* Sun-Times…

A panel of federal judges has affirmed a lower court’s decision in favor of Illinois and 21 other states after the group sued the federal government over cuts to medical research funding.

In February, the Trump administration handed down an order capping the federal government’s “indirect costs” of research at 15%. Hundreds of medical centers and universities have long relied on such reimbursements at rates of 60% or more for such expenses as building facilities, conducting studies and paying utilities.

The ruling keeps in place the existing payments of nearly $67 million annually for the University of Illinois system and $4.5 million for other public universities in the Southern Illinois University system from the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Raoul said.

“This win protects the efforts of Illinois universities and research institutions to achieve breakthrough discoveries with lifesaving medical research,” Raoul said in a statement. “I commend the court for stopping the administration from attempting, yet again, to cut essential funding, and I will continue to work with my colleagues to ensure the law is upheld.”

* Subscribers know more. The Tribune…

Hawthorne Race Course was forced to temporarily halt operations this past weekend for failing to meet licensing requirements, regulators said, and operators in the horse racing industry said its checks have been bouncing.

The track in west suburban Stickney has been beset by financial troubles, including liens seeking to recover unpaid debts, and its inability to open a proposed casino.

The failures have prompted harness racing participants to renew their call for state legislation to revoke Hawthorne’s veto power over any competing new racino in the south suburbs. […]

“Over the weekend, they were able to correct the deficiencies and are now in compliance,” the [Illinois Racing Board] announced in a statement Monday. Racing and off-track betting were expected to resume this coming weekend, but horse owners and trainers remained alarmed about the track’s finances.

* We told subscribers yesterday about Dan Egler’s passing. From his obituary…

After graduation, Dan joined the staff of the Chicago Tribune as a reporter in the summer of 1969. Later that year, he was drafted into the United States Army and took leave from the Tribune to proudly serve his country. Dan spent the majority of his Army career stationed in Ft. Hood, TX until his honorable discharge in August 1971.

Upon discharge from the army, Dan returned to writing for the Chicago Tribune. In the Fall of 1977, he moved his family to Springfield, IL to cover politics for the Tribune and eventually worked his way up to Statehouse Bureau Chief. He spent nearly 14 years covering the highs and lows of Illinois state government. In 1992, Dan left journalism to join Governor Jim Edgar’s administration as Associate Press Secretary and speechwriter. After six years, he moved to the State of Illinois’ Capital Development Board where he was instrumental in the planning of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. Despite taking advantage of early retirement from the government sector at age 55 in 2003, Dan never really retired. He formed his own consulting business and worked for numerous campaigns for several Illinois candidates. Most notably, Dan worked for Senator Bill Brady’s campaigns for governor including helping Senator Brady secure the Republican primary in 2010. In reality, Dan may have slowed down, but he never really retired. Illinois politics was both his passion and his life’s work. […]

A valued friend to many, a beloved father and grandfather - Dan will be truly missed. A Celebration of Dan’s life will be held in February with details to follow.

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Johnson warns of mid-year layoffs in wake of budget brawl: The mayor blamed his City Council opponents, who in December took the extraordinary step of passing their own $16.6 billion budget after his 2026 plan — built around reviving a corporate head tax and trimming an advance pension payment — failed to win enough support. Johnson neither signed nor vetoed the final package, an implicit concession after weeks of unsuccessfully trying to halt a rebellion by a rival bloc of aldermen.

* Chalkbeat Chicago | Report: Sexual misconduct was widespread on campus where former dean sentenced to 22 years worked: The watchdog report, which was pending at the time, has since found employees groomed students for sexual relationships in person and via social media, and sometimes pursued them as soon as they graduated. One teacher, who also ran a legal aid clinic on the shared campus, presented himself as a protector of girls and women — only to make overtures to numerous former students months after they graduated and have sex with at least four of them, the watchdog found.

* Block Club | ‘Missing Middle’ Housing Program Breaks Ground On 1st Project In North Lawndale: The first portion of the program will build seven two-flats on Douglas Boulevard as well as in the 1400 and 1500 blocks of Trumbull and Homan avenues. The two-flats are the first of a planned 115 market-rate housing units being built. The Missing Middle initiative looks to revitalize and repopulate neighborhoods by building new, for-sale housing attainable to families looking to own in areas where such housing stock has been hollowed out. The initiative sells city-owned lots in the program to developers for $1, with the city subsidizing up to $150,000 per unit to develop for-sale housing.

* Sun-Times | Chicago History Museum’s top leader out after nearly five years: The head of the Chicago History Museum is departing his post after nearly five years, the museum announced Wednesday. Donald E. Lassere served as the museum’s president and CEO since April 2021. In a statement, the museum said the board will conduct a nationwide search for Lassere’s replacement. In the meantime, Michael Anderson, who is currently the museum’s vice president of external engagement and development, will serve as interim president and CEO.

* Sun-Times | Grant Park Music Festival announces 2026 lineup, featuring Ben Folds and ample American music: The annual classical series features the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus and will bring 10 weeks of free music to venues such as Millennium Park from June 10-Aug. 15. The second season under Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Giancarlo Guerrero will feature a heavy dose of music from American composers, as the country marks its 250th birthday and programming around the semiquincentennial is expected to be widespread.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* The Daily Northwestern | Border Patrol covertly filmed Dec. 17 protesters with Meta smart glasses, Daily analysis finds: A spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol’s parent agency, told The Daily in an emailed statement that CBP “does not have an arrangement with Meta.” They added that personal recording devices are “not authorized,” though individual Border Patrol officers “may wear personally purchased sunglasses.” The spokesperson did not cite a specific policy, but a 2023 directive on body cameras issued by the Department of Homeland Security, parent agency of CBP, prohibits the use of personal cameras to record “official law enforcement activities.”

* Lake County News-Sun | Waukegan a finalist for solar panel plant, 500 jobs: ‘This will reverse our environmental legacy’: A factory employing 500 people making 2 million solar panels a year, adjacent to a 125-acre solar field and a 40-acre solar pond generating clean power, may be coming to Waukegan on land once a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Superfund site where the Johns Manville plant once sat. Waukegan and a location in Kansas are the two finalists competing to become the home of Netherlands-based Solarge’s first facility in the U.S., where lightweight solar panels will be made and solar energy generated.

* NBC Chicago | Residents push back on plans for Amazon retail facility in Orland Park: Many residents overwhelmingly said they did not want the development because of conservation and transportation issues it would bring to the area. One resident said adding the facility would “bottleneck” traffic in the area, and another stressed how Orland Park could be left with costly challenges if it needs to repurpose and reforest the area in the future.

* Evanston Now | County tax mess cost D65 more than $1 million: Cook County’s bungled property tax distribution system has cost Evanston/Skokie School District 65 “approximately $1.14 million in real, avoidable taxpayer impact,” the district’s spokesperson has told Evanston Now. The county’s delayed payment of property taxes owed to school systems forced D65 to borrow money “to meet payment obligations to employees and vendors/service partners,” according to district spokesperson Hannah Dillow.

* Crain’s | Lincolnwood mall pitched as redevelopment candidate gets new owner: The sale comes after years of challenges for the aging mall, which had been marketed for sale as a redevelopment candidate. Kirsten Bowersox, president at Xroads, said the firm’s affiliate Prairie Ridge Development intends to remake the property, though there’s not a concrete plan yet. “The village is developing their vision along with ours, and we’re confident it’ll all make sense at some point and whatever it becomes, it’ll be useful to the community,” Bowersox said.

* Tribune | Cook County clerk’s office teams up with Chicago Bears to launch inaugural student election judge program: Through the initiative, dubbed “Defenders of DA’mocracy,” students across the county will see the inner workings of the election system firsthand by becoming official election judges for their own peers ahead of this spring’s primary. Preparations for the inaugural venture started this week, with some 150 students from two dozen high schools across suburban Cook County learning the ins and outs of running a polling place at a series of training sessions. Students are training to ultimately run early voting sites at their schools for the March 17 election and, if they want, to officiate future elections, too.

*** Downstate ***

* Shaw Local | Gotion updates Manteno village on safety issues: Wheeler outlined what Gotion has completed since the issues were brought up and after a Dec. 8 special board meeting. The issues were the establishment of a fire brigade on site, having an emergency action plan in place, sprinkler holding tank inspection report, and a bi-directional amplifier (BDA) system for emergency responder radio communications. Wheeler said a fire brigade is in place with experienced firefighters and a fire marshal. It’s waiting on final village approval.

* Illinois Times | Public hearing on proposed project in Logan County draws questions, concerns: Electrical demand for the two data centers would be similar, as would the amount of farm ground to be purchased if the companies receive zoning approval from county boards in Logan and Sangamon counties, respectively. But CyrusOne has said it would spend about $500 million to construct the Sangamon County data center, while Hut 8 says in documents submitted to Logan County and in public presentations that its data center would cost $4 billion to $5 billion to establish.

* WICS | Hut 8’s $4-$5 billion data center proposal in Logan County faces public scrutiny: Rachel, a Latham resident, raised concerns about noise, specifically the low-frequency hum that could affect residents’ well-being. “It is a noise that is felt, not heard,” she said. Hut 8 has committed to conducting a noise study as part of their planning process. […] Hut 8’s facility is designed to be a closed-loop system, primarily using air for cooling and recirculating water every four to five years. The company has not yet decided whether to use gas or diesel backup generators.

* WAND | DACC board member censured for policy violations: According to a resolution of the board’s January 5 meeting, Trustee Dylan Haun shared information that was talked about during a closed session without permission, violating board policy. In the resolution, the board said the violation “undermines the board’s ability to engage in candid discussion and exposes the college to potential legal and reputational risk.”The resolution also said Haun met with the college’s Safety and Security Officer and Chief of Campus Security to “discuss matters relating to the college” without the board president’s permission.

* Illinois Times | New manufacturer for Springfield: An international crane manufacturing firm is opening a plant in Springfield that will likely employ more than 100 people on the city’s west side. In addition to the blue-collar jobs assembling cranes, the firm will employ a host of professional positions as it plans to make Springfield its first manufacturing site in the U.S., Dominic Jolicoeur, REEL USA Corp’s vice president for North American operations, said.

* WAND | Cyberattack under investigation by Coles County school district: In a press release sent to WAND News, Oakland Community School District 5 said hackers gained access to their systems and demanded payment to restore them. The district said they did not pay the criminals, working with cybersecurity experts and using backup systems to recover their systems before the end of the holiday break.

* Muddy River News | Quincy task force eyeing zoning changes to ease housing crunch: “It isn’t just ‘we’re going to do this’,” task force co-chair Paul Havermale said. “That’s not how we’re going to operate. We’re going to try to educate, make sure everyone understands the recommendations we’re going to make.” When it comes to a comprehensive land-use zoning plan, Havermale acknowledges it costs money. Estimates are around $250,000. The last time the City of Quincy had one was when he was still on the council, sometime before 2010, meaning the data is outdated.

* WGLT | Carle Health names new president of Bloomington-Normal service area: Carle Health has named Dr. Robert Cavagnol as its new president of the Bloomington-Normal service area. Cavagnol will assume the position on Feb. 2, replacing Colleen Kannaday after 15 years in that role. The healthcare provider said Cavagnol brings executive leadership experience and clinical experience needing to operate its health system.

* WAND | Springfield City Council approves alcohol sales at Scheels Sports Complex: Springfield residents can soon buy alcohol during tournaments and events at the Scheels Sports Complex. Springfield City Council approved a new class of liquor licenses for the sports park Tuesday night, called Class P. Vendors will be able to sell beer, wine and liquor during designated hours.

*** National ***

* Democracy Docket | Missouri officials reject one-third of signatures in anti-gerrymander referendum dispute: People Not Politicians submitted their status update to the court Monday, reporting that the Secretary of State’s office has deemed invalid 16,695 of the 49,763 pages of signatures. Numerous other legal challenges related to the Missouri gerrymander remain ongoing. Missouri voters are asking a court to block the state from using the new map until after the referendum vote takes place. A hearing is scheduled for Thursday on the plaintiffs’ motion to expedite the trial.

* The Minnesota Star Tribune | ICE agent shoots, kills woman in Minneapolis: Gov. Tim Walz put out a call for calm. Frey said the woman killed was 37 years old. “To the family, I’m so deeply sorry,” Frey said. He also disputed Homeland Security’s version of what happened. […] Bystanders who observed the shooting from their own properties on Portland Avenue rejected Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s characterization of the incident, insisting the motorist was not attempting to ram anyone as she fled. “They’re whitewashing it; that’s absolutely not what happened,” said local resident Aiden Perzana, a data engineer for the state of Minnesota. “Somebody was trying to pull her out of her car. She was just trying to get away. There’s no way she was aiming for anybody. It’s just absurd.”

* WaPo | The soaring price of youth sports: $50 to try out, $3,000 to play: A market report from business consultants Red Chalk Group in April said youth sports has become “a magnet for investment activity” as firms look “to capitalize on this growing demand.” Outside the hearing, Farrey said many of the problems with youth sports existed before private equity, “but it’s gotten a lot worse since then.” … Later this year, a youth sports megaplex is set to open in Springfield, Illinois, boasting the world’s largest air-supported dome, with room for more than 12 volleyball courts, six basketball courts and two softball fields.