbines off Lake Michigan.

“I think you have to look at it,” Daley said. “If you want to talk about the environment or about the clean environment, alternative energy, everyone has to look at that.”

The mayor was asked about the idea today after the Evanston City Council last night voted unanimously to ask developers to submit
their ideas about building turbines of their shores, just North of
Chicago.

Daley said there is consideration being given to putting smaller turbines on three water-intake cribs that are two miles out on the lake.

“It wouldn’t be the big windmills, it would be a smaller one,” he said, adding that they could provide the city Water Management Department with power and defray costs.

“You have to look at it. You don’t just dismiss it," he said.

“If you want to go with alternative energy, we have to figure
this out. We have to do alternative energy. You know that," the mayor added.

Posted by Hal Dardick and John Byrne at 5:30 p.m.

Facing opposition from licensed massage therapists and business interests, the City Council today balked at approving a measure that would have prevented the opening of massage establishments on blocks that are mostly residential.



Ald. Ray Suarez, 31st, had proposed the ordinance, citing his concern over prostitution businesses masquerading as massage establishments. He said he had trouble with such a situation in his ward.



Ald. Joe Moore, 49th, however, said he had heard from many massage therapists opposed to the ordinance.

“This is a legitimate business, and they have a right to operate a legitimate business without going through undo hurdles,” Moore said, saying the proposed ordinance was too broad. “I think it’s like swatting a mosquito with a fly sledgehammer….There are enough regulations on business in this city.”



Ald. Mary Ann Smith, 48th, said she supported delaying a final vote on the ordinance because it would create a burden for the physical therapy businesses that are proliferating in her North Side ward.



"Perhaps it’s an indication of the fact our population is aging that suddenly we have a physical therapy operations in our neighborhood that are very, very highly recommended," Smith said.



Smith termed the proposed ordinance "ridiculous."



The Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce, the Illinois Chapter of the American Massage Therapy Association and the nationwide Massage Envy chain all opposed the ordinance, saying it would damage the livelihood of licensed massage therapists.



“It’s effect will be to jeopardize a licensed element of Chicago’s business community that provides quality, well-paying jobs and a sought-after service in almost all of Chicago’s 50 wards,” said Tracy Smodilla of the Massage Therapy Association.



A better approach, she said, would be to have all massage establishments to submit proof they have state licenses. She also said the ordinance will affect businesses like salons that offer massage therapy as an added service.



“Not only is this ordinance unnecessary, but it does not specifically address one of the key issues it is set out to stop,” said Kim Schilf, president and CEO of the Lincoln Park chamber. “Massage parlors are licensed, taxpaying businesses in Chicago and deserve the support of the community.”



The proposed ordinance would ban massage parlors in confined business districts that essentially serve the surrounding neighborhoods. They will be allowed in areas that have more commercial development. A council committee had recommended approval.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 3:14 p.m.



Mayor Richard Daley has named Ald. Anthony Beale, 9th, to the influential post of City Council Police and Fire Committee chairman.



“He’s very good,” Daley said today when asked why he picked Beale. “Anthony has a good career. He works very hard for his community. Up and coming political leader. He’s very good. Good government official. He works very hard in the community.”



If approved by his colleagues, Beale will take the post held until by ex-Ald. Isaac Carothers, 29th. Carothers resigned in February, the same day he pleaded guilty in federal court to accepting bribes in exchange for favorable consideration of a zoning change.



Carothers, a close ally of the mayor, was considered a political force to reckon with. By contrast, Beale is known for his affable manner and is well liked by his colleagues.



Beale was first elected in 1999, when he wrested control of the Far South Side ward from the Shaw brothers with the help of U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. and Rev. James Meeks.

From the Breaking News Center:

The new details are contained in
an evidentiary proffer ordered unsealed by
a federal judge today. It echoes some of the details in the indictment
against
the ex-governor but offers the most complete roadmap yet of the
government’s case.

Read more from Tribune federal courts reporter Jeff Coen by clicking here.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 12:59 p.m.; updated at 1:47 p.m.

Chicago aldermen put off a vote today on a much-criticized measure that would have the City Council hire its own watchdog who’d need permission before launching investigations.

The postponement means the proposed ordinance won’t be voted on until next month’s council meeting. The decision came after criticism that the new watchdog office wouldn’t have the power to stop the kind of abuses that have seen dozens of aldermen sent to prison.

Ald. Brendan Reilly said he voted to defer the vote on the inspector general because he doesn’t see the point of creating a new level of bureaucracy when it is as weak as the proposed legislative watchdog.

 

Reilly said he would prefer the existing inspector general be given the authority to investigate the City Council, and that it be made more independent from the Mayor’s Office. But he said he would also consider supporting a stronger separate legislative investigator.

Aldermen had said the ordinance was a response to Mayor Richard Daley’s proposal to expand the powers of the city’s current inspector general, who right now can only investigate the mayor’s administration. They balked at the idea of giving the mayor more control over them, but were also worried that inaction would anger voters in next year’s city elections.

But aldermen were ready for only so much reform. Under the proposal, the new watchdog would have to seek permission to investigate an alderman. And that permission can only be sought if an accuser signs a sworn complaint – a longshot in the political atmosphere of City Hall, critics say.            

The permission to start probes would have to come from the little-known Chicago Board of Ethics, which hasn’t found a single case of wrongdoing by aldermen since it was created in 1987. The same board also would determine if wrongdoing was committed if the legislative inspector general brought charges against an alderman or City Council employee.



Even if an investigation leads to any recommended discipline or reprimand, the accused will have the right to appeal that decision to a City Council committee.



Daley had sought to give the council oversight role to his Office of Inspector General, which in recent years has developed a reputation for independence under the leadership of former federal prosecutors.



Daley also proposed greater transparency for the work of the inspector general, as critics have long sought, and the transfer of internal hiring oversight from the much-criticized and beleaguered Office of Compliance to the inspector general. The ordinance approved today also does those two things.



The mayor’s office was involved in the negotiations over the council compromise, and Daley had indicated he’s OK with the measure.



Daley proposed the change in hiring oversight as part of his plan to ask a federal court this year to end years of monitoring of City Hall personnel decisions.



But Michael Shakman, the attorney who decades ago brought the case that barred politics from playing a role in most City Hall personnel decisions, has slammed the new ordinance as ineffective. He said the council shouldn’t appoint its own watchdog and predicted people would be too afraid of retaliation to swear and sign formal complaints.

Posted by Ray Long and Michelle Manchir at 12:50 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois Senate today approved a plan to change the highly political process for redrawing lawmakers’ districts, but Republican opponents contended the Democratic majority was just trying to solidify its power.

The proposed amendment to the Illinois Constitution, which the Senate passed on a 36-22 vote, next goes to the Illinois House. If it passes there, it would need voter approval in the November election.

Sen. Kwame Raoul, D-Chicago, said the proposal “goes a long way” to fix the flawed process for redrawing House and Senate districts every decade following the Census. He contended the plan would guarantee more public input and ensure minorities would be fairly represented.

But Sen. Kirk Dillard, R-Hinsdale, said the Democratic proposal would be worse than the current system, which often leads to a competition between Republicans and Democrats that is settled by a winner-takes-all tiebreaker. The party that wins the map-making contest historically redraws districts to help its members win a majority of legislative seats.



Republicans have pushed an alternative that largely mirrors a citizen initiative the League of Women Voters is pushing to get on the November ballot, but that effort would need nearly 300,000 signatures just to qualify for the ballot.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 12:42 p.m.

Aldermen today approved Mayor Richard Daley’s selection of a Chicago ophthalmologist and philanthropist for the Chicago Park District board.

Dr. Bryan Traubert, who’s married to wealthy prominent Chicagoan Penny Pritzker, now will be considered by fellow park commissioners as their new chairman, though that’s considered a formality.

Traubert,
55, is poised to replace Gery Chico, a
longtime Daley troubleshooter who’s been tapped to lead the City
Colleges of Chicago board. Traubert is on the Noble Street Charter
Schools board. And he’s chairman of Marwen, an organization that
provides art instruction and college counseling to Chicago Public
Schools students.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 12:39 p.m.



The Chicago City Council today approved a $3 million settlement in the case of a young woman who suffered a permanent brain injury in a crash involving a stolen vehicle being followed by police.



The settlement goes to the family of Regina Varela, who suffers a host of cognitive problems as a result of the August 2004 crash.

Varela, who was 17 when the crash occurred, was a passenger in a car headed west on Addison Street at Kedzie Avenue when a stolen conversion van being pursued by police ran a red light and hit the car broadside.



The man driving the stolen van, a passenger in the van and a witness on the street testified police had been chasing the van for several blocks, according to a Law Department news release.



The officers involved, however, said they had just activated their emergency equipment and were several car lengths behind the van when the crash occurred, the release stated. They were disciplined for being outside their district without approval, it stated.

Posted by John Byrne at 11:03 a.m.

The number of liquor licenses would more than double on Chicago Park District property along the lakefront under a proposal Mayor Richard Daley introduced today.



The high-profile locations where beer, wine and liquor would be able to be sold under Daley’s plan include the North Rose Garden at Buckingham Fountain, the 63rd Street Beach House in Jackson Park and three new locations in Lincoln Park: the Montrose Beach House, the Osterman Beach House and the Diversey Grill, according to a city Web site.

Other new spots where Daley wants to allow liquor sales include the South Shore Golf Course, the Ohio Street Beach in Olive Park, Calumet Beach House in Calumet Park, Diversey Driving Range and

Miniature Golf Course, DuSable Harbor Building, the South Shore Cultural Center, the 31st Street Boathouse in Burnham Park and the 87th Street Harbor.

All told, the mayor wants to add 13 new liquor licenses to the 12 already allowed on lakefront park district land, according to the ordinance. In 23 of the 25 spots, the ordinance seeks to restrict alcohol sales to no later than 10 p.m. Currently, liquor sales are allowed until 11 p.m. in most places.



The mayor’s plan would allow liquor sales to continue until midnight at Northerly Island. Currently, Millennium Park is the only lakefront park where alcohol can be purchased that late.



In seven parks where only beer and wine are now allowed to be sold, the Daley administration wants to allow liquor sales. Those include two spots in Lincoln Park, bringing to five the total number of places where Chicagoans can buy an alcoholic beverage in the popular North Side park.

The proposed ordinance will be sent to the City Council’s License Committee for consideration.

Posted by Ray Long at 10:05 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD–Gov. Pat Quinn plans on Wednesday to sign legislation aimed at saving billions of dollars through reforms of the state pension system that will increase the retirement age and cut benefits for new employees.

The move would give Quinn and lawmakers a chance to crow about big savings that would take effect years down the road, potentially $119 billion over 35 years.

Estimates on how much the move could help the state’s current financial gap of up to $13 billion for the budget year beginning July 1 are far less. They range from $300 million to $1 billion.



Further, the pension legislation is not expected to whittle down the state’s worst-in-the-nation pension debt of $77 billion to $90 billion, critics of the legislation have argued.



Future savings are expected to come from increasing the general retirement age to 67 from 62 or lower in many cases, as well as limiting the salary level on which pension benefits are based. The legislation also would strike at one form of double-dipping by banning public employees from getting a pension from one government while collecting a salary from another.



Quinn’s office announced the Wednesday bill signing ceremony in a press advisory this evening.

  

Posted by John Byrne at 5:22 p.m.

 

Ex-city Fleet Commissioner Michael Picardi, suspended by City Hall this year after an embarrassing contracting mistake, has landed a new $129,000-a-year job with the Chicago Police Department.

As a deputy director, Picardi will oversee the police department’s general support division, which includes the city auto pound, equipment and supply, and document services and graphics, according to police department spokesman Roderick Drew.

The new gig comes after Mayor Richard Daley suspended Picardi without pay for three months in January  for contracts involving Central Auto Body in the Logan Square neighborhood. The shop’s owner, John Szybkowski, was convicted nearly 30 years ago of faking work orders on police department vehicles and giving kickbacks to city workers. Yet that didn’t stop him from getting a new city contract.

At the time of Picardi’s suspension, Daley said that "someone should have had knowledge" about Szybkowski’s earlier conviction.

 

Daley spokeswoman Jacquelyn Heard said today that she isn’t certain why Picardi changed jobs shortly after his suspension ended.

 

One of Picardi’s main tasks with the police department will be to look for efficiencies and implement them, freeing more officers to work on the street, Drew said. The police department expects to hand over administration of the auto pound to the Department of Streets and Sanitation within the next few weeks, Drew said.



This isn’t the first time Picardi has switched city jobs amid criticism. Daley moved him from commissioner of Streets and Sanitation to the head of Fleet Management last year, shortly after a city report found Streets and Sanitation’s leadership "does not fully appreciate the importance" of abiding by hiring rules meant to keep politics out of personnel decisions.

 

Streets and Sanitation also was criticized over garbage pick-up and snow removal while Picardi was in charge, but Daley said Picardi had done a good job in the position.



Tribune reporter Annie Sweeney contributed.

Posted by Michelle Manchir at 3:20 p.m.



SPRINGFIELD – Gov. Pat Quinn today signed a new tax break into law that he said would create 20,000 jobs, but a key Illinois business leader doubted whether the measure would inspire anyone to hire anybody.



Come July 1, businesses with 50 or fewer employees can apply for a $2,500 tax credit for each full-time employee they hire.

“Small businesses are essential to the Illinois economy and it’s crucial that state government find fresh and creative ways of working with entrepreneurs, who will lead the charge toward economic recovery,” Quinn said.



Kim Clarke Maisch, Illinois director of the National Federation of Independent Business, said the tax credit won’t prompt small-business owners to hire new employees, but companies will be happy to use the credit for any jobs they already planned to create.



“This alone is not going to cause business owners to start hiring,” she said. “They need more customers and they need a better business environment before they’ll hire new employees.”



The state is prepared to give out as many as $50 million in tax credits under the law, according to the Quinn administration. For businesses to qualify, the new hires must be employed for a year, but companies can apply for the credit online as soon as they make a new hire. The application won’t be available until closer to July, according to the governor’s office.

Quinn, who wants to raise the state income tax by 33 percent, is seeking to soften his image in the business community before the November election. The governor faces Republican challenger, Sen. Bill Brady, a Bloomington
businessman and entrepreneur.

Brady, who voted for the measure, said in a statement the legislation fails to go far enough. He has promoted a broader pro-business plan.

“We need to offer tax credits for all businesses regardless of their size” rather than only providing incentives for small businesses, Brady said.

Posted by John Chase at 2:15 p.m.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias announced today that he raised $1.2 million from January through March — about $1 million less than his Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk.

While Giannoulias trails Kirk in the political donations game, he still had what his campaign said was his best three month period of fundraising ever.

The campaign cash announcements for the single-term state treasurer and North Shore congressman are the first since both men won their respective February primaries. Giannoulias and Kirk are vying to replace U.S. Sen. Roland Burris, who was appointed by ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich to the seat Barack Obama left after he was elected president. Burris did not run for election.

Giannoulias’ campaign said it has $1.2 million on hand, compared to $3 million for Kirk, at the start of April.

Giannoulias’ camp said their candidate is behind Kirk because Giannoulias has tied his own hands for fundraising by refusing to accept contributions from corporate political action committees or federal lobbyists. Giannoulias said Monday that he had raised less than Kirk and would say how much less today.



Kirk’s campaign released a statement saying Kirk’s fundraising advantage shows he has more support than Giannoulias. Kirk’s campaign also said that Giannoulias does accept contributions from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Democratic National Committee, both of which receive corporate PAC dollars.



Neither campaign has released its financial reports detailing where their money is coming from. Those forms must be filed with the Federal Election Commission by Thursday.

Posted by John Byrne at 1:30 p.m.

Mayor Richard Daley defended Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias today, saying the candidate should not step aside despite revelations about family-owned Broadway Bank.

"Why should he step aside? Tell me," Daley said. "He went through the primary."

"Everybody knew that, what was happening to the bank, so why?" the mayor added.

The Tribune reported earlier this month that Broadway Bank loaned a pair of Chicago crime figures about $20 million during a 14-month
period when Giannoulias was a senior loan officer in a story that provided new details about the bank’s
relationship with the convicted felons.

Broadway Bank had already lent millions to Michael Giorango when he and
a new business partner, Demitri Stavropoulos, came to the bank in
mid-2004. Although both men were preparing to serve federal prison
terms, the bank embarked on a series of loans to them. The bank also is in financial trouble.

Earlier this year, Daley offered a similar defense for pawnbroker Scott Lee Cohen — who withdrew as the Democratic lieutenant governor nominee amid embarrassing revelations about his private life. Daley invoked Cohen today while talking about Giannoulias.

""You forced one candidate out for lieutenant governor, because you didn’t like his profession or his personal life," Daley said. "It’s really interesting, it’s just very interesting how people go through a primary, and say ‘You have to step aside because we don’t like what happened.’ "

In both the Cohen and Giannoulias cases, Daley invoked the sanctity of the primary election.



But the mayor declined to defend the importance of the primary election process in the race for Cook County assessor, where Democratic nominee and county Democratic Party Chairman Joseph Berrios has chastised Forrest Claypool — a former Daley chief of staff —  for running as an independent rather than participating in the primary.

 

"I’m not going to get into all that," Daley said when asked about Berrios’ criticism of Claypool. "Everybody’s arguing about the primary. This is the general election and people are going to decide in the general election what’s going to come."

Posted by Hal Dardick and John Byrne at 12:40 p.m.

A key City Council
committee today overwhelmingly approved a proposal for a watchdog to
investigate aldermen despite criticism that the office will have almost
no power.

The Rules Committee voted 22-4 for the proposal to create the office of legislative inspector general. Ald. Joe Moore, 49th, the measure’s staunchest opponent, said he believes the full council will approve it at Wednesday’s meeting. (You can read the ordinance by clicking here: Download Councilproposal)

“I was sad to see a few of my reform-minded colleagues were reluctant to oppose this," Moore said.

Under the ordinance, the legislative inspector general would be chosen
by aldermen and not be allowed to even proceed with an investigation
unless someone filed a signed-and-sworn complaint and the little-known
Board of Ethics found “reasonable cause” for the investigation to
proceed.

If the inspector general then decided to level formal charges, the
Board of Ethics would sit in judgment.

During its 23-year history, that board hasn’t found a single case of
wrongdoing by aldermen. Over that period, more than 20 aldermen have
been convicted of crimes.

While he is used to being on the losing side against council forces
loyal to Mayor Richard Daley, Moore found himself allied today with
aldermen like Ald. Bernard Stone, 50th, who believe no inspector general should have the authority to probe council members.

Some aldermen conceded today that they had to take action of some kind,
with elections coming next year, after Mayor Richard Daley earlier
proposed allowing the city inspector general to investigate aldermen.
Currently the IG can only investigate the mayor’s administration.





“This is a work on progress,” added Ald. Richard Mell, 33rd, chairman
of the Rules Committee that recommended approval of the measure. “At
least it’s a first step, hopefully, for a meaningful ethics ordinance.”





Asked if he’s concerned voters will regard the proposal as a paper tiger, Ald. Edward Burke, 14th, said his constituents aren’t focused on the issue.


 


"I wasn’t aware there was any groundswell," Burke said after the vote.
"I haven’t heard from any of my voters about it, but I think it is what
it is. Certain people will never be satisfied. I think this is a
reasonable approach to an issue that needs to get 26 votes and this
will get 26 votes."





Aldermen said Daley’s office was involved in the negotiations over the
measure, and the mayor today signaled he was OK with key provisions in
the plan.


 


"That will be up to (aldermen) to explain the final result," Daley said
when asked if the proposed legislative inspector general is strong
enough to provide real oversight.


 


The mayor said the important thing is that some kind of City Council
inspector general be created by the body, just as other levels of
government have internal investigators.


 


Asked about Moore’s complaints, Daley said critics should make their case to their colleagues.


 


"That’s up to them," Daley said.

UPDATE by John Chase at 3:30 p.m.

Democratic Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias today sought to change the subject from the controversy over his family’s struggling Broadway Bank and accused Republican opponent Mark Kirk of overplaying the issue.

In a luncheon speech to about 300 people at the City Club of Chicago, Giannoulias once again acknowledged his involvement in approving loans that turned into bad investments for the bank, which could soon be taken over by federal regulators.

But he offered no further explanation about his role in troubled loans made to crime figures, despite a recent Tribune story that raised new questions about those deals when he was a senior loan officer at the bank.

“The truth of the matter is when you have a bank with thousands of customers it’s easy to cherry-pick a few and go back in time and say I wish we wouldn’t have done business with these individuals…that’s not how the real world business model works, unfortunately,” Giannoulias told reporters after the speech. “As I’ve said before, if I knew then what I knew now, these aren’t the kinds of people that we want to do business with.

"And it’s an unfair and it’s an offensive characterization of Broadway Bank’s customers when we have hundreds, when we have thousands of customers that are hard-working men and women that have started their first store, bought their first home, hired individuals, have been a fabric of the economy here in Chicago that are great people, that wouldn’t have gotten their start if it weren’t for that bank.”



Giannoulias, the first-term state treasurer, instead sought to turn the heat up on Kirk, a North Shore congressman. He said Kirk has accepted campaign contributions from corporate interests and voted their way in Congress and that he has yet to discuss his stances on issues, including his vow to lead the repeal on the recently passed health care legislation.

 “My point here today is to elevate the debate,” Giannoulias said. “I’m not going to let this campaign be overshadowed by his negative attacks and lies. Not when people of Illinois desperately need solutions. Real families are dealing with real problems. It’s time to elevate the debate.”



Giannoulias ran for treasurer in 2006, touting his experience as senior loan officer at Broadway Bank. During his speech, he said he accepted responsibility for nine percent of loans currently on Broadway’s books that have gone bad.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 1:07 p.m.

Chicago aldermen attempting to prevent prostitution offered under the guise of massage services today endorsed a measure to ban massage businesses in locations that are mostly residential.

The ordinance approved by the City Council Zoning Committee would ban massage parlors in confined business districts that essentially serve just the surrounding neighborhood. They would be allowed in areas that have more commercial development.

Today’s action amends a previously proposed ordinance that would have enacted a broader ban and was opposed by therapeutic massage therapists who said it would damage their ability to do business. The newer measure was endorsed by Mayor Richard Daley’s administration, unlike the previous one. It is scheduled to go before the full council Wednesday.



David Penn, an executive with the Massage Envy chain that is expanding in the city, said the proposal would prevent his company from doing business in some areas — without doing much to address the problem of prostitution.



The proposal “doesn’t really solve the problem of the kind of illicit activities that you have,” he said.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 1 p.m.

A key City Council committee today recommended approval of a $3 million settlement in the case of a young woman who suffered a permanent brain injury in a crash involving a stolen vehicle being followed by police.

If approved Wednesday at the council meeting, the family of Regina Varela would receive the $3 million. She suffers a host of cognitive problems as a result of the August 2004 crash.

Varela, who was 17 when the crash occurred, was a passenger in a car headed west on Addison Street at Kedzie Avenue when a stolen conversion van being pursued by police ran a red light and hit the car broadside.



The man driving the stolen van, a passenger in the van and a witness on the street testified police had been chasing the van for several blocks, according to a Law Department news release.



The officers involved, however, said they had just activated their emergency equipment and were several car lengths behind the van when the crash occurred, the release stated. They were disciplined for being outside their district without approval, it stated.

Posted by John Byrne at 4 p.m.

Mayor Richard Daley and his wife saw their income fall for the third straight year in 2009, according to tax returns released this afternoon by the mayor’s office.

 

The Daleys’ net income for last year was $175,240. That’s down from $183,992 in 2008, $238,190 in 2007 and $363,647 in 2006.

The majority of their 2009 income came from the mayor’s salary, plus about $11,500 earned on investments.

Daley took 15 unpaid days off last year, which cut his gross pay by $8,883, about 4 percent of his city budgeted $216,210 salary, spokeswoman Jacquelyn Heard said. The unpaid days were six furlough days, three government shutdown days and six unpaid holidays.

The mayor has said he plans to take 29 unpaid days this year. Non-union city workers are taking 24 unpaid days off this year as Daley tries to balance the city budget during a recession.

 

Daley also deferred $38,874 toward retirement savings and about $1,787 toward health benefits, leaving Daley with a net income from the city of $166,667.

Daley and his wife, Maggie, claimed a $3,000 capital gains tax credit — the maximum allowed — after selling investments at an unspecified loss. Heard declined to provide specifics on what investments they sold.

 

Maggie Daley stopped working in 2007, which has played a role in the couple’s diminishing income. She had been paid $50,000 in 2007 and $100,000 in 2006 as a consultant for the Academy of Achievement, a Washington-based non-profit, scouting locations for the academy’s annual conferences of outstanding graduate students.

 

Property taxes on the couple’s South Loop home were $13,640 in 2009, up from $13,175 in 2008. Taxes on their Michigan vacation home went up to $20,871 from $20,137 the year before, Heard said.

 

The Daleys reported charitable donations of $8,070, down from $11,000 in 2008.

 

The couple is eligible for tax refunds of $7,779 from the federal government and $561 from the state.

 

Though there is no requirement that he disclose his tax returns, Daley typically does each year. Reporters are given an opportunity to see tax documents shortly before the April 15 filing deadline, but are not allowed to keep copies of the returns.

Posted by John Byrne at 12:42 p.m.; last updated at 12:52 p.m.

Gov. Pat Quinn today named an unsuccessful Democratic congressional candidate to lead the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

State Rep. Julie Hamos of Wilmette succeeds Barry Maram, who resigned this month after seven years in the post. Maram, a holdover from ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s administration, will help in the transition.

In February, Hamos lost the 10th Congressional District Democratic primary to Dan Seals of Wilmette. That’s a nationally-watched, open-seat congressional contest for the post now held by U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, a Republican who’s running for U.S. Senate.

Hamos pledged to make Illinois a nationwide health care leader by bringing people from around the state to the table to listen to how to best implement national health care reforms locally.



"We need to really hear the disparate voices," Hamos said at a luncheon with Quinn to announce her appointment at the East Bank Club.

Hamos, who has served in the Illinois House since 1999, is known for working on mass transit issues, including the small sales tax increase approved in early 2008 to keep the CTA, Metra and Pace afloat.

Maram’s tenure was marked by controversy. Under Blagojevich, the state expanded health care coverage for the poor and middle-income families even as the state budget crisis worsened and there wasn’t money to pay for it.

Blagojevich was impeached in January 2009, and one of the charges against him was that he disregarded authority, procedure and the separation of powers by unilaterally expanding a state health care program. After lawmakers rejected his plans, Blagojevich pushed state agencies under his control to offer health insurance to more citizens even though the funding was not there.

Hamos’ departure from the House means Democrats will have to pick a replacement. Hamos ran for Congress instead of seeking re-election. Winning the 18th District Democratic primary was Robyn Gabel, the 20-year executive director of the Illinois Maternal and Child Health Coalition. Democrats could select Gabel to replace Hamos.