* Background is here if you need it. Press release…
Governor Pritzker announced the state has come to an agreement with Iron Workers Local 1 to ensure skilled iron workers will be present at the build site for new shelter space for asylum seekers. Upon learning of a potential labor issue late Thursday night, the state worked closely with the Iron Workers Local to negotiate sending additional union labor to the site as quickly as possible. The 38th and California site is being constructed to house approximately 2,000 recent arrivals to the city ahead of worsening winter weather conditions.
“When my administration was made aware of an issue that could have resulted in a work stoppage and increased costs at a new asylum seeker shelter site, we acted immediately to ensure union iron workers were represented and that the project could continue without delay,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “I am grateful to the Iron Workers for their collaborative work with my office to reach agreement and I am pleased this project can proceed.”
“Upon learning of concerns regarding labor use at the 38th and California site, Governor Pritzker and state officials immediately began negotiations to ensure the project could continue efficiently while maintaining the commitment to organized labor that the Governor has demonstrated since day one of his administration,” said John Gardiner, President, Iron Workers Union Local 1. “Skilled union ironworkers will be on site tomorrow to aid in the safe construction of this base camp and provide shelter for those desperately in need.”
“I commend John Gardiner for his leadership and tireless advocacy for Ironworkers Local 1, and I’d like to thank Governor Pritzker for responding quickly to our members to reach this important agreement,” said Michael Macellaio, President of the Chicago & Cook County Building & Construction Trades Council.
It’s late Friday night and we’re all still working. I haven’t seen anything like this since the Rauner years. Thanks, mayor.
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* From WBBM…
* From Jordan Abudayyeh at the Governor’s office…
The State has repeatedly requested this report from the city and despite assurances it would be sent, that has yet to occur. When the State does receive the report the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will need to review it. We will not have additional comment until we receive the report.
* Alice Yin…
* Abudayyeh at 8:33 tonight…
Update. We just got it: The state just received the environmental report. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will need to review it. We will not have additional comment until the review of the nearly 800 page document is complete.
*** UPDATE 1 *** From Natalie Moore at WBEZ…
*** UPDATE 2 *** Click here for the full report…
* Metals were below the residential ROs with the exception of arsenic, lead, mercury, and manganese, which exceeded in residential ingestion exposure route at certain sample locations.
* Mercury exceeded the residential outdoor inhalation exposure route and the default CSAT limit in sample SB-15 (1-3’) and its associated duplicate sample, DUP-004. These two samples were further evaluated with elemental mercury laboratory analysis, as provided in Table 1, which confirmed the exceedances.
*** UPDATE 3 *** From Rich: The governor’s office has been asking for this report for days, and they sent it to reporters first? Yeah, that’s wise…
*** UPDATE 4 *** Coverage roundup…
* Tribune…
After weeks of pressure, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration dropped a voluminous environmental assessment of a proposed tent camp for migrants late Friday that said contaminants are being removed from the former Southwest Side industrial site.
The nearly 800-page report by outside contractor Terracon Consultants was released to the Tribune on Friday evening.
It said high levels of mercury and other chemicals were found and are being removed from the Brighton Park lot at 3710 S. California Ave., where workers had already begun building the giant tents for incoming migrants this week. […]
“Terracon conducted a field investigation under a sampling plan that was developed for this specific site,” a Johnson spokesperson wrote in a statement, before noting soil with mercury levels and other contaminants, which were addressed through removal as well as an “engineered barrier” along the site. “With the limited soil removal and placement and maintenance of the barrier, the site is safe for temporary residential use.”
The report notes that despite the presence of toxic substances at the site, the levels detected are within state guidelines and as a result pose minimal risks to temporary occupants of the tent encampment.
* WTTW…
Tests were performed in 16 locations on the site, and soil, groundwater and soil gas samples were taken and analyzed, according to the report.
Mercury was located in one location on the site, and the soil in that area was removed and disposed of, according to the report.
In another location, the organic compound bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate was found, the report said. That compound is used in the manufacturing of polyvinyl chloride, a rigid yet flexible plastic. That soil will also be removed and disposed of, according to the report.
At multiple locations on the site, the tests found evidence of two semi-volatile organic compounds and four metals that exceeded limits considered safe for residential use, according to the report.
That prompted city officials to require that the entire site “be covered with imported clean stone from a quarry and compaction of the stone to a minimum thickness of six inches throughout the site. The stone layer will be periodically inspected and maintained,” the report said.
* ABC Chicago…
Crews are also placing a clean crushed stone barrier around the site that will be regularly inspected.
The statement goes on to say in part, “With the limited soil removal and placement and maintenance of the barrier, the site is safe for temporary residential use.” […]
City officials have said they hope to have the site up and running by mid-December.
Alderwoman Julia Ramirez and her office are reviewing the new findings and plan to comment soon.
* Sun-Times…
The state, which is committing $65 million for the shelter and is directing the contractor building on the site, will have to sign off on the environmental report.
“The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will have to review it,” said Jordan Abudayyeh, a spokeswoman for Gov. J.B. Pritzker. “We will not utilize that site if IEPA does not sign off.”
She declined to comment further until state officials review the report.
The city’s consultant said it can’t guarantee there isn’t additional contamination, and if additional materials are discovered, “activities should be halted.”
“We cannot represent that the site contains no hazardous substances, toxic material, petroleum products or other latent conditions beyond those identified during this evaluation,” the city consultant Terracon said in the report.
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Afternoon roundup
Friday, Dec 1, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* I’ve reset the donation target amount to match what we raised last year, adjusted for inflation…
The money we’ve contributed so far will help Lutheran Social Services of Illinois buy Christmas presents for 1,503 foster kids. LSSI serves 2,530 children. That means we’ve met 59 percent of their basic goal and will create a little joy for lots of kiddos.
I have my doubts that we’ll make our fundraising goal. Last year’s unprecedented final tally completely surprised me. Also, it’s been my experience that donations tend to drop off after the first couple-two-tree days. We had a good Tuesday, a great Wednesday (people really stepped up to score that $10,000 match), an OK Thursday, but almost zip today, likely because we haven’t posted a reminder.
So, please, if you can, click here and contribute. Thanks.
* Daily Illini…
Illinois is the first state to offer fully funded universal tests and licensure preparation classes to public university undergraduate students in the newly passed Prepare for Illinois’ Future Program. The program entails that Illinois public universities’ undergraduate students will have free access to necessary resources to assist them in their preparation for graduate school admission tests and professional licensure.
On Nov. 7, La Shawn Ford, Illinois state representative and chair of the Illinois Higher House Appropriations Committee, announced that the Prepare for Illinois’ Future Program will warrant $10 million of the state of Illinois’ budget.
The funding of the program was passed with the intention of providing free test preparation classes for the MCAT, the LSAT, the GRE and the GMAT in the 2024 fiscal year.
In addition to the graduate school admission tests, the Prepare for Illinois’ Future Program will include free preparation assistance for professional licensure preparation in nursing, teaching, real estate and securities professional exams.
Sounds like a good idea.
* Text message…
In case you might find it of at least slight interest, Congressman Jackson, as of a couple of minutes ago when I checked ISBE, has not filed his nominating petitions. The only IL congressperson not to have done so yet. Only 1 GOP candidate has filed in the first district. I haven’t seen any outlet take note of this.
I’m trying to reach US Rep. Jackson’s campaign, but no luck so far.
* Glad to see the BGA’s policy director standing up for a reporter who wrote a very strong story only to see it trashed by those weirdos on the Tribune editorial board…
Speaking of this topic, here’s an Illinois House rule that you might not know exists…
In accordance with Article IV, Sec. 6(d) of the Constitution, the House during its session may punish by imprisonment any person, not a member, guilty of disrespect to the House by disorderly or contemptuous behavior in its presence. That imprisonment shall not extend beyond 24 hours at one time unless the person persists in disorderly or contemptuous behavior.
The Senate has a nearly identical rule.
* Isabel’s roundup…
* WBEZ | Chicago pastor on housing migrants in his church: ‘This is your new home’: I was sharing earlier today about a gentleman that we received from Police District 14. I was in the basement showing them where the showers were at, with the kitchen where they can cook, and opening cupboards and cabinets. And, one gentleman, when I opened the cabinet, he saw all the snacks and all the food and all the supplies that he hadn’t seen, maybe for years, going back to his days in Venezuela. And the term “taken aback” is usually used figuratively right? “I was taken aback.” This guy literally took a step back because he was overwhelmed by what he saw. And that overwhelmed me. And immediately he just started crying. We were meeting there for the first time. We just had a couple of conversations before. And so, my instinct was to go and embrace him and tell him ‘you’re safe here” and “this is your new home.”
* Crain’s | Tesla’s truck isn’t a Rivian killer yet: Tesla is expected to produce about 75,000 trucks next year, Baird Equity Research estimates. Rivian is expected to increase production at its plant in Normal to 75,000 to 80,000 vehicles, up from about 50,000 this year.
* Bloomberg | Battery startup opens Chicago plant as U.S. seeks to curb reliance on China: NanoGraf received $10 million in funding from the U.S. government to build what the company says is the Midwest’s first large-volume facility to produce silicon oxide — an important ingredient for a new kind of longer-lasting battery that can be used in electric vehicles and medical devices. It’s part of a wave of investment in US capacity to make more lithium-ion batteries at home as the country looks to compete with China, which controls large swaths of the world’s output.
* Tribune | Peoples Gas asks to restore $134 million of ‘paused’ pipeline replacement work, says hundreds of jobs may be lost: The utility is hoping to claw back more than half of the $265 million cut from its budget when the ICC issued an order last month to pause the long-running System Modernization Program to replace 2,000 miles of aging iron pipes below Chicago streets, pending an investigation. “The company understands the Commission’s directive to pause work on SMP; however, the $265 million in work that was paused includes more than $134 million in other critical safety and reliability work outside of SMP,” Peoples Gas spokesperson David Schwartz said in a statement.
* WBEZ | These conservation-minded Illinois farmers are in a race against climate change to save their soil: Jake Lieb drives his John Deere two-seater around his property and across the shallow Camp Creek. The waterway cuts back and forth through miles of farm fields until it reaches the Sangamon River and eventually pours into Lake Decatur 32 miles away — the man-made source of water for 200,000 people. These are troubled waters. The city of Decatur paid $100 million in 2021 to dredge so much polluted sediment from the lake that it could have filled the Willis Tower seven times.
* Crain’s | Illinois boosts Amtrak in soaring year for rail travel: Almost 28.6 million customers rode Amtrak nationwide last year, according to fiscal 2023 passenger figures released Thursday. That’s a 24.6% increase from the previous year — albeit still shy of 32 million rides in the 2019 fiscal year. The increase reflects a resurgence in rail travel, which has been slow to bounce back from its struggles during the COVID-19 pandemic. […] The Hiawatha, which connects Chicago to Milwaukee via Glenview, saw a year-over-year increase in passenger activity of 26.9%. The line provided 636,854 customer trips from October 2022 to September 2023, the most of any Midwestern route.
* Crain’s | Feds and city’s inspector general eye Bally’s casino deal: A federal law enforcement agency and Chicago’s inspector general are looking into the process by which Bally’s won the Chicago casino license, according to people familiar with the matter. Crain’s has learned one inquiry is being led by the U.S. attorney’s office, and stems from complaints lodged by losing bidders. The existence of the federal inquiry was confirmed by Ald. Brian Hopkins, 2nd, a longtime critic of the Lightfoot administration’s handling of the casino process, and by other sources.
* Sun-Times | South Loop had a hybrid car dealership — a century ago. Now it’s headed toward demolition: In addition to its remarkable car-making history, the former Woods Motor Vehicle building is also a pretty nice example of early Chicago School architecture with its minimalist, grid-like face adorned with three bays of large windows designed to bring in natural light. It would be a mark against the city’s architectural heritage to lose a building of this character and pedigree.
* Crain’s | Northwestern medical residents announce intent to unionize: The group of physicians across Northwestern’s McGaw Medical Center filed their intent to join the Committee of Interns & Residents, a division of the Service Employees International Union, with the National Labor Relations Board and have requested voluntary recognition of the union from Northwestern management, according to a statement today.
* SJ-R | Friend-In-Deed, Central Illinois Food Bank team up again for a drive-through giveaway: Friend-In-Deed, started by the late State Journal-Register editor Ed Armstrong in 1960, is looking to raise $85,000 this holiday season to assist with the two food drive-throughs and to help out 100 homeless families from Springfield School District 186. Unlike in some previous years, there is no application required for the drive-through food giveaways.
* Sun-Times | Jussie Smollett’s 2021 conviction, sentence upheld on appeal: A Cook County jury found Smollett guilty of five counts of disorderly conduct in 2021, and he was sentenced to 30 months of probation, with the first 150 days to be served at Cook County Jail. Smollett appealed the conviction and was released while it was pending after spending six days behind bars. A spokeswoman for the actor said Smollett will appeal Friday’s decision.
* Tribune | Michigan grad sues state after losing ‘G0BLUE’ license plate: Joseph Hardig III said the plate has been on family vehicles for years. But he was told it was assigned to another car owner when he recently tried to renew it at a Secretary of State office. “My dad’s passed away. I got it from him. It’s meaningful to me. We’re just huge fans and love the university,” Hardig told The Detroit News. Hardig, a suburban Detroit lawyer, is asking a judge to block the state from giving the plate to an Ann Arbor man, who is also a University of Michigan graduate and lives just minutes from the football stadium.
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* The city just can’t get its act together on anything…
Building on the State’s data-driven plan to improve the asylum seeker response, Governor JB Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), and the Greater Chicago Food Depository announced an additional $4 million investment to provide meals to asylum seekers through the end of the calendar year. The additional $2 million state investment will be matched by philanthropy through the Food Depository.
At the request of the City of Chicago in June 2023, the State has provided $10.5 million in funding to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, a food bank with a network of community-based providers, to deliver meals to asylum seekers while the City worked to procure additional vendors. Due to delays in the procurement process, the State and Food Depository will now contribute an additional $2 million each, to ensure asylum seekers are fed through the month of December. In January, the City of Chicago will assume this responsibility as the State ramps up its shelter, resettlement, and Temporary Protected Status and Employee Authorization Document efforts. The State will also provide the meals at the recently announced shelter sites in Brighton Park and Little Village, which will house up to 2,200 people at full capacity.
“In Illinois – we welcome asylum seeking families with dignity and that means ensuring they don’t go hungry,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The State is continuing to make strategic investments in the absence of the resources and coordination we continue to advocate for from Congress and the federal government.”
This $2 million investment from the State builds on Governor Pritzker’s recently announced $160 million investment, via IDHS, to improve the asylum-seeker path to self-sufficiency, as well as the $478 million in State funding that has been allocated to the asylum seeker response over Fiscal Years 2023 and 2024.
Before this latest investment, the State provided $10.5 million in funding for food for new arrivals, bringing the total now to $12.5 million. The State began partnering with the Greater Chicago Food Depository for this purpose in June 2023.
“I am grateful to the Greater Chicago Food Depository for continuously meeting this need,” said Dulce Quintero, IDHS Secretary Designate. “The Depository has been an invaluable partner to the State as we continue to address this humanitarian crisis.”
“The Greater Chicago Food Depository believes food is a basic human right. It is a privilege to provide daily meals for asylum seeking new arrivals in our community while continuing our work of serving anyone in need of food across Chicago and Cook County,” said Kate Maehr, Executive Director and CEO of the Food Depository. “Our response for new arrivals has been bolstered by support from the state of Illinois and the generosity of private philanthropy. We are incredibly grateful that the State of Illinois has stepped up again and again this year to protect residents from hunger, both lifelong Illinoisans and our newest neighbors.”
The Greater Chicago Food Depository has worked with the State of Illinois and the City of Chicago to provide food for asylum seeking new arrivals since Texas began busing them to Illinois last summer. This year, the Food Depository’s response has expanded to include daily lunch and dinner, fresh fruit, breakfast items, and hygiene essentials at shelters and police stations across Chicago. The Food Depository’s response has been funded by critical investments from the State of Illinois and generous contributions from private donors.
To supply meals for new arrivals, the Food Depository has been working in partnership with more than 15 minority-owned restaurants and caterers based in neighborhoods across Chicago. By contracting with these local businesses, the Food Depository is supplying up to 20,000 nourishing and culturally affirming meals each day, while investing millions of dollars back into the local community – creating economic impact and jobs for Chicagoans. The response serves as a model of how to address hunger while also guiding funds and resources to neighborhoods that have endured historic disinvestment.
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* Yesterday…
Migrant Camp Sight Target of Iron Workers Picket;
Construction Shutdown Likely
What:
On Thursday, November 30, Iron Workers Local 1 Union filed a notice of intention to picket the Brighton Park migrant camp site on Friday, December 1, which is currently under construction, due to the contractor’s failure to hire certified union ironworkers. The Iron Workers Local 1 Union’s picket line will likely be honored by other union workers, if any, on the site, causing them to lay down their tools and leading to a construction shutdown.
Who:
· Ken Davis, Business Agent, Iron Workers Local 1 Union
· John Gardiner, President, Iron Workers Local 1 Union
· Rank and file Iron Workers from Local 1 Union
· Scabby The Rat
Where:
Brighton Park, 2822 W. 38th Street, Chicago (corner of 38th and California)
When:
Friday, December 1, 2023; 6 a.m. – 2p.m.
Trade union members almost never cross a picket line, and there are plenty of other unions on that site. A picket would have likely shut the whole thing down.
* Today…
The following statement can be attributed to John Gardiner, President/Business Manager, Iron Workers Union Local 1:
“On Thursday, November 30, Iron Workers Union Local 1 filed a notice of intention to picket the Brighton Park migrant camp site on Friday, December 1, which is currently under construction, due to the contractor’s failure to hire certified union ironworkers. After receiving a call from the governor’s office last night, Thursday, the Iron Workers Local 1 agreed to a 24-hour pause on our picket to allow for negotiations. We paused our picket for 24-hours out of courtesy to the governor’s office. We met virtually this morning with multiple, high-level officials, and will continue to talk throughout the day.”
Apparently, nobody told the governor’s office in advance about the impending labor action until I sent them the union’s press release last night asking for comment.
…Adding… The mayor’s office has reached out to say they had “Multiple conversations on Thursday” with the governor’s office.
[Both releases had a date typo, so I was asked to update the post.]
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Today’s quotable
Friday, Dec 1, 2023 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Former Kenwood Oakland Community Organization organizer, Chicago Democratic Socialist Caucus member and second-term Chicago Ald. Jeanette Taylor was on Ben Joravsky’s show…
Joravsky: As you said, we’ve got some work to do in the movement.
Taylor: Absolutely.
Joravsky: What do you mean by that?
Taylor: A) we should not be on the Fifth Floor. And I’m speaking my whole heart. I feel like, and I’ve said this to them, and so whoever get the backlash, come on with it because I’m ready for it.
We were not ready because we haven’t been in government long enough to know how government really runs. You still got Rahm’s, you still got Daddy Daley’s people still in these committees, still in these departments. And so we got some uprooting to do.
But we just weren’t, I felt like we’re not ready and it’s showing out in the wash. I don’t gotta say it, people see it.
And we stopped doing the most important thing that movements do, and that means organize. Ain’t no way we’re on the Fifth Floor and we’re having all these issues and now they’re talking about he’s going to be a one-term mayor. Because we ain’t doing the thing that the movement does best, and that’s to organize our people and get people to see the entire picture, not the part of the picture or not a part of a conversation that they came in on.
Half of the people that are hollering at us that come to City Hall are not things that City Hall can fix. They are things that City Hall initiated, but they are not things that City Hall can fix. Why not take those people to the side and say, Hey, how do we help you? How do we do this? Well, we won’t do that.
We’re pretending like now we got the power let us show you how it’s supposed to be done. And we look real stupid right now.
The full show is here.
…Adding… I wrote this in comments, then decided to front-page it…
===Practitioners of “movement” politics are intellectually wired to operate as disrupters — or as an opposition party. Being in charge is not part of what they do.===
While mostly true, the alderperson’s comments are spot on.
The Brighton Park fiasco is a great case in point. They could’ve had people canvassing that neighborhood to calm folks down and counter the misinformation. The CTU has plenty of front groups and allies that could be dispatched.
Also, Johnson’s father is a pastor. He’s tapped in to a huge church network. Why did it take the mayor so long to talk to churches about taking in asylum-seekers? Why didn’t he bring pastors in and urge them to calm down their parishioners with facts instead of inciting fear and hate?
I could go on, but why bother?
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* From a January 2021 press release…
Using revenue from adult-use cannabis sales, the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA) today announced 80 grants totaling $31.5 million to organizations to help the communities hardest hit by the failed war on drugs. The organizations’ work includes violence prevention, legal aid, and re-entry services.
The grants are part of the Restore, Reinvest, and Renew (R3) Program, which was created as a key equity element of the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act (CRTA), signed by Governor Pritzker in 2019. The law requires that 25 percent of all cannabis revenue be used to support communities impacted by economic disinvestment, violence, and the severe and disproportionate damage caused by the war on drugs, largely and disproportionately impacted low income Illinoisans and communities of color.
Awardees include nonprofit organizations, local units of government, tax-exempt faith-based organizations, businesses, and other community organizations that serve residents of—or are based in—designated eligible R3 zones.
That first round of funding was known as Cohort 1. The funding for Cohort 1 will end in January. Cohort 2 was started in July of 2022, and it will run through June of 2025.
But if you are one of those initial 80 grant recipients and you didn’t make it into Cohort 2, or have programs that aren’t funded by Cohort 2, then you’re gonna have to wait until at least the fall of next year to apply for the third round of state grants.
* The Children’s Place Association is one of those groups. Here’s Cinaiya Stubbs, the association’s CEO…
The decision by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority to close out cannabis-funded, anti-violence programs on January 31, 2024 – without the next round of funding in place until fall 2024 at the earliest – for the 1st cohort of community providers, such as The Children’s Place Association, means that, for example, the care we provide to more than 90 youth ranging from kindergarten to 8th grade, and 15 community families in and around Humboldt Park will abruptly end and some staff will need to be let go.
The better decision by ICJIA would have been to have a “funding bridge” in place to prevent the interruption of services to families across Illinois and loss of valuable staff who may never return.
That last sentence is important. As we saw during the turbulent Rauner era, once service providers fully or partially shut down and lay off workers, it’s super difficult to build those groups back up again. This is literally human services infrastructure, and it can’t be replaced nearly as easily as physical infrastructure like a damaged bridge.
* Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton chairs the R3 board. So I asked her office for comment…
While Cohort 1 funding period is ending after 3 years in compliance Grant Accountability and Transparency Act, Cohort 2 continues to provide $133 million in programming in R3-eligible areas throughout Illinois. Those funds won’t expire until July 2025 and will again overlap with future Cohort grant cycles. Qualifying Cohort 1 grantees may apply for future R3 funds and any other ICJIA-administered state violence prevention grants.
The R3 program is designed to create a pathway to funding for qualifying grassroots community organizations in a process that is fair and equitable. Grants are awarded via a competitive process to ensure funding is available and accessible in each R3 area.
It’s our goal to ensure that communities throughout the state that have been disproportionally impacted by the war on drugs can have equitable access to R3 grants. We will continue to collaborate with ICJIA and continue to invest in the people and communities of Illinois.
Cold comfort to the groups that are losing out.
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* ABC 7 in January…
Data show that 40% of all pedestrians struck last year in Chicago were victims of hit-and-run crashes.
The ABC7 I-Team talked to one victim who said her court battle is an insurance claim wake-up call, for both walkers and bike riders.
One local woman thought her auto insurance would cover her when she was struck by a hit and run driver. When that didn’t happen, she brought her battle to court. […]
But in court, Direct Auto Insurance Company said in order to file a claim for a payout under uninsured motorist coverage, the customer must have been inside an automobile at the time of the hit-and-run.
* The circuit court sided with the insurance company. The appellate court reversed that decision…
The appellate court said it didn’t matter that Direct Auto’s policy states that coverage is available only to insureds who are injured while they are occupants of an insured vehicle.
“The terms of an insurance policy that conflict with a statute are void and unenforceable,” the majority opinion says. “Similarly, insurance policy terms cannot circumvent the underlying purpose of a statute in force at the time the policy is issued.”
* And yesterday, the Illinois Supreme Court sided with the appellate court. Sun-Times…
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that insured pedestrians or bicyclists struck by a hit-and-run or uninsured driver should be entitled to uninsured motorist coverage from their insurance companies.
The court said auto insurance companies whose policies include language requiring a person to be in an insured motor vehicle to qualify for uninsured motorist coverage are violating both the Illinois Insurance Code and public policy. […]
Attorneys for Direct Auto could not immediately be reached for comment.
* From the opinion…
The plain language of section 143a of the Insurance Code makes clear that an insurance policy cannot be “renewed, delivered, or issued for delivery” in Illinois unless it provides coverage to “any person” for injuries “arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of a motor vehicle.” A bicyclist injured by an uninsured motorist vehicle is a “person” who suffered injuries arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use of “a motor vehicle.” Therefore, the injured person’s status as an occupant of a vehicle is irrelevant since the statute includes “any person” in the protected category.
* From the law firm which fought this case all the way to the top…
“If you ride a bike in our streets, or are crossing the street, you can have the peace of mind knowing that if you are injured by a hit-and-run or uninsured driver, your insurance will cover you. And if they deny that claim, Disparti Law will be there to stand behind you for what is right,” continues Larry Disparti, Founder of Disparti Law Group.
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Open thread
Friday, Dec 1, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Friday, Dec 1, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* ICYMI: The Illinois Supreme Court ruled FOID records are exempt from public disclosure. Capitol News Illinois…
- The case revolved around a 2011 amendment to the Freedom of Information Act that exempts from public disclosure the names and information of people who have applied for or received FOID cards or concealed carry permits.
- In a 7-0 ruling, the court said the Illinois State Police acted properly when it denied FOIA requests from individuals who sought copies of letters explaining why their FOID cards had been denied or revoked.
- The court also said those individuals could have obtained those records through other means.
* Related stories…
* Isabel’s top picks…
* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup…
* Capitol News Illinois | State high court finds medical personnel exemption to biometric information privacy law: In a unanimous opinion, the justices ruled against a pair of nurses who sued their employers over their use of fingerprint-enabled medication storage – a technology many hospitals have adopted to curb abuse or theft of certain drugs.
* ABC Chicago | Father of 6-year-old killed in Will County stabbing, apparent hate crime files wrongful death suit: Odai Al-Fayoume filed a wrongful death lawsuit last week in Will County against Czuba for the incident, which took place in unincorporated Plainfield. The next court date is in March.
* Crain’s | United, American on collision course with Johnson administration over O’Hare rebuild: The airlines say the cost of a rebuild of Terminal 2 and the addition of two satellite concourses, as well as some related projects, now is pushing $7.6 billion, up from an estimated $7.1 billion last year. United and American have been warning airport officials for months that the cost of the expansion is at risk of running over a budget that’s already risen by $1 billion from its original $6.1 billion price tag.
* WGLT | Democrat files in mostly rural Illinois House 105th District race: An artist and former political campaign manager is running for office in a mostly rural, conservative Illinois House district. Democrat Morgan Phillips of Lostant has filed in the 105th House District that includes parts of McLean and eight other central Illinois counties. At age 24, Phillips said she would bring youth and a fresh perspective to the state legislature.
* WBEZ | Corruption in Illinois breeds voter cynicism, but what about voter apathy?: Plenty of forces enable corruption to thrive in Illinois — loophole-ridden ethics laws, policymakers unwilling to confront the problem head-on and a drastically shrunken nonpartisan press corps that once kept a close eye on political chicanery. Perhaps the more consequential question, though, centers on the effect Illinois’ corruption carousel is having on the health and well-being of the state’s democracy.
* Center Square | Illinois Republicans criticize Chicago mayor’s rhetoric over border crisis: Johnson continued by questioning the sanctity of the party.
“That’s what this particular party has been about,” Johnson said. “This is the same Republican right-wing extremism that stormed the Capitol. It’s the same right-wing extremism that refuses to accept the results of the Civil War. It’s raggedy, it’s disrespectful,” Johnson said. “It’s disrespectful, it’s mean spirited, it’s an unclean spirit.”
* Daily Southtown | South Suburban College to get $13 million grant for nursing education center; expects to break ground next year: The money, from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, comes on top of about $51 million previously approved by state legislators for the project, which is expected to break ground next summer. The building will house classrooms and labs for the school’s programs in areas such as nursing, pharmacy and occupational therapy and will “benefit generations to come,” said Terry Wells, chairman of the college’s board.
* WTTW | ‘This Is an Anomaly’: Part-Time Columbia College Faculty’s Record-Long Work Stoppage Continues Into Second Month: Issues arose amid ongoing contract negotiations, which began earlier this year. But tensions increased weeks before the academic year began when Columbia College eliminated more than 50 class sections for the current fall semester and 317 class sections for the upcoming spring semester — courses typically taught by part-time faculty.
* BGA | Unwritten Rules Limit City Council Gallery Seating; Reserve Prime Spots for “Invitation Only”: The written rules for public attendance posted on the City Clerk’s website have not been updated, and still state, “The public is admitted to the Gallery’s non-reserved seats on a first-come, first-served basis.” Media reports and verbal responses from the Sergeant-at-Arms have indicated that second-floor seating is now invitation only, with no clear process or policy for how those invitations occur.
* WBEZ | Opponents sue the city of Evanston for approving Northwestern’s stadium plans: The complaint in Cook County Circuit Court seeks to overturn last month’s narrow vote in favor of allowing concerts and other commercial events at the rebuilt Ryan Field, near single-family homes in the northern suburb and neighboring Wilmette.
* Daily Herald | Police officer caught child thrown from burning apartment building in West Chicago: A police officer caught a child thrown from the 24-unit building in the Main Park Apartments complex, West Chicago Fire Protection District Chief Patrick Tanner said. One woman jumped from a third-floor window, Tanner said. She was one of five people injured after the fire broke out in the three-story building on the 800 block of Burr Oaks Drive.
* AP | Corey Perry news: Former Chicago Blackhawks player says he’s seeking help for alcohol abuse: Corey Perry said Thursday he has begun working with mental health and substance abuse experts to discuss his struggles with alcohol after the Chicago Blackhawks terminated his contract for engaging “in conduct that is unacceptable” and violated his contract and team policies.
* WCIA | Teacher surprised with new car, part of Wheels to Prosper program organized by Teutopolis classmate: “My husband and I have been sharing a car for about a year-and-a-half,” Coffin said. “We had wanted to buy a house, so we sold my car so that way, we could make that a successful dream.”Unfortunately, that dream was cut short when Coffin’s husband suffered a stroke in 2022. Between three different jobs, Coffin takes care of her husband. And the tragic loss of her son, who died of cancer in 2018, is another burden she’s carrying.
* Chicago Reader | Hometown hero Mavis Staples provides inspiration at Cahn Auditorium: On Friday, December 1, Ms. Staples brings her unmistakable voice, gruff and heartfelt, along with her incredible catalog to Evanston’s Cahn Auditorium. Respect yourself and grab tickets to see a homegrown powerhouse with a message that transcends trend and genre.
* The Atlantic | The Murky Shoplifting Narrative: Despite inconclusive evidence, some retailers have seized on the narrative that theft is a major issue, pressuring lawmakers to crack down and changing the shopping experience as a result. The specter of shoplifting is haunting America. Viral videos show frightening scenes: people in masks smashing windows, groups swarming stores, thieves attacking workers. Retail executives have referred to theft as a serious threat, suggesting that their companies are victims of a national crime wave. Already, they have made a number of decisions—including locking up items, closing stores, and advocating for harsher larceny laws—under the auspices of trying to deter theft.
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Friday, Dec 1, 2023 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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