Burr Ridge Official's Posts Questioned

BURR RIDGE, IL – A Burr Ridge trustee's Facebook page is the subject of an ethical question.

Trustee Tony Schiappa maintains a page that is titled, "Tony Schiappa, Burr Ridge Trustee." The page, which is categorized as "Government & Public Service," contains an introduction that says he is "honored to be one of the trustees of the Village of Burr Ridge."

On the page, he recently promoted the candidacies of Arlene Cabana and Baron Leacock, who were running for the Lyons Township High School and Hinsdale High School District 86 boards, respectively.

Illinois law bars government employees and officers of any municipality from taking part in political activities in their official roles.

In response to a Patch inquiry, Alisa Kaplan, executive director of Chicago-based Reform for Illinois, said Schiappa maintains a constitutional right to advocate for candidates on his own time.

But he cannot do so when he is acting as a government official.

"It's common for elected officials to campaign for themselves or others on their own time – there's nothing wrong with that," Kaplan said in an email. "But they need to set up personal or campaign pages to do so."

In an email to Patch, Schiappa had another view.

"I am the only administrator for my Facebook account titled 'Tony Schiappa, Burr Ridge Trustee,'" Schiappa said. "The Facebook account does not have a link to the Village of Burr Ridge Web site or Facebook page. My Facebook account has no affiliation with the Village of Burr Ridge."

Asked about that, Kaplan disagreed. She said Schiappa "clearly presents it as being an official page and therefore that he is acting in his official capacity on it."

Schiappa was first elected in 2015.