Author: Newsdesk

Posted by Michelle Manchir at 6 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD—House lawmakers who impeached Rod Blagojevich more than a year ago added some insult to the injury today when they voted against using public money to pay for a portrait of the indicted and ousted chief executive—in case anyone ever moves to add his image alongside his predecessors in the Capitol.

The legislation, which passed the House 85-23 and goes to the Senate, still would allow private funds to pay for a portrait if one is ever put on display, an honor bestowed on even the biggest of the rogues in the gallery of former governors that stretches along a wing of the statehouse.

The taxpayer-funded collection includes former governors who were sent to prison after their time in office, among them Otto Kerner, Dan Walker and George Ryan.

But Blagojevich, who is fighting federal corruption charges, is the first governor lawmakers booted out of office. Rep. Bill Black, R-Danville, argued taxpayers shouldn’t have to foot the bill for him. He estimated it would cost $25,000.

“I don’t want to pile on Gov. Blagojevich,” Black said. “He’s suffered plenty. Quite frankly, I like the guy. … But I think there’s a price to be paid in public life when you are impeached and removed from office for impeachable offenses. You can put a plaque up there, you can put a picture up there, but I don’t think the public needs to pay for it.”

Rep. Julie Hamos, D-Wilmette, opposed he legislation, maintaining its breadth was too troubling.

“This is a very broad designation of a policy that really rewrites history,” Hamos said.

Another “no” vote came from Rep. Deborah Mell, D-Chicago, Blagojevich’s sister-in-law, who also opposed his impeachment in January 2009.

Posted by Hal Dardick at 1:56 p.m.

The Chicago City Council has two new aldermen — a former state legislator from the West Side and a North Side businessman  — after aldermen today approved the most recent appointments by Mayor Richard Daley.

In the 29th Ward, where former Ald. Isaac Carothers resigned his post after pleading guilty in federal court to accepting a bribe, Deborah Graham is the new alderman. Until her appointment, she was a state representative for the Austin neighborhood and Oak Park.

Graham, 43, was a Carothers protege. She said she also will give up her job as a special projects coordinator for the city planning and development department.



After her appointment, she agreed to make a $5,000 payment to the city because she failed to live up to the terms of a city program that allowed her to buy an affordable home in Austin. She agreed to the payment after the Tribune asked her about the transaction.



In the 1st Ward, where former Manny Flores resigned to become the Illinois Commerce Commission chairman, the new alderman is Joe Moreno, the vice president of a graphic arts and printing company. Moreno, 37, is a member of the Jose Diego Academy local school council and the Humboldt Park Social Services Board.



He also is involved in the United Neighborhood Organization, a Latino group that has allied itself with Daley and become a political force in the city.

Posted by John Byrne and Hal Dardick at 1:42 p.m.

Mayor Richard Daley said today it was "unacceptable" for his nephew to contact Chicago Public Schools officials on behalf of a politically active neighbor who wanted to get his daughters in an elite school.

But Daley also said there was nothing wrong with the request by Patrick Daley Thompson, noting there is a lot of frustration among Chicagoans seeking to get the best public education for their children.



To that end, Daley said school officials would create a new process to let any parent formally appeal if their children are denied entry to the school of their choice.

Daley suggested parents would be able to attend hearings with school administrators. But he did not offer details for what sounded like a potentially highly complicate and time-consuming procedure.



It was the first specific policy response Daley publicly offered to the recently publicized school "VIP list" that showed many aldermen and other politically connected people have in recent years directly contacted Chicago Public Schools officials on behalf of students–though not always with great success.

 

"Again, the VIP list, there’s a lot of frustration, and that’s why (Chicago Board of Education President) Mary Richardson-Lowry is putting up a, creating a structure  where people complain, ‘I can’t get my son or daughter into a school,’ they can go right to a formal hearing," Daley said during a news conference at City Hall after a City Council meeting.

 

"You need a process. And you have a process, anyone can call, anyone can go to a hearing and say ‘I’ve been denied, I want to know why. Give me the reason why,’" he added.

 

According to the "VIP list" — logs kept by then-CPS schools chief Arne Duncan about admissions requests — Daley’s nephew, Patrick Daley Thompson, contacted Duncan in April 2008 in the hopes of securing two spots at Whitney Young Magnet High School for the daughters of a ward loyalist. The girls’ father, a high-ranking city supervisor, has donated about $2,500 to the Daley family’s 11th Ward Democratic Organization in the past decade.



On Tuesday, the mayor dismissed the notion that his administration exerted political clout in any of the appeals, but the Tribune has verified six instances in which the mayor’s staff or his nephew intervened for students.

 

"He did call. It’s unacceptable, he just called," Daley said today of Thompson’s appeal. "Of course, it was denied. The principal denied (the request)."

 

"I guess (it was unacceptable for Thompson to call)," Daley said when asked to clarify his position on his nephew’s advocacy. But the mayor said it is natural for people to want to know why students have been denied.



At least two other attorneys from Thompson’s powerful law firm also lobbied to get students into the city’s best schools. The CPS inspector general is investigating one of those cases, a source has told the Tribune.

UPDATE 3:20 p.m. by Monique Garcia: Quinn says Simon should be his running mate, but there are no guarantees.

Gov. Pat Quinn today said he wants Sheila Simon, the daughter of the late Sen. Paul Simon, to be his running mate for the November general election.

At an afternoon news conference in Chicago, Quinn said Simon fit his requirement that a lieutenant governor candidate "should be a strong advocate of everyday, ordinary people." He said Simon, who did not appear at the news conference, has an "exemplary record of public service on her own" as a Carbondale City Council member, teacher and former prosecutor.

"It’s important to have a strong voice for downstate Illinois, and that’s what Sheila Simon will be," Quinn said.

Quinn was asked about the bid of state Rep. Art Turner, a Chicago Democrat who finished second in the primary and is calling on the party’s ruling State Central Committee to pick him tomorrow.

The governor did not suggest Turner drop out of the running, but said he and Simon would continue to make their case in advance of the meeting.

"I hope the members listen to what I said," Quinn said, saying Simon is "the best to fill this vacancy."

"There are no guarantees in life, especially if you are in a democracy," Quinn said.

Posted by Ray Long and Rick Pearson at 11:59 a.m.

State Rep. Art Turner of Chicago is still working today to persuade Democratic colleagues that he should be the party’s candidate for lieutenant governor, even though Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to announce this afternoon that he wants his running mate to be Sheila Simon, the daughter of the late Sen. Paul Simon.



"The race is not over," Turner said this morning.



Sources told the Tribune last night that Quinn has decided on Simon — he is expected to make that announcement official at 2 p.m. today. Quinn has said he hopes party leaders will endorse his choice when they gather in Springfield Saturday to vote on the replacement to Chicago pawnbroker Scott Lee Cohen, who won the Feb. 2 primary but withdrew after news stories about his arrest record and financial problems.

Turner, a veteran state lawmaker from Chicago’s West Side who is African-American, finished second to Cohen in the primary and is making a case that he should be the choice to run with Quinn in the November general election. He has gathered support from both black and white Democrats, but some of his supporters are warning that snubbing him for the No. 2 spot could offend the black community and depress the vote of a core Democratic constituency.



Turner pressed his case on the floor of the Illinois House this morning before the chamber was scheduled to adjourn for spring break. He joined House Speaker Michael Madigan, the state Democratic Party chairman, on the speaker’s podium, where the two smiled, shook hands and chatted.



Madigan endorsed Turner in the Feb. 2 primary race but has signaled he’d give strong consideration to Quinn’s choice.

 

Turner worked his way from colleague to colleague in the House, at one point huddling Reps. Constance Howard of Chicago and Karen Yarbrough of Maywood. As he stood at the front of the chamber and leaned slightly forward onto Howard’s front-row, Turner placed his right hand on the shoulders of Yarbrough as they chatted with Howard.



"This is a 500-mile race. This is lap 499," Turner said. "The air’s swelled in the tires, and the gas tank is full, and we’re still running."



Both Howard and Yarbrough are members of the 38-person Democratic State Central Committee, made up of a male and female representative from each of the state’s 19 Congressional districts. At the meeting Saturday, members will cast votes that are weighted to reflect the turnout in their congressional districts in the primary election.

Quinn told the Tribune on Thursday night that he would make his pick known Friday, and he spoke favorably of Simon.



"I know Sheila," Quinn said. "I’ve worked with Sheila. She has a servant’s heart, and that’s exactly what Illinois needs in a lieutenant governor."



Simon, 49, said Thursday night that she had not talked to the governor about his decision but said she was "excited" to hear that sources had confirmed she was his preferred candidate.



"If it is offered, I will accept," Simon said.



Simon already was on a list of 16 potential candidates put together by Democratic Party leaders after public hearings.



"I think there may be a shorter list than the Sweet 16, and I think I’m probably on that," Simon said.



When Quinn and Simon talked before he made his decision, they "focused a lot on whether we would be compatible, and I said, ‘Yes, I support his proposal for a tax increase,’" she said.



Quinn has long trumpeted Paul Simon as a pillar of ethical government to the point that he often uses a bow tie that Simon gave him as a prop. With Sheila Simon, Quinn would have a female running mate to help him with female voters, with whom he has struggled, as well as among downstate voters where his primary challenger, Comptroller Dan Hynes, had the most success.



"The No. 1 goal is to get the governor elected and get the Democratic ticket elected," Simon said. "I think I’m pretty well suited to help out in that department.



"I am someone who fits the bill geographically, broadens the ticket a little bit. I think women’s votes are a primary concern in the campaign, and I think I can help there. … I have some name recognition that will help get me in the door a few places."



Quinn had earlier encouraged state Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest to apply for the nomination. But in recent days, she has asked that Quinn make significant budget cuts and take other steps to assure voters of his ability to handle the state’s fiscal problems before pushing for a 33 percent increase in the state’s income tax, moving the personal rate from 3 percent to 4 percent.

UPDATED at 8:55 p.m.; originally posted by Rick Pearson and Ray Long at 8:36 p.m.: Quinn speaks highly of Simon; she says she doesn’t know.

SPRINGFIELD—Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn made an about-face on his choice for a running mate and plans to unveil Sheila Simon, the daughter of the late U.S. Sen. Paul Simon, as his preferred candidate for lieutenant governor, sources familiar with the selection said tonight.

The sources, who asked not to be identified so as to not preempt Quinn’s public announcement of a running mate on Friday, said the governor ultimately rejected another top contender for the post, state Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest, who has been reluctant to fully embrace his call for an income tax increase. Simon said she would back the governor’s plan.

The state Democratic Central Committee is set to vote on a running mate Saturday in Springfield and Quinn has said he hopes they will endorse his recommendation.

Quinn, reached tonight, said he would make his pick known on Friday, but he spoke favorably of Simon.

"I know Sheila," Quinn said. "I’ve worked with Sheila. She has a servant’s heart, and that’s exactly what Illinois needs in a lieutenant governor.

Reached tonight by telephone, Simon, 49, said she did not know if she would be Quinn’s choice. "That’s the straight-up truth," she said, adding she believed she had made it into a small number of finalists that Quinn was giving serious consideration.

Simon already was among a list of now-16 potential candidates put together by Democratic Party leaders after public hearings. The list had had 17 people on it, but Rep. Mike Boland, D-East Moline, dropped out and threw his support to Rep. Art Turner, D-Chicago, who came in second in the primary race.

"I think there may be a shorter list than the Sweet 16, and I think I’m probably on that," Simon said. 

The talk between Quinn and Simon "focused a lot on whether we would be compatible, and I said, ‘Yes, I support his proposal for a tax increase," she said. She called her meeting with Quinn at the governor’s mansion Wednesday a "good, honest session for him to get to know me better."

The choice of Simon is filled with irony. Her father served as lieutenant governor from 1969-1973 under Republican Gov. Richard Ogilvie when voters could cast individual votes for governor and lieutenant governor. A law professor at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, she lost a high-profile race for Carbondale mayor to incumbent Republican Brad Cole. Cole unsuccessfully sought the GOP primary nomination for lieutenant governor in February.

Posted by Michelle Manchir and Monique Garcia at 6:34 p.m.



SPRINGFIELD — A diverse group of House lawmakers today threw their support behind Rep. Art Turner to be Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s running mate and warned the governor could suffer politically if he doesn’t go along.



The announcement came as Quinn said he expects to make his lieutenant governor preference known Friday, a day before the Democratic State Central Committee is scheduled to make its choice in Springfield.



Turner, who is African American, came in second in the Feb. 2 lieutenant governor primary. Chicago pawnbroker Scott Lee Cohen won, but quickly resigned amid tawdry revelations about his past.

Quinn, who has refused to automatically move up Turner, said in Chicago on Thursday that he has spoken to six to eight candidates from a remaining field of 16 finalists chosen by Democratic leaders. Among them is Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest, a potential running mate Quinn wooed as someone who could draw support from suburban women.



Yet Turner’s supporters cautioned that snubbing him for the No. 2 spot could offend the black community and depress the vote of a core Democratic constituency.



“A lot of people are going to say that maybe this is a slap in the face to the African- American community,” said Rep. Charles Jefferson, D-Rockford. “So there could be consequences that way.”



Rep. Marlow Colvin, D-Chicago, went even further, fearing a “real serious consequence. We may end up with (Republican Sen. Bill) Brady as governor.”



But with three African-American candidates on the statewide ticket, including Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, it’s unclear at best whether black voters would stay home in November.



Rep. Mike Boland of East Moline dropped out of the initial list of finalists this week. He embraced Turner, saying he deserves the promotion because he is qualified.

Posted by John Byrne at 5:40 p.m.

A panel of Cook County commissioners today voted to borrow $332 million despite arguments from opponents that spending money on improvement projects and equipment is an extravagance the county can’t afford right now. 

The County Board Finance Committee voted 12-4 to borrow $224 million for the projects and another $108 million for equipment. Four Republicans voted against the plan.
 

The proposal will next head to the full County Board for consideration for what’s expected to be routine approval.

 

Commissioner Larry Suffredin (D-Evanston) told his colleagues to look beyond the bottom line to the fact that the money will go toward necessary projects that he said will directly benefit taxpayers.

 

Suffredin pointed to proposed investments in the county jail and health care system as sensible expenditures that will save the county money in the long run by helping end federal oversight of the jail and making hospital billing practices more efficient.

 

New technology for the county assessor’s office will help get property tax bills processed more quickly so municipalities that depend on that money don’t have to borrow to pay their bills, Suffredin said.

 

But Commissioner Timothy Schneider (R-Streamwood) noted that some of the projects in this year’s capital plan – such as a new security camera system at the Daley Center – had been turned down by the board last year.

 

"After looking at some of the projects in the fiscal year 2010 capital bill, it looks to me like many of them are castoffs from the 2009 bill, and crow-barred back into the 2010 bond issue," Schneider said. "Why are we putting projects back into the capital bill that were previously rejected by this board?"

 

Finance Committee Chairman John Daley (D-Chicago) countered that department heads presented all the project plans during budget hearings last year.

 

"Some people have said we never took this up. It was at budget time that people would have had the opportunity – if they chose – to ask various elected officials about their capital improvement programs," Daley said. "It is in your budget. No one is hiding it."

Posted by Michelle Manchir at 3:25 p.m.



SPRINGFIELD — Teachers at Chicago schools would be able to live outside the city limits under a measure the Illinois Senate approved today.



Sponsoring Sen. Heather Steans, D-Chicago, said the legislation would expand the hiring pool, perhaps bringing in more quality instructors. Current rules require Chicago Public Schools teachers to live in the city.

"The quality of the teacher first and foremost really indicates how well that child is going to do," Steans said. "I think making sure that we can draw on the broadest employment pool for teachers in the city is good educational policy."



The measure passed 40-7, with nine voting present.



One dissenting senator, Sen. Kwame Raoul, D-Chicago, said teachers are more sensitive to a district’s needs if they live within its borders.



"It should be more than a job, it should be an investment in the communities and in the children that come from the communities," he said.



The education measure now goes to the House for consideration.

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

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois Senate today approved legislation creating a small-scale voucher program that would provide money for 22,000 students at the worst-performing Chicago Public Schools to attend private schools.

The students would get a voucher equivalent to the minimum amount of money the state requires districts to spend on each child. The vouchers would be part of a test program and could be used toward expenses at any private school in Chicago that is willing to participate in the program.

The legislation, sponsored by Sen. James Meeks, D-Chicago, passed 33-20 with 3 present votes.

Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-East Moline, argued the bill doesn’t go far enough to correct the root problems in education.

"Maybe the problem starts at home," Jacobs said. "Are there vouchers so that we can replace the parents who aren’t doing a good job?"

The House now will consider the legislation.

From the Breaking News Center:

The top job at the tollway has been filled on an acting basis since
soon after former Gov. Rod Blagojevich was arrested by federal officials
in December 2008.

Lafleur is also Quinn’s point person for development of high-speed
rail. Her selection came from a group of five finalists by a search
committee of tollway directors. Her appointment becomes official after a
vote at the April tollway board meeting.

The other candidates included Richard Kwasneski, Pace’s chairman and
director of the Joliet Arsenal Development Authority; Leanne Redden, deputy executive director
for the Regional Transportation Authority and former planner for the
tollway; and Jerry Hurckes, a grant manager for Metra, and former aide
to U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Ill.

Matthew Amorello was the only nonlocal candidate. He is former
chairman of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, but was ousted amid
controversy over Boston’s "Big Dig" program.

For more, please click here.

Posted by Michelle Manchir and Ray Long at 2:10 p.m.



SPRINGFIELD — Drivers who excessively speed would find it tougher to keep it off their records under legislation that passed the Illinois Senate today.

   

The legislation to crack down on drivers going more than 40 mph over the speed limit follows a Tribune examination that outlined how the fastest drivers sometimes end up with little more than a slap on the wrist. The Tribune story found drivers going far over the limit, including some
hitting 100 mph on their speedometers, have managed to get court
supervision, a form of probation that allows a driver to wipe the
offense from his record if he drives safely for a designated period
after appearing in court.

   

The proposal, which passed the Senate and now goes to the House, would ban a judge from imposing court supervision for these types of egregious speeders.



A similar bill, sponsored by Rep. John D’Amico, D-Chicago, also cleared the House 114-0 today. But D’Amico said he’ll take up the Senate version, sponsored by Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, for approval in the House.

D’Amico said the high-speed drivers are too often "just walking away free" when they get court supervision, noting insurance companies don’t get notified about court supervisions.

Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White supports both versions.

Posted by Michelle Manchir at 1:02 p.m.; updated at 1:42 p.m. with How They Voted

SPRINGFIELD — Red-light camera tickets would be slightly harder to get and cheaper to appeal
under legislation the Illinois Senate approved today.

Senators voted 45-10 to send to the House a red-light reform plan that falls far short of the
sweeping overhaul demanded by critics of the automated devices. You can see how lawmakers voted by clicking here.



The
measure was sponsored by Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, and
hammered out in a closed-door meeting this month with other lawmakers and
lobbyists for Redflex and Redspeed, vendors hired to operate camera systems for
Chicago and many suburbs.

The legislation would ban the city and suburbs from tacking on an extra fee to
the standard $100 fine if a ticket is appealed, a common practice which deters
many motorists from fighting the charges.



The measure also would give
drivers more wiggle room to creep up to the edge of an intersection before
stopping. A complete stop would still be required before making a right turn on
red, but drivers could come to a halt after the painted stop line without
getting a ticket as long as pedestrians were not nearby. Drivers awaiting a
green light to head straight into an intersection also could make stops past the
stop line without being nabbed by a camera.



Statistics show that the most dangerous
red-light-running infractions involve drivers who barrel straight into an
intersection and become involved in broadside collisions. But most tickets
issued through cameras involve drivers who fail to come to a complete stop while
making a right turn on red — a violation that experts say rarely is
dangerous.



Rolling right turns would still be outlawed under the
Cullerton measure, but drivers would no longer be required to make their stop at
a white line several feet shy of the intersection.



Other changes
to the state red-light camera law that are included in Cullerton’s plan codified
what is already common practice. One provision mandates that yellow lights on
traffic signals be timed to comply with broad guidelines set by state
transportation officials, a standard that every community with cameras already
claims to meet.



Another provision requires that any ticketed vehicle
owner be able to access video of the alleged misdeed on the Internet. That is a
courtesy already widely offered by camera vendors.

Critics said the legislation doesn’t do all that much.

From today’s print edition:

Daley’s nephew appears on schools VIP list

Mayor’s relative made admissions requests on behalf of longtime
political supporter

By Azam Ahmed and Todd Lighty, Tribune reporters

A VIP list maintained by Chicago Public Schools included admissions
requests by Patrick Daley Thompson, Mayor Richard Daley’s nephew, on
behalf of a longtime supporter of the family’s political organization,
the Tribune has confirmed.





At least two other attorneys from Thompson’s powerful law firm also
lobbied to get students into the city’s best schools. The CPS inspector
general is investigating one of those cases, a source said.

On Tuesday, Mayor Richard Daley denied any role in the VIP lists, which
were kept by orders of then-schools chief Arne Duncan, who is now U.S.
education secretary. However, the Tribune has verified six instances in
which the mayor’s staff or his nephew intervened for students.

Daley spokeswoman Jacqueline Heard said Wednesday the mayor never would
have denied involvement if he knew about the lobbying efforts.





"Do you really believe the mayor would say that unequivocally if he
didn’t believe it was true?" said Heard. "That leads you to believe that
the mayor didn’t have knowledge that any of these people were making
calls."





Logs indicate Thompson contacted then-CPS schools chief Duncan in April
2008 in the hopes of securing two spots at Whitney Young Magnet High
School for the daughters of a ward loyalist. The girls’ father, a
high-ranking city supervisor, has donated about $2,500 to the Daley
family’s 11th Ward Democratic Organization in the past decade.





The father’s name also appears on another once-secret government log. He
was listed as the sponsor of three people who sought city jobs for
their political work, according to a clout list once kept in the mayor’s
office that was entered into evidence during the 2006 federal trial of
Daley’s former patronage chief, Robert Sorich.





The man has worked as a voter registrar in the ward and lives on the
same street as Thompson, who now owns the Bridgeport bungalow where
his grandfather, Mayor Richard J. Daley, once lived.





Heard denied Thompson intervened because he wanted to reward an 11th
Ward foot soldier, and noted the children were not accepted into their
top choice.





"It had nothing to do with the political connections," she said. "It was
because he was a longtime friend."





The logs obtained by the Tribune indicate the students were denied a
place at Whitney Young because their scores were too low. Instead they
were enrolled at Lincoln Park High School, which is not a
selective-enrollment school but has several highly regarded magnet
programs.





The Tribune revealed Monday that Duncan ordered his office to track
admissions requests over several years. The lists, used mostly in
appeals cases, include politicians and influential business people but
also show inquiries from unconnected parents looking to place their
children.





There is no evidence that principals were forced to admit unqualified
students. Indeed, many students were rejected even after Duncan’s office
intervened.





In the Thompson case, Lincoln Park principal Bessie Karvelas said she
was never pressured by the district’s central office to accept anyone.
On the log, Lincoln Park often serves as a landing spot for politically
connected children who have been rejected by selective-enrollment
schools.





"Nobody said, ‘I want you to take this student,’" she said.





Thompson did not return calls seeking comment.





The names of at least two other zoning lawyers at Thompson’s firm, DLA
Piper, appear on the list, as well.





In 2006, one lawyer requested a child’s admission to a program that was
full. The student was later placed into a coveted magnet school after
CPS officials encouraged the Piper attorney to write a letter to the
principal, according to the logs. The attorney has worked on several
major civic endeavors in Chicago and also represented the Chicago Cubs
when they were owned by Tribune Co., which owns the Chicago Tribune.





Two years later, Daley education aide Tawa Jogunosimi made a request on
behalf of another Piper attorney who was seeking a child’s admission to
Augustus H. Burley School, a magnet elementary that focuses on writing
and literature. The student was No. 5 on the wait list at the time and
was later accepted.





The case is being reviewed by the CPS inspector general, a source said.





A spokesperson for DLA Piper declined comment on lobbying by the firm’s
lawyers, calling it a "family matter."





Jogunosimi also made requests on behalf of a new city hire, according to
the 2008 list. The employee’s two children were placed in highly
desirable schools.





The lists also indicate that in 2008, John Dunn, then Daley’s chief
lobbyist, requested help for the child of one of his employees.





The student wanted to attend either Lane Technical High School or
Prosser Career Academy. The student didn’t get into either school.
According to the log, the Prosser principal was contacted and said the
school already was "60 students over" and that an alderman already had
five students on the waiting list.





"He would love to help but there is not much he can do," according to
the log.





Dunn, who left his job as director of Daley’s Office of
Intergovernmental Affairs last year and is now a private attorney, could
not be reached for comment.





Officials highlighted Dunn’s case as an example of how the system did
not exert undue influence or help politically connected people land
students at top schools.





"For every person who has the affiliations with City Hall who is on the
list, I can name you 10 with deeper affiliations who are not," Heard
said.





Tribune reporters Stacy St. Clair and Jodi S. Cohen contributed to
this report.

Posted by Ray Long and Michelle Manchir at 5:45 p.m.; last updated at 8:11 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD — Following years of calls for pension reform, changes that would raise the retirement age to 67 for government workers to collect full benefits and put new limits on annual pensions zoomed through the General Assembly tonight.

The idea is to save billions of dollars in the coming decades for taxpayers who will have to dig deep to cover retirement costs for school teachers, lawmakers and public servants in state government, universities, cities, park districts and counties.

But the reforms would not apply to anyone who’s currently in the retirement system, only new government hires and state officials elected in the future.

Another criticism of the legislation is that it will have little, if any, immediate impact on the worst-in-the-nation pension debt–estimated between $77 billion and $90 billion. But the growth in that pension debt should be reduced considerably and save tens of billions over several decades, budget analysts said.

The Illinois Senate approved the bill 48-6, with three present votes, tonight after it passed the House 92-17, with seven lawmakers voting present, this afternoon. To see how House lawmakers voted please click here.

"This bill is not window dressing," said Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont. "It’s substantial reform."



Quinn issued a statement in favor of the legislation this afternoon.

"I am a longtime advocate for pension reform and believe it is crucial for our state to get its public pension costs under control to help save Illinois taxpayers’ money now and in the future. The proposed pension reform will stabilize the system, protect current state employees and provide attractive pension benefits to future state workers," the governor said.

The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago called the legislation "a step in the right direction," but argued it doesn’t begin to address the state’s "urgent fiscal problems."

That’s because the legislation doesn’t apply the reforms to current government employees, said R. Eden Martin, the organization’s president.

If the reforms are approved, they could give Gov. Pat Quinn and state
lawmakers a chance to pick
up savings of hundreds of millions of dollars in a new budget year
beginning July 1, according to legislative budget forecasters.

Posted by Rick Pearson at 12:55 p.m.



The number of finalists to become Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s running mate has dropped by one with today’s announcement that state Rep. Mike Boland has stepped aside in favor of state Rep. Art Turner.



“It is my strong belief that the nominee to replace Scott Lee Cohen should be someone who ran for the office of lieutenant governor in the February primary,” Boland, D-East Moline, said in a statement distributed by Turner’s campaign today.

“To not choose someone who has already campaigned extensively throughout this huge state and garnered over 180,000 votes would be to tell all of the hundreds of thousands of voters who took the time and made the effort to vote in the primary election that their votes meant nothing,” Boland said.



Turner, a veteran Chicago Democrat and member of House Speaker Michael Madigan’s leadership team, finished second behind the embattled Cohen in the Feb. 2 primary. Cohen gave up the nomination following politically damaging disclosures about his personal life.



Boland has long sought the office of lieutenant governor and has long been a political acolyte of Quinn’s, going so far as to propose a further cutback of the General Assembly to turn it into a one-house or unicameral branch of government.



But Boland’s decision could carry some consequences with the Democratic State Central Committee, headed by Madigan, which meets Saturday in Springfield to choose a lieutenant governor nominee. Boland’s wife, Mary, is among the 38 state central committee members who will make the decision.



Boland was among 17 finalists recommended for the post following six hearings held across the state among more than 100 applicants last Saturday.



The current favorite for the post is state Sen. Susan Garrett of Lake Forest, whom Quinn encouraged to apply for the job and met with last week. Quinn has had trouble appealing to suburban women voters, a key voting bloc in the November general election.



Turner has said he is surprised that Garrett has emerged as a favorite, given his longer legislative tenure. An African-American legislator from Chicago, Turner said the support he received from Boland, the only downstate candidate for lieutenant governor, shows “that my home address does not impede my ability to understand and affect the issues being faced by downstate Illinois residents.”

Posted by Hal Dardick at 4:25 p.m.

A key City Council committee today endorsed Mayor Richard Daley’s proposal to strip his beleaguered compliance office of half a dozen jobs as he seeks to invest more authority in the city’s inspector general.

It is the latest step in Daley’s campaign to shrink the authority of his own Office of Compliance, which he created to oversee the city’s court-ordered efforts to keep politics out of city hiring. Daley has said the office isn’t doing a good enough job.



The measure would send five of the jobs to the Inspector General’s office, along with more funding so the IG could take over the role of overseeing city hiring.



But aldermen have balked at other aspects of Daley’s plan that would give Inspector General Joseph Ferguson authority to investigate aldermen.



Daley hopes to end federal court monitoring of city hiring this year, and his administration believes the proposed changes to the inspector general ordinance could advance that goal.



Efforts to reach a compromise have yet to bear fruit, and it has been suggested that the non-controversial portions of Daley’s proposal could be approved by City Council while leaving the question of aldermanic probes to be addressed later.



Tony Boswell, the executive director of the compliance officer, recently returned to work from a 30-day suspension imposed by Daley on a recommendation by the inspector general. Boswell was accused of mishandling a sexual harassment complaint, but he is challenging his suspension in court, saying it’s all part of an attempt to punish him for criticizing hiring practices in the city Law Department.



Both Ferguson and the city hiring monitor appointed by the federal court have criticized Boswell’s hiring oversight efforts, which Daley last month said “did not yield the results we hoped for.”

Posted by John Byrne at 3:25 p.m.



Mayor Richard Daley today came out against the idea of cutting the school week back to four days, calling it a step in the wrong direction as the city tries to find new organized activities for kids to keep them off the street. 

"That is not the quick answer, to shorten the number of days," Daley said.

The mayor was reacting to Monday’s approval by the Illinois House of legislation to allow local school boards to set four-day weeks for students in an effort to help strapped
school districts save money. Students would still be required to go to school the same amount of
hours every year. That would mean school days could be longer or summer
vacation would be shorter.

Daley’s comments came as he appeared with city officials and clergy to announce a series of events for Chicago Public Schools students during spring break, which starts Friday.

"This is a welcome break for parents and students alike. But this extended period away from school gives our young people time on their hands, which can be dangerous," he said.

Likewise, the four-day week would force parents struggling to make ends meet to try to find the money to pay somebody to look after their children during the day to keep them safe, he said.

"What do parents then do on a Friday or a Monday or a Wednesday?" Daley asked. "Many of the parents are working. A single parent has to work, and so how do they afford then – what do they do with their child?"

The state’s dire financial situation demands spending cuts, he said, but called the four-day week "the easy way out."The bill passed the House on an 81-21 vote and goes to the Senate for
consideration.

UPDATED by John Byrne at 3:42 p.m. at Posted by John Byrne at 12:47 p.m.

Mayor Richard Daley today said his office had "no role" in a back-door process to get students into select high schools, even though a list of such appeals shows multiple references to the Daley administration.

In a story today, the Tribune revealed the existence of a list maintained over several years by the office of former schools chief Arne Duncan that compiled requests from politicians, business people, and some non-connected parents looking to place children in highly competitive city schools.



There were multiple references on the list to a top Daley education aide.



Asked what role his office played in the unpublicized appeals process, Daley said "No role, in the sense that no role."



"As Arne Duncan pointed out, first of all, people are very frustrated with the system, how they get their children in all schools here in the public school system," Daley said.

 

Many of those who appear on the list had political patrons speaking to schools on their behalf, but Daley played down the notion that political clout was used.



"Arne said people called. All types of people called," Daley said. "Not just political people. Business people, parents and all that."

 

Schools CEO Ron Huberman is trying to develop a "system fair to everyone" to allow parents and others to appeal if students don’t get into the schools of their choice, Daley said.

Posted by Hal Dardick and John Byrne at 10:35 a.m.; last updated at 2:30 p.m.



Some Chicago wards would get more frequent street cleaning while others would go longer between sweeps under a proposal by Mayor Richard Daley’s administration to cut the number of sweepers.

Instead of one sweeper in each ward, the city would have 33, with each one assigned to an equally sized chunk of the city under a “grid system,” aldermen said today after being briefed Monday by Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Thomas Byrne.

Ending the ward-based street sweeping map will increase efficiency, Mayor Richard Daley said today.



"If this side is one ward — of the street — and that’s the other side, we can only street clean one side one day and the other the other day," Daley said at an event to announce spring break programs for students. "Now you clean both at the same time."

Not all aldermen are on board.

"I want to keep Chicago cleaner,” said Ald. Willie Cochran, who opposes the measure because it would give him less control over how streets are cleaned in his 20th Ward on the South Side. “I want more efficient delivery of services. Some wards need more work. Mine is one of them. . . . I want to keep control of that sweeper.”

Ald. Ed Smith, 28th, said aldermen want to be consulted about cutting the number of street sweepers — which he said "could be a major problem" for aldermen trying to keep their wards clean — even if there’s is little they can do to prevent Daley from going ahead with the plan.

 

"We understand there is a major crisis in terms of the dollars we need to adequately do the job we’re trying to do," Smith said. "But planning is a major part of whatever you do. Who sits down and plans, makes sure everybody is consulted in this process? You don’t want to get planned out of the process. That’s what we’re very concerned about."

Ald. Richard Mell, 33rd, also expressed reservations, saying he often assigns a street sweeper where it’s needed, giving the example of cleanup after a block party.

“We have special street-sweeping schedules because we have the ability to do that,” Mell said. “Once they start on that grid system, you are never going to have control of it.”

But  Ald. Robert Fioretti, 2nd, said he has long advocated the city should go to a grid system, both for street sweeping and garbage pickup, to create more efficiency. ‘It only makes sense to go to a grid,” he said.

Aldermen who oppose losing control of local street sweeping have to make
concessions as the city pushes to save money, he said. "It’s called efficiency, saving money," Daley said.





Ward-level street department superintendents will insure street sweepers
remain responsive to local calls for cleaning, Daley said.

Under the current system, geographically smaller wards get swept more often than the bigger wards. If the grid system were implemented, each grid would be of equal size, so each street in smaller-sized wards would get swept less often, aldermen said.

Posted by Michelle Manchir at 7:33 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD — In an effort to help strapped school districts save money, the House today approved a bill that would let local school boards set four-day weeks for students.

Students would still be required to go to school the same amount of hours every year. That would mean school days could be longer or summer vacation would be shorter.

The bill passed the House on an 81-21 vote and goes to the Senate for consideration.

Lawmakers said the move could save schools districts money on fuel for buses and could scale back their electric bills for school buildings.

Rep. Bill Black, a Danville Republican who sponsored the bill, said he took up the issue when a school superintendent in Vermilion County approached him about ever-increasing fuel costs. Black said many smaller, rural districts have long bus routes with students who live in farms several miles away from their schools.

"All he wanted to do is try and keep their school district operating," Black said.

Schools statewide are struggling due to delayed payments from the state for items like transportation and special education.

But the legislation is opposed by some major education groups, including the Chicago Teachers Union and the Illinois Federation of Teachers. Lawmakers opposed to the bill said denying kids a day of school is the wrong way to address the state’s enormous backlog of bills.

"It is tragic when we try to balance the budget of the state of Illinois on the backs of our babies," said Rep. Monique Davis, D-Chicago.