Where was Quinn on tollway hike?
Long before the toll increase vote Thursday, Gov. Pat Quinn appointed several of the leaders who paved the way to Thursday’s approval of bigger numbers on your I-PASS bills next year.
But save an occasional comment here or there, the governor has mostly stayed out of the debate over higher tolls, a move that’s raised the eyebrows of some observers and drawn praise from others.
“We briefed Gov. Quinn several times on this plan,” said Illinois Tollway Authority board chair Paula Wolff. “This is a plan that was developed over the last 18 months. The governor’s been aware of the process, I don’t think he’s been aware of the specific detail.”
His absence from the process struck some as a missed leadership opportunity.
“His role would be to tell the public where he stands on it,” said Rep. Dennis Reboletti, a Elmhurst Republican on an Illinois House tollway committee. “He appoints the members of the board. You can’t get a clear-cut read on where the governor is at.”
Others, though, said Quinn was right to stay out of it.
“I appreciate that Gov. Quinn has not put pressure on us,” said tollway Director Bill Morris, the lone vote against the toll hike.
And state Sen. Susan Garrett, a Lake Forest Democrat, argued Quinn should stay out of decisions like this in order to keep from politicizing them more than they already will be.
Quinn, Garrett says, should appoint the members and let them work.
“It may be even improper for the governor to weigh in,” she said.
The day before the vote, Quinn did talk about the proposed hikes after an unrelated event. Then, he defended the need for a toll hike in general, but stopped short of getting behind the particular plan under review.
Still, Quinn is at the top of state government, and foes will argue to angry drivers — and voters — that he’s responsible for their more expensive commutes. “Pat Quinn continues to campaign against his former self,” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady of St. Charles. “With more and more tax and fee increases, people need to ask the governor, what’s next?”
Those increases Brady references started when Quinn helped usher through Springfield an often-lauded statewide construction plan that raised various vehicle fees, raised taxes on booze, soda, candy and some hygiene products and legalized video gambling machines in bars.
Then, there was the income tax increase earlier this year that Quinn loudly promoted in an effort to stop the bleeding of the state’s budget.
Because of those other efforts that have hit suburban wallets, Republicans looking to pin the toll increase on Quinn might find sympathetic ears among voters.
“Gas prices are up, food prices are up, unemployment is high, and all of this is coupled with the massive tax increase that the Democrats signed into law in January of this year,” state Rep. Tom Morrison, a Palatine Republican, said in a statement released after the vote. “Tolls add up, and this unfortunate decision now makes it more expensive for Illinois residents to get to work every day.”
Daily Herald Transportation Writer Marni Pyke contributed to this story.