Eye On Illinois: Madigan trial teaches plenty of useful lessons about government operations

I’m not on the Mike Madigan jury. And, barring a set of remarkable circumstances, neither are you.

But viewing the trial – finally in the closing arguments stage – through only the narrow lens of the verdict would be a waste of all the time and resources invested in the proceedings. I’ve written before about how the trial of Madigan, along with similar proceedings against former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke, illuminated the ways government rules endow outsized power in a few individual positions, giving rise to the type of influence almost begging to be corrupted.

Reading all the coverage collected at shawlocal.com/tags/michael-madigan underscores that point – one ethics-minded lawmakers should take to heart when proposing their next cycle of reforms – but there also are takeaways outside the realm of corruption.

For example, Hannah Meisel’s Tuesday report for Capitol News Illinois revisits the role of an apartment complex proposal in Chicago’s West Loop. In June 2017, Madigan called Danny Solis, also an alderman, because the site was in Solis’ 25th Ward. But he didn’t know Solis was already working as an FBI informant.

Most of what happened stemming from that call are the sorts of factual disputes the jury is considering while deciding if they agree with federal prosecutors’ allegations of an illegal quid pro quo. But some of the facts are well above board:

Madigan’s law firm represented the site in the past when it housed a nonprofit addiction treatment center. The developer hired the firm to estimate the property tax implications of building a for-profit apartment tower, then contracted for full property tax appeal service. Madigan’s attorney, Dan Collins, told jurors the firm helped the developer save $2.5 million on real estate taxes.

The timing of that sequence bolsters the defense, Collins said, because it shows the firm – as private lawyers and not agents of the General Assembly – was just doing its job independent of any formal agreement related to zoning approval. He may prevail on that point, but missing from the equation is the inefficiency of a municipal government system that misses the valuation mark by seven figures such that a developer must pay specialized attorneys.

Law firms certainly don’t go broke doing this business. Property tax lawyers go to the mat for private clients against Chicago City Hall and taxing bodies across the state. So in addition to time spent on the initial valuation, public resources are expended trying to keep the revenue flowing, which is important for budgeting officials in search of stability.

Aside from the private legal fees, this entire system impacts and impugns the efficiency of public service.

Madigan’s trial teaches plenty of useful lessons, but don’t sleep on the importance of improving how we tax ourselves.

• Scott T. Holland writes about state government issues for Shaw Local News Network. He can be reached at sholland@shawmedia.com.