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Updating this site as of November 13, 2024.
This site will be entirely retooled and updated. |
Next Rock Island
County Board meeting-
Committee of the Whole
Thursday, November 14th at 5:30 p.m.
County Office Building, 1504 Third Avenue, Rock Island, 3rd floor.The meeting is open to the
public.
Committee of the whole agenda
and supporting documents can be viewed here:
https://rockislandcountyil.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11142024-940?html=true
https://www.rockislandcountyil.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/1617?fileID=1838
County Board Regular
Board Meeting
Tuesday, November 19th at 5:30 p.m.
County Office Building, 1504 Third Avenue, Rock Island, 3rd floor.
The meeting is open to the public
https://rockislandcountyil.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11192024-951?html=true
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Next Rock Island
County Board meeting-
Tuesday, June 21st 5:30 p.m.
County Office Building, 1504 Third Avenue, Rock Island, 3rd floor.The meeting is open to the
public.
All county board committee
meetings, agendas, and minutes can be viewed here:
http://www.rockislandcounty.org/CountyBoard.aspx?id=39632
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We're doing
REAL REFORM!
We're making progress!
There remains a lot to do to get this county back on the right path.
Please support me in getting the job done.
If you are unable to make this
night and you would like to make a donation, donations can be made to:
Friends of Drue Mielke, 503
E. 13th Avenue Ct., Coal Valley, IL 61240
A copy of our report filed with the State Board of
Elections is (or will be) available on the Board’s official website
www.elections.il.gov or for purchase from the State Board of Elections,
Springfield, Illinois.
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REAL REFORM Fundraiser-
for Drue Mielke
Rock Island County Board
District 22- Coal Valley-Moline
Saturday, June 4th
6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Crabby's Bar and Grill
826 West 1st Avenue (U.S. 6)
Coal Valley
Hors d'oeuvres & wings.
$10 suggested donation.
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GOALS ACHIEVED
Downsizing County Board
Hire a County Administrator
Add Public Comments to Meetings
Stopping
Nepotism in Hiring Practices
Ended County
Board Pensions & Benefits
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REAL REFORM-
Delivered. |
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REAL REFORM-
Special Meeting Called for Rock Island County Board
Meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March
16th begins a new chapter county board reform
In November 2012, the public
voted 72% in favor of a non-binding referendum stating that the public
wished to have a smaller county board. In response to overwhelming
public demand, the Rock Island County Board Governmental Affairs
Committee will have a SPECIAL MEETING,
Wednesday, March 16, 2016, at
5:30 p.m. at 1503 3rd Avenue, Rock Island for the
consideration of Rock Island County Board Reform Resolution regarding
downsizing of the county board, removal of health insurance benefits for
county board member, and removal of pension benefits for county board
members.
These and other reforms will signal a new chapter county board reform.
The resolution for downsizing the county board calls for the decrease of
county board members to 15 after the next decennial reapportionment in
2020 that would take effect in 2022. The resolution calls for
single-member districts.
The agenda can be found at:
http://www.rockislandcounty.org/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=39850&libID=1000007711
These reforms were voted on previously at the February Governmental
Affairs Committee meeting and moved to teh full board. The resolution
was removed from the full board agenda to allow for review by the Rock
Island County State’s Attorney’s office.
These reforms must go through committee and those who have long
supported the effort will vote to move this to the full board. Voting at
the February meeting to move these reforms to the Rock Island County
Board for discussion and vote was Vice Chair Brian Vyncke, Mike Steffen,
and Drue Mielke, with the tie breaking decision by the Governmental
Affairs Chair Scott Terry.
This meeting is open to the public. The public is encouraged to attend
to voice their concerns during the public comments section of the
meeting. Forms are provided for public comment to be filled out prior to
the meeting.
These real reforms show that the public has
a voice in their government.
Press release can be
viewed here.
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Ask voters to expand
Public Building Commission
We must not circumvent the voters and tax
beyond our authority.
Reform is more than smaller
government and removing perks. It’s also about how we do business being
up-front with the people.
We should go to a referendum to expand the scope of the Public Building
Commission. There is a
reason why the statues says....
From Illinois Complied Statues- (50 ILCS
20/4a)
The purpose of a public building commission
created by the county board of any county may not
be expanded until the question of expanding the
purpose of the public building commission has been
submitted to the electors of the county at a regular
election and approved by a majority of the electors
voting on the question.
From Illinois Compiled Statutes
(ILCS)
(50 ILCS 20/4a)
(from Ch. 85,
par. 1034a)
Sec. 4a. A Public Building Commission may be created for the
limited purpose of constructing, acquiring, enlarging,
improving, repairing or replacing a specific public
improvement, building or facility or a special type or class
of public improvements, buildings or facilities. The
provisions of Section 4 of this Act shall apply to the
creation of a Public Building Commission under this Section,
except that the resolution adopted
by the
municipality or county board and
the proposition shall specify the limited purpose for which
such Public Building Commission is to be created.
The provisions of Section 4 authorizing any municipal
corporation any part of whose area of jurisdiction lies
within the territorial limits of that county seat to join in
the organization of the Public Building Commission in the
manner set forth in that Section shall not be applicable to
a Public Building Commission created under this Section. The
county board of any county that has created a public
building commission for a limited and specific purpose
may expand that purpose by resolution.
The
purpose of a public building commission created by
the county board of any county may not be expanded
until the question of expanding the purpose of the public
building commission has been submitted to the electors of
the county at a regular election and approved by a majority
of the electors voting on the question.
The county board must certify the question to the proper
election authority, which must submit the question at an
election in accordance with the Election Code.
The election
authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No".
If
a majority of the electors voting on the question vote in
the affirmative, the county board may thereafter expand the
purpose of the public building commission.
(Source: P.A.
94-355, eff. 1-1-06.)
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I understand that the current ruling determined that the
Public Building Commission now has the powers.
I also believe that the powers should be formerly
expanded as per statue.
Ask the voters FIRST to expand the Public Building
Commission’s powers BEFORE proceeding to
overreach its authority.
We must not circumvent the voters and tax beyond our
authority.
Using the Public Building Commission to build courtrooms
and ancillary offices I believe is the best
plan for the county to comply with the Illinois Supreme Court Courtroom
Standards and the American Disability Act.
But to do this, we must go to the voters and get
approval to expand the Public Building Commission’s
powers beyond the current and original commission,
which is- “the sole purpose of such Public Building Commission
... to provide a good and sufficient jail.”
I believe that the Public Building Commission is the
best way to address courtroom space deficiencies
and ADA issues. But the ends do not justify the means.
1) Courtrooms and offices are not a jail.
2) We should to go to a referendum to the public to
expand the powers of the PBC first prior to
building the annex.
3) Proceeding without this is to impose a tax that we
don’t have the authority to do. We are acting
outside the color of law.
4) The ends don’t justify the means and it’s time to end
business as usual.
There is a right and proper way to do things and it’s time Rock
Island County makes this REFORM also.
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There is a public
hearing for the proposal of building courtrooms and offices adjacent to
the Justice Center.
Tuesday, February 16th at
5:30 p.m.
County Board Room on the third
floor of the County Office Building
1504 3rd Avenue
Rock Island
The public may enter from the back parking lot off 4th Avenue.
Conduct of public
hearings concerning the intent of the County Board to enter into a lease
agreement in the principal amount not to exceed $28,000,000 between the
County and the Rock Island County Public Building Commission in
connection with acquiring, constructing, improving, altering, equipping,
repairing, maintaining, operating and securing the Justice Center
Click here to read the
proposal:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_ZSyCeFTKRsRWN2dTNHU1ZPdW8/view?pref=2&pli=1
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Discussion of
pulling the reform resolution off the county board agenda
RICO Board member Drue Mielke visits with
Dan and Dan to talk about the Governmental Affairs Committee resolution
that was passed but pulled from the agenda of the upcoming meeting. The
resolution would recommend shrinking the size of the board from 25 to
15, require five year budgets, and end pension and health benefits used
by some board members.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=3B0ED7nEN-s
Reform
agenda pulled from RI County board meeting
Posted:
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 5:24 pm |
Updated: 5:31 pm, Tue Feb 9, 2016.
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Drue Mielke speaks to
Democratic Ethnic Minority Conference on County Board Downsizing Issue
Monday, February 1st, 2016
Click here
to listen to what I had to say regarding downsizing the county board
"...We can we can find other
counties that 24 or 25 (members) and this harkens back to when I was not
on the board, but I was asking for reforms under the Open Meetings Act
and that board, of which most of you people were not there, said 'well,
this county doesn’t do it this way or that county doesn’t do it that
way,or La Salle County does it that way'.
So they would find a county
that does it wrong.
And it just angered me because
I was currently an elected official but I didn’t tell them that. And I
already adhered to the Open Meetings Act.
The point is that we should
look at counties that have done it (downsized). An example is Peoria
county who I think went to 19 from like 25 or 27. They still have
minority representation. Maybe we should talk to them and say “How is
your minority representation?” Maybe we should flesh it out? “How is
your rural representation?”
The other thing is that in 2012 when I ran, and that (downsizing
referendum) passed, that was an advisory referendum, it had no teeth,
but it did give… it did test the waters on how the public felt.
We all agreed that the board
should be smaller. Never did I say that the board should be
downsized. Ever! What I always said was it CAN be downsized, and they
weren’t telling you the truth. And who “they” is up to you guys to
decide, but what I mean is that I am not an attorney, but when I read
the ’74 and ’76 opinion from the Attorney General that says in all but…
“the decennial reapportionment should hold in all but exceptional
circumstances”, that tells me that there is an exceptional circumstance.
We all probably all agree that we do not like the exceptional
circumstance for other reasons that weren’t obvious at the time. Because
when you start thinking about something, you think “oh, what’s the
ramification? “ Will it affect….? This district is going to be too big,
we won’t have a rural district. What about the people that live in a
minority majority district? How are they going to be affected when they
find out all of a sudden their district is part of a (larger district).
So luckily, I never said we should do it, but I got angry when I kept
hitting the brick wall of whatever you want to call it: The machine, The
people or whoever it was whoever it was who said “no”.
I got threatened if I proceeded with it (the downsizing question)! I had
my documents stolen from me! And then they were used in political attack
ads! I mean this is the kind of climate I’ve experienced on this county
board. That was the welcome mat that was put out for me.
And then when I thought I was reaching out with an olive branch, saying
we could get an new Attorney General opinion, which sounded very
credible….. it took two years to get one (a new opinion.)
So you , know, we’ve been down this road… I mean I’ve been down this
road, back and forth. Where I think we are heading the right direction,
I think we should look at because of all the other issues. And the late.
the clock has ran out, I am afraid.
I am going to say that I am the biggest advocate for listening to the
will of the people. We need to explain to the people why, what the
ramifications are if we downsize this late in the game, otherwise they
are not going to get it otherwise (what would happen if we downsize
prior to 2020)
The other thing that I did do,
was not only did I believe in getting this to the people, was that to
the people. That I spoke to the Farm Bureau, I didn’t tell them what to
think but I told them what the facts were. I spoke to the NAACP, I
didn’t tell them what to think, but I told them what the facts were. And
I told them what the threats were, I mean as far as I what the threats
were was that we were going to have eight districts if we are going to
do it (downsize) this other way.
I have never said it “should” be done but I got very frustrated when I
was told it “can’t be done”. And it could. It is just whether the public
wants it.
I don’t think the public really does want to have multi-member
districts. I think you guys all said that with the resolution that was
the second resolution that followed it (the first resolution).
I just want to do what the people want.
Not what the county board wants.
But what the people want.
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Pension question moved
to focus group rather than to full board.
Here today's discussion with Dan & Dan from
WOC's AM Quad Cities.
Click here to play.
Please be patient, the file may take up to a minute to begin playing.
Click here to play.
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Should Rock Island
County Board make county board pensions ineligible? |
Listen to IMRF interview with
Dan & Dan on AM Quad Cities |
Read about proposed resolution |
Read Dispatch / Argus Editorial |
I have drafted a resolution on Monday, October
5, 2015 calling for terminating participation in the Illinois
Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) for all Rock Island County Board
Members.
The resolution was sent
to Rock Island County Administrator Dave Ross and to Nick Camlin, Chair
of the Rock Island County Board Human Resources Committee
for consideration by the County Administrator and with the intent
of placement on the next Human Resources Committee meeting agenda for
discussion on November 10th at 10:00 a.m. for recommendation to the full
county board or consideration and vote on Tuesday, November 17th.
I have asked fellow county
board member Mr. Scott Terry to co-author this resolution with me in a
show of bi-partisan support.
The resolution states:
“WHEREAS, the Rock Island County Human Resources Committee recommends to
the County Board to adopt the IMRF Resolution to terminate County Board
member participation in the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund; and
WHEREAS, the County Board has determined that a majority of its members
will not normally be performing the minimum of 1000 hour per year; and
WHEREAS, authorization is given to the County Clerk to sign and submit
the attached
IMRF Form 6.64T (03/12).
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the County Board approve this
recommendation.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the County Clerk notifies the County Board
Office of this Action.”
When I was elected, I was given new employee paperwork from Rock Island
County Human Resources. Included in the new employee paperwork were IMRF
forms. I was not told that once one is in IMRF that a county board
member cannot opt out. Knowing what I have come to learn being on the
county board, I do not believe that IMRF is appropriate for county board
members and I do not wish to participate in IMRF.
In exploring what other counties and
municipalities have done, I discover that a governmental body can opt
out of IMRF participation. That is what I intend to do in this
resolution. It is the right move at the right time and shows we are
committed to working together for the good of the county given the dire
condition of our funds.
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Telephone
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countyboard@druemielke.com
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