SE MC Water Auth 🤔

By: Diane Benjamin Understand the title? It is an abbreviation for Southeast McLean County Water Authority. I wrote about them last year when a new line appeared on my property tax bill: https://blnnews.com/2025/05/16/new-line-on-my-property-tax-bill/ I found no trace of this organization on the County website. They claim to be subject to the Freedom of Information Act […]

Where’s the Sewer Fund Money Stanford?

By: Diane Benjamin At the end of 2015 the Sewer Fund had $79,316.68. With another 8 years of residents paying $5 a month, what’s the balance now? According to this 2015 story, there was a difference of $4,674.63 then between what I was told is in the fund and what the bank statement showed. https://blnnews.com/2015/08/15/stanford-games-with-your-money/ […]

Is Property Fraud now Legal?

By:  Diane Benjamin Continuation of this story:  Did Village of Stanford’s Attorney File Fraudulent Easement Documents?   New Problem: The original TEMPORARY easement contains this statement:  Temporary Easement The Village of Stanford President and Village Clerk signed the document in the presence of a Notary. So, what’s in the May 20, 2010 meeting minutes? FOIA […]

When Lawyers Don’t Care About the Law

By:  Diane Benjamin Long time readers know finding a prosecutor is almost impossible.  Public corruption prosecutions must be demanded by many people before equal justice under the law actually exists. Then there is McGrath Law Office in Mackinaw.  These guys represent many small units of government who evidently aren’t capable of reading the Open Meetings […]

Stanford-Allin Township, nobody cares

By:  Diane Benjamin I’ve written a long list of articles concerning the Village of Stanford and the Allin Township Fire Protection District. Just for the record, Sheriff Sandage isn’t investigating and State’s Attorney Jason Chambers isn’t prosecuting anything I’ve written about. They probably won’t care about the Allin Township Fire Protection Trustees appointing an illegal […]

Allin Township Fire: Throwing away your money

By:  Diane Benjamin The Freedom of Information law was written to protect the rights of taxpayers.  Since government has no money unless they take it from citizens, it is presumed under the law that all documents BELONG to the citizens, not government.  Here’s the opening paragraph of the law:  (5 ILCS 140/1) (from Ch. 116, […]

Stanford: Where’s your money?

By:  Diane Benjamin First, why is the Freedom of Information officer for Stanford a lawyer?  How much is it costing taxpayers to get information through a lawyer that you are entitled to under the law?  Is the FOIA officer a lawyer to hide information? Stanford residents have been paying an extra $5 per month tacked […]