Endorsement: Frerichs for Illinois treasurer

In his first term as Illinois treasurer, Democrat Michael Frerichs, of Champaign, has initiated a program that provides access to 401(k)-style benefits to small-business employees who previously couldn't get it, leveraged technology to make the treasurer's office operate more efficiently and more cheaply and expanded a program that can help children with disabilities save for the future. His challenger in the November election - Republican Jim Dodge, of Orland Park, contends that such programs dilute the office's ability to concentrate on its core constitutional mission, overseeing the state's investments. Considering that Illinois is reaping substantially more money from its investments today than it was when Frerichs took office, that claim is hard to support. Frerichs takes his job seriously and works hard to find creative ways to make the office operate better. He should return for another term.