JOE McCOY

Joe is a motivated and experienced government relations professional with a deep interest in using technology, collaboration, and coalitions to influence the development of public policy.
 

In 2011, Joe was named the Legislative Director for the Illinois Municipal League. In this position, Joe leads the legislative advocacy program for a statewide association of over 1,100 municipalities. He has worked at the IML since 1999. Prior to that, he worked in government relations at the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (now DCEO). Before working at DCCA, Joe had the privilege of working for Illinois Governor Jim Edgar after winning a Dunn Fellowship.

 

In 2013, Joe proposed a restructuring of the IML Legislative Committee process that was subsequently approved by the IML Board of Directors. He implemented the restructuring, which included a downsizing of the Legislative Committee and introduction of more cross-membership between the Committee and the IML Board. Six policy committees were also established to support the work of the Legislative Committee and advise the Legislative Team on select policy issues. The new structure was designed to provide enhanced membership involvement and collaboration with IML staff in pursuit of the legislative goals of the organization.
 

In addition to his directorial duties, Joe is the primary policy advocate for the IML on revenue, personnel, pension, and labor issues before the Illinois General Assembly. 

 

Joe has used his passion for communication to expand the IML's legislative outreach. Joe manages the legislative web presence through frequent writing and coordination of content. Additionally, Joe established the IML's social media presence that incorporated videos, podcasts, Facebook and Twitter platforms to reach a wider audience with the advocacy messages of the organization. 

 

Joe also engages in original policy research. Illinois' state public pension crisis has received national attention. Joe was among a handful of individuals that initially sounded the alarm about the emerging municipal pension crisis in Illinois. He was a principal author of a 2007 study about the Illinois municipal pension crisis entitled "A Fiscal Analysis of the Downstate Police, Fire, and IMRF Pension Systems." This groundbreaking study is credited with creating awareness about skyrocketing municipal public pension debt in Illinois and eventually led to the passage of two municipal pension reform bills. Joe was also the primary collaborator on a second study about the financial impact of the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act (PSEBA). This first ever analysis of PSEBA benefits served as a catalyst for a law requiring the state to produce biennial reports on the cost impact of this health insurance mandate for the purpose of determining the need for essential reforms. Both of these projects involved the IML Managers Committee.

 

Joe writes and speaks frequently about legislation and public policies that will affect Illinois municipalities.

 

He earned a Bachelors Degree in Political Science from Western Illinois University and a Masters Degree in Public Policy from Regent University. He is a native of the Chicago suburbs and currently resides in Chatham, Illinois.