— A secret report put together by the legislature's watchdog in the wake of last summer's Metra scandal offers new insight into how Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan navigates the intersection of public business and ward-style patronage through his Southwest Side office and Illinois Capitol suite.

The analysis by then-Inspector General Thomas Homer — based on interviews with Madigan's political allies, government officials and the speaker himself — presents those methods in an unflattering fashion.

The report contains an account of Metra's chairwoman entering Madigan's Capitol office to talk about state issues and leaving with a yellow Post-it note bearing names of two workers the speaker wanted to see promoted. In another meeting, a Metra lobbyist who was a longtime Madigan aide was spotted leaving the speaker's office with two resumes. Another time, Madigan simply called the cellphone of one of his "better" precinct captains to tell him about a state job, according to the report.

A copy of the unreleased report, obtained by the Tribune, also gives a rare glimpse into Madigan's thoughts on getting people government jobs and raises. In an interview with Homer, Madigan is quoted as speaking highly of both the work-related credentials and the political experience of one 13th Ward operative the speaker backed for a raise.

"You can understand that there are many people that are involved with me and campaigns and community service," Madigan said, according to the report. "Among these many people, some are better than others. (He) happens to be one of those who is better than others."

The report is the product of an investigation Madigan requested a year ago as a scandal unfolded surrounding the ouster of then-Metra CEO Alex Clifford and the severance package he took with him that was worth up to $871,000. The legislative inspector general was tasked with looking into whether Madigan's actions in the high-profile scandal created pressure that contributed to Clifford's departure — a notion Madigan denied through an attorney, according to the report.

In April, Madigan's office issued a statement saying that Homer "found no violation of any law" by the speaker and that the case was closed. Homer had concluded that "insufficient evidence" existed to say Madigan violated the state ethics act or other related laws, according to the report.

But the never-released Homer report, which was reviewed by the bipartisan representatives and senators who sit on the Legislative Ethics Commission, roundly criticized Madigan and his allies for the "timing and persistence" of personnel requests to Metra.

"(Madigan) should have realized, given his influential position, that by making the requests at the conclusion of meetings with Metra officials to discuss funding and other legislative issues, he would be creating reciprocal expectations," Homer wrote.

"This unhealthy situation was exacerbated by the subsequent communications to Metra by the speaker or persons associated with him inquiring as to the state of the promotion requests when favorable action was not forthcoming," Homer concluded.

On Monday, a Madigan spokesman issued a statement in response to Tribune questions about the report.

"Speaker Madigan asked the Legislative Inspector General to investigate this matter. He cooperated fully with the investigation and provided all requested information. The Legislative Inspector General has found no violation of any law, including the Illinois State Officials and Employees Ethics Act," Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said.

The Madigan methods that Homer described reflected the Tribune's findings in a far-reaching investigation published in January. The paper identified hundreds of current or retired public employees at every level of state and local government who work elections for Madigan, donate regularly to his campaign funds, register voters for him or circulate candidate petitions on his behalf.

The Tribune also found repeated instances in which Madigan took action to get them jobs, promotions or raises, just as he did at Metra. Tribune interviews with nine veteran government officials who oversaw hiring, promotions or raises recalled Madigan personally suggesting people for specific jobs, checking in on how people were doing in their jobs or requesting that they make more money or get a better position.

In each case, the officials said Madigan never demanded action, but they felt compelled to follow his suggestions.

In his report, Homer maintained that the "proximity" of Madigan's discussions about the transit system's agenda and the speaker's mentions of favored Metra workers "created the impression among Metra officials that the speaker's support for Metra's legislative initiatives may be linked."

"While this may not have been the speaker's intention, the natural inferences to be drawn by Metra officials should have been obvious," Homer wrote. "Moreover, when the requested promotions were not immediately forthcoming, the follow-up inquiries by the speaker or his agents created additional angst at Metra and contributed to the controversy."

The Tribune's disclosure of the Homer report represents the first airing of confidential information about the Madigan investigation done by the legislative inspector general and presented to the bipartisan Legislative Ethics Commission.

The closed-door process keeps most cases sealed, particularly in matters deemed unfounded, as was the case with Madigan and Metra. It would have taken five votes of the commission, which is divided evenly with four Democrats and four Republicans, to release the report to the public.

The commission's meeting minutes also are secret, and committee members — virtually all party loyalists — are told they cannot publicly discuss their deliberations or whether they agreed with, disagreed with, changed or quashed Homer's report.

Homer would not comment about the Madigan report, nor would he release a copy, instead pointing to a statement he released in April when the speaker's office announced that the investigation was closed. "A decision to close an investigation based on insufficient evidence does not constitute a Good Housekeeping seal of approval or a best practices award," wrote Homer, a former Fulton County state's attorney, Democratic state representative and appellate court judge whose tenure as legislative inspector general ended June 30.