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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Thursday, Feb 19, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Tribune…
* WGN…
* Capitol News Illinois | Bill drafted by Illinois high schoolers would mandate vape disposal programs: Producers would also be required to finance the programs and inform consumers of their disposal options. Andrew Diaz and Allison Hovaniec, students at Pontiac High School in central Illinois, worked with Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago, and the Illinois Environmental Council to draft and introduce the bill. The students came up with the idea through an assignment in a government class. “As we kind of realized that it’s a widespread problem and that there are vapes all over the environment, we ended up deciding that we wanted to kind of make this a legislation,” Hovaniec said, emphasizing the longevity of the bill if it is passed into law. “It’s not just something that will just kind of go away after a while.” * Environmental Defense Fund | Illinois is at a turning point in transportation policy, new bills this session can speed momentum: SB3732/HB5600 — Warehouse Pollution Reduction Act: The growth in e-commerce over the last few decades has led to considerable diesel truck pollution from warehouses and distribution centers, impacting air quality and risking serious health impacts for communities and workers. This bill would reduce that pollution through a points-based program that incentivizes zero-emission vehicles and other pollution mitigation measures. New developments would also have to meet minimum setback standards, and all regulated facilities must report relevant operating information such as truck trips and pollution reduction progress. Along with community participation and transparency, this bill would improve public health, especially in areas already overburdened by industrial pollution. * Block Club | Neighbor Sues Chicago Housing Authority Over Vacant Property Used As A Drug Stash House: Bermudez made repeated calls to 311, the police, the office of then-Ald. Walter Burnett Jr., the CHA, and the private company hired by the agency to manage the house. When she got officials on the phone, they sent her to someone else. Block Club Chicago and the Illinois Answers Project called about it too as part of an investigation into the CHA’s neglect of hundreds of other scattered-site homes around the city. * Block Club | Sarah’s Circle Gets City Approval To Build Women’s Housing Development In Uptown: Sarah’s Circle unveiled its latest building, the 28-unit Sarah’s on Lakeside at 4737 N. Sheridan Road, in 2024. Sarah’s on Leland, 1005 W. Leland Ave., debuted in 2021 with 38 apartments and is home to the 50-bed interim housing program. Sarah’s on Sheridan, 4838 N. Sheridan Road, has 10 apartments and the group’s daytime support center. The new building will only take up a portion of the lot bounded by Sunnyside, Clarendon and Agitate avenues. After it’s built, Sarah’s Circle would like to build a second one and eventually find a developer who could bring low-income family housing for the rest of the site, Ragnar said. * WGN | Lincoln Park Zoo welcomes new red panda for Lunar New Year: Qi arrived from New York and has a breeding recommendation with Nisha, meaning the hope is the pair will eventually have cubs. […] Because red pandas are used to cold climates, zoo officials say Chicago’s winter weather should be no match for them. * Tribune | Cook County top prosecutor circulates policy outlining process for charging federal immigration agents: “No one is above the law — including both ICE agents and prosecutors,” Burke said in a news release announcing the policy. “If a federal law enforcement agent commits a crime, my office will not hesitate to act, in accordance with state law. This protocol establishes clear, legally sound guidelines to ensure we have a responsible and effective path to pursue accountability.” The document, though, notes that prosecutors must consider federal immunity — which is not absolute but offers some protection for agents — among other factors. * Naperville Sun | Naperville council resurrects efforts to create more affordable housing options: In 2019, the city worked with consultant SB Friedman to analyze Naperville’s housing market and needs. The firm’s report suggested a number of policy options, but many did not seem feasible for Naperville, according to Brian Palm, a former member of the Naperville Human Rights and Fair Housing Commission. “When we were looking at inclusionary zonings, the majority of them and what was being proposed at that time said, ‘OK, if you’re building five units, one of them has to be affordable,’” Palm said. “To come into that, then we were starting to come into the have and have nots. If you’re going to make one unit affordable, you will have to drive up the cost of the other four.” * Naperville Sun | ‘Density works’ for 236-unit apartment compex near Route 59, Naperville commission says: “Density works in certain locations,” Commissioner Mark Wright said, “and to me, this location is kind of a textbook example of where density works.” The site is immediately north of a Whole Foods grocery store and near a variety of shops and restaurants on Route 59 and 75th Street. It’s two miles south of the Route 59 Metra station for accessibility to Chicago, and a Pace bus stop sits just west of the property. Harris Fawell Park is east of the site along Fort Hill Drive. * Daily Southtown | Will County considers review of policing agreement with Homer Glen: County officials said the original intergovernmental agreement was authorized in 2001 and renewed most recently in 2007. This would be the first time an outside firm would review financial and operational matters. County Auditor Kevin “Duffy” Blackburn said a third party consultant would provide an objective and fair analysis of the true cost of policing Homer Glen. He said the county plans to choose a consultant that specializes in law enforcement audits to look at all the direct and indirect costs that go into the services provided. * Successful Farming | Illinois Drought Deepens as Drainage Tiles Fall Silent: “We are in severe or extreme drought in virtually all of central Illinois and much of southern Illinois, due to places having 10–25 inches below normal precipitation going back to last spring,” Ford said. “The biggest issues right now are mostly for water resources, including rural wells going dry and some municipalities enacting voluntary water restrictions due to low lake/reservoir levels. We have not seen significant agricultural impacts yet, because the drought has intensified during the cold season.” * WCIA | Danville Mass Transit gets nine new buses for rural transportation: The city received nine new buses from the state at Tuesday night’s city council meeting. But Mayor Rickey Williams said there are still a lot of hoops to clear before they begin taking over as the only rural service provider in Vermilion County. “We are providing several hundred additional rides a day that we weren’t [previously] through fixed route transportation,” Williams said. “But we are not able yet to take on the whole county. We have to make sure that these vehicles are serviced. We have to get the [CRIS] insignia off of them. We also are in the process of hiring additional staff.” […] In addition to paying for the busses, the state is paying for the maintenance to help get the program up and running. * WGLT | Unit 5 budget is ‘on track’ midway through fiscal year: “In general, we’re on track, pleased with where the budget is currently,” said finance director Marty Hickman. Several key facets of the budget are doing better than the school district projected when the $244.7 million budget was passed in September. Hickman noted the education fund, operations and maintenance fund and the tort fund are all showing a surplus. Transportation and working cash funds are at a deficit, according to projections for the rest of the fiscal year. * WSIL | Ameren Illinois Building New Substation in Williamson County to Strengthen Southern Illinois Power Grid: “Substations do not get a lot of fanfare, but they are critical elements in a reliable, resilient energy grid,” said Ty Lindhorst, director of south region electric operations for Ameren Illinois. “With these enhancements, Ameren Illinois is taking proactive steps to prepare for the future needs of our electric customers. We’re excited to bring these benefits to our customers in southern Illinois.” * Tribune | No. 10 Illinois overwhelms USC by 36 points, cruising to its 14th win in 16 games: Andrej Stojaković scored 22 points to lead seven players in double figures, and No. 10 Illinois routed USC 101-65 on Wednesday night for its 14th win in 16 games. Blue-and-orange-clad fans were out in force for the Illini’s first game against the Trojans in Los Angeles since 1975. The Illini (22-5, 13-3 Big Ten) didn’t disappoint, leading all the way to maintain a hold on second place in the conference standings behind No. 1 Michigan. * AP | HUD proposes rule that would force noncitizens from public housing: The rule, published in the Federal Register, calls for limiting funding for those in public housing and other HUD-related housing to citizens and eligible noncitizens. The rule would require every resident in HUD-funded housing to show proof of citizenship or eligible status, including those 62 years and older who previously only had to show proof of age. The measure would effectively bar mixed status families — where some household members are eligible for help — from housing and is part of the government’s immigration crackdown. A similar rule was proposed but never finalized during the first Trump administration and is mentioned as a policy priority in the conservative blueprint Project 2025, * NYT | U.S. Imports Grew in 2025, as Trump’s Tariffs Reshuffled Global Trade: Overall imports of goods and services increased 4.7 percent, to $4.3 trillion, in 2025, while exports rose 6.2 percent, to $3.4 trillion. The trade deficit — the amount by which imports exceed exports — was $901 billion, down from $903 billion in 2024. The trade deficit grew sharply at the end of the year, rising 32.6 percent in December as imports rose and exports fell. * AP | Early prenatal care, considered best for moms and babies, is on the decline in the US: The share of U.S. births to women who began prenatal care in the first trimester dropped from 78.3% in 2021 to 75.5% in 2024, according to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday. Meanwhile, starting care later in pregnancy or getting no care at all has been on the rise. Prenatal care beginning in the second trimester rose from 15.4% to 17.3%, and starting care in the third trimester or getting no care went from 6.3% to 7.3%.
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- BE - Thursday, Feb 19, 26 @ 3:47 pm:
So, with the HUD thing, citizens would be denied housing simply because they have family members who are not citizens? That the idea that it is better that citizens not have housing as long as no noncitizen gets housing? This just punishes families, especially children.