McHenry County Blog

A press release from State Senator Dan Duffy:

Final Month of Legislative Session in Springfield

We are now in the final month of the 2013 legislative session.  Like a student who waits for the last night to complete a term paper – legislative leaders also procrastinate until this final month before they try to quickly maneuver key bills through the General Assembly.  As you can imagine, this is when political games, arm twisting, and emotions are at their peak.  Legislative bills, which have been stalled for months, are now moving with lightening speed through the legislative process.  I feel it is imperative that every bill is completely read, reviewed, and analyzed.

As you know, a bill must pass both chambers (House and Senate) and be signed by the Governor to become law.  Here are two key bills which have moved through the Senate recently:

Pension Reform Bill (SB01)

President Cullerton barely passed an insignificant pension reform bill out of the Senate a few weeks ago.  The bill went over to the House.  The powerful House Speaker, Mike Madigan, sat on the bill before he decided to “gut” the bill, take out all of the President’s wording, and replace / amend the bill with his own content.  The new Pension Reform bill, with all of Speaker Madigan’s wording, was passed by the House on May 2nd and now will return to the Senate (since it was amended) for a vote.  It is now up to President Cullerton to decide whether or not he will allow Speaker Madigan’s revised bill to be called for a vote in the Senate.  President Cullerton has openly expressed feelings of resentment due to the fact that Speaker Madigan gutted his original pension reform bill and replaced it with his own.

The Speakers new pension reform bill significantly reforms the state’s pension system which is currently 100 Billion dollars in debt, the worst funded pension system in the United States.  His bill reforms 4 of the 5 state pension programs.  The bill impacts all state employees, teachers, legislators and all others in state pension programs – except judges.  Speaker Madigan excluded judges from his bill.  The bill would have state employees pay more for benefits, work longer before they can retire, decrease cost of living adjustments, and end some perks which have been abused in the past.  His bill would save an estimated $150 Billion dollars over the course of his 30-year plan.

Property Tax Increase Bill / College of Lake County Borrowing bill (SB2305)

Senator Terry Link sponsored, and barely passed, this bill which would allow the College of Lake County board to borrow as much money as they desire for projects – WITHOUT taxpayer approval.  I did not support the bill and voted against it.  Once the College of Lake County borrows the money for projects, Lake county property taxes will be increased to pay for the loans.  In addition to the College of Lake County, this bill would also impact the Blackhawk College District, Illinois Eastern College District, and the Southwestern College District.  This bill passed the senate by only 2 votes;  Lake County Senator Melinda Bush and Senator Julie Morrison supported the bill and were the deciding votes for its passage.  The bill now has moved over to the House for a vote.

In addition to this money, the President of the College of Lake County is also lobbying for more money. 

He would like an additional $36 Million from the state (and $12 Million more from local funds) to build a new 118,024 square foot learning center.

In these difficult economic times, families and small business owners are cutting expenses.  They have learned to “live within their means”.  Lake County residents are struggling under the burden of extremely high property taxes.  Now is NOT the time to raise our property tax once again!  I do not support these major upgrades to the College of Lake County at this time, which will drastically increase our property taxes.
GET ENGAGED

Get engaged in our political system!  To stay updated with what is happening in Springfield, “Like” me on my facebook page!  I give daily updates from the Senate floor while we are in session and communicate directly with people who post comments on my page.  Liking my page gives you DIRECT ACCESS to me in a very personal way.

Stay connected with me on facebook by clicking “like” on my page at www.facebook.com/senatorduffy

To follow bills through the legislative process, review bills and see how your representative voted, go to www.ilga.gov

Second-term State Senator Dan Duffy, whose district reaches all the way into the middle of Crystal Lake as a result of the Democrat’s redistricting plan and includes a fair amount of southeastern McHenry County, has endorsed Bill Prim as the Republican candidate for Sheriff.

This is the second major endorsement from a political figure that Prim has received.

The first was from McHenry County’s first resident congressman, now-WIND talk show host, Joe Walsh.

It apparently wasn’t considered important by the Northwest Herald, because I didn’t see an article.

We’ll see if a sitting elected official’s endorsement is worthy of conveying to the 30,000+ readers of the NWH.

STATE SEN. DAN DUFFY ENDORSES BILL PRIM FOR SHERIFF

A powerful voice has been added to the chorus of those backing Bill Prim for McHenry County Sheriff. Popular Illinois State Sen. Dan Duffy (R-26th) announced Monday that he is endorsing Prim in the Republican primary election next year.

The landslide winner in his contest for reelection last November, Duffy said he recently concluded his review of the candidates for Sheriff and wanted to make his endorsement early to add to the growing momentum behind Prim’s campaign.

“There is absolutely no doubt Bill Prim is the most qualified candidate we have for this critical post.

“His 27 years of ever-increasing responsibility in police work are a great fit for McHenry County.”

Duffy added, “There is more to being Sheriff than catching bad guys. The Sheriff must also be able to work with county wide officeholders and, at the same time, be accountable to taxpayers for how he spends their hard-earned money.”

Duffy continued, “In all of these areas, Bill Prim is the right choice. I urge all of McHenry voters to join me in supporting Bill Prim for Sheriff.”

Prim said he was pleased and grateful for Duffy’s endorsement.

“Anyone who lives in McHenry County knows that Sen. Duffy is a man of integrity and courage.

“His efforts on behalf of small business owners, who are the backbone of our economy, and his concern that taxpayers be listened to at all levels of government, may have not made him the most popular man in Springfield, but they have certainly earned him a great deal of respect in McHenry County.”

Prim added, “The hard-working people who support Dan Duffy will find themselves right at home with the message I am sending in my campaign.”

Pretend you are a legislator.

It is very highly unlikely you will read each bill. Actually, that is impossible as the deadline for passage out of each house approaches.

In the House, you don’t even know the order in which the bills will be called anymore.

It’s whenever Speaker Mike Madigan decides. (It wasn’t like that before Madigan. There was an actual calendar from which the bills were called in numerical order each day.)

Yesterday, the Illinois State Senate amended what is commonly called the “video poker” bill. It’s really about the slot machining of Illinois.

Here’s the summary that would have been on your computer screen about Senate Bill 1738, sponsored by Lake County’s Terry Link:

Replaces everything after the enacting clause with the introduced bill with the following changes: defines “electronic card” (and removes a cross-reference to the Illinois Administrative Code); provides that the central communications system vendor may be licensed as a video gaming terminal manufacturer or a video gaming terminal distributor, or both, but in no event shall the central communications system vendor be licensed as a video gaming terminal operator;

provides that the Board shall not permit the development of information or the use by any licensee of gaming device or individual game performance data;

provides that nothing in the Act shall inhibit or prohibit the Board from the use of gaming device or individual game performance data in its regulatory duties;

requires the Board to adopt rules to ensure that all licensees are treated and all licensees act in a non-discriminatory manner and develop processes and penalties to enforce those rules;

adds language authorizing the Illinois Gaming Board to adopt rules establishing standards for advertising video gaming;

removes language prohibiting the Board from disseminating information that is specific to individual licensed locations (and removes corresponding changes to the Freedom of Information Act); and,

in provisions amending the Criminal Code of 2012, provides that video gaming terminals for sale to a licensed distributor or operator (rather than a licensed establishment, licensed fraternal establishment, licensed veterans establishment, or licensed truck stop establishment) under the Video Gaming Act are exempt from seizure.

Effective immediately.

In the form legislators see the description, it is one fully packed paragraph. I have cut it up to make it easier to read.

Below is the roll call:

Locally, Senator Pam Althoff voted in favor, while her McHenry County colleagues Dan Duffy and Karen McConnaughay voted against the measure.

The Illinois Church Action on Alcohol and Addiction Problems (ILCAAP) offers the following commentary:

Wednesday, the Senate passed SB 1738, which hides information about video gambling at individual establishments from the public examination. The vote on SB 1738 was 35 Yes and 15 NO.

SB 1738 also changes the video gambling act to allow the company that has the contract for the Central Communications System (Scientific Games) to also manufacture video gambling machines. This is a conflict of interest.

A press release from State Senator Dan Duffy:

Duffy Reacts to Governor’s Budget Address

SPRINGFIELD- On Wednesday, March 6, Illinois legislators including State Senator Dan Duffy (R-Lake Barrington) listened to the Governor lay out his proposed 2014 budget in his annual Budget Address.

“Illinois is facing the worst fiscal crisis in our history and the Governor’s response is to craft a budget that increases spending by $1.2 billion.” said Duffy.

“Instead of cutting costs and living within our means, just like all families and small businesses are doing, the Governor has decided to expand government by adding 2,800 state employees to the payroll.”

Duffy points to pension reform as the most important issue facing the state of Illinois today.

“Our growing pension debt is the number one threat to Illinois’ fiscal security,” said Duffy.

“During his speech Governor Quinn repeatedly intimated that we must address pension reform, but offered no solutions.

“For months Governor Quinn has been echoing this sentiment but has failed to provide leadership on the issue, leaving the burden of reforming the system entirely on the General Assembly.

“We need a Governor who will roll up his sleeves and join us in making Illinois a more fiscally secure place.”

One proposal in the Governor’s speech raised eyebrows among the legislators in the House chamber.

“Governor Quinn mentioned closing ‘loopholes for mobsters’ in the gambling industry.

“I appreciate that the Governor wants to close these loopholes, but my question is if they exist, and the Governor knows about them, why haven’t they been closed already?”

“Our state needs a real leader to step forward and offer solutions.

“Instead the Governor has chosen to grow government, he has failed to participate in the pension reform process, and has recently handed out a sweetheart deal to AFSCME increasing their wages by $160 million,”said Duffy.

“It’s time that Governor Quinn pulled his head out of the sand and faced our fiscal reality.

“We are broke.

“This budget will not solve any of our fiscal problems.”

A note from District 300′s Allison Strupeck:

This is a reminder that the D300 Legislative Reception is tonight (Jan. 22) in the commons area of Jacobs High School (2601 Bunker Hill Dr, Algonquin), as hosted by the D300 Board Legislative Committee.

Please park on the side of the school and walk into the main/front entrance.

A meet-and-greet with the legislators and village officials is 5:30 to 6 p.m., and the agenda (albeit informal) starts at 6 p.m.

The public forum portion will begin roughly around 6:45 p.m. and everything should conclude by about 7:30 p.m.

My office is continuing to receive RSVP’s.

Currently, yes’s and maybe’s include

• Senator Karen McConnaughay,
• Representative Keith Farnham,
• Representative Tim Schmitz,
• Senator Dan Duffy, and
• Representative Mike Tryon, plus
• a representative of Rep. David McSweeney’s Office.

We also anticipate having community leaders from Algonquin, West Dundee, Sleepy Hollow, and others. Additionally, one of the co-sponsors of pension reform legislation is planning to attend who had heard about our event through the grapevine. See you tonight.

A press release from State Senator Dan Duffy:

Duffy Sworn in for 98th General Assembly

SPRINGFIELD- After being sworn in as 26th District State Senator for the 98th General Assembly Dan Duffy (R-Lake Barrington) released the following statement:

“The 98th General Assembly is a fresh start in the Senate and an excellent opportunity for us to get serious about the many issues facing the State of Illinois.

“Getting our budget under control and passing meaningful pension reform have to be priorities.

“We also need to address the wasteful boards and commissions and restore common sense to the Illinois General Assembly.

“We need bold solutions to get this state on track.”

Senate Republican -Call to Action

To: Senator Radogno and her Leadership team

cc: The Members of the Illinois Senate Republican Caucus

Senator Radogno has publicly stated that the majority of my Republican colleagues in the Illinois Senate have decided they are comfortable keeping the status quo in place by re-electing her as Republican Senate Leader.

Since I can’t imagine that anyone in our caucus feels good about our failure to effectively take on the Illinois Democratic Political Machine in either the state Senate or at the ballot box, I want to take this opportunity to lay out the true challenges we face and a road map which I believe can lead us to a future majority.

The Challenge

Despite the Illinois Democratic Party steering our state off a cliff, the Illinois’ Senate Republican Campaign Committee has just led us through an election where Democrats dominated so dramatically that they now have a super majority at levels not seen since before the Great Depression.

It is shocking that we have apparently selected our leadership going forward without demanding an accounting for how our caucus has failed.

We still do not have a clear, credible vision for the future or a plan for how we can achieve a majority in the Senate.

In the absence of this kind of accountability being demanded by Senator Radogno’s majority, and with several members of our caucus leadership team busy laying the ground work for a run for Governor, I feel I would be shirking my duty if I did not lay out my sense of why our caucus has failed so badly to win either the Senate or at the ballot box in an attempt to focus on the real job at hand:

Our caucus has not articulated a clear vision and our underlying principals are ambiguous.

We have not effectively challenged the entrenched Democrat leadership which has controlled this state for years.

Instead of raising much needed funds for our caucus, key members of our leadership team have been too focused on their own political career objectives.

Due to our lack of vision, principals, courage and leadership – we have not been able to raise the money needed to run successful candidate campaigns.

It is a travesty we have chased away minority groups — such as the Latino’s — by letting the Democrats frame our entire party as being intolerant.

What has our response been?

What is the leadership plan for the future as it pertains to minority groups?

We are the Party of free-enterprise, small business, entrepreneurs and family values.

We offer a path to the American dream which every immigrant is searching for.

How could we, the party of Abraham Lincoln, have let ourselves be defined as intolerant?

Bold, sincere action is immediately required — not by compromising principles — by building long term relationships and properly communicating our plan to the public.

Vision for the Future

We must encourage job growth by developing an efficient, transparent, ethical state government with less regulation and lower taxes.

We must follow these principles in words and action.

We must hold every Republican caucus member accountable for their votes.

By following these basic conservative principals, we will:

• Create grass roots support
• Develop a unified team with a mission
• Effectively defeat the Democrat agenda
• Raise money needed to finance future candidate campaigns

On a state and national level, the Democrats have built a powerful grass-roots machine by fully utilizing current technology. The Democrat use of “Big Data” has given them a huge advantage over Republicans.

Through their investment in technology and long-term plan of gathering data, they have been able to:

• Increase effectiveness of phone calls, door knocks and mailers
• Learn constituent’s on-line habits and focus on those groups
• Target TV Ads
• Increase donor base by raising more revenue on-line, in small amounts, from many donors.
• Connect personally with voters via current social media outlets

We have not even begun to tap into technology and the efficiencies it offers by giving us the ability to reach a mass audience at a minimum expense.

The data we would receive by properly utilizing technology will be the difference between future success and failure.

Developing  a sophisticated technology plan will most definitely help us obtain and archive the data we will need to compete with Democrats on a level playing field.

This past election should have been a startling “wake up call” to every Republican in the state – especially those of us in the Senate.

The only place for us to go is up — if the caucus has the courage to make BOLD moves. Every member must get fully engaged and not be content with sitting on the side lines while watching our destiny be dictated by Mike Madigan.

As Benjamin Franklin said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”

It is time for a fresh start.

Clearly communicating our vision and fully utilizing technology will lead to donor support and votes.

Through our consistent and persistent actions we will be in the position to take over the majority and put our state back on the path to a renewed prosperity.

Sincerely,

Dan

On top of the $195,000 Republican candidate for State Rep. had put into his campaign previously, he reported adding another $60,000 last night.

The total is $255,000 out of his own pocket.

In addition, the following contributions were listed:

• $10,000 – Richard E. Uihlein, CEO/Owner, Uline. Lake Forest
• $1,500 – Robert Mayo, Vice Chairman of the Board, Cancer Centers of America, Schaumburg
• $1,000 – Elect Dan Duffy, Barrington
• $1,000 – Citizens for Joe Sosnowski, Rockford

Ray Long of the Chicago Tribune figures Beaubien has run over a $920,000 campaign so far.

With yesterday’s reported infusions, McSweeney is at about $608,500.
McSweeney is running against Dee Beaubien (Ind.-Madigan). She has pumped $236,500 of her own money into her campaign.

Folks are announcing Election Night parties.

State Senator Dan Duffy will be hanging out in Barrington.

Senator Duffy’s Election Night Party

Chessies / 111 Grille
200 Applebee Street
Barrington, IL 60010
Ph: 847-382-5020

When polls close – 7pm to ???

There will be plenty of complimentary food, beer, wine, pop and excitement! Come on by and join us as we watch the election results roll in for local, state and federal races. Bring your family and friends.

Help us CELEBRATE VICTORY for our campaign and many other key Republican races throughout the state and country – including the Presidential race!

I look forward to seeing you at Chessies on Tuesday – November 6th!

Dan

The McHenry County Republican Party will be watching election returns at its campaign headquarters in the Crystal Lake Plaza down from Joseph’s Market.

Election Night Celebration

Election night celebration will be held at our Crystal Lake Campaign Office, 22 Crystal Lake Plaza (few doors away from Joseph’s Grocery) beginning at 7:00 pm until ?????

Light refreshments will be served and we will have election results as they come in. Come and join your Republican friends for an evening of relaxation and enjoyment that all of our hard work paid off.

Geri Davis
Executive Director
McHenry County Republican Central Committee

Democrats Will Be at Buddy’z Pizzari in McHenry

Demcoratic Party Chairman Mike Bissett advises, “We are going to be at Buddyz Pizzeria in McHenry, 7:30 p.m.”

The pizza place is located near McHenry East High School.

And, in Algonquin, Citizens for [Kane County Board member] Maggie Auger has a party at Niko’s Lodge. It is the former Barley House in Algonquin Commons.

ELECTION NIGHT COUNTDOWN

JOIN CITIZENS FOR MAGGIE AUGER as we await the election results for Kane County Board Dist. #23 and other Republican Candidates including Gov. Romney.

 Where: Nikos Lodge (Algonquin Commons)
1520 S. Randall Rd.
Algonquin, IL 60102

When:  Tuesday,  November 6. 2012
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm

Please RSVP to maggie@maggieauger.com

Appetizers will be served.  Cash Bar.

Yesterday when I drove to Lions Park on the Fox River in Fox River Grove I saw campaign signs for Democrat Amanda Howland on the public right-of-way.

A call I had placed to the Public Works Director was returned this morning.

He told me that village ordinance prohibited posting of signs on the right-of-way, that police and public works employees had been picking them up (not on overtime, by the way).

I told him of the Amanda Howland signs that had been missed on the street from Downtown to Lions Park.

When I checked a couple of hours after the call, I was surprised to see the Howland signs had not been removed from Beachway Drive.

Maybe they will disappear after this article is posted.

Then, going back to Crystal Lake, I saw a sign under a stop sign on Opatrny.

I circled around and saw it was advertising a Veterans event at Lake Julian.

On the way down Opartny, however, I saw another Amanda Howland sign and a sign urging people to “Vote Yes” on Jack Franks’ referendum to concentrate power in McHenry County government.

Maybe when Fox River Grove village employees drive by one will see if the Howland and “Vote Yes” signs are indeed in the right-of-way.