Illinois districts tap bond funds that don't require public vote

From The Chicago Tribune: Strapped for cash and taking their lumps on tax-increase measures, some school districts in the Chicago area are skirting requirements for voter approval of building projects by issuing bonds that don't require a referendum and then shifting that money from fund to fund. Even after a state Appellate Court ruled last year that such maneuvers were improper, the Hinsdale Township High School District 86 board reached into a rainy-day fund for $4 million to install artificial turf at its two high school football fields. State legislators are now considering a bill that would permit school districts to transfer working cash bond money to any school fund, allowing the controversial practice to become the norm.