Have you ever considered leaving Illinois? If you have, a new study says you are not alone. A survey out of the University of Illinois Springfield found while more people feel the state is moving in the right direction this year compared to years past, most still feel Illinois is going down the wrong road.
The UIS Research Center study found that 61 percent of people surveyed have considered moving out Illinois in the past year but researchers said it’s just a thought for many.
“When we look at the data, we actually ask folks about action related to the leaving the state and when you actually look at those actions,
Like applying for jobs out of state, applying for housing, it’s actually really low like in the single digits,” said Alan Simmons, Director of Survey Research at UIS.
On the topic of out-migration, 61 percent of respondents said they have considered moving out of Illinois in the past year. But of those 61 percent, only 16 percent looked for jobs in a new state and just 5 percent applied for such jobs; and 26 percent looked at out-of state housing but just 2 percent applied for such housing.
Reasons of those considering out-of-state moves included lower state taxes, 27 percent; state government and policies, 17 percent; better weather, 15 percent; lower crime, 13 percent; job opportunities, 12 percent; better schools, 6 percent; and family or personal reasons, 8 percent.
In 2018, 53 percent of respondents to a survey that year said they considered moving out of state in the previous 12 months. Simmons said that while the 61 percent in this year’s survey is higher, actions leading to actual moves out of state are “pretty low.′
“I think a wider study would need to be done to talk to folks that have left and maybe even folks that have moved into the state as well to … really unpack the kind of migration that has been going on,” Simmons said.
* The Question: Have you ever seriously discussed leaving Illinois? Explain either way. Thanks.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he doesn’t expect to see a broad state energy plan come together during the General Assembly’s brief fall legislative session.
As lawmakers prepare to return to the state capital later this month for the fall session, a number of policy issues could be discussed – from gun control measures to e-cigarette regulations. […]
But the governor said doesn’t expect a broad energy plan to surface during the fall session.
“It certainly is something that’s being considered as part of a broader energy package,” Pritzker said. “I don’t know that we’ll be able to get to it during a veto session.”
Lawmakers are scheduled to come back for three days beginning Oct. 28 and then three days beginning Nov. 12.
As we’ve discussed before, a leadership determination was made in the spring to move all energy bills forward at once. But with ComEd facing some attention from the feds, nobody wants to touch their proposals.
* But some public support appears to be building for this proposal…
* Governors are required by state statute to issue five-year economic plans. Pat Quinn published the latest five-year plan. It’s now Pritkzer’s turn…
Governor JB Pritzker and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity released a 5-year plan to create an economy in Illinois that works for everyone. To expand prosperity throughout the state, the plan is focused on fostering job creation, improving wages, building greater equity, and attracting and supporting businesses.
“Since I took office in January, we’ve already begun making strides toward growing our state’s economy after years of neglect and intransigence. For the first time in nearly two decades, we’ve seen simultaneous strong job growth in every region of the state,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Underlying my vision is the fundamental principle of equity. No matter their zip code, every Illinoisan deserves economic opportunity. Where in the past sustainable and inclusive economic development has been elusive, instead I am committed to reinvigorating the most important foundational element of Illinois’ economy: our diverse and talented workforce.”
The initiatives outlined in the report lay the foundation for long-term growth by focusing on key growth industries with a broad reach like technology, manufacturing, life sciences and healthcare, and transportation and logistics.
There’s a lot to this thing. The executive summary is here. The full plan is here.
The most striking thing in the report is its call for emphasizing help for seven industry clusters: agriculture/agriculture tech, energy, information technology, life sciences/health care, manufacturing, transportation/logistics and small business.
Though some economists say trying to cherry-pick certain industries for help is a losing strategy compared to, say, across-the-board tax cuts, others counter that identifying and then nurturing and growing certain industry clusters has proved to pay big dividends. Pritzker clearly agrees with the latter sentiment, and pointed to New York, which a decade ago had little presence in the life sciences industry but has since targeted that field with major success.
“It’s not that we’re picking winners and losers,” said Erin Guthrie, who heads Pritzker’s Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity and who sat in on the interview. “It’s that we’re picking six areas where we feel we should put in extra work because they’re fast-growing” and the state already has a significant presence in them.
In agriculture, which clearly already is a pillar of the state’s economy, the plan proposes to help better integrate tech solutions to problems including “eroded soils, more pests and pathogens, degraded quality of stored grain, and lower crop yields” from global warming. Pritzker wants to spend $420 million to expand broadband—mostly downstate—enlarge foreign trade zones to facilitate access by food processors and exporters, and increase joint-research efforts at academic and related facilities, such as the proposed Discovery Partners Institute in the South Loop here.
Illinois may not be flying high in its standing with the public, but Gov. JB. Pritzker is.
A new poll — dubbed the Illinois Issues Survey — conducted by the University of Illinois-Springfield Survey Research Office shows that nearly six out of 10 state residents have a positive view of how Pritzker is conducting himself as governor.
OK, first of all, this is an online poll, so I wouldn’t jump to any hard conclusions just yet.
Secondly, I’ve heard some GOP grumbling about how the partisan universe in the Illinois Issues Survey is way more favorable to Gov. Pritzker than other polls: 53 percent Democratic vs. 30 percent Republican. That’s a +23D universe. By contrast, Gallup’s polling last year had Illinois at +16D. The Simon Poll’s most recent survey this spring had Illinois at +12D. That spring poll had Pritzker’s job approval at 40 and his disapproval at 38.
Even so, if you apply Gallup’s partisan makeup to the Illinois Issues Survey, you still get a 58 percent job approval rating for Pritzker. It’s a 57 percent approval rating if you apply the Simon Poll partisan universe.
According to the Illinois Issues Survey, Pritzker experienced a 14-point increase in his approval rating among Democrats vs. the Simon Poll, which is to be expected after the session he had. But he also saw an 18-point increase among independents (31 to 49) and more than a doubling of his approval rating among Republicans, which skyrocketed from 15 to 32. I dunno.
Again, this is an online poll and I’m not yet sold on that methodology.
A broad majority of Illinois voters support major changes to the state income tax, favoring a system where the wealthy pay more. That’s according to new survey data from NPR Illinois and the University of Illinois Springfield.
The survey says 67 percent of registered Illinois voters support a graduated income tax. That’s where people who earn more money pay a higher tax rate, and people who earn less pay a lower rate.
Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker made the proposal a centerpiece of both his campaign and his freshman legislative session. Given that, it’s not surprising the plan enjoys widest support among Democrats and independents who lean Democratic (79%). Next are non-leaning independents (59%), and finally Republicans and independents who lean Republican (49%).
Since the polling universe skews so high for Democrats, this is not a surprising result. Also, while the result is in line with several Simon Poll results over the years, support is now ten points higher than the 2018 Illinois Issues Survey.
* WBEZ dug up 10 Illinois Supreme Court cases where Justice Anne Burke participated in the decision even though her husband Ed Burke’s law firm represented one of the parties in property tax matters. There’s zero evidence that Burke tipped the scale on behalf of her husband’s clients, but the pledge she took when she was first sworn in looks inoperative to my eyes…
On the day she first was sworn in as a justice in 2006, Burke pledged to be mindful of potential conflicts of interest that might involve her politics or her husband.
“I’m constantly on the lookout for any possible — what appears to be, which I might not even think is an appearance of — impropriety or conflict. I go the opposite way,” she said. […]
In the case involving Jason Sloan, a court spokesman said Justice Burke was unaware that her husband had any financial relationship to ComEd.
“I can confirm on the record that Justice Burke did not know who was or was not a client of Klafter & Burke in 2011 and still does not know who may or may not be a client of Klafter & Burke to this day,” court spokesman Christopher Bonjean said in a statement.
Court rules dictate that judges shall “make a reasonable effort to keep informed about the personal economic interests of the judge’s spouse.”
You cannot be both “constantly on the lookout” for even the appearance of conflict and then never make a reasonable effort to ask your attorney spouse about possible conflicts.
* I somehow missed the bottom of this editorial until a buddy recently forwarded it to me…
Editor’s note: A previous version indicated that Andrew Johnson was elected president. In 1865, Johnson, next in line as vice president, assumed the presidency after President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. The Tribune regrets the error.
Editorials reflect the opinion of the Editorial Board, as determined by the members of the board, the editorial page editor and the publisher.
We have nearly 17,000 homeless students in CPS. Our proposals demand more staff to support families in danger of losing housing, and advocate for a program that financially helps PSRPs and new teachers purchase a home. The mayor finds them "unreasonable." https://t.co/6UUQOjQdAK
“Today marked the 49th time that CTU and CPS negotiators met at the bargaining table, and the 142nd day that CTU has still not provided us with a comprehensive counter-proposal. Instead of providing a response to our comprehensive proposal, CTU presented its demands to set the City’s affordable housing policy through their collective bargaining agreement, demanding that the City enact CTU’s preferred affordable housing policy as part of their contract.
“My administration is committed to addressing Chicago’s affordable housing challenges. That’s why I appointed the City’s first housing commissioner in a decade, and announced a new and transparent plan for distributing Low Income Housing Tax Credits, with more progress to come. The CTU shares much of our vision on affordable housing, and I invite them to engage in the policymaking process with housing providers, advocacy organizations and other stakeholders who must be a part of this important discussion.
“Affordable housing is a critical issue that affects residents across Chicago, and everyone’s voices need to be heard during this process. As such, the CTU collective bargaining agreement is not the appropriate place for the City to legislate its affordable housing policy.
“We are a week away from our deadline to resolve this contract and avoid a strike. We need CTU to come to the table with written proposals on the core issues we need to address in order to resolve the contract. Once this contract is resolved, our Department of Housing will continue to work closely with stakeholders—including unions like the CTU—to ensure everyone in all of our communities has access to a safe, affordable, accessible place to live.”
CTU spokeswoman Chris Geovanis said late Tuesday that housing costs need to be addressed to help students and lower-paid support staff who she said don’t make enough to live in the city, even though they are required to.
It’s “sad that [the mayor] continues to distort our proposals and try to force a wage agreement that would still leave the children of teaching assistants and school clerks eligible for free and reduced lunch under federal poverty guidelines,” Geovanis said.
The two sides will bargain every day this week except Wednesday in observance of a Jewish holiday. Negotiators will also meet Saturday.
Still, there doesn’t appear to be a resolution in sight with just more than a week left before the union’s Oct. 17 strike deadline.
The Illinois Senate recently released a heavily redacted copy of the federal search warrant served during the raid of Sen. Martin Sandoval’s Statehouse office last month. And the Village of McCook also released a heavily redacted search warrant from the federal raid of its town hall.
It’s impossible to tell from the redactions exactly how many individuals and entities are under investigation, but it’s a lot. McCook’s warrant has almost six full lines of text blacked out after the phrase “Items related to.” Sandoval’s warrant contains 67 redactions, but it’s unclear if all those are for separate individuals and entities or just multiple words in the same names.
Even so, by counting things like “Associate A,” or “Lobbyist B,” or “Official A’s company,” I totaled up more than 70 people and entities clearly listed in the two warrants.
And we’ve only seen parts of two of the numerous search warrants served. So there’s more. We know the Village of Lyons also was hit, as was a sand and gravel operation owned by a businessman named Mike Vondra.
Vondra is known in some circles as “The Wizard,” a nickname that is both complimentary and disparaging at the same time. It comes from his uncanny business sense and his ability to work the system to benefit his many companies, which naturally makes some of his competitors furious.
Vondra’s main business is asphalt, perhaps one of the most politically drenched industries in this state. Asphalt companies vie for contracts with this state’s innumerable local governments, as well as with the state. Many of those companies are by necessity politically active. Vondra is said to excel at this.
Vondra has been an honorary chairman of Sandoval’s huge annual golf outing fundraisers over the years and has contributed thousands of dollars to Sandoval’s campaign fund. As chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, Sandoval took the lead in his chamber on the state’s massive new infrastructure law.
Vondra’s Statehouse lobbying team is led by Victor Reyes, whose Roosevelt Group firm started working for Vondra in 2006. Reyes is super-close to Sandoval and has worked to elect Sandoval and his allies for nearly two decades. Nothing has emerged to connect Reyes or his firm to the current federal investigation.
At least seven municipalities are being looked at during this probe. We know that because the FBI was looking for evidence in Sandoval’s office regarding “Municipality 7 Attorney, Municipality 7 President,” etc.
The feds were looking for any items related to five unnamed officials with the Illinois Department of Transportation in Sandoval’s office. According to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the agency has received no federal subpoenas or search warrants and neither has his office.
The G was also looking for information in Sandoval’s office about two unnamed lobbyists, an unnamed “Foundation,” an unnamed construction company, an unnamed highway company, an unnamed “lounge” and an unnamed “Club.”
The Sun-Times has reported that federal investigators asked Summit’s mayor “whether another political figure tried to pressure village officials into giving a local bar a license to operate later into the night,” but it’s not clear if either the lounge or club in the Sandoval warrant are connected to Summit.
Multiple media outlets have reported that the feds are asking questions about SafeSpeed, a politically connected red-light camera company.
Red-light cam companies are popular with a certain set. With enough influence over a town government you can get a cam or two (or more) installed and then receive a percentage of the fines. Some Statehouse lobbyists have supplemented their incomes by recommending cam locations to their municipal clients. The cam companies are also popular with politicians who need jobs for their campaign workers.
But the Sun-Times also reported that the feds asked Cook County Commissioner Jeff Tobolski’s chief of staff about SafeSpeed investor Omar Maani and some low-income housing projects Maani built in Cicero and Summit. The feds also asked the mayor of Summit about the housing projects, according to the Sun-Times. According to the Forest Park Review, Maani at one time worked for a man who now handles legal work for the Town of Cicero. Sandoval has a lucrative translation contract with Cicero. The Roosevelt Group also lobbies for Cicero and SafeSpeed.
Again, we don’t know yet who will be ensnared, but it’s one of the biggest dragnets we’ve ever seen in Illinois, and that’s saying something.
One more thing. The warrant served on McCook includes items relating to “CW1” and “CW2.” That federal “CW” reference usually translates to “Cooperating Witness.”
On paper, at least, House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton appear pretty similar.
They’ve both served in the General Assembly since the 1970s, they’re Chicago Democrats from political families and are White Sox fans with season tickets. Cullerton is the godfather of Madigan’s only son.
But they don’t wield their power the same way.
Over the years, Madigan has been far more top-down than Cullerton. His nickname isn’t the “Velvet Hammer” for nothing. Madigan’s longtime chief of staff, Tim Mapes, was given more power than any of the speaker’s elected members. Madigan’s staff constantly tries to micromanage House Democrats. Cullerton’s staff is much more deferential.
Cullerton is more of a delegator. He gently defers to his members, even devolving some power to them this year with a committee rules restructuring.
The column eventually gets to what I think is behind Cullerton’s refusal to move Sen. Martin Sandoval out of his Transportation Committee chairmanship, so go read the rest before commenting, please.
* This rumor has been going around for about a week now. Here’s the Sun-Times on Monday…
The politically connected CEO of a red-light camera company under federal scrutiny insisted “we don’t pay people off,” amid new revelations that agents recently approached another village mayor and a company salesman as part of their investigation.
“There is no subpoena to SafeSpeed,” Nikki Zollar told the Chicago Sun-Times late last week in her first public remarks since federal agents fanned out across the southwest suburbs on Sept. 26, seizing records and interviewing people. […]
Zollar said she believes that a SafeSpeed “partner,” businessman and developer Omar Maani, appears to be cooperating with the government, as do other sources familiar with the probe. […]
Her company is “trying to find out what we need to do to distance ourselves from him.”
“Our partner has run amok in some way,” Zollar said.
An upscale cigar shop and lounge in southwest suburban Countryside is proving to be an intriguing — and, until now, little-known — link to political players involved in an ongoing federal corruption investigation that saw agents swoop into Chicago and the southwest suburbs over the last two weeks, seizing records and interviewing public officials.
The business, Casa De Montecristo, offers choice cigars for sale, a living room-type space to unwind with a blazing fireplace where customers can puff away while watching sports on a large-screen TV and a separate “VIP room” in the basement, accessible by elevator, that offers dim-lighting, booths straight out of a Rat Pack-era nightclub, televisions and a bar for special events. Attractive women were often on hand working as servers. […]
It turns out a central figure in the corruption probe, Omar Maani of Burr Ridge, often entertained or otherwise socialized with political figures there, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned. […]
Maani was there so often, in fact, that many people — including his business partners in other endeavors — thought he owned the swanky establishment. These days some of them believe he was something else: A businessman who was secretly cooperating with federal authorities as they attempted to snare local politicians.
* I think I’m gonna play hookie on Monday and call in well. Talk with you soon.
Back in the day, the Bruce’s Tavernacle Choir would gather at the popular Springfield venue on 11th and South Grand to joyfully and loudly sing this song together almost every Sunday night. Too many (Brian, Raoul, Grant, Hose, Jason - to name just a few) of our choir members are now gone, but their memory lives on. I think Ringo and Robbie would’ve approved…
A U.S. Army veteran who was fighting to stay in the country after being deported to Mexico has officially become an American citizen.
Miguel Perez Jr., a 39-year-old veteran of the war in Afghanistan, was sworn in at a naturalization ceremony Friday in Chicago. Perez had recently returned to Chicago on a two-week permit to attend a citizenship hearing. […]
Perez was deported to Mexico roughly 18 months ago, after his original petition for citizenship was denied due to a 2010 drug conviction.
He served over 7 1/2 years in prison. His green card status was revoked and he went from state prison into the custody of immigration officials.
In August, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker pardoned Perez, allowing him to appeal his case, and return home to his parents and two children.
Pritzker took a big chance on pardoning Perez. The war vet had been battling PTSD when he was busted for handing a large amount of cocaine to an undercover cop. But the governor has said he believes in second chances and thought Perez should have an opportunity to prove himself. So far, so good.
Billionaire Gov. J.B. Pritzker — the richest sitting politician in America — is shelling out another $850,000 from his own pockets to renovate the Illinois Governor’s Mansion in Springfield.
That cranks up the tally of personal funds he has used to cover government expenses — including doubling some salaries and paying for other renovations — to at least $3.45 million, according to a Sun-Times analysis.
* But this post isn’t really about the Pritzker money. It’s about a bot publication called Moose Gazette which lifted Tina’s story in its entirety, but appeared to run it through a translation program…
Billionaire Gov. J.B. Pritzker — the richest sitting politician in The usa — is shelling out an additional $850,000 from his very own pockets to renovate the Illinois Governor’s Mansion in Springfield.
That cranks up the tally of individual funds he has applied to cover federal government expenditures — which includes doubling some salaries and shelling out for other renovations — to at the very least $3.45 million, in accordance to a Solar-Periods investigation.
“Solar-Periods” is apparently bot speak for “Sun-Times.” Also, check out this photo caption…
Democrat J.B. Pritzker hugs his spouse M.K. Pritzker and celebrates at an election night rally at the Marriott Marquis Chicago after beating incumbent Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner in the Illinois gubernatorial election, Tuesday night time, Nov. six, 2018. |
Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sunshine-Situations
That bot needs to settle on its translations. Sunshine-Situations?
Gov. J.B. Pritzker acknowledges the group soon after being sworn in as the state’s 43rd governor in January. File Image.
Abundant Saal/The Point out Journal-Register by way of AP
Um, that would be Rich Saal at the State Journal-Register.
* And…
It appears as "the reporter" who lifted your story, "Laura Neilson," has a twin, an actual reporter, who works for the Telegraph in London. So they not only steal stories from reporters, they steal their photos as well. pic.twitter.com/hYe4ir4VYP
* I called the number on the Moose Gazette’s contact page and spoke to a very nice lady who said I was the third or fourth person to call about this. She insisted that she has no idea what the Moose Gazette is or why they’re using her phone number, which she said she’s had for 47 years and doesn’t want to change. I gave her the website address and wished her luck. The address listed on the page didn’t turn up anything, either. I suppose I could go to Boise and knock on some doors, but I kinda have better things to do with my time.
According to the Idaho Secretary of State’s website, MG LLC is a Foreign Limited Liability Company that cancelled its registration in 2004. I did find the name of a registered agent at the time the company cancelled its registration, looked up his number and left a voicemail.
OK, I think I’ve wasted far too much time on this today.
* The New York Times has a long, but very insightful story about how Chicago taxi drivers were fleeced by New Yorkers…
Over the next decade, New York taxi industry leaders — fleet owners, brokers and financiers — steadily seized control of Chicago’s medallion market and squeezed it for huge profits. Using tactics honed in New York, they made millions of dollars, but they ultimately helped to leave the industry in tatters and the lives of immigrant drivers on the edge of ruin.
New Yorkers used a similar playbook in several cities across the United States: They inflated medallion prices, provided high-risk loans to buyers and collected interest and fees before the bubbles burst and the markets collapsed. Medallion prices rose sevenfold in some places, soaring to $700,000 in Boston, $550,000 in Philadelphia, $400,000 in Miami and $250,000 in San Francisco.
But the most ambitious expansion targeted Chicago, home of the nation’s second-largest cab industry, a New York Times investigation found. New Yorkers eventually bought almost half the city’s medallions, records show.
There’s lots more, so go read the whole thing. There’s a Daley family nexus via a Patrick Daley meeting in Moscow, Gery Chico’s involvement, a big investment by Michael Cohen, and a city government far more interested in revenue than regulation…
Under Mr. Daley, the former mayor, the officials who regulated the Chicago taxi industry were focused on raising revenue through medallion sales, according to four former city employees. Officials sent memos praising the price increases, some of those employees said.
* Serious money was made and lost before Uber came along and tanked the market…
Records show that before the market collapsed in late 2013 and 2014, Mr. Levine’s companies sold most of the Chicago medallions they had bought a few years earlier. The companies paid $30 million to buy 543 medallions between 2006 and 2008. They sold 529 medallions between 2012 and 2014, for a total of $185 million. … Mr. Levine said he did not see a conflict in his lending company providing loans to drivers, which in turn helped him sell off medallions. […]
Only about 4,300 of the city’s 7,000 cabs are currently in operation, according to the city, and the ones on the road are generating at least 20 percent less than before there was ride-hailing, according to an analysis of city data by The Times.
A venture capitalist who bankrolled City Hall deals that secretly benefited Patrick Daley while his father Richard M. Daley was mayor has agreed to a court settlement that will see him repay less than 10% of the $290,596 he owes the U.S. Small Business Administration. […]
Under a settlement approved by a federal judge in Chicago, McInerney agreed to repay $36,000 over the next three years, to cooperate in an ongoing investigation of Cardinal Growth and to give a sworn deposition if asked.
The SBA had accused McInerney of failing to put up all of the money he promised as a condition of Cardinal Growth obtaining more than $51 million in loans from the federal agency. […]
Patrick Daley got more than $1.2 million from Cardinal Growth between 2002 and 2009, the Chicago Sun-Times previously has reported. He got $708,999 after Cardinal Growth sold Concourse Communications, a company that got a contract from the Daley administration to install wireless Internet service at O’Hare Airport and Midway Airport.
Officials of a private facility in Harvey that houses and educates severely disabled children will soon be forced to choose between laying off staff or discontinuing education to 11 students if they can’t find a district willing to enroll them, according to a lawsuit filed last week.
The Children’s Habilitation Center, which provides education and other services to students with intellectual disabilities, orthopedic impairments, traumatic brain injuries and other severe mental and physical limitations, claimed several Illinois school districts have refused to enroll their students, in violation of state and federal law.
“This case is about how several Illinois School Districts have put their desire to save money over their legal obligation to provide a free and appropriate public education to 11 severely disabled and medically fragile children who live and go to school at (Children’s Habilitation Center),” the suit said. “Despite every party acknowledging that the children are entitled to a free and appropriate education under the law and that some Illinois school district must enroll them, each School District is passing the buck, and the children remain without a home district and without the legally required public funding for their schooling.”
The suit, filed Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court, requested that the superintendent of the Illinois State Board of Education make a district determination for the 11 students and demands a $622,527 judgment against West Harvey-Dixmoor School District 147, which previously had enrolled the majority of the students.
Nobody wants to claim these children. No school district wants to foot the bill for the education they are entitled to by law. And nobody at the Illinois State Board of Education seems willing to step in and straighten out the mess.
The students reside at Children’s Habilitation Center, a private facility in Harvey that houses, cares for and educates children with medically complex developmental disabilities. Most of the infants and children require feeding tubes and are on around-the-clock ventilators. Many of the roughly 60 residents of the center were born into families already dealing with physical or intellectual disabilities of their own, drug abuse or incarceration.
So they often have parents who can’t be found, parents who are sometimes reachable, but unwilling to engage, or parents who have simply moved out of state, leaving their children in the center’s care.
Earlier this year, that lack of parental connection led West Harvey-Dixmoor School District 147 to unenroll eight children, claiming that since there was no proof of parents living in the district, the district shouldn’t have to pay to educate the kids. That district also refused to enroll two younger children from the center who had just reached school age. […]
I spoke with Pamela Markle, the chief executive officer of Children’s Habilitation Center. She figures that without payment from District 147 — per the lawsuit, it already owes the center more than $600,000 dating back to February — she’ll soon have to lay off educators and cut back on classes.
Press Secretary Jordan Abudayyeh emailed this statement late Thursday: “The administration is monitoring the situation to ensure the children are being educated and cared for, and we will work with families, educational institutions and other stakeholders to deliver the services they deserve.”
Also on Thursday, ISBE spokeswoman Jackie Matthews emailed me this statement: “ISBE’s most critical priority is to ensure that children are being educated and cared for. We have ensured that the children at CHC have been and are receiving education and services with no interruption. We are urgently attending to the matter of responsibility for the payment of services and are working toward a swift resolution.”
The Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access panel set up by the Democratic Party earlier this year released its final recommendations last week. […]
The panel’s report included “paraphrased comments” from participants of the listening sessions like this: “Expecting campaigns or parties to handle harassment internally during a campaign may be unrealistic because everyone, including the victims of harassment, is trying to win the election. This desire to win may be a deterrent to reporting because victims may worry it would hurt the campaign.”
I think that’s why House Republican Leader Jim Durkin’s recent decision to abandon Rep. Jerry Long’s (R-Streator) re-election campaign was so important and so underappreciated by the media and other political observers.
Durkin has said that his best hope in a year like this is to focus lots of resources on picking up and/or holding on to Downstate seats. Long’s Downstate seat was once in Democratic hands, but pro-Trump, anti-Madigan sentiment helped propel him into the General Assembly two years ago.
Yet when a campaign worker reported allegations of harassment, Durkin ordered an outside investigation and then publicly walked away from the candidate. There was no attempt to sweep it under the rug until after the election, which is pretty much what you’d expect in other times.
What Durkin clearly demonstrated by abandoning Long’s campaign is that some things have to be more important than winning. That’s an all-too-rare concept in politics.
It was also prudent in the long term. Covering up the Long situation could’ve seriously endangered his leadership position if the truth emerged.
However you look at it, this was absolutely the right move by Durkin and it took guts, particularly since some House members on his far-right flank are still not condemning Long and the state’s leading newspaper editorial boards have remained silent.
* The Tribune endorsement in that district last October…
76th District: We had high hopes for Rep. Jerry Lee Long, R-Streator, when he took this seat in 2016. A pro-union Republican, his win helped erode Speaker Michael Madigan’s supermajority in the House. But GOP officials withdrew their support after a colleague accused Long of inappropriate behavior. He has admitted he touched the neck of an associate who was complaining of a headache. A third-party investigator hired by the GOP prepared a report damaging enough that prominent Republicans called for him to resign. We don’t know enough to make a determination. But Long stayed in the race and insists the party abandoned him over a minor misunderstanding. His opponent, Democrat Lance Yednock of Ottawa, is an engineer with International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150. We fear he would be yet another voice in Springfield promoting anti-business policies and pitting rank-and-file taxpayers against union interests. No endorsement.
“We don’t know enough to make a determination.” The House Republican Leader walked away from a candidate in an all-important swing district and yet the Trib took a pass.
The only silver lining to be extracted from yet another report outlining sexual harassment in Springfield is the potential for further reform. When lawmakers return to the Capitol this month for the fall veto session — their first gathering following two investigations into House Speaker Michael Madigan’s operations — will things be different?
The latest report on sexual harassment, released Wednesday from the office of Legislative Inspector General Carol Pope, largely mirrors the findings of an August report from an outside attorney who examined the speaker’s government and political offices. Both reports concluded that top Madigan lieutenants perpetuated a work environment of harassment and bullying. Madigan, by his own admission, didn’t do enough to stop it. Women got fed up.
Let’s emphasize that point: Women involved in state government came forward as whistleblowers. At great personal and professional risk, they joined the #MeToo movement that swept across the nation. They outed powerful people. If change comes to Springfield with a zero tolerance policy on harassment, and a culture shift from the often-sleazy culture of inappropriate behavior, the credit will belong to them. […]
On the Republican side of the aisle, two lawmakers — Nick Sauer and Jerry Lee Long — faced ouster following accusations of harassmentlike conduct involving women.
Among other topics, federal agents questioned Summit Mayor Sergio Rodriguez about whether another political figure tried to pressure village officials into giving a local bar a license to operate later into the night. Rodriquez hasn’t returned numerous calls from a reporter. The bar operator said he’d consult with his attorney and call back a reporter but didn’t.
I have no way of knowing whether this is related or not, but if you look at the heavily redacted federal warrant served on Sen. Martin Sandoval’s Statehouse office, you’ll see these two mentions…
A source with knowledge of the probe told the Chicago Tribune that one focus of the investigation is Safespeed LLC, a clout-heavy red light camera company that does millions of dollars in business in Chicago’s suburbs, including Summit. One of the company’s paid consultants, Patrick Doherty, also is chief of staff in Tobolski’s County Board office. Doherty has not responded to requests for comment.
But is this about SafeSpeed itself or is it about the activities of one of the company’s investors, or is it maybe both? No idea yet…
Doherty told the Sun-Times he was interviewed by FBI and IRS agents at his home last week but he insisted it was not about SafeSpeed. Rather, he said agents asked about another company — run by SafeSpeed investor Omar Maani — that’s been involved in low-income housing projects in Cicero and Summit.
I’m told Tobolski was very involved with that Maani project in Summit.
* This thing is going in a large number of directions. WBEZ…
The search warrant also indicates that the FBI was looking for “items related to any official action taken in exchange for a benefit,” the records show.
And agents sought “items related to Latino Night at the Max, Chicago Cubs spring training trips, benefits provided by Law Firm 1 and/or Law Firm 1 Attorney A, Esq., and/or air conditioning and/or heating at [redacted] residence,” according to the documents provided by McCook officials. The Max is a sports complex in McCook.
Agents left with records related to a “Pub Max project,” a 2017 roof repair, Department of Labor safety violations, invoices, emails, hard drives, a Max monthly meeting reports folder and other documents. […]
Tobolski has also been subject of criticism for putting many family members on the village payroll, including good-paying jobs at the Max.
Even as calls to ban vaping have intensified after at least 18 people have died and over 1,000 more have been sickened, Illinois’ new pot czar says the state should take a more measured approach to the outbreak but should not prohibit certain products.
State Sen. Toi Hutchinson, who was tapped for the role last week by Gov. J. B. Pritzker, warned against an all-out ban of the pot-laden vaping products believed to be at the center of the nationwide public health scare she acknowledges is a “crisis.”
If you scroll down in that Sun-Times piece, you’ll see the ban is already in place…
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control issued a report singling out black market THC vaping products tied to illnesses in Illinois and Wisconsin.
Hutchinson, an Olympia Fields Democrat, claimed “illicit entrants into this market are creating havoc.”
The problem is not THC, as the Sun-Times appears to want you to believe. The problem is with harmful additives that criminals put into currently illegal vaping juice. The best way to deal with this problem is to legalize and regulate. And that’s already in the pipeline.
WeWork leases more than 1 million square feet in Chicago. It is the largest office tenant in the city, a statistic that does not include companies or government agencies that own their space rather than renting. WeWork is also the largest tenant in other markets, including Manhattan, London and Washington, D.C.
The brand appeals to small businesses, start-ups and freelancers who can’t afford permanent office space. And a growing part of its customer base includes larger corporations looking for cost-efficient ways to enter new markets.
But critics say WeWork has given little indication of how it can eventually become profitable.
To put this into some perspective, downtown business district tenants leased nearly 13 million square feet of office space last year. So, WeWork represents a significant chunk of the total.
But perhaps what made WeWork different is the apparent problems with the company’s business model. It was on the hook for $47 billion in future lease payments to building owners while having committed revenue of only $4 billion. Last year’s loss jumped to $1.9 billion on revenue of $1.8 billion — for every dollar it made, it was spending two. For the first half of this year, losses climbed to $904 million even as revenue doubled to $1.54 billion.
Whew.
By the end of last month, WeWork’s parent company “We” had withdrawn its initial public offering.
Jamie Dimon’s bank, along with UBS and Credit Suisse, helped [co-founder Adam Neumann] with a $500 million personal line of credit that allowed him to buy buildings that he then leased back to WeWork.
Neumann took out more than $700 million before the IPO was filed.
WeWork was forced to pull its IPO—despite bankers at Goldman pitching valuations as high as $90 billion—after investors began studying its high debt levels, massive losses and that it burned through mountains of cash, issues that were glossed over by the company’s marketing pitches and Neumann’s savvy promotion.
A truly insane $90 billion market cap estimate and just weeks later the company is scrambling everywhere to find cash to avoid burning through the rest of its borrowed and invested money by the end of the first quarter. Sheesh.
* But let’s get back to what matters on this blog: Illinois…
What happens to the New York and Chicago commercial-real-estate markets where WeWork was the biggest and the second-biggest tenants?
Good question. Its departure would definitely be disruptive, but could its formerly leased space be absorbed? We could be about to find out…
In a potential bankruptcy, WeWork’s $47 billion in lease obligations could be frozen, and commercial real estate in cities where WeWork is very active – like New York and London – could be paralyzed, deflating one of the strongest markets since the financial crisis.
“All of these things help a company like ours,” [Nick Clark, founder of Dallas-based coworking firm Common Desk] said. “There was never a coworking bubble, but we’re about to see a big WeWork bubble pop.”
Essentially what happened is that the employees of We who didn’t get a chance to sell, SoftBank, and some other institutional investors have lost $47 billion. Had this consensual hallucination gone on for 60 more days, retail investors would have experienced that loss. So this is a good thing! This is the [regulated public] markets working. Whereas Uber, the consensual hallucination continues. They have to maintain the illusion of growth. They have to maintain the growth story. Without the growth story, they’re worth 20 percent of what they’re worth now. I think that chops off 50 to 80 percent in the next 25 months. WeWork can start from zero. If they act crisply enough, it can still be a nice, cute office-sharing company. Uber has to maintain the hallucination. Uber has to keep chasing that eight ball.
* And with that bit about Uber needing to maintain the appearance of growth in mind…
* Uber launches staffing business in Chicago: Uber Works will be led by Andrey Liscovich. He declined to specify how many employees the unit will have but said, “We plan to grow rapidly.”
