Illinois Supreme Court finally ends charade by lawmakers to claim back pay

“Chutzpah” has been outlined as a person charged with killing his dad and mom, then begging the choose for mercy as a result of he’s an orphan.

Fortunately, final week, the Supreme Court docket of Illinois stated “No!” to some of the brazen circumstances of chutzpah this state has seen.

For 5 years, former state senators Mike Noland and James Clayborne Jr. have shamelessly tried to drive you, the state taxpayers, to pay them again raises they voted to not take.

Not solely did they vote to say no the raises, however they bragged about their noble self-sacrifice and ran for re-election on it!

“[Mike] Noland, who served within the Illinois Senate from January 2007 till January 2017, was a co-sponsor of the legal guidelines [to cancel legislator raises] and routinely voted for them,” Supreme Court docket Justice P. Scott Neville, Jr., wrote. “Declaring his assist for the legal guidelines, Noland publicly said that ‘most working households in Illinois should not seeing raises’ and ‘the least we are able to do is lower our personal pay.’”

Clayborne equally pontificated, “As legislators, it’s incorrect to ask our fellow Illinoisans to make accountable selections, if we’re unwilling to do the identical.”

However as soon as they left the Normal Meeting, they rotated and sued me — and by extension, you, the taxpayer — saying, despite the fact that they have been attorneys and state senators, they apparently didn’t know what they have been doing after they voted to say no the pay raises.

That they had since come to consider they have been violating the Illinois Structure, which says, “Modifications within the wage of a member shall not take impact through the time period for which he has been elected.”

These of us who stay in the true world would see a wage hike in the course of their time period as a “change.” However, some courts have dominated mid-term “cost-of-living” raises are anticipated, and so should not a change, whereas a vote to reject a cost-of-living enhance is a change.

Sure, that’s complicated.

However, on Thursday, the Supreme Court docket of Illinois stated they didn’t even want to handle the constitutional subject of the raises as a result of Noland and Clayborne had been so brazen of their timing, having fun with their re-elections and solely years later discovering they… misvoted.

“Right here, plaintiffs, who’re suing of their particular person, and never of their official capability, have slept on their rights, and we is not going to come to assistance from such complainants,” Neville wrote.

Justice Neville was joined by all of his Republican and Democratic colleagues on this unanimous, bi-partisan rejection of some of the jaw-dropping shows of chutzpah this state has ever seen. And that is Illinois!

The quick impression of the ruling is saving taxpayers $180,000 in raises Noland and Clayborne have been making an attempt to claw again. However the former state senators had petitioned the courtroom to incorporate all present and former legislators, which might have value state taxpayers $10 million or extra.

Final Thursday’s ruling places a decisive finish to not simply this hypocritical campaign, however in all probability to a companion go well with filed by former State Rep. Mike Fortner, which sought to broaden the campaign to all legislators.

There are various good, conscientious legislators in Springfield who weren’t a part of Noland, Clayborne, and Fortner’s shameful efforts, and have been embarrassed by them.

I wish to thank Legal professional Normal Kwame Raoul and his stellar workforce for standing with me and for Illinois taxpayers in preventing this shameful case. The Supreme Court docket of Illinois’ unanimous assist of our protection was not a lot a victory for us, because it was a victory for you — the hardworking taxpayers of Illinois.

Susana A. Mendoza is Illinois State Comptroller.

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