Corruption In Illinois Costs Each Family $109 as Reform Stalls
“I dont believe well see any real reform in my lifetime,” said Lupe Martinez, a 56-year-old crane operator, as he swept the sidewalk in front of his brick bungalow on Chicagos southwest side. “Every time we think weve elected someone who will do the right thing, they turn out to be liars and thieves.”
Four months after legislators removed Blagojevich from office for abuses including an alleged attempt to sell President Barack Obamas U.S. Senate seat, they are poised to reject limits on how much their leaders dole out to other lawmakers to ensure loyalty. The Illinois Senate is scheduled to vote on ethics measures today.
Researchers at the University of Illinois-Chicago tallied the price of corruption to state taxpayers: at least $500 million a year. Based on prosecution costs and estimates that 5 percent of state contracts go to the politically connected, that equals $109 per family. The total is enough to pay the average salary for 8,214 public school teachers.
The universitys May 13 report found that during the past four decades, graft convictions of elected officials or their cronies averaged three per month. Illinois ranked 18th per capita for the number of convictions on federal public- corruption charges from 1998 through 2007, according to an analysis by USA Today.
Political shenanigans hurt the states economic growth, said Duane Noland, a member of the Illinois Reform Commission appointed by Blagojevichs successor, fellow Democrat Patrick Quinn.
Deters Investment
“When you have corrupt administrations, businesspeople become reluctant to invest and set up shop in the state because theres so much uncertainty involved,” said Noland, chief executive officer of the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives in Springfield.
“If we cant muster the strength to enact real reform after being exposed on a national scale for crime in government, when will we ever do it?” he said.
Good-government advocates, dismissed as “goo goos” in the local dialect, doubt that the Legislature will adopt an ethics crackdown before it adjourns May 31.
“Its a matter of power, raw power,” said Dick Simpson, a political science professor and former Chicago alderman who led the team that compiled the cost report. Chicago, where the Obama family keeps a home, is the third-largest U.S. city, with 2.8 million people.
Leaders Stance
The person with the most to lose is Madigan, 67, who has been speaker of the Illinois House for 24 of the past 26 years. The commissions limits would diminish his control of three campaign funds that doled out more than $7 million in 2008.
The cap would crimp Madigans role as the single biggest contributor to the state Democratic Partys campaign finances. Friends of Michael J. Madigan gave $1.65 million to the state organization last year, or 41 percent of the total collected by the party, election board filings show. Steve Brown, a top aide to Madigan, said the speaker would not comment for this story.
Term Limits Proposed
The commission also called for term limits of 14 years for the four top legislative positions — a proposal Madigan already has rejected.
“Perpetual occupancy of these positions tends to give disproportionate power to a few politicians,” the panel said in its April 28 report. “This concentration of power disenfranchises the average voter — leading them to believe that without the ear of a select few politicians, their opinion effectively goes unheard.”
The Legislature is expected to pass some measures, such as stricter requirements on campaign-funding disclosures, Brown said. Lawmakers will resist caps on contributions such as the $2,400 recommended by the Quinn-appointed panel because they could force candidates to spend more time raising money, he said.
“The reality of contribution limits is that no ones making campaigns any cheaper,” Brown said in an interview. Madigan opposes term limits for legislative leaders because they would put more power in the hands of lobbyists and staff, Brown said.