* Earlier today, I told you about SoS Giannoulias’ push to raise the age for mandatory road tests to 87. From AAA…

The crash rate of drivers ages 16-17 years was nearly double that of drivers ages 18-19 and approximately 4.5 times that of drivers ages 30-39, 40-49, and 50-59 Drivers ages 60-69 had the lowest crash rate. Crash rates began to increase beyond age 70; however, drivers ages 70-79 had crash rates similar to or lower than those of drivers ages 30-59, and drivers age 80 and older had crash rates higher than those of drivers ages 30-79 but lower than those of drivers younger than age 30. Rates of injury crashes generally followed a pattern very similar to overall crash involvement rates.

Rates of fatal crashes followed a somewhat different pattern. Fatal crash involvements per 100 million miles driven were the greatest for drivers age 80 and older.

* Sun-Times…

It’s been nearly half a century since a little-known Georgia peanut farmer hoisted a nine-year-old girl and her kid sister into the air at a South Shore church and gave them each a kiss on the cheek before introducing himself to Chicago.

“Hello everyone, my name is Jimmy Carter” Kimberly Ray can still hear the Democratic presidential candidate saying at that April 1976 campaign event. […]

But the passion of his Chicago supporters wasn’t enough. Carter won the presidency in 1976, but lost Illinois to incumbent President Gerald Ford. Four years later, he lost the state again, losing his reelection bid to Republican Ronald Reagan, who was born in Tampico, Illinois.

Of course, that 1980 defeat did not end Carter’s legacy. As the nation’s longest living former president, Carter developed a reputation for his humanitarian efforts.

“I know my mother would have been so proud of him,” Kimberly Ray said of Carter’s work since Angie Ray’s death in 2005. “His body of work is not just being an amazing president, but genuinely caring about people.”

* Governor JB Pritzker attended President Carter’s funeral today…

The five living presidents made a rare simultaneous appearance on Thursday at Jimmy Carter’s funeral. Before 1991, there was only one other period in U.S. history, around 1861, when more than five presidents were even alive at the same time. https://t.co/lCTj50sPJA pic.twitter.com/atEQlhIzEa

— The New York Times (@nytimes) January 9, 2025

*** Statehouse News ***

* Bloomberg | Pritzker says Illinois is ‘on guard’ for any Trump hit to budget: Pritzker is expected to propose a spending plan for the year starting July 1 in just over a month, and his budget office’s five-year analysis is projecting a deficit of about $3 billion for fiscal 2026. Pritzker described the upcoming budget as “challenging” but added that since taking office, he’s addressed a number of fiscal crises in Illinois. “We are doing the best that we can to try to predict the things that might happen,” Pritzker told reporters in Springfield on Wednesday. He said he’s weighing the possibility that potential changes “will create another hole in the budget,” adding that President Donald Trump’s actions are “so unpredictable.”

* Press release | IDPH Approves New Conditions for Treatment with Medical Cannabis: The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has approved four conditions to be added to the list of medical issues that may be treated with medical cannabis. The four newly approved conditions are endometriosis, ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, and female orgasmic disorder. The approval by IDPH Director, Dr. Sameer Vohra, comes following a thorough review by the Medical Cannabis Advisory Board (MCAB) and IDPH staff.

*** Statewide ***

* Illinois Soybean Association | Illinois Declares Soybean as Official State Bean : “I would like to extend our gratitude to Representative Matt Hanson and the Illinois General Assembly for officially designating the soybean as the state bean of Illinois. This bill helps raise awareness of the importance of soybeans to our state’s economy and agricultural sector,” said Andrew Larson, Director of Government Relations & Strategy at the Illinois Soybean Association. “We thank Representative Hanson for his work highlighting the importance Illinois farmers play in our state.”

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | CPS CEO Pedro Martinez injunction hearing postponed by judge: On Dec. 24, Judge Joel Chupack granted Martinez’s request for a temporary restraining order to prevent Board of Education members from attending contract negotiations with the Chicago Teachers Union without his approval; or block him from the “performance of his job duties.” Representatives for Martinez and the school board agreed to defer the hearing because the school chief’s court order — or injunction — is complicated by the Jan. 15 meeting in which 10 newly elected and 11 members appointed by the mayor will be seated, William J. Quinlan, Martinez’s attorney said.

* Block Club | One Alderwoman’s Crusade To Ban Legal Weed Dispensaries In Her Southwest Side Ward: Ald. Silvana Tabares (23rd) does not want the marijuana business in her ward. So she’s going door-to-door with a pen and a clipboard, asking neighbors to sign petitions to block licensed dispensaries from setting up shop at all. “As an alderman, I want family-friendly businesses that anybody can enjoy. Like an Andy’s Frozen Custard,” Tabares said. “Residents are signing. They agree with that.”

* Sun-Times | Three of CPD’s most notorious bad actors trigger $33.75 million in settlements: Three former police officers implicated in scores of wrongful conviction cases are coming back to haunt Chicago taxpayers yet again. Former Detective Reynaldo Guevara and former Sgt. Ronald Watts took their place alongside Jon Burge and his midnight crew of Area 2 detectives as the Chicago Police Department’s most notorious bad actors and legal liabilities. Another round of costly proof is on Monday’s agenda for the City Council’s Finance Committee.

* Sun-Times | After decades in prison and 8 years in court, Mark Maxson settles wrongful conviction suit for $8.75 million: Eight years after he was freed from prison for a South Side murder that another man has confessed to, alleged police torture victim Mark Maxson has settled his federal wrongful conviction lawsuit against the city for $8.75 million. […] Maxson’s settlement must be approved by the City Council. He and the city’s Law Department have signed off on the agreement in federal court, records show. It’s among almost $40 million in legal settlements the Finance Committee will consider Monday, including $17.5 million for Thomas Sierra in his wrongful conviction case against retired Chicago Police Detective Reynaldo Guevara.

* WTTW | Developer Moves Forward With Lincoln Park Apartment Complex, Setting Stage for Fight Over Aldermanic Prerogative: Sterling Bay will hold a community meeting at 6 p.m. Jan. 15 at 1840 N. Marcey St., the site of the planned development that would build two towers — one reaching 25 stories and the other 15 stories — across the north branch of the Chicago River from the planned Lincoln Yards megadevelopment, which has yet to get off the ground. That meeting, designed to again give community members a chance to weigh in on the project, is the first step on a path that could result in the apartment complex’s approval by the City Council despite the opposition of Ald. Scott Waguespack, whose 32nd Ward includes the proposed development.

* Tribune | Bird deaths plummet at McCormick Place Lakeside Center after safety film installed: In 2023, the death toll for a single day was so high — at least 960 birds — that the carnage became national news. But this fall, when bird collision monitors performed their usual daily searches of the building’s grounds, they found something remarkable: just 18 dead birds.

* Tribune | Chicago couple first to sue ex-Sgt. Ronald Watts in line for $7.5M settlement: Attorneys have proposed a $7.5 million payout to settle the first of more than 150 federal lawsuits alleging phony arrests by corrupt ex-Chicago police Sgt. Ronald Watts and his team, records show. Ben Baker sued Watts and the city in 2016, alleging the longtime tactical sergeant in charge of the Ida B. Wells housing complex pinned bogus drug cases on him — and in one instance, his partner, Clarissa Glenn — in retaliation for refusing to pay Watts a $1,000 bribe. Baker spent about 10 years in prison before his conviction was thrown out.

* Tribune | Today in Chicago History: ‘McCaskey, you’re a bum!’ The coin flip that cost the Chicago Bears Terry Bradshaw: “McCaskey, you’re a bum!” former Chicago sportswriter Jack Griffin hollered from the back of the room to Bears owner George Halas’ son-in-law. “You couldn’t even win a coin flip!” The Steelers used the No. 1 pick to draft quarterback Terry Bradshaw, who led owner Art Rooney’s team to eight American Football Conference Central Division titles and four Super Bowl titles in 14 years.

* Crain’s | What’s next for the controversial hot tub boats on the Chicago River: Hot tub boats on the Chicago River captured the attention of the masses last winter when a couple was caught on camera publicly fornicating aboard one of the new vessels. Other river users had also reported negative interactions with the boats and wanted the program to end. We are now well into season two of hot tubs cruising the Chicago River, and not only are the controversial boats not going away, the company behind them is doubling down. The Chicago Electric Boat Co. introduced two new vessels in December and plans to add another two in February, bringing the total fleet to six.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* WBEZ | Highland Park massacre suspect regains some phone privileges; trial to begin next month: Robert Crimo III is now allowed to call his parents from Lake County Jail, Judge Victoria Rossetti ruled during a brief court hearing Thursday. Crimo has had his communication privileges revoked several times over the two years he’s been jailed on charges he fatally shot seven people and injured at least 48 others from a rooftop overlooking the north suburb’s 2022 Fourth of July parade.

* Daily Herald | Suburban schools using PowerSchool software affected by data breach: Mundelein High School District 120 Superintendent Kevin Myers posted information to his community on the district’s website. “While information from District 120 students and staff was accessed, PowerSchool informed us they are confident data collected during this breach has already been destroyed without evidence of being misused or shared,” Myers wrote. “The breach occurred on Dec. 28 and was reported to D120 on Jan. 7. We were one of many school districts impacted.”

*** Downstate ***

* NBC Chicago | Shabbona Lake State Park to be transferred to Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation: The state park, located in DeKalb County, is situated on land that was illegally seized and auctioned off by the United States government in the 1800s, with officials saying in statements that they were rectifying an historic wrong in transferring ownership of the park to the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. […] According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the legislation would require the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation to maintain the land as a public conservation area. A spokesperson told the newspaper when the bill was introduced that the state park would remain open to the public.

* SJ-R | Feeling lucky? Springfield alderman wants to revive talk about a casino here: A Springfield alderman wants to revive discussion about the possibility of Springfield getting in line for a casino license from the State of Illinois. A resolution that the city be included for consideration of receiving a casino license was shelved by the Springfield committee of the whole in 2022. But possible revenue streams and jobs has Ward 2 Ald. Shawn Gregory more than interested in the venture.

*** National ***

* Columbia Journalism Review | Net Neutrality Is Dead (Again). Journalism Could Suffer.: Matt DeRienzo, the executive director of the group Local Independent Online News Publishers, also wrote in 2017 about what the repeal would mean for local journalism. Independent sites that had sprung up to fill gaps in the sector rely on “an Internet based on a level playing field for all publishers and readers, regardless of size or resources,” he argued. The end of net neutrality would mean that big internet and wireless providers could charge individual publishers for differing levels of speed and access, “a scenario in which a handful of big companies with deep pockets could squeeze out” small outlets. This, DeRienzo wrote, would “severely limit citizens’ access to information and could be devastating to local news.” Since then, there hasn’t been a lot of clear evidence that these negative effects have occurred. But they could feasibly have been obscured by the general decline in the industry’s financial health. Either way, the recent verdict is clearly not good news for beleaguered smaller publishers fighting for every competitive advantage they can get.