* Tribune…

Chicago Transit Authority board chair Lester Barclay, who has faced heat from transit advocates for criticizing Illinois’ transit reform legislation and for riding the system he oversees less frequently than they’d like, will continue to helm the transit agency’s governing board, members voted unanimously Tuesday morning.

Keeping Barclay on as chair was one of the first actions the new seven-member board took during the meeting, its first since a state-mandated reorganization took effect. Barclay still needs to be confirmed by the Illinois State Senate. […]

Barclay has continually defended himself against his detractors, arguing he is in fact on board with transit reform. He’s also pushed back against implications that he doesn’t have transit experience, pointing to years he spent working as outside counsel for the CTA. In conversations with the Tribune this summer, he positioned himself as a supporter of transit-oriented development who believes in the power of mass transit to transform disinvested neighborhoods.

Much of the criticism of Barclay this summer centered around an op-ed he wrote for the Tribune last fall in which he questioned the increased oversight NITA has over decision-making at the CTA.

* Capitol News Illinois…

Illinois’ eight state-run visitor information centers, located within rest areas at interstates around the state, will be closing by the end of the month.

“The role of the State’s visitor information centers has evolved significantly over the past couple of decades as the ways visitors plan and access travel information have changed,” the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity told Capitol News Illinois in a statement. “For example, the centers used to provided services such as booking hotel rooms for tourists, while that is no longer a need of many travelers.”

The rest areas where the centers are located will continue operating, and other services will be uninterrupted, the department added. The closures do not extend to independently operated visitor information centers by local governments or tourism organizations. […]

The department did not respond to questions about the cost of operating the centers or the number of jobs that will be impacted.

*** Statewide ***

* Crain’s | UChicago, Northwestern slip in U.S. college rankings: The 2027 rankings released today dropped UChicago from No. 6 to 9 and Northwestern from No. 7 to 9, both tied with Johns Hopkins University for the ninth spot. […] The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ranked No. 34, up two spots from last year.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Pritzker establishes AI cabinet amid calls for greater regulation: Illinois lawmakers have already taken steps to regulate AI. Pritzker signed Senate Bill 315 in July, also known as the Artificial Intelligence Safety Measures Act, which increases transparency and accountability requirements for the largest artificial intelligence models — those that generate more than $500 million in annual revenue and are trained using massive computing power. It establishes new reporting standards for the possibility that the AI model could be used for large-scale harm, such as by helping create a chemical, biological or nuclear weapon or committing cyber-attacks.

* Center Square | Pritzker names union leader to capital board: Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s latest appointee to the Capital Development Board is Dustin Ramage, business manager with Downstate Illinois Laborers’ District Council and special international representative with Laborers’ International Union of North America. Ramage previously served as president of LIUNA Local 100. Capital Development Board members receive no salary but are reimbursed for expenses.

*** Chicago ***

* Borderless | More Chicagoans are Getting Mental Health Help Through 911: Chicago’s Crisis Assistance Response and Engagement (CARE) program has responded to 51% more 911 calls since expanding citywide in May, according to data Borderless received from the city’s public health department. The program offers emergency assistance that does not involve the police to individuals experiencing mental health crises or behavioral distress.

* CPS Board president candidate Jessica Biggs is up with her first TV ad…

?Our campaign’s first TV ad is now live! The ad highlights my background as a CPS mom, lifelong educator, and relentless advocate for my students – even in the face of powerful opposition. Check it out ➡️ https://t.co/KGbEas5zVj

— Jessica Biggs (@biggs4chicago) September 22, 2026

* WTTW | Fate of Chicago Police Reform Push at Stake Ahead of Illinois Supreme Court Arguments: Attorney General: The Illinois Supreme Court will hold oral arguments at 9 a.m. Thursday in the case that has frozen the system Chicago officials used for 60 years to hold accountable officers accused of the most egregious misconduct amid a legal dispute between the city and the city’s largest police union that has lasted for more than two years. […] “Moving hearings in serious police disciplinary matters outside of public view would undermine the consent decree,” Raoul wrote. “It is the attorney general’s goal to ensure — consistent with the consent decree — that CPD acts in as transparent and accountable a manner as is practicable. The arbitration award in this case, if affirmed, would represent a profound step backward in that mission. It would decrease transparency in the most serious disciplinary cases — those most likely to attract the public’s interest and to shape its perception of CPD. Moving those proceedings behind closed doors would undermine the public’s faith in the disciplinary process and in CPD generally.”

* Tribune | Chicago woman ‘felt relief’ as troubled South Side foster facility’s manager sentenced to 30 years in prison: he Tribune first reported on the details of the case in a story published in June. Escamilla had filed a lawsuit against Aunt Martha’s Health and Wellness, the nonprofit that operated the now-closed residential facility, and its security contractor, A-Alert Security Services. […] Escamilla said she was happy Henry will go to prison, but she believes he deserves more time. He was sentenced to four years on each count of criminal sexual assault and six years on the predatory criminal sexual assault, which run consecutively, according to the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.

* ABC Chicago | Chicago begins rollout of new OEMC 911 dispatch system Tuesday: Several dispatchers and 14 aldermen have expressed concerns that the new system showed dropped calls and delayed responses. Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office has responded - saying the system has been stress-tested beyond what it expects to see in the real world. In fact, they say the technology was tested with 3,800 911 calls in a single hour.

* Tribune | Art Institute will return painting looted during World War II to heirs of Jewish art collector: On Tuesday, the Art Institute of Chicago announced it is returning a 1913 painting, “Woman with a Fan” by Jean Metzinger, to the heirs of its original owner. […] Because of that gap, the museum listed the painting on its website as well as on a dedicated portal “in the hope that somebody would come forward and help us fill this gap,” said Schumacher. “And that is exactly what happened when Mondex contacted us and shared information about the family history that wasn’t previously known to us.” The key to unraveling the mystery was not found in an archive, but on the back of the painting itself. “We discovered very, very faint handwriting in pencil. And thanks to the help from our conservators and technical imaging experts, we were able to take infrared photography, which allowed us to see a name: Paul Citroen.”

* Block Club | Volunteers Dubbed The ‘Litter Caterpillars’ Turn Englewood Lots Into A Park: While cleaning the city, the group noticed that trash and debris mostly accumulated in vacant lots, Bippes said. To clear the “mountain of trash” in vacant lots, Litter Caterpillars launched a new project called “The 50 Ward Challenge,” where the group completed 50 trash pickups in all 50 wards in 50 weeks, Tao said. It was while gathering on a Sunday morning at one of the city’s many vacant lots when members of Litter Caterpillars asked themselves, “What would it look like if we bought one of these vacant lots in the city and made it into something beautiful, like a park?” Bippes said.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Pioneer Press | Park Ridge revisits affordable housing policy ahead of 2029 deadline: The discussion, which will continue through to next month’s council meeting, comes ahead of 2029, when the Illinois Housing Development Authority is expected to review compliance with a state law requiring 10 % affordable housing. That review is part of federal HUD housing requirements. Currently, Park Ridge has about 8 % affordable housing, according to the state’s accounting. Community Preservation and Development Director Drew Awsumb said the city’s affordable housing guidelines are voluntary and come with development incentives for builders, as opposed to mandatory requirements. He said some suburbs mandate specific affordable housing guidelines for developments, and other suburbs have incentives, and Park Ridge has the latter. He said it’s a carrot and stick approach.

* Daily Southtown | Plea deal expected for former Thornton Fractional High School teacher charged with sexual assault: By the time Aaron Richmond pleaded guilty to the crimes in April, he had already spent 458 days in custody, which counts toward his total sentence. He agreed to register as a sex offender and refrain from contacting or going near the victim and several others involved in the case for life.

*** Downstate ***

* WAND | District 186 adopts budget with nearly $8 million deficit: District 186 Superintendent Terrance Jordan said every effort is being made to protect the classroom from cuts. “We’ve gotta make some tough decisions; we know that, and [as] I said, we have been very transparent about that … the realities that we are facing. Hard to pinpoint exactly right now, but doing what we can to stay away from people. That’s the first step,” Jordan said.

* Illinois Times | Philanthropist buys former college campus to offer space for business startups and nonprofits: “We want life back on that campus,” John Wieland told Illinois Times in describing the $1 lease program for nonprofits and for-profit businesses that will offer space on the more than 50-acre campus in the heart of Lincoln. John Wieland, 68, the owner and chief executive officer of Peoria-based MH Equipment, which sells and rents materials handling equipment and operates at 40 locations in 12 states, said he and his wife, Julie, 67, bought the campus for $2.6 million for the program.

* WCBU | Money matters to Peoria County Treasurer candidates: Republican Peoria County Treasurer Branden Martin sits next to Democratic challenger Randy Stevens during a League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria candidate forum Saturday at the Peoria Public Library main branch. Peoria County Treasurer Branden Martin was appointed to the position last year, following the retirement of Nicole Bjerke after 27 years on the job. Now Martin, a Republican, is seeking to keep his office as he faces Democrat Randy Stevens in the upcoming Nov. 3 election. The two participated in a candidate forum last weekend at the main branch of the Peoria Public Library, with Martin touting the improvements he’s made in the office and how he’s dealt with “a heavy with learning curve” and the frustrations he’s encountered.

* 25News Now | Western Illinois University unveils new Emergency Operations Center: Kristi Mindrup, WIU President, called the facility “hands-on” and “state of the art.” School officials say the EOC will serve the WIU campus and surrounding communities by bolstering campus safety and emergency response, while also giving students a chance to gain real-world experience in disaster management.

* WAND | Gas and diesel prices continue upward climb across central Illinois: As of Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gas was $4.47. The average price in Illinois, according to AAA, is $4.90. Diesel continues to jump. One week ago, it hit a new record high of $6.23 a gallon. As of Monday morning, the national average was $6.51. An increase of 28 cents per gallon.

*** National ***

* Reuters | Trump administration halts Obamacare enrollment for over 760,000 people, claiming fraud: The Trump administration is halting enrollment in Obamacare health plans for more than 760,000 people it believes were fraudulently signed up, Vice President JD Vance said on Tuesday, ‌part of an anti-fraud effort he estimated would save $2.2 billion in taxpayer money. The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services canceled about 315,000 plans last month, citing unverified citizenship or immigration documentation and suspected improper enrollments.

* NYT | How Unions Are Confronting A.I. Threats in the Workplace: Last month, when Local S6 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers negotiated a new five-year contract with the defense company that runs the shipyard, the union insisted on updating longstanding language about technology. Now the union must be informed at the “conceptual stage,” rather than at implementation, of “any proposed addition or modified technology, equipment or process,” including A.I. and robotics. “It was the union trying to force the company’s hand about being more transparent when it comes to A.I.,” Mr. Suitter said. “The sooner we can be part of that conversation and represent the members’ side of it, the better off we are.”

* Reuters | Texas Governor Abbott halts all state-issued permits for data centers until grid audit is complete: Since the artificial ⁠intelligence boom began roughly three years ago, Texas has become one of the fastest-growing data hubs in the world. But intensifying public backlash over the facilities, and fears about AI more broadly, prompted Abbott last month to freeze the connection of new data centers to the state grid and order an audit of the facilities. By the time of that directive, there were more than 470 gigawatts’ worth of data center projects and other large energy users in line to connect to the grid — more than five ‌times ⁠the state’s peak demand.