 Illinois lawmakers will continue to get their paychecks on time despite an
appeal of last month’s ruling that they be paid before vendors or social
services that are owed almost $13 billion.
On March 23, a Cook County Circuit Court judge sided with several Democratic
lawmakers, saying despite no budget and a massive backlog of bills, lawmakers
should be paid before vendors and social services.
Comptroller Susana Mendoza started issuing millions of dollars worth of backpay
in the following days.
On March 28, Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed an appeal. That didn’t stop the
paychecks. Records obtained by Illinois News Network through a Freedom of
Information Act request show payments were issued as recently as March 31, days
after the appeal.
Rank-and-file lawmakers have received paychecks of more than $50,800 in the
couple weeks since the ruling. The amount paid for per diem and travel varies
per member, with some getting as much as an additional $7,745. Ranking members
also get some extra pay, as do members holding various committee leadership
positions.
The four legislative leaders, House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, House
Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, Senate President John Cullerton,
D-Chicago, and Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, each have
received $71,484 since the judge’s ruling. This pay comes despite the four
leaders having failed to pass a full year’s balanced budget in nearly two years.
In a statement in response to why there wasn’t an injunction filed to delay pay
pending an appeal, Mendoza’s deputy director of communications, Jamey Dunn, said
the pay is “in compliance with the judge’s order.”
[to top of second column] |
 Mendoza, who took office just this past December, has received
nearly $44,000.
When also asked why no injunction, Madigan’s Communications
Director, Maura Possley, said, “At this point, I would just say that
we are focused on an appeal.”
Madigan has been paid more than $117,400 since the court’s ruling.
Former comptroller Leslie Munger, who implemented the no budget/no
pay policy, now acts as deputy governor. She criticized Mendoza,
saying an injunction to delay pay should have been filed immediately
after the circuit court ruling.
Munger has received more than $58,000 in back pay since the judge’s
ruling.
Altogether, lawmakers and constitutional officers have received
nearly $12 million, including back pay, in 2017 alone, the bulk of
that being paid out since the circuit court judge’s ruling.
Some have questioned whether the windfall back pay will increase the
annual pensions of any lawmakers considering retirement in the next
couple of years, since pensions are based on the highest annual
salaries of state employees in their several years on the job. A
senior public service administrator for the State Retirement Systems
of Illinois said even if lawmakers were to receive several months of
pay in one month, their pension would be based of the annualized
salary rate set by statute and the windfall would not artificially
spike pensions.
Click here to respond to the editor about this article
|
