Earlier this month, my colleagues and I held a press conference to discuss chaos happening in multiple state agencies. Now, another example of state agency dysfunction under the Pritzker administration has come to light. The Office of Executive Inspector General (OEIG) has revealed a significant conflict of interest within the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). The investigation centers on Daniel Thomas, the former Deputy Director of the Tourism Office, and his ties to a business he previously owned, which also happens to be a DCEO vendor.
From the OEIG:
“The OEIG determined that DCEO committed mismanagement by placing Mr. Thomas in charge of the Tourism Office, despite knowing about his prior relationship with TimeZoneOne, but not taking reasonable steps to determine if there was an actual or perceived conflict, as well, allowing contractual payments to be made with state funds without ensuring reconciliations were performed to support such payments. In addition, it was clear to DCEO management that TimeZoneOne was paying for at least some of Mr. Thomas’s and his subordinates’ travel, yet no action was taken to ensure such payments were appropriate and that the travel rules were followed.”
If the Governor and supermajority Democrats won’t take corruption seriously, we are only going to see more mismanagement and bad behavior at our agencies. This has to stop, and it has to stop now.
Learn more about the investigation: https://oeig.illinois.gov/…/Newsletter_April_21_2025.pdf
Read the full report: https://oeig.illinois.gov/…/24-00353-thomas-d–summary