* Here you go…

* Capitol News Illinois | State board of education looking for new providers in preschool ‘deserts’: ISBE is looking for new providers to offer preschool programs in areas of the state designated as “preschool deserts,” with the goal of creating 5,000 new preschool slots in the upcoming school year. The $75 million in new funding available for new preschool slots this year is part of Pritzker’s $250 million “Smart Start Illinois” initiative, a four-year effort that seeks to make early childhood day care and preschool available and affordable to every family in the state who needs it.

* Center Square | Pritzker tours state discussing increased taxpayer-funded education in the state’s budget: “It has been the mission of my governorship to not only reverse the harm that has been done but to shape an Illinois that truly uplifts our residents from cradle to career,” Pritzker said.

* Capitol News Illinois | Lawmakers approve measure giving utilities control over new downstate transmission lines: The measure applies to companies that already own or operate electric transmission lines under the purview of the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, or MISO, the grid operator for a wide swath of the Midwest, including much of downstate and parts of northwestern Illinois.

* Bonus | Illinois Passes Bill Allowing Casinos to Hire People with Felony Convictions:The bill also gives the gaming board the power to review each licensee and refuse a permit to anyone deemed a threat to the state’s public interests or gaming integrity. IGB will consider the time since conviction, the number and severity of the charges, and more when deciding.

* Tribune |Indiana now ranked first among inland ports, second in Great Lakes ports by feds: The state was previously counted as having multiple small port districts but now has just two. The southern district includes facilities run by the Ports of Indiana in Mount Vernon and Jeffersonville, along with private terminals along the Ohio River from Posey County to Dearborn County. The northern district includes the Ports of Indiana’s Burns Harbor terminal in addition to private terminals and steel mills along Indiana’s Lake Michigan coastline.

* Daily Herald | Why the DuPage Water Commission wants to spend billions for own pipeline from Lake Michigan: “The question becomes can we build a new system and have it cost less than $120 million a year,” said Paul May, water commission executive director. “As concluded by that report, the answer is yes.”

* Sun-Times | Judge silences, scolds attorney for Berrios relative who faces trial Monday for bribing state lawmaker:James T. Weiss’ attorney wound up having to raise his hand to speak in court, including when he said he had to use the bathroom. He claimed he’d been unlawfully restrained and had thrown up in a cup. He told the judge, “look at the cup!”

* Chicago Law Bulletin | Jesse Reyes announces 2nd run for Illinois Supreme Court:Appellate Justice Jesse G. Reyes announced his candidacy for the Illinois Supreme Court at a press conference Wednesday in Chicago, saying the court should reflect the community it serves. — Grace Barbic/Chicago Daily Law BulletinFirst District Appellate Court Justice Jesse G. Reyes announced Wednesday his candidacy for the Illinois Supreme Court next year. He will be running for the seat held by Justice Joy V. Cunningham, who was appointed when former Chief Justice Anne M. Burke retired Nov. 30.

* Erickson Institute | Erikson Institute Receives $8 Million from MacKenzie Scott to Advance Equity in Early Childhood:Erikson Institute has announced an $8 million unrestricted gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. In keeping with MacKenzie Scott’s charitable vision of advancing opportunities for people in underinvested and underserved communities, the funds associated with this transformational gift will fuel Erikson’s mission of building equitable and just futures for young children, their families, and communities. The gift is a testament to the vision and work of Erikson Institute, under the leadership of President Mariana Souto-Manning, Ph.D.

* Tribune | Watchdog group seeks to cut more than $110 million from record Peoples Gas rate hike request: Targeting everything from the “mismanaged” pipeline project to high residential heating costs, the consumer watchdog group recommended slashing $63 million from the proposal, with the Illinois attorney general’s office expected to seek $49 million in additional reductions.

* Tribune | Civic Committee announces initiative to tackle public safety as ‘the No. 1 issue’ in Chicago: “The issue of public safety is the No. 1 issue for pretty much everyone in the city of Chicago,” said Derek Douglas, who became the first Black president of the Civic Committee in August. “And the business community is no different.”

* WBEZ | There’s a surge in calls for shelter. Chicago’s 311 help line can’t keep up: Data analysis by WBEZ also shows a declining percentage of calls appear to result in a placement. But it’s hard to measure how well the system is working because of several major flaws in the 311 data system the city uses to track shelter requests. “The demand for resources, be it through 311 to get people into a shelter or any other piece of the shelter system, is so much greater than what the system can handle,” said Douglas Schenkelberg, the director of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.

* WTTW | Edgewater Residents Call for Answers as City Eyes Broadway Armory as Possible Migrant Center:“We couldn’t believe it,” said Linda White, an Edgewater resident. “There’s so many wonderful programs here — dance, fitness and wellness for all the kids and the seniors. They said this will all be shut down and it will become a shelter.” White said in May a group of city officials looked at the property along with Ald. Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth (48th Ward). It’s a move that makes White believe the plan to convert this facility into housing for migrants is highly possible.

* Sun-Times | Inside the political survival of Chicago City Council dean: “I’m the type of guy that, when I’m in with you, I’m in 100%,” Burnett said. “I went that extra mile working on his campaign for county commissioner, and he won. You could say … we’re part of his success because, if he wouldn’t have been county commissioner, he wouldn’t have run for mayor, and he wouldn’t be where he is today.”

* Center Square | Illinois General Assembly fails to address the state’s biometric privacy law: Business groups have been pleading with lawmakers to address the law, which has spawned hundreds of lawsuits, none of which have proven harm to anyone. “No data breaches, no lost information, but billions of dollars have already been paid out with more on the way, and it’s already having a significant impact on our economy,” said Mark Denzler, CEO and president of the Illinois Manufacturers Association.

* AP | Peregrine falcons protecting chicks and dive-bombing Chicago pedestrians:Just ask Chuck Valauskas, who was struck by one of the falcons. The patent attorney was leaving work one day last week, walking below the nest situated on a seventh-floor ledge when he felt a thud on his head.

* Crain’s | New figures show tourists flocked back to Chicago in 2022: Officials from Choose Chicago announced today that visitation to the city during 2022 was up 60% from 2021 as public health restrictions faded and a surge of leisure travelers poured in during peak tourism months. The total, reported by the city’s official destination marketing group using data from travel research firm DK Shifflet, was roughly 80% of the 2019 figure, when the city boasted a record 60.8 million visitors.

* Crain’s | State chamber chief Todd Maisch has died: “Todd was a fierce champion for the business community and an integral part of major policy wins for our economy, namely the Blue Collar Jobs Act and the historic Rebuild Illinois capital bill,” Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch said in a statement. “Though Todd and I often found ourselves at opposite ends of policy debates, I knew he was driven by an adoration for our state and a sincere commitment to doing what he believed was right.”