Property taxes, electricity power state House debate National Guard role in Iraq also discussed

Property taxes, electricity power state House debate
National Guard role in Iraq also discussed

By Clifford Ward
Special to the Tribune

October 12, 2006

        Candidates for the Illinois House from three west suburban districts clashed this week on issues ranging from high property taxes to electricity rates to the deployment of the Illinois National Guard in Iraq. "High property taxes are pushing people out of DuPage County," said Rob Bisceglie, a Democratic candidate for state representative, at a League of Women Voters forum Tuesday in Wheaton. "We need to do something about it." Bisceglie, a Roselle resident and director of planning and development for the Infant Welfare Society of Chicago, is running for the 45th District seat against Republican Franco Coladipietro, a Bloomingdale lawyer. Coladipietro defeated incumbent state Rep. Roger Jenisch (R-Bloomingdale) in the March primary. "When I decided to run against an incumbent, everybody said `Don't do it; you can't beat him,'" Coladipietro said. "When I won, I had a meeting with my partners, and they all asked, `What are you doing? Do you really think you can make a change in Springfield?' I said, `Yes, I can.'" When asked whether he would support an extended freeze on electricity rates, which could jump 20 percent or more next year when a 10-year freeze expires, Coladipietro said the state needed more answers about ComEd's finances. "Reliable power is important, but we need an informed decision," he said. Bisceglie said he favored open competition for electricity, but added that because competition does not now exist, he would "seriously consider" a rate freeze.

        Also at the forum were candidates from the 42nd District, where state Rep. Sandy Pihos (R-Glen Ellyn) is facing a challenge from Democrat Thomas Hanlon, and the 95th District, where Democrat Dirk Enger is running against Republican Mike Fortner. Enger and Fortner are seeking to fill the House seat being vacated by state Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-Winfield), who is running unopposed for the state Senate. The six candidates gave one-minute replies to written questions from the 100 audience members at the Wheaton Park District Community Center. Fortner, the mayor of West Chicago and a physics professor at Northern Illinois University, said Illinois should look at a mix of sales and property taxes, and maybe a uniform Internet sales tax, to fund public schools. Pihos, a former teacher seeking her third term, called education her passion. "I strongly believe every child has a right to a quality education and the right to reach their full potential," she said.

        Their Democratic opponents criticized the deployment of National Guard troops in Iraq. "The question is `Should Illinois National Guard troops be serving overseas?' No, they should not," said Hanlon, a Glen Ellyn resident. Enger, a Winfield resident and a former Marine, noted the problems in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina because many of its National Guard troops were in Iraq.

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