McHenry County Board Committee Misses Chance to Talk about Jack Franks’ Latest Doomed Crusade: Eliminating Pensions for Elected Countywide Officials

Further evidence that McHenry County Board Chairman Jack Franks cares nothing about eliminating IMRF pensions for countywide officials is the cancellation of tomorrow’s Human Relations Committee meeting.

The first indication was that Franks introduced no bill to abolish such elected officials’ pensions while he was State Representative.

With county officials being among the most influential politicians in Illinois, such a lack of demonstrated interest made good sense.  Its introduction would have made Franks more enemies in Springfield than he already had.

Franks did so for Metra and RTA Board members during his hissy fit with Metra Board member Jack Schaffer.

You remember, don’t you?

These are 2010 numbers. Would anyone like to go to VoteSmart.org and update the figures?

Schaffer’s mini-billboard company posted a panel about Jack Franks, which you can see here, right down the road from his office near the intersection of old Business Route 14 and Route 47.

Franks had no interest in Metra until that offended him.

Then, he filed lots of Freedom of Information requests (all filed after the billboard went up), ranted on the House floor and introduced a bill to abolish pensions for such board members.

And he passed it.

Next on Franks’ pension hit list were part-time county board members.

He passed a bill on that, too.

No bill was introduced to eliminate Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund pensions for elected county department heads, however.

No interest was evidenced until this year.

It wasn’t until his gambit exploded in his face to lease the Valley Hi Nursing Home that he came up
with the full-time county elected officials’ issue.

At the last meeting of the County Board, Franks put the issue into committee pretty much without discussion and certainly before the IMRF Executive Director delivered his three-minute smack-down version of the letter that Franks received over a week before. (See contents of letter stating that Franks’ proposal was not only illegal, but unconstitutional.)

And, now, the committee to which the IMRF pension elimination question was referred, the Human Resources Committee, has had its meeting canceled.


That’s the same committee that Franks did not bother attending last month to explain his pension abolition position.

Hard to think of this issue as more than something to garner headlines.


Comments

McHenry County Board Committee Misses Chance to Talk about Jack Franks’ Latest Doomed Crusade: Eliminating Pensions for Elected Countywide Officials — 12 Comments

  1. Can county wide elected officials forgo being enrolled into the IMRF system?

    If so, the I hope future elected officials will follow the lead of the chairman and forgo their enrollment into IMRF.

    McHenry County taxpayers cannot afford it.

  2. The Chairman did not have a choice.

    Coroner Anne Majewski, Sheriff Bill Prim and Recorder of Deeds Joe Tirio did and decided not to participate in IMRF.

  3. When elected I will take no insurance, no benefits other than simple compensation for my time.

    No mileage no reimbursement nothing.

    Ask those who have been feeding at the trough if they will do the same.

    It’s time to clear the hogs from the trough.

    Drain the swamp!

  4. The Chairman, as a newly elected official not previously in IMRF, can forgo the pension.

    The previous County Board resolution taking the Board and supposedly the Chairman out of IMRF is ineffective as it pertains to the Chairman, according to Lou Kosiba, because the Chairman can certify that he works more than 1000 per year so he can qualify for the IMRF pension on top of the GA pension if he wants to do so.

    I believe he can wait until the end of his terms to make that election if he is willing to pay his portion of the contribution in at that time.

    I believe he will need 10 years in the county system to be able to do that unless the GA pension counts towards the IMRF.

  5. The County Board when abolishing its pensions did not allow the next chairman to enroll in IMRF.

  6. Cal: According to Lou Kosiba’s analysis, the Board’s actions amount to nothing because he is entitled to IMRF as Chairman if that job is certified to be one that requires at least 1000 hours per year to properly perform.

    The certification is done by the Chairman himself.

    He can keep time records to back it up.

    It is a different position than County Board Member.

    The County Board has no power to designate what offices can and cannot be in IMRF.

    The previous vote was treated as a determination by the Board that the job of County Board Member does not require 1000 hours per year.

    The Chairman position is not controlled by that.

  7. “Fair Play” you say “Taking the Chairman’s lead???”

    You’re a rimmer for Jack Franks!

    The County Board made it so the Chairman couldn’t take the IMRF!!!

    Are you saying Franks is giving up his state Pension???

    HAH!

    I didn’t think so.

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