Kankakee Mayor Chasity Wells-Armstrong did not file mandatory SEI for KRMA

KANKAKEE, IL. (ECWd) –

Kankakee Mayor Chasity Wells-Armstrong did not file her required 2018 Statement of Economic Interests (“SEI”) for her position on the Board of Directors of the Kankakee River Metropolitan Agency (“KRMA”).

The Illinois Governmental Ethic Act requires she submit an SEI on an annual basis, and no later than May 1, of each year.

The purpose behind these economic interest statements is to facilitate the public’s right to information concerning financial dealings between an office holder or candidate and the unit of government in which office they hold or are seeking.

Those required to file, include, but are not limited to [5 ILCS 420/4A-101(g)and (h)]:

(g) Persons who are elected to office in a unit of local government, and candidates for nomination or election to that office, including regional superintendents of school districts.

(h) Persons appointed to the governing board of a unit of local government, or of a special district, and persons appointed to a zoning board, or zoning board of appeals, or to a regional, county, or municipal plan commission, or to a board of review of any county, and persons appointed to the Board of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority and any Trustee appointed under Section 22 of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority Act, and persons appointed to a board or commission of a unit of local government who have authority to authorize the expenditure of public funds. This subsection does not apply to members of boards or commissions who function in an advisory capacity.

In the Mayor’s case, subparagraph (h) mandates her filing for the KRMA.

Some of the penalties for failing to file include, and can be found in Section 4A-105:

• forfeiture of office (rules of forfeiture found in Section 4A-107)
• late filing penalty of $15
• fine of $100 per day starting May 15 of each year

These penalties are only valid if she was notified of the filing requirement and of her failure to file. Other members of the Board of Directors of KRMA filed their SEIs, so initial notification may be hard to deny.

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