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June 27, 2014 • $1.00
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Board rejects prevailing wage rates County considers challenge to pay schedule mandated by state law By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
Tina Hill McHenry County Board chairwoman
WOODSTOCK – The McHenry County Board wants to gauge interest among other county governments to challenging the local prevailing wage mandated upon them by the state. The move comes after the County Board voted last week, 13-10, against adopting the wage schedule they are required by law to follow. Prevailing wage
requires all contractors and subcontractors for works built by any public body with public funds to be paid the hourly rate set by the Illinois Department of Labor for that county. Because the rates are typically based on union wages, local governments have long complained that prevailing wages are significantly higher than the local median and drive up the cost of taxpayer projects. “It’s unrealistic in the work-
place,” County Board Chairwoman Tina Hill, R-Woodstock, said Wednesday. “What does prevailing mean? It means what everyone else is doing. No one’s being paid that kind of money.” The County Board isn’t alone. The Woodstock City Council earlier this month also rejected the prevailing wage ordinance on similar principle, only to approve it at the following meeting out of fear of possible legal ramifications, and Cary School District 26
Rauner faces more questions over daughter’s school admission
in 2012 rejected it on a 3-3 tie. The governments of Mount Prospect and Palatine also declined this year to approve their ordinances. But while governments are required by law to pass an annual ordinance approving the rates set for their county, there is no real penalty for not doing so because the state requires the wages to be paid and essentially sets the wage for them. The penalty comes in not paying the prevailing wage – government officials who vio-
late the prevailing wage law are guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, and the government can be subjected to significant fines. Illinois passed its prevailing wage law in 1941 as a mechanism to ensure that labor disputes did not delay or cease public works projects altogether, and to ensure that workers’ jobs were not threatened by itinerant labor. In subsequent years it was meant to
See BOARD, page A8
‘READING IS A CRITICAL LIFE SKILL’
By SOPHIA TAREEN The Associated Press
Bruce Rauner
Pat Quinn
Inside n Harvard attorney Scott Summers running in governor ’s race as Green Party candidate. LOCAL A3
CHICAGO – The issue of how Republican Bruce Rauner’s daughter was admitted into an elite Chicago public school resurfaced in the Illinois governor’s race this week with a top school official and Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn raising new questions. Rauner was dogged by allegations of using his money and influence – knowing school leaders and giving the school a $250,000 donation – during the four-way Republican primary. The venture capitalist trying to unseat Quinn has portrayed himself as a political outsider fighting against such special interests in a state that’s infamous for clout. However, outgoing Chicago Public Schools Inspector James Sullivan, who investigates waste, fraud and mismanagement for the nation’s third-largest school district, offered information that contradicted some of Rauner’s public statements. One of Rauner’s six children was initially denied admission into Walter Payton College Prep in 2008 despite having top grades and test scores, one point Rauner and school officials agree on. But Rauner has said his daughter’s attendance record was marred by illness and hurt her overall admission score, which was the reason for the rejection. He said the family appealed through a principals’ discretionary process. However, Sullivan told The Associated Press on Thursday that Rauner didn’t use the formalized principals’ process. CPS policy says that principals of selective high schools can use discretion for up to 5 percent of incoming freshmen.
Sarah Nader – snader@shawmedia.com
Gabriella Ellis (left), 8, reads to Book Buddy volunteer Sarah Persico, 16, both of Algonquin, outside the Algonquin Area Public Library on Tuesday during the Summer Book Buddies program. Volunteers entering ninth through 12th grades work with children entering first through eighth grades who need extra help with reading. The six-week program meets at 11 a.m. Mondays or at 2 p.m. Tuesdays.
Libraries open book on
SUMMER READING program attracted 4,500 participants who combined to read more than 5 million minutes. Price said this year’s program CRYSTAL LAKE – There are more than is off to a strong start to meet or exceed 5 million reasons Linda Price can think of those goals. for why summer reading programs work. “Reading is a critical life skill,” Price Price, spokeswoman for the Crystal said. “You don’t even have to read books Lake Public Library, said people who per se. People can read magazines, newsbelieve it is impossible to get young peo- papers, textbooks, comic books, anything ple interested in reading should look no they want. We just want to get people readfurther than the Crystal Lake library’s ing.” summer reading program. Last year the While people often assume reading
By JEFF ENGELHARDT
jengelhardt@shawmedia.com
Programs see increase in number of participants
programs are for children, Price said the library focuses on all ages and separates the program into youth, teen and adult demographics. There is even a friendly competition to see which group accounts for the highest percentage of minutes read, with prizes donated from more than 80 local businesses available. In this year’s Paws to Read program, Price said the library has also introduced
See READING, page A8
See RAUNER, page A8
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