Excerpts from recent editorials in newspapers in Illinois

April 23, 2017

The (Freeport) Journal-Standard

Illinois is heading for financial disaster - fast

We look with alarm at the repeated warnings from financial rating agencies about our state's sliding credit rating. At the end of March, Moody's Investor Services issued another such warning that said if Illinois doesn't pass a budget by May 31, the end of the legislative session, the state will face unsustainable fiscal challenges and risk long-term damage to universities and social service providers because of unpaid bills.

May 31 is a little over a month away. The so-called "Grand Bargain" in the state Senate to raise taxes and cut spending has broken down, and the House is in no mood to pass a budget with any reforms that Gov. Bruce Rauner wants passed. Worse, we have not detected a sense of urgency from legislators to take action.

The last time our state had a budget was June 30, 2015. That's nearly two years ago. We face the very real possibility of entering a third fiscal year on July 1 with no budget, and then a fourth year. Neither Rauner nor House Speaker Michael Madigan seems willing to compromise their positions. No budget without reforms, says the governor. No reforms without a budget, says the speaker. The only reason most state functions are still being carried out is because of court orders requiring spending to continue at 2015 rates, putting us deeper in deficit.

With a growing backlog of unpaid bills and the nation's worst unfunded pension liability, Illinois is in real trouble. Social service agencies are going out of business. Community colleges and state universities are cutting staff, classes, and are losing students galore. People are leaving the state. And nobody does anything about it.

We're truly in a sorry state.

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April 22, 2017

Sauk Valley Media

Oberweis' bill imperils public's right to know

Dissemination of information to citizens through publication of public notices protects the public's right to know.

Through public notices, units of government inform the public about what they are doing or proposing which, in turn, helps the pubic effectively engage in the democratic process. The cost for public notices is minimal to each unit of government, usually less than a tenth of a percent of the budget.

Legislation that took effect 5 years ago goes further. The Illinois Legislature unanimously approved a bill requiring newspapers to post all public notices they print on a public, free-access centralized website at no additional cost to government. That website is PublicNoticeIllinois.com.

The system works well. Newspapers disseminate public notices and then certify that governments have complied with public notice laws. The public is served efficiently, in print and online.

However, some people want to change it.

Senate Bill 2032 would allow units of government to bypass publishing notices in local newspapers and, instead, post public notices on their own websites or on a state-run website.

State Sen. Jim Oberweis, R-Sugar Grove, introduced the bill in February; a Senate committee is reviewing it.

Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti is a strong supporter; a task force she headed issued a report in December 2015 that favors the concept of "modernizing public notices."

Frankly, we are appalled by their cavalier attitude toward public notices and government transparency.

As a respected, independent third party, newspapers reliably transmit this information in print and online. Newspapers for centuries have played a key role in the legal process of public notices by publishing, certifying and archiving them. It's a long proven process.

By contrast, government is unreliable.

The Citizens Advocacy Center reviewed Illinois local governments' track record for posting notices online in three basic areas - public meeting notices, public meeting agendas, and approved minutes from public meetings - as required by law through the Open Meetings Act.

Of more than 750 websites surveyed, only 73 percent of governments complied with posting meeting notices, 57 percent complied with posting an agenda, and a mere 48 percent complied with posting approved meeting minutes.

That's unacceptable.

What can the public expect if local governments bypass newspapers and post public notices online?

The same dismal record of noncompliance and lawbreaking.

That would be a terrible blow to transparency.

We are unconvinced that public notices, if placed only on government-controlled websites, would have anything close to the same readership they have now.

Senate Bill 2032 is a radical departure from the proven public notice system that all other states use.

Government would inevitably become less transparent, especially for people who aren't online.

And the public's right to know, rather than being protected, would be diminished.

Politicians like Oberweis and Sanguinetti ought to know better. They should realize that public notices in Illinois were "modernized" more than 5 years ago through legislation establishing the centralized website, which is PNI.

The bill should be defeated.

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April 24, 2017

The Quincy Herald-Whig

Subcharge on defaulted student loans should go

Millions of Americans have fallen behind on their student loans. Data from the U.S. Department of Education reveal that 42.4 million people owed $1.3 trillion in federal student loans by the end of 2016, and the average amount owed per borrower had increased by 17 percent since 1993.

A rule issued by the Department of Education in 2015 said defaulting borrowers who quickly got their federally guaranteed student loans back on track could not be hit with a 16 percent collection fee.

However, that rule was rescinded last month, offering a potential windfall to 26 private companies that help run this government program.

Fortunately, the withdrawal of the rule generated so much public outcry that the companies that are now allowed to charge the fee - known as guarantee agencies - quickly announced they won't actually charge it.

If that sentiment remains, it was the correct response, because most of those who would be subjected to a collection fee are already struggling with debt, and increasing it would only make their problem worse.

As it is, a relatively small share of borrowers would be affected if the new regulations are enforced, according to MarketWatch. Starting in 2010, all new federal student loans were issued by the Department of Education, which doesn't charge collection fees to borrowers who quickly agree to make good on their defaults.

As a result, students who have taken out federal loans in the last few years need not worry about any potential increase in fees.

However, those who received bank-based loans from the Federal Family Education Loan Program before it was discontinued in 2010 could face higher fees if the guarantee agencies change their minds.

Clearly, student debt is a mounting problem. The law gives defaulting borrowers one shot to rehabilitate their loans -- and even arrange payment terms based on their income.

The point of that is to let them fix the mistake they made by defaulting. It defeats the purpose to add a huge surcharge.