Thursday, June 17, 2010

Caterpillar to build mining shovels in Aurora; Decatur adding capacity | Crain's Chicago Business

 

Taking advantage of a worldwide surge in mining, which makes up about 30% of its heavy-equipment sales, Cat is turning to such shovels to complement its position in large mining trucks. The first shovels will begin rolling off the Aurora assembly line in 2011.

The Aurora facility, which also makes wheel loaders used in mining, employs about 1,200 workers, down from a recent high of about 2,000 before the recession hit.

Click on the following for more details:  Caterpillar to build mining shovels in Aurora; Decatur adding capacity | Crain's Chicago Business

Public Imput to County Appointment

Last night I made a public comment  to the County Board regarding the right of the citizens of Boone County  to know in advance of the proposed appointments by the Chairman of the County Board.  The recent advice and consent vote of the County Board regarding appointments to the Boone County Health Board was the specific appointments I questioned.  Chairman Walberg refused to state if these appointments would or would not be on the agenda for consideration on June 16.  I believe that this is a deliberate breach of the open meetings act which requires 48 hour notifications of meetings and a posted agenda  of the major issues of the meetings.  Mr. Walberg’s agenda item of “ Appointments” without any other specifics should not be considered appropriate notification. 

On June 15  I questioned Mr. Walberg regarding which proposed appointments were on the agenda and asked explicitly if the Health Department appointments would be on the agenda.  Mr. Walberg refused to state if they would or would not.  This appears not be and isolated instance of refusing to provide the board in advance of proposed motions, discussions and information.

As noted by the email from Ms. Glass [shown below]-- Mr. Walberg appears to consistently provide little or no advance notifications of his proposed appointments to either the public or his fellow board members.  Refusing to post the proposed appointments grants the public no opportunity to speak to  their individual representatives regarding their concerns in these matters.

 

TO: Boone County Board & Boone County Board Chairman

FROM: Terri Glass- District 3

DATE: June 16, 2010

RE: Appointments

Illinois State Statute has given county boards much responsibility, one of which is the authority to appointment people and/or community members to serve on various boards and committees. The County Board Chairman must make the appointments but can only do so with the advice and consent of the County Board.

These boards and committees are intended to serve the interests of the community, oversee any budget and/or tax dollars that the entity may receive and establish policies and procedures. The people who are appointed to these committees and boards must be held accountable for their decisions and actions not only to the County Board but to the general public as well.

It is only fitting that the members of the County Board give the applicants and appointments proper consideration. I feel that in order for me, or this County Board, to make educated decisions regarding the appointments certain information must be provided. I, for one, will not be a mechanism for placing a rubber stamp on an appointment.

Effective immediately:

I will vote NO for any and all appointments unless I have, at minimum, the following information:

  1. Copies of all correspondence from ALL persons who express interest in an appointment

  2. A list of the Boards/Committee members currently serving on the applicable board, such list should also include how long each member has served (in their entirety) on such board/committee

  3. This information shall be provided in a timely and reasonable time frame PRIOR to the County Board meeting.

In addition, I propose the following:

The County Board should

  1. Be provided a complete list of the Boards/Committees that require appointments through the County Board.

    a. Such list should include current board/committee members and the term expiration dates

    b. Such list should also include how long each member has served (in their entirety) on such board/committee

  1. Such list shall be included in its entirety on the County Board website and in the Boone County Illinois Yearbook

  2. Vacancies announced to the media should be included on the County Website

  3. Vacancy announcements should include a brief description of the duties of the board/committee

Boone County mulls whether to fix, rebuild Animal Control - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

 

The building, licensed by the Illinois Department of Agriculture, hasn’t had a formal inspection since 2008. But a courtesy inspection by the agency last month disclosed sanitation problems because of improper drainage in the kennel area. Damage to walls,
ceilings and dog runs also was noted.

roughly 50-year-old building wasn’t intended to be a permanent home for the department. The county rented the property long before buying it in 2003

A new building may cost an estimated $350,000.

Boone County mulls whether to fix, rebuild Animal Control - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

In Illinois Race, a Teaching Career Is Questioned - NYTimes.com

An other Kirk statement questioned.

review of public comments that Mr. Kirk has made over the last decade shows that while he may refer to himself as a former teacher, he does not talk about the brevity of his experience: a year in London at a private school and part-time in a nursery school as part of a work-study program while he was a student at Cornell University.

Click on the following for more details:  In Illinois Race, a Teaching Career Is Questioned - NYTimes.com

Public Policy Polling: Brady leads Quinn, but margin reduced

 

Bill Brady is still favored to become the most obscure big state Governor in the country this fall, as he leads Pat Quinn 34-30 despite 56% of Illinois voters having no opinion about him. But Quinn has reduced what was a 10 point deficit now to 4 points and is looking a little more viable for November than he was back in April.

Click on the following for more details:  Public Policy Polling: Brady leads Quinn, but margin reduced

Quinn: 10,000 in Illinois get subsidized jobs - Springfield, IL - The State Journal-Register

gives employers tax credits to create temporary jobs that Illinois officials hope might be made permanent.

Gov. Pat Quinn says nearly 11,000 people have gotten federally subsidized jobs in Illinois.

The money for the "Put Illinois to Work" program

Click on the following for more details:   Quinn: 10,000 in Illinois get subsidized jobs - Springfield, IL - The State Journal-Register