Anti-corruption panel chews over ‘bad apples,’ the ‘cone of silence’ — and the ‘none sheet’

Members of the General Assembly and other state officials wait Wednesday as Gov. J.B.Pritzker prepares to deliver his State of the State address at the Capitol in Springfield. File Photo. | Jerry Nowicki/Capitol News Illinois

“We do a have very casual attitude about conflicts of interests and reporting them and enforcing recusal and that sort of thing,” said Marie Dillon of the Better Government Association.

SPRINGFIELD — Lawmakers jumped to their feet this week to applaud Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s call to end the “scourge” of corruption in Illinois.

And on Thursday, they sat down to hash out the details of what exactly that will mean. The newly formed state commission tasked with tackling corruption met in Springfield a day after the governor promised in his State of the State address to “root out the purveyors of greed and corruption.”

The Joint Commission on Ethics and Lobbying Reform discussed the financial disclosure form that lawmakers are required to submit that is often archly referred to as the “none sheet,” for how often legislators answer “none” or “not applicable” to questions on the form.

For the government reform advocates that met with the commission again, the vague prompts on the form pose a major problem for transparency, as often lawmakers get away without having to disclose much information.

“We do a have very casual attitude about conflicts of interests and reporting them and enforcing recusal and that sort of thing,” said Marie Dillon, director of policy at the Better Government Association.

Dillon and the other government reform advocates who addressed the commission said Illinois’ financial discourse laws are weak compared to other states.

But there’s nothing vague about the scandals rocking state government.

On Tuesday former state Sen. Martin Sandoval pleaded guilty to corruption charges and admitted in court that he accepted bribes from a person prosecutors described as having an interest in a red-light camera company. And in November, state Rep. Luis Arroyo resigned from the House a week after he was arrested for allegedly trying to bribe a fellow lawmaker to move legislation in Springfield.

And what’s even more clear, panel members said, is that the federal activity underscores the need for tougher ethics laws.

“All that occurred for a long time through our legislative process without any of our current laws or systems in place uncovering them,” said state Sen. John Curran, R-Downers Grove.

Legislators on the panel agreed that the investigations and charges were an embarrassment.

But one government reform advocate argued that the corruption is so pervasive that that public has become jaded.

“So many across our state kind of react to this news with a shrug,” said Georgia Logothetis, assistant director of Common Cause Illinois.

State Sen. Cristina Castro, D-Elgin, likened the corruption cases to recent sexual harassment scandals in Springfield, saying both flourish because those who know about them say nothing.

“There’s a culture down here of a cone of silence,” she said.

State Rep. Grant Wehrli, R-Naperville, said lawmakers who do speak out are often punished.

“Leaders abuse the legislative process to silence those that dissent in having the integrity to call out what it is going on around here,” Wehrli said. “I take it as a form of overt bullying, and it needs to stop.”

In his State of the State address Wednesday, Pritzker pledged to root out corruption that “infects the bloodstream of government,” but said he will wait for the commission to suggest the needed fixes.

Pritzker did call for an end to the “revolving door” door that allows lawmakers to become lobbyists as soon as they leave office and to stop state legislators from lobbying other governmental bodies.

It will be up to the commission to work out the details, although lobbying is sure to be a focus, given the panel’s name — and the nature of the recent federal charges.

For Arroyo, his alleged bribery came as part of his dual efforts as a state legislator and a lobbyist. While the City of Chicago banned lawmakers from lobbying in their city or alderman from lobbying state or local governments in Illinois, the General Assembly has no comparable restriction.

Ted Schurter/The State Journal-Register via AP

Members of the commission said part of the problem is only a few jurisdictions in the state— such as Illinois government, the City of Chicago and Cook County — require lobbyists to register. Yet the politicians linked to the current federal investigations include local suburban leaders.

“Yes, we have two bad apples that were in the statehouse. There were also a lot of local elected officials that were a part of — allegedly — a part of that scheme,” Castro said.

The commission is required to come up with a report by March 31, and will meet again in Springfield on Feb. 5.