* ICYMI: Illinois DCFS official improperly approved $1.4 million in extra pay for employees, inspector general says. Tribune…

- A top human resources official at the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services approved $1.4 million in extra pay for employees that state rules did not allow, including nearly $52,000 for herself, according to a newly released investigation from the state Office of the Executive Inspector General.
- Under the arrangement, which DCFS called “Extra Duty Pay,” employees received a percentage of their salaries on top of their regular pay, in some cases for working on specific projects. Employees in Bates’ department “were frequently awarded amounts in excess of 5%, and at times up to 25%, of their salary,” the report said.
- The state allows pay adjustments up to 5% under limited circumstances, but the “Extra Duty Pay” system was removed from the state’s “Pay Plan” decades ago, according to the inspector general’s report.

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

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Fox Chicago | Video: Illinois lawmakers push for stronger college sexual assault investigations: State Rep. Mary Beth Canty discusses a proposal to hold Illinois colleges more accountable for handling and reporting sexual assault investigations.

* Attorney General Kwame Raoul | Illinois is focused on facilitating — not limiting — voter access: It has been the longstanding practice of the attorney general’s office to monitor elections in Illinois to ensure that voters’ rights are protected and polling places are accessible. Voting no longer takes place only on Election Day, so my office has expanded its monitoring efforts. Teams of attorneys from my office are in the field monitoring polling places around Illinois now and on Election Day.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WCBU | Incumbent Spain, first-time challenger Dopler vie for 73rd House District seat: “I’m proud of my accomplishments in Springfield of helping to make the state more affordable, making it a safer place, making it more economically competitive,” said Spain said in an interview with WCBU. “The work of representing this district is something that means a lot to me.” Spain also works in administration with Peoria-based OSF HealthCare, while Dopler was previously employed in the medical industry. She said her top priorities include advancing legislation that will improve the health care system and help for working families.

* Tribune | Illinois lieutenant governor race: Christian Mitchell, Aaron Del Mar vie for a No. 2 job with big stakes: His sometimes fiery demeanor was on display as recently as last week, when he told WLS-AM he wanted to “choke” Pritzker “through the television.” He was criticizing the governor for touting minimum wage increases while some taxes have also gone up under his leadership. Del Mar made a similar comment about the Democratic-controlled legislature. “We will reach across the aisle and shake their hand, but when they don’t want to cooperate, we will reach across the aisle and grab them by the throat,” Del Mar said on the show. Del Mar told the Tribune he “got a little animated and had some hyperbole and political rhetoric” on WLS but that did not mean he intended to harm anyone.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Top mayoral aides defend Mayor Johnson’s tax-heavy $17.6B budget: “This budget is quote, unquote ‘balanced’ with more than $5 in new revenue for every one dollar saved,” said Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd). “Why is the administration choosing taxing over managing its expenses?” Acting Budget Director Jonathan Ernst said cost-cutting in Johnson’s first three budgets produced “nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars” in savings. “Those reductions continue this year. We’re adding another $120 million,” Ernst said. Reilly was not appeased, lashing out at newly appointed Chief Financial Officer Ashlee Gabrysch, a former senior director and mid-central regional manager at Fitch, the Wall Street rating agency that in February dropped Chicago’s bond rating to three notches above junk.

* Tribune | Chicago aldermen open budget hearings questioning if Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plan is truly balanced:
Shortly after Johnson’s budget speech last week, Scott Nees, an S&P ratings analyst, criticized the borrowing for using debt to cover operating costs. Analysts would be looking for “the council’s appetite” for cuts or efficiencies, given Johnson’s proposal for closing the gap was “notably revenue-centric and includes some conspicuously nonstructural revenues,” he said. Johnson’s comptroller, Michael Belsky, responded Friday by touting almost $900 million in spending efficiencies in Johnson’s first term and stating settlement costs are not operational, but instead temporarily elevated as the city tries to reduce long-term risk.

* Crain’s | Johnson’s budget math gets a reality check from his own CFO: Asked about Johnson’s claim he solved the budget gap with 76% structural solutions rather than one-time measures that can’t be relied on the following year, Gabrysch said she isn’t using the same math as the mayor. To get to 76% structural solutions, Johnson is relying on the $652 million deficit figure, but Gabrysch said it’s the $882 million projected gap that should be used in the calculation. “We’re looking at something closer to 56% balance” and that ratings agencies will likely agree, she said.

* Sun-Times | Does Chicago need a permanent festival site? Voters asked to weigh in on ballot.: Here in Chicago, the city already owns multiple outdoor venues, like the city-operated pavilion in Millennium Park. Although, that Frank Gehry-designed venue is typically used for free-to-attend festivals, like Blues Fest and Jazz Fest. Elsewhere, the city also owns Northerly Island, but it contracts operation of Huntington Bank Pavilion on that site to Live Nation. That arrangement is scrutinized in a new Vanderbilt University report.

* Chicago Mag | The Vilification of Michael Sacks: “It is harder to attack a nameless, faceless group in some ways because the nameless, faceless group won’t keep a story going,” says Tom Bowen, a Democratic strategist. “But as has been very evident in the past six to 12 months, attacking Michael Sacks directly gets him to respond and pushes the news into an additional cycle. So in some sense, it’s been very effective for them.” […] But though Sacks has certainly used his influence and deep pockets to sway opinion, he is hardly the reason that Johnson’s appointed school board refused to approve a risky high-interest loan in 2024 or that many of his former progressive allies have turned against him in the City Council.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Evanston Now | Nieuwsma named Evanston’s acting mayor: Ald. Jonathan Nieuwsma, the city’s 4th Ward alderman since 2021, was selected as Evanston’s acting mayor Monday night, succeeding Daniel Biss, who resigned last weekend ahead of an anticipated election to the U.S. Congress next Tuesday. Nieuwsma, 57, has served as alderman for the 4th Ward since 2021, when he succeeded Don Wilson, who lost in a February 2021 primary to Nieuwsma and Diane Goldring. Nieuwsma defeated Goldring in the April 2021 runoff that year to win his first full term.

* Daily Herald | The wheel deal: Cycling program gets a thumb’s up from junior high school students: With assistance from the not-for-profit Naperville Outdoor Alliance, Kennedy Junior High Home and School, and Spokes Bikes, about 1,000 students are now exercising on a fleet of donated bicycles along with helmets. On Monday, students cycled off-site from the Lisle school using nearby paths in the Green Trails neighborhood for the first time. “The kids were really excited about it,” Nelson said, adding he passed numerous neighbors who were curious at first, then complimentary.

* Daily Herald | ‘Tremendous leap forward’: Libertyville upgrading wastewater treatment plant: Libertyville is investing about $3.28 million into an essential part of daily life that residents likely seldom, if ever, consider. Wastewater goes away when you flush, but receiving, treating and releasing it clean into the Des Plaines River is an unheralded necessity. The village board recently awarded a $3.28 million contract to Joseph J. Henderson & Son Inc. of Gurnee to convert Libertyville’s disinfection process from liquid chlorine to ultraviolet light and to replace pumps and the nondrinking water system in the filter building.

* NBC Chicago | Amazon drone deliveries whir to life over Chicago suburbs: “It’s got a weird sound to it,” Homewood resident Paul Bochenk said. “It’s not as loud as I thought, but it’s kind of annoying.” According to Amazon, the company has deployed approximately 21 drones. The drones are capable of delivering a package of up to five pounds and to deliver it as far as eight miles from the facility. The cost savings for the company is significant, as Amazon says it will cost less than $5 per delivery.

*** Downstate ***

* Illinois Times | Additional candidates join Springfield city council race: No candidate filed to challenge incumbent Ward 7 Ald. Brad Carlson. Sontae Massey, who previously announced his intention to seek to represent Ward 4, didn’t file candidate petitions, leaving Brian Baskett as the only candidate who will appear on the ballot for the ward. Treasurer Colleen Redpath-Feger, Redpath’s daughter, also won’t face a challenger.

* WGLT | Embattled McLean County Clerk seeks 5th term as Democrats eye elusive countywide office: A McLean County native, Michael touts her experience as the primary reason to reelect her for a fifth term. Before becoming clerk, she spent eight years working in former state treasurer Judy Baar Topinka’s office. As clerk, Michael oversees the office that holds vital records, calculates tax bills, issues licenses and permits and administers local elections. [Bloomington has a separate election commission for voters registered within city limits.]

* Press release | Senior Director of Community and Government Relations Bob Flider to retire: In 2003, he was appointed to the Illinois House of Representatives when the 101st district member left for a position in the Office of the Governor. He was later elected to the seat and was the primary sponsor of several people-centered bills that became law, including one that prevented gas and utility services from cutting off service to customers in extremely cold weather. In 2012, he was appointed Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture where he worked to support Illinois farmers.

* WAND | New Reas Bridge opens in Decatur after long road to replace Macon County’s worst bridge: The engineer’s estimate was about $12.5 million. The first bid came back at $18 million. Had they accepted it, it would have been a bargain — the final price tag topped $32.7 million. A bipartisan effort helped secure significant federal dollars. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and former U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Ill., combined for $8 million. The engineer’s estimate was about $12.5 million. The first bid came back at $18 million. Had they accepted it, it would have been a bargain — the final price tag topped $32.7 million. A bipartisan effort helped secure significant federal dollars. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and former U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Ill., combined for $8 million. “Rodney Davis a former Republican congressman, myself as a Democratic Senator, we both pitched in. He put in $4.5 million. I found three and a half. Together we paid for about a fourth of this project. That’s bipartisanship brings your tax dollars back to Decatur,” Durbin said.

* WCBU | East Peoria developer under contract to buy Bloomington’s mostly vacant Eastland Mall: If approved, PGAV Planners LLC would conduct a study on whether the property should qualify for a TIF district, which would provide tax rebates and other assistance to the developer. Creating a TIF district would require a separate vote by the council. The existing Empire Street Corridor tax increment financing [TIF] district, for example, has helped revitalize the shopping center just across the street from the mall. That TIF does not include the mall.

*** National ***

* NYT | The Fed Is Expected to Hold Rates Steady. Warsh Will Have to Explain Why: Kevin M. Warsh wants inflation to move more swiftly back to the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target. But on Wednesday, the central bank chairman and his colleagues are widely expected to hold interest rates steady. The discrepancy is poised to be a focal point at the latest meeting, which is taking place just days before midterm elections that will decide who controls Congress in the latter half of President Trump’s second term.

* AP | How daylight saving time changes affect you and what you can do about it: But health groups, including the American Medical Association and American Academy of Sleep Medicine, have long urged adopting standard time year-round. That’s because it aligns more with the sun, which rises later in the winter, and with human biology, what’s called the circadian rhythm. Brighter mornings and less light at night are key to keeping that rhythm on track, making it easier to wake up on time and stick with healthy sleep patterns.