Stroger Beats Hiring Freeze, But County Investigates Census Contracts

By Kevin Robinson in News on May 19, 2010 2:20PM

(Soon to be former) Cook County Board President Todd Stroger beat back an attempt by county commissioners to reign in his hiring authority, after the board failed to override his veto of a hiring freeze ordinance by two votes. The board voted 9 to 6 to override the veto, with one member voting present, even though the voted 16-1 in favor of the original hiring freeze. The failed veto override comes after an opinion from the state's attorney's office that found a hiring freeze would "result in an unconstitutional change in the form of government,” and therefore be unlikely to survive a legal challenge.

Meanwhile, the county inspector general's office is investigating eight contracts, worth a total of nearly $150,000, that two of Strogers top cronies aides gave to people they knew for Census work. According to the Tribune, contracts put in place by Cook County for Census outreach - to get people to participate in the decennial count - were all $5 below the $25,000 threshold that would have required county board approval. Stroger Spokesman Eugene Mullins said that the firms were chosen after the county realized it had Census funds left over. "Either we can spend the money the best we can or it goes back to Washington," Mullins said.