* In this case, it’s an approp bill. Press release…
Law enforcement in Illinois needs an estimated $759 million in state funding to pay for all the new mandated training, combat the surge in violence and address a growing shortage of officers at the state and local level, according to an analysis from the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police released March 28, 2022.
“As we have said many times in recent years, we welcome more training, we welcome new technologies such as body cameras and license plate readers, and we want to be held accountable in an increasingly transparent world,” said ILACP Executive Director Ed Wojcicki.
“But it costs money to do all of this, and legislators and others have been asking how much. Now we know: It is at least $759 million as an initial investment in public safety in Illinois.”
The Illinois Chiefs’ detailed analysis has five major categories and encourages the General Assembly to fund these items before adjourning next month:
Technology and Equipment $206.5 million
ILETSB and Training $96.5 million
Community Policing and Community Engagement $100.0 million
Recruitment and Retention $276.4 million
Officer Wellness Programs $80.0 million
“We also now know that about 60% of Illinois law enforcement agencies are not fully staffed; they have shortages and are having a more difficult time recruiting and retaining officers,” Wojcicki added.
“Some officers are retiring. Some are going into other lines of work, and some are going to other states that they consider to be more police friendly, such as Indiana and Missouri.”
Details here.
* Daily Herald…
Legislators are considering a bill aiming to bring more accountability and transparency to tax increment financing, a funding tool used by many municipalities to pay for economic development projects in areas considered blighted and run down.
Some suburban communities are among the groups opposing the legislation they argue will limit their ability to spur economic development. But many school districts, park districts and similar taxing bodies support it, because they believe it will limit the amount of tax money that TIFs draw away from them. […]
The proposal introduced by Gillespie and co-sponsored by state Sen. Melinda Bush, a Grayslake Democrat, limits the life span of a TIF to 10 years instead of 23 years. And the joint review board, which is made up of one representative from each taxing body and one member of the public, has the power to approve or disapprove the extension of a TIF to 15 years. Currently, the legislature must approve a TIF extension for up to 35 years.
* Press release…
State Senator Bill Cunningham advanced a measure in the Illinois Senate that makes it easier for callers to reach 9-1-1 from hotels and businesses during an emergency on Thursday.
“This initiative will help ensure a quick response during times of an emergency,” said Cunningham, a Democrat who represents portions of Chicago and the Southwest Suburbs. “We are removing barriers that hinder people from calling 9-1-1 and making it easier for first responders to locate the caller.”
Under current law, multi-line telephone systems require dialing “9″ or another number to reach an outside line. Places like businesses, hotels and government buildings use these systems to handle two or more calls coming in at the same time. Under the new law, MLTS vendors and manufacturers must configure new systems to support direct dialing 9-1-1.
The goal of this legislation is protect people and specifically children. In 2013, a women was killed in a hotel room by her estranged husband. Her daughter attempted to call 9-1-1 four times, but the calls never went through because the hotel’s multi-line telephone system required her to dial “9” before making an outbound call. Illinois will follow suit with other states who have already passed this legislation.
House Bill 5502 will also update regulation on multi-line systems to provide accurate information about the caller’s location within a building or complex. Far too often, large hotels or complexes use multi-line systems and it is difficult for emergency response to get an exact location on the caller. This ensures people who need help during an emergency are able to be located by first responders.
“This legislation will save lives and could save your child’s life,” Cunningham said. “I want to thank the Illinois State Police for bringing this issue to our attention.”
House Bill 5502 passed the Energy & Public Utility Committee on Thursday and awaits further consideration before the full Senate.
* Reform for Illinois…
We’re in the midst of “petition challenge” season, when candidates and their allies try to knock their opponents out of races by challenging signatures they’ve gathered to get on the ballot.
The process of gathering petition signatures in Illinois is burdensome and outdated. And those expensive and time-consuming challenges can keep good people out of office, especially those who lack the wealth or party connections they need to play the game.
Luckily, there’s a solution. Reform for Illinois worked with state Rep. Kelly Cassidy to introduce HB 4966, which would allow election authorities to adopt digital signature programs. These programs dramatically reduce invalid signatures and help avoid challenges.
The legislature has a chance to make life easier for candidates and improve representation for Illinoisans. We urge lawmakers to bring our state into the 21st century and adopt this common sense reform.
* Letter to the editor…
If you think the ever-present attorney advertisements that you see in Illinois are an eyesore, get ready to see more of them if a bill passes the Illinois General Assembly and is signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
As someone who watches the cost of insurance and is concerned about the factors that drive costs up, I’m worried that a piece of legislation zooming through the House and Senate is not being vetted appropriately and has the potential to increase insurance costs for everyone.
Senate Bill 1099 is being pushed by influential trial lawyers who benefit from big-ticket lawsuit settlements. The bill would allow third-party investors to “loan” money to people who have been hurt while they wait for their court cases to move through the legal system. The “lenders” would be allowed to charge interest rates to the injured of 18% every six months for nearly four years.
That’s predatory. It should not be allowed to become law. The end result would be more abuse of personal injury litigation, which would drive up the costs of insurance for all of us.
- James Coston, CEO, Corridor Rail Development Corp.
* Press release…
Today, the Gun Violence Prevention PAC (G-PAC) and State Representative Kam Buckner (D-Chicago) announced the introduction of House Bill 5731, new legislation to protect communities from dangerous ghost guns.
“Ghost guns pose a great threat to our communities. Unregulated by the federal government, these homemade firearms are flooding our streets and taking too many innocent lives,” said State Rep. Kam Buckner (D-Chicago). “To be blunt, these are weapons that are used so one can’t get caught. I am proud to introduce life-saving legislation that will stop ghost guns from harming our state.”
“These untraceable, homemade ghost guns are a clear and present danger to our communities,” said Kathleen Sances, President and CEO of G-PAC. “Their easy availability is a constant threat to children, families and first responders and provides deadly firepower for people, especially white supremacist and terrorist groups, who want to commit acts of violence without being detected.”
This piece of legislation cracks down on these unregulated firearms that anyone - including minors and prohibited purchasers - can buy and build without a background check. Parts and kits to build these unserialized and untraceable weapons can be bought online and assembled at home in just 15 minutes. They are also intentionally marketed as unregulated and untraceable to appeal to those who want to avoid background checks and gun traffickers.
House Bill 5731 will ensure that:
• The transfer, purchase, manufacture, importation, and possession of ghost guns is illegal
• Printing ghost guns with 3-D printers is prohibited
• Guns that are currently unserialized can become serialized and trackable
Nationwide, law enforcement discovered 10,000 ghost guns in 2019, but countless others are on the streets. However, there are no federal restrictions on who can buy gun kits or parts or on how many someone can buy. The absence of national leadership has led ten states to implement laws regulating ghost guns to keep their children, families and communities safe from gun violence.
Ghost guns make up a growing percentage of gun violence across the country, which has claimed more than nine thousand lives so far this year. Chicago police confiscated 455 ghost guns in 2021 (more than twice as many as in New York City), andmore than 40% of guns recovered by California ATF officers in 2020 were ghost guns.
Alongside Rep. Buckner and G-PAC’s Kathleen Sances, advocates from Brady United and Moms Demand Action Illinois joined the press conference and spoke in support of the new bill.
“We cannot continue to allow gun traffickers to control our communities with fear and bloodshed,” said Annliese Dickman, City Program Manager for Brady United. “Ghost guns pose a major threat to every single person in our state, and we need to pass an essential policy that limits the possession of these dangerous weapons.”
“Ghost guns are dangerous, impossible to trace, and too easy to obtain without a background check – and they don’t belong in our communities,” said Maria Pike, a survivor of gun violence and volunteer with Moms Demand Action Illinois. “Protecting our communities from ghost guns cannot wait, especially as gun violence continues to devastate our state and ghost guns are turning up with alarming frequency at crime scenes in Illinois. We’re grateful to stand here today and join the call for lawmakers to prioritize this critical bill.”
“As gun violence has skyrocketed in communities across Chicago, Illinois, and the country, more and more of the guns fueling it have been ghost guns,” said David Pucino, deputy chief counsel at Giffords Law Center. “These untraceable weapons are sold by cynical companies evading our gun laws to flood the streets with unregulated weapons. We need legislation to stop this, legislation that says if your company is selling the ability to make a gun you must be regulated as a gun seller. This bill will do that and we are proud to support it.”
* Press release…
As a result of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus four-pillar agenda, specifically the Education and Workforce Equity Act, State Senator Kimberly A. Lightford (D-Maywood) announced a $17 million grant to create the first-ever state-funded Freedom Schools network.
“Freedom Schools have a proud history and major significance for African Americans,” Lightford said. “These schools represent a long tradition of engaged citizenship, personal empowerment and academic excellence. I know this experience will have a positive impact on students, their families, and the whole community.”
Because of the monumental education package to rid Illinois of systemic racism, the Phillip Jackson Freedom School Grant was created to ensure Black students receive quality education across the state.
The Phillip Jackson Freedom Schools will offer students a wide range of academic and social learning opportunities, provide quality teaching experiences, a progressive school climate and an equitable curriculum. The first Freedom School was created in the 1960s to allow marginalized communities to get the same educational opportunities as their white counterparts.
Also, the Philip Jackson Freedom School will guarantee teachers feel empowered by the community to ensure students are getting the representation and leadership they need.
“Better representation is important for students of color as they statically do better and stay longer in school,” Lightford said. “The Philip Jackson Schools is warranted to liberate not only our Black students but also our Black teachers.”
Lightford is honored that the Freedom Schools network is named after the life of Philip Jackson, a longtime advocate of educating youth in Chicago public schools and metropolitan areas.
The Phillip Jackson Freedom School Grant application is now open to public schools and universities, community colleges, and not-for-profits, community-based organizations.
- Trusted Source - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 11:21 am:
FWIW the TIF bill does not change the duration of a TIF. That’s from an earlier version of the bill and is not in the current version.
- Anyone Remember - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 11:32 am:
===Officer Wellness Programs $80.0 million===
Would like to see local & state law enforcement agencies develop physical fitness standards for officers throughout their entire career, not just basic training. Most likely this would require secure access physical fitness facilities, to begin with. The feds have figured it out.
- TheInvisibleMan - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 11:34 am:
== Currently, the legislature must approve a TIF extension for up to 35 years. ==
That’s a start, given the completely ridiculous volume of these extensions rubber stamped in the legislature every year. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one voted against, There are 23 such bills in the *current* legislative session alone.
The original purpose of TIF has long since been usurped, and today it is mostly used simply to funnel money out of other taxing districts.
SB3106 is an example on the extreme side of abuse of TIF. (You have to mess up pretty badly to be called out by name in the bills language for a new TIF law to NOT apply to your one specific city). Less abusive but still well outside of the original purpose of TIF is how many very wealthy villages use TIF for projects that are at best questionable - but do point out the absurdity of what qualifies to be a TIF district in the first place.
The entire downtown of plainfield recently received a TIF extension to 35 years. Is downtown plainfield dilapidated, because they are claiming with a straight face that it was in order to get the extension. Making it even worse, the villages rationalization for the extension is that they weren’t able to collect as much money from the other agencies as they wanted yet. A few years back the village was also trying to convince people it was completely normal and allowed to use TIF money to purchase road salt for the public works department.
Most downtown TIFs could be replaced with a much more efficient SSA, or specialized corporate tax district, and still accomplish the same stated goals without taking money away from any other districts.
TIF needs a complete overhaul at this point, but as we seem to be beholden to business over everything else I doubt that’s going to happen anytime soon.
- Blue Dog - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 11:38 am:
What is a progressive school environment
- DEE - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 11:46 am:
A lawyer Can Not loan money to an injured client. That is where the ‘predatory’ loan companies come in. The loan company’s only recourse for repayment is the client’s case so if the lawyer loses, that company loses also. The headache for the lawyer comes when there is a reasonable offer to settle made and the client refuses the offer because the client’s net is so low after deduction of the loan and ‘predatory’ interest. How, pray tell, will an increase in the ceiling on interest rates on such loans cause a proliferation of lawyer ads on billboards or an increase in the cost of insurance? Unless insurance companies are afraid of the ‘predatory’ lenders because, knowing the attorney can not loan money to their client, and that loan money may stave off an injured party’s financial ruin following an injury, those ‘predatory’ lenders may stop the insurance carrier from settling a ‘broke’ persons claim for half its value.
- Larry Bowa Jr. - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 12:16 pm:
“What is a progressive school environment”
My layperson’s definition would be a school environment characterized by adherence to educational best practices, which are subject to review and revision and thus change or “progress” over time.
I’m not the half of my household who is a teacher so I won’t even try to field “what are best practices.”
I don’t know if that’s a great explanation but I know a regressive school environment when I see one. I live in one, with an absolutely stupid emphasis on sports, paltry to non-existent language and music offerings, and where my kid is bringing home the same archaic math worksheets I was given 35 years ago, because the math curriculum here hasn’t been updated in literally decades.
- TimeWasted - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 12:56 pm:
So Buckner introduced a “new” bill that can’t move, rather than move the bill he had on the topic all session? Seems to me like a publicity stunt. Wasn’t that Tom Dart’s big issue last fall too? Couldn’t Dart and Buckner get the job done?
- Pundent - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 1:15 pm:
=those ‘predatory’ lenders may stop the insurance carrier from settling a ‘broke’ persons claim for half its value.=
I’ve litigated several cases where predatory lending is involved. And I’ve never seen an instance where it hasn’t made settlement more difficult. The plaintiff’s attorney takes their contingent fees and expenses off of the top and their can be other lien holders such as doctors, physical therapy providers, chiropractors, etc. that stand in line before the plaintiff. The plaintiff’s attorney will inevitably look to inflate their demand value in order to “put money in my client’s pocket” with no acknowledgment that the funding company has already done so. All of which does nothing other than raise the cost everyone else pays for insurance.
- Amalia - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 1:29 pm:
James Coston used to be a lawyer. Sigh.
- thisjustinagain - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 1:30 pm:
Ref the “ghost gun” bill…Under Federal laws, a person can make all the guns they want, and it is illegal for any type of serial number to be given to those guns. It is also illegal to give or sell any unserialized gun to anyone else. So Illinois is trying to override Federal law and regulations yet again under the guise of “it’s for the children”. It’s a gun ban pure and simple, just like those who claim “nobody is coming for your guns” keep insisting is not happening.
- Elmer Keith - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 2:13 pm:
“…we welcome new technologies such as body cameras and license plate readers, and we want to be held accountable in an increasingly transparent world,” said ILACP Executive Director Ed Wojcicki” Lies. Every police union in Illinois opposed recording homicide interrogations, when that baby step was taken after Jon Burge electro-shocked and suffocated suspects.
The Chiefs of Police are the worst, they cut the deal with former NRA lobbyist Todd Vandermyde to place Duty to Inform in Brandon Phelps garbage concealed carry bill. DTI was designed so every cop off duty and out of uniform can kill any armed citizen they contact, like Philando Castile in Minnesota. Don’t pose as a civil libertarian Wojnicki.
- Demoralized - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 2:15 pm:
==Under Federal laws, a person can make all the guns they want==
==It’s a gun ban pure and simple==
Good. Nobody should be able to make their own guns. That’s just asinine.
- NonAFSCMEStateEmployeeFromChatham - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 2:22 pm:
==Most downtown TIFs could be replaced with a much more efficient SSA, or specialized corporate tax district, and still accomplish the same stated goals without taking money away from any other districts.==
Paging this to Mayor Langfelder, to Downtown Springfield, Inc., and other downtown supporters.
- Todd - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 3:22 pm:
D –
“Good. Nobody should be able to make their own guns. That’s just asinine.’
Its been going on since 1791.
John Browning began producing firearms independently by 1831 and shortly thereafter invented a “sliding breech” repeating rifle also called a Harmonica gun between 1834 and 1842 while living in Quincy, Illinois. Each Harmonica gun took two weeks to manufacture by hand and were available to purchase for $24.00.
People today enjoy making their own firearms and customizing them. You can’t go out and buy a working m11 blaster, but my son wants one and I’m about 1/2 done with it.
The whole 80% thing was driven by you and the anti-gunners. Oh you can’ have a an AR-15 or a sem-auto that holds more than 10 rounds. So the gun guys said EF U. We’ll make our own and you can’t stop us. Cuase how do you ban what you don’t know we have. No 4473, no records and so on. you were so hot to ban them, people said we’ll make our own and oh you can’t stop the signal. interesting that now the bill says you can not trade in information, wonder how that is gonna get around the 1st amendment, and it seems they hate the 4th as well.
how are you gonna stop someone who can make their own frame or receiver out of a block oof metal? A standard shovel will do niclely for an or a maac-10. I can make a machinegun receiver out of a piece of tubing in an hour.
- Techie - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 3:26 pm:
The digital signatures bill for petitions is a good one. I can easily see how it would cut down on the gamesmanship around petition signatures.
- duck duck goose - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:10 pm:
A 10-year TIF would be pointless. By the time a project was completed and started producing increment, there would not be enough time left on the TIF to generate any type of meaningful reimbursement. This would lead to more TIFs because each TIF would be project specific and coordinated with a specific development.
With respect to the complaint that the legislature rubberstamps extensions, that simply is not true. The legislature will not consider a TIF extension unless it has received letters from all of the affected taxing districts. The only extensions that the legislature calls for a vote are the ones that everybody has agreed to.
- Quincy - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:36 pm:
WHO in this state would want to be a police officer in this state with all the new laws coming next year against police and protecting ALL the law breaker running free
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:39 pm:
=== WHO===
There’s a long list to become a Chicago police office.
You could ask them.
- Anonymous - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:48 pm:
Tif districts should be discontinued, they are nothing more than a free ride for companies, and a tax increase on local homeowners
- Deputy Sheriff - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:49 pm:
@Oswego
Please back that up with facts. Every law enforcement agency I’ve spoke with is struggling to find officers. ISP’s recruiting efforts are greater than ever seen before.
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:56 pm:
===Please back that up with facts.===
Last year, July, 3,700+ took the exam.
In August of 2021, there was reported to be 1,066 vacancies.
How Chicago is handling the shortage, there are folks taking the exam far greater than current openings.
NBC5 Chicago
- thisjustinagain - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:57 pm:
OW, Chicago hasn’t even hired enough officers for the last few years to balance retirements, far less resignations as officers go to other departments.
https://www.chicagocontrarian.com/blog/on-chicago-you-think-its-bad-now
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Mar 28, 22 @ 4:58 pm:
===Those numbers show that a total of 3,789 people took the exam in the months of June, August, October, November and December.===
Also…
=== By July 31, 640 Chicago police officers already had put in their retirement papers. Budget Director Susie Park told the City Council’s Committee on Budget and Government Operations she expects that attrition rate to rise to 725 officers by year’s end.
Already, the department is struggling to fill 1,066 vacancies — 877 of them among sworn officers. The other 189 are civilian positions.===
Recruitment, training, and getting qualified officers on the street can be an issue, but folks are “taking the exam”.
- thisjustinagain - Tuesday, Mar 29, 22 @ 12:01 pm:
OW, not only are test numbers down from when you’d have double-digit thousands of applicants, but so are the number of applicants who can get through the background checks and other pre-appointment steps. And CPD has lowered its standards to try to get people in the academy, let alone complete it. “Big funnel with small output” is the key here.
https://moose106.iheart.com/content/2022-03-18-chicago-police-department-lowers-hiring-standards-amid-staffing-shortage/
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Mar 29, 22 @ 12:06 pm:
=== not only are test numbers down from when you’d have double-digit thousands of applicants, but so are the number of applicants who can get through the background checks and other pre-appointment steps. And CPD has lowered its standards to try to get people in the academy, let alone complete it. “Big funnel with small output” is the key here.===
Reading is fundamental.
===Recruitment, training, and getting qualified officers on the street can be an issue, but folks are “taking the exam”.===
More than enough folks are *taking* the test, and further, the question starting the discussion here was “WHO”, and I responded as such, and while metrics seem lower, more than enough folks are taking the test, the discussion to the quality or “big funnel, small output” premise, the job market is competitive, but more folks are testing than open spots, so it’s not that folks don’t want the job, it’s that the timelines, recruiting, and training are lagging.
All with respect, bud.
OW