Mayor's Row

by Mayor Ned Mitchell

The state budget crisis is starting to hit home and not in a good way for the folks who need help the most. Our most vulnerable citizens are now facing uncertain days ahead while waiting on legislative leaders to roll out a package that everyone can agree with.

Governor Pat Quinn has now signed the capital bill that will free up $31 billion dollars in construction money for much needed projects throughout the state so get ready for legislators to hit the media with press releases telling all of us how hard they are working.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan has wisely chosen to run for another term in that office and that has given Governor Quinn a little breathing room. My prediction is that Comptroller Dan Hynes is going to make the run for Governor thus setting up a much dreaded primary for the Democrats. Hynes will not run for Comptroller according to top staffers on his team so that only leaves him running for Governor or United States Senator. Potential Senate rivals include incumbent Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias who has expressed interest as well as Chris Kennedy of the Kennedy clan. Hynes lacks the charisma and financial backing to take on either of these two if they decide to run.

Governor Quinn has made no announcement as to his intentions but it is widely expected that he will run for the office he has coveted for decades. He will be a formidable opponent and could be one of those candidates that boils down to even if you beat him in battle you will lose the war.

Republicans appear to be also heading down the path of a primary for Governor as State Senator Dillard has announced and State Senator Brady is expected to do so. On the United States Senate side for the Republicans Rep. Mark Kirk is all but in the race. Rep. Kirk is an odd ball Republican in that he has a liberal streak that would almost qualify him to be a Democrat. Southern Illinois retired Circuit Court Judge Donald Lowery of Golconda has announced his candidacy and in my opinion if Republicans were wise they would give him the nod. Not only is Judge Lowery one of us down here he is basing his campaign on “Common Sense” and that in itself is severely lacking in both parties of the political spectrum. Republicans also have several others getting ready to jump into the ring on several statewide races. It will be interesting to watch as the typical Labor Day campaign season is just around the corner.

A recent article by Jim Broadway who is publisher of the State School News Service, calls out legislators to solve the current budget crisis. Broadway points out that in essence we are all against governmental waste, fraud, corruption, nepotism, cronyism and other forms of waste. He further states that if we assume government performs any useful service at all, it must be paid for by citizens either by an income tax or other fees on goods and services.

The problem with fees on goods and services ultimately boils down to the poor pay the same as the rich, much like when we go to the grocery store we all pay the same for a loaf of bread. Trying to run a government on this philosophy is detrimental to the masses and this is why we have an income tax. Those with the ability to pay due to their high wages pay more.

Broadway states that a person who makes $20,000 per year has to work five times as long to pay for a vehicle registration fee as the person making $100,000 per year. This inequity covers a lot of ground in Illinois and it serves to keep the income tax low in Illinois which in turn favors the guy making $100, 00 per year and hampers the one making $20,000.

We also have the problem in Illinois of the wealthy being concentrated in geographical areas of this state and that is causing a funding problem for education. There is no doubt that school children in districts up north are getting a much better education than those down here simply due to the inequity of funding for schools. It pits an us against them theory with school children being the scapegoats.

Publisher Broadway claims that legislators are supposed to understand this inequity and fix it. The fact is folks in the poorest counties carry more than twice the burden of paying for goods and services as do those in the five wealthiest counties in Illinois as it relates to their income. This is why we see legislators in wealthy areas opposed to an income tax increase as they see it as harmful to their constituents. They would rather increase fees such as vehicle registration whereby everyone pays the same. Legislators in poor areas should be more inclined to increase the income tax rate as it will protect their constituents.

It appears to me that we are widening the divide between the haves and the have not’s. When the job market is booming and everyone is working we are less inclined to complain about inequity as we either don’t pay attention or don’t care. The fact is the gap is there and it is getting worse. Now is the time for our legislators to get to work and provide the money necessary to educate our children as our state constitution calls for. Sadly, it has once again been put off to another day conveniently after the deadline when candidates must declare their intention to run for office.

Broadway sums up his article by saying legislators from poor areas who keep voting for everyone paying the same for goods and services yet opposing income tax increases should all be voted out of office next year. One thing about it, we do all have the right and privilege to vote as we see fit. Touché’!