Democratic state Sen. Terry Link is quitting the seat he’s held for more than two decades, roughly a month after he was charged with a federal count of income tax evasion, he said in a resignation letter Friday.
Link’s resignation is effective at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Link, of Vernon Hills, has not commented publicly since a criminal information was filed in U.S. District Court on Aug. 13 accusing him of not reporting income on his 2016 tax return. He did not immediately return a call seeking comment Friday afternoon.
Link is the third Democratic state senator to face federal criminal charges in a little over a year amid a sweeping federal corruption investigation. He resigned his position on the Legislative Ethics Commission the same day the charges were made public.
The one-page criminal information filed last month in U.S. District Court alleged Link’s income was substantially higher than the $264,450 he reported on his 2016 tax return.
The Tribune reported last year that Link wore a wire for the FBI as part of an investigation of former state Rep. Luis Arroyo, who prosecutors said had sought a state senator’s support on video gambling legislation that would have benefited one of Arroyo’s lobbying clients. Link has repeatedly and vehemently denied wearing a wire.
In the complaint against Arroyo, the state senator was identified only as “Cooperating Witness 1.” During one conversation that was recorded, the unidentified state senator told Arroyo he was in the “twilight” of his career, and wanted to boost his income, records show. The cooperating witness was also wearing a wire when Arroyo handed over a check for $2,500, records show.
The Arroyo complaint said the senator was no longer a confidential source after it became clear he had filed false income tax returns, but later began cooperating with authorities again in an effort to seek relief on anticipated charges related to the income tax returns.
In a statement issued following Link’s resignation, Senate President Don Harmon, an Oak Park Democrat, said he looks forward to “welcoming and working with a new senator from Lake County,” in a statement issued Friday.
Link has been a lawmaker since 1997, and was assistant majority leader for part of his tenure. He was long part of an effort to expand gambling in the state and was one of the primary architects of legislation the General Assembly passed in 2019 allowing for a casino in Chicago and several others around the state, in addition to legalized sports betting. That legislation passed with bipartisan support, with the new gambling revenue slotted to help fund a major statewide public works project.
In 2007, Link sponsored the legislation that banned smoking in restaurants, bars and public buildings statewide.
The longtime lawmaker would be eligible for an annual pension of about $77,000 based on his time spent in the legislature, according to the General Assembly Retirement System.
Link announced last month he was stepping down as chairman of the Lake County Democratic Party, which he initially planned to do Sept. 15. That sparked an uproar among fellow Lake County Democrats who were concerned Link would resign his seat after Friday, the cutoff date after which a special election would not be triggered, but maintain party chairmanship for the narrow window of a few days, allowing him to choose his successor.
A slew of fellow Democrats in Lake County called on Link to immediately resign as party chairman and were planning a meeting to appoint a replacement. Amid the backlash, Link resigned as party chairman in August.
State law gives local party leaders in the district 30 days from the date Link vacates the office to meet and choose a replacement.
The Tribune’s Dan Petrella contributed.
