Under the category of "a day in a life of...", here is a real life experience of an issue that matters to many of my constituents.  If you'd like to participate in a "live blog" with me on this subject, log onto www.lauzen.com/blog on Monday, February 20th at 5pm.

If you came to me with a problem, you would want me to listen carefully and respond in a way that shows that I care.

The Campton Hills-St. Charles Township-Elgin Annexation-Elburn-Lily Lake-Kane County Situation is another example of trying to give those who are alienated in the political process a voice and a vote in the future of their community.  In this case it is a classic struggle between a modern form of oppression, i.e. unresponsive government coupled with special interest power and money, versus the individual citizen.

SB2933 seeks to clarify what the rules are to form a village in the middle of sprawling and inevitable population growth.  Just as you and I are imperfect, so are our fellow citizens who are merely trying to protect themselves.  Mistakes are going to be made in the democratic process, but the fundamental ideal in this country is that each of us deserves at least a voice and a vote in our own futures. 

This whole controversy began when Kane County approved the Future Planning Area (FPA) application for Elgin to annex a territory west of them in rural Kane County that is bigger than their current city size.  This action gobbled up scores of smaller communities that didn't want to go to the distant Elgin City Council for permission on many important matters.

Next, Northern Illinois Planning Commission (N.I.P.C.) gave Elgin the green light to consolidate their power over the annexed region.  I witnessed with my own eyes, hundreds of people futilely petitioning the new encroaching city government, filling Elgin's Hemmens Auditorium with standing room only crowds. For practical purposes, their concerns were ignored, Elgin moved forward with a massive land acquisition, and the Campton Hills Incorporation Referendum group was born. 

When Campton went to the County to begin the application process to protect themselves, they again felt frustrated because their perception was that the "rules" were going to be changing and arbitrary.  They called me to ask if I could merely help them get clarification regarding the criteria for village self-determination.  They wanted to put their plan on the ballot so that people could vote. 

The original, preliminary language of SB2933 established that $400,000,000 of equalized assessed value of property taxing "capacity" obviously satisfied the requirement of enough financial strength to provide local government services.  And, because the Campton Hills original petition area over-reached too much territory and infringed on other communities' preferences, my initial amendment provided citizens from St. Charles Township with statutory power to opt-out before the referendum went to a vote. 

Kane County sent me a letter that the Chairman wanted two provisions inserted, i.e. generalize the opt-out language for anyone on the border of the petition territory and relieve the county of providing any government services if petitioners met the $400M standard for 10,000 people.  I agreed to both improvements before we even went to the first Senate committee hearing.  The County's and Campton Hills' lawyers worked on the correct language to include the County's preferences in the Campton Hills amendment and I received an email on Friday afternoon from the County's lawyer that said, "I have seen (the Campton Hills' attorney) handwritten revisions to the Legislative Reference Bureau re-draft.  They appear satisfactory...the changes reflect my agreement with Bill (The Campton Hills' attorney) on the revised text."

In the meantime, a lobbyist for powerful land developers visited me and they began their work to deny Campton a voice and St. Charles Township statutory opt-out before referendum.  An email and fax campaign of misinformation was begun to panic senators, claiming that a school district was opposed to incorporation when, in truth, they had not even been asked about the issue.  Another lobbyist from organized labor was sent ganging up against legislation that they could not have even read because it was in the drafting process at the Legislative Reference Bureau.  And, finally, just forty-five minutes before my first presentation to the Illinois Senate Local Government Committee hearing, a reporter called to get a reaction from me to Kane County withdrawing their commitment to the legislation and amendment that they had written and Campton had agreed to. 

The score is now "Lobbyists 1, Citizens 0".  For the time being, SB2933 and its amendments are dead.  However, this part of the process has at least shed light on the desire of regular folks to be treated fairly by their local government. 

Kane County, by its actions and with mighty assistance from special interest lobbyists, has reasserted its authority to unilaterally decide the fate of more than 10,000 people in the Campton Hills area who will now be required to petition their local government under an imperfect statute that does not allow residents of St. Charles Township, Elburn, Lily Lake, and others to opt-out of the incorporation territory before a referendum vote.  We are basically back to square one, however I believe that Campton Hills now has the serious attention of their county government. 

I will do my best to try again to help anyone, including Kane County, if I am asked.  However, the next time I receive an email approving legislative language, should I believe it?  And, who should I take direction from, i.e. the Chairman in her letter to me, her attorney who negotiates and agrees to language, individual board members, the county's new lobbyists, or worse yet lobbyists bought and paid for by special interests within the county?

When people ask me why I became involved, the answer is, "Because no one else would help and I wouldn't want to be treated that way."  We are elected to serve others.