Secretary of state: Rutherford

Thursday, November 2, 2006

Jesse White, 72, of Chicago is one of the most beloved officeholders in state government and it's easy to see why. He's easy going, personable, caring, and has worked to help inner city kids with the Jesse White Tumbling Team, a program he's run for 47 years.

On Nov. 7 he is challenged in his re-election bid for secretary of state by Dan Rutherford, a Republican state senator from Chenoa.

White's done a solid job running the office and has plans for the next term.

He's interested in making younger drivers better drivers and to that end is pushing to increase the amount of time teens have to drive with a parent before getting their licenses. He's also for a 10 p.m. curfew period for 16-year-old drivers.

White has the office offering more services online and through the mail and he has further developed the organ donor program. He's helped clear up a problem of people abusing disability placards.

White says he's restored credibility to the office after the scandals that plagued and finally convicted former secretary of state and then governor George Ryan.

White has improved appearances with moves like hiring former U.S. attorney Jim Burns as his inspector general, but White fails to acknowledge the problems of nepotism in his office. His daughter's salary in the secretary of state's office tripled ($112,000) while he was at the helm. Her stepson was hired to the office as were White's three nieces, his biographer, his chief of staff's wife, three children and four relatives. Nepotism is a problem in the secretary of state's office and White should recognize that and eliminate these conflicts rather than defend them.

Rutherford, 51, has 14 years in the legislature and is vice president of Service Master Corporation, a service industry company.

He promises to eliminate any doubt of impropriety in the office, and his reputation supports that.

Rutherford says his 20 years of experience in the private sector gives him a more service-oriented approach to the office. He wants to make the driver's license facilities more customer-focused.

Rutherford has some fresh ideas. One of them is to allow people to make appointments to do business at the driver's license facilities. This would allow those who schedule in advance a chance to do business without waiting. The facilities would still need a place for walk-ins, and Rutherford says that can be done without extra staffing.

He suggests keeping the offices open on Saturday afternoon.

He also wants to set up a standardized plate with a simple logo for charities rather than having a different plate for each charity, which is now the case. This, he says, will make it easier for officers to use the plate numbers.

He says the secretary of state's office has fallen behind in the use of technology, and he would move it ahead by allowing the use of credit cards to pay for services. Only 15 percent of facilities accept payments by credit card (and with those, only Discover Card can be used).

He also wants to send e-mail reminders for license renewal and offer PIN numbers so people can check their records and official documents online.

White's popularity is deserved, but it's time for a less bureaucratic and squeaky clean approach to this office. Rutherford offers both and is endorsed.