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Elections and Referenda
Elections and Tax Referenda
List past, current and upcoming referenda in Illinois, using the
Election Information website of the Illinois State Board of Elections.
Most of the issues related to schools are shown if you set the "Government Unit Type"
popup to "School".
Illegal Activities
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Antioch D34 pitches
tax hike on its web page
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Kenilworth D38 mailing at public expense
says 22% raise to unions isn't evidence
of excessive spending
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Illinois election code prohibits schools from using any public funds to urge you to vote in support of a particular candidate
or referendum choice. Examples of violations:
- Use of school facilities to hold meetings.
- Use of school resources (web site, copiers, etc.)
- Kids being told to tell their parents to vote "yes"
- School-supplied materials describing the referendum positively (i.e. "good for our schools", "badly needed")
- Use of personnel paid by the school in related efforts
A first-time violation is a Class B misdemeanor, a second violation is a more serious Class A misdemeanor.
Violations should be reported to the State's Attorney of the county.
Schools are allowed to provide "information" but cannot make a specific
endorsement or ask for a certain vote. Obviously, the distinction between "information"
and an endorsement is a slippery one, so it is advised to key a close eye on these kinds
of activities. Here is the section of the Illinois code that applies:
(10 ILCS 5/9-25.1) Sec. 9-25.1. Election interference.
(a) As used in
this Section, "public funds" means any funds appropriated by the
Illinois General Assembly or by any political subdivision of the
State of Illinois.
(b) No public funds shall be used to urge any
elector to vote for or against any candidate or proposition, or be
appropriated for political or campaign purposes to any candidate or
political organization. This Section shall not prohibit the use of
public funds for dissemination of factual information relative to any
proposition appearing on an election ballot, or for dissemination of
information and arguments published and distributed under law in
connection with a proposition to amend the Constitution of the State
of Illinois.
(c) The first time any person violates any provision of
this Section, that person shall be guilty of a Class B misdemeanor.
Upon the second or any subsequent violation of any provision of this
Section, the person violating any provision of this Section shall be
guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
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Illinois Election Interference
In your local school board election or school tax hike referendum,
are Illinois' Election Interference statute or the Illinois Attorney General's Model Ethics Ordinance
being violated? Read these pages for specific examples, and decide for yourself!
- The office of the Illinois Attorney General
issued this
Model Ethics Ordinance for use by governmental units,
including school boards, in complying with the mandates of the
State Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Among the Model Ethics Ordinance's provisions is this:
Section 5-1:
Prohibit political activities.
(a) No officer or employee shall intentionally perform any prohibited
political activity during any compensated time, as defined herein.
No officer or employee shall intentionally use any property or resources
of the [name of entity] in connection with any prohibited political activity.
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FAQ on Referendums and the State Officials and Employee Ethics Act, February 2007.
The Illinois Council of School Attorneys (not an unbiased source) put together these answers
regarding the use of public resources in school finance elections.
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Districts Failing to Set Proper Ethics Rules
by Russell Lissau, Daily Herald, February 13, 2005.
"Few Lake County school boards have adopted ethics ordinances that meet a minimum
standard set by state lawmakers, a Daily Herald examination has shown.
Although nearly every local school board has approved the legislation mandated by
the General Assembly in late 2003, most policies are missing a chapter spelling
out potential penalties for violations, such as jail time or fines.
Without that chapter -- formally called Article 25 -- the rules aren't as strong as
they're intended to be and could be deemed invalid if challenged in court ...
"Every government agency in Illinois was required to adopt new ethics-related
regulations by May 19, 2004. Formally called the State Officials and Employees
Ethics Act, the legislation was designed to encourage ethical conduct by limiting
political activities and gift acceptance by politicians and employees.
They can't campaign for or against referendums, for example, or accept certain
gifts from people who do business with the district.
Many boards approved the rules after the deadline, and some still haven't
approved them. There are no penalties for failing to adopt them in a timely
fashion."
- Illegal activities by school officials concerning finances or corruption:
Go to our page on Spending: Illegal Activities.
Tax-Exempt Groups and Political Activities
Tax-exempt groups such as 501(c)(3)'s may jeopardize their status if they participate
in or contribute to a political effort.
- Internal Revenue Service:
Tax-Exempt Organizations and Political Campaign Intervention,
-- access to materials discussing the federal tax rules that apply to political campaign intervention by tax-exempt organizations.
Items include:
- IRS Reports on Political Activity Compliance Initiative
- Prohibition on Political Campaign Intervention for Section 501(c)(3) Organizations
- IRS Releases New Guidance and Results of Political Intervention Examinations
- Political Intervention: Do's and Don'ts for 501(c)(3) Organizations
- Political and Lobbying Activities: federal tax rules on political and lobbying activities for
tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations
- Political and Lobbying Activities -- Private Foundations:
"In addition to the general rules applicable to all section 501(c)(3) organizations,
private foundations are subject to excise taxes on these activities"
- News Releases and Fact Sheets on Political Campaign Activities
- Internal Revenue Service:
How Do You Report Suspected Tax Fraud Activity?
"If you suspect or know of an individual or company that is not complying with the tax laws,
you may report this activity ... You may fill out [a form] online, print it and mail it. ...
Although you are not required to identify yourself, it is helpful to do so.
Your identity can be kept confidential. You may also be entitled to a reward."
"Non-Partisan" Partisans
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The 72-page political agenda
of the "non-partisan"
League of Women Voters
of Illinois
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Some groups nurture a public image of being non-partisan, but in reality have
detailed political agendas.
A classic example is the League of Women Voters (LWV).
Many people think that "the League" simply encourages political participation without endorsing specific positions.
This is incorrect. The League does indeed endorse many positions on a number of issues.
Let's let the LWV try to explain it:
The League of Women Voters is strictly nonpartisan; it neither
supports nor opposes candidates for office at any level of
government. At the same time, the League is wholeheartedly political
and works to influence policy through advocacy. It is the original
grassroots citizen network, directed by the consensus of its members
nationwide. The 900 state and local Leagues -- comprising [sic] a vast
grassroots lobby corps that can be mobilized when necessary.
Source:
"About Us" page of the LWV website, retrieved March 2007.
Here in Illinois, the League of Women Voters of Illinois has a 72-page document
Where We Stand: 2005-2007 Program on its political agenda!
Fully seven pages of dense, single-spaced type in this manifesto are devoted to its various positions on the
government operation and funding of schools! (So much for being impartial!)
Bear this in mind if "the League" offers to host or stage school board debates or information presentations in your community.
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In League With Big Government
by John Berthoud, president, National Taxpayers Union. Excerpts:
"The League of Women Voters (LWV) tries to portray itself as an
ideologically-neutral, 'good government' group. ...
But just beneath this respectable veneer, the League -- and its state
and local chapters -- has become an active lobbyist ... This fall, state and local League chapters
all over the country will be weighing in on the side of bigger
government and higher taxes. ...
The National Taxpayers Union Foundation -- using the database of our
BillTally program -- conducted a line-by-line cost accounting of the
League's legislative agenda as presented in its National Program, and
found that if the League's political wish list were enacted in its
entirety, federal spending would soar by $870 billion per year. That
represents a 40% increase in the size of the federal government."
More Info on Elections and Referenda
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Illinois State Board of Elections
- Learn how to acquire records and documents from your school district
in the section of this website on the federal and Illlinois
Freedom of Information Acts.
- Sources for campaign materials:
Illinois Organizations Monitoring School Taxes
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Family Taxpayers Network
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Citizens for Reasonable And Fair Taxes (CRAFT)
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A list of other taxpayer organizations in the state of Illinois.
Political Expenditures and Contributions
- Is your district a haven of Pay-for-Play?
Can businesses get rewarded with big contracts for
contributing to a referendum campaign?
Here's the text of the policy adopted by the Cary school board to
prevent such abuses:
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Vendor/Contractor Conflict of Interest
Any company or individual doing $10,000 or more in
business with the District within a fiscal year shall
not contribute to any political campaign that directly
affects the District while doing business for the
District or for a period of two years after completion
of business with the District. Further, the District
will not enter into significant business with a
company or individual that has contributed to a
political campaign that directly affects the District
within two years prior to commencing business.
Political campaigns that directly affect the district
shall be defined as:
- School board election
- Tax or bond referendum
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- To discover the facts about expenditures for specific companies and consultants used in
election and referendum campaigns (e.g., PR companies specializing in tax-hikes)
or on behalf of tax-hike organizations (e.g., "Save Our Schools", "Community Partnership for Education") associated with
school districts, go to the
"Campaign Disclosure" section of the website of the Illinois State Board of Elections.
Expenditures can be searched in a variety of ways, though you may need to do some exploring
to discover them all.
Local Referenda
- Who's making contributions to local referendum efforts? Here are just a few tidbits:
- Vendors:
We're seeing more and more examples of contributions to pro-tax groups from
companies who stand to benefit from more school spending. For example,
here are some recent contributions by bond firm William Blair and Company
to local school tax-hike referenda:
Contributions to tax-hike campaigns
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| Contribution |
Date |
Pro-Tax Committee |
School District |
| $500 |
May 22, 2008 |
"Pro Kids 2008" |
Diamond Lake School District 76 |
| $3,950 |
January 29, 2008 |
"Geneva Citizens for Excellent Schools" |
Geneva School District 304 |
| $2,000 |
January 28, 2008 |
"ReNew Our Schools" |
DeKalb School District 428 |
| $3,500 |
October 16, 2007 |
"Grant Citizens Helping Students" |
Fox Lake CHSD124 |
| $3,500 |
April 14, 2007 |
"Students First" |
Joliet School District 204 |
| $800 |
March 1, 2007 |
"Citizens for Strong Schools" |
Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 |
| $500 |
October 23, 2006 |
"Protect Our Investment in Education" |
Barrington School District 220 |
| $4,000 |
October 3, 2006 |
"Vote Yes for LFHS" |
Lake Forest High School |
| $4,000 |
September 19, 2006 |
"Voices of Tomorrow's Education" |
Glenbrook High School |
| $2,500 |
March 27, 2006 |
"Advance 300" |
School referendum, D300 |
| $1,800 |
February 9, 2006 |
"Byron Referendum Committee" |
Byron CUSD 226 |
| $1,500 |
February 15, 2005 |
"Citizens Referendum Committee" |
McHenry School District 118 |
| $500 |
March 8, 2004 |
"Neighbors for Strong Schools" |
Skokie School District |
| $1,000 |
April 10, 2003 |
"Committee for Our Community Schools" |
Orland Park School District |
| $750 |
March 6, 2002 |
"Protect Our Investment in Education" |
Barrington School District 220 |
| $1,000 |
March 22, 2001 |
"Bright Futures Cmte (Fremont Kids First)" |
Fremont School District 79 |
| $500 |
January 3, 2000 |
"Bright Futures Cmte (Fremont Kids First)" |
Fremont School District 79 |
- PTOs/PTAs:
Many PTOs and PTAs
(click for more info about these organizations)
are little more than cheerleaders and fundraisers
for their schools, and this also takes the form of making contributions
to tax-hike groups. Here's an example, from Winnetka's 2007 referendum:
Winnetka PTO
contributions to 2007 tax-hike campaign
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| PTO | Contribution | Date |
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| Crow Island School PTO | $500 | 3/6/2007 |
| Greeley School PTO | $500 | 2/26/2007 |
| Hubbard Woods School PTO | $500 | 3/9/2007 |
| Skokie-Washburne PTO | $1,500 | 3/9/2007 |
State and Local Candidates
Federal Candidates (President, Senate, House)
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Campaign Finance Reports and Data:
Contributions to federal campaigns (president, senate, U.S. house) can be analyzed
at this site.
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Open Secrets: Another great source for information on contributions and contributors in federal campaigns.
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