Lisa Madigan, Candidate for Illinois Attorney General

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Lisa Madigan

Candidate Full Name: Lisa Madigan

Office: Illinois Attorney General

Party: Democrat

Email Address: info@lisamadigan.org

Web Site: www.lisamadigan.org

Campaign Name: Citizens for Lisa Madigan

Campaign Office Mailing Address: 500 N. Dearborn, Suite 510, Chicago, IL 60654

Phone: 312.670.0606

Survey Questions (Character limit of 2,000 per response)

1. Please tell us about yourself, your background and why you believe you are qualified to hold this office.

I have dedicated my career to public service. Before becoming an attorney, I was a volunteer high school teacher at a Zulu girls' school in South Africa during Apartheid. When I returned to Chicago, I worked on the West Side, helping to develop an after-school program to keep kids away from gangs and drugs. I then practiced at a law firm until my election to the State Senate in 1998.

As Attorney General, I have an exceptional record of standing up, speaking out and fearlessly fighting for all the people of Illinois. I have achieved unprecedented recoveries, including more than $10 billion in state revenue. I am a national leader in holding Wall Street accountable for fraudulent conduct during the foreclosure crisis, recovering $2.8 billion for Illinois homeowners, communities and pension systems so far.

I am tackling threats to Illinoisans' financial security and privacy. With student loan debt burdening more people, I was the first Attorney General to sue companies for fraudulently claiming they can reduce student loan debt, and am taking action against for-profit colleges and investigating Sallie Mae for abusive practices. I also have created a unit to help people recover from identity theft by repairing their credit, assisting more than 35,000 victims remove more than $26 million in unauthorized charges.

I have prosecuted public officials and recovered taxpayer funds lost through Medicaid fraud and public contracting fraud. I have increased government accountability by leading efforts to strengthen our sunshine laws and creating a Public Access Counselor to help people obtain government information.

To protect children, I lead the Illinois Internet Crimes Against Children task force, which has been involved in arresting more than 791 offenders. I have targeted the most active child pornographers, arresting an unprecedented number of them for trading horrifying images of sexual violence against infants and toddlers.

I seek re-election to continue fighting for all the people of Illinois.

2. What is the most important role of the Attorney General's office?

The Attorney General must be an independent and aggressive advocate on behalf of the State and the people of Illinois. My record demonstrates just that.

The biggest issue the State, and as a result, the people of Illinois, have faced recently and continue to face has been the financial crisis and its impact on the State's economic viability. During the fiscal crisis, I have generated more than $10 billion in revenue, providing needed funding for critical programs. In the first six months of 2014, I have recovered more than $653 million for the State. Since July 1, I have recovered an additional $384 million for the state's pension systems, homeowners and communities.

I have also worked to hold Wall Street accountable for fraudulent conduct leading to the foreclosure crisis, recovering $2.8 billion so far for Illinois homeowners, communities and pension systems. I have represented consumers when utility companies are seeking rate increases, resulting in more than $2 billion in rate relief for consumers. Through all of these efforts and many others, I have recovered more than $15 billion for the State and the people of Illinois during an unprecedented fiscal crisis.

I also have effectively fought fraud and abuse in government and increased accountability. I have gone after individuals and companies that defraud the state and the taxpayers - including through public contracting fraud, Medicaid fraud and grant fraud - and have taken legal action to protect taxpayers, such as by preventing former Governors Ryan and Blagojevich from receiving public pensions. My office has successfully prosecuted a number of public officials, including a Democratic state representative, a Democratic state's attorney and a Democratic county sheriff. Additionally, I have expanded the office's work to fight for government accountability by creating the first-ever Public Access Counselor in the office and now respond to more than 3,400 requests a year from Illinoisans struggling to access public records.

3. One important responsibility of the Attorney General's office is to help protect consumers. What are the most pressing issues impacting consumers today? What can the Attorney General's office do to help consumers?

The Attorney General is charged with enforcing the consumer fraud laws on behalf of the people of Illinois. To fulfill this role, the Attorney General must identify threats to Illinoisans' financial security and privacy and take action to protect people. I have consistently done this, recovering and saving billions for Illinois consumers.

When the mortgage foreclosure crisis began, I worked to hold big banks accountable for fraud, recovering $2.8 billion for homeowners, communities and pension systems. I also created a unit of expert housing counselors within our Consumer Fraud Division to make sure that my office provides direct help to families struggling to stay in their homes.

With identity theft increasing, I created a unit of trained experts to help people repair their credit, assisting more than 35,000 victims to remove more than $26 million in unauthorized charges from accounts.

Recently, as more and more Illinoisans are dealing with staggering amounts of student debt, I became the first Attorney General in the nation to sue companies for fraudulently claiming they can reduce student loan debt. I am also taking action against for-profit colleges and investigating Sallie Mae for abusive practices, similar to those I saw during the foreclosure crisis.

When utility companies have sought unfair rate increases, I have represented consumers and opposed those increased bills, resulting in more than $2 billion in rate relief for consumers.

I also have advocated on behalf of healthcare consumers to challenge unfair decisions by insurance companies and make sure patients receive the care they need, saving consumers more than $24.3 million in healthcare benefits.

These examples demonstrate my ability to use the tools of the office - and to create new tools as necessary - to protect Illinoisans from new and existing threats to their financial security.

Click Here to return to the Online Candidates Forum Main Page