Auditing in McHenry County

Some with a 25-year memory may recall that I ran for Illinois State Comptroller in 1982.

I think the office could be the second most powerful office in state government, after the governor. But, no one has treated it that way.

Our first state comptroller, then-Crystal Laker George Lindberg, used the power of the office to deny the payment of the second lottery tickets to pretty much shut down its operations when Governor Dan Walker was in office.

Lindberg refused to pay the bill because the tickets had not been put out to bid by Walker.

So, when I read in the Daily Herald that McHenry County Auditor Pam Palmer apparently was not looking at the individual bills submitted for payment, I am reminded of the excuse most state comptrollers use to justify paying bills that, in hindsight, should not have been paid.

They have said that their staffers don’t look beyond the four corners of the voucher. If all the right spaces are filled in, it gets paid.

So, a lot of stuff gets paid for that probably shouldn’t be.

Chuck Keeshan’s Tuesday article is headlined,

Auditor: New policies will end mistakes

It says she and her staff “now personally reviews every bill for red flags.”

“I want the county to be more accountable to the public,” she told Keeshan.

The perception that Palmer’s office was being used by politicians unknown to sabotage the re-election chances of McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi has been costly for Palmer.

She drew an opponent, Crystal Lake attorney Richard Kelly, Jr.

Now, as I suggested earlier, that may not have been the reason Kelly ran for the hundred grand or so job.

But it may have been.

Any politician who has had a contested primary will tell they prefer not to have one.

Tomorrow, learn whom opponent Kelly says Palmer is blaming for the problems in her office.

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Photo of then-State Representative George Lindberg courtesy of Leona Nelson and her scrapbook about her and Arlene Fetzner’s efforts to clean up Crystal Lake by replacing faulty septic tanks with sewers around the north and west end of the lake.


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