By: Diane Benjamin
HB 3337 was brought up again by Stan Nord. He wants the Council to vote on proposing municipal code changes instead of the Town going behind the backs of most elected officials.
Keep in mind this bill ONLY applies to Normal AND permanently recuses the Town from following the current code for Incorporated Towns.
Think your elected officials should have voted first?
Hear Stan Nord at 24:00. Town attorney Brian Day was ready to rebut, of course he knows his job depends on what he says. Just hit PLAY.
2 Facts
1.)HB3337 defines the mayor as the only required elected office. The FACT that “trustee” has been excluded cannot be ignored. Brian Day could have easily written “the mayor AND trustees are required elected offices“ in this bill but he did not.
2. State officials have been, and continue to be lied to and manipulated into making this bill law. There has been no council resolution granting anyone authority to say this bill is a Town of Normal official action or to use taxpayer resources on this effort. Laws do not matter to corrupt people.
And Brian Day lies once again. I think it was the first of the recent anti-voter court rulings, but I recall the judge saying something to the effect of ‘if the text is clear, the legislature is assumed to have meant what it said, even if the result is absurd’. Recent court rulings have also held that generalized ‘incorporated town’ laws do not apply to Normal due to our home rule status, so his citation is not applicable. I’d have to look up the specifics, but I know there is a municipal law that refers to something like “all municipal officers other than trustees and aldermen”, meaning ‘trustees’ are a subset of ‘officers’. And the online Black’s Legal Dictionary supports that interpretation as well.
Stan: 1
Lyin’ Brian Day: 0
Normal’s lawyers never mentioned Home Rule. It’s a garbage argument
What a disappointment for conservative citizens of Normal and Unit 5. Another apathetic voter turnout and any hopes for change in our future appear to have been quashed.
Too many good people left
Sadly I’m afraid you are right.
Koos has filled the entire council with people he endorsed. There is no one to represent an opposing opinion or check his power. This winner take all outcome is one of the problems with at large elections.