* The Illinois Answers Project…

[The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services] is federally required to conduct initial and regular background checks for people who work in childcare facilities. The process requires checks of a state child abuse database and state and federal sex offender registries, as well as fingerprinting for state and federal criminal history checks.

The department has faced chronic staffing issues amid federal changes that added more requirements to background checks. The state has also failed to implement a law that allows childcare operators to use third-party vendors to collect the fingerprints needed during the background screenings. State officials said in a statement that they have been “actively working” on a process to carry out this law. […]

These ongoing delays have consequences, according to interviews with childcare owners and operators. Before new hires can be in the presence of children, they need to have certain background checks cleared. This means childcare businesses, at times, have been forced to reduce class sizes because they don’t have enough employees to meet the state’s required staffing ratios. Some centers are at risk of losing federal funding due to not keeping up with enrollment requirements.

In early August, DCFS said there were 32 full-time employees working for the background check unit with 12 vacant positions, according to data obtained by a public-records request. A spokesperson said IDEC plans to add two positions to the unit.

DCFS said it received more than 52,500 authorizations for childcare homes and centers in fiscal year 2026. Of those, the agency cleared just under 40,000, or about 75%. The department said preliminary internal records show that as of June 30 (the end of the 2026 fiscal year) it had 2,271 background-check requests from childcare facilities, or about 4% of the total it had received that year, that it had not yet processed.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Sun-Times | Rate Field owners say ‘main priority’ is keeping White Sox from moving, as Bridgeport residents air concerns: Ald. Nicole Lee (11th) and Cook County Commissioner John Daley also spoke out about the new Amtrak facility — and a potential White Sox move. “This is a disgrace when you look at what is being proposed,” Daley said. “…The proposal raises serious concerns about the long-term environment, including air quality, noise, traffic, safety, and over quality of life for the residents of Chinatown, Armour Park, Bridgeport and Wentworth Gardens.” Daley said he wants the Illinois General Assembly to renegotiate the Rate Field lease, continue the lease “and keep the White Sox where they are.”

* PJ Star | Organizer responds to concerns about Illinois gubernatorial candidate at Morton event: However, Darren Bailey will not attend the event as a special guest, but rather as a member of the public. “The Morton Chamber of Commerce and Morton Pumpkin Festival did not invite or choose to host Mr. Bailey,” Morton Chamber of Commerce executive director Kim Litwiller said in an email to the Journal Star. “We have had no contact or communication with Darren Bailey or his campaign regarding his planned attendance at the Pumpkin Pancake Breakfast.”

* Thoroughbred Daily News | Illinois Racing Commission Expands Fairmount Park’s 2027 Racing Calendar: Fairmount’s racing calendar next year spans April 6 to November 23 comprising a total 73 race days, seven races per day minimum. This year, the track hosted around 57 days of racing. […] The reason, explained Gabbert, is to capitalize on the Saturday buzz generated by the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes, as well as their own St. Louis Derby (ran on Saturday August 29 this year).

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Aldermen opposed to Mayor Brandon Johnson’s renters’ rights plan advance their own version: “It’s starting to feel like the ordinances are getting to a point where they are similar enough, where if this was a truly functional body, we could iron out some of these issues and vote near unanimity on something that really helps Chicagoans in a week or two,” said Ald. Timmy Knudsen, 43rd. Both measures could head to the full council Wednesday, though the rival sides appear poised to use legislative maneuvers to force delays, making mid-October votes more likely.

* Crain’s | Civic Committee lays out a growth agenda for Chicago — starting with 3 million residents: In addition to increasing the city’s population and more than doubling economic growth, the plan also aims to increase median incomes and reduce the percentage of households living in poverty by 25%. What the plan doesn’t yet spell out in detail is how to achieve those goals. The Civic Committee intends to marshal its members around common priorities while enlisting other business groups and working with government and philanthropic leaders to turn the agenda into action.

* Block Club | West Siders Hope New Disaster Relief Program Will Offer Reprieve From 2023, 2024 Floods: At a West Garfield Park community meeting Tuesday, Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) and partnering organizations, Northwest Center and the Department of Family and Support Services, encouraged neighbors to apply and answered questions regarding the application process and eligibility requirements. “They know that our community has been impacted the hardest by this,” said Ervin. “Didn’t mean that other communities didn’t see any impact, but the bulk of the impact of these floods over the last three, four, five years have been right here on the West Side of Chicago.”

* Block Club | You Can Spend The Night At Soldier Field To Raise Money For Homeless Youth: The Sleep Out Chicago event, led by East Garfield Park-based nonprofit Covenant House Illinois, will bring hundreds of Chicagoans into Soldier Field overnight on Nov. 19 for its annual event to raise awareness and funds for people 18-24 experiencing homelessness. Marking the 10th anniversary of the sleepout and the first year at Soldier Field, Covenant House wants to raise $1 million for housing, food, mental health support, education and employment services for homeless youth.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | US Customs and Border agent convicted of raping, robbing sex workers in Chicago-area hotel rooms: After deliberating for about 6 1/2 hours beginning Wednesday, the jury of six men and six women found Uribe guilty of 11 counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. […] A veteran customs agent stationed at O’Hare International Airport, Uribe was arrested in December 2025 on charges alleging he attacked four women over the span of nine months in 2022 in hotels in Chicago’s suburbs, using his police powers to rob and sexually assault them.

* Aurora Beacon-News | Residents express concerns about data centers at meeting in Aurora: “You can tell by the folks who showed up today that data centers and the impact on our communities are on their minds,” said state Rep. Maura Hirschauer, a Democrat from Batavia, who attended the meeting. “Everyone’s energy costs are going through the roof right now.” Proponents of data centers have spoken in favor of the potential jobs and property tax revenue data centers can bring. Officials in Robbins, Illinois, for example, recently said they are open to data center development in their area due to tax revenue they said it could bring in.

* Daily Southtown | Will County strategic plan aims to overcome areas of friction: During the surveys, board members rated trust as one of its critical issues, scoring it an average of 2.3 out of 5. Members reported friction in the working relationship between the board and the executive office, difficulty in the budget process and the effects of a divided party system, according to the report. “We didn’t have direction,” Williams said. “We didn’t know what our priorities were.”

*** Downstate ***

* WIFR | Rockford solar project hits 1-year milestone, almost $200K in energy savings: The 20,000 solar panels are nestled in the middle of farms just off W. State Street and power homes and a portion of OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center. “We’re able to generate 3.7 million kilowatt hours of electricity and that accounts for about 24% of our electricity utilization and we realize about $70,000 in annual cost savings from this program,” Diego Lopez, the Vice President of Outpatient at the hospital, said. It provides energy for hundreds of homes. In fact, the company shares that 20% of the neighbors welcomed cuts to their energy bills.

* WGLT | Eastland Mall for sale as ‘redevelopment opportunity’: Eastland Mall in Bloomington is for sale, and it could soon have a new owner. […] Bloomington Mayor Dan Brady stressed the mall is privately owned but confirmed it’s for sale — and that a deal might be reached by the end of September. “I believe before the end of the month,” he said. “I have not heard back officially from CBL, and I want to say the window of that time has closed or is closing very shortly, so we should be hearing something soon.”

* Heartland News | Blue Sky Vineyard celebrates Illinois Wine Month: If you’ve ever wanted to see how your favorite wines are made, now is the perfect time to visit your local winery, as September is Illinois Wine Month and harvest season. Organizers for the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail say that when people visit during harvest season, they can see how their wine is created and meet the people behind the scenes.

*** National ***

* WaPo | Gas prices are about to take a big jump, analysts say, with the worst still to come: U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Tuesday that the pipeline would be operational again in a matter of days, and the White House touted renewed tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. But analysts who reviewed images of the pipeline damage anticipate a significantly longer disruption, likely resulting in high prices for consumers well beyond the midterm elections. Andrew Lipow, an industry consultant who advises clients on protecting and repairing oil infrastructure, said photos of the pipeline “show a significant amount of damage” and that repairs are likely to “take a month or two.”

* Financial Times | OpenAI staff knew the ‘existential threat’ AI posed to publishers, New York Times claims: Lawyers for The New York Times said OpenAI was driven by commercial incentives to harvest its material. OpenAI’s co-founder Greg Brockman wrote in around 2017 that he was “deeply motivated by the gazillions” he hoped to gain by commercialising OpenAI’s technology, they claimed. The New York Times’ filings on Thursday introduce new evidence in one of the most prominent cases among dozens of lawsuits filed by copyright holders against AI groups, accusing them of pirating materials to train models that threaten the jobs of human content creators.