Illinois politics has long been known for corruption, but a bill sponsored by Michael Connelly, one of Naperville's state reps, and passed by the Legislature seeks to improve on the situation and save money at the same time.

House Bill 379, which passed unanimously, streamlines state procurement by instituting an open, online bidding process. Under the system, companies would bid anonymously for state contracts on an eBay-type system. Theoretically, it would prevent anyone from knowing who is making the bids and keep the contracts from being awarded based on politics instead of who is cheapest. Connelly says it will save the state millions and cut down on corruption.

Here is a link to the full article: http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1592117,Procurement-reform-heads-Quinn-desk_na052609.article

Do you think this will work as planned? Is there some way to still work around the system?

President Barack Obama is expected to announce new national emissions standards for vehicles Tuesday, as well as fuel efficiency standards of 35.5 miles per gallon on average by 2016.

The standards should save billions of barrels of oil but are estimated to cost consumers an extra $1,300 per vehicle.

Administration officials say the plan would be the environmental equivalent of taking 177 million cars off the road. New vehicles would be 30 percent cleaner and more fuel-efficient by the end of the program, they said.

Under the changes, the overall fleet average would have to be 35.5 mpg by 2016, with passenger cars reaching 39 mpg and light trucks hitting 30 mpg.

What do you think of the plan? Are you willing to pay more for more efficient vehicles? Is this a sign that or attitudes toward driving are changing as a nation?

This is an open forum. Talk about whatever's on your mind.

The Sun is running a story Sunday about high school pranks. Every year in May, high school seniors around the country try to cement their legacy and one-up previous classes by pulling off great senior pranks. The pranks can range from relatively minor incidents like releasing crickets in the hall or toilet papering trees to much larger and more serious pranks like disassembling a car and reassembling it inside the school.

Some of these pranks can go too far. A few years ago a St. Charles police officer suffered a fatal heart attack chasing students who were stealing a golf cart as part of a prank. Last week in Lockport several students were transported to the hospital after a soda bottle filled with chemicals exploded, releasing smoke and chemicals into a crowd. In the post-Columbine world, what may have been a joke before is now taken very seriously, with the police getting involved and serious charges leveled.

Do you think senior pranks are just kids being kids, or do they just create a lot of harm? Is the era gone when you could play a joke without legal consequences? Were you, your friends or family members involved in any memorable pranks when in school?

With housing values going down - yes, even in Naperville - some residents thought their property tax bills might go down, too. But property tax bills that recently went out in general showed that tax bills went up, according to county and township officials.

Did you think your tax bill would go down? Was it more than last year? Some of you were lucky enough to see your tax bills go down a bit. Were you surprised? For those of you stuck with the same old bill, do you plan to dispute your assessment later this year?

If you'd like to talk to a reporter about your bill, contact Susan Frick Carlman at 630-416-5260. We'd like to tell your story.

With Drew Peterson being arrested and accused of the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio, much of the talk has focused on Illinois' so-called "hearsay law" that allows victims to "speak from beyond the grave."

Prosecutors have not said how much of their case revolves around this law, which is believed to have been passed with this case in mind. But most legal experts expect a challenge to the law and many think it will be found unconstitutional.

The law allows a judge to admit hearsay evidence in first-degree murder cases if prosecutors can prove the defendant killed a witness to prevent them from testifying. Under the law, the accused could not confront the accuser, which is a constitutional right. Another attorney says if a judge allowed the evidence, it would be a biased move indicating the judge thinks the defendant is guilty.

Do you think the hearsay evidence law will hold up in court? And if it doesn't, do you think the state's attorney has an adequate case?

Indian Prairie School District 204 Superintendent Stephen Daeschner has applied to be Greater Clark County (Ind.) Schools' next superintendent.

A little over a month ago, Daeschner responded to rumors that he was a finalist for the position and that Greater Clark representatives had visited District 204 by telling The Sun he hadn't even applied for the post.

But, on Monday, he disclosed that he'd decided to apply for the position because he had a "passion for at-risk kids, and they're all at-risk."

Greater Clark County Schools serve about 11,000 kids in the southern Indiana communities that sit right across the Ohio River from Louisville, Ky. Louisville is where Daeschner lived before he accepted his current position two years ago. There, he worked as superintendent of Jefferson County Public Schools for 14 years.

All of Greater Clark's schools serve large populations of students from low-income families.

Greater Clark would appear to want Daeschner to return to the Louisville area. In 2007, a prominent Greater Clark board member told District 204 officials that he wanted Daeschner to be the next superintendent of his district.

Daeschner, though, said this isn't a done deal, and added that he isn't interested in leaving District 204 for any other job.

What are your thoughts? Should he leave? Is he already gone? How would District 204 hold up without him?

UPDATE: Daeschner accepted the post in Indiana on Wednesday. Daeschner reportedly agreed to a three-year contract for $225,000. District 204 said it does not know at this point who will take over Daeschner's job while the district conducts a search, which typically takes about a year.