Two Republican candidates for Will County treasurer tout their strong financial backgrounds in hopes of winning their party’s nomination to challenge incumbent Treasurer Tim Brophy in November.
The March 17 Republican primary features Raj “Pi” Pillai, of Plainfield, and Carmen Maurella III, of Homer Glen. Brophy, treasurer since 2018, is the only candidate in the Democratic primary.
In 2022, Brophy edged out Pillai with 50.5% to 49.5% of the votes.
Pillai, 47, is a certified public accountant and owner of a CPA practice. He said his career has focused on auditing, accounting and financial solutions. He is a Navy veteran and past president of the Will County Veterans Assistance Commission.
Maurella, 52, has been Homer Township assessor since 2021, and is the former village manager in Homer Glen, a certified Illinois assessing officer and an accountant and business owner. He has a master’s degree in taxation and teaches accounting and taxation at Lewis University.
Pillai said his work with the Will County Veterans Assistance Commission stemmed from trying to clean up a mismanagement of about $500,000 in funds, and said he helped transform the agency to be one of the best-performing veterans groups in the state.
Pillai said in the private sector, he audited large, publicly traded companies.
“There’s a high level of scrutiny the Securities and Exchange Commission gives to publicly traded companies,” Pillai said. “I was on the other side, auditing to make sure that they are meeting those requirements.”
He said once involved with county government through the veterans commission, he realized that same level of scrutiny did not exist.
“Transparency is almost nonexistent in a way. And it’s not because it’s not there,” he said. “It’s because the constituents, the taxpayers, really don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes. There’s no digestible report.”
Pillai said he is the only certified public accountant in the race and has worked for companies with more than $1 billion in revenue.
Maurella said he is motivated to make county government better for his six children and seven grandchildren. He said he is a communicator, works well with others, and his work as Homer Glen village manager prepared him to work with the diverse opinions of County Board members and county administrators.
He said the knowledge he gained as assessor for Homer Township will help transition him to the role of county treasurer. He digitized the office and streamlined its operations. Maurella said each year he saves about 10% of the $540,000 assessor’s budget, which gets put back into Homer Township’s general budget.
“I’m a certified Illinois assessing officer, which is a big part of what the property tax is all about,” Maurella said. “So when I had to take 90 hours of casework just to get that certification, that gave me a bigger edge in what really happens in the county treasurer’s office.”
Pillai said his platform also includes transparency so people know how their money is spent. He said he wants to ensure taxpayer money is invested wisely and protect taxpayer funds. He said he wants to compare budgets to the money spent to eliminate waste and increase efficiency.
Pillai said he would make sure financial reports are easily accessible and simple to understand, and said he wants to make the treasurer’s website more user-friendly. He said he will provide quarterly reports that details where dollars are spent and how investments are doing.
Pillai said it may be possible to merge the treasurer’s office and auditor’s office, which can reduce costs and increase accountability.
He said he wants the property tax system to be seamless so residents don’t feel as though they are fighting through bureaucracy.
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“There’s always processes that can be improved,” Pillai said.
Maurella said he wants to modernize the treasurer’s office and create easy to understand financial reports for constituents. He said as an educator, he is accustomed to breaking down complex matters to simpler terms. He said he would provide educational opportunities to the community so people understand the treasurer’s role in county government.
He said he wants to ensure property owners are protected from equity theft, noting a person’s home is their largest investment. He said he doesn’t feel it is right when some homeowners do not get their fair share of equity back if they lose their home in a tax sale, and no homeowner should lose everything over a minor tax bill.
Maurella said he will cut waste in the department, ensure funds are invested correctly and make sure tax dollars are dispersed correctly to municipalities, school districts and other taxing bodies. He said he would investigate whether there was is any fraud with property owners taking exemptions they did not qualify to take.
Maurella said county taxpayers shouldn’t have to wait for a window to pay their bill, and he would like to keep the online payment portal open year round so taxpayers can pay on their own timeline.
“Being an educator, that’s a big part of what our constituents are looking for,” Maurella said. “They are looking to understand why government is working the way it is.”
Pillai has touted endorsements from six Republican County Board members and two past members.
“These are the most fiscally conservative members of the board, and I’m just honored to have their endorsement,” he said.
Maurella said he is not seeking endorsements in this race and is self-funding his own campaign.
“I’m going into a financial position, so I want to really make sure everything is clean going forward,” Maurella said.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter.