Grace B.

Hou
Secretary, Illinois Department of Human Services
401 South Clinton Street
Chicago, Illinois 60607
or
100 South Grand Avenue East
Springfield, Illinois 62762

Secretary Hou,

I am troubled by a series of comments and events emanating from the Land of Lincoln Goodwill
Industries.

The President and CEO disparaged disabled workers and eliminated their jobs, blaming a minimum wage
increase that doesn’t take effect for nearly five months and which doesn’t apply to many of the workers
because she has a federal waiver allowing her to pay disabled workers less than the legal minimum

Oddly enough, the economic health of the organization had been strong enough in recent years to
accommodate a substantial raise for the President and CEO and allow for the hiring of her son to an
executive position.

Your department oversees thousands of dollars in state appropriations that go to Land of Lincoln
Goodwill. I hope that you also are troubled by these comments and actions.

Given the circumstances, I write to you to request that your agency utilize its existing auditing authority
to review and account for the public resources that have been going to Land of Lincoln Goodwill to
ensure they are being used appropriately and to support a charitable mission in line with its not-for-
profit status.

Thank you for your time and attention. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Andy Manar
Senator, 48th Senate District