http://capitolfaxcom.disqus.com/NoneenFri, 23 May 2008 22:15:29 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158543<p>What hypocrisy!</p><p>While the legislature is trying to restrict "pay to play" for the Guv, they're institutionalizing it in the Senate and House.</p><p>SB 2690, sponsored by Maloney (D-18) in the Senate and Joyce (D-35) in the House, would allow Commmunity College boards to ignore the lowest responsible bidder(s) and give the contract to a "local firm" at as much as 5% above the lowest bidders price.</p><p>There is no limit on the amount of the contract, so a contractor could make an extra $5 million in profit on a $100 million construction project without providing a penny's worth of additional value to the district.</p><p>There is also no restriction on which "local business" the Board can choose to give this patronage gem to amongst bidders.</p><p>This means it gives the board the ability to choose a local business of the board's party affiliation instead iof the "other" party's lower bidder.</p><p>There is no restriction on campaign contributions from bidders to get this incredible boon.</p><p>I've been told that if they can get this bill through quietly, they intend to pull this same deal with the $20 billion K-12 public education system.</p><p>The Board said they're pushing this because "local businesses", and heavy campaign contributors to a certain "donkey" party, are complaining that they're only getting 17% of the $90 million construction project in the district, and they don't want to cut their profit margins to win bids.</p><p>The bill passed the Senate unanamously in the Senate, and has had Rep McCarthy (D-37) already hold the hearing for the House.</p><p>Apparently no one in the State legislature has gotten the memo that "pay to play" is dead.....</p>PalosParkBobFri, 23 May 2008 22:15:29 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158541<p>Great non-answer VM. Put your information where your mouth is.</p>steve schnorfFri, 23 May 2008 20:57:03 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158540<p>i heard poshard on jim leach this morning touting the capital bill. leach asked him about blago and his alleged ethical problems since poshard made that a issue when he ran against george; poshard dodged the question. leach then asked if the gov had been in spfld working on the bill and would he be there next week also. poshard seem to hesitate and then said the gov had been in the capitol working hard pn the bill and was there until 9 last night. according to the trib the gov walked into tavern on rush at a quarter to 8 last night. interesting...</p>interesting...Fri, 23 May 2008 19:15:49 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158539<p>--VM,<br>so tell me about the corruption in George Ryan’s gubernatorial administration. I was there, and I guess I missed it. --</p><p>If you missed it, you probably wouldn't understand anyway.</p>VanillaManFri, 23 May 2008 15:50:00 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158538<p>Whew, that was close!<br>Its back to business as usual. Let's improve this bill for a few years so we can get it right for a change.</p>BillFri, 23 May 2008 14:48:33 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158537<p>Foot-tapping and hand waving "in DC"? As an Illinois exile in DC, I resent that. Sen. Craig got in trouble in the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport, thank you. The allegations about him doing the same in DC's Union Station were never proven.</p><p>besides, here it's probably seen as a signal for a bribe... tap your foot and get a Pentagon earmark back.....</p>MuskratFri, 23 May 2008 14:46:04 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158536<p>The House is adjourned until Tuesday.</p><p>Also, this is a House bill, so the governor's office must surely know that once a House bill is amended in the Senate the House's options are: Concur; Nonconcur.</p><p>The House bill cannot be amended again in the House unless the House votes to Nonconcur and the Senate refuses to recede from the amendments, at which point the bill would be sent to a conference committee. I think there has been one conference committee appointed in the past five years.</p>Rich MillerFri, 23 May 2008 14:21:42 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158535<p>==“This is a beginning,’’ Rausch said. “It doesn’t go nearly far enough. And we urge the House to take this opportunity to make the bill more comprehensive and broader.”==</p><p>Is the house planning on voting for this today?</p>Vote Quimby!Fri, 23 May 2008 14:15:36 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158534<p>Thanks. Very entertaining today!</p>Vote Quimby!Fri, 23 May 2008 14:12:23 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158533<p>Amendatory Veto.</p><p>Steve, gimme a call.</p>Rich MillerFri, 23 May 2008 14:07:06 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158532<p>VM,<br>so tell me about the corruption in George Ryan's gubernatorial administration. I was there, and I guess I missed it.</p>steve schnorfFri, 23 May 2008 14:06:20 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158523<p>showing my knowledge....whats an AV?</p>Vote Quimby!Fri, 23 May 2008 14:06:16 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158522<p>Let’s hold on for one silent moment and recognize that unlike a lot of the busy work that passes for policymaking, this bill, however imperfect, is purposeful both in its specifics and its symbolism.</p><p>The symbolic value, on the other hand, was created and served up by Senate leaders when, among other things, they allowed the bill to languish and when they changed the $25K limit to $50K (and called it an improvement).</p><p>That legislative leaders witlessly transformed this modest bill, this reasonable proposition, into a crucible-like question---Are the leaders of this state irredeemably corrupt or incompetent?---is a bonus.</p>SuzanneFri, 23 May 2008 14:04:51 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158521<p>I hear that the boards and commissions are kept at the minimum number of members required for a quorum so that the Gov's staff can pull off a member to control a vote when necessary.</p><p>I've also recently heard that there are hundreds of (whatever they call them now - under previous administrations they were called "Exception Forms") sitting in the Governor's Office awaiting signature to hire staff in various agencies. Some have called this a stalling tactic.</p>BehindTheScenesFri, 23 May 2008 13:53:20 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158520<p>It appears that ethic's only applies to everyone else. Not to Elvis. Maybe the State should save some money and dissolve the Ethics Commission (look at that case history and stats?)and the Executive IG who can pick and choose who to investigate? It's a joke on the People again. Keep hurting the working man or women.</p>MarbleyFri, 23 May 2008 13:44:43 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158518<p>problem, I agree. This was good practice for the AV.</p>Rich MillerFri, 23 May 2008 13:18:15 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158517<p>I at least give GoBears credit - coming to such a virulently anti-blago environment and trying to stand up for the guy, or at least his policies. I am entertained, at least.</p>problemFri, 23 May 2008 13:16:56 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158516<p>Gobearss said "Probably frustrated like me."</p><p>Try working under this administration.</p>AnonFri, 23 May 2008 13:08:44 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158515<p>Problem - I get the last laugh on this one. If you only knew..............</p>Little EgyptFri, 23 May 2008 13:08:39 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158514<p>I think wordslinger is asking a good question.</p><p>How does Blagojevich raise funds? Who could he be milking? For what reason would contributors contribute? What is the story being told?</p><p>The conversations taking place must be rather odd, wouldn't they be?</p><p>Honestly, and I'm not being overly smart-aleky about it, who and why would someone contribute to Rod Blagojevich?</p><p>I'd really like to know.</p><p>And nothing silly, please. I mean it.</p>VanillaManFri, 23 May 2008 13:06:32 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158512<p>GB, if this is your idea of Friday entertainment, I'd hate to see your idea of torture.</p>Just My OpinionFri, 23 May 2008 13:05:44 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158511<p>Little Egypt - you're corrupt.</p><p>Its true because I said so.</p>problemFri, 23 May 2008 13:05:39 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158510<p>Problem, I wasn't referring at all to Madigan. You've missed my point entirely but GB and Rich both know what I meant.</p>Little EgyptFri, 23 May 2008 13:04:16 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158508<p>Little Egypt,</p><p>It think you just proved GB's point about Madigan being the wall between Illinois and progress.</p>problemFri, 23 May 2008 13:01:09 -0000http://capitolfax.com/2008/05/23/reform-and-renewal-6/#comment-18158507<p>GoBearsss, you're not gonna win this one. You're up against a bigger/smarter dog and he's not going to go sit on the porch.</p>Little EgyptFri, 23 May 2008 12:57:17 -0000