* ICYMI: Illinois considers lowering scores students need to be considered proficient on state exams.Chalkbeat Chicago…

- Illinois education officials say the current benchmarks are too high and the results often don’t accurately reflect whether high school students are college and career ready.

- “Our system unfairly mislabels students as ‘not proficient’ when other data — such as success in advanced coursework and enrollment in college — tell a very different story,” state schools chief Tony Sanders wrote in a message to school leaders this week.

- The Illinois State Board of Education agreed Wednesday to move ahead with a process to change the state’s testing system, though the exact details still are being worked out.

- That process will include creating new “cut scores,” or the lowest score needed for a student to be sorted into broad categories of achievement on state assessments.

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

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Sun-Times | Illinois is the last state still unlawfully stripping wealth from homeowners in tax foreclosures: The Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a decades-old practice of taking every cent of people’s home equity over unpaid property taxes. Experts say Illinois lags behind other states with a segregation-era law that mostly affects Black communities.

* Tribune | Hundreds of thousands of Illinois residents could lose Medicaid coverage under House Republican proposals: It’s unclear exactly how much federal money Illinois could lose under the current proposals, but a number of the provisions would directly affect Medicaid funding in Illinois. The bill includes work requirements for people on Medicaid, and would restrict taxes that states including Illinois now impose on providers to help raise money for Medicaid. It would also cut funding for states that offer health care coverage to undocumented immigrants, such as Illinois — a provision that could trigger an end of coverage for more than 770,000 Illinois residents who gained it under the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of Medicaid.

*** Statewide ***

* 21st Show | One-on-one with Senator Dick Durbin ahead of retirement: U.S. senator for Illinois, Dick Durbin is in his fifth term in the Senate, and for 20 years he’s been the number two Democrat there. However, he recently announced he would not be running for reelection. Durbin discusses working with Republicans on budget negotiations and the Trump administration’s latest policy decisions.

* Press release | Youth Unemployment tops 80% in parts of Chicago, new report shows: The report, “Youth Employment Data Brief: Racial and Geographic Inequities in Youth and Young Adult Joblessness and Disconnection in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, and the U.S., 2019–2023,” finds that while overall labor market conditions have improved since the COVID-19 pandemic, many young people, particularly those in communities of color, remain disconnected from both school and work. To fill the gap, a coalition of nonprofits proposes a job-training and placement program fueled by a $150 million appropriation from the state. Coalition members say that money could put 50,000 jobless youth and young adults into jobs paying $15 per hour throughout the summer and for the entire year for those not in school.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WAND | Pritzker administration lowers Fiscal Year 2026 revenue projection by $536 million, citing unpredictable Trump economy: “Recent reports have been pointing to slower GDP growth and even the potential for a recession,” said GOMB Director Alexis Sturm. “So, like we do every year, we’ll overcome those challenges and pass a balanced budget but we do recognize that there is a lot of uncertainty and headwinds at the state level.” Meanwhile, the Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability said Illinois could expect to end the current fiscal year with roughly $54 billion in revenue. COGFA leaders said the revenue growth comes from strong income tax receipts during April.

* Press release | Healthy Illinois urges state to protect healthcare for all: “HBIA is a lifeline for the 33,000 individuals who depend on the program for lifesaving care. Despite the continuation of the process ending the program, we are committed to working with our state legislators to protect access to coverage,” said Enddy Almonord, director of the Healthy Illinois Campaign. “The program saves money for the state in the long run and protects the lives of people who are vital to our state’s culture and economy. “There is no other viable alternative, and there is no valid reason for Gov. Pritzker and Illinois to abandon their leadership position on this vital issue. In the face of the federal government’s threats to punish states for protecting their most vulnerable populations, Illinois must not capitulate but instead continue to defend healthcare for everyone, regardless of immigration status.”

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | City has run out of money set aside for settlements, but $62M more has been added to tab: The city of Chicago has already gone through the $82 million that Mayor Brandon Johnson set aside for settlements and judgments in 2025. Now the fund could soon be $62.4 million in the hole. That’s how much six new settlements on the agenda for Monday’s meeting of the City Council’s Finance Committee would end up costing taxpayers. That’s not counting a $15.5 million settlement to private investors who leased Chicago parking meters.

* Crain’s | Two years in, Brandon Johnson’s progressive allies worry their movement is stalled: Without getting into specifics, Johnson acknowledged he didn’t do enough to keep his coalition together as he filled out his administration while responding to the influx of roughly 30,000 migrants bused and flown to Chicago from the southern border. “I did not do the due diligence of securing and making sure that the coalition had everything that it needed and had complete understanding of what we were facing,” the mayor told Crain’s. “That was an error on my part, and I should have worked harder to ensure that that coalition remained engaged.”

* Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago finance officials to privately pitch investors: “Closing it to the media undermines the transparency that residents and taxpayers deserve — particularly at a time when major decisions about debt, investment, and budget strategy are being made,” the letter said. Jaworski responded in a letter hours after the conference kicked off. “We recognize and respect the important role the media plays in fostering transparency, accountability, and public understanding of the City’s financial outlook and policy decisions,” she said, but limiting the meeting to just “current and prospective municipal bond investors, credit analysts, and ratings agencies … is consistent with peer municipalities across the country.”

* Crain’s | Jenner & Block lawyer’s security clearance pulled by Trump administration: A lawyer for Jenner & Block, which is challenging the Trump administration’s executive order against the firm, had their security clearance suspended, according to a court filing. Jenner won a temporary restraining order in March blocking much of the actions outlined in Trump’s executive order, including restrictions on access to federal buildings and the termination of government contracts with the firm, but the section related to security clearances was not addressed.

* Chalkbeat Chicago | A quarter of Chicago high schoolers missed more than a month of school last year: Across Chicago Public Schools, nearly 25,000 high school students — or a quarter of all high schoolers — missed at least 35 days last year, according to CPS data obtained by WBEZ and Chalkbeat. That’s double the number of students who missed that much school in 2019 — and twice the number of days the state deems troublesome enough to flag a student as chronically absent.

* Tribune | Which way, CTU? Election tests union’s strategy and solidarity: The opposition slate argues that the current leadership’s bullish nature doesn’t allow for dissenting voices, lacks financial transparency and has shed union allies. Their presidential candidate, Erika Meza, a 25-year veteran teacher from the Southeast Side, is unhappy with what CTU has come to symbolize. “There’s a lack of solidarity right now. We want to bring that back,” Meza said in an interview with the Tribune. “We need to make this a decision for the whole union.”

* Crain’s | ‘Makes no sense’: UIC dental dean blasts science behind FDA fluoride order: Federal regulators now want to remove ingestible fluoride supplements from the market, claiming they harm children, interfere with the gut microbiome and are not necessary because topical fluoride on the teeth is what actually matters. Dentists in and around Chicago don’t see the line.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Oak Park trustee Susan Buchanan once targeted by InfoWars resigns, citing burnout: She got her first and perhaps worse taste of that vitriol in the fall of 2019, less than six months into her first term on the Village Board. Buchanan received threats that caused her and her family to leave their home for a couple days after she had what she described in retrospect as a “hissy fit” when she told two white male Village Board members, Deno Andrews and Dan Moroney, to “shut up” when they asked for the term “systems of oppression” to be clarified during a discussion of the village’s diversity statement. Despite apologizing for the comment after the meeting, her “shut up” comment went viral when a video of her comment was posted on Infowars, the website hosted by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

* ABC Chicago | Thousands across Chicago area wake up without power after storms topple trees, power lines: On Thursday evening, the National Weather Service issued a Tornado Watch and Severe Thunderstorm Warning for multiple counties in Illinois and northwest Indiana. They have all since expired. Clean up began since Thursday night for city and sububran public works. ComEd said more than 47,000 woke up without power on Thursday.

* Lake County News-Sun | Federal funding cuts hurting Lakeside Tower improvement plans; ‘We’re living in uncharted territory’: “We may have to lessen the scope of our plans if we have $9 million less,” he said. “We’ll see what happens with court cases. We’re living in uncharted territory.” After the city of Waukegan sued the former owners of the building for what then-Mayor Ann Taylor called “inhumane conditions,” the lawsuit resulted in a sale to the current ownership nearly two years ago. Valery said at the time at the time of the purchase his group planned to spend $20 million giving each of the 150 apartments new kitchens, bathrooms and more, as well as curing years of deferred maintenance untouched by the former owners.

* Daily Herald | Long Grove planning chair replaced in wake of QuikTrip vote: The village board delayed the vote on QuikTrip last month after it became clear the board did not have the four votes needed to pass. During the meeting, Kritzmire, who was sitting at her last meeting as trustee, declared her support for QuikTrip. Following the appointment, one of Wilson’s fellow commissioners, Archana Mohanchandra questioned Jacob about whether Wilson had resigned and why she was replaced. “She has not resigned at this point,” he said. “We’re going in a different direction.”

* Crain’s | With federal action looming, Northwestern hits the gas on lobbying efforts: In the first quarter of this year, the school has doled out more than $600,000 toward lobbyists, according to federal records, nearly exceeding what the university would typically spend in a full year on such efforts The big Q1 follows a year when the school spent more than $1 million on lobbying, its largest figure on record, according to the nonprofit database OpenSecrets, which tracks lobbying expenditures. The nonprofit has NU’s annual congressional lobbying figures going back to 1998.

* Tribune | After Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss announced run for Congress, locals have mixed reactions: Newly elected 8th Ward City Councilmember Matt Rodgers said he was split on whether or not Biss running for Congress is a good move for the city and its residents. “I think it’s very beneficial anytime you have someone who’s local in a national office and they understand Evanston, they fully get Evanston,” Rodgers said, adding that it can boost the amount of federal grants the city could receive from the federal government, particularly at a time when the feds are looking to make cuts.

* Daily Herald | Bird-friendly rules extended to new residential construction in unincorporated Lake County: Changes to the building code approved Tuesday by the Lake County Board require that at least 80% bird-friendly glass be used on exterior surfaces from the ground level to 100 feet. The rules take effect July 12 and also apply to accessory structures such as free-standing glass walls, railings, windscreens, greenhouses and similar features.

*** Downstate ***

* WSIL | Marion’s STAR Bond Project breaks ground, promising jobs and growth: Gov. JB Pritzker and local leaders broke ground on a new 550,000 square-foot retail, entertainment, and hospitality development in Marion. This project is the first Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) Bond Project in Illinois. “Today’s groundbreaking is one of the direct results of our bipartisan efforts to bring to life the economic growth opportunities that were stifled for far too long in Marion and Southern Illinois,” said Governor JB Pritzker.

* Fox 2 Now | Pritzker unveils new grocery store for Venice community: Illinois Grocery Initiative is really about growing those locally grown initiatives,” Pritzker said. “The idea here is that it can be a private enterprise or small business or a public enterprise coop or anything in between. The grocery initiative is about something that is locally grown helping it thrive or helping it come into existence without the state imposing an answer about it.” Former Superintendent Ed Hightower was asked to help revitalize the struggling community. He turned to lawmakers who found a bipartisan way forward through the Illinois Grocery Initiative.

* BND | O’Fallon bank VP’s alleged ‘financial betrayal’ detailed in police reports: Police reports provide a deep look into the investigation of a metro-east bank executive who federal prosecutors have accused of defrauding his employer of nearly $2 million and stealing another nearly half million dollars from a Lebanon couple’s retirement savings. The reports portray a man who borrowed from wealthy friends to support extravagant spending habits – including a $200-per-day allowance for a favorite waitress who called him “sugar daddy” – and out of desperation committed bank fraud when his debts came due.

* WGLT | McLean County Board formalizes transit provider swap, upgrades jail to protect guards: The McLean County Board on Thursday approved a resolution formalizing an intergovernmental agreement between Connect Transit and the county to provide rural transportation services. The resolution allows Connect Transit to take control of the county’s rural transportation service. The county will help with policy for hours, services, fares charged and the annual budget. In June of last year, the board officially withdrew from an intergovernmental agreement [IGA] with ShowBus.

* WCIA | Fisher making efforts to get first public library: Right now, they’re still in the initial process and are hoping everything goes smoothly. One volunteer said this isn’t their first time making the attempt for a public library. “Fisher is one of the only small towns in the area that doesn’t have their own library,” said volunteer Kim Clemmons. “About 25 years ago, there was a push to try to get one at that point, and the tax referendum failed at that time. We definitely could use a library here in our town.”

* WSIL | Southeastern Illinois College celebrates 63rd graduating class: “In a world that can feel increasingly fast-paced and far away from places like this, it’s important to remember that some of the most valuable skills don’t just come from a textbook,” Weiss said. “They’re forged in real life—in long shifts and late nights, in caring for kids while attending class, in commuting long distances to chase a dream.” Weiss also acknowledged the college’s achievements, including state championships in speech, Model Illinois Government, and eSports.

*** National ***

* Next Gov | DOGE went looking for phone fraud at SSA — and found almost none: Under the new policy, the agency found that only two benefit claims out of over 110,000 had a high probability of being fraudulent — and they aren’t guaranteed to be so. Less than 1% of claims were flagged as even potentially fraudulent at all. “No significant fraud has been detected from the flagged cases,” the internal document said.

* WaPo | What we get wrong about Mark Twain: Overall, Chernow’s “Mark Twain” is less a literary biography than a deep dive into “the most original character in American history.” Born in 1835, Samuel Langhorne Clemens, who adopted the pen name Mark Twain, was by turns a printer, steamboat pilot, journalist, stand-up storyteller, best-selling author, publisher, political pundit, champion of racial equality and all-around scourge of authoritarianism.

* ARS Technica | Judge admits nearly being persuaded by AI hallucinations in court filing: “Directly put, Plaintiff’s use of AI affirmatively misled me,” Judge Wilner wrote in a May 5 order. “I read their brief, was persuaded (or at least intrigued) by the authorities that they cited, and looked up the decisions to learn more about them—only to find that they didn’t exist. That’s scary. It almost led to the scarier outcome (from my perspective) of including those bogus materials in a judicial order. Strong deterrence is needed to make sure that attorneys don’t succumb to this easy shortcut.”