WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Dave Loebsack (IA-02) and Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17) urged the House Appropriations Committee to provide funding for the activation of Thomson Prison in their appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2014. 

In a letter to the Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS), Congressman Frank Wolf of Virginia, and the Ranking Member, Congressman Chaka Fattah of Pennsylvania, Loebsack and Bustos urged the inclusion of the Department of Justice's budget request to activate new prisons, including Thomson prison.

Loebsack has long pushed to activate funding for opening Thomson Prison.  He has worked to push Chairman Wolf to include this funding in previous appropriations bills.

A signed copy of the letter can be found here.

As tax filing deadline nears, Simon introduces taxpayer receipt

CHICAGO - April 14, 2013. As Illinois residents prepare to meet Monday's deadline to file their taxes, Lt. Governor Sheila Simon is calling for more transparency on how income tax dollars are spent. Simon wants taxpayers who file online to receive an itemized receipt that illustrates where their money goes and how it fits into the state's multi-billion budget.

"When you buy groceries, you automatically receive a receipt outlining how your money was spent," Simon said. "Taxpayers deserve the same clear information on how the state spends their money on education, prisons and pensions."

Simon's office is working with the Department of Revenue and the Governor's Office of Management and Budget (GOMB) to design a taxpayer receipt, which will be introduced before the start of the next tax filing season in January. The taxpayer receipt will be available to the roughly 500,000 residents who file online for free, and a webpage will be available to those who file by other means.

"This new feature will give taxpayers a better understanding of how Illinois spends tax dollars on schools, public safety and the services they and their neighbors rely on," said Assistant Budget Director Abdon Pallasch.

Simon will also work with Revenue and GOMB to ensure that the receipt is created and made available annually. This transparency initiative comes at no cost to the taxpayer.

Simon's office offered a sample receipt for a taxpayer who pays $1,000 in income taxes to the state.

The illustration should help taxpayers understand the state's growing pension obligations and the strain that places on other areas such as Medicaid and the state's backlog of unpaid bills, Simon said. It also reflects the state's move toward "Budgeting for Results," a budget system that aligns spending with how effectively a service or program achieves its objectives - rather than spending being based on historical funding.

A similar taxpayer receipt has been proposed at the federal level by Congressman Mike Quigley, and the White House has operated a taxpayer calculator as shown here.

Scott Emergency Communications Center (SECC) is pleased to announce that the 911 center has received American Professional Communications Officials (APCO 911) Iowa's Chapter "Team of the Year" award. SECC was nominated for team of the year for the teamwork portrayed during the September 1, 2012 airplane crash at the Quad Cities Air Show. APCO judged nominations received throughout the State on several criteria items. The items which SECC was chosen from included: "Commendable handling and control during an emergency situation" and "A willingness to participate as team players".

In 2011 SECC began operations in a consolidated 911 environment. Previously, there were four emergency communications centers in Scott County; Bettendorf 911, Davenport 911, Scott County 911 and Medic EMS Dispatching. On September 1st at 1:22 PM SECC began receiving 911 calls of a jet airplane that had just crashed. Countless 911 calls were being received by 911 dispatchers. In the now consolidated environment, dispatchers were able to be shifted to assist where heavy call load levels were being experienced. Dispatchers, supervisors, management team members and off duty personnel joined in on the coordination and response of handling all of the 911 and radio traffic that soon followed.

The effort and synergy that SECC and Medic EMS Dispatch were able to apply toward this event far exceeded the capabilities of the previous emergency communications centers. All of the team members really showed team spirit and coordinated well during the event. This was truly one of the first tests for a new consolidated center.

Brian Hitchcock, Director of SECC, stated that it is a great pleasure to see so many employees experience a challenging 911 consolidation and form to be strong team members allowing SECC and Medic EMS Dispatchers to respond to serious events with high call load levels. To see the team in action, handling all of the 911 calls and radio traffic from the jet crash was phenomenal. They acted as a well coordinated team. The team performed very well especially considering that not only did they handle the jet crash, they also had to keep up with all of the other 911 and radio traffic that was taking place in the County.

SECC personnel that handled the event are:

Dispatchers: Caroline Eakins, Deb Beadel, Mandy Mayer, Patricia Shorter, David Rowland, Sunny Blaesi, Tammy Walker, Kayla Mathews, Kathryn Hale and Todd Malone

Supervisors: Doris Moreno, Stacey Green and Kathleen Schwarz

Management: Deputy Director Pam Paulsen and Director Brian Hitchcock

Medic EMS personnel that handled the event are:

Vikki Habben, Michelle Arp, Crystal Eakins and Jim Doran

Illinois #1 in the Nation for Most "Cities of Service" and #1 Among the Nation's 10 Largest States for Volunteer Rate

CHICAGO - Governor Pat Quinn today saluted the efforts of more than 600 mayors across the country for the first-ever Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service. Today's action is part of Governor Quinn's agenda to strengthen communities across Illinois. This commemorative day is a nationwide bipartisan effort to highlight the impact of national service in tackling municipal problems.

"Service to others is the rent we pay on God's earth," Governor Quinn said. "AmeriCorps members, Senior Corps participants and all other national service volunteers have a positive and lasting impact, making Illinois a better place to live. Illinois is grateful for the dedication and sacrifice of these individuals who represent Americans at their best."

Thanks to the Governor's Serve Illinois Commission and its many partners across the state, Illinois continues to be a leader in service. According to the latest Volunteering and Civic Life in America (VCLA) report, Illinois has the highest volunteer rate?27.2% of residents?among the nation's 10 largest states.

"Illinoisans possess a deep-seated ethic of service," Brandon Bodor, executive director of the Serve Illinois Commission said. "Across ages, abilities, backgrounds and interests, volunteerism makes us more resilient as individuals, as communities and as a state. The benefits of service are more than just social - last year's Illinois volunteerism was valued at over $8 billion."

The outreach efforts of the 40 governor-appointed Serve Illinois Commissioners have also propelled Illinois to #1 in the nation's Cities of Service rankings. Cities of Service, a co-sponsor of the April 9 Mayors Day of Recognition, is a national coalition of mayors committed to using volunteerism as a viable tool to achieve measurable impact on pressing local issues. Illinois leads the nation with 25 such cities.

The Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service is a way to recognize the positive impact of national service in cities, to thank those who serve and to encourage citizens to give back to their communities. The day is sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the National League of Cities and Cities of Service.

Across the country, mayors are participating in a variety of activities including visiting national service programs, hosting roundtables at their respective city halls, issuing proclamations and communicating about national service through social media. By shining the spotlight on the impact of service and thanking those who serve, mayors hope to inspire more residents to get involved in their communities.

Current list of Illinois Participants in Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service:

Rahm Emanuel - Chicago

Vivian E. Covington - University Park

Frederic Brereton - Belvidere

Keith Snyder - Lincoln

Lawrence Morrissey - Rockford

David Kaptain - Elgin

Bill McLeod - Hoffman Estates

Rick Reinbold - Richton Park

Bill Wilkey - Dwight

Scott Punke - Eureka

John Mohr - Lexington

Bob Russell - Pontiac

Arlene J. Mulder - Arlington Heights

Terry Weppler - Libertyville

Steve Stockton - Bloomington

Chris Koos - Normal

Joel Fritzler - Carbondale

George Gaulrapp - Freeport

Nina Epstein - Kankakee

Donald Corrie - Chenoa

Ron Mool - El Paso

Bob Webster - Lacon

John Heinz - Metamora

Bob Huschen - Roanoke

For more information on the Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service, including background and a list of participating mayors, please visit nationalservice.gov/mayorsforservice.

For more information on the Serve Illinois Commission, please visit serve.illinois.gov.

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