* Here you go…

* WSJ | J.B. Pritzker, Public Union Boss: The best argument against collective bargaining for government workers is that no one represents taxpayers. Union chiefs and the politicians they support sit on both sides of the bargaining table. That was demonstrated again last week when Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a whopping new contract with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (Afscme).

* Sun-Times | Illinois Gaming Board says it didn’t know of testimony about mob payoffs, now plans to revoke Cicero diner’s gaming license: Officials with the state agency say they hadn’t realized when they approved the gaming license that Bertucci had testified in 2010 in a mob gambling case that he’d paid winnings from illegal video gaming machines installed in his diner — and split his take with the Chicago Outfit’s so-called video poker king, Casey Szaflarski.

* Capitol News Illinois | Pritzker signs bill overhauling mandatory supervised release: “Our current supervision system too often operates unfairly, with rules that make it simply a revolving door back to jail,” Pritzker said at a bill signing ceremony in Chicago. “In fact, more than 25 percent of people who are released from prison in Illinois end up back behind bars, not because they’re recidivists, but instead for a noncriminal technical violation.”

* CBS Chicago | Meek Mill on hand as Gov. Pritzker signs parole system overhaul bill: Rapper Meek Mill stood by Pritzker’s side as he signed the new law. The rapper talked about how he was in and out of prison for years because of a drug problem. He said he got his life back on track after a parole officer got him into a drug treatment program. The new law limits when a parolee can be drug tested.

* Sun-Times | A new school year means new education laws on the books: Here’s a roundup of the new rules and resources that were put into Illinois law for the 2023-2024 school year.

* WMAY | New Illinois law mandates two formerly incarcerated individuals are included in ICJIA: The law was proposed by the Young Invincibles’ Young Advocates Program, which trains young adults on advocacy and leadership. Participants then present a policy proposal based on what they’ve learned.

* JG-TC | Niemerg to seek reelection to state House seat: In a news release, Niemerg highlighted his sponsorship of HB 2607, a bill to protect minors under 13 in abuse cases allowing them to give remote testimony via closed-circuit television which was signed into law.

* Daily Herald | New Kane DUI problem-solving court aims to help defendants get on the straight and narrow: It goes beyond just ordering a person convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol to attend AA meetings and not drink. The new court wants to address the underlying causes of DUI offenses and provide comprehensive support to those working toward recovery.

* The Pantagraph | Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to visit central, southern Illinois on Monday: Buttigieg will make two stops in the Champaign area and one in East St. Louis, according to a media advisory. He will be joined by U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Springfield.

* Greg Hinz | Good intentions aren’t enough to shape smart tax policy: A few facts: According to the city, on an average night, 4,139 Chicagoans are homeless — and that’s not counting refugees. Over the course of a year, 65,611 will spend at least one night on the street or sacked out on a welcoming friend’s couch, about 11,000 of them of school age. Ordinance advocates have seized on the larger number, arguing that it’s big enough that the homeless actually could constitute Chicago’s 51st Ward. The proposed solution would more than triple the city’s real-estate transfer tax, moving it from the current 0.75% of the sales price to 2.65%, on property sales of $1 million or more.

* The Real Deal | All hands on deck: CRE lobby preps opposition to Chicago transfer tax hike: “We’re presuming or working off the version that was introduced previously,” Chicagoland Apartment Association’s Michael Mini said. “It remains to be seen whether the actual ordinance will be exactly like the previous versions that were introduced or there will be some changes.”

* Sun-Times | Groups call for safe-use site as opioid overdose deaths climb: Each of the purple boxes on the West Side was stocked with 200 doses of naloxone (also known by the brand name Narcan), along with instructions on how to use the overdose antidote drug. But that effort will only help so much, prevention groups say, until the state allows safe-use sites to be created. At a safe-use site, users could get high under the watch of care providers.

* Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson’s first big fiscal test: How to translate campaign promises into dollars and cents: Each year, the mayor’s office hosts a series of community roundtables across the city to ask Chicagoans for their budget wish lists. Johnson added a special roundtable for a constituency he discussed repeatedly during his run for mayor — teens and young adults — and the administration plans to hold public comment sessions after the official budget proposal is released this fall.

* Tribune | For interim Chicago police Superintendent Fred Waller, stepping in to help new mayor pays off in salary-pension double dip: Mayor Brandon Johnson is on the clock. He faces an Aug. 12 deadline to select the next leader of the Chicago Police Department from a list of three finalists handed to him earlier this month. If he decides none of the candidates fit the bill — a long shot, but not impossible — he could order the vetting process begin anew.

* Tribune | Google plans to open in the Thompson Center by 2026. Will the tech giant help revitalize the Loop?: Google has been credited with sparking the redevelopment of whole neighborhoods when it opens an office. Well-paid workers flock to such areas, including New York’s Meatpacking District, where Google opened more than a decade ago. Google has attracted other tech firms eager to catch the New York neighborhood’s new vibe, sparking new business for nearby restaurants and retail.

* SJ-R | Buscher selected for 2023 class of Edgar Fellows: Forty elected and appointed officials from all levels of government, leaders of non-profit and labor organizations and business leaders make up the class which will meet for the first time at its Executive Leadership Training Program held Aug. 6-10. The program, started in 2012, is housed at the University of Illinois System’s Institute of Government and Public Affairs in Urbana-Champaign.

* Sun-Times | Nation’s first residency program for free-ranging wildlife veterinarians has been wide-ranging and fruitful: In July of last year, Winter became the pioneer in the nation’s first wildlife residency program accredited by the American College of Zoological Medicine. The Chicago Zoological Society, which manages Brookfield Zoo, the FPCC and and the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine collaborated on Illinois Zoological and Wildlife Health Management Residency.

* Sun-Times | Beer summit: U.S. beers win big in restaged Mike Royko 1973 beer taste test at Old Town Ale House: Wisconsin-based Old Style won first place from a panel of 12 judges, most with ties to the beer industry, rating 12 lagers. One judge wrote in their comments that Old Style is a “happy cat.”

* Tribune | Cecilia Rodhe — through son Joakim Noah’s foundation — offers art therapy to mothers who lost a child to violence: “What we’re trying to do here is have the moms be seen and heard,” Rodhe said. “These moms have lived the ultimate sacrifice. It’s not a club that anybody wants to be in because this is a very, very painful situation. … It’s a difficult topic. But I’m just so proud of them coming here and wanting to express themselves.”