Suburbs, schools spend millions on lobbying state officials

SPRINGFIELD - Several suburban governments ranging from DuPage County to Harper Community College are among more than 100 local government entities that altogether spent more than $5 million last year lobbying state officials.

At least 14 different lobbying firms received nearly $700,000 from the Chicago area's four bus and train agencies as they pushed lawmakers for sales tax increases to stave off their own cuts and fare increases.

The voluminous research released Monday by the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform found discrepancies in the required reporting and suggested state lobbying laws be tightened.

There is no singular "gotcha" finding in the report. Instead, Illinois Campaign for Political Reform officials said it's intended to shine a light on how much local governments spend in taxpayer money lobbying the state.

"Cities of all sizes, transit agencies, school districts and many other local governments have turned to professional lobbyists for a variety of reasons," said campaign executive director Cynthia Canary, in releasing the report. "(The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform) leaves it to local taxpayers to determine whether the lobbying services were necessary and whether the fees paid to lobbyists were fair."

State law already requires lobbyists to register with the state and disclose their clients. They also must disclose how much they spend on meals, golf and other lobbying activities and which lawmakers or officials benefited.

Looking to go a step further, the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform filed dozens of legal requests with government entities across the state, seeking information on lobbying.

The DuPage County Board spent $115,830 on two lobbying firms, making it one of the top 15 government spenders on lobbyists. The RTA topped the list, having spent $223,600.

Fred Backfield, DuPage County's chief financial officer, said lobbyists help protect the county's interests when myriad laws ranging from zoning to construction spending are being bandied about the Capitol.

Last year, DuPage officials wanted lawmakers to approve giving the county the ability to have its own cigarette tax to balance county spending and avoid cuts and layoffs. That didn't happen, but ultimately the county got an additional sales tax as part of the mass transit bailout earlier this year.

Elsewhere, records show various school districts, villages and cities hiring lobbyists to go after specific projects.

Harper College, for instance, was pursuing a $4.25 million grant from Gov. Rod Blagojevich's administration. It also has been pushing for a four-year degree program that needs lawmakers' approval.

Schaumburg paid $6,000 monthly to the firm of Advanced Practical Solutions to have its lobbyists press for a full interchange at Roselle Road, restoration of $616,000 in state funding to the Woodfield Area Children's Organization and improved access at Meacham Road and I-90.

Lake Barrington paid the same lobbying firm $24,000 to stay atop transportation and environmental issues important to the village.

Similarly, Huntley officials paid $5,000 monthly to the Morreale Public Affairs Group to help pursue widening Route 47 and a complete interchange at I-90.

Andy Kimmel, spokesman for the Lake County Forest Preserve District, said their agency's lobbyist updates local officials about every other week and tracks proposals that could affect the district.

Spokeswoman Evelyn Schiele said College of Lake County needed a lobbyist to help secure funding for a new building at the Waukegan campus. She said the state has stopped funding capital projects for community colleges, but the lobbyist keeps CLC's story in front of lawmakers.

"The lobbyist should position the college well should the logjam break and the funding open up," she said. "The lobbyist helps tell our story."

But even the records turned over Monday reflect only a minuscule amount of the overall lobbying that goes on at the Capitol.

Canary estimated "tens of millions of dollars" are spent on behalf of corporations, labor unions and numerous special interest groups who aren't required to turn over such information.

"What the public doesn't know is what special interests in the private sector are spending to try to pass or kill legislation and to impact actions in the executive branch," Canary said.

Biggest spenders

Fifteen units of government spent more than $100,000 on lobbying in 2007, according to the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform.

Regional Transportation Authority, $223,600

Chicago Transit Authority, $220,173

City Colleges of Chicago, $213,200

Metropolitan Water Reclamation Dist., $162,949

Pace, $133,800

Chicago, $127,257

Metra, $122,004

Chicago Public Schools, $120,000

Crestwood, $120,000

Illinois Housing Development Authority, $120,000

DuPage County Board, $115,830

Southern Illinois University, $115,000

Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority, $114,951

Chicago Park District, $110,000

Aurora, $102,101

Suburban spending

Here is a breakdown of suburban units of government, the lobbyists they hire and their total spending on lobbying for 2007.

Unit of Government Lobbyists Contract Total Aurora Civic Center Zack Stamp Ltd.
John Holub $1,500
$1,500$3,000 Aurora Dan Shomon, Inc. $102,101 $102,101 Bartlett Cullen Assoc
Dan Shomon, Inc. $62,500
$5,436 $67,936 Carpentersville Dist. 300 300 Hinshaw Culbertson $28,347 $28,347 College of DuPage V.A. Persico Consulting
Paula Johnson Perdue $24,480
$24,480 $48,960 College of Lake County Jeffrey A. Dixon
Paul Williams $25,191
$12,000$37,191 Cook County commissioners Morrill Assoc. $40,082 $40,082 Cook County state's attorney Gerardo Dejesus Reyes $41,666 $41,666 Des Plaines All-Circo, Inc $73,333 $73,333 DuPage County Board Hadfield Consulting
VA Persico Consulting $79,999
$35,831 $115,830 DuPage Board of Health John Wyma Assoc. $88,000 $88,000 DuPage Election Commission Sorling, Northrup et.al. $33,000 $33,000 DuPage recorder's office Capitol Consulting Illinois $18,000 $18,000 DuPage Forest Preserve PAR Sol. / Govt. Nav.
Illinois Govt. Consulting $48,833
$26,500 $75,333 DuPage state's attorney Roger C. Marquart Co. $36,000 $36,000 Elgin Community College Adv. Practical Solutions $47,500 $47,500 Elgin Steven Nemerovski $27,500 $27,500 Elgin Dist. U-46 Luking Assoc. $24,000 $24,000 Glendale Heights Fidelity Consulting Group $15,000 $15,000 Glenview Cullen Assoc. $40,000 $40,000 Harper College Adv. Practical Solutions
MichelleTeresa Olson $60,000
$24,000 $84,000 Huntley Morreale Public Affairs $45,000 $45,000 Lake Barrington Adv. Practical Solutions $24,000 $24,000 Lake County Forest Preserve Kolkmeier Consulting $21,000 $21,000 Lombard Marquardt Co. $46,000 $46,000 Naperville Govt. Affairs Specialists $60,000* $32,220 Rosemont Michael A. Cohen $25,000 $25,000 Schaumburg Adv. Practical Solutions $60,283 $60,283 Waukegan Dist.. 66 Hinshaw Culbertson $15,888 $15,888 West Chicago Marquardt Co. $18,000 $18,000 Wheaton Govt. Consulting Solutions $36,000 $36,000 *ICPR number of $32,220 corrected by Naperville officialsSource: Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, except where noted