McHenry County Blog

A press release from State Rep. Mike Tryon:

Rep. Tryon Named to Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability

CRYSTAL LAKE….. State Representative Mike Tryon (R-Crystal Lake) is one of three House Republicans who has been named to the prestigious Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability (CGFA).

CGFA is a bi-partisan Illinois commission which includes 12 House and Senate members. Membership is determined by the Republican and Democrat leaders of both chambers of the General Assembly.

Mike Tryon

Tryon joins Republican State Representatives Patti Bellock (R-Westmont) and Raymond Poe (R-Springfield) on the commission.

“It is an honor and a privilege to serve on this commission,” said Tryon. “This bi-partisan group does some incredibly important work.”

The Commission was created in 1972 by the 77th General Assembly, and provides the Legislature with research and information regarding state and national economies, revenue projections and operations of Illinois Government.

The group is also charged with monitoring the long-term debt position of Illinois and for monitoring the administration of the State Employee Group Insurance Program.

Each year CGFA creates several reports that are shared with the General Assembly, including

• the annual Revenue Estimate and Economic Outlook, which describes and projects economic conditions and its impact on state revenues;
• the Legislative Capital Plan Analysis, which examines the State’s capital appropriations plan and debt position;
• the Liabilities of the State Employees Group Insurance Program, which provides the General Assembly with an estimate of liabilities of the Group Insurance Program each fiscal year; and
• the annual Budget Summary.

CGFA also absorbs several pension duties, including

• reviewing the laws and practices relating to public pensions,
• retirement and disability benefits for people serving in State or local government and their survivors and dependents.

The Commission

• evaluates existing laws and practices and makes recommendations on proposed changes to the Illinois Pension Code and
• annually issues a Report on the Financial Condition of Illinois Public Pension Systems.

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Yours truly served on this panel for eight years in the 1970′s.

Every seat was not filled, but there was a respectable crowd at the Patriots United forum on the referendum to change McHenry County from a strong Board -weak Chairman form of government to a strong County Executive-do-equal Board form of government.

I haven’t had the opportunity to see State Rep. Jack Franks turn up the heat in a debate for a long time, but tonight he had all four burners turned on high.

Jack Franks attacks cronyism on the McHenry County Board.

The problem was, the man he wanted to debate–McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler–wasn’t on the stage.

His predecessor, who served as County Board Chairman six years, now-State Rep. Mike Tryon was.

And Tryon didn’t take the attacks lobed in Koehler’s direction personally.

The occasion was a debate sponsored by Patriots United on the County Executive form of government put on the ballot by Franks and his supporters. It was held at McHenry County College.

Franks main talking point was that property taxes would be lower under a County Executive form of government.

Mike Tryon got in his licks, pointing out that a County Executive could issue contracts up to $25,000 without Board approval and draw a County Board District map behind closed doors. Jack Franks criticized an illegal secret meeting of County Board members to discuss reapportionment.

He repeated and repeated that pitch, even after Tryon pointed out that about 30% of the reason for our higher taxes are taxes levied because voters approved referendums for

• Valley Hi (the county nursing home)
• Veterans Assistance
• Mental Health
• Senior Services

“McHenry County has one of the smallest portions of your tax bill,” Tryon added. “Almost every unit of government raises its taxes as much as it can.”

More transparency was another benefit that Franks pitched to the audience.  He repeatedly condemned the illegal secret meeting conducted by County Board members during the reapportionment fight.

Here’s a sample, “Do you really believe it was an accident when they knowingly [met to gerrymander County Board districts in violation of the] Open Meetings Act?”

Then, Franks added:  “They laugh when they take the money to the bank.”

Tryon’s position?

“I don’t see it increasing accountability.  So many decisions will be made by the County Executive that are now decided in open committee meetings.”

In closing, Tryon challenged the transparency of the campaign to obtain passage.

Franks has just pointed out the supporters of the No County Czar campaign were insiders.

Tryon pointed out that that committee has filed a campaign disclosure report and read off the names of the contributors, which included himself.

The “Vote Yes” yard sign whose design is the same used on admitted Jack Franks’ “Vote Yes” flyers.  The name of the group no Republican has heard of is in the lower left hand corner of the sign.  Click to enlarge.

Then he pointed to the “Vote Yes” signs which contain the identification “McHenry County Republicans for Lower Taxes.”

“This has started with no transparency,” Tryon said, pointing out he headed the McHenry County Republican Party and he had no idea who comprised the group.

“But these signs are showing up next to Representative Franks’.”

Two of the questions asked in advance by an audience member that went unanswered might have shed some light on the connection of Franks to the signs, the image of which appear on Franks-sponsored literature distributed at MCC:

This piece of literature, handed out by Jack Franks’ people at MCC is almost identical to the yard sign.  On the back, it says, “Paid for by Supporters of Jack D. Franks.”

“What are your affiliations with the people and special interest groups who are distributing yard signs and literature for ‘Vote Yes’ and ‘Vote No’?

“If Mr. Franks says he has no affiliation with the ‘Vote Yes’ signs, why is the artwork on your leaflet (see Franks’ distributor identification at bottom left of the leaflet image) the same as that on the sign?”

One question that was answered was whether Jack Franks would run for the office, if the referendum passes.

He defanged that issue by declaring,

“I will neither seek nor accept the nomination for this office.”

Tryon, however, did not rule out a candidacy.

“It would be kind of appealing to come back to McHenry County and [run a good government]. I can’t tell you I wouldn’t run. I would have a real concern if the wrong person emerges as a candidate.”

“I’d vote for you, Mike. I think you’d do a good job,” Franks replied.

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Other takes on the meeting:

First Electric Newspaper
Northwest Herald

Mike Tryon’s plastic bag re-cycling bill was vetoed by Governor Pat Quinn.

The bill that State Rep. Mike Tryon passed to set State standards for re-cycling plastic bags got vetoed by Governor Pat Quinn over the weekend.

The report of the veto, a wish-fulfillment of 13-year old Abby Goldberg of Lake Zurich, ran in Monday’s Chicago Tribune.

Change.org got involved with an online petition.

Tryon, the House Sponsor of Senate Bill 3442, didn’t get a mention in the article.

Environmentalists opposed the bill because it prohibited local municipalities from imposing stricter rules than those set forth in the bill.

Lake County Democratic Party Chairman Terry Link was the Senate sponsor.

Locally, State Senator Pam Althoff voted for the bill. Colleague Dan Duffy did not. State Representatives Tryon and Kent Gaffney supported the measure, while Jack Franks voted “No.”

The Environmental Defenders of McHenry County sent out the following information from the Illinois Environmental Council on the bill:

This bill would have banned the municipal regulation of plastic bags, including community plastic bag bans, fees, and takeback programs.  This bill also would have created a statewide program for the recycling of plastic bags.  Read more about our concerns here.

As the Governor explained in his veto message, “Local authorities and the environmental community strongly oppose this program because the metrics are simply not aggressive enough and home rule preemption prevents more stringent local regulation.”

Last week, the Illinois Environmental Council released its 2012 scorecard.  Governor Quinn now has a 100% environmental record for the bills that he has taken action on during the 2012 session according to our scorecard.

Veto session is scheduled to begin November 27, 2012.  We will keep you updated to let you know whether the sponsor of this legislation moves to override the Governor’s veto.  Check out how your House and Senate members voted on this bill.

In the meantime, be sure to thank Governor Quinn for taking action to support the environment through the contact form on his website.

A press release from State Rep. Mike Tryon:

Tryon Co-Sponsors Legislation to End Scholarship Program

SPRINGFIELD – A controversial scholarship program that provides full tuition waivers for each State Representative to award to students in their home legislative districts will officially end this year.

Mike Tryon

State Rep. Mike Tryon (R-Crystal Lake), a co-sponsor of the bill, said that while he has seen students from District 64 benefit tremendously from the program, the time has come to discontinue it.

“In this difficult budget year, every penny counts,” he said.

“As we face tough decisions regarding funding for all levels of education, it is not appropriate for us to force our State universities to absorb these tuition waivers.”

Through the program, students are awarded full tuition waivers to use at the State school of their choice.

According to Tryon, the system did not have rigid guidelines that prohibited some legislators from handing out the waivers to political allies or donors.

In his office, Tryon said he has always been completely removed from the process, and an independent committee always reviewed the applications and determined the recipients.

“The only time I would see the list of recipients would be after the process was complete so I could ensure that the waivers were spread evenly between the towns I represent.”

In 2011, 1,327 tuition waivers were awarded in Illinois, costing the State $13,508,800.

This $13.5 million is an unfunded mandate on State universities, where the cost is then passed on to other students paying tuition.

“In times like these, unfunded mandates and extra costs to our universities need to be eliminated,” Tryon said. “It was a difficult vote because I know that in some cases the waiver made a difference between a child going to college or not going to college.”

In addition to abolishing the General Assembly Scholarship Program, House Bill 3810 creates the Tuition and Fee Waiver Task Force to evaluate tuition and fee waiver programs offered by State universities.

“The creation of the task force was a key selling point for me, because I believe there still exists a serious issue where children of very high-paid university employees are attending college tuition-free,” Tryon said.

“I believe the waivers need to be either eliminated across the board, or at a minimum that those who continue to receive them should have the amount of the waiver treated as taxable income.”

The bill has been sent to the Governor for his signature.

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Names of those who will receive Tryon’s last legislative scholarships follow:

• Rosa Wu, Jacobs H.S.
• Brittany Daley, Jacobs H.S.
• Brandon Bencko, Huntley H.S.
• Stephanie Konecki, Crystal Lake Central H.S.
• Helen Bengtson, Prairie Ridge H.S.
• Bodecker DellaMaria, already in college, from CL
• Bridgette Martinak, already in college, from Algonquin
• Riley Quinlan, already in college, from Algonquin

Mike Tryon

I hope you are finding time to relax and enjoy time with family and friends during this holiday season.

As I like to do every year, I would like to provide you with a list of new laws that will take effect on January 1, 2012. It is not a complete list, but rather a list of new laws that I thought might be of general interest to the constituents I serve:

HB  78: Beginning January 1, the offense of “criminal trespass to a safe school zone” will be added to the state statutes.   This new law will improve safety of children during the school day by providing that a person commits the offense of criminal trespass to a safe school zone when he or she knowingly enters or remains in a safe school zone without a lawful reason for being there.  Under the new law, criminal trespass to a safe school zone is classified as a Class A misdemeanor.

HB 83: This new law’s intent is to ensure that minors committed to a youth judicial system receive appropriate treatment in the least restrictive setting possible, based on a belief that serving time in a confined area is often unnecessary and troubling for minors when some form of juvenile treatment center could produce more favorable results in the long term. According to the provisions of the new law, before the court commits a minor to the Department of Juvenile Justice, the court must find reasonable efforts have been made to prevent or eliminate the need for the minor to be removed from the home, or reasonable efforts cannot, at this time, for good cause, prevent or eliminate the need for removal, and removal from home is in the best interests of the minor, the minor’s family, and the public.

HB 141: People who enter into leases for housing will receive additional protection as of January 1 through the provisions of this law. The new law provides that if a lessee notifies a lessor of a positive radon test in a leased dwelling unit, the lessor must disclose that risk to any prospective lessee of that unit, unless a subsequent test by the lessor indicates that a radon hazard no longer exists.

HB 147: This legislation will provide for quicker information being given to the Secretary of State regarding school bus drivers who fail an alcohol and/or drug test.  It also provides that school bus driver shall be subject to reasonable suspicion drug and alcohol testing, and those who refuse testing or test positive for the presence of alcohol, drugs or intoxicating compounds will be suspended for three years.

HB 195: This law closes an existing loophole in the state statutes regarding elected officials who are found guilty of crimes. Although felons are barred from holding municipal or village offices, they are not barred from being a township official. In respect to township directors, this law provides that a conviction in any court shall constitute a resignation from that office. Such a conviction that disqualifies an officer occurs on the date of the entry of a plea of guilty in court; the return of a guilty verdict; or in the case of a trial by the court, the entry of a finding of guilt.

HB 219:If you are ever a back seat passenger in a vehicle, this new law affects you. Starting January 1, every driver and passenger of a motor vehicle operated on a street or highway in Illinois must wear a properly adjusted safety belt.. A violation of shall be a petty offense and subject to a fine not to exceed $25. Previously, only drivers, front seat passengers and backseat passengers under the age of 19 were required to wear a belt.

HB 233:This new law amends the Criminal Code of 1961 by providing that aggravated battery that causes great bodily harm or permanent disability or disfigurement is a Class X felony when the aggravated battery was intentional and involved the infliction of torture as the infliction of or subjection to extreme physical pain, motivated by an intent to increase or prolong the pain, suffering, or agony of the victim. According to the law, the penalty for the offense of aggravated battery that causes great bodily harm or permanent disfigurement when the aggravated battery was intentional and involved the infliction of torture as defined in the statute concerning first degree murder is a Class 1 (rather than a Class X) felony.

HB 263:A new law will take effect on January 1 which creates a statewide database of individuals who have been convicted of first degree murder. Much like the sex offenders’ database, those people who have been convicted of first degree murder will be required to supply their name, address, place of employment, schools attended, and a photo for the database. Offenders will remain in the database for a period of 10 years after their release from a penal institution or other facility.

Many bills that have successfully passed through both chambers of the General Assembly remain on the Governor’s desk awaiting his signature. They include many of the measures that received House and Senate approval during veto-session.

The General Assembly will return to Springfield at the end of January for a day, and then session will move into full swing in February.

Again, have a very safe and happy holiday season, and as always, if my staff or I can assist you in any way, please do not hesitate to call my Crystal Lake office at 815-459-6453.

Sincerely,

Michael W. Tryon, State Representative, District 64

The bills submtted by Special Prosecutors Thomas McQueen and Henry Tonigan instigated House Bill 2558. Photo credit: First Electric Newspaper.

A press release from State Senator Pam Althoff:

Senate OKs law seeking to avoid hefty county legal bills

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Illinois Senate today approved a measure aimed at preventing county boards from paying State’s attorneys’ exorbitant and unexpected legal bills, according State Sen. Pamela Althoff (R-McHenry), its main Senate sponsor.

House Bill 2558, introduced by Rep. Michael Tryon (R-Crystal Lake) and co-sponsored by Rep. Jack Franks (D-Marengo) in the Illinois House, seeks to help county governments avoid sky-high legal bills similar to those associated with the corruption trials of McHenry County State’s Attorney Louis Bianchi, which could see taxpayers responsible for covering more than $1 million in legal fees.

Pam Althoff. Photo credit: Jay Barnard, Senate GOP staff photographer.

The legislation requires courts to utilize special prosecutors, with a preference for special prosecutors from other governmental agencies, to conduct cases where a sitting State’s attorney is absent due to illness, active service or is unable to perform their duties for other reasons.

It also requires the special prosecutors to provide budgets for their investigations and itemized bills for fees incurred during their trials to help minimize expenses.

“Right now, county governments’ budgets are already stretched to the brink – the last thing they need are expensive court cases to come along that eat up funding desperately needed for public safety, education and core services,” Althoff said.

“This bipartisan bill is an effort to protect McHenry and other Illinois counties from facing unexpected legal bills and save taxpayers’ dollars.”

House Bill 2558 passed without opposition in the Illinois Senate, and now heads back to the Illinois House for further consideration.

I’ve written previously that McHenry County will gain congressional clout because those of us who live in Algonquin Township will be represented by U.S. Representative Peter Roskam, assuming no court challenge is successful.

Recently I’ve been thinking how McHenry County has four state representative districts, one in whole and three in parts.

What Mike Madigan’s staff would probably consider the power center for the Republican Party in McHenry County, Crystal Lake, was split four ways. Jack Franks’ continues to have a small portion of northwestern Crystal Lake. The other three districts meet in the middle of Crystal Lake.

McHenry County Board member Donna Kurtz lives one block west of the north-south street at the northwestern edge of the new 52nd State Rep. district. The cut line has been corrected because of the sharp eyes of a reader-editor. Kurtz, then does not live in Beaubien's 52nd District, but such residence is not a requirement for candidacy in reapportionment years.

With 308,760 people counted by U.S. Census takers, McHenry County deserves almost three full state rep. districts.

Mike Madigan gave Jack Franks one of them.

A vacant district running north from the Crystal Lake Country Club to Antioch is clearly dominated by McHenry County voters.

Mike Tryon got 67% (percentage of GOP primary votes in McHenry County) of one that goes deeply into Kane County.

And Mark Beaubien’s 52nd district contains a chunk of Crystal Lake, Algonquin, Cary and Fox River Grove.

Obviously Beaubien did not live in McHenry County. His home was in southwestern Lake County. No one doubted that he win re-election.

But now his seat is unoccupied.

I think it is likely that McHenry County will end up with four resident state representatives.

Madigan could have arranged for us to have three, but his map has set the stage for us to get four.

A map of the new 52nd State Representative District.

Names are surfacing for the 52nd District.

While I have heard several from McHenry County, it is my opinion that McHenry County Board member Donna Kurtz is most likely to be able to win the primary election.

Donna Kurtz

As I have mentioned previously, she is a social liberal. She was one of very few county board members endorsed by Personal PAC.

From personal experience, I know how effective Personal PAC can be. It took the pro-abortion group three elections to defeat me, but defeat me they did.  With Rosemary Kurtz.

If Donna Kurtz runs and she is the only pro-choice candidate, I would be willing to give odds that she would beat a multi-candidate group of conservative, pro-life candidates.

And, that’s what I think will happen.

People who want to be candidates are not shrinking violets.

They think they can win, regardless of what dispassionate outsiders might discern.  And candidates from the Barrington area will be able to raise sufficient money to hire campaign consultants who, wanting a pay check, will convince them they can win.

“Look at Joe Walsh,” they will tell prospective clients.  “He’s pro-life.”

There was only one pro-choice candidate in that race, however.  He was not well-financed.

The difference is that Personal PAC already had a candidate for Congress in the 8th District.

Melissa Bean.

So, the political action committee did not get involved in the GOP primary election in the 8th congressional district.

This is two-thirds of the inside of a pamphlet attacking Dan Duffy. Along the bottom is the admonition to "VOTE NO ON DAN DUFFY."

From the above mailing against State Senator Dan Duffy, you can see that Personal PAC has no compunction about lying.  The favored candidate’s finger prints won’t be on such pieces.

Independent expenditures, don’t you know.

Mailers like this come at the last minute, of course.

Personal PAC will also pay a calling center to identify early on every woman who is willing to say she is “pro-choice” and use that data base to drive those voters to the polls, using the kind of vicious campaign that Duffy saw two years ago. (Duffy won, but it was a one-on-one race, not a one-on-five race.)

Pro-lifers have not been able to marshal the money for a similar voter identification effort for even one state rep. district in Illinois.

Tom Morrison

There is no pro-life counterbalance to Personal PAC.

It’s not that Personal PAC cannot be beaten.

Tom Morrison beat one of their favorites–Suzi Bassi–in the Palatine are last spring. As an incumbent, she didn’t have the advantage of having more than conservative opponent to split the vote.

Kurtz will.

No one can convince me that the 52rd district is not at least 25%, maybe 30%, pro-choice. Maybe more.

Divide 100% by 6 candidates and you tell me what percentage is required to win.

Here’s the 77-36 roll call that was taken yesterday:

Click to enlarge.

McHenry County’s other state representatives, Mike Tryon and Jack Franks voted on the side of openness.

The secrets of Walt Packard's performance review will soon be safe from taxpayer eyes.

When the bill was first up, Beaubien voted against it.

The bill now will be voted upon by the Illinois State Senate. Senator Pam Althoff voted in favor of restricting the Freedom of Information Act the first time around.

That was just six months after it was passed.

Senator Dan Duffy did not.

First there was his sign. Now in the Galesburg Register-Mail:

“We didn’t do a headcount, but there are nowhere near 60 votes (needed to pass it),” said Rep. Jack Franks, D-Woodstock. Franks is against raising the income tax.

I’ve asked via email and only Dan Duffy replied. (Maybe a reply from Mike Tryon’s legislative assistant Tina Hill counts.)

Nothing from State Senator Pam Althoff or State Rep. Mark Beaubien.

Probably time for constituents to make a call or send an email.

State Rep. Mike Tryon, who filed for re-election on Monday, has issued a monthly letter to his constituents. It follows:

This legislative session has brought forth many important issues that will affect the quality of life in our district. As I continue to represent your best interests in Springfield, it is extremely important to me that I stay connected with the people of McHenry County.

In an effort to address any concerns or questions that area residents may have, Senator Althoff and I will be hosting a series of town hall meetings. The intention of these meetings is to gather public input and give you an outlet to have your voices heard.

The first town hall meeting that was scheduled for this Thursday, November 1 in Crystal Lake has been cancelled as Senator Althoff and I have been scheduled to be in Springfield. There are several very important issues still pending in Springfield and it is important that we represent McHenry County as we continue to seek resolution. I apologize if this cancellation causes any inconvenience, but I welcome all area residents to attend one of the following Town Hall meetings.

7 p.m., Tuesday, November 6
Huntley Village Hall
10987 Main Street, Huntley

7 p.m., Wednesday, November 7
Algonquin Village Hall
2200 Harnish Drive, Algonquin

These events are free and open to the public. Your input is so important to help me represent you in Springfield. I hope that you will take the time to attend.

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The meetings will be probably held after the key votes on expanding Illinois gambling and whether or not to increase sales taxes in McHenry County to bail out the Chicago Transit Authority.

They will also be held after the deadline for filing petitions to oppose Tryon in the February 5th primary.