Andy Shaw

Unless you’ve been living in the Deep Tunnel, you’ve probably heard the State of Illinois is facing a daunting public employee pension crisis, and Chicago — mainly its schools and municipal government — is tiptoeing around similar fiscal land mines that could blow up in the faces of retirees and taxpayers.

Given the recent history of the office both men are running for, Illinois voters are entitled, at the very least, to straight answers from the two men who want to govern the state.

Inspector General or Inspector Clouseau? Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference.

Surprisingly, the findings landed with a thud, generating minimal media coverage and scant reaction from lawmakers and community leaders.

It’s disappointing, and at times heartbreaking, to watch the city’s Animal Care and Control agency (ACC) doing what critics consider a poor job of handling lost, abandoned and stray pets and wildlife.

Fewer watchdogs and less vigilance in the seat of state government presented the Better Government Association with a challenge and an opportunity as we considered the best way to fulfill one of our key objectives: Expanding the scope and impact of our watchdog work beyond the Chicago area.

We take ’em to court, because we won’t tolerate attempts to abuse or weaken the state’s open records law.

Illinois is just one of several states teetering precariously on the edge of the fiscal cliff.

The BGA found at least fifteen Cook County suburbs that are now billing non-residents after providing emergency responses to their accidents.

The Emanuel administration apparently made enough progress in wringing illegal politics out of hiring, firing and promotions at City Hall to finally shed the yoke of a court-appointed monitor who’s been policing personnel decisions for the past decade.