* WBEZ…

Illinois residents on both sides of the political aisle strongly support increasing state funding for public colleges and universities, according to a new study released Monday by the nonpartisan research group Public Agenda. […]

The results are based on a survey of 2,062 Illinois adults aged 18 or older conducted in January.

The poll found that roughly half of Illinois residents don’t have any college credentials. Many respondents said they wanted to pursue a degree after high school but couldn’t afford to, or thought that their best option was to enter the workforce straight after high school. Almost 3 in 4 of those surveyed who don’t have a degree said that not earning one has negatively impacted their lives, with many citing limited career opportunities. Black and Latino residents reported more often than white residents that they don’t think they can afford to earn a degree.

* It’s just a bill. The Pantagraph…

Illinois lawmakers passed more than 600 bills ahead of their self-imposed deadline to move legislation out of the House or Senate and into the other chamber. There are always exceptions, but the deadline stands for most bills.

Altogether 378 House bills were moved to the Senate and 203 Senate bills advanced to the House. It represents only about 9% of the nearly 6,700 bill that were filed this session. […]

Senate bills that passed:

Senate Bill 32, sponsored by state Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Deerfield, would make households with one or more veteran and/or service member eligible for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits if gross household income is at or below 200% of the poverty line. It would be subject to federal approval. […]

Senate Bill 93, sponsored by Sen. Willie Preston, D-Chicago, would ban food additives such as red dye 3 and brominated vegetable oil from being used in food products produced and sold in Illinois. The federal Food and Drug Administration earlier this year banned red dye for use in food and ingested drugs.

*** Statehouse News ***

* CBS Chicago | Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias awards $1.3 million to school libraries: The grants, which are awarded each spring, support school library services for students from kindergarten through 12th grade, and include library books, e-books, audiobooks, periodicals, technology, programs and multilingual materials. Districts receive 88 cents per student through a state-determined formula based on enrollment at each school that has a qualified library. Chicago Public schools received more than $78,000 for libraries through his year’ grant. Other major recipients include Elgin School District U-46 which received more than $26,000; Rockford Public School District 205 which received over $21,000; Plainfield CCSD 202 which received just over $20,000.

* Keith Whyte | Illinois could set a new gold standard for responsible gambling: As Illinois legislators debate legalizing iGaming, problem gambling concerns remain at the forefront. Opponents of online gambling, often traditional gambling companies motivated by competitive concerns, raise some understandable fears about potential increases in problem gambling. However, they should also acknowledge that account-based online wagering is driving a revolution in responsible gambling. […] With over 20 years of experience tackling gambling addiction and advising policymakers, I know a legal, regulated market is far safer than offshore platforms. Illinois should embrace the potential for setting a new gold standard in consumer protection and responsible gaming through a regulated, taxed market.

*** Statewide ***

* WSIL | Illinois State Police operations recover 243 stolen cars, arrests dozens across the state: The ISP received a $10 million grant for the first fiscal year and an additional $677,000 grant in June 2024 from the Illinois Secretary of State Illinois Vehicle Hijacking and Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention and Insurance Verification Council. From January to March 2025, ISP operations led to the recovery of 243 stolen or hijacked vehicles, 16 stolen vehicle arrests, and 18 hijacked vehicle arrests. They used a K9 officer 16 times and there were 39 air operations which targeted stolen or hijacked vehicles. They also seized seven firearms during these operations as well.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | The Tri-State, Route 53, the Kennedy, oh my — What to expect on this year’s road construction menu: As the Illinois Department of Transportation wraps up a seismic, three-year Kennedy redo, the agency is pivoting to an ambitious Route 53 fix. “This year, in addition to our smaller maintenance and improvement projects in the northwest suburbs, we are rehabilitating 9 miles along Illinois 53 from I-90 to Lake Cook Road,” IDOT District 1 Bureau Chief of Construction Jonathan Schumacher said.

* Daily Herald | Niece of man killed by Carol Stream police gets pretrial diversion for threat: Dajanae Barnes, 23, of Carol Stream admitted April 17 to one count of threatening a public official, according to DuPage County court records. Under the terms of her plea deal, Barnes will enter a pretrial diversion program. If she completes it successfully by April 16, 2026, she will be allowed to withdraw her plea and prosecutors will dismiss the charge. […] During a detention hearing after her arrest, prosecutors told a judge Barnes said “I’ll blow this building up, watch when I get out. So take me to jail for saying that too.”

* Evanston Now | NU to fund research paused by feds: In a statement, administrators wrote that the university has still not received a formal notice of the reported funding pause totaling $790 million, including “a significant portion of our federal research funding.” But on Thursday, administrators wrote that the university, “after consultation with the Board of Trustees, will fund research that is subject to stop-work orders or the federal funding freeze.”

* Tribune | Construction of new Chicago Sky training facility in Bedford Park delayed into 2026 to accommodate expansion: The $38 million facility originally was expected to be completed in October 2025. The building is being constructed in partnership with the village of Bedford Park as part of the second phase of development at the Wintrust Sports Complex, which also will add two turf fields, a hotel, a gas station and two restaurants this year. After altering the original construction plans to expand the facility, the Sky and the village now anticipate that completion will be delayed several months. Despite the additions, the Sky told the Tribune they expect the facility to be available for training camp in April 2026.

* Tribune | Niles Township High School District 219 cuts seven administrators in restructuring plan: Niles Township High School District 219’s Board of Education voted 4-1 at its April 7 meeting to cut seven administrator positions and create four assistant principal positions. The move followed Superintendent Tom Moore’s earlier announcement that the district has a greater percentage of administrators per student than surrounding districts, and a desire to be more efficient with taxpayer dollars.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Mayor Johnson cracks the door open to city layoffs, service cuts: With a $1.12 billion budget shortfall and $3 billion more in federal funds on the chopping block, Mayor Brandon Johnson on Monday cracked the door open to the prospect of layoffs and service cuts that he has previously ruled out. “We will have to deal with the realities of the billions of dollars that are being threatened by the federal government. That’s a different scenario than we were under before,” Johnson said as he signed an executive order establishing a working group to advise him on ways to confront the city’s fiscal challenges.

* Crain’s | Johnson creates budget working group to search for efficiencies and revenue: Hoping to get ahead of what’s anticipated to be an arduous 2026 budget cycle, Mayor Brandon Johnson is creating a working group to put forward plans to cut spending and raise revenue that have thus far not had political support during his nearly two years in office. It’s unlikely the group will identify solutions that are not already known or haven’t been put forward previously, but a set of policy ideas supported by a broad coalition, if they materialize, could lead to better buy-in from a City Council that has made life difficult for the first term mayor.

* Crain’s | Congress calls on DePaul president to testify in antisemitism probe: Manuel will be joined by leaders from California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo) and Haverford College as part of the the Republican-led committee’s probe of allegations of antisemitism on college campuses. In a letter sent to the Chicago college today, committee chairman Tim Walberg, a Republican congressman from Michigan, wrote: “Tragically, Committee oversight shows that antisemitism persists on college campuses, specifically at DePaul University.”

* WTTW | Tonight You Can Look for the Lyrids, the Year’s First Meteor Shower. Here’s How to View in Chicago: The Lyrids will be active through Friday, but tonight is peak viewing, starting around midnight. Under dark skies, the best time to catch the meteors would be 3 a.m. to 4 a.m., but the moon will be rising and obscuring the dimmer Lyrids. So experts recommend either finding an object — such as a tree — to block the moon, keep the moon at your back, or head out while the moon is low on the horizon.

*** Downstate ***

* BND | Environmental group and metro-east coal plant agree to dismiss federal lawsuit : A lawsuit that alleged a metro-east coal plant operated without proper state documentation has been dismissed after the company and the environmental group reached an agreement this week. […] The Sierra Club staff said that no coal plant is above the law. “We are looking forward to now participating in that process to make sure the permit reflects the most stringent requirements to protect Illinois and Missouri citizens from pollution from this plant,” said Megan Wachspress, a staff attorney with the Illinois Sierra Club.

* WSIU | SIU pioneers mental health response program for emergency calls: Thanks to a new grant-funded program, responders with specialized skills in mental health are available to assist when needed in emergency calls at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, de-escalating situations, improving outcomes and helping students stay in school, officials said. SIU’s Department of Public Safety, Counseling and Psychological Services and others have developed a collaborative response team, funded by an Illinois Board of Higher Education Mental Health Early Action on Campus Competitive Grant of $290,000.

* WGLT | Central Illinois mental health providers say there are lots of barriers still for ketamine therapy despite positive results: Mental health providers in Central Illinois offering ketamine say it has changed patients’ lives, like Marie’s, for the better. Still, only a handful of clinics offer the service, and additional barriers — time commitment, cost, insurance — can prevent access for people who need the treatment most.

* NPR Illinois | Springfield’s mayor announces a series of community meetings: Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher and her administration have announced a series of what are being called “departmental open houses” where residents can speak with City staff and ask questions. “This initiative is part of a broader push to increase transparency, provide consistent access to resources, and gain a deeper understanding of agency operations while learning about the community’s needs,” an announcement said. “These events will not only create direct, face-to-face communication but will also serve as a foundation for an ongoing community needs assessment to help guide future policies, services, and investments.”

*** National ***

* WTTW | Walgreens Agrees to Pay $300M to Settle Opioid Lawsuit Claims: As part of a settlement with the U.S. government, Walgreens, one of the largest pharmacy chains in the country, has agreed to pay at least $300 million to settle claims it illegally filled millions of invalid opioid prescriptions. […] According to the feds, the settlement amount will jump another $50 million in the event Walgreens is sold, merged or transferred prior to 2032.

* AP | 60,000 Americans to lose their rental assistance and risk eviction unless Congress acts: But the program, Emergency Housing Vouchers, is running out of money — and quickly. Funding is expected to be used up by the end of next year, according to a letter from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and obtained by The Associated Press. That would leave tens of thousands across the country scrambling to pay their rent.

* The Atlantic | The scramble to save rural health care from DOGE: The reason wasn’t only because so many patients relied on Medicaid, which was currently being targeted by the Trump administration for $880 billion in cuts. Cahaba’s clinics also depended upon an array of more obscure federal grants of the sort that President Donald Trump’s adviser Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency had been summarily deleting before fully understanding the lives that would be upended in the real world. In the gray language of the federal bureaucracy, the funding that mattered most was from the Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education Program—THCGME—and it was the reason the clinic in Perry County and others in some of the poorest corners of rural America had any doctors at all.