 Republicans Bill Brady and Bob Schillerstrom say they won't release
their tax information. Fellow Republican Andy McKenna says he'll
only give out the information if everyone else does. And Green Party
candidate Rich Whitney says he leans toward withholding his returns,
too.
Other Republican candidates told The Associated Press that
they're willing to release their tax information. One, Adam
Andrzejewski, has made disclosure a central theme of his campaign
and posted his tax returns on his Web site. (He paid $29,773 in
federal taxes for 2008.)
The major Democratic candidates, Dan Hynes and Pat Quinn, both
promise to release their returns.
Candidates for Illinois governor usually release their tax
returns, although not necessarily in the primary election.
Republicans Jim Edgar, George Ryan and Jim Ryan released the
forms when they ran. So did Democrats Glenn Poshard and Rod
Blagojevich.
Cindi Canary, executive director of the Illinois Campaign for
Political Reform, said the tax forms give voters a better
understanding of the candidates and possible problems.
"The underlying reason for all of this is to lay bare any
potential conflict of interest which may exist. It's not just simply
that the public has a right to be nosy," Canary said. "What we're
trying to find out and understand is what kind of financial
relationships exist."
She said that's especially relevant after the scandal that ended
with Blagojevich being arrested and booted out of the governor's
office. Voters deserve information that can help reassure them about
a candidate's integrity, she said.
Personal matters
Schillerstrom, chairman of the DuPage County Board, said he
doesn't see the value in releasing tax information.
"I feel strongly about full disclosure in government, but I do
not believe posting my personal tax returns, or the tax returns of
the other candidates for governor, would further the public interest
in any tangible way. I have yet to hear anyone make a compelling
argument how this would benefit voters," he replied to an Associated
Press questionnaire.
Brady, a state senator and Bloomington real estate developer,
cited business concerns as his reason for keeping the information
private.
"As one of the owners in a family-operated business, I have to be
cognizant of the effect releasing my income tax returns can have on
other people and the potential of providing competitors with
confidential business plans and information," Brady said.
Those concerns didn't stop him from making his returns public in
2006, when Brady was one of three candidates for the Republican
nomination for governor. Brady reported total income of $581,059 for
the 2004 tax year.
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Who's interested
Canary said she sympathizes with candidates' interest in
withholding information that might somehow harm their business
interests. She suggested it might be possible to release some
information while withholding particularly sensitive details.
McKenna, chairman of Schwarz Supply Source, said he released his
returns when he ran for Senate in 2004 and found that only his
primary opponents were interested in them. "While I am open to
releasing my returns during this campaign, I believe it is only
appropriate if all other candidates agree to do so as well," he
said.
Whitney, of the Green Party, said releasing his returns would
interfere with his wife's privacy without actually giving voters any
useful information about his integrity.
"It's time to stop looking at trendy gimmicks as a pathway to
clean government, and time to look at the real public policies
needed to establish it," Whitney said.
The AP questionnaire asked if the candidates would post their
returns on the Internet. Hynes and Quinn did not answer this part of
the question. In the past, Quinn has required people to visit his
office to see his returns.
Several candidates noted they have filed a formal "statement of
economic interests" with the state. These statements provide only
limited information, such as ownership in any companies doing
business with the state.
"It tends to be a fairly worthless document," Canary said.
[Associated Press;
BY CHRISTOPHER WILLS]
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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