Addison Township Politicians Trade Charges

ADDISON, IL – Addison Township's new supervisor last week accused his predecessor of overseeing "grossly mismanaged" finances.

"My administration is putting an end to the madness," Supervisor Bobby Hernandez said during a news conference, which a public relations firm advertised.

The township includes the north part of Elmhurst.

Hernandez alleged former Supervisor Dennis Reboletti's administration was responsible for financial malfeasance, nepotism, "bloated" salaries and missing property.

Asked for details, Hernandez, a Democrat elected in April, said he would share them later.

In an interview this week, Reboletti, an Elmhurst Republican who lost to Hernandez after two terms, said the supervisor is making "malicious" allegations without any documentation.

At the news conference, Hernandez alleged that Reboletti left the township with a $900,000 shortfall. He said the township spent $60,000 over two years on a lobbyist "to benefit insiders."

Hernandez announced he would lay off 30 percent of the township's workforce. He said the reductions would follow the provisions of contracts with unions that formed just before he took office.

"We are instituting performance expectations and accountability measures for all employees," Hernandez said.

Another speaker at the news conference was Bill Velazquez, a lobbyist who runs the firm, Veritas Strategies. Since it was hired in early June, the firm has received $50,000 from the township, according to public records. The firm is set to get $240,000 over a year.

Reboletti called Hernandez's allegation of a $900,000 budget hole "patently false." He said that when he left, the township's corporate township fund's balance was $1.2 million.

"We paid off all the bills," he said.

Reboletti accused Hernandez of going on a spending binge with new positions, amounting to about $900,000. The posts include the finance director, human services director and deputy township clerk, he said.

He said the township hired lobbyist John Humes under his administration. Humes, he said, handled issues at the state and county levels.

"We have a supermajority of Democrats in the General Assembly," said Reboletti, a former state representative. "You have the same circumstances in the county. You use all the resources you can to make sure the people of the township are served."

In response to a question at the news conference, Hernandez wouldn't say whether he would hire a lobbyist.

In the interview, Reboletti said Hernandez shouldn't have made allegations in a news conference without proof.

"It's the theater of the absurd," Reboletti said. "It's not about facts or policy."

He also questioned laying off workers just before Labor Day.

"You tell everyone you are pro-union and lay off a bunch of workers," Reboletti said.

In the April election, Democrats took control of many traditionally Republican suburban townships.

Under state law, townships have three mandatory functions – maintaining roads, assessing properties for tax purposes and providing what is known as "general assistance." Townships can also provide a variety of social services.