- How many aldermen does it take to fix a city? We began questioning whether Chicago should cut the size of its City Council several months ago, issuing a BGA analysis on our Think Tank blog. Emily Miller, our policy and government affairs coordinator, discusses the issue again on today’s 848 on WBEZ.
- Pappas’ party planners pink-slipped. In the wake of BGA/CBS2 investigations into the conduct of Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas (the high salaries for her driver and cleaning lady), she fires two party planners, each making nearly $100,000 on the county dime. This comes days after CBS2 and the BGA question the jobs.
- Tightfisted trifecta? State lawmakers are looking at three ideas to deal with the state’s budget crisis, capitalizing on some momentum from the income tax hike. The first is a plan that would charge state retirees more for health care–the others are leftover options: raise the cigarette tax and a bond borrowing proposal.
- E-tailer equality? An editorial in the Trib calls for Governor Quinn to sign the “Amazon tax,” which would require Amazon and other e-tailers to collect Illinois’ sales tax, arguing there should be a level playing field for all retailers and urging other states to do the same.
- Ward wampum. The Sun-Times “Watchdogs” take a look at the $5.6 million raised in Chicago’s 43 aldermanic races, highlighting those that have attracted the most money since July 1.
- Bond bonus. Some good news amid the grumbling about the income tax hike: Fitch Ratings raises Illinois’ bond rating from negative to stable.
What I’m Watching—Jan. 24, 2011
