McHenry board hopefuls debate budget

The eight Republicans seeking a seat on the McHenry County Board from Districts 3 and 5 all agree the county needs fiscal restraint.

But they differ dramatically on how to achieve that - with proposals ranging from cutting the size of the county board in half to freezing salaries.

Five candidates are vying for two GOP nominations in District 3, while three hopefuls are competing for two nominations in District 5.

In District 3, challenger Veronica Armstrong of Crystal Lake is pushing for a smaller board.

"Let's not have as many members," Armstrong said in a Daily Herald endorsement interview. "Let's cut it down and show we are for the people, not just the government."

Trimming the county board, an idea that has been proposed before but never gained momentum, also has a strong advocate in District 5 challenger and vocal board critic David Frederick of Woodstock.

Frederick, in a candidate questionnaire, said he supports cutting the board from the current 24 members to 18 or even 12. Frederick also wants to cut taxes.

"I would cut all the taxes," Frederick said in an endorsement interview.

But District 3 challenger Craig Steagall of Crystal Lake argues the county shouldn't cut taxes at a time when other revenue streams are shrinking.

"At this point, cutting taxes may not be a realistic objective for the county board," Steagall said.

Instead, Steagall proposes a freeze on pay raises for county employees. The board recently voted employees a 2-percent increase for 2010.

"It may be that a 2-percent increase is not in the cards," Steagall said. "The reality of what's happening in the private sector is that employees are taking cuts."

District 5 incumbent Tina Hill of Woodstock pointed to her vote against the 2-percent raises and said the board may have to do more to rein in employee costs.

"We run a pretty efficient machine," Hill said. "I would support furlough days before layoffs."

Former board member Nick Provenzano, a McHenry resident seeking to regain his seat in District 3, said the board needs to be more serious about a balanced budget.

"This year, they missed the mark in their goal-setting," Provenzano said. "We need to be able to trim the budget aggressively."

But District 3 incumbent Barbara Wheeler of Crystal Lake said cost-cutting by county departments and administrators has already saved about $2 million. The board, she added, needs to continue leaving vacant positions unfilled.

"As often as we possibly can, we're going to freeze them so we don't have to make cuts," Wheeler said.

Former board Vice President John Jung, who is seeking to recapture a seat in District 5, also supports a salary freeze and said measures he pushed while on the board have helped the county weather the economic blizzard.

"I worked hard to solve the problems we face by advocating an open budget process, strategic planning and financial modeling," Jung wrote in a candidate questionnaire. "If elected, I will continue to foster these policies."

District 3 challenger Karen Tynis of McHenry said the county could save money by consolidating departments and services.

"We definitely need serious cuts," Tynis said, while adding: "We need to be much more aggressive in going after grants."