 Looking to interject itself into upcoming contract talks, the state
Legislature is setting a limit on how much it'll appropriate for
wage increases.The Illinois House will decide the maximum
increase.
"Essentially, it's the Legislature putting down a marker and
saying (to the governor), 'If you go beyond this, we're not going to
fund it,'" said Kent Redfield, a political science professor at
University of Illinois at Springfield and longtime state government
observer.
The Legislature's actions come on the eve of contract
negotiations beginning between Gov. Pat Quinn and the state's
largest public-sector union, the American Federation of State,
County and Municipal Employees, or AFSCME. The current contract ends
June 30.
During the 2010 campaign cycle, which was the last major election
before the new contract with the unions will be decided, AFSCME
maintained a steady stream of campaign contributions to help get and
keep public officials, from Quinn to Democratic legislators, in
office.
Between Jan. 1, 2010, and Nov. 7, 2010, AFSCME gave $1.4 million
to candidates, according to records from the Illinois State Board of
Elections.
Topping the list were Quinn and Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon. Their
campaign, Quinn/Simon for Illinois, got $575,000, or 42 percent, of
AFSCME's donations between Jan. 1, 2010, and Nov. 7, 2010.
Requests by Illinois Statehouse News for comment from AFSCME were
not returned.
James Nowlan, a senior fellow at the Institute of Government and
Public Affairs at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, said
campaign contributions can be viewed either as a group trying to buy
influence or a group giving to a candidate who shares their values.
"It's probably not possible to be certain about what role the
campaign contributions play, but certainly, one would be suspicious
of the ability of a governor to be objective with the unions,
following campaign contributions of half a million dollars," Nowlan
said.
Should a negotiated contract or another legal case end up in the
Illinois Supreme Court, AFSCME's money will have beaten it there.
Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Kilbride took
$100,300 from AFSCME. Kilbride was up for a retention vote in 2010
for another 10-year term with the state Supreme Court. AFSCME's
contribution wouldn't rule Kilbride out from voting on a case
involving the union.
"There really is no firm set of guidelines on recusal,
particularly at the Supreme Court level in Illinois," Redfield said.
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The third-highest beneficiary of AFSCME's money for the 2010
general election is the Democratic Party of Illinois, which received
$50,000. The Democratic Party can decide what to do with
contributions, including sharing them with candidates in various
races.
On the legislative side, state Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet
City, took $20,500, the largest donation among legislators. State
Reps. Daniel Biss, D-Evanston, and Wayne Rosenthal, R-Litchfield,
each received $20,000 from AFSCME.
How much influence AFSCME's contributions have and how the public
perceives them are two different things, Redfield and Nowlan agreed.
"You can argue it both ways, but I think the public's perception
is that money has a pernicious influence on politics," Nowlan said.
Other notable recipients include:
-
Illinois Comptroller
Judy Baar Topinka: $20,000
-
Illinois Attorney
General Lisa Madigan: $20,000
-
State Rep. Eddie Lee
Jackson, D-East St. Louis: $16,000
-
State Sen. Michael
Noland, D-Elgin: $16,000
-
State Sen. Toi Hutchinson, D-Olympia
Fields: $16,000
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By ANDREW THOMASON]
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