Could Wisconsin's Scott Walker now abolish the weekend? - LA Times

 

isconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a leading aspirant for the Republican nomination for president, made his state the 25th "right-to-work" state in the nation on March 9 when he signed a measure passed by the Republican-controlled legislature.

He may soon get another crack at a worker-unfriendly law: Legislators have introduced a bill to abolish employees' legal right to at least one day off per week.

Walker's tenure falls somewhere between lackluster and a failure.- Christopher Flavelle, Bloomberg

State law currently allows factory or retail employees to work seven days or more in a row for a limited period, but they and their employer have to jointly petition the Department of Workforce Development for a waiver. These petitions apparently number a couple of hundred a year. The new proposal would allow workers to "voluntarily choose" to work without a day of rest. The state agency wouldn't have a say.

lRIt can't be a secret what "voluntarily" really means in this context. As Marquette University law professor Paul Secunda told the Nation, the measure "completely ignores the power dynamic in the workplace, where workers often have a proverbial gun to the head." Workers will know that if the boss demands it, they'll be volunteering or else.

The new measure tracks one last year that was introduced too late in the legislative session to reach a vote. As the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported at the time, it came directly from the wish list of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, the state's biggest business lobbying group. According to the newspaper, the measure's sponsors at first "said they had heard from businesses with employees who want to work the additional time." Under questioning, one sponsor, Republican state Rep. Mark Born, acknowledged that he had met only with representatives of the business lobbying group.

Walker hasn't said he would sign the bill, but he hasn't spoken out against it either; nor did he when it was introduced last year. The elimination of a guaranteed weekend would fit nicely with the rest of Walker's anti-worker platform, which includes his having ended collective bargaining rights for most public sector employees and signing the deceitfully named "right to work" law, which prohibits requirements that private-sector workers join unions or pay a representation fee as a condition of employment. Right-to-work laws in general are associated with poorer workplace conditions and lower pay than in union-friendlier states.

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Boone County money sought for Rockford airport project

 

March 5, 2015

By Bob Balgemann

Reporter

BELVIDERE - Winnebago County Board Chairman Scott Christiansen will be coming to Boone County soon, searching for funding to help defray the cost of the proposed $40-million hangar project at Chicago Rockford International Airport.

He already has asked the village of Machesney Park and city of Loves Park for $400,000 each, to be paid in annual installments of $20,000 for the next 20 years.

And he told Machesney Park officials Feb. 17 that he soon would be making a similar request of the Boone County Board and city of Belvidere. Durand and Winnebago also are on his list of upcoming stops.

It's all about partnerships, he said, and far-ranging benefits the hangar project will bring those outside of Rockford. The hope is AAR, one of the world's largest aircraft maintenance companies, will locate at the Winnebago County airport.

The plan calls for construction of two 90,000-square-foot hangars with another 30,000 square feet of office and warehouse space.

It's a cooperative effort with Rock Valley College (RVC) with the goal being to increase the number of graduates from 20 to 120 a year. Those completing the program would be making $45,000 to $50,000 a year.

While the airport and RVC both are located in Rockford, Christiansen said the benefits will be widespread and include Boone County and its municipalities.

Belvidere Mayor Mike Chamberlain said he would not comment on the chairman's proposal until after it is presented to the city council.

Of partnerships and regionalism, he said, "Regionalism is the only sensible solution to economic development in today's economic climate. For us to access federal money, the more citizens who will benefit the better chance we will have."

Regionalism, he added, is the way local governments will be able to create jobs and finance infrastructure improvements in the future.

Support for regionalism

Boone County officials believe in the importance of regionalism. They, in particular county board Chairman Bob Walberg, are members of regional committees that link Boone with Winnebago County and its municipalities. They also attend countless regional meetings throughout the year.

But finding an extra $20,000 a year to help finance the Rockford airport project, at this particular time, would be difficult if not impossible.

The most recent challenge to confront the county is the potential loss of $900,000 in funding it receives from the state. That possibility was part of the budget address given Feb. 18 by newly elected Gov. Bruce Rauner.

He also noted that the lost revenue only would make up 3 percent of local governments' total income.

To finance the hangar project, the airport would receive $15 million from the state, $10 million from Winnebago County and $8 million from the city of Rockford. The airport itself would be in for $5 million to $7 million.

Neither Machesney Park nor Loves Park has committed to the funding request. Machesney Park officials are expected to discuss it March 7, during a workshop on their 2015-16 budget

belvideredailyrepublican.net

US opens criminal inquiry of resigning Illinois congressman - Yahoo News

 

Justice Department is investigating the congressional expenses and business deals of Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock, and FBI agents have begun issuing subpoenas to witnesses, a person familiar with the case told The Associated Press on Friday.

Investigators were focusing on Schock's House office expense account, expenditures by his re-election campaign and his personal investments with long-time political donors, the person said. Schock, 33, a young, media-savvy Republican, abruptly announced his resignation Tuesday after weeks of mounting media reports about questionable expenditures and personal finances.

The government was convening a federal grand jury in Springfield, Illinois, according to the person, who was not authorized to publicly discuss the case. The person also said that FBI agents were visiting people close to the Republican congressman who were being compelled by subpoena to testify. The grand jury was hearing testimony in early April, according to the subpoenas.

A spokesman and lawyers for Schock did not respond to repeated phone calls and emails Friday from AP.

Schock's sudden resignation followed revelations over six weeks about his business deals and lavish spending on travel, personal mileage reimbursements and office redecorating in the style of "Downton Abbey." Congressional ethics investigators had begun probing Schock's conduct in the days before his announcement, but that probe was expected to shut down because of the federal investigation.

Questions have included Associated Press investigations of Schock's real estate transactions, air travel and entertainment expenses — including some events that Schock documented in photographs on his Instagram account. On Monday, the AP confirmed that the Office of Congressional Ethics had reached out to Schock's associates as it apparently began an investigation.

The owner of an air charter service in Peoria confirmed Friday that he had been contacted by an ethics investigator interested in Schock's extensive flights on planes owned by campaign donors. Harrel W. Timmons, owner of Jet Air Inc., was not a Schock donor but said the investigator wanted to know about the lawmaker's flights on a plane owned by D&B Air, a Peoria aviation firm owned by a prominent Schock donor.

AP previously reported that Schock's use of the D&B plane appeared to violate congressional rules in place at the time prohibiting the use of office accounts to pay for private flights. Schock had used office expenses to pay $24,000 for eight flights in 2011 and 2012. Since mid-2011, Schock's office and campaign expenses paid for more than $40,000 worth of flights on planes owned by his political donors.

House ethics investigators typically stand down open inquiries once federal authorities open their own probe or when the House Ethics Committee orders a halt in the inquiry. The OCE had been authorized to continue its inquiry until Schock's planned March 31 resignation. His decision to quit has no impact on the FBI investigation.

Earlier this week, Schock's father, Richard, told an ABC reporter: "Two years from now he'll be successful, if he's not in jail."

"If you're going to investigate his real estate dealings, etc., then find out the facts," Richard Schock said. "The facts are what are going to convict him or exonerate him."

The AP reported last week that much of Schock's personal wealth, estimated at about $1.4 million, grew from a series of real estate deals involving other long-time political donors. Schock's political contributors built, financed and later purchased a house the lawmaker owned as an investment in Peoria. He owns a stake in a Peoria apartment complex involving other contributors. And he pushed for a federal appropriation that would have benefitted a donor's development project.

Schock's expenses came under scrutiny last month after the Washington Post reported that Schock had paid $40,000 from his House expense account for a lavish office redecoration modeled on decor depicted in the TV serial "Downton Abbey." Reports by Politico and other news organizations also singled out Schock's unusually high, personal reimbursements for auto mileage.

Schock responded to the growing scrutiny by paying back his office decorator $40,000. The day of his resignation, Schock also paid back his mileage expenses, but his spokesman did not say how much he had repaid.

In resigning abruptly on Tuesday, Schock cited a "heavy heart," following six weeks of revelations about his business deals. He said in a statement that the constant questions about his spending and business dealings had made it impossible to serve effectively as congressman.

House Speaker John Boehner was not informed of Schock's resignation before it was announced but has said he supported the decision to quit.

A spokeswoman for the Federal Elections Committee also confirmed Friday that staff lawyers were reviewing a complaint from a liberal-leaning watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The group complained Feb. 26 that two political committees associated with Schock paid more than $9,000 for flights on donor planes. The FEC does not investigate complaints until the full committee votes on the matter. That has not happened, the spokeswoman said.

US opens criminal inquiry of resigning Illinois congressman - Yahoo News

Boone County Board votes to remove sales tax sunset clause - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

BELVIDERE — Boone County residents probably thought the 0.5 percent public safety sales tax they have been paying since 2000 would be history come 2018.

• By Chris Green
  Rockford Register Star

  Posted Mar. 19, 2015 at 9:56 PM
  Updated at 8:18 AM

  Editor's note: This story was updated to correct the board on which Cathy Ward served. She was a 12-year member of the Boone County Board.

  BELVIDERE — Boone County residents probably thought the 0.5 percent public safety sales tax they have been paying since 2000 would be history come 2018.

  After all, that's what was promised in 1999, when proponents gathered public support for the tax as a means to pay off construction bonds for a $9.3 million jail expansion.

  However, the Boone County Board voted 8-4 Wednesday to remove the 2018 sunset clause by striking a sentence in a 2011 ordinance: "The bond payment will be satisfied in the year 2018, and at such time the County Board hereby pledges to repeal the public safety tax."

Boone County Board votes to remove sales tax sunset clause - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Were the Voters of Boone County “sold” a bundle of lies?

Below is the advertising circular use to “sell” the PSB sales tax referenda.  Is there any question that the sales tax was to be ended in twenty years, namely 2018?

Please note the ad’s answer regarding will the tax end.  Not a mere “yes” but three “yes’s”

Any excess money from the referendum shortens sunset.  But this did not happen.