* The Illinois Commerce Commission…

Today, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) cut $146.5 million from Northern Illinois Gas Company’s (Nicor) rate request for its natural gas delivery services. The decision reduces Nicor’s initial $314.3 million request by nearly 47 percent and approves a 9.60 percent return on equity (ROE), a reduction from the company’s requested 10.35 percent ROE. […]

The ICC issued its decision after closely scrutinizing Nicor’s filings, along with additional materials submitted by the utility, consumer advocates, Commission staff, and various interveners over an 11-month legal proceeding. The rate case process is designed to ensure that utilities receive the necessary funds to provide safe and reliable service at a reasonable cost to ratepayers. Under the Illinois Public Utilities Act, these costs are only recoverable if the utility demonstrates they are reasonable and prudent.

Today’s decision provides important oversight to constrain spending and protect ratepayers from energy infrastructure costs they might otherwise fund for decades. In all rate cases, the legal burden of proof falls to the utilities, and many of the specific disallowances made to Nicor’s proposed investments were made to projects where the utility failed to sufficiently articulate management decisions, including the need, timing, and pace of the proposed projects.

The final order also directs Nicor to maintain a 3 percent energy burden for all customers by adjusting the utility’s low-income discount (LID). The 3 percent figure is a nationally recognized measure of affordability.

Citizens Utility Board…

Any heating bill increase is too much for Ameren’s more than 800,000 gas customers, who have already been hit by four rate hikes in the last seven years – a period when profits for the utility’s gas operations have ballooned by a whopping 112 percent. At a time when Ameren is experiencing such unbridled prosperity, it shouldn’t be forcing its customers into more economic hardship.

Against this backdrop, we’re thankful that state regulators responded by derailing Ameren’s bid to raid consumers for costs that were blatantly inflated and unwarranted. In shrinking Ameren’s requested $129 million increase by more than half, the ICC’s ruling today exceeds the reduction recommended by two administrative law judges last month by an ample margin and reaffirms the Commission’s commitment to holding utilities accountable for justifying every expense they attempt to charge consumers.

With winter heating season in full force, and prices for groceries and health care putting a squeeze on household budgets, conditions for consumers are extremely fragile. We urge state regulators to continue to crack down on profit-mongering by Illinois’s gas utilities so no one is forced to choose between paying for fuel to heat or food to eat.

* NBC Chicago…

Illinois iPhone users trying to add their driver’s licenses and state IDs into their Apple Wallets may hit a snag in the process.

Beginning at 7 a.m. Wednesday, the Illinois Secretary of State rolled out digital IDs for Apple users, giving residents the opportunity to add their Illinois driver’s license onto their phones for use at airports, restaurants and bars.

About two hours later, messages started popping up on phones saying the service was down due to high demand.

“Thank you for your interest in adding your ID to Wallet,” an error message from an iPhone user obtained by NBC Chicago showed. “Due to high volume, your state’s service is currently busy.”

Have any of y’all added your license to your Apple Wallet?

*** Statehouse News ***

* Sun-Times | Election board deadlock sinks $9.8M campaign fine against Illinois Senate President Don Harmon: Illinois Senate President Don Harmon is off the hook for a $9.8 million fine after election board officials deadlocked again Tuesday over allegations that the Oak Park Democrat’s political committee accepted donations beyond state campaign financing limits. Members of the Illinois State Board of Elections, which is composed of four Republicans and four Democrats, landed in 4-4 ties along party lines on separate motions to reject or to impose the hefty fine against the Friends of Don Harmon for State Senate campaign committee. Without a majority, no action could be taken against Harmon, election board general counsel Marni Malowitz said, settling procedural questions raised in a board meeting last month.

* Sun-Times | A state ID you can’t drive with: Under the law passed last year by the Illinois General Assembly authorizing digital IDs, residents will still be required to have physical IDs. Mobile ones can serve as identification, but businesses aren’t required to accept them. Residents still must carry physical IDs when driving. Law enforcement is not required to accept the digital form.

* Illinois Answers Project | Illinois is turning to local jails to treat mentally ill defendants. Some early results offer hope — and warnings: Illinois, in recent years, has seen a steep rise in the number of times people are being found unfit for trial, resulting in long wait times due to the limited number of state hospital beds. In 2022, tensions reached a high between jails and IDHS when a handful of sheriffs sued the state for not transferring defendants quickly enough. The legislature then changed the law, giving the department 60 days to transfer a person and the ability to extend that time. […] As of June 30, 2025, 185 people have been recommended for the pilot program with 90 being transferred and admitted. About 20% of those people have regained fitness in jail, according to performance reports, which Illinois Answers obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

*** Chicago ***

* Block Club | 400 Arrested By ICE In Chicago To Be Released Friday, But Feds’ ‘Risk’ List Remains Murky: ICE identified 57 people who were deemed “high public safety risk” and are therefore to remain in detention, Cummings ruled. The list provided by Homeland Security includes a Risk Classification Assessment for each person, which reviews a person’s criminal history, immigration record and community ties to recommend whether they should be detained or released while their case moves forward, according to a 2012 report from the department. But questions around how risk is calculated by the government remain, as the rubric has changed several times since its inception.

* Block Club | Feds Used Chemical Weapons On Chicagoans At Least 49 Times — Even After Judge Said To Stop: The events of Oct. 4 also helped establish a pattern of force by federal agents. Our investigation found that federal agents used chemical weapons on protesters at least 49 times across 18 incidents across Chicago and the suburbs since Oct. 1. Federal agents have used chemical irritants at least 30 times since a judge placed restrictions on their use of tear gas and pepper spray. Contrary to federal claims about attacks on agents, most of these incidents appear to involve nonviolent protesters or bystanders.

* Fox Chicago | Founder of Chicago crypto company indicted in $10M money laundering scheme: The company ran cash-to-cryptocurrency exchanges and a network of crypto ATMs nationwide, allowing users to convert cash into digital currency. According to the indictment unsealed in the Northern District of Illinois, people sent more than $10 million to Crypto Dispensers, Isa or a co-conspirator. Prosecutors alleged Isa converted the money into cryptocurrency and transferred it to virtual wallets to disguise the source of the funds while knowing the proceeds came from illegal activity.

* Chicago Eater | These Are Chicago’s Michelin Star and Bib Gourmand Restaurants for 2025: In all, 20 Chicago restaurants earned or maintained one, two, or three stars, up from 19 in 2024. Kasama was the night’s other major winner, securing its second star. An emotional Genie Kwon, the restaurant’s co-owner and pastry chef, carried a cutout of her partner and chef Tim Flores’s head on stage as she accepted the award.

* Crain’s | Ishbia shares Sox stadium vision with Pope Leo: Chicago White Sox owner-in-waiting Justin Ishbia today said he will build a new ballpark for the franchise at some point, and shared his stadium vision with the team’s most famous fan: Pope Leo XIV. Speaking to Crain’s from Rome after a brief meeting with the Chicago-born pope in Vatican City, the Sox’s minority shareholder said he visited to make a formal connection with the pontiff, share his aspiration for creating the team’s new home and formally ask the Dolton native if he would throw out the first pitch if the venue comes to fruition.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Southtown | Tinley Park trustees agree to increase property tax levy by 3.8%, first increase since 2018: If passed, this would be the first tax levy increase by the village since 2018. The Board has until Dec. 16 to make its decision and adopt a new levy, according to a village memo. The tax levy increase would equate to a $43 increase in taxes for each household in Tinley Park, Lipman said. Trustee Colleen Sullivan called this increase reasonable.

* Naperville Sun | Naperville D203 five-year financial forecast dips into red; board considers cuts: According to the district’s projection summary, its fiscal year 2026 estimated budget will be about $5.25 million in the red. The fiscal year 2026 budget is anticipated to have about $354.9 million in revenue and $360.1 million in expenses. The projected fiscal year 2027 budget could have nearly a $12.6 million deficit, and the fiscal year 2028 budget may have a nearly $14.4 million deficit, which would continue to draw down on the district’s fund balance, district documents said.

* Daily Herald | Cook Board president, officials back efforts to unionize at Chicago Botanic Garden: Some Garden employees are organizing efforts to join CMRJB Workers United, a labor union that represents various industries around the country. Preckwinkle, some county commissioners and other elected officials complained of “union-busting and retaliatory activity against workers” in the news conference held at the County Building in downtown Chicago. In an interview later on Tuesday, Workers United organizing director Matt Muchowski said, “(There’s been) a lot of intimidating talk, telling workers that they should be afraid for their jobs if they talk about the union. They’ve been called into these one-on-one meetings to kind of dissuade them from supporting a union.”

* Daily Southtown | Calumet Country Club to be shut down, all infrastructure to be demolished, owner says: Liz Varmecky, co-founder of South Suburbs for Greenspace, a community group that has resisted efforts to develop the property for industrial use, called the announcement “a lot of bluster” and said she doubted Brown would go through with it. “He has said many times in the past golf won’t be open the next season, and then come March, golf is open,” Varmecky said.

*** Downstate ***

* PJ Star | Changes to federal homelessness funding could have ‘catastrophic’ impact on Peoria: What was described as a “very dire warning” for homelessness housing services in Peoria was issued Tuesday night after the Peoria City Council was informed roughly 250 units of permanent supportive housing in the city could be at risk because of federal funding changes. Community Development Director Joe Dulin told the City Council that permanent supportive housing units at places such as the Dream Center, New Hope Apartments and Glendale Commons, among others, could be at risk for federal funds because the government is shifting to prioritize transitional housing units.

* Illinois Times | Public hearing on data center proposal : The company that wants to build the $500 million data center in rural Talkington Township, Dallas-based CyrusOne, will be given 30 minutes to make a presentation during the hearing, Wilhite said. The Coalition for Springfield’s Utility Future, a citizens’ group that has opposed the data center and asked for a six-month moratorium on any County Board votes to allow for more debate and study, will have 30 minutes to make a presentation as well. Sangamon County government staff and other experts also will have 30 minutes for a presentation, Wilhite said.

* WCIA | City of Champaign Township searching for new Supervisor: Two weeks after the City of Champaign Township Supervisor announced his resignation, the township is now accepting applications for the position. Kyle Patterson’s final day in the role was Nov. 18, and the Township Board unanimously voted to accept his resignation during Tuesday night’s meeting. Now, they have 60 days to fill the position.

* WGLT | Home Sweet Home sets rules for Bridge shelter village and identifies highest-need residents ahead of opening: Home Sweet Home Ministries [HSHM] is getting ready to fill Bloomington’s first non-congregate shelter village, The Bridge, with residents in a few months. The Bridge will consist of 48 sleeping cabins able to accommodate up to 56 adults; a community building with a kitchen, living room area and offices for service providers; and a bathhouse.

* WGLT | Normal firefighters union study calls for staff expansion and retaining College Avenue station: Firefighters Local 2442 commissioned a study from the International Association of Firefighters. It suggests the town should keep the fire station at College Avenue and Blair Drive open, even after the new fire station at Shepard and Hershey Roads opens in a month or two. That would cut against the town’s long-term plan to close the College Avenue station. “What we know is that we’ve got two different narratives that are emerging,” Town Council member Kathleen Lorenz said at Monday’s council meeting. “Residents are confused. Frankly, so am I.”

* WAND | Deer donation program launching in Sangamon County: The Sangamon County Farm Bureau is teaming up with the University of Illinois Extension and Buffalo Hart Presbyterian Church to launch the Hunters Feeding Illinois Program. Donors can drop off whole, freshly harvested deer to partnering meat processors. There are no processing costs for donors. From there, the processor and U of I Extension work together to ensure a local food pantry picks up the ground deer meat to serve those in need.

*** National ***

* AP | Labor Department won’t release full October jobs report, a casualty of the 43-day federal shutdown: The Labor Department said Wednesday that it will not be releasing a full jobs report for October because the 43-day federal government shutdown meant it couldn’t calculate the unemployment rate and some other key numbers. Instead, it will release some of the October jobs data — most importantly the number of jobs that employers created last month — along with the full November jobs report, now due a couple of weeks late on Dec. 16.

* Government Executive | Lawmakers force House vote on bill nullifying anti-union EOs: On Capitol Hill, a bipartisan coalition of House lawmakers have engaged in a months-long campaign to attract signatures for a discharge petition to force House leadership to schedule a vote on the Protect America’s Workforce Act (H.R. 2550). The legislation, introduced by Reps. Jared Golden, D-Maine, and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., would nullify the executive orders; a companion bill in the Senate, introduced in September, has the support of all Democrats and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.

* AP | Trump doubles down on redistricting in Indiana even as lawmakers rebuke special session: [Republican Gov. Mike Braun] suggested in a statement that he is exploring ways to compel the Senate to return in December and take a vote. But his options remain unclear, other than maintaining political pressure on Republicans refusing to go along. “I will support President Trump’s efforts to recruit, endorse and finance primary challengers for Indiana’s senators who refuse to support fair maps,” Braun said.

* Crain’s | Pope rebukes U.S. over ‘disrespectful’ treatment of migrants: Pope Leo addressed a rare “special message” approved by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops during its recent general assembly, a statement that lamented fear in immigrant communities and highlighted the denial of pastoral care in detention centers. The bishops called for “meaningful immigration reform” and rejected “indiscriminate mass deportation.” According to published reports, the Pope today said he appreciated the clarity of their message and encouraged Catholics and “all people of goodwill” to heed it.

* Study Finds | ChatGPT’s Hallucination Problem: Study Finds More Than Half Of AI’s References Are Fabricated Or Contain Errors: When scientists at Deakin University tasked GPT-4o with writing six literature reviews on mental health topics, they discovered that nearly 20% (19.9%) of the 176 citations the AI generated were completely fabricated. Among the 141 real citations, 45.4% contained errors such as wrong publication dates, incorrect page numbers, or invalid digital object identifiers. Overall, only 77 of 176 citations (43.8%) were both real and accurate. That means 56.2% were either fabricated or contained errors. For researchers under pressure to publish and increasingly turning to AI tools for assistance, the study, published in JMIR Mental Health, reveals a troubling pattern in when and why these errors occur.