* ICYMI: Former Portage Mayor James Snyder seeks dismissal of bribery charge ahead of sentencing on IRS charge. Post-Tribune…

- Former Portage Mayor James Snyder is asking a federal court to dismiss his bribery charge with prejudice and bar prosecutors from using bribery evidence at sentencing for his separate IRS obstruction conviction.
- Snyder’s legal team argues that the bribery conviction was overturned after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled his $13,000 payment was a gratuity, not a bribe.
- The Supreme Court’s ruling in Snyder’s case has had broad implications, with ripple effects reaching high-profile Illinois cases, including the trial of former House Speaker Michael Madigan and the “ComEd Four.”

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Sponsored by the Illinois Health and Hospital Association

What’s at Stake with 340B: Hospitals and FQHCs Want to Provide More Services, Big Pharma Wants to Benefit Shareholders

Why do hospitals and FQHCs want to protect the 340B drug discount program? Because it helps them care for patients. The 1992 program, created by Congress, has allowed hospitals and FQHCs serving many uninsured and low-income patients to “stretch scarce federal resources as far as possible, reaching more eligible patients and providing more comprehensive services.”

Pharmaceutical manufacturers agreed with expanding 340B to include more hospitals in 2010, but in 2020 began imposing restrictions on 340B providers to protect their bottom line and hundreds of billions in annual revenue. Big Pharma has a significant financial interest in preventing legislation—SB 2385 and HB 3350—that would ensure the 340B program fully benefits patients and providers.

Big Pharma is looking out for their shareholders. Illinois hospitals and FQHCs are looking out for their patients.

Big Pharma claims patients aren’t benefiting from 340B. Here’s the truth:

• Hospitals and FQHCs put 340B savings toward addressing critical community health needs.
• Those savings provide access to low-cost medications and financial assistance to low-income patients.
• Hospitals and FQHCs can also offer essential services, such as obstetrics, oncology and inpatient psychiatric care.

The Illinois Patient Access to 340B Pharmacy Protection Act (SB 2385/HB 3350) is modeled after legislation passed in 14 states. It reinforces 340B through the State’s authority to regulate the distribution of drugs and protect access to healthcare.

Vote YES on SB 2385/HB 3350 to restore 340B and help the most vulnerable communities. Get the TRUTH about 340B and learn why it matters to patients.

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* BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here.

* Governor Pritzker will join Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias and other state officials at 2:30 pm to dedicate a new reading room at the Illinois State Library in honor of Illinois’ 38th Governor Jim Edgar. Click here to watch.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Subscribers were given a preview yesterday. Mark Batinick | Illinois is paying top dollar to fail its college-age young adults : We’re told Illinois universities are expensive because they’re underfunded. That seems to be the narrative every time tuition increases make headlines. But it doesn’t speak to the larger problem. While the Urbana-Champaign campus continues to see record attendance, the state’s regional universities are struggling to define their roles and demonstrate unique value. Enrollment across the 12 public universities fell from around 368,000 in 2009 to 278,000 in 2023 — a 25% drop — but the money keeps flowing.

* Sun-Times | Sen. Tammy Duckworth heads to Taiwan, Singapore in bid to ‘close the deal’ for quantum campus: “Foxconn has been in Illinois. They’ve met with the governor’s office. They’ve met with Intersect Illinois. And I’m hoping to go in and try to help close the deal,” Duckworth told the Sun-Times. “They’ve toured Argonne and Fermilab [national laboratories]. So this is really to push our quantum microelectronics and to get investments in quantum technology.”

* Press Release | AG Raoul urges American Medical Association to ensure abortion and gender-affirming care providers can get board certified without unnecessary risk: In testimony submitted to the AMA, Raoul and the coalition argue that mandating in-person board certification testing in states that have aggressively criminalized or penalized reproductive and gender-affirming health care endangers providers and threatens access to essential care nationwide. In particular, the attorneys general highlight the American Board of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ABOG), which requires OB/GYNs seeking board certification to travel to Texas for in-person testing. Texas has imposed some of the most severe restrictions on abortion and gender-affirming care in the country.

*** Statewide ***

* Daily Herald | Giannoulias: Don’t click on fake texts from Illinois DMV with threats about traffic tickets: It’s a scam, Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias warned Tuesday. The texts purport to be from the nonexistent “Illinois State Department of Motor Vehicles” and falsely threaten suspension of vehicle registration and privileges. “Do not respond to it or click on any links,” Giannoulias said. “These phony texts are designed to trick you into giving up personal or financial information which can lead to identify theft and fraud. The secretary of state does not send text messages regarding vehicle registrations and driver’s licenses.”

* WAND | Mental health professionals stress importance as ‘Mental Health Awareness Month’ winds down: Still, many continue to suffer in silence because of the stigmas around mental health or not knowing where or who to turn to. “Unfortunately, the stigma has characterized people as not being strong,” Garrison said. “You know, ‘You [have to] get through this, you can do it.’ We all have vulnerabilities and there’s nothing wrong with asking for help.”

*** Statehouse News ***

* Sun-Times | Illinois lawmaker proposes a Pope Leo XIV statue and license plate: To mark the historical milestone of the former south suburban Dolton resident’s ascendancy to the highest position in the Holy See, state Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Lake Barrington, proposed building a statue on the grounds of the state capitol. To afford the construction, a special fund would be formed, accepting public and private donations, according to a measure McLaughlin recently introduced.

* WAND | Advocates continue push for hemp regulation despite legislative inaction: The Cannabis Business Association of Illinois told WAND News Illinois is one of just a handful of states that has failed to take action on hemp. The group said hemp and cannabis come from the same plant, and both products can get users high. “Individual municipalities across the state are putting in place their own rules, creating a confusing patchwork of regulations,” said CBAI Executive Director Tiffany Chappell Ingram. “It’s time lawmakers regulate intoxicating hemp in a manner similar to cannabis.”

* WGN | Illinois budget battle: What Chicago needs from Springfield: “There is some urgency to respond to the financial needs that exist today,” Johnson said. “We’re going to have a fully funded well-supported transit system, safe, affordable and reliable.” In exchange for a bailout, lawmakers are demanding reform, pushing to consolidate the transportation agencies, but their proposals have been met by resistance from labor groups. The legislature is also looking to beef up security on buses and trains with some floating the idea of a single police force for Chicago area systems.

* FYI…

That’s not quite right — the CTA fiscal cliff comes once COVID funds expire at the *end of this year.* If Springfield does not bail out local transit this week, lawmakers could either come back during the summer or the fall veto session to figure out the funding https://t.co/MT7nc0C7ZN

— Alice Yin (@byaliceyin) May 27, 2025

*** Chicago ***

* Crain’s | Fitch downgrades Chicago’s financial outlook to ‘negative’: Fitch Ratings has revised its financial outlook for the city of Chicago to “negative,” citing a lack of meaningful progress in closing a $1.12 billion structural budget gap. The move, first reported by the Chicago Sun-Times, signals the city could face a future downgrade if it fails to stabilize its finances. The negative outlook accompanies an A- rating on a planned $600 million borrowing package for infrastructure, housing and economic development. But by revising the outlook to “negative,” the agency is signaling the possibility of a future bond rating downgrade.

* Sun-Times | Chicago sees least violent Memorial Day weekend in at least 16 years: A tally shows four men killed and at least 21 wounded in shootings across the city. Mayor Brandon Johnson credits the hiring of 200 detectives and increased clearance rates in homicides and shootings as key factors for the dip in Memorial Day weekend violence.

* Daily Herald | Congressional candidate says she’s hiring security because of comments, vandalism: Abughazaleh, who lives in Chicago and is Palestinian American, said a Republican candidate called her office in the Rogers Park neighborhood “the home of Hezbollah,” a reference to the Lebanese Islamist political party and terrorist group. While Abughazaleh didn’t name the candidate, Republican Rocio Cleveland of Island Lake used that phrase in a pair of May 9 Facebook posts about her Democratic counterpart. One of Cleveland’s posts included an image of Abughazaleh’s online call for volunteers to paint the office and multiple anti-Islamic images.

* Crain’s | As Trump targets foreign enrollment, this Chicago university could be hardest hit: More than half — 51% — of Illinois Tech’s 6,571 students are international, according to an analysis by The New York Times, the highest percentage of such students in the country. Just behind Illinois Tech is Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, with 44% of its more than 14,000 students being international, and Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, N.J., whose international students make up 42% of the 7,461 total student body.

* Sun-Times | Driver says he did not see cyclist in fatal Loop crash — Chicago’s first bicyclist death of 2025: Aleck, owner of Aleck Plumbing Inc. of Homewood, said he was driving to the gym in the predawn light of Memorial Day in the moments before the crash. He said he was the only car stopped at the light just before the intersection where the crash happened. He was going south on Michigan Avenue, approaching the top of Millennium Park. “They must have thought there was no one coming. I must have been halfway through the intersection. I thought it was a car,” Aleck, 65, told the Sun-Times.

* WTTW | Unexploded Device From US Military Exercise Washes Up on Montrose Beach, And There Are 3 More Missing Flares Out There: The devices were deployed earlier in May during a joint military exercise conducted off the shore of Milwaukee by the Coast Guard and U.S. Air Force. Four of what the Coast Guard describes as “phosphorus pyrotechnics” failed to activate when they hit the water and are considered “armed.”

* Tribune | Chicago Housing Authority selling more land for private development near Chicago Fire training facility: The Chicago Housing Authority board approved a land sale on Tuesday to a private developer to construct 23 town homes, at least four of which will be considered affordable, despite opposition from many housing and community advocates. The 23 lots on the Near West Side will be sold to Related Midwest for an estimated $460,000, a number that is based on current land valuations minus expected environmental remediation costs, CHA development officials said in an interview. That number could change with future appraisals. The officials said that CHA will receive a portion of the profits from the home sales as well.

* NBC Chicago | Pope Leo XIV to address young Chicagoans via video at Rate Field event: According to the Archdiocese of Chicago, the pope will address “the young people of the world” via a video message that will be broadcast for the first time at a massive event being held at the ballpark on Saturday, June 14. The event, called “Chicago Celebrates Pope Leo XIV,” will feature a Catholic mass and other programming, according to officials.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Two charged with hate crime in beating of woman at Carpentersville McDonald’s: Two people are now charged with committing a hate crime in connection with the beating of a woman in Carpentersville two weeks ago because of her sexual identity. A Kane County grand jury indicted John Z. Kammrad, 19, of the 900 block of Hillcrest Road, Elgin, and a 16-year-old male with hate crime stemming from the May 13 attack. The Kane County state’s attorney’s office announced the indictment Tuesday afternoon. It did not say when the grand jury handed up the indictment.

* Tribune | Ex-assessor’s office employee gets 3 years’ probation in bribery case: A former Cook County assessor’s office employee was sentenced Tuesday to three years’ probation for conspiring to accept golf outings at country clubs from two businessmen in exchange for helping reduce assessments on their properties and save thousands in taxes. Basilio Clausen, 53, pleaded guilty in 2023 to a count of bribery conspiracy and testified at the trial last year of one of the businessmen, Robert Mitziga, who was ultimately acquitted of all charges by a federal jury.

* Grist | Illinois must protect the Great Lakes from invasive carp. A toxic mess stands in the way.: It is there, on a sliver of land where a coal-fired power plant once stood, that the state plans a last stand against the invasive Asian carp. It wants to build a $1.1 billion barricade, called the Brandon Road Interbasin Project, to keep the particularly voracious predator from muscling past the channel that connects the Mississippi River Basin with the Great Lakes. But to keep the fish from breaching the divide, the state needs more land. It has a couple of acres in mind, but there’s a catch: The ground is contaminated by coal ash, the carcinogenic byproduct of burning that fossil fuel to generate electricity.

* Tribune | A long way to go: Chicago Bears proposed move to Arlington Heights would require complicated approval by local taxing bodies: The Chicago Bears have submitted required traffic and financial impact studies to Arlington Heights, marking the next step in their quest to build a new football stadium there. The studies are considered preliminary drafts that will be worked on further with a village consultant, so Village Manager Randall Recklaus declined to release them publicly for now. But a Bears move to Arlington Heights will require much more than those plans. It will also require an extensive review by local school districts, a park district, and even, potentially, the Northwest Mosquito Abatement District.

* Daily Herald | Rolling Meadows hires consultants to prepare for potential Bears stadium next door: The city council approved a series of resolutions to hire a lobbyist, traffic engineer and noise expert in anticipation of the team’s possible relocation to the sprawling Arlington Park site, which is bordered by Rolling Meadows to the south, west and a small side street to the north. The Bears have a team of consultants and lobbyists, as does the village of Arlington Heights, which recently brought on traffic and financial experts to peer review the work submitted by the Bears.

* Daily Herald | DuPage County setting up land bank as part of affordable housing push: DuPage County Board members passed a resolution Tuesday authorizing the creation of a land bank as part of a push to expand affordable housing. The county has a “de facto” land bank through its “clean and lien” neighborhood revitalization program. “We have inventoried land that we’ve received through our ‘clean and lien’ program, either through foreclosures or through gifts from property owners who simply don’t want to take care of their property anymore. They give it over to us,” said Paul Hoss, the county’s planning and zoning administration coordinator.

* Daily Herald | ‘A window to our past’: 1846 document signed by President James Polk tells story of DuPage County: DuPage County History Museum Director Michelle Podkowa was especially excited by the find. Land patent documents are increasingly rare — the museum has just three of them — and often were signed by a lower level federal official, she said. “During this time (the 1840s), the rules and laws regarding land was ever-changing,” she said. The logistics of communicating with federal authorities in Chicago and Washington, D.C., meant it could take years to straighten out land ownership.

* NYT | Is This Chicago Suburb for You?: Since the pandemic, the city of Elmhurst, Ill., west of Chicago, has experienced an uptick in families moving in for more space and an easier commute. Although 20 miles from the city, Elmhurst residents can soak in the Chicago skyline when looking east on St. Charles Road, and the Metra express train can transport them to downtown Chicago in about 30 minutes.

*** Downstate ***

* The Illinois Democratic Party has launched an online ad campaign running through June 3 targeting U.S. Reps. Mike Bost, Mary Miller, and Darin LaHood, saying their “supportive votes for the House GOP budget could destroy [constituents’] access to health care.” Click here to view some of the ads.

* PJ Star | Electric bills set to jump for Ameren customers in Illinois this summer. Here’s how much: CUB said that the supply charge for customers could increase to 12 cents per kilowatt hour on June 1, a 50% increase from the current rate. Ameren said that the specific supply charge, also known as the “price to compare,” will be made public the week of May 26.

* WQAD | Ex-Rock Island County employee pleads not guilty in $900K embezzlement case: During the May 16 hearing, Assistant State’s Attorney Steven Cichon said Streeter used forged documents, including a falsified W-9, and created a bank account in the name “Rock Island County VIP” to redirect payments meant for a county Victims’ Impact Program. The funds were allegedly used to pay for travel, credit cards and personal expenses. Two bank accounts tied to the case have been frozen with about $20,000 in funds, and investigators traced assets including a camper, a Ford F-250 truck and a Subaru, valued at roughly $120,000. Hundreds of thousands of dollars remain unaccounted for.

* WTVO | Winnebago Co. Chairman’s restored power to boost efficiency of government: Between 2017 and 2019, the county board voted to strip powers from then-chairman Frank Haney that impacted staff management and administration. Those powers were never restored when Chiarelli was elected in 2020. “When I receive a citizen complaint to my office on the fifth floor, they’re expecting myself to be able to respond to that issue and to try to solve that issue,” Chiarelli explained. “But [then] I had to take that issue, that problem, and give it to someone else to manage that problem, because I had no authority to manage that problem. It’s fragmente

* WCIA | Ordinance regulating public camping recommended for approval in Danville: During the Public Services Committee meeting, the committee voted to recommend the camping regulations to the full city council. If the city council approves it at the next meeting, public camping will be declared a “nuisance” within the city. This means that people would be prohibited from sleeping on public sidewalks, streets, alleys, lanes, other public right-of-way, parks, benches, or any other publicly-owned property.

* WCIA | Champaign Co. union members take steps to potentially authorize strike: About 150 Champaign County employees represented by AFSCME Local 900 are taking steps to potentially authorize a strike. Dozens rallied for wage increases and affordable health insurance at the beginning of May, but workers are still looking for changes and improvements. Cecelia Phillips, the Local 900 President and a circuit clerk employee, said progress between union members has been “great” over the last few weeks. But, she doesn’t necessarily feel that sense of teamwork has helped much at the bargaining table, which has left some feeling frustrated.

* WIFR | Rockford City Council members reject ComEd’s $9M electric line burials: By a unanimous voice vote, Rockford City Council members unplugged the hopes of buried electric lines along 11th Street. In April 2024, the Council approved a “high-level estimate” of $4,460,362 for moving ComEd’s electric lines underground. Before a Tuesday night vote, city engineer Tim Hinkens explained the priority as aligning with Rockford’s “11th Street Corridor Study” and “2040 Comprehensive Plan.”

* WGLT | Airport director says CIRA is strong, stable amid uncertainty elsewhere: Technical troubles at major airports can have trickle down effects in smaller facilities like the Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington. Airport director Carl Olson said, for instance, cutting the number of flights at Newark because of limited staff capacity can increase ticket prices and suppress demand for travel down the chain. “If somebody decides I’m not going to pay that price to go to Newark, or I’m going to drive three hours to another airport to do it, we lose the revenue because they’re not in the restaurants. They’re not in the gift shop. They’re not renting cars. It does reach us,” said Olson.

* WGLT | IDOT awards Bloomington $800,000 for Constitution Trail expansion: The Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program [ITEP] received 213 applicants for $139.2 million in funding for the current cycle. The City of Bloomington was one of 67 winners, according to the IDOT website. The city estimates the total cost of the project at $1.2 million. The remaining funding will come from the city’s capital improvement fund in a future year budget, according to a city spokesperson.

* WIFR | Verizon’s ‘secret’ switch centers power cell service in Northern Illinois: A team from the telecommunications company provides me a tour of the “secret” facility. Due to physical and digital safety concerns, its location remains publicly unavailable. Since 2012, Lovero’s made a career at Verizon operating or overseeing part of the cell network. He leads the stroll through the “fortress” defending service.

* WCIA | 300 people attend funeral of Springfield veteran with no known family: Robert Neff died at the age of 79 with no known family. The public was invited to his funeral on Friday, and Central Illinois showed up in force. As Neff was laid to rest, hundreds of people attended the funeral service, including active duty servicemembers, veterans, Honor Guard members, Patriot Guard riders and civilians. “This morning, when I got up, I would’ve been happy with 15 or 20 people,” said Jerry Curry of Curry Funeral Home. “But the community just came out in droves, and it was a very humbling experience.”

* WAND | One year later, central Illinois still impacted by cicadas: Last fall, Okaw Valley Orchard struggled to produce enough apples to stay open. This year, they are still seeing the impacts of the insect infestation. “Where the cicadas damaged the trees last year, they are still a little bit weakened and healing over,” said Mike Mitchell, owner of Okaw Valley Orchard. “So there’s a little bit of a concern that they aren’t strong enough to hold apples, but for the most part I think they will be okay.”

* WCIA | 60 new U.S. citizens to be naturalized in special ceremony at Old State Capitol: “USCIS often conducts naturalization ceremonies at museums, schools, libraries and other notable locations to celebrate the conclusion of an immigrant’s journey to citizenship and honor the commitment they have shown along the way,” said Kate Carroll of the U.S. Clerk’s Office. “Special venues not only make these events meaningful for those who have voluntarily chosen to participate in American democracy and dedicated themselves to the country’s future, but they also reflect the strength and spirit of the United States.”

*** National ***

* AP | COVID-19 vaccinations no longer recommended for healthy children, pregnant women: The decision was blasted by the Illinois-based American Academy of Pediatrics. “This decision bypasses a long-established, evidence-based process used to ensure vaccine safety and ignores the expertise of independent medical experts, including members of CDC committees who are examining the evidence regarding the vaccine to make recommendations for the fall,” Dr. Sean O’Leary, chair of the AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases, said in a statement.

* Politico | RFK Jr. threatens to bar government scientists from publishing in leading medical journals: Speaking on the “Ultimate Human” podcast, Kennedy said the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association and The Lancet, three of the most influential medical journals in the world, were “corrupt” and publish studies funded and approved by pharmaceutical companies. […] Kennedy’s stance, however, conflicts with that of his NIH director, Jay Bhattacharya, who recently told a reporter with POLITICO sister publication WELT he supports academic freedom, which “means I can send my paper out even if my bosses disagree with me.”

* NYT | Driverless Semi Trucks Are Here, With Little Regulation and Big Promises: Byron Bloch, an auto safety expert in Maryland, said that federal oversight of the new robotrucks was “totally inadequate” and that the technology was being rushed into use with “alarming” speed. “My initial thought is: It’s scary,” said Angela Griffin, a veteran truck driver from outside Hagerstown, Md. She said misting rain had caused A.I.-powered scanners on her semi truck to malfunction, and she worried that unpredictable traffic patterns in congested areas or challenging weather conditions could lead to catastrophic errors by unmanned trucks.