* ICYMI: Compared to other states, Illinois takes lax approach toward funeral home oversight. Sun-Times…

- Illinois is the only state that does not have a board or agency monitoring licensed funeral homes at their physical locations, the International Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards said.
- “If we can’t figure out how to head off people from engaging in this kind of behavior, then we have to have some sort of enforcement mechanism on the back end to try and figure it out before it’s too late,” Wake Forest University Law Professor Tanya Marsh said.
- Creating a unified board is something state Rep. Diane Blair-Sherlock, D-Villa Park, is considering. She chairs the House State Government Administration Committee, which typically handles funeral home legislation, and worked on the bill granting the comptroller more regulatory powers over cemeteries.

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* Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* NBC Chicago | Hundreds of invasive carp found on Illinois River 80 miles from Lake Michigan: Officials say the location where the fish were found could indicate a spawning event occurred further upriver or in one of the tributaries that feeds into the Illinois River, and as a result surveillance monitoring is being stepped up in several key areas as a precaution, including in the Dresden Island Pool, which is located approximately 30 miles closer to Lake Michigan.[…] The news comes just weeks after the Army Corps of Engineers issued a stop work order on construction of the Brandon Road Interbasin Project, which are set to produce a series of barriers designed to keep invasive carp out of Lake Michigan.

* Sun-Times | Gov. JB Pritzker pours $65M into his campaign fund ahead of November elections: Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has added $65 million to his gubernatorial campaign — giving him flexibility to spend on his own campaign and to support other candidates across the country. The contribution was reported on Aug. 10, according to the Illinois State Board of Elections. Pritzker is heavily favored to win a third term in November, facing Republican challenger Darren Bailey, whom he beat in 2022. Prior to that large contribution, Pritzker had about $3.1 million cash on hand ahead of the November election. In the past, the billionaire governor has self-funded his three campaigns to the tune of more than $326 million since 2017.

*** Statehouse News ***

* ABC Chicago | Republican IL governor candidate Bailey calls for ending tolls; Pritzker questions funding plan: Gov. JB Pritzker criticized Bailey’s proposal, saying it lacks fiscal realism. “He believes that magic beans can take care of everything; so it’ll be interesting to see. What I can tell you is that every one of the proposals that I’ve seen from him is unrealistic. He doesn’t understand the state budget,” Pritzker said.

* Crain’s | Big Pharma trade group joins legal fight against Illinois drug discount law: The Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America‘s lawsuit is the latest challenge to state-based laws designed to protect hospitals, clinics and pharmacies from unfettered access to 340B discounts. Dozens of states have enacted laws seeking to transform the program, while parallel federal efforts are also underway.

* WGN | Independent candidate for governor Collin Corbett shares his plans for school funding and data centers: As political eyes turn to Springfield this week for the Illinois State Fair, an independent candidate for governor is taking a different track. “I don’t know that I want to crash somebody else’s party. Instead, I’m going to spend my time talking to the voters,” said Collin Corbett, noting that with a Governor’s Day and a Republican Day, he feels even the State Fair is stacked against an independent candidate.

*** State Fair News ***

* WJBD | State Police utilize Bicycle Response Team at Illinois State Fair, plan to train over 100 troopers as bicycle operators: The Illinois State Police’s (ISP) new Bicycle Response Team is on a roll this summer as it hits the streets of the Illinois State Fair for the first of many large-scale events the team is expected to attend in support of ISP’s mission of protecting public safety. The Bicycle Response Team was established to increase operational mobility, visibility, and service during events where traditional patrol vehicles are less effective due to crowds and environmental restrictions, such as fairs, festivals, and parades. According to ISP, bicycle patrols allow Troopers to reach harder to get to areas at large-scale events more quickly, as well as increase crowd management capabilities. Bicycle patrols are also meant to enhance community engagement through a ‘ride and represent’ approach, allowing Troopers to interact more readily with people at events.

* WHBF | Rock Island teen wins Illinois’ best bagger competition: According to a release from the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, Carlos Sabino, 17, won the the first Illinois Best Bagger Competition at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. Sabino works at Hy-Vee in Rock Island and won a $500 prize. Shelby Morton from Hy-Vee in Galesburg won second place and a $250 prize, and Mike Clark from Hy-Vee in Moline won third place and a $100 prize.

* WAND | Illinois veterans gather at State Fair for annual Veterans Day celebration: Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher also made an appearance delivering a speech and calling on community members to show their appreciation for veterans every chance they get. “If you’re not a veteran every time you see someone wearing something that represents their service, please thank them,” said Mayor Buscher. “Sometimes veterans go underappreciated and we need to make sure they know how thankful we are for them.”This annual celebration has been a state fair tradition for decades and Vaughn says he expects it to continue for generations to come.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Who will be the next Chicago school board president? Meet the candidates: In a historic first for Chicago, all 21 school board seats will be on the November ballot. The board was previously composed of seven mayoral appointees, but is currently in a two-year transition period, split between 10 elected and 11 appointed members. Get to know the candidates for school board president.

* WBEZ | Illinois lawmakers want chaotic ‘mega master’ hearings at Chicago’s immigration court to end: U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi denounced the hearings as the “latest effort to weaponize the immigration courts to facilitate mass removals” at the expense of due process, in a five-page letter sent to Attorney General Todd Blanche on Tuesday. The lawmakers repeatedly cited recent Chicago Sun-Times and WBEZ reporting in the letter, which was signed by nearly every Illinois Democratic member of Congress. At Chicago’s Downtown immigration court, Sun-Times and WBEZ reporters documented daily schedules with as many as 185 cases per judge, tiny courtrooms holding dozens more people than they were designed for, and drastically shrinking notice time for immigrants to appear before a judge — with or without a lawyer.

* Sun-Times | Chicago Teachers Union sues Illinois Policy Institute for ‘toxic’ branding, ‘defamatory’ claims about audits: The new lawsuit claims the finalization of the audit reports were delayed for “innocuous reasons,” including that the finalization for fiscal year 2020 through 2023 were delayed due to complications from the pandemic and staffing turnover, as well as the impact of a lawsuit to protect pension benefits. The suit says the reports have been available to CTU members for review. The suit includes an Aug. 22, 2025, social media post by the Liberty Justice Center, which features a cartoon of Davis Gates and the words “Cooked Books,” mimicking the branding of the restaurant Cracker Barrel. The union says that post was “part of Defendant’s strategy to ‘make the union itself toxic’ through sustained negative messaging.” And the suit says the “cooked book” statement was defamatory because it “falsely imputed CTU’s engagement in criminal conduct.”

* Tribune | Years before corpses found at South Side funeral home, owners left decomposing bodies in van: police: According to a police report obtained in a Freedom of Information request, the officer learned that while Clark Morgan’s funeral director license had been revoked, his wife, Johanna, had an active license. But they were still dubious enough about the discovery, and the couple’s “defensive” responses to their attempts at investigation, that officers spent hours the following day investigating, including reaching out to family members of the deceased and seeking advice from the Cook County state’s attorney’s office about whether charges should be filed. Ultimately, the police investigation was closed and the Morgans faced no criminal charges in the matter. Asked about the case, the Cook County state’s attorney’s office referred to the police report.

* CBS Chicago | Exclusive look inside Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park development in South Chicago: Henderson is CEO of P33, a nonprofit dedicated to innovation here in Chicago with a focus on tech opportunities. “What’s interesting now is when you go to India, where I was recently, or Taiwan, or to Europe, and you say you’re from Chicago, it’s commonly recognized that Chicago is the leading global place in the world for quantum computing,” he said. This first phase of construction, anchored by PsiQuantum based in Palo Alto, California, the goal is to build and deploy the world’s first large-scale quantum computer in Chicago.

* WBEZ | Jesse White Tumbling Team gets second chance on ‘America’s Got Talent’ as troupe rolls into live rounds: The tumblers’ current run on the show follows a 2008 “AGT” initial audition that did not fare so well, as they failed to advance into the competitive live rounds. Nearly 20 years later, the show came calling, said Emmanuel McGhee Sr. McGhee is a 26-year organization veteran who worked his way up through the organization’s ranks to his current role as head coach/choreographer/manager. He also works full time in the Illinois secretary of state’s office. “The [show] reached out to us maybe about a year ago … asking if we wanted to audition again. And of course, we said yes,” said McGhee.

* Press release…

The Jesse White Tumbling Team is competing live on America’s Got Talent (AGT) on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, at 7pm. The Jesse White Foundation is hosting two official viewing parties from 6pm - 9 pm — one in Chicago and the other in Springfield.

Chicago location is at The Jesse White Community Center: 412 W. Chicago Avenue.

Springfield location is at Boone’s: 301 W Edwards St.

Family, friends, and supporters of the Tumbling Team and Foundation are invited to attend. Treasurer Mike Frerichs is co-sponsoring the Springfield Watch Party. The Chicago Watch Party will offer pizza and cake sponsored by Robert’s Pizza & Dough Company and Roeser’s Bakery. Founder and Coach Jesse White, 92, is traveling with the team. Glenna White Jones, President of the Jesse White Foundation, will be leading the Chicago Watch Party.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora city employees demand a ‘fair contract’ as negotiations continue: Five months after picketing outside City Hall and 20 months after beginning contract negotiations with the city, a group of unionized Aurora city employees is again demanding what they call a “fair contract.” Union members demanded higher wages and other changes to improve quality of life and workplace accommodations at the Aurora City Council meeting on Aug. 11. Local 3298 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees — made up of roughly 180 Aurora city employees across various departments — had its contract expire at the end of 2024 and has been in contract negotiations with the city since January 2025.

* Pioneer Press | Niles Village Board approvess three referendum questions for November ballot: The Village Board met in a special meeting on Aug. 14 to vote on the measures, days before the state deadline. Niles Mayor George D. Alpogianis said trustees wanted to reintroduce term limits to voters who had rejected a referendum in March that set term limits to all current and future elected officials to five, four-year terms, or a maximum of 20 years in the same elected office.

* Shaw Local | Sleepy Hollow village trustee charged with felony theft of Maserati; hasn’t been at meeting in months: Police records also state that Noor, who goes by McGuire on the village’s website, moved in August 2025 and no longer lives in Sleepy Hollow. Sleepy Hollow Village President Courtney Boe said local officials are seeking to determine where the trustee lives but do not have any address confirmed. […] Under the name McGuire, Noor is also an elected Republican precinct committeeperson in Dundee Township 26. Dundee Township GOP Chairman Joseph Connell declined to comment.

*** Downstate ***

* WAND | District 186 releases AI guidelines, introduces 3-strike rule for grade schoolers: The district encouraged students to use AI as a tool to push forward thinking. Teachers must also communicate clear AI guidelines to students. “We want them to know that they need to communicate, and this could be in a syllabus at the beginning of the year, when AI may or may not be allowed, and to what level,” said District 186 Assistant Superintendent Erica Filipiak. The district has a three-strike rule for elementary students. Students who use AI to cheat on the first offense can redo the assignment for full credit.

* WCBU | Mayor Ali views Phoenix Manor project as another key piece to revitalizing Peoria’s South Side: Peoria Mayor Rita Ali remains steadfast in her belief that the planned Phoenix Manor permanent supportive housing development on the South Side ultimately will benefit the neighborhood. “One, it adds more population, more housing to the area, which is in desperate need of housing,” Ali said in her latest regular one-on-one interview with WCBU. “We need more density there.

* WGLT | Clean-up continues as school resumes in still soggy Bloomington-Normal: Illinois State University students like junior Katelyn Slobodian had just arrived in town Thursday when the storm dumped nearly two inches of rain on the Normal campus in one hour. “It just came out of nowhere. It was the day I moved in, and my dad couldn’t drive home because the roads were so flooded, and you can’t see anything,” Slobodian said. “I saw a lot of pictures of cars that were completely submerged. And the house I was staying at, their Wi-Fi power line just completely got torn down and trees came down and broke car windows and everything.”

* WGLT | Normal debuts public sculpture park, recommits to public art: The sculpture park has been in the works for two years. It was originally approved by the town council in 2024, and the sculptures were purchased in 2025. The work had some false starts when initial bids came in over budget, triggering a second round of bidding. One Normal Plaza is just off Route 66 on the site of the historic Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s School [ISSCS], originally established to care for children orphaned during the Civil War.

*** National ***

* AP | ICE pitches legal insurance to help shield local officers who make immigration arrests: Under the plan, officers would purchase insurance covering up to $500,000 in personal liability, which typically funds legal fees, settlements and judgments. Officers would be reimbursed up to $250 annually — roughly what the insurance is expected to cost. One prominent critic of ICE’s immigration crackdown said the program would be yet another way for officers to avoid personal accountability for misconduct.