Mass transit, Route 59 among top concerns for 96th District candidates
Two candidates for state representative in House District 96 are running in the Feb. 5 Republican primary for their party's nod to appear on the November ballot.
The seat has been held by Republican state Rep. Joe Dunn of Naperville, who has announced he will not seek re-election this year.
The candidates are Michael G. Bowler, 37, of Aurora and Darlene J. Senger, 52, of Naperville.
Whoever emerges from the Feb. 5 primary will face Democratic candidate Dianne McGuire of Naperville in the November general election. McGuire is running unopposed on the Democratic primary ballot.
The 96th District covers a large part of western Naperville, eastern Aurora and a small part of Warrenville.
The Daily Herald recently asked the candidates to respond to a series of questions concerning the race and their views. Their responses were limited to 150 words.
Here's what they said:
Q. Why are you running for office?
Michael Bowler: With Rep. Joe Dunn retiring, this is an open seat and in this type of district, this opportunity will not come along again as an open seat. This is my first time running for this position.
Darlene Senger: I am running because I have a deep desire and proven ability to represent my constituents. I am running for office to continue providing those who live in the 96th District an accessible and responsive state representative.
District 96 is diverse both culturally and economically. I understand our diversity and know what problems need to be solved and will work to get them solved.
The people of the district need to know that tomorrow we will still have good schools, good jobs, and good means to get from one place to another, whether it be on our roads or on mass transit.
They need to know their state legislators are working together to put the needs of Illinois ahead of political infighting and that decisions are being made in a fiscally responsible manner.
Q. What contributions would you make as a newcomer in Springfield?
Bowler: With my past experience as a legislative aide, I believe I can hit the ground running in relation to service from the district office to the legislative process in Springfield. To me there is a lot more to being a state representative than driving down to Springfield and making laws.
Being involved in all of the communities you represent, dealing with local officials and, most importantly, running a great district office (are important). (So is) dealing with the citizens of the state and their issues and providing assistance.
Senger: My professional background is in financial planning, employee benefits and pension consulting. I also have five years municipal experience with budgeting and financial policy setting.
As a member of the Illinois General Assembly, I would hope to contribute my education and training on those committees that could best benefit from my expertise, such as insurance, finance, personnel and pension, education and appropriations.
I also have the ability to work with people to get things done.
Q. The 2007 session showed again how heavily legislative action relies on consensus by the governor and legislative leaders. Should rank-and-file legislators play a larger role? If so, how can that change be made?
Bowler: Yes, of course the rank-and-file members should and are required to play a larger role in legislative action. We are elected to represent the citizens; they rely on us to represent their views and issues.
Why then even have an elected legislature if only the governor and leaders are going to legislate everything or not because there are issues between them.
We as representatives need to demand to be part of the system.
Senger: Yes, rank-and-file legislators should play a larger role. Their voices should be heard before the vote gets to the leaders.
The budget is a 3,000-page document put together by the leaders and given to the members two days before the vote. How can rank-and-file members participate in such a process?
In my opinion, each section should be heard before their respective appropriations committee for comment prior to the General Assembly. This would at least give the rank-and-file legislators the ability to read comments on each appropriation before it gets approved.
Q. Illinois residents will vote this year on whether the state should call a constitutional convention. Do you favor a convention? If so, what revisions do you favor?
Bowler: Yes, I would support a constitutional convention. Again, this is the right of the voters. Many issues can be placed and voted on -- recall, state central committeeman elections, requiring a super-majority vote for tax increases, the way education funding is handled. Again, we live in a democratic society and the voters should be allowed to place issues on the ballot and revisions.
Senger: The risk involved in calling for a constitutional convention may outweigh the long-term benefits. While you may be able to fix some of the things you want to fix at the moment, you also expose yourselves to the risk of changing some of the things you like, such as limits on spending.
The right to recall elected officials, the power of the Speaker of the House, and how the state gets redistricted are some of the reasons why a constitutional convention is being suggested.
It is disappointing that the current administration cannot work in fairness. It would be better to enforce the rules presently in place and punish abuse through an active and educated electorate than to spend years in the judiciary interpreting a new constitution.
Q. Do Illinois' ongoing budget problems have their roots in too much spending or too little revenue?
Bowler: Our current situation is a combination of both, but is heavily on the spending side. As a Republican, I, of course, believe in less spending and less government.
But the government does need revenue to provide the necessary services. But the governor's "user fees" and fees directed to business in Illinois will, of course, drive out business and revenues that would be coming into the state.
Senger: Government cannot be all things to all people. Yes, transit needs more income, but that doesn't mean we should raise taxes without regard to accountability for both the short- and long-term.
It is our lack of recognizing the long-term costs of our infrastructure that got us into the transit mess to begin with.
Government must be run like a business. We must avoid unfunded mandates. New programs should not be added without first being mindful of what long-term support can be in place for it. The benefits of each project must be carefully weighed against the costs.
Q. Do you favor changes in the state's funding of schools?
Bowler: I would seriously need to take a closer look at the funding issue and the options that are out there. There certainly needs to be a conversation/debate/action on this issue -- but one that is fair and balanced to property owners, seniors and businesses.
Senger: No, I am not in favor of school funding reform as it currently exists. Our cost per pupil expenditures in District 203 and District 204 are among the lowest in the state and the student performance is excellent. This is all being accomplished even with the diversity, both cultural and economic, that exists in the school districts.
I agree property tax reform is needed for seniors and those on fixed income with disabilities, and that can be done through other mechanisms, such as raising the exemption.
I also agree that today's schools are more challenged with No Child Left Behind.
Let's identify what is being done right, such as parental involvement and business partnering, and pay close attention to each individual student. Let's first look at how the things we are doing right here can be incorporated in other school systems, before we overhaul the system.
Q. Do you favor or oppose putting new state employees on defined-contribution instead of defined-benefit retirement plans?
Bowler: I would seriously need to take a look at this issue. Being a former state and county employee, I know how important these benefits are to these employees and contrary to popular belief. Most of these employees don't make a huge salary and aren't always compensated fairly for all their work.
I would probably side with state workers on this, but would make sure these pensions and benefits are funded and not put at risk.
Senger: First and foremost, the goal of either plan is to have money to retire on and with. One thing you cannot do is not fund a defined benefit plan, which is what the governor is doing now. By not funding pension requirements, you're creating an even larger unfunded liability and increasing the risk that the cost will be so great you will never catch up.
You run the same risk when you borrow from your 401K plan.
The benefit of a defined-contribution plan is just that -- you have more personal control over what you are saving. If you, as an individual, chose to borrow from your plan or not contribute, it is your decision, not a choice made by legislators in Springfield.
Q. Does Illinois tax businesses too heavily, too lightly or the right amount?
Bowler: Yes, I believe Illinois businesses are taxed too much. All forms of government are looking everywhere for any new or additional money -- they are hitting the citizens from every direction and we all know business has to pass along any taxes or the governor's favorite idea of "fees," which is a round-about way of taxing the voters.
Senger: Looking at the whole picture, clearly we are doing something wrong when we are losing jobs and not replacing them. Not only are we losing agricultural and manufacturing jobs, we're also losing service sector and technology jobs as experienced in our backyard along the I-88 corridor.
Taxes on our businesses have to be competitive and fair. "Fees" and excise taxes should be added to businesses with the intent of funding general revenues.
New taxes or fees should also not stifle job creation and economic development that will ultimately lead to a higher standard of living for our citizens and more revenue for the state.
Q. Should the state lease or sell some assets, such as its tollways or the lottery?
Bowler: I believe there could be some benefit to leasing or selling some assets. It would depend on who and what. We need to ensure the process is open and honest and that the state would benefit and not hurt the residents in the long run.
Senger: No, I do not think the tollways or lottery should be handed to a private company. What if the company became a firm overseas? Who would be watching over the tollways' long- and short-term maintenance?
If the state did a better job of managing its assets and managing the lottery, this question would not even be considered and it should not be considered. Plus, this is only a one-shot boost to revenues. It really does nothing to solve the annual shortfall in operating revenues.
Q. What issue or issues specific to your legislative district and its residents do you plan to address in Springfield?
Bowler: Pretty much everything the General Assembly hasn't done this year. We need to address the transit issue, both roads and mass transit.
We need to keep taxes down and work on tax issues and services for the low-income and middle-income families. We need to put more money in our pockets and not continue taking money from those who can't afford it.
Senger: My first concern is Route 59 expansion funding. Route 59 is a major north-south arterial that supports a significant area of expanding commercial and residential development.
In 2003, the City of Naperville partnered with IDOT to conduct a preliminary engineering study of this state highway to help identify potential improvement options. The state is responsible for funding these improvements and needs to make the funding available now. By not doing so, we are hurting our businesses, hindering economic development and job creation, and lowering our quality of life.
My second priority is job creation. We need to recoup some of the jobs we lost on the I-88 Technology Corridor.