SPECIAL SHOULD MEAN SPECIAL

My friends Cheryl and Derek recently entrusted me with money and gift cards to be used by me for any “special needs” at Doolittle School where I do volunteer work.  I have set that money aside to buy “fixings” to go with turkeys that Scott Lee Cohen is donating to families at Doolittle who cannot afford a holiday meal.  Cheryl and Derek gave me the money for a specific purpose, not for me to use to buy Diet Coke and Lean Cuisine for myself.  Even if I were starving, I could not use that “special” money for myself because it is not mine.  It would be stealing if I used the “special” money for any other purpose.  The Supreme Court of Illinois disagrees with me, because they just ruled in favor of Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and the Legislature to allow them to “steal” money from hundreds of special state funds.

 Two examples of special funds created by the legislature are:

“There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be known as the Secretary of State Special License Plate Fund. Money deposited into the Fund shall, subject to appropriation, be used by the Office of the Secretary of State (i) to help defray plate manufacturing and plate processing costs for the issuance and, when applicable, renewal of any new or existing registration plates authorized under this Code and (ii) for grants made by the Secretary of State to benefit Illinois Veterans Home libraries.”

“The Illinois Fire Fighters' Memorial Fund is created as a special fund in the State Treasury. Moneys deposited into the Fund shall, subject to appropriation, be used by the Office of the State Fire Marshal for construction of the Illinois Fire Fighters' Memorial to be located at the State Capitol grounds in Springfield, Illinois. Upon the completion of the Memorial, moneys in the Fund shall be used in accordance with Section 3‑634.”

There are hundreds of funds like these in Illinois.  The money collected, whether it is by people paying an extra fee to have a special license plate, or fines imposed upon convicted corporations that are designated for certain organization, is designated in the beginning for one purpose only.  It should not matter if the state needs money for some other reason.  It is simply not the state’s money to use.  At least that is how I feel—but unfortunately, only one Illinois Supreme Court Justice agrees with me.

According to the Illinois StatehouseNews, “In a 6-to-1 decision Thursday{last week}, the high court upheld a 2006 Sangamon County Circuit Court ruling that backed the governor and Legislature’s ability to take money from hundreds of special state funds, a practice commonly referred to as sweeping.

Motorcycle riders sued former Gov. Rod Blagojevich after he ordered that $296,000 be taken from the Cycle Riders Safety Training Fund, or CRSTF. A portion of the fee for an Illinois motorcycle license went into the CRSTF, which the motorcycle education and advocacy group A Brotherhood Aimed Towards Education, or ABATE, argued, was only to be spent on motorcycle safety education. The governor that year used the $296,000 to pay general state bills.”

Justice Anne Burke wrote for the majority, “Clearly, the fee charged by the state for motorcycle registration and licensing is state revenue, and therefore the portion of this state revenue which the General Assembly has allocated to the CRSTF is also public money.”   Statehouse news said that “Burke rejected the ABATE lawyers’ argument that the special fund was tantamount to a special trust fund.”

With the lone opposing vote, Chief Justice Tom Kilbride wrote in his dissenting opinion that he is “concerned, however, that the legislature may have swept private or federal funds. This court has an obligation to address the implications of sweeping private donations and federal grant moneys.” 

ABATE lawyer Rod Taylor said, “The decision just strikes terror into the basic fabric of American life, the sanctity of contract.”

The Illinois lottery has been publicizing a new lottery where the proceeds will benefit various veteran organizations. I asked an elected official in Springfield if the money will really go to veterans or can it be swept. I was told that it could be swept, but they would not do that. Do you believe that? Hey, can I sell you a bridge in Brooklyn?

The fact that the Governor and Legislature can do whatever they want with money that had been originally designated for something else is morally wrong.  Considering the last two Illinois Governors are convicted felons for taking money in bribes, why should we expect anything better from this state government?  I guess the third time is not the charm.