A forum for McLean County Clerk candidates on Tuesday saw Democratic challenger Joshua Crockett suggest a series of budgetary overruns and erroneous tax bills in the office form a pattern that indicated time for a change.
Incumbent Kathy Michael, a Republican who’s been in office since 2010, apologized for tax errors, blaming them on the loss of an experienced tax administrator. And she said budget overruns that were ultimately approved by the McLean County Board were evidence of a process that was working.
She also suggested the focus on the office’s errors had a political slant, and didn’t account for years when the office was under budget.
The pair shared the stage at a forum at Illinois State University's Bone Student Center. The event was hosted by WGLT alongside partners at The Vidette and ISU's Center for Civic Engagement and Student Government Association, along with the Bloomington-Normal NAACP and the McLean County League of Women Voters. It was preceded by an open house for voters to meet other candidates on the ballot Nov. 3.
The banter between the two was collegial, with Michael saying she prefers elections with more than one candidate.
“But I have to say, and I'm not making this up, that it's been a pleasure to have an opponent like Josh Crockett,” she said.
But the crowd of more than 200 grumbled at some of her explanations, and gasped at her comments about a former employee charged with possession of child pornography.
“And this person had been with us for 10 years, a good person that did his job,” she said.
After the reaction, she added, “a good person as an employee, he hasn't been convicted yet. Please remember that.”
She called the whole incident “devastating.”
Crockett's plans
Questions for the candidates were developed by WGLT and The Vidette, based in part on questions from listeners and readers.
Crockett's plans include expanding services such as universal polling places throughout the county and visiting rural communities and printing records such as marriage licenses and birth certificates in real time.
“And that is something ... other clerks already do,” said Crockett, who is on staff of Democratic state Sen. Dave Koehler of Peoria.
He also promised to be a “collaborative partner” with the McLean County Board.
At Heartland Community College, where he’s a board member, “Unexpected costs are discussed. They are voted on. They go through that fair process, and we need that kind of fiscal leadership in the clerk's office right now,” he said.
“We know that we need to right the fiscal ship, the fiscal ship of the office, get our property taxes right.”
Michael's record
Michael said her office is always open to improvement, but said she hadn’t received requests for on-site document printing. And while her opponent’s ideas were worthy of consideration, she said they would also cost money.
She said budget overruns aren’t constant, but may come from state requirements, as well as the necessities of running her office.
“Remember that the county board signs off and approves our budget every year, and they sign off and approve our amendments. That's part of the process,” she added.
Meanwhile, some expenses, such as postage, have risen and are beyond her control.
She noted that while there may be disagreements, there was no allegation of dishonesty or misuse of money.
Crockett agreed, but said collaboration was key.
“I have never raised an issue with what was purchased. Election equipment, overtime costs. I understand that. It is how the clerk went about it. You have not heard about any other countywide elected Republican in this situation because when they have unexpected costs come up, they call the county administrator, they call the county board, they get proper approval before they spend the money,” he said.
He said the pattern of overruns, totaling more than $900,000 over the past three years, constitute a pattern. And while the county board has put systems in that flag potential overages earlier, he said it’s important the clerk be committed to the budgeting process.
And the erroneous tax bills, including the Octavia Park District in Colfax, village of Hudson and the Ridgeview and Olympia school districts are further evidence a change is needed, he said.
Michael acknowledged an error in not having a second person cross-trained to handle the tax administrator’s job when the employee who’d handled those duties left. But she said her current team is well positioned for the future.
“We're not perfect, and over 16 years, we've had four errors,” she said. “So we hope you understand that, and that moving forward, that we have things in order now, the proper training, a great tax administrator, and we're going to go forward with great pride.”
The pair shared common ground on election integrity, saying there have been no issues in the county. Crockett suggested universal polling places throughout the county. Michael said she was open to considering that and suggested supporters should contact her office.
WGLT will broadcast a recording of the forum at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Listen on 89.1 FM or stream on WGLT.org or the NPR App.
Watch video of Tuesday's candidate forum:
Listen to the full audio from Tuesday's candidate forum:
