2017 Election Questionnaire: Jaime Olson, Bolingbrook Village Clerk

Name: Jaime J. Olson

Age: 39

Town of residence: Bolingbrook

Position sought: Village Clerk of Bolingbrook

Family:

My husband is Joe Giamanco. He is a local attorney and partner at the Law Offices of Giamanco and Ooink. We are the parents of Natalia (8) and Jack (3).

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?: I have proudly been employed by the U.S. federal government for twelve years. I am currently the Labor Relations Officer for Region 5 of the U.S. General Services Administration.

Education: I graduated from St. Charles High School in May of 1995. In May of 1999, I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and history (with honors in history) from the University of Iowa. I graduated from DePaul University College of Law in 2002 with a Juris Doctor.

Occupation: For the past 15 years, I have worked as a labor and employment law attorney and specialist. Immediately after law school, I served as an Administrative Law Judge for the Illinois Labor Relations Board. I then had the privilege of working as labor law attorney for the Federal Labor Relations Authority and as in-house counsel for the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150. In 2009, I became a labor law specialist for the Federal Aviation Administration and then served as a Human Resources Manager for the Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center in Aurora, IL. For the past two years, I have had the pleasure of serving as the Labor Relations Officer for Region 5 of the U.S. General Services Administration. Upon being elected Village Clerk, I will maintain my position with the federal government. I will not turn my elected position into a full-time job, unlike the current Village Clerk who draws two salaries from the Village.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing our Village is the $316,000,000 of debt our Village has accumulated. While the Village Clerk does not control the debt, the Clerk is the keeper of records and is charged with the responsibility of making such information easily accessible to residents. If you search the Village’s website, however, information regarding the debt is insubstantial. Moreover, I have found that most residents do not know that the Village is over three hundred million dollars in debt or that our debt is twice as much as Naperville and three times as much as Romeoville. While the current Clerk did not cause the debt, she was the keeper of the records and charged with making this information available to the public. For far too long our residents have had to jump through hoops, such as multiple Freedom of Information Act requests, in order to obtain basic information about what is going on in our Village. If elected, I will ensure that residents are made aware of critical issues, like the debt. I will publish this information on the Village website and update the information regularly. I intend to bring transparency to the Village by ensuring that government documents, plans, and data, are easily accessible to the public.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

My education, finance knowledge and work experience set me apart from the other candidate in this race. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Iowa as well as a Juris Doctor from DePaul University College of Law. I am also an Illinois licensed attorney. I have managed the records of a government facility with over six hundred employees and am well versed in record creation and retention policies and procedures. I am very familiar with the Freedom of Information Act process, prohibitions concerning the release of information that contains personally identifiable information, and formal and informal methods of information discovery.

As a political outsider, I will bring a fresh perspective to Village hall. The current Village Clerk has held the position for nearly three decades. She not only serves as the elected Village Clerk, but has also hired herself as the Administrative Aid to the Clerk. As the Administrative Aid (to herself), she garners a second salary and benefits from the Village that amount to an additional $70,000 at the expense of taxpayers. I believe this creates a clear conflict of interest.

Contrary to the current Clerk, I will not parlay my election as the Clerk into a full time job at the Village. I intend on keeping my personal livelihood separate from my elected responsibilities. I will serve as intended by the Village code and will not take advantage of our Village government for personal gain.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)?

I believe that the current office holder is a good person. She is very involved in the community and has shown a passion for helping people though social and community outreach groups.

While I commend her for her civic outreach, the current Village Clerk has neglected some of the basic duties of her elected position. According to the Village, the Clerk is the ‘local election official’ of Bolingbrook. Not withstanding this delegation, the current Clerk discontinued early voting in Village Hall.

As a result of the Clerk’s failure to hold early voting in her office, Will County Clerk Nancy Schultz Voots took it upon herself to find a location and provide early voting to Bolingbrook Residents. Luckily, the Bolingbrook library opened its doors and helped Schultz Voots provide invaluable services to Bolingbrook voters.

Rather than burdening our library and the County Clerk, the Village Clerk should do their job and oversee the local elections. Moreover, the Village Clerk ’s office should serve as the official early voting location for Bolingbrook residents. As the Village Clerk, I intend to fulfill my duties as the local election official and reestablish early voting at Village Hall.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform:

While there are many areas of concern, here are a few of the issues that define my campaign platform:

(1) The Village has certain obligations, legal and ethical, to publish information on salaries and benefits paid to its employees. The Village’s own website acknowledges this. The last time the Village complied with these requirements was 2015. More than 2 years have passed and this information has yet to be updated. Residents have a right to know where their taxpayer dollars are going, especially when it comes to paying public officials with those funds. I will make sure such information is easily accessible and keep it current.

(2) The Village Clerk is considered to be the “local election official” for the Village there is no logical reason why the Clerk does not serve as an early voting location. I intend to reestablish the convenience of early voting at Village Hall as it existed a few years ago.

(3) While the Village has information posted on its website, much of it is not easy to locate, I plan to make it searchable to make sure residents can find what they are looking for with less effort.

(4) I would like to see the calendar (that is on the homepage for the Village website) incorporate information regarding community organizations.

(5) By making sure residents are kept informed on Village business I am confident that we can increase the transparency within the Village.

If you gain this position, what accomplishment would define your term in office as a success?

If elected Clerk, I will be successful if I accomplish increased transparency and resident knowledge of Village expenditures, resolutions, policies and plans. I want Village information to be easily accessible and comprehensible to all residents.

In order to achieve this I am going to reach out to residents via a monthly newsletter, in which I inform them about things that have happened in Village Hall and throughout Bolingbrook and provide them with an update on the Village debt, budget and expenditures. This newsletter will be sent to residents via email and will also be available on the Village website.

Please share with voters a story about wisdom gained from a mistake you made in your life or career.

During my first pregnancy, I was diagnosed with preeclampsia. My doctor conveyed the seriousness of the condition to me. Nonetheless, I thought I could persevere and ignored much of her advice. I refused to change my work and home habits and would not delegate anything to my husband or colleagues. I wanted to show that I could be the career woman, mom, and wife without any help.

To make a long story short, I almost died and ended up delivering my daughter at 34 weeks and 5 days. Fortunately, both my baby and I pulled through.

Through this experience I learned that I can rely on others and not micromanage. My husband and colleagues came through for me. My clients were happy and my home was as it should be.

As Bon Jovi says, “no man is an island.” Bolingbrook is not based on one person. It will succeed through the incorporation of many voices and helpmates in its administration, just as I succeeded with the help of others.

Why should voters trust you?

I am beholden to no one. Neither my husband, nor I receive any financial or other direct benefit from Village government or contracts. Unlike the Current Clerk, I am not going to turn this into a full-time position.

I have a young family and intend to live in Bolingbrook (though not as an elected official) well into my retirement. What happens today in the Village will affect my family for decades to come. As such, I want to see nothing but success for the Village and its residents.

Last, as a licensed attorney I am ethically and legally bound to follow a code of ethics, which - if violated - could affect my ability to practice law, my chosen profession. I would never do anything that would put my law license in jeopardy.

Share a quote that defines your philosophy:

“Don’t dream it, be it,” Tim Curry as Dr. Frank-N-Furter. I don’t just dream how the world can be or how I can improve myself. I do my best to turn my dreams into reality and I don’t stop until I have accomplished them.

What questions should be asked of current government employees accountable to your board?

(1) If you had to make cuts to reduce Village expenses where would you make them?
(2) What is one expense in your department that you do not believe is essential and you could do without or with less?
(3) What do you believe needs more attention within your department?
(4) Has the current administration failed you in anyway or neglected an important issue?
(5) What do you believe should be the top priorities within Village government?

Explain your attitudes toward fiscal policy, government spending and how taxpayer dollars should be handled by your office (or board)?

My attitude toward fiscal policy is simple: Don’t spend money you don’t have to buy things you don’t need. Over the past 15 years we have seen our debt explode beyond the debt of our neighboring municipalities because our Village government took out loans to buy luxuries and non-essential items, such as the Bolingbrook Gold Club and Clow Airport. Unless there is a compelling reason, the Village should not be spending money on frivolities that do not benefit the majority of Bolingbrook. While investments in our future are critical for growth, the expense must be worthwhile to taxpayers and not wasteful.

Next, I believe our Village bond rating (like a consumer credit rating) is of critical importance as it affects our ability to borrow money when necessary and the rates we have to pay. Because of this, we must have a long-term plan to pay down the debt. During our campaign, Bolingbrook United sent a Freedom of Information request to the Village Clerk asking for any plan the Village has to pay down the debt. The Clerk’s office responded that the information requested does not exist! It is unacceptable that the current administration does not have any plan to pay off the debt it incurred.

Last, I firmly believe that government leaders should never engage in pay-to-play politics or conflicts of interest that call into question the soundness of their decisions.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have previously managed the records and budget for a federal facility of 600+ employees. I am well versed in appropriations law, budget development, staffing analysis, funds certification, and inventory and tracking systems. As a Labor and Employment law attorney and I have experience working as a labor neutral and as an advocate for both union and management. I have participated on contract negotiating teams and have successfully negotiated numerous memorandums of understanding and agreement, and settlement agreements. I excel at personnel and records management, legal and statutory interpretations, and analysis.

Overall, I am analytical, driven, and have excellent writing skills. I also excel at creating partnerships and mediating issues between adverse parties.

The best advice ever shared with me was ...

You can lose almost anything in life, but the one thing that people can never take away from you is your education. Once it is obtained, it is with you forever. Never stop learning.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I love Bolingbrook. My husband and I chose to move and start a business and a family in this Village. We came to Bolingbrook because of the community, its’ best asset. I wanted to raise my children in a diverse community; where they could attend school with students of different races, backgrounds, and national origins. Now that I am here and love my Village of 12+ years, I do not want to be taxed out of this town or forced to move due to the town’s improper governance.

We need elected officials who will tackle the Village debt and not place the burden of paying for the debt on the backs homeowners. We need a Village that works for all of its residents and not just a select few. We need a Village with officials who have integrity; ones who will not appoint themselves to full-time positions in order to profit off of your tax dollars. We need the slate of Bolingbrook United now more than ever.

Last, but not least, I want to thank my family and give a shout out to Girl Scout Troop 70315. I am so proud to be leading and inspiring young women through the Girl Scouts. Girls can do anything, including being an elected official.

More via Olson's campaign website

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