Illinois Editorial Roundup:

Here are excerpts of editorials from newspapers around Illinois.

May 8, 2020

The (Springfield) State Journal-Register

Wrong time for pay raises for local officials

Our local governments have made no secret these last few months of how much they're hurting.

Lost funds from sales taxes, restaurant taxes, hotel taxes, convention and event revenues have put a pinch on their budgets. Positions have gone unfilled; employees have been furloughed or laid off. In some places, basic infrastructure repairs have been postponed.

In short, it's one of the most challenging times city and county finances have faced in decades.

At the same time, unemployment among residents has risen as businesses have taken the same steps as governments '• leaving jobs vacant, furloughing employees or laying them off. More than 1 million unemployment claims had been processed in the state of Illinois since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. That's 12 times higher than over the same time period last year, according to the state.

Against this backdrop, county leaders across the state will soon have a choice to make. With elections coming up in the fall, they must set the pay for county board members and countywide elected officials for the next two or four years.

Later this fall, many of our cities and villages will have the same choice to make about salaries for City Council members, as well as for city clerks, city treasurers and mayors.

In each and every instance, the decision ought to be easy: No raise.

Not while a substantial number of constituents are unemployed or underemployed. Not while revenues are down and cuts are being considered throughout the organization.

These problems will not disappear in one year, or two. Nor will those governments build back up their other staff members who were let go, or replace all the vacancies left unfilled, or reinstate all the services cut for citizens. This will be one of the defining problems of a new term in office.

This is not a time to be voting oneself a raise, or giving one to colleagues. The dollars spent by local governments ultimately come from taxpayers' pockets.

Peoria County Board member Linda Daley, a longtime local legislative aide, hit it on the head: 'œI think we cannot be deaf to what is going on around us.'ť

'œAll the people I talk to now all day long who are unemployed, can't get even unemployment benefits, are worried they're going to lose their house because they can't pay their property taxes,'ť Daley added. 'ť... I cannot in good conscience ask those people to pay more property tax for (salary) increases.'ť

Bizarrely, members of that committee were still OK with 2% pay hikes for countywide officials '• but only in the last two years of terms for the coroner, auditor and circuit clerk elected in November.

But pay is set for a full term now; it can't be tweaked if budgets are still dire in 2022.

When they vote next week, and when other local governments take their votes, they shouldn't be deaf to the pain their constituents are quite audibly feeling.

They should vote no on any raise for the coming term.

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May 9, 2020

(Decatur) Herald & Review

Can we afford the coronavirus wait? Or not?

Have we reached a peak? Are we in a calm before the storm? Can we safely begin to live our lives in a fashion somewhat closer to what was normal? Can we afford it? Can we afford not to?

All of us sort through those questions and others on a daily basis. Our current issue is because we are making history as we live, there's no one available to give us the answers we crave. And 'œI don't know'ť is an unacceptable response.

With those things in mind, Gov. J.B. Pritzker's revision is an improvement. The plan to look at the state as distinct sections when addressing response to the COVID-19 crisis is a step in the right direction.

Some of Pritzker's orders have been sensible, others have been, and continue to be, curious at the least. Pritzker's management was quick to shut down public places. The relative quiet outside of Cook County is likely a testament to that strategy having the preferred result. He's been on the cutting edge, with many of his plans and decisions influencing those from other states.

But Pritzker is holding too many people's keys. Dog stylists being allowed to work while human stylists are not remains baffling. Businesses which want to reopen and might be willing to adhere to any restrictions imposed by the state, but they're not being given a target with options. Why were face masks optional for almost two months and then required? A requirement that was going to be enforced by social pressure and concern? How is it that dozens of citizens can gather at a religious ceremony and still be considered 'œsafe'ť?

We are well short of understanding this virus and how it works. Understandably, every decision will have to be made with the awareness that as our knowledge evolves, our reaction has to as well. What's important and relevant today could be ignored in even a few days as we learn about this invisible and unprecedented foe.

Pritzker also has to keep an eye on surrounding states. He does no one favors if the stay-at-home order is implemented here but not in surrounding states. Illinois' reputation does not need any more body blows. It also doesn't need the image of little-used oversized triage rooms outside of their buildings.

We also have to face reality. Getting through this, as difficult as it is, will pale in the price we have to pay to recover. As debts pile, local governments will be forced to cut essential services. The economy has to be a consideration in the decisions as we move forward.

We may have to come to realize some of us may take a long time to start believing we are 'œsafe.'ť

There's a tricky tightrope to walk. Those on the one side of the issue would whoop with delight at a reopened state. Those on the opposite side are likely to continue to live with caution and fear. We cannot move forward without finding a middle ground in an effort to keep one from bullying the other.

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May 8, 2020

(Arlington Heights) Daily Herald

The case for convening a legislative session

House Republican Leader Jim Durkin complained at a news conference that it's time for Gov. J.B. Pritzker to stop governing by 'œdecree'ť and for the legislature to come back into session. His comments echo an understandable frustration common among all of us trying to adapt to new work structures, but beyond the frustration, they also highlight a growing concern: There is business facing the state that lawmakers need to attend to.

It's not so much a question of whether Pritzker has been dictatorial in putting his emergency powers to use in an emergency. Indeed, there are indications he has tried to keep in touch with the membership and the leadership of both parties as he formulates the plans he announces. Throughout this crisis, he has done an impressive job of demonstrating decisive leadership at a time when we need a clear, consistent message from the top. And, let's be practical, Republicans would have no more influence complaining from behind a podium in Democratic-run Springfield than they have complaining from their offices at home.

But there is a case to be made for moving more assertively toward getting lawmakers back together in some fashion.

For one thing, that would help show that the governor isn't operating in a vacuum, and there can certainly be no harm in giving more consideration to the concerns of lawmakers who feel that their regions are inadequately served in Pritzker's five-phase plan for reopening the state.

For another, there are some important issues that need to be addressed by the General Assembly.

One is redistricting reform, which needs to be taken on soon if new measures are to have any impact on political mapmaking for the next 10 years. Another is voting by mail. If the state is going to do more to promote that alternative -- as it should -- decisions need to be made soon, rather than late in the summer or beyond. And, the huge elephant in the room is the state budget. The Illinois constitution requires a budget to be enacted by May 31 or else a three-fifths majority of support is required. Lawmakers are somewhat hamstrung by the fact that they don't know how much, if any, emergency help they might get from the federal government, but that's all the more reason they should be working together to prepare for various potential outcomes.

To be sure, serious logistical obstacles stand in the way of simply calling lawmakers into session. Even with social distancing and masks, lawmakers risk bringing disease to Springfield. That's dangerous for them personally and for their constituents across the state if they take something back home with them. There also are questions about whether online meetings can qualify for the alternative meeting places the current rules allow in emergencies.

Surely these difficulties can be worked out. House Speaker Mike Madigan responded to the Republicans' call with a prepared statement Wednesday rightly stating that the decision to call lawmakers into session 'œmust have the health and safety of all those involved as a top priority, including the communities the members represent.'ť But Durkin was also correct when he said, 'œWe're adults. We're relatively smart people, and we have to be creative in finding ways for us to return back to doing business.'ť

Make no mistake. Downstate lawmakers who are obstructing and defying the governor's orders are doing more harm than good at a time when we need decisive, consistent leadership. And, as Durkin also emphasized, protesters who dredge up Nazi imagery belie the notion of an adult conversation.

But there is important work commanding lawmakers' attention, and leaders need to begin finding a way for them to do it.