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Rod Blagojevich
Dan Hynes
Lou Lang
Jim Oberweis
Steve Rauschenberger
Joe Birkett
Bill Brady
John Cox
Jim Durkin
Judy Baar Topinka
Color Codes:
Black - Potential Candidate
Green - Active Candidate
Red - Lost Primary
Orange - Candidate has dropped out or is
not running
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Daniel W. Hynes (Democrat) was elected to a second term as State Comptroller on November 5, 2002, by a margin of more than one million votes. As the
state's chief fiscal officer, Hynes, 34, has become the state's leading voice for fiscal responsibility. In the process, he has focused his
administration on consumer and taxpayer advocacy, long-term budget reform and innovative policy.
Hynes engineered the creation of a Rainy Day Fund, designed to ensure that the state can meet its financial obligations during economic hard times and
revenue slowdowns. Creation of the fund was a part of the Comptroller's Agenda for Financial Stability, which also calls for controlled growth in state
spending, paying down our debts and truth-in-budgeting. The Comptroller will renew his call for long-term budget reform in 2003.
The Comptroller also regulates private cemeteries and funeral homes. After holding statewide hearings and receiving input from hundreds of citizens,
Hynes spearheaded bi-partisan passage of the most sweeping consumer protection reforms of those industries in 25 years. His office also toughened its
oversight of crematories. In addition, Hynes established a toll-free cemetery hotline and a special web page, created and distributed a consumer video,
advocated legislation that doubled the plot allowance benefit for veteran burials, and sponsored the cleanup of dozens of neglected cemeteries across
the state.
Hynes believes the Comptroller should be a watchdog for taxpayers and consumers. He cracked down on deadbeats by sponsoring successful legislation that
prohibits tax scofflaws from getting state contracts. In 2003, he will introduce similar legislation to prohibit corporations that have falsified or
distorted their finances from getting state contracts. Hynes also put sharper teeth into the state's debt collection efforts, more than doubling the
monies collected through the Comptroller's offset system.
Hynes has re-energized the Local Government Division of his office. Under his administration, local government financial reporting compliance has
increased from 65 percent to 95 percent. In addition, his office has provided statewide training and assistance to thousands of local government
officials, which resulted in initiatives that saved local taxpayers more than $1 million.
Hynes further demonstrated his commitment to openness and accountability by providing extensive information on his web site about the workings of state
government, and he was the first constitutional officer to offer some of that information in Spanish.
During his tenure, Hynes has expanded the state's commercial direct deposit program, encouraging state vendors to receive their payments electronically,
thereby saving money and increasing efficiency. Under Hynes' leadership, participation in the direct deposit program has grown substantially.
Before taking office, Hynes was a health care attorney for a Chicago law firm. A native of Chicago, he married Christina Kerger, M.D., in June, 1999. He
graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Notre Dame in 1990 with a degree in economics and computer applications, and earned a J.D. with Honors
in 1993 from the Loyola University School of Law. Hynes is active in numerous civic and charitable organizations. |
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