Panel doubts governor’s parks policy

Thursday, October 11, 2007 4:37 PM CDT

SPRINGFIELD -- A panel of state lawmakers Wednesday blamed problems at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources on Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Responding to a laundry list of financial and management missteps revealed in an audit issued in April, the lawmakers said the Chicago Democrat isn’t committed to the state’s parks and outdoor activities.

“This is obviously not a priority of the governor,” said state Rep. Rich Brauer, a Petersburg Republican.

State Rep. Frank Mautino, R-Spring Valley, who chairs the Legislative Audit Commission, which was reviewing the audit, said Blagojevich-imposed job cuts have “gutted” the agency, leaving it unable to function properly.

“You need more people,” Mautino told agency officials. “You just don’t have enough of them.”

Since Blagojevich took office, the agency has lost more than 400 employees. Although it has permission to hire 1,720 workers, it currently has just 1,668, according to DNR Deputy Director Leslie Sgro.

Sgro said the agency is working to hire workers.

“We look to filling as many as we can in the coming year,” she said.

Director remains ‘acting’

State Rep. Sandra Pihos, R-Glen Ellyn, said another sign of the governor’s lack of interest in the department is the fact that Sam Flood has served as acting director of DNR for nearly two years.

Flood stepped in as acting director after Blagojevich’s first director, former state Rep. Joel Brunsvold, D-Milan, left in January 2006.

“Maybe we need to encourage the governor to make it more permanent,” said Pihos.

Special permits

Also coming under fire was the revelation that several major league baseball players, including San Diego Padres pitching ace Jake Peavy and Chicago White Sox slugger Jim Thome, were given special Illinois hunting permits without having to take their chances in a lottery alongside other less-connected hunters.

In addition to ballplayers, the list included a number of current and former state lawmakers, including state Sen. Gary Forby, D-Benton, state Rep. Brandon Phelps, D-Harrisburg, and state Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro.

According to the audit, the agency doled out an “excessive” number of permits through a process that is not advertised to the public. Auditor General William Holland said the program allowed the state to give preferential treatment to certain people.

Usually, deer and turkey-hunting permits are issued to people through a lottery-like system to prevent over-hunting in some areas.

Flood told lawmakers that applications for the special permits are more tightly scrutinized by the agency. And, he must sign off on each application before it can be approved.

State Sen. Dale Risinger, R-Peoria, said underfunding at the agency comes at a time when other parts of state government are growing.

“That is a little frustrating to me,” Risinger said. “We need to be moving forward. We want to be expanding and growing.”

In response to the criticism, a spokesman for the agency said there were very few complaints from the 44.4 million who visited state parks in the past year.

“The parks are running well and the people’s needs are being met,” said DNR spokesman Chris McCloud.