Illinois Senate 27th District Democratic candidate: Joe Sonnefeldt

Complete coverage of the local and national primary and general election, including results, analysis and voter resources to keep Chicago voters informed.

On Feb. 18, Joe Sonnefeldt appeared before the Chicago Sun-Times Editorial Board. We asked him why he’s running for the Democratic nomination in the Illinois State Senate 27th district in the March 2018 primary:

My name is Joe Sonnefeldt. I lived in Mt. Prospect for 20 years and I’ve been involved in a number of campaigns including education funding referendum, congressional campaigns in the 10th District. I have been a member of the Wheeling Township Democrats and served as secretary on their executive board for four years. In 2011 I ran for the Board of Education in Mt. Prospect and I’m now serving as school board president. In the school district I was on the education foundation, I established a music scholarship fund for students there, a nonprofit organization back in 2011. And I’ve just been you know involved in many projects pertaining to youth and I was awarded the Shining Star Award by the Village of Mt. Prospect for youth service in 2016. So my experience has been in working with young people and also working for progressive causes like passing the Affordable Care Act and working for President Obama’s campaign in 2008.

My top priority is changing the way we fund education in Illinois. No other state in the country relies more on property taxes than we do here in Illinois. The system is unfair and it’s unsustainable. So we need to shift some of that burden away from home owners by having the state assume more of the responsibility for funding education by identifying new sources of revenue. In addition, the inequity in the system is also caused by the property tax system. Because some districts are very wealthy with commercial and industrial property tax revenue while some are lacking in that area. So I have an idea for how we can share commercial property tax more broadly so that we don’t have districts, some are haves and some are have nots.

The Chicago Sun-Times sent the candidates seeking nominations for Illinois State Senate a list of questions to find out their views on a range of important issues facing the state of Illinois. Joe Sonnefeldt submitted the following answers to our questionnaire:

QUESTION: Please explain what your specific cause or causes will be. Please avoid a generic topic or issue in your answer.

ANSWER: Work on restructuring the funding of public education in order to shift some of the burden away from residential property taxes and enable the state to fund a greater share. TIF reform- there are MANY facets to this. Raising the minimum wage in IL

Joe Sonnefeldt

Running for: Illinois State Senate 27th district

Political/civic background: Mt. Prospect School District 57 Board President 2016-present

2016 recipient of Mount Prospect “Shining Star” award for Youth Service

SD57 Board Member 2011- present

Wheeling Township Democratic Organization Secretary 2012-2016

District 57 Music Scholarships, N.F.P. President & founder, 2011-present

Volunteer with Bernie Sanders 2016, Obama for America 2008, David Hoffman for Senate 2010, Dan Seals for Congress 2006, ’08 & ’10; various others…

MPSD57 Referendum Campaign co-chair 2003

District 57 Education Foundation 2000-2002

Occupation: self-employed musician and music instructor

Education: Bachelor of Music, American Conservatory of Music 1987

Campaign website: joeforstatesenate.com

QUESTION: Please list three district-specific needs that will be your priorities. This could be a project that is needed in your district, or a rule that needs to be changed, or some federal matter that has been ignored.

ANSWER: property tax relief, TIF reform, better paying jobs. My top priorities (above) are aligned with these needs.

TOPIC: Pension debt

QUESTION: In 2017, Illinois’ unfunded pension liability ballooned to at least $130 billion. Do you support re-amortizing this debt? Please explain your answer. And what is your position on a constitutional amendment that would reduce the liability of the pension debt?

ANSWER: I do support re-amortization of the pension debt. I would support the plan put forward by the Center for Tax & Budget Accountability or something similar. I’m not sure what constitutional amendment you’re referring to. I haven’t seen specific language. I’m not in favor of amending the pension protection clause to enable the state to diminish or impair state employees’ pensions.

TOPIC: Minimum wage

QUESTION: Cook County and Chicago are on their way to paying a $13 hourly minimum wage. Many suburbs in the county, however, have opted out of the wage increase. Should Illinois raise its minimum wage from $8.25 an hour? Please explain. And if you favor an increase in the state minimum wage, what should it be?

ANSWER: I support a gradual increase to $15 an hour over a few years. I’m flexible on the timeline, but the minimum wage should then be increased annually (indexed) at an amount tied to inflation/CPI. We cannot grow our economy if we are constantly depressing wages. All of the gains of the economic recovery have gone to the top 1-2% of income earners and that disparity has been especially evident in IL due to our regressive tax structure. So an increase in the minimum wage should be part of an overall growth strategy that includes a progressive income tax and other tax reform.

TOPIC: Marijuana

QUESTION: Should recreational marijuana be legalized in Illinois? Please explain.

ANSWER: Yes. It’s already used widely (it’s more accessible to minors than is alcohol) so it should be legalized and more closely regulated in its sale & use. Tax money would help the state’s budget; local governments would save money on the prosecution of pot related “crimes”; it would also reduce the expense and injustice of marijuana related incarceration. It’s already been done in enough states that we can learn from them in terms of what works and what doesn’t.

TOPIC: Casinos

QUESTION: Would you support more casinos in Illinois, including in Chicago. What about racinos? Please explain.

ANSWER: There’s a typo in this question (“racinos”).

I may support a new casino if it can be demonstrated that it would create new revenue for a region in need as opposed to draining revenue away from any existing casinos. Some areas of the state may be saturated and I would not support new casinos in these areas.

TOPIC: Property tax freeze

QUESTION: A property tax freeze in Illinois has been proposed frequently since Gov. Bruce Rauner took office. What’s your position? If you favor a freeze, how many years should it last? Should the freeze exclude property tax increases to service the debt, make pension payments or cover the cost of public safety? Again, please explain.

ANSWER: I oppose any property tax freeze until an alternative funding formula (and additional sources) for education is passed. Public schools in Illinois are more reliant on local property taxes than any other state in the U.S. This is the root of the problem. Some school districts would be severely hurt by a statewide freeze. All districts are unique, and it’s irresponsible to call for a statewide freeze until alternative sources of funding are identified.

TOPIC: Property tax freeze

QUESTION: A property tax freeze in Illinois has been proposed frequently since Gov. Bruce Rauner took office. What’s your position? If you favor a freeze, how many years should it last? Should the freeze exclude property tax increases to service the debt, make pension payments or cover the cost of public safety? Again, please explain.

ANSWER: We should spend more on public education (and provide property tax relief) by generating new revenue from any of the following: a progressive income tax, a financial transaction tax, taxing recreational marijuana and taxing luxury services. We can also address education funding inequities by pooling and distributing commercial and industrial property tax on a wider basis (perhaps county-wide) than using current school district boundaries.

TOPIC: Opioids

QUESTION: How can the Legislature best address the problem of opioid abuse and addiction? Please cite specific laws you have supported or would support.

ANSWER: Monitor opioid prescriptions being written by doctors. Detach the prescription of opioids from hospital satisfaction (HPSHCA) surveys. Adequately fund drug addiction treatment centers. Encourage (fund) research into pain treatment alternatives. Make medical cannabis more easily available for the treatment of pain. I’m not aware of what legislation is pending and would need to review any specific laws on which I may be called to vote.

TOPIC: Guns

QUESTION: Do you support a state ban on gun silencers? Please explain.

ANSWER: Yes. Silencers (or suppressors) make the job of law enforcement more difficult when responding to an active shooter. Silencers also make it more difficult for bystanders or potential victims to avoid gunfire. Recreational shooters have hearing protection available to them. I’m a professional musician and I use hearing protection all the time. This is available to gun owners as well, and they have been using it to this point. The attempt to legalize gun silencers is simply a ploy to create a new market (and profits) for the gun industry.

QUESTION: Should all gun dealers in Illinois be licensed by the state? Please explain.

ANSWER: Yes. Gun dealers sell some of the most lethal products available to the public. Licensing is warranted.

QUESTION: Should family members be empowered to petition courts for the temporary removal of guns from emotionally or mentally disturbed people who may be a danger to themselves or others? Please explain.

ANSWER: Yes. Family members are in the best position to know when a gun owner may be a danger to himself or others. The courts are an appropriate place for them to make their case.

TOPIC: Medicaid

QUESTION: What would you do to ensure the long-term viability of the state’s Medicaid program? Do you support continued Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act? Should the state continue on a path toward managed care for Medicaid beneficiaries? Should everyone be permitted to buy into Medicaid?

ANSWER:I think a 3 pronged approach is best: 1) make sure sound actuarial data is used to set appropriate rates 2) create an economy in which fewer people are living in poverty and need Medicaid 3) adequately fund Medicaid for those in need

Do you support continued Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act?

Only as needed- I would prefer a single payer health care system.

Should the state continue on a path toward managed care for Medicaid beneficiaries?

Only if it can be shown that this results in better patient outcomes along with savings to the program.

Should everyone be permitted to buy into Medicaid?

Yes.

TOPIC: College student exodus

QUESTION: Illinois is one of the largest exporters of college students in the country. What would you do to encourage the best and brightest young people in Illinois to attend college here at home? Does Illinois have too many state universities, as some have argued?

ANSWER: Offer free or greatly reduced tuition for Illinois residents to attend state schools. Offer a measure of student loan forgiveness or discounted tuition to those who live and work in IL after college.

Does Illinois have too many state universities, as some have argued?

I don’t know who is arguing this or what the basis for the argument is. New York State (S.U.N.Y.) has 13 universities and numerous state colleges and community colleges in their system. IL has 9. I would need more information to study and form an opinion.

TOPIC: Gov. Rauner

QUESTION: Please list three of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s principles, or decisions he has made, with which you agree. Also please list three of the governor’s principles, or decisions he has made, with which you disagree.

ANSWER: I agree with his decision(s) to sign HB40, The Trust Act, and automatic voter registration (SB1933).

I disagree with his decision to not compromise on a budget bill since he’s been elected.

I disagree with his insistence on a property tax freeze without identifying alternative funding sources for education.

I disagree with his penchant for wanting to privatize government services as much as possible, including his desire to increase the number of for-profit charter schools in the state.