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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ABC Chicago…
* Gov. JB Pritzker…
* Press release | Gov. Pritzker Provides $11.4 Million in Savings During the 2026 Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday: Today, Governor JB Pritzker announced that the 2026 Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday provided an estimated $11.4 million in savings for Illinois families – exceeding the $10 million savings estimate. The tax holiday, held August 7 through August 16, reduced the state sales tax rate on clothing, footwear and school supplies. Approximately 2,284 retailers sold an estimated $229.3 million in qualifying items during that period. The reduced rate applied to purchases made both in stores and online. * WICS | Attorney General files lawsuit against Dollar General for overcharging customers: Attorney General Kwame Raoul, along with 19 other attorneys general and the Federal Trade Commission, have sued the Dollar General Corporation for charging customers more than the advertised price of items. Raoul said, “Our lawsuit alleges that Dollar General has generated millions of dollars by regularly and repeatedly charging shoppers more at the register than the prices it advertises,” said Raoul. “Overcharging for products at a time when many basic necessities have become less affordable harms vulnerable families and consumers. I will continue to work with my fellow attorneys general and our federal partners to hold businesses that break the law accountable.” * WGLT | New Illinois law expands domestic violence protections to tech abuse, doxxing: Starting Jan. 1, 2027, Illinois orders of protection can address tech-based abuse, doxxing, and AI harassment, and survivors in all 102 counties will have expanded virtual access to the orders. Dylana Larson, assistant director of Safe Harbor Family Crisis Center in Galesburg, explained the changes on Galesburg In Focus with Chris Postin during Domestic Violence Awareness Month. * WSIU | Illinois Governor Race: Independent Candidate Collin Corbett on Policy, Healthcare, and Taxes: Corbett, a former Republican political strategist, entered the race saying he wants to challenge the two-party candidates. Corbett talked with WSIU about his campaign, sharing his hopes to start a movement of independents. A movement giving voters a choice beyond what he says are candidates who take up the extreme sides of their parties. Corbett spent 30 minutes talking about the campaign and more of his policies. * Crain’s | Ishbia-backed Amtrak project gets deeper review amid Bridgeport backlash: The agency that regulates the federal rail system is taking a fresh look at how Amtrak’s proposed maintenance facility next to Rate Field could impact its surrounding neighborhood, committing to a more robust review amid staunch pushback from local residents and officials. The Federal Railroad Administration today announced it is conducting a formal environmental assessment of the rail operator’s planned $900 million redevelopment of Canal Street Rail Yard just west of the Chicago White Sox’s ballpark. The EA — a process that includes public comment and a deeper dive into previous studies about the project’s environmental impact — is slated to be completed by the end of the year, according to the FRA’s website. * Tribune | Controversial Amtrak yard proposal to get environmental assessment by Federal Railroad Administration: The federal government originally granted Amtrak and Canal Edge, Ishbia’s development company, a “categorical exclusion,” or an exemption from a more thorough environmental assessment. But hundreds of Bridgeport and Chinatown residents packed community meetings throughout August and September and denounced the Amtrak-Ishbia plan. Many said they worried a 24/7 maintenance facility would pollute their neighborhoods with diesel fumes and noise, while others complained that it opened the possibility of the White Sox leaving nearby Rate Field for a new downtown stadium. * WTTW | New Pilot Program to Bring Childhood Lead Testing to Six South Side Neighborhoods: Testing events will be held at daycares, schools, libraries, places of worship and community organizations over the next two years across six neighborhoods — Englewood, West Englewood, South Chicago, Greater Grand Crossing, Auburn Gresham and New City – where a significant number of children ages 1 through 3 have not been tested for lead, according to the health department. * Tribune | 2026 Soul Train Awards will be held in Chicago: The annual awards show will air at 7 p.m. Nov. 27 on BET and will be simulcast on CBS for the first time. According to an announcement from BET, the awards show will be “taped in the city where Don Cornelius launched the original ‘Soul Train’ more than 50 years ago,” as a Chicago-born television show that celebrated Black music, dance and style. * Elgin Courier-News | East Dundee to return sponsor money after Oktoberfest controversy: Sponsors of the East Dundee Oktoberfest will have their money returned in response to Village President Dan Pearson turning the event into an impromptu Republican political rally. In a split decision, the East Dundee Village Board voted Oct. 19 to return $5,250 to all 12 sponsors. Village President Dan Pearson was against the idea. “Was I wrong for allowing a political candidate to speak at an event? Yes. I’m sorry I put people through that,” Pearson said. “At the time, I didn’t know it was wrong. It was a spontaneous thing. * Press release | After 59 Days on Picket Line, Workers Overwhelmingly Ratify New Three-Year Agreement: After eight weeks on strike, IKEA workers represented by Teamsters Local 179 have overwhelmingly ratified a strong first collective bargaining agreement. The three-year contract covers 190 workers, delivering a 12 percent wage increase, enhanced grievance procedures, and improved working conditions. The workers at IKEA’s distribution center in Joliet voted overwhelmingly to join the Teamsters in March, becoming the third IKEA location to organize with the union in North America. * Elgin Courier-News | Hawthorne Hill Nature Center in Elgin vying to have state’s 2nd certified therapy trail: David Schoenknecht, a naturalist at the center at 28 Brookside Drive near Randall Road and U.S. Route 20, said a therapy trail is a perfect fit for a park that is so close to two hospitals. “Once we become certified, we’ll be a bona fide therapeutic location, but it’s also something that somebody could do over lunch and just pop over here,” he said. “It gives anyone an opportunity to do things a little more mindfully.” * Daily Egyptian | State says it will keep 25 mental health beds at Choate, expand regional jobs: The Illinois Department of Human Services has scaled back its plans to close 75 minimum-security mental health beds at Choate Developmental Center in Anna, opting to keep 25 beds open while phasing out the remaining 50 by July 2027. The department says it also plans to reopen about 200 beds at three other state-run psychiatric hospitals in Alton and Chester in southern Illinois and Hines in the Chicago suburbs. * BND | Metro-east police officer decertified for making false statements on job applications: Judge Sarah Carlson concluded that Simmons Jr. falsely claimed on job applications he submitted to police departments in Dupo, Cahokia Heights and Sauget in 2024 that he graduated from Dupo Junior/Senior High School, according to board documents. […] Simmons Jr., 24, is a firefighter with Prairie du Pont Fire & Rescue, formerly Prairie du Pont Fire Protection District, a volunteer fire department in East Carondelet that also covers Dupo and surrounding communities. His father, Jerame Simmons Sr., is the department’s fire chief and a former part-time East Carondelet police officer. His grandfather, Herb Simmons, is director of the St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency, mayor of East Carondelet, a former Washington Park police officer, former police chief in East Carondelet and a member of other public boards. * WCIA | Rantoul residents discuss referendum to change trustee elections: Former Rantoul Mayor Charles Smith recently held a public forum. He said he wanted to inform the community about a referendum on the November ballot. This will change how elected officials are voted in. Currently, villagers vote for trustees by district. The referendum aims to have the public vote at large for the board of trustees. * Shaw Local | Bourbonnais Township assessor resigns day after highway commissioner received threatening voicemail: Bourbonnais Township Assessor Doug Anderson released a formal resignation letter Thursday following public scrutiny from a threatening, obscenity-laced voicemail he left on Bourbonnais Township Highway Commissioner Jason Diaz’s publicly-funded phone Wednesday. Anderson’s letter does not reference the voicemail he left on Diaz’s phone. * STLPR | Enrollment gains at both SIU campuses help Illinois reach highest total since 2015: Southern Illinois University Carbondale also saw student enrollment grow over the past year, with total enrollment increasing by about 2.4% to 12,066. Both SIU campuses had declining graduate enrollment, with SIUE down about 5% and SIU Carbondale down about 3%. However, gains in undergraduate enrollment more than offset those declines. * Politico | Tech giants target spending on Florida’s state-level elections: Tech firms are donating to Democrats and Republican candidates alike, buying scores of mailers and ads on top of making campaign contributions in the upcoming November midterms races. They’re also funneling tens of thousands of dollars — a meager sum compared to statewide races, but notable at the statehouse level — through a dizzying network of political committees that support Republican leaders in the state Legislature and lawmakers who had a hand in artificial intelligence legislation last session. * Reuters | In China, the AI bubble has already burst: There has been no obvious selling trigger in China, although traders said high prices, tax bills and the threat of the US or other nations banning Chinese equipment in data centres all contributed. With AI stocks running to 42% of China’s market capitalisation and 57% of turnover across mainland-listed A-shares and Hong Kong’s H-shares, according to Goldman Sachs, few in a market dominated by small investors have escaped pain.
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Today’s must-read
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The Sun-Times takes a closer look at the Northern Illinois Transit Authority’s new powers to develop land near transit…
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Campaign stuff
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * “Bailey endorsed by Trump” signs paid for by JB for Governor popped up on Chicago’s West Side this weekend…
* From the Darren Bailey campaign…
Click here for the rest of the week’s stops. * Lincoln Legacy PAC is spending six figures on an ad against Melissa Bean…
* The spot…
* Transcript…
Bean is running against Republican Jennifer Davis. * Daily Herald…
* The Chicago Tribune…
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Ammons asks judge to toss indictment, says feds misrepresented state law
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here for some background if you need it. The Center Square…
* Rep. Ammons’ attorneys also cite a separate state contracting provision covering elected officials, their spouses and minor children. From the motion…
* On the alleged kickbacks…
* More from the Center Square…
* Back to the motion…
Thoughts?
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Farmers criticize timing of Trump and Pritzker diesel relief orders issued a month before election. Tribune…
- But farmers across Illinois say the relief may do little to offset costs they’ve already incurred. Some, like McHenry County farmer Chris McKee, have opted not to use dyed fuel on roads because they’re uncertain about the documentation required, whether they could face penalties after the relief period ends and whether the federal tax will eventually come due. - “If they’re really concerned about farming, this would have been in effect back in March or April, back when it would have made a difference,” Yeley said. “Not a month before an election.” - A spokesperson for the governor’s office said the administration acted in response to rising fuel costs. * Related stories… * Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today. * Sun-Times | NITA has unprecedented power to develop land near transit. How could this change your neighborhood?: The NITA Act catches Chicago up to its peers. But it goes further by granting power to buy and develop land for reasons unrelated to transit, says Yonah Freemark, an expert on the method at the Urban Institute, a DC-based think tank. “There are some provisions that give NITA substantial power for undertaking transit-oriented development projects itself that virtually no other transit agency across the country has,” he says. “This could be a potentially massive change.” * Tribune | Potential buyer of Weiss and West Suburban hospitals has mixed track record: Insight’s Chicago hospital has also been cited for numerous safety issues, records obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests show. In 2023, state inspectors found safety problems in its behavioral health unit that were severe enough to place the hospital in immediate jeopardy, a serious designation that can lead to a facility being cut off from Medicare. The safety issues were resolved, and the Chicago hospital remains open. But state inspectors flagged problems at another Insight-affiliated hospital in Ohio, and that hospital was ultimately terminated from the Medicare program and closed. * CBS Chicago | Video: Pritzker rallies with United Auto Workers in Calumet City: UAW endorsed Pritzker in September, citing his support for Illinois workers. The governor reaffirmed his commitment to workers’ rights and well-paying union jobs. * River Bender | Alton Alderwoman Rosie Brown Shares Campaign for Illinois State Representative: She noted that property taxes and affordability are major concerns for constituents. Incumbent Illinois State Representative Amy Elik has served since 2021; Brown suggested it might be time for “a different “Property taxes are here to stay, but they can be managed,” she said. “I appreciate anyone trying to lower the cost. But property taxes remain one of the biggest issues in District 111. If homeowners and seniors are still struggling after six years, it’s fair to ask whether a different strategy is needed. The goal, I do believe, is in lowering property tax burdens and stronger schools, not at the expense of the people, but we have to find alternatives for this.” * Tribune | Chicago Bears stadium becomes a political game as midterms near. Can it score for Republicans?: “If JB Pritzker refuses to act and the Bears leave, he will own that failure,” Bailey said. “As governor, I will never step back and watch Indiana take any team of ours without putting up one hell of a fight.” But Bailey’s plan comes with one big caveat. What he didn’t say at the time, but later disclosed in interviews, is that the state wouldn’t put a dime toward the project until it rolls back gasoline tax increases and enacts relief for local property taxpayers. * Daily Herald | GOP’s Tracy gives his Senate campaign a big cash boost: Tracy, a Springfield attorney whose family owns Dot Foods, lent his campaign committee $1.5 million just a week before the quarter’s end, according to his latest Federal Election Commission finance report. That’s on top of the $2 million the former state Republican Party chair lent the campaign in August 2025. If his latest loan is taken out of the equation, Tracy’s fundraising last quarter was dwarfed by Stratton’s. * Gov. JB Pritzker and First Lady MK Pritzker hosted their annual trick-or-treating event at the governor’s mansion…
* Tribune | In Mayor Brandon Johnson’s fourth budget fight, is it ‘class war’ or reelection war?: “We don’t expect to take over the budget and try to rescue it like last year,” Ald. Scott Waguespack, 32nd, told reporters after Johnson’s speech. “We can do it, but it’s his job to provide a balanced budget that’s transparent.” It was a muted sequel compared with last December, when a victorious council majority glided out of those same chambers, legislative guns blazing after passing Chicago’s first aldermanic budget in four decades. * Tribune | Mold in Chicago-area schools is a growing problem as climate change intensifies summer storms: In recent weeks, mold has similarly derailed daily activities and operations across several public buildings in the area, including at least a handful of other schools in Chicago, multiple facilities in a southwest suburbs school district, two schools in Mount Prospect and a police station in Waukegan. As greenhouse gas emissions from human activities like fossil fuel burning increase average global temperatures, summers in the Midwest are becoming more humid. When the atmosphere warms, it can hold more moisture, leading to heavier downpours and local flooding. This causes storm damage and damp conditions in buildings, which can support mold growth and expose humans to bad air quality and health issues. * Crain’s | Chicago banks post strong profits despite macroeconomic shocks: “Despite the headlines that would lead some to believe that the banking industry would be showing either a slowdown in growth, a slowdown in loan demand or certain losses percolating within the loan portfolio, that just simply is not the case this quarter,” said Terry McEvoy, banking analyst at Wells Fargo. “The industry is seeing steady demand for business loans, steady growth in deposits. Borrowers are really managing around this high-rate environment and are continuing to invest and move forward, despite some of the geopolitical uncertainty.” * Block Club | Holiday Club Being Demolished To Make Way For New Uptown Apartment Building: Renderings show some terracotta included on the Sheridan Road-facing side of the future apartment building, though it is unclear if any of the original building’s masonry will be incorporated into the design. Thousands of bricks have been salvaged from the demolished buildings so far, according to Chicago YIMBY. * Tribune | Chicago facing last week of warm weather before temperature drops: Forecasts predicted highs would remain in the 60s and 70s over the next five days, potentially peaking at 79 degrees on Thursday, according to the weather service. “It has been an unseasonably mild stretch, and what is driving this pattern is we had a series of high-pressure systems moving through the Great Lakes, and high-pressure systems typically give us tranquil patterns,” said Brett Borchardt, senior meteorologist at the weather service. * Tribune | Cook County assessor favorite Patrick Hynes vows ‘stability,’ detente with appeals board: Hynes promises “stability” after years of record assessment increases, which Kaegi attributed to a hot housing market and efforts to correct years of undervaluing big business buildings under his predecessor. Hynes’ plans to offer developers custom estimates of their likely assessments and to ease tensions with the Board of Review would mark a sharp break. Kaegi’s two terms have been defined by conflict with commercial property owners and with the board, which often reversed his office’s valuations on appeal. * Crain’s | Silver Cross bets on outpatient growth to stay independent in crowded southwest suburbs: Silver Cross is doubling its capacity at its Lemont outpatient center, opening a 20,000-square-foot facility that brings more healthcare to the community outside the walls of the longtime independent New Lenox hospital. * NBC Chicago | First part of new tollway in Chicago suburbs opens to traffic: The first portion of a new tollway in the western suburbs opened to drivers and truckers early Saturday, marking a major milestone in the years-long project near O’Hare International Airport. The stretch is part of the new Interstate 490 that will eventually connect the Jane Addams Tollway near Des Plaines to the Tri-State Tollway in Franklin Park, skirting the western edge of O’Hare in the process. * Daily Herald | Retiring Kane County sheriff’s absence an issue in race for his successor: Republican Rob Russell has criticized Democrat Amy Johnson, Hain’s longtime second-in-command, for not publicly addressing the sheriff’s status when he took leave in the spring. “When you become a public official, part of your life, part of your private life, now is, you know, not as private as it used to be,” Russell, of Hampshire, said during an interview with the Daily Herald. But Johnson, the undersheriff since 2022, said she was honoring Hain’s family’s desire to keep the matter private, as well as acting on the advice of Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser. * Illinois Times | Candidates seek Springfield city clerk office: Voters will see a familiar name in at least one candidate running for Springfield city clerk. Former Sangamon County Recorder Josh Langfelder is joining the race after much internal debate, he said. […] Langfelder works at the Illinois secretary of state in the Illinois State Archives as an archival program administrator. “This (the city clerk job) falls right in the alley of my experience, of what I did previously and what I’m doing with my position now with the state archives,” he said. * IPM Newsroom | Champaign County Board members can no longer sign NDAs regarding county business: Effective immediately, county board members are barred from signing NDAs regarding any county business, except when dealing with confidential information or legal settlements. Defined in the ordinance, a non-disclosure agreement is “a legal contract between two parties that prohibits the sharing of information deemed confidential or proprietary.” […] This comes after Mahomet village officials signed an NDA with Clean Cloud Energy, a data center developer, but ended talks with the company after backlash from residents. * WCBU | East Peoria OKs traffic signal upgrades near ICC, carry-out mixed drinks: Commissioner Mark Hill noted the move does come with some restrictions, such as using clearly marked, tamper-proof containers and prohibiting third-party delivery. “It doesn’t sound like you’re going to get a sippy cup with the plastic lid and walk out the door with the mixed drink,” said Hill. * WCBU | Rural fire department schedules public hearing to raise levy after 2024 tax error: It’s the latest in a series of tax errors uncovered as four-term McLean County Clerk Kathy Michael, who is responsible for calculating tax rates, seeks to defend her position in the November election. Her Democratic opponent, Joshua Crockett, raised this potential fifth tax error since 2024 during a WGLT debate earlier this month. State law requires a public forum known as “Truth in Taxation” when proposed increases exceed 5%. Ellsworth FPD plans a 31% increase to its tax income to account for “errors in how the county handled tax matters in the 2024 and 2025 tax years,” said Pamela Bane, Ellsworth FPD president. * Reuters | Anthropic’s Claude accessed Georgia state vote count data behind paywall: “Claude didn’t access the state’s voter registration system or change or pull any voting records,” Anthropic said, adding that it has since taken steps to block these kinds of actions. Anthropic said in a blog post earlier this month it found examples of Claude “working around a restriction to reach data that was gated by a token or a fee” and some of these cases involved websites run by US government agencies at the federal, state, and local levels. * Tribune | Trump proposes eliminating race, ethnicity questions from 2030 census, alarming health, civil rights advocates: Also as proposed, the census would count only citizens and legal permanent residents and not immigrants who are without legal status. Advocates say this would tailor representation in the House of Representatives to those with legal standing, while critics like the American Civil Liberties Union say it violates the constitutional requirement to count all persons, and would reduce services to areas with larger immigrant populations.
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Good morning!
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Selected press releases (live updates)
Monday, Oct 26, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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