Progress Illinois

With unemployment, foreclosures, and evictions all on the rise, social service providers warned months ago that ignoring homelessness, hunger, and other social service needs in Illinois wouldn’t make the problems go away.

Just as the cold weather sets in, demand for help among the state’s neediest is predictably surging—even in some unlikely places. Demand at suburban and rural shelters and food banks is reportedly spiking, growing between 50-90 percent is some suburban Cook County locations as compared with last year.

Sadly, those startling figures haven’t prompted state officials to develop a crisis intervention plan yet. And it looks like the worst is yet to come.

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At Barack Obama’s press conference last Tuesday, ABC 7’s Andy Shaw told him that across the country “mayors and county board presidents and governors are facing hemorrhaging budgets and … are wondering, to paraphrase the late, great Mike Royko, ‘Where’s ours?’” In his response, the president-elect made clear -- and rightfully so -- that the Prairie State won’t be in line for any extra goodies. Nonetheless, Illinois should certainly be near the front of the line when it comes to assistance and investment.

A new report from the National Governors’ Association (NGA) has outlined $18 billion worth of ready-to-go capital projects that would give state economies a jolt and put folks back to work. As the Stateline graph below shows, Illinois ranks fifth nationwide, with $831 million worth of road, schools, and other infrastructure initiatives that could be started up within 90 days of receiving necessary funding:

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Ask even some proponents of Chicago’s Tax Increment Financing (TIF) system and they’ll admit it has grown unwieldy.

TIF districts now cover half of the city’s acreage, each capturing new property tax revenue in the name of economic development. However, keeping tabs on the millions in off-the-books tax revenue has become virtually impossible, even for folks with an eye for municipal finance.

At a community forum organized by the Independent Voters of Illinois- Independent Precinct Organization (IVI-IPO) last night, some reform-minded Chicagoans—including Cook County Commissioner Mike Quigley—explored possible new game plans for bringing sorely needed oversight to the TIF system.

“How can we retool this program with some governance?” long-time TIF organizer John Paul Jones asked. “I’m not sure it will happen unless the community would take control.”

The challenge has long been finding a solution that people across the city can coalesce around. Some initial thoughts are pushing for a TIF moratorium, mayoral term limits, or stricter state-wide legislative controls.

“We have to have everything on the table,” IVI-IPO’s Aviva Miriam Patt said.

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During his six years on the Cook County board, Commissioner Larry Suffredin has seen his fair share of malfeasance, manipulation, and all around lousy governance. But according to a statement he sent out Friday, this week marked “a new low.”

The north suburban commissioner used that language after learning that Board President Todd Stroger’s administration recently sent out a letter warning current and former county employees that the pension fund is broke and jobs are on the line -- all part of an effort to scare up support for a questionable $740 million bond proposal. (Click the image to the right to read the letter from pension fund director Daniel Dengan.)

Suffredin’s office responded: “The Cook County Pension Fund is currently the best funded public pension fund in Illinois. Current pension benefits are not in jeopardy.”

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While there have been -- and continue to be -- numerous obstacles to greening the Chicago Public Schools system, Suzanne Carlson, the woman hired by the district to oversee its new Environmental Action Plan, tells us not to rule her out.

Carlson recently unveiled a framework for changes that include composting food waste, bolstering recycling efforts, better managing stormwater, and changing everyday behavior to cut back on energy consumption by millions of dollars each year.

Her biggest outside ally is the Healthy Schools Campaign, which knows a thing or two about working for change within a bureaucracy.

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Today saw no action in Springfield on the governor’s not-so-popular Emergency Budget Act. Two more days remain in the veto session, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens. Nonetheless, there were a few legislative developments worth noting:

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Money may be scarce these days. But with a relatively simple shift in policy, the Prairie State could bring in millions of dollars in extra revenue that big corporations take home each year for merely collecting sales taxes.

The way state law is written, Illinois retailers are eligible to keep 1.75 percent of the sales tax revenue that enters their tills. Most states have similar policies, but cap the amount individual businesses can collect. But not Illinois. And that costs us $126 million a year, which is more than any other state in the nation, according to a report released by the Washington D.C.-based group Good Jobs First.

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On Monday, we reported that Illinois officials were scrambling to find the funds for thousands of vouchers that parents and social service agencies rely on to care for foster children across the state.

Well, the crisis has been averted.

We got word that Comptroller Dan Hynes' office cut $30 million worth of aid checks last night. The money should make it to foster care providers without delay, according to spokesman Alan Henry.

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Last week, FOX News Chicago exposed how some Cook County commissioners are converting a $1,200-per-month expense account into personal income or using it to lease a car or pay off their own education expenses.  Like many stories of government waste in Chicago, the FOX investigation surfaced, caused some brief consernation, then quietly slipped away.  When confronted by FOX's Dane Placko about his pocketing of the monthly checks, Comm. William Beavers' brazen response said it all.  Watch:

No one should be "all right" about Beavers turning taxpayer dollars into a de facto $14,000 pay raise. We decided to follow-up on the story to learn what -- if anything -- is being done to address the issue.  What we found is that Commissioners Mike Quigley and Tony Peraica are angling behind the scenes to eliminate the $245,000 contingency fund from next year's budget. Until Board President Todd Stroger rolls out the much-anticipated 2009 spending plan, however, nothing's likely to happen on this front.  In the meantime, Quigley and Comm. Larry Suffredin are drafting a proposal for stricter oversight on how the money's being spent.

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As wind power continues to sweep across the state, planners have watched closely to see how municipalities are reworking blueprints and amending building codes to make way for the hulking turbines. The latest case study can be found in the northern suburbs.

Ken Aldridge, CEO of Aldridge Electric Inc., is currently working on wind farm projects as far away as Utah. But in an effort to show his company’s commitment to alternative energy, he has submitted a proposal to erect a wind turbine to power his company’s building in Libertyville.

As a result, the town is grappling with the height, noise, and spacial requirements necessary to plant a free-standing turbine smack dab in the middle of a suburban community.

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