Cook County Board Meeting and Committee Meetings September 9, 2015

The Committee meetings for Wednesday, September 9 were as follows: Labor Committee, Rules Committee, Finance Committee, Zoning and Building Committee, and Criminal Justice Committee.  

Criminal Justice Committee: 

Proposed Ordinance 15-4648 sponsored by Commissioner Boykin, this ordinance is to appoint a Cook County Gun Violence Czar to lead a Cook County Gun Violence Task Force.  The Task Force, made up of representatives from other County officials, such as the Chief Judge and Sheriff, along with Commissioner Boykin and another representative appointed by President Preckwinkle, would be charged with holding hearings and gathering information in order to submit recommendations to the Board within 6 months. Boykin withdrew this ordinance and plans to work on it further with the support of other commissioners.

There were two speakers who spoke in favor of this ordinance. Commissioner Boykin reiterated the fact that there is too much violence. He stated that 80% of African Americans are victims of gun violence even though they make up 25% of the population.  He also stated that there could be an allocation in the budget of $200,000 to finance the Task Force.

There was much discussion as most of the Commissioners had reservations concerning this ordinance.  Many questioned whether the money could be found within this fiscal year.  In addition, they felt that more community support, education, parental support and jobs are needed to control violence. Zelda Whittler, Undersheriff, was asked to comment. She stated that they are working with many law enforcement agencies including law officials from the city and suburban areas to address this issue. She stated the Sheriff would participate in the Task Force.

Proposed Resolution 15-4728, sponsored by Commissioner Boykin, calling upon the Justice Advisory Council and the Department of Procurement to report to the Cook County Board of Commissioner on the scoring criteria for the Justice Advisory Council’s Violence Prevention Grant Awards and the role played by community violence levels in determining violence prevention grant recipients. Resolution was approved.

Please note all reports referred to are available on the Cook County web site. Go to http://cook-county.legistar.com and click on “meeting details”.

General Meeting:

Public Testimony: Reference to item 155308 and 15-5311 (proposed ordinance on Cook County Service Occupation Tax). Speakers stated they were opposed to a tax increase stating that $10 an hour is too little to live on making this tax increase difficult for them. They want a fair wage of $15 an hour.

The following were items of interest:

15-5141, proposed by Commissioner Boykin, calls upon the Cook County Medical Examiner to modify its reporting of Gunshot homicides to include specific classifications of victims as to Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin.  In other words not just list them as Spanish but their origin. This was withdrawn because the medical examiner already has the software to do this.

15-5308 and 15-3011, proposed by Commissioners Fritchey, Boykin, Schneider and Suffredin to roll back the newly approved sales and service tax of 1.75% after 1 year to 1.25% on Jan. 1, 2017, and back to 0.75% on Jan. 1, 2018.  Was referred  to the Finance Committee.

15-5262 presented by John Jay Shannon, MD, Chief Executive Officer. Cook County Health and  Hospitals System (HHS), proposed  HHS preliminary budget for 2016 fiscal year. During the Public Testimony portion of the meeting, there were many speakers, doctors and nurses who spoke in support of retaining the in-services Pediatric Unit at Stroger Hospital.  Dr. Shannon stated that there has been no decision to close the Pediatric In-Services Unit at Stroger, but a consolidation of services, such as combining the Pediatric Emergency Room with the regular emergency room, will happen. He stated that with advancements of care and access to ambulatory care such as “Kid Care,” there are opportunities for patients receiving care closer to home.  Dr. Shannon stated that there is constant review as to whether the services being offered throughout HHS are what are needed or whether other services would better fit the needs of those needing care.

Commissioners Gainer and Sims had concerns about the cancellation this summer of the contract with the current administrator of Medicaid eligibility for HHS.    The current administrator is Illinicare, which has its own managed-care program and which is in competition with HHS and its managed-care program, County Care, for Medicaid recipients.  Dr. Shannon said that while there was no evidence of impropriety on the part of Illinicare, there was concern for the future.  Dr. Shannon said that Illinicare will stay on through early 2016, providing sufficient time to find a replacement and transition smoothly.  This item was referred to the Cook County Board’s HHS Committee.

15-5225,  submitted by Clerk David Orr,  seeking approval to eliminate 74 voting precincts in suburban Cook County, changing the number from 1,673 to 1,599 a reduction of 4%.  The estimated savings in 2016 is $200,000.  This was approved.

Also approved at the Board Meeting were the following items that the Board’s Technology Committee, which met the day before, had voted to recommend to the Board:

15-4067, a contract for $30 million for an Integrated Tax & Mass Appraisal System, to integrate the functions of the Recorder of Deeds, Assessor, Board of Review, Clerk, and Treasurer relating to the property tax system.

15-4318, a $66 million contract for an E-Business Suite platform to allow for process improvements and analytics for finance and human resource functions across the County.

15-4488,  which amends the contract with the existing provider of telephone service at the County Jail to lower the costs for detainees to make calls.

The meeting ended around 3:30

Respectfully submitted

Nancy Marcus and Priscilla Mims.

July 29, 2015 Cook County Board and Committee Meetings

12 Committee Meetings and a Board Meeting

Make for a Long Day Prior to the August “Recess”

Citizen George Blakemore, who speaks during the public comment period of almost all committee and board meetings, pointed out that having so many meetings on one day did not make sense.  He urged that the committee meetings be held on a separate day or days so that the Commissioners and the public would not be so tired and have time to consider the items on the agendas.  Meetings ran from 8:45 am to 3:10 pm that day with no break.

The newly appointed Commissioner for the 17^th District, Sean Morrison, who replaced Comm. Gorman who announced her resignation at the July 15 Board Meeting, was at the meetings.

Following are a few items of interest from this marathon day.  Note that all reports referred to are available on the Cook County web site;  go to http://cook-county.legistar.com and click on “Meeting Details” for the appropriate Committee on July 29 to gain access to the report. The Board and Committees are not scheduled to meet again until September.

Contract Compliance Committee:  Received the 2014 Cook County Annual Business Diversity Report detailing the different County departments’ compliance with including minority and women-owned businesses (“MBEs” and “WBEs”) in contracts awarded by the County.  Comm. Sims asked what the Health & Hospitals System  was planning to do so that more MBEs and WBEs would have the opportunity to get contracts.  The HHS representative said that HHS was having a vendor fair in September for both their large suppliers and MBEs and WBEs to help them network and for them to learn what contracts are expected to be awarded in the 2016 fiscal year.

Workforce, Housing, & Community Development Committee:  Met to hear speakers on various viewpoints to discuss the issue of paid leave.  Mr. Blakemore pointed out that the notice for this Committee meeting did not specify that this topic was going to be the focus, and he urged that in the future that the notice should be include this information.  The Committee recommended (which the Board later approved) a pre-apprentice program for inmates at the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, with thanks to the painters’ union.

Audit Committee:  Received several department audits by the County Auditor, as well as the 2014 Audits of the HHS and the County performed by outside auditors. In response to a question by Chair Daley, the County Auditor said that none of the other County Elected Officials have raised any questions about the right of the County Auditor to audit their departments.  The Independent Auditors mentioned that they were pleased that the deadline of May 31 for the 2014 audits was met; and that HHS had net income for the first time, but also stated that some of the costs attributable to HHS are not included, and if they were, then HHS would have had a loss.

Legislation & Intergovernmental Relations:  Recommended the appointment of Tanya Anthony as Director of Budget & Mgt. Services, which the Board subsequently approved.

Finance Committee:  Received the Revenue Report through May 31, 2015, the HHS Monthly Report for June, and the Projected 2015 Year-End Revenues and Expenditures Report.  There was concern about the Clerk of the Court’s revenues being down below those budgeted.  The CFO for the Clerk of the Court stated that this was partly due to fewer court filings (which is out of the control of the Clerk) and partly due to amounts due but not yet collected.  Some of the receivables have been assigned to a second collection agency.

Human Relations Committee:  The proposed amendment to the Human Rights Ordinance (15-4214) that  would prohibit employers and the County from inquiring about a candidate for employment’s past criminal record until after the candidate has been found to be qualified for the position was recommended (and later passed by the Board).  The amendment includes exceptions for positions for which there is an occupational requirement for a clean criminal record.  However, this was first amended to eliminate the requirement that employers must provide a written explanation as to why the candidate was not hired.

The proposed ordinance to prohibit a company that has been found guilty or has settled a claim of discrimination or sexual harassment from receiving a “Cook County economic incentive” was “received and filed.”  From the discussion, it appears that this proposal as written is dead, but Chair Boykin stated that he looks forward to working with the Assessor’s and President’s offices to craft a new proposed ordinance.  Comm. Fritchey mentioned his concern over including companies when there was a settlement, as opposed to an actual finding of guilt.

Board Meeting:

15-4648 (Proposal by Comm. Boykin to create a Gun Violence Czar and Committee to make recommendations to the County in 6 months) was referred to the Criminal Justice Committee.

15-4318 (Proposed contract for an Enterprise Resource Planning, ”ERP,” system that will allow for process improvements, best practices, streamlined and automated workflows, and real time reporting and analytics for finance and human resources functions across the County) was referred to Technology Committee.  Comm. Fritchey urged all Commissioners to attend this Committee meeting to learn more about this.  Total cost is listed as $66 million.

15-4067 (Proposed contract for a new Integrated Property Tax & Mass Appraisal System) was referred to Technology.  Total cost is $30 million.

15-4713 (Proposed ordinance amendment to require any increase in sales occupational tax, i.e., sales tax, to require 2/3’s approval by Board) and 15-4716 (Proposed ordinance amendment to require any increase in the retailer’s occupation tax to require 2/3’s approval by Board) were referred to Finance Committee.  Commissioner Fritchey’s proposed ordinance amendments to reduce the recently passed increase in the sales tax in 2017 to 1.25% (from 1/75%) and back to .75% in 2018 failed for lack of a second to the motion to refer these to Finance.

Submitted by Priscilla Mims, League Observer

Human Relations Committee Hearing regarding Gun Violence June 10, 2015

Present were Committee members Boykin (chair), Arroyo, Daley, Silvestri and Steele.

This subject matter of this hearing reflects the expansion of what this Committee will consider now under new Chair Boykin as compared to the past when it was only concerned with personnel matters within County government.

Chair Boykin began the hearing by stating that he has a 7-point plan for dealing with gun violence within Cook County:

1.    Parenting workshops conducted by not-for-profit organizations throughout Chicago and Cook County;

2.    Strict enforcement of curfew laws utilizing multiple departments of law enforcement;

3.    Expansion of drug courts and other therapeutic court models;

4.    Charging individuals pulling the trigger and co-conspirators with Domestic Terrorism;

5.    Expansion of utilization of the Sheriff’s police in high crime areas;

6.    Stiffer penalties for people illegally in possession of firearms and expansion of gun buy-back programs; and

7.      Job training and a real jobs program for areas experiencing high levels of violence, unemployment and poverty.

He did not expand on his plan, but then called on those who had clearly been pre-arranged to speak, many of whom stated they supported Comm. Boykin’s plan.  Among those who spoke was Chief Brian White of the Cook County Sheriff’s Police who talked about the Sheriff’s Community Resources Initiative which involves Sheriff’s Police assisting local police departments in Cook County with such things as apprehending those with outstanding warrants.  Ms. Jasmine Jackson, an early childhood special education teacher in North Lawndale, talked about how she has to spend less time on academics and more time on dealing with the children’s responses to violence. 

Commissioner Daley, after hearing all the speakers, said that he has long thought that the money the County receives for fighting terrorism should be allowed to be used to fight the terrorism in the streets caused by gun violence.

It was not clear to this Observer what the next steps of this Committee would be following this hearing.

Submitted by League Observer Priscilla Mims

Cook County Board Meeting May 20, 2015

President Toni Preckwinkle called the meeting to order at 11:15 am. There was a quorum of commissioners attending. Two commissioners were absent: Commissioner Fritchey and Commissioner Moore (Moore came late). It was noted that Wi-Fi information is posted on the outside door and on the back of the wall between the commissioners and audience. Note that Wi-Fi information will change at the end of the Business day.

Commissioners spent about 45 minutes on the Consent Calendar. The rest of the items on the Calendar were referred to the June 10 meeting.

After the Consent Agenda was referred to the June meeting, President Preckwinkle left the meeting and President Pro-temp Commissioner Steele took over the meeting.

Items on the agenda were routine and the meeting went quickly. Most items were referred to committees, received and filed, adopted or withdrawn. These items were basically reports; approval of bids, contract agreements, grant approvals etc.

Items of note:

15-3362-Sponsored by Commissioner Boykin, This is an ordinance to establish a Commission on Cook County Youth. This was referred to the Human Relations Committee.

15-3246- sponsored by President Preckwinkle, this proposed resolution for Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73 Economic Package, Collective Bargaining Agreements for the period of December 1, 2012 to November 30, 2017. This was referred to the Labor Committee.

15-2578 proposed ordinance sponsored by Commissioner Gainer from Workforce, Housing & Community Development Committee, this proposed ordinance amendment created a Cook County Apprenticeship earned credit incentive. This was adopted.

New Items added to the agenda.

15-3440 proposed resolution by Commissioner Boykin, referring the issue of gun violence to the meeting of the Human Relations Committee.

15-3429 sponsored by Commissioner Goslin, this is an ordinance supporting Naco’s “Stepping Up Initiative” to reduce the number of people with mental illness in jails. It was adopted.

15-3433 sponsored by Commissioner Moore urging the Illinois General Assembly to create Legislation, and the Governor to approve funding support for the 2020 Decennial Census, including possible methods and procedures tests in Cook County during the next three years that will lead to improved operational and promotional approaches to educate, inform and encourage the cooperation of Cook County and Illinois residents. This was referred to the June 10 meeting.

The Commissioner’s then honored Earl Dunlap, former temporary Superintendent Juvenile Temporary Detention Center since being appointed by Federal Court Judge James Holderman in 2007.

The meeting was adjourned at 1:35

Submitted by Nancy Marcus & Syvia Tillman