* WCIA…

The Illinois FOP Labor Council decided against pursuing reinstatement of the former Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy accused of murdering Sonya Massey.

Sangamon County officials confirmed Friday they had received a grievance form from the FOP union to reinstate Sean Grayson, the Sangamon County Deputy who shot Sonya Massey in the head earlier this month. While the union initially defended the grievance as part of their standard procedure, after finalizing their internal process, they announced they will not continue with the grievance.

“We have arrived at that final stage of the process where a determination can be made regarding whether or not to proceed with Sean Grayson’s grievance,” the labor council said in the statement. “The Union has determined that it will NOT be proceeding any further.”

“Our obligations under the collective bargaining agreement and to our members do not take away from the sympathy we feel for the family and loved ones of Sonya Massey,” the statement continues. “Our thoughts and prayers are with them and with all those impacted by this tragedy.” […]

The FOP state lodge criticized the Illinois FOP labor union for filing the grievance.

* Governor JB Pritzker…

Governor JB Pritzker today signed into law Senate Bill 3646, the Child Labor Law of 2024, which updates child labor regulations to the 21st century by repealing the existing statute and replacing it with a modern framework.

“While neighboring states weaken their child labor laws, in Illinois we’re modernizing our regulatory framework to further protect minors from unscrupulous employers,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Minors should be able to experience safe, age-appropriate work in an educational setting, and I’m proud of the added protections my administration and the General Assembly advanced through this bill.”

SB 3646 is intended to provide a structure for minors to engage in safe, age-appropriate work, while protecting their health and access to education. The bill sets standards for working conditions for children aged 15 and younger, including limiting hours of work and updating the list of jobs that minors cannot hold. The Illinois Child Labor Law has long required school officials to review a minor’s work opportunity and, with the permission of the minor’s parent or guardian, issue an employment certificate to the minor before they can lawfully work.

“My office will continue to work with the Illinois Department of Labor to protect minors from exploitation and from dangerous working conditions,” said Attorney General Kwame Raoul. “I will use all tools available to ensure minors are not subjected to unlawful labor practices.”

The bill updates the school certification process by:

- Requiring the issuing officer to consider the “health, welfare, and education” of the minor when assessing an employment certificate application, including consideration of past reports of death/injury of a minor at that workplace.
- Requiring that a minor’s work permit include the minor’s school schedule.
- Clarifying the certification process for minors who are experiencing homelessness or who do not have a birth certificate.

SB 3646 also provides the Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) with new tools to enforce the law and protect youth workers. To deter egregious violations, the bill updates penalty amounts and adds a multiplier in cases of a minor’s death, injury, or illness. Additionally, employers will now be required to report to the minor’s school if they are injured or killed at work.

* Lee Enterprises’ Brenden Moore keeping us up to date on the numbers…

* SJ-R…

Ahead of the start of the Illinois State Fair next week, state officials are once again touting major improvements and renovations to the fairgrounds.

Through the Rebuild Illinois Infrastructure Program — Gov. JB Pritzker’s 2019 capital improvements plan — $85.3 million has been allocated towards the Springfield fairgrounds as part of a multi-year and ongoing upgrades and repair plan.

So far, Illinois Department of Agriculture director Jerry Costello said more than $65 million has been spent on renovations plus another $8.3 million in improvements completed by the building and grounds staff over the last five years. Fairgoers, he said, will particularly notice improved roads and roofs and a modernized Coliseum. […]

“When people get on the grounds, I’m telling you, I think it looks better than it’s looked in decades,” Costello added.

* Click here for an accurate representation of me watching this clip…

Sedrick USA takes it 94 meters for bronze In English pic.twitter.com/cC4OgrKPDq

— dovtepfer (@dovtepfer1) July 30, 2024

*** Statewide ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Study: Illinois students still struggle with post-pandemic learning loss: A new study from the University of Illinois System says only about one-fourth of all public-school students are back to pre-pandemic performance levels in English language arts while even fewer have returned to pre-pandemic levels in math. Learning recovery has been especially slow at the high school level, where test scores have been declining, the study found. And recovery in math scores has lagged English language arts scores across grade levels.

* WMBD | Boys & Girls Clubs receives state funding to expand in Illinois: According to a news release from the Boys & Girls Clubs, it will receive $4 million in state funding that was secured with help from State Rep. Jehan Gordon Booth (D-Peoria) and State Sen. Elgie R. Sims (D-Chicago). “Throughout Illinois, Boys & Girls Clubs provide vital youth development opportunities that contribute to academic success, enhance social-emotional growth, teach important life lessons and promote healthy outcomes,” Gordon-Booth said. “It’s critical that our state invests in smart community programs that prioritize our children and make a strong, positive difference that can last a lifetime.”

*** Chicago ***

* WBEZ | Family of Sonya Massey is in Chicago for a rally after “rough” listening session in Springfield: Sonya Massey’s family members will be in Chicago Tuesday evening for a rally on the city’s West Side hosted by Black clergy leaders. The rally is called “Remembering Sonya Massey.” The 36-year-old unarmed Black woman was fatally shot by white Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson after she called law enforcement to her Springfield home.

* WaPo | Black journalists group announces Trump interview, sparking backlash: Karen Attiah, the 2019 NABJ journalist of the year, announced Tuesday she would step down as convention co-chair. “While my decision was influenced by a variety of factors, I was not involved or consulted with in any way with the decision to platform Trump in such a format,” she wrote on social media. (Attiah is a Washington Post columnist who works for the Opinions division of The Post, which operates separately from its news coverage.) Other journalists raised objections as well. TheGrio’s April Ryan — who clashed repeatedly with the then-president during her time as a White House correspondent — wrote that the invitation was “a slap in the face to the Black women journalists” who were verbally attacked by Trump.

* Block Club | Alderman’s Englewood Campout Gave Violent Block Relief. Neighbors Say They Need Help To Make Peace Last: Ald. David Moore (17th) camped out on 73rd Place between Ada Street and Racine Avenue for a week last month, pledging not to leave until he saw a positive turn in what he called an “open-air drug market.” The alderman stayed on the block for several nights, including the days following a nearby shooting broadcast on his Facebook Live channel. He ended his camp-out June 21. The alderman and two neighbors told Block Club Moore’s effort had a positive effect. It brought attention to the market, drew the Police Department to host a roll call on 73rd Place and prompted neighbors and community leaders to show support, they said. Neighbors came out on their porches and watered their grass while children played on the block during the alderman’s camp-out.

* Crain’s | U.S. Soccer to sell $200M of debt to finance Chicago-to-Atlanta HQ move: This will be the federation’s first national training center to operate fully under its control and it will serve as the home of 27 men’s and women’s US soccer teams, spanning various age groups. USSF has most recently been training at facilities owned by MLS’s Los Angeles Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City, while most of its roughly 1,400 staff have been based in Chicago. The vast majority of US Soccer staff will move to the new center, according to USSF.

* Block Club | Chicago’s Best Italian Beef? TikTok Star Keith Lee Weighs In: After one bite, Lee said [Al’s Italian Beef] sandwich was a “win in my opinion. It’s not even close.” “It’s spicy, it’s flavorful, it’s saucy,” he said. “I don’t even need to try the cheese sauce. This by itself is an 8.5 out of 10, and in my opinion, wins the Al’s versus Portillo’s war. In my opinion, the meat is way better, the bread is better, the sauce that it’s dipped in is better, the peppers are spicier.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Naperville Sun | Naperville police make 20th gun-related arrest at Topgolf parking lot in just under a year: According to Naperville police Cmdr. Rick Krakow, the officer was walking the Topgolf lot when they observed a black handgun in the rear passenger seat pocket of a vehicle. Officers set up surveillance on the vehicle and waited for its occupants to return, Krakow said. […] Online court records show the firearm that police spotted was a loaded Taurus 9mm Millennium G2 for which Cobbins did not have a valid Firearm Owner Identification card.

* ABC Chicago | Cook County treasurer introduces free Payment Plan Calculator for property taxes: The calculator is designed to help taxpayers manage incremental payments over time, so that their tax bill is fully paid before the Annual Tax Sale. Last year, the Illinois General Assembly created a task force to recommend payment options to prevent tax-delinquent owner-occupied homes in Cook County from being sold at the Annual Tax Sale. The tool launches Aug. 2, the day after property taxes are due. The tool will be available at cookcountytreasurer.com.

* Daily Herald | ‘You’re going to see me everywhere’: New Glen Ellyn Dist. 41 superintendent shares priorities: Jeffrey McHugh, the new superintendent of Glen Ellyn Elementary District 41, officially took the helm on July 1, but he’s already a familiar face. McHugh has been on a districtwide listening tour over the last six months. He’s met individually with principals and school board members. He’s visited all five of the district’s schools, spending about a half-day at each. And McHugh has plans to create advisory councils, one involving students and another comprised of both parents and households who don’t have children in the school system.

* Tribune | The water that raised her: US sailor Maggie Shea of Wilmette set her Olympic course on Lake Michigan: This is the lake that raised her, that taught her how to sail in unpredictable waters and provided some of her happiest childhood memories. It’s where the Wilmette native sat with her grandpa and listened to him explain racing strategy. It’s where she first competed against rival sailor Stephanie Roble, who would later become her teammate and close friend. And it’s where, when Shea and Roble needed money to fund their Olympic dream, the Chicago Yacht Club Foundation stepped in to help.

*** Downstate ***

* Tribune | Deere reports 300 more layoffs, this time of salaried workers: Deere & Co said it will lay off nearly 300 employees at its Moline headquarters in a notice filed with the state Monday. The batch of layoffs comes after the tractor giant said earlier this month it would lay off nearly 600 workers across two factories in Iowa and one in Moline. Deere confirmed the layoffs in a statement to the Tribune, noting the new batch of layoffs were of salaried employees and not production workers.

* SJ-R | Former UIS golfer confirms story from anonymous report, claims coach dismissed mental health concerns: A former member of the University of Illinois Springfield women’s golf team confirmed one of the anonymous allegations published this month against coach Michael Leotta and believes the only solution is to dismiss him. Lily Stanton competed last fall as a freshman for the Prairie Stars but said she left the team before the spring season due to Leotta’s conduct. The allegations were published by website 2aDays on July 9. She described the coach’s behavior as overwhelming and traumatic in a recent phone interview with The State Journal-Register.

* WCIA | Power restored for thousands in Springfield after severe storms: Many of the power outages left by severe storms Tuesday morning in Springfield were restored, City Water, Light and Power announced shortly before noon. As of 11:40 a.m., only 315 customers are still experiencing power outages. The area with the majority of those outages is north of Lanphier High School from N 11th St. to N 19th St. between E Watch Avenue and E Converse Street. CWLP added that this outage was caused by a downed tree damaging power poles.

* KFVS | Humane Society of Southern Illinois announces it is closing: In a news release, the shelter said there are several reasons leading to their closure, such as evolving community needs, operational challenges, increasing costs, lack of appropriate funding and continuing staffing needs. The shelter in Carbondale will stop taking in animals starting Wednesday, August 1, but HSSI hopes to find homes for the animals currently in their care through adoption or rescue groups.

*** National ***

* Wired | Zombie Alt-Weeklies Are Stuffed With AI Slop About OnlyFans: “We’re seeing an ever-increasing part of old media be reborn as AI-generated new media,” says Reality Defender cofounder and CTO Ali Shahriyari. “Unfortunately, this means way less informational and newsworthy content and more SEO-focused ‘slop’ that really just wastes people’s time and attention. Tracking these kinds of publications isn’t even part of our day to day, yet we’re seeing them pop up more and more.” LA Weekly laid off or offered buyouts to the majority of its staff in March 2024, while the Riverfront Times laid off its entire staff in May 2024 after it was sold by parent company Big Lou Media to an unnamed buyer.