Transparency important to 18th District board candidates

Kay Hoogland, a Democrat from Long Grove, is challenging incumbent Republican Aaron Lawlor of Vernon Hills to represent the 18th District on the Lake County Board. Lawlor was appointed in summer 2009 to fill the seat vacated by Pam Newton.

What follows are the candidates' responses to a Daily Herald questionnaire. They have been edited for spelling, grammar and style.

The 18th District includes all or portions of Buffalo Grove, Hawthorn Woods, Indian Creek, Vernon Hills and Long Grove.

Q. Name one specific step you would take if elected to increase government transparency in your Lake County office.

Hoogland. I would focus on providing open information on the internal and external cost of government.

Internally, a good place to start is personnel costs. Job titles, pay and related benefit costs are basic information that taxpayers should see. Visibility of this type of data can also head off “pension spiking” inflating final pay rates simply to boost pension benefits, as was recently done at the park district in Highland Park. This should be prohibited in Lake County government.

Posting pay information would also be a good way to guard against this and other deceptive pay practices.

Externally, we should have open and competitive bidding for county business. That means establishing a much more visible and competitive bidding process, with very few isolated exceptions. Citizens need an easy way to know where their tax dollars are being spent.

Also, local businesses need every opportunity to compete for and win Lake County contracts. Competitive bidding can only lead to better and less costly contracting.

Lawlor. I support efforts to put government online in real-time. We are already a national leader in government transparency.

Lake County was one of only 39 government websites out of 5,000 to be awarded an “A” grade by The Sunshine Review, a nonprofit organization dedicated to state and local government transparency.

Every open session document that is in my board packet is available online for Lake County residents. I supported efforts to digitize forest preserve board documents so residents have access to them with the click of a mouse.

Lake County residents have a right to know how their tax dollars are being spent. The county's bills are currently available online with each month's board agenda.

I support publishing each county officeholder's salary and expense records online. The county board receives $4,500 to cover the cost of their office.

I have used my allocation to communicate with residents about property tax appeals, the state of the county's finances and other important issues even if it means paying for them out of my own pocket. Each member uses their fund at their own discretion. I think residents have a right to see how their board member is utilizing funds immediately under their control.