Hinsdale D86 Legal Spending Spikes 43%

HINSDALE, IL – Over the last budget year, Hinsdale High School District 86's legal spending skyrocketed by 43 percent.

According to budget documents, legal spending so far this budget year, which ends June 30, amounts to $588,398, far over the $425,000 that was budgeted. The spending is up from the previous budget year, when it was $412,226, according to budget documents.

The tentative budget for next year earmarks $600,000 for legal bills.

District 86's costs are well above those at similarly sized Lyons Township High School, which spent $186,169 in the 2023 budget year.

The lower legal spending at District 86 occurred while Tammy Prentiss was still superintendent. A year ago, a new school board majority ousted her. Annual legal costs ranged from $362,737 to $436,357 from budget years 2020 to 2022.

When Prentiss was superintendent, her critics on the board often questioned legal spending, even voting against approving the bills. But one of them who remains on the board, Jeff Waters, has been silent about such expenditures over the last year, despite the escalation.

On Thursday morning, Patch texted Waters about his views on the recent spending. He immediately responded, "No comment."

But he had plenty to say when Prentiss was in charge. He said the bills were excessive.

"They are increasing by many magnitudes year over year, quarter over quarter, etc.," Waters said at a July 2022 meeting. "We need to understand why exactly that is happening. We also need to know as a district some of the fiscal constraints and demands that will be placed on us in the upcoming year that we're already seeing playing out with certain projects."

Over the last year, Waters has voted for the higher legal bills every month.

In January, the board approved Chicago-based Robbins Schwartz as the new law firm, replacing Itasca-based Hodges Loizzi, which may have been seen as too close to Prentiss.

Over the last year, lawyers likely have been asked to help with the settlement agreement with Prentiss and basketball team controversies at both South and Central.

As a member of the new majority, Waters also appears to have taken a different approach to the costs of Freedom of Information Act requests, which is how residents can obtain public information.

In April, he said the number of records requests had become excessive and that the district should take steps to minimize them.

The number of such requests has remained about the same before and after Prentiss' exit. The difference is that Prentiss' critics were filing the requests before, and now opponents of the new majority are submitting them. When Prentiss was in charge, Waters did not publicly highlight the costs of records requests.

Board President Catherine Greenspon couldn't be immediately reached for comment about the legal spending. She has not returned messages for comment since taking the helm in May 2023.