Excerpts from an editorial on IllinoisPolicy.org:
This small town northwest of Chicago has become the testing ground for a peculiar state law that allows a clear conflict of interest to exist.
Under the Local Governmental Employees Political Rights Act, public employees in Illinois have the right to run for office. If they win, it's expected and often required that they resign their government job, to avoid sitting on both sides of the bargaining table during union negotiations.
That’s why teachers and other school district workers are banned from serving on their local school board. However, there's a special rule for firefighters.
Christopher Scholl, a firefighter in Carpentersville, is one of six candidates running for three open seats on the village board. Another candidate, Sara Miller, is married to a firefighter. Both are taking advantage of a unique loophole in the law.
Firefighters in Illinois are the only public employees who can hold elected office while still receiving full pay negotiated by the very body they serve on. This exemption only applies to local governments. For example, if a firefighter is elected to the Illinois General Assembly, they must take unpaid leave during their term.
Meanwhile, members of the General Assembly are prohibited from holding any other public job if their salary was increased during their term. They also can't collect pay from two jobs at the same time.
The conflict of interest in Carpentersville is obvious. Imagine a firefighter like Scholl, who earns over $100,000 a year, serving on the village board. He would effectively be his own boss’s boss, with the power to vote on decisions affecting his department, including his own salary and benefits.
For instance, Scholl could vote to fire his own supervisor, or be involved in internal disciplinary actions. Even though he claims he won’t vote on collective bargaining issues, he has openly supported cutting administrative roles to hire more firefighters.
This situation raises serious concerns about how public funds are spent. Fire and emergency services make up over 20% of the village’s budget—nearly $5.8 million in 2015. With a major contract renewal coming in 2016, the influence of a firefighter on the board could distort the negotiation process.
This isn’t just a moral issue—it’s a systemic abuse of power. Illinois lawmakers need to close this loophole and ensure that those negotiating contracts aren’t also part of the union they’re bargaining with.
Thanks, Dan
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