Administrative costs at Illinois universities have spun out of control. The latest example comes as the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees voted to approve a $600,000 golden parachute for President Doug Baker.
A bill that would apply term limits to legislative leaders in the Illinois House and Senate cleared a major hurdle May 19, and is scheduled for a second reading May 22.
Illinois Senate Bill 55 would observe former President Barack Obama’s Aug. 4 birthday, but keep state facilities open.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan will look to extend her record as the longest-serving attorney general in Illinois history. Her father, Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan, has remained the state’s most powerful state legislative leader throughout her tenure.
The Illinois State Board of Elections cast a tie vote on whether to refer to the Illinois attorney general or LaSalle County state’s attorney the disclosure violations case regarding Illinois Auditor General Frank Mautino’s previous campaign funds.
The details of an investigation into Candace Wanzo, an official in the Illinois secretary of state’s office, are not yet known, but she pleaded guilty to embezzlement before working for the secretary of state’s office.
State agencies have paid more than $270,000 to Mautino Distributing Company – most of it after Madigan brought Mautino into a leadership role in 2009.
With House Speaker Mike Madigan’s longevity comes a patronage army paid with public dollars.
Illinois House Bill 4039 would reveal publicly the names of state lawmakers who haven’t filed their state tax returns.
The gas the Mautino campaign claims to have purchased over 16 years would equate to more than 35,000 miles every year. The circumference of the earth is 24,901 miles.
Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan reportedly uses his large quantity of Cubs and White Sox tickets as gifts for his political volunteers, but his history with professional sports teams in Chicago isn’t so generous.
As the federal government repeals regulations requiring broadband companies to obtain consumers’ consent before using their browsing history and other personal information to create targeted ads, Illinois state politicians are moving to ramp up privacy protections. However, whether these bills would actually further those privacy goals or whether they would merely bolster Illinois’ class-action lawsuit industry while burdening businesses are open questions.
On March 29, the Illinois House of Representatives voted almost unanimously in favor of allowing voters to decide on local government consolidation – a crucial component of shrinking local government spending, which drives up property taxes. State Rep. Tom Demmer, R-Dixon, sponsored House Bill 496, which received bipartisan support – more than a dozen representatives...
“By singling out medical cannabis organizations,” Judge Lee wrote, the state of Illinois appeared to be favoring certain speakers based on their viewpoints – precisely the type of discrimination the Supreme Court has disapproved of in the past.