NEW ITEMS

 

Meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners

County Board Room, County Building

Thursday, March 7, 2002, 10:00 A.M.

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PROPOSED RESOLUTION

ITEM #1

 

Submitting a Proposed Resolution sponsored by

 

JOHN H. STROGER, JR., PRESIDENT and BOBBIE L. STEELE, County Commissioners

 

Co-Sponsored by

 

JERRY BUTLER, ALLAN C. CARR, EARLEAN COLLINS, JOHN P. DALEY, GREGG GOSLIN,

CARL R. HANSEN, ROBERTO MALDONADO, WILLIAM R. MORAN, MIKE QUIGLEY,

HERBERT T. SCHUMANN, JR., PETER N. SILVESTRI and CALVIN R. SUTKER,

County Commissioners

 

PROPOSED RESOLUTION

 

WHEREAS, the President of the United States, leaders in the medical community and organizations dedicated to public health issues will officially recognize the month of March as National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County has been informed of this event by Commissioner Bobbie L. Steele; and

 

WHEREAS, each year, an estimated one hundred thirty-five thousand new cases are reported across America and fifty-eight thousand men and women die annually from colon and rectal cancer; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County is proud to call itself a partner in the movement to the STOP Colon/Rectal Cancer Foundation, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to reducing deaths from colon and rectal cancer through education and preventative testing, early detection and healthy lifestyle choices; and

 

WHEREAS, as part of this national campaign, the goal of the STOP Colon/Rectal Cancer Foundation is to save lives through public education campaigns on these diseases throughout the month of March.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the President and the Members of the Board of Commissioners, on behalf of the more than five million residents of Cook County does hereby declare the month of March as “Cook County Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month” and calls upon all citizens of this County to recognize the urgent importance and value of this public health awareness campaign; and

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a suitable copy of this Resolution be spread upon the official proceedings of this Honorable Body and that a copy of same be tendered to Dr. Ernestine Hambrick, M.D., Founder and Chairman of the STOP Colon/Rectal Cancer Foundation.

_________________________

 

Commissioner Steele, seconded by Commissioner Hansen, moved to suspend the rules so that this matter may be considered.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Commissioner Steele, seconded by Commissioner Maldonado, moved that the Resolution be approved and adopted.  The motion carried unanimously.

REPORT

ITEM #2

 

Transmitting a Communication, dated February 22, 2002 from

 

MICHAEL F. SHEAHAN, Sheriff of Cook County

by

JACK J. KELLY, Chief Financial Officer

 

Submitting the Independent Auditor’s Report dated May 3, 2001, from E.C. Ortiz & Company, Certified Public Accountants for the period ending November 30, 2000.  This audit report contains a Statement of Revenues Collected, Expenditures Paid and Changes in Fund Balances for the two narcotics forfeiture funds administered by the Cook County Sheriff’s Office along with the auditor’s findings.

 

Also included is the Report to Management for the fiscal year ending November 30, 2000.

 

I respectfully request that this report be received and filed by the Audit Committee.

_________________________

 

Commissioner Maldonado, seconded by Commissioner Butler, moved to suspend the rules so that this matter may be considered.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Commissioner Daley, seconded by Commissioner Quigley, moved that the communication be referred to the Audit Committee.  (Comm. No. 250198).  The motion carried unanimously.

 

 

PROPOSED RESOLUTION

ITEM #3

 

Submitting a Proposed Resolution sponsored by

 

CARL R. HANSEN and JOHN P. DALEY, County Commissioners

 

Co-Sponsored by

 

JOHN H. STROGER, JR., PRESIDENT, JERRY BUTLER, ALLAN C. CARR,

EARLEAN COLLINS, GREGG GOSLIN, ROBERTO MALDONADO, WILLIAM R. MORAN,

MIKE QUIGLEY, HERBERT T. SCHUMANN, JR., PETER N. SILVESTRI, BOBBIE L. STEELE

and CALVIN R. SUTKER, County Commissioners

 

PROPOSED RESOLUTION

 

WHEREAS, in times of war and conflict, many of our nation’s men and women have risen to fulfill the duty to protect our nation, and

 

WHEREAS, many of these brave men and women have perished in the fight, while hundreds of thousands returned with injuries or illnesses that would plague them for a lifetime, and

 

WHEREAS, it is the nation’s duty to provide assistance to these veterans for the rest of their lives, which also includes providing assistance to their family members.  In 1930 Congress authorized the President to “consolidate and coordinate government activities affecting war veterans”, an act which established the Veterans Administration, and

 

WHEREAS, the Veterans Administration assumed many responsibilities, one of which was to provide health care to veterans, their family members or survivors, and

 

WHEREAS, the health care standards to which the Veterans Administration strives to meet are laudable, focusing on treating the Veterans with courtesy and dignity, while providing first-rate health care, and

 

WHEREAS, the Veterans Administration has recently announced plans to shift inpatient services from the Lakeside Division of the Veterans Administration Chicago Healthcare System to the West Side Division within the next few years, which would allow expansion of the outpatient services at the Lakeside Division, and strengthen the Veterans Administration’s facilities at other locations within the Chicagoland area, including the West Side Division, and

PROPOSED RESOLUTION continued

ITEM #3 cont'd

 

WHEREAS, the shift of inpatient services to the West Side Division will require renovation of its existing facilities and possibly affiliation with more nearby hospitals to ensure access to cutting-edge medicine and highly competent faculty physicians, and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County Hospital and the Bureau of Health Services provide quality health care to the needy citizens of Cook County, with affiliations extending to many reputable health facilities nearby, including Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Hospital, all of which are recognized as having highly qualified, competent faculty physicians, and

 

WHEREAS, there have already been discussions between Cook County’s Bureau of Health Services and the Veterans Administration regarding the potential of collaboration of some services, such as outpatient primary care, maternity care for women veterans, ventilator care and pharmacy distribution, now therefore

 

BE IT RESOLVED, that the Cook County Board of Commissioners does hereby conclude that the Cook County Bureau of Health Services should support the Veterans Administration Chicago Healthcare System’s efforts in maintaining the best possible care for our veterans.

_________________________

 

Commissioner Maldonado, seconded by Commissioner Butler, moved to suspend the rules so that this matter may be considered.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Commissioner Hansen, seconded by Commissioner Moran, moved that the Resolution be approved and adopted.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

 

REQUEST FOR MOTION TO DISCHARGE FROM COMMITTEE

ITEM #4

 

Transmitting a Communication, dated March 6, 2002 from

 

CARL R. HANSEN, County Commissioner and Chairman

                                 Committee on Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations

 

In accordance with the rules of the Board, please place the submitted item, Communication No. 248514, (appointment of Robert Halm to the Garden Homes Sanitary District), on the agenda for the meeting of the Cook County Board for March 7, 2002, for discharge from the Committee on Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations.

 

Comm. No. 248514

 

Transmitting a Communication from

 

JOHN H. STROGER, JR., President, Cook County Board of Commissioners

 

I hereby appoint Mr. Robert E. Halm to the Garden Homes Sanitary District, to fill the vacancy left by John Kissel, for a term to begin immediately and expire on May 1, 2003.

 

I submit this communication for your approval.

_________________________

 

Commissioner Maldonado, seconded by Commissioner Butler, moved to suspend the rules so that this matter may be considered.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Commissioner Hansen, seconded by Commissioner Sutker, moved that Communication No. 248514 be discharged from the Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Commissioner Hansen, seconded by Commissioner Daley, moved that the appointment by the President be approved.  The motion carried unanimously.

UPGRADE OF COUNTY'S BOND RATING

ITEM #5

 

Transmitting a Communication, dated March 6, 2002 from

 

JOHN H. STROGER, JR., President, Cook County Board of Commissioners

 

In connection with the County's issuance of its $226,060,000.00 General Obligation Capital Improvement Bonds, Series 2002C on February 27th, Moody's Investor Service upgraded the underlying rating of Cook County to "Aa2" from "Aa3".  In upgrading the County, Moody's cited our large and growing tax base, diverse local economy, manageable debt levels and well managed financial operations.  A copy of the Moody's report has been submitted.

 

The County is now rated as follows:

 

Fitch Rating                              AA

Moody's Investor Service           Aa2

Standard & Poor's                     AA-

 

This marks the fifth time that the County has been upgraded by these three agencies since 1998, and reflects the collective efforts of my Administration and this Board to be prudent fiscal stewards of our constituents tax dollars.  While many financial challenges lie ahead, particularly the settlement of our labor contracts and escalating health care benefits, we have a sound financial foundation on which we can begin to address these issues.

_________________________

 

Commissioner Maldonado, seconded by Commissioner Butler, moved to suspend the rules so that this matter may be considered.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

Commissioner Butler, seconded by Commissioner Hansen, moved that the communication be received and filed.  The motion carried unanimously.

 

 

PUBLIC TESTIMONY

ITEM #6

 

Pursuant to Rule 4-30, George Blakemore, addressed the President and Members of the Cook County Board of Commissioners.  Mr. Blakemore expressed his concerns regarding the Human Rights Ordinance.