Despite city council resistance, Naperville mayor pushing to repeal campaign finance law

Despite resistance from city council members, Naperville Mayor Steve Chirico is pushing to repeal the city's ordinance regulating campaign finance disclosures.

The issue became contentious in recent city council meetings after Chirico, who chose not to run for reelection, chided Councilwoman Theresa Sullivan for not disclosing contributions to Naperville Forward, the political action committee she chairs.

Chirico said the law, which dictates council members must publicly disclose contributions of $750 or more if the donor is connected to an agenda item, is ineffective and doesn't prevent outside money from influencing candidates.

In addition, he said, repealing the law wouldn't impact transparency because the city adheres to state rules.

"This ordinance is flawed badly, and we need to get it fixed," Chirico said. "The best way to fix it, I believe, is for the next council to make decisions on what it should look like."

Sullivan, the architect of the 2020 ordinance, remains supportive of the law and said it doesn't apply to PACs, which is why she didn't initially disclose a $5,000 union donation to Naperville Forward.

Councilman Patrick Kelly also disagreed with repealing the law, suggesting language could be added to include PACs.

"I support letting the new council decide for themselves if their own highest priority is scrapping the ethics ordinance," Sullivan said. "I don't support people on their way out doing it for them."

A vote is expected at next week's meeting, which will be the last for Chirico and Sullivan, who chose not to run for reelection. It's also the final meeting for council members Paul Hinterlong, who is termed out, and Nikki Anderson, who served as an interim appointment.

Chirico said he's tackling the issue because he doesn't want to saddle Scott Wehrli, the incoming mayor, and council members with "gotcha" moments if they fail to remember contributions among the dozens they received during a campaign.

While some council members said it's a rare need to disclose contributions of $750 or more, and not a big ask when the issue does arise, Chirico said the law creates too many traps for those running.

Councilman Benny White, who lost to Wehrli in last week's mayoral election, disclosed contributions relevant to agenda items during each of the previous two meetings.

"If this is something we want to take a look at and make it better," White said, "I think that's worth some discussion."