Levee Bill Passes House
Published by Al Adomite on May 20th, 2008
By Al
The metro-east levee repair bill passed the Illinois House 64-44 on Thursday. It now heads to the Governor’s desk, where it’s future seems uncertain yet, seriously, how will the Governor tell metro-east Democrats “no” on this issue?
It is unclear whether Gov. Rod Blagojevich will sign the measure. He has previously been opposed to measures that would create a general tax increase. A spokesman for the governor’s office could not be reached for comment Thursday.
You can debate whether or not this is the “only” solution, but it’s not debatable that this is the only solution put out for consideration in the timetable necessary, and it did receive broad bipartisan support from local lawmakers.
As a local official who represents some of the “taxed” in this proposal, I think this will be an interesting test on our local Democrat officials and lawmakers. Our county has enjoyed a renaissance of sort of fiscally-conservative Democrats in the past four to five years, partly from the threat of an advancing GOP caucus within the county that had successfully unseated Democrat incumbents on fiscal conservative issues.
The “hook” of this levee tax deal is the federal funds reimbursement of up to 65 percent. A (more likely at this point) Obama presidency, with the #2 US Senator (Durbin) and a powerful Democrat House coalition (led by Emanuel) will mean these funds should be certain. If these funds don’t come in a timely manner, we’ll look back on this proposal as “smoke-and-mirrors” on the taxpayers. If they do come quickly, then the whole debate on the “life” of this proposal will be mostly moot.
If county officials squander the reimbursement funds and the tax lives longer, voters should rightly bounce the county officials out of office. If McCain wins the Presidency, I would like to think Shimkus (McCain’s Illinois co-chair) is in good position to fight for those funds.
Some in the GOP will (fairly) argue this tax is unfair and unnecessary. I think the Democrats have put their clout and their fiscal conservative integrity out on the table with this proposal and I hope they live up to both. If they do, this tax will be short-lived.
This is certainly “legacy” legislation for Haine, something his entire tenure will someday be judged upon. For the local GOP, I hope they work for specific, legislative guarantees that partisanship will not be the levee tax’s rub.
The state legislation was too burdensome to put in higher ethics standards for the letting of funds, future contributions to campaign committees from contractors, and standards for the non-partisan disbursement of work for this $180 million project. New ethics standards coupled with this proposal at the county level is a must to further bipartisan “trust” on this proposal.
Filed under County Issues, State Issues
May 20th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
I would take exception to your comment about a threat from GOP caucus to the Democrats. The GOP lost two of the most fically conservative board members in the last election. It would seem it is less about fiscal conservatism and more about the candidates.
A more fiscally conservative policy tone does seem to have come from Chair, Alan Dunstan. There has been little change from the board committees controlled by the democrats indicating a willingness to address overall spending or a reduction, thereof. Some of the democratic countywide elected officials continue to submit budgets that show little reduction or restraint in spending. Increased technology and productivity should result in some annual reductions in spending.
May 29th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
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