90 of the 102 counties in Illinois have merged the recorder of Deeds office with the county clerk’s office. Illinois largest county, Cook County, voted to eliminate the office in 2016.

Both clerk and recorder offices perform record-keeping functions, and the recorder’s office is not mandated by the state constitution.

If nothing else the county would save a salary upwards of $150,000 annually and benefits.

The Daily Herald reports the following:

A county board member wants to let voters decide this spring whether to eliminate the DuPage recorder’s office and merge its duties with the county clerk’s office.

Downers Grove Democrat Elizabeth Chaplin says she would like to see the question on the March primary election ballot so the consolidation could take effect in November 2020.

The time is right, she said, because longtime Recorder Fred Bucholz is planning to retire after four terms.

“It would be a perfect transition into the clerk’s office,” Chaplin said.

County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek oversaw one consolidation earlier this year when her office merged with the DuPage Election Commission.

You can read the full story here.

The DuPage County Development Committee will begin informal discussions on the sale of recreational marijuana at the August 6, 2019, Development Committee meeting. The meeting begins at 10:30 a.m. and will be held in the DuPage County Board Room to accommodate the public and Board Members.

As Vice-Chair of the Development Committee, I welcome and look forward to this discussion.

If you would like to make a public comment please plan to arrive a few minutes early to complete the necessary form.

You can find a copy of the Agenda here.

Recycling is something we should do every day but there’s a possibility that what you put in your recycling bin may not be recyclable.

The DuPage County Environmental Division has a helpful interactive page that breaks down what you can and can’t recycle.

You can find the page here.

On July 10th from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm the first-ever Veterans Resource Fair will take place in the auditorium at 421 N. County Farm Rd, Wheaton.

Please join the DuPage Democrats and 50 other organizations at the Veterans Resource Fair. All Veterans, Active Duty, National Guard, Reservists, family members and members of the public are welcome. No proof of Veteran status is required. Bagels and coffee will be provided.

For more information, contact the Veterans Assistance Commission of DuPage at, 630-407-5655.

You should have recently received an Official Election Mailing from the DuPage County Clerk’s Office. I have received several questions from my constituents as to why they received the card. Here’s the answer. The National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Illinois Election Code mandate that voter verification cards be mailed to all active voters every two years. Currently, we have nearly 650,000 active voters in the database. Our population is roughly 915,000. There has not been a complete voter verification as mandated in a number of years, as evidenced in the high number of registered voters. According to postage expenditures, a full mandatory voter verification may not have been done since 2008. We must keep the database current and clean as possible. Having an elected official that is passionate, knowledgeable and cares deeply about the job makes all the difference in the world. Kudos Jean Kaczmarek.

So proud of our newly elected DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek Jean Kaczmarek for DuPage County Clerk.

This is what leadership looks like.

DuPage County Republicans have had control of the Clerk’s Office for decades and what did they do? Unlike most other County Clerk’s they did not run elections. That freed up a lot of time. What was done with all that free time? Maybe spend some time preserving our historical documents? No, they did not take the time to preserve our historical documents leaving them vulnerable to the elements and natural decay.

The Daily Herald reports the following

DuPage Clerk Begins Preservation Effort to Save County’s Historical Documents

During the May 27th meeting of the DuPage County Board, I had asked if we could include the word air in our updated Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan mentions water quality and since our community was hit hard by Steriginics I thought it might be a good idea to reference air quality as well. The Chairman pointed out that I need to do my homework and come prepared to the meetings. I fired back that we received our packet late Friday afternoon, Monday was a holiday and there simply wasn’t enough time to get a hold of staff before the meeting.

Flash forward to the June 11th meeting of the DuPage County Board, as Chairwomen of the Environmental Committee I am giving the committee update and motion to approve an Intergovernmental Agreement between DuPage County and the City of Naperville, all hell breaks loose.  Member Jim Zay questions the procedure and asks questions about the intergovernmental agreement. He is allowed all the time he needed to loudly question and request additional information, information that was included in the board packet. Newly elected Board Member Julie Renehan rightly called out the double standard. It is true when some board members ask questions they are criticized and belittled while others get a free pass to ask questions and request more information.

During our last meeting on June 25th  Board Member Tim Elliott called on the Clerk Jean Kaczmarek to answer questions regarding the minutes. Board Member Elliott was allowed to question the clerk with no interruptions and there were no questions as to why he did not call the clerk before the meeting to discuss his concerns. During the same meeting board members were chastised for asking legitimate questions and asking for more information regarding a major structural change to county government which also included hefty increases in salaries.

I have always supported allowing more time for members to get the information they need and the time they need to do the necessary research. I may not be so accommodating anymore.

When I ran for the DuPage County Board I said I would challenge the status quo, ask questions and do my homework and that is what I am doing.

The Daily Herald reports the following

Cronin’s Restructuring Plan Draws Fire From Critics

DuPage holds off on $100K for hazardous waste facility in Naperville; board member says city benefits most in deal

DuPage renews support for hazardous waste facility in Naperville

Liz Chaplin, whose appointment ended last June, was ignored and even ridiculed by other Commissioners

#2020iscoming

#builabetterdupage

#demsindupage

For years the DuPage County Board has passed an Intergovernmental Agreement between DuPage County and the City of Naperville to provide funding in the amount of $100,000 for the continued operation of the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility.

Two weeks ago the item was tabled in part because of procedural questions. The procedure used two weeks ago has been the same procedure the county has used for years. Two weeks ago there was a concern that the intergovernmental agreement went from the Environmental Committee to the County Board meeting without going through the Finance Committee. The intergovernmental agreement was tabled. Yesterday the Intergovernmental Agreement between DuPage County and the City of Naperville was brought before and passed out of both the Finance Committee and the County Board meeting.

I did a little research and it didn’t take long for me to determine that the DuPage County Board approved $610,920.00 in intergovernmental agreements that went from a standing committee to the board without going through the Finance Committee since January. In fact, the same day the Intergovernmental Agreement between DuPage County and the City of Naperville was pulled in part because of the concern it was not reviewed by the Finance Committee the board approved an Intergovernmental Agreement between the Department of Transportation and IDOT in the amount of $153,750.00 an increase of  891.30%  and total estimated costs of $171,000.00 that did not go to the Finance Committee. No concerns, no questions and no hoopla.

Yesterday I spoke about the inconsistency with regards to the practice of how intergovernmental agreements are processed. Staff confirmed my findings that in fact, many intergovernmental agreements had been approved without being reviewed by the Finance Committee. I am pleased to announce that county staff is in the process of creating a policy for intergovernmental agreements so in the future we don’t experience what took place a few weeks ago.

As a member of the board and in the minority party, it is my job to challenge, question and stand up when I know the playing field is not always level.  It’s important to insist that the same standards apply to all committees and board members. Consistency is the key.

You can read more about the Intergovernmental Agreement between DuPage and the City of Naperville here.

7-3 POST UPDATE:

#buildabetterdupage

#demsindupage

For years the DuPage County Board has passed an Intergovernmental Agreement between DuPage County and the City of Naperville to provide funding in the amount of $100,000 for the continued operation of the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility.

Two weeks ago the item was tabled because of procedural questions. The procedure used two weeks ago has been the same procedure the county has used for years. Concerns of lack of information arose even though the information was provided in the board packet. I supported the motion to table the intergovernmental because I believe in collaboration and even though the material was in the packet I wanted to give the board members more time to review the information and make sure all their questions and concerns were addressed.

Yesterday the County Board approved the Intergovernmental agreement with the City of Naperville for the operation of the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility and will provide funding in the amount not to exceed $100,000 during the term of the agreement.

The Naperville household hazardous waste facility is one of four in the state and provides the residents of DuPage and the surrounding communities a much-needed place to safely dispose of hazardous household items. The facility is located at 156 Fort Hill Drive and is open on Saturdays and Sundays, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., excluding holidays.

Household hazardous materials, including oil, anti-freeze, cleaning products, flammables, fertilizers, paints, prescription medications, herbicides and more are accepted at the facility.

DuPage County is a recognized leader in addressing environmental concerns support of the HHW is part of the reason for this recognition.

You can learn more about the HHW here.