Tag Archives: Biz PAC

2011 Election, Chamber of Commerce

Campaign news: Guess who’s not endorsing me?

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I received a nice letter from Business PAC of Central Illinois (Biz PAC) yesterday — this is the political action committee that used to be known as the Chamber PAC and was directly affiliated with the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce. Now it’s just legally separate, but all the same people are involved, so nothing substantive has changed. Here’s what they said:

Thank you for participating in the Business PAC of Central Illinois survey and interview process. We very much appreciate your time and information, not to mention the commitment and energy running for office requires from you and your family. After careful consideration, we will not be supporting your candidacy at this time. We wish you well in your campaign.

This comes as no surprise. The Chamber has consistently advocated for non-essential projects involving vast sums of taxpayer money while actively lobbying against revenue enhancements for essential services such as police and fire protection. For example, they lobbied against raising property taxes to pay for police and fire protection just a few years ago, but have supported efforts to raise sales taxes both for the museum and the downtown hotel. I didn’t expect my basic-services platform would be very attractive to this group.

Nevertheless, as I told them in my questionnaire and interview, I believe my platform is business-friendly. “Safe streets and improved infrastructure benefit everyone in the City. When public services and incentives are provided in a fair and equitable manner, they give businesses an even playing field and set the table for economic development. Furthermore, by limiting government to its core function, taxes can be kept low.”

2011 Election, Chamber of Commerce, City Council, City of Peoria

Answers to Biz PAC’s questions

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As I mentioned in a previous post, I received a questionnaire from the new “Biz PAC” (formerly Peoria Area Chamber PAC). Here are the questions they asked, along with my answers:

What are your top three priorities if elected?
I believe city government exists for the purpose of providing basic, essential public services to residents and businesses in the fairest and most efficient manner possible. Based on those principles, my top priorities include developing a sustainable budget, improving the city’s infrastructure, and restoring faith in local government through greater transparency.

For Incumbents only: What are your top three accomplishments in your most recent term on the Council?
N/A

Please explain your position on the provision of economic development services by the City of Peoria. Discuss the options of contracting out vs. providing the services in house.
I oppose outsourcing economic development services to private organizations because it could compromise accountability, transparency, and efficiency in the use of taxpayer dollars. However, sharing these services with Peoria County or contracting them out to the County would be worth exploring. Economic Development tools should be used strategically and as intended. (For instance, Enterprise Zone status should be given to blighted areas that need it, not to greenfield sites that do not.)

Please explain your position on shared services between the City and other units of government. Be specific regarding the services you believe should be shared, with whom should they be shared and why.
I do believe in exploring and acting on opportunities to share or combine services with other governmental bodies when it’s to our mutual advantage. One possibility mentioned already is to share Economic Development activities. Additionally, the City and County should combine their election commissions to eliminate needless duplication. Peoria Township should be dissolved and its duties discharged by the City and/or the County; there is no good reason to have this superfluous layer of government. Other areas should be explored for possible consolidation such as planning/zoning, information technology, and human resources.

The City Council recently engaged an outside firm to assist in the reorganization process. Please provide your perspective reorganization of city government and be as specific as possible.
Since no specifics have been made public, I can only speak in generalities. It is a good idea to investigate whether greater efficiency can be gained through the reorganization of city departments. However, this should be a public debate, deliberated in open session.

The City Council has had two back to back challenging budget years. Please explain your perspective on the recently passed 2011 budget. Do you believe the structural deficit problem has been addressed? Do you support or oppose the fee/fine/tax increases passed by the Council?
Before instituting a natural gas tax, the City should have exhausted other, less regressive methods of raising revenue and lowering costs, such as instituting a packaged liquor tax and reducing/eliminating downtown parking subsidies. Acknowledging the recession’s role in our budget crisis, much of the crisis is of the Council’s own making. The predictable failure of MidTown Plaza is costing taxpayers a half million dollars a year. The City had to pay out over one million dollars to cover a very unwise loan guarantee to Firefly Energy. The City also gave away two very valuable assets for practically nothing (the $10 million Sears block sold to the County for $1 and the $2+ million Kellar Branch rail line sold to the Park District for $1). The 2011 budget crisis could have been significantly mitigated had the Council sold these assets for market value and stayed out of the venture capital business. To address the structural deficit successfully, we need to learn from (and not repeat) past mistakes.

While control of the pension systems for City of Peoria employees is outside the direct purview of the City Council, what will you do personally to work for change in this system?
I will support pension reform that provides fair and reasonable pension benefits that are affordable and sustainable for municipalities.

What do you believe is the role of the City Council members (both collectively and individually) in promoting regionalism?
I’m not sure what is meant by “regionalism” in this context. Regional cooperation among municipal organizations should be pursued as a matter of policy. However, cities should retain their own elected representatives and decision-making authority, not be subsumed into a large regional government. City Council members can promote regional cooperation by building relationships with other elected officials (collectively) and working with them on areas of mutual concern, resulting in more efficient delivery of public services.

Please tell us in 400 words or less why the business community should support your candidacy.
A basic-services platform is very business-friendly. Safe streets and improved infrastructure benefit everyone in the City. When public services and incentives are provided in a fair and equitable manner, they give businesses an even playing field and set the table for economic development. Furthermore, by limiting government to its core function, taxes can be kept low.

2011 Election, Biz PAC, Chamber of Commerce

Business PAC no longer affiliated with Chamber

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As a candidate for City Council, I received an expected questionnaire from the Peoria Area Chamber PAC, except that it’s not the Peoria Area Chamber PAC anymore. It’s the Business PAC of Central Illinois, or “Biz PAC” for short. The letter explains that they are “no longer a subsidiary organization of the Chamber,” but rather “an independent business focused political action committee.” According to the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce’s website, the change was effective November 1:

[T]he Chamber and the Peoria Area Chamber PAC are ready for change. Both organizations’ boards have made the decision that it is time for the PAC to stand on its own. We believe this strategy is advantageous for both. The Chamber can focus its political efforts on its issue advocacy work. The PAC can focus its efforts on candidates and issues important to the business community even if those candidates or issues are outside the sphere of the Chamber.

Effective November 1, 2010, the Peoria Area Chamber PAC will no longer be an affiliate of the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce or The Heartland Partnership. The PAC will stand on its own under the name Business PAC of Central Illinois. All governance connections between the two organizations have been eliminated. The Business PAC of Central Illinois, as other organizations have done with various members of the Heartland Partnership family, has contracted with the Chamber to provide administrative services that include staff support, meeting space, etc.

The committee members listed on the Biz PAC’s stationery are: Tom Landon (Chairman), Henry Vicary (1st VP), Diana Hall (2nd VP), Julie Russell (Treasurer), Tim Moore (Secretary), Tim Bertschy, Dr. Andy Chiou, James Gilkesson, and Jay Harms. Biz PAC’s mission is, “Dedicated to electing pro-business candidates in races of local importance.” And just what do they consider a “pro-business” candidate, you may ask? The Chamber’s website indicates it would be someone “who support[s] the business community, stands[s] for growth and believe[s] in good government.”