* ICYMI: Full SNAP benefits going out starting Friday as shutdown ends, Illinois officials say. Sun-Times…

- With the country’s longest government shutdown finally over, Illinois officials say they expect full SNAP food assistance to begin flowing Friday and that the nearly 2 million people in the state that rely on the program to buy groceries will receive full benefits by Nov. 20.
- “This crisis was entirely avoidable — the Trump Administration had the funding to fully support SNAP but chose not to, putting tens of millions of Americans at risk of hunger,” the Illinois Department of Human Services said in a statement on Thursday.
- The bill signed by President Donald Trump Wednesday night funds SNAP through next September. Across the state, there are 1.8 million people who get SNAP benefits each month, receiving about $370 on average, according to IDHS.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | Gov. JB Pritzker renews push for Illinois homeowners’ insurance rate oversight after bill fails in state House: Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday renewed his call for legislation requiring insurance companies to justify and disclose the reasons behind steep homeowners’ insurance rate hikes — a proposal that stalled in the Illinois House last month despite support from the Democratic-controlled Senate. Pritzker said the state’s lack of authority over insurers leaves homeowners vulnerable to sharp premium increases, pointing to Bloomington-based State Farm’s decision this summer to raise home insurance rates by more than 27%. The company attributed the increases to extreme weather coupled with costly repairs.

* Sun-Times | Clock ticking for Illinois lawmakers to navigate hemp hurdles: That measure easily passed Illinois Senate President Don Harmon’s chamber, but never got a vote in the House, facing steep opposition from the hemp industry and pushback from lawmakers reluctant to criminalize products that have supported thousands of jobs. “This surprised everybody, and we’re trying to figure it out,” Harmon said. “Obviously, the Senate’s been trying to regulate hemp for a long time, and maybe this changes the baseline and gives us a fresh perspective from which to tackle the problem, but it’s just too early for us to pronounce what direction we’re going in.”

* Capitol News Illinois | Durbin defends shutdown vote, says it wasn’t coordinated with Schumer: “I think that is the crudest form of political weapon that I can imagine — and that’s why I came to the conclusion that we had tried to find a bipartisan agreement, and we reached it,” Durbin said following an unrelated event in Springfield. Durbin was one of eight members of the Senate Democratic caucus who joined Republicans in advancing the deal, providing the votes needed to break a filibuster. The measure passed Congress and was signed by President Donald Trump on Wednesday.

*** Statewide ***

* WTWO | Illinois Lottery named top performing lottery in the nation for second time: The Illinois Lottery under Allwyn Management has managed to be named the highest-performing lottery in North America even after an absence of major multistate jackpots. Despite this, the Illinois lottery has only seen a 2.6% decline, beating the next state by .4%. Illinois also ranked in the top 10 nationally for total instant ticket sales and record online sales of $702,000,000 in fiscal year 25. This is also impressive with Illinois holding no billion-dollar or more jackpots throughout the fiscal year.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Press Release | Prominent Union Endorsements Propel Momentum–United Steelworkers District 7 Endorses State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit for Illinois Comptroller: United Steelworkers (USW) District 7 has given its endorsement of State Representative Stephanie Kifowit for Illinois Comptroller, citing her unwavering pro-labor record, her deep financial expertise, and her visionary plan to protect workers’ rights and pensions through the Comptroller’s office.

* Journal & Topics | Moylan’s Health Issues, ‘Frustration’ Led Dem Candidate Cochran To Run In Primary: Justin Cochran, the 38-year-old Des Plaines resident whom it’s believed will replace longtime State Rep. Marty Moylan (D-55th) on the March 17, 2026 Democratic primary ballot, said this week that “frustration” with politics, specifically the Donald Trump presidential administration, is what directed him into the political arena. Cochran’s entry into local politics was in 2018 and within a year he was working as Moylan’s legislative office chief of staff. In that role, he provides constituent services, schedules meetings for Moylan, and “interfaces with Springfield.”

* WMBD | On the Record: Energy bill will not raise rates according to Peoria Democrat: That second measure would allow the creation of “energy storage facilities.” Once constructed, the storage units will hold power produced by solar and wind, allowing it to be dispersed when the sun isn’t out or the wind is slow, Koehler said. “We have to add more supply and battery storage adds supply,” he said. “We know that we have to put more energy onto the grid if we’re going to bring prices down. It’s a simple fact of supply and demand, and we know that demand is high in the summertime.

* Capitol News Illinois | Education union, students call on governor to release higher education funding: But the governor’s office said in an email to Capitol News Illinois that it does not intend to release the state-approved funding until it sees “stability” on federal education policy coming from Washington. “(President) Trump’s budget bill and reckless tariffs have wreaked havoc on state revenues nationwide, making it essential to double down on fiscal discipline,” a spokesman in the governor’s office said.

* Tri States Public Radio | Illinois education groups call for tax on millionaires : The president of a union representing employees at more than half a dozen public universities in Illinois said they will be pushing state lawmakers next year to improve funding for the institutions, even though it’s an election year. “There is no good year, right? Every year is always a reason not to do something. So when is the reason to do something?” said John Miller, President of the University Professionals of Illinois Local 4100.

* Muddy River News | Quincy lobbyist Michael McClain gets 45-day extension to report, after prison screw up, defense attorney says: Judge Manish Shah has granted lobbyist Michael McClain until December 29 to report for his two-year prison sentence as part of the Commonwealth Edison conspiracy case. “It’s not like we’re begging for more time,” defense attorney Patrick Cotter said. “The Bureau of Prisons screwed up, again.” McClain was scheduled to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons by October 30, but his attorney was forced to seek an extension when the BOP failed to designate a location.

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Johnson wants $1.3 billion as part of $18 billion, 5-year infrastructure plan: Mayor Brandon Johnson is seeking $1.3 billion in new borrowing to support a $18 billion, five-year capital funding plan in the City Council. The infrastructure plan includes issuing up to $3.9 billion in general obligation bonds over five years, and the new borrowing is drawing fire from members of the City Council who only authorized $830 million in infrastructure borrowing in February in a narrow 26-23 vote after a protracted fight over the structure of the financing.

* Crain’s | Johnson unveils amended budget to a skeptical City Council: The largest revenue change is increasing the city’s lease tax, which extends to everything from film production equipment rentals to computing software, from 11 to 15% to bring in an additional $416 million. Johnson’s initial proposal called for a 14% rate. […] Jack Lavin, CEO of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement the City Council should push off a vote until more detail is provided on the overall plan. “Our city’s businesses, families, and taxpayers deserve greater transparency and demand better accountability,” he said.

* NBC Chicago | ISIS terror plot exposed against 2024 Chicago Pride Parade: An ISIS plot to attack the Chicago Pride Parade with a backpack bomb in 2024 was discussed on a terrorist website but never carried out, according to FBI records obtained by the NBC Chicago investigative team. The bombing plot was to be carried out as an initial salvo in a series of attacks against gay targets in the U.S., according to an FBI affidavit in a terror case indicted Thursday in Detroit.

* Sun-Times | Judge plans March trial over feds’ use of force in Chicago deportation push: During a hearing Thursday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis told lawyers, “All I know about this is what I’ve read in the paper, which is that the operation is changing, I guess, over the next few months. … But then I read that they intend to be back in March.” Justice Department lawyer Andrew Warden told the judge, “There has been a transition of officers. There always is. Folks come in and out of operations. As far as, ‘will there be a sort of ramp-up in the spring?’ I don’t know whether that’s the case.”

* Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago offers free virtual therapy to students, but some have concerns: CPS and the company, Hazel Health, say the provider safeguards student data and has helped the district tackle a teen mental health crisis at a time of limited access to care, threatened further by looming Medicaid cuts. “CPS has worked hard to ensure all CPS high school students have access to free, high-quality online therapy and counseling while maintaining student safety, privacy, and trust,” a district spokeswoman said in a statement. But student privacy advocates are urging the school board to drop or overhaul the district’s agreement with Hazel Health. They say the company’s parent consent form raises concerns about the possible use of student data to develop its product in violation of the state’s online student privacy law.

* Block Club | Derrick Rose Moves Back To Chicago In Retirement: ‘I Love Chi. The Good, The Bad, The Ugly’: The city declared Jan. 4 “Derrick Rose Day” in honor of the former All-Star point guard, while Rose had an Englewood garden dedicated to him and the Chicago Bulls announced plans to retire his jersey on Jan. 24, 2026. Rose discussed how his move back to Chicago was motivated by him wanting to be present for his three children. “Since I retired, I had time to really think about what’s the difference between a dad and a father,” Rose said, reflecting on his father’s absence in his life. “I always looked at my pops in the father category because he never was around.”

* NBC Chicago | Popular Chicago pie shop adds Malort-flavored item to their menu: “Here’s to you Chicago! We don’t have a liquor license so we can’t raise a glass, but we can raise our forks. Bring your big shoulders in for a slice of Chicago Sunrise (aka Malort and grapefruit) pie!” the post said. The pie is described on the shop’s website as a “one of a kind pie” that’s “garnished with a ring of lightly sweetened whipped cream.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | Metra, Pace approve budgets with no fare hikes: Metra’s leaders approved a budget that spares riders from a fare hike next year, but they acknowledged it won’t be an express train to the hoped-for transformational service expansion. The commuter rail agency won’t see any service cuts next year, thanks to the $1.5 billion transit bailout passed in Springfield last month. But Metra’s $1.2 billion proposed budget, passed Thursday by the agency’s board of directors, largely keeps the status quo with plans for yet-to-be determined “modest service increases.” Metra CEO Jim Derwinski said there is still tough work ahead to expand service, even though the agency has overcome an impending deficit when federal COVID-19 funds run out next year.

* CBS Chicago | Judge tours Broadview ICE processing facility amid claims of inhumane conditions: Lawyers for the plaintiffs did not speak to reporters after completing the tour. In a statement from the MacArthur Justice Center, the ACLU of Illinois, and Eimer Stahl of Chicago, attorneys declined to discuss the conditions they saw inside the facility during the tour.

* WGN | Costs mount as National Guard soldiers sit on standby: On a military base an hour southwest of Chicago, National Guard soldiers from Texas are more than a month into a deployment. The Trump administration ordered troops to the area to protect federal property and personnel during immigration enforcement operations. […] The military says 200 National Guard soldiers from Texas and 300 from Illinois have been federalized for the Chicago operation for 60 days. The left-leaning Institute for Policy Studies pegs the deployment cost at a minimum of $647 per day, per soldier. The estimated total cost: $12.8 million.

* Daily Southtown | Homer Glen trustees again voice support for license plate reader cameras: Homer Glen officials are preparing to move forward with installing license plate reader cameras in town, but want to hear all potential privacy concerns before final approval. All six trustees voiced their support for the Flock Safety license plate camera system at a board meeting Wednesday and want to obtain more information about price, locations they would be installed and how they would be implemented. No vote on installing the cameras was taken, and trustees plan to continue discussion in December.

* Daily Herald | DuPage County clerk’s request for more money denied; board member suggests censure: In addition to raising doubts about the need for extra money, board members pointed to an ongoing lack of communication, questions over billing and bidding practices in the clerk’s office and Kaczmarek’s absence from county board meetings. “They are giving us information piecemeal, which makes it really difficult for us to have a full financial picture,” board member Yeena Yoo said. “I just feel like we’re giving them a blank check.”

* Daily Herald | ‘Belief in the limitless potential of our kids’: Boys and Girls Club turning old school into Impact Center: On Thursday, the club held a ceremonial wall-smashing where leaders took small sledgehammers to demolish a piece of drywall. Leaders also updated community members about the organization’s plans to help middle school and high school students. “This space will once again be filled with the sounds of young people learning, laughing and growing,” Barrington Unit School District 220 Superintendent Craig Winkelman told the crowd.

*** Downstate ***

* KWQC | Emails show Mercer County superintendent ordered nurse to turn over student health records: KWQC obtained his emails through the Freedom of Information Act. They center on communications in September between Farquer and a nurse, Amber Wood. According to the emails, Wood alerted the county health department that the school was seeing cases of hand, foot and mouth disease. Farquer asked Wood to compile information about the students, but Wood was reluctant.

* PJ Star | Peoria County approves fee increases for five departments in $174 million : A gradual increase of some user fees in Peoria County was approved by the Peoria County Board on Thursday night after some debate about how to structure the fee increases. User fees will be raised across five county departments, but only the new fees raised by the County Clerk’s Office will be implemented on a two-year ramp after County Clerk Rachael Parker raised concerns about the increases.

* Illinois Times | Voters to weigh tax increase for mental health board: The Mental Health Commission unanimously voted to approve language for a March referendum asking Sangamon County residents if they would approve a half-percent sales tax increase (an additional 5 cents per $10 of goods purchased, 50 cents per $100) to fund a county mental health board that would disburse such taxes toward various mental health initiatives. The tax would not be included on grocery or medication purchases. If approved, the tax would generate more than $14 million for a mental health board, according to county estimates.

* WGLT | Explosion of sports wagering discussed at problem gambling conference in Normal: Dave Wohl is executive director of the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling [ICPG], the nonprofit hosting the conference at the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. Wohl said the council is neutral on gambling but is opposed when it leads to addiction, noting gambling is the leading cause of suicide among all addictions. “As with any addiction, when it starts affecting other aspects of your life, that’s when you need to talk to somebody, you need to get some help,” Wohl said in an interview on WGLT’s Sound Ideas.

* Illinois Times | Newly formed PURPLE Coalition aims to tackle unresolved inequalities: Made up entirely of volunteers and organized as a limited liability company, the Springfield-based coalition will “bring our community together, not through fear or division, but through understanding and community,” she said. “We will keep listening, keep organizing and keep pushing until justice, transparency and compassion are the standard, not the exception,” she said. Standage said the group’s name is an “ode” to Sonya Massey, the 36-year-old Black woman who was murdered in her home in Woodside Township, just outside the borders of Springfield’s east side, in July 2024 by former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson. The acronym formed by the coalition’s name was Massey’s favorite color.

* WICS | Lanphier High principal resigns amid battery charge for allegedly punching student: Christopher Hampsey, the Lanphier High School principal who faces an aggravated battery charge as authorities said he punched a student in the face, has resigned. Hampsey was previously on administrative leave after an incident involving Hampsey pushing a student into a corner and punched him in the face and head.

* Rockford Register Star | Rockford apartments ​for rent saw price increases since last October: Renters in Rockford saw apartment listing prices increase 8% from last year’s median of $999, an analysis of new data from rental marketplace Zumper shows. The typical apartment listed for rent at $1,080 in October. Median listing prices in Rockford are trending 8% upwards from last month’s $1,000 price.

* News-Gazette | Campustown restaurant to close after 53 years: Timpone’s Ristorante, 710 S. Goodwin Ave., announced the news in a Saturday advertisement with The News-Gazette. The business is set to close on Dec. 20. “Until our final day of service, we will continue to offer the signature made-from-scratch menu that has defined Timpone’s Ristorante since 1972,” the business stated in its ad. “We warmly invite you to join us one last time to savor your favorite dishes, share a story or two, and celebrate the wonderful journey we’ve shared together.”

*** National ***

* Newsweek | Tokyo Named World’s Richest City—Here’s Where US Cities Ranked: U.S. cities dominated the top 25 spots, with Greater Chicago coming seventh, followed by the San Francisco Bay Area (9), Greater Washington (12), Dallas-Fort Worth (13), Greater Houston (14), Greater Boston (15), Greater Seattle (18), Greater Philadelphia (19), Metro Atlanta (20) and Silicon Valley (24).

* AP | The trend of unproven peptides is spreading through influencers and RFK Jr. allies: But the peptides being promoted by influencers, celebrities and wellness gurus are different: Many have never been approved for human use and much of their purported evidence comes from studies in rats and other animals. Several peptides, such as BPC-157 and TB-500, are banned by international sports authorities as doping substances. “None of them are proven,” said Dr. Eric Topol, a research methods expert and director of Scripps Research Translational Institute. “None of them have gone through what would be considered adequate clinical trials, but nonetheless many people are taking these. It’s actually quite extraordinary.”