The Naperville Township Board tonight meets to consider annual raises for elected officials: supervisor, highway commissioner, assessor, clerk and trustees. Last year raises were about 5 percent. This year, they may be less, one official said, though the final decision won't be made until August or September.
What do you think? What you be a fair wage increase these days for elected officials? And not just township -- what's fair for city council, county board, state representative, U.S. senator -- all those salaries and benefits your tax dollars pay for.
It's called Article 36, and it allows authorities to seize vehicles in 48 different instances in which offenders commit a crime, including driving under the influence, driving with a suspended license or transporting more than 10 cartons of cigarettes. (We are not making this up.)
As Wednesday's Sun reports, they've had tremendous success lately taking vehicles away from criminals in DuPage County. What about the Constitution? Isn't there something in the Fourth Amendment about unlawful search and seizure? OK, maybe this doesn't violate the letter of the law, but it certainly tests the spirit. Does the punishment fit the crime, in your opinion, when authorities can seize vehicles like this?
One word about this thread: Let's keep the discussion focused on the legislative aspect of this question, and not enforcement. We've had plenty of threads lately about police. Let's talk about the lawmakers who created this legislation, and the courts that have upheld it.
A report in Sunday's Sun describes what local governments are doing about high fuel prices. The city of Naperville, for example, says its cut fuel consumption by 6 percent in recent years by reducing the number of vehicles in its fleet, buying fuel wholesale, and taking other steps. The Forest Preserve District of DuPage County is using alternative fuels. The Naperville Park District is telling workers not to leave vehicles idling.
What do you think -- are these steps enough? Remember not long ago when a whistleblower told DuPage County Board members how public works employees were filling up personal vehicles with gas paid for by county taxpayers? And that was before $4 a gallon gas. How confident are you that there are no thefts by employees taking place now?
What are you doing to cut your own personal fuel consumption? What do you think government agencies should do to reduce fuel costs?
Naperville-area farmer Llyod Hamman has agreed to accept $1.8 million to settle an eminent domain lawsuit, Sunday's Sun reports. DuPage County and the city of Naperville want his 5 acres off Plank Road to continue the $13 million Steeple Run Watershed project, which aims to control serious flooding like the 1996 flood that affected 30 homes on Huffman Street.
But Hamman isn't done in court. On Friday, he filed a civil rights lawsuit against the DuPage County sheriff and 12 other officers, saying his rights were violated two years ago when authorities seized goats and chickens from his property, claiming neglect. He was arrested, but the charges were later dropped, and a judge said the warrantless search of his property was illegal.
Your thoughts on either of these two cases? Let's see, $1.8million for 5 acres works out to $360,000 an acre. Boy, land is expensive these days. What about the civil rights lawsuit? Are you surprised to learn--as court records show--that the county executed an illegal search? This guy's been waiting two years for his goats and chickens. If indeed they were taken from him illegally, what sort of compensation should he receive? What do you think the federal lawsuit will end up costing the county and its taxpayers?
And can anyone know for sure--what is the connection between Lloyd Hamman (guy who lost goats) and the Wheatland Township farm of Don Hamman (brother?), where 12 decomposing goat carcasses were discovered in late April?
Every property owner in Illinois pays taxes to a community college district. Often the amount each pays is small in comparison to other taxing bodies, because the districts are geographically larger and the costs are spread among a larger tax base. Community college trustees are elected.
Naperville is served by the College of DuPage, whose board this week decided to get rid of its president, Sunil Chand. He'll stay on for the duration of his contract -- another year with the title of president emeritus -- collecting at least $200,000.
This is a pattern for the COD board. In 2003 it replaced then-president Michael Murphy before his contract was up, a move that cost the district nearly $300,000.
Often, community college district boards are factional entities where infighting and personal battles gets in the way of responsible stewardship of taxpayer money. There would seem to be evidence of this at COD. Chand's ouster reportedly stems from a dispute over the hiring of a public relations firm. It's a shame the differences couldn't be worked out -- or at least some sort of truce reached -- long enough for Chand to fulfill his contract, which would have been much less costly to taxpayers.
What do you think of Chand's ouster? What's going on at COD? How much do you pay attention to how this taxing body spends your money?
The Naperville Sun broke the story about the arrest of Nicholas T. Birkett, 21, the son of DuPage County State's Attorney Joseph Birkett, by Naperville police for possession of cannabis and drug paraphernalia. The younger Birkett faces a lesser charge--he was cited under a Naperville ordinance because he had no previous arrests or convictions, while two other men with him face state charges because they had previously been arrested.
What should be the response of the elder Birkett, a former Republican Party gubernatorial candidate who has been a tireless and ferocious prosecutor of narcotics dealers and drug-related crimes? If found guilty, what would be an appropriate punishment for the younger Birkett? What do you think of the arrest by Naperville police, who previously arrested Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar for DUI? (Claar was not convicted).
The first installment of real estate tax bills is due June 1 for many Naperville residents in DuPage and Will counties. Most homeowners pay the bulk of their real estate taxes to local school districts. Other taxing districts on bills are the city, county, township, park district, forest preserve, community college, and more.
How do your taxes this year compare to last? What about your assessment--how has the value of your home changed? A higher assessment can be a big part of the reason for higher taxes, though a taxing district's rate may have increased due to a referendum. How much are you paying, and are you getting your money's worth?
Another sign that Democrats are gaining traction in DuPage County is that a Democratic challenger for the solidly red 13th Congressional District is setting fundraising records and drawing the attention of national Democratic party officials for the first time. How good are Democratic Scott Harper's chances against Republican incumbent Judy Biggert in the fall?
The Ballot Integrity Project has gotten some ink of late, with its tireless criticism of the DuPage Election Commission. Now state Republican Party officials are charging that the Ballot Integrity Project is nothing more than a front for left-wing Democratic organizations, when it had positioned itself as nonpartisan.
A report in Sunday's Sun revealed how several elected DuPage County officials have accepted campaign donations from Aramark, a company that has provided food service to the jail for years. Aramark is trying to keep the jail food contract, but has repeatedly failed to meet bid requirements. Yet county officials are giving Aramark chance after chance after chance to get the contract by changing the bid rules, saying it would save taxpayers money if Aramark gets the contract. Do you see anything wrong with this?
