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The total amount of spending that Sunshine Review uncovered for . But this is clearly only a partial figure. The real number must be exponentially more. In a purely unscientific fashion, the amount spent on lobbying between 2005-2010 in Cook County is more than twice as much at $1,559,980, considering the 3 years of contracts not disclosed and not even considering membership in .

From my very subjective perspective, wasn’t stonewalling me. They just didn’t prioritize their resources or time to respond to my request. Which is just as unacceptable as them having done it on purpose, because the result is the same: citizens and journalists having to go through rings of fire in order to get information that rightfully belongs to them.

There’s always room for improvement when it comes to transparency and taking your constituents seriously, and Cook County is no excuse.

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We give in a B- on the information it discloses on its website. Which is a decent grade. One of the check marks the county misses on is for “Lobbying.” The county does not disclose on its website what it pays dues to, or what lobbyists it hires to represent the county before the Illinois State Legislature or the federal government.

Most local . And because these lobbyists are a part of public affairs, they should be disclosed.

online of those who lobby them. Which is great! The section of Cook County’s website is called “. The county is the largest of counties and it contains the largest city in the state, . Naturally, this is interesting information:

The site, proposed by County Clerk David Orr and a bi-partisan group of commissioners, also lists how much lobbyists were paid.

Orr said 188 lobbyists representing 89 businesses reported on time. They contacted about 60 government officials and were paid a total of $1.12 million.
“You can track who they were lobbying and, for the most part, why,” Orr said. “They made 576 contacts with those roughly 60 people, and that’s just in the first half of 2010.”

Still, while this is great information, it still doesn’t make up for the fact that Cook County still does not disclose what lobbyists it contracts. Cook County as a whole has at least one lobbyist, as , and its departments and subsidiaries have more. Not to mention the dues paid to organizations like the .

The county’s efforts in are laudable, but it can still take the next step forward. Lobbying by counties isn’t rare. Especially because of its prevalent nature, local governments should take the initiative to making that information available to its taxpayers. If anything, they should do it to get an extra point on our checklist and upgrade their B- to a B. Or, you know. For its citizens.

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An editorial appeared in the Wednesday edition of the , which outlined in greater detail the irregularities found in the budget. Included in this report are the shocking expenditures that Charles Flowers assumed would go unnoticed by the Cook County taxpayers. Unfortunately for him they have been noticed and a memo has been sent to Attorney General and Cook County State’s Attorney for their review into the taxpayer-funded shopping spree. A few of the shocking expenditures include:

• Changes for thousands of dollars in private expenses for him and his family on a trip to Mississippi
• $15,000 in cash advances for two employees, including his sister that holds a position as his administrative assistant
• Money paid towards his nephew who only worked eight hour days but received pay for nine

In addition to these purchases, Flowers still could not account for 70% of the receipts for charges made on this government card as mentioned in the previous blog . The state’s attorney will have her hands full as more details are uncovered regarding just how much taxpayer money was wasted at the command of Superintendent Flowers.

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Today, Cook County Board member Tony Peraica for

John Tillman, President of the , accurately stated:

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Other things to throw up on the Cook County website are lobbying contracts and information on how to file a .