Afternoon news update: June 30, 2015

Another day closer to the deadline, another day with no budget agreement. House Speaker Mike Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton met with the governor late Monday, but spokesmen said no progress was made. Governor Bruce Rauner issued a memo to state employees, attempting to reassure them they’ll be paid on time – he says administration lawyers will work on that. But Attorney General Lisa Madigan says the comptroller can’t pay workers if there’s not an approved budget to pay them from, such a move would violate separation of powers. “In keeping with [Ill. Const. art. VIII section 2(b)], the State Comptroller Act prohibits the Comptroller from paying vouchers that are not ‘pursuant to law and authorized,” Madigan’s office wrote in a statement. “In AFSCME v. Netsch, 216 Ill. App. 3d 566, 568 (4th Dist. 1991), the court held that the Comptroller could not pay state employees in the absence of an appropriation and ‘any attempt by the comptroller to issue the funds in the absence of an appropriation bill signed into law by the governor would create obvious problems under the separation of powers doctrine.” The new fiscal year begins Wednesday. Credit Union 1 is set to offer state workers no interest loans in the absence of a budget agreement.
La Voz Latina, a Rockford Latino resource center, is closing its doors temporarily because of the state budget impasse in Springfield. The organization says it will close on July first and remain closed until the state budget is approved. Because La Voz Latina relies so heavily on state contracts, as many nonprofits do, late payments from the state have created financial problems. Interpretation and translation services will continue to be provided, however. Contact patsyc@lavozlatina-rkfd.org for requests or for cancellations of services already scheduled.
What’s your favorite fast food chain? Well, America says it’s Chick-fil-A. A customers satisfaction index survey ranked Chick-fil-A at the top spot, scoring 86 out of a possible 100. Experts say Chick-fil-A has won over customers by focusing primarily on one specific product: chicken sandwiches. Chipotle ranked second with 83. McDonald's was in last place with 67.
Wisconsin is the target for Democratic politics in the coming days. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders says 9,500 people have said they plan to attend his rally on Wednesday night in Madison. Sanders says he believes the progressive movement that existed for years in Wisconsin is now spreading throughout the country.
President Barack Obama is bringing his push to raise salaries for low-income workers to La Crosse on Thursday. Gov. Scott Walker’s office isn’t saying if he’ll be available to greet the president. Obama and Walker clashed back in March when Walker signed the bill making Wisconsin a right-to-work state. Obama is coming to Wisconsin after proposing to make up to 5 million more people eligible for overtime in an effort to boost pay for low-income workers.
The Beloit Police Department’s rank and file has issued a vote of no confidence in their leadership. The vote come after the city conducted the first part of an internal investigation resulting in Chief Norm Jacobs and Deputy Chief Tom Dunkin being placed on administrative leave. Despite a drastic increase in violent crimes in recent years, union reps say Beloit police officers felt leadership was more interested in parking tickets and traffic citations.

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