AUG. 1, 2011 — Grayslake Elementary District 46 agrees to better oversight of its taxpayer-funded debit cards after the BGA and Daily Herald question heavy spending on food, air travel and other items.
Archives
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Grayslake District 46 Debit Card Expenses Under Scutiny
Missing itemized receipts and a lack of detailed justification for expenses are among concerns some Grayslake Elementary District 46 board members are raising about employee use of debit cards.
Posted inNews, Results & Reforms
CPS FIRES PRINCIPAL, OTHERS
JULY 27, 2011 — A BGA/CBS2 investigation into a free lunch program for lower-income students at Chicago Public Schools uncovered instances of kids who didn’t qualify for the program. Following the probe, CPS moved to fire more than a dozen employees.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
CPS Ousts Principal, Others, Over Free-Lunch Fraud
The Chicago Public Schools are moving to fire a principal and discipline 15 other employees, following disclosures by the CBS 2 and the BGA of apparent fraud in the free lunch program.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Fired City Worker Ends Up on County Payroll
In 2010 a top Chicago Animal Care and Control administrator was suspended for working a second job on city time. He was later fired for other reasons. But he wasn’t off the public payroll for long.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Jesse White Gives Raises While Other Illinois Agencies Freeze Pay
At a time when pay raises are a distant memory and unpaid leave a reality for many area government workers, Jesse White has given pay hikes to his entire executive staff.
Posted inNews
BGA to Gov. Quinn: Defend Open, Public Records
In this open letter published in the Chicago Sun-Times, BGA President & CEO Andy Shaw encourages Gov. Pat Quinn to protect the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, which is under attack in Springfield.
Posted inNews, Results & Reforms
CREDIT CARD PRIVILEGES REVOKED
JULY 12, 2011 — A BGA/FOX Chicago News investigation into credit abuses at governmental agencies prompts the Regional Transportation Authority to cut back on the number of charge cards assigned to its administrators—one of whom used a taxpayer-funded card to pay for her daughter’s high school tuition.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Fair Cards? RTA Reduces Credit Card Spending by Execs
Prompted by revelations of excessive spending by CHA executives, another governmental agency, the Regional Transportation Authority, has revoked credit card privileges.
Posted inNews, Results & Reforms
TERMINATION
JULY 1, 2011 — A BGA/CBS2 investigation finds that a city worker at Midway Airport had allowed his friends to bypass security because they were running late for a flight. The BGA and CBS2 also find that city officials, rather than fire the worker when this came to light, put him on paid leave, then gave him another job with more pay. Only after the story aired did supervisors
