Island Lake candidates differ on whether new ethics rules are needed

Despite the arrests of several current and former village officials on various criminal charges, the candidates running for seats on Island Lake's village board differ on whether more attention should be given to the town's government ethics policy.

Like many other local governments, the village has an ethics commission. And like other governmental agencies in the area, it sits dormant.

Seven people are running for three seats on the board, all of which have 4-year terms.

Only six candidates will appear on the April 7 ballot: Connie Mascillino, Donna O'Malley, Don Verciglio, Gregory Kachka, Laura Rabattini and Dwaine Schaal. The seventh candidate, David Meeks, is running a write-in campaign.

Mascillino and Verciglio are the only incumbents in the race.

The candidates spoke about the issues facing Island Lake in questionnaires for the Daily Herald. The ethics question was inspired by the October 2008 arrest of current Mayor Tom Hyde, who was accused of illegally changing the name of a business owner of a village liquor license, and the 2007 arrest of former mayor Charles Amrich on official misconduct charges.

Authorities said Amrich concealed ownership of a gas station where he insisted village vehicles buy their fuel and service. Former village clerk Christine Becker was arrested as part of the same investigation.

Mascillino, O'Malley and Verciglio are running on the same slate, and nearly all of their answers to the survey question about the village's ethics policy were nearly identical.

Each said the village already has an ethics committee and stressed the people who were arrested are not running for election.

Kachka, Rabattini and Schaal are running together but answered the question independently.

Kachka said personnel changes, not a new ethics policy, will fix the problem.

Rabattini called for creation of an ethics panel made of volunteer residents that would work outside the traditional board structure.

"An ethics board should not exist simply to exist," she said. "(It) needs to be accessible and ... have some ability to hold elected officials accountable."

Schaal believes the village's existing ethics policy should be adhered to by all officials and employees.

Meeks said a written ethics policy is needed.

"Elected officials are not living up to the honesty and integrity we expect from our officials," he said. "No one is being held accountable."