Issues

Car Sharing

2011-03-24T18:58:29Z

Cook County owns and leases over 2,000 vehicles with no central fleet management. The cost of operating and maintaining this fleet increases every year with rising gas prices and deferred maintenance.
]]> In an attempt to consolidate spending on County vehicles and creatively reduce the County budget, I've suggested piggybacking on the Chicago's recent car sharing initiative and consolidating our fleet into a more effective pool car program. The flat hourly rate that would be paid for car sharing includes fuel, maintenance and insurance costs. Car sharing companies also provide opportunities to introduce hybrid, alternative fuel and environmentally innovative cars and vehicles into Cook County and Forest Preserve District fleets. We are working with the Purchasing Department and the Department of Contract Compliance to explore car sharing options for Cook County.

Public Safety

2011-03-24T18:37:13Z

In an effort to reduce neighborhood violence, I found funding for the first CeaseFire Program in Uptown to be administered through the Organization of the North East.
]]> Community stakeholders will be allowed to take the first step as a unified front to determine and put into action a comprehensive strategic plan to reduce the gun and gang violence.

Lobbyist Sunshine Initiative

2010-05-11T21:25:37Z

The County Ethics Ordinance, as it relates to lobbyists, has been tightened to capture more information about who is influencing county government. The Board of Commissioners reduced the perception of corruption by creating an online lobbyist reporting tool, simultaneously making reporting more convenient for lobbyists while organizing information into a searchable format.
]]> Lobbyist data is searchable by categories, such as subject matter, client and compensation. The web-based process allows for real-time reporting, whereby lobbyists are required to submit new client information within a day of being contracted or any lobbying activity.

Video Poker

2010-05-11T21:24:35Z

On July 13, 2009, Governor Quinn signed into law the largest capital bill in Illinois history. Although the bill (HB 2424) included funding for many critical projects, it also legalized video poker machines in bars and restaurants.

]]> In this scenario, when you say "the house always wins," we are talking about the state of Illinois. My concerns not only surround the legalities of the regulations. We need to look seriously at all the costs - social, law enforcement, legal - and make sure that those profiting from the expansion of gaming do not shift these heavy burdens to taxpayers and communities. I successfully worked with my fellow Commissioners on the Cook County Board to ban video poker from unincorporated Cook County and will continue to help other jurisdictions who are interested in passing a ban.

In January 2011, the Illinois Appellate Court overturned Governor Quinn's bill. I don't think this is going to be the end of the debate on video poker by any mean, but I think it will be a lot harder for it to pass on its own, mean not included in the bill with liquor and candy taxes, for example.

Budget

2010-05-11T21:23:35Z

Currently, Cook County is operating on a $3 billion budget and 24,000 employees. Budget transparency is critical for taxpayers who want to better understand where their tax dollars are being used. On February 25, 2011, the Cook County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the 2011 budget. In an effort to pass a balanced budget, all non-essential employees will take 5 furlough days and 5 "shut down" days County-wide. Citizens' Guide to the County Budget
After hearing from constituents, local neighborhood groups and Chambers that good information on the County budget was impossible to find, I created a "Citizens' Guide to the County Budget" and hosted local town hall meetings in neighborhoods throughout the 10th District. These meetings provided an opportunity for people to discuss the historically unapproachable and impenetrable budget on a local level. We presented a break down of the $3 billion budget into the information people need: where does the money come from, where does it go and who decides how it is spent. 10th District residents had fantastic questions and informative feedback and we hope to continue these local discussions in the future. Click here for the Citizens' Guide to the County 2010 Budget. We are in the process of updating the presentation to reflect the 2011 budget.

Sales Tax Rollback
The remaining portion of the Cook County sales tax hike is on its way out. On February 25, I, and the majority of the County Board voted to repeal the remaining half of the sales tax increase in full by 2013. Under the ordinance passed on the 25th, the County sales tax will drop by a quarter cent-on-the-dollar on January 1, 2012 and another quarter cent on January 1, 2013.

Sales Tax Survey
Currently, I am surveying small local businesses in the 10th district regarding the impact of local taxes on their sales and overall profits. The survey includes multiple choice questions that attempt to inform me and the County Board of the needs of local businesses and their ideas for increasing overall sales and job creation. Complete the Sales Tax Survey below.

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.

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Workers' Compensation Transparency

2010-05-11T21:22:17Z

Workers' Compensation claims at the County account for a significant amount of annual costs. In order to better track each claim, I have worked to have multiple claims from the same claimant attached to each new claim as it appears before the board.

]]> This will immediately bring greater transparency to how much the County spends on these settlements. We are also working with the Department of Capital Planning as they implement a new, county-wide time and attendance system to show exactly how much labor is lost to all forms of time off including, workers compensation, time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act, vacation and sick time.

Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation

2010-05-11T21:21:05Z

Working with the Chief Judge and local housing advocacy groups we were able to provide $3.5 million to start a mortgage foreclosure mediation program within the Cook County Court System. This program provides for legal assistance and mediation between lenders and homeowners. All of which helps members of the Cook County community remain in their homes.

]]> Between mid-April and early-December, the Mediation Program had fielded 20,600 calls to the hotline administered by the Illinois Housing Development Authority and scheduled 5, 740 appointments between Cook County residents and housing counselors. The success rate of complete mediations, meaning agreements reached between homeowner and a foreclosing lender was at 61% in early-December.

For more information, please visit http://cookcountyforeclosurehelp.org/.

Cook County Jail

2010-05-11T21:20:01Z

Recidivism is a top issue when discussing the Cook County Jail. Many times people are housed at the Cook County Jail because they simply cannot afford to post their bond, or have been arrested on non-violent offenses.

]]> Instead of jail, we need to identify the root cause whether it is drug abuse or mental illness to combat overcrowding and recidivism. One way to find these root issues is to implement specialty courts to address specific issues related to drug abuse, mental health and veterans' affairs. These courts have had dramatic success in reducing recidivism, whereby reducing cost and overcrowding at the jail. I have been working with the Appleseed Foundation and my colleague, Commissioner Earleen Collins, to create a diversion division within the Criminal Courts to reform the bond court process and permanently expand the existing diversion courts.

Risk Management at the Jail
Within the 2011 budget, I created and funded a Risk Manager position for the Cook County Jail. The responsibility of the Risk Manager will be to identify patterns at the jail before they become litigious and to create processes to ensure reaching and maintaining substantial compliance with the requirements set forth by the Department of Justice. Since 2000, the County has spent over $84 million on settlement claims, including $55 million that the County is now paying for civil rights violations stemming from illegal strip searches conducted at the jail. The County has also begun paying settlements for shackling pregnant women during delivery. Los Angeles County developed a risk management department which has decrease their litigation costs by $12 million annually.

Department of Women's Justice Services

2010-05-11T21:15:50Z

The vast majority of women in the Cook County Jail have been arrested for non-violent offenses. The Department of Women's Justice Services identifies women in the general jail population who suffer from mental illness and substance abuse, which is generally the reason they commit non-violent offenses, to provide necessary treatment that addresses both issues.

]]> We are working with DWJS to implement a more useful pre-trial services assessment tool so that we can identify the appropriate diversion programs and break the cycle of criminal behavior.

The MOMs program is also administered through the Department of Women's Justice Services. The program allows pregnant mothers and mothers with young children to remain with their children after giving birth, rather than separating mother and child. The program also provides parenting classes and supportive services to the women. In the 2010 budget, in partnership with the Haymarket Center, we were able to expand the MOMs program by eight beds so that fewer children are separated from their mothers.

I have also been working with Chicago Public Schools, the Department of Women's Justice Services, and the Pre-trial Services Division of Adult Probation to develop a link between mothers incarcerated at the jail and their children at CPS. Due to the fact that a child is likely to display emotional and behavioral problems as a result of a parents' incarceration, it is important that teachers and social workers are aware of this so that the child can receive the proper counseling services. It is also important that the mother and child are able to connect consistently with each other. Bringing programs like Skype into classrooms will allow this type of consistent connection to be established.

On average, there are 1,000 women in Cook County Jail everyday. This means there are thousands of children who require special attention while their mothers are detained. I'm hoping to cut the number of women in jail by half by developing a Diversion Court Division to coordinate and expand the specialty court model into five permanent courtrooms. This will allow the County to create an alternative for non-violent offenders to the costly revolving door of incarceration.

Forest Preserve

2010-05-11T21:11:59Z

The mission of the Cook County Forest Preserve is to restore, protect and preserve the natural forests that encompass the system. We will continue to work with community groups and the Friends of the Forest Preserve to ensure that the holdings of the Forest Preserve are protected and restored in accordance with best practices.

For more information on events and services, visit the Cook County Forest Preserve website.

Juvenile Temporary Detention Center

2010-05-11T21:08:58Z

The Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center is a residential facility for juveniles who have been arrested and are awaiting trial. There are approximately 400 young people between the ages of 10 and 17, 95% of whom are young men. The average stay is 28 days.

]]> Our office has two areas of concern and action at the JTDC: the CPS-run school inside the JTDC (Nancy B. Jefferson School) and the temporary status of the JTDC Administrator. NBJ School is inadequate when it comes to meeting the needs of the students.

I would like to bring together industry experts and advocates of juvenile justice and children's issues to run the JTDC in much the same way the Independent Board oversees the Cook County Hospital System.

The JTDC is currently run by a court appointed temporary administrator. The Temporary Administrator is working to change the culture at the JTDC to incorporate the necessary support that these children need by addressing that many of the children housed at the JTDC have no where else to go.

My office is also working on modifying the NBJ School within the JTDC. Although reading, writing and arithmetic are critical skills, many of the children at this school also crave alternative creative outlets for stress and anger management. Moreover, by incorporating basic life skills training that would include budgeting, sex education, and parenting classes, we can provide a solid foundation of life skills that translate directly into the real-world.

As with the Independent Board of the Cook County Hospitals, I strongly and vocally advocate for an independent board to run and monitor the specialized needs of the 400 children at the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center. I will submit a budget amendment for 2011 in that effort.

Arrestee Medical Cost Fund

2010-05-11T21:05:35Z

When a person is arrested by the Cook County Sheriff's department or is transferred to the Cook County Department of Corrections, their medical costs become the responsibility of the County, this is a Federal law.

]]> In cases where medical care is provided by someone other than the Cook County Health and Hospitals System, the county is billed at a fee for service rate. This results in a great cost for the County, especially when we pay uncompensated care on undisclosed rates to local hospitals. We are currently working with the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services to ensure that detainees receive quality care and the taxpayers pay a fair and efficient cost for that care.

STD Testing at Intake

2010-05-11T21:01:34Z

The people that come through the Cook County Jail are at higher risk for contracting and transmitting STDs. Until 2007, an STD test was a part of the intake process but because of a lack of space and medical concerns, the testing was halted. We wanted to be sure that testing resumed in the right way so that people can be properly screened, informed of their potential condition and assisted in their treatment.

]]> In the 2010 budget, we were able to secure funding to resume HIV and STD testing at the Cook County Jail. We worked with the Sheriff's Office and Facilities Management to design and build a new intake space that will provide the appropriate space and privacy to conduct thorough medical and mental health evaluations.