* Another reminder to click here and help Lutheran Social Services of Illinois buy Christmas presents for foster kids. Thanks!
* The city’s aldermanic briefing on new arrivals just landed in my in-box. A total of 26 buses arrived in the previous seven days for a total of 1,111 people. But the number of asylum-seekers at police stations and O’Hare airport is down to just 339, from 575 last Friday and more than 3,000 earlier this year. Most, 228, are currently at O’Hare. According to the city, 767 people exited the shelter system during the past week, for a grand total of 11,069. The city also has a cost dashboard online, so click here for that.
Jake Butcher, the chief of staff to Senate President Don Harmon, is stepping down to practice law. Moving up is Ashley Jenkins-Jordan, who’s been deputy chief of staff. She’ll be the first African American woman chief to hold the position in Illinois.
* A feel-good story for your Friday via Block Club…
Monique Cauley knows the life stories of more than 500 Logan Square neighbors, down to their dogs and children’s names.
As a beloved postal carrier who serves homes between Talman and Artesian avenues starting at Logan Boulevard, Cauley receives high praise from her customers — including the four-legged ones who have grown up seeing her every day. […]
The Bronzeville resident, who has worked in Logan Square with the United States Postal Service for 16 years, isn’t just popular for her kind attitude, big smile and impeccable memory. She’s also known for sharing mail tips, changes to deliveries and other important information for 60647 residents.
Cauley is active on the community Facebook page, which she started using during the pandemic as a way to keep in touch with her customers and share information, she said. She shares periodic mail advice, including a detailed annual Christmas post with useful tips to make sure everyone gets their holiday cards and gifts as postal workers prepare for a stressful season.
Signaling a paradigm shift in a school system largely shaped by choice, the Chicago Board of Education passed a resolution Thursday to prioritize neighborhood schools in Chicago Public Schools’ forthcoming five-year strategic plan — a document that will guide investments in the district through 2029 and is slated to be released in June.
Among a range of goals aimed at “disrupting cycles of inequity,” the resolution commits to “transition away from privatization and admissions/enrollment policies and approaches that further stratification and inequity in CPS and drive student enrollment away from neighborhood schools.” […]
The eventual impact could be seismic, with more than 75% of high school students and about 44% of elementary students attending schools outside of their neighborhood boundaries as of last school year. White and Asian students disproportionately attend CPS’ selective enrollment schools. Meanwhile, Black students face persistent opportunity gaps, disproportionately attending neighborhood schools long starved of investments, officials and community organizers said.
* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup…
* Chalkbeat | Chicago Public Schools leaders want to move away from school choice: However, Todd-Breland did signal that the board might move to close charter schools. “If you are a privately-managed school, taking public dollars from our taxpayers that would otherwise go to the other schools that we know need to be invested in because they haven’t [been] for years, and you are not performing at a level that we find to be a high quality educational experience for young people, then why do you continue to exist in this system?” she said.
* Sun-Times | Activists praise Board of Ed’s push toward neighborhood schools, away from school choice: Todd-Breland said the board recognizes that charter schools are part of CPS’ fabric and is “not proposing blanket non-renewals of all charter schools.” But the board wants to hold charter operators accountable. And she pointed out that magnet and selective enrollment schools, initially meant to desegregate schools, have more recently become more segregated. “[This] is not about closing selective enrollment schools,” she said. “It is about a shift towards emphasizing supporting neighborhood schools, particularly in those communities that have been historically disinvested in and where young people are furthest from opportunity.”
* Rep. Edgar Gonzalez | Running for Office As a Young Person Means Dealing With Ageism. I Did It Anyway: As a young legislator, the motives that drive your decision to run for office consistently get put under a microscope, especially when compared to those who have spent decades in their political careers. On one hand, critics often view career politicians with cynicism, assuming their motives revolve around money and power. Meanwhile, inexperienced candidates face doubts about their ability to perform the job. This contrast underscores the challenges faced by young individuals entering politics, as their motivations and capabilities are frequently questioned.
* Bond Buyer | Munis rally, new-issues from Illinois, NY see strong demand: Municipals rallied hard Thursday, playing catch up to the moves in U.S. Treasuries, which extended their gains for a second session following the Federal Open Market Committee’s clear communication of future rate cuts in 2024. Equities continued their rally.
* Daily Herald | Back to the beginning: Project aims to return Libertyville-area site to its natural state: Given the amount of equipment and activity in the highly visible area north and east of Route 45 and Casey Road in Libertyville Township, it may appear the site is being readied for new homes or a big box store. Quite the opposite is taking place. Instead, the work is part of a $2.17 million project to restore nearly 178 acres to its natural state.
* WBEZ | State’s attorney hopefuls back effort to require lawyers for kids in police interrogations: The pledge comes in response to video footage showing a detective in suburban Lake County steering a 15-year-old to falsely confess to a shooting. The video, obtained by WBEZ through an open-records lawsuit against the city of Waukegan, prompted a state senator to draft a bill that would raise the age at which a child must have an attorney present to be questioned in police custody. Now Clayton Harris III and Eileen O’Neill Burke, facing off in a March primary for Cook County state’s attorney, are vowing to help push the legislation into law.
* Crain’s | After court order, CPS extends contract with Urban Prep charter schools: The extension comes more than a year after the board voted not to renew the contracts, with plans to take over those schools. The board’s decision was based on allegations that Urban Prep mismanaged finances and failed to comply with special education laws, as well as allegations that the school’s founder, Tim King, sexually abused a now-former student. King has denied those allegations.
* Crain’s | Chicago Tribune union members taking contract fight to Tribune Tower: The “rally to save the Tribune” is planned to take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday to protest “detrimental labor practices and profiteering-driven bargaining efforts” by Alden Global Capital, the investment firm that owns Tribune Publishing, according to the Chicago Tribune Guild. The rally will also include members of the DPS Guild, representing workers at Tribune Publishing’s Design & Production Studio, as well as the Suburban Chicago Tribune Guild and the Tribune Content Guild.
* WBEZ | Little Village residents install air sensors to monitor neighborhood pollution: Residents say public officials aren’t doing enough to protect them so they are taking matters into their own hands — monitoring air quality themselves with nearly $200 sensors. Five are currently in operation with a goal of installing 10 in the neighborhood. Data collected could be used to understand the severity of pollution and inform environmental policy.
* WaPo | She miscarried in her bathroom. Now she’s charged with abuse of a corpse: “Moving this over to the individual after a miscarriage just heightens the question, ‘What are they supposed to do?’ ” said Dov Fox, a national health law and bioethics expert at the University of San Diego School of Law. “If it’s already difficult for hospitals, for individuals facing difficult circumstances and navigating pregnancy loss to undertake the medical system is not just a tall order but a prohibitive one.” Watts later learned through her lawyer that the nurse who had reassured her had reported her to the police.
* NYT | Behind the Scenes at the Dismantling of Roe v. Wade: The Supreme Court deliberates in secret, and those who speak can be cast out of the fold. To piece together the hidden narrative of how the court, guided by Justice Alito, engineered a titanic shift in the law, The New York Times drew on internal documents, contemporaneous notes and interviews with more than a dozen people from the court — both conservative and liberal — who had real-time knowledge of the proceedings. Because of the institution’s insistence on confidentiality, they spoke on the condition of anonymity.
A county board incumbent in Illinois wants election officials to disqualify his primary opponent because he misspelled “Republican” on his nomination papers.
McHenry County Board member Eric Hendricks has filed an objection to primary opponent Bob Nowak’s candidacy, the Northwest Herald reported Wednesday.
Hendricks wrote in the objection that Nowak filed to run as a member of the “Republian Party,” omitting the “c” in “Republican.” Hendricks argues such a party does not exist.
Nowak said he had heard there was an objection to his candidacy but hasn’t seen a copy of it.
County officials have scheduled a hearing on the objection for Tuesday. The primary is March 19.
An Elmhurst alderwoman running for state representative on Monday praised Illinois’ achievements over the last few years.
“Illinois has made progress on important issues in recent years and is moving in the right direction as demonstrated by nine credit rating upgrades since June of 2021,” Alderwoman Marti Deuter, a Democrat, said in a news release about her candidacy. “There is more to be done, and we need legislators with a demonstrated ability to bring people together.”
A month ago, Patch reported on Deuter’s candidacy. That was after Rep. Jenn Ladisch Douglass, an Elmhurst Democrat, announced she would not seek a second term. […]
Deuter, an alderwoman for a decade, is set to run unopposed in the Democratic primary in March. The only Republican candidate is Dennis Reboletti.
Joe McGraw of Rockford and Scott Alan Crowl of Milan are both seeking the Republican nomination in the 17th congressional district. The winner of the primary will face Democratic incumbent Eric Sorensen next November, who’s unopposed in his party’s primary.
In the 99th state representative district, Republicans Kyle Moore of Quincy and Eric Snellgrove of Beardstown filed to replace Republican Representative Randy Frese, who isn’t running for a sixth term. No Democratic candidates have filed in that district.
Elsewhere in the region, several Republicans are running unopposed in their primaries — and in each case, no Democratic candidate filed.
They are Illinois Supreme Court Justice Lisa Holder White, Ninth District Circuit Judge Nigel Graham, Congresswoman Mary Miller, and state representatives Norine Hammond and Dan Swanson.
An initiative designed to let Illinois voters truly make decisions when they go to the polls again succeeded in putting Illinois Statehouse candidates on the 2024 ballot.
Illinois Policy, a 501(c)(4) advocacy partner of the Illinois Policy Institute, helped usher 27 Illinois General Assembly candidates through the process, including collecting signatures on nominating petitions.
These candidates represent a significant share of the 2024 contested races. Without the new candidate program, Illinois would have seen a low number of choices and its more traditional list of unchallenged incumbents. According to an Illinois Policy Institute analysis, 207 candidates have filed to run for 118 Illinois House of Representatives seats in 2024. These include about 10 contested Republican primaries, 20 contested Democratic primaries and 53 contested general election races.
For over 20 years, less than half of all Illinois House races had just one candidate on the ballot – the least competitive rate in the Midwest and the seventh worst in the nation.
Among Illinois Policy’s recruited candidates:
• 24 are Republicans and three are Democrats
• 12 are women
• 8 are non-white
• 16 are running in districts that are wholly or partially in Chicago
Research shows contested elections help lower corruption, make government more responsive and increase voter turnout.
“Thanks to these candidates being willing to challenge entrenched incumbents, Illinois will experience real choice on Election Day and will be able to hold lawmakers accountable. That is good news that Illinois voters can feel proud of,” said Josh Bandoch, head of policy at the Illinois Policy Institute. “It’s amazing to see candidates take on this responsibility, especially considering how partisan gerrymandering leads voters to feel powerless to foster change in the voting booth.”
The number of contested races will change during the next six months as candidacies are challenged and political parties “slate” candidates for races.
* WLBK | Stage being set for 14th District Congressional race: Two years ago several viable candidates were gunning for the GOP nomination. This time around Jim Marter says he’s the only serious contender for the March Primary. Two other people filed as Republicans.
* Pantagraph | 53rd Senate District candidate faces objection to nominating petition: An objection has been filed with the Illinois Board of Elections for one of the four candidates vying for McLean County’s state Senate seat. Joshua Belter of Pontiac, Matthew Snider of Benson and Brooke Uphoff of El Paso have filed an objection against Livingston County Board Member Mike Kirkton, who is running in the Illinois 53rd Senate District. All four candidates are Republicans.
* Landmark | RBHS school board member Laura Hruska files to run for state representative: Hruska, a longtime resident of Brookfield, is running for state representative, challenging 2nd District incumbent Democrat Elizabeth “Lisa” Hernandez, who is an assistant majority leader in the Illinois House of Representatives and the chairwoman of the Illinois Democratic Party. Neither Hruska nor Hernandez has a primary opponent, so Hruska is guaranteed to face Hernandez in the November general election.
* Shaw Local | No primary election petition challenges in DuPage County: There were no primary candidate petition challenges filed for 2024 local races – the second major election cycle in a row with no ballot objections in the county, DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek has announced in a news release. “It was unprecedented in 2022 when no candidate petition challenges were filed here,” Kaczmarek said. “We just surpassed our own record.”
* Patch | Will County Judge Anderson To Seek Seat On Illinois Appellate Court: Anderson, a former Will County Board member, has served as a county circuit court judge since 2010. He will be on the ballot for the March primary election to represent the 3rd District, which includes Will, Kankakee, DuPage, Grundy, LaSalle, Bureau, and Iroquois counties.
* Journal and Topics | Local Reps In Congress, State Senate, House, Judicial Candidates Filing To Run In March 2024 Primary: A petition challenge period, where challenges to the validity of signatures will be adjudicated, and some candidates could be removed from the ballot, will take place in the coming weeks. Where there is no candidate in a given party for a given race, township political committeemen may later name a candidate. Candidates may also later mount write-in candidate drives.
Children who are detained will no longer be able to be held in solitary confinement starting Jan. 1 thanks to advocacy from State Senator Elgie R. Sims, Jr.
“Sadly, across the nation, young people are being held in solitary confinement for unreasonably long periods of time, sometimes spending 22 hours or more alone each day,” said Sims (D-Chicago). “That is inhumane and can cause long-term grave psychological, physical and developmental harm.”
Sims’ law prohibits the use of solitary confinement on young detainees in detention centers for any purpose other than preventing immediate physical harm.
Young people in solitary confinement are isolated both physically and socially, often for days, weeks, or even months on end. Sometimes there is a window allowing natural light to enter or a view of the world outside cell walls. Sometimes it is possible to communicate by yelling to other inmates, with voices distorted, reverberating against concrete and metal. Occasionally, they get a book or bible, and if they are lucky, study materials. But inside this cramped space, few contours distinguish one hour, one day, week, or one month, from the next.
“For children, who are still developing and more vulnerable to irreparable harm, risks are magnified – particularly those with disabilities or histories of trauma and abuse,” said Sims. “Children should not be deprived of the services, programming, and other tools they need for healthy growth, education, and development. We should be helping children grow into productive and healthy adults, not harming them, this is particularly true when they have come into the criminal legal system. If we are going to have true safety and justice, we must invest in a criminal legal system that creates pathways to success not one that tears down our young people and creates a cycle of recidivism.”
House Bill 3140 takes effect Jan. 1, 2024.
* Sen. Morrison…
Illinois is one step closer to becoming smoke free thanks, in part, to a new law from State Senator Julie Morrison set to take effect on Jan. 1 that bans e-cigarettes inside public places.
“E-cigarettes, in all of their many forms, continue to be one of the most addictive products readily available for purchase in gas stations, vape shops and online,” said Morrison (D-Lake Forest). “We have made solid progress toward de-normalizing the perception of tobacco, and I am proud that on Jan. 1, e-cigarette usage will be banned indoors.”
Passed in 2007, the Smoke Free Illinois Act prohibited smoking in most public places and within 15 feet of entrances, and required “no smoking” signs to be posted. However, this law took effect when people primarily smoked cigarettes and cigars.
In recent years, the use and popularity of e-cigarettes, or vapes, has increased – especially by middle school children – according to recent reports, leading Morrison to add such products to the Smoke Free Illinois Act through the passage of House Bill 1540, signed by Governor JB Pritzker on July 28, 2023.
Morrison has been an advocate for putting an end to tobacco use by teens since entering the General Assembly. In 2019, she successfully passed a law that increases the age to legally purchase tobacco to 21 and last year passed a measure to place a number of restrictions on marketing e-cigarettes to children.
“Secondhand e-cigarette aerosol contains harmful and potentially harmful chemicals. The use of e-cigarettes has skyrocketed in recent years with tobacco companies targeting teens and young people with enticing flavors,” said Kristina Hamilton, Illinois advocacy director for the American Lung Association. “This expansion of the landmark Smoke-Free Illinois Act will reduce the negative effects of e-cigarettes on our communities.”
House Bill 1540 takes effect Jan. 1.
* Sen. Koehler…
Illinois residents who are victims of fertility fraud will soon be able to bring action against health care providers, thanks to a new law from State Senator Dave Koehler.
When Bloomington resident Curt Richardson got his DNA test results back from Ancestry.com in June 2021, his life – and those of his parents – changed forever when they learned they had been victims of fertility fraud.
Richardson’s story is similar to hundreds of others across the state and nation who have lived most of their lives thinking the very people who raised them were their biological parents. Koehler worked to bring awareness to fertility fraud and provide justice to the families who fall victim to the heinous act.
“The pain a person feels when they find out they are victims of fertility fraud is something no one should have to go through,” said Koehler (D-Peoria). “These acts have gone unpunished for too long, and the health care professionals who commit such acts deserve to face dire consequences.”
Fertility fraud occurs when a health care provider knowingly or intentionally uses their own human reproductive cells during an assisted reproductive treatment without the patient’s informed written consent.
Koehler’s new law allows people to bring action against health care providers who commit fertility fraud. It provides a civil cause of action for donor fertility fraud against health care providers who treat patients for infertility using donated human reproductive material without consent. It also states that any child born as a result of fertility fraud is entitled to a qualified protective order allowing the child access to the personal medical records and health history of the person who committed the fraud.
“This crime has caused trauma for countless families across Illinois and the country,” said Koehler. “Under this new law, victims will be able to bring action against those who commit this heinous crime.”
Senate Bill 380 takes effect Jan. 1, 2024.
And in case you’re wondering, I haven’t yet seen anything from the House Democrats about their bills. Only Senators.
As the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) approaches the halfway point in resuming customer Medicaid redeterminations following the end of the pandemic-era continuous Medicaid coverage requirement, Illinois has the highest renewal rate among states, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Medicaid Enrollment and Unwinding Tracker. The tracker relies on renewal data that the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) collects from states.
Following the end of the continuous coverage requirement earlier this year, states resumed Medicaid renewals, or redeterminations, which are regular customer eligibility verifications.
According to the data tracker, at this stage of the unwinding process, Illinois and Maine have the highest renewal rates among all states, at 90%. HFS credits robust preparations and ongoing process improvements to being able to preserve health care coverage for Medicaid-eligible individuals across the state.
At least 12,573,000 Medicaid enrollees have been disenrolled as of December 13, 2023, based on the most current data from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Overall, 34% of people with a completed renewal were disenrolled in reporting states while 66%, or 23.4 million enrollees, had their coverage renewed (one reporting state does not include data on renewed enrollees). Due to varying lags for when states report data, the data reported here undercount the actual number of disenrollments to date.
There is wide variation in disenrollment rates across reporting states, ranging from 62% in Texas to 10% in Illinois and Maine.
* The 2023 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Do-Gooder Lobbyist is a tie. I decided to break tradition by seconding the nomination of William McNary with Citizen Action…
I spoke at Will’s recent retirement dinner, as did the governor, both US Senators, several members of the congressional delegation, Chicago’s mayor, the two Democratic legislative leaders and others.
They all spoke of the big things Will did during his career. And that list is very long. I focused on the smaller things that don’t get a lot of notice, like putting a lid on payday loans, helping people pay their utility bills, etc.
Will is one of the smartest people I know. He’s also one of the hardest workers I’ve ever met. He’s honest and he’s never sold his soul. He’s also a kind, sweet man who believes that his short-term legislative defeats are only temporary.
Chuy Garcia spoke after I did. He started by saying that the person sitting next to him leaned over during my speech and said “I didn’t know Rich Miller could be so nice.”
That got a good laugh. But I was nice for a very good reason: McNary truly deserved it.
She is very smart, always prepared for the excepted and unexpected, she preps and supports her sponsors and their staff, she’s a resource for staff generally, does substantive and budget work on an issue that can sometimes feel like fighting an uphill battle. On top of that, she’s a good person. She takes the time to develop relationships with LA’s, security and staff around the Capitol, Stratton and Howlett, and can be a blast of sunshine and fun when you see her. She also shows up every day and gets the work done. There aren’t that many lobbyists who do the work on a consistent basis the way she does. All these years of committed EFFECTIVE hard work sure merits the best do-gooder designation.
* The 2023 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Legislative Liaison is also a tie. Allison Nickrent at IDPH…
Allison Nickrent at DPH is single-handedly one of the most talented professionals in the business. DPH is a behemoth of an agency and the level of institutional knowledge she has is impressive. Allison was tasked with negotiating the bylaws of a newly created board with its (*sometimes pushbacky*) membership and she handled it with precision, intuition, and class. She is no stranger to JCAR and knows her way around every square inch of DPH’s rules and regs. Allison’s unique skill set makes her a pleasure to work with. She takes a hands-on approach to mentoring her team and truly is one of the best.
I love working with Wendy Butler at CMS. She’s super responsive and understands the extremely difficult machinations of procurement. She works with you to meet your goal in a way that will be effective.
Honorable mention to Kieran Fitzgerald at DHS.
Y’all submitted some very strong nominations in both of these categories. It was difficult to choose winners, hence the ties.
* On to today’s categories…
Best State Agency Director
Best Statewide Staffer
As always, please explain your nominations or they won’t count. Also do your best to nominate in both categories. Thanks!
* ICYMI: Regulators once again reject a record rate increase request from ComEd and Peoples Gas. Sun-Times…
- The Illinois Commerce Commission rejected Peoples Gas’ request for “clarification” on its order last month that cut off spending for the pipe program pending an investigation into the project.
- The order slashed a request from the utility to raise rates on its 884,000 Chicago customers by a collective $402 million, down to $301 million.
- The panel previously noted it “will not remove any funding related to emergency response to leaks, pipe breaks, or other critical safety measures.”
* WJBC | Candidates for March primary election in Illinois assigned their spots: The process of determining which candidates place where on the Illinois primary election ballot is high-tech enough to attract an audience on Zoom – and simple enough to require only Ping Pong balls and a wooden box. “I do think the lack of complexities makes it easier for us to have a transparent process,” said Brent Davis, director of election operations for the Illinois State Board of Elections. “Not much can go wrong with an empty box and a set of Lotto balls.”
* Crain’s | Thompson Center assessed at more than double 2022 sale price: Kaegi’s office pegged the market value of the 17-story building at 100 W. Randolph St. at $222.8 million for tax year 2023, according to the assessor’s website. That estimate represents what the assessor thinks the property was worth as of the beginning of this year, which is the key number used to determine its next property tax bill. It also marked the first time the assessor’s office estimated the value of the Thompson Center, since it was owned by the state of Illinois and tax-exempt from its completion in 1985 until it was sold last year.
* SJ-R | Haley issues apology; has backing of NAACP branch presidents: The one-minute-and-forty-eight-second video of Haley making the remarks during an NAACP state presidents’ meeting last month was recorded and made public by former NAACP DuPage County president Patrick Watson. It was a segment in a nearly two-hour-long video.
* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup…
* Crain’s | Durbin takes beef about Union Station rehab funding to Buttigieg: In a letter Thursday to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., urged the feds to place a greater priority on modernizing the historic but outmoded Union Station and surrounding rail access so that the facility can serve as a more effective anchor for Amtrak’s midcontinent operations and a base for Metra commuter lines.
* SJ-R | Pritzker lights menorah in Springfield, calls for Illinoisans to defy hate: “But here today, as I look out on all of your faces, a coalition of Illinoisans of faiths and backgrounds of all sorts I am filled with hope,” [Pritzker] said during the ceremony held at the Governor’s Mansion. Anti-semitism and islamophobia have increased nationwide due to the war and being felt in Illinois following the fatal stabbing of 6-year-old Wadea Al Fayoume in a Chicago suburb.
* The Triibe | Unpacking the underlying political tensions driving the effort to repeal Chicago’s sanctuary status: Black communities are still grappling with decades of disinvestment and racist real-estate practices, and many Black Chicagoans and their businesses have been forced out of the city due to a lack of nourishing public institutions and support for Black entrepreneurship. Among the many examples are ones highlighted in a 2021 Politico article titled “The Demise of America’s Onetime Capital of Black Wealth” and Eve L. Ewing’s investigation into the widespread racist school closings on Chicago’s South Side, Ghosts in the Schoolyard.
* Tribune | ‘Home for the holidays’: Court vacates convictions for cousins in 1981 double homicide, Illinois’ longest-serving exonerees: Just 8 years old when her brother was incarcerated following a double slaying in a Southwest Side park, Pilar More, now 50, watched her older sibling grow up behind bars. Her brother, James Soto, and his cousin, David Ayala were convicted of murder and other felonies in the shooting deaths of 16-year-old Julie Limas and Hector Valeriano, 18, a U.S. Marine on leave, on Aug. 16, 1981. They were sentenced to natural life in prison.
* Chicago Reader | What’s happened since the Reader reported on the number of overdoses on CTA property?: Two months after the Reader found that more than 150 people have died from opioid-related overdoses on the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) in the last four years, the CTA has increased its engagement with harm reduction advocacy groups and extended, and expanded, a contract with outreach agencies. Here is a look at what the CTA has been up to since the Reader published its findings…
* WTTW | Nonprofits Must Register Before Lobbying City Officials Under New Rules: The rules were included in a package of ethics reforms backed by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot that were approved by the City Council 50-0 in July 2019 as federal investigations shadowed City Hall. The rules were set to go into effect Jan. 1, 2020, but were delayed after dozens of nonprofit groups objected, saying the regulations would force them to pay costly registration fees or risk fines.
* WGLT | ‘When are you going to resign?’: Public blasts WTVP board’s handling of financial crisis: As promised by station board chairman Andrew Rand, the rumors that the station would be permanently dissolved by its board of directors on Tuesday didn’t come to pass, but it’s been a difficult year for the beleaguered public television station nonetheless. Former president and CEO Lesley Matuszak took her own life a day after resigning in late September. The station’s financial problems first publicly came to light a couple weeks later, when Rand announced the station would cut costs by $1.5 million. The Peoria public television station has since laid off nine employees and indefinitely suspended publication of Peoria magazine.
* Chicago Defender | Alabama Prison Work Programs Are ‘Modern Day Slavery’, Lawsuit Alleges: “If you didn’t work, you were at risk of going back to the prison or getting a disciplinary (infraction),” LaKiera Walker, who was previously incarcerated for 15 years, said. According to the suit, the state is violating the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution, anti-human trafficking laws, and the Alabama Constitution through its prison labor program. The state claims that the prison jobs prepare inmates for after their release.
* Live coverage is back, sorta. This will be different than the old Scribble Live feed because Twitter broke itself and almost everything else it touched. These new feeds do not update instantly. There’s a bit of posting lagtime, but it’s much better than nothing. We are also limited to just 20 Twitter sources. The service may also not last long. We just can’t give you any guarantees about this. You can still click here or here to follow breaking news the way we’ve done since Twitter stopped Scribble Live from working…
* These new feeds do not update instantly. There’s a bit of a lagtime and you have to refresh the page every now and then. The service we’re using may also not last long. We just can’t give you any guarantees. You can still click here to follow the Ed Burke trial on Twitter. Posts without a Twitter author name below them are from online news sources via Bing…
Illinois State Conference President Teresa Haley offers a statement in response to a video excerpt disseminated by former DuPage County President Patrick Watson on Tuesday, December 12, 2023. Watson received an unprecedented and embarrassing “Vote Of No Confidence” by his Branch members on November 14, 2023. Illinois Branch Presidents met on December 13, 2023 and unanimously supported Haley’s quintessential leadership skills. Haley’s heartfelt sentiments are appended below:
“First and foremost, I express my sincere apologies to anyone who may have been hurt or offended by my comments. I love and value all members of our communities—including immigrants. I have worked tirelessly to advocate for the underserved and the voiceless. I remain focused on denouncing injustices, racism, and discrimination. I am empathetic to the plight of all people, and I proudly serve as a beacon of hope to the hopeless. I embrace the mission of the NAACP, which is to “Achieve equity, political rights, and social inclusion by advancing policies and practices that expand human and civil rights, eliminate discrimination, and accelerate the well- being, education, and economic security of Black people and all persons of color.”
A day after the Illinois NAACP met and "unanimously supported" statewide conference president Teresa Haley's "quintessential leadership skills," the conference announces she has been "suspended" in the wake of her controversial statements about migrants. #twill
*** UPDATE 2 *** From a national NAACP spokesperson…
The NAACP stands firm in our commitment to advancing racial justice and cultivating a society where human dignity is respected. As of December 13, NAACP Illinois State Conference President Teresa Haley has been suspended. As an internal matter, there will be no additional comment at this time. The NAACP will continue to foster an environment that is reflective of our mission and respective of our membership.
So, she was suspended on the 13th, but the board voted unanimously to support her on the 14th? Checking on that.
*** UPDATE 3 *** I asked for clarification on the dates from the national NAACP…
The notice of suspension from NAACP National was dated on December 13th.
…Adding… I asked ICIRR earlier today for a statement. This is from them and the Springfield Immigrant Advocacy Network…
The Springfield Immigrant Advocacy Network (SIAN) and our statewide coalition partner the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights reject the statements made by Illinois NAACP president Teresa Haley at a meeting in October, in which she referred to migrants in Chicago as criminals and “savages.”
Divisive rhetoric damages communities. It reinforces harmful stereotypes, which in turn hurt entire groups of people. True apologies must include strategies to begin dialogue, deliberate actions to repair relationships, and commitment to share accurate information. We don’t heal alone but in community. Our leaders need to work in solidarity to advocate and create better policies, and to make our cities better for all of us.
SIAN has worked diligently to advocate for immigrants and refugees who have arrived in Springfield within the last year, many of whom were originally sent to Chicago by bus from Texas. At SIAN, we know that the NAACP has a history of supporting immigrants and refugees in our country that we ought to honor and remember. We have worked with our NAACP siblings to fight injustice and racial profiling and to protect our immigrant youth, as we know most of our Illinois DACA recipients and migrants applying for asylum and refugee status are people of color coming mostly from the Global South.
We should not be calling groups of people rapists, inciting fear at migrants’ arrival, and calling cities to refuse Venezuelans seeking shelter happens when we still must contend with the supremacist, structural values of scarcity, silo-planning and thinking, and the predicament that marginalized communities must fight each other for a tiny piece of a pie. We know that immigrants, refugees, and other historically excluded communities live together at the margins. We have shared spaces and built families together while fighting injustice, racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, and oppression. When we lift one group, when we support and elevate communities, we must also lift up our neighbors and other marginalized peoples.
SIAN serves immigrants and refugees, children and families, who have come to Illinois after surviving life-threatening living conditions as well as environmental, economic, and political turmoil. In a welcoming state like Illinois, we encourage our organizations, leaders, and institutions to serve immigrants and refugees with compassion, understanding, respect, and attention to the many intersections of being and experience of marginalization our communities encounter.
We need to understand and identify a manufactured crisis when we see it. This moment of Illinois being targeted for our welcoming values is a perfect example of how oppression works against immigrants and people of color. When the humanity, safety, and survival of children and families are at stake, we need to stop seeing ‘us’ versus ‘them.’ We instead need to see communities as whole, fully human, deserving of our respect and assistance–and our policies have to reflect this. We hope that our historical partners at NAACP chapters across the state join us in this analysis as we strive to move forward together.
*** UPDATE 4 *** OK, this is getting weird…
NAACP Illinois State Conference
President Teresa Haley will hold a Press Conference on Saturday, December 16, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at the NAACP’s Office:
801 South 11th Street
Springfield, Illinois 62703
The media is invited to attend, arriving no earlier than 10:45 a.m. Thank you.
*** UPDATE 5 *** Press release from the state council…
Effective 8:10 p.m., President Teresa Haley’s Press Conference is cancelled, in accordance with the recent request from the National NAACP Office. Ms. Haley stands by her heartfelt apology and will not provide any further comments at this juncture.
The city has begun impounding “rogue buses” that do not follow established guidelines for dropping off migrants coming to Chicago. […]
The city towed and impounded the first bus under the new order at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Mayor’s Office said in a statement Thursday.
Mayoral advisor Jason Lee said the “main trigger” for impounding the bus was the lack of a necessary permit through the Chicago Department of Transportation, but that it also arrived outside the city’s drop-off window.
Another bus carrying migrants in Chicago also arrived after the 5 p.m. curfew, but ended up not stopping and ultimately left the city, Lee told reporters ahead of a special City Council meeting Thursday morning regarding Chicago’s sanctuary city status.
* Press release…
Today, Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Transportation were joined by local officials and community leaders to celebrate the latest milestones on the $251.8 million replacement of the Interstate 57/74 interchange, a signature project of the historic, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital program. As it moves into its next phase, the overall project will positively impact safety and mobility while positioning the region for long-term economic growth. […]
The I-57/74 project is replacing a traditional cloverleaf interchange built in 1965 that no longer meets current traffic volumes and demands. The new interchange will feature a design that includes two flyover ramps to improve traffic flow and efficiency: Eastbound I-74 to northbound I-57 and westbound I-74 to southbound I-57. To add capacity, a third, auxiliary lane will be added to both directions of I-74 between Prospect Avenue and Duncan Road.
Four people convicted of conspiring to bribe then-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan to benefit ComEd want their fast-approaching sentencings put on hold as the Supreme Court considers a separate case, arguing its ruling could prove “fatal” to the verdict against them. […]
The ComEd defense attorneys insist in their six-page filing that “the Supreme Court’s decision in Snyder is certain to impact [the ComEd] case, and it has a substantial chance of requiring dismissal of the charges, acquittal or, at a minimum, a new trial.”
In dispute in the ComEd case is whether the federal program bribery statute criminalizes only bribery, as opposed to also criminalizing so-called gratuities or rewards. Another point of contention is whether a bribery conviction under the statute requires proof of a “quid pro quo.”
Federal prosecutors in Chicago insist that it does not.
State Rep. Anna Moeller’s work to protect young women seeking reproductive health protections is being honored by a respected statewide civil rights organization.
Rep. Moeller, D-Elgin, will be recognized Dec. 14 at a ceremony in Chicago as an honored guest at the ACLU of Illinois Annual Legislator Awards. This was the first ceremony held in person to recognize civil liberties legislation since 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
* Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel…
Illinois veterans will be able to adopt a pet without paying fees on Jan. 1, thanks to a new law from State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel. […]
Across the state, pet adoption fees vary widely depending on the organization, ranging from $50 to $275. Loughran Cappel’s new law requires animal shelters and animal control facilities to waive the adoption fee for military veterans in Illinois.
* More…
* SJ-R | Illinois Innocence Project, UIS grad help exonerate man wrongfully imprisoned for 35 years: The two provided evidence to a Cook County judge that Beals wasn’t the perpetrator of Campbell’s death, but the target of attacks by a local drug supplier. At least five witnesses confirmed to the IIP and Nirider that Beals was indeed the target, with photographic evidence showing five bullet holes in his car, aiding in his claims of innocence.
* Tribune | Aldermen block plan to put sanctuary city question to Chicago voters: Beale, Lopez and Moore have been plotting the mini-rebellion for several weeks, with Johnson’s allies outmaneuvering them by using to their advantage the fact Chicago only allows three referendum questions per election. One spot is already reserved for the “Bring Chicago Home” referendum that would increase the real estate transfer tax for some to fund homelessness services, a major plank of Johnson’s progressive agenda.
* WBEZ | The harrowing journeys of migrants are revealed in the quiet spaces of Chicago: More than 25,000 migrants and asylum seekers have arrived mostly from South and Central America since late August of last year. They are fleeing the collapse of their economies, the lack of jobs and food, and as one social worker puts it, “misery.” Many came here on a bus from Texas, where Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said Chicago and other sanctuary cities that embrace immigrants would provide much-needed relief “to our small, overrun border towns.” The buses haven’t stopped since.
* Crain’s | Jewel, Mariano’s parents brace for feds’ decision on merger in January: Progressive lawmakers and the Teamsters union both urged the antitrust agency this week to veto the deal after its yearlong probe. The FTC has until Jan. 17 to decide on their deal under a timing agreement the companies reached with the agency, according to a court filing in a class action brought by consumers opposed to the deal. The agency’s deadline hasn’t been disclosed previously.
* Daily Herald | Will Prestige’s new equipment pass the smell test?: A Mount Prospect animal feed producer that neighbors say has inundated nearby residents with a “burnt cheese” odor for four years will be allowed to operate during the daytime over the next three weeks. Mount Prospect conducted an inspection Wednesday of the $300,000 odor mitigation equipment installed by Prestige Feed Products, 431 Lakeview Court, village attorney Allen Wall said at a hearing in Cook County Circuit Court later that day. Wall said the inspection “seemed to go very well.”
* Sun-Times | Tony’s Place: A healthier La Russa is back, wants to state where he fits with White Sox: Hired at age 76 by chairman and good friend Jerry Reinsdorf before the 2021 season to lead the White Sox beyond the wild-card finish manager Rick Renteria led them to in 2020, La Russa’s Sox went 93-69 with an AL Central title. In 2022, La Russa didn’t feel well. His pacemaker needed attention, and unbeknownst to most everyone, he was dealing with cancer.
* The Hill | News media outlets slashed record 2,700 jobs in 2023, with more expected: Data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas found media companies overall have made 20,324 cuts so far in 2023, the highest year-to-date total since 2020. In the “news” subcategory the firm tracks, 2,681 jobs have been cut, including those in broadcast, digital and print. That total surpassed the 1,808 cuts announced during 2022 and 1,511 announced the year before.
* WaPo | Bigots use AI to make Nazi memes on 4chan. Verified users post them on X: An antisemitic post on Elon Musk’s X is not exactly news. But new research finds the site has emerged as a conduit to mainstream exposure for a fresh wave of automated hate memes, generated using cutting-edge AI image tools by trolls on the notorious online forum 4chan. The research by the nonprofit Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), shared with and verified by The Washington Post, finds that a campaign by 4chan members to spread “AI Jew memes” in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack resulted in 43 different images reaching a combined 2.2 million views on X between Oct. 5 and Nov. 16, according to the site’s publicly displayed metrics.
The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to block an Illinois law banning assault-style weapons, leaving the measure in place while proceedings before a federal appellate court continue.
The decision from the justices marks the second time they have declined to halt Illinois’ statewide ban, which a gun rights advocacy group and gun shop owner argued violates the Second Amendment. It has also left in place a similar ordinance in Naperville, a suburb of Chicago.
The unsigned order from the court rejecting the request from the pro-Second Amendment organization comes on the heels of the latest spate of shootings, on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, campus and in Austin and San Antonio, Texas. The shootings have reignited now-familiar calls from President Biden for Congress to pass a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.
For the second time, the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday turned down an opportunity to pause an assault weapons ban in Illinois implemented in response to a deadly shooting. […]
The National Association for Gun Rights, a gun store, and the store’s owner sued Naperville — and later Illinois — claiming the new ordinance violated the Second Amendment. Two lower courts refused to block the regulations, leading to the group’s first trip to the Supreme Court’s emergency docket.
The justices’ denial left the law in place while the challenge was under review. While this case was proceeding two other lower courts upheld the law in five different cases challenging the ban. The Seventh Circuit consolidated all six cases.
In a 2-1 decision, the appeals court declined to grant preliminary relief, finding that the gun advocacy group was not likely to prevail on its Second Amendment challenge.
The gun advocacy group then returned to the high court for relief. The group says the law would ban the most popular rifle in America, and therefore, in unlawful because it bans weapons in common use.
The court’s action on Thursday, leaving the Illinois law in place, is not a decision on the merits of the case; as of now, there have been no conflicting decisions by lower appeals courts, and the justices may well have felt there was no need to intervene without such a conflict.
This post will likely be updated.
…Adding… GPAC…
Gun rights groups continue to try to block the new law, even after repeated failures. And they continue to get nowhere. They asked the Supreme Court for relief before the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on the new law and the Supreme Court said no. Now after the Court of Appeals has upheld the law they’ve gone back and asked again. Not surprisingly the Supreme Court again said no. No amount of flailing around by losing lawyers alters the basic fact that sale in Illinois of these destructive weapons continues to be blocked completely.
…Adding… Protect Illinois Communities…
Once again, the US Supreme Court has refused to listen to requests from extremist organizations to block the Protect Illinois Communities Act, a commonsense gun safety measure to keep assault weapons off of our streets. This law helps save lives, and every day it remains in place is a step toward keeping weapons of war out of our neighborhoods.”
For the second time in a month, utility regulators at the Illinois Commerce Commission on Thursday handed down decisions that portend the beginning of a new era of consumer- and climate-focused utility oversight in Illinois.
“We applaud Chairman Doug Scott and other members of the Illinois Commerce Commission for making a decisive pivot away from the more utility-friendly approach of the past,” said Illinois PIRG Director Abe Scarr.
The five-person commission, recently overhauled by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, set new rates for the electric utilities ComEd and Ameren. Notably, the Commission rejected ComEd and Ameren’s grid plans, finding that the utilities failed to meet the standards set by law, and ordered them to re-submit compliant plans next year. The Commission rejected significant planned utility spending based on the lack of compliant grid plans.
The commission set Comed’s authorized profit rate, known as the return on equity (ROE), at 8.9% over the next four years. ComEd initially proposed a 10.5% ROE in 2024, which would escalate over four years to 10.65% in 2027. Illinois PIRG submitted expert testimony recommending a 6.5% ROE, arguing that state policies virtually guarantee ComEd’s profits, so it does not need a high ROE for financial health. Miniscule differences in profit rates can translate into hundreds of millions of dollars on customer bills.
“As it did with the gas rate cases, the Commission took important steps to rightsize ComEd and Ameren’s spending levels and limit their impact on customer bills. It also set a much lower profit rate than proposed by ComEd, saving customers hundreds of millions of dollars,” said Scarr. “We are pleased the Commission invited further consideration of profits rates under multi-year rate plans and will continue to make our case to the Commission that Illinois utilities can remain financially healthy with significantly lower profit rates.”
The Commission also denied Peoples Gas’ motion to “clarify” and reverse portions of the Commission’s November decision regarding the failing Peoples Gas pipe replacement program and authorize an additional $134 million in 2024 spending, which would raise its already record-breaking rate hike by an additional $8.1 million.
“We hope Peoples Gas now has the clarity it needs: while it maintains its fundamental service obligation to maintain public safety, it can no longer operate accountability-free and waste billions of dollars on a pipe replacement program that fails to achieve its public safety objective,” said Scarr. “We look forward to working with the commission and other parties to enact meaningful reforms to the program next year.”
Since the November decision, Peoples Gas and its allies had mounted a pressure campaign targeting the Commission. It included suggesting the legislature intervene, threatening the pending confirmation of three commissioners and sending more than 20 letters in support of the motion from unions, contractors, and others, each requiring an ethics report from the Commission in compliance with its “ex-parte” communications rules. Commissioner Scott directly addressed these ex-parte communications, asking members of the public to use more appropriate means of communicating with the Commission.
That last paragraph is quite something, but the two linked examples are an op-ed by two high-level labor leaders and a tweet by Local 150.
In an unprecedented ruling in favor of electric customers, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) today reined in reckless spending by ComEd and Ameren, said no to excessive profit rates and lowered the electric utilities’ rate-hike requests by hundreds of millions of dollars. After a decade in which electric utilities exploited lax oversight, scandal, and rampant rate hikes to reap excessive profits, the ICC made it clear that ComEd and Ameren must be held accountable to their customers and provide more affordable electric service. Today’s ICC ruling delivered an important message: Utilities need to prove that their grid plans will actually benefit consumers. Clean energy is about lowering costs for electric customers in the long run, not giving a blank check to Ameren and ComEd.
Less than three weeks after receiving a record rate hike, Peoples Gas tried to bully the ICC into raising costs, yet again, for the utility’s beleaguered customers by manufacturing a fictitious emergency. We’re grateful that regulators saw through these blatant theatrics and protected Chicago consumers, who have been buffeted by spiraling heating bills, from another money grab by the utility.
Peoples Gas has reaped record profits for six straight years – and that was before it obtained its record rate hike last month. No company that has amassed such a staggering fortune should ever threaten to neglect public safety and lay off workers. If Peoples continues to put jobs in jeopardy as a form of political extortion, the unions that represent the utility’s employees should put the blame where it belongs – on Peoples Gas, not on the state regulators entrusted with holding the company accountable.
For the past decade, Chicago families have been suffering through a heating affordability crisis, as People Gas bills skyrocketed to pay for the company’s bloated pipe-replacement program. Peoples Gas customers pay an average of $50 in fixed monthly costs before they ever turn on the heat or the stove. Nearly 200,000 households have been assessed a late fee, and 160,000 families have fallen behind on payments by more than 30 days.
Given all this financial woe, the ICC did the right thing when it put a moratorium on discretionary, non-emergency pipe-replacement, pending further investigation. Nonetheless, Peoples Gas responded by trying to hold its workers and public safety hostage as a ploy to coerce another rate hike out of financially burdened customers. We urge regulators, lawmakers, and the public at large to continue to stand strong and resist cynical attempts to pit the utility’s workers against its customers when it is obvious that both are being made victims of the company’s greed.
* The 2023 Golden Horseshoe Award for Best Contract Lobbyist is a tie. Liz Brown-Reeves…
Liz Brown is everywhere all the time. If you need something done you can call her and know it’s handled. She’s a superstar staffer turned lobbyist who knows everyone and knows who to call to ensure your issue is at the top of the list. If you’re looking to succeed in Springfield she’s someone you need to have on your side.
Just take a walk around the Capitol early morning or late into the evening you will see him. He ALWAYS greets everyone with a smile and very respectful to Staff & LA’s all while working multiple clients difficult agendas.
He spent 2,000 miles on a bus to promote manufacturing. Traveled to London with the Governor on a trade mission. Helped lead efforts on REV to land Gotion and Stellantis with 7,000 good jobs. And his peers named him Speaker of the Third House. Not a bad year.
I cannot think of another lobbyist that is more passionate about their cause than Jen. Professional and knowledgeable, Jen has taken on some heavy hitters on big issues and prevailed. I couldn’t think of a better leader for the environmental movement.
Congratulations to our winners and to everyone who was nominated!
* On to today’s categories…
Best Do-Gooder Lobbyist
Best Legislative Liaison
As always, explain your nominations or they won’t count. And please do your very best to nominate in both categories. Thanks!
* And here’s your daily reminder to click here and help buy Christmas presents for foster kids served by Lutheran Social Services of Illinois. Thanks!
Chicago Alderman Raymond Lopez, a rare Democrat speaking out against the end of cash bail in the Land of Lincoln, told Fox News’ “America Reports” in October that innocent people are being “hunted down like prey.”
“[T]hings like robbery, burglary, arson, assault, even threatening elected officials like myself, do not warrant you being held on bond anymore in the state of Illinois, and criminals are taking note,” Lopez told the cable news outlet.
Um, all but one of those crimes are detainable offenses, including threatening elected officials. Assault, defined as “conduct which places another in reasonable apprehension of receiving a battery,” has long been a Class C misdemeanor, but past “assaultive behavior” is a factor judges can use to detain someone.
And then the article talks about somebody who was arrested and is still being detained by the feds on “14 federal felony counts of interstate communication of a threat to injure.”
The article goes on to note that the same person had been arrested by the Perry County sheriff’s office and released after two days behind bars. The sheriff blames the SAFE-T Act, but the person was released on a charge of resisting arrest, and the important underlying charge related to the threats was “dropped due to a lack of a specific target.”
Sure sounds like the local sheriff messed up and blamed state law.
In Sangamon County, the average daily number of people in custody at the jail was 323 before the Pretrial Fairness Act took effect and has ranged between 220 and 240 since then, according to Sheriff Jack Campbell. It’s obvious the new law is the reason for the drop, he said.
The reduction has meant less crowding in the facility, less stress among inmates and higher morale among the jail staff, Campbell said. […]
It is “too early to tell” the long-term impact, [Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser] said, but he collected statistics that show Sangamon County judges are agreeing with prosecutors almost 70% of the time when the State’s Attorney’s Office has requested detention. There have been 99 petitions for detainment so far, and 69 were granted, he told Illinois Times Dec. 13.
The rate is similar to numbers released Dec. 11 by the state administrative court office, which is overseen by the Supreme Court. For 71 of the state’s 102 counties – a number that doesn’t include Sangamon and mostly consists of smaller counties – judges had issued decisions on 1,445 petitions for detention. Of those, 976 (67.55%) petitions were granted, and 469 were denied. Another 51 petitions were waiting to be heard
[Jackson County State’s Attorney Joseph Cervantez] said if someone violates their pretrial release conditions, they can face sanctions. If a defendant continues to violate them, prosecutors can petition to revoke bail.
Cervantez also said that since the start of the SAFE-T Act, he has not seen crime increase in Jackson County.
Amends the Lobbyist Registration Act. Directs the Secretary of State to grant a waiver of the lobbyist registration fee for any not-for-profit entity with an annual budget of less than $5,000,000 that is classified as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, including a waiver for any lobbyist that exclusively lobbies on behalf of such an entity.
Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Provides that, on and after January 1, 2030, no person shall sell or offer for sale in the State a new washing machine for residential, commercial, or State use unless the washing machine: (1) contains a microfiber filtration system with a mesh size of not greater than 100 micrometers; and (2) bears a conspicuous label that is visible to the consumer, in the form of a sticker or any other label type, that includes a specified statement. Provides that a person or entity who violates this prohibition shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 for a first violation and not to exceed $30,000 for each subsequent violation.
Creates the Climate Corporate Accountability Act. Provides that, on or before July 1, 2024, the Secretary of State shall develop and adopt rules to require a reporting entity to annually disclose to the emissions registry, and verify, all of the reporting entity’s scope 1 emissions, scope 2 emissions, and scope 3 emissions. Provides that a reporting entity, starting on January 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, publicly disclose to the emissions registry all of the reporting entity’s scope 1 emissions and scope 2 emissions for the prior calendar year, and its scope 3 emissions for that same calendar year no later than 180 days after that date. Provides that the Secretary of State shall contract with an emissions registry to develop a reporting and registry program to receive and make publicly available disclosures. Provides that, on or before January 1, 2025, the Secretary of State shall contract with the University of Illinois, a national laboratory, or another equivalent academic institution to prepare a report on the public disclosures made by reporting entities to the emissions registry. Provides that the emissions registry, on or before January 1, 2025, shall create a digital platform, which shall be accessible to the public, that will house all disclosures submitted by reporting entities to the emissions registry. Provides for enforcement of the Act. Effective immediately.
Amends the License to Read Act. Defines terms. Provides that no contract or license agreement entered into between a publisher and library shall preclude, limit, or restrict the library from performing customary operational functions or lending functions, restrict the library from disclosing any terms of its license agreements to other libraries, or require, coerce, or enable the library to violate the Library Records Confidentiality Act. Provides that nothing in the amendatory Act affects existing contracts that are in effect on the effective date of the amendatory Act. Sets forth remedies. Contains a severability provision. Effective immediately.
Amends the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. Provides that the photograph of each minor for whom the Department of Children and Family Services is responsible under the Abused, Dependent, or Neglected Minors Article of the Act shall be transmitted to the clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the minor resides for placement in the court file. Provides that the photograph shall be taken within 6 months before transmission and shall be accessible by the judge who is to decide the placement, custody, or other disposition concerning the minor.
Amends the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act. Provides that, if the Illinois State Police denies an application for or revokes and seizes a Firearm Owner’s Identification Card because an individual has been a patient of a mental health facility, the notice to the applicant or card holder of denial of an application for or revocation of the person’s Firearm Owner’s Identification Card shall include the date or dates of admission of the person to the mental health facility and the name of the facility. Provides that, if the Firearm Owner’s Identification Card Review Board does not, within 90 days of the filing of the applicant’s appeal of a denial of a Firearm Owner’s Identification Card or revocation of a Firearm Owner’s Identification Card, render a decision on the appeal, the failure to render a decision shall constitute a rejection of the appeal, and the applicant or card holder may appeal to the circuit court for relief. Provides that the cost for replacement of a combined Firearm Owner’s Identification Card and concealed carry license is $5 if the person has changed his or her address. Amends the Firearm Concealed Carry Act to make conforming changes.
* Rep. Barbara Hernandez filed HB4264 earlier this week…
Creates the Good Samaritan Menstrual Products Act. Prohibits a person, manufacturer, or distributor from being held liable for damages incurred resulting from any illness or disease contracted by the ultimate user or recipient of an apparently usable menstrual product due to the nature, age, condition, or packaging of the menstrual product that the person, manufacturer, or distributor donates in good faith to a nonprofit organization for ultimate distribution to an individual in need of such menstrual product. Prohibits a nonprofit organization from being held liable for damages incurred resulting from any illness or disease contracted by the ultimate user or recipient of an apparently usable menstrual product due to the condition of the menstrual product. Sets forth exceptions. Effective immediately.
Amends the Reproductive Health Act. Provides that consent to a termination of pregnancy is voluntary and informed only if: the physician who is to perform the procedure, or the referring physician, has, at a minimum, orally, while physically present in the same room, and at least 24 hours before the procedure, provided the woman with specified information; specified printed materials prepared and provided by the Department of Public Health have been provided to the pregnant woman, if she chooses to view these materials; and the woman acknowledges in writing, before the termination of pregnancy, that the information required to be provided has been provided. Provides that if a medical emergency exists and a physician cannot comply with the requirements for informed consent, a physician may terminate a pregnancy if he or she has obtained at least one corroborative medical opinion attesting to the medical necessity for emergency medical procedures and to the fact that to a reasonable degree of medical certainty the continuation of the pregnancy would threaten the life of the pregnant woman. Provides that a physician or other person who violates the provisions shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action.
* ICYMI: Chicago spent almost $1M on Brighton Park migrant base camp.Sun-Times …
- Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office says the $985,621.21 of taxpayer money didn’t go to waste because the land at 38th Street and California Avenue “has been assessed and further prepared for future use.”
- Cristina Pacione-Zayas, Johnson’s deputy chief-of-staff, said the city wouldn’t be reimbursed by the state.
* Illinois Answers | Illinois Taxpayers Shell Out Hundreds of Millions as Prison Reform Lawsuits Grind On: Progress has been slow as the bill to taxpayers keeps rising. Court-ordered audits show the IDOC continues to fail to provide basic care to inmates — a point underscored by the Illinois Answers Project in interviews with more than a dozen people who are incarcerated. The state has paid more than $13 million in legal fees and fines so far as part of the settlements and faces an ultimate tab of hundreds of millions of dollars to fulfill settlement requirements. Separately, a report published earlier this year estimates the state has a multibillion dollar backlog in maintenance expenses to repair its dilapidated prisons, some of which date to the 19th century.
* Post-Tribune | Supreme Court agrees to review former Portage Mayor James Snyder’s public corruption case: Snyder was elected mayor in 2011 and reelected in 2015. He resigned in February 2019 after his first conviction on the IRS and garbage truck charges; in a second trial a jury confirmed the guilty verdict in the garbage truck case. Snyder was indicted in November 2016, on the same day former Lake County Sheriff John Buncich, who is serving a 12-year sentence in federal prison, was indicted on public corruption charges. Federal attorneys argued in a November filing that Snyder does not deserve to have his conviction on a public corruption charge involving garbage truck contracts reviewed because earlier court rulings in the case indicate Snyder received a bribe of $13,000 in regard to a contract for garbage trucks.
* The Southern | Williamson County commissioners talk Paid Leave Act, plan to adopt policy Dec. 15: “It’s going to be a bookkeeping nightmare,” was the consensus of the County Commissioners as they discussed the policy to be adopted by the county that would keep them within the new Paid Leave for All Workers Act. They discussed how the first 40 hours could be pulled from sick time, would need to be used within the year and would not require a doctor’s note. The decision to accrue sick leave or give it out as a lump sum at the beginning of the year was not determined during the meeting.
* Daily Herald | Suburbs scramble to exempt public safety employees from state’s on-demand paid-leave law: The announcement was publicly applauded by a number of legislators and civic leaders. While their comments focused on the benefit to those employees receiving this right for the first time, they didn’t reflect the specific concern suburban municipalities and fire protection districts have been trying to address this fall.
* Chalkbeat | Illinois’ education budget might be tighter over the next several years, say officials: That’s because local revenue projections are modest and federal COVID relief dollars are set to run out, state finance and budget officials told board members. The Governor’s Office of Management and Budget has predicted the Illinois State Board of Education can expect to receive an additional $425 million in revenue next year.
* Illinois Times | Elimination of cash bail seems to be working: “It’s a fairly orderly process,” Matthew McLoughlin, campaign coordinator of the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice, told Illinois Times, adding that naysayers so far have been proven wrong. “The courts have slowed the process down. “The big thing here is the dramatic pronouncements made last year of chaos in our communities have turned out to be patently false. We’re thrilled with the implementation of the law.”
* Crain’s | Johnson says city close to clearing migrants from police districts: As of Wednesday morning, city officials reported 354 asylum seekers were living in police district stations, with another 221 living at O’Hare International Airport. By Wednesday afternoon, Johnson said that number was reduced and that all but one of the city’s 22 police districts had been cleared of migrants.
* Tribune | Oak Park, which has been providing shelter for migrants, will require them to move out of hotel, YMCA by Jan. 31: The approximately 160 people at The Carleton of Oak Park hotel and the West Cook YMCA are to be notified of the eviction date this week. They will be asked to work with a case manager or village staff to find new shelter and possibly move them to another city or state if they have stable housing there, according to a memo from the village Emergency Operations Center. For anyone who can’t find shelter, the village will help relocate them to the Chicago shelter program, the memo states.
* Crain’s | Prosecution begins closing arguments in Ed Burke trial: After the media frenzy surrounding the testimony of FBI mole Danny Solis on Tuesday, the crowd inside the 25th-floor courtroom at the Dirksen Federal Building had simmered down by the time Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane MacArthur addressed the jury Wednesday afternoon. Understated and methodical, MacArthur laid out the 19-count federal indictment that named Burke as well as his chief of staff Peter Andrews and local developer Charles Cui.
* Block Club | MAT Asphalt Agrees To $1.2 Million Class-Action Settlement With McKinley Park Neighbors: The settlement, agreed upon in early November, applies to any resident who lives within a half-mile radius of MAT Asphalt, 2055 W. Pershing Road. The facility is situated across the street from McKinley Park and makes hot-mix asphalt, among other industrial products. […] With the settlement agreement, lawyers from the Detroit-based law office of Liddle Sheets Coulson P.C. are now requesting that neighbors interested in the payout file a claim form to receive compensation from the settlement fund. The form must be postmarked by Jan. 22.
* Sun-Times | Judge vacates murder conviction of Chicago man wrongfully imprisoned for 35 years: Beals was convicted in the 1988 murder of 6-year-old Demetrius Campbell in Englewood. At the time, Beals, a 22-year-old student at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, was home in Chicago during Thanksgiving break. He was approached by a drug dealer and they argued, according to news accounts at the time. Attorneys say Beals got in his car and drove off. Bullets fired in Beals’ direction hit two bystanders, the boy and his mother, Valerie Campbell. Despite three witnesses describing a different offender, Beals was convicted, namely on Campbell’s testimony. She said she saw Beals in the argument and believed he fired the shots. Beals maintained his innocence.
* Sun-Times | Heartland Alliance cuts 65 jobs and shuts affordable housing division: Ed Stellon, the group’s chief external affairs officer, said the nonprofit is “managing a very severe cash flow challenge.” He said the layoffs were among 125 workers who got temporary furloughs in recent months. “It’s just a terrible situation for them,” Stellon said.
* NBC Chicago | Illinois’ New Laws: Transit bill includes reduced fares, requires zero-emission buses: The legislation will provide free fare cards for victims of domestic violence, with state agencies partnering with The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence, according to the language of the bill. The legislation also included several provisions aimed at younger Illinois residents. Both PACE and Metra will be required to offer youth job opportunities and internship programs as part of the bill, and participants in the “One Summer Chicago” program, which provides employment opportunities for Chicago residents age 14-to-24, will also receive reduced-fares on transit.
* WAND | Illinois lawmakers, industry experts discuss future broadband expansion: Roughly 234,000 Illinoisans are unserved and lack access to basic broadband service. However, about 132,000 people live in underserved locations across the state. “How are we going to reach 100% coverage for all Illinoisans? That’s a really big hurdle,” said Greg Claus with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. “This is the first time a grant program has been set up to connect all homes and businesses.”
* Sun-Times | CTA boss says Yellow Line crash conditions are isolated, not systemwide: Brushing aside criticism that he has remained silent since the crash, CTA President Dorval Carter said National Transportation Safety Board rules prohibit him from commenting on the investigation. But he tried to allay speculation about a potential design flaw.
* Our Quad Cities | Pat O’Brien, Moline 6th ward alderman, dies: Pat O’Brien was a longtime resident of Moline. He served eight years as the 2nd Ward Alderman for the city until 2005. In 2021, he was elected as the 6th Ward Alderman. Pat was also the former President of the Council on Community Services and also served as President of the Moline Preservation society. His co-workers and friends describe him as selfless.
* WREX | Illinois Comptroller Mendoza shares safe holiday shopping tips: In a recent release to Illinois residents, Comptroller Susana Mendoza encourages safe shopping for the holidays. Providing tips to the public, the state leader charged with fiscal control calls for consumer caution. “That perfect present you picked out for a loved one may end up costing you dearly if you aren’t careful,” states Mendoza.
* Tribune | Anti-Cruelty Society sees uptick in adoptions after waiving fees for December to reduce overcrowding: Pistachio is one of 158 animals that has been adopted from the Anti-Cruelty Society animal shelter since it waived adoption fees for the month of December in its “Home for Howlidays” promotion to encourage and remove one financial barrier to adoption. The large-scale promotion aims to combat overcrowding at the shelter, which has seen in the past two years animals, particularly big dogs, linger at the shelter.
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* These new feeds do not update instantly. There’s a bit of a lagtime and you have to refresh the page every now and then. The service we’re using may also not last long. We just can’t give you any guarantees. You can still click here to follow the Ed Burke trial on Twitter. Posts without a Twitter author name below them are from online news sources via Bing…
