Prairie State Wire

The Illinois Office of Comptroller has suspended offset payments to the Village of Dolton due to a failure to file necessary annual reports. For approximately two years, Dolton's administration under Mayor Tiffany Henyard has not submitted required documents, including an annual financial report, a financial audit, and three Tax Increment Financing District (TIF) reports.

"When municipalities around Illinois are having legitimate problems filing their annual reports with us, based on staffing or other issues, we earnestly work with them to get them into compliance," stated Comptroller Mendoza. "Dolton is different. The Mayor’s office has refused to communicate with us or address the problem. If Mayor Henyard refuses to follow state law, my office will use the tools at our disposal to safeguard the interests of Dolton’s citizens."

Village Clerk Allison Key reported difficulties in fulfilling Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests due to interference from Village Administrator Keith Freeman. Key noted that Freeman instructed department heads not to respond to her FOIA requests and allegedly removed her as FOIA officer without proper approval.

The comptroller's office advised Clerk Key to contact the Attorney General Public Access Counselor for further action regarding FOIA violations.

Reports indicate that Mayor Henyard is currently unlocatable amid controversies and investigations by local and federal agencies.

The comptroller's office expressed willingness to assist Dolton's government in complying with state statutes concerning report filings. However, they emphasized that disbursements of fines collected through state offsets would only resume once overdue reports are filed.

In 2023, Dolton received $120,000 from offset funds related to unpaid fines owed by residents. This year, they were projected to receive about $135,000.

State laws mandate forced audits for towns failing compliance with reporting requirements. Fines may also be imposed if non-compliance persists. Currently, Dolton faces potential fines totaling $78,600 for unfiled reports since their last submission in 2022.

The village was notified of the immediate suspension of offset funds and warned that forced audits and fines would commence unless compliance is achieved soon.