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Republicans file no candidate against Treasurer Frerichs - ‘First time in at least 90 years’ that a statewide candidate runs unopposed
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Treasurer Michael Frerichs…
A handful of Republicans filed to run for governor: Darren Bailey, James Mendrick, Ted Dabrowski, Max Solomon, Rick Heidner and Gregg Moore. Three Republicans, Andy Williams, attorney JoAnne Guillemette and former Chicago Ald. Bob Fioretti, have all filed for attorney general. Attorney Bryan Drew filed for comptroller. And Diane Harris and Walter Adamczyk filed to challenge Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias.
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Chuy Garcia’s chief of staff files petitions to run for his congressional seat (Updated)
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * No statement yet, but Patty Garcia has filed petitions to run for the 4th US House seat currently held by incumbent Rep. Chuy Garcia. Patty Garcia is Rep. Garcia’s chief of staff. Also, 22nd Ward Chicago Ald. Michael Rodriguez has filed to run for state central committeeman, a position Rep. Garcia now holds. Looks like the end of an era. There’s some thought that one reason Rep. Garcia did it this way was to ensure that the district stayed in Latino hands after his retirement. …Adding… The Sun-Times…
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup (Updated)
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Sun-Times…
The Tribune…
* NPR…
…Adding… Crain’s…
* Shaw Local | Hunters Feeding Illinois program under threat, deepening supply shortages for local food pantries: While SNAP-Ed couldn’t pay for the deer processing itself, Extension staff raised money through local donations and grants to reimburse processors and help cover costs. SNAP-Ed funding pays for the staff who built those connections by coordinating between hunters, processors and pantries, handling logistics and organizing nutrition education at food distribution sites. Federal funds don’t go toward the meat but toward the people and planning that kept the program running smoothly. Without that funding, Hunters Feeding Illinois would be unable to operate, leaving local pantries like the Community Food Basket in Ottawa, uncertain of what to expect if the program isn’t reinstated. * Inside Higher Ed | Illinois Launches Effort to Re-Enroll Some College, No Degree Cohort: Illinois has launched a statewide effort to re-enroll students who stopped out of college, in partnership with ReUp Education, a company focused on recruiting and supporting adult learners, according to a news release. ReUp has established a re-enrollment marketplace in Illinois that will connect stopped-out learners with 19 participating community colleges and universities and provide them with live coaching and other resources. The platform will be accessible to 200,000 Illinois residents who have earned some college credits but not completed a degree. Nationwide, about 43 million Americans fall into that category. * STLPR | Some Midwest soybeans are headed to China again, but farmers still need other buyers: Soybeans yields are predicted to hit record highs in states like Missouri, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota. Total production is also on track with previous years, according to data from the USDA. That abundance, along with the trade war, has driven soybean prices down. Soybean farmers in the southern portion of the Midwest, such as Indiana, Illinois and Missouri, will have better options for selling their harvests, economists say. Many are closer to crushing facilities and can also ship their soybeans along the Mississippi River to be exported across the Atlantic Ocean. However, producers to the north in the Dakotas and Minnesota, who have long relied on railroads to ship their soybean crops west and on to China, will be hit the hardest by the trade war. * Press Release | Gun Violence Prevention Action Committee releases 2025 gun safety report card: As the 2026 legislative elections draw near, the Gun Safety Report Card is a useful tool to evaluate the commitment of state lawmakers on several laws that collectively work to create safer communities across Illinois by making it more difficult for dangerous individuals to obtain firearms, protecting children and at-risk individuals from accessing firearms in their homes, and expanding enforcement and accountability to ensure these laws are upheld. In this year’s Report Card, 60% of legislators earned an A while 30% failed. * Evanston Roundtable | Springfield roundup: Parking minimums, immigration and more from veto session: Besides the revenues and reforms that captured most of the attention, the transit bill also incorporates the People Over Parking Act, which targets vehicle parking requirements for developments in local zoning codes. A previous version of the act was introduced earlier in the year, alongside other statewide zoning bills supported by an ad hoc housing advisory committee convened by Pritzker last year, though none of the others made it across the finish line during the veto session. * WTTW | Measure Designed to Protect Chicago’s South, West Sides From Pollution Stalls: A measure designed to reduce the burden air, water and soil pollution imposes on South and West side neighborhoods remains stalled, six months after Mayor Brandon Johnson introduced the proposed ordinance and more than two years after the mayor promised to act. Even though the city’s annual departmental budget hearings were put on hold Monday to allow the Chicago City Council’s Zoning Committee to consider the measure named for Hazel Johnson, known as the mother of the environmental justice movement for her work in Altgeld Gardens, Ald. Bennett Lawson (44th Ward) announced he would not call a vote on the measure, long mired in legislative limbo. * ABC Chicago | Manny’s Deli offering free meals to SNAP recipients affected by gov. shutdown: In Chicago, Manny’s Deli in the South Loop will give a free family meal to customers who show their SNAP Link card through this week. On Monday, the line wrapped around the restaurant as recepients waited for a free sandwhich. “I was having a lunch with a longtime customer and mentor and he gave me the idea to do this. It kind inspired me . We thought this was the best way to help Chicago at the time,” owner Dan Raskin said. * Tribune | Operation Midway Blitz linked to dip in 911 calls, especially in Little Village: And nowhere is the decrease more pronounced than in Little Village, home to Chicago’s largest Mexican American population, where calls to 911 have fallen by more than 21% since the surge of federal immigration officers began, city data show. Neighborhood leaders acknowledge a sharp year-over-year decline in crime, but note that the wave of immigration enforcement has left many residents in fear of calling 911 for help during that stretch. * Tribune | Chicago woman dragged out of her car after colliding with ICE demands accountability: Seconds after the crash, agents abruptly stopped their vehicle and exited with weapons in hand pointing at Figueroa, a U.S citizen. Agents then forcibly opened her door and pulled her out of the vehicle by her legs without identifying themselves, presenting a warrant or informing her that she was under arrest. As bystanders yelled, “You hit her! We have it on video!” agents ignored the crowd and forced Figueroa into a red minivan and drove away. Her car was left behind in the middle of the road, her coffee still in the cup holder, and her keys in plain view. * Crain’s | Quantum park developers seek IEPA sign-off to begin work: The state’s EPA late last week disclosed the results of a site investigation and remediation plan from Related Midwest and CRG for the property at 8080 S. Lake Shore Drive. The Chicago developers, backed by $500 million in state funding, are poised to break ground on the 128-acre Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park on the south end of the land, the centerpiece of a broader 59-million-square-foot megadevelopment dubbed Quantum Shore Chicago. * Sun-Times | CTA hopes this kind of rush hour — subway surfing — doesn’t take root here as it has in New York: Nine people partaking in the high-stakes thrill-seeking in that city’s subways since last year have been killed, and police have made roughly 300 arrests, authorities say. Nothing even close to that is happening in Chicago, but CTA records show train surfing is indeed occurring in Chicago, with 24 incidents logged since 2023 — though transit employees and others say the reckless behavior is surely occurring more than the records indicate. * Block Club | Inside Diner Grill, The Tiny Eatery That’s Kept Stragglers Fed For 88 Years: Amid the growth of food delivery apps and the slow recovery of the restaurant industry, Diner Grill has weathered the changes with resilience, a bastion for the hungry and the drunk, the blue- and white-collar workers, the families and the loners, its iconic white and black neon sign blazing night and day. * WBEZ | This year’s Millennium Park Christmas tree is a 67-foot-tall Norway spruce from Glenview: The folks at the city who are responsible for picking the tree said they were impressed, among other things, by the tree’s size. “We couldn’t pass up an opportunity like this,” said Neil Heitz, director of production at the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events “This year’s tree is bigger than many of the trees that we had in the past. We’re thrilled to continue building on a Chicago tradition that brings so many people together.” * Crain’s | Electrical equipment maker lays off 185 in shift from Illinois to Indiana: Panduit, a maker of electrical and computer networking equipment, is laying off 185 employees at a DeKalb warehouse by year-end. The company, which is based in Tinley Park, recently received tax incentives to build a new warehouse in northwest Indiana. “To modernize and align our distribution network for future growth, Panduit made the strategic decision to move operations from DeKalb to a new, state-of-the-art facility in Merrillville,” a spokeswoman said. * Sun-Times | Suburban man hospitalized after allegedly being struck during ICE arrest: Ricardo Rodriguez, 53, was riding his bike to get groceries when federal agents stopped him, according to Rodriguez’s niece Stephanie Suaine. Videos circulating on social media show an agent placing Rodriguez in a chokehold and striking his head at least once before two more agents approach and appear to put Rodriguez in handcuffs. “My uncle got up and they punched him … they’re still choking him,” Stephanie Suaine said as she watched the video. “It makes me mad because he’s old already, they shouldn’t be treating old people like that.” * WCIA | Decatur restaurant, community paying it forward: free meals for those in need: What started as an idea for free lunches, has turned into more than 200 meals in just a few days. Bobbie Lane’s BBQ in Decatur is calling it the “pay it forward” wall. Customers can buy a meal, put the ticket on the wall, and then someone else can eat for free. The General Manager, Brandon Dulik, said that they chose to do this because of concerns about SNAP benefits running out and food insecurity rising. * IPM News | Where to find food assistance in Central Illinois as SNAP funding runs out on Nov. 1: Illinois Extension has launched a tool called Find Food IL Community Food Map displaying food pantries and other resources across the state. The Eastern Illinois Foodbank partners with agencies to distribute food and groceries across 21 counties. The organization also operates a Foodmobile program offering scheduled drive-thru food pantries in various communities. * Daily Herald | NIU welcomes Illinois Senate minority leader for ‘Rebuilding Democracy’ lecture: This event, conducted on Zoom, will feature a discussion between Curran, Dean Robert Brinkmann and College of Law Dean Cassandra Hill on various topics, such as the current state of democracy, states’ rights, ethical leadership in uncertain times, economic development, issues facing the state and taxpayers and a preview of the upcoming legislative session. A moderated question-and-answer session will follow. * WCIA | Firefighters respond to second molten glass leak in Macon Co.: The Mt. Zion Fire Protection District said crews were called back just after 3 p.m. The fire protection district said the call was upgraded to a third-alarm since their firefighters were “exhausted” from battling the larger leak earlier, and because the crews didn’t know how large the leak was. * NPR Illinois | Country star Lainey Wilson to play 2026 Illinois State Fair: “We couldn’t think of a more powerful way to kick off our 2026 Grandstand announcements than with Lainey Wilson,” said Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello II. “She’s a trailblazer in country music, and her show will be an unforgettable experience for our fairgoers.” * Smile Politely | Smashing pumpkins in Urbana: Sorry, I don’t mean the band in case you were thinking that. I’m talking about the pumpkin smash event at the Landscape Recycling Center. The center has a food scrap pile and is inviting folks with old, post-Halloween pumpkins to come smash them up to make compost and grow new plants. Make sure you aren’t trying to dispose of pumpkins that have paint, coatings, or lights and such; they will not be accepted. But that mushy, squirrel-ravaged carved one that looks like it’s been on your porch since 1979? Don’t stick it in the trash, smash it! * Lexinton Herald Leader| Martha Layne Collins, KY’s first woman governor & Toyota dealmaker, dies at 88: In an exit survey conducted at the 1983 polls, a strong majority of Kentucky voters said they had personally met Collins in the year leading up to the election. “It was like in the ‘80s,” Luallen recalled. “I remember the pollsters being shocked by that, but it was because she was everywhere. “Nobody could outwork her.” * 404 Media | Flock Logins Exposed In Malware Infections, Senator Asks FTC to Investigate the Company: Lawmakers have called on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate Flock for allegedly violating federal law by not enforcing multi-factor authentication (MFA), according to a letter shared with 404 Media. The demand comes as a security researcher found Flock accounts for sale on a Russian cybercrime forum, and 404 Media found multiple instances of Flock-related credentials for government users in infostealer infections, potentially providing hackers or other third parties with access to at least parts of Flock’s surveillance network.
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Caption contest!
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * The governor’s Halloween costume… 
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Trump on Chicago, Pritzker
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * From the full, unedited transcript of last night’s episode of 60 Minutes…
Deep breaths before commenting. …Adding… The Insurrection Act has been invoked in response to 30 crises. From a subscriber: It was last invoked in 1992 in response to a request from the CA Gov. No president has unilaterally involved the insurrection act against a state’s wishes since Lyndon Johnson did so to provide protection for civil rights activists in Alabama marching from Selma to Montgomery in 1965.
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Rep. Marty Moylan to drop out of reelection bid
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Rep. Marty Moylan (D-Des Plaines) told me he won’t seek a seventh term in the Illinois House and plans to endorse his chief of staff, Justin Cochran, who filed petitions today. Moylan said the decision came as he’s been dealing with some health issues. Moylan said he doesn’t have a timeline yet for withdrawing from the race but plans to “move on.” “I’m going to do local stuff, but that’s about it — done with Springfield, retired,” Rep. Moylan said. He said he’ll “decide on a retirement date soon.” Rep. Moylan, first elected in 2013, chairs the House Transportation: Rail Systems, Roads & Bridges Committee and has been heavily involved in transit reform talks. He pushed for the creation of the NITA Law Enforcement Task Force, which will be lead by the Cook County Sheriff. * Cochran said he was honored for Moylan’s confidence and encouragement to run. “Marty is a very serious legislator, and he cares a lot about his district, and he cares a lot about the residents,” Cochran said. “I remember when he hired me, he told me my biggest service [is] to make sure my residents get what they need and the help they need. So that has been my focus, and it’s been a very rewarding experience.”
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When pressed, Welch refused to commit to progressive revenue ideas
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Fran Spielman repeatedly tried to pin down House Speaker Chris Welch on progressive revenue ideas for the spring legislative session. He batted them all away last Friday…
“Chris Welch does not support a head tax” effectively ended that line of inquiry. It was news. Please pardon all transcription errors.
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RETAIL: Strengthening Communities Across Illinois
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood is home to Mestiza, a shop that delivers memories of culture, family pride, and traditions in the heart of Chicago’s Latino community. With a commitment to their Pilsen neighborhood and a passion for women-owned business, Mestiza owners Lorena and Sugieri provide a Mexican American shopping experience visitors are sure to remember. Retail generates $7.3 billion in income and sales tax revenue each year in Illinois. These funds support public safety, infrastructure, education, and other important programs we all rely on every day. In fact, retail is the second largest revenue generator for the State of Illinois and the largest revenue generator for local governments.
Policies that support small businesses help communities thrive as retailers like Lorena and Sugieri are better equipped to meet local needs. We Are Retail and IRMA are showcasing the retailers who make Illinois work.
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The path to the transit bill
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: SNAP benefits remain on hold for 2M Illinoisans despite court rulings, agency says. Fox Chicago…
- Even if the Trump administration is forced to distribute the money, it is uncertain how long it will take for residents to receive the money, IDHS said. - SNAP benefits from prior months can still be used this month, according to state officials. * Related stories… * Governor Pritzker will give remarks at the Chicago Quantum Summit at 9 am. At 11 am, the governor will attend the opening of a new facility at the Philip J. Rock Center and School. Click here to watch. * TPM | One Amicus Brief May Have Given Supreme Court an Out in Chicago National Guard Case: So far, Trump has attempted to argue that “regular forces” refers to local law enforcement and federal officers, who he claims are overwhelmed and endangered by the anti-ICE protests a few miles outside the city’s downtown. Not so, says Georgetown Law’s Marty Lederman. In an amicus brief that seems to have caught the Justices’ attention, Lederman gives a thorough accounting of the legislative history of the term “regular forces,” offering pages of evidence that it referred to the military. Under his theory, the National Guard was meant to be called in as a last resort if the active duty military couldn’t quell whatever domestic crisis they were deployed to handle. * NOTUS | Super Rich? In Prison? Lobbyists Want to Help Score You a Trump Pardon.: Crossroads Strategies directed questions about Pramaggiore’s case to adviser Mark Herr, who told NOTUS: “Anne Pramaggiore was wrongly convicted and is appealing her case to the Seventh Circuit. At the same time, she is exploring all options in her pursuit of justice, including the possibility of a pardon.” * Sun-Times | IDs are mismatched, illegible or still missing 3 weeks after judge’s order to immigration officers: Three weeks ago, a federal judge in Chicago ordered federal immigration officers who have been sweeping area streets to add individual IDs to their uniforms, an order she repeated Tuesday in court directly to the Trump administration’s top immigration enforcer here. But dozens of photographs of uniformed immigration agents shot by Chicago Sun-Times photojournalists in four separate locations since the court order show how the feds have fallen short. U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis on Oct. 9 ordered “visible identification” that is “prominently displayed.” * Daily Herald | Chronic absenteeism numbers dip for third year; state launches special task force to address problem: Chronic absenteeism — defined as students missing 10% or more of the school year due to excused or unexcused absences — marked a third consecutive year of improvement since its pandemic-driven peak at 29.8% in 2022, officials said. It fell to 25.4% in 2025, down 14.8% since 2022, according to the 2025 Illinois School Report Card data released Thursday. Though it remains higher than pre-pandemic levels, chronic absenteeism has continued to decline for the third consecutive year, State Superintendent of Education Tony Sanders said. * Northwestern Now | Northwestern study finds a 65% increase in Illinois hospitals from 2016 to 2023: Men, Black patients and those living in areas with low socioeconomic status were disproportionally affected, the study found. The dramatic spike is largely attributed to a growing prevalence of diabetes and peripheral artery disease (PAD), two chronic conditions that often lead to lower extremity amputation, the study authors said. * Fox 2 Now | Services to be held for family of Ill. candidate Darren Bailey after helicopter crash: The services will take place at 9 a.m. at the Oil Belt Christian Service Camp in Flora, Illinois, located at 555 Park Road. Visitation for the family was held Sunday at the same location, and a private burial will follow the celebration of life service. * More details…
* Sun-Times | Gov. JB Pritzker tells President Donald Trump to ‘f— all the way off’ in viral video: Gov. JB Pritzker told President Donald Trump and his Republican allies to “f— all the way off” during a speech last month before Illinois’ largest teachers union. Video of Pritzker’s F-bomb started gaining traction on social media Sunday, two weeks after the Democratic governor and potential 2028 presidential contender got a standing ovation for his profane takedown of Trump administration education policies. * Daily Southtown | Judge to consider sanctions against state Sen. Michael Hastings in lawsuit alleging smear campaign: Glotz’s attorney, Patrick Walsh, said the lawsuit was politically motivated and represents an effort by Hastings to harass Republican opponents. “As attorneys, and Hastings is an attorney, we have a duty to ensure that lawsuits are filed in good faith and that they have a good faith basis in law and fact,” Walsh said. “Not all political disputes should be litigated.” Walsh said he will present evidence that Hastings should face sanctions, including paying Glotz’s legal fees, at the next scheduled hearing in the case at the Markham courthouse at 11 a.m. Dec. 10. * Tribune | Legislature sets stage for Illinois to become a ‘right-to-die’ state as bill narrowly passes: The bill will go to Gov. JB Pritzker, who will have to decide whether to sign it into law. If he does, the legislation would allow mentally competent, terminally ill adults the right to access life-ending prescription medication. The governor’s office did not return a request for comment about whether Pritzker backs the legislation. If signed by Pritzker, Illinois would join at least 10 other states, among them Oregon, California, Colorado and Hawaii, as well as Washington, D.C., in allowing medical aid in dying. The legislation received support from the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and Compassion and Choices Action Network. * Sun-Times | Bovino carries out Halloween arrests. ‘They showed up here to terrorize people,’ alder says: The agents swept through the Albany Park and Edison Park neighborhoods, and suburban Evanston, Skokie and Niles Friday morning and afternoon after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said enforcement operations would continue on Halloween despite Gov. JB Pritzker asking they pause for the holiday. * Tribune | Border Patrol’s strong-arm tactics are the new norm in Chicago as Trump moves to sideline ICE leadership: But more than a month after Bovino and the crew of camouflaged agents he calls the “green machine” arrived in Chicago to assist Trump’s immigration crackdown dubbed Operation Midway Blitz, the scene signaled a profound shift in how the federal government arrests undocumented immigrants far from the border. Instead of carefully targeted arrests long practiced by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, President Donald Trump’s administration has deployed roving groups of masked Border Patrol agents, who work within U.S. Customs and Border Protection. These agents have roamed throughout Chicago and its suburbs with the mission of arresting as many undocumented immigrants as possible, often while camera operators film for future government promotional videos. * Sun-Times | Gov. Pritzker makes a Halloween stop in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood: Gov. JB Pritzker made an appearance in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood on Halloween Friday to hand out candy to costumed kids. In a bid to allay fears trick-or-treating children might have about ICE agents in their neighborhoods, Pritzker this week asked U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to stop immigration enforcement operations for a three-day stretch during the Halloween weekend. * Sun-Times | Plainclothes agents make arrest in Southwest Side barbershop: Despite displaying “No ICE or face coverings” signs on their front door, five plainclothes officers walked into the business Thursday afternoon and asked people for identification. When witnesses saw a barber come out of the bathroom, agents threw him to the ground and carried him out of the shop and into a pickup truck. * Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson’s budget pitch blames ‘Trump Deficit,’ but Chicago’s money woes found elsewhere: Instead, the $1.19 billion projected shortfall for 2026 has been telegraphed for years because of rising personnel and pension costs as well as pandemic-era federal grants from President Joe Biden’s administration expiring. While these pressures long predated Johnson, he has known about them since assuming office and has not meaningfully addressed the structural causes. * Sun-Times | Mayor Johnson’s job approval up slightly, but his tax choices are unpopular, poll shows: Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 31% job approval rating — up from 26% last summer — follows months of mayoral attacks on budget cuts imposed or threatened by President Donald Trump and after Johnson’s opposition to weeks of immigration raids that have besieged Chicago neighborhoods. * WBEZ | As SNAP benefits are cut off, Chicagoans line up at food pantries: Starting Saturday, nearly 2 million Illinois residents — 42 million across the country — are going without Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits as the government shutdown continues, though two federal judges separately ruled on Friday that the Trump administration must pay for November’s SNAP benefits using contingency funding. The administration has until Monday to decide whether it will partially or fully fund the food assistance program. Trump said he would provide the money but wanted more legal direction from the court, which will not happen until Monday. * Sun-Times | Chicago firm that resolves ransomware attacks had rogue workers carrying out their own hacks, FBI says: ogue employees of a Chicago company that specializes in negotiating ransoms to mitigate cyber attacks were carrying out their own piracy in a plot to extort millions of dollars from a series of companies, prosecutors say. Kevin Tyler Martin, a ransomware threat negotiator for River North-based DigitalMint at the time of the alleged conspiracy, was among two men indicted in the scheme. A suspected accomplice who wasn’t indicted was also employed at DigitalMint, court records show. DigitalMint has denied any wrongdoing, fired both employees and cooperated with the investigation. * Sun-Times | Dale Bowman, longtime Sun-Times outdoors columnist, escapes for new adventure: Years later, I learned why the Palmisano brothers (Henry, Tom and Steve) gave me the scoop on Deva Vranek catching the Illinois-record brown trout of 36 pounds, 11.5 ounces, straight off Chicago on June 22, 1997. They thought I wrote for ordinary anglers, the ultimate compliment, and they were in a pissing match with Husar over another story. Vranek’s record still stands. * Sun-Times | In highly unusual move, Lyons mayor takes $245k loan from campaign committee to pay personal tax liability: Chris Getty’s lawyer insists the arrangement is legal, and says it’s tied to his divorce that led to sizable federal and state tax debt. But an official with the state elections board says: “You can’t spend your campaign fund for personal expenses. I would see this as a personal expenditure.” * Sun-Times | Cook County housing authority in turmoil amid firings, investigation, spending concerns: Last month, HUD removed the housing authority from its list of underperforming agencies. But troubles persist — even without the official moniker. The housing authority is undergoing a significant staff reorganization — one the board didn’t know about and the agency has denied. Documents obtained by the Sun-Times show payments amounting to thousands of dollars for restructuring work. * Tribune | Cook County leaders get some but not all property tax relief legislation sought in Springfield: Despite doubts that any such legislation would pass by the time the legislature adjourned on Friday morning, several other property tax changes — including moving the due date for spring bills one month later — also crawled over the legislative finish line. It’s a key victory for Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Assessor Fritz Kaegi, coming a few weeks before property tax bills are set to land and as campaign season heats up. Both Preckwinkle and Kaegi are facing challengers in the March Democratic primary. * Sun-Times | Religious leaders’ request to give communion to detainees at Broadview facility is denied again: In a statement to the Sun-Times, a DHS spokesperson said any request to tour its facilities must be approved by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and that requests “should be made with sufficient time to prevent interference” with the president’s authority to oversee executive department functions. “A week is sufficient to ensure no intrusion on the president’s constitutional authority,” the DHS spokesperson said, not elaborating on why Saturday’s request was denied despite more than a week’s notice given. The spokesperson also noted increases in obstruction to immigration enforcement. * NBC Chicago | New policy will dispatch police supervisors to federal agent activity in Evanston: The city introduced the policy, believed to be the first of its kind in the Chicago area, this week. The mayor said police supervisors will now respond to federal activity if they receive 911 calls from residents and attempt to gather any information for investigative purposes, including interviewing witnesses and collecting cellphone videos. The information would be documented in an incident report, according to the mayor. * CNN | ‘Bunch of liars’: Mayor of Evanston, IL slams DHS’ account of violent arrest: A Chicago suburb is outraged by federal agents repeatedly striking a man in the head during an arrest. Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss tells CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield that DHS’s account of the incident is false, insisting “the only violence was coming from ICE and their fellow agents.” * Aurora Beacon-News | Batavia mulls ordinance banning federal immigration actions on city property: Joining a flurry of other municipalities, Batavia’s City Council is considering drafting an ordinance that would ban federal immigration enforcement on city-owned property, as a federal immigration crackdown continues in Chicago and its surrounding suburbs. The issue was discussed at the Batavia City Council’s Committee of the Whole meeting last Tuesday, at which dozens of residents addressed the council, the vast majority speaking in support of such an ordinance. * Daily Herald | Wheeling board could ban ICE operations on village property: The potential ban comes after Wheeling officials said federal immigration agents approached a village fire station Saturday asking to use its parking lot. A citizen group arrived at the scene and began blowing whistles, Village President Patrick Horcher said. “That was enough to chase away the (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) guys,” Horcher said Sunday. * Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora’s proposed 2026 budget includes none of previously-discussed Paramount funding: At the time, those officials said that the city’s previously-communicated financial support of $7 million could be reduced by up to 65%. They warned that, if city funding for the organization did come in far under the $7 million mark, it would mean additional cuts. But Aurora’s recently-proposed 2026 budget, which includes significant funding and staffing cuts for city departments, doesn’t just have a reduction in that previously-discussed funding for the Paramount. City and theater officials say it includes none of those funds at all. * Naperville Sun | Naperville to collect $1.8M in new revenue in 2026 after utility tax billing error caught: Naperville Finance Director Ray Munch said the problem was discovered this summer as city staff was preparing the tentative 2026 budget. In looking more closely into city finances for ways to close a potential $4 million shortfall, it was noticed that revenue from the city’s electric use tax wasn’t adding up. A software issue caused about 3,000 commercial customers to be billed at the wrong rate from out of the city’s total of 60,000 electric customers. * Daily Southtown | Tinley Park police close training facility, partner with Orland Park on new location: The Tinley Park Police Department’s training facility in the 17300 block of 69th Avenue is closing due to maintenance issues, officials said, and the village is looking to build a new gun range near the village police station. But in the meantime, officers will train at a $10 million dollar facility in Orland Park. * Daily Herald | Despite objections, Lake County zoning board OKs solar farm near Antioch: Opponents argue the solar farm represents an industrial use in a rural area zoned for housing. They say it would create potential risks to well and lake water, dominate site lines and pose other concerns. Antioch Mayor Scott Gartner said he isn’t opposed to solar facilities but the site is “completely wrong” for a solar farm. The village is investigating whether a land swap is possible, he said. * Daily Herald | As more suburban schools switch to artificial turf, injury debate carries on: One study, from Current Orthopaedic Practice in 2021, states that data collected from 26 high schools indicated athletes were 58% more likely to sustain injuries on artificial turf. But other studies have shown no significant difference, or even a higher frequency of injuries on grass. * WCIA | Macon Co. one step closer to having one mile horse race track, casino: A new horse racing track could be coming to Macon County. After a bill passed the state senate on Thursday, people are weighing the pros and cons of bringing a casino and a harness racing-track to Decatur. They’re calling it a “racino.” It would go near Rt. 36 and Wyckles Road, diagonal to the Decatur Conference Center and Hotel. * BND | ‘Bring their daddy home.’ Rally demands local father’s release from ICE custody: Many residents in the small town of Staunton were shocked to learn that a local father and Mexican restaurant owner was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in late October shortly after dropping his two daughters off at elementary school. Ismael Ayuzo Sandoval, 41, of Staunton, is being held at the Ste. Genevieve County Detention Center. “We couldn’t imagine the fact that his daughters were going to go home that day and not be with him,” said Chelsa Pruden, a Staunton activist whose daughter goes to the same elementary school. * WQAD | Moline-Chicago passenger rail funding approved; QC leaders react: Funding to bring passenger rail service from Moline to Chicago has officially been secured, local and state leaders celebrated Friday during a press conference in downtown Moline. “Today is a day for celebrating because we have secured funding for our train,” Moline Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati said The funding approval in Illinois’ state transit bill marks one of the final legislative hurdles in a project years in the making. Officials said the next steps include entering into agreements with Iowa Interstate Railroad, construction planning and securing federal approvals. * WGEM | Quincy Regional Airport celebrates first flight to O’Hare with new airline: The first Contour Airlines flight from Quincy Regional Airport to the Windy City departed early that morning. The cabin was filled with a cast of city officials, but the star of the show ended up being the plane itself. Contour jets can reach Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport in as little as 38 minutes. * Crain’s | Appeals court reinstates Galena’s approval of Sonoma-style resort: A three-judge panel in the Fourth District Appellate Court of Illinois ruled yesterday that a lower court judge erred when he ruled in August 2024 that Galena had to throw out any ordinances it passed to make the Parker possible. The 2024 decision found that Galena officials violated the rights of Wendy Clark, who lives next to the Parker site, by not allowing her to cross-examine presenters at city meetings about the project. Clark “had an unlimited opportunity to pose questions,” Justice Raylene Grischow wrote in the state appellate court’s decision, and at times passed when her chance to speak came. * TPM | Trump Admin Slowrolls Census Effort To Accurately Count Non-White Americans: Under the directive, federal departments and agencies were initially supposed to have their action plans for policy’s implementation done by last month; they will now have until March 2026, according to the OMB website. All federal race and ethnicity data collections were initially supposed to be “consistent with the updated standards” by March 2029, but that deadline has been pushed to September 2029, well after the 2030 Census process is set to begin. * The Intercept | ICE Plans Cash Rewards for Private Bounty Hunters to Locate and Track Immigrants: According to the document, which solicits information from interested contractors for a potentially forthcoming contract opportunity, companies hired by ICE will be given bundles of information on 10,000 immigrants at a time to locate, with further assignments provided in “increments of 10,000 up to 1,000,000.” * The Atlantic | The Slow Death of Special Education: The Trump administration has taken the government shutdown as an opportunity to end federal oversight of the education services offered to more than 8 million children with disabilities in America. Last month, the Department of Education attempted to fire nearly every staff member left at the Office of Special Education Programs—an action now stuck in litigation. The department had already canceled millions of dollars in grants to provide teacher training and parental support for students with disabilities, and it is now “exploring additional partnerships” to move special-education services elsewhere in the government. Ostensibly, these cuts and administrative changes are part of a broader effort to empower states. But whatever the motive, the result is clear: The government has abandoned its commitment to an equitable education for all children.
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Good morning!
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * We are witnessing perhaps the most prolific singer-songwriter of all time… where’s the manhunt for our reason * Did you rest up over the weekend?
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Monday, Nov 3, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…
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Reader comments closed for the weekend
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Blaze Foley will play us out… Smokin’ cigarettes in the last seat
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Fran Spielman interviewed House Speaker Chris Welch today…
* Two federal judges have ruled the Trump administration must tap into emergency funds to partially cover food stamp benefits. NYT…
* Sun-Times | ICE has powerful facial recognition app Illinois cops are barred from using — with little apparent oversight: The Trump administration has contracts with Clearview AI, a firm banned from doing business with Illinois police agencies. “This is what dystopian nightmares are made of, this kind of continual expansion of surveillance without any real oversight or restrictions,” says Jeramie Scott of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. * Shaw Local | State senate OKs bill to transfer Joliet prison land to Will County forest preserve district: Ventura, D-Joliet, is the sponsor of Senate Bill 1698, which was approved by the Senate on Wednesday. “This transfer will bring much-needed oversight and cleanup to land that has been neglected for too long,” Ventura said in the lease. “Management by the forest preserve will not only enforce proper use of the land, but will also expand access and accountability to the local community.” * Shaw Local | DeKalb Park District’s proposed 2025 property tax levy would see residents owe about $120 more on bill: A tax levy is a tool that determines how much money a governing body will collect in property taxes each year. Other measures that contribute to the funding formula include the equalized assessed valuation of the taxing body and the tax rate. The levy amount makes for an estimated 20% increase for the district over the prior year’s aggregate extension of roughly $6.5 million, park board documents show. Under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law, the district is limited to a 5% increase, or the consumer price index, or the rate of inflation, whichever is less, plus new construction. * Sun-Times | Massive oily asphalt spill in Chicago canal leaves environmental threat months later: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has overseen the removal of almost two tons of oil-based asphalt that the agency says spilled from Petroleum Fuel and Terminal Co., a Forest View business operating along the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. While the company has been ordered by the EPA to modify its safety practices to avoid future spills into the water, the agency hasn’t issued any penalty or even a notice of violation almost nine months after the problem was detected. The business is responsible for the cleanup, however. Officials with St. Louis-based Apex Oil Co., which owns Petroleum Fuel and Terminal, did not respond to repeated requests for an interview. * Block Club | As ICE Targets Home Depot Stores, Advocates Say Company Is Failing To Protect Day Laborers: The company’s stores have historically been a place where day laborers, including many immigrants, have gathered outside to look for work from contract companies — but those workers have now been repeatedly targeted by federal agents. Organizers have said Home Depot isn’t doing enough to deter ICE and Border Patrol and to protect day laborers. “As a larger-scale corporation, you would hope that they would want to protect the life of their company: people who patronize it, people who work there and even folks who use their materials to be able to work,” Miller said. * Crain’s | Former Mayor Daley creates merchant bank with son and longtime associate: The new venture, called Great Lakes Global Partners, combines Daley’s Tur Partners, which focused on advising distressed companies, and Great Lakes Global Holdings, an investment firm led by Adam Hitchcock. “GLGP focuses on the kinds of complex transactions traditional financial institutions cannot pursue on their own — opportunities that demand an understanding of government and finance,” Daley told Crain’s in an email. “It is the right platform for this moment, and I am proud to be part of it.” * WBEZ | Harrison Ford recognized for environmental advocacy at Field Museum ceremony: Framed by dinosaur fossils and elephant taxidermy, Harrison Ford recalled his childhood in suburban Chicago, spending his weekends at the Lincoln Park Zoo and wandering outdoors during his free time. It was on one of those adventures in his neighborhood that he came face-to-face with a red fox, and that encounter led to a revelation, the actor and environmental activist said during a Field Museum conversation Wednesday evening. * Daily Herald | Asleep at the wheel? Driver cited after self-driving Tesla rear-ends police SUV: Fresso, the report states, later admitted he had fallen asleep with his vehicle in self-driving mode and woke up too late to avoid the collision. Two South Barrington officers and the truck’s driver were taken by ambulance to Ascension St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates for treatment of nonlife-threatening injuries. They were later released. * Daily Herald | Schaumburg gives apartment buildings more flexibility on switching between heating and A/C: While the benchmark dates remain, trustees’ unanimous vote allows landlords the ability to decide for themselves when to switch systems within 30 days of those dates. The complaints mainly have been about heat. The change means air conditioning could return as early as May 1 and linger as late as Oct. 15 each year. * WICS | Prosecution team in Sean Grayson’s trial breaks silence, urges judge to give max sentence: “At the sentencing hearing, we will be asking for the maximum sentence of second-degree murder,” State’s Attorney, John Milhiser, told NewsChannel 20. A jury found Grayson guilty of second -degree murder yesterday. He shot and killed Sonya Massey inside her home last July. * Capitol News Illinois | ‘They are literally targeting people.’ ICE comes to southwest Illinois: When Jose Jeronimo Guardian showed up at a Spanish language traffic court this week, he didn’t expect to be detained and face expulsion from a country he’d lived in for more than two decades. Guardian, 48, was scheduled to appear Monday in a courtroom where a county-provided translator would aid communication with about a dozen Spanish-speaking defendants who face charges from traffic infractions like his — two charges of driving under the influence of alcohol — to serious felony charges. * WSIL | RHI breaks ground on expanded clinic in Metropolis, IL: Rural Health, Inc. (RHI) has started construction on a new clinic in Metropolis with a groundbreaking event on Thursday. The facility will be located at 1521 East 5th Street. The new building will be just under 11,000 square feet, offering services like Family Medicine, Behavioral Health, General Dentistry, and an in-house pharmacy. This expansion is due to RHI outgrowing its current location at 1003 East 5th Street. * WGLT | ‘Oh, hi Mark’: Actor Greg Sestero presents ‘The Room’ and ‘Big Shark’ at Normal Theater: Fans of the cult classic independent film The Room have the chance to say, “Oh, hi Mark” to Mark, played by actor Greg Sestero, at Normal Theater on Nov. 8. Sestero recalled that he started his creative projects around the age of 12 after seeing the movie Home Alone. “I just sat down and started writing a screenplay about Kevin McCallister getting lost in Disney World, getting on the wrong plane and meeting his long-lost best friend, who now lived at Disney World,” Sestero said. * WCIA | U of I professors go viral after catching students using AI: When they started getting apology emails, they noticed nearly 100 emails all starting with “I sincerely apologize.” That’s when they knew students were using AI to write apology emails. […] “The first person was very apologetic,” Flanagan said to her students. “They said, ‘Dear Professor Flanagan, I want to sincerely apologize.’ And I was like, thank you, they’re owning up to it. They’re apologizing. and then I got a second one, and a third. And then everybody started ‘sincerely apologizing’ and suddenly it became a little less sincere.” * AP | Young adults turn to Quakers’ silent worship to offset — and cope with — a noisy world: It has been called the “Westminster Abbey of Quakerism.” Yet for years, attendance at Arch Street was so low, and its historic 300-seat West Room felt so empty, that the few people present began to meet in a smaller room. But recent years have produced an unprecedented surge in the number of attendees at Sunday worship — from about 25 before the coronavirus pandemic to up to 100 today. “One of the things that I’m very excited about is the number of people that we have coming to meeting, and the fact that the majority of them are young,” says Hazele Goodridge, Arch Street’s clerk. * 404 Media | You Can’t Refuse To Be Scanned by ICE’s Facial Recognition App, DHS Document Says: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) does not let people decline to be scanned by its new facial recognition app, which the agency uses to verify a person’s identity and their immigration status, according to an internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) document obtained by 404 Media. The document also says any face photos taken by the app, called Mobile Fortify, will be stored for 15 years, including those of U.S. citizens.
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Statehouse to Bears: Which part of the word ‘No’ do you not understand?
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Bloomberg…
* Their offer of pocket change for pork projects didn’t move the needle at all this week. Sun-Times…
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Bill allowing terminally ill patients to obtain medication to end their lives will head to the governor
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Sponsor of Senate Bill 1950…
* GOP Rep. Bill Hauter…
* Proponents…
* Catholic Conference of Illinois…
Discuss.
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Advocates sue over “black box” ICE facility in Broadview, claim detainees denied counsel, basic care
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * WTTW…
* From the complaint…
* The Tribune…
* More…
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Soybean deal with China won’t erase trade war damage, Illinois Ag Director says
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The AP yesterday…
* I reached out to Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello, who’s been critical of the trade war, to get his take. From Costello…
Thoughts? * Related…
* WJRT | Mixed reactions from Michigan farmers on new soybean deal: “The idea that there has been a significant gain here is woefully misstated,” Thompson said. Thompson, whose organization represents more than 500 farmers across Michigan, expressed being ‘cautiously optimistic’ but emphasized the importance of follow-through. “I think that it’s well known that statements are made and then sometimes the follow through isn’t as strong as we would like,” Thompson said. * Des Moines Register | China pledge of soybean purchases ‘great news’ for Iowa farmers, state ag secretary says: “This is great news for Iowa farmers and our ag economy,” Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig said in a statement. “Expanded soybean purchases by China will make a meaningful impact at a time when many farmers are feeling the pain of a tough farm economy. The announcement “addresses many of the concerns around market access to China following months of stalled purchases and uncertainty,” said Tom Adam, an east-central Iowa farmer and president of the Iowa Soybean Association. * KWCH | 5th-generation Kansas farmer shares thoughts on soybean deal with China: “Until we can get some agreement signed and get some teeth into it, I don’t really know that we have anything solid that we can plan on,” Winter said. With all the recent changes between China and the U.S., many farmers are wondering if soybeans are still a safe crop to plant next year. “It really makes a person stop and think and scratch their head a little bit about, ‘Do I really want to pant these crops?’” Winter said. “However, I revert back to, ‘All these crops are part of my crop mix, they’re part of my program.”
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Lawmakers approve $1.5B transit funding package without statewide tax increases. Capitol News Illinois…
- The plan goes to the governor’s desk without any of the controversial statewide taxes on package deliveries, streaming or event tickets that were part of previous bills. The House two days earlier had introduced a measure that taxed entertainment and billionaires’ investments. - The bulk of the funding, $860 million, would come through redirecting sales tax revenue charged on motor fuel purchases to public transportation operations. Another estimated $200 million would come from interest growing in the Road Fund. * Crain’s | Senate OKs energy bill that includes billions for battery storage and nixes nuke ban: The Illinois House passed the legislation yesterday. It now heads to Gov. JB Pritzker, who called it “an important step that will help lower utility bills and make our electrical grid stronger.”“This legislation takes two routes toward affordability,” the governor said in a statement. “First, it will accelerate clean-energy projects with new grid-scale batteries and other clean-energy technology to increase the available electricity supply. Second, it will require utility companies to help their consumers to lower their utility bills and access energy efficient resources.” * Tribune | Illinois lawmakers pass bill to tackle constitutional violations in immigration raids, ban courthouse arrests: The legislation came in response to what one of the bill’s sponsors, Democratic state Sen. Celina Villanueva of Chicago, described as “the reality of the pain and the cruelty and the inhumanity that’s being inflicted on my community, on my district, on the communities in this state — that are also American — for the simple fact of looking the way that I do.” “I’m going to fight back,” she said on the Senate floor late Thursday, shortly before the bill passed 40-18. The Illinois House passed the legislation 75-32 a little more than an hour later. * Daily Herald | ‘Progress, not just achievement’: State emphasizes growth over proficiency in new Illinois Report Card data: When looking at student learning, proficiency and growth, each tell an important part of the story, officials say. Proficiency shows what a student knows and can do at a single point in time. It’s a snapshot of performance measured against the state’s learning standards. Growth shows how much a student has learned in comparison with peers who started at the same level. * WCIA | Illinois Sen. passes Clean Slate Act to seal criminal records for crimes not considered serious: “The Clean Slate Act is about creating pathways to opportunity for people who have earned a second chance,” State Senator Elgie R. Sims, Jr. (D-Chicago) said in a release. “By automating the sealing process for eligible records, we’re removing unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles that keep people from finding employment, securing housing, and fully reintegrating into their communities. At the same time, we’ve been deliberate in maintaining strong public safety protections and ensuring law enforcement has the access they need.” * Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago school board approves controversial $175 million pension payment to the city: The Chicago school board voted Thursday to make a pension reimbursement to the city after 18 months of controversy and leadership turmoil stemming from the payment. But there is one catch. The board voted unanimously to authorize the $175 million payment to the city to support a municipal pension fund that covers city workers and some non-teaching district staff — but only if the entire $552.4 million tax surplus boost for Chicago Public Schools that Mayor Brandon Johnson has proposed comes through. * Tribune | Thousands Of City Buildings Are Overdue For Fire Code Inspections, Watchdog Report Says: The report found that only 17 percent of buildings are up to date on fire code inspections. Fire Department leaders say the Fire Prevention Bureau is understaffed and under-resourced due to city budget cuts. * Sun-Times | Chicago Sun-Times demands DHS remove social posts using its photos without permission: A letter sent to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Thursday says the government used three Sun-Times photos without permission to promote its immigration enforcement campaign. The newspaper threatened to file an intellectual property right infringement lawsuit if the posts aren’t taken down. * Block Club Chicago | Pilsen’s Massive Ofrenda Returns For Día De Los Muertos: This year, Hernandez’s ofrenda, 1340 W. 19th St., features about 400 photos of people that were shared by Pilsen neighbors. To the side, Hernandez built a smaller altar dedicated to about 40 pets, including cats and dogs, who also deserve to be honored because “they are family,” she said. * The Record | ICE activity confirmed in Wilmette. Number of arrests remains unclear: Resident Chad Boomgaarden told The Record that he spoke with at least one border patrol agent around 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday in an alley between Park and Prairie avenues near his home. Boomgaarden, who shared photos supporting the encounter, said he inquired about federal jurisdiction on and near private property, among other topics. He was walking his dog and was not pleased to see men in “face masks, camo, tactical gear and long rifle weapons” just feet from his backyard. * Daily Herald | DuPage County Board members balk at clerk’s request for more funding: The two-term clerk, who is up for re-election next year, obliged and showed up at a finance committee meeting this week. Her message, however, was not welcomed by board members “We simply cannot finish fiscal year 2025 on the funds allocated, which were considerably less than our request last year,” DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek told board members Tuesday. “We absolutely will not be able to fund 2026 on the proposed amount budgeted for our office.” * Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora again pushes back purchase of police equipment: One of Lawrence’s concerns was that the device would be used to surveil residents’ cell phones, in particular by seeing whose cell phones are within a certain area, without needing a warrant. But Aurora Police Det. Darrell Moore told The Beacon-News that the device, called a “drive test scanner,” is not able to do that. * Daily Herald | Cook County to hold hearing on improving rush-hour congestion on Quentin Road in Palatine: Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways met with residents this week to explain why a combination of factors led to their preferred solution being the addition of just a turn lane and a traffic signal. What the residents of the two Dunhaven Woods subdivisions want — and the village has also endorsed four times since 1996 — is a continuation of Quentin Road’s four-lane configuration that exists north and south of them as well as a turn lane. * WMBD | On the Record: Special education cuts haven’t affected Central Illinois, yet: Those layoffs, the continued government shutdown, and further budget cuts to the Department of Education, have made Peoria County and McLean County regional superintendents anxious. “The concern is that special ed funding in particular for students is a large portion of a lot of our district’s budgets,” Peoria County Regional Superintendent George McKenna said. * WSIL | Fulton County Transit expands services to Calvert City residents: “The expansion of Fulton County Transit Authority into Calvert City ensures that our residents have access to essential services and the freedom to travel where they need to go,” said Calvert City Mayor Gene Colburn. FCTA offers same-day “Demand Response” trips within Region 1, available Monday through Friday. Medical trips can be scheduled in advance to cities like Louisville and Nashville. * WGLT | Demand softens but prices remain high across Bloomington-Normal housing market: It cost around $213,859 on average to buy an existing home in 2021. Now, it’s $287,107. That’s a 34% increase in just five years. “What we are seeing is, with fewer houses available, a lot of buyers right now are getting discouraged and exiting the market,” said Dawn Peters, a Realtor with Keller Williams. “And so the demand is softening a little bit while the supply still remains low. Prices are still holding because of that.” * NYT | Big Tech’s A.I. Spending Is Accelerating (Again): Last week, the Bank of England wrote that while the building of data centers, which provide computing power for A.I., had so far largely come from the cash produced by the biggest companies, it would increasingly involve more debt. If A.I. underwhelms — or the systems ultimately require far less computing — there could be growing risk. “This is a fast-evolving topic, and the future is highly uncertain,” the bank wrote. * Reuters | Daylight saving time bill stalls again in US Senate: he U.S. Senate briefly took up a long-stalled effort on Tuesday to make daylight saving time permanent and end the twice-yearly practice of switching clocks, but again failed to reach consensus. […] Cotton said that the bill’s proponents are pushing Congress to repeat a prior mistake that would create absurdly late winter sunrises and force children to go to school in darkness in much of the country.
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When RETAIL Succeeds, Illinois Succeeds
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller [The following is a paid advertisement.] Retailers take risks. Eric Williams, founder of Hyde Park’s The Silver Room, wants politicians and policymakers to know most retailers open their stores out of passion and to fill a creative need, not to become wealthy. Located on Chicago’s South Side, the Silver Room is part clothing boutique, part music venue, part community hub, and part artists’ studio. The Silver Room is as diverse as the community it serves. Findings of a recent economic study are clear: the retail sector is a cornerstone of the state’s economy and crucial to our everyday lives. Retail in Illinois directly contributes more than $112 billion in economic investment annually – more than 10 percent of the state’s total Gross Domestic Product. Policies that support small businesses help communities thrive as retailers like Eric are better equipped to meet local needs. We Are Retail and IRMA are showcasing the retailers who make Illinois work.
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Good morning!
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * It’s 6:40 am as I write this. We’ve been up all night covering the veto session. I’m gonna try to get a few hours’ sleep. Isabel, who’s young and can handle it, is in charge for the rest of the morning… I can’t stop my brain * How are you this fine morning?
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition (Updated)
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Live coverage
Friday, Oct 31, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…
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End of veto session news coverage roundup (Updated)
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Transit is a done deal…
* Click here for some background. This was final passage…
* Press release…
* Transit… 
* Crain’s | Illinois lawmakers bring forth latest plan to overhaul Chicago-area public transit as deadline looms: Legislators are considering a last-minute $1.5 billion transit-rescue package that will rely mainly on transportation-related revenue sources. The potential deal, which also includes a steep increase in highway tolls, was hammered out during late-night negotiations that carried into today on the final day of the fall veto session, but still faces the hurdle of being approved by both the House and Senate. The deal would authorize over $860 million from a motor fuel sales tax. Theannual interest that is generated from the state’s road fund would also flow towards mass transit. The revenue split from the motor fuel sales tax would be 85% to the Chicago region and 15% to downstate transit. The road fund interest would be a 90% to 10% split. * Tribune | Illinois lawmakers bring forth latest plan to overhaul Chicago-area public transit as deadline looms: During the hearing Thursday evening, the proposed measure faced pushback from lawmakers who suggested the bill would fund Chicago-area transit at the expense of downstate infrastructure. Opponents also expressed frustration that they were asked to debate the proposal without a version of the bill ready to read. … The bill introduced Thursday would hike tolls collected by the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority for commercial and passenger vehicles. It would increase the tolls for commercial vehicles by 30% and raise the toll for passenger cars by about 45 cents per toll. The revenue from the toll hike would generate between $750 million and $1 billion annually and be put back into the tollway and not be used directly for mass transit. But the move was intended to offset the money being diverted from highway projects and appeared to have won the blessing of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150, which opposed a springtime effort to use a toll hike to fund transit. * Sun-Times | Illinois Democrats wrangle over ways to pay for $1.5B legislative package to buoy mass transit: But some downstate representatives said the amended bill took them by surprise, that it doesn’t allocate enough money outside of the Chicago area, and that the bill should be held for another day. * CNI | Latest Chicago transit funding plan appears to avoid statewide tax increases: Downstate lawmakers in both parties worried they drew the short straw in the bill, however, as only $129 million would go toward operational expenses at downstate public transit agencies. The agencies and advocates hoped to receive $200 million. “This is a devastating and extensive change for the district I represent,” Rep. Ryan Spain, R-Peoria, said. The downstate lawmakers also worried the bill tapping into Road Fund money removed a critical funding source for road construction projects. Illinois AFL-CIO President Tim Drea, who led a coalition of labor unions in negotiations over the bill, spoke in support of the proposal on Thursday. Unions have typically fiercely opposed any measure that diverts from the Road Fund but support this measure because of its importance to union employees at transit agencies. * Homeowners’ insurance reform passed the Senate and then unexpectedly failed in the House, even after an internal roll call was taken…
Concurrence is a renewable motion, so she can call it again. We’ll see. * Immigration…
* Bears…
This post will be updated. …Adding… Energy…
* CSI | Lawmakers OK sweeping energy reform package that governor pledges to sign: Battery storage. The core of the bill is a new incentive structure for energy storage projects. The incentives are broadly similar to how the state funds renewable developments like wind and solar power. They will result in new charges to ratepayers, although proponents say that savings from more storage on the grid will offset costs. Energy efficiency. The bill adds new requirements for energy efficiency programs at natural gas and electric utilities. These are aimed at reducing energy demand and proponents of the measure say they will lower prices for consumers. Nuclear power. The bill lifts a longstanding moratorium on large-scale nuclear power plants, but it also hikes fees for nuclear plant operators. New authority for regulators. The Illinois Commerce Commission, the state’s utility regulator, would gain new authority for “integrated resource planning,” a way of setting long-term plans to control both supply-side issues, like plans for electric generation, as well as managing demand. Labor protections. New requirements for community solar projects would close a loophole that some developers were using to avoid hiring union labor. This was a major priority for organized labor groups during negotiations. Data centers air regulations. The bill places new requirements on the backup generators used by data centers, which require always-on power to operate. Virtual power plants and time-of-use. The bill requires large utilities to create “virtual power plant” programs and time-of-use rate plans. This allows utilities to use small-scale residential solar and battery projects to deliver energy throughout the day. Geothermal energy. The bill outlines a program to fund geothermal heating, a technology which uses naturally occurring heat from underground to offset the need for electric or fossil fuel-based heating. Thermal energy networks. A new state-backed loan program would fund thermal energy network projects. These use water-filled pipes to transfer heat between energy-intensive buildings, wastewater systems and bodies of water. They can also use geothermal energy to manage heat. * Center Square | Energy bill opponents say increases IL electric bills by $8 billion passes: Republicans protested that SB 25 did not include price caps to protect consumers. “Katy bar the door! You took the caps off!” State Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, shouted. State Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, questioned why battery storage developer BlackRock could not finance the project with low-interest loans as it did in other states, instead of adding another line item to Illinois ratepayers’ bills. * WAND | IL Senate Democrats pass Clean & Reliable Grid Affordability Act, send bill to Pritzker: “We’ll incentivize an estimated 1.8 gigawatts for virtual powerplants, which is energy storage, demand response and other technology at homes and businesses,” Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-Swansea) said. “This will be about 5% of our peak load.” The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association stressed their members need reliable and affordable energy to produce goods consumers rely on, including food, pharmaceuticals, machinery and household products. IMA President and CEO Mark Denzler said this proposal repeats mistakes of the past by raising costs on manufacturers and working families without addressing underlying capacity and supply issues that are projected to lead to energy shortfalls. “While there are some provisions of the legislation we support, including lifting the moratorium on nuclear facilities, more work needs to be done to strengthen our state’s energy marketplace, protect consumers and encourage long-term economic investment,” Denzler said.
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2025 veto session cheat sheet
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * HB1843 - Zoning reform - In Senate * HB3564 - Rental regulation - In House * HB3799 - Homeowners’ insurance reform [Failed in House with 56 votes] * HB2724 - Decatur Racino - In House * HB1085 - Insurance mental health coverage * SB1911 - Decoupling/STAR Bonds/Film tax credit * SB1950 - End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act You can see press releases about bills as the evening progresses by clicking here.
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End of session starts to take shape
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * They’re also apparently working on a tollway capital component…
The RTA tax is a sales tax. Unlike current law, local governments will not be allowed to divert that new money for first responders, etc. There’s also word that some of the interest on the Road Fund might be used for transit. This was a Republican idea. …Adding… Keep in mind that nothing is set in stone until the three tops make the final decision. …Adding… The 2019 capital bill gradually phased-out transferring sales tax on motor fuels to the General Revenue Fund. By now, it was supposed to be all heading to the Road Fund. But this budget (again) delayed that final phase-out and used the money for transit. That practice was supposed to end, but apparently, they’re gonna use that cash for transit going forward. …Adding… The plan is actually to transfer all sales tax revenues on gas/diesel to transit, for a total of roughly $750 million a year. Add that to the quarter point increase of the RTA tax and the annual interest on the Road Fund for transit capital ($175 million a year right now) and you’re at about $1.5 billion for transit. I’ll have more for subscribers in the morning.
* Sales tax on motor fuel and redirect that to transit operations. * Road fund interest for transit capital, shared statewide (about $200 million, with a 90-10 split between RTA and downstate). * RTA sales tax increase of 0.25 percent ($478 million). …Adding… Downstate Laborers’ union is opposed because the plan reduces overall money for road projects. Rep. Maurice West (D-Rockford) wants Downstate’s sales tax share bumped up to $150 million per year. Rep. Delgado says that can’t be done without additional revenues. * Rep. Ryan Spain (R-Peoria) is justifiably complaining that they’re debating a bill without any actual language. …Adding… As I noted above, Rep. Delgado says there will be a tollway hike of 45 cents for passenger vehicles and 30 percent for commercial vehicles, with CPI increase capped at 4 percent a year. That money will only be used for roads. Local 150 says this will generate up to about a billion a year in revenues to fund a $10 billion ten-year capital program, but with CPI it could be significantly higher. …Adding… Not mentioned yet in the committee debate is that, according to Local 150 of the Operating Engineers, the split in the state’s road/bridges spending has been about 65-35 favoring downstate. It’s only supposed to be 55-45, but the state has been working on a ton of downstate roads and bridges. And it’s projected to remain 65-35 during the next five years. …Adding: 7:47 pm… House Exec has finished debating the transit bill. Recessed until call of the chair. * Meanwhile, the House Revenue Committee has approved an amendment to create a sales tax and revenue (STAR) bonds program (SB1911 HA3). A similar bill passed the House last spring with 100 votes, but it wasn’t called in the Senate. The bill prohibits sports teams from using STAR bonds. The proposal allows developers to use sales tax money to finance big projects. Unlike the old STAR bonds program, this one has a lot of state oversight. The amendment is part of a larger revenue package, which includes the decoupling from recent federal tax code changes. This post will be updated. …Adding… The House Executive Committee is holding a subject matter hearing on HB3799, which is the insurance regulation bill currently in the Senate. The insurance industry is hotly opposed, with one testifier claiming that it will increase homeowner insurance rates higher than California’s. …Adding… House Exec could also hold a subject matter hearing on the immigration bill that’s still in the Senate: HB1312 SA2. As subscribers know, the language was changed a bit from yesterday. Some background is here. …Adding: 5:56 pm… House Speaker Welch is now testifying in favor of the immigration-related bill. Click here. …Adding: 6:20 pm… The insurance regulation bill is being heard on the Senate floor. It’s expected to pass. …Adding: 6:44 pm… The Senate has approved the insurance regulation bill. HB3799 now goes to the House for consideration. …Adding: 8:09 pm… The Senate has passed the Energy bill. SB25 now heads to Gov. Pritzker. …Adding… Press release…
[We’re moving over to our usual format of an end of session cheat sheet. Click here. Also, you can see press releases as the evening progresses by clicking here.]
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * CNN…
 Illinois families can’t afford a new delivery tax. Delivery services are a lifeline for millions of Illinois residents helping seniors, families, and those with limited mobility get the essentials they need, when they need them. Delivery isn’t a luxury — it’s a necessity. Learn how a delivery tax could affect your household and why we must STOP THIS TAX today. * Chalkbeat Chicago | More Illinois students are proficient, new test scores show. But the cut scores changed.: State officials unveiled the new cut scores in August after gathering input from teachers, school leaders, and advocates. They then applied the new benchmarks to tests students took this past spring. But in releasing a trove of data known as the state report card, the Illinois State Board of Education did not provide data allowing the public to compare proficiency rates from previous years when the cut scores were different. * Capitol News Illinois | Illinois school report card continues to show wide achievement gaps: The 2025 report card shows more than half of all students (52.4%) scored proficient or better on English language arts exams, but only 38% met grade-level proficiency standards for math. Those numbers are based on standardized tests that students from third grade through high school took in the spring 2025 semester. They reflect a new scoring system the Illinois State Board of Education approved in August that established new benchmarks for proficiency. * Press release | Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs Announces $50 Million Loan Program to Help Federal Workers During Shutdown: The loans will be issued through participating banks and credit unions across Illinois with money made available through the Treasurer’s linked-deposit program. An estimated 153,000 federal employees live and work in Illinois. It is uncertain how many are not receiving their salaries since Oct. 1, when the shutdown began. * Press Release | Peters measure to create state-run labor mediation program: Peters’ measure would create the Labor Mediation Services Pilot Program to be used in place of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service when the federal program is not available. The FMCS is a small, independent federal agency that provides mediation, training and facilitation to resolve labor-management disputes – disagreements between unions and employers. These efforts help avoid costly disruptions in production, services and supply chains, ensuring economic stability and growth. * Crain’s | Pritzker signals transit bailout hasn’t gone off the rails — yet: “The transit bill is not dead,” the governor said this morning. “There’s a whole lot of conversation that’s still going on. The work continues.” Pritzker said he met with leaders of the House and Senate yesterday to talk about ways to shore up funding for mass transit, including rail and bus services operated by Metra, the Chicago Transit Authority and Pace. * Crain’s | Aldermen balk at Johnson’s head tax but stop short of outright revolt: The letter signed by 27 aldermen sounds the alarm about the head tax as well as a plan to borrow to pay for operational efficiencies and calls on representatives from Ernst & Young to testify on the firm’s audit of city spending. […] “We are gravely concerned that reinstating the ‘head tax’ would discourage hiring, push employers outside city limits and make Chicago less competitive. We ask your administration to model alternative budget scenarios that exclude the jobs tax,” the letter says. * Block Club | Judge Orders Release Of Cancer Patient’s Father Arrested By ICE, Citing No Criminal Record: During a bond hearing Thursday morning, Immigration Judge Eva S. Saltzman set a $2,000 bond for Torres Maldonado, saying she saw “nothing in the record” indicating he posed a danger to the community. Saltzman cited Torres Maldonado’s strong family and community ties, lack of criminal history and eligibility to apply for cancellation of removal based on hardship to his U.S. citizen family members. * Sun-Times | Bovino’s Fox News interview leaves judge ’surprised’ at feds’ opposition to daily check-ins: “I did see Mr. Bovino’s interview on Fox News today, where he did state that he was excited to come to court and that this would not impede his activities or his ability to manage the operation at all,” Ellis said. “So I was a little surprised just to see that the government’s position … was directly contradicted by Mr. Bovino.” * Chicago Reader | The gravediggers of Rosehill Cemetery: Reyes tells me he recently bought the grounds team new shovels, but Sanchez turned down the offer, opting instead for his old, all-steel shovel. He prefers it; it’s more precise. “It’s important,” Sanchez says, “because we’re trying to do it perfect and not make mistakes. We have to do right for the family.” * Crain’s | Cook County tax bill delays cause headaches for homebuyers: The roughly 17,000 people in Cook County who’ve bought homes since July 1 may all be feeling the same minor headache, sparked by a months-long delay in property tax bills that could stretch into the new year. The buyers are waiting for reimbursements that, although typically small, usually come three weeks or less after the date the sale closes. Because Cook County officials have yet to announce when the latest tax bills — which were to be mailed July 1, with an Aug. 1 payment deadline — will finally be mailed, there’s no telling when the reimbursements will come. * CBS Chicago | Scuffle between federal agents, adults spills into Warren Township High School in Gurnee, officials say: Woestman said that he believes the incident happened with an off-campus encounter between federal agents and adults who are not related to the school district. He said the adults then came onto WTHS’s O’Plaine campus, with federal agents following. The agents followed one of the adults through a door into an O’Plaine campus building. The door was open as it was being “used appropriately” by students and staff coming as part of a normal school day, Woestman said. * ABC Chicago | Rich Township employee stranded in Jamaica without life-saving medication after Hurricane Melissa: Trinette Britt-Johnson is chief of staff to Rich Township Supervisor Calvin Jordan. In 2024, Britt-Johnson was the recipient of a successful kidney transplant after being diagnosed with a rare kidney disease years earlier. Officials say Britt-Johnson’s trip to Jamaica a week ago for vacation was the first time she was allowed to really travel due to doctor’s orders. Britt-Johnson is currently stuck in Montego Bay after Hurricane Melissa hit, and is without critical medicine that supports kidney function * Illinois Times | “It doesn’t look like justice”: “Sean Grayson should be able to get out of jail when my daughter can get out of that burial vault,” Massey’s father, James Wilburn of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, said at a news conference after the verdict. The law would allow the presiding judge, Sangamon County Circuit Court Judge Ryan Cadagin, to release Grayson and only sentence him to probation, though one of the lawyers representing the Massey family, Antonio Romanucci, said that is unlikely. * STL PR | Cost of marketplace health plans to soar in 2026, will hit some in southern Illinois especially hard: “Southern rural communities will see much higher increases,” said state Department of Insurance Director Ann Gillespie. “Some [consumers] are going to lose their coverage entirely,” she said. “But everybody is going to be hit by this.” According to data from the nonprofit health organization KFF, a 60-year-old couple making $85,000 annually in southern or western Illinois could see monthly premiums for a benchmark plan increase anywhere from 300% to 535%. * WJBD | Two more candidates file for Marion County Board seats: Two candidates have filed to run in the Republican primary for Marion County Board seats. Harvey Evans V has filed to run in District One and Jack Riley is running for re-election in District Two. Candidate filing continues through four Monday afternoon at the Marion County Clerk’s office. * WCIA | State Police squad car struck in ‘Scott’s Law’ accident on I-57 in Arcola: At around 5:50 a.m., a State Police trooper was parked across the northbound lanes of I-57 conducting traffic control for a different crash that involved a commercial motor vehicle, according to a news release from ISP. The trooper had turned on the squad car’s emergency lights and was directing traffic to exit at milepost 203 onto IL 133. The driver of a Chevrolet Trailblazer failed to move over and exit, and it struck the front passenger side of the trooper’s squad car. The trooper was outside of the squad car at the time of the crash, but no one was hurt. * Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson | The burial of Black genius (A.K.A. D’Angelo lives!): Then came Voodoo. Then came everything. That album remade Black music. There’s a before and an after. Its tour was the greatest soul revue since prime Prince — we spent four years studying him; naturally, we wrote our love letter back. […] I have to say, the last weeks with him were probably the best for our friendship. Music was always the template for our communication. Now here we were in the hospital — no soundproof separation booths, no drums, no keys, no instruments, no musicians. Nothing but just the two of us talking. * ProPublica | Details of DHS Agreement Reveal Risks of Trump Administration’s Use of Social Security Data for Voter Citizenship Checks: Instead, experts say, the sweeping data-sharing agreement authorizing DHS to merge Social Security data into SAVE could threaten Americans’ privacy and lead to errors that disenfranchise legitimate voters The details of the agreement, which haven’t previously been reported, show it contains alarmingly few guardrails to ensure accuracy and scant specifics on how the data will be kept secure, election and privacy lawyers who have reviewed it say. Further, it explicitly does not bar DHS from deploying the SSA data for other purposes, including immigration enforcement. * NYT | Candy Companies Are Quietly Cutting Down on Cocoa to Save Money: Almost no one noticed when, sometime over the last few years, the packaging on Almond Joy, Mr. Goodbar and Rolo was updated to remove the words “milk chocolate.” The edits were easy to miss: The description on the front of the Mr. Goodbar wrapper changed from “milk chocolate with peanuts” to “chocolate candy with peanuts.” Almond Joy is now marketed as a “coconut and almond chocolate candy bar.” Rolos are now wrapped in “rich chocolate candy” instead of “milk chocolate.”
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Keep ROFR And Anti-Competitive Language Out Of The Energy Bill
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Voters and the Governor already rejected lawmakers’ push for anti-competitive “Right of First Refusal” (ROFR) bills that handed transmission contracts to incumbent utilities. Now, the same principles that would raise costs on ratepayers are back. They are trying to rebrand ROFR and pretend it’s about protecting Illinois. As energy legislation is finalized in Springfield this month, let’s keep ROFR and anti-competitive language out of bill. Let’s remember Illinois voters:
• 76% say anti-competition laws only strengthen utilities, not citizens. • 75% say ending competition drives up prices and kills savings. The message is clear: voters want more competition, not less. Voters’ concerns about higher energy prices are only on the rise. Since this poll, they’ve endured a sizzling summer with skyrocketing prices, and a new report says the cost of heating a home this winter is expected to jump nearly 8%. Voters have made their voice clear: Say no to energy inflation. Don’t hand more power and control to ComEd and Ameren. Say no to ending cost-cutting competition. And say yes to policies that provide lower cost to consumers.
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Pritzker on Tier 2 pension bill: ‘whole lot more work that needs to be done’
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * We Are One Illinois press release from yesterday…
* Gov. Pritzker was asked about the bill today…
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Quick session updates
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Credit Unions Step Up During Government Shutdown
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] When the federal government shuts down, thousands of workers face missed paychecks and mounting stress. Illinois credit unions are stepping in to help. During the shutdown, credit unions across the state offer emergency relief to impacted federal employees - proving once again that they put people before profit. From skip-a-payment programs and low-interest emergency loans to waived fees and financial counseling, credit unions provide a lifeline to those caught in the crossfire of political gridlock. These not-for-profit financial cooperatives are owned by their members, not shareholders, which means their focus is on service - not earnings. The Illinois Credit Union League (ICUL) coordinates these efforts statewide, ensuring that federal workers - from TSA agents to postal employees - have access to compassionate, practical support. This response reflects the credit union philosophy of “people helping people,” especially in times of crisis. As policymakers debate financial regulations, remember that credit unions are more than lenders - they’re community partners. Their proactive support during the shutdown is a powerful example of how member-owned institutions can respond swiftly and humanely when their communities need them most. Learn more at: https://www.icul.com/advocacy/2025-government-shutdown/ Paid for by Illinois Credit Union League. 
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Noem to Pritzker: No
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * Sun-Times…
* Response…
* Full transcript…
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US Supreme Court requests more information regarding Trump’s deployment of National Guard in Illinois
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* SCOTUSblog…
* Reuters…
* Related… * The Guardian | Revealed: Pentagon orders states’ national guards to form ‘quick reaction forces’ for ‘crowd control’: The memo, signed on 8 October by Maj Gen Ronald Burkett, the director of operations for the Pentagon’s national guard bureau, sets thresholds for the size of the quick reaction force to be trained in each state, with most states required to train 500 national guard members, for a total of 23,500 troops nationwide. As authority, Burkett cited Donald Trump’s August executive order that deployed the guard to fight crime in Washington DC. The same order required the secretary of defense to create “a standing National Guard quick reaction force … available for rapid nationwide deployment” in “quelling civil disturbances”. * Politico | Trump’s National Guard DC deployment extended into 2026: National Guard troops patrolling the streets of Washington, D.C., will stay in place until at least February, a defense official said — but the extension is open-ended until the mission is considered complete. The orders to stay in Washington were likely to lapse in November, but Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the extension this week, said the official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the orders. * The Hill | DOJ admits National Guard was briefly sent to Portland despite court order: “We’ll discuss later whether that’s contempt and in direct violation of my TRO, but we’re moving on,” the judge said. It was not clear how many soldiers were sent or what they were tasked to do. Lin said they “completed the shift.” U.S. Northern Command, which oversees the National Guard troops who have been federalized, declined to provide additional information or comment, citing the ongoing litigation. * The Texas Tribune | Majority of Texans oppose National Guard deployment to cities out of state, poll finds: The survey, conducted by the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas, Austin between Oct. 10 and Oct. 20, found that 43% of Texans “strongly oppose” the move and 8% “somewhat oppose” it. Forty-one percent of Texans supported the move.
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Clean And Reliable Grid Affordability Act (SB25) Is The Only Bill This Veto Session That Can Slash Skyrocketing Electric Rate Increases
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.]  This fall veto session, only one bill can reduce spiking electric rates – the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability (CRGA) Act. If enacted, CRGA would direct the state to procure battery energy storage and finally implement the kind of long-range planning that will help stabilize the grid and lower costs for ratepayers. Government (Illinois Power Agency) and private sector (The Power Bureau) studies agree CRGA will save consumers on monthly bills and slash tens of billions in costs. Want more proof? Look to Texas where consumers saved an estimated $750 million in 2024, sheltering them from demand-induced price spikes and preventing blackouts in the process. These are benefits Texas saw from storage even as the state reduced its gas generation capacity by 166 MW last year. The solutions offered in CRGA are nimble enough to address growing data center power demands and meet other electrification-related power needs. It’s the only bill in Veto that can lower rates for consumers and ensure economic development efforts are set up for success. After all, if we lack power and capacity, we can’t add the jobs that come with new data centers and other large power users. Without action, prices will continue to rise with no end in sight. It’s time for the General Assembly to pass the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act.
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Pritzker leaves door open for RTA sales tax hike
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Governor Pritzker was asked about the House transit bill during an unrelated press conference this morning…
* On if the bill can get done during veto session…
* On what qualifies as a broad-base tax increase…
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Big Pharma’s Greed Is On Full Display — And Illinois Patients Are Paying The Price
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] When pharmaceutical giants worth hundreds of billions of dollars go after hospitals that serve low-income families, it isn’t compassion driving them—it’s greed. These companies, earning over $112 billion in profits in just one year, are running a multimillion-dollar misinformation campaign in Illinois to block hospitals from accessing federal drug discounts, just so they can keep overcharging hospitals and patients. The federal 340B program allows hospitals caring for large numbers of Medicaid and uninsured patients to purchase outpatient drugs at a discount—savings they reinvest into patient care. As Congress enacts deep Medicaid cuts threatening healthcare for nearly 500,000 Illinoisans, Big Pharma is doubling down on deception. Drugmakers are misleading lawmakers about Illinois’ 340B legislation. Let’s be clear: Illinois hospitals aren’t asking for anything new. • HB 2371 SA 2 preserves the status quo requiring drug discounts that hospitals pass onto patients and use for essential new service lines. For Safety Net and Critical Access Hospitals, 340B savings are lifelines funding free and discounted prescriptions, mental-health and substance-use treatment, cancer care, maternity services, and clinics. Reject Big Pharma’s lies and stand with Illinois hospitals, who deliver care, create jobs, and strengthen communities. Learn more.
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Appeals court pauses order requiring CBP Chief Bovino to meet with judge daily
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The Sun-Times…
* Tribune…
* The AP…
* WTTW…
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Lawmakers Must Reject HB 3799 Before It Raises Costs And Drives Insurers Out Of Illinois
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] SPRINGFIELD, IL — [Oct. 30] — The National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies today called on members of the Illinois House to vote “NO” on HB 3799. The bill would hand the Illinois Department of Insurance unchecked power to retroactively and artificially suppress insurance rates, which will create chaos in the marketplace, drive up premiums, and jeopardize coverage for Illinois families. If this bill passes, Illinois will walk straight into the same crisis we’ve seen play out in states like California and possibly worse because HB 3799 goes beyond every other state in price control.” Hammer continued. “The bill gives regulators unlimited authority to pull back approved rates at any time with no deadlines, no appeal process, and no accountability. That kind of uncertainty will force insurers to raise prices or stop writing business in Illinois altogether.” Today, Illinois’ insurance market is a national success story where consumers benefit from competition, stability, and affordability of rates. More than 200 companies currently offer coverage, and auto insurance rates remain well below the national average. HB 3799 would undo decades of progress and send a chilling message to insurers: Illinois is no longer open for business. “Governor J.B. Pritzker touted Illinois’ rise to 13th in CNBC’s Top States for Business this summer,” said Erin Collins, senior vice president of state and policy affairs for NAMIC. “But if HB 3799 passes, those gains will vanish fast. You can’t claim to be pro-business while advancing policies that drive investment and jobs out of the state. I hope the governor tells the legislature that HB 3799 is not in concert with his desire to continue Illinois’ rise in the rankings.” NAMIC urges lawmakers to reject HB 3799 and instead work toward policies that preserve affordability, stability, and consumer choice in Illinois’ insurance market. 
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: House passes energy bill amid debate over costs to consumers. Capitol News Illinois…
- The bill, which passed the House 70-37, has been in the works for more than a year. Much of the back-and-forth between lawmakers, business groups, environmentalists and organized labor centered on the balance between reliability and consumer costs. - The Illinois Power Agency, which manages Illinois’ electricity market and oversees renewable energy procurement in the state, conducted an analysis of the bill. The agency found that while the programs in the proposal will increase customer bills slightly, those increases will be entirely offset by 2029. * More veto session stories… Sponsored by Ameren Illinois
* Gov. JB Pritzker will hold a 9:30 am press conference highlighting the “worst of the worst” Trump administration actions affecting Illinoisans amid federal deployments. At 1:30 pm, he’ll announce the next round of Regional Site Readiness Program grants. Watch live here. * Crain’s | As SNAP shutdown looms, Illinois will provide $20M for food: Illinois plans to provide $20 million to food banks across the state as federal supplemental nutrition assistance funds are set to end Oct. 31 because of the government shutdown. Gov. JB Pritzker is expected to sign an executive order tomorrow to mobilize state resources and work with food banks and food pantries, grocers, universities and other community organizations to help limit the impact of the end of SNAP benefits, which help low-income residents purchase food. * Sun-Times | Gov. Pritzker asks Noem to pause ICE enforcement for Halloween: ‘Please let children be children’: Gov. JB Pritzker is asking Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and top ICE officials to suspend immigration enforcement operations throughout Chicago for three days so children can safely celebrate Halloween. The request, obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times, comes four days after ICE agents fired tear gas in the Old Irving Park neighborhood as families and children walked to a Halloween parade. And it came a day after U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis told Border Patrol commander-in-chief Gregory Bovino on the stand that a “sense of safety was shattered” for children who witnessed the deployment. * Chalkbeat Chicago | Teachers union pushes Illinois lawmakers for more school funding: Davis Gates said lawmakers and Gov. JB Pritzker should do more than hold press conferences denouncing President Donald Trump’s policies and she repeated the union’s push to “tax the rich.” “We’re going to spend a lot of time in Springfield creating the lesson plans, the pathways for elected officials to honor the working people, the public servants, and the educators of the state of Illinois,” Davis Gates told a crowd of union members outside the capitol building. * Crain’s | Lollapalooza ‘at risk’ if state entertainment tax is approved, organizer says: “Events like Lollapalooza and Sueños fuel Illinois’ economy, creating jobs and boosting local businesses,” a spokesperson for the concert organizer said in a statement. “A new statewide event tax and higher amusement tax would drive up ticket prices, putting these events at risk and adding a nearly 20% total tax burden on fans in a city that already has the highest amusement tax in the nation.” * Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson tries to beat state to taxing hemp with plan that adds age limit: Johnson argued that Chicago “did not get its fair share” of revenue when the state legalized the sale of marijuana in 2019. This time, the mayor, who has aired his frustrated belief that Gov. JB Pritzker has repeatedly boxed him out of securing new tax revenue, is trying to beat Springfield to the punch. “I don’t want what happened to the city of Chicago during the cannabis debate to happen around hemp,” Johnson said. * Tribune | Illinois officials should investigate, charge federal immigration agents for state violations, group says: In letters sent this week to Gov. JB Pritzker, Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke, all three of whom are Democrats, and Chicago police Superintendent Larry Snelling, the Free Speech for People campaign contends “federal agents have repeatedly committed criminal acts that are not immunized by federal law.” “We applaud you for establishing the Illinois Accountability Commission and empowering it to refer” violations to agencies empowered to investigate and enforce such laws, the group’s letter to Pritzker says about the governor’s creation of the new panel last week. “Although the executive order establishing the commission requires it to create an initial status report by Jan. 16, we encourage the commission to immediately refer serious incidents for further investigation by relevant law enforcement officers.” * WCIA | Governor Pritzker signs new executive order to assist struggling farmers: Pritzker’s new executive order does two things. First, it orders the state to identify and promote domestic markets for Illinois Ag products. It also orders the Department of Agriculture to invest further into the Farm Family Resource Initiative that provides access to mental health resources for farmers. Neither effort will put money in farmer’s pockets right away but Pritzker hopes it is enough to hold them over until trade policy stabilizes. * WCIA | Darren Bailey announces funeral arrangements for family members killed in Montana helicopter crash: A visitation will be held from 1-5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 2 at Oil Belt Christian Service Camp in Flora. A Celebration of Life for the Bailey family will start at 9 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 3, also at Oil Belt. Private burial will take place in Oskaloosa Cemetery. * Sun-Times | Trump taps big City Hall contractors for ICE operation Brandon Johnson opposes: Ald. Rossana Rodriguez (33rd) is calling for a city review to determine whether Chicago taxpayer dollars should be going to firms working with the Department of Homeland Security and its on-the-ground agencies, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. “We do have to take this seriously and make sure that we are not collaborating by hiring or benefiting companies that are acting against us,” says Rodriguez, who was born in Puerto Rico and represents one of the city’s most diverse wards. * Tribune | Former aide admits helping Ald. Carrie Austin get home improvement perks from developers: Chester Wilson, 59, pleaded guilty only to one misdemeanor count involving the unrelated theft of “SNAP” state food subsidies, for which he faces up to a year behind bars. But in his plea agreement with prosecutors, Wilson, who served as Austin’s chief of staff admitted that for a three-year period beginning in 2016, he helped facilitate benefits from three people seeking to influence Austin in her official capacity. * Crain’s | Bears offer $25M to benefit Chicago as team pushes bill for Arlington Heights move: Team officials and their lobbyists are circulating a letter among the Chicago delegation that was previously sent to Rep. Kam Buckner and Sen. Bill Cunningham. The letter commits $25 million to benefit the city and Chicago Park District if the Bears move to Arlington Heights. Buckner has been among the most vocal critics of the Bears’ potential move, introducing a bill this month that would require extensive public review of stadium deals and potentially force a team to repay subsidies if it relocates before the contract ends. * Tribune | Grant Park Music Festival president Paul Winberg steps down: The Grant Park Music Festival announced Wednesday that its president, Paul Winberg, will step down in the spring of 2026. Winberg has served as president and CEO since 2011. The festival, which puts on Chicago’s free outdoor classical music series every summer at Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, said in the announcement that its board of directors has begun a national search for his replacement. * Daily Southtown | Immigration enforcement officers arrest at least 7 people in Crete, Chicago Heights: ICE officers detained at least three people, including two customers and one employee, in the parking lot outside of Heights Fresh Market on Chicago Road at about 11 a.m. Monday, according to a store manager, who cited store footage. Yadira Banuelos, a store employee, said officers arrested her coworker as he arrived for his shift Monday. Another man who regularly sold Sabritsa chips outside the store was detained then released, according to a statement the market, posted on Facebook at 11:17 a.m. Tuesday. * Daily Herald | Batavia moves toward ban on ICE using city property: And while some aldermen were passionate about the idea, some questioned whether the city could actually enforce a ban. Alderman Christopher Solfa also questioned the need for an ordinance, saying it would just be a symbolic gesture. He noted that Batavia already complies with the Illinois TRUST Act, which prohibits local police and governments from aiding immigration agents in civil cases, including use of city property. * Daily Herald | ‘More challenging’: Naperville budget plan includes fewer new programs: During preparations for the upcoming fiscal year, city departments were told to hold the line on operating budgets because of budgetary pressure from increased personnel and health insurance costs. Officials expect to see an 18.5% spike in health insurance premiums. “To be clear, this was a more challenging budget year than we’ve seen in recent memory,” Finance Director Ray Munch said during the second of three city council budget workshops. Among the few new budget requests? An estimated $150,000 that would allow Naperville police to pilot a “Drone as a First Responder” program. * Shaw Local | DeKalb County administrator issued rodeo permit to man who pleaded guilty to animal abuse: Records: “I permitted an event to an animal abuser. I did,” interim DeKalb County Administrator Derek Hiland said of an Aug. 2 rodeo in Kirkland. It’s the third time that Hiland signed off on a rodeo permit for Cristofer Perez, and the second time that footage of the event is being investigated by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office. * Daily Southtown | Dolton board prematurely settled sexual assault lawsuit, attorney says: Attorney Eric White, who is representing the plaintiffs said Wednesday the village mischaracterized the status of the lawsuit that is still pending. The plaintiffs include a former village and Thornton Township employee who claims Holmes drugged and sexually assaulted her on a 2023 work trip to Las Vegas, The village declined to provide details of the settlement agreements after they were approved Oct. 6, saying they had not yet been finalized or signed. The lawsuit names Holmes, the village, Thornton Township, and former Dolton Mayor and Thornton Township Supervisor Tiffany Henyard as defendants. * WCIA | Massey family reacts to Sean Grayson verdict: After nearly a week of hearing testimony and 11 hours of deliberations across two days, the jury convicted Grayson of second-degree murder and acquitted him of first-degree murder. Emotions were high as the Massey family spoke, saying that they are not happy with Grayson being convicted of only second-degree murder, not first-degree murder. The next steps they want include Grayson receiving the maximum sentence — 20 years in prison. * WCIA | Watseka police officers on leave since July; State Police investigating: Multiple officers with the Watseka Police Department are being investigated by the Illinois State Police, officials confirmed with WCIA on Wednesday. Watseka Police Chief Eric Starkey was unable to confirm the identities of the officers under investigation, or how many are being investigated. But, Starkey was able to share that the officers under investigation have been on leave since July. * Rockford Register Star | Rockford considering use of cannabis funds to close deficit despite pleas to keep promise: The city could rescind its policy restricting recreational cannabis sales tax funding to aiding communities disproportionately impacted by marijuana laws and instead tap the funds to help close a projected $3.7 million 2026 general fund deficit. Rockford has $2.6 million in marijuana sales taxes on hand. Combined with the estimated $850,000 it expects to generate next year, it could be spent to avoid a property tax increase or cuts in city services, city officials said. * WGEM | Pike County Board debates cuts for fiscal year budget: County Chairman Rita Hoskin confirmed the total deficit was $1.8 million. When the floor opened for discussion, Vice-Chairman Tom Lewis questioned a $350,000 proposed cut to the ambulance department. “If you take $350,000 out of [the ambulance department] budget, [the department] will be broke if an incident that causes us to lose the other $250,000 we might have had saved,” Lewis said. * WGLT | McLean County rebuts agreement default allegations from Bloomington and Normal: County administrator Cassy Taylor also rebutted the town’s allegations point by point in the letter dated Oct. 24, a few days ahead of the Oct. 27 deadline to respond to the notice. The dispute centers on the accumulation of more than $21 million in the County Mental Health and Public Safety Fund [MHPSF]. That money is supposed to fund new public safety information system technology, behavioral health services in the jail and community, and bond debt incurred to pay for renovation and expansion of the McLean County jail. * WCIA | IL Extension gets $40k to improve, protect Coles Co. water months after Mattoon algae bloom: One part of the initiative, the Watershed Stewards program, will launch in Coles County in 2026. It’ll be led by Extension Program Coordinator Jenny Lee. Anyone can attend the program to learn how to protect local lakes, a spokesperson with Extension said in a release. In the second part of the initiative, participants will have the opportunity to install native plants under native trees. This will help slow stormwater runoff, benefit pollinators and keep excess nutrients from entering local waterways, according to Extension officials. They attributed the “soft landings” concept to Heather Holm and Leslie Pilgrim. * NOTUS | USDA Quietly Deletes Its Contingency Plan for Funding SNAP: The U.S. Department of Agriculture had a plan to keep the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program running during a government shutdown by using contingency funds — but the document laying out that plan has now disappeared from the agency’s website. “Congressional intent is evident that SNAP’s operations should continue since the program has been provided with multi-year contingency funds that can be used for State Administrative Expenses to ensure that the State can also continue operations during a Federal Government shutdown,” the plan that was removed, dated Sept. 30, stated. * Semafor | British newspaper spoke to the wrong de Blasio, not an ‘imposter’: “I’m Bill DeBlasio. I’ve always been Bill DeBlasio,” DeBlasio said in an interview conducted Wednesday evening through his Ring doorbell in Huntington Station, Long Island, from his current location in Florida. “I never once said I was the mayor. He never addressed me as the mayor,” DeBlasio told Semafor Wednesday evening. “So I just gave him my opinion.” * WaPo | We checked DHS’s videos of chaos and protests. Here’s what they leave out.: Some videos that purported to show the fiery chaos of Trump-targeted cities included footage from completely different states. One that claimed to show dramatic examples of past administrations’ failures instead featured border crossings and smuggling boats recorded during Trump’s first term.
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Good morning!
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller * The Kinks… There’s a rat under my bed Holding up so far?
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Selected press releases (Live updates)
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
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Live coverage
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…
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