* ICYMI: Mayor Brandon Johnson to shut down migrant shelters, combine with existing homeless system in 2025. Tribune…

- Speaking at a news conference in City Hall, Mayor Johnson cast the shift to a unified shelter system covering both asylum-seekers and homeless Chicagoans as a victory for fiscal prudence, coordination of resources and Chicago’s values as a pro-immigrant city.
- Under the new Chicago setup that takes effect in January, the city will have 6,800 total beds for homeless people, whether they are new arrivals or not.
- The current homeless shelter system under the city’s Department of Family and Support Services has 3,000 beds, so the city will add 2,100 while the state will fund 1,700 additional beds.

* Related stories…

∙ NBC Chicago: Mayor Johnson announces major transition: the end of Chicago’s migrant mission
∙ Axios: City cracks down on migrant shelter eligibility
∙ Block Club Chicago: City Shutting Down Migrant Shelter System By End Of The Year

Governor Pritzker will be at Maryville Academy at 11 am for a ribbon cutting for new DCFS facility. Click here to watch.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Sun-Times | Illinois House races to watch, where suburban challenges could affect Springfield power balance: State Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Barrington Hills, faces a deep-pocketed challenge from Democratic nominee Maria Peterson as he vies for a third term at the helm of this far northwest suburban district that stretches north to Wauconda.

* The Grist | The nation’s first commercial carbon sequestration plant is in Illinois. It leaks.: The emerging technology has become a cornerstone of government strategies to slash fossil fuel emissions and meet climate goals. Meanwhile, the Biden administration’s signature climate legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act, has supercharged industry subsidies and tax credits and set off a CCS gold rush. There are now only four carbon sequestration wells operating in the United States — two each in Illinois and Indiana — but many more are on the way. Three proposed pipelines and 22 wells are up for review by state and federal regulators in Illinois, where the geography makes the landscape especially well suited for CCS. Nationwide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing 150 different applications.

*** Statewide ***

* Sun-Times | Illinois launches push to combat distracted driving: Under the new program, starting in January, teens applying for their instruction permit will have to watch a video that explains the consequences of distracted driving. In addition, the Secretary of State’s Office will partner with the state Department of Transportation to erect signs to remind drivers to pay attention to the road in areas with high rates of distracted-driving crashes.

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Johnson’s deputy mayor for education steps aside amid CPS fight: Jen Johnson, deputy mayor for education, youth and human services, is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the Fifth Floor. […] Johnson’s leave of absence is due to health issues, according to a senior aide to the mayor, who is not permitted to speak publicly about personnel decisions. The mayor’s office did not comment on her departure.

* Tribune | Chicago Public Schools halts board meetings until December amid board and mayor’s office shake-ups: CPS did not immediately respond to requests for comment about its plans in light of the canceled meeting. The district has not released how the canceled meeting will affect the activities of the newly appointed board. Chicagoans will vote for their district’s elected school board member in just two weeks, which will replace Johnson’s appointed board. The other half of the new 21-member board, plus the board president, will still be appointed by Mayor Johnson. The new board will assume their positions in January.

* Sun-Times | Mayor Johnson urged to fire Chicago cops tied to Oath Keepers after ’sham’ investigation: A leading national civil rights group, more than a dozen local activist organizations and 10 elected officials sent a letter Monday to Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson urging him to fire police officers with ties to what they called “hate and extremist groups.” The letter from Color of Change and the others came one year after WBEZ and the Sun-Times identified officers whose names appeared on the membership list of the Oath Keepers, a group involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

* Sun-Times | Lowering city speed limit to 25 mph gets committee OK — but final Council vote slowed down: The ordinance to lower speed limits on all city-owned roads was approved 8-5 by the Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety, with its chairman, 1st Ward Ald. Daniel La Spata, saying the measure “sets us on the pathway to save hundreds of lives in the next decade.” Though the full Council meets Tuesday, the proposal won’t be voted on at that meeting, La Spata said, to allow time for more public conversation. He told reporters after Monday’s meeting that he plans to bring it for a vote before the end of the year.

* WGEM | Gov. Pritzker celebrates Illinois’ quantum future at Chicago summit: Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) spoke at the summit Monday morning. He has a lot to celebrate as he works to transform the state into a quantum hub. “Here in the Midwest, we believe that quantum science and research are on an accelerating timeline, and as governor, I want to make sure that we are focused on bringing opportunity and history-making innovations to the people of the United States and the world as soon as we can,” he said.

* Crain’s | How Chicago got ahead of the curve on quantum computing: “The University of Chicago’s previous president came to see me. I had just become governor, and we’re passing a capital bill to invest in roads and bridges and other big capital investments, including things at universities,” Pritzker told a crowd at the University of Chicago’s annual quantum summit this morning in Hyde Park. “He said: ‘This is an opportunity for Illinois and for Chicago, not just the University of Chicago, to lead. If the state can help us, it will spark more investment from the federal government and private investors. Seeing the state step up will give people faith.’”

* NBC Chicago | Chicago reigns as ‘America’s Rattiest City’ for 10th straight year: Chicago’s decade-long stint atop the rankings of America’s Rattiest Cities remains intact according to new research released by Orkin. […] According to the company, Chicago’s “infrastructure and environment” are appealing to rats, along with the prevalence of alleys, which allow rodents plenty of hiding places and plenty of garbage that they can eat.

* Crain’s | These are Chicago’s Most Innovative Companies for 2024:
A model showed off a Stella McCartney handbag made with a new leather substitute from The Fynder Group, a Chicago-based company best known for a fermented protein used to make its Nature’s Fynd dairy-free yogurt and meatless breakfast patties. “This is where innovation can take you,” says CEO Thomas Jonas. “We found this microbe in the volcanic springs of Yellowstone. Now it’s on the shelf at Whole Foods and in space and on the runway. It’s like ‘Where’s Waldo?’ It’s fun.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Democrats looking for another clean sweep of Cook County races: The down-ballot races for Cook County clerk and Circuit Court clerk could spell big changes to the county’s administrative hinterlands. Each office is known either for its paper pushing, its reputation for political patronage hiring, or some combination of both. In the court clerk race, three candidates are vying to become the next head of the massive office that serves as the records manager for one of the largest court systems in the nation. The winner will succeed outgoing Clerk Iris Martinez, who lost in the Democratic primary in March.

* Daily Herald | Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin to face at least two challengers in 2025 election: It’s official now: Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin is seeking a third term and will face at least two opponents in the 2025 election. He and Alderman-at-Large John Laesch and 3rd Ward Alderman Ted Mesiacos filed their petitions for the position on Monday morning, the first day candidates could submit them.

* WGN | Dolton drama: Judge sides with trustees over Henyard in meeting squabble: Henyard filed a complaint after a majority of trustees moved the meetings to a Dolton Park District building to accommodate large—and sometimes raucous—crowds. […] Henyard asked a judge to invalidate decisions made at the meetings and force them to gather at village hall. The trustees say the judge has sided with them and agreed that their meetings do not violate the Open Meetings Act.

* Daily Herald | DuPage County clerk countersues county officials in ongoing bill saga: DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek is suing the DuPage County Board, Auditor Bill White and county board Chair Deborah Conroy in a move to assert her right to control how she runs the clerk’s office. The lawsuit was filed earlier this month in response to a lawsuit filed in September by DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin, who is seeking a judge’s order to compel Kaczmarek to comply with county regulations regarding the payment of bills.

* Fox Chicago | Suburban Chicago school district cracks down on reckless drivers with new tech: This school year, one district is gearing up to get more drivers to stop when students are getting on and off buses. Their approach is similar to using a red-light camera, but this time it’s on a school bus. […] This new camera, which sits right next to the school bus stop arm, recorded the violation of the suburban Chicago student who was nearly struck. All buses transporting District 204 students have one this year.

* Sun-Times | Benet star Daniel Pauliukonis commits to Southern Illinois: Even while putting up modest numbers last season, Benet’s Daniel Pauliukonis had the look of a blossoming prospect. He emerged over the course of the spring and summer, garnering recruiting attention along the way. Now the ultra-skilled 6-9 Pauliukonis is one of the fast-rising prospects in the senior class — and one of the City/Suburban Hoops Report’s top 10 prospects in the state.

*** Downstate ***

* Capitol News Illinois | 17th District looms large in tight battle for U.S. House: The seat is currently held by first-term Democrat Eric Sorensen, of Moline, a former TV weatherman for a local station in Rockford. First elected in 2022, he serves on the House Agriculture Committee and the Science, Space and Technology Committee. He faces Republican Joe McGraw, of Rockford, a retired judge in the 17th Judicial Circuit. A graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the Northern Illinois University College of Law, he spent nearly 20 years as presiding judge in the criminal division of the circuit court.

* TSPR | Daughter seeks damages in McDonough County jail beating death: The lawsuit, filed Oct. 16 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois in Rock Island, also claims Darrell Hocker’s constitutional and civil rights were violated when he was housed in a cell with a man known to be violent and mentally ill — a man who had not undergone a mental evaluation before he was removed from isolation. Hocker, 51, died in the early morning hours of Nov. 8, 2023, after an altercation with Timothy Smith, now 41, in a locked cell. Hocker was repeatedly struck in the head, neck and chest during the altercation.

* Pantagraph | Rivian to start construction on logistics facilities near Normal plant: The Normal Town Council on Monday approved site plans for the electric vehicle maker’s proposed $200 million development that includes two buildings spanning a total of roughly 2.4 million square feet. In September, the council approved a preliminary subdivision plan called “NN2 WH” for 381 acres the company bought in 2021 across Rivian Motorway from the plant in west Normal. At the time, the plan designated two 90-acre parcels for future development.

* The Southern | Congressman discusses CTE Funding Impact Expansion at JALC: Illinois Democrat congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi participated in a roundtable discussion on workforce development Monday morning at John A. Logan College. Krishnamoorthi, a key proponent of CTE, emphasized the significance of visiting communities in person to see firsthand how federal funding impacts them. […] John A. Logan College is growing its Career and Technical Education Center with help from a $4.2 million grant from the Economic Development Administration.

* Herald-Whig | ‘We need vocational trades’: Tracy learns about vocational programs in QAVTC tour: alton Tournear made one thing clear to the visitors to his diesel technology class. “You learn more hands-on than you do sitting in a classroom,” Tournear said. State Sen. Jil Tracy, R-Quincy, included in his audience, readily agreed. Tracy toured Quincy Area Vocational Technical Center on Monday, hearing about available programs from students and staff.

* Labor Tribune | Illinois AFL-CIO’s Devaney upbeat in Belleville appearance: Unionists at the annual awards banquet of the Southwestern Illinois Central Labor Council were urged to turn out for Democrats in the general election and told about efforts being made on workers’ behalf in the state Capital in a speech by one of Labor’s strongest proponents, Pat Devaney, secretary-treasurer of the Illinois AFL-CIO. Devaney reported that the legislature had approved a $45 billion economic development package, the biggest in the state’s history, with Labor’s support.

* WSIL | Marion team wins International Lineman’s Rodeo competition: A Marion, Illinois, team finished first in the International Lineman’s Rodeo over the weekend. Ameren Illinois stated a trio of journeymen linemen, as part of the Marion Operating Center, finished first overall in the 40th International Lineman’s Rodeo in Overland Park, Kansas. They also placed second in a couple of individual competitions.

*** National ***

* WaPo | Elon Musk targets Michigan with voter misinformation: Two weeks before the presidential election, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D) accused billionaire Elon Musk of spreading “dangerous disinformation” about voting in her state after Musk, owner of X and Tesla, shared a post suggesting falsely that the state’s voter rolls, swelled by large numbers of inactive voters, were likely to result in widespread fraud.

* The Atlantic | The Invasion That Wasn’t: The Haitians had come to Sylacauga by bus. Two buses—possibly even three. But certainly more than one; of this, one resident was sure. As he explained on Facebook, he’d been told by someone who’d spotted them unloading in the Walmart parking lot. The federal government had chartered their transport, locals were saying—an effort to cripple the welfare state of this small Alabama town as punishment for voting red.

* Vanity Fair | Inside the Bungled Bird Flu Response, Where Profits Collide With Public Health: When dairy cows in Texas began falling ill with H5N1, alarmed veterinarians expected a fierce response to contain an outbreak with pandemic-sparking potential. Then politics—and, critics say, a key agency’s mandate to protect dairy-industry revenues—intervened.