SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Gov. Pat Quinn is reviewing how the son of embattled Sen. Roland Burris got a state job as a housing-agency lawyer under ousted Gov. Rod Blagojevich's administration, just weeks after he landed in tax and foreclosure trouble.
The Chicago Sun-Times reported in Thursday editions that the September hiring of Burris II as senior counsel for the Illinois Housing Development Authority came six weeks after the Internal Revenue Service slapped him with a $34,163 tax lien and three weeks after a mortgage company filed a foreclosure lawsuit on his Chicago home.
Quinn said Thursday that his office is reviewing how Burris' son got the job to "make sure everything is right and proper."
"I think the matter deserves serious review, and quickly," he said.
Quinn noted that the housing authority makes its own hiring decisions, but he said he might have some recommendations to make after looking into the issue.
The Housing Authority oversees mortgage programs for low-income home buyers and anti-foreclosure initiatives.
Authority spokeswoman Rebecca Boykin told the Sun-Times that Burris II was given the $75,000-a-year job based on his qualifications and in response to a published job posting.
The senator is fending off calls for his resignation because of conflicting testimony he provided the state House panel that drafted impeachment charges against Blagojevich.
Sen. Burris' spokesman referred questions to Burris lawyer Timothy Wright III, who declined to comment. A message left for Roland Burris II at his office was not immediately returned.
Quinn spokesman Bob Reed said that even before the hiring of Burris' son was reported, the governor's top lawyer and chief of staff had launched a review of attorneys at all state agencies to make sure they're all capable. He would not say whether the administration is checking the performance of other kinds of staffers.
