Huntley pet clinic takes in 22 cats from Union home
Local, B1
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2013
WWW.NWHERALD.COM
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CHRISTMAS AT DOLE Fight could add fiscal pain The only daily newspaper published in McHenry Co.
Inside n Pension vote could alter Illinois governor’s race. PAGE A3 n Workers, retirees worry about effect of changes. PAGE A3
ALSO IN PLANIT PL@Y ... n Local holiday events guide n ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ review n Winter Pops concert in CL
Season starts this weekend at historic mansion In Pl@y
If courts kill pension reform law, state shortfall likely to worsen By SARA BURNETT The Associated Press SPRINGFIELD – With the fight over solving Illinois’ worstin-the-nation pension shortfall now headed to the courts, the financially troubled state faces a grim possibility: The plan could be tossed, and Illinois could wind
up in an even deeper fiscal hole than the one it’s in now. Legislative leaders, anticipating a legal challenge from public-employee unions once the landmark bill approved Tuesday is signed, went extra lengths to bolster the law’s odds in the courtroom – including an unusual three-page preamble to the
legislation in which they lay out their case for cutting worker and retiree benefits. But legal experts say those efforts could mean little in a state that provides some of the country’s stronger constitutional protections of pension benefits. They point to Arizona as a possible warning sign. In 2012, a
judge there said a law raising the employee contribution to pension benefits was illegal, and ordered the state to repay the money to workers – with interest. Amanda Kass, budget director and pension specialist for the Center for Tax and Budget
See PENSIONS, page A6
Special bond in special education
Review board raises nixed County votes down pay hike By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com WOODSTOCK – A majority of the McHenry County Board decided that salaries for the Board of Review should not go up if the number of property tax appeals are going down. County Board members on Tuesday voted, 12-10, against a 2.75 percent salary increase for review board members for fiscal 2014, which started Sunday. The board, which consists of three members and 12 alternates, is tasked with reviewing appeals of the property assessments by which property tax bills are calculated. Mary McClellan, R-Holiday Hills, pointed out that the number of appeals fielded by the board on the assessments for next year’s property tax bills decreased to 7,000 this year from last year’s all-time high of 10,413. “There’s no need to give people salary increases to pay them for an increased workload when, in fact, that increased workload is no longer going to be there,” County Board member Diane Evertsen, R-Harvard, said. This year’s total is the second-highest number of appeals ever recorded. The proposed increase would have increased the salary of review board Chairman Clifton Haughton to $32,548, and that of regular members Mark Ruda and Sharon Bagby to $31,611. The County Board in March
H. Rick Bamman – hbamman@shawmedia.com
See RAISES, page A6
Marlowe Middle School inclusion aide Sharon Peckham assists Kiera Smith during a project that incorporates math skills at the school in Lake in the Hills. Inclusion aides are adult paraprofessionals who help students with special needs in everything from academic work to keeping lockers organized. By JEFF ENGELHARDT jengelhardt@shawmedia.com CRYSTAL LAKE – Gwen Taylor knows the day comes once every two years, but it never gets easier for her when it finally arrives. After spending two years sharing walks down the hallways, experiencing academic and social struggles and achievements and learning a little more each day
Inclusion aides provide students with one-on-one assistance about each other and perspectives on life, it is always tough for Taylor to say goodbye to her student. Taylor, an inclusion aide at Marlowe Middle School, is one of roughly 125 paraprofessionals in
Huntley School District 158 dedicated to helping special-needs students on a one-on-one basis. For two years, the aide helps with whatever is necessary, from talking with teachers to bridging
communication gaps to helping organize a locker. “It’s always hard, but you just have to trust you’ve done your job well,” Taylor said of saying goodbye to each student she helps. “It’s been so fulfilling for me. I absolutely love it. It even inspired my daughter to pursue a college degree as a special education teacher.”
“There’s no need to give people salary increases to pay them for an increased workload when, in fact, that increased workload is no longer going to be there.”
See INCLUSION, page A6
Diane Evertsen R-Harvard
LOCALLY SPEAKING
Kyle Grillot – kgrillot@shawmedia.com
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30 15 Complete forecast on A8
CITY TO STUDY MUNICIPAL SPACE With plans in the works for a new aquatic center, the city of McHenry is starting to think about changes at its municipal center. The McHenry City Council approved hiring Oak Brookbased FGM Architects for $18,850 to conduct a space needs study of the building at 333 S. Green St., which was built in 1991. For more, see page B1.
Harvard’s Justin Nolen (left) and North’s Josh Jandron
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WOODSTOCK: Woodstock North boys come back from slow first half to top Harvard, 61-48. Sports, C1
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