* Governor Pritzker signed seven bills into law today…

Bill Number: SB0688

Description: Clarifies the service fee collection process for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.

Action: Signed

Effective: January 1, 2025

Bill Number: SB2703

Description: Extends the estimated dates of completion of redevelopment projects located in tax increment financing districts and retirement of obligations issued for various municipal ordinances.

Action: Signed

Effective: December 31, 2024

Bill Number: SB3410

Description: Extends various reporting deadlines and task forces expiration dates, and amends the Unemployment Insurance Act to amend effective date of changes to benefits and remove contingent provisions.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

Bill Number: HB0222

Description: Makes changes to the civil law to establish that no contributory fault can be attributed to a plaintiff for personal injury actions based on childhood sexual abuse.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

Bill Number: HB0814

Description: Requires that a current survey of day care facilities conducted by the Department of Human Services be updated every four years and include stakeholder feedback in the survey update process.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

Bill Number: HB4636

Description: Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act to clarify eligibility for tax credits for wages paid to returning citizens, amends the Live Theater Production Tax Credit Act to insert correct cap and exemption for credit, amends the DCEO Music and Musicians Tax Credit and Jobs Act to make definitions and requirements consistent, makes technical changes to the Use Tax Act with respect to trailer leases, makes technical change to the Tobacco Products Tax Act with respect to license validity, amends the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act with respect to prepaid telephone calling arrangements, changes deadline to report an ordinance or resolution imposing a tax to the Department of Revenue to April 1st (previously May 1st), and provides that a non-home rule municipality may use the proceeds of the municipal retailers’ occupation tax or the municipal service occupation tax for municipal operations in addition to or in lieu of any expenditure on public infrastructure or for property tax relief.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

Bill Number: HB5172

Description: Codifies the right to language access services throughout the administrative hearing process.

Action: Signed

Effective: July 1, 2025

* A little piece of Illinois history…

Interesting update from @ILComptroller @susanamendoza10: her office has transferred records of former State Sen. Barack Obama to the Illinois Archives as the record keeper of historical documents. They include items signed by Obama, such as his oath of office #twill pic.twitter.com/8uZSQ0C2NS

— Ben Szalinski (@BenSzalinski) December 20, 2024

*** Statehouse News ***

* Capitol News Illinois | State lawmakers consider Tier 2 pension changes as new session approaches: Lawmakers are tentatively scheduled to be back in Springfield on Jan. 4 for a lame duck session before new lawmakers are sworn in on Jan. 8. “Whether that will all come together in a fashion that is ready for lame duck or not remains to be seen,” Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, D-Oswego, told Capitol News Illinois. “I do think we’re closer than we were than at the beginning of the legislative session.”

* WSPY | Legislation adjusting weight limits for vehicles with alternative fuel sources part of Benton’s busy spring legislative session work: One piece of legislation Benton has been working on is House Bill 5882, which would amend the state’s vehicle code to increase the weight limit on vehicles that run on alternative fuels. He says one company in his district is looking at rolling out a hydrogen-powered vehicle as a transport between their facilities in Plainfield.

*** Statewide ***

* IPE Real Assets | Illinois Firefighters pension fund adds $80m to new infrastructure allocation: The Firefighters Pension Investment Fund (FPIF) of Illinois has continued to build up its new infrastructure allocation by investing $80m (€76.1m) in infrastructure funds managed by Stonepeak and Global Infrastructure Partners. The pension fund confirmed to IPE Real Assets that has committed $40m to Stonepeak Fund V and invested the same amount in GIP Fund V. The moves follow a request for proposal issued earlier this year to select one to three infrastructure fund managers.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Attorney for CPS CEO Pedro Martinez threatens to sue school board if they move forward with firing: The attorney for embattled Chicago Public Schools chief Pedro Martinez sent a letter to the sitting school board Friday asking for clarification about whether they will move to fire the CEO by 2 p.m. and threatening legal action to prevent it if so. Any action against Martinez taken Friday would be a breach of their fiduciary duty, wrote Maritnez’s lawyer William J. Quinlan of the Quinlan Law Firm LLC, and raised a host of other concerns, including whether the new board members had the authority to fire him or appoint a co-CEO to work alongside him.

In a statement this morning, the city of Chicago declares the new arrivals mission over, essentially. There is a press briefing scheduled for this afternoon, too. pic.twitter.com/DmajIUUqYm

— Quinn Myers (@rquinnmyers) December 20, 2024

* WGN | Nearly 4 million expected to pass through Chicago airports for holidays: An estimated 3.6 million travelers are expected to pass through Chicago’s two airports between Friday and January 2. The busiest days are expected to be Monday at O’Hare and the following Sunday at Midway. Friday morning flights out of O’Hare were delayed due to a ground stop caused by snow and ice.

* Block Club | 94-Year-Old Midway Airport Volunteer Wants To Ease Your Holiday Travel Dread: ‘You Got To Be Cool’: Robert Garrison takes work where he can get it. Busboy. Dining car waiter. Librarian. Taxi driver. Mail sorter. Doorman. House cleaner. “I do the best I can with them,” Garrison said. “You put yourself into it, you like what you’re doing at the moment … it keeps you healthy.” But for the past year, the gregarious service worker, who turned 94 in August, has settled into what he says may be his last job: manning the information desk in the lower-level baggage claim area of Midway Airport.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Injustice Watch | Sheriff Tom Dart skips hearing on Cook County Jail deaths as families offer tearful testimony: Commissioner Tara Stamps said testimony from Sampson and the other families turned the hearing into “one of the heaviest meetings I’ve participated in.” […] “My first question is where is Sheriff Dart? Is he supposed to be here?” Stamps asked jail officials representing Dart’s office at the hearing. “This is one of the times that I personally would have wanted him to be present — to hear the testimony, the hurt of the families who’ve been impacted by the deaths of their loved ones in his care,” Stamps said.

* WBEZ | Cook County Board of Review fires aide with criminal background: Board of Review Commissioner Samantha Steele initially defended giving Jon Snyder a job on her staff at the obscure but influential agency, where Steele is one of three commissioners with power to decide property tax appeals across the county. But Steele suspended Snyder in June and initiated an internal investigation after a reporter asked her about his past. And in confidential documents obtained by WBEZ, Board of Review investigators alleged that Snyder “has had multiple violations” of a policy regulating side jobs for agency employees.

* Streetsblog | Tribune claimed Elston, Milwaukee PBLs “reduced… vehicular capacity.” Editor declined to run retraction. CDOT confirmed editorial was inaccurate: Except that the Tribune’s claim that Elston and Milwaukee are more likely to jam up nowadays because the installation of protected bike lanes “reduced their [motor] vehicular capacity” isn’t true. The stretches of these two avenues where there are now PBLs have one mixed-traffic (”travel”) lane in each direction. They also generally had one “car” lane in each direction before the protected lanes were installed. So there was no major reduction in motor vehicle capacity!

* Daily Herald | A year after Invest in Kids’ demise, Catholic schools work to fund scholarships: A year after the state eliminated a tax credit that helped students from lower-income families attend private schools, Catholic schools in the suburbs are seeking other ways to fund scholarships. Among them is St. Hubert School in Hoffman Estates, where school leaders created the Fr. Mike’s Kids fund to help address a $130,000 shortfall that directly affects the tuition of 24 students.

* Taylor Media | Rep. Rita Named Township Officials of Illinois Legislator of the Year: State Representative Bob Rita has been named the 2024 Legislator of the Year by the Township Officials of Illinois (TOI) in recognition of his commitment to township government and community service.

* WGN | Kane County authorities deploy new tool to stop fleeing drivers: Faced with the potential for injury and death, not to mention millions in liability, the sheriff’s department here is deploying a new tool to stop fleeing drivers in their tracks. Video of a test shared with WGN Investigates shows a police vehicle get close to a car in front when a deployed cable attaches onto the wheel or undercarriage of the fleeing car. The officer then hits the brakes, forcing the speeding car to stop.

* Shaw Local | From Arrest to Commutation: The Full Story of Rita Crundwell: Rita Crundwell, the former Dixon comptroller, committed one of the largest municipal frauds in U.S. history, embezzling more than $53 million over two decades. Her actions devastated the city but also led to a remarkable recovery story.

* ABC Chicago | Teamsters say ‘momentum continues’ as Christmastime strike against Amazon enters 2nd day: Amazon said the strike was not expected to impact operations and claimed the strikes were being attended by outside organizers. Kelly Nantel, director of Global Corporate Issues and Media Relations at Amazon, said the company had not seen an impact on deliveries.

* Shaw Local | St. Charles water makes splash with 1st place for taste: About 150 brawny men, most of them bewhiskered and some sporting reflective safety vests, packed into Global Brew Tap House in St. Charles Thursday for Kane County’s who-has-the-best-tasting-water contest. Three judges sat at the bar, scoresheets at the ready, each grimly facing nine glasses of water from nine municipalities brave enough to put up their product for what is the Academy Awards of water: the 2025 Taste Test for Kane County Cities and Villages.

*** Downstate ***

* WTVO | Rockford continues to climb the ranks as one of the nation’s hottest real estate markets: The ranking comes partly because Rockford boasts the third-lowest median home price among the top 20 markets. Another reason for the boom was due to Rockford’s housing inventory increase over the past seven months, making it the first stretch of this magnitude in 15 years.

* WCIA | Macon Co. father accused of threatening school officials with gun: Sergeant Scott Flannery said the incident happened at Argenta-Oreana Elementary School after students left for the day. The investigation revealed that a verbal altercation happened between students on a bus and one of their fathers — identified as 33-year-old Michael Evans — went to the school after. Flannery said Evans demanded the names of the other children involved in the altercation with his child. When staff refused to tell him, Evans allegedly made a threatening statement and lifted his clothes to reveal a gun tucked in his waistband.

* Muddy River News | ‘We don’t deserve this’: Employee threatens legal action after embattled Park Board commissioner refuses to resign: The Quincy Park Board approved a resolution during a special meeting Thursday afternoon that censured long-time Commissioner John Frankenhoff for conduct that President Mark Philpot described as “unbecoming of a commissioner.” However, the employee who formally lodged a complaint against Frankenhoff wants more. Marketing Operations Director Marcelo Beroiza said during a six-minute statement to the Park Board that he wanted Frankenhoff to resign after Thursday’s meeting. “If he doesn’t, I’ve been reaching out for some support, and my intention is to contact the Illinois Human Rights Commission and the NAACP, file an order of protection against John and seek legal counsel,” Beroiza said.

* BND | How a Collinsville teen found himself performing with country music star Zach Bryan: Rainn Hoelting, 15, of Collinsville was a fan on a mission. A budding musician, he knew country artist Zach Bryan often brought youngsters on stage to play with him on the song “Heading South,” which is about never giving up on your dreams. So, Rainn enlisted his family to help make his dream come true on Dec. 12 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

*** National ***

* New Republic | The Democrats Have a Crime Problem. Blame the Media: A 2022 analysis of media coverage of crime in New York City paints a damning picture of how the news distorted people’s perceptions. Toward the end of the analysis, a graph compares two values: actual shootings in New York City and mentions of shootings in local media, from 2019 to the end of 2022. For most of the graph, the two are uncorrelated at best; spikes in shootings often produce no change in coverage, and coverage sometimes spikes even as shootings remain flat. In 2022, in the run-up to a crucial federal midterm election, however, the picture becomes much worse: Shootings themselves remain almost completely flat, but the coverage of them soars, hitting levels about three to four times higher than during previous periods with similar levels of gun violence.

* NPR | Louisiana forbids public health workers from promoting COVID, flu and mpox shots: A group of high-level managers at the Louisiana Department of Health walked into a Nov. 14 meeting in Baton Rouge expecting to talk about outreach and community events. Instead, they were told by an assistant secretary in the department and another official that department leadership had a new policy: Advertising or otherwise promoting the COVID, influenza or mpox vaccines, an established practice there — and at most other public health entities in the U.S. — must stop.

* ABC | Oops, wrong number! The real story behind NORAD’s Santa tracker: In 1955, Sears Roebuck & Co. ran an advertisement in a Colorado Springs-area newspaper with a phone number that children could call to speak with Santa. But rather than being a direct line to the North Pole, the misprinted number instead connected to a telephone on the desk of the Continental Air Defense Command’s director of operations, Col. Harry Shoup.