Oct 29, 2009 6:29 pm US/Central
Lawmakers Vote To Weaken Cook County Board Prez.
Measure Would Allow Opponents Of Sales Tax Hike To Override Veto Of Rollback
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) ―
-
-
Cook County Board President Todd Stroger at the start of the board meeting on May 19, 2009. The board voted not to override Stroger's veto of a sales tax rollback. A new measure waiting the governor's signature would make it easier to override such vetoes.
CBS
Illinois lawmakers have approved a measure that would weaken the power
of Cook County Board President Todd Stroger and could bring sales tax
relief to Cook County.
By a 48-1 vote on Thursday, the Illinois Senate approved legislation that would lower the number of votes it takes for the Cook County Board of Commissioners to override a veto by the board president.
If that happens, it will only take a three-fifths majority, as is the case in the rest of the state. But in Cook County, it takes 14 of the 17 commissioners to override a veto.
The County Board has voted twice to roll back all or part of a sales tax hike enacted to balance the 2008 budget, but both times Stroger vetoed it and the board couldn't override the veto.
They voted to roll back the entire 1 percent tax hike in May.
Stroger wasted no time in vetoing the rollback, and when the board couldn't override the veto, they introduced new legislation calling for cutting the tax hike in half.
The legislation passed, but Stroger vetoed it and again, the votes to override the veto came up short.
State Sen. Dan Kotowski (D-Park Ridge), the Senate sponsor of the measure to reduce the Cook County veto override requirement, said "It's a matter of fairness. ... The four-fifths veto override threshold is so high that it takes nearly unanimous support to override the Cook County Board President's veto. Having such a strong an executive doesn't reflect the balance of powers we expect in a democracy."
A handful of senators spoke out against the measure, saying the state should not interfere with local governments in such a manner. State Sen. Donne Trotter (D-Chicago) said if lawmakers wanted to reduce the threshold to override a veto in Cook County, the law should not go into effect until December 2010, when the next term for the Cook County Board begins.
"We're changing the rules in the middle of a game. Like it or not, they voted for this president that is now serving the county board," Trotter said. "Just because you don't get your way, you don't change the rules."
Trotter abstained from voting on the measure.
The Illinois House of Representatives approved the measure two weeks ago, so the proposal now goes to Gov. Pat Quinn for his consideration. The governor has said he supports the effort to reduce the veto threshold in Cook County.
Stroger supported a similar measure during his 2006 campaign. At the time, he said, "I know full well this means it would be easier for the Cook County Commissioners to override any Presidential veto that I may make as the next Cook County Board President, and even knowing that, I support this measure. This is not about politics or power, this is about what's best for Cook County."
But Stroger had urged lawmakers to reject this latest effort, saying that allowing Commissioners to roll back the sales tax hike would force the county to make major cuts to health care, public safety and other services for the needy.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Jewish Celebrities
Click to enlarge
Funeral Underway For Chicago Board Of Ed President 46 mins ago
Stumble It!
