Category: Cook County Board

Cook County Board Committee Postpones Action On Just Housing Amendment Interpretive Rules

9/13/2019

Cook County Board of Commissioners Committee Meetings
September 4, 2019

Rules Committee
Chair Larry Suffredin announced at the beginning of the meeting that the Committee would hear all the public comments, but would not take any action on the proposed Just Housing Amendment Interpretive Rules from the Department of Human Rights and Ethics. Instead, the Department and Committee would consider all the comments, written and verbal, and consider whether any changes were warranted. (Agenda Item 19-4770)

These Rules are to provide guidance in interpreting the requirements of the recently passed Amendment to the Cook County Human Rights Ordinance which prohibits discrimination in housing based on criminal history. The Human Relations Committee separately met and voted to postpone the effective date of this Amendment until December 31, 2019, to allow time for the Interpretive Rules to be finalized and disseminated to landlords and other people involved with housing. (Agenda Item 19-4848)
There were over 20 speakers and the main concerns were with
- The exemption in complying with the Rules for public housing.
- The inclusion in the Rules of categories of convictions; instead speakers urged that these be eliminated so that each person would be treated individually.
- The look-back period for convictions, with realtors and landlords wanting a 7-year period and others wanting the proposed 5-year period reduced to 3 years.
- The requirements that anyone denied housing based on a criminal background has 5 business days to notify the housing provider of the intent to dispute the denial and an additional 5 business days to provide evidence that disputes the accuracy or relevancy of the basis for the denial; landlords and realtors urged that the time periods be reduced to 48 hours to notify and 72 hours to provide the evidence disputing the bases of the denial.

Chair Suffredin stated that he hopes to have the Proposed Interpretive Rules on the September 25 agenda of the Committee, so they can be approved by the Board on September 26.

Legislation & Intergovernmental Affairs Committee

The League of Women Voters of Cook County provided written and verbal comments pointing out that the 2nd Quarter Report from the Clerk and Recorder on the planning for the upcoming merger in December 2020 did not include a timeline of benchmarks as required by the Board resolution from 2017 requiring these quarterly reports. The Clerk’s representative stated that future reports would contain such a timeline. (Agenda Item 19-4656)
Voted to recommend the Board approve the Ordinance Amendment which would require all boards, commissions, advisory committees, and task forces created by the Cook County Board to post a notice of its meetings with the Secretary to the Board. (Agenda Item 19-4820) (The Cook County Board did approve this at their September 5 meeting.)

Finance Committee

Voted to recommend the Board approve the Substitute for the proposed Surviving Spouse Tax Abatement, which provides for applications to the Board of Review for a reduction in property taxes for the surviving spouse of policeman, soldier in Iraq or Afghanistan, or rescue worker who dies during the performance of his/her duties. (Agenda Item 19-4797) (The Cook County Board did approve this at their September 5 meeting.) See the LWVCC Observer Report from the July 25 Board meeting for more information.

Observer - Priscilla Mims

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Equipment Upgrades Approved for Cook County Sheriff’s Department

9/11/2019

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Cook County Board of Commissioners Meeting - September 5, 2019

Board Actions:

A Request to enter into and execute a contract with Axon Enterprise, Scottsdale, AZ Axon Enterprise provides law enforcement grade weapons and tech services. The contract is for 5 yr, 9/12/2019 - 9/11/2024. Explanations were provided for the Commissioners’ many questions. It was explained that this contract will provide upgrades and expansion of the existing body worn cameras and TASER weapons inventory that are needed to supply more Cook County Sheriff Department Officers with equipment. Axon is the only company that sells law-enforcement grade weapons which are sold strictly to law enforcement agencies. The TASER will activate their body worn camera; it is the only weapon that will activate the camera. The cloud storage system is unique to Axon. The cameras’ recordings will be sharable with the Public Defender’s Office. The contract was approved. (Agenda Item 19-5076)

The Fair Transit of South Cook County Pilot Study was referred to the Transportation Committee for a more detailed presentation. Commissioner Miller stated that the Public Meeting in the South Suburbs was well attended. Supt. Yonan explained that this 3 year Pilot Program is ready for implementation. The program has several goals, including modest service improvement and improved coordination with PACE, Metra, and CTA. Another benefit of the program should be facilitating access to employment. Yonan explained that Year 1 is the implementation phase. Years 2 & 3 are to evaluate the impact of improvements. (Agenda Item 19-4276)

Criminal Justice Committee - Charitable Bond Fund Commissioner Suffredin reported that the Criminal Justice Committee is waiting for responses from the State’s Attorney’s Office and from the County Clerk regarding questions of implementation of this program. The Committee will return with a completed proposal at the next meeting.

Observer - C. Cosentino Meeting Length - 2 hr. 25 min

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Cook County Board Looks to Provide Tax Breaks for Families of First Responders Killed in the Line of Duty

7/26/2019

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Cook County Board of Commissioners Meeting - July 25, 2019

Pre Meeting Press Conference:
As I stepped off the elevator there were many people in the lobby with lots of press coverage. Commissioner Daley was explaining an ordinance he hoped would pass at today’s meeting. 19-4797 is an ordinance allowing for property tax breaks for the families of First Responders who had perished in the line of duty. This ordinance did pass!

The meeting was called to order at about 10:15 AM with all 17 Commissioners present and on time. The gallery was packed with observers. 20 seats were reserved for guests of Commissioner Miller.

Public Speakers:

There were 10 speakers in all. Most of them were speaking in favor of the above mentioned ordinance or another ordinance that was sponsored by Commissioner Anaya. This was Resolution 19-4750, opposing a rule recently imposed by HUD (Housing and Urban Development) at the federal level. HUD has enacted a new rule for recipients of housing assistance that mandates proof of their immigration status. This rule would target mixed status families, those where some members are citizens, others are residents, and others are undocumented. This would cause significant hardship for many families according to housing experts who testified. This opposition resolution passed.
Two speakers who drew much attention were George Blakemore and former Alderman Wallace Bradley. Mr. Blakemore condemned Cook County’s health system for being discriminatory towards black people, while helping immigrants. President Preckwinkle and Commissioner Daley both stated that the county’s health system never turns anyone away. Mr. Bradley complimented President Preckwinkle for Criminal Justice Reform and hoped that comments by Police Superintendent Johnson would not deter her from furthering this reform.

Items Approved by the Board:

19-4588, A contract proposed by the Justice Advisory Council (the justice arm of the President’s office) to give grants worth up to $500,000 to Catholic Charities and and the Haymarket Center for helping pregnant and post-partum arrestees before trial.
19-4820 An ordinance proposed by Commisioner Suffredin to have the Board Secretary post all meetings of advisory boards, task forces, special committees, etc. on their website.
19-4438 A contract proposed by Chief Judge Evans worth approximately $1.5 million over a 4 year period to Westcare Illinois for behavioral treatment services. These would be available to pretrial defendants in order to reduce recidivism.
19-4285, a resolution proposed by Commissioner Deer to recognize Health Equity in Cook County. He cited some unequal life expectancy statistics: 60 yrs. of age in Englewood and 90 yrs of age in Streeterville.

Items That Were Sent to Committees:

19-4656, the Report on the progress of the merger of the Recorder Of Deeds and Clerk’s offices was sent to the Legislation and Intergovernmental Affairs Committee, as proposed by Commissioner Suffredin.
19-4770, a resolution for Just Housing, allowing for no discrimination in the rental or sale of housing, to the Rules Committee, as suggested by Commissioner Johnson.
19-4849, a resolution to continue Criminal Justice reform, sent to that committee by Commissioner Johnson ( He also told me as an aside that the CJ committee would be considering a no-monetary bail ordinance in Sept.)

The meeting went over agenda items very quickly with very little discussion. President Preckwinkle adjourned the meeting around noon. She wished everyone a happy summer as this was the last summer meeting. She said that the meetings would resume in September.

Observer - Jan Goldberg

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Current Social Issues on Agendas at Cook County Board Committee Meetings

7/11/2019

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Cook County Board of Commissioners - Committee Meetings - June 26, 2019

Human Relations Committee:
Human Rights Ordinance amendment - Amendment Passed.
(Agenda Item 19-3462 - sponsor K. Morrison)

The amendment changes the word meaning of “sex” to include gender and also gender identity in public accommodations. No one would need to show proof of gender in public areas with certain exceptions such as single sex schools, sleeping areas, etc.

Criminal Justice Committee:
Charitable Bond Fund Ordinance substitute. Substitute passed and final approval deferred to next Criminal Justice Committee meeting
(Agenda Item 19-0768 - sponsor Suffredin)

The substitute to the ordinance would include family members bailing out defendants—, but the ordinance still is awaiting input from fiscal impact note and other details.
The Ordinance as a whole would enable charities, groups and individuals to donate money for a Bond Fund to bail out defendants who are awaiting trial and can’t afford their bail. There are currently about 400 individuals who are being held in jail with bond amounts of $5,000.00 or less.
This charitable fund would be replenished by the refunds defendants would get for showing up to trial.
Definite criteria of who would qualify for these funds needs to be fully developed and presented to the Board.
Excluded from these funds would be defendants in de-tox programs and mental health treatment because they would benefit from the programs in the jail.
No court fees or fines could be taken from these funds, including the $100.00 processing fee.
The entire ordinance is deferred and will stay in committee until home-rule restrictions and other issues can be worked out. The fiscal impact to the courts of not charging fees will also be determined.

Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee:

Resolution supporting equality and equal rights act for LGBTQ individuals throughout the United States - Resolution passed. (Agenda Item 19-3961 - sponsors L. Suffredin, K. Morrison)
The committee passed a resolution supporting the US House bill proposing Medicare for All throughout the United States. (Agenda Item 19-3838 Medicare for All Act)
Several Board members and other individuals were appointed to the Complete Count Census Commission.

Observed online by: Karin Hribar

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Cook County Board Approves Resolution in Support of The Medicare for All Act - HR1384

6/15/2019

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Cook County Board of Commissioners Meeting - June 6, 2019
Commissioner Absent: Stanley Moore

What did the Board Decide:

The Board approved a Resolution in Support of HR1384 - The Medicare for All Act.
Rationale:

The United States spends nearly twice as much per capita on health care as all other comparable countries, yet ranks only 35th by global health standards.
The uninsured rate for U. S. adults has risen for four straight years up to nearly 30 million uninsured.
More than 40% of all U.S. adults under the age of 65 forego needed medical care, fail to fill a prescription or take less than the recommended dose of their medication.
The inability to pay medical bills continues to be a leading cause of personal bankruptcy.
55% of the uninsured are people of color.
Due to their profit incentive, private insurance companies deny up to one-fourth of all claims for care.

The Medicare for All Act supposedly will:

Establish guaranteed, universal health care to all U.S. residents, eliminating all costs for premiums, deductibles, copays and other out of pocket costs.
Ensure genuine patient choice of any doctor, hospital or clinic a patient chooses.
Reduce the cost of prescription drugs by authorizing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices.

Other Items of Interest:

The meeting began with three public speakers, nurses at Stroger Hospital, in support of the above bill.
The Board referred to the Criminal Justice Committee a proposed ordinance to change the hours of the Law Library, to make it more accessible to the public for the purposes of legal research.
The Board approved the authorization to renew a Cook County States Attorney’s Office grant to provide funding for a total of 21 victim specialists to provide services to all crime victims throughout Cook County. - Grant amount: $2,250,000.00

Observer: – Beverly Graham Meeting Length: 55 minutes

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Cook County Board Approves Intergovernmental Agreement with MWRD for Independent Inspector General Services

5/2/2019

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Cook County Board of Commissioners Meeting- April 25, 2019

Notable Items Passed:

The Board approved an amendment (Agenda Item 19-3024) to the ordinance covering the Office of Independent Inspector General (OIIG) that will allow the OIIG to provide services pursuant to any intergovernmental agreement approved by the Board of Commissioners to which the OIIG is a party (Cook County Code, section 2-284 #14) and to provide services pursuant to a memorandum of understanding to any agency funded by the County Board to which the OIIG is a party and the OIIG determines that a memorandum of understanding is applicable or preferred (Cook County Code, section 2-284 #15). The Board then approved the proposed intergovernmental agreement with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) for the OIIG to provide services to the District (Agenda Item 19-3027). The League testified in support of this intergovernment agreement at the MWRD the week before, and sent a letter of support to the Cook County Board prior to the vote.
The Board approved a proposed amendment to the Human Relations - Housing section of the Cook County Code that will require landlords to determine if someone can qualify for a property before the landlord can ask about criminal history, and delayed the effective date for this amendment for 6 months. Commissioners discussed the importance of clear guidelines for small landlords in the rule making process in order to make clear what is needed for compliance. A question was raised regarding whether “rules” come back to the Board for review, and the answer was yes. (Agenda Item 19-2394)
The Board approved the Report and Amended Resolution from the Litigation Subcommitte following the Committee’s hearing on the status of the Shakman cases in the Offices of the Assessor, Clerk of the Court, and Recorder of Deeds. (Agenda Item 19-2242) Court-appointed oversight of these offices has been ongoing for 9 years for the Assessor, 7 years for the Recorder, and since last year for the Clerk. Much work needs still to be done before they can be found to be in substantial compliance with the Shakman decisions, which prohibit political considerations with regard to the hiring, firing, promotion, or pay of all but a few “exempt” employees. These cases have cost the County millions of dollars. The Commissioners at the hearing on Tuesday emphasized the need for these offices to come into compliance as soon as possible. The Subcommittee amended the hearing resolution to provide for quarterly hearings on these matters. The League testified in support of such regular oversight by the Subcommittee, and the Subcommittee utilized the questions submitted by the League during the hearing on April 23

Other items of interest:

The Board approved a contract with the Adult Probation Department, Circuit Court of Cook County and Loyola University to develop and implement a recidivism reduction program for high-risk probationers. This plan will “include an in-depth implementation fidelity review plan, a process evaluation plan, and an outcome evaluation plan”. The contract period is 5/01/2019 - 9/30/2021. (Agenda Item 19-2519)
Com. Kevin Morrison questioned a contract for disposable kitchen supplies for the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. Com. Morrison asked if the contract looked at compostable, biodegradable or reusable supplies.

Future items:

A proposed ordinance regarding establishing civil fees and criminal and traffic assessments collected by the Clerk of the Circuit Court Cook County was referred to the Finance Committee. The Criminal and Traffic Assessment Act restructures criminal, traffic and civil fees in the circuit courts in Illinois in order to consolidate fees into unified schedules. (Agenda Item 19-2843)

Observer - Laura Davis. Meeting Length - 2 hours and 10 minutes when observer left - ongoing

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Cook County Board Committee Postpones Action On Just Housing Amendment Interpretive Rules

Equipment Upgrades Approved for Cook County Sheriff’s Department

Cook County Board Looks to Provide Tax Breaks for Families of First Responders Killed in the Line of Duty

Current Social Issues on Agendas at Cook County Board Committee Meetings

Cook County Board Approves Resolution in Support of The Medicare for All Act - HR1384

Cook County Board Approves Intergovernmental Agreement with MWRD for Independent Inspector General Services

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