The Daily Herald issues its endorsement in the race between Republican Laura Curtis and Democrat Maura Hirschauer for Illinois House District 49.
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September 23, 2020 at 10:29AM
Incumbent Democratic Diane Pappas of Itasca faces a challenge from Republican Seth Lewis, a Bartlett insurance agent, in the Illinois House 45th District.
Q: Should Speaker Madigan resign from his leadership positions? If he does not resign, will you support him for a new term as House speaker?
A: The issue of ethics in government is much larger than one single person. We have seen ethics allegations at the local, state, and federal levels on both sides of the aisle, and focusing on one person distracts from and undermines the larger issues at hand.
I’m focused on the very real issues at hand — increasing transparency in the lobbying field and cracking down on bad actors that use loopholes in the law to avoid disclosing who they are lobbying for. And, of course, anyone found guilty of any crime should be punished to the fullest extent, and any politician found guilty of a felony related to their job should have their pension taken away.
Q: Describe at least two circumstances in which you have shown or would show a willingness and capacity to act independently of the direction or demands of party leadership.
A: I grew up in a Communist-run country, worked my way through some of the best schools in the country, and built a successful legal career where I negotiated contentious corporate contracts — and where I was often the only or one of few women in the room.
I have never been afraid to speak my mind and defend what I believe in.
Since taking office last January, I’ve listened to my constituents and their needs and desires, and several of the bills I’ve introduced are a direct result of those conversations. The opinions of the people I represent mean far more to me than any party official’s opinion.
Notably, I listened when my constituents told me they can’t afford to pay more in taxes and fees — and this was even before COVID-19 changed the entire direction of the economy.
That’s why I broke with party leadership and most others in my party to oppose the gas tax increase, increased fees on various vehicle plate fees, and a slew of other taxes that include a new tax on auto trade-ins and higher taxes on home sales.
Q: How would you rate the governor’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis? Does the legislature need to have more input and influence in establishing rules and policies related to stemming the spread of the disease? What would you have done differently, if anything? If nothing, please say so.
A: I am grateful that our governor has chosen to listen to the advice of public health experts, scientists, doctors, and epidemiologists when making these very difficult decisions.
I can appreciate that none of his decisions — whether I’ve agreed with them or not — have been easy, and that every possible solution and decision came with very real pros and cons.
I think it’s clear when looking at Illinois’ data as compared to other states that didn’t rely on the science that we likely avoided an even greater crisis by focusing on medical science-based decision making rather than making the “easy” political decisions.
As we continue to collect data and gain greater knowledge on the virus in general, I would hope that the legislature may play a role in the decisions being made that impact our communities.
Q: Regardless of whether the federal government provides assistance, what is the impact of the pandemic on the state’s economic outlook and what immediate and long-term actions should be taken to address it? Would you support increasing taxes to pay for COVID-19 response or to make up for lost revenue related to COVID-19?
A: We have to take care of families and provide services to ensure that families can stay afloat. I do not support raising taxes on middle-class families; they cannot afford to pay any more.
The budget challenges created by the pandemic will be staggering for all levels of government and there will be no easy solutions. It’s more important than ever before that our state reevaluates priorities, which must include investments in health care, measures to keep children and their teachers safe at school, resources for our health care workers and emergency responders, and assistance for those facing layoffs, evictions, foreclosures, and other extreme and unforeseen financial hardship.
And, of course, we still have our pre-COVID priorities, like funding for domestic violence shelters and home care services for seniors. Lastly, it’s time for the federal government to step up and provide all states with financial relief and resources.
Q: The graduated income tax is designed with the intent to reduce taxes for 97 percent of Illinoisans. Do you believe that will happen? Why or why not? What assurances can be given to voters?
A: The families I speak to every day are desperate for relief, and it’s clear that the current system isn’t working for the middle-class families I represent. I supported putting the constitutional amendment to the voters because I believe they deserve the opportunity to accept or reject a graduated tax structure, which is similar to the federal tax structure.
To ease concerns I heard from families worried that a graduated tax plan could raise their taxes, I also supported a rate structure that guarantees that 97% of taxpayers see lower tax rates or no change at all.
Q: Do you support any type of tax on retirement benefits?
A: No.
Q: Should Illinois prohibit lawmakers from lobbying other levels of government? Should lawmakers be prohibited from becoming lobbyists after their term in office? For how long?
A: Illinois should prohibit all elected officials at every level of government from paid lobbying, as well as unpaid lobbying on behalf of anyone other than their constituents. The prohibition should be for a reasonable period of time in light of the length of the elected official’s term.
Q: What are the most important components that should be included in legislative ethics reform? What will you do to help them come to pass?
A: We need to increase transparency in the lobbying field and crack down on bad actors that use loopholes in the law to avoid disclosing who they are lobbying for. And, of course, anyone found guilty of any crime should be punished to the fullest extent and any politician found guilty of a felony related to their job should have their pension taken away.
Q: What should the state do to address the still-growing problems with its key pension programs?
A: While the state’s future revenue outlook remains in limbo as we still grasp the full picture of the severity of the COVID-19 impact, we have to continue to find ways to pay down the backlog, meet the pension obligation and fund vital services.
We will need to honestly evaluate our spending priorities and determine what we as a state choose to make a priority — services for senior citizens and higher education and job training programs to put people back to work. We will need to make smart, but difficult, decisions about where to invest our limited resources to put Illinois on track in the midst of an unprecedented economic crisis.
Prior to COVID-19, I supported legislation to consolidate the hundreds of downstate (non-Chicago) police and fire pension funds to cut administrative costs and yield a greater return on investment. I supported and will continue to support budgets that pay the state’s full pension payment to ensure that we are not kicking the can and burdening future generations with additional debt.
Q: Do you believe climate change is caused by human activity? What steps should state government be taking to address the issue?
A: I think the fact that the climate is changing is irrefutable, regardless of the cause, and those changes are detrimental to Illinoisans in economically measurable ways, whether it’s flooded farmland or basements, invasive species migrating and impacting our local ecosystems, or extreme cold or heat that drives up the cost of utilities.
We need to do whatever we can to slow down climate change in order to limit economic losses and preserve our natural resources for the benefit of future generations.
A big part of that is investing in clean, renewable energy, which also means the creation of new good-paying jobs.
I’m a co-sponsor of the Clean Energy Jobs Act to invest in renewable energy and create green jobs throughout our state.
Q: Protesters have massed in the streets in Chicago and other cities across Illinois for greater social justice and changes in the funding and responsibilities for police. How significant a role does systemic racism play in limiting equal opportunity in Illinois? To the degree that it exists, what should be done about it? What, if any, changes should be made in funding and duties of police?
A: The deaths of George Floyd and so many other people of color are unacceptable, wrong, immoral, and not a reflection of who we strive to be as a society.
Like many Americans, over the last several months I have tried to listen to experiences of others and to educate myself on our country’s and state’s history of racism, race relations, and discriminatory policies and practices.
I thought I had a strong understanding of the civil rights movement and our country’s long struggle for equality, but I am learning so much, including the heartbreaking past of Cairo and other Illinois communities.
Racism knows no borders, and our own state’s history and struggle is something we should take the time to learn about so we can learn from our past mistakes. I won’t pretend to have all of the solutions, but I am committed to working with all stakeholders, keeping an open mind and an open ear, and working with my colleagues to do better for all Illinoisans, because no one should feel unsafe in our state and no one should feel discriminated against or unfairly targeted because of the color of their skin.
I am confident that meaningful and productive reform measures will arise from these discussions.
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September 22, 2020 at 10:59AM
Last week, Illinois House candidate Travis Breeden said he was being wrongly described as being against affordable health care. A Democratic Party of Illinois mailer describes the Utica Republican as someone who will give the gift of higher drug prices. Breeden says he was only against an unbalanced budget.
Ottawa Democrat Lance Yednock supported that budget and says it’s not as simple as refusing to go along with borrowing money.
Yednock says simply cutting things will affect those who need services the most. He says if the state has to borrow to provide service, that’s the way it is.
Breeden and Yednock are running in the 76th Illinois House District.
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September 22, 2020 at 08:49AM
The race for the Illinois House in District 51 is expected to be close.
How close? Two years ago, even with a Blue Wave behind her, Democrat Mary Edly-Allen had to wait almost two weeks after Election Day to find that provincial ballots had pushed her to her first election victory.
Yes, it’s a swing district, and Edly-Allen has a worthy opponent this year in Lake Zurich minister and Ela Township Trustee Chris Bos, a common-sense Republican who is a strong advocate for the kind of reform that Springfield needs,
There is a lot to like about Bos, but our endorsement goes to Edly-Allen. The Libertyville teacher has shown courage in standing up for the unsuccessful Fair Maps redistricting amendment and has been a strong advocate for Springfield reform herself. Beyond all that, she has been unafraid to challenge powerful House Speaker Michael Madigan. That political courage deserves to be rewarded by the voters.
The 51st District takes in parts of or parts of Arlington Heights, Barrington, Barrington Hills, Buffalo Grove, Deer Park, Forest Lake, Grayslake, Green Oaks, Gurnee, Hawthorn Woods, Kildeer, Lake Barrington, Lake Zurich, Libertyville, Long Grove, Mettawa, Mundelein, North Barrington, Tower Lakes, Vernon Hills, Wauconda, and Waukegan
“I was not elected to protect the status quo,” Edly-Allen says, and we believe her commitment to confront the problems in state government is real. We endorse her for a second term.
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September 22, 2020 at 01:23AM
The four major-party candidates for House seats in Illinois districts 41 and 42 met with the Daily Herald editorial board in a Zoom interview to discuss issues facing the state.For District 41, incumbent Republican Grant Wehrli and Democratic challenger Janet Yang Rohr appeared.For District 42, incumbent Republican Amy L. Grant and Democrat Ken Mejia-Beal made the case for their candidacies.The four candidates described their positions on issues such as ethics reform, the state’s response to the pandemic and more.
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September 21, 2020 at 11:59AM
As a public service, Shaw Media will provide open access to information related to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) emergency. Sign up for the newsletter here
ROUND LAKE BEACH, Ill. (AP) — An Illinois lawmaker has tested positive for COVID-19, his office announced Monday.
State Rep. Sam Yingling tested positive last week and has been quarantined at his home in Grayslake, his office said a statement.
The 40-year-old Democrat experienced significant sinus congestion and drainage, symptoms he thought at first to be related to his allergies, the statement said. But those symptoms quickly evolved and he experienced a sore throat, cough, chest congestion, headache, fatigue, and body aches, it said.
Yingling said once he learned he’d tested positive, he notified anyone he’d knowingly been in contact with and encouraged them to get tested.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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September 21, 2020 at 12:03PM
Will concerns about COVID-19 and Madigan end Democratic rule in southwest Illinois? Belleville News-Democrat
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September 18, 2020 at 09:55AM
Jun 5, 2020 at 6:25 PM
ROCKFORD — State Rep. Maurice West brought members of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus to town Friday to call for racial unity and to demand an emergency session of the General Assembly to approve social and economic reform legislation.
More than 100 elected officials, civic leaders and residents stood and listened to the lawmakers explain the urgent need for legislation to hold police officers accountable and to enhance the social and economic lives of all Illinoisians.
People in the crowd wore face masks and stood 6 feet apart — dutifully following the social distance guidelines in place amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The crowd patiently listened for more than an hour as speaker after speaker delivered a call to action under the hot afternoon sun on the east lawn of Booker Washington Center, the heart of Rockford’s black history and heritage.
The killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer must awaken all Americans to the sobering truth of racial inequality, West said.
Americans can no longer afford to be silent or ambivalent "about where you stand on racial injustice. It makes others question what your true intentions really are."
"Rock Valley College is a perfect example — and I’m disappointed," West said.
West explained later on Friday that his statement about the city’s community college was a reference to the college’s "weak response to the death of George Floyd."
West and other members of the Black Legislative Caucus are developing a "working list" of legislative reforms that they hope the General Assembly will approve — and that Gov. JB Pritzker will sign into law — as soon as possible. The reforms include economic and employment measures designed to improve the quality of life in minority communities and measures to hold police officers more accountable.
"We know our police departments don’t have rules and consequences," said state Rep. La Shawn Ford, D-Chicago. "They get to run rampant and kill black people."
West said he has been inspired by peaceful protests that are happening in Rockford and across the country.
"The tide is changing," West said. "This massive ship of injustice and inequality is turning. It’s no secret that it will take time to fully move in the right direction. But we are committed to do what must be done. …That time is now and we will do this together."
Isaac Guerrero: iguerrero@rrstar.com; @isaac_rrs
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June 5, 2020 at 10:08PM
ALTON, Ill. – State Rep. Monica Bristow, D-Alton, is promoting a new Get Hired Illinois program from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and Illinois Department of Employment Security. This program will help connect employers and job seekers with opportunities for job and career development across the state.
“The new Get Hired Illinois platform will help lay the groundwork to getting job seekers back to work and the economy on track,” said Bristow. “It’s essential that as our economy begins opening back up, that both employers and job seekers have the resources they need to return to normal.”
The Get Hired Illinois portal is a collection of both IDES and DCEO information and resources to give job seekers and employers a single platform to find unemployment resources and job opportunities. The page will allow for employers to upload jobs, host virtual career fairs, and training opportunities. The new portal already features nearly 60,000 jobs across various industries. Visit the new Get Hired Illinois Website at www.illinois.gov/gethired.
“Although the COVID-19 outbreak has setback numerous employers and workers, this platform will help put our economy work toward recovery,” said Bristow. “I encourage anyone who is looking for employment to visit the new Get Hired Illinois website and find resources and job opportunities.”
To find the most recent information about resources and information regarding COVID-19 in Illinois, visit https://coronavirus.illinois.gov or call the Illinois Department of Public Health at 1-800-889-3931.
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June 2, 2020 at 08:33PM
Working for Illinois Caucus 