Endorsement: Noland over Collins in Senate District 22

The GOP challenger for the 22nd District state Senate seat, Cary Collins of Hoffman Estates, is a thoughtful and articulate attorney who understands the depth of the economic problems facing the state and offers reasonable approaches to address them. He has extensive public service experience in Hoffman Estates, including at the village board and numerous commissions, and he seems committed to working cooperatively to get things accomplished in the legislature. The incumbent, Democrat Michael Noland of Elgin, has himself been an active lawmaker, and, with his appointment to a panel on pension reform last year, has begun to work his way into more influential roles in the Senate. Noland also at times has shown a steadfast independence, especially in differences he’s had with his party on the state budget and the need for deeper spending cuts. Noland’s fiscal conservatism serves him well — not to mention the state and district, of course — and is not far removed from that of his challenger. We have some concerns about his willingness to advance a pension solution that would shift costs to local districts, but he’s open-minded enough to listen to reason that may slow or at least refine that process and he’s certainly aware of the ultimate need for broader, more comprehensive reform of the state’s public pension system. He is endorsed. Senate District 22 straddles portions of Kane and Cook counties, including the towns of Carpentersville, Elgin, Streamwood and Hoffman Estates.