Four of the state’s public universities, including Eastern, are scrambling to reassemble their Board of Trustees membership after Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Tuesday signed an ethics bill outlawing lobbyists from serving on state boards.

Already, two Eastern trustees have resigned because of their affiliation with trucking and real estate lobbies, jobs they rely upon for most of their personal income. Board members at three other state universities – Northern Illinois University, Southern Illinois University and University of Illinois – will soon resign for similar reasons.

“I think there were a couple of people who were innocent bystanders in this,” President Lou Hencken said on Wednesday. “It would have been a stretch to see if it was a conflict of interest; but on the other hand, to ensure there aren’t loopholes down the line sometimes you have to cover the whole thing.”

After the regional governing boards system was scrapped in 1995, each state university developed a Board of Trustees body that serves as the school’s final decision maker.

The bill, House Bill 702, touted as the toughest, most comprehensive ethics reform package in state history, was passed to give citizens a reason to “start believing in their government again,” Blagojevich said in a Tuesday press conference.

Since the governor appoints BOT members to the state universities, they are categorized as a state-appointed official, grouped with constitutional officers and the General Assembly. Under the new laws beginning Feb. 1, board members and their spouses are prohibited from lobbying.

“I don’t think any group ought to be singled out for exclusion,” said Zack Stamp, Western Illinois University’s board chair, who resigned earlier this week. “I understand the politics of it, the public perception that we are evil. Therefore we should be excluded.”

A lobbyist’s main job is to sway the Legislature and this can present a conflict of interest even when work and legislation don’t overlap, said Jeff Ashley, assistant political science professor. He believes Blagojevich passed the bill to reduce public perception that decision makers are biased.

That is why there was some confusion when the board members were restricted. For example, one of Eastern’s resigning board members, Betsy Mitchell, represents The Girl Scouts of America.

Former Eastern board member Julie Sullivan resigned the day the bill was enacted. Sullivan’s only client is the Illinois Association of Realtors.

“I don’t know if it’s any one particular scandal here or there,” Ashley said, “but it’s the idea that most people don’t trust their government, and they’re wanting to change that perception or that image.”

(subhead) Six board members could resign statewide (subhead)

While most universities do not have another board meeting until late spring, Eastern’s board will meet via teleconference Dec. 19 with only five of its eight members. A third board member, Bob Manion, resigned in August and is yet to be replaced.

At Western Illinois University, Ted Brunsvold and Stamp resigned. At Northern Illinois, Catherine Adducci will soon resign because of her husband’s involvement with a lobbying organization, according to the university’s public affairs office. At Southern Illinois University, board Chair Molly D’Esposito plans to step down, said Scott Kaiser, an assistant to the president at Southern.

Blagojevich vetoed last spring an earlier version of the bill, requesting the bill be reworded. Stamp knew then his position with the board was in danger. Still, the Western Illinois graduate who chaired the university’s presidential search last year contends conflict of interest is not a problem.

“If it did,” Stamp says, “you simply refrain from voting. The reality, candidly, is that it costs you money to be on this board. The time you sacrifice going to meetings, going to functions costs them money time off from work, time away from families. So they should be applauded for being willing to do it.”

Because of the comprehensiveness of the ethics bill, which applies to all state employees, the governor is open to additional tweaking next legislative session, said Tom Schafer, a press secretary for Blagojevich in the Chicago office.

While he said no specific entity was targeted, Schafer said many saw it as a reform for the state’s legislative and executive branches. Of the approximately 130 state-appointed boards and commissions, Schafer estimated 40 are effected by the new ruling.

“Was part of the mix the Board of Trustees?” Schafer said. “I doubt it.”

(subhead) The replacement process (subhead)

The process to replace the vacant board positions begins at the university, then works to the Office of Boards and Commissions and ends with Blagojevich.

The office screens applicants’ resumes and conducts background checks before passing on the names to the governor, who Schafer said does not “change their decision too often.” Because the process has multiple buffers, Schafer said if the names were on the commissions’ desk today, the wait would still take weeks.

At Eastern, the alumni association is currently compiling names to submit to replace the three vacant positions. The changeover is greater at Southern Illinois, where four board members – two whose terms ended last year – need to be replaced.

Schafer said letting terms extend beyond their original timeframe is normal practice.

Neal Young, undergraduate Student Government president at Southern, said Chancellor Walter V. Wendler told him he estimates the governor will begin appointing members in January. Such a timeframe will not apply to other schools, Schafer said, noting Blagojevich will move as “quickly as possible.”

The process to replace the board members begins when names are provided from the university. When asked if replacements would be found by the end of Fiscal Year 2004 on June 30, Schafer said it is, “hard to say. It may be one or two or three (members).”

Until then, Eastern and three other state universities will be scrambling.

“As far as Eastern goes, we’re now down two additional trustees, and we wait until the board appoints,” Hencken said. “The board was great and still will be great, but it’s tough when you lose those two people.”