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Isabel’s morning briefing
Thursday, Jul 9, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Illinois ‘reviewing’ DOJ’s threat to prosecute state election officials over noncitizen voting. Capitol News Illinois…
- The letter, dated Tuesday, July 7, was addressed to ISBE Executive Director Bernadette Matthews. It was similar to letters reportedly sent to top election officials in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. - In addition to Tuesday’s letter threatening prosecution, DOJ is also suing Illinois and dozens of other states for access to the state’s complete, unredacted voter registration list, including sensitive information such as voters’ dates of birth, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers. The federal government has not been successful in any of those lawsuits thus far. * Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today. * Illinois Times | Housing advocates celebrate legislative wins: Bob Palmer, policy director for the statewide housing coalition Housing Action Illinois, said some of the major victories came on the funding front. For one, the General Assembly rejected the governor’s proposed cut of $10 million to the HOME Illinois Program, which aims to prevent and end homelessness in the state. Lawmakers were facing a tight fiscal year, meaning any new funding would be an uphill battle. Even so, David Zoltan, a Chicago-based housing activist, said not increasing funding amid rising inflation is “effectively a cut” for a crucial HOME Illinois program. * Capitol News Illinois | As Illinois enters 10th year under Evidence-Based Funding model, equity remains an elusive goal: But as Illinois enters the 10th year of financing schools under the Evidence-Based Funding model — a formula adopted in 2017 that was supposed to improve both the adequacy and equity of the state’s school finance system — wide disparities still exist in the property tax system that funds more than half the cost of K-12 education. An analysis of school finance data by Capitol News Illinois covering the nine-year period from 2017 to 2025 shows homeowners in the lowest-wealth districts pay tax rates that are double those in the wealthiest districts. The findings are largely consistent with those of other researchers who follow school finance issues nationally. * Chalkbeat Chicago | Johnson-aligned Chicago school board members continue push for more funding from Springfield: Schools had to approve their proposed budgets in early June, but the district has yet to release full details around what might be cut. The Chicago Teachers Union joined Mayor Brandon Johnson-aligned board members at Wednesday’s press conference outside the Board of Education headquarters where they called for state lawmakers to again consider raising education funding through progressive tax policies that target wealthy individuals or corporations. Khari Humphries, the city’s deputy mayor of education and youth, also joined elected board member Jitu Brown and appointed members Michilia Blaise, Karen Zaccor, Norma Rios-Sierra, Emma Lozano, Angel Velez, Cydney Wallace, and Debby Pope. * Crain’s | Illinois ACA health insurance prices set to rise by double digits again in 2027: In Illinois, insurers are seeking rate hikes between 9.2% and nearly 15%. Less than 10% of Americans get their health coverage from the ACA marketplace, or state-run marketplaces like Get Covered Illinois, but the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker points out that factors driving premiums like growth in hospital or pharmaceutical costs are similar across all private plans. * Center Square’s Sean Reed…
* Sun-Times | Cash App parent company agrees to $45 million settlement with Illinois, 44 other states: Illinois will get $1.1 million of a $45 million, 45-state settlement with money transfer app Cash App’s parent company, which was accused of misleading customers about the app’s security. Block Inc. will face $55 million in civil penalties and also have to pay customers nationwide somewhere from $75 million to $120 million as part of the settlement, which includes the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. * WGLT | Illinois’ U.S. Senate Republican nominee Don Tracy aims to slow cost-of-living increases: Tracy said the election centers around affordability, and sees that as an advantage for the Republican Party in Illinois. “Democrats … and Republican politicos seem to agree this is a cost-of-living election,” Tracy said in the interview with Capitol News Illinois. “[I] believe that to be a winning message for Republicans, because everything Democrats do increases the cost of living.” “I’m not sure there’s a tax that they didn’t want to increase and that increases the cost of living for all working families,” Tracy said, referring to Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration. * Illinois Times | Data center details: Questions remain about effects on nearby animals, soil temperature: Sangamon County’s average residential electricity bill has increased by more than 52% in the past five years when comparing seasonal data, according to a database constructed by Heatmap News and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. That’s nearly 15% more than Cook County, and almost 10% more than the state, experienced over the same time frame. Despite utility costs soaring over the past five years, grid operators keep approving more data centers. Utility providers, such as Rural Electric Convenience Cooperative, claim the projects will lower rates for others even in light of the larger amount of power needed to run them. * Shaw Local | Dixon man accused of threatening Lee County official over data center listing pleads guilty to petty offense: A Dixon man charged with felonies accusing him of threatening a Lee County official pleaded guilty to a petty offense on Wednesday and agreed to complete a court-ordered program to get the four felony charges dismissed. […] The charges accused him of threatening Lee County Industrial Development Association Executive Director Tom Demmer. Those charges were amended on Wednesday to also include one count of obstruction of justice, a Class 4 felony, and one count of barratry, a petty offense, court records show. Under Illinois law, barratry is when a person “wickedly and willfully excites and stirs up actions or quarrels…to promote strife and contention.” * Texas Tribune | Planned Texas data centers could emit more greenhouse gases than many countries: Including Stargate’s Abilene campus, at least 15 gas plants tied to data centers are planned for Texas, according to Cleanview. Available permits reviewed by Floodlight show that nine of them combined could emit more than 130 million tons of greenhouse gases every year. That’s the equivalent annual emissions of 35 coal-fired power plants, according to an Environmental Protection Agency calculator. While actual emissions are usually lower than estimates, the impact on the climate could still be enormous: If completed, these nine plants have the potential to emit more annual greenhouse gases than most countries do — even if emissions end up being half of what’s permitted. * Sun-Times | CTA crime has dropped for last 6 consecutive months amid security surge, agency boss says: The Red Line has seen a 47% decline in all crime, and a 76% drop in violent crime through June compared to last year, Leerhsen said. “The perception of safety on CTA is affected by every single incident we have,” Leerhsen said. “But given the importance of our system to the vitality and strength of our city, it is incredibly important to me that we still stop and note this progress, which is real and is continuing to sustain itself.” * Block Club Chicago | Chicago Police Torture Survivors Break Ground On Monument: ‘More Work To Do’: The memorial — a blend of public art, education, reflection and movement-building guaranteed within a 2015 reparations package — broke ground Wednesday at 5520 S. King Drive in Washington Park, with plans for its completion by early next year. “This memorial is about more than remembering the past,” said Gregory Banks, a member of the Chicago Torture Justice Memorials Foundation and a survivor of beatings, suffocation and racial epithets inflicted on him by officers who extracted his confession in 1983. * Tribune | Chicago FBI boss forced into early retirement, skips lunch with US Attorney Boutros: Shortly after Douglas DePodesta became head of the FBI’s storied Chicago bureau, he told the Tribune he would love to call it a career in his adopted hometown when he hit the mandatory retirement age in a few years. “I think I have a lot left in my tank,” DePodesta said in May 2025. Instead, DePodesta’s impressive FBI career came to an abrupt end this week. He was forced to retire early due to a falling out with bosses in the Justice Department, apparently over issues with his fealty to the Trump administration’s political agenda, or lack thereof. * Crain’s | Judge enforces distance rule for cannabis shops in blow to planned South Loop store: Attorneys for Blounts & Moore argued the location 470 feet away from the existing dispensary violates a provision of the state’s Cannabis Regulation & Tax Act that says a new dispensary can’t be within 1,500 feet of a pre-existing one. The ruling for Blounts & Moore appears to be the first time a court has interpreted the setback rule, casting doubt on future efforts to open cannabis shops in the Loop. * Tribune | Chicago White Sox blanked for the 4th time this season in a 5-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox: Despite the loss, the Sox (47-44) remain alone in first place in the American League Central standings. They are one game ahead of the Cleveland Guardians (47-46), who lost 6-5 to the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday. The Twins (46-47) are two games back. * Daily Southtown | Bolingbrook, Homer Glen mayors urge residents to fight Illinois American Water rate hike: “Water is not a luxury,” Bolingbrook Mayor Mary Alexander-Basta said Wednesday. “It is not a vacation. It is not a new television or a shopping trip that can be postponed. Water, electricity and natural gas are essential services that every family needs to live with dignity, safety and health.” Alexander-Basta, along with state legislators, said Bolingbrook residents pay an average of $220 a month for their water bills. Senior citizens on fixed incomes and households already cash-strapped by rising costs in food, insurance and housing, cannot afford more rate hikes, she said. * Tribune | Prime Healthcare seeks to permanently close inpatient pediatric unit at St. Joseph hospital in Joliet: St. Joseph, which was bought by Prime last year, said in April 2025 that it was temporarily suspending pediatric inpatient care. At the time, the move drew criticism from nurses union the Illinois Nurses Association, which represents nurses at the hospital. Now, the hospital has filed an application with the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board to shutter the 13-bed unit for good upon board approval or by the end of the year. The board will vote on the request at a future meeting. * Daily Herald | Plan for massive industrial park approved in Vernon Hills: Including an existing warehouse, the 70-acre Vernon hills Industrial Park could total about 1.2 million square feet in five buildings, following approvals Tuesday by the village board. Property owner JCA Hayes LLC has been pursuing the project at 100-230 S. Milwaukee Ave., in the Continental Executive Parke, since late 2024. The approved plan for the site once scouted by Amazon calls for three speculative buildings, use of an existing warehouse and a huge build-to-suit facility for hand2mind, a sister company of tariff-busting Learning Resources * Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora residents still struggling with storm damage: Residents across Aurora, and particularly in the 4th and 6th Wards, experienced basement flooding, tree damage and power outages Friday and Saturday morning, with varying degrees of damage, said Ald. Jonathan Nunez, 4th Ward. Nunez said some basements flooded twice, including his own, and residents struggled to keep the water out. “It’s disheartening when you spend several hours, you know, trying to save whatever you may have,” he said. “A lot of us had to throw away a ton of different items that you just can’t recover.” * Capitol City Now | Springfield Mayor supports Flock contract extension: The company has been accused in the past of violating state law regarding data, which led to other cities ending their contracts with Flock. “It’s our job at the city to police our cameras and our contract with Flock, so that’s what we will do and have been doing,” said Buscher. “I can’t speak on what was going on in other communities. But, for the City of Springfield, we will make sure our data is secure.” * Capitol News Illinois | IDOC worker pleads guilty to padding the payroll of her correctional officer husband: An Illinois Department of Corrections payroll worker admitted in federal court Wednesday that she falsified her correctional officer husband’s overtime and holiday pay, defrauding the state of nearly $125,000. […] According to a stipulation of facts she signed, Tudor doctored her husband’s payroll records for about two and a half years, from July 1, 2022, through Dec. 30, 2024, while he worked as a correctional officer at the Murphysboro Life Skills Re-Entry Center, a satellite facility of the Pinckneyville Correctional Center. Under the plea agreement, the parties calculated an advisory federal sentencing guideline range of 10 to 16 months in prison and a fine of $5,500 to $55,000, but the judge is not bound by that recommendation. * The Daily Egyptian | SIU board expected to give Lane $65K bonus Thursday: The Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees is set to determine Thursday if Carbondale Chancellor Austin Lane will receive his annual bonus — an additional $65,000 on top of his annual base salary of $378,000. Whether he gets the bonus depends on a series of goals, which for this past academic year included keeping the hiring chill in place and increasing online enrollment. Many of Lane’s goals are focused on improving the university’s enrollment and graduation rate and controlling school spending. A document obtained by the Daily Egyptian through a Freedom of Information Act request outlines 10 goals for the 2025-2026 academic year. * Post-Tribune | Indiana Gov. Mike Braun says Hammond stadium for Chicago Bears is ‘in the red zone’: “I’m excited by the Bears. I think we’re almost there, but we’re not there yet,” [Northwest Indiana, Family Express President and CEO Gus Olympidis] said. “It is always a little risky to overplay something before it happens because if it doesn’t happen, you have some explaining to do,” he said. * Wired | Self-Driving Cars Are Interfering With First Responders. Feds Aren’t Happy:Morrison wrote that NHTSA has documented a “clear pattern” of interference over the last few months, including incidents in which the vehicles drove into active emergency scenes, blocked ambulances and firefighters, and didn’t respond in situations involving flashing lights, fire, and traffic cones.
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Good morning!
Thursday, Jul 9, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Thursday, Jul 9, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Subscribers were told this morning. Associated Press…
* WGLT | Planned Parenthood of Illinois appoints McLean County’s Carolyn Moon as new board chair: A McLean County-based new leader at Planned Parenthood of Illinois [PPI] is relentlessly focused on providing affordable care to anyone who needs it, all across Illinois. Carolyn Moon, who lives just outside Bloomington-Normal and took the board chair position this month, is the first person from outside the Chicago area to serve in the role. She said she brings a different perspective on rural healthcare. “I really am an advocate for access for everyone in the state, corner to corner, today, tomorrow, and for future generations,” Moon said on WGLT’s Sound Ideas. * Capitol News Illinois | State Rep. Carol Ammons indicted for scheme to receive kickbacks, misusing campaign funds: State Rep. Carol Ammons, D-Urbana, an 11-year veteran of the Illinois House, has been charged with orchestrating an alleged scheme to receive cash kickbacks from illegal payments from her own campaign account and from local nonprofits for which she helped secure state grant funding. The indictment, brought by a federal grand jury late Tuesday, outline an alleged conspiracy involving both Ammons’ husband, Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons, and her daughter, who last month was indicted on separate federal charges alleging she fraudulently collected expanded COVID-era unemployment benefits. * WCIA | Carol, Aaron Ammons indicted for wire fraud, obstruction of justice: The counts against Carol allege that she used donations and contributions to her political support committee, Friends of Carol Ammons, for personal use. They also allege Carol used state grants to fund organizations her daughter Titianna was involved in and to pay her a salary, which is an “impermissible conflict of interest” under Illinois law. […] “From at least on or about May 21, 2024, and continuing through at least June 15, 2025, [Carol and Aaron] knowingly conspired with each other and others, both known and unknown the grand jury, to engage in misleading conduct toward another person,” the indictment with the intent to hinder and prevent the communication to a federal law enforcement officer of information relating to the commission and possible commission of a federal offense, namely wire fraud,” the indictment says. * Press release | Illinois Surpasses 1,000 Certified Peer Professionals, Marking Major Milestone in Behavioral Health Workforce Growth: The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) announced today that Illinois has surpassed 1,000 certified peer professionals, with 1,010 individuals now credentialed as Certified Recovery Support Specialists (CRSS) and/or Certified Peer Recovery Specialists (CPRS). The milestone reflects the State’s continued investment in peer recovery support services and behavioral health workforce development and represents a 335% increase in the certified peer workforce since 2022. “Growing our behavioral health workforce has been one of the most impactful investments we’ve made in strengthening our system,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “This milestone reflects real, statewide momentum—and we’re committed to continuing to grow this workforce so more Illinoisans can access the hope, support, and connection they need.” * WAND | Bill providing resources for youth repeat gun offenders awaits Pritzker’s signature: The plan could require probation agencies to conduct an assessment of the minor’s needs and identify restorative justice programs for high risk youth, cognitive behavioral therapy, family engagement and mentoring options. “Without this help and without the services that are provided through this legislation, the direction of their life is not going to be a positive one,” said Rep. Anthony DeLuca (D-Chicago Heights). “We believe that we can help some kids with this version.” * Press release | Governor Pritzker Announces Funding for NSF Quantum X-Labs Teams: In addition to the $3 million X-Labs Fast Fund, Chicago’s leading quantum innovation organizations have put together a package to attract teams applying to X-Labs. The Chicago Quantum Exchange, P33, Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and mHUB will add $250,000 in funding, immediate access to elite lab space and advanced prototyping facilities, and access to the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park’s (IQMP) technical infrastructure, including cryogenic, test and measurement equipment, and experimental research facilities. With access to Chicago’s state-of-the-art quantum campus and innovation ecosystem, facilities, assets and resources, X-Labs teams will be able to reduce infrastructure costs and maximize the impact of their NSF funding. * CBS Chicago | Black and gold bumblebee officially designated Illinois State Bee: Last year, students in Ms. Barbara Bell’s eighth-grade science class led the push for the state bee designation, after they completed a research project on bee species native to Illinois, according to the governor’s office. The students created presentations for distribution around Illinois, launched a statewide vote, and testified before lawmakers. Because of their efforts, HB 4438 was approved to designate the state bee. * Press release | Former Gov. Quinn & Rep. LaShawn Ford to Introduce & File an Ordinance Calling for a Citywide “Millionaire Tax” Voter Referendum: This Thursday, July 9, at 11:30AM inside the City Clerk’s Office on the first floor of City Hall, former Governor and Chicago resident Pat Quinn will join with Rep. LaShawn Ford to introduce and file an ordinance calling for a citywide referendum this November 3 urging passage of the Illinois Millionaire Amendment for Property Tax Relief and Education. The Referendum asks voters: “Shall Illinois adopt the Millionaire Amendment for Property Tax Relief and Education which would enact a 3% income tax surcharge only on millionaires and use 50% of this new revenue to provide property tax relief for residential and commercial tax payers and 50% to improve state funding for public education?” *Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago cut funding for assistant principals in small schools. Most chose to keep them anyway: More than 130 small schools were poised to lose funding for their assistant principals next school year. Most, including McCutcheon, used discretionary dollars to keep them or convinced CPS to make an exception, leaving about 40 campuses without that position, Chalkbeat has learned. The move comes as district officials are trying to close a $732.5 million deficit to balance a more than $10 billion budget. * WBEZ | Mayor Brandon Johnson taps new public health commissioner: “I’ve spent my career committed to centering a public health approach that addresses the social and economic conditions that shape people’s health and wellbeing,” Walker said in a statement Wednesday announcing his appointment. “As someone who grew up in Chicago, it’s an honor to serve as Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health and support the Mayor’s vision for a healthier Chicago.” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed Walker, but City Council members must approve his new role. He would replace Dr. Olusimbo Ige, who resigned in May after about two and half years on the job. * Tribune | Chicago Public Library Foundation gets a new president and CEO: The foundation’s board of directors has appointed Eva Giglio as its new president and CEO. Joining the organization Aug. 12, Giglio will leave the executive director role at the CME Group Foundation to take up a mantle left behind after former leader Brenda Langstraat Bui died in February. Giglio said she knew Langstraat Bui and that stepping into the position she held for more than seven years is a bittersweet moment. * WGN | O’Hare taxi times soar to highest in nation. Here’s why: “I think the worst ones are when I’m coming back from Minneapolis and the flight is 40 minutes and the taxi time is longer than the actual flight was, which happens!” said frequent flyer Pan Fanshaw. A WGN Investigates analysis of FAA data found the amount of time it’s taking planes to move around the airfield is higher than at any other airport in the nation. Back in 2018, the average time from gate to runway was 22-and-a-half minutes. This year, it’s climbed to more than 28 minutes. Taxi times after landing have also increased, from 13.6 minutes to now, more than 18 minutes on average. * Daily Southtown | Tinley Park storm clean up: ‘Please be patient’: Tinley Park public works employees are still working to clean up damage from the weekend’s heavy storms, Public Works Director John Urbanski told the Village Board Tuesday night. “We had over 200 emails Monday morning that we were welcomed with, and approximately 150 voicemails,” Urbanski said. “I’ve got all of my staff all hands on deck trying to go through and chip up and bring all of the brush away from the parkways, but I just ask everybody that’s waiting to just please be patient.” * Daily Herald | Future of Trickster Cultural Center uncertain as Schaumburg ponders village history museum: Schaumburg officials are sticking with plans to study the feasibility of a local history museum that could displace a Native American cultural center at a village-owned building it’s leased for more than two decades. Officials from the Trickster Cultural Center said they haven’t identified any options for relocation because the village hasn’t provided a time frame or determined if they’ll even have to leave. “We asked if there was a building they could offer Trickster and they said no,” said Gina Roxas, Trickster’s executive director. “We love Schaumburg. This is where our roots are.” * The Daily Egyptian | ‘No one’s selling anyone’s water’: Fear, speculation follow southern Illinois water district consolidation proposal: * Press release | IDNR and City of Springfield announce plans for new downtown park and outdoor venue space: Conceptual designs for the park include landscaping featuring all native Illinois plants. The focal point is a natural limestone amphitheater with seating for 1,500 to 1,800 people, enabling it to continue hosting the popular Levitt AMP Springfield Music Series. Additional features include open lawn seating, shaded gathering areas, ADA accessible walking paths and a natural play space for children. The park layout will be aligned with the Governor’s Mansion to enhance the visual connection between the adjacent blocks and will incorporate design elements inspired by the residence’s historic oval lawn. Interpretive signage will share the history of the park site, including information about the former YWCA building. Plans also call for a dedicated “Community Row” space for vendor tents, mobile restrooms and a food truck plaza along the closed Jackson Street area to support concerts and other events. * IPM Newsroom | New Champaign Unit 4 superintendent brings back some former cabinet members into other leadership roles: Ward and most members of the previous superintendent’s cabinet have all retired or been demoted, with the option to return to teaching. The new superintendent, Geovanny Ponce, appointed three from that group into leadership roles this week. Ward will become interim principal of Central High School. “I have a dream that every student will have a path and a plan,” she said. “And I know that Dr. Ponce and the team here has that same dream.” * WCIA | Decatur City Council approves memorandum with sanitary district to cut down pollutants in waterways: City Council member David Horn said the Sanitation District of Decatur is the largest single point source of phosphorus into waterways in the state. Now, he said the city will be working with the district to get that number down from 20 milligrams per liter flowing into streams and rivers like the Sangamon.“The I-EPA is requiring that by 2029, the sanitary District of Decatur reduced that to 1 mg per liter. This is a big victory from an environmental perspective,” Horn said. * Harvest Public Media | Trump reduced tariffs on farm machinery. But prices could still increase.: Tariffs on equipment made from steel, aluminum and copper decreased from 25 percent to 15 percent on June 8 after President Trump signed a proclamation. Yet, experts say the decrease isn’t enough to relieve manufacturers or farmers in a struggling market. “We appreciate the [a]dministration’s move to lower tariffs on agricultural equipment, but the real-world savings are limited,” said Richard Gupton, the senior vice president of public policy and council for the Agricultural Retailers Association.
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Welch removes Ammons from committees, caucus pending federal case (Updated)
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Background is here if you need it. House Speaker Chris Welch…
…Adding… Gov. JB Pritzker’s office…
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It’s the management
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller * WBEZ…
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Jesse’s still got it
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The Jesse White Tumblers auditioned for ‘America’s Got Talent’…
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Governor Pritzker, Fight For Us.
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Working families face rising costs and medical debt, while hospital systems continue to profit by exploiting the 340B program - making billions, while patients are paying the price. Leaders in Kentucky, Virginia and California recognize that a program meant to help vulnerable patients shouldn’t become a profit stream for billion-dollar hospital systems and their business partners. Governor JB Pritzker has the opportunity to lead the way. Illinois deserves better — veto 340B Profit-Grab (HB 2371).
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Feds indict Rep. Ammons (Updated)
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Rep. Carol Ammons (D-Urbana) was indicted by a federal grand jury on wire fraud, false statement and obstruction charges. From the indictment…
* The indictment also cites text messages prosecutors allege referred to cash kickbacks…
* After eight wire fraud counts, the indictment alleges Rep. Ammons made a false statement to the FBI…
…Adding… House Minority Leader Tony McCombie…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Attorneys general, state officials sue over 2nd federal attempt to cut permanent housing funds. Sun-Times…
- Raoul and the coalition of state legal officials said the move, which they argue oversteps the Trump administration’s power and violates federal law, will once again risk housing for tens of thousands of people. In Illinois alone, $60 million in funding would be lost, according to the suit. - Similar arguments made by Raoul and others have led to federal court decisions reinstating $2 billion in federal disaster relief funding, $2 billion for transportation and millions in public health research money. * Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today. * Subscribers know more. Politico | When should an ethics report be public?: Questions are mounting about whether the ethics report that led former state Rep. Harry Benton to resign should be made public. […] About the report: The Legislative Inspector General has 30 days to submit its report to the Legislative Ethics Commission, which then has another 60 days to consider its findings and respond. The commission also has the authority to make available a public summary of the findings. It is required to make the findings public if it results in a suspension or termination, according to a person familiar with the state statute, who was granted anonymity due to a lack of authorization to discuss the matter publicly. * Capitol News Illinois | Utility watchdog warns of rising water rates as regulators consider requests: Customers across Illinois could be facing higher water and sewage bills as the state’s largest private water utilities seek rate increases and permission to merge. Illinois American Water, the state’s largest private water utility, is seeking a $142 million rate increase, which would raise typical water costs for its 357,000 residential customers by around $14 per month. Typical wastewater customers would see an additional increase of around $28 per month. * Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson says aldermen’s provisions in budget $130 million short: “I want to say this clearly: There were other options,” Johnson said. “We did not need to cede to big money interests and fall back on the tired practice of balancing budgets on the backs of working people.” What’s less clear is how his administration will seek to fill that hole as the clock ticks toward the 2027 budget cycle — and an election that will see the mayor’s office and all 50 aldermanic seats on the ballot. The freshman mayor said he’s “working hard to avoid layoffs and cutting services” but made clear he will use his bully pulpit to blame aldermen should it come to that. * Block Club | Council-Backed Budget Could Lead To $130 Million Shortfall This Year, Mayor Says: Johnson, however, has remained a frequent critic of the budget that got passed. On Tuesday, his administration released a mid-year budget report with preliminary revenue numbers and forecasts showing that some of the alternative budget revenue ideas weren’t panning out — which could lead to an at least $130 million budget hole this year. In particular, the mayor said his team has attempted to find a buyer for the city’s vehicular debt, but “to date, no buyer has been identified,” making a sale impossible. Alderpeople had estimated a debt sale could bring in about $90 million for the city coffers. * Ald. Scott Waguespack | 29 Council members sought to get Chicago to live within its means: Yet when Mayor Brandon Johnson unveiled his fiscal year 2026 budget proposal, many members of the City Council were confronted with a troubling reality: They were being asked to approve a nearly $18 billion spending plan without significant efficiencies, without involvement in its development and without answers to basic fiscal questions. At the same time, Mayor Johnson pushed policies like the head tax on businesses to penalize employers for putting people to work and placing Chicago closer toward the end of a financial cliff. This approach lacked transparency while ignoring altogether the concept of trying to live within our means. * Sun-Times | One of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s most ardent City Council adversaries won’t seek reelection in 2027: Ald. Marty Quinn (13th), who learned the game of Chicago politics at the feet of now-convicted former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan (D-Chicago), is calling it a career after 15 years in the City Council. Quinn, 51, told the Sun-Times that he has decided not to seek reelection in 2027. After 4,100 conversations in the last four years alone in the living rooms and at the front doors of his Southwest Side constituents, Quinn said he “left it all on the field” and no longer has the energy required to “manage from the front lines.” He said he cannot risk giving the demanding job less than it demands. * Sun-Times | Chicago Public Media launching community website — chicago.com — in the fall: The site will include Chicago-area information, civic and cultural resources, community-sourced knowledge and opportunities for audience participation, the nonprofit said Wednesday. It will also curate headlines from the Sun-Times, WBEZ and other news sources. For independent journalism to “truly service the public … we should have digital infrastructure that is also steered by public media companies,” Chicago Public Media CEO Melissa Bell said. The news industry “has ceded a lot of distribution to places like Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter, and I think that has done a disservice to centering civic discourse in a healthy way.” * Tribune | After putting the street race on hold, could NASCAR end up in Chicago and Joliet next summer?: While nothing is set, NASCAR is not only hoping to bring back the Chicago Street Race after a one-year hiatus, but perhaps add the long-dormant southwest suburban track to its regular schedule as well. “It could be both,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR’s chief operating officer and great-grandson of the family-owned racing organization’s founder. “It’s a market that’s strong enough that absolutely we could have two events there in the future.” * Tribune | Chicago White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami begins his injury rehab assignment with Triple-A Charlotte: Munetaka Murakami estimated he was at the 99% point of his recovery. “The last road is to play in the minors,” the Chicago White Sox first baseman said through an interpreter on Sunday evening in Cleveland. “That one percent at being at the minors and then being back on the (major-league) field.” That final hurdle got underway Tuesday when Murakami began a minor-league injury rehab assignment with Triple-A Charlotte. * Daily Southtown | Dolton passes ordinance allowing payment of $33.5 million judgment over 10 years: “We’re still in negotiations and discussing that, but it looks like we’re going to come up with a positive plan so the taxpayers won’t be burdened,” village attorney Michael McGrath said at Monday’s Village Board meeting. Dolton and the families of John Kyles and Duane Dunlap agreed in court June 10 the village would pay the judgment and accruing interest in installments over 10 years, with the payments secured through a bond. The village is only allowed to pay the judgment over time by adopting an ordinance, which passed Monday, stating that “unreasonable hardship will result” unless the judgment is paid in installments, according to state law. * Daily Herald | State agency wants more information on how DuPage County Board approved raises: DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek filed a request for review of the board’s April 28 vote setting salaries for officials taking office after the November election. In a June 26 letter to the public access counselor, Kaczmarek raised questions about the legality of the vote, arguing the board did not provide enough notice to the public of the pending vote. She also argued the board violated the state’s Open Meetings Act when it approved a change, proposed on the board floor, that increased the originally suggested salary for the county board chairman from $154,390 in the upcoming fiscal year to $185,000. Under the amended salary, the chair’s pay will top $198,000 in the 2030 fiscal year. * Daily Southtown | ‘The stench is putrid’: Nearly full Thornton reservoir brings sewage stink, increased flood risk: As of 10:15 a.m. Tuesday, the water level had receded slightly from that high to 93% capacity, or 7.3 billion gallons, according to the district’s website. The highest the reservoir has ever been before was in 2019, when it hit 54.5% capacity. […] “It smells,” said Thornton Village Clerk Nikki Kitakis. “It’s pretty horrific.” Odors from the reservoir have been a long-standing issue for residents of Thornton, though Kitakis said the issue is particularly severe with the reservoir so full. * WCIA | Decatur Council votes for city to cover full cost of leaking lead service line replacements: At Monday’s meeting, the Decatur City Council voted to up its reimbursement program from 50% to 100% for businesses and homes trying to get rid of drinking water supply pipes at risk of lead contamination. More specifically, for residential and commercial properties with possible lead contamination. […] Back on Jan. 17, 2023, city council approved a policy to provide a 50% cost share to replace privately owned water services. However, the city was recently informed that the Illinois EPA received additional funding from the U.S. EPA for lead service removal. * WGLT | Bloomington Police say drones are an eye in the sky, not a surveillance state: Police Chief Jamal Simington compared the use of drones to other advances in technology that police use: DNA, fingerprinting, and radar guns for monitoring speed. “History tells us community members have struggled with advancements in law enforcement for many many years. This is nothing new,” Simington said. Sgt. Jared Bierbaum is the drone coordinator for Bloomington Police Department. He told the small audience of a few community members at a public forum Tuesday night that not every drone they see in the sky is from the department, but he can understand the unsettling feeling of seeing a drone hovering over one’s property. * BND | Belleville repeals ban on ‘tiny homes’ approved under former administration: Belleville City Council has repealed a ban on new homes smaller than 1,000 square feet that was passed two years ago. At the time, zoning staff under former mayor Patty Gregory were trying to guard against construction of “tiny homes,” arguing they could reduce property values in some neighborhoods. But the ban unnecessarily regulated development and created problems for people trying to get loans or insurance when buying, selling, modifying or rebuilding existing small homes, according to officials. * AP | Obamacare premiums surged this year. A new analysis shows it’s likely to happen again in 2027: Across the 77 insurers in the ACA program that have submitted rate filings that are publicly available, the median proposed premium increase for 2027 is 14%, according to Wednesday’s analysis from the healthcare research nonprofit KFF. The insurers cited mounting healthcare costs, federal regulatory changes and the recent expiration of pandemic-era enhanced subsidies as the biggest factors driving premiums higher. * WIRED | Meta Now Lets Anyone Use Your Instagram Photos in AI Images—Unless You Opt Out: The new model, called Muse Image, rolled out with deep integrations woven into the Instagram app. As part of this update, public Instagram profiles are now automatically opted into being fodder for generative AI remixes. All someone has to do is tag your account’s profile in a prompt—if it’s public—and they can use Meta AI to generate an image using your likeness.
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Good morning!
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller * Every now and then you have to remember that, no matter what challenges you may face, life is most definitely grand… Sun came out the other day This is an Illinois open thread.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Wednesday, Jul 8, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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