Illinois Budget Impasse Reality, at least one Center for Independent Living has closed its doors!

article by Jim Watkins, Ability Chicago Info | July 6, 2015

With the State of Illinois still at a impasse for budget, at least one Center for Independent Living has closed its doors for the duration of the budget impasse. This means at least a few hundred people with disabilities in the far northwest of Illinois have lost supports from that CIL.

Northwestern Illinois Center for Independent Living or NICIL in Sterling, IL. has had to make tough decisions over the years, but their decision on Thursday July 2, the toughest.

NICIL has been around for 30 years helping people with disabilities live on their own through programs they offer. They serve 300 people in five Illinois counties. Their contract with the state ended June 30th and with no budget set for next year, a new contract can’t start, forcing NICIL to close its doors and lay off eight employees.

NICIL has very little in reserves. If the budget isn’t passed by mid-September it will reopen until their reserves are gone, so they can save money now and use it later when there is a greater need for service in the fall.

“Every day for a person with disabilities can be difficult without support, so there’s no good day to cut off services,” said Michele Miller, executive director for NICIL.

Lawmakers are expected to return to the capital Tuesday, July 7th, to discuss the budget.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO CONTACT GOVERNOR RAUNER'S OFFICE, AND YOUR LEGISLATURES. MORE AGENCIES, AND SOCIAL SERVICES ORGANIZATIONS CAN BE PUT IN A POSITION TO CLOSE THEIR DOORS AS WE FACE THE ISSUES IN ILLINOIS.

AT THE VERY LEAST WE NEED A TEMPORARY STATE BUDGET - BUT ALSO SERVICES THAT EFFECT THOSE IN THE DISABILITY COMMUNITY OF ALL AGES ARE AT A REAL RISK OF REDUCTIONS, AND SOME SERVICES BEING TOTALLY ELIMINATED!

Illinois Citizens Protest at Thompson Center over Budget Standoff on July 1st

more from WGN 9 News Chicago - TY!
JULY 1, 2015, BY RACHAEL PURL, NANCY LOO AND JULIAN CREWS

CHICAGO — The new fiscal year kicks off today and the state of Illinois still has no approved budget.

Lawmakers are pitching a temporary one month spending plan today, but the governor’s office already is calling it “unconstitutional.”

Illinois now faces a partial government shutdown after Governor Rauner and democratic lawmakers broke off spending talks.

At the Thompson Center in Chicago, protesters are demanding lawmakers and the governor put citizens before politics.

They are worried social services will suffer the most in a budget standoff.


http://wgntv.com/2015/07/01/protesters-rally-at-thompson-center-over-budget-standoff/

As Illinois braces for Government Shutdown - 'Moral Monday' Activists Protest Gov. Rauner's Proposed Budget Cuts (VIDEO)

As the budget stalemate in Springfield continues, several grassroots activists and clergy with Fair Economy Illinois participated in an act of civil disobedience during a downtown Chicago protest for "fair share" state revenue options. Progress Illinois provides highlights from the "Moral Monday" demonstration, during which seven protesters were taken into police custody

###

wonderful article from Progress Illinois; by Ellyn Fortino | June 29, 2015

Seven Illinois activists participated in civil disobedience late Monday afternoon during a Chicago "Moral Monday" protest against Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner's proposed budget cuts. 

As part of the protest, a few hundred clergy and grassroots activists with Fair Economy Illinois marched from the Thompson Center to 131 S. Dearborn St., the downtown office building of Citadel LLC. The hedge fund firm's founder and CEO Ken Griffin has given Rauner millions in campaign donations.  

Seven protesters, including five religious leaders, were taken into Chicago police custody after refusing to leave the Citadel building lobby, where they held up a banner reading, "Rauner/Griffin. Fair Budget Now! No Cuts! Tax the Rich!"

Chicago police news affairs could not immediately confirm whether formal arrests were made during the protest.

During the demonstration, activists chanted, "Love thy neighbor as thyself. Tax the rich and share the wealth." They also staged a "die-in" outside the Citadel building while the seven protesters were being put into police vehicles. 

"The main message today is that we have a choice here in Illinois between cutting critical services for our fellow citizens, or we can actually raise revenue from those who are doing the most well-off -- the top 1 percent and corporations," said protester Drew Rindfleisch, pastor at San Lucas United Church of Christ in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood. 

Here's scenes from today's 'Moral Monday' protest, posted at YouTube by Progress Illinois:

The protest took place amid an ongoing stalemate between Democratic leaders and Rauner over a budget for the 2016 fiscal year, which begins July 1. The state government will begin to shut down if a new budget is not adopted by July 1.

In the 2016 fiscal year, the state faces a $6 billion budget deficit, due mostly to the rollback of the 2011 temporary income tax hike. Democrats want to see that budget hole closed with a combination of cuts and new revenues. Rauner -- whose fiscal plan calls for no new revenues and proposes deep cuts to a range of programs and services -- vetoed most of the Democrat-passed legislative budget proposal last week due to its $4 billion shortfall. Rauner did sign a budget bill for K-12 and early childhood education. 

The governor wants "structural reforms" adopted, like workers' compensation changes, tort reform and a property tax freeze, before new revenues are considered. Democrats, however, have described Rauner's proposals as extreme and consider them to be non-budgetary issues.

To avoid deep budget cuts, Fair Economy Illinois is advocating for "fair-share" revenue solutions, including a graduated income tax, a financial transaction tax and the closure of corporate tax "loopholes." 

"We're facing massive cuts across the board to education, health care, social services, and these cuts are entirely unnecessary," said Fair Economy Illinois leader Toby Chow. "This is a wealthy state. The problem is that the wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few ... If we tax those who can afford to pay more, the wealthy and large corporations who are very profitable, then there's more than enough money to not just support existing programs, but to even expand them."

With a government shutdown looming, Rindfleisch said people who depend on state services are concerned.

"Folks are going to lose their homeless shelters. They're gonna lose critical services around youth programs that make sure kids aren't on the streets," he said of the potential impacts of a government shutdown. "This is life and death for a lot of people."

Earlier this month, "Moral Monday" activists staged a similar protest against state budget cuts to critical programs. Seven people were arrested and another 20 were issued citations during that protest, which targeted the downtown office of billionaire investor and Rauner ally Sam Zell.

http://www.progressillinois.com/posts/content/2015/06/29/moral-monday-activists-protest-rauners-proposed-budget-cuts-participate

How State of Illinois Government Shutdown Will Affect Daily Lives

nice article breaking down how the state budget issues will effect our lives in Illinois. 
by Mike Riopell | The Daily Herald | June 28. 2015

Illinois government will keep the lights on Wednesday even if it can't immediately pay the electric bill.

State police will stay on the roads. State parks will stay open for the July 4 holiday. Gambling regulators will keep working, allowing casinos to stay open.

But suburban agencies that care for the disabled, for example, won't get paid by the state for work they do in July until Democratic lawmakers and Rauner end a budget feud that's been boiling since February.

Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner last week vetoed most of the budget sent to him by the Democrat-controlled legislature. When the new budget year starts on Wednesday, Illinois loses its ability to pay for anything.

In addition, the state's contract with its biggest employee union runs out Tuesday, but talks have been extended by a month. If Rauner's office and union leaders don't work things out soon, a strike or lockout is eventually possible.

Though few people will feel immediate effects, pressure will start to mount midmonth as the July 15 payroll approaches, vendors start sending bills that can't be paid and agencies that care for the poor and disabled start reducing services because they don't know when it will end.

"The longer this plays out, the worse it's going to be," said Kim Zoeller, CEO of Lisle-based Ray Graham Association.

Many nonprofits that have contracts with the state keep little cash on hand, so the length of Illinois' budget fight will be critically important. Some can operate for a while without payment, knowing money will be coming eventually. Other, smaller organizations could start having trouble sooner.

Illinois has long had a large backlog of bills for such services and can keep paying the ones that have piled up since April, May, June or earlier, helping them with cash flow.

Rauner's administration will keep state workers on the job. In the suburbs, that means youth prisons in Warrenville and St. Charles will keep running for the duration. 

Expenses -- payroll, food for prisoners, medical bills -- will be paid for eventually once a budget deal is reached. But not before.

Elsewhere, "the state police will continue our mission," Master Sgt. Matt Boerwinkle said.

"I have heard nothing but business as usual," Illinois Gaming Board spokesman Gene O'Shea said.

Rauner already has signed Democrats' education spending plan, ending the threat of schools not opening their doors in August. Eliminating that point of pressure could open the door for a protracted state shutdown.

Even though the state won't have legal authority to pay most salaries beginning Wednesday, a court order could eventually force Comptroller Leslie Munger to cut the checks anyway, removing another pressure point that would encourage officials to cut a deal quickly.

Such stopgaps won't relieve local caretakers of uncertainty, though. Zoeller says her agency likely will cut respite services for 350 families of disabled people on Wednesday if there's no budget agreement.

She said her group and others like it just don't know if money for the program eventually will be available. Rauner's original budget plan wiped out money for respite, a program that helps care for disabled children while their parents take care of daily tasks.Democrats' budget put some of the money back, but it was vetoed.

Zoeller said Ray Graham can't spend money it might not ever recoup from the state. And until Rauner inks a budget that lawmakers have sent him, she won't know for sure how much money is coming.

"It's holding people with disabilities and their families hostage," she said.

The standoff arose after Democrats sent Rauner a budget that was more than $3 billion in the red and he vetoed most of it. Some top Democrats argue state taxes need to be raised to cover expenses after a drop in the state income tax rate from 5 percent to 3.75 percent for individuals earlier this year. Rauner wants lawmakers to approve parts of his pro-business agenda -- including a two-year property tax freeze -- before he'll talk about tax increases.

"Despite the fact (House Speaker Michael) Madigan and the politicians he controls have left the state of Illinois in flux by passing an unbalanced budget the governor was forced to veto, Gov. Rauner will manage state government as efficiently as possible while working toward reforming state government and passing a balanced budget," Rauner spokesman Lance Trover said.

Democrats have scheduled a hearing for Tuesday about the effects of a shutdown.

"Too often do the politicians proposing irresponsible cuts forget that there are real human faces behind the budgetary numbers and lives that will be forever changed by careless decisions," Democratic state Rep. Fred Crespo of Hoffman Estates said.

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20150628/news/150629131/

Illinois Budget Update and Call-In Meeting July 7th

as shared by Illinois Partners for Human Service.

Call-In Meeting scheduled for Monday, July 6th at 2:00 p.m. has been RESCHEDULED for TUESDAY, JULY 7th at 2:00 p.m.

Illinois Partners:  Yesterday Governor Rauner vetoed 19 of the 22 budget bills including all the human service appropriations bills. The General Assembly will be in session next Tuesday but it is unlikely that they will be prepared to pass a new budget or to take action on the Governor's legislative proposals. Many of the Human Service State Agencies began issuing contracts though some do not specify funding levels. Other contracts have dollar amounts inserted. Some providers were specifically told regardless of when the budget is signed they will be paid retro-active to July 1st. Other communications clearly state that there is no guarantee they will be paid retro-actively to July 1st. Providers are being told to return their contracts either by end of yesterday or by June 30th.  The timing question is one major area of concern: without a passed state budget many areas of human services are not guaranteed payment without the appropriation authority in place. So how long can one continue to meet payroll and other expenses without receiving payment? Additionally, even with a signed, agreed budget, there is a very real possibility that the administration will continue to make damaging changes by limiting the ability of individuals to enroll in services or severely curtailing them altogether. (These are policy changes!)  If you have a current contract and did not receive notification in writing about the status of the program, you will need to request in writing from the State agency, confirmation that they want you to continue to provide services and the rate at which that will be provided. You should assume that, absent a contract that states that it is effective beyond July 1, 2015, your program is no longer being funded by the state. Next steps in advocacy:   1) Email Judith information about those contracts which have been renewed and those which have not been as of Monday evening so that we can better talk about the impact statewide.     2) Email information about the stress of delayed payments due to the budget impasse.   3) Keep your voice strong about the impact of cutting human services and the impact of the budget impasse on human service organizations by meeting with your local leaders, writing letters to the editor, speaking with local business leaders and community leaders!  Please email Judith the outcomes of this outreach!   We have successes: last week's statewide call with Representative Patti Bellock and Senator Daniel Biss led to clarity in some of the State contracts about payments being retroactive to July 1st in the event of a continued budget impasse and at least ten Illinois Partners' members have been quoted in the press including Judith in the Chicago Tribune. Thank you!!! SAVE THE DATE:  Tuesday, July 7th at 2:00 p.m. Comptroller Munger will join us. Please send any questions for the Comptroller to Judith@illinoispartners.org  by close of business Wednesday July 1st so that we can pass them along before the holiday weekend.   Call-In Information: 877-475-9088  896-105-1154    Thank you for all you are doing.  Please keep letting us know what your plans are beginning July 1st.  With appreciation,  Judith Gethner, Executive Director  Illinois Partners for Human Service

Illinois Budget Cuts - Mental Health, Disability Services In Jeopardy For 26,000 Illinoisan Citizens

TY to All for sharing nice article published by the Illinois Observer!

Posted by: IO News Staff on June 24, 2015(Chicago) – The failure of Illinois state leaders to adopt a new budget has prompted service shutdown planning for nearly 26,000 mentally ill adults and children.

“Without a budget or clear direction from state agencies, the consequences will be severe,” Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities (IARF) President and CEO Janet Stover said on Tuesday. “Tens of thousands will lose service, and thousands more will be sent to the unemployment line as these predominately not-for-profit organizations struggle to stay afloat.”

A survey of community service providers by Stover’s trade association estimates that 25,812 individuals with developmental disabilities and/or serious mental illnesses will gradually begin to lose or to experience a reduction in community-based services after July 1 with no fiscal year 2016 state budget in place by June 30.

IARF also estimates employee layoffs will top 5,000.
“Nearly 43% of our ID/DD service provider members and 34% of our mental health provider members have projected they will need to terminate services to clients and lay off staff,” Stover said.

They IARF survey identified five categories where care would be ended or reduced:

• 3,050 individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities will lose access to or experience reduced services through grant funded programs such as respite, dental services, epilepsy, and the Autism Program of Illinois.
• 6,669 individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities will lose access to or experience reduced services through Medicaid waiver funded programs, such as group homes, developmental training, and home-based services and supports.
• 324 adults with severe and profound intellectual/developmental disabilities will lose access to 24-hour active treatment.
• 7,611 adults with serious mental illnesses will lose access to or experience reduced services through grant funded programs such as psychiatry, care coordination, crisis, supervised, and supported residential services and housing.
• 906 adults with serious mental illnesses will lose access to or experience reduced evidence-based community mental health Medicaid services and supports.

Meanwhile, Illinois Department of Human Services Secretary James Dimas on Tuesday notified community providers that state contract renewals will be sent out by the end of the week, but not every agency will receive a renewal, contract amounts may be modified, and actual payment will be halted after July 1.

“Some Providers and programs will be issued a CSA (Community Service Agreement) for this year, but some will not,” Dimas wrote in a June 23 letter to providers. “For those that do receive a CSA for this year, the very real possibility remains that either: (i) the amount and availability of the grant will be modified, or (ii) payments to your organization will not begin until the fiscal situation is resolved.”

Dimas also warned that any services provided by those agencies that receive no contract will receive no approval for payment.

“For those organizations or programs with which IDHS is unable to enter into a CSA at this time, no payment will be approved for any activities performed on or after July 1, 2015,” Dimas wrote.

Dimas also gave no hint about when a resolution of the budget stalemate between Republican Governor Bruce Rauner and the Democratic-controlled legislature might be achieved.

“There is a great deal of uncertainty as to both when, and at what amount, funds will be made available for this coming year,” Dimas noted.

Stover, however, warned that the budget uncertainty has forced community providers to begin preparing shutdown plans, plans that are mandated by law.

“These providers are making decisions now on when they will exhaust reserves and lines of credit and when they will need to inform individuals, families, and the state of termination of services and closures,” said Stover. “These decisions are being planned right now, and we see a very clear timeline of the system dismantling.”

In the meantime, Stover is urging the governor and lawmakers to pull back from the brink and adopt a temporary budget.

“It is long past time for the General Assembly and the Governor to Commit to the Community and reach agreement on an FY16 budget that includes revenue to fully fund community-based services and supports,” Stover said. “While negotiations continue, we urge our government leaders to agree on a temporary budget to ensure the catastrophe we have projected will not occur, individuals and families keep their critical services without interruption, and layoffs are prevented.”

While some Democratic lawmakers are open to the idea of a temporary budget, Rauner, who has launched a two-week, $2 million TV Ad campaign attacking House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago) over the stalemate, complicating a budget resolution, has dismissed the idea.

Lawmakers return to Springfield next week.
Meanwhile, today, representatives from 30 local community organizations, who are members of the Responsible Budget Coalition, will rally at the Thompson Center on Wednesday morning at 11:15 a.m. to urge the governor and lawmakers to avoid budget cuts and raise taxes to fill the $6 billion budget hole.

Additionally, on Thursday, lawmakers from the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus will hold a rally with community groups at 5071 W. Congress in Chicago highlighting their opposition to Rauner’s proposed budget cuts.

http://www.illinoisobserver.net/2015/06/24/illinois-providers-prepare-shutdown-plans-26000-mentally-ill-adults-kids/newsdesk@illinoisobserver.net

(*Note to Political Insiders: The Illinois Observer also offers our exclusive, subscriber-only e-newsletter – The Insider – to, well, Illinois political insiders. Each Tuesday and Friday at 6:00 a.m. The Insider arrives in e-mail boxes with the choicest Illinois, Cook County, and Chicago political gossip, insider information, and news tips. For more information and a free, 4-week trial subscription to The Insider, please go here).

Illinoisans Speaking Out Across State on Severe Budget Cuts We All Face

The following information was shared by many of our colleagues throughout Illinois. 
The Important Updates from Access Living will continue to link us together throughout Illinois.Please continue to share information as we the disability community in Illinois continue together in this year we all face real budget cuts, and elimination of programs that will effect our independence.

Dear Access Living friends and allies,

This past Monday (06/22), Representative Robin Gabel held a town hall in Evanston with the Center for Independent Futures and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office to discuss disability rights. Many people in the audience had questions about the state budget, including whether payments for home care workers and the Home Based Services and Supports program would stop (too early to tell, is the answer).

 

Also on Monday night, Representative Michelle Mussman hosted a town hall on the budget in Hoffman Estates. Many parents of people with disabilities expressed concerns there.

 

Last night in Naperville, Senator Mike Connelly and Representative Grant Wehrli held a town hall on the budget cuts that reportedly attracted several hundred people, mostly seniors and people with disabilities.

 

This morning in Chicago, the Responsible Budget Coalition held an excellent press conference on the impact of possible human service cuts to many providers, who could be forced to reduce hours, lay off staff or close down completely.

 

This afternoon in Rochelle, Lutheran Social Services of Illinois is facilitating a roundtable discussion on the budget cuts and human services.

 

This evening, Senator Heather Steans, Representative Greg Harris and Representative Kelly Cassidy will hold a town hall at St. Andrew’s from 7 pm to 8:30, at 5649 N. Sheridan Road in Chicago.

 

Tomorrow, June 25, from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm is the Community Values Rally hosted by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus at 5071 W. Congress Parkway in Chicago.

 

Also tomorrow, June 25, Bloomington area disability advocates will host a press conference at 11 am in front of the Old Courthouse at 200 N. Main in Bloomington.

 

On Monday, June 29, Representative Stephanie Kifowit will hold a Community Meeting on the State Budget inOswego from 6 to 7:30 pm. It will be in the Community Room at Oswego East High School, at 1525 Harvey Road. For more info call 630-585-1308.

 

Also on Monday June 29, Senator Julie Morrison and Representative Elaine Nekritz will host a community meeting from 6 pm to 7:30 pm at the Northbrook library, 1201 Cedar Lane, Northbrook. For more info call 847-945-5200 or 847-229-5499.

 

On July 2, Representative Ann Williams will host a town hall on the budget from 6 pm to 7:30 pm at the Lincoln-Belmont Library, 1659 W. Melrose, Chicago.

 

Please continue to send me reports of upcoming town halls or press conferences around the state, focusing on the state budget, or events that happened in the last week. Remember that you can check your state senator and state representative’s offices to see if they are having community events. If you do not know your state senator and your state representative, use this link to look them up. It is so important for people with disabilities and seniors to be at these events to represent yourselves, especially with problems like the DON score change, cuts to Chicago paratransit, and other cuts affecting us all around the state. Speak up, speak out.

Let’s go Illinois!

 

Amber Smock

Director of Advocacy, Access Living

Illinois Energy Assistance at Risk: a LIHEAP Town Hall meeting - Chicago on June 29th

Illinois Governor Rauner (R) proposed budget cuts and reluctance to sign a responsible budget based on shared sacrifice are already resulting in real consequences for Illinois residents, particularly the most vulnerable among us.

Monday June 29th at 6 p.m. at Antioch Missionary Baptist Church (6248 S. Stewart), Senator Mattie Hunter, Senator Jacqueline Y. Collins, Representative Esther Golar, the Englewood Coalition AD-HOC Group will hold a town hall meeting to discuss one of the ways in which hundreds of thousands of Families, Seniors, and People with Disabilities will suffer if the governor's proposals take effect. Gov. Rauner intends to eliminate the state's Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps 300,000 Illinois residents afford their utility bills, avoiding the health risks of extreme heat and cold.

Hear from the experts, ask questions and tell us what energy assistance means to you or your neighbors as we seek to better represent your concerns to our colleagues and the governor at a critical time in state government.

Please also consider joining members of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus June 25, 2015 from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at Chicago State University (Douglas Hall) 5071 W. Congress Parkway for a rally against the Rauner cuts. 

And don't forget to call the Governor at (312) 814-2121 or write to him here to voice your opinion about his attack on social services from LIHEAP to breast cancer screenings to summer jobs for at-risk youth and many more.

Illinois Voters Strongly Oppose Gov. Rauner’s Home-care and Child-care Cuts

SEIU Healthcare recently contacted  Hart Research to conduct a poll of Illinois citizens on the issue of Governor Rauner's (R) proposed Home-care and Child-care Cuts. A overview of the results has been released,  but the actual polling questions were not included in the summary. 
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MEMORANDUMTO: Interested Parties
FROM: Geoff Garin
DATE: June 15, 2015
RE: Voters Strongly Oppose Rauner’s Home-care and Child-care Cuts

Overview

Our recent survey of 1,051 voters in Illinois shows that there is an overwhelmingly negative reaction to Bruce Rauner’s proposed cuts to state home-care and child- care programs. Opposition to Rauner’s cuts crosses party lines, suggesting that legislators who back his cuts would be put in significant jeopardy regardless of the party composition of their districts.

Rauner already has deep vulnerabilities with Illinois voters because he is perceived to be more interested in doing what’s best for the wealthy and big corporations than in doing what’s best for average people in the state. Rauner’s proposed cuts to home care and child care exacerbate these vulnerabilities, as do his efforts to undercut the workers who provide these services. The survey results show that by a lopsided margin Illinois voters are more likely to side with home-care and child- care providers than with Governor Rauner in a major policy disagreement.

Key Findings

1. There is strong opposition across party lines when voters hear about Bruce Rauner’s proposed cuts to state home-care and child-care programs.

Fully 73% of all voters in Illinois say they would have an unfavorable reaction if they heard that Governor Rauner wants to make large cuts in state government funding for in-home assistance for seniors and people with disabilities, including 53% who are very unfavorable. Similarly, 68% react unfavorably upon hearing that Governor Rauner wants to make major cuts in government support for child care, including 47% who are very unfavorable.

Large pluralities of Democrats, independents, and Republicans react unfavorably to Rauner’s proposed cuts to home-care and child-care programs.

Rauner’s proposed cuts to home care and child care are unpopular even among those who recall voting for him last year. Rauner voters are unfavorable to his home-care cuts by 51% to 20%, and are unfavorable to his child-care cuts by 46% to 26%.

Negative reactions to Governor Rauner’s policies extend to his contract proposals for home-care and child-care providers.

74% are unfavorable to his proposal to cut or totally eliminate health insurance for home-care and child-care providers.
74% are unfavorable to his proposal to eliminate reimbursement for equipment, protective garments, and supplies (including latex gloves) for home-care providers.
73% are unfavorable to his proposal to eliminate training and professional development for home-care and child-care providers.
62% are unfavorable to his proposals to freeze the pay for home-care and child-care workers.

2. Illinois voters already are skeptical about Bruce Rauner when it comes to caring about people like them or understanding the challenges of working-class families, and the plurality say he is more interested in the wealthy and big corporations than in what’s best for average people. These negative perceptions create a significant vulnerability for Rauner in the debate on home care and child care.

Just 40% of voters in Illinois have confidence in Bruce Rauner when it comes to looking out for the middle class, while 50% have doubts about him.

Similarly, by 50% to 41%, voters express doubts about him on “caring about people like you.” Rauner especially lacks credibility with voters on understanding the challenges faced by low-wage workers and working-class families, with 58% expressing doubts about him.

When asked which matters more to Bruce Rauner, only 31% say his priority is doing what’s best for average people in Illinois, while 46% say he is more interested in doing what’s best for the wealthy and big corporations.

3. Voters in Illinois have positive feelings about home-care and child-care providers. In a fight between these providers and Governor Rauner, voters in Illinois side with home-care and child-care providers by a margin of close to three to one. Voters support the right of home-care and child-care workers to have a union, and they react unfavorably to aspects of Rauner’s contract proposals that would weaken the union.

Fully 75% of Illinois voters report having a positive opinion of child-care providers, and 72% are similarly positive to home-care providers. In a dispute between Governor Rauner and home-care and child-care providers, only 21% of voters say they would side with Rauner, while 61% say they would side with the home-care and child-care workers.

By 60% to 29%, voters support home-care and child-care providers being represented by a union to negotiate with the state on issues involving pay, benefits, working conditions, and training. Sixty percent (60%) of voters react unfavorably (including 45% who are very unfavorable) when they hear that Governor Rauner wants to weaken the union that represents home-care and child-care providers, and 66% are unfavorable when they hear that he wants to stop home-care and child- care providers from joining together to have a voice at work.

Voters are not persuaded by a defense that Rauner’s proposals are necessary because the state budget is “out of control” and that average taxpayers will end up paying the price “if we don’t take action now to hold the line on excessive union contracts.” Surprisingly, 60% say this line of argument makes them no more likely at all to support Governor Rauner’s proposals.

Given these results, it is safe to assume that voters across Illinois want their state legislators to stand with home-care and child-care providers instead of Bruce Rauner, and that those legislators who instead align themselves with Rauner’s unpopular policies would be creating significant political jeopardy for themselves.

The results in this memo are based on telephone interviews with 1,051 likely voters in the 2016 elections in Illinois. The interviews were conducted from June 2 to 7, 2015, and the statewide sample provides a representative cross section of the Illinois electorate.

Clergy, Seniors, Children, Minorities, Disabled March on Billionaires Ally of Illinois Governor Rauner

A demonstrator dressed as a camel attempts to pass through the eye of a needle in a demonstration of clergy and activists against billionaire Sam Zell, ally to near-billionaire Illinois Governor Rauner.   (Martin de Bourmont)

Clergy March on Billionaires as Moral Mondays Come to Chicago

article by MARTIN DE BOURMONT | IN THESE TIMES | June 16, 2015

Rain fell steadily in front of 2 N. Riverside Plaza in downtown Chicago Monday morning as police herded 28 clergy and grassroots activists into a police van. The activists, including Chicago’s Lutheran Bishop Wayne Miller, rallied before marching on the corporate headquarters of billionaire Sam Zell who is chairman of the Chicago-based private investment firm Equity Group Investments and a former owner of the Chicago Tribune, as part of Chicago’s third “Moral Mondays” demonstration.

“It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a man who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven,” said Bishop Miller, beginning with a few verses from Matthew 19 and referencing the immense wealth of both Zell and near-billionaire Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, who has proposed immense state budget cuts the activists oppose.

Yet hope still existed for the two, Miller added, in repentance. “You will never get a camel through the eye if you are not aiming in the right place. Rauner, you are off the mark!” he stated.

Zell, a supporter of Gov. Rauner, awarded $4 million to Turnaround Illinois, a Rauner-allied super political action committee that supports banning political donations by government worker unions and asserts the authority of local governing bodies to decide which workplace topics union members can bargain over. Most controversial and far-reaching of the policies submitted by Turnaround Illinois are the massive cuts proposed for health care, education and public transit.

Defined by civil disobedience and peaceful arrests, “Moral Mondays” protests were first launched by religious leaders and community activists in North Carolina in April 2013 as a means of protesting Republican Gov. Pat McCrory’s imposition of cuts to social programs, restrictions to abortion rights and the reversal of the 2009 Racial Justice Act. The first Moral Monday action took place in Chicago in 2013, when Chicagoans protested the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) 40th anniversary meeting at Chicago’s Palmer House.

Tony Chow delivering open remarks.
Jim Watkins (wheelchair), Ability Chicago Info.
photo: Jane Addams Senior Caucus 

As the demonstration began earlier that morning, marchers listened to Toby Chow — a seminary student and vicar at the First Lutheran Church of the Trinity in Bridgeport and a co-chair of Fair Economy Illinois — deliver the demonstration’s opening remarks.

“We are prepared to employ civil disobedience, or, as we like to call it, divine obedience,” said Chow, referencing Christianity’s emphasis on generosity, charity and solidarity with the poor and vulnerable.

Once in front of Zell’s corporate headquarters at 2 N Riverside Plaza, activists blocked an intersection and the building’s entryway. While occupying the intersection, the activists staged a piece of street theater in which two actors dressed as a camel laden with money bags attempted to pass through the eye of a gigantic needle. Twenty-one activists, including the camel, were arrested in the street, and seven more were taken into custody for “criminal trespassing” after occupying the entryway to the Riverside Plaza Building.

Children, minorities, seniors and the disabled would bear the brunt of the cuts proposed by Turnaround Illinois, said Jim Watkins, a disability activist responsible for founding Ability Chicago Info, a blog devoted to coverage of local disability issues.

“Take the proposals to cut the funding for paratransit by $4 million in Northeastern Illinois,” he told In These Times as the rally began. “By doing so, we are looking at $5 per ride or $10 round trip. Just to go to get food, maybe to go to a doctor’s. Many people are living on minimum income. That could be half a week of food a month.”

Organized by Fair Economy Illinois along with members of Chicago’s Judeo-Christian clergy, the “Moral Mondays” demonstration protested these “deadly” budget cuts and corporate tax loopholes, which, according to Fair Economy Illinois, cost the state more than $ 1.5 billion annually.

Reflecting the concerns voiced at last week’s Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) demonstration, the activists demanded the implementation of a tax on buyers and sellers of futures as well as futures options and security options contracts traded on the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Mercantile Exchange. According to CTU president Karen Lewis, these taxes could create up to $10 billion in revenue for the state of Illinois.

Rauner, say the activists, defends the interests of corporations and the very rich at the expense of Illinois’s poor and middle class residents. “It’s not unique to Illinois,” explained Rabbi Brant Rosen, the Midwest regional director of the American Friends Service Committee. “There’s a movement of the 1%, of the super rich and large corporations that see themselves as exempt from paying there fair share to recreate state budgets so that the state’s most vulnerable—the elderly, the infirm, children—are left without a safety net.”

When asked if they feared the prospect of arrest, the activists In These Times spoke to responded with equanimity.

“I’m not worried about being arrested,” said one young activist and Chicago resident at the rally who gave his only his first name, Robert. “There are millions of people within the state of Illinois, some people who need a trauma center, some people who need jobs, people who need a social safety net. We need a world in which we’re not taking money away from them but creating a social safety net.”

MARTIN DE BOURMONT

Martin de Bourmont is a Summer 2015 editorial intern at In These Times. He graduated from Dickinson College with a bachelor's in political science and previously worked as an editorial intern for La Croix in France.

http://inthesetimes.com/working/entry/18075/clergy_march_on_billionaires_as_moral_mondays_come_to_chicago