By: Diane Benjamin
In case you didn’t know, the Town of Normal took $81,018 out of the Water Enterprise Fund to buy snow plow equipment. The plows could have easily been paid for out of general reserves, but the Town chose to use the money you pay for the delivery of water instead. https://blnnews.com/2022/03/11/3-things-normal-doesnt-understand-but-citizens-must/
The two clips below prove the Town used to believe Water Funds can only be used to deliver water. Both Chris Koos and Kevin McCarthy stated the Water Fund is the actual cost of delivering water to you. There is no “fluff” according to Koos and no “whims” according to McCarthy. Both voted to spend your Water Enterprise Fund money on snow plow equipment anyway. (Everyone but Stan Nord voted yes)
At the last meeting Koos claimed Home Rule gives the Town the right to do whatever they want.
Home Rule doesn’t if the General Assembly specifically limits them:
From the Illinois Constitution:
(i) Home rule units may exercise and perform concurrently with the State any power or function of a home rule unit to the extent that the General Assembly by law does not specifically limit the concurrent exercise or specifically declare the State's exercise to be exclusive. https://ilga.gov/commission/lrb/con7.htm From the statutes passed by the General Assembly:
It sure looks like the General Assembly told Home Rule units of government they can only used money collected for WATER on WATER projects!
The Town must think plowing snow is part of delivering water to you – did they clear the roads, melt it, and add it to water reserves?
Watch these two really short videos of Kevin McCarthy and Chris Koos saying the Water Enterprise Funds can only be used for Water projects. Since both voted to spend Water Funds on snow plow equipment, what does that tell you?
The Town needs more money in the Water Enterprise Fund so they are raising the rate you pay. That is like spending the rent money and not being able to pay when it’s due. You get evicted, the Town of Normal just tells you to pay more.
Kevin McCarthy 10/19/20: (20 seconds)
Chris Koos: 10/6/2020 (19 seconds)
These videos need to go viral.
McCarthy is a LIAR
Koos is a LIAR
and out water bills are being jacked because of it!
They are raiding the water enterprise fund to free up money in the general fund for the underpass.
Only way that can happen is if people share them!
Sadly, Illinois still does not have an Attorney General to protect it’s citizens.
Vote for Tom Devore
So Normal can misappropriate tax dollars without consequence? If this is illegal does Don Knapp stop this, the state police, who?
Good luck finding somebody! Ask Don. Ask Kwame. Voters in this country are expected to hold their officials accountable at the ballot box. Normal has failed over and over and over. Next Preston could get promoted to Springfield to do the same thing there. Voters get what they failed to fix at elections.
A Campaign question for Preston should be
“What will you do if you learn a city government in your district is willfully breaking state law? Will you do nothing like you did while you were a trustee of that corrupt municipality or does being elected a state rep come with a set of balls?” …mike drop and walk away.
but, but Normal’s lawyer claimed it was legal under Home Rule!