Newsroom

The police force assigned to patrol Cook County’s hospital system doesn’t have the best reputation in town.

After getting fired for allowing friends to bypass Midway Airport’s security checkpoint so they wouldn’t miss a flight, a city worker gets his taxpayer-funded job back, and now is making $84,000 a year with Chicago’s water department.

Municipal leaders in suburb get free access to a stadium suite during special events, including concerts and games.

The mammoth state teachers’ pension fund spent $1.3 billion for 10-years worth of financial expertise. Critics argue that’s way too high; Teachers Retirement System says it’s a cost of doing business.

As talk of streamlining government intensifies in Cook County, the sheriff suggests that one way to save taxpayer money is for his police force to assume more policing duties from suburban departments.

What happens if you lie to Chicago’s inspector general? Not a lot, it seems, if you’re a City Clerk employee who was investigated by the in-house watchdog for, among other things, allegedly keeping pornography on his work computer and then lying about it.

Add President Barack Obama to the list of current and former Illinois lawmakers who may have violated the lone rule of the controversial legislative scholarship program: that the recipient live within the awarding lawmaker’s district.

As part of the BGA’s Rescuing Illinois project, this investigation is the first in the Education Watch series shining a light on the state’s school systems.

The majority of the 20 suburban Cook County townships hoard large amounts of cash that’s in excess of the “rainy day” fund that municipal finance experts recommend. Some townships have enough cash to cover a full year’s expenses without going to taxpayers.

It costs millions of dollars annually to staff and operate townships. The BGA inquiry found that the 20 suburban townships employed 562 full-time workers and 425 part-time employees, adding up to $27.6 million in total salaries. Are they all necessary?