At least 41 probable flu cases in Illinois - Chicago Breaking News

 

The new cases reported Thursday evening by the Illinois Department of Public Health included 16 cases in Chicago, 11 in suburban Cook County, two cases in DuPage County, seven in Kane County, three in Will County and one each in Lake and McHenry Counties.

In addition to Kilmer[Chicago], the schools closed so far include Fox Chase Elementary and Thompson Junior High Schools in Oswego, Bednarcik Junior High in Aurora, Batavia High School and Rotolo Middle School in Batavia, Haines Middle School in St. Charles and Ridge Circle Elementary School in Streamwood. Two Joliet schools, Farragut and Sator Sanchez elementary schools also were being closed, officials there said

At least 41 probable flu cases in Illinois - Chicago Breaking News

US buys more flu medicine, sends doses to Mexico | Reuters

 

April 30 (Reuters) - The United States will spend $251 million to buy 13 million more courses of flu medicine and will send 400,000 doses of treatment to Mexico

US buys more flu medicine, sends doses to Mexico | Reuters

GDP: 4thQtr 2008 and 1st Qtr 2009 both down 6+%

Real gross domestic product -- the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States -- decreased at an annual rate of 6.1 percent in the first quarter of 2009, (that is, from the fourth quarter to the first quarter), according to advance estimates released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the fourth quarter, real GDP decreased 6.3 percent.

The Bureau emphasized that the first-quarter “advance” estimates are based on source data that are incomplete or subject to further revision by the source agency (see the box on page 4). The first- quarter “preliminary” estimates, based on more comprehensive data, will be released on May 29, 2009.

The decrease in real GDP in the first quarter primarily reflected negative contributions from exports, private inventory investment, equipment and software, nonresidential structures, and residential fixed investment that were partly offset by a positive contribution from personal consumption expenditures (PCE). Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, decreased.

The slightly smaller decrease in real GDP in the first quarter than in the fourth reflected an upturn in PCE for durable and nondurable goods and a larger decrease in imports that were mostly offset by larger decreases in private inventory investment and in nonresidential structures and a downturn in federal government spending.

Motor vehicle output subtracted 1.36 percentage points from the first-quarter change in real GDP after subtracting 2.01 percentage points from the fourth-quarter change. Final sales of computers added 0.05 percentage point to the first-quarter change in real GDP after subtracting 0.02 percentage point from the fourth-quarter change.

Comprehensive Revision of the National Income and Product Accounts

The price index for gross domestic purchases, which measures prices paid by U.S. residents, decreased 1.0 percent in the first quarter, compared with a decrease of 3.9 percent in the fourth. Excluding food and energy prices, the price index for gross domestic purchases increased 1.4 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of 1.2 percent in the fourth. The federal pay raise for civilian and military personnel added 0.3 percentage point to the change in the first quarter gross domestic purchases price index.

For more recently released statistics go to:  http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/gdpnewsrelease.htm

EPA seizes Crestwood files -- chicagotribune.com

 

Click here to read the story:  EPA seizes Crestwood files -- chicagotribune.com

Remember: “one job for each five seeking”

And how much must it be in Boone-Winnebago Counties?

Click on the illustration to make it larger.

Where Boone County stands compared to the rest of Illinois.

County Well-Being Index—Source, Heartland Alliance Mid-America Institute on Poverty, 2009

Four key indicators of well-being are assessed in each of Illinois' 102 counties: high school graduation rates, unemployment rates, teen birth rates, and poverty rates. Counties in Illinois are evaluated using a point system, with a higher number of points indicating a worse score. A county receives a point if its rate is worse than the state average and/or if they have worsened since the previous year. For each indicator a total of 2 points is possible, and overall a total of 8 points is possible. Counties that score 4 or 5 points are placed on the Watch List and counties that score 6, 7, or 8 points are placed on the Warning List.

Using this methodology, 70 Illinois counties have been placed on either the Poverty Watch or Poverty Warning lists. 46 counties are the Poverty Watch List, and 24 counties are on the Poverty Warning List.

 

The County Well-Being Index illustrates that poverty and hardship are not limited to one region of the state—counties all across Illinois struggle with poverty-related issues. This year’s Watch and Warning lists must serve as a wake-up call for leaders to begin deliberate efforts to reverse these trends in their communities.

Important Enhancements to the County Well-Being Index

This year's County Well-Being Index has undergone a series of changes designed to make the Index more timely and accurate. Changes include:

• A more accurate teen birth rate calculation: In prior years, teen births have been reported as a percent of all births. Now, teen births are reported as the number of births to women ages 15 to 19 per 1,000 women of that age in the population.
• A more current unemployment rate: In prior years, unemployment rates reflected August of the previous year. Now, December unemployment rates are reported
• A more current poverty rate: The data source for county poverty rates has become more timely, reporting estimates for the same year for which state estimates are available. The County Well-Being Index now uses these most recent poverty rates.

While these enhancements were necessary and important, they do limit the ability to compare county movement between the Watch and Warning Lists from this year's Index to last year's. 

Note: At the time of print, all data used for the County Well-Being Index were the most accurate available.

Northwest Herald | Study finds rise in Ill. poverty

 

Food banks are seeing a big surge in individuals and families requesting assistance, and the Illinois Department of Human Services says the state’s emergency food program has distributed 36 percent more food in the first three quarters of the state’s 2009 fiscal year, which began last July, than it did in the entire previous year.

Northwest Herald | Study finds rise in Ill. poverty

FACTBOX: Details of Chrysler bankruptcy plan | Reuters

Here is the prediction of the exact actions by the New Chrysler.   Dealership rights are not mentioned.

Click on the following:  FACTBOX: Details of Chrysler bankruptcy plan | Reuters

Ex-Cook County worker gets 4 years for stealing $170,000 :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Chicago Crime

 

A former Cook County assessor’s employee was sentenced Wednesday to four years in prison for siphoning almost $170,000 from a special county [FOIA] account.

Ex-Cook County worker gets 4 years for stealing $170,000 :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Chicago Crime

30 April 2009 -- From today, WHO will refer to the new influenza virus as influenza A(H1N1).

Influenza A(H1N1) - update 6

30 April 2009 -- The situation continues to evolve rapidly. As of 17:00 GMT, 30 April 2009, 11 countries have officially reported 257 cases of influenza A (H1N1) infection.

The United States Government has reported 109 laboratory confirmed human cases, including one death. Mexico has reported 97 confirmed human cases of infection, including seven deaths.

The following countries have reported laboratory confirmed cases with no deaths - Austria (1), Canada (19), Germany (3), Israel (2), Netherlands (1), New Zealand (3), Spain (13), Switzerland (1) and the United Kingdom (8).

Further information on the situation will be available on the WHO website on a regular basis.

WHO advises no restriction of regular travel or closure of borders. It is considered prudent for people who are ill to delay international travel and for people developing symptoms following international travel to seek medical attention, in line with guidance from national authorities.

There is also no risk of infection from this virus from consumption of well-cooked pork and pork products. Individuals are advised to wash hands thoroughly with soap and water on a regular basis and should seek medical attention if they develop any symptoms of influenza-like illness.

Daily WHO updates are available at:  http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html

 

Some Basics on a Chrysler Bankruptcy - Question - NYTimes.com

If pensions are terminated, employees would still receive about one-third of their benefits through financing from the federal pension agency.

in bankruptcy, supplier contracts can be canceled.

See the details by clicking on the following:  Some Basics on a Chrysler Bankruptcy - Question - NYTimes.com

Administration Aide Suspected of Contracting Swine Flu - washingtonpost.com

 

The suspected individual was part of the President’s advance party to Mexico before the President’s recent visit.  He works for the Secretary of Energy.

Click on the following for the rest of the story:  Administration Aide Suspected of Contracting Swine Flu - washingtonpost.com

UAW to present ratified agreements to Bankruptcy Court

For Release: Thursday, April 30, 2009

UAW to present ratified agreements to Bankruptcy Court

DETROIT - The UAW will join with the U.S. government, Chrysler and Fiat in urging the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to give immediate approval to labor agreements ratified by UAW members, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said today.

President Obama today announced continued government support for Chrysler as it continues its restructuring process.

“UAW Vice President General Holiefield and I spoke with President Obama this morning, and he asked us to let our active and retired members at Chrysler know how much he appreciates the substantial sacrifices they have made to help save this company,” said UAW President Ron Gettelfinger. “The president’s goal is clear: to assure the long term future of Chrysler.”

The next step in that process will be the filing of a petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.

The first order of business in the bankruptcy proceedings will be to seek court approval of the agreements recently reached between the UAW, the U.S. Treasury, Chrysler and Fiat. Motions seeking that approval will be filed immediately.

“We will urge the court to act swiftly,” said Gettelfinger. The agreements incorporate the modifications to the UAW collective bargaining agreement and retiree health agreement that were ratified by the UAW’s membership in voting that concluded yesterday.

Chrysler, the U.S. Treasury Department and Fiat all remain in full support of these UAW agreements and will join in urging the Bankruptcy Court to give them immediate approval. At the same time, the parties will be urging the Bankruptcy Court to give immediate approval to the terms of the Chrysler/Fiat alliance.

Under the UAW agreements, the pension plan covering UAW-represented employees and retirees will continue in effect without change. The agreements also include the previously announced changes to the retiree medical program, including 55 percent ownership of the restructured company by the retiree benefits trust fund.

“The UAW agreements have been ratified by our membership and approved by the United States Treasury, Chrysler and Fiat,” said Gettelfinger. “We believe it is in the best interests of all concerned for the Bankruptcy Court to give those agreements swift and complete approval. We look forward to presenting those agreements to the court.”

“The UAW membership at Chrysler, both active and retired, has once again demonstrated its strength and steadfastness in the face of great uncertainty,” said UAW Vice President General Holiefield, who directs the union’s Chrysler Department. “While we work to complete the process of court approval, the steps taken today are important milestones in restoring a great American car company to financial health, keeping manufacturing jobs here in the United States, and preserving a secure retirement for tens of thousands of American workers.”

Chrysler bankruptcy might be good for Belvidere plant - - BusinessRockford.com

 

The advantage of a bankruptcy is that it enables the company to continue to operate,” Belvidere Mayor Fred Brereton said. “We should be in a good position in that we are set up to make small cars.”

Growth Dimensions, Boone County’s economic development agency, has been coordinating letters of support from local leaders for Chrysler as it goes through a federally overseen process. Executive Director Mark Williams said the organization will continue to “marshal our resources” to respond as needed.

It could be good news — if Chrysler is able to stabilize rather than schedule workers on a weekly basis — or bad news, if Chrysler has to shut it down for a period, said Janyce Fadden, president of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council. Each Chrysler job affects four other jobs in the region, she said, so the situation leaves a lot of people in unstable situations.

Chrysler bankruptcy might be good for Belvidere plant - - BusinessRockford.com

Chrysler plants to be idle for 30 to 60 days - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

 

Chrysler LLC announced this afternoon that it is temporarily shutting down most manufacturing options beginning May 4 and will not restart production for 30 to 60 days while it undergoes bankruptcy restructuring.

The Belvidere plant, which employs 2,700, has been in intermittent production since the start of the year

Chrysler plants to be idle for 30 to 60 days - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

Poplar Grove water bills rising 9 percent - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

 

The village has an ordinance that raises the rate 3 percent each year, but the increase doesn’t hit residents’ bills until every third year

Poplar Grove water bills rising 9 percent - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

Chrysler Bankruptcy Plan Is Announced - NYTimes.com

Best details I have seen are at NY Times. 

officials envisioned as a swift, “surgical” process, was filed in United States Bankruptcy Court in New York, with the first hearing scheduled for Friday morning.

government would provide debtor-in-possession financing in a range of $3 billion to $3.5 billion, so the company can continue to operate normally.

Click on the following for the rest of the details:  Chrysler Bankruptcy Plan Is Announced - NYTimes.com

Bankruptcy Looks Likely for Chrysler - NYTimes.com

 

an official, who declined to speak for attribution ahead of President Obama’s announcement, made it clear that the administration was frustrated with the holdout creditors.

Click on the following for further details: Bankruptcy Looks Likely for Chrysler - NYTimes.com

Chrysler to File for Bankruptcy - washingtonpost.com

President Obama is scheduled to address the issue at noon today at the White House

Click on the following to read the story:  Chrysler to File for Bankruptcy - washingtonpost.com

Economy Shrinks at Fastest Rate Since 1950s - NYTimes.com

If that pace were to continue, nearly $1 trillion would be wiped out this year from the nation’s economic output of $14.2 trillion last year.

More than five million jobs have disappeared since the recession began in December 2007.

Mr. Volcker said the improvement was sufficient to avoid a second government stimulus on top of the $787 billion in spending and tax breaks enacted in February.

Economy Shrinks at Fastest Rate Since 1950s - NYTimes.com

Is America ready for eco-fashion? | csmonitor.com

Fair-trade clothing is a hit in Europe. But some wonder if American will buy into this trend.

will cash-strapped consumers keep snapping up the company's premium-priced fair-trade apparel?

more than 70 percent of the British populace recognize the fair-trade mark, whereas consumer recognition in the United States is only 28 percent, according to recent surveys.

Read more by clicking on the following:  Is America ready for eco-fashion? | csmonitor.com

Bankruptcy Looks Likely for Chrysler –“It is not over until it’s over.

Last-minute efforts by the Treasury Department to win over recalcitrant Chrysler debtholders failed Wednesday night

Read the rest of the story by clicking on the following:  Bankruptcy Looks Likely for Chrysler - NYTimes.com

Should One Person Hold Two Elected Offices? LWV Presents Findings

This  article from Park Forest, Illinois, can be seen at:  http://www.enewspf.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5082&Itemid=88889791

Written by Gary Kopycinski

Sunday, 16 November 2008 21:33

Attorney Heidi Keenan discusses Illinois Case Law with the League of Women Voters Sunday. (Photo: ENEWSPF)

Park Forest, IL–(ENEWSPF)– Should a person be permitted to hold two public offices at the same time? The League of Women Voters of the Park Forest Area (LWVPFA) presented their findings of a year-long study of this question to the public Sunday in the Library. The presentation was geared toward members of the LWVPFA to aide their board in forming policy for the organization.

Many members did express their concerns during the meeting.

The study committee was chaired by Barbara Sturges and consisted of School District 227 Board President Tony Brunson, Attorney Heidi Keenan, Meg Maselli and LaVerne Williams.

The scope of the project was to study what public offices can appropriately be held by an individual simultaneously and what public offices, if any, are not appropriate to be held simultaneously, with an emphasis on public offices represented by the taxing bodies shown on a LWVPFA member's real estate tax bill.

The committee looked at a number of specific concerns including what public offices, if any, Illinois law prohibits from being held simultaneously, what public offices are permitted to be held simultaneously, and what public offices the Attorney General and/or Illinois Courts found to be incompatible.

The committee members acknowledged that the subject is complicated and somewhat controversial.

According to the committee's report, opinions of the Attorney General have found the following pairs of public offices to be incompatible:

1. City Council Member and School Board Member
2. City Plan Commissioner and Township Trustee
3. Community College Board Trustee and county Board Member
4. County Board Member and Township Trustee (in countries greater than 100,000)
5. County Board Member and School Board Member
6. County Executive and Township Supervisor
7. Deputy Assessor and Township Supervisor
8. Deputy Supervisor of Assessments and Township Assessor
9. Multi-Township Assessor and Village Trustee
10. County Board Member and Mayor or Village President

City Council Member would be the equivalent of a member of the Village Board in Park Forest.

The report also cited opinion letters by the Attorney General which determined the following pairs do not present potential conflicts in duties and therefore are NOT incompatible:

1. City Library Board Trustee and City Treasurer
2. Community College Board Trustee and General Assembly Member
3. County Board Member and County Board Chairman elected at-large
4. Library Board Trustee and School Board Member
5. State Representative and Township Supervisor

During her presentation to the members, Attorney Heidi Keenan said while someone may win a seat on two conflicting boards, removing them from office can be a problem, "The only legal remedy is an In Quo Warranto suit. Those suits only be brought by the States Attorney General or the attorney of the county."

Keenan did add, however, that being sworn into the second position constitutes a de facto resignation from the first position.

Members agreed in general to the following recommendations for the LWFPFA board to consider, although there was much discussion focusing on specifics:

1. The LWVPFA supports the concept that an individual should not simultaneously hold public offices which have been determined to be incompatible either by a prohibition in written law or under the common law doctrine of incompatibility.
2. If the LWVPFA suspects an incompatibility of public offices as evidenced by an apparent conflict in duties between two offices held by one individual where both offices are in governmental units covered by the same real estate tax bill, the LWVPFA should inquire if the Illinois Attorney General has issued an opinion as to the compatibility of the offices?
3. The LWVPFA should attempt to inform the public when an individual has been sworn into an additional public office while already holding an office in a governmental unity covered by the same real estate tax bill if there is:
   1. A statute prohibiting an individual from holding both public offices
   2. An Attorney General’s opinion that the two public offices are incompatible
   3. A potential conflict of duties between the two public offices
4. Tthe LWVPFA should advise or inform that the original board declare a vacancy when an individual holding public office on that board is sworn in to an additional office in another governmental unit covered by the same real estate tax bill if there is:
   1. A statute prohibiting an individual from holding both public offices
   2. An Attorney General’s opinion that the two public offices are incompatible
   3. A potential conflict of duties between the two public offices
5. The LWVPFA supports the enactment of a law that would prohibit an individual from serving simultaneously on a school board and a municipal board in municipalities with at least 2,500 people
6. The LWVPFA should support the enactment of any other laws that would prohibit an individual from serving simultaneously in two specified public offices if those offices are determined to be incompatible by some authority either now or in the future?

These consensus statements now go the the LWVPFA board for discussion. The board will decide on which items will become policy for the chapter.

2 Boone candidates request recounts - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

 

2 Boone candidates request recounts - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

Breaking News- Arlen Spector Switching Parties -- Politics Daily

I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary.

I will continue to be guided by President Kennedy's statement that sometimes Party asks too much. When it does, I will continue my independent voting and follow my conscience on what I think is best for Pennsylvania and America.

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Breaking News- Arlen Spector Switching Parties -- Politics Daily

Caterpillar prohibits travel to Mexico | Crain's Chicago Business

 

The Peoria-based company has six manufacturing plants in Mexico, along with other facilities. It said Monday that it notified employees that they should not travel to Mexico and any exceptions would require approval from high-ranking company officers

Caterpillar prohibits travel to Mexico | Crain's Chicago Business

Northern Trust raising $1.25B to redeem TARP shares | Crain's Chicago Business

 

Northern Trust will use the proceeds, plus other capital, to redeem the $1.6 billion in preferred shares it sold to the federal government last year under the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Northern Trust raising $1.25B to redeem TARP shares | Crain's Chicago Business

Chrysler Creditors Agree to Deal With Treasury - washingtonpost.com

It looks like bankruptcy will not occur. 

Read the details by clicking on the following:   Chrysler Creditors Agree to Deal With Treasury - washingtonpost.com

Swine flu's ground zero? Residents say nearby farm

Local residents state this is the source of the flu—authorities say that is is not. 

LA GLORIA, Mexico — Residents in this community of 3,000 believe their town is ground zero for the swine flu epidemic, even if health officials aren't saying so.

As far back as late March, roughly one-sixth of the residents here in the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz began complaining of respiratory infections that they say can be traced to a farm that lies upwind five miles (8.5 kilometers) to the north, in the town of Xaltepec.

Granjas Carroll de Mexico, 50 percent owned by Virginia-based Smithfield Foods, Inc., has eight farms in the area.

Swine flu's ground zero? Residents say nearby farm

Swine flu affects hog market | Daily Chronicle

 

Russia, which represents about 9 percent of the U.S. pork export market, has restricted imports of pork from some U.S. states and Latin America

Illinois Pork Producers Association Executive Director Jim Kaitschuk said pork producers should always utilize strict biosecurity protocols, regardless of whether a particular virus is going around. Producers should restrict visits to their facilities, practice basic hygiene, and make sure workers who are ill stay away from other workers and the animals, as several viruses, including influenza, can be transmitted between pigs and humans, he said.

Swine flu affects hog market | Daily Chronicle

U.S. Tries to Broker Sale Of Chrysler's Loan Arm - washingtonpost.com

 

The Obama administration wants the nation's largest auto-financing company, GMAC, to buy Chrysler Financial,

if Chrysler files for bankruptcy protection, keeping Chrysler Financial afloat still remains critical to the company's future, some industry and government officials said. A collapse of the financing arm could take down many dealers

Closing a merger between GMAC and Chrysler Financial would require an infusion of new bailout money from the Treasury.

U.S. Tries to Broker Sale Of Chrysler's Loan Arm - washingtonpost.com

Swine flu as pork: Congress cut flu money from stimulus bill | csmonitor.com

On Wednesday, the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on “Swine Flu: Coordinating the federal response.” The panel is chaired by Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I) of Connecticut; Collins is the ranking Republican.

The Omnibus appropriations bill signed into law in March contains $156 million for pandemic influenza research

Swine flu as pork: Congress cut flu money from stimulus bill | csmonitor.com

Bracing for swine flu :: The Courier News :: Local News

 

less a matter of "if" than a question of "when," says John Cicero, executive director of the Will County Health Department.

Provena Saint Joseph Hospital in Elgin, said the hospital already has taken inventory to make sure it has adequate medications and supplies in case of an outbreak.

the good thing about the swine flu is that doctors can treat it with two antivirals, Tamiflu and Relenza, whereas the regular flu this year was resistant to these antivirals.

Dallas-based El Conejo Bus Line, which also delivers passengers from Mexico to Elgin daily, said that firm has begun to sanitize buses with disinfectant three to four times a day instead of the usual once. The bus line provides masks to passengers in Mexico, and passengers in the United States are able to choose to wear masks. He said that the company probably will refrain from making any route adjustments unless something further happens locally.

Bracing for swine flu :: The Courier News :: Local News

Economy has Latinos downsizing quinceañeras

 

the Las Vegas-based publisher of the Quinceañeras  chain, estimated that the industry nationwide has shrunk by about 15 percent since last year

Economy has Latinos downsizing quinceañeras

AMCORE lets go of 2 top execs - - BusinessRockford.com

 

The bank’s loan weakness has since spread as the general economy, especially in its core Rockford market, went into drastic decline. The jobless rate in Boone and Winnebago counties was at 13.5 percent at the end of March.

AMCORE lets go of 2 top execs - - BusinessRockford.com

Belvidere to address $300K deficit - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

 

Belvidere to address $300K deficit - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

GM might be 89 percent-owned by the U.S. government and the United Auto Workers| Reuters

 

The new GM that would emerge from the restructuring would be 89 percent-owned by the U.S. government and the United Auto Workers unions

“The bond exchange needs to be successful for us to avoid bankruptcy," Henderson[CEO of GMC] said. "It's not impossible, but bankruptcy is now more probable."

GM to slash costs, drop Pontiac | U.S. | Reuters

Swine Flu: 5 Things You Need to Know About the Outbreak

 

Hong Kong, New Zealand and Spain reported potential new cases in which people had been infected with swine flu and Canada confirmed several new cases

only one American has been infected so far who had not recently traveled to Mexico - a woman in Kansas got sick after her husband returned from a business trip in that country,

Swine Flu: 5 Things You Need to Know About the Outbreak

GM to cut 21,000 US factory jobs, shed Pontiac

GM said in a news release that it will ask the government to take 50 percent of its common stock in exchange for canceling half the government loans to the company as of June 1.

GM to cut 21,000 US factory jobs, shed Pontiac

Chrysler and Union Agree to Deal Before Federal Deadline - NYTimes.com

But many still expect Chrysler to go into Chapter 11   but “My sense is that it’s not liquidation, that it would be a reorganization,”

A new company would be set up with the best assets of Chrysler, these people said. Fiat of Italy would own 20 percent to 35 percent of the new Chrysler, they said, with the government also holding a stake. Some of the equity in the new company would also be given to Chrysler’s creditors as repayment.

Click on the following for the rest of the story:  Chrysler and Union Agree to Deal Before Federal Deadline - NYTimes.com

Shortage of Doctors Proves Obstacle to Obama Goals - NYTimes.com

 

To cope with the growing shortage, federal officials are considering several proposals. One would increase enrollment in medical schools and residency training programs. Another would encourage greater use of nurse practitioners and physician assistants. A third would expand the National Health Service Corps, which deploys doctors and nurses in rural areas and poor neighborhoods

Shortage of Doctors Proves Obstacle to Obama Goals - NYTimes.com

Ford doing better than GM and Chrysler, but still not very well | csmonitor.com

• The new union deal will save $500 million in annual labor costs.
• In exchange for incentives, creditors agreed to eliminate $10 billion in debt owed by the company – another big cost saving.

Ford may be able to benefit by using GM and Chrysler as a pattern for its own efforts to cut costs

Ford doing better than GM and Chrysler, but still not very well | csmonitor.com

Green Party forms in DeKalb | Daily Chronicle

There are currently 24 locals – local chapters affiliated with the Illinois Green Party – and DeKalb County will be breaking away from a bigger local, the Northwestern Illinois Greens comprised of Boone, Carroll, DeKalb, Jo Daviess, Lee, Ogle, Stephenson, Whiteside and Winnebago counties.

Green Party forms locally | Daily Chronicle

GM Gets $2 Billion More bringing GM’s grand total [2] to $16.83 billion.

GM Gets $2 Billion More

by Paul Kiel, ProPublica - April 24, 2009 1:50 pm EDT

As we say [1], another day, another bailout. The Treasury disclosed today that it had loaned out an additional $2 billion to General Motors, bringing GM’s grand total [2] to $16.83 billion. This is money to keep GM up and running while it nears its June 1 deadline. At that point, GM will either have restructured and proven to the administration that it can remain viable or face bankruptcy.

This seems unlikely to be the last time GM returns for more—the company has sought as much as $5 billion in additional loans [3] (which would bring its total close to $20 billion).

Local fests will go on, despite the recession :: The Courier News :: Local News

 

Falling tax revenue and corporate donations have caused Elgin to eliminate or cut back many of the city's most cherished summer and fall festivals. But in other Elign area towns, while the recession has planners wary, festivals remain on track for a 2009 repeat.

Local fests will go on, despite the recession :: The Courier News :: Local News

It's official: ECC bond plan passes by 35 votes :: The Courier News :: Local News

.09 of one per cent is the margin of victory 

It's official: ECC bond plan passes by 35 votes :: The Courier News :: Local News

Fed Releases Stress Test Guidelines – ProPublica

Stress Test Results—May 1—A new meaning to May Day—Lenin would be proud.

Next Friday is going to be a big day for our bailout database [1]. That’s when the Treasury will release the results of its “stress tests” on the nation’s 19 biggest banks.

Click on the following for further details:  Fed Releases Stress Test Guidelines - ProPublica

Democrats’ Budget Deal Sets Up Fight on Health Plan - NYTimes.com

A way around the filibuster:

an obscure procedure known as a reconciliation on a health care bill, allowing health care legislation that meets budget targets to be approved by a simple Senate majority.

House and the Senate first agree on an overall budget blueprint and then pursue legislation, “reconciling” the blueprint with the needed policy changes. If enough Senate Democrats support the legislation, the White House would not need a single Republican vote.

Read the rest of the story:  Democrats’ Budget Deal Sets Up Fight on Health Plan - NYTimes.com

The Belvidere Daily Republican. - Local food pantry shelves, reserves depleted for first time ever

The mix of food goods currently provided, a $275 value, has been estimated at providing a two-person household one month worth of food supplies

Recipients have increased from around 900 in March 2008 to over 1,600 in March of 2009.

considering reducing the value of the once monthly food package given to its clients from $275 to $100 in order to be able to service the number of households now needing their assistance.

Click on the following to read the entire story:  The Belvidere Daily Republican. - Local food pantry shelves, reserves depleted for first time ever

Mexico Shuts Schools Amid Deadly Flu Outbreak - NYTimes.com

 

shuttered schools from kindergarten to university for millions of young people in and around the capital on Friday and urged people with flu symptoms to stay home from work.

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Mexico Shuts Schools Amid Deadly Flu Outbreak - NYTimes.com

States Resort to Furloughs Even as Need for Services Grows - NYTimes.com

 

at least 15 states from every region — like Alabama and Georgia in the South; Arizona, California and Washington in the West; and Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York in the Northeast — are in various stages of considering or carrying out furloughs

The longest state furloughs so far appear to be 24 days in Alabama, the same number that had been proposed in Minnesota.

Social Security Administration, a program paid for by the federal government but administered by state workers. Officials said this month that in seven states, 2,700 of those workers had been furloughed, further delaying the processing of tens of thousands of disability claims, which already take an average of 488 days to resolve.

furloughs are fundamentally a cut in pay. And furloughs are a cut in service. If you don’t have people working, the work isn’t going to magically get done

So the savings aren’t as great. And you’re not solving any long-term problem

Read the rest of the article by clicking on the following:  States Resort to Furloughs Even as Need for Services Grows - NYTimes.com

Boone County Journal’s Opinion on the Search for Health Administrator

Few words have been left out of the Journal’s opinion. 

Stained Fabric

Athletic coaches agree winners are found by who made
the fewest mistakes. Errors mark the difference between
success and failure in many endeavors.

Few initiate a path designed to make mistakes yet,
the recent embarrassment of the Boone County Health
Department as they sought to find a new leader could
redefine the term “incompetence.”

The result of this fumbled effort had someone
deciding to hire an applicant to lead the organization that
was inexperienced. It is often concluded, if someone is
inexperienced they are incompetent to hold the job. Why
an incompetent candidate for a leadership job was hired
has not been fully explained.

However, when the applicant’s lack of experience came
to light, members of the health department and the Boone
County Board circled the wagons to decide what to do.
The Illinois Department of Public Health was called
and they recommended someone to mentor the applicant
so they could gain experience they were lacking. That
move was approved by the county board. Understand,
these are presumably competent public officials assigned
to protect the public health and not to personify the essence
of “The Peter Principle.”

When did the Boone County Department of Public
Health become a center for advanced study to mentor the
inexperienced and incompetent?

Members of the health department board turned a blind
eye to the requirements for the job and, arguably, they
risked putting the health of the community in jeopardy by
hiring an inexperienced leader to run the organization.
It is irrelevant to argue the smarmy ethics of what
occurred. In this addled culture ethical discussions are left
for the losers to debate.

The following questions arise with no one, least
of all members of the board of health to offer answers:
Why would an inexperienced applicant be given serious
consideration for the job? Why would the inexperienced
applicant be offered a job? Why would an executive board
hire an incompetent person to run an agency vested to
protect the public health? Why would an executive board
contract with a state agency to provide a mentor to keep
the inexperienced person on the payroll? Why would the
county board hire a mentor after imposing a hiring freeze
in fiscal 2009? Why would a board of health comprised
of elected officials, bank executives, lawyers, doctors
and other allegedly responsible people go through such a
tawdry public display?

Perhaps the health department board is no different
than other groups here that are comprised of some that are
more dedicated to sustain an elitist self-perception than to
truly serve the public. Some officials here do serve the
public through their work, their vision and their wisdom.
These officials will speak out when they see unethical or
illegal activity, but they are in the minority.

For example, there remain some on the Boone County
Housing Authority Board that hired a former director that
gave service contracts to family members, allowed years
to pass without a financial audit, and violated Department
of Housing and Urban Development rules. Yet, many of
the same people that sit on multiple boards continue to
look aside as they seek to persuade their friends that they
are serving the public needs.

Some of these self-appointed experts are better skilled
at sucking air from a room than they are at serving the
public need. These are the people that will sit and smile
and recite their vacuous self-serving homilies.

Elitism is a social disease staining the fabric of this
community. The sooner this disease is recognized and
the sooner those that practice this policy are removed, the
sooner the community fabric can be washed clean.

But as long as voters find greater purpose watching
Dancing with the Stars and continue to mindlessly elect
incumbents instead of choosing officials that identify
methods to correct these wrongs, the longer this infection
will fester and the further the disease of elitism will
spread.

Kokomo, Ind., looks beyond cars for its economic survival

Here is story which everyone should read as the Rockford/Belvidere Area ponders life after GM-Janesville, Chrysler-Belvidere and all their local suppliers. 

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Kokomo, Ind., looks beyond cars for its economic survival - Apr. 22, 2009

Retired Auto Workers Face Big Hit - washingtonpost.com

If the GM pension plans are terminated, they would be at least $20 billion underfunded, according to the government's Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. The federal agency would insure about $4 billion of that gap, leaving the GM pension plans with $100 billion in obligations and only $84 billion in assets.

if the Chrysler pension plans are terminated, they would be at least $9 billion underfunded, according to the agency, which would insure about $2 billion of that. This would leave the Chrysler pension plans with $28 billion in obligations and only $20 billion of assets, according to the pension agency.

When Daimler sold Chrysler to the private equity firm Cerberus in 2007, it agreed to contribute $1 billion to the PBGC if the agency ever had to take over Chrysler's pensions. Daimler might now have to live up to that agreement.

Read the whole story, click on the following:  Retired Auto Workers Face Big Hit - washingtonpost.com

U.S. Tells Chrysler to Prepare for Bankruptcy Filing - NYTimes.com

 

The Treasury Department is directing Chrysler to prepare a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing as soon as next week, people with direct knowledge of the talks said Thursday.

Treasury now has an agreement in principle with the U.A.W., whose members’ pensions and retiree health care benefits would be protected in the event of a bankruptcy filing

A bankruptcy filing for Chrysler would most likely wipe out existing equity stakeholders, notably Cerberus Capital Management

The four major banks — JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs — hold about 70 percent of the roughly $7 billion of Chrysler debt, and they favor striking a deal with the government. Many of the hedge funds, however, are calling for a tougher stance.

In bankruptcy,  Chrysler could sell or jettison any assets it did not want to keep and cancel franchise agreements with car dealers it considered superfluous.

Read the rest of the story—click on the following:  U.S. Tells Chrysler to Prepare for Bankruptcy Filing - NYTimes.com

New GI Bill Benefits Dependents

 

Military veterans can transfer education benefits to wife or children

Benefits must be transferred before separating from the military.

Many other new features.

Click on the following to read the story:  New GI Bill Benefits Dependents

Nationwide Marches to Push Obama on Immigration | OneWorld.net (U.S.)

 

On May 1st, 2009, The Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), a national network of over 300 organizations, is leading a Nationwide Immigration and Labor Rights March in hundreds of cities across the nation

Read more by clicking on the following:  Nationwide Marches to Push Obama on Immigration | OneWorld.net (U.S.)

Boone County Taxpayers Association: Meeting Change

Thursday, April 23, 2009

BCTA Meeting - Thursday, May 14, 2009

Due to a scheduling conflict at the library we must cancel our April meeting. Our next monthly meeting will be Thursday, May 14, 2009 at Belvidere Township Hall,8200 Fairgrounds Road, Belvidere, Il. Doors open at 6:30, meeting 7:00PM. 

Our invited guest is Boone County Chairman, Robert Walberg, and County Administrator, Ken Terrinoni. Discussion will center on county finances, current year budget adjustments and projections for 2010 fiscal year. The current economy has caused many shortfalls in sales tax and state revenues; what can the county do to adjust to these numbers. How will it affect our services? Will our real estate taxes be increased? Come with your questions.

As BCTA members and active members of our community, please join us for an informative evening, frank discussion, sincere give and take, and a sharing of problem solving ideas.

Hope to see you May 14.

Sincerely,

Diann Helnore,
Director, Boone County Taxpayer Association

“Back off credit card reform” (TARP Banks).

Thursday, April 23, 2009

The Great Credit Card Battle To Come—Banks ask President to back off credit card reform.

The next front in the banking wars will be over credit cards. Some of the nation's biggest bankers -- including representatives of Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, and other recipients of billions of taxpayer dollars -- are meeting today with the President to ask him back off his move to reform credit-card lending practices.

What's happening to credit card lending is a smaller replay of what happened to mortgage lending. For years, banks used every gimmick possible to get the public to use their cards -- regardless of the credit worthiness of the customer. They lured borrowers with low "teaser" rates. They told borrowers they could get by paying minimum balances.

And now that tens of millions of Americans are poorer than they used to be, the credit-card bubble is bursting. Credit card delinquencies are soaring. At the Bank of America, the largest U.S. lender by assets, 7.8 percent of credit-card accounts were delinquent in February by more than 30 days, up from 5.9 percent last August. Yesterday, Bank of America reported a $1.8 billion first-quarter loss in its credit-card services unit.

As delinquencies mount and profits shrink, card lenders are raising fees and interest rates, including rates on existing balances. They're also charging higher fees when customers exceed their credit limits, and shortening the duration of the teaser rates. When a customer makes a payment in excess of what's owed, card companies now routinely apply the excess to balances with the lowest rates rather than those carrying the highest rates. And banks disclose very little of relevance: For example, most customers have no idea how long it will take them to pay off their balances if they make minimum repayments, or what interest they're actually paying on their balances.

As more and more Americans find themselves in the credit-card squeeze, they're complaining loudly. But the bankers have their own loud lobbyists on Capitol Hill, whose voices haven't been muzzled despite the giant bank bailout. Last month, the Senate Banking Committee reported a bill that bans rate increases for existing balances, among other things. But the vote was close -- 12 in favor, 11 opposed -- and its future in the Senate is uncertain. A House bill advanced yesterday, sponsored by Representative Carolyn Maloney, Democrat from New York, has only a fifty-fifty chance of succeeding. Meanwhile, the Fed is working on a set of watered-down reforms scheduled to go into effect a year from July, but that's way too far off to avoid the pending battle.

Enter Obama. The Treasury holds lots of cards given how dependent the big banks are on its solicitude. Meanwhile, the public has grown weary and suspicious of the bank bailouts. Knowing how unpopular the bailouts have become, the Administration is considering how to get additional capital to the banks without going back to Congress for the money. One big idea is to convert taxpayer-provided bank loans into bank equity -- even though the swap puts taxpayers at greater risk (after all, loans have to be repaid, but equity can continue to fall).

That's why getting tough on the banks' credit card lending practices has such appeal for the Administration, politically. It puts the White House on the side of the people rather than Wall Street, on an issue that the public is becoming more and more upset about. And the Administration's push could be enough to get reform legislation through Congress.

The bankers will tell Obama today that any new constraints on credit card lending will cause the banks to reduce the amount of credit card lending they do, which will hurt the economy. But it's a weak argument because it presupposes that any lending is good for the economy -- even lending to people who don't know what they're getting into and can't repay the loans. It's the same argument banks used two years ago, when prescient observers warned that constraints had to be placed on mortgage lending practices. What may hurt the economy in the short term, we now know, may save it from even larger pitfalls to come.

Robert Reich

Fiat Weighs Buying G.M.’s Opel Unit, Officials Say - NYTimes.com

FIAT has more than one card to play. 

Click on the following to read all of the story:  Fiat Weighs Buying G.M.’s Opel Unit, Officials Say - NYTimes.com

Lack of national search raises questions.

We all know that it is best not to advertize a job vacancy?  Word of mouth and telling your friends is the only way for a government agency to tell of a job opening?  Might this be racial or ethnic discrimination, if there is no public notification of the opening?  No matter. But remember, the “people across the county” don’t really care—as long as get someone “qualified” do what you want?

Kane County budget showdown looms :: The Courier News :: Local News

Could we learn something from this neighbor? 

Throughout the discussion, she[county board chairwoman] put the onus on elected officials to hit their cost-reduction mark and explained that board members have few options to assist or direct how that happens

If officials don't hit the mark, a recently approved policy change allows the board to not pay expenses that exceed an elected official's budget.

The board already has approved an unpaid furlough policy, and will continue to look at insurance and buyout ideas.

Click on the following for the rest of the story:  Kane County budget showdown looms :: The Courier News :: Local News

Japan Pays Foreign Workers to Go Home, Forever - NYTimes.com

In 1990, Japan — facing growing industrial labor shortage — started issuing thousands of special work visas to descendants of these emigrants. An estimated 366,000 Brazilians and Peruvians now live in Japan.

The guest workers quickly became the largest group of foreign blue-collar workers in an otherwise immigration-adverse country, filling the so-called three-K jobs (kitsui, kitanai, kiken — or hard, dirty and dangerous.)

Critics denounce the program [of paying workers to return to South America] as short-sighted and inhumane, and a threat to what little progress Japan has made in opening its economy to foreign workers

Read the rest of the story by clicking on the following:  Japan Pays Foreign Workers to Go Home, Forever - NYTimes.com

Jenkins: GM Is Becoming a Royal Debacle - WSJ.com

A very critical op-ed from Wall Street Journal.  Unfortunately it tells too well the possible downfalls in the administration current auto bailout.

[At Chrysler, bondholders give up] nearly full recovery in a bankruptcy in return for 15 cents on the dollar

current bailout strategy amounts to asking thousands of bondholders and GM retirees to buy stock in a GM that the king's[Obama’s] own policies mean they'd be loony to buy

Click on the following to read the full story:  Jenkins: GM Is Becoming a Royal Debacle - WSJ.com

An Effort to Save Flint, Mich., by Shrinking It - NYTimes.com

An urban plan to deliberately shrink--

Indianapolis and Little Rock, Ark., have recently set up land banks, and other cities are in the process of doing so. “Shrinkage is moving from an idea to a fact,”

Instead of waiting for houses to become abandoned and then pulling them down, local leaders are talking about demolishing entire blocks and even whole neighborhoods.

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  An Effort to Save Flint, Mich., by Shrinking It - NYTimes.com

Burlington election may not be quite over :: The Courier News :: Local News

a turnout of 56.51 percent of the registered voters

the turnout was stunningly large for a village and school election in April.

handful of votes still left to be counted could be enough to change which of five people running for three trustee seats won.

Burlington election may not be quite over :: The Courier News :: Local News

Up date on Chrysler Negotiations with its lenders: Banks Reject U.S. Terms for Cutting Chrysler Debt - WSJ.com

 

The lenders have told Treasury officials they believe they could recover at least 65% of their loans if Chrysler is liquidated in bankruptcy.

In their counteroffer, the lenders blasted the government's proposal as unfair. They said it is "in no way a shared sacrifice."

Banks Reject U.S. Terms for Cutting Chrysler Debt - WSJ.com

AIG Bonuses are we paying for them or not?

Treasury to Give AIG $30 Billion, Recoup Bonus Payments

by Paul Kiel, ProPublica - April 21, 2009 5:28 pm EDT

Remember those AIG bonuses that went to the employees in the division that sunk the company? Well, here’s a sort of resolution. The Treasury Department wasn’t able to rescind them, but is taking a different route to get the money back – applying a “commitment fee” when it forks over nearly $30 billion more.
Here’s how it’s working, according to a regulatory filing yesterday. Treasury has already invested $40 billion in AIG. And in early March, it committed to providing $30 billion more – bringing Treasury’s total to $70 billion. AIG released the finalized agreement yesterday for that extra $30 billion, and in it, it disclosed that Treasury would be deducting $165 million (the total of the bonuses) from the $30 billion total. So that means AIG is actually only getting $29.835 billion.

Treasury has also charged AIG a “commitment fee” for the amount of the bonuses. The government is allowing AIG to pay that money back in an installment plan, three $55 million payments over the next five years. The fee is to be paid from the “operating cash flow” of the company – presumably guarding against the possibility that AIG would simply be paying the taxpayers back with their own money.
Not exactly the simplest solution, but there you have it.

In Spain’s Falling Prices, Early Fears of Deflation - NYTimes.com

 

Spain’s jobless rate, already a painful 15.5 percent, could soon reach 20 percent, a troubling number for a major industrialized country

economists fear Spain may be in the early grip of deflation, a hallmark of both the Great Depression and Japan’s lost decade of the 1990s, and a major concern since the financial crisis went global last year.

Deflation is not just a Spanish concern. Luxembourg, Portugal and Ireland have reported price drops, too.

The jobless rate for those under 25 is at a Depression-like level of 31.8 percent

In Spain’s Falling Prices, Early Fears of Deflation - NYTimes.com

Parking at Elburn Metra station to more than double | Daily Chronicle

The project will create an additional 329 parking spaces, including 306 standard stalls, eight spaces for those with disabilities, 10 spaces for motorcycles and scooters

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Parking at Elburn Metra station to more than double | Daily Chronicle

GM, Chrysler to get $5.5B more in government loans - Kansas City Star

 

General Motors Corp. could get as much as $5 billion more in federal loans, while Chrysler LLC could get $500 million as they race against government-imposed deadlines

Read the rest of the story:  GM, Chrysler to get $5.5B more in government loans - Kansas City Star

Leader in Kansas banking says FDIC rates skyrocketing - Kansas City Star

 

premiums last year were $20,000 and could soon reach $400,000 to $600,000 because of new rates set by FDIC.

Click here to read the rest of the story:  Leader in Kansas banking says FDIC rates skyrocketing - Kansas City Star

Robert Reich’s statement of tax facts

Taken from:  http://www.robertreich.blogspot.com/

A Short Citizen's Guide to Kooks, Demagogues, and Right-Wingers On Tax Day

No one likes to pay taxes, so tax day typically attracts a range of right-wing Republicans, kooks, and demagogues, all of whom tell us how awful we have it. Herewith a short citizen's guide (that is, a citizen's guide that's short rather than a guide for short citizens) responding to the predictable charges:
1. "Americans pay too much in taxes." Wrong: The United States has the lowest taxes of all developed nations.
2. "The rich pay too much! The top ten percent of income earners pay over 72 percent of all income taxes!" Misleading: The main reason the rich pay such a large percent is they've become so much richer than the bottom 90 percent in recent years. If you look at what they pay as individuals -- the percent of their incomes over and above the highest rate below them -- you'll see a steady decline over the years. When Republican Dwight Eisenhower was president, the marginal rate on the highest earners was 91 percent (after deductions and tax credits, closer to 50 percent); by 1980 it was still up there, at 70 percent (an effective rate of closer to 45 percent); under Bill Clinton, it was 38 percent (an effective rate closer to 28 percent).
Look at the after-tax earnings of families and you'll see what's really going on. Between 1980 and 2000, the after-tax earnings of families at the top rose more than 150 percent, while the after-tax earnings of families in the middle rose about 10 percent. The Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 raised the after-tax incomes of most Americans by a bit over 1 percent -- but raised the after-tax incomes of millionaires by 4.4 percent.
3. "The bottom 60 percent pay only 3.3 percent of the taxes!" Misleading again. Most Americans are paying more in sales taxes than they ever have. Property taxes have also been rising at a steady clip. And Social Security taxes have also risen (thanks to the Greenspan Commission), while earnings over about $100,000 aren't subject to Social Security taxes. So-called "sin" taxes (mostly beer and cigarettes) have also skyrocketed. All of these taxes take a bigger bite out of the paychecks of people with lower incomes than they do people with higher incomes.
4. "Obama is raising your taxes!" Wrong. Obama is cutting taxes for 95 percent of Americans, by about $400 per person a year -- not a whopping tax cut, to be sure, but not a tax increase by any stretch. Only the top 2 percent will have a tax increase, but even this tax increase is modest. Basically, they go back to the rates they were paying under Bill Clinton (their deductions will be limited to 28 percent, which is only fair). And they won't start paying this until 2011 anyway.
5. "The huge debts we're wracking up will cause your taxes to rise!" Wrong again. When it comes to the national debt, as I've said before, the relevant statistic is the ratio of debt to the gross domestic product. The only sure way to bring that debt down and make it manageable in future years is to get the economy growing again -- which requires that, in the short term, the government spend a lot of money (because consumers and businesses won't). In the long term, the biggest source of concern is rising health-care costs. And that's something Obama and Congress are aiming to tackle.
6. "We have a patriotic duty to stand up against Washington taxes!" Just the opposite. We have a patriotic duty to pay taxes. As multi-billionaire Warrent Buffett put it, "If you stick me down in the middle of Bangladesh or Peru or someplace, you'll find out how much this talent is going to product in the wrong kind of soil. I will be struggling thirty years later." President Teddy Roosevelt made the case in 1906 when he argued in favor of continuing the inheritance tax. "The man of great wealth owes a particular obligation to the state because he derives special advantages from the mere existence of government."
An acquaintance from law school, now a partner in one of Washington's biggest and wealthiest law firms, explained to me one day over lunch how he and his partners use tax rules to create offsetting taxable gains and losses, and then allocate the gains to the firm's foreign partners who don't pay taxes in the United States. That way, they keep the losses here and shelter their income abroad. I noticed he had an American flag lapel pin. "You're supporting our troops," I said, referring to his pin. "Yup," he replied, entirely missing my point.
True patriotism isn't cheap. It's about taking on a fair share of the burden of keeping America going.

An Army Takeover Quells Violence in Mexico - washingtonpost.com

More than 10,000 soldiers and federal agents patrol Juarez's gritty streets

Centrally located, with access to U.S. interstates, Ciudad Juarez is the most coveted "plaza" of the Mexican drug trade, which funnels 90 percent of all cocaine entering the United States

"We know [the judges] exist, but they work in a place that is unknown to the public,"

The military operation will be evaluated in September, said Reyes, the mayor. He said he hopes a civilian police department will be ready to replace the army and federal police by the end of the year

Read more by clicking on the following:  An Army Takeover Quells Violence in Mexico - washingtonpost.com

Jan., Feb. sales data not encouraging - - BusinessRockford.com

 

Jan., Feb. sales data not encouraging - - BusinessRockford.com

Congress returns to immense agenda | csmonitor.com

 

$3.6 trillion budget proposal for the next fiscal year – a third of which is to be paid for with borrowed money.

Congress returns to immense agenda | csmonitor.com

'Ruined' by Lynn Nottage wins Pulitzer; Chicago play again snags top honor | The Theater Loop - News from America's hottest theater city

 

Ruined,” commissioned and first produced by Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, is a hard-hitting homage to Bertolt Brecht’s “Mother Courage,” with the action moved from Europe to a bar and whorehouse in the crossfire of the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo

'Ruined' by Lynn Nottage wins Pulitzer; Chicago play again snags top honor | The Theater Loop - News from America's hottest theater city

Quinn orders review of tainted Crestwood well - Chicago Breaking News

 

Asked about the lack of public notification, EPA officials first said the well was contaminated too long ago to trigger the law's requirements. Later they said it was because pollutants in Crestwood's tap water didn't violate legal limits

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Quinn orders review of tainted Crestwood well - Chicago Breaking News

U.S. May Convert Bank Bailouts to Common Stock - NYTimes.com

the biggest way to stretch funds could be to convert preferred shares to common stock, a strategy that the government seems prepared to use on a case-by-case basis.

arrangement with Citigroup by converting up to $25 billion of preferred stock, which is like a loan, to common stock, which represents equity.

Treasury would also become a major shareholder, and perhaps even the controlling shareholder, in some financial institutions. That could lead to increasingly difficult conflicts of interest for the government, as policy makers juggle broad economic objectives with the narrower responsibility to maximize the value of their bank shares on behalf of taxpayers.

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  U.S. May Convert Bank Bailouts to Common Stock - NYTimes.com

Suburban immigration sting nets 17 arrests :: Beacon News :: Local News

 

ICE spokesman Gail Montenegro said Monday that the sting netted 17 arrests and two detainees, with five of those arrested from Aurora and others coming from Elgin, Streamwood, Warrenville, West Chicago, Hanover Park, Belvidere and Boone County.

Suburban immigration sting nets 17 arrests :: Beacon News :: Local News

Silence Dogood has not moved a mountain but he did move an awning “for a week”.

Take at look at:  http://belvideresovereignty.wordpress.com/  It shows you, change may be possible in Belvidere.  Silence Dogood complained and put his complaint on the web and “Walla—the awning is gone”.

Update April 23, 2009:

Well that is not the way it is—The only thing changed was the color of the awning.

Sorry Dogood, keep the faith.

BEFORE

AFTER (For a week or so)

NOW --

Sources: Chrysler Financial Refused Government Loan Over Limits on Executive Pay - washingtonpost.com

But Chrysler Financial says that is not so. 

"Chrysler Financial has determined that it has adequate private capital funding to cover the short-term needs of our dealers and customers and as such no additional TARP funding is necessary at this time," the company said in its statement.

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Sources: Chrysler Financial Refused Government Loan Over Limits on Executive Pay - washingtonpost.com

Civil Lawsuit Over Katrina Begins - NYTimes.com

based largely on a a 1971 case, Graci v. United States, that found there is no immunity for flooding caused by a federal project unrelated to flood control, this current case hopes to show a similar legal situation exist in the MR-GO,  navigation canal

Click on the following to read the rest of the story:  Civil Lawsuit Over Katrina Begins - NYTimes.com

Belvidere to tackle Public Safety Building - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

Ald. Andy Racz is scheduled to make a motion that the city establish a line-item in the Public Safety Building budget for renovations, upgrades and expansion.

Click on the following to read the entire story:  Belvidere to tackle Public Safety Building - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

Jury to hear hoarding case July 6 - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

This unfortunate case is before us again.  From what I understand there may currently be a larger than agreed number of domestic animals on this farm.  Does anyone have any details?

Click on the following to read the story:  Jury to hear hoarding case July 6 - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

LaHood: No favoritism to home state in stimulus money | Clout Street - local political coverage

 

statehouse infighting that prevented a public works plan from being approved during former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s six-year tenure left many projects meeting the federal government’s “shovel ready” requirement.

LaHood: No favoritism to home state in stimulus money | Clout Street - local political coverage

Military chief says US troops won't go to border

 

more than 10,670 people have been killed since Mexican President Felipe Calderon launched a government offensive against the powerful drug gangs in 2006 – governors and members of Congress have increasingly called on President Barack Obama to send troops to the southern frontier.

Military chief says US troops won't go to border

Why Republicans Should Back Universal Health Care - The Atlantic Business Channel

 

There's a massive constituency behind the policy. Buffeted by the recession and the threat of losing their employer-provided health insurance, the American people want universal coverage. Much of the US business community wants it too.

Why Republicans Should Back Universal Health Care - The Atlantic Business Channel

School District 100’s Investment Report

The Illinois Compiled Statues required that the Board of Education of all school districts review at least every three months district investments.  I have raised a complaint regarding the board’s failure to comply with this requirement a number of times.  In order to insure better compliance, I plan on posting this report every three months.

For purpose of comparison, I am posting Boone County’s investment report for the similar period.  The County Treasurer provides monthly reports of the county’s investments.

District 100 requests bids only from banks which have a branch office within District 100 and from Illinois School District Liquid Asset Fund(ISDLF). Boone County request bids from banks and insured credit unions within the county and just outside its borders.  Deposits from all institutions must either be federally insured or secured by high quality federal or state securities.  With the exception of community colleges, the laws regulating the investments of schools and other local governments are nearly identical.   District 100 has chosen not to request bids from credit unions and other than ISDLF, financial institutions outside of District 100.  Click on the photocopies to enlarge.

District 100 Investment Report for 3-31-2009

Boone County Investment Report for 3-21-2009

 

Lawsuit filed against DeKalb County, Sheriff's Department | Daily Chronicle

According to the updated Boone County budget -- DeKalb County is now  sending inmates to Boone County Jail. 

The lawsuit alleges that officers [of DeKalb County] left Brantley alone with equipment they knew could be used to inflict harm, that deputies failed to take adequate measures to protect Brantley from herself and that they failed to reasonably monitor her even though they knew she was under the influence of drugs or other illegal substances.

Read more by clicking on the following:  Lawsuit filed against county, sheriff's department | Daily Chronicle

Boone County gave a $580,000 gift to the “The Glen of Belvidere”, Assisted Living Facility

Since December 2008 I have been asking questions to city and county officials concerning the proposed assisted living facility.  The county has granted a sizeable gift to the developers of this project, the Kensington Group which operate North Woods and Maple Crests Nursing Homes in Belvidere.  The actual transaction for much of this gift was finalized in 2006.  I am very surprise that it has been so difficult to obtain the nature and value of the transaction. 

Value of land, (see the recent email from Mr. Terrinoni):  $470,340

Donations from Maple Crest Charitable Trusts for landscaping:                                                                                         $110,000

Plus there are a few more costs to the county. There also was $7,500 paid in 2007 to a grant writer for an unsuccessful state grant application and the in house costs of the 2008 application.

Previous I have questioned whether a tax  assessment agreement similar to that proposed in the Peaker Plant be attached to the lease.  It is not possible to require Kensington Group (nor the peaker plant) to arbitrate any future tax assessment on the assisted living facility, (see email below.)

 

In response to Mr.. Mattison's letter to me dated March 23, 2009, below are answers to your questions as I understand them:

1.  Regarding questions on tax assessment:

     A.    Per recent legal advice given to the County Board in reference to the "peaker plant" tax assessment, we cannot as county officials involve ourselves in the process of determining taxable value for properties.  In similar fashion we cannot pre-negotiate the property taxes for the new supportive living facility.  I did provide my best guess of those tax revenues and a spreadsheet is attached.

2.  Regarding questions on the lease:

      A.    The final lease is not yet negotiated with the company or HUD and what value is placed  What we have in place now is a Memorandum of Understanding that sets out the obligations of the parties. I sent that to you some time ago.  Adding the land to the proposal gave the County the edge in receiving the state tax credit award of 9%.  In addition to that cash has been pledged for landscaping and other improvements that were necessary to receive the tax credits.  Thus, the land would be considered a financial concession to make the project qualify for tax credits.

3.   Regarding additional costs to the taxpayers:

      A.  I can only think of gain to the taxpayer through additional property taxes and up to 40 jobs being created. The company has promised to cover all costs related to extending sewer and water to the site.

4.   What is the value of the land?

      A. The appraisal at the time placed the value of the land at $470,340.

Mr. Terrinoni