Audit Raises New Questions About Pritzker Administration’s Handling of Taxpayer Funds
Governor JB Pritzker and his Administration are facing renewed scrutiny over its handling of taxpayer dollars after a new state audit found that the Illinois Emergency Management Agency-Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS) paid tens-of-millions of dollars to outside contractors for employees to be on standby and not actually work.
According to an August 11 report from the Illinois Auditor General, IEMA-OHS was billed $220.3 million by Kansas-based Favorite Healthcare Staffing during Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023. Of that total, $78.5 million was for nearly 470,000 hours of standby time where contractors were not working. This means that a third of this total cost went to pay employees to not even work. Digging deeper, auditors also found that 270 contract workers also billed the state exclusively for standby time, costing taxpayers $7.5 million, for no work performed.
The audit raised broader concerns about the Pritzker Administration’s oversight of the massive staffing contracts. IEMA-OHS could not provide documentation showing it had analyzed how many contract workers were actually needed, failed to adequately enforce contract requirements, and lacked sufficient procedures for reviewing invoices and verifying billing accuracy.
Another Audit Shows Millions of Additional Taxpayer Funds Wasted
In addition to the wasteful spending outlined in the above article, Illinois taxpayers are also left on the hook for an additional tens of millions of dollars in state spending after an additional Auditor General report examined the University of Illinois’ Discovery Partners Institute (DPI) and an abandoned headquarters project in Chicago.
According to the audit, the State directly provided $49.7 million to DPI, including approximately $37.9 million spent on its planned headquarters at The 78 development. Construction began in September 2024, but just weeks later, University of Illinois System President Timothy Killeen decided to abandon plans for the headquarters.
The headquarters was part of a larger initiative backed by $500 million in state capital funding and promoted as an investment that would help drive innovation, research, entrepreneurship, job creation, and economic development throughout Illinois.
Questions about DPI’s direction were also being raised internally shortly before the headquarters was abandoned. According to the audit, the Dean of the Grainger College of Engineering warned that not having an “intellectually-driven focus” presented a significant risk to DPI’s future. University officials told auditors those concerns did not drive the decision and said President Killeen ultimately made the call to change course.
Illinois families work too hard for their money to see tens of millions of taxpayer dollars poured into projects that ultimately fall apart, and taxpayers deserve a clear explanation of how the project reached this point, why it was allowed to proceed as far as it did, and what safeguards are being put in place to prevent similar situations in the future.
The Legislative Audit Commission is expected to review the findings, with the co-chair of the Commission calling on University President Killeen to attend and answer questions.
Two More Senior Expos and a Shred Event Round Out Events Calendar for 2027
I want to thank everyone who came out to my Senior Expo at the Rakow Center in Carpentersville last week. We had a great turnout and the 30+ agencies and non-profits delivered a wealth of helpful information those who attended.
Remaining events for the year include:
- September 12: Document Shredding & Food Drive Event in Elgin
- September 15: Senior Fair in St. Charles
- October 14: Senior Fair in Crystal Lake
These events are listed on the Events page of my website with full details.
Chicago Amusement Tax Offers Warning for Illinois Taxpayers
Chicago residents are already paying more to stream movies, listen to music and play online games, offering a glimpse at a tax idea that Democratic lawmakers have already considered expanding statewide.
Since January 2025, Chicago has imposed a 10.25% amusement tax on electronically delivered entertainment, including video streaming services and online gaming. The city previously taxed both digital and in-person entertainment at 9%, but raised the rate on digital entertainment while leaving the in-person rate unchanged early last year.
While amusement taxes are currently imposed at the local level by home-rule municipalities, Democratic lawmakers have previously considered taking the tax statewide as part of previous negotiations over funding Chicago-area public transit.
In previous legislation, Democrats proposed a 7% statewide amusement tax on a broad range of entertainment, including streaming services, live shows, concerts and sporting events.
The proposal would have meant that Illinoisans across the state could have been forced to pay another state tax to watch a streaming service at home, attend a concert or take their family to a sporting event.
That tax was ultimately stripped from the final transit package, but the fact that Democrats considered the proposal at all should concern Illinois taxpayers. In my opinion, it just shows they are willing to continue reaching into taxpayers’ pockets to find ways to pay for even more government spending.
Illinois Makes Traveling Easier for Caregivers
The Illinois Secretary of State has implemented a pilot program that expands access to disability parking placards.
The new pilot program expands in-person disability parking placard services to 14 additional facilities across Illinois. The expansion follows recently signed legislation that allows legal guardians who transport children and individuals with disabilities who are incapable of driving themselves to obtain meter-exempt disability parking placards. Previously, meter-exempt parking benefits were primarily for drivers with disabilities and not their caregivers.
The new walk-in option is expected to help reduce application processing times and allow eligible drivers to more easily obtain their placards.
Meter-exempt disability parking placards allow eligible individuals to park in spaces reserved for persons with disabilities while also exempting them from parking meter fees and certain time limitations of 30 minutes or less.
Participating driver services facilities include the: Springfield Flagship, Chicago Flagship, Chicago North, Chicago South, Chicago West, LaSalle, Robinson, Rockford, Champaign, Carbondale, Peoria, Quincy, Moline, Macomb, and Granite City.
IDOT Is Hiring Snowbirds!
The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is currently hiring over 1,500 temporary snow removal winter hires for their IDOT Winter Seasonal “Snowbird” Program.
IDOT hires two types of temporary positions within their “Snowbird” Program: Monthly Snowbirds and Hourly Snowbirds. These job postings are winter salaried, full-time or on-call temporary positions, perfect for individuals who are seeking seasonal work or long-term career paths.
IDOT is looking for talented and innovative people who strive to deliver solutions to help enhance the quality of life for Illinois residents.
For more information, please visit https://idot.illinois.gov/careers/seasonal-employment.html to learn more.