County Board Updates into June

There continued to be a great deal of drama between Auditor and a great deal of the rest of the County government. Recent public statements by those involved appear to put the Auditor at odds with many of the staff of the County Auditor’s office itself, most of the County Board members of both parties, the County Executive, and the administrative staff under the Executive). This culminated in a County Board censure of the County Auditor for alleged mistreatment of staff, pornographic material on a work computer, and other criticisms of his work (or allegedly the lack thereof). From the News-Gazette:

After at least a month of discussion on the subject, the Champaign County Board has voted to censure county auditor George Danos for alleged failure to act as an "independent watchdog" of taxpayer funds and actions "unbecoming an elected official."

...

"The actions of Champaign County Auditor, George P. Danos, have created a work environment the County Board does not condone or support," the resolution states. "... The Champaign County Board seeks to make Champaign County government a safe working environment, free of harassment and misconduct for all employees."

Voting for the resolution: Elly Hanauer-Friedman, Jennifer Locke, Jenny Lokshin, Diane Michaels, Don Owen, Emily Rodriguez, Jilmala Rogers, Ed Sexton, Mike Smith, Chris Stohr, Jennifer Straub, Leah Taylor, Jeff Wilson, John Farney and Stephanie Fortado voted for the resolution.

That full article here. We had a previous Cheat Sheet post on the controversies surrounding the Auditor back in April here. The Auditor gave his perspective and answered many questions about the accusations in the censure resolution on WDWS' "Penny for your Thoughts" radio show this past week (in the second hour of the June 5th episode here). The conservative opinions editor of the News-Gazette, Jim Dey, has also taken an interest in the local Democratic Party infighting with no less than seven opinion articles focused on the dispute in the last two months.

May County Board Regular Meeting:

The last regular County Board meeting (video, agenda packet) lasted over 5 hours due to a great number of presentations on a variety of important programs and topics, as well as public comments in support of looking at the contract / bidding process for minority owned contractors and sub-contractors. Highlights with video links:

• Public Participation included several comments in support of looking at the process of awarding contracts, ensuring minority owned businesses are given proper consideration per the County's own equity goals (go to video link).
  
  
• Presentation on the Racial Covenant Project out of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office (go to video link).
  
  
• Updates on the wider H3 program from many of the organizers behind that and the local First Followers Reentry program (go to video link).
  
  
• Updates on C-CARTS (Champaign-County Area Rural Transit System) funding and projects (go to video link). Staff from C-CARTS had been waiting well over 4 hours by the time their funding item came up and they had a chance to speak on it.

The meeting also went on to cover some contentious issues such as the salaries for countywide offices and their historical imbalances. The new salaries would continue to be imbalanced between the countywide elected office holders. The meeting ended on a long discussion and vote to censure the County Auditor (jump to video link) that was covered in the News-Gazette article mentioned above.

During board member Communications, Chair Carter expressed her ongoing frustration that she is facing racism within the County government and a double standard by her own colleagues. Some of the frustrations appeared intertwined with the County Board's concerns with the Auditor's office. A heated moment came when she complained about the behavior others during and after the 4/4 Special Finance Committee Meeting disagreement. She had previously publicly apologized for her own behavior in that incident (at the 4/9 Committee of the Whole a few days later).

There were repeated points of order and admonishments not to criticize other board members during meetings per the County Board's rules. Carter yelled over the admonishments and received some applause from the audience when she finished her statement.

April County Board and Committee Meetings Roundup:

• 4/4 Special Finance Committee Meeting: the only agenda item for this meeting was discussing a response to the public FOIA information on the County Auditor. The agenda packet also included that same FOIAd information that had been made public.
  
  County Board Member John Farney made a point of order early in this meeting that the County Board Chair, Samantha Carter, took issue with (jump to video). While it appeared that the point of order was mundane, the gestures, yelling, and other behavior during this moment has become the subject of further apologies and arguments.
  
  
• 4/9 Committee of the Whole: This meeting began with admonishment by various board members about Samantha Carter's behavior at the 4/4 special meeting. Chair Carter apologized, noted some ongoing frustrations, but assured the board that it wouldn't happen again. Bruce Hannon was honored as the "eternal keeper of the clock" for the County Court House (see more on that later in this post below). There were updates on the Reentry Program by Rosecrance (jump to video here) and the censure process regarding the auditor.
  
  
• 4/11 Labor Committee: This meeting (agenda packet, minutes) was almost entirely about the auditor, proposed censure language, and the priority of the committee's intent to protect County staff in the Auditor's office who lack many labor protections afforded County employees in other departments. There is a separate Cheat Sheet post that got into the weeds of that meeting and the Auditor issues here. I wasn't able to cover May's Labor Committee meeting, and it appears that the only media coverage was an opinion piece by Jim Dey here. It also centered on censure language (agenda packet including a new proposed censure resolution, tentative minutes of the May meeting are available in the June Labor committee agenda packet).
  
  
• 4/18 County Board Regular Meeting: This meeting included a presentation by the County Auditor with his own interpretation of the County's financial situation and dispute on the budget projections. There was a separate Cheat Sheet post on this dispute over budget forecasts as part of the budget process and the Public Safety Sales Tax here.
  
  
• 4/23 County Board Special Meeting / Study Session: This meeting (agenda packet, video) was focused on addressing board member questions about a referendum to increase the Public Safety Sales Tax by a quarter cent. In the end, it was decided that the County Board's intent was to move forward with putting the question on the ballot. There would still have to be additional approval by the County Board itself.

Bruce Hannon, Eternal Keeper of the Clock:

The County Board passed a resolution to dedicate the courthouse clock as the "Bruce Hannon Memorial Clock" at the April Regular Meeting. From the News-Gazette:

“Bruce Hannon was instrumental in forming the Citizens Committee to Restore the Clock and Bell Tower at the Champaign County Courthouse in 2001 and became Chair of said Committee,” county officials said. “... Under his leadership, the Clock and Bell Tower Committee raised $1.15 million of non-public funds by private donations to underwrite the re-construction of the historic tower at the Champaign County Courthouse and to restore the Clock therein.”

...

A plaque will be placed at the site and a dedication ceremony will be held at a later date.

Steve Beckett, a local lawyer and former Champaign County Board member who was part of the clock tower committee, said Hannon had a gift for persuading people to get involved with different projects, including the clock tower restoration.

That full article here. Steve Becket's full remarks in at the April Committee of the Whole meeting in favor of the resolution, and a touching story of Bruce Hannon's clock work in the community that made him a legend, are available here at the County government's YouTube page.

 

More County Government News:

• There was a 6/10 meeting of the County Board's Broadband Task Force (agenda packet, video starting after the staff resolved some serious technical issues with the sound), which included some presentations and a long discussion on the rural broadband goals. It appears that a lack of state funding had seriously reduced the number of households the VOLO project had hoped to reach. State funding appeared to be an issue with Nextlink's goals as well. The discussion by Task Force members afterwards appeared to highlight a number of technical disagreements and concerns about the lack of progress.
  
  
• Tom Kacich had a profile of the new Champaign County Republican Chair in the News-Gazette.
  
  
• Savoy voted to go ahead with an agreement with the Champaign County government towards its viaduct project, according to WCIA. There was an additional article previewing the vote with more information here.

County Board Updates: Summer into Fall

Since our last update earlier this summer, 11 year veteran of the County Board, Stan Harper has resigned. The News-Gazette had coverage here with a biographical article from a couple years back here. John Farney, a former Champaign County Treasurer and Auditor, was appointed to fill the vacancy in the District 3 seat. Long time County Board member Aaron Esry sits in the other District 3 seat. 

There are two seats per County Board districts and vacancies are filled by a member of the same political party that held the seat before, regardless of which party may have majority control over or chairs the board itself.

This Cheat Sheet update highlights a new advocacy group for affordable local nursing home beds, SAFE-T Act / Pretrial Fairness updates as the new law goes into effect, advocacy for affordable jail communication, and other County government news. But it's also approaching 2024 election season and you'll see candidates circulating ballot petitions to get on the primary election ballot. If you would like to be a candidate or support a candidate, the work has already begun. More detailed deadlines and important dates are laid out in the 2024 Illinois Election Calendar here. The County Clerk and Recorder has been promoting Vote by Mail locally and with other area County Clerks in a bipartisan effort in the wider area.

There has been a local push for more nursing home beds in the heart of the county's twin cities, especially with the old Champaign County Nursing home shut down by its new private owners this summer (more on that in a previous Cheat Sheet here). The News-Gazette had coverage of the new collaboration pushing for an assessment of local nursing home bed availability to get the policy process rolling on addressing the issue:

The collaborative is an offshoot of work already begun by a group calling itself Advocates for Nursing Home Care that formed with the closing of one of Champaign County’s few remaining nursing homes, University Rehabilitation Center of C-U, which was formerly the county nursing home in Urbana.

Cathy Emanuel, an organizer of that group, said state public health data is showing a need for 721 nursing home beds in Champaign County (based on population) that will be 310 beds short by the end of this year.

That’s due to the recent closing of University Rehab and a planned reduction in beds at ClarkLindsey’s Meadowbrook Health Center, she said.

That full article here. Earlier News-Gazette coverage of the advocacy group is available here from June and the previous June County Board updates on the Cheat Sheet covered and linked to their large showing at the County Board general meeting that month (jump to that portion of the meeting video here, roughly 10 minutes in).

There was also coverage, including a brief overview by WAND here and an article in WCIA here.

SAFE-T Act and the end of cash bail (via the Pretrial Fairness Act that was a part of the larger SAFE-T Act provisions) went into effect this month. WCCU had an article on the impact in Champaign County earlier this month: 

Champaign County State’s Attorney Julia Rietz says the justice system in Champaign County is working well together but there are a few hiccups...

Rietz added she does not believe the SAFE-T Act will change the outcome of the justice system in Champaign County.

“I truly believe that in Champaign County, we've been making these decisions all along, and I really don't see this as changing the end result of our process, just the beginning part of the process,” explained Rietz.

That full article here. WAND had additional coverage of the State grant money heading to the Public Defender's Office to offset some of the additional costs here.

There has also been increased criminal justice reform activity surrounding the Champaign County government's budget and a "Request for Proposal" for jail phone and video call systems contract. Several public commentors appealed to the County Board at the September general meeting (jump to video of those comments here). WILL had coverage explaining the issue with some additional helpful links here. One of the activists, Brian Dolinar, involved had an article in Smile Politely discussing his concerns here.

At the County Board's recent Special Finance Committee of the Whole meeting (full video), there were additional public comments by Brian Dolinar on the phone contract issue and some clarifications by Finance Committee chair Stephanie Fortado on the actual costs of these phone calls: $3.40 flat fee per call plus an addition 13 cents per minute after that (remote video calls have higher costs). 

The Champaign County Sheriff had been publicly stating that the calls cost 13 cents per minute (e.g. quote from WCIA article here). This didn't mesh with the stated experiences and billing examples by family members and activists who received calls from inmates. Fortado's clarification appears to bridge the gap in some of the fees people were seeing in addition to the per minute rates. The Cheat Sheet will be looking deeper into the communication protocols and costs in the weeks ahead.

In other budget news, a new associate judge was approved for Champaign County. The downside is that the County budget that was already over $700,000 in the red now also has to find room for a new clerk for that judge, as required by law. This was also discussed in the Special Finance meeting (agenda packet, video) last night. News-Gazette coverage on that meeting and the likely increase of the budget deficit here.

Other County Government News:

• Champaign County Coroner to resign in order to take job with Mahomet-Seymour schools, according to the News-Gazette. WCCU also had a blurb on this news here.
  
  
• The last general County Board meeting included a presentation on the Mahomet Aquifer mapping project (video here, presentation slides here).

• Farm Bureau to help with building up rural broadband, according to WCIA.
  
  
• Champaign County bicycle safety issues growing as use increasing, according to WRSP.  
  
  
• Last month, the News-Gazette reported that a special prosecutor was denied in a domestic battery case involving a Sheriff's deputy. As of that reporting, he is due back in court in early November.
  
  
• The new Champaign County Humane Society facility was quickly overwhelmed by increased need and promoted adoption discounts, according to the News-Gazette. The initial community response was highlighted by Jim Dey in his News-Gazette column.
  
  
• Getting to know Champaign County court security officer by the News-Gazette.
  
  
• Updates on Champaign County's Drug Court and recertification by the State, from the News-Gazette.

Other County Government Updates

There's a lot going on with Champaign County government offices in general this month. From Amnesty Week in the Circuit Clerk's office to a lot of Champaign County Sheriff's Office updates, health care, housing, and history!

The Champaign County Circuit Clerk is hosting its annual "Amnesty Week" according to WCIA:

Starting October 11 to the 21, if you have delinquent tickets, you can settle them with the city.

Amnesty Week is hosted by the Champaign County Circuit Clerk’s office. Suppose you have a balance on any criminal, traffic, DUI, ordinance violation(s), or conservation violation(s); you can pay off your balance without any late or collection fees. Officials said this does not apply to any fines and costs already paid or tax refunds used against what is due.

That full article here. More information from the Circuit Clerk's website here.

The News-Gazette's 9/16 "Meeting Minutes" feature highlighted a CSSO Lieutenant's FBI training graduation:

Just back from Quantico, Va.: newly minted FBI National Academy graduate and Champaign County sheriff’s Lt. Dave Sherrick (right). The 22-year department veteran, who serves as the administrative support lieutenant in the Law Enforcement Division, spent 10 weeks learning about advanced communication, leadership and officer resiliency, among other topics.

That blurb with photo is available at the News-Gazette's eEdition here. WCIA also had a short blurb on the same story here.

The 9/2 "Meeting Minutes" feature had an article on area corrections hiring. Excerpt related to Champaign County: 

Current openings: 16 correctional officers (of 50), two sergeants (of eight)...

Sheriff says: Staff shortages aren’t unique to Champaign County, Dustin Heuerman has learned in conversations with fellow sheriffs in similar-sized cities: “One is down 15 correctional officers and the other is down 10. Sheriffs across the state are struggling to find quality staff to help fill our vacant positions.”

Unlike police and fire departments, Heuerman says, “the corrections division has never had a robust list of interested applicants, which makes it difficult to replace employees leaving in a timely manner.”

That full article is also available on the eEdition here. WCIA had additional coverage on low morale and staff shortages in Champaign County corrections:

Some Champaign County correctional officers say morale is low among jail workers. It’s been hard to hire and keep employees. So, they want to start negotiating for a better contract. Their current one expires in December...

They’re down 16 officers, and [union representative] Micah McMahon said it’s been taking a toll on their physical and mental health. That’s why he went to the County Board meeting Tuesday night and asked to start the negotiation process...

McMahon said some officers are working 12-16 extra hours of overtime per week and haven’t taken a regular day off for a while. He said closing the downtown jail helped, but housing is still limited.

That full article with video segment here. In a somewhat related story, the Champaign County Bailout Coalition was in the news attempting to protect the scope of the SAFE-T Act reforms on cash bail and pretrial detention. WCIA had coverage with a video segment here. County Board member Emily Rodriguez was also interviewed. WCCU had a recent article that suggested the reforms might help a bit with some of the staffing issues in the local jail and another article looking at how the reformed process may work (including comments by the Champaign County State's Attorney).

C-U Publich Health District employees formed a union and expressed some of their frustrations with working conditions throughout the pandemic.

More at the full WAND article here with additional links to more information and the News-Gazette's coverage with more details from their FOIA request here.

Additional County area health updates are in a separate Cheat Sheet post here.

Other County Updates:

• Illinois Newsroom had coverage of one of the area judicial election races between Democrat Chad Beckett and Republican Sam Limentato here.
• The News-Gazette had some of the latest news on the Champaign County African American Heritage Trail project working with MTD, Visit Champaign County, and other local organizations.
• WCIA highlighted some upcoming activities with the Champaign County Forest Preserve District.
• WCIA highlighted the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission – Workforce Development Division.
• WCIA also highlighted the Housing Authority of Champaign County's YouthBuild program in coverage here.
• Additional events at this year's Pride celebration from WAND.
• Electronic recycling collection registration is available, but as of yesterday only by phone and not on-line. The phone number is 217-403-4780. More information from Smile Politely here.

Champaign County Updates

 

The possible nighttime white out conditions with the recent severe winter storm forced County crews to halt road clearing operations overnight according to WCIA:

Champaign County Highway Department will cease plow operations from 6 p.m. Wednesday until 6 a.m. Thursday due to the forecasted high winds and white out conditions.

Officials said based on the information that they have received from the National Weather Service, winds will continue to gust at 35 MPH to 40 MPH on Thursday...

Champaign County Highway Department will have plows stationed throughout the county overnight to aid in emergency calls if needed.

Full blurb here.

Petitions for local candidates in the upcoming midterm elections are circulating. It's a good time to help your favorite candidates get on the ballot and get to know who is in the running. From WCIA earlier last month:

Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons asks everyone to be prepared for an influx of people — who want to run for office — bringing a petition to their doors.

Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, Ammons asks all candidates to be masked and bring along hand sanitizer to use in between homes, not just for handwashing but for cleaning pens in between signatures...

The Illinois Primary is set for June 28 this year.

That full article here. 

If you want to learn more about how to be an effective member of a local board and get more involved in your community or a local organization, there is a free "Board Bootcamp" course coming up this month. From Smile Politely:

If you are a new, current, or prospective board member for a nonprofit organization, The Center for Nonprofit Excellence at the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois encourages you to attend their Board Bootcamp, a now quarterly offering that is designed to help create effective boards. 

The first session of the year is on February 23rd from 4 to 5 p.m. and will take place over Zoom. The focus will be on recruiting new board members.

Full blurb here. More information available at the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois website here.

In other Champaign County government news:

• January Champaign County Board Updates Cheat Sheet post.
• See our Cheat Sheet post on the latest updates on the Champaign County Courthouse. Includes updates on the cell phone ban, severe weather closings, and more here.
• Champaign County Sheriff Dustin Heuerman spoke to WCIA about initiatives to expand access to mental health care before a situation becomes an issue for law enforcement or the jail.
• The Champaign County Forest Preserve District has a bit of a scavenger hunt available when the weather clears up again. From WCIA.
• What towns and areas are defined as "rural" can have a major impact on where federal dollars go to local government and projects. From Illinois Newsroom.

In other Champaign County news:

• The Champaign County Humane Society raised $17,000 during the Betty White Challenge event according to WCIA.
• Champaign County home sales hit record numbers according to WCIA.
• The Eastern Illinois Foodbank announced a warehouse expansion. From WCIA.
• Update on Miss Champaign County Erica Johnson looking towards the Miss Illinois County Fair Queen competition.  
• A recent Tom's Mailbag question was asking about the Champaign "snow hole" with recent snowfall appearing to miss our area (prior to the severe winter weather warnings this past week).
• That same Tom's Mailbag column addressed fire station needs in Champaign and Urbana. In Champaign they gave an overview of the existing locations meeting current standards, but possibly some expansion issues in the future.
• Champaign County Restaurant Week coverage from WAND. More on restaurant week events and updates with the severe weather at their website here and facebook event page here.

County Courthouse Updates and Weather Closing

The high likelihood of extreme winter weather over the next couple days has led to closings across the area, including government facilities and even the Champaign County Courthouse. IllinoisNewsroom has a list of area closings and cancellations on their website here. Excerpt from the News-Gazette coverage of the Courthouse closing here:

Heuerman reminded motorists who do get stuck in drifts that their vehicles may not be towed right away.

“It is important that those who do not need to be out stay in,” he said, adding that the Champaign County Emergency Management Agency will be working with first responders to help coordinate response to emergency calls for service.

Presiding Judge Randy Rosenbaum said he alerted judges and their clerks on Tuesday to begin rearranging schedules. Anyone with court hearings for Wednesday or Thursday is advised to stay in touch with their attorneys about rescheduling.

More at the full blurb here. In other recent Courthouse news, the ban on electronic devices at the courthouse is changing. From the News-Gazette earlier in January:

The Illinois Supreme Court has decided to enter the 21st century and allow the general public to bring cellphones and other portable electronic devices into county courthouses.

The high court is leaving the choice up to individual counties. Champaign County has opted to embrace the change, reversing a 10-year-old ban...

Phones will be allowed in Jan. 18, giving the sheriff time to get signs ready and court security officers up to speed on the dos and don’ts of cellphone usage.

That full article here. WCIA had a full overview of the rules going into effect here with a link to Presiding Judge Rosenbaum's order on "Portable Electronic Devices (PEDs)" here. 

WCIA also had a comparison to other County courthouse rules under the changes here.

The Circuit Clerk's information on visiting the Courthouse still has the prohibition listed, however (as of February 2nd):

Prohibited Items

By order of the Champaign County Sheriff, the following items cannot be brought into the Courthouse:

• Electronic devices of any kind (cell phones, tablets, laptops, smart watches, eReaders)

That information appears to be out of date, but is available on the Circuit Clerk website here.

In other Champaign Courthouse news:

• The News-Gazette had information on the local Abraham Lincoln history exhibit at the courthouse and other Lincoln history points of interest locally.

State Races, Redistricting, and Other Updates

 

It appears that all the legislation dealing with redistricting has finally passed now that the Illinois Judicial District legislation has passed the General Assembly (just awaiting a likely Governor's signature). The Champaign County and C-U Local Cheat Sheets focus almost entirely on local government and local candidates, but the State redistricting runs right through our local communities. 

For a lot of information on the legal process, dates, before and after maps, etc Ballotpedia's redistricting page on U.S. Congressional and State of Illinois General Assembly districts has a lot of helpful information.

The most detailed maps with zoom functions and comparing before and after are on the Ballotpedia website here. There are also some additional maps at the Illinois Democratic Party's page here. Direct links to maps:

• U.S. Congressional District Map
• State of Illinois General Assembly, Senate and House Maps
• Illinois Supreme Court district map (it appears Champaign County is still in the 5th District compared to the current map here).

 

The General Assembly's passage of the new State judicial circuit and sub-circuit maps just happened this week. The changes appear to give some Illinois Counties with likely Democratic Party majorities, like Champaign County a bit more party representation opportunities on the court compared to circuit-wide elections that include far more surrounding rural populations and lean more Republican overall. The Springfield State Journal-Register had Capitol News Illinois coverage of the bill and its passage:

Democrats in the Illinois Senate and House pushed through legislation Wednesday night that would create new judicial “subcircuits” in Sangamon, Madison and DuPage counties.

Before sending House Bill 3138 to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk with no Republican votes, Democrats who control the General Assembly defended the new proposed subcircuits and other changes in residential qualifications for elected circuit judges in the Chicago area the counties of Peoria, Champaign and Rock Island. They said the plan would give Black and Hispanic judicial candidates more of a chance to get elected...

Republicans said the move is a brazen attempt to fill the bench with Democratic judges who would support Democratic initiatives and philosophies in court rulings.

Full article with more details here. The News-Gazette's Jim Dey had an article critical of the changes here, but it included some helpful descriptions of how some of the court seats would end up elected within Champaign County as opposed to across the full Sixth Circuit region:

Champaign County is among many affected counties. The evolving proposal calls for all three local circuit judges currently elected from the six-county Sixth Circuit to run only in Champaign County in future elections.

This change was proposed several months ago by state Rep. Carol Ammons, D-Urbana, who complained that judges are overwhelmingly White and male.

The transition takes effect on the retirements of circuit judges Jason Bohm, Randy Rosenbaum and Roger Webber.

Champaign County has six circuit judges — three at-large and three resident. The resident judges are Ramona Sullivan, Ben Dyer and Sam Limentato.

That full opinion piece here. More information on the structure of the Sixth Circuit here, list of judges here, map here, and an explanation of circuit versus associate judges here. The Cheat Sheet's judges page is dire need of an update and on the to-do list.

For previous coverage of the redistricting of the County Board districts, see this previous Cheat Sheet post or the News-Gazette coverage here.

Race and Candidates:

There were a couple recent news items highlighting potential candidates for these new districts. The Cheat Sheet won't have a lot of further information and updates about them, but the Champaign County Voter Alliance has had some great non-partisan candidate guides in recent years. The League of Women Voters of Champaign County has candidate events to keep an eye out for as well!

The News-Gazette had updates on incumbent representatives at the State level of government running again. The list includes Representatives Carol Ammons (D - 103rd), Mike Marron (R - 104th) and Tom Bennett (R - 106th). It also includes Senators Chapin Rose (R-51st) and Scott Bennett (D - 52nd).

It could be the first part of 2022 before they know the territory they’d represent — pending a ruling by a federal panel of judges on redrawn maps — but five local state legislators say they all plan to run for re-election 11 months from now.

Full article here.

Now that the U.S. Congressional races this year finally have districts after a convoluted process by the State of Illinois government to deal with late census data and lawsuits. it's becoming more clear who may run for which seat. Some early updates on potential candidates are available for the IL-13 Congressional District candidates so far: Democrats David Palmer and Nikki Budzinski. The News-Gazette's Tom Kacich had some early fundraising information for the IL-13 candidates here. The very recently announced candidates for the IL-15 here (Republicans so far) started off with some fireworks almost right out of the gate.

COVID and Health Updates

There has been a great deal of news this past month due to the latest COVID-19 wave and the changing behavior of the Omicron variant. This post starts with some general information and updates, school related updates, and other news and links. 

Illinois Newsroom had a listing of vaccination and testing sites in central Illinois, including Champaign County, in a recent article here. Smile Politely had a listing for C-U testing sites as well here. As always you can get more local information at the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District website here and regular updates at their facebook page here.

There were press releases asking asymptomatic people not to go to local hospitals for testing, but to use other testing services in the area. From WCIA:

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District recently posted to Facebook, asking people not to use Carle, OSF, Christie or Promise Healthcare for COVID asymptomatic testing.

Health officials said at this moment, people who should go to these healthcare locations for COVID testing are only the ones with symptoms, have a high-risk exposure or are directed there by a healthcare provider.

According to officials, others should use the Market Place Mall testing site, SHIELD-CU sites (the Stephens Family YMCA, CRCE on the U of I campus, or Parkland College in Building E), The Free Rapid Test site at southeast corner of Springfield & Duncan or Campustown Urgent Care at Wright and Green.

Full article with video segment here.

Schools:

The Omicron variant of the COVID pandemic hit Illinois last month. and has put a strain on hospitalizations locally. In the week before Christmas the C-UPHD was warning of a "tsunami" of new infections and that the local hospitals were being overwhelmed. The News-Gazette editors promoted vaccinations and masking to help mitigate the surge in a recent editorial as well.

Around that same time the University announced a week long delay for in-person classes this year. Earlier in December, the UIUC Chancellor Robert Jones' "State of the University" speech highlighted the school's pandemic strategy heading into the new year. From Illinois Newsroom:

Last year, everyone on campus was required to test for the virus twice a week. Now, with vaccines available, Jones said they’re testing students, faculty and staff on a targeted basis.

“If there’s more than a couple of cases in a day or two or three cases in a week, we do what we call targeted surveillance testing where everybody in that facility does have to test every other day. And that, according to our public health officials, combined with our very high level of vaccination, is the best mitigation step to take at the moment,” Jones said.

Around 94 percent of the University of Illinois students and staff are fully vaccinated. That’s compared to 74 percent of people 18 and over statewide.

Full article here. Text of the address here, video link here (jump to link on COVID section of the address here). The News-Gazette also had an overview of the University's mitigation strategy last month here.

The University also announced COVID testing requirements for upcoming athletic events. WCIA had an overview here.

The local school districts announced their COVID testing policies and requirements heading into the new year. WCIA had an overview for Unit 4 and District 116 (Champaign and Urbana) here.

Other COVID and health news updates:

• Prior to the New Year's Eve celebrations, mayors of both Champaign and Urbana warned residents to avoid large gatherings to help prevent overwhelming the hospital system any further.
• Secretary of State drivers services have been impacted. Details from WCIA here.
• The surge in cases has also affected court appearances in Champaign County.
• The governor "and hospital leaders are asking hospitals to postpone non-emergency surgeries" according to WICS.
• WICS had coverage of Illinois implementing new CDC quarantine guidelines.
• WCCU highlighted warnings that there may be more cancelations and staffing issues to come.
• Community Foundation of East Central Illinois provided grant money to several area non-profits. More information and links at Smile Politely.

County and County Board Updates

This post is following up on previous County Board committee and Committee of the Whole meetings in February (previous Cheat Sheet post here) as well as some other County government related updates. 

This week's County Board meeting (agenda packet, addendum, video) started off with the appointment of a new Democratic member for District 6, Jenny Lokshin (District 6 page has been updated). The rest of the meeting focused quite a bit on dividers for the Circuit Clerk's office staff and rapid testing for County employees. The rapid testing would be derived from the UI saliva test developed locally. From the News-Gazette coverage:

In addition to authorizing Kloeppel to negotiate a contract for testing county employees, the county board also Thursday authorized a budget amendment that would cover up to $70,000 in testing expenses...

The cost will likely run $10 to $20 per test, she said, but, “I think I can get it for $10 a test.”

Testing may begin as soon as in March, and county employees will probably be going to UI State Farm Center for testing, Kloeppel said.

Full article here. WCIA also had coverage here. The News-Gazette had more background on this issue in its article previewing the topic before the County Board meeting here.

Public participation in the meeting included continued concerns about the management of the Champaign County Animal Control Department in light of recent incidents, including the mistaken euthanization of a family pet. County Board Chair Kyle Patterson highlighted several of the first black County and Countwide office holders in Champaign County for Black History Month. He also highlighted the likely record tenure of County Board member Lorrain Cowert who has served on the County Board for 36 years.

There was a long discussion and debate on the Circuit Clerk dividers. A handful of Republicans questioned the urgency and long term need of the dividers. Democrats and the Circuit Clerk herself highlighted an ongoing need for both noise control for the call service staff and safety during the pandemic, which may be a long term concern. The proposal failed to gain the 15 votes required for a budgetary amendment. The No votes were Republicans Esry, Goss, Harper, Michaels, Passalacqua, and Paul. McGuire recused (I believe due to a potential conflict of interest) and Jodi Wolken was absent from the meeting.

Another item that received bipartisan opposition and did not pass was a health care contract negotiated by the County Executive. Discussion revolved around the County Board not being included in the process by the County Executive again. The UI saliva testing proposal received support from the board for negotiations with amended language. The County Executive can negotiate for tests up to a $70,000 commitment and assuming weekly volunteer testing as the norm. As noted above that passed over some Republican opposition.

At the end of the meeting the vote on the health care contract was discussed. Board members asked for additional information to consider voting on the contract again at the next meeting with that additional information. Members Michaels and McGuire suggested they might be able to support it in a future vote with more information. The Executive affirmed that it can be brought up at the next meeting and there's still time to approve it within the deadlines. The meeting adjourned just before 8:30pm.

Other County News:

The News-Gazette reported a new associate judge, Matthew D. Lee, will be appointed to the Sixth Circuit:

When he’s sworn in Feb. 25, the Champaign County bench will be back to its full strength of 11: five associate judges and six elected circuit judges.

Associate judges serve at the pleasure of the circuit judges.

Lee will step into the post vacated two weeks ago by the retirement of John Kennedy, an associate judge for 20 years.

That full article here.

The County Clerk has been in the news the past few weeks with the local municipal primary elections coming up and Early Voting already begun (more on the C-U Local Cheat Sheet here). The News-Gazette had coverage of the public testing of voting machines here. Tom's Mailbag answered questions on who makes voting machines for Champaign County here. WICS had an article earlier this month with the initial early voting being down from the high turnout general election here.

Sample ballots and other voter information links are available on the Champaign County Clerk website here. Specimen ballots were printed in the News-Gazette (subscription eEdition links here and here). The News-Gazette also had an update on the non-partisan group in Champaign County promoting voter turnout in cooperation with the League of Women Voters. The Champaign County Voter Alliance also produces the non-partisan candidate guide in Champaign County.

There are continued concerns about Census delays and how that may impact election timelines and the data used for various programs and services in the area. Illinois Newsroom had an overview this week:

The U.S. Census Bureau announced Friday that due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other delays, it will not be able to deliver the detailed, block-level data that states need for redistricting until Sept. 30, long past the deadline spelled out in the Illinois Constitution for the General Assembly to approve new maps.

That’s also a full month after candidates are scheduled to begin circulating petitions to run for office and qualify for the March 15, 2022, primary election. The petition period begins Aug. 31 and filing begins Nov. 22, according to a spokesperson for the Illinois State Board of Elections.

Full article available here. The Regional Planning Commission noted their concerns about the Census delays at their January meeting (Cheat Sheet post on that here). The Regional Planning Commission was also in the news for LIHEAP assistance available for utility bills. From WCIA:

Through the RPC’s LIHEAP program, people can catch up on their utility bills, and cover themselves for any extra usage over the coming weeks. The RPC’s director, Lisa Benson, said to apply for benefits as soon as possible.

State moratoriums end March 31. Benson said the RPC is already anticipating a large influx of applicants in the coming weeks. If you have already received benefits, you can apply to have your utilities covered by the RPC’s Emergency Rental Assistance program.

Full article here.

Tom's Mailbag had an answer to the question on how cannabis tax money is collected by the State and then the portion of the tax money the County is eligible for is returned to the local governments here.

County Government Updates

This post has some news updates related to County government and information on upcoming meetings this month. The updates have to do with the Champaign County Circuit Clerk's office outreach on cannabis expungement, the annual homeless population survey, and support for eliminating the office of the Recorder of Deeds.

The Circuit Clerk highlighted additional information people effected by State expungements may be unaware of. There is a push to reach out to folks who may have already benefited or could benefit locally. From WAND:

"We actually have a group of 500 cases where people may not be aware that their records have automatically been expunged," said Champaign County Circuit Clerk Susan McGrath. 

The list of individuals whose convictions were presented to the governor for potential pardons authorizing expungement has already been provided to Champaign County and granted by the Champaign County Court. For an individual who believes they fall into this category, they can get a copy of the order granting their expungement from the Office of the Champaign County Circuit Clerk and a certified docket sheet.

Those individuals can also contact the Circuit Clerk’s Office cccircuitclerk@co.champaign.il.us and provide their name, date of birth, address, cell phone number, case number and/or approximate date of conviction. They are encouraged to make this contact either in person or by email by March 1, 2021.

More details and helpful links at the full article here. The News-Gazette had more coverage here.

The annual point-in-time survey to track homeless people in the area took place last week. WAND had a brief overview:

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, along with the Champaign County Continuum of Services Providers to the Homeless, mandates the Point-in-Time survey allowing homeless service providers to track progress made towards ending homelessness in the community.

Since July, the CSPH has added six new members, bringing the number of organizations involved to 35...

The data collected from the Point-in-Time count will track the needs of people experiencing homelessness and determine how to distribute the federal funding effectively.

More at that full article here. More information on the Champaign County Continuum of Services Providers to the Homeless is available on the Regional Planning Commission website here with meeting information on their webpage here.

The News-Gazette's editorial board is still on board with getting rid of the Recorder's office and so is the current office holder, former County Board member Mike Ingram. From WCIA:

Champaign County Recorder Mike Ingram ran a campaign to do away with his office. Now, he’s preparing a referendum to make that happen...

He says not much would change for employees in his office. The only major change would be that his staff works for a different department head.

Voters will be able to decide on whether or not to merge the two offices or keep them separate in April.

That full blurb here. News-Gazette editorial here. It may be one of the few things most people can agree on these days.

Upcoming Meetings:

There are County Board committee meetings coming up tonight and heading into next week (see the February meeting calendar here). Tonight is the Environment and Land Use Committee (agenda packet) and will be live streamed on the web and facebook. There will be the 2nd part of a 5 part series on waste management. From a previous Cheat Sheet post:

"[January 7th's] Environment and Land Use Committee (ELUC) had Part 1 of a 5 part presentation on waste management issues in the County (agenda here, waste presentation PowerPoint here, and video here). There was also an interesting overview of what the County has to do to get back in compliance on its "noxious weed" responsibilities."

The calendar has a key to the abbreviations, for example the VAC is the Veterans' Assistance Commission . The VAC's facebook page has regular updates on the work they're doing here.

Champaign County Bailout Coalition Updates

This post has updates and links from the last meeting of the Champaign County Bailout Coalition, but first some context with the passage of a major piece of legislation. The Illinois General Assembly recently passed a police and criminal justice reform bill that is now waiting on the Governor's signature to become law. In a recent Cheat Sheet post we had the Champaign County Sheriff's reaction, but the bill would also impact many organizations that work with the Criminal Justice system like the Champaign County Bailout Coalition. NBC Chicago had a detailed overview of the bill earlier this month:

House Bill 3653, authored by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus, was approved by the Illinois General Assembly Wednesday, bringing "significant changes" to things like police training policies, police accountability, transparency in law enforcement and the rights of detainees and prisoners, according to Sen. Elgie R. Sims, Jr., who sponsored the bill.

Among the changes the bill would bring are the elimination of monetary bail, a requirement that all police officers wear body cameras by 2025, a ban on all police chokeholds, new guidelines for "decertification" of police officers, and an end to suspended licenses for failure to pay, among several other changes. It also bans police departments from purchasing military equipment like .50 caliber rifles and tanks, increases protection for whistleblowers, and adds to rights for detainees to make phone calls and access their personal contacts before police questioning.

Full article here with a breakdown of the bill by topic. There is a great deal of pushback by law enforcement across the state. From CBS Chicago:

The executive director of the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police, Ed Wojcicki said he wants to be part of any upcoming discussions involving the bill.

“We’re going to ask the governor to veto it, or certainly ammendatorially veto it,” Wojicicki said. “We’re going to identify the most egregious portions of the bill.”

Once he gets the bill, the governor has 60 days to sign it. He issued a statement Wednesday supporting the bill, calling it a model for the nation in justice reform.

That full article with more details here.

The end of cash bail isn't immediate in the bill and it appears that it could take a couple years to transition to a system where a suspect is jailed based on factors such as public safety and flight risk as opposed to how much money they have. The Bailout Coalition's website about page makes clear how their mission remains relevant until that transition occurs:

The Champaign County Bailout Coalition is a non-profit and volunteer-run alliance of local individuals and organizations committed to the abolition of money bail as the criterion for determining pretrial release in Champaign County. Unaffordable bail disregards the legal right of the presumption of innocence and condemns individuals to jail before trial. Moreover, decades of research show that the risks of an individual committing a punishable offense during pretrial release or missing their court dates are unaffected by payment of bond. We believe that justice will be done only when this criminal practice is replaced by mandatory non-monetary release for as many people as possible and support for those awaiting trial.

More information on their about page here. In their most recent meeting and on their facebook page they have made it clear they're still looking for volunteers right now:

CCBC collaborates with other criminal justice reform minded organizations for court watching, fundraising and groups like the Coalition to End Money Bond. Local criminal justice activist and Co-Director of the FirstFollowers Reentry Program in Champaign County highlighted the bail reforms in his initial impressions of the passed bill:

The ending of cash bond is momentous and has been the product of years of grassroots struggle. While legislators will no doubt claim credit for this advance, the real credit goes to the Coalition to End Money Bond and the Chicago Community Bond Fund and other activists/advocates who have been so instrumental in getting this passed. In keeping away multiple attempts to water down this legislation and raising consciousness about EM and all the other ways the system tries to pretend they are making change. I especially salute the impacted people who stepped up so heroically to share their experiences of EM and pretrial injustice. Without their stories and determination, this legislation could not have passed. 

People can listen to more reactions from various organizations and activists at a virtual townhall on the Chicago Community Bond Fund facebook page.

Last week's meeting covered a multitude of topics, but a timely issue involved advocacy for priority access to the COVID-19 vaccine for incarcerated people in prisons and jails. Danville Correctional Center recently had an outbreak that they're still battling. From WCIA last month:

 New numbers released by the Illinois Department of Corrections show 30% of Danville Correctional Center’s inmates are currently battling COVID-19.

“We dreaded this day,” Education Justice Project‘s Rebecca Ginsburg said. “We thought it was likely to come eventually. The warden, especially at Danville Correctional Center, has done a good job of delaying this day. But the day has arrived. The numbers are increasing, doubling – more than doubling on a weekly basis.”

Full article here. Another update from WCIA a few days ago included two new deaths:

Two men in their 60s who are inmates at the Illinois Department of Corrections prison in Danville have died since Thursday after contracting coronavirus...

WCIA reported Jan. 5 that an inmate in his 40s had died on Dec. 26.

Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 896 inmates have tested positive for the virus. Of those 741 have recovered and 155 cases are still active.

Another 147 jail staffers have also tested positive. Of those, 135 have recovered and 12 cases are still active.

That full blurb here. The local Champaign County Sheriff gave a presentation on safety issues at the Main and Satellite jails in Champaign County to the County Board's facilities committee (agenda, video) earlier this month. His presentation included the various ways they have attempted to prevent outbreaks locally in spite of serious limitations in their ability to separate and quarantine the number of incarcerated people during intake and in housing.

The Champaign County Bailout Coalition meetings are bimonthly on Thursday evenings and the upcoming dates/times can be found on their facebook events page here. Their meetings are currently on-line and their next meeting is January 28th at 5-6:30pm. 

County Board Roundup: Recorder, Appointments, Animal Control

This past week the County Board had a Committee of the Whole meeting, a special meeting, and a court ruling on appointments. The discussion and votes mostly revolved around appointments and a referendum on eliminating the County Recorder office by merging it with the County Clerk's office. There was also some discussion on the Animal Control office and its handling of euthanasia cases after a tragic mistake over Christmas.

The Committee of the Whole (video, agenda packet here) was a marathon meeting lasting nearly 5 hours. Most of the public comments revolved around the outrage of the Animal Control euthanasia error and some input on how best to eliminate the Recorder's office. The News-Gazette had an overview of the Recorder referendum approved a couple days later at the special meeting (video, agenda):

The long-debated question of whether Champaign County should eliminate the elected office of recorder of deeds is now set to head to voters.

At a special meeting Thursday night, the county board approved putting the question on the April 6 ballot.

Specifically, voters will be asked if the office of Champaign County recorder shall be eliminated, with all duties and responsibilities of that office being transferred to the county clerk’s office, at the end of this year.

Full article here with a brief overview of what the Recorder office does and how those duties are often part of a County Clerk's office in Illinois counties. Most of the discussion in this week's meetings revolved around the technical issues of how long it would take to transfer the responsibilities of the office and ultimately end the elected office overseeing it. A compromise for the end of this year won out in the end.

Of the long discussions and arguments about appointments, probably the most important point was that appointed positions are difficult to fill and the County needs more applicants and interest.

If you are interested in learning more and applying for a vacancy, start on the Board Appointments page: http://www.co.champaign.il.us/CountyExecutive/Appointments.php

The County Executive also has appointment news on the Executive's News page: http://www.co.champaign.il.us/CountyExecutive/countyexecnewsreleases.php

This page lists the different appointed bodies overseen by the Board. To find a current opening, start by clicking on the “Vacant Appointments” tab.

The appointments links on the County website can be a bit circular and confusing as the appointment authority has changed with the new County Executive form of government. This has been a subject of lawsuits, including the most recent ruling establishing the Executive as the clear appointment authority, with the County Board's authority to advise and consent to those nominations. The News-Gazette highlighted a potential hiccup with a recent vacancy appointment to the board itself:

Whether it will have any impact on the recent appointment of Cameron Raab to fill the other District 6 seat formerly held by Mike Ingram, who resigned after being elected county recorder of deeds in November, remains to be seen.

Kloeppel vetoed Raab’s appointment, but her veto was ignored and Raab was seated as a new board member.

Kloeppel said Friday she could potentially appoint Raab herself, or she could let her veto stand — in which case the board could override it — or she could contest the appointment, though that would require going back to court.

That full article with more details and background here. Other appointment discussions included more legal technicalities about statutory requirements for partisan balance on the Board of Review (an overview of the Board of Review is available at a previous Cheat Sheet post here).

The discussion on the Animal Control Department didn't result in any substantive votes or changes, but there have been a couple updates in the local news about new protocols to hopefully prevent any further errors and allay concerns with the public. Illinois Newsroom had an overview of the discussions and copies of memos on the subject:

Both County Executive Darlene Kloeppel and Animal Control director Stephanie Joos issued memos reporting on the incident (they can be seen below, following this article). In her report, Joos said she’s taken steps to prevent future mistakes. Because there was confusion over the description of Dada, additional fields have been added to the department’s loss report form, so staff can provide more details. And kennel cages at the department’s pound will have additional signs showing the status of each animal.

“These new measures have been implemented to assure this will not happen again,” Joos wrote in the memo.

That full article here. WCIA had additional coverage with a short video segment here.