IDOT Clout Hiring Continues Under Quinn
By Chuck Sudo in News on Aug 15, 2013 2:00PM
This should come as no surprise to Illinoisans: patronage hiring is still going strong in Illinois government. The latest example comes courtesy of The Better Government Association which completed a four-month investigation into hiring practices at the Illinois Department of Transportation and found hiring guidelines enacted after a 1990 Supreme Court ruling limiting political hiring, firing and promotions were being circumvented and ignored. Again, this shouldn’t be a shocker to many. What is surprising is the practices continue years after Gov. Pat Quinn said he was the new sheriff in town in the wake of Rod Blagojevich’s impeachment. (IDOT falls directly under Quinn’s control.)
The BGA reports the state’s executive inspector general has been investigating Quinn’s administration since last year, although there has been no confirmation of wrongdoing on Quinn's part. What is known is that political hiring at IDOT increased 63 percent over the past decade while close to 800 road maintenance positions were lost—that's a lot of potholes not being filled while someone who used to be a cashier at a 7-Eleven draws a salary in the mid-five figures for holding down a desk job.
The political hiring began shortly after Blagojevich took office in 2003 with the creation of new “staff assistant” positions that were eventually approved by the state Department of Central Management Services (CMS), another agency under control of the governor, as being exempt from the Rutan decree, the downstate version of Chicago's Shakman hiring rules. Once that happened, these typically low-level clerical positions could be redefined to include job descriptions like media relations and policy, although many of the hires weren’t performing these duties.
They also found IDOT managers were forging other people’s names on documents, meaning many of the managers who approved the hires never met them. Documents indicated many of the hires had little or no work history. Some of the resumes included stints as a bartender, a community college student and a truck driver.
A former state manager who asked not to be named told the BGA the political hires continue unabated. "When you get somebody sent to you, you usually didn't turn your back on too many of them," the former state manager said. "It's no different than it ever was. You're never going to change that in Illinois." Indeed, the BGA notes there is little to prevent this from happening again and that there will be no consequences for the hiring, past state taxpayers.
IDOT spokespeople who actually speak with the media wouldn’t comment to the BGA, citing the ongoing investigation. It’s worth noting IDOT isn’t the only government agency accused of political hiring. The Daily Herald reported in January a hire by the Illinois Department of Corrections had no actual work experience in the prison system. His resume included working as a theater teacher, working in a music store and managing an office for "his father's campaign."