Andy Shaw

Some parents in affluent Chicago neighborhoods are stealing coveted seats in elite schools from low-income students by falsifying their addresses.

Watchdog or lapdog? Aldermanic factions prepare for a showdown this week over the power of a new Legislative Inspector General.

Happy New Year from the BGA! To borrow a couple lines from Frank Sinatra, 2015 “was a very good year” for our watchdog team. But regrets? We’ve “had a few.”

“Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it.”  Philosopher Santayana’s prophetic warning in 1905 is just as relevant today when it comes to the critical importance of preserving Chicago police records. But cop unions disagree.

Illinois watchdogs, including the Better Government Association, have been voicing that concern for years—powerful legislative leaders controlling the Statehouse for decades while, at the same time, profiting handsomely from lucrative businesses or law practices that intersect with government without having to disclose income or client details.

First a video, then an apology. Now Rahm Emanuel’s long road to accountability. 

A look at the Laquan McDonald shooting and its aftermath in context: Decades of police misconduct but no accountability or real reform.

The impact of the release of the Laquan McDonald video continues to build. While the video is shocking, the handling of this case is not surprising to watchdogs like the BGA who have been investigating the Chicago Police Department and the State’s Attorneys Office for years.

Why are Chicago area transit agencies paying former Congressman Bill Lipinski millions of our tax dollars to lobby for them when Lipinski’s son Dan is now their go-to guy in Congress? Ethically challenged?  

Wanted: Watchdog With Sharp Teeth And Loud Bark To Clean Up Chicago’s Infamously Corrupt City Council.  Why? 30-plus aldermen hauled off to prison since 1970.