56th District rivals discuss impacts of national crisis

Though pledges to address the state's budget woes have been part of both their campaigns, the two candidates for Illinois' 56th District House seat are recognizing new challenges for Springfield from the nation's financial crisis.

Much of the responsibility is falling to the federal government, of course, but both Democratic state Rep. Paul Froehlich and Republican candidate Anita Forte-Scott see potential impacts for the two-year term they both seek.

They discussed their different takes on how state government can help as well as how its regular responsibilities may be even tougher now.

"The stress on the budget will be more acute, and the budget was already sick," Froehlich said. "We're going to have to figure out how to tighten the belt a notch."

With the economy hurting both businesses and individuals, the state is seeing a significant drop in revenue just when more people are in need of aid, he said.

Many options for solving the state's problems will have to be considered, though there are some Froehlich already considers off limits.

"I would not support any sales tax hike, not with this current sales tax structure," he said. "I'm trying to roll it back. You have to look at some opportunities for tax reform. You could still increase the excise tax."

A steadfast opponent of gambling, Froehlich said expanding it makes even less sense when people have less disposable income.

Education is one area that's enjoyed recent increases in funding, though Froehlich regrets that the same hasn't been true for higher education. "Certainly we have to be open to the likelihood that we will have to reduce the growth in spending, maybe across the board," he said.

Froehlich believes he's the better candidate to handle the financial crisis due to his time on the Schaumburg Township Elementary District 54 board in the early '90s when he said its own budget problems were solved and the only $4 million property tax abatement in the district's history occurred.

He also believes being in his third term in the House provides important experience when it's most needed.

"It does take a while to get your hands around the budget," Froehlich said. "I think it takes some years to find out where our cost pressures are coming from."

But Forte-Scott said her original message about reining in taxes is just as relevant - albeit more crucial - after the bad news of recent weeks.

"The most difficult thing facing most people is higher taxes," she said. "People are looking at where to put their money. It's not going to be in entertainment goods and services. It puts a strain on businesses all over the state."

She believes that what most people don't realize is the state is collecting more money than it ever has before, but is being run by leaders determined to overspend on frivolous things.

While the governor is buying potted plants to beautify the Springfield and Chicago, doctors who participate in government medical programs for low-income patients aren't getting paid and are moving out of state, she said.

"All of the governor's prerogatives and priorities are not in the right place," she said. "It's at the cost of everything else in the state. And the longer that the state cries poor, the more complacent people become about hearing that their taxes have to be raised."

Among the spending Forte-Scott would target is $3.5 billion in annual costs for programs for undocumented immigrants who can't work legally and give back to the system what they're taking out. She also favors the less costly option of deporting rather than incarcerating such immigrants convicted of crimes.

Programs she would never consider cutting include the Women, Infants and Children program, which provides nutrition information and free food for such residents, and the Child Care Assistance Program, which helps people with young children keep working.

She doesn't consider either a gross receipts tax on businesses or a tax on landlords who will raise their tenants' rents any kind of solution.

The current national crisis just shows how much Illinois needs a new direction in its leadership, Forte-Scott said.

"The longer we go down this path, the harder it will be to change," she said. "We don't have to be this way, that's the point. We are a premier state. Why are there 48 states above us on these things?"

Both candidates discussed the potential impact a Barack Obama presidency could have on the state as a recipient of more federal spending.

While it's perhaps not a surprise that Froehlich would support a fellow Democrat, he said that it's Obama's Illinois ties that could perhaps raise the state's profile in Washington.

"The reality is we are competing with other states for our fair share," Froehlich said. "An Obama presidency would be good for Illinois. And Dick Durbin is already one of the most powerful senators and will be even more so."

Forte-Scott said there also were once high hopes for Gov. Rod Blagojevich's leadership, but that she genuinely doesn't know whether to believe in the speculated Illinois benefits of an Obama presidency.

"I have heard that," she said. "I'm not so partisan that I don't see that. I have an open mind and I look at all the possibilities. If I'm elected, I'm going to be working with many people all over the place."

The 56th District includes Schaumburg and parts of Elk Grove Village, Hoffman Estates, Palatine, Rolling Meadows, Roselle, Hanover Park and Bloomingdale.