Chamber leader urges more monitoring of state government

"There are economic consequences to political decisions that affect our lives every day," Douglas Whitley, president of the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce, said Thursday in explaining why his organization so closely monitors the machinations of the General Assembly in Springfield.

Whitley was blunt in raising several red flags regarding the state legislature's effect on the state's economic climate during a breakfast meeting presentation at Eagle Brook Country Club hosted by the Geneva Chamber of Commerce for members of Geneva, Batavia, St. Charles and West Chicago chambers.

In pleading with area chamber members "to look beyond Main Street and get engaged in Springfield," Whitley posed a series of questions:

"When is the last time you heard the governor talk about new jobs being created in the state of Illinois?" he asked. "When is the last time you heard the state of Illinois talk about being the best at anything, or when is the last time you heard the state ask how it can help you be more successful?"

Whitley used the last question to share a story about a conversation he had with a person who had just returned from China.

"This person said the cab driver in China turned to him and asked, 'How can we help you be more successful in our country?' and I thought, what a story," Whitley said. "I can't recall Illinois state government saying that to employers in our state."

Whitley said business owners in the Tri-Cities should be aware of three key areas in state politics -- the lack of a balanced budget, the failure to keep the state infrastructure in good shape, and the lack of voters involved in the election process.

"The first thing we have to worry about is our state does not have a balanced budget and has not had a balanced budget for years," Whitley said. "It's a total fiscal house of cards, and I have great sympathy for how they try to manage the budget year-to-year, but we are definitely troubled.

"If you are a health-care provider and you have to go to the bank to borrow money because the state is 120 days late in paying you Medicaid payments, there is something wrong with that system."

Whitley said Illinois is becoming known as a "dead-beat state," operating in a manner in which most people would never allow in their own household or business.

The tremendous erosion in transportation infrastructure, which he believes should be the cornerstone of what makes Illinois a great state, troubles Whitley the most.

"Our state has not passed a capital bill in nine years," Whitley said. "Been on the roads lately? We just had the worst winter in Illinois in years and we have needed $22 million in supplemental funds and employees have been working overtime -- and there is not enough money to patch the potholes."

Whitley said the governor has moved money out of road funds to pay for other state programs.

"We must have a road fund that has some integrity to it," Whitley said, adding that it damages business because most manufacturers and producers view Chicago as a bottleneck when shipping or trading goods.

Even though taxpayers cringe at the thought of more taxes, Whitley said the cost of oil, steel and concrete has all increased in the past 10 years, making transportation funding expensive.

"We have to take it upon ourselves from time to time to recognize that, yes, we are going to have to put in some more cash to invest in our future," said Whitley, who was president of the Taxpayers' Federation of Illinois for 14 years.

It also would be beneficial for area business owners to encourage people to return to the voting booths at election time and communicate with state leaders and get more involved in the process that establishes the General Assembly.

"Every person in this room is a registered voter and your children are registered voters, so do not miss the opportunity to vote," Whitley said. "In the last gubernatorial election, 54 percent of the registered voters in this state chose not to vote."

Laura Stoecker/lstoecker@dailyherald.com

Illinois Chamber of Commerce president Douglas Whitley addresses business leaders Thursday in Geneva.