State treasurer candidate wants Illinois voters to combine office with state comptroller, save taxpayer money

[January 29, 2022]  By Scot Bertram

(The Center Square) – There’s another push underway in Springfield to combine the offices of Illinois state comptroller and state treasurer.

State Rep. Tom Demmer, R-Dixon, has introduced legislation to merge the duties of the two constitutional offices into the treasurer’s office. Under the proposal, the treasurer would maintain the state’s central accounts and order payments into and out of state funds. The officeholder also would be responsible for the investment of state monies and securities.

“As we continue to have financial pressures in Illinois, we should be looking for ways, large and small, to try to reduce size and the cost of government,” Demmer said. “I think the idea is one way we can reduce the cost for taxpayers.”

Demmer also is running for the Republican nomination for state treasurer. He says he’s not yet reached out to other candidates for comptroller to gauge their reaction to the idea.

In 2010, Republicans Judy Baar Topinka and Dan Rutherford ran for comptroller and treasurer, respectively, with a pledge to eliminate one of the offices. A proposal to do so was unanimously approved by the Illinois Senate in 2011, but the bill stalled in the House.

“I think this is a good year to put this question on the ballot to voters and give them the opportunity to decide whether they would like to combine those offices and save a little bit of money,” Demmer said. “And we can do that in this upcoming November general election.”

If approved by a three-fifths majority of both branches of the General Assembly and then by voters, the change would take effect in 2026, at the end of the next full term for the next elected treasurer and comptroller.

Demmer argues it makes sense to have one person in charge of streamlining the fiscal operations of the state.
 

“I think by combining those two, you really have an opportunity to save money, but also to make sure that there's somebody who's responsible for both the short term and long term financial thinking for the state,” Demmer said.

He says many other states follow a similar setup with one person in charge of all of these duties, including fellow Midwestern states Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan.

“I'm sure that you can put in place the kinds of safeguards and processes and an organizational chart that would ensure that you get all of the critical responsibilities accomplished under one umbrella,” Demmer said.