A former Western Springs District 101 board member again approached the District 204 School Board Monday night seeking answers about its relationship with former Lyons Township Treasurer Robert Healy.
Martin Brown asked D204 to pay more than $2 million in administrative fees to the Lyons Township Treasurer’s Office that Healy waived as part of a verbal agreement that originated in 1999.
The district uses its own staff to perform most payroll, billing and bookkeeping tasks. But it’s still bound to pay those fees—now totaling more than $2 million—because it wasn’t officially emancipated from the TTO, according to a Better Government Association report.
Healy was arrested last week and charged with stealing roughly $1.5 million from the Lyon’s Township Treasurer’s Office over the course of two decades, the Cook County State’s Attorney said.
He resigned in 2012 amid allegations that he misused more than $500,000 in sick and vacation time.
While the D204 board did not respond during the meeting to Brown’s demand, its members have in the past denied any wrongdoing.
“We did not see why the taxpayers of District 204 should pay for a service they were not receiving,” Board President Mark Pera said in May. “I am not aware as we sit here 13 years later of any adverse impact on another district.”
The district attempted to extract itself from the TTO this spring with the help of a bill from State Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs). The legislative session ended before the Illinois House could vote on the matter.
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