Finances top of mind for Kane County Board District 11 candidates

The Kane County budget is top of mind for the two candidates vying for a District 11 board seat.

Incumbent John Martin, 70, a Geneva Republican, says declining revenues have caused greater challenges for the already financially lean county. His Democratic challenger, 53-year-old Jody Kanikula of Batavia, criticized the county's recent "one-size-fits-all" budget cuts, saying they've caused departmental operations and staff to suffer.

Many of the county's services are required by statute, yet reimbursements from the state have been significantly reduced, said Martin, a former attorney seeking his second and final term on the county board. He believes the county needs to find ways to increase revenues.

"Our elected officials and department heads are doing their best to run everything lean as they realistically can and still provide services," Martin said. "The difficulty is when you run lean, there's not a lot of excess to deal with."

Kanikula, a clinical social worker, agreed new revenue sources should be explored, possibly in the form of grants. She also said businesses and corporations should pay their fair share of taxes and should not be subsidized by residents.

Should additional cuts be necessary, Kanikula said, they shouldn't be across the board. Eliminating the electronic monitoring program for potentially dangerous pretrial defendants was one example of a budgetary decision she believes negatively affects the county in the long-run.

"We need to have a common-sense budget approach," she said. "Continuing to cut programs to the bone will only continue to sacrifice the quality of life and safety of Kane County residents."

Martin, who has served as chairman of the county board's judicial and public safety committee the last two years, said he agrees with Chief Judge Susan Clancy Boles that the $700,000 electronic monitoring service should not be reinstated unless the county has a "consistent and repetitive revenue source to pay it." Determining priorities within the budget is not just a county board decision, he said, but one that needs to be made in collaboration with department leaders.

Pointing to probation officer strikes and a "woefully inadequate" coroner's building, Kanikula said the county has been deferring its responsibilities to the point of crisis. She said she would support a tax increase if it would address safety or health issues.