Volume 141 No. 33
Friday, July 24, 2015
Single Copy Cost 50¢
Mautino: Illinois Auditor General? State rep. would have to relinquish his 76th District seat if appointed By Terri Simon
tsimon@tonicanews.com
SPRINGFIELD — Illinois State Rep. Frank Mautino has unofficially thrown his hat in the ring to be the state’s next audi-
tor general. Having served on the Legislative Audit Commission for 18 years — 12 of those as co-chairman of the commission, Mautino said he clearly has the experience and the track record to assume the
position, after the current auditor general, William Holland, will retire in January after serving 25 years in that position. Mautino said he officially resigned his seat on the Legislative Audit Commission last week, which was necessary for him to eventually apply for the post. “It was important for
me to do that. They are going to take applications (for the auditor general position) over the next few weeks,” Mautino said. “Beginning Aug. 1, they will accept applications through the 14th, and then they will schedule interviews.” The auditor general seat is a statewide constitutional executive officer,
equal to the secretary of state, the governor and the lieutenant governor. It is the only seat not elected by voters, rather the post is elected by the Senate and House of Representatives. The person winning the position will need a super majority vote from both houses —a threefifths majority vote, which Mautino said insures
bipartisan support. When Mautino tendered his resignation from the Legislative Audit Commission, he said he went to all four of the leaders from both parties to make them aware of his resignation. “I did that out of respect,” Mautino said.
Mautino Page 2
Wired for success in Tonica New locator wire system would save time By Zachary Pratt news@tonicanews.com
Tonica News photos/Dave Cook
Above: Liz Huss works at the reception desk of the recent American Red Cross Blood drive held on July 20 at the United Methodist Church and sponsored by Illini State Bank. Huss brought 25 donors of her own and hopes to receive a scholarship from the Red Cross. Below: According to the Red Cross, the typical, actual donation only takes 10-12 minutes. One donation can help save the lives of three people. Although an estimated 38 percent of the U.S. population are eligible to donate, less than 10 percent actually do each year.
Tonica draws first blood Nineteen first-timers at Red Cross blood drive By Dave Cook
news@tonicanews.com
TONICA — Since she was a freshman in high school, Liz Huss has worked the check-in desk during Tonica’s Red Cross blood drives. In doing so, she fulfilled her school required volunteer hours. Once she was old enough, she also began donating herself. Now that she’s graduated, Huss is hoping to use blood donations to Vol. 141 No. 33 One Section - 8 Pages
win a scholarship from the Red Cross. Blood supplies are traditionally low during the summer. “I don’t know why, but high-schoolers give a lot of blood,” said Huss. To help raise their supply levels, the Red Cross started a summer program which encourages student involvement. “If I get enough donors (25), I get put into a raffle for a scholarship, and this is something I’ve already
been doing,” said Huss. “Giving blood is a big thing in my family. My grandpa gave 26 gallons in his lifetime. But, my dad
never gives blood, so to see him donate was super cool,” said Huss.
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TONICA —The village of Tonica is due for a new tracer wire system. At the Tonica Village Board meeting Monday, July 20, the board moved to purchase a new locator wire system. Marc Lemrise, a public works employee, updated the board regarding a tracer wire upgrade. He could have put forth a couple options, but he did not bring one to the board because of the price. “The newer water mains have a tracer wire: That’s the easiest,” Lemrise said. In checking out the new system, these tracer wires were tested first. “We followed it to the curb stop, about as far as I thought we would get,” Lemrise said. The test was more successful than anticipated, and the system led much further. Lemrise noted the system features what is referred to as a compass, though he says the term is inaccurate, and a USB port which allows updates to be downloaded. When asked about the device’s construction, Lemrise said, “It’s plastic with a lot of electronics in it.” The next question regarded the warranty, but Lemrise was uncertain of the answer until he checked: A three-year warranty. The package can
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include a rechargeable battery. “I don’t think we need that,” Lemrise said. Without the battery, the system carries a price of around $36,000, which includes a carrying case and training. “We’ve been lucky thus far because we’ve only had a couple incidents where an excavator hit some of our stuff because the location was off,” Lemrise said. The new system would be more accurate and further avoid such incidents. “It’ll save time. Big amounts of time,” said Village President Kevin Sluder. He said the system would help ensure the town does not pay people “to walk around for hours with sticks.” Other topics also addressed by Lemrise included: • Wastewater flows grossly increased during the June floods. The levels are still a little higher than they should be, but the situation is under control. The water table made it back up to 2009 levels. “We’re getting a little bit more water in, but it’s nothing we can’t handle,” Lemrise said. • A big tree fell into Bailey Creek. Lemrise said while this wasn’t an issue of city property, they removed it anyway. • A header was found broken but has been fixed. • The extra assistance in the waste treatment
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