McHenry County Blog

McHenry County Board members have budgeted themselves $1,000 a year for miscellaneous expenses.

$24,000 in total.

The Fiscal Year runs from December through November, so FY11 is almost over.

Maybe because all of the Board members are up for election, most have turned in no receipts.

Below you see the expenditures through November 9th:

These do not include expense reimbursements from other sources in the McHenry County budget.

Yesterday, McHenry County Blog laid out the time line for State Rep. Jack Franks’ interest in reforming Metra.

Democrat Franks introduced no legislation until after the fall election.

In the final weeks before the fall election, Metra Board member Jack Schaffer’s Liberty Outdoor posted a billboard that revealed the amount of money that Franks had received in campaign contributions from

• Lawyers
• Labor
• Lobbyists

The source of the information, according to the billboard, wash VoteSmart.org.

About a year after former Metra Executive Director Phil Pagano killed himself on the train tracks near Crystal Lake’s Hillside Road, Franks wrote a letter to McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler about getting rid of Schaffer.

Below is Koehler’s reply to Franks’ May 5th letter.

McHENRY COUNTY BOARD

KENNETH D. KOEHLER, CHAIRMAN
McHENRY COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER
2200 N. SEMINARY AVENUE
WOODSTOCK, IL 60098
815/334-4221
Fax 815/338-3991
Email KDKoehler@co.mchenry.il.us
May 10, 2011

Representative Jack Franks
State Representative 63rd District
1193 South Eastwood Drive
Woodstock IL 60098

Dear Representative Franks,

In response to your recent letter concerning the Metra Board, I have to let you know I definitely do not share your point of view.

When we first appointment former State Senator Jack Schaffer to the Metra Board of Directors, we looked at his extensive background on transit issues. We concluded that he was the best choice of a person to represent McHenry County’s interest on the Metra Board. I continue to believe that to be true.

Jack was actively involved in the reform acts which created Metra, he understands the formula guarantees that are central to suburban rail and has done (in my opinion), an excellent job representing McHenry County on the Metra Board.

We all know that Metra’s problems were caused by the activities of the former Executive Director, which was in a large part a personal tragedy in so many ways.

I would suspect you have a better understanding of that than anyone in McHenry County, since your law firm is/or was representing Mr. Pagano’s estate in bankruptcy.

The Metra Board has acted swiftly and responsibly to make the changes necessary to see that a situation like that never happens again.

Individual board members are not expected to be approving individual bills or be involved in the minute decisions on any agency like Metra.

I also note with interest that you have been attacking Jack or non-board member’s decisions that were being made several years before Jack got on the Board, which hardly seems fair.

You didn’t mention any problems with any expenses paid to Jack.

I suspect that is because he hasn’t taken a dime for travel expenses for any trips to Chicago, Springfield, or elsewhere on behalf of Metra.

When we first went to Jack and asked him to serve, none of us even knew what the salary was. In fact, Jack had to be convinced that he was the right person to represent McHenry County and the other Collar Counties.

I would also suggest to you that we knew he was, in fact, a retired State Senator and had a pension, much like you will some day. That was part of the reason we felt he would be in a position to commit the number of hours necessary to serve on this board.

I have been informed that the decision to treat board members as employees was made 15 to 20 years before Jack was appointed to the board. The Metra Board salary and fringe benefits are set or regulated by legislation passed by the Illinois General Assembly. If the legislature feels that those salaries and benefits are too high or low, they can change them. So please have at it and while you are at it, please look at all the board fees paid in six figures to all boards in Springfield.

Metra does in fact employ Lobbyists in Springfield and Washington DC, as does every other transit board in this nation. Metra’s expenses, compared favorably with the CTA and other major suburban rail agencies. The CTA in fact, maintains a staffed office in Washington DC, and Metra spends less money. Jack Schaffer has been in the forefront of the reform efforts at Metra.

When he was last reappointed, he indicated to me that this would be his final term, but, that he wished to be involved long enough to finish the job getting Metra back on track. His presence on the Board will help that cause.

The Metra Board has installed an Inspector General and hired a new Executive Director, Alex Clifford.

Removing Mr. Schaffer would deprive Mr. Clifford of experienced advisors and leave him with no historical perspective. This is a critical point in Metra’s life that a balance must be struck between change that needs to take place and the support needed for the new Executive Director to keep Metra moving in the right direction.

On a personal note, I think the attacks that you have leveled personally at Jack Schaffer have little or nothing to do with his service on the Metra Board (yes, we do get transcripts and tapes) and are troubling, and make me think that there is another agenda at work here.

Suburban Rail is important here in McHenry County and we need to get Metra thoroughly back on track. The number one priority should be first and foremost to protect public transit. I believe we all need to work together to get this done, and I believe that Jack’s continued service on the Metra Board is a real plus.

Sincerely yours,

Kenneth D. Koehler
McHenry County Board Chairman

= = = = =
A post script of Metra’s time table was attached.

When I heard of the $1,000 a year that McHenry County Board members can use to get reimbursement for county board-related expenses, it perked my interest.

Would goodies be found as they are with the Chicago Aldermen’s much larger expense accounts?

Here’s what I received when I filed a Freedom of Information request for Fiscal Year 2009, which ended November 30th. As you can see, it’s pretty obvious that the spreadsheet provided contains some reimbursements beyond the $1,000.

In fact, I learned it contains all of the expense rreimbursements to county board members, except mileage for driving to and from meetings.

What seems most significant is the large number of county board members that took no reimbursements.

McHENRY COUNTY BOARD EXPENSE REIMBURSEMENTS – FY 2009

Randy Donley

• $188.10 for 342 mile trip for 3-30-9 Rural Community Economic Development Conference
• $94.33 for hotel/food for Rural Comm Econ Dev Conf

John Hammerand

• $38, McCog (McHenry County Council of Governments) Dinner September 23

Tina Hill

• $742.19 2009 National Association of Counties Conference 3-7 thru 3-10
• $28.05 Comcast broadband meeting 2/26/09
• $161.28 Rural Economic Development Seminar
• $841.12 NACO 3/7-3/10  Wash DC
• $32 March McCog Mtg 3
• $35 McCog May 27, 2009
• $34 McCog June 26th dinner
• $30 McCog Meeting July 2009
• $125 EDC Dinner Sept 17
• $38 McCog Dinner Crystal Lake 9/23/09
• $31 October McCog Dinner Mtg
• $32 November 18 McCog meeting

Ken Koehler

• 

  Ken Koehler

  $436.80 Wash DC Mtg w/Lobbyist

• $193 Paratransit/Fed Lobby/Strat Plan Dec 2008
• $76.50 Springfield Meetings Jan 2009
• $57.20 K.Koehler
• $255 DCA Lobbyist 3/2-4,2009
• $37 transportation mtg 2/17/09
• $38 EDC 2/19/09
• $12 CMAP 3/24/09
• $71 Amtrak/Rockford 3/25/2009
• $43 Integrated Justice Mtg Luncheon
• $45.25 Lakewood Issues Luncheon
• $43 Transit Grant Program Luncheon
• $129 PACE Pilot Project
• $28 Randall Rd., City CL Mtg
• $53 CMAP2030 Chicago
• $34 Public Safety Bldg Mtg
• $50 MCEDC Issues
• $26 RWSP, Chicago Water Issues
• $24 Valley Hi Issues Koehler, Dvorak
• $44 ISSSoftware Issues Koehler, Austin, Wallis
• $47.25 MCEDC Issues Koehler, Austin, MCEDC reps
• $84 Valley Hi long range Koehler, Austin, Revere reps
• $27.50 2030 plan w/Eldridge
• $47.25 Meeting w/Lobbyist – Ferguson
• $12 RTA – cab fare

Lyn Orphal

• $34 June 24th McCog Dinner

Ersel Schuster

• $173.28 Rural Community Econ. Dev. 03/04-03/05
• $64 McCog June and July reimbursement

Barb Wheeler

• $91.71 Housing Forum refreshments

Paula Yensen
$30 McCog reimbursement
$30 Feb McCog reimbursement
$34 McCog Dinner 6/24/09 3
$30 McCog July 2009
$20 MCCD Class-Creating Thriving Communities

If you want to be a part-time elected official, what office should you run for?

Inspired by a front page Northwest Herald story of what mayors and village presidents in McHenry County earn, I filed a Freedom of Information request to discover how much county board members are compensated.

Take a look at the chart (click to enlarge) I received:

The highest paid mayor was McHenry’s Susan Low at $16,500. Algonquin’s John Schmitt earned $15,000.

Relatively small Island Lake’s head honcho Tom Hyde got $14,800.

Also $10,000 and more were Woodstock’s Brian Sage, Ed Plaza of Lake in the Hills, Marengo’s Don Lockhart, Harvard’s Jay Noland and Union’s Bob Wagner.

Clearly, if one wants to be a part-time public official and get paid pretty well for it, the office one should run for is county board.

Besides the $18.601.70 current annual salary, there’s health insurance, if one wants it. That can be worth up to $17,050.56 this year for the family PPO. The lowest figure is for dental insurance only. And some members don’t take any health benefits.

It does look as if county government has a pretty rich health benefits program.

You will note that McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler is paid $74,406.02 this year.

And, there’s the county contribution to a pension, which can be upgraded substantially, if one wins one of the countywide offices. The years in the relatively low paid office of county board count just as much as the ones in which one might be paid about $100,000.

And, although not all county board members utilize the newly approved $1,000 a person expense allowance, it is there for those who want to use it to pay for dinners that might otherwise be paid for out of one’s own pocket.

Guess I ought to look at the salaries of township officials as well. Some of them get paid pretty well, too.

More than the county board members.

And township elections are next spring.

The informal picture of county board members comes from swearing in day, 2006. I think the others came from the McHenry County Republican Cat Tax meeting.

If you want to be a part-time elected official, what office should you run for?

Inspired by a front page Northwest Herald story of what mayors and village presidents in McHenry County earn, I filed a Freedom of Information request to discover how much county board members are compensated.

Take a look at the chart (click to enlarge) I received:

The highest paid mayor was McHenry’s Susan Low at $16,500. Algonquin’s John Schmitt earned $15,000.

Relatively small Island Lake’s head honcho Tom Hyde got $14,800.

Also $10,000 and more were Woodstock’s Brian Sage, Ed Plaza of Lake in the Hills, Marengo’s Don Lockhart, Harvard’s Jay Noland and Union’s Bob Wagner.

Clearly, if one wants to be a part-time public official and get paid pretty well for it, the office one should run for is county board.

Besides the $18.601.70 current annual salary, there’s health insurance, if one wants it. That can be worth up to $17,050.56 this year for the family PPO. The lowest figure is for dental insurance only. And some members don’t take any health benefits.

It does look as if county government has a pretty rich health benefits program.

You will note that McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler is paid $74,406.02 this year.

And, there’s the county contribution to a pension, which can be upgraded substantially, if one wins one of the countywide offices. The years in the relatively low paid office of county board count just as much as the ones in which one might be paid about $100,000.

And, although not all county board members utilize the newly approved $1,000 a person expense allowance, it is there for those who want to use it to pay for dinners that might otherwise be paid for out of one’s own pocket.

Guess I ought to look at the salaries of township officials as well. Some of them get paid pretty well, too.

More than the county board members.

And township elections are next spring.

The informal picture of county board members comes from swearing in day, 2006. I think the others came from the McHenry County Republican Cat Tax meeting.