 In addition to appointing new members to the University of Illinois
board of trustees, Quinn late Wednesday temporarily reappointed top
agency officials who had been serving without Senate confirmation.
The move comes after a letter from Democratic Senate lawyer Eric
Madiar asking Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka to remove
Quinn's appointees from payroll because they had not been confirmed
during the previous General Assembly.
Fifteen of the 38 appointees receive a salary.
Illinois State Police Director Jonathon Monken, Illinois Commerce
Commission Chair Manuel Flores, Illinois Commerce Commissioner John
Colgan, Corrections Department Assistant Director Gladyse Taylor and
Human Services Department Assistant Secretary Matthew Hammoudeh were
among those put up for confirmation. All five appointees each earn
more than $110,000.
Some lawmakers, however, were not impressed by Quinn's choice to
make appointments while the Senate was still in recess after last
week's General Assembly inauguration.
"I think it's a way to get around the process. Hopefully, he will
get these nominations forwarded to the Senate, and they will take
care of it in the proper fashion. To go around the process is, to
me, inherently wrong, and I certainly hope this isn't an indication
of what we expect to see the next four years," said Rep. Rich Brauer,
R-Petersburg.
"It is up to the Senate to advise and consent," said Patrick
Pfingsten, spokesman for Jason Barickman, R-Champaign.
Among the contentious temporary appointees was Monken, who was
criticized for his youth and lack of police experience when he was
appointed nearly two years ago. An Army veteran who served in Iraq,
Monken has been training at the Illinois State Police Academy.
"I know there's a lot of concern among legislators on both sides
of the aisle as far as his experience," said Sen. Tim Bivins,
R-Dixon. "I think he is a fine person; it just remains to be seen if
he will be appointed by the Senate."
As for the U of I trustees, Quinn brought in new faces, including
Ricardo Estrada and Patricia Brown Holmes. He also reappointed Karen
Hasara, former Springfield mayor, who had been serving since 2009.
Estrada and Holmes replace former members Frances Carroll and
Carlos Tortolero, who were both involved in the 2009 admissions
scandal that led to the resignation of a majority of the board
members at the state's flagship university.
[to top of second column] |
For Rep. Chapin Rose, R-Charleston, it was high time for them to
go.
"Frances Carroll had no association with the university before
she was appointed a trustee. ... That's not exactly what you want,"
Rose said. "It was sort of a slap in the face when Rob Blagojevich
appointed somebody who'd never even been to Urbana."
Barickman and Bivins said they wish Quinn had taken a little more
time to decide.
"Gov. Quinn should seek more input from the University of
Illinois Alumni Association when he makes appointments to the
University of Illinois board of trustees," Pfingsten said.
Bivins said a deliberate approach would have been preferable.
"There was plenty of time to address this issue. Unfortunately,
like everything else, it seems like it was on the fast track,"
Bivins said.
Quinn apparently didn't agree.
"The important thing to us is making sure that government
continues to operate without any interruption, which is really why
we issued these temporary appointments," said Annie Thompson,
Quinn's spokeswoman.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By MELISSA LEU]
 |
