A months-long standoff between the DuPage County Board and County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek has resulted in a lawsuit over the timing of vendor bill payments.
The county’s state’s attorney’s office is seeking authority through a judge to have Kaczmarek comply with county regulations on protocols and timelines for paying bills.
Lawsuit stems from dispute on vendor bill payments
The lawsuit was filed Wednesday, Sept. 4, and alleges Kaczmarek is not following Illinois’ Local Government Prompt Payment Act. The legislation stipulates local units of government must pay for a vendor or contractor’s goods or services within 30 days of billing.
County officials outside Kaczmarek’s office are alleging she is not indicating how much a vendor should be paid for a good or service.
County board chair touches on lawsuit at meeting
County Board chairwoman Deb Conroy briefly discussed the lawsuit in her routine report at a meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 10.
“Today, I want to acknowledge what most of you already know,” Conroy said. “The DuPage County state’s attorney filed a suit against the DuPage County clerk last week, seeking a court order, compelling the clerk to comply with county accounting practices.”
In her report, Conroy hinted at offering no further comment while the lawsuit worked its way through the courts.
“Because there is a pending court case, and the state’s attorney is acting on behalf of the county, it’s my hope we refrain from commenting on this situation on the board floor, and I ask board members to generally be mindful of any public comment regarding the situation,” she said.
Kaczmarek had requested process change
Kaczmarek has not directly commented publicly on the lawsuit since it was filed. This spring, she provided the board with a memo, asking for a change in process that would remove the county’s auditor from the review process so bills could be paid once she has given approval.
The County Board in recent months has shared concerns with Kaczmarek and others within her office, alleging a lack of collaboration. The county clerk is an elected position and largely functions autonomously from other units of county government.
In May, as reported by NCTV17, Conroy and other officials weighed in on issues surrounding unpaid bills from the clerk’s office. At the time, a reported $224,000 in invoices did not go through the proper vetting process — including competitive bidding processes.
“I have never viewed this issue with the clerk’s office as a dispute,” Conroy said in May.
But, she added, “The way I see it, in DuPage County, we value transparency, we are guided by the principle of fiscal responsibility. The only way to build trust with taxpayers is to communicate by our words.”
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