The Week Ahead 12/31 - 1/6

I'm posting an image link to the clickable PDF weekly calendar at the County main website again:

The 2018 schedule is up on the Calendar page and the County page. The regular County Board meetings are back to Thursdays until next holiday season. This week starts off with a couple swearing in ceremonies and an amendment on solar farms according to the Environmental and Land Use Committee agenda.

The real excitement probably starts next Tuesday with the Committee of the Whole looking at where they landed in from 2017 and towards the financial hurdles and goals of 2018 in an election year full of State and federal issues that could squeeze local budgets even harder!

If you're curious about learning more about how your county government works, it's easy enough to live stream a meeting or go in person: Attend a Meeting.

*Meeting is broadcast live on Comcast Public Access and at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/champco1776

Where is Brookens?

Brookens Administrative Center
1776 East Washington Street
Urbana, Illinois 61802-4581
Phone: 217-384-3772

After 4:30 the Washington Street side Parking Lot is Closed See Maps for the North East Parking Lot Access

The Year Ahead

First of all: Vote!

Upcoming Elections:
Primary: March 20, 2018
General: November 6, 2018

But be informed when you do it! Tom Kacich laid out some of the promises and statements at various levels of our government by the politicians we can either hold accountable to their word or slip by another year. This year is an election year so expect a lot of big talk overshadowing real record. Here are the excerpts about the county:

Tom Kacich: Officials at all levels of government look ahead to 2018

Remember how Congress and the Trump administration couldn't get anything done all year until the GOP tax plan was passed in December, how the Illinois Legislature and Gov. Bruce Rauner couldn't get a budget passed for more than two years and how the Champaign County Board couldn't get anything done about the financially plagued county nursing home?

Next year should be better, your elected officials say.

The nursing home "will have to be dealt with," said county board Chairman C. Pius Weibel...

Perhaps this will be a year of action.

At the county level, a decision on putting the nursing home up for sale "is a possibility," Weibel said coyly.

"Obviously, the nursing home issue is one that will have to be dealt with" in 2018, he said.

"We also need to find direction on the downtown jail. We've talked about it, but we've never really said this is what we're going to do and how we're going to do it," said the county board chairman who is not running for re-election.

There's plenty of county board support for closing the jail, he said, but there's no consensus on whether to add onto the satellite jail in east Urbana.

"I would like to close it, but you have to have a plan to do that," he said. "It's an old building that is taking a lot of money. It has ADA problems. Plus, it's inefficient both from an operations viewpoint and a financial viewpoint."

All politics may be local, but a lot of our local politics is a nightmare because State and federal funding that, regardless of your political philosophy, involves your tax dollars coming back to fund basic services most of us do want and support through those local governments. When the State and federal government cut funding they rely on without any alternative, the people who rely on them to keep our communities safe and taken care of during the worst of times are devastated.

Local politicians sometimes like to talk about local government as if it is in a bubble. All of it is connected. Get the whole story and demand it acts in your interests, not their party's.

Jimmy John's Owner Aids Local Criminal Justice Program

A program designed to keep kids out of the criminal justice system is getting a new home, thanks to a donation from a local business owner. From the WCIA news Illinois Hompage.net:

Donation provides new home for youth program

State's Attorney Julia Reitz announced Jimmy John Liautaud and his wife gave $50,000 to support the Champaign County Youth Assessment Center. It needs to find a new facility.

It was using space, rent free, from Unit 4, but district leaders say they now need that space.

Jimmy John's sandwich restaurant chain is owned by the same. The Chicago Tribune had an interview with and about him recently about his business and him no longer big game hunting after a controversy that still haunts his image to this day.. As far as PR goes, this is certainly better than the news about his chain this time last year when he was settling a labor dispute with the Attorney General.

Regardless of any speculation on his motivations this was a definite need of a local program that has had objective results, so in the end a welcome bit of philanthropy this holiday season.

Nursing Home Lawsuit and County Board Summary

[UPDATE 12/22: Notes from the meeting added below (jump to here). Also the County Clerk uploaded the video, available here: https://www.youtube.com/user/champaigncountyclerk ]

In the ever dire news of the Nursing Home debt, a vendor is suing over a chunk of the roughly $2.7 million owed to vendors overall (not including subsidizing loans from the County or other budget issues). Excerpt from the N-G:

Former county nursing home vendor sues over $235,000 in unpaid bills

A Pennsylvania-based company that once provided dietary and housekeeping services at the Champaign County Nursing Home has filed suit against the nursing home and the county, alleging breach of contract and asking to be paid about $235,000.

Health Care Services Group of Bucks County, Pa., filed the lawsuit earlier this month, saying that the nursing home was behind in its payments.

According to the suit, the nursing home was to pay HCSG $60,955 a month for services provided. But as of Oct. 31, the suit said, the county owed the company $234,622.

Last week, in a report to the county board, County Auditor John Farney said that HCSG had been owed $234,610 on Nov. 8 but that by Dec. 12, the sum had been reduced to $182,278 after a payment on Nov. 29.

In the County Board meeting, the N-G had a summary, excerpts with a quick run down quoted below:

Champaign County Board OKs hiring law firms to sue opioid makers

Champaign County Board members voted unanimously Tuesday to join other Illinois counties that have hired law firms to pursue claims against drug makers believed to be partly responsible for the nation's opioid crisis.

The 21-0 vote came without debate.

Under the agreement, three Illinois law firms will split 25 percent of the gross amount recovered on behalf of the county...

Meanwhile, the board deferred action until January on two items related to the county-owned nursing home.

One was to renew $500,000 in loans from the county's general corporate fund to the home. The original terms said they had to be repaid by Dec. 31.

The second item calls for the issuance of more than $1 million in tax-anticipation warrants —essentially short-term loans to be repaid with property-tax revenue in the spring — to help the nursing home's cash-flow problems.

Champaign Republican Jim McGuire said he asked for the deferral on the nursing home issues because "we just need more time to accomplish some things. There is a lot going on in the background, and we just weren't ready tonight."

"We're discussing things and working together to get some things accomplished," McGuire said. "Some financial issues have come up, and we're just waiting to see what happens. We're trying to settle things down. We're getting there, but we're not there yet, so in January we hope to get some things accomplished."

Board members also approved, 19-1, the county's participation in an application to establish a land bank that advocates say would be a more efficient way of acquiring blighted properties and redeveloping them. The village of Rantoul is the lead agency in the application to the Illinois Housing Development Authority, along with the cities of Champaign and Urbana and the county. One goal of the land bank, said county zoning director John Hall, is to make the agency self-sustaining.

Also Tuesday night, the board approved the appointments of Richard Barnes of Urbana to the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District board; Susan Fowler and Thom Moore, both of Champaign, to the county mental health board; and county board Republican Diane Michaels of Rantoul as the new county auditor, effective Jan. 1. She succeeds John Farney, who will become the county treasurer, replacing Dan Welch, who is retiring after 19 years in that position.

Also, the board named a five-person committee to review the upcoming transition to a county-executive form of government. Champaign County will elect a partisan county executive next November, and the powerful position will become effective in December 2018. Appointed to the committee were Democrats C. Pius Weibel, Kyle Patterson and Steve Summers, and Republicans Jim Goss and McGuire.

Board member James Tinsley, an Urbana Democrat, was absent from Tuesday's meeting.

Amy's 12/19 County Board Notes:

The January County Facilities Committee meeting (scheduled for Jan. 2) was canceled. No public participation at this meeting. During the Communications portion, upcoming events that were announced include a January 12 Martin Luther King event at Vineyard Church in Urbana and a February 25 Art Fair organized by the Friends of the Champaign County Nursing Home.

During the Finance portion of the meeting, resolutions 10187 and 10188 both received a motion to defer the decision to January. Both times, the motion was raised by Councilman McGuire and passed on a voice vote.

Resolution 10186, Authorizing Purchases Not Following Purchasing Policy was for several thousand dollars in extra Nursing Home supplies (from janitorial, soap, etc) according to the full agenda. The motion passed.

Resolution 10191 Establishing a County Executive Style of Government Transition Committee was approved. Wiebel said that the committee would consist of Patterson, Summer, McGuire, Goss and Wiebel.

Three agenda items of the night received the most discussion.

The first was Environment and Land Use Resolution 10166 Authorizing Champaign County Participation in a Joint Application with Municipalities for the Illinois Housing Development Authority Land Bank Capacity Program. I believe that Esry gave the presentation and stated that the short notice to this request was due to a grant deadline of 1/15. This grant will offset the costs of creating an operating land bank to more efficiently address and dispose of damaged properties. Rantoul will lead the agency, with duties to include a feasibility analysis, developing operational plans, and initiating the land bank. It is anticipated that the agency will become self-supporting through income from the land bank with no cost to the cities involved. Questions were raised to Mr. Hall (Head of Planning and Zoning Department) regarding whether or not a board would be established and questions about liability issues.

The second were the Rural Transit Service Report for FY2017 and the approval of a Budget Amendment for State Capital Grant toward Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Software to improve services. Zoe Keller reported on the implementation and growing ridership of the Rantoul Deviated-Fixed Route, available for just over a year.

The third was regarding Resolution 10195 to pursue claims against opioid manufacturers. This was pretty well covered by the News Gazette. The only addition that I’d add is, as Council member Furtado pointed out, this request is rather timely given last week’s COW approval of additional funds to the coroner’s office needed to fund, in part, the increased number of tests for an ever-changing range of opioid compositions on the street.

Committee of the Whole - N-G

Video of the the 12/12 meeting is available at the Champaign County Clerk's YouTube Channel Link.

A little late, but here's the N-G report from the Committee of the Whole (more about what this is at Attend a Meeting) County Board meeting last week (full story here):

Longtime Rantoul banker slated to become county's next auditor

On Jan. 1, the Rantoul woman will succeed John Farney as Champaign County auditor. Farney is in line to become the new county treasurer when Dan Welch retires.

On Tuesday night, the Champaign County Board's committee of the whole unanimously recommended appointing Michaels to the position. A formal vote is set for Dec. 19...

In other business:

— The county board voted 12 to 9 against a resolution dissolving the County Nursing Home Board of Directors.

"My request was to bring more accountability to the county board," said county board member Jim Goss.

"The board of directors is an advisory board. It has no fiscal responsibilities," said county board Chairman C. Pius Weibel.

"If this body doesn't exist, what is it that you are proposing to replace it with?" asked County Administrator Deb Busey.

— By voice vote, the county board voted recommended issuing $1,076,760 in tax anticipation warrants for the nursing home.

"The deficit at the nursing home continues to grow throughout the year," Farney said. "The home is losing about $130,000 a month."

"It is important that we develop a buffer to pay the employees first," said board member Brooks Marsh.

Nursing home officials reported that census numbers are up, but expenses are also up.

"We have a long way to go to balance this out," said board member Pattsi Petrie.

— The county board recommended by voice vote renewing $500,000 in unpaid loans to the nursing home.

— The board unanimously approved endorsing the Illinois Bicentennial Celebration.

Committee of the Whole Preview

More information coming soon, but a quick run down of the Committee of the Whole on 12/12:

1. New auditor appointed-Diane Michaels.

2. Roll call requested for the resolution dissolving County Nursing Home Board of Directors. Discussion followed. Fails on a roll call.

3. Last item on the agenda was an approval to create a "County Executive Style of Government Transition Committee." It will be a 5 member committee, with members selected at next week’s meeting.

The Week Ahead 12/11 - 12/17

I'm posting an image link to the clickable PDF weekly calendar at the County main website again:

Big highlight this week. The Committee of the Whole County Board meeting is this week.

There's a vote on dissolving the Nursing Home Board of Directors that could be contentious. There are also end of the year issues with Nursing Home loans and aftershocks of last month's budget seem likely (at least from a peek at the agenda). Board Member Diane Michaels, I believe, is set to be appointed to be County Auditor in the latest county GOP musical chairs.

The Committee of the Whole and regular County Board meetings are on Tuesdays again due to the holidays. The main monthly calendar is  at the county website. I'll be updating the calendar page soon with the 2018 Annual Calendar of Meetings.

If you're curious about learning more about how your county government works, it's easy enough to live stream a meeting or go in person: Attend a Meeting.

*Meeting is broadcast live on Comcast Public Access and at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/champco1776

Where is Brookens?

Brookens Administrative Center
1776 East Washington Street
Urbana, Illinois 61802-4581
Phone: 217-384-3772

After 4:30 the Washington Street side Parking Lot is Closed See Maps for the North East Parking Lot Access

Public Primary Primer

A local group is offering a public information meeting on primary candidates in January for the upcoming March 20, 2018 primary elections. Here's their banner and facebook event link:

Event details from the facebook event link:

The Primary is coming! The Primary is coming!

March 20, 2018 is Primary Election Day. Primaries have historically had terrible voter turnout and then people don’t like their ballot choices in November! Let’s change that.

Join us on January 21st at 2pm in Robeson Pavilion Room A for a Primary Primer. We’ll go over all the races, candidates, seats, and ways to vote in this year’s Primary.

More information about them is available from their facebook page, their website, and this quick blurb from the about section:

Our goal is to build community while realigning the local elected officials, boards, commissions, and policies to reflect a People's Agenda that supports our safety net programs, addresses institutionalized oppression and gives a voice and power to the most marginalized community members. This an opportunity for us to get to know our neighbors, learn about the rich legacy of local victories for equity & justice, and strategize to build political power in CU.

Last Minute County Candidate Filings

Among the numerous candidate filings this week, I'd been keeping up fairly well on the election page and the county office races page. But I have two more to add tonight. From the News-Gazette:

Two surprises in last day of candidate filings for March primary

— Six more people — four of them Democrats — made official their candidacy for Champaign County seats. They include Democrat Darlene Kloeppel of Urbana for county executive, Champaign Democrat George Danos for county auditor and former Urbana Mayor Laurel Prussing for county treasurer.

Diane Michaels of Rantoul became a Republican candidate for county auditor and Greg Worrell of Thomasboro became a GOP contender for sheriff, joining Allen Jones of Rantoul.

Pranjal Vachaspati, a Democrat, filed to run as a candidate in County Board District 9, where Incumbent Democrat Shana Jo Crews is not running for re-election.

Former Champaign County office holders were also running elsewhere in the state, for those keeping tabs:

— Tio Hardiman of Calumet City, a Democratic candidate for governor, along with his lieutenant governor running mate, Patricia Avery of Champaign. Avery is a former chair of the Champaign County Board.

...

— Champaign Democrat Mike Frerichs, seeking a second term as state treasurer. A Republican candidate, Jim Dodge of Orland Park, also brought his petitions to the State Board of Elections.

For those just becoming active in politics, or more active than general presidential elections, these past few months have been the time when races really begin and are shaped for the upcoming year. It's not too late to get involved and influence the choices (down to which choices survive to be on the general ballot). But when all your friends were saying they're sick of politics, now is not the time? This is exactly when people miss out on a lot of democracy. With regular citizens collecting ballot petitions all over town and fund raising numbers starting to show the viability (or lack thereof) of candidates ability to raise money and compete.

GOP Auditor Appointment

Champaign County Republicans put out an announcement for their appointment to Auditor to fill the vacancy being left by John Farney, who is resigning after being appointed to the County Treasurer office. Diane Michaels is a County Board member who will be replaced by appointment as well (detailed in the announcement below). More musical chairs if you're following along with the GOP County government shuffle. On the DNC side of the Auditor office, Democrat George Danos filed as a candidate for the office again. I'll be updating the election and county races page soon.

Champaign County Republicans Select Diane Michaels as Next Auditor

URBANA – Republican Precinct Committeemen from throughout Champaign County tonight selected Diane Michaels, currently a County Board Member, to serve as County Auditor starting January 1, 2018. Michaels will succeed John Farney, the current County Auditor who will assume the duties of County Treasurer at the first of the year.

“I am humbled by the support I’ve received throughout this appointment and petitioning phase,” said Michaels. “On the County Board, I have been a voice for transparency, fiscal responsibility and sound management, and I’ll continue to carry that flag as Auditor.”

Michaels currently serves as the Deputy Chair for Finance of the County Board. “She has a deep understanding of County finances,” said Board Member and Republican Caucus Chair Jim McGuire. “Diane will be ready to take action as Auditor on day one.”

“Diane Michaels is an excellent choice for County Auditor,” said Farney. “Diane has shown through her leadership at the County Board level that she will be a watchdog of County finances. She will continue my efforts to make sure County administration, elected officials and Champaign County Nursing Home management are held accountable for their practices.”

Diane is a long time resident of Rantoul with her husband, Bill. She has two adult children. Diane has a long career in the banking and finance industry, including management of facilities, commercial and personal banking, investments and settlements. She has served on the boards of many community organizations, including Hope Meadows, United Way, The High School of St. Thomas More and St. Malachy Church and School.

Initially, Michaels will serve through November 30, 2018. She is a declared candidate for election to a fill Farney’s unexpired term at the November 2018 General Election.

​NOTE:​
Republican Precinct Committeemen from County Board District 2 (Rantoul, Thomasboro, Gifford, Ludlow area) will be charged with selecting a successor for Michaels in County Board District 2 at a later meeting. Details for that appointment process will be released in the near future.
  --Mark Ballard​, Chairman

Follow up from a previous post on Potential Auditor Candidates and recent news in the Rantoul Press.

The Week Ahead 12/4 - 12/10

I'm posting an image link to the clickable PDF weekly calendar at the County main website again:

I'm also posting the December Calendar (for more detail, see the main monthly calendar at the county website) because the Committee of the Whole and regular County Board meetings are on Tuesdays again due to the holidays. I'll be updating the calendar page soon with the 2018 Annual Calendar of Meetings.

If you're curious about learning more about how your county government works, it's easy enough to live stream a meeting or go in person: Attend a Meeting.

*Meeting is broadcast live on Comcast Public Access and at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/champco1776

Where is Brookens?

Brookens Administrative Center
1776 East Washington Street
Urbana, Illinois 61802-4581
Phone: 217-384-3772

After 4:30 the Washington Street side Parking Lot is Closed See Maps for the North East Parking Lot Access

Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program Report

Last week there was a meeting on Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program to present information to the public about their work and report. I was unable to attend at the last minute, but wanted to put together a post and resource for those who may find the information valuable and helpful.

Quick Links:

• Full report
• Power Point Presentation from Champaign Public Library Presentation 11/27/2017
• Champaign County Board report video at the Committee of the Whole 11/14/2017

Summary, Guide and Links:

First of all what is it? A concise statement from the report:

In 2015, Champaign County was awarded a Justice and Mental Health Collaboration grant to pursue a coordinated planning process to analyze criminal justice needs for the justice involved population with mental health and co-occurring mental health and substance use needs.

The report, available here, details the work, the people and organizations involved, data and recommendations. It is rich in information, but Claudia Lennhoff of the Champaign County Health Care Consumers offered this guide to peruse both the power point presentation from the public meeting, available here, and the report (linked again below):

Here are a few things I would like to point out:

- It's really important to understand two things about this grant-funded project:  a) the purpose is to help communities develop collaborative approaches to reducing the prevalence of individuals with mental health disorders in the jails (so, focuses on people with mental illness and their interactions with the justice system); and b) it is a planning grant - the purpose is to support the community in going through its planning process. It is not an implementation grant. In order for communities to know what solutions they want to pursue, they have to first make sure they understand the problem, and then plan for the solutions accordingly. In other words, this grant is to provide support for the first step of this community process.

- Page 6 of powerpoint tells of some of our activities. I just want to point out that some of our Focus Groups and Surveys were conducted with people currently incarcerated at the time, as well as recently released people and other populations and the community.

- Also Page 6 - the bullet point that says we Established validated screenings in the jail at booking. This is a major accomplishment that would not have been possible without the Sheriff's Office and their jail staff. What this means is that when people are booked into jail, officers involved in the booking now screen the people being booked for two things: a) mental health issues, and b) substance abuse issues. We are one of the only counties in the country that has actually been able to implement this. The reason this is so important is because it will help us get data, in terms of giving us a sense of what proportion of the people being booked might have these problems, and also because it allows the staff in the jail to refer the people who screen positive so that they can get an evaluation by a professional, and link up with appropriate services (both inside the jail and outside) as needed.

- Also Page 6 - the last bullet about Conduct a data-driven analysis. This follows from the previous point -- if we are to identify solutions or propose solutions, they need to be based on a fact- and data-based definition of the problem. We have scarce resources and we need to use them appropriately and carefully to meet these human needs.

- Page 7 shows you the 4 key measures that we used in carrying out this planning process.

- Page 8 shows the Sequential Intercept Map (more detail on that below)

- Page 9 - 12 are our recommendations to the community.

Regarding data - Page 12,13, and 14 of the Final Report has data related to the various points in the Sequential Intercept Map, if you want to take a look at the data:
http://www.co.champaign.il.us/Sheriff/pdf/JMHCP_Planning_Phase_Final_Report.pdf

The report was also presented to the Champaign County Board at the November 14, 2017 Committee of the Whole meeting (the six and half hour long marathon one). Video with a direct link jumping to this report as opposed to the full meeting is here.

I'm not an expert on this material, but page two of the report should have plenty of contacts for those involved from law enforcement, to advocacy, etc to google and ask depending on what information you're looking for.

Prussing Enters Treasurer Race

Another update for the elections page and the county office races page. From the News-Gazette today:

Former Urbana mayor enters race for treasurer

Seven months after she left the mayor's office in Urbana, Laurel Prussing said today she wants to be the Democratic Party nominee for Champaign County treasurer.

Prussing said she would file her nominating petitions Monday to appear on the March 20 primary election ballot. She needs at least 251 signatures to qualify as a candidate.

John Farney, currently the county auditor, so far is the only candidate for treasurer from either party.

Shortly before she left the mayor's office last spring after being unseated by Diane Marlin in the Democratic Party primary, Prussing, 76, said she "needed a break from this stuff."

Seven months was enough, she said today.

"I had enough of a break," she said. "I wasn't planning on doing this but I was looking for candidates and I couldn't find anybody. Qualified people just didn't want to do it and I thought we needed a candidate and I thought that maybe I should do it.

In the article she mentions that George Danos will run again for County Auditor. The News-Gazette article on his last attempt was described as "razor-thin:"

John Farney has lived the scenario that played out Tuesday night before. In 2012, during his initial run for Champaign County auditor, the Republican's race against Democratic challenger George Danos came down to the wire, with Farney winning by a margin of 2,036 votes.

Tuesday's rematch between Farney and Danos was even tighter, with the incumbent collecting 50.08 percent of the vote, narrowly defeating the Champaign challenger with 49.92 percent. When all the votes were counted, Farney had 42,516 votes to Danos' 42,385, for a margin of 131.

 It's looking like a very good time to get involved and learn about Champaign County politics!

The Week Ahead 11/27 - 12/3

I'm posting an image link to the clickable PDF weekly calendar at the County main website again:

This week's meetings involve two public forums at the Champaign Public Library that will be presenting work done to improve community programs and services for both criminal justice reforms and mental health care needs. These are not typical county board meetings or auxiliary meetings for the county government, but a chance to learn more about the issues, recommended policies, and what people can do to help get them implemented.

The Shields Meeting Room is at Brookens Administrative Center:

Where is Brookens?

Brookens Administrative Center
1776 East Washington Street
Urbana, Illinois 61802-4581
Phone: 217-384-3772

*After 4:30 the Washington Street side Parking Lot is Closed See Maps for the North East Parking Lot Access

Candidates Filing and the Nursing Home

I've updated the election page on this site with the latest candidate filings from the Champaign County Clerk's information here (from 11/27/2017) and recent News-Gazette Articles linked below. The first article has a brief overview of many of the filings so far, but today's has more information on the 6th District race and the Nursing Home issue.

Champaign County Board races draw a crowd

URBANA — Democrats in central Champaign will have at least a three-way race next spring in County Board District 6, based on candidate filing Monday morning.

Twelve candidates filed petitions at the Champaign County clerk's office before 8:30 a.m. Monday — the first day of the petition filing period — and three of them were for the county board seat generally bounded by Prospect Avenue on the east, Bloomington Road on the north, Kirby Avenue on the south and Country Fair Drive and Duncan Road on the west.

Eight-year incumbent Pattsi Petrie was among those who filed petitions for the District 6 seat, along with Mike Ingram and Charles Young. They will face off in the March 20, 2018, primary election.

Also filing petitions were Matt Grandone and Jon Rector, both Republicans running for county clerk. The incumbent Republican county clerk, Gordy Hulten, was the only person to file for the newly created position of county executive. Allen Jones filed as a Republican candidate for sheriff and John Farney, currently the county auditor, filed as a Republican candidate for county treasurer.

Other county board candidates filing Monday morning included Republican newcomer Jodi Wolken in District 2, incumbent Republican Jim McGuire in District 4; Democrat Leah Taylor and Republican Tom Dillavou in District 5; Republican Traci Nally in District 9; and Democrat Chris Stohr in District 10.

Nally is a vice president at News-Gazette Media.

The Illinois candidate filing period ends on Dec. 4...

Today's article got into how the Nursing Home issue is shaping the County Board's 6th District Race:

East Central Illinois candidates are off and running

URBANA — Pattsi Petrie, a veteran of seven years on the Champaign County Board and a onetime chair, will face her fifth primary election contest since 2008 next spring.

Petrie, a Democrat who represents District 6 in central Champaign, is being challenged by two other Democrats in the March 20 primary: first-time candidate Mike Ingram and Charles Young, who ran unsuccessfully for the Champaign school board in 2003 and was a candidate for appointment last month to an opening on the Parkland College board.

So far, the Democratic contest in District 6 is one of a handful of contested primary races that developed after the first day of candidate filing on Monday...

Matt Grandone of Urbana and Jon Rector of rural Champaign are running for the Republican nomination for Champaign County clerk. No Democrat had filed yet.

Meanwhile, there's no rest for Petrie, who lost a four-way race for one seat on the board in 2008, finishing second out of four Democrats, but came out on top in another four-way primary race in 2010 and overcame challenges from Josh Hartke in 2012 and Tony Fabri in 2014.

The future of the county nursing home as a county-supported facility undoubtedly will be an issue in the District 6 race. In recent months, Petrie has voted in favor of issuing a request for proposals from private operators who might be interested in buying the facility and also supported a six-month budget for the home for the fiscal year that begins Jan. 1.

Both votes placed her at odds with the majority of other county board Democrats.

Ingram said the nursing home was a "pretty big" factor in his decision to run for the board. He said he supports keeping the facility publicly owned.

"I don't think there's anything more important on the minds of people right now than the nursing home," he said. "But there are plenty of other things that people are talking about when I asked them what they knew about at the local level."

Young also said the nursing home's future is a top concern of voters.

"The hot topic now of course is that nursing home. I'm sorta like still in the middle with that," he said. "I want to protect the (home), but at the same time, what I've been reading and following is the money issue. We'll see how that works out. I'd like to get there and see how that stuff works."

Petrie said she believes the nursing home has to become self-sustaining.

"I have constantly and consistently said that the county needs to be concerned about positioning that nursing home so it will be sustainable not for one or two years, but for a decade," she said. "This roller coaster ride on the nursing home is exhausting everybody, and the county isn't getting any other work done."

Petrie said she isn't troubled by the regular challenges from within her own party.

"I look at that as positive, though," she said. "That means you go out and you talk to your constituents more often. I do retail politics. I knock on doors, every door."

Nursing Home Reality Debate

The News-Gazette all but called Democrats' continued support for the nursing home delusional as it mocked their moral superiority and accused them of being do-gooder die-hards unbowed by facts. It's pretty harsh. Click here to jump directly to Democratic County Board Member Kyle Patterson's rebuttal.

Incredible divide on nursing home

The Champaign County Board's handling of the nursing home controversy is taking on other-wordly features.

Those who are conflicted in their view or have no opinion on the future viability of the county nursing home need only look at the latest budgetary contortions the board has put itself through.

Last week, in what can only be described as an act of desperation, the board voted 13-8 to fund the financially beleaguered nursing home for six months. The board's majority opted for that questionable course as a means of avoiding a decision on how to cut $1.4 million in spending needed to support the county's statutorily mandated programs so it could continue to fund the purely optional nursing home.

If this isn't a case of the tail wagging the dog, it's darn close.

Further, there appears to be a widespread consensus among board members that this proposal is being held together with bailing wire and chewing gum and might fly apart with the slightest of nudges.

There's the little matter of a $500,000 loan repayment the nursing home is supposed to make to the county's general fund in December. The nursing home's cash balance is down to $19,000, according to county administrator Rick Snider, so how good are the nursing home's chances of meeting that obligation?

Perhaps that's why there has been discussion about the need to issue tax anticipation warrants — a bank loan to be repaid when eventual revenue generated by property tax payments comes in.

The nursing home has all the earmarks of a failing enterprise. Yet to hear some board members talk, the idea of selling or closing the nursing home is unthinkable.

"In my mind, (the county's obligation) never ends because care for the elderly and the people in the nursing home, it never ends. We can talk all we want about kicking the can down the road, but in my mind, there's no can to kick. It's about care for folks who need care, and that's something that's not going to end in this county," said Democratic board member Josh Hartke.

Hartke's words are sincere, but misguided.

If the county nursing home was the only such facility in Champaign County or beyond, there might be some merit to that holier-than-thou position. But there are plenty of private facilities, where current county nursing home residents can go.

Indeed, if there wasn't strong competition from the private sector, the county wouldn't have encountered the seemingly endless problem of not having enough nursing home patients needed to generate the revenue necessary to keep it financially afloat.

So what, in fact, is the county board doing other than playing financial Russian roulette regarding an optional service for which there is limited demand but back-breaking costs...

The article continues here.

Democratic County Board Member Kyle Patterson laid out a step-by-step rebuttal:

Lots to unpack here. Let’s do this chronologically:

The $500K “loan” the republicans blocked the renewal of as a political move to sabotage with no reasonable explanation other than to further manufacture the financial “crisis” at the County Nursing Home. Ask yourself: how can the County “loan” money to itself? Because it is technically an “enterprise” entity, the county cannot simply do a budget transfer to the nursing home the way in which other departments are replenished when they have financial shortfalls, which the county board does for multiple departments every month. There is no running record of “debt” for the other departments that need extra money because of unexpected costs the way the Nursing Home does. This is a red headed step child situation. As Josh Hartke, who they call misguided, once said so well: there are boilers at the nursing home they are failing because the county board chose the architects, approved and funded the construction of the nursing home which has a structural flaw that places the laundry machines too close to the boilers and the boilers acquire debris, so now the county board “loans” money to the nursing home to fix the boilers that failed because of the decision made by the county board, then when if we sell the nursing home, the county will then get paid twice for selling those boilers. Both from the returned loan and then from selling the home. It’s nonsense.

The only reason there is “discussion” of using Tax Anticipation warrants is because the republicans, in a move to sabotage the finances of the home, blocked the county acquiring those rather routine loans. For no motivation other than to hurt he Nursing Home. They are trying to force democrats to sell the home by dooming the Home to financial ruin. They are preventing the home from paying its bills.

Two huge examples of the editors missing the point:

1. we support the Champaign County Nursing Home NOT because there are no private homes, but because we believe in the foundational progressive principal of PUBLIC HEALTH CARE. For profit homes provide worse care than public nonprofit nursing homes and there is plenty of data to back that up. For profit corporations reduce services, cut wages and reduce staffing levels, choosing profits over people. This isn’t news nor is it unique to nursing home care. For profits corrupt access to healthcare across the board. Without a large, quality nursing home that places no restrictions on access for Medicaid patients, many low income individuals will have no where to go in CU.

2. The Champaign County Nursing Home is a SERVICE, NOT a BUSINESS. They only say it’s not financially viable because it can’t sustain itself financially, which, NEWS FLASH, neither does any county department! It’s not supposed to be a 100% self sustaining business like a private home, and it was never intended to be. The home has a bit of a tax levy that some would characterize as a “subsidy”, which is designed to fund the nursing home with revenues generated outside of the services compensated at the home. In the structure, it has never been considered a self sufficient entity. The nursing home provides a SERVICE in which the private industry cannot provide, and that’s universal access for Medicaid patients. Private homes limit access from Medicaid patients because the state is inconsistent with timely compensation for Medicaid patients, which has caused the majority of CCNH’s pain. Our county has always recognized the need to fund a service that offers an outlet for Medicaid nursing home patients by funding the home in a way that the private industry cannot.

And lastly, the editors refer to their not being a “demand” for the nursing home. Let’s get two more things clear:

1. The nursing home cannot fill enough beds right now because...... THE NEWS GAZETTE AND REPUBLICANS KEEP BASHING THE PLACE AND CALLING FOR ITS IMMEDIATE SALE! Our census is low because people are afraid to put their parents in a home that they think is going to be sold soon. You want to place your loved ones in a home that will be consistent for years and not have to possibly move them once they are in nursing home care. The drum beat from the news gazette has caused a low census and the departure of many good staff members that are afraid that once it’s sold, the new for profit company will have mass layoffs, exactly how they did when Vermillion County privatized their home.

2. Look up census data and understand that the demand for nursing homes is going to skyrocket over the next 5-10 years as the baby boomers generation is now becoming nursing home aged. Once that happens, we will have countless residents covered by Medicaid that will need somewhere to go in this community. The pain of sending a loved one to a nursing home, which I personally know well, is very intense, but to have to send them off to another community because of a lack of Medicaid beds in CU, and not being able to visit them regularly is deplorable.

This is about access to healthcare and public healthcare institutions, plain and simple. There’s a reason why Republicans are ravenous to close this thing and make no mistake: the News Gazette editorial board is our very own local Fox News.

This is not about an unprofitable business, this is about an underfunded healthcare institution.

Jail Deadlines and Budget Woes

The News-Gazette laid out the issues facing the downtown and satellite jails, proposals for expansion, budget problems and the work of Build Programs Not Jails in support of reforms and programs that would rely on less jailing. Full text here. Excerpt:

CU-CitizenAccess: DOJ's deadline looms over Champaign County Jail

URBANA — With a U.S. Department of Justice-imposed deadline approaching, Champaign County officials are under increasing pressure to either renovate or close the 37-year-old jail in downtown Urbana.

The county has already stopped using much of the downtown jail — it has a daily population hovering around 45 people, even though its capacity is 113. It has instead relied more on the satellite jail in east Urbana, which has a capacity of 182.

An agreement between the county and the DOJ states that the county must renovate the downtown jail to adhere to Americans with Disabilities Act standards by March. These renovations are expected to cost about $175,000.

In November, the DOJ said it would consider granting the county an extension to come into compliance by Dec. 31, 2018, and would extend the deadline even longer if the county decided to fund a new jail.

With the required renovations pending, county officials have discussed either closing the downtown jail and replacing it with a new facility next to the satellite jail or renovating the downtown jail to make it more suitable for housing inmates, said Chief Deputy Allen Jones.

Standing in the way: funding issues and the efforts of local activist groups who oppose any new facility.

Board Member Pattsi Petrie had a couple comments as well, that pointed out the Mental Health Board (MHB) doesn't seem to get enough attention for many of these program issues as the full County Board meetings do:

If the downtown jail is closed for whatever reason and the satelitte jail does not have additional provisions constructed there, then the projected cost to out source is 1M/annually. And the sheriff inquired whether nearby counties have space and willingness to house the out sourced inmates. The responses across the board is negative. The next step will be to out source at jails many hundreds of miles away fro C-U, making family visitations very difficult, let alone the cost of deputy time to transport to and fro along with gas costs. Approximately there are 40 inmates plus or minus at the downtown jail. Just do the math.

CB member appreciate once again pointing out that there has never been a plan to build a new jail, not even back to the first consultant report. That is a narrative conjured by the Build Programs, Not Jails folks.

Indeed, the county does have a hard time educating the public about all of the issues that the county has before it to solve. CCNH has been sucking the ether out of the air for years along with money. There is a bit of a domino effect in play--solve the nursing home one way or the other, move to relocating the sheriff's office, this opens up what to do with the downtown jail. If the decision is to close that facility, then the county can repurpose the building and land, which might mean selling both. The resulting funds can be turned toward county building maintenance. The more that the decision on the jail and building maintenance is kicked down the road, the over all costs continue to increase. Just think had the sales tax passed--the county would already have done phase one of the ten-years plan on maintenance, used tax dollars in the most efficient possible way, and stayed ahead of the CPI.

And she continued in a second comment:

One more clarification--the CCNH is an Enterprize Fund. By definition this type of fund is constructed such that the entity being funded is resonsible to pay for any and all expenses associated with the entity. The nursing home is not part of the county general fund. So, yes, the CCNH is responsible for all expenses and debt. You are correct in that the county owns this home so the buck stops with the county, including all associated debt. This is one of many reasons that you do not hear a discussion about closing the home because doing so would, in essence, bankrupt the couny  This stated if there is not the launch of the RFP so the CB can find out if there is a buyer(s), then the next step will need to be putting in place a contingency plan to close the home. Because the county is ultimately responsible for staff IMRF and FICA along with regularly making payroll, the county has loaned the home a lot of money, in addition to having forgiven a large amount of loan monies.

For whatever reason, citizens have a hard time understanding these financial facts.

The facility sales tax, as I have written all too often, would have paid as we go for county building maintenance. On one hand people comment that the county can not even maintain the buildings and the downtown jail is in terrible condition Then on the other hand, the same citizens argue for social programs, many of which could be funded and supported by the 4.5 M/annually received by the MHB. Why is it that these concerns are not regularly presented to that board and the CUPHD board or the two municipalities and hospitals, etc.?

Right now the county is moving toward a historic repeat that resulted in the DOJ telling the county we will build a new jail if you do not. The result was the downtown jail. This jail is about to cost the county millions of dollars, per the information in the above article.

All of the county budget/finances are on the county web site.

CU-CitizenAccess appears to have a lot of helpful information about local politics and issues. I'll try to get more information about it and pass it along. In the mean time here are links to their on-line material:

CU-CitizenAccess main website is available here: http://cu-citizenaccess.org/
And also on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cucitizenaccess/

County Board 11/21 Meeting

Highlights:

Well for starters we have a 6 months (option B) budget that doesn't resolve the Nursing Home issue either direction in finding money to save it or that forces it to be sold, but perhaps inevitable depending on which party you ask. I didn't catch the exact roll call, but Chair Weibel said it was 13-8 of which I definitely heard Pattsi Petrie vote for with the Republicans. Fortado summed up the Democratic feelings about the 6 month budget: It is not a responsible precedent. It is a collective failure, including herself in that failure, not to have a 12 month budget. It's something we will all regret and it will be felt sharply later this year. The associated levy passed without opposition shortly after.

There were some goodbyes. It was County Administrator Rick Snider's last meeting as well as County Treasurer Dan Welch's. Both were thanked and had standing ovations by the board and others.

The replacement process was moved along further along last week, as noted by the N-G, as well as with additional votes tonight that were unopposed:

URBANA — Champaign County Board members Tuesday agreed to begin negotiations to rehire former county Administrator Deb Busey as interim administrator.

The current county administrator, Rick Snider, has resigned in order to become the village administrator in Rantoul later this month.

The move to rehire Busey, who would be limited to 600 hours of work under Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund regulations, was made by Republican board member Aaron Esry but approved unanimously.
...
Also Tuesday, the board unanimously approved the appointment of John Farney as the new county treasurer, beginning Jan. 1. Farney, currently the county auditor, will replace longtime treasurer Dan Welch, who is leaving office 11 months early. Both Welch and Farney are Republicans.

As pointed out in an earlier update, this means that there will be an abbreviated ballot petition period for any candidates wanting to run for County Auditor in the 2018 elections. That same link notes some of the early candidates seeking appointment to the fill the vacancy in the mean time by the Champaign County Republican Party.


Other Meeting Notes:

Public Participation included complaints about dilapidated properties and numerous citizens asking the Board to consider the Racial Justice Task Force recommendations for everything from pre-trial hearings, treatment programs for addicts, mental health care services outside of the jail system, etc. Build Programs Not Jails had a strong presence and pleaded with the Board to take significant action on these issues.

Illinois Bicentennial flag arrived and will be up in front of the Court House soon. Chair Weibel also noted a Chair/Vice-Chair meeting about the agenda that is poorly attended after Republican complaints last week at the COW about difficulties getting an item on the agenda.

"Visit Champaign County" had a presentation on marketing Champaign to outside visitors with a video presentation and a run down of numbers brought in through tourism and visitors. Stohr asked that taxicab services be better highlighted in their printed publications along with Uber/Lyft. The sheer number of independent cab companies (>50) makes it easier to link to in on-line materials.

Apparently "cornhole" is a popular game that has a following and events here in Champaign. It was mentioned and nobody snickered. I feel as though a college joke went terribly wrong somehow. They also brought up that the State Farm Center does not have a good layout for large (2000+ person) trade shows and it makes it difficult to host large events in Champaign County because there is not a large convention center that's ideal for the task compared to other regional ones.

The Youth Assessment Center (more info) via the Regional Planning Commission is looking for a new space and highlighted the Racial Justice Task Force recommendations as well. Their work with restorative justice in the community. After fielding some questions on staff and space requirements, it was pointed out (by Circuit Clerk Katie Blakeman, I believe) that it's a fairly unique program on the cutting edge of  criminal justice reform. Sounds like a program I need to learn more about for a future post.

Other agenda items were passed smoothly by voice vote or roll call as required.

The meeting adjourned at  8:37pm. Not 12:53am the next morning like the last COW. So YAY!!! YAY for THAT!!! Phew!


Reactions [Updated 11/22]:

The News-Gazette's Tom Kacich has more details and specifics, including this excerpt on the budget vote:

County board avoids cuts by funding nursing home for only 6 months

URBANA — Champaign County Democrats were unable Tuesday night to pass a county budget guaranteeing 12 months of operation for the county-owned nursing home.

Instead, by a 13-8 margin, the county board approved a fiscal year 2018 budget that includes only six months of funding for the financially troubled facility.

And because of savings from operating the nursing home for only six months, the approved budget doesn't include any of the $1.425 million in staff cuts, polling-place consolidations, capital reductions (including almost $400,000 for police radios), or program cuts (such as the Youth Assessment Center and re-entry council) discussed in recent weeks.

But county officials cautioned that there's great uncertainty about the budget, including a $500,000 payment the nursing home is to make to the county general fund in December and the need for tax-anticipation warrants to help fund the facility's continued operation.

"I don't think passing a six-month budget for any part of the county budget is a responsible precedent," said Democrat Stephanie Fortado.

And she urged county department heads to "keep your wallet in your pockets for the next six months, especially for big-ticket items. If there's something you can wait on, please wait."

And outgoing County Administrator Rick Snider predicted that the board would have to make "significant budget amendments" throughout 2018.

Voting for the budget were all 10 board Republicans and Democrats Pattsi Petrie, Chris Stohr and Shana Jo Crews.

Voting against it were eight Democrats: Fortado, Steve Summers, James Tinsley, Lorraine Cowart, Josh Hartke, Robert King, Kyle Patterson and board Chairman C. Pius Weibel.

Champaign Democrat Giraldo Rosales was absent from the meeting

I'm not seeing any other reactions yet today, but I'll update if I do.

The Week Ahead 11/20 - 11/26

I'm posting an image link to the clickable PDF weekly calendar at the County main website again:

This week's county board meeting is certain to have contentious debate on the Nursing Home again. Last week's Committee of the Whole went on for nearly 6 and half hours between reports and Nursing Home arguments: reactions here, notes here. As always links to recent Nursing Home news and resources will be added to the Nursing Home issues link at the top of the page as I have time.

If you're curious about learning more about how your county government works, it's easy enough to live stream a meeting or go in person: Attend a Meeting.

*Meeting is broadcast live on Comcast Public Access and at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/champco1776

Where is Brookens?

Brookens Administrative Center
1776 East Washington Street
Urbana, Illinois 61802-4581
Phone: 217-384-3772

*After 4:30 the Washington Street side Parking Lot is Closed See Maps for the North East Parking Lot Access

Possible Auditor Replacements - UPDATE

[UPDATE 12/5: GOP Auditor Candidate selected. County Board Member of District 2 Diane Michaels]

[UPDATE 11/21: A quick answer on the Auditor being appointed *and* elected

Q: Pardon a dumb question, but just to be clear. If that happens as described, then there would be an election for Auditor as opposed to an appointed replacement? 

Champaign County Clerk: There will be both. The Board will appoint a replacement who will serve from 1/1/18 until a successor can be elected next November who will take office 12/1/18.]

[UPDATE 11/20: Some confusing information out of the County Clerk's office today. I'm not entirely sure (will update tomorrow), but it sounds like the Auditor's position will be elected if he resigns tomorrow, not appointed. From the County Clerk's facebook post:

From a note sent to our local Party Chairs, regarding the upcoming vacancy in the office of County Auditor:

"If the County Board tomorrow night votes to finalize John Farney's appointment as County Treasurer effective January 1, 2018, then Mr. Farney intends to resign as County Auditor on Wednesday, November 22, effective December 31, 2017.

Mr. Farney's resignation on November 22, 2017 creates a vacancy in the office of Auditor. Though his resignation isn't effective until December 31, the Election Code considers the vacancy to be created as of the date of his resignation. Because he is submitting his resignation during the current petition circulation period, statute says that candidates interested in running for the Auditor's unexpired two-year term may circulate petitions beginning on November 22, and file them during the normal filing period (November 27 through December 4).

I'm aware that this creates a very abbreviated circulation period, but the statutes are clear. If you have a candidate who can't gather the required signatures by December 4, please be aware that other options for winning nomination are still available (write-in candidacy; post-Primary party slating)."

So, tomorrow I suppose we find out if County Auditor Farney still resigns tomorrow, and if so, whether I need to update the County elections page.]

The headline is about another headline causing confusion in a Congressional race, down below it had some other local political tidbits including potential County Auditor candidates to fill John Farney's seat when he takes the County Treasurer job being vacated by a retirement. It's a bit of musical chairs, but hopefully the other County Offices page can explain the musical chairs going on better than I can in a paragraph. I'll try to update the office races as it becomes official.

Here's that News-Gazette article and relevant excerpt:

Tom Kacich: Misinterpreted tweet about Davis ruffles feathers
...
Champaign County Board member Diane Michaels of Rantoul on Tuesday became the first Republican to express interest in replacing John Farney as county auditor. Farney is in line to become the county treasurer when Dan Welch retires about 11 months early on Dec. 31.

Farney was the only person to apply to become treasurer and was selected by Republican precinct committeemen Monday night.

A similar process to replace Farney will begin soon, culminating in a Dec. 4 meeting when a new auditor will be appointed. Republicans get to name the new officeholders because voters chose Republicans in the most recent elections (2014 for treasurer, 2016 for auditor).

Michaels is the only person to go public for the auditor's position although GOP Chairman Mark Ballard said two others have expressed some level of interest.

"My 40 years of experience in banking and finance, as well as eight years service as a county board member, have given me the skills and knowledge I need to make a difference as county auditor," Michaels said. "The financial challenges facing Champaign County are enormous, and my experience can help us navigate toward solutions."

Also a good reminder to verify sources and context before jumping the gun on news these days. I try to be good about it, but it takes eternal vigilance. Especially these days. 

County Board and Nursing Home This Week

Sunday's News-Gazette mentioned the upcoming fight in a local political roundup article. Here's the relevant excerpt:

It's not clear what's going to happen at Tuesday night's Champaign County Board meeting regarding the county budget and the county-owned nursing home.

But things aren't getting better at the home, says County Auditor John Farney.

It has tapped the last $100,000 from a total of $500,000 the county board loaned to the facility earlier this year from the county general fund. As of Friday, he said, the nursing home had $380,000 on hand. But with an expected payroll of about $250,000 on Wednesday, that could knock it down again. And the facility owes $4.6 million to vendors and the county.

One major legal question facing the nursing home and the county is what happens when that $500,000 loan comes due at the end of December? Does it have to be paid immediately or does the county get in line with all the other vendors owed money, three of which are individually owed more than $300,000?

A lot of items got moved from the Committee of the Whole meeting last week to the full board due to the 6 and a half hour marathon that became. Reactions on that meeting here. Notes on that meeting here.

The Week Ahead 11/13 - 11/19

This week is a very busy week, so I'm posting an image link to the clickable PDF weekly calendar at the County main website:

A major meeting is the Committee of the Whole (what is this?) which will have some fireworks on the Nursing Home budget that the County Clerk as part of his County Executive campaign has been saying would cut 1.4 million into sheriff's jobs, threaten ballot boxes by reducing polling stations, etc... while Democrats find that to be patently false, from the full number and where costs can be saved, e.g. $300k for radios that will be obsolete in 5 years.

*Meeting is broadcast live on Comcast Public Access and at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/champco1776

Where is Brookens?

Brookens Administrative Center
1776 East Washington Street
Urbana, Illinois 61802-4581
Phone: 217-384-3772

*After 4:30 the Washington Street side Parking Lot is Closed See Maps for the North East Parking Lot Access