* Here you go…

* USA Today | How one quiet Illinois college town became the symbol of abortion rights in America: Similar scenes play out each day five miles away, a short drive past the city’s Amtrak station, downtown shops and neon-lit 1950s-era Dairy Queen, on the other side of town. There, at an anodyne medical office where a vinyl sign stuck in the grass reads “Alamo Women’s Clinic,” the parking lot is often filled with out-of-state license plates – women who drive as long as 10 hours from the Deep South for an abortion.

* Crain’s | ComEd president credited with utility’s operational improvement is leaving: ComEd disclosed the news in a terse Securities & Exchange Commission filing late today. It said the company “announced” the news May 31, although there was no release on that day. A spokeswoman said that’s when the news was shared internally, leaving public disclosure for the late Friday time frame companies traditionally choose to disclose bad news.

* Sen. Jil Tracy | Todd Maisch: A man proud of where he lived: A fixture in the Statehouse during his tenure at the Chamber, Todd was well-known for helping find common ground on contentious issues. The Illinois Chamber’s Champion of Free Enterprise Award, given biennially to Senators and Representatives who demonstrated their commitment to the entrepreneurial spirit, was much prized by lawmakers. […] My husband, Jim, served on the Chamber State Board with Todd for eight years. We are both grateful to have known Todd. He was a good friend to us and to all Illinoisans.

* Daily Herald | Jim O’Donnell: Have Kevin Warren and the Bears found their golden crowbar in Naperville?: From the side of a $5 billion sports entertainment company in which annual franchise profits are goof-proof, that’s a marvelous “ask.” From the side of direct-hit communities including Arlington Heights, Palatine and Rolling Meadows, that “ask” has steadily edged toward dismissibly imperious nonsense.

* Politico | Biden looking at big re-election fundraisers for the end of June: The president’s team is in talks with Gov. JB Pritzker (D-Ill.) about holding a fundraiser later this month, according to two people familiar with the event. A fundraiser by Pritzker, a billionaire who has promised to help pay for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 2024 along with other stakeholders on the host committee and elsewhere, would be a major boost to Biden in the final days of the current campaign finance quarter. The details of the event have not been finalized and are subject to change. But one of the dates being considered is June 28.

* WCIA | Illinois may receive up to $76 million in federal grants to restore land affected by coal mines: As a part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Illinois is one of 22 states and tribes eligible for parts of $725 million this fiscal year to clean up polluted lands affected by coal mines. The federal government will offer $11.3 billion in funding over 15 years to clean up across the country.

* Sun-Times | Humboldt Park residents say they reported swastika, erratic behavior of man dead after police standoff, but ‘no one was listening’: The man, who apparently took his own life inside the building in the 4100 block of West Chicago Avenue, had been the subject of more than 40 calls for service since January 2022, a CPD source tells the Sun-Times.

* WCCU | Counties across Central Illinois are seeing homeless populations rise: Executive director of Heartland Housed, Josh Sabo, says Sangamon County saw a decrease in homelessness during the pandemic, but they are now back at pre-pandemic numbers. “But through some data analysis we do anticipate that there could be around 155 additional households who experience homelessness in Sangamon County above previous years,” explained Sabo.

* Patch | South Suburban Airport ‘Ties Everything Together’, Sen. Hastings Says: “I’ve served with three different governors, and they’re going to make their mind up whether they’re going to support it or they’re not going to support it,” Hastings told Patch on Friday. “ I just hope that Governor Pritzker supports it. The south suburbs, just in terms of density, is a big area and he knows it’s growing and everyone else knows it’s growing. I think this is a great opportunity for us.”

* AP | Churchill Downs moves meet to Ellis Park to examine protocols following 12 horse deaths: Racing will continue at Churchill Downs through Sunday before shifting to the CDI-owned racing and gaming facility in Henderson, Kentucky. Ellis Park’s meet was scheduled to start July 7, four days after the scheduled close at Churchill Downs, and run through Aug. 27 but will now expand with Friday’s announcement.

* Elgin Courier-News | South Elgin student deprived of wearing Hispanic honor sash at graduation wants to ensure it doesn’t happen again: “We were in line outside of the Now Arena where the graduation was being held. One of the deans came up to me and said, ‘Hey, I need to let you know you are now allowed to wear that. I’m sorry. The district has a strict policy.’” “I was kind of taken aback because a lot of people were wearing them. They never said there was an issue with it,” Pedroza said

* Tribune | Illinois environmentalists push for state action to protect wetlands after Supreme Court ruling rolls back federal rules: In a startling precedent for environmental law, experts say, the decision in Sackett v. EPA upends more than 50 years of legal protections by limiting the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act to wetlands visibly connected to major waterways. “(The court’s rationale) is almost science fiction,” said Richard Lazarus, a law professor at Harvard University who represented environmental groups before the court.

* Tribune | 44 tickets, one excuse: Chicago cop’s go-to alibi helps highlight troubles with police accountability: Most officers face only a handful of complaints over the course of their careers. But at least 92 misconduct complaints were filed against Kriv, according to city and police disciplinary records compiled and analyzed by the Tribune and ProPublica. Even more exceptional: About 28% of complaints against Kriv were found to have merit, compared with about 4% of complaints against all Chicago police officers going back decades.

* Tribune | Faith-based groups step up to help house migrants in Chicago: More than a dozen elected representatives and faith leaders gathered at a church Friday to ask for help from faith communities across the city to respond to the crisis, which deepened Friday when the Cook County medical examiner’s office confirmed a migrant died that morning at a shelter in Woodlawn. The migrant died at the former Wadsworth Elementary school building, where a temporary shelter was placed housing single individuals. Migrants told the Tribune recently they were crammed inside, sleeping close together and sharing few bathrooms.

* The Messenger | Migrants Flown into CA on Private Plane Were Carrying Florida Documents, Officials Say: After crossing the border, this group of migrants were approached by a private contractor who told them that they would be given jobs, support and help accessing a migrant center, according to Sacramento Area Congregations Together, a multi-faith social justice organization. The migrants were “dumped on the doorstep of a local church without any advance warning,” said Newsom.

* Daily Herald | Spongy moth menacing? It’s the caterpillar that ravages our trees’ leaves: What’s being done: With the ability to completely strip trees bare year after year, spongy moths have the potential to severely affect trees and forests. But since an Illinois county was quarantined first — Lake County in 2000 — two types of prevention treatments have proved successful at holding the line, or least slowing it down.

* Tribune | Advocates say Pride celebrations are even more important this year as attacks on the LGBTQ community intensify. ‘It’s terrifying.’: In contrast, Illinois is often considered an LGBTQ haven in the Midwest. While elected leaders in other parts of the country have worked to restrict LGBTQ freedoms, lawmakers recently passed several bills aimed at increasing gender inclusivity and protecting LGBTQ rights. But even here, some businesses have come under attack.

* People | Taylor Swift Kicks Off Pride Month with Speech at Chicago Concert: ‘This Is a Safe Space for You’: “There have been so many harmful pieces of legislation that have put people in the LGBTQ and queer community at risk. It’s painful for everyone, every ally, every loved one, every person in these communities, and that’s why I’m always posting, ‘This is when the midterms are, This is when these important key primaries are.’” she explained.

* Tribune | Soil salvaged during construction at Rockford’s Bell Bowl Prairie is once again sprouting rare flowers and grasses: “Already we’re seeing some very cool things,” said Forest Preserves of Winnebago County’s director of natural resources, Mike Brien, who spotted the violet wood sorrel growing in the Bell Bowl soil a few weeks ago. He said the plant hadn’t been present at the preserve before the soil transfer.

* CBS Chicago | Hadiya Pendleton’s family still pushing for end to gun violence 10 years later: This weekend there is a strong push to put an end to gun violence. That push includes a celebration for Hadiya Pendleton Saturday afternoon. Her murder rocked the nation and sparked a movement. But ten years have passed since she was caught in the crossfire crossfire of a gang shooting, and nothing has changed. People at the event pointed to the violence in Chicago one week ago during Memorial Day Weekend when 53 people were shot, but they say that won’t stop them from trying.

* Sun-Times | The Sun-Times introduces a ‘right to be forgotten’ policy: At the Sun-Times, we don’t think it’s fair for stories about arrests to follow people around forever if they were never convicted or if charges were dropped or expunged. In recognition of the unintended harm that some of our work has caused, we want to be intentional about reviewing these articles and considering whether they should remain part of the searchable internet record.