FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:  Jason Gerwig
630-407-6022
September 16, 2008

SCHILLERSTROM PROPOSES FISCAL YEAR 2009 BUDGET     
Public safety, infrastructure and traffic congestion relief top initiatives

WHEATON ― DuPage County Board Chairman Robert J. Schillerstrom presented his Fiscal Year 2009 budget on Tuesday, a  budget which continues the county’s commitment to public safety, traffic congestion relief, infrastructure improvements and human services.    

The $462.6 million budget, which is a 12 percent increase over last year’s budget, is still under Fiscal Year 2004 levels, making DuPage County one of the leanest counties in the nation. 

“This budget follows the strategic vision and priorities born of our Strategic Plan, which was a collaboration of elected officials and members of the public coming together to chart the future of our county,” said Schillerstrom.  

The Fiscal Year 2009 budget:  includes no increase in the property tax and remains balanced; maintains the county’s commitment to public safety; addresses the critical infrastructure needs facing DuPage; creates a comprehensive road program, as well as invests in public transit, which will alleviate traffic congestion; invests in economic development, which will create jobs and retain and attract businesses; reaffirms the county’s commitment to the environment and green initiatives; and assures access to health care and critical human services.

This budget will include $96 million in direct spending on public safety, not including pension and Social Security costs.  It includes an increase of $8 million over the restored Fiscal Year 2008 budget levels, and $18 million, or 23 percent, from the Fiscal Year 2008 budget the county originally passed last November.    

“This investment in public safety will keep our crime rate low, and it responds to our public safety priorities, including implementation of the recommendations in the jail study,” said Schillerstrom. 

The jail study report received in April noted that DuPage County has “experienced a major reduction in all categories of crime over the last 20 years, and has one of the lowest crime rates in the state.” Therefore, the budget sets aside $3.4 million dollars for the Sheriff’s Office to: equalize deputy salaries; increase the number of officers in the department to respond to crime and staff the jail; and reinstitute SWAP, a successful alternative sentencing program, which helps keep the jail population at a manageable level.

The budget also allocates $1 million dollars for a Pretrial Bond Supervision Program, which has been developed by the Department of Probation and Court Services, and will divert low risk offenders in the justice system from incarceration while they await trial.  This collaborative effort will be modeled after a successful, longstanding pre-trial services program in Lake County, Illinois. 

“This program will significantly reduce the county’s jail population and relieve overcrowding, as well as offering a necessary and proven alternative to incarceration,” said Schillerstrom.

The budget will also ensure the State’s Attorney’s Office continues to:  support a high level of investigations against crimes, including crimes against abused children; attract and retain the highest quality Assistant State’s Attorneys to serve the people of DuPage; fully staff the courthouse, including those who are seeking orders of protection; and ensure the State’s Attorney has the tools to prosecute those who pose a threat to our communities.    

Schillerstrom also proposed $400,000 to fully enable the Department of Homeland Security and Office of Emergency Management to implement organizational and operational changes as it redirects its focus and mission.    

“There is nothing more important to this county than being fully prepared for a disaster, whether man-made or resulting from Mother Nature,” said Schillerstrom.  “It was the planning and investments we made in the 1980s and 1990s that minimizes flooding as we saw this past weekend.” 

Schillerstrom also announced that the county cannot continue to wait for personalities and politics to do “what is right” in Springfield.  As a result, he proposed “DuPage 2013,” which is a comprehensive 5-year, $220 million local capital program.

“DuPage 2013 will enable us to undertake a large-scale regional transportation construction program that responds to the public concerns to reduce traffic congestion,   as well as a critical modernization and infrastructure program for county structures,” said Schillerstrom.

DuPage 2013 will:

• Provide transportation improvements to address traffic congestion at various locations throughout the county, which will enhance mobility and provide an economic boost to our region.
  
  
• Continue the development of bike trails and open spaces, which will further help alleviate traffic congestion and provide an alternative mode of transportation. 
  
  
• Repair the county’s infrastructure, which will address needed maintenance and rehabilitation of the county complex, as well as life safety issues at the Convalescent Center, Jail and other buildings.  This will ensure long term stability for our campus infrastructure.
  
  
• Fund the need for back up [emergency] generators to allow continuing operations of county services and programs, as well as the round-the-clock services the county provides at the jail, convalescent center and Youth Home.
  
  
• Replace outdated, and obsolete, technology infrastructure.  This modernization will improve access, transparency and reliability of data and information. 
  
  
• Initiate green projects, which are environmentally sensitive, cost-effective and will put DuPage at the forefront of environmental leadership; starting at county buildings. 

“This program will be an economic stimulus to our county and region, and will create close to 5500 jobs for our transportation program alone,” said Schillerstrom.

The Fiscal Year 2009 budget also continues the county’s $500,000 commitment to Choose DuPage, an organization that will retain and expand existing businesses and grow the regional economy, as well as create over 25,000 high-quality new jobs and advance DuPage as a premier business location. 

The Fiscal Year 2009 budget reallocates funding to expand the current responsibilities of the Department of Economic Development and Planning by creating an office of green initiatives.

This office will be a clearing house and resource for every department and agency, particularly facilities management, on implementing new and innovative “green projects” that ensure DuPage remains good stewards of the environment here at the county complex, and in the county as a whole, noted Schillerstrom.

Other highlights of the Fiscal Year 2009 budget include:  increasing the Human Services Grant Fund from its 2008 level of $500,000 to a 2009 level of $1,000,000;
$400,000 to support Pace and the RTA as plans progress for the first Bus Rapid Transit route in DuPage County; annualized funding for the Naperville Recycling Center, the Woodridge Paint Recycling Center, environmental education through SCARCE, and environmental enforcement through the IEPA; $4.5 million for the Stormwater Department, which will help upgrade equipment and regional floodplain maps and facilities to protect communities from the dangers of flooding; and $180,000 for the Office of Regional Education that will go toward the “Building Bridges of Understanding” program, which will ensure every student in DuPage County has a chance to succeed in the classroom. 

“This budget is more than just who we are as a county today; it’s about where we are headed into the future,” said Schillerstrom.

To view a copy of Schillerstrom’s budget speech, please visit www.dupageco.org.

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