Selected State Reports
State Documents • "Guide to the Illinois Open Meetings Act," Illinois Attorney General (1978), 42pp. Intended for news reporters and public officials who are not lawyers, this pocket size booklet offers clear and concise guidelines on the types of meetings that should be open to the public. The guide is up-to-date as of January 1978, based on the Open Meetings Act and its amendments, case law and opinions of the attorney general. • "Summary Report: Structure and Development in the Illinois Economy" (January 1978, unpaged) and "Workmen's Compensation and Employer Location Decisions(January 1978, 20pp. plus appendix). Office of Planning, Illinois Bureau of the Budget. These reports are part of the series. Studies of the Illinois Economy. The first describes trade patterns in the state and linkages among state industrial sectors. It also classifies industries as those basic to the Illinois economy, those which could be promoted for expansion, those where further study is needed to determine growth prospects and those where expanded activity is not advisable in Illinois. The second report grew from recently expressed concern over the cost of workmen's compensation in Illinois; many business and industrial leaders claim that premiums for this insurance borne by Illinois employers are higher than in other states. They also claim that this situation causes Illinois employers to consider relocating in other states and deters out-of-state employers from relocating in Illinois. Examining these matters, this report concludes that although Illinois workmen's compensation rates are relatively high, "these high rates are, however, only a marginal factor in an employer's decision on where to locate or relocate." • "Dual Office Holding in State Legislatures," file 8-791, Illinois Legislative Council (May 1977), 14pp. By constitutional provision, members of the Illinois General Assembly may hold additional public offices but may not accept compensation from such offices when in attendance at the state legislature. This report discusses the history of dual office holding in Illinois and compares provisions in other states. • "Structure of Local Government in Illinois," file 8-848, Illinois Legislative Council (March 1978), 39pp. This report revises and updates a 1967-69 Illinois League of Women Voters monograph series in light of the 1970 Illinois Constitution and other developments. It covers all forms of local government, from counties through special districts, and offers general discussion on intergovernmental cooperation and local government budget and finance. • "Comparative Conflict of Interest Provisions," file 8-796, Illinois Legislative Council (June 1977), 19pp. "Conflict of interest is a situation involving a public official or employee in which either the public good or his own special financial advantage may suffer as a result of his official action. This report describes laws in Illinois and 18 other states. A typical conflict of interest law consists of prohibitions of actions likely to result in benefits to the individual legislator to the detriment of the public interest and of a listing of the disclosures a legislator must make. • "ESEA Title I Successful Programs," State Board of Education/Illinois Office of Education [1978], unpaged. Describes nine "exemplary projects" in Illinois schools funded under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Most of the projects focus on improving reading skills. Other Reports • "The Illinois State Board of Elections: A History and Evaluation of the Formative Years" by Charles R. Bernardini, John Marshall Journal of Practice and Procedure, vol. 11 (winter 1977-78):322-62. The 1970 Illinois Constitution provides for the first central election authority in the state, the Board of Elections. Actual creation of the board, however, was hampered by political and legal difficulties. This article traces the constitutional, legislative and judicial history of the board up through the invalidation of the first board by the state Supreme Court and the creation of a new board in January 1978. • "Managing Chicago's Urban Dollars," by Judith D. Feins, based on a colloquium convened by TRUST, Inc., 53 West Jackson, Chicago (June 1976), 68pp. After presenting background information on Chicago's fiscal situation, policy issues are considered in relation to three current situations: the South Loop New Town plan, the city Economic Development Commission and federal Community Development Block Grant funds. • "Residents of Small Towns Speak Out on Growth," by Kenneth Stabler and Carl V. Patton, Planning & Public Policy (Bureau of Urban and Regional Planning Research, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), vol. 3, no. 2 (August 1977), 4pp. Residents of three small towns in Champaign County were interviewed about issues of growth affecting their communities. All three communities are located about 10 miles from Champaign-Urbana, a major regional metropolitan area housing a campus of the University of Illinois which is the major local employer and economic force. In general, residents interviewed would like their communities to remain small towns. Higher-income households are less likely to favor further growth than are middle-or low-income households, and longer-term residents tend to oppose new growth compared to newcomers. • "County Home Rule in Illinois," edited by David R. Beam, Alex Pattakos and David Tobias, Center for Governmental Studies, Northern Illinois University (1977), 134pp. (available for $4.00 from the center, DeKalb, Illinois 60115) Sections in this publication assess the status of county government modernization in Illinois under the 1970 state Constitution. Referenda to permit county home rule in nine counties have failed; these attempts are described and then analyzed critically. Items listed under State Documents have been received by the Documents Unit, Illinois State Library, Springfield, and are usually available from public libraries in the state through interlibrary loan./S.L.K. October 1978/Illinois Issues/27
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