WBEZ | Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan

Illinois AG workers authorize strike

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 09:46:00 -0500

The union that represents 250 paralegals and clerical workers who work for Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has authorized a strike.

They're members of the Illinois Federation of Public Employees, which has spent a year in contract talks with Madigan's office. The union says 88 percent voted to authorize a strike if negotiations fail. Most of the workers are in Chicago, while almost 80 work in Springfield and a dozen are at other locations.

The union is asking for a one-time stipend instead of a salary increase, and a spokeswoman argues money from recent settlements reached by the AG's office should be used to cover the stipend.

Madigan spokeswoman Natalie Bauer, however, calls the strike threat "outrageous and unrealistic" given the state's tight budget.

Negotiations are scheduled to continue Friday.

Illinois joins push against for-profit colleges

Wed, 30 May 2012 09:39:00 -0500

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has joined counterparts from 20 other states in pressing Congress to stop what they say is the exploitation of military veterans by for-profit colleges.

They sent a letter Tuesday urging Congress to close a loophole in the Higher Education Act that they say is to blame for a push by the colleges to recruit veterans and their families. That recruitment rush allows the colleges to cash in on taxpayer-financed tuition money coming out of the G.I. Bill and the U.S. Department of Defense Tuition Assistance program.

Madigan says service members, veterans and their families have become "rich targets for aggressive for-profit college recruiters."

She also accuses the colleges of entrapping the veterans in costly private loans in exchange for what she calls "questionable degrees."

Federal standards now in effect for cribs

Tue, 28 Jun 2011 18:12:00 -0500

As of Tuesday, new federal safety standards will make selling certain cribs illegal in the United States. Everyone from yard sale organizers to mass manufacturers must adhere to the law, or else they could face civil penalties.

The new standards make the sale of drop-side cribs illegal. All other cribs are to be tested by independent labs for durability, mattress and slat support strength and must have warnings that instruct parents about when (age-wise) children should be using cribs.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Illinois, sponsored the original legislation.

“The fact that children have been injured or killed by these types of products and accidents that were 100 percent preventable is unconscionable,” Schakowksy said.

Schakowsky introduced the Infant Toddler Durable Product Safety Act in 2001. Provisions of the bill were then incorporated into the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act which was signed into law by President George Bush in 2008.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said Tuesday the enforcement of these laws will be challenging. She said her office will continue to search stores, as well as websites like Craigslist for noncompliant cribs.

The law does not make it illegal for parents to use already purchased or hand-me-down cribs that are not compliant with new standards.

Blagojevich's $65K state pension now in jeopardy

Tue, 28 Jun 2011 17:56:00 -0500

Convicted former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich is likely to lose his $65,000 annual state pension, but he could get $15,000 a year in federal retirement for the years he served in Congress.

The Chicago Tribune reports Tuesday that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office will be asked to make a recommendation on whether Blagojevich should lose his pension. A spokeswoman for Madigan's office says the former governor must first be sentenced before the pension can be denied. It's uncertain when he'll be sentenced.

The 54-year-old Democrat could start collecting his state pension on his next birthday Dec. 10. Timothy Blair, executive director of the General Assembly Retirement System, says he hopes the pension board will have a ruling before that.

Blagojevich could start drawing his federal pension at age 62.