The Senate and House Redistricting Committees today released an updated version of the proposed legislative map that includes changes suggested by community groups, advocacy organizations and individuals during hours of testimony at four public hearings held this week.
“After 50 public hearings across the state and listening to hours of testimony, the House and Senate Democrats have put together a product our state can be proud of,” said Rep. Lisa Hernandez, Chair of the House Redistricting Committee. “What should stand out about this proposed map is how similar districts look compared to our current map. This is the same map a renowned expert says is a model for the nation for minority representation. The changes we made not only reflect testimony provided the last couple of days from members of the public, but also include revisions to address concerns raised by Republicans.”
“This proposed map is the product of countless hours of testimony from advocacy, community, and grassroots organizations, as well as individuals who care deeply about their communities. Their passion and dedication were vital to this process, which has resulted in a fair map that will not only ensure that broad racial and geographic diversity is reflected in the General Assembly, but also maintain our status as a leader in the nation for minority representation in the state legislature,” said Sen. Omar Aquino, Chair of the Senate Redistricting Committee.
Among the changes made in the revised version of the proposed legislative map is a request from the Orthodox Jewish community. While maintaining the integrity of surrounding districts, as well as requests from other members of the public, the revisions will keep more of the Orthodox Jewish community united. The revised legislative map also restores the southern part of the North Lawndale neighborhood in Chicago to its current legislative district following feedback from community members asking for that change.
Following the release of the proposed legislative map, Republicans in the legislature made public comments criticizing the number of incumbent Republicans who would be located in the same district. A number of those districts have been reconfigured to accommodate the concerns of Republicans.
In addition to these updates, House and Senate Democrats also released new boundaries for the Cook County Board of Review. The Board is a vital asset that assists taxpayers in calculating tax obligations for Cook County property owners. Currently, there are three Commissioners elected in three separate districts in Cook County. This proposed map reflects population shifts in the past decade and allows for more equal representation across the districts.
Consistent with the proposed legislative and Supreme Court maps, this proposed map was drafted using population information from the American Community Survey’s (ACS) 5-year estimate for 2019. The ACS estimate varies by just 0.3 percent from the state’s official population count released by the U.S. Census Bureau in April.
Illinois House Republican Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs) released the following statement on the release of new legislative maps by the Illinois Democrats this evening:
“Round two of the House Democratic legislative maps are as dishonest as the ones released last Friday. The House Democrats turned their back on Illinoisans and every advocacy group who has an interest in honest government. Despite the flowery rhetoric about these changes, the Illinois House Democrats allowed their members to draw their own legislative districts with phony data. It is now on Governor Pritzker to live up to his pledge in 2019 and veto this poor excuse for democracy.”
Senate GOP…
State Senator Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington), lead Republican on the Senate Redistricting Committee, released the following statement in response to the Democrat’s most recently released map.
“Tonight’s disclosure demonstrates everything wrong with the current broken system of politicians creating their own legislative districts. During numerous hearings, Democrats in charge claimed that they wanted the public’s input, but what they’ve done this year is no better than the same crooked paths of the past.
“They drew a map behind closed doors that is not representative of the people they are supposed to be serving. Their updated map maintains the broken status quo, because it was clearly created to prioritize the protection of incumbent politicians and maintain their power over everything else. No one could watch this gerrymandering process unfold and maintain any level of respect or faith in their state legislature.
“Illinois has to change the way districts are drawn. We desperately need a system where the public actively participates in an open, transparent, and independent process. We need an independent commission to draw the districts based on Illinoisans’ diverse communities and shared interests, to make districts more competitive, which will result in a much more responsive legislature.
“The people of Illinois should be empowered to carry out this process to choose their representatives, instead of allowing the politicians in power to choose their voters.
“We are once again calling on the Governor to live up to his promise and veto this and any other politician-drawn map.”
House GOP…
Illinois House Republican Redistricting Committee Members Avery Bourne (R-Morrisonville), Tim Butler (R-Springfield), Dave Severin (R-Benton) and Ryan Spain (R-Peoria):
“Once again, behind closed doors in a locked room, the Illinois Democrats re-drafted legislative maps to maintain their political power across Illinois by choosing their voters. Chairwoman Hernandez’s claims of accommodating Republican concerns are deceptive and downright untrue. The only concerns Republicans voiced were the use of inadequate data, and politicians drawing their own maps to pick their voters.
We join the countless advocates who testified in four public hearings over the last two days who urged the Majority Party to wait for the official Census data coming in just two months before making final decisions on this very important process in our democracy. We call on Governor Pritzker to veto these maps just as he promised millions of Illinoisans he would while on the campaign trail.”
*** UPDATE *** Rep. Tarver has introduced an amendment containing the Supreme Court redistricting language. Click here.
…Adding… Yep…
The following IL State House incumbents remain paired:
46 (D-R): Conroy and Mazzochi 47 (R): Grant and Lewis 50 (R): Wheeler and Ugaste 51 (R): Bos and Morrison 90 (R): McCombie and Chesney 99 (R): Frese and Davidsmeyer 107 (R): Caulkins and Halbrook 108 (R): Bourne and Murphy
A conservative media outlet filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against Mayor Lori Lightfoot over her decision this month to grant interviews only to reporters of color to mark her two-year anniversary in office.
Judicial Watch, another conservative organization, filed the lawsuit on behalf of the Daily Caller News Foundation and reporter Thomas Catenacci, who covers labor, the economy and politics.
Lightfoot announced last week that she would only grant interview requests from reporters of color “on the occasion of the two-year anniversary” of her inauguration. The Daily Caller’s lawsuit wrongly suggests Lightfoot had announced an ongoing policy.
The complaint alleges that Lightfoot has since granted at least one interview request from a self-identified Latino reporter but denied or failed to respond to interview requests from white reporters, including Catenacci.
Catenacci sought an interview with Lightfoot on May 20 to ask how her administration would encourage more people to take the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the complaint. It alleges that Catenacci sent follow-up emails May 21 and again last Monday, but Lightfoot’s office did not respond.
I’d have to ban myself from my own blog if I told you what I think of this.
Attorneys for the Geneva-based restaurant suing the governor over his COVID-19 orders barring indoor dining last year say their case is very much alive despite the Illinois Supreme Court rejecting a direct appeal motion.
“FoxFire is disappointed, but not surprised, by the [Illinois] Supreme Court’s denial of Leave of Appeal,” FoxFire attorney Kevin Nelson of the firm Myers, Earl, Nelson said Thursday morning.
The Illinois Supreme Court rejected the leave of appeal request Wednesday.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration responded to the Illinois Supreme Court’s appeal denial through a political blog saying “the Governor is pleased the court rejected this request and sided with upholding Governor Pritzker’s ability to follow the science and protect the citizens of Illinois.”
Nelson said their case against the governor saying his orders were arbitrary and capricious is “still very much alive at the Trial Court level, and furthermore, we fully expect the Supreme Court take up the case of such importance – however, it turns out – once it is ultimately decided on the merits.”
As reported in September of 2020, Illinois lawmakers are considering permanently closing two nuclear energy facilities in the state, one of which is a short drive from Rockford.
Um, Exelon is the one threatening to close three nuclear power plants if it doesn’t get hundreds of millions of dollars in ratepayer subsidies, despite an independent audit showing it doesn’t need nearly that much.
Nursing homes accounted for nearly half of Illinois’ COVID-19 deaths. But, as their owners said they were doing all they could about that suffering, they kept showering lawmakers with campaign contributions.
Now the main lobbying group for profit-driven facilities is asking those lawmakers for a big infusion of state dollars in the name of “recovery and stabilization” while fighting proposed accountability measures.
The group, the Health Care Council of Illinois, is pushing state lawmakers for $486 million without strings requiring the money to be spent on staffing and infection control. The council, meanwhile, is opposing legislation drafted by Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration that would focus a Medicaid boost on facilities that eliminate ward-style rooming and improve nurse-to-patient ratios.
“Now is not the time to introduce dramatic policy changes that would significantly disrupt the delivery of care while the pandemic is still active,” HCCI Executive Director Matt Pickering said in a written statement about the Medicaid bill. […]
A WBEZ investigation last year found that the for-profit facilities tended to have lower staffing coverage, which correlated with higher COVID-19 infection and death rates. The investigation also found that nursing home owners routinely hide their profits by paying themselves huge fees through vendors and real-estate firms they control. The complicated ownership structures allow them to cry poor while asking lawmakers to approve increases in state funding.
The most profitable facilities last year had staffing below federal guidelines, according to IDHFS.
Opponents of a bill that would require the sale of dogs and cats only from animal control facilities or shelters say they have polling that shows Illinois residents don’t like the idea. The poll by National Research Inc. and commissioned by Furry Babies, a majority woman-owned pet store, says 53 percent of residents oppose HB 1711.
In your opinion, do you think the state government should dictate where and how families can purchase a dog, or should they be free to choose from a variety of options and price points?
Sheesh.
* Press release…
Stand for Children Illinois today released poll results it commissioned among Chicago and Illinois voters to gauge support for a fully elected Chicago school board, a hybrid board split evenly between elected and appointed members, or a plan proposed by the Mayor with more appointed than elected members.
Methodology…
The following findings are based on the results of three surveys:
• An online survey from May 11-13, 2021 in Illinois among N=500 likely 2022 general election voters, with an n=200 Chicago oversample (margin of error of +4.4%)
• A phone and text survey from April 28 – May 6, 2021 in Illinois among N=600 likely 2022 general election voters, with an n=400 Chicago oversample (margin of error of +3.5%)
• A phone and text survey from February 23 – March 1, 2021 in Illinois among N=600 likely 2022 general election voters, with an n=400 Chicago oversample (margin of error of +3.5%)
Sponsor/Rep. Gonzalez presents SB225: a bill that says the @ILSecOfState can not share facial recognition data in local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies passes in the Illinois House 65-47. This bill will proceed to the governor's desk. pic.twitter.com/pjXwtP7Yic
Today, State Representative Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield) passed SB 512, the Prevent Youth Vaping Act out of the Illinois House. This bill is a critical piece of public health legislation that will help keep Illinois youth safe from addictive vaping and other tobacco products.
“The Federal Tobacco Control Act grants states the ability to legislate tobacco products in several key areas, including tobacco advertising and sales requirements,” said State Representative Bob Morgan. “This bill will help ensure that vaping manufacturers are not targeting youth when they advertise their products for sale.”
Additionally, the Prevent Youth Vaping Act prevents the sale of altered e-cigarettes and the use of certain additives that are believed to contribute to respiratory illnesses. It will also empower the Illinois Office of the Attorney General to create more stringent requirements for online orders, including requiring packages to be clearly marked as containing electronic cigarettes.
“Especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, I believe we must do everything we can to protect the lung health of our young people. The Prevent Youth Vaping Act is a critical first step in helping the next generation live smoke and vape-free,” said Rep. Morgan.
The bill will now go back to the Senate, where State Senator Julie Morrison will work to get it agreed to in the Senate and sent to the Governor. The bill is supported by the Attorney General’s Office and the American Cancer Society.
The Illinois Senate passed a bill Wednesday which would create a new housing program for individuals living with mental illness or substance use disorders.
House Bill 449 creates the “Housing is Recovery Pilot Program Act,” a new program which would offer bridge rental subsidies to individuals at high risk for “unnecessary institutionalization” due to mental illness, or those at high risk of overdose or death due to substance abuse.
The bill, which is subject to appropriations, has already passed the House and needs only a signature from the governor to become law.
The Senate passed a bill that could allow terminally ill prisoners to be freed more quickly by the Prisoner Review Board. Under current law, terminally ill or mentally incapacitated prisoners who wish to be released to the care of family in their final days must rely on a commutation from the governor.
But there’s “no mechanism in Illinois to permit us to do that,” said the bill’s sponsor, state Sen. John Connor, D-Lockport.
The bill “provides reasonable timeframes and deadlines for the Prisoner Review Board to review cases involving medical incapacity or terminal illness, and to determine if those inmates — with victim input — would basically … have a quality-of-life improvement if they’re moved out of prison,” Connor said. […]
But state Sen. Terri Bryant pointed to cases in the state’s Department of Corrections where physicians said someone would imminently die “over and over and over again.”
“There were physicians that would tell us that a particular incarcerated individual was going to pass very soon and then, two, three years later the person is still living,” said the Murphysboro Republican.
The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that multiple improvement projects in Chicago are underway or starting soon and extending into 2022. The seven projects represent a total investment of more than $849 million for the region, made possible by Gov. JB Pritzker’s historic, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital program.
“With the Rebuild Illinois capital plan, we are restoring and transforming Illinois’s aging infrastructure,” said Gov. Pritzker. “Rebuild Illinois is not only about investing in infrastructure but about investing in people and communities as well. In the coming months, IDOT will undertake projects that will ultimately create safer roads and bridges and provide jobs in Chicago and across the entire state.”
* Around the same time that release went out, Mayor Lori Lightfoot talked to reporters about infrastructure…
We also need to make sure that we get funding from the state, from the plan that was passed by the [legislature] in 2019. We’ve seen very little of those dollars, and it’s critically important that those dollars come to cities like Chicago so we can continue to magnify the efforts around rebuilding our aging infrastructure.
The city also gets a sizable chunk of the Motor Fuel Tax, which was doubled in 2019 and is now tied to CPI. Not to mention that getting the Chicago casino up and running would go a long way to providing dollars for vertical construction projects.
…Adding… I asked the governor’s office for dollars distributed to the city so far under Rebuild Illinois…
Thursday, May 27, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Early in the pandemic, greater risks of COVID-19 for older adults forced people 50+ across Illinois to stay home—away from family, friends and even the necessary care of healthcare professionals for other medical issues. Thankfully, Governor Pritzker lifted longstanding barriers to healthcare via telehealth. In response, healthcare providers rapidly invested in new technology, adjusted clinical workflows and educated staff, patients and clinicians on telehealth delivery – resulting in dramatic increases in the use of telehealth services.
It was a much-needed option for older adults in Illinois, who suddenly did not have to worry about finding rides to a clinic, being exposed to COVID-19 or difficult scheduling issues.
Telehealth has helped reduce missed appointments, increase care plan adherence, and improve chronic disease management.
Telehealth has also helped empower patients to address care needs swiftly, preventing conditions from worsening and requiring unnecessary visits to urgent care or a hospital. To ensure that accessible, safe and reliable telehealth continues to be a choice after the pandemic, we urge the General Assembly to pass House Bill 3308/SCA 1.
Over the last year and a half, we’ve all seen first-hand the many benefits of telehealth. Protecting access to telehealth can help improve healthcare for all Illinois patients. The Coalition to Protect Telehealth urges the General Assembly to pass House Bill 3308/SCA 1. Learn more at https://protectillinoistelehealth.org/.
* An astonishing number of younger people are dying. Get your shots, people. Press release…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 891 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 42 additional deaths. In addition, 66% of Illinois adults have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose and more than 49% of Illinois adults are fully vaccinated, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- Cook County: 1 female 40s, 1 male 40s, 1 female 50s, 3 males 50s, 1 female 60s, 1 male 60s, 1 female 70s, 3 males 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s, 2 males 90s
- DeWitt County: 1 male 50s
- DuPage County: 1 male 100+
- Henry County: 1 male 70s
- Jefferson County: 1 female 70s
- Kane County: 1 male 80s, 1 female 90s
- Kankakee County: 1 female 80s
- Knox County: 1 male 80s
- Lake County: 1 female 70s, 2 males 80s
- LaSalle County: 1 female 70s
- McHenry County: 1 male 50s, 1 female 100+
- Mercer County: 1 female 70s
- Montgomery County: 1 female 60s
- Randolph County: 1 female 40s, 1 female 50s
- Richland County: 1 male 50s
- Tazewell County: 1 male 50s
- Vermilion County: 1 female 60s
- Will County: 1 male 60s, 1 male 80s
- Winnebago County: 1 male 30s, 1 female 60s
- Woodford County: 1 female 90s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 1,379,279 cases, including 22,718 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 67,705 specimens for a total of 24,434,225. As of last night, 1,316 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 339 patients were in the ICU and 186 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from May 20-26, 2021 is 1.9%. The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from May 20-26, 2021 is 2.5%.
A total of 11,113,382 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of last midnight. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 67,485 doses. Yesterday, 63,717 doses were reported administered in Illinois.
*All data are provisional and will change. In order to rapidly report COVID-19 information to the public, data are being reported in-time. Information is constantly being entered into an electronic system and the number of cases and deaths can change as additional information is gathered. For health questions about COVID-19, call the hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
The U.S. Department of Labor estimates 18,920 new unemployment claims were filed during the week of May 17 in Illinois, according to the DOL’s weekly claims report released Thursday. […]
Illinois’ estimated claims are among 406,000 total claims filed across the country last week, the lowest so far during the pandemic.
There were 17,530 new unemployment claims were filed during the week of May 10 in Illinois.
There were 18,355 new unemployment claims filed during the week of May 3 in Illinois.
According to Fitch, total employment through March was still down 6.7 percent in Illinois compared to January 2020, just before the pandemic really hit. That’s more than in Texas, where the total number of jobs was off 3.6 percent, or Florida, down 5.7 percent.
But it’s better than Pennsylvania, down 6.7 percent; California, off 8.6 percent, and definitely New York, with total employment down 10 percent.
Fitch suggests the reason isn’t tax policy but the nature of the economies in specific states and how they reacted to the pandemic. Job losses in California and New York were much more concentrated than in Illinois in the leisure and transportation sectors, and those two states had tighter and longer lockdowns than Illinois did.
That concentration will slow their recovery going forward, since California and New York have “a much higher share of business and international travel” than Illinois does, Fitch notes.
Unemployment will not fall back to 4.3%, which is Fitch Ratings’ estimate of the natural rate, until the 4th quarter of next year.
Olu Sonola, senior director with Fitch Ratings, said the huge shock to the labor-intensive leisure and transport industries hit labor demand hard and the recovery will be slow.
“The outsized effect that the pandemic had on the leisure and hospitality and transportation sector and our expectation is that sector will be a drag and we won’t see a full recovery there until 2024,” Sonola said.
* A bill that included the “shot and a beer” promotion passed the House today 108-6 with 1 voting “Present”…
Provides that, from June 10, 2021 through July 10, 2021, a retail licensee may offer a single drink of alcoholic liquor at no cost to a customer as part of a publicly advertised promotion to encourage participation in any COVID-19 vaccination program if the customer provides proof of COVID-19 vaccination received at any time.
“No” votes were Republican Reps. Caulkins, Chesney, Halbrook, Miller (no relation), Severin and Windhorst. In other words, much of the Eastern Bloc.
Illinois currently ranks 47th out of 50 in funding for two-year colleges and 46th out of 50 in funding for public four-year colleges. As the 2021 Illinois Board of Higher Education’s budget points out, as funding for higher education has remained stagnant—and declined by half when accounting for inflation— universities have largely shifted the costs to students: In 2002, 72 percent of state revenues came from state funding and 28 percent from tuition and fees; in 2020, those figures were 36 percent and 64 percent respectively. With Monetary Award Program grants, which provide financial support for low-income students, underfunded over the same period of time, students have had to take out more and more debt to attend college.
* Self-selected responses from non-experts quoted in a story written by a local sports reporter, but sure…
The Illinois High School Association plan to deal with COVID proved to be a successful one, based on a survey that drew over 1,400 responses from membership after its winter sports season was finished.
The survey, which examined data gathered from 1,483 respondents in 10 different sports, indicated coaches and athletes from Illinois high school sports programs successfully mitigated pandemic risks while playing.
That was an important contention the IHSA made while battling with state health officials to allow sports to be played last fall.
“Early on in the process, we tried to communicate to Illinois Department of Public Health our confidence in the protocols we were going to put into place,” IHSA executive director Craig Anderson said. “We had no doubt our mitigations would be followed by our schools.”
The survey reported only 3% of athlete positive COVID cases were traced to a sports practice or competition. The rest were from an outside close contact.
* Governor’s office…
Throughout this pandemic the most effective mitigation has been physical distancing and masking. Unfortunately this non-scientific survey is in direct contrast to the multiple scientific studies on coronavirus and youth sports. More than a year after the start of this pandemic the science is clear and youth sports have been studied and proven to contribute to spread, along with a long list of other activities that are done in close proximity indoors. Thanks to effective mitigation strategies and effective vaccines, Illinois is well on its way back to normalcy and we look forward to vaccinating more youth and safely allowing a return to regular sports competition.
Background…
Here is a sampling of some of the sports related outbreaks reported in Illinois after March 9th, 2021:
College/University sports
• 3 sports related outbreaks across the state
o Involving 16 cases
o 2 volleyball and one basketball
High school sports
• 5 sports related outbreaks across the state involving 31 persons
o 2 volleyball, 2 basketball, one pending Investigation
Youth sports (non-school)-but students from school(s) go to an outside rink
o 3 sports related outbreaks across the state involving 24 people (all hockey teams)
A coalition of 40 organizations, consisting of academics, activists, engineers, environmentalists, entrepreneurs, and concerned citizens underscored the high stakes of the last few days of the legislative session. In a letter just sent Governor J.B. Pritzker and members of the Illinois General Assembly urging them to do whatever is needed to keep all of the Illinois plants open.
Whatever is needed, eh? Hmm.
* The press release was sent to me by an organization called Generation Atomic. From its GuideStar page…
We’re working to build the capacity and skills of nuclear advocates around the world by offering monthly trainings on the fundamentals of grassroots organizing. These trainings include how to write letters to the editor, how to have productive meetings with decision makers, and how to shift perceptions of nuclear energy in your own communities.
* A small group of nuke fankids dressed up and gave away free Mel-O-Cream donuts outside the Statehehouse the other day…
ANS at UIUC is out with some amazing #nuclear advocates today talking with our legislators about #savedresden and #savebyron. If you can, call your state representatives and tell them you support keeping our nuclear fleet in Illinois online!! pic.twitter.com/DZzwC3ah8d
Back when I was in high school, a nuclear industry representative asked our drama teacher to help recruit a mascot who would make appearances at local schools dressed up in some ridiculous costume. She asked me if I was interested. The money was good, but I politely turned her down.
* The organization also sells nifty t-shirts like this one…
* They also have a character named “Melty,” which is supposed to be about preventing the polar caps from melting, but unfortunately reminded me of the phrase “nuclear meltdown”…
A nuclear meltdown is the worst case scenario for a nuclear power plant, causing widespread releases of deadly radiation into the environment that can spread hundreds of miles away impacting wildlife as well as humans.
Thursday, May 27, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
We can’t have fair maps if those maps aren’t drawn using the full set of detailed Census data. But, due to census delays, Illinois politicians are planning to use outdated, estimated numbers to draw election maps that will last for a decade.
We know those estimates missed tens of thousands of us. We need the next set of election district maps to fully reflect our communities, and the only way that can happen is if those maps are drawn with current, complete Census data to give all our communities accurate and fair representation.
Call Governor Pritzker’s office today to ask that he push lawmakers to seek court permission to delay the process so that the next set of election maps are drawn with COMPLETE Census data, NOT old estimates.
The association representing horse owners and trainers at Arlington Park has called on the Illinois attorney general to launch an antitrust investigation into track owner Churchill Downs Inc.
The request stems from the Louisville, Kentucky-based corporation’s August 2019 decision to forgo slots and table games at Arlington Park, five months after it acquired a majority stake in nearby Rivers Casino in Des Plaines.
In a letter to the Antitrust Bureau of Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office, Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association President Mike Campbell urged the state’s top legal officer to investigate whether Churchill violated state or federal antitrust laws by quashing the potential for casino gambling — or even continued pari-mutuel wagering on horse races — at Arlington in order to prevent competition with Rivers just 12 miles away.
“Churchill executives evidently engaged in a campaign to block current and future gaming scenarios at Arlington while telegraphing messages to deflect public attention from its actual intent: shielding Rivers from a major gaming competitor in close proximity,” Campbell wrote in his April 29 letter to Antitrust Bureau Chief Blake Harrop. “Whether Churchill’s steps rose to the level of illegal anticompetitive behavior, we respectfully submit, is worthy of your review.”
The Illinois House gave final approval Wednesday to a proposal asking voters to enshrine a “fundamental right” to unionism and collective bargaining in the state constitution, a Democratic slap at departed anti-union GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner and a move that could boost labor turnout for the party in next year’s midterm elections.
The proposed constitutional amendment, to be placed on the Nov. 8, 2022, ballot, was approved in the House on an 80-30 vote, with nine Republicans joining Democrats in supporting the change. […]
Under the proposal, employees would have a “fundamental right to organize and bargain collectively” over wages, hours, working and safety conditions, and their economic welfare. It would ban any law or local ordinance that interferes with or diminishes the right to collectively bargain.
It also would effectively ban “right-to-work” laws or ordinances that prohibit employer-labor union agreements that require union membership as a condition of employment.
The amendment would also ensure the right to bargain will not be “diminished” by any future law, proponents said.
State Rep. Marcus Evans, the sponsor of the amendment, said it would not change existing Illinois law but “make permanent” the rights workers already have.
“The message to everyone across this country and across the state is that their workers want to be prioritized,” the Chicago Democrat said. […]
But state Rep. Deanne Mazzochi, R-Elmhurst, called the language of the amendment “problematic,” saying that the actual meaning of the provision might be left up to the Illinois Supreme Court.
“Once you enshrine this at the constitutional level, any change is going to be very difficult to reverse,’’ Mazzochi said. “This on its face seems like a really nice idea … but we’ll be dealing with the negative fallout of an ill thought-out constitutional provision.”
Rep. Marcus Evans, D-Chicago, the lead sponsor of the measure in the House, framed the vote as a choice between standing up for the rights of workers or the interests of business.
“Where do you stand when you look that working mother in your community in the eye, and do you want her to have collective bargaining,” he said. “Do you want her to have representation, or do you want to follow many other states as they continue a concerted effort to take away the rights of working men and women? You’ve got to make a decision.” […]
Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City, answered Evans’ challenge by touting his own working-class roots.
“I literally climbed off a pole barn into the General Assembly,” he said. “I represent a working class district. I support unions and non-unions. But let’s recognize, unions don’t create jobs. Special interest pandering may create campaign donations, but it doesn’t create jobs.”
The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150, an influential giant of organized labor in Illinois, has been pushing the constitutional amendment for more than a year. But Gov. JB Pritzker’s fears about the proposed amendment’s effect on his signature graduated income tax campaign promise and the COVID-19 pandemic’s halt on the General Assembly’s spring session last year prevented it from getting on the November ballot.
A majority of House Republicans voted against the proposed amendment Wednesday, warning it’s an unnecessary addition to the state’s constitution and could drive job creators away from the state.
State Rep. Andrew Chesney (R-Freeport) alleged Democrats pushed the amendment for no other reason than to appease organized labor, a major financial donor behind most of the party’s legislative races.
“This isn’t about men and women in hats slamming hammers and building stuff,” Chesney said. “These are the people right outside this door ready to send contribution checks to your campaign to get you re-elected.”
The House rollcall is here. Republicans voting in favor were Haas, Hammond, Keicher, Lewis, Luft, Marron, McCombie, Severin and Welter.
Thursday, May 27, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
As negotiations continue on a comprehensive clean energy bill, nearly 50 legislators issued a resolute letter to leadership, making it clear that the days of utility companies dictating public policy are over.
There’s time to do right by our communities, but not without firm action on climate and bold leadership on equity. Learn more at ilcleanjobs.org.
As we approach the end of the session and conversations around an energy package continue in earnest, it is critical we pass a strong and comprehensive climate bill built on a foundation of equity.
For too long, utilities have dictated energy policy in Illinois. It is imperative that this time around, any energy package is driven by climate, communities and consumers. The final energy bill must:
● Eliminate carbon emissions from the electric sector by a date certain and prioritize closures in environmental justice communities.
● Ensure equity opportunities across all components of the bill, from workforce diversity to contractor equity to just transition.
We will not support a bill which is simply a handout for utilities and does not prioritize climate and equity – we must be forward thinking and lead with these issues. Our constituents and communities will support nothing less.
Thursday, May 27, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Employers in Illinois provide prescription drug coverage for nearly 6.7 million Illinoisans. In order to help keep care more affordable, employers work with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), who deploy a variety of tools to reduce prescription drug costs and help improve health outcomes. In addition to helping employers, PBMs also work with the Illinois Medicaid program in the same way to help control costs. Over the last five years, PBMs have saved the state and taxpayers nearly $340 million.
Today, Illinois faces a multibillion budget shortfall as more Illinoisans are relying on Medicaid to help meet their health care coverage needs. As legislators work to address these challenges, one way to help ensure continued cost savings is by strengthening the PBM tools that the State and employers use, which are poised to save employers, consumers and the State $39 billion over the next 10 years. These are meaningful savings that will help continue to contain costs, ensure consumer access to medicines and drive savings in public health programs.
Amid a pandemic and economic challenges, now is the time to strengthen, not limit, the tools that employers, consumers and the State rely on to manage costs and ensure consumers can access the medicines they need.
#BREAKING A federal grand jury has indicted Tim Mapes, the longtime chief of staff to former House Speaker Michael Madigan, on perjury and attempted obstruction of justice charges.
Here's what the feds say was crucial to their investigation when they called Mapes in (Public Official A = Madigan, Individual B = Madigan confidant Michael McClain): pic.twitter.com/ilnbTHnBW6
On March 31, the feds say "one of the things we were trying to figure out, Mr. Mapes, is whether or not — kind of a key issue for us is whether or not [McClain] acted as an agent for [Madigan]." Mapes says, "I don't know who you would go to other than [Madigan] and [McClain]." pic.twitter.com/MJjS03Bgv0
The charges allege Mapes repeatedly lied to the grand jury during an appearance on March 31 when asked about Madigan’s relationship with his longtime confidante Michael McClain, who has been charged with orchestrating the bribery scheme on behalf of ComEd to win Madigan’s assistance with state legislation.
Mapes lied to the panel even though he’d been granted immunity from prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and was told by the Chief U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer that he must testify truthfully or possibly face criminal charges for perjury, according to the indictment.
The charges against Mapes marked the latest in a still-active investigation that also threatens to ensnare Madigan, who was the nation’s longest-serving state House leader before stepping down in January as pressure from the investigation was mounting.
The indictment is certain to create major ripples in the closing days of the Springfield legislative session, where ComEd and its corporate parent, Exelon, are trying to negotiate a new energy bill before a scheduled Monday adjournment that could include subsidies to keep its nuclear power plant fleet afloat.
The indictment went on to allege that Mapes lied to the grand jury about his knowledge of conversations McClain had in 2018 with two members of the House Democratic caucus, identified only as Public Official B and Public Official C.
The indictment alleges McClain told Mapes about the discussions but doesn’t detail their substance nor allege wrongdoing by those officeholders. WBEZ has confirmed those public officials to be state Rep. Bob Rita, D-Blue Island, and former state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie.
“We have no idea who or what they’re talking about in this,” Rita told WBEZ in a statement Wednesday night. Rita did not respond to a question about whether he’d been asked to testify before a grand jury.
Mapes’ defense attorneys, Andrew Porter and Katie Hill, released a statement denying that Mapes lied to the grand jury.
“Tim Mapes testified truthfully in the grand jury,” they wrote. “His honest recollections — in response to vague and imprecise questions about events that allegedly took place many years ago — simply do not constitute perjury. This case, of course, is not about him — but about the government’s continued pursuit of his former boss. Tim Mapes has in no way engaged in obstruction of justice, and looks forward to prevailing at trial when all of the facts are aired.”
As of Monday, [Kankakee County] has given 65,274 doses of the coronavirus vaccine with 31,948 totally vaccinated, which is 29.04 percent of the county population. Herd immunity is reached at 70 percent.
Board member John Fetherling asked [Kankakee County Health Department administrator John Bevis] what the goal is and can the county get to 40 percent or higher on vaccinations.
“What’s the best way to do this to get up to around 40?” Fetherling said.
“Even the most populous counties right now that have had the best success rates of getting people vaccinated, I don’t think have hit 40 [percent] yet,” Bevis said. “So once we hit 30, now at least, I’m going to be comfortable that we’re in the talking distance because just a couple of months ago, we were one of the last ones from the bottom of the state, and a number of counties hit 30, 35, just right off the bat.
FAMM President Kevin Ring issued the following statement after the Illinois legislature passed a bill that will allow the Prisoner Review Board to release severely ill and dying people from Illinois prisons.
“It is unfortunate that it takes a tragic situation like Joe Coleman’s to create action, but we believe this overdue reform can prevent similar tragedies in the future,” Ring said. “Providing early release to elderly and ill people who pose very little risk to public safety will allow state leaders to target more resources to programs that actually make communities safer.”
The bill is named after Coleman, who died at 81 years old of cancer in an Illinois prison while awaiting clemency. Under current law, the only avenue sick and dying incarcerated people have for release is through the rarely used executive clemency process. Only Iowa, a state with no compassionate release authority whatsoever, is worse when it comes to meaningful opportunities for release.
* All over but the signing…
To provide dignity to all Illinois residents in their final days, State Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) passed the Joe Coleman Medical Release Act in the Illinois Legislature. The bipartisan measure will allow terminally ill and medically disabled inmates to safely move from the Department of Corrections to outside care facilities.
“Joe Coleman was a decorated veteran and father of six,” Guzzardi said. “He was terminally ill and not a threat to anyone in the public or himself. He died alone in prison awaiting a decision on executive clemency while serving a life sentence for stealing $640 from a gas station. That’s a tragic failure of our justice system, and this bill will make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
The Joe Coleman Medical Release Act would allow for an expedited review for terminally ill and incapacitated people committed to the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) to be released to Medicaid-approved outside care facilities able to meet their needs. Currently, incapacitated and dying individuals in Illinois correctional facilities can only seek early release via clemency by the governor. This new standard would allow the Prisoner Review Board to be able to grant medical releases through a quick and thorough review process.
Guzzardi’s legislation would also save Illinois taxpayers millions of dollars by sharing the cost of treatment with Medicaid, while also saving the unnecessary costs of medical transport from correctional facilities to specialists, guarding costs and infirmary costs within IDOC.
“Every year, too many individuals who have spent a lifetime in prison die alone with no family and very little dignity,” said Guzzardi. “My legislation would help restore some humanity for individuals who are not a risk to the public.”
The measure passed the Illinois Senate on May 26th after clearing the House in April with bipartisan support. It now awaits signature by the Governor.
* And another one…
House Bill 12 (HB 12) passed the Senate. The bill now heads to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk for his signature.
The legislation was drafted by the Illinois Education Association (IEA) and sponsored by Rep. Terra Costa Howard (D-Lombard). HB 12 expands coverage of the Family and Medical Leave Act to thousands of education support professionals across the state.
“When this bill becomes law, it will be a huge victory for our education support professionals. They’ll know they have access FMLA without the risk of losing their job and health insurance,” IEA President Kathi Griffin said. “This is something our members have fought for years, and that hard work is paying off. This is a huge victory for our working families and our talented support staff.”
The leader of one of the state’s largest anti-abortion group told a legislative committee Tuesday that the group intend to file a legal challenge against the state’s new “culturally responsive teaching and leading standards.”
Ralph Rivera, a lobbyist for Illinois Right to Life Action and the Pro-Family Alliance, told a House committee that 30 public school teachers have signed on to a future lawsuit that will challenge the constitutionality of those standards.
“They feel that that would be compelled speech,” Rivera said. “This would threaten their right to free exercise of religion or conscience.”
The standards, which the Illinois State Board of Education endorsed last year, call on schools of education to train prospective new teachers in how to make their instruction more inclusive and relevant to students from different cultural backgrounds as well as students of different sexual orientations and gender identities.
“…business owners who planned to build a career on Illinois’ solar panels say they are waiting to see whether the state legislature will pass a new bill with additional funding so they can start work on the backlog of projects left in limbo.”
“We’ve been able to minimize laying off folks. We voluntarily took pay deductions. Some people took furlough just so we could maintain our work force …”
“If legislators don’t renew the subsidies by the end of the session on Monday, a number of owners said they will be forced to lay off staff, move to other states or shut down completely.”
People planning to travel this Memorial Day weekend may find something unfamiliar when they stop to fill up or get a snack: a COVID-19 vaccine.
The Illinois Emergency Management Agency announced Wednesday that it would be partnering with Amtrak, Walmart, TravelCenters of America, Wally’s and Hy-Vee to provide vaccination clinics to travelers this weekend in six locations across the state.
Amtrak and Walmart will provide a clinic at Union Station in Chicago from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday through Sunday. The shots will be free and no appointments will be required. […]
Wally’s and Hy-Vee will have their clinic in Pontiac on Memorial Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. All clinics statewide will provide the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and will be provided cost-free to the patient. No appointments are necessary to participate in the clinics.
I think I’ve told you that I always stop in Pontiac for gas, whether I need it or not. It’s my only real superstition. My maternal grandparents are buried there, my mom was born there, and the only time I can remember not stopping I was involved in a car accident, so better safe than sorry.
I first encountered Wally’s as I drove to my uncle’s house from my parent’s place. I needed gas, so my brother Devin and I decided to go inside and check it out.
If you’ve never been there… wow. Like the headline says, it has everything. I’ve never seen such a thing. I’ve since heard several Chicago-area legislators and lobbyists enthusiastically talk about their Wally’s experiences. My uncle loves jerky, and they have a jerky bar at the gas station, so I was all over it.
Anyway, this post really means nothing at all except to say if you still need to get your shots, maybe stop by that gigantified gas station on I-55 and kill two birds with one stone.
Throughout her tenure, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the police superintendents who work for her have repeatedly blamed judges when the city’s violence starts to rise. The argument goes like this: If judges would keep more people locked up after arrest, then they wouldn’t be able to commit crimes, and violence in Chicago would decrease. […]
But emails released to the public after a hack of the mayor’s office show that even as Lightfoot and police leaders continued to trot out the talking point, some of the highest-ranking city officials were aware the claim was wrong. And in fact, the leader of the city’s anti-violence efforts repeatedly tried to get them to stop making the claim that decisions on pretrial release were driving Chicago shootings. […]
“Electronic monitoring and low bond amounts given to offenders endangers our residents and flies in the face of the hard work our police officers put in on a daily basis to take them off the streets,” [CPD Superintendent David Brown] said [last summer]. “I will continue to bring attention to the sheer number of repeat offenders who are given little to no jail time and low bonds and … go on to commit more crimes.”
By that point, the emails show, city officials were scrambling to find evidence that would justify Lightfoot and Brown’s claims, but their efforts were largely unsuccessful.
One week before Brown made his comments, in an email thread spurred by a question from Crain’s Chicago Business columnist Greg Hinz, the mayor’s office and CPD were able to find only two examples of bail decisions leading to new gun crimes.
On top of that, Pat Mullane, a top mayoral spokesman at the time, admitted to colleagues that one of the two examples was “kind of weak.” But he said the city needed to provide them “so the [superintendent] doesn’t look like he’s pointing the finger.”
The following is a statement from state Sen. Robert Peters (D-Chicago), who has spent the past five years fighting alongside community groups to end cash bail and sponsored the Safe-T Act which abolished cash bail and wealth-based detention in Illinois:
“We continue to work in pursuit of real public safety for all and, at least in Springfield, we have made significant progress because we know that public safety belongs to the people. Along those lines, the people deserve the truth from those elected to represent them.
“There is nothing more damaging than a public servant who knowingly contributes to a false narrative, and enables a system that picks and chooses evidence and data-based practices.
“Despite this, and with the support of Governor Pritzker, we were successful in ending cash bail in Illinois, taking the oxygen out of any more declarations from those who choose to ignore the fact that our justice system used to rule by ‘guilty if poor.’”
Gov. Jim Edgar on Friday signed into law the final hurrah of last year’s Republican-run General Assembly, approving a redrawing of the Illinois Supreme Court’s election boundaries aimed at giving the GOP control of the state’s highest court. […]
By having Cook County’s three seats on the high court elected from subdistricts, instead of countywide, beginning in the year 2000, Republicans hope to win a majority on the 7-member court for the first time since 1970. […]
House GOP leader Lee Daniels (R-Elmhurst) rebutted arguments that the map represented a Republican power grab.
“It’s a solid bill. It meets the constitutional requirement, and it’s about time the Supreme Court was redistricted. The Democrats refused to deal with the issue because they had control of the court,” he said.
Illinois Democrats, already drawing legislative and congressional maps to solidify their majorities in those bodies, on Tuesday offered a new map of state Supreme Court districts in an effort to ensure the party maintains control of the state’s highest court.
Illinois Supreme Court districts haven’t been redrawn since 1964. But changing demographics and shifting regional politics, as well as the ouster of a Democratic justice by voters last year, has Democrats fearing that their advantage on the court could evaporate in next year’s election. […]
“The boundaries for Illinois Supreme Court districts have not been updated for several decades, it’s time we make changes in recognition of the population changes and demographic shifts that have taken place since the 1960s,” said state Sen. Omar Aquino, the Chicago Democrat who chairs the state Senate Redistricting Committee. […]
One major function of the court is to act as a check and balance in determining the constitutionality of legislation approved by lawmakers and signed into law. With Democrats holding control of the legislature and, through Pritzker, the governor’s office, the partisan influence can often play into the court’s decisions.
House Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, was bracing for the new judicial maps when he accused Democrats Monday of preparing to stack the court. Kilbride’s loss sent a “shockwave” to the majority party’s major supporters such as trial attorneys and labor unions, Durkin said. “Quite frankly, if they don’t change that district, Republicans win and the balance of power will go to Republicans,” Durkin said. “That’s why there is going to be…some type of map that is going to redraw that third Supreme Court district to make it more appealing to Democrat voters.”
And that, effectively, is what Democrats did with their new map.
While partisan make-ups of the new judicial districts weren’t immediately available, Kilbride’s old district was recalibrated to include all of DuPage County, the state’s second most vote-rich county and one that has trended heavily Democratic in recent election cycles.
* I had two different analyses on the partisan makeup of the new districts for subscribers this morning, but here’s one that was made public yesterday by the Illinois Civil Justice League…
(T)he current third district gives Republicans about a 55 to 45 percent advantage while the new map gives the Republicans a slight 51 to 49 percent advantage.
Additionally, the new second district is a 50-50 toss-up using the same voting data.
The ICJL analysis was pretty good, but it was posted late yesterday afternoon so you may have missed it…
The population changes in the new map bring the judicial districts within the threshold of substantially equal, with a total average deviation from the mean of 4.425 percent.
The map drawers paid particular attention to the historic nature of the Mt. Vernon, Springfield, and Ottawa appellate court locations, as well as keeping the original circuit breakdowns from the 1897 reapportionment whole, with just the divisions in circuits over the 125-history of the circuit map.
Newly appointed Second District Justice Michael Burke will likely run in the Third District in 2022, his home is in DuPage County and makes up roughly 48 percent of the new Third District. Will County is now 35 percent of the Third District, whereas before it represented almost 39 percent.
The tough job politically is managing the retentions in 2022, where longtime Third District Justices Tom Lytton (D-Rock Island) and Daniel Schmidt (R-Peoria) are up and live a long way from their district.
In the Fourth District, Justice Rita Garman’s home is now in the new Fifth District and she will need to move west to qualify for her 2022 retention. Fourth District Appellate Justice John Turner lives in his revised district and is eligible for a third term on the retention ballot.
There is now an open Supreme Court seat in the new Second District, which was 50-50 in the Attorney General’s race in 2018, and now gives Democrats an opportunity to elect a Democrat from the north and west suburbs. Remapped out of the Second District are Appellate Justices Joe Birkett, who is up for retention, and newly appointed Justice Liam Brennan, who are both from DuPage.
Additionally, several assigned circuit judges, who sit on the appellate courts by assignment, find themselves from circuits outside of the districts, including Winnebago County judge Kathryn Zenoff (Second) and Vermilion County judge Craig DeArmond (Fourth).
Lawyers for a Kane County restaurant are asking the Illinois Supreme Court to overturn an appellate court decision that found the governor’s indoor dining ban was lawfully imposed.
FoxFire Tavern is one of dozens of restaurants that sued Gov. JB Pritzker and his administration after he issued an executive order imposing stricter restrictions on businesses, including a ban on indoor dining and bar service, in response to rising COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations throughout the state.
The state’s highest court has not yet weighed in on the legal arguments challenging Pritzker’s power to impose the indoor dining ban, or any other restrictions implemented in his numerous executive orders.
The 2nd District Appellate Court’s decision last month that upheld Pritzker’s order prohibiting restaurants from allowing indoor dining cannot stand because it “leaves the restaurant industry out in the cold and without legal redress,” Kevin Nelson, one of FoxFire’s attorneys, wrote in the legal brief to the Illinois Supreme Court submitted on Friday.
The brief asks the court to accept the case and reverse the appellate court’s ruling on the governor’s executive order. However, since the court is not obligated to hear the case, the justices could reject that request and decline to rule on it.
SUPREME COURT OF ILLINOIS
WEDNESDAY, MAY 26, 2021
THE FOLLOWING CASES ON THE LEAVE TO APPEAL DOCKET WERE DISPOSED OF AS INDICATED:
126765-Fox Fire Tavern, LLC, etc., petitioner, v. Jay Robert Pritzker, etc., et al., respondents. Leave to appeal, Appellate Court, Second District. 2-20-0623, 2-20-0627
Petition for Leave to Appeal Denied.
* I asked the governor’s office for a response. Jordan Abudayyeh…
The Governor is pleased the court rejected this request and sided with upholding Governor Pritzker’s ability to follow the science and protect the citizens of Illinois.
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 1,139 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 27 additional deaths. In addition, 66% of Illinois adults have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose and 49% of Illinois adults are fully vaccinated, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- Cook County: 1 male 50s, 2 males 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 male 90s
- Kane County: 1 male 30s, 1 male 40s, 1 female 80s
- Kankakee County: 1 female 80s
- Knox County: 1 female 50s
- Lake County: 1 female 70s, 1 male 70s, 1 male 80s
- Logan County: 1 male 70s
- Macon County: 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s
- Marion County: 1 female 50s
- Marshall County: 1 male 70s
- McDonough County: 1 female 60s
- Pike County: 1 male 30s
- Tazewell County; 1 male 60s, 1 female 80s
- Vermilion County: 1 male 70s
- Will County: 1 male 70s, 1 female 90s
- Williamson County; 1 male 50s
- Winnebago County: 1 female 80s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 1,378,388 cases, including 22,676 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 57,402 specimens for a total of 24,366,520. As of last night, 1,395 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 351 patients were in the ICU and 181 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from May 19-25, 2021 is 2.0%. The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from May 19-25, 2021 is 2.6%.
A total of 11,049,665 vaccines have been administered in Illinois as of last midnight. The seven-day rolling average of vaccines administered daily is 71,215 doses. Yesterday, 59,494 doses were reported administered in Illinois.
*All data are provisional and will change. In order to rapidly report COVID-19 information to the public, data are being reported in-time. Information is constantly being entered into an electronic system and the number of cases and deaths can change as additional information is gathered. Information for a death previously reported has changed, therefore toda
* When I mentioned earlier that one of the more effective ways of getting your way on Statehouse matters is to find the votes to block an unfavorable bill from passing, this is exactly the sort of thing I was talking about…
As negotiations continue on a comprehensive clean energy bill during the final days of legislative session, nearly 50 legislators issued a resolute letter to leadership today, making it clear that the days of utility companies dictating public policy were over.
Governor Pritzker, legislators, and community stakeholders are currently working toward a plan to hold utilities to the highest ethical standards, launch an historic effort to replace fossil fuels with clean energy and provide a just transition for communities historically dependent on coal, and create equitable jobs in Illinois’ communities of color.
The legislators’ terms were simple and clear: “We will not support a bill which is simply a handout for utilities and does not prioritize climate and equity,” they stated.
The letter was co-signed by Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) chief sponsors Rep. Ann Williams and Sen. Cristina Castro, as well as Rep. Kam Buckner and Sen. Celina Villanueva, chief sponsors of Governor Pritzker’s Consumers and Climate First Act. These four legislators are part of the larger working group negotiating a clean energy package for passage this spring session.
Additional signatories include members of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus and Latino Caucus, and lawmakers from across the state.
* And here’s the letter…
To: Senate President Harmon and Speaker Welch
From: Illinois Legislative Green Caucus
Date: May 26, 2021
As we approach the end of the session and conversations around an energy package continue in earnest, it is critical we pass a strong and comprehensive climate bill built on a foundation of equity.
For too long, utilities have dictated energy policy in Illinois. It is imperative that this time around, any energy package is driven by climate, communities and consumers.
The final energy bill must:
• Eliminate carbon emissions from the electric sector by a date certain and prioritize closures in environmental justice communities.
• Ensure equity opportunities across all components of the bill, from workforce diversity to contractor equity to just transition.
We will not support a bill which is simply a handout for utilities and does not prioritize climate and equity – we must be forward thinking and lead with these issues. Our constituents and communities will support nothing less.
Thank you.
Signed,
Representative Ann Williams
Representative Anne Stava-Murray
Representative Anna Moeller
Representative Barbara Hernandez
Representative Bob Morgan
Representative Carol Ammons
Representative Daniel Didech
Representative Dagmara ‘Dee’ Avelar
Representative Delia Ramirez
Representative Denyse Stoneback
Representative Edgar Gonzales
Representative Jaime Andrade, Jr
Representative Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz
Representative Jonathan Carroll
Representative Joyce Mason
Representative Justin Slaughter
Representative Lakesia Collins
Representative Lamont Robinson
Representative Lindsey LaPointe
Representative Lisa Hernandez
Representative Kam Buckner
Representative Mark Walker
Representative Margaret Croke
Representative Michelle Mussman
Representative Nick Smith
Representative Rita Mayfield
Representative Robyn Gabel
Representative Sam Yingling
Representative Sonya Harper
Representative Suzanne Ness
Representative Terra Costa Howard
Representative Theresa Mah
Representative Will Guzzardi
Senator Ann Gillespie
Senator Laura Fine
Senator Laura Ellman
Senator Celina Villanueva
Senator Cristina Castro
Senator Cristina Pacione-Zayas
Senator David Koehler
Senator Jaqueline Collins
Senator Julie Morrison
Senator Melinda Bush
Senator Mike Simmons
Senator Robert Peters
Senator Robert Martwick
Senator Sara Feigenholtz
This means that, if present trends continue, Exelon and the unions will have to corral a whole lot of Republicans to muscle this thing through the House, since almost half the House Democratic caucus signed the letter.
* I told subscribers weeks ago that the good government groups’ only real job this spring was to find three House Democrats willing to stand up and say they would not vote for any remap plan devised by legislators. Preventing a veto-proof majority in just one chamber would’ve put enormous pressure on Gov. JB Pritzker to keep his promise to veto an unfair map. And that, in turn, would’ve put pressure on the majority party to rethink its entire strategy.
If 19 House Democrats stood up to stop the most powerful Democrat in Illinois history from being reelected, could 3 be found, cajoled or pressured to do the same on the remap?
Nope. Didn’t happen.
The Democrats stuck together and good government groups either didn’t bother to up the ante on them or simply sided with Republicans. And now it’s all devolved into a last-minute partisan process argument…
Republican lawmakers and non-partisan good government advocates continue to bash the first draft of Illinois’ Democrat-controlled map for the next decade. Legislators held a joint committee hearing with the redistricting groups Tuesday afternoon.
While Democratic leaders released the map late Friday night, lawmakers and the public still want to see each district’s geographical boundaries and demographics. They also want to know the information Democrats used to craft the map besides data from the 2019 American Community Survey.
Tuesday night, Republicans pushed Democrats to explain when they’ll file the legislation for the new map. With six days left before adjournment, the legislation and bill sponsor is still unknown. Also, only one Democrat participated in person with Republicans during Tuesday’s hearing. The other Democratic members appeared virtually.
Nearly every advocacy group testifying before the committee asked lawmakers to wait on the mapping process until after the census data is ready in mid-August.
“There’s still time. We could back away from this ledge and hit the pause button,” said Jay Young, Executive Director of Common Cause Illinois. “We can still appeal to the courts. I urge you in the most strenuous way, please take this opportunity.”
It’s just too late for that argument because the courts are not known for acting in a prompt manner. But since the Democrats refused to ask the Illinois Supreme Court to intervene on our constitutional deadline the way the California Democrats did with their Supreme Court, why didn’t anyone else?
* Instead, the goo-goos fundraised off of a claim that Black and Brown people were being disenfranchised…
Illinois politicians introduced the set of maps that they have been working on behind closed doors for weeks. These maps use 5-year sampling data that we know undercounts Illinoisans by 41,877 people.
We know this undercount likely has a great effect on people of color. It’s beyond alarming and disappointing. For too long, Black communities have historically been underrepresented, under-resourced, and targeted by large-scale misinformation campaigns designed to further disenfranchise them.
These maps are just another example of this disenfranchisement.
The decisions by our current lawmakers will disenfranchise tens of thousands of voices for a decade by creating representative maps that do not include them. How is this equity for Illinois?
* Except, Illinois has one of the best track records in the nation of drawing legislative districts for people of color. Fox 32…
After meeting for months behind sealed doors, Democrats now hope to lock in their Springfield super-majorities for another ten years. They are declining to answer questions because they fear anything they say publicly will be used against them when Republicans inevitably challenge the new district boundaries in court.
In previous years, some judges overturned new district maps based on issues related to minority representation. On that count, the Democrats’ remap expert called Illinois a model for the nation, not least because Illinois is one of the few places in the country where large groups of white voters regularly support minority candidates.
“A little under a third of the members of the state House and the state Senate are African-American, Asian-American or Hispanic,” said Prof. Allan Lichtman of American University. “That’s right in line with the citizen minority voting age population in the state.” […]
Democrats are now rushing to approve a redistricting plan because of a deadline imposed by the Illinois Constitution. Unless the job is done by the end of next month, random chance will decide which party gets to finish the process. That means Republicans would have a 50-50 chance.
There’s another step before that 50-50 drawing, but, yeah. Anyway, this is what it has come down to because three brave HDem souls could not be found or cultivated or pounded into submission.
Allan Lichtman, a history professor at American University in Washington, D.C., who was hired as a consultant by the House and Senate Democratic caucuses, testified that in his opinion, ACS data is acceptable to use for redistricting because in the five years leading up to the 2010 census, those estimates for Illinois were off by only about 0.3 percent.
“Nationally, there is no requirement under law or the constitution in Illinois that only decennial U.S. census data can be used for redistricting,” he said. “In fact, the majority of states, I repeat that, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, do not explicitly require that you must use only decennial census data for internal redistricting purposes, particularly of course when such data is not available or delayed.” […]
Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez, D-Cicero, who chairs the House Redistricting Committee, said the maps before the committee were only a draft, but McConchie said the committee still needed to see the demographic numbers.
“How can we appropriately measure the draft without the numbers,” he asked.
Well, I dunno, Leader. As subscribers know, I hired a consultant to put together the demographic numbers for each and every district. Y’all have a large state budget for this sort of thing. Maybe reach out to me and I’ll give you his number?
* From what I’m told, this elected Chicago school board idea is being pitched by Senate President Don Harmon. Other folks have to sign off, of course, but this appears to be the framework on which the solution will be built. Greg Hinz…
According to reliable sources, what’s now being pitched is a 21-member board that would be elected in 2027. In the meantime, a “hybrid” 21-person board would be created, with 10 members elected in 2023 and 10 appointed by the mayor, as occurs now. The mayor also would appoint the chair, the 21st member, giving the city’s chief nominal but by no means certain control of the board.
The elections would occur on the same dates as city elections for mayor and aldermen.
Another feature of the latest plan: Two years into the hybrid period, an outside commission would take a look at how things are going and issue a public report that, if negative, could prompt the General Assembly to re-evaluate the situation.
*** UPDATE *** The Senate Executive Committee passed Sen. Martwick’s original bill with a promise to hold it on the floor pending a compromise. Martwick would not pledge to hold the bill forever, but Senate President Don Harmon said he was confident that a compromise would be found by the end of session.
State law says utility companies like Commonwealth Edison cannot make their customers pay for the cost of their lobbying expenses.
Yet, ComEd’s nearly 4 million ratepayers in Chicago and northern Illinois are on the hook for nearly $9 million in grants the company awarded this past year to an array of nonprofit organizations.
What some of those investments also have yielded for ComEd is a de facto, ratepayer-underwritten lobbying force in Springfield that has aimed to help nudge some of the company’s most prized legislative initiatives during the past decade.
A WBEZ analysis of legislative records shows a distinct pattern in which the same grant recipients getting ComEd charity that ratepayers subsidize are wearing dueling hats as utility company advocates before the General Assembly. The same is true for a long list of ComEd contractors who have advocated on behalf of the company.
WBEZ documented nearly $350,000 in ComEd grants since 2017 to a dozen nonprofit groups that formally — and, in some cases, repeatedly — lobbied for company-backed legislation in Springfield. Some charitable groups are overseen by board members who also happened to be ComEd executives. […]
“We do not direct businesses or charities we support to submit witness slips,” ComEd spokesman Paul Elsberg said in a statement, referring to the paperwork that individuals and organizations file with the legislature to signify their opposition or support for a particular bill.
“However, we naturally reach out to businesses and community leaders about energy legislation that could affect our customers and our business,” he said. “In fact, we have an obligation to do so because it affects them, too, and we fully support their, and anyone’s, right to voice their support or opposition to legislation based on what’s important to them.”
Darnit, we have an obligation to inform fortunate recipients of our heartfelt, ratepayer-funded charitable giving that we have an amendment up for a vote in House Public Utilities next Tuesday at 3 o’clock and send them a link to the witness slip filing page.
At just 2.11%, the statewide seven-day case positivity rate for COVID-19 is at the lowest point since the pandemic began.
At the peak in November, the state’s seven-day case positivity rate had reached more than 13%. The statistic measures the percentage of new cases from a batch of COVID-19 tests and indicates the level of infection within the population. […]
In the suburbs, Lake County is reporting the lowest seven-day case positivity rate at 1.3%. McHenry County’s is highest at 3.2%.
The rate is 2.2% in Will County, 2.6% in DuPage County, 2.8% in suburban Cook County and 2.9% in Kane County.
On Christmas Eve, Downers Grove Village Commissioner Rich Kulovany thought he was out of the woods with his COVID-19 diagnosis.
From his bed at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, Kulovany texted a friend that he expected to be released soon.
But the next day, doctors transferred Kulovany to the ICU, attached him to a ventilator so he could breathe and put him into a medically induced coma for 16 days. […]
Kulovany spent 99 days in three hospitals: Good Samaritan, RML Specialty Hospital in Hinsdale (to wean him off a ventilator and a tracheostomy tube) and then Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital in Wheaton for physical therapy.
