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Quigley: County needs overhaulBooster / News-StarNovember 28, 2007By Patrick ButlerAs far as County Commissioner Mike Quigley is concerned, the real issue isn't whether Board President Todd Stroger should get the steep tax increases he's asking for, but whether it's time to revamp Cook County itself. A lot of governments, like townships, are like dinosaurs that survive to protect turf and jobs, while counties like Cook could use a major overhaul at the very least, Quigley told a recent West Lake View Association meeting at the Lincoln-Belmont Library, 1659 W. Melrose. "Back about 100 years ago, there was a lot of unincorporated Cook County, so you needed a centralized police and road maintenance services to do the job. When Sheriff Michael Sheehan took over, we were covering an area more than twice the size we do now. Now 20 years later, we have half the area, but four times as many police officers. "We still have highway vehicles plowing two miles, then going somewhere else and plowing four miles, and so on. We should be outsourcing that with the county's 128 local municipalities covering 948 square miles and encouraging annexation. We'd probably save $120 million a year," Quigley said, noting that unincorporated areas now account for only 15 percent of the county. No wonder there's a $238 million shortfall on the county's $3.2 billion budget, said Quigley, adding that one of biggest problems is with the county health care system which is supposed to charge prevailing fees to patients who can afford to pay, but often don't do so. "The hospital is filled with people from DuPage, Lake and Will counties who aren't paying," said Quigley, comparing the situation with Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, where "unless you're there for an emergency, they want to know your income and where you're from. And if you lie, you go to jail. We've got to see what the rest of the country is doing." If Cook County's three hospitals and 16 clinics collected the millions they have coming, "we wouldn't be in this situation," Quigley said. Unless major changes are made, he added, "we're headed for the perfect storm. We're not going to get any more help from the federal government, the state isn't able to act, and the city has its' own problems." And tax hikes clearly aren't the answer, said Quigley, noting that Cook County's sales tax - already at 9 percent - would become the highest of any major U.S. city if Stroger gets the 2 percent increase he wants. All that would do is cost jobs, tourism and conventions, he said. Quigley, however, insists he's not gearing up to run against Stroger for the county board presidency next time around. "Honestly, it's way too early to figure any of that out. Right now I'm just campaigning to fight taxes," he said.
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