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Isabel’s afternoon roundup

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* KWQC

Every law enforcement agency in Illinois must have body cameras by Jan. 1, 2025, but with less than 80 days until the deadline, Illinois State Police say they’re in a pilot phase.

Both the Governor JB Pritzker’s Office and State Police confirm the agency is in a pilot phase with 982 officers outfitted out of 1800 troopers. Pritzker’s office and State Police said all troopers will be properly outfitted before the deadline.

In 2021, the Illinois General Assembly passed the SAFE-T Act which included a mandate for all law enforcement agencies with different enforcement dates depending on how many people the department serves.

    January 1, 2022 - +500,000 people
    January 1, 2023 - 100,000-500,000 people
    January 1, 2024 - 50,000-100,000 people
    January 1, 2025 - -50,000 people & state agencies

[…]

What happens if State Police don‘t have their body cameras on time? As TV6 Investigates dug into the issue, it turns out there’s virtually no punishment for violating the mandate.

* WTTW

After a week of questioning, a dozen people have been seated as jurors in ex-House Speaker Michael Madigan’s landmark corruption trial, but opening statements are not expected until next week as jury selection remains ongoing.

One additional juror was seated Thursday after none were selected following full days of questioning Tuesday and Wednesday at the Dirksen Federal Building, where Madigan and his longtime confidant Michael McClain stand accused of racketeering, bribery and wire fraud.

That brings the total number of jurors to 12 — enough for a full jury. One alternate was also seated Thursday morning, but five more are still needed before opening statements and the evidence phase of the trial can begin.

*** Statewide ***

* WAND | Illinois Deer Donation Program returns for 3rd donation season as ‘Hunters Feeding Illinois’: Hunters Feeding Illinois connects hunters, meat processors, and food pantries to support access to lean protein for Illinois residents and families. The expanded partnership covers 16 counties in east-central Illinois and 16 counties in southern Illinois. […] Hunters can donate whole harvested deer at no cost. Partnering meat processors are prepared to accept donated deer with the start of deer hunting season in October. Because processing volume increases throughout the season, hunters are encouraged to call processors in advance to confirm they have slots to accept deer. Processors have a select number of slots for donated deer, which becomes more limited as the season continues.

*** Chicago ***

* CBS Chicago | Mom wants Chicago Public Schools to stop sending kids to New York special ed boarding school, claims abuse: The CBS News Chicago Investigators have discovered that the school, Shrub Oak, has been investigated for reports of abuse and neglect. Yet, the Chicago Public Schools continue sending kids there. “There are kids that are nonverbal, that can’t speak for themselves, and that is very upsetting,” said Joanna Grenrock, the mother of a former Shrub Oak student.

* Block Club | Rogers Park Alderwoman Rejects Plan To Build 6-Story Apartment Building On Vacant Lot: Hadden decided against signing off on the proposal after hearing “major concerns” from neighbors, she said in a statement. Among neighbors’ top complaints were the density of the building, the inclusion of only nine parking spaces and the possibility of further traffic congestion in the neighborhood, Hadden said.

* Sun-Times | Host committee for Chicago’s DNC spent $89 million on convention, raised $97 million: The report from the Development Now for Chicago, the host committee’s official name, also states the committee has about $14 million cash-on-hand with some $6.3 million in bills still outstanding from the August presidential convention nominating Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.

* WBEZ | New pilot project to create retirement support for Chicago musicians: Freelance musicians don’t have the benefits many 9-to-5 jobs offer, like retirement accounts or health benefits. A group called Golden Egg, in partnership with the Experimental Sound Studio, is trying to change that through a matching grant program funded through the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. It will select 16 artists to receive a share of $50,000 to put into a retirement fund.

* Crain’s | Ken Griffin puts another unfinished penthouse up for sale, this one at $9 million: Griffin is asking $9 million for the 7,500-square-foot 37th floor at No. 9 Walton. He put it on the market yesterday evening, two days after his real estate agents changed the listing for his $11 million 38th floor to show that a buyer has it under contract with a contingency.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Public beaches in Lake in the Hills? Board cool to proposal: Lake in the Hills mulled the idea of opening up its beaches to nonresidents for a fee, but the proposal got a lukewarm response from the village board. Currently, people who don’t live in Lake in the Hills can access its beaches only if they’re accompanied by someone who lives in town. And that is anticipated to remain the case, despite village staff suggesting a fee for nonresidents.

* Daily Southtown | Ford Heights appoints 2 new trustees, 1 with family connection to convicted former Mayor Charles Griffin: The Ford Heights Village Board voted Wednesday to appoint a longtime friend of interim Mayor Freddie Wilson as village trustee, as well as a man with a family connection to convicted former Mayor Charles Griffin. Wilson was named interim mayor last month following Griffin’s conviction for embezzlement.

*** Downstate ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Questions remain over whether Sangamon County followed policy in deadly pursuit: As the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office led a multi-county pursuit last month that ended in the death of a 43-year-old Kansas man, Illinois State Police directed troopers not to participate. A Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office news release issued a week after Kirtis Shane Davenport’s death stated “various other law enforcement agencies” assisted, but ISP confirmed they did not participate, citing the agency’s pursuit policy.

* WAND | Champaign City Council accepts over $700,000 grant for asylum-seekers: Following the designation of a Certified Welcoming Place nearly a year ago, Champaign City Council accepted a grant to provide services for asylum-seeking migrant refugees. A portion of the grant — about $709,705 — will be awarded to the New American Welcome Center at the University YMCA. […] Akua Forkuo-Sekyere, the Director at New American, said that the grant will allow them to continue funding their program. “It truly is exciting to be able to have funding to support new arrivals in our community,” said Forkuo-Sekyere.

* WCIA | Champaign Co. woman serves in her fifth presidential election: The nation is gearing up to see who will be next in line for the White House. On the local level, people like Ann Prisland are making sure every vote is accounted for. […] This will be her fifth presidential election working as an election judge. She and others in the role are responsible for checking in voters, verifying their identities and providing them with ballots.

* WCIA | ‘I was doing everything right’: Douglas Co. Animal Shelter manager speaks out on board’s decision to fire her: Last week, the Douglas County Board suspended Douglas County Animal Shelter Manager Spencer Hall with pay. Now, as of a hearing on Tuesday morning, she was told she is officially fired from her position. Hall said there are multiple reasons why, including the incident earlier this month where the county resolved a cruel treatment investigation with a Murdoch dog owner. The resolution gave the owner four of his original 11 dogs back after the shelter seized them during the case.

* NPR Illinois | Illinois Symphony Orchestra season opens with ‘Festive Fanfare’: The Illinois Symphony Orchestra (ISO) begins its 2024-2025 season with “Festive Fanfare.” The concert, conducted by ISO music director Taichi Fukumura, will feature Walton’s Spitfire Prelude and Fugue, Coleridge-Taylor’s Violin Concerto with violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason, and Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8.

* BND | It used to be a convent, now this Belleville house is a do-it-yourself punk venue: “As soon as we moved we were like, ‘this is too much house to do nothing with,” said Gabe Kimme, who bought the house with his partner, Jackie Eberle, and turned it into “The Nunnery,” a DIY music space that is simultaneously secretive and non-exclusive.

*** National ***

* Texas Monthly | The Border Crisis Won’t Be Solved at the Border: Whenever Texas politicians threaten to pass laws that would make it harder for businesses to employ undocumented workers, phones in the Capitol start ringing. Stuck with the need to show their base that they’re cracking down on migrants, politicians, including Abbott, have instead found a middle ground: They keep up their bombast regarding the border, but they avoid stringing any razor wire between undocumented immigrants and jobs in the state’s interior.

* NYT | This Is Post-Roe America: Even when the consequences haven’t been that dire, the day-to-day reality of abortion in America’s left-behind places now involves navigating constant undercurrents of confusion and fear: Is this pill I found on the internet safe? If I miscarry, is anyone going to help me? Or, in the cases of some doctors: How can I help this patient without getting arrested?

* WSJ | The Old-School Spy Tactics Helping to Set Your Grocery Prices: Grocery-store operators scrutinize the websites and promotions of rivals and send managers to walk through competitors’ stores to help establish what shoppers will pay for items. Companies commonly use rivals’ prices as a benchmark in setting their own, but these tactics have gained attention from government antitrust lawyers seeking to block a $20 billion merger between Kroger KR -0.57% and Albertsons ACI 0.05%, the respective largest and second-largest U.S. supermarket chains by sales.

  7 Comments      


On Wisconsin and hailing rides to Michigan

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Politico

Gov. JB Pritzker will campaign in Nevada on Saturday for Kamala Harris, then head to Lake County on Sunday for Illinois Democrats’ “Weekend of Action.”

Illinois Atty. Gen Kwame Raoul has been enlisted by the Harris campaign to travel to Miami and its Little Haiti neighborhood to campaign. Raoul is Haitian American and is working to dispel misinformation that’s been amplified by Donald Trump’s campaign about Haitian immigrants.

The Illinois Harris-Walz campaign team is organizing a thousand volunteers to canvas over the weekend in Michigan and Wisconsin, two of the swing states that the presidential candidates are hoping to win. […]

Other Dems on the stump: Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton will campaign in Michigan. Comptroller Susana Mendoza is set to lead a bus tour to Grand Rapids, Mich., along with state Reps. Kam Buckner and Camille Lilly and state Sen. Natalie Toro. And state Rep. Bob Morgan will also join a group of volunteers in Michigan.

* From Operation Swing State…

Operation Swing State, a grassroots coalition of 64 Democratic, labor, and allied organizations, will launch a field organizing canvass operation, sending Illinois volunteers to Michigan to knock doors and mobilize voters for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz on Saturday.

Operation Swing State is launching canvasses to Michigan and Wisconsin from staging locations in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs every weekend through Election Day, and has already led 2,500+ volunteer shifts with 60,000 doors knocked.

Operation Swing State also hosts virtual phone banks every week.

More info about upcoming Wisconsin and Michigan canvasses can be found here. Senate President Don Harmon’s township committee is helping send folks to Michigan, as are Personal PAC and the 40th and 45th Ward Democrats. House Speaker Chris Welch’s township committee is helping get people up to Wisconsin, as are Rep. Theresa Mah and the 47th Ward Democrats. Upcoming phone banks include one on the city’s South Side and another in Champaign sponsored by College Democrats of Illinois. A list of partners is here.

* More stops for Rep. Buckner…


* Illinoisans from both parties are involved in Wisconsin politics

[Wisconsin] Republicans engineered the [2015 campaign finance law] rewrite that allowed donations of any size to political parties and legislative caucuses, plus unlimited transfers to candidates.

That paved the way for donations such as the $6.3 million that Diane Hendricks and Liz Uihlein combined to give the Assembly and Senate GOP caucuses over the past two months.

Hendricks also gave the state GOP $1.1 million over that period, while the state Dem Party’s own megadonors came through again with LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman giving $2.25 million over the past month and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker chipping in $2 million.

  12 Comments      


It’s just a bill

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* SJ-R

The Safe Firearm Storage Act, filed under Senate Bill 3971 and House Bill 5891, would prohibit the possession of a firearm outside its owner’s “immediate possession or control” and increases the age to 18 from 13 where safe storage in homes are required.

In the case of a lost or stolen firearm, Senate Bill 3973 and House Bill 5888 would require the owner to report it with local law enforcement within 48 hours instead of the original 72. It comes after reports show that approximately 380,000 guns are stolen per year nationwide.

They could also be subject to losing their Firearm Owner Identification Card on a second violation of failing to report a lost or stolen firearm within the new 48-hour window.

* React from Center Square

“The Safe At Home legislation will address the sobering realities that today, there are more guns in our country than people, and every one in three children lives in a home with a gun,” a statement from G-PAC President and CEO Kathleen Sances says. “There is mounting evidence that the risk of unintentional shootings, mass shootings and suicide can be significantly reduced if we make simple changes in our laws to keep us all Safe At Home.” […]

Illinois State Rifle Association lobbyist Ed Sullivan said the proposal also requires firearms be locked up if there are any “prohibited persons” in the residence.

“Anybody in the state of Illinois that does not have a [Firearm Owner’s ID] card is a prohibited person,” Sullivan told The Center Square. “And so there’s over 10 million people that are prohibited persons [in Illinois]. There’s no criminal damage. They’re not criminals. They’re not mentally challenged. They just don’t have a FOID card.” […]

“I can think of two separate legislators who have introduced language who make it cheaper to buy a safe or do some type of tax credit to buy safes and they’ve never moved forward,” Sullivan said. “So, here are the Democrats that want you to buy safes to have safe storage and yet they do nothing to make it easier to buy them.”

* WAND

A separate bill [HB5065] could ban people from storing or leaving a gun outside an owner’s possession or control unless it is unloaded and secured in a lock box. The legislation specifically notes that minors, at-risk people and those prohibited from using guns should not be able to access firearms in the home.

“It is clear that we must address child access to firearms and safe storage,” said Rep. Maura Hirschauer (D-Batavia). “Guns have surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of death of our children ages one to 17 years old.”

Gun owners could face a fine of $500 to $1,000 if someone prohibited from accessing guns obtains their weapon. The bill would also create a $10,000 penalty if a minor or at-risk person uses someone else’s gun to injure or kill people.

“We need to ensure that all of our gun owners are responsible and they know what they need to do to keep everybody safe, including our youth,” Villivalam said. “I have a six-year-old. I have a three-year-old. I want them to be safe. I want every youth regardless of the community they live in, but especially those communities that have been disinvested in, to feel safe.”

Click here for a fact sheet.

* Midwest Renewable Energy Association Senior Regional Director John Delurey

Illinois is facing a critical moment in its clean energy transition. The recent price spike in PJM’s capacity market — the tool designed to ensure power availability during peak demand — is drawing attention to the growing need for policy that moves Illinois towards an affordable clean energy future. Though the current capacity crunch is largely beyond the control of state policy, Illinois does not have to resign itself to this fate. Illinois lawmakers must act now to pass legislation that will help us boost energy supply and reduce and shape energy demand. […]

While Illinois cannot single-handedly overhaul PJM, there are state policies that can help Illinois prepare for what lies ahead. The Clean and Reliable Grid Act (SB 3637), currently under consideration in Springfield, is a critical piece of legislation that would help strengthen the state’s power grid. It includes policies that would reduce and shape demand by updating energy efficiency standards and paying residential customers to shift their energy use to off-peak hours. It also includes policies that would accelerate clean energy supply by inviting the state to directly procure more renewable energy on behalf of certain utility customers. In doing so, the Clean and Reliable Grid Act would reduce strain on the grid while keeping energy bills affordable.

The urgency of this moment calls for a full menu of legislative solutions, so Vote Solar and our partners in the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition have outlined a comprehensive set of priorities for Illinois’ clean energy future. This includes reforms to the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard to ensure large solar and wind projects can move forward. Illinois cannot afford to fall behind in its journey to 100% clean energy, and the RPS is key to driving the next wave of clean energy development.

Energy storage is another critical piece of the puzzle. By storing excess renewable energy for use during peak demand, batteries help lower capacity costs and meet PJM’s need for dispatchable resources. On a smaller scale, residential and community storage systems provide added resilience, especially for those who are medically or financially vulnerable. This past summer, expanded battery storage was pivotal in stabilizing California’s grid during an extreme heat wave and delivered vital energy support across the Western grid.

SB3637 sponsored by Sen. Bill Cunningham never made it out of Senate Assignments.

* HB5887 from House Minority Leader Tony McCombie

Amends the Election Code. Provides that the election authority shall reject any application for registration that is not accompanied by satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship. Specifies the documents that provide satisfactory evidence of citizenship. Provides that any person who is registered in the State on the effective date of the amendatory Act is deemed to have provided satisfactory evidence of citizenship and shall not be required to resubmit evidence of citizenship unless the person is changing voter registration from one county to another. Sets forth additional requirements.

  5 Comments      


Showcasing The Retailers Who Make Illinois Work

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

Retail provides one out of every five Illinois jobs, generates the second largest amount of tax revenue for the state, and is the largest source of revenue for local governments. But retail is also so much more, with retailers serving as the trusted contributors to life’s moments, big and small.

We Are Retail and IRMA are dedicated to sharing the stories of retailers like Linda, who serve their communities with dedication and pride.

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CPS CEO claims CTU contract would cost $10 billion over four years

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez as quoted in the Tribune

And he predicted that the [Chicago Teachers Union’s] next contract — for raises, additional staffing, help for migrant and homeless students and sports — would cost CPS more than $10 billion over the next four years.

“Long-term, that’s not sustainable. That’s not stable for taxpayers,” he said.

* Related…

    * CPS CEO Pedro Martinez defends his school budget plans in City Council hearing: Ald. Nicole Lee (11th) asked whether Martinez had a plan once federal pandemic relief funding runs out. The school district spent most of the COVID relief money on staff, which it now wants to keep. Martinez defended spending the federal COVID relief money on staff. Post-pandemic, he said, staff was drowning in work and needed more support. And he said he wanted to show people, using that money, that it was possible for the public school system to more robustly support its students.

    * WTTW | Effort by City Council to Put CPS Board Members, CEO on the Hot Seat Fizzles: Ald. Angela Clay (46th Ward) pressed Martinez, who has led the district since 2021, on why he used those grant funds to cover the district’s ongoing operations while knowing that they would run out by 2025, leaving programs in jeopardy of being cut and employees at risk of layoffs. “We all knew this day would come,” Clay said. “What’s the plan?” Martinez did not directly answer Clay’s question, but spoke at length on the need for additional aid from the state and his commitment to investing in Chicago schools and students.

    * Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez asks City Council for additional $325 million in funding: Ald. Angela Clay asked Martinez how the district would cover costs next year, when it is expected to face another $500 million deficit, if the city bailed CPS out this year. Martinez said he hopes TIF districts will expire under Johnson, potentially freeing up more money for CPS. He added that he will ask for City Council “and the mayor’s help” to advocate for more state funding.

    * NBC 5 | CPS CEO Pedro Martinez appears at City Council hearing as budget battle continues: “We know we have at least 100 schools, between high schools and elementary schools, that are probably at least, you know, at least 100 that are under 200 students enrollment.”

    * Fox32 | Chicago City Council questions CPS CEO on budget crisis, tensions with Mayor Johnson: Some aldermen also question why CPS is keeping open schools that are virtually empty, including Douglass High School, which right now has only 39 students. Ald. Anthony Beale: “Walgreens is closing 1200 stores because those stores are either underperforming, and so they had to make a business decision that if they’re going to stay afloat, that they have to restructure.” CEO Martinez: “Yes, class sizes are very small. But again, for me, I would, I would ask, let’s change the conversation of what could be possible at Douglass High School to really attract children to go there.”

    * Block Club Chicago | CPS Boss Grilled By Frustrated Alderpeople After School Board Members Skip Special Hearing: Alderpeople did use the hearing to ask Martinez about CPS funding decisions, potential cuts, school closures and other issues. Ald. Anthony Beale (9th) questioned the school chief’s decision to continuing operating Douglass High School in Austin, which only has a few dozen students enrolled. Last year, the school was spending just over $68,000 per student compared to the district average of $18,287, according to Illinois State Board of Education statistics. Martinez on Wednesday defended keeping the school open, saying he supports further investments in schools like Douglass, not less, especially as many students in Austin currently leave their neighborhood to go to school. “We have to make the investments,” he said. “I would ask, let’s change the conversation of what could be possible at Douglass High School to really attract children to go there.”

    * Mayor Johnson’s chief of staff says school CEO and board kept 5th Floor in the dark: Was Pedro Martinez influencing – did he take he take over the board essentially? Cristina Pacione-Zayas: “I can’t say – again, I’m not privy to what his interaction was with the board.”

  35 Comments      


A dream come true for White Sox fans, or yet another leverage ploy against the state?

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Brittany Ghiroli at the Athletic

Longtime majority owner Jerry Reinsdorf is open to selling the Chicago White Sox, sources briefed on the matter but not authorized to discuss it publicly told The Athletic. The 88-year-old Reinsdorf is in active discussions with a group led by former big leaguer Dave Stewart. […]

The news represents a significant change of stance for Reinsdorf. The oldest majority owner in baseball, Reinsdorf has shown no previous public interest in selling the team — at least, not as long as he was around as majority owner. Reinsdorf has said several times that he has advised his heirs upon his death to sell the White Sox and keep the Chicago Bulls, where his son, Michael, is COO and team president. […]

Stewart’s group, Smoke34, previously tried to purchase Oakland’s stake in the Oakland Coliseum. He has been actively involved in trying to get an expansion baseball team to Nashville. Stewart and partner Lonnie Murray are leading a group pushing for an NWSL team in Nashville. The city is one of the league’s finalists, with a decision expected to be announced next month.

It’s unknown what Stewart’s potential involvement would mean for the White Sox staying in Chicago long-term.

* Tribune

According to a report Wednesday in The Athletic, Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf has changed his stance about keeping the team he has owned since 1981 and is in “active discussions” with a group led by Dave Stewart, the former major-league pitcher who starred under manager Tony La Russa in Oakland. […]

A Sox spokesman told the Tribune’s LaMond Pope “we don’t comment on rumors and speculation.”

* Forbes

Stewart won 20-plus games four years in a row with Oakland in the Mark McGwire/Jose Canseco Bash Brothers era. He put together an investment group that unsuccessfully tried to purchase the Oakland Coliseum and is currently pursuing an MLB expansion team in Nashville. He and Murray are also leading a group pushing for an NWSL team in Nashville.

* Sox Machine

Stewart makes all the sense in the world at this particular time, although not for the most encouraging of reasons.

For one, he’s the closest of friends with Tony La Russa. If you didn’t recall it from the two running the Arizona Diamondbacks in a confusion fashion — La Russa as Chief Baseball Officer, Stewart as GM — then you’d recall it from La Russa traveling to Oakland for Stewart’s jersey retirement ceremony in September 2022, when he was on leave from White Sox managerial duties due to health issues.

Then there’s the part where Stewart has been involved in bringing a Major League Baseball team to Nashville. He could be seen holding court around the Gaylord Opryland during the winter meetings, and he’d been working with Music City Baseball, an investment group that has been championing the prospect of landing an expansion team it would call the Nashville Stars, until last November, when he left the group citing “philosophical differences.” […]

Stewart had previously tried to buy the Miami Marlins before turning his attention to an expansion team in Nashville. Whether his group would be fine owning any team in any place, his ties to Nashville would certainly help Reinsdorf’s goals of seeking leverage for public funds to build a new White Sox ballpark in the South Loop.

* All City Network

Stewart is close friends with Tony La Russa, who managed Stewart with the A’s and currently works as a senior adviser with the White Sox. La Russa and Reinsdorf are close friends, as well.

Reinsdorf met with the mayor of Nashville during last year’s Winter Meetings, held in the city, sparking much worry throughout the fan base that the White Sox would be moved if Reinsdorf’s wishes for stadium funding were not granted. Reinsdorf’s ties to La Russa and therefore Stewart, who was attempting to bring a team to the city, seemed a more likely reason for the meeting. But Reinsdorf’s history of suggesting the White Sox would depart — and his stated intention to move the team from its current home at Guaranteed Rate Field by the time its lease ends in 2029 — have made for a new round of speculation, with The Athletic report saying it’s unknown what Stewart’s involvement in these discussions means for the team’s long-term future in Chicago.

  40 Comments      


Uber’s Local Partnership = Stress-Free Travel For Paratransit Riders

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

The Pace Rideshare Access Program subsidizes Uber trips, leaving riders with a co-pay of just $2.

The impact: “This program has been a godsend for me. It offers flexibility, independence, freedom and the ability to maintain a beautiful life on so many levels,” says one rider.

CTA: See how it works.

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Open thread

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* What’s going on? Keep in Illinois-centric please!…

  7 Comments      


Isabel’s morning briefing

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: Illinois installs supermarket kiosks for license renewals, other DMV transactions. Tribune

    - The Illinois secretary of state’s office this week said it installed more than a dozen kiosks in supermarkets to give residents an opportunity to renew their driver’s licenses or other state IDs and obtain vehicle stickers while grocery shopping or running errands.
    - The 15 kiosks, most in the Chicago area, puts Illinois in line with about 17 other states that use self-service kiosks to conduct similar state business.
    - SoS Alexi Giannoulias said the kiosks are intended as a convenience for working people and parents who don’t have time to wait in line at a driver’s services facility.

* Related stories…

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Sun-Times | The politics of picking a Madigan jury: Prospects asked how they view ‘politicians for life’: For several days over the past few weeks, dozens of people have been led into a room in Chicago’s Loop, where they’ve been asked whether they opposed people being “politicians for life.” Many of them did. They either raised their hands or argued that career politicians “lose touch with reality” and lack fresh perspectives demanded by changing times. Occasionally, their answers seemed to reference President Joe Biden. At others, the U.S. Supreme Court.

* Tribune | Jury selection for Madigan trial slows further with no one chosen for second straight day: Two days of intensive questioning this week have yielded no new jurors in the corruption trial of Michael Madigan, as the already sluggish pace of jury selection slowed to a crawl Wednesday. Although U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey has been insistent he would not rush the parties though the important process, the judge for the first time suggested time limits for questioning — which he referred to as a “shot clock” — if things don’t improve.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WMBD | Hauter vs. Gill: 87th District State Rep. candidates share why they should win the candidacy: Independent candidate Dr. David Gill is challenging State Representative Bill Hauter, a Republican. Gill wants to increase ballot access for third-party candidates. “I spent 90 days knocking on 12,000 doors in 30 communities throughout the district, gathering signatures to get myself put onto the ballot so that we could at least have a battle,” Gill said. “I think that most Americans have had enough of these two major parties that make life so difficult.”

*** Statewide ***

* WAND | Pritzker administration improving statewide youth behavioral healthcare services: Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law last year calling for a clear, consistent and comprehensive way for families to find mental and behavioral healthcare options for young children and teens. The law created an inter-agency team to improve service coordination, implement new technology to refer families to resources and increase capacity to meet demand for care.

* SJ-R | Wet soil, dryer pockets: How climate change is impacting Illinois pumpkin farms: As a farmer carrying on a family legacy of over a century on the farm, Jefferies has been facing insecurities about her abilities as a farmer like never before because of climate change. “When you have year after year of crop failure or reduced crop production you start to question your own ability,” Jefferies said. “It’s pretty mentally challenging, the weather is hard on people. Not just financial hardship, but a mental hardship. You feel like a failure even though there was nothing you can do, and that you’ve let people down.”

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Pedro Martinez defends CPS work to aldermen in contentious hearing: Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez had the stage to himself Wednesday at City Hall, and used it to go on the offensive in his ongoing fight with Mayor Brandon Johnson over control of the city’s schools. As expected, only Martinez — and none of the Chicago Board of Education nominees Johnson tapped in an apparent bid to get Martinez fired for refusing to borrow money to balance the school budget — showed up to the Education Committee meeting aldermen called to vet the mayor’s picks.

* Block Club | CPS Boss Grilled By Frustrated Alderpeople After School Board Members Skip Special Hearing: A focal point of that tension has been Martinez’s refusal to take out a $300 million high-interest loan to cover pension payments for non-teaching staff and upcoming contract costs. The back-and-forth came to a head Oct. 4, when the entire seven-member school board — six of whom were appointed by Johnson last year — resigned en masse. The school board has the final authority to fire the school district’s chief executive.

* Tribune | CPS marks second consecutive year of increased enrollment and ‘exponential progress’ in staffing: CPS has enrolled more than 325,300 students this school year, officials announced Wednesday, marking the second consecutive year that the district marginally reversed a long-term trend of declining enrollment, common among public schools across the country. As of the fourth week of school, CPS said more than 2,000 students were attending the district than at the same time last school year, an increase of .64%.

* Crain’s | Civic Federation calls on mayor to avoid raising property taxes: Mayor Brandon Johnson should consider every option to avoid raising property taxes to close a $982 million budget gap for 2025, including hiking sin taxes, raising fees on garbage collection, implementing employee furloughs and putting a pause on making an advanced pension payment, according to the Civic Federation.

* Block Club | Chicagoans Can Get Help After July Floods With New FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers: Two newly opened disaster recovery centers in the Chicago area are helping neighbors affected by flooding in July. Homeowners, renters and small business owners can get face-to-face support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Small Business Administration at the disaster recovery centers, which opened Wednesday in Chicago Lawn, 6120 S. Kedzie Ave., and suburban Homewood, 2010 Chestnut Road.

* WTTW | As Chicago clears away its biggest tent city, a former gang leader says he won’t settle for a homeless shelter: City officials say most of the roughly 100 unhoused people in the park will be offered one of those rent-free apartments. Those who don’t get a unit will be given a shelter bed. “The park is being cleared because people are moving into housing,” said Sendy Soto, chief homelessness officer under Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. Apartment or not, everyone will have to leave the park by Dec. 1, officials say.

* Block Club | Chicago’s Biggest Halloween Parade Turns 10 Saturday With Its Hugest Event Yet: The free Arts in the Dark celebration — annually pegged to the season of Halloween and Dia de los Muertos, channeling the vibe of Carnivale and Mardi Gras — unfurls its 10th iteration at 6 p.m. Saturday, stepping off at the corner of State and Lake. Performers march south for about two hours, wrapping up their procession at State and Van Buren.

* Block Club | See The Year’s Brightest Supermoon Thursday In Chicago: A supermoon occurs when a full moon coincides with the moon’s closest approach to Earth in its orbit, according to NASA. It can look up to 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than when the moon is at its farthest point from Earth. Thursday’s supermoon will be the closest full moon of the year, approximately 222,056 miles from Earth, according to AstroPixels.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Southtown | Under federal scrutiny, Tiffany Henyard announces reelection bid for Dolton mayor: Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard, the focus of an investigation by federal authorities, said she will seek reelection next year, starting with the February Democratic Primary, and plans to back a slate of Village Board candidates. Elected to her first term in April 2021 as Dolton’s first Black female mayor, Henyard has been the subject of federal subpoenas targeting her and a supposedly philanthropic organization bearing her name meant to help cancer survivors. An attorney representing Henyard has declared she’s done nothing wrong.

* Daily Herald | Commissioner faces ethics violation over leaked Bears tax appeal info: Cook County’s inspector general has recommended that a county board of review member take ethics training over the leaking of confidential information about the Chicago Bears’ property tax appeal at Arlington Park to the Daily Herald and other media outlets. Inspector General Tirrell Paxton’s report doesn’t mention Commissioner Samantha Steele by name, but the facts of the case match previously reported details about the internal squabble at the quasi-judicial county agency, which oversees appeals of property assessments.

* Daily Herald | ‘New, improved, evolved’: Revised plan would keep remainder of Hawthorn mall intact: The next step in a comprehensive transformation of the Hawthorn mall property in Vernon Hills aims to build on the success of initial work and keep what remains of the existing 1970s-era shopping center intact. The revised concept would keep 130,000 square feet of existing space in the mall core that was to have been demolished in previous plans.

* Daily Herald | Officials: Anti-Semitic messages on billboard near Northbrook were ‘unauthorized : A preliminary investigation by officers determined the messages were “unauthorized” and not displayed by the billboard company, Interim Chief John Ustich said in the release. “This disgusting, intimidating display has no place in the 10th District, or anywhere in America,” Rep. Brad Schneider, a Highland Park Democrat, said in a tweet. “It is notable that this sign is located in a community with a large Jewish population, in close proximity to a Jewish day school, at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.”

*** Downstate ***

* WCIA | Sangamon County Recorder candidates split over future of office: A candidate for Sangamon County Recorder announced Wednesday he’s campaigning to allow voters to decide if his job should be dissolved. The official’s job is to “record all documents transferring land in order to establish legal ownership,” according to a fact sheet from the Illinois Association of County Board Members and Commissioners.

* SJ-R | Who is on the Massey Commission? A closer look at the 14 members: The commission, an outgrowth of the fatal shooting of Sonya Massey by a former Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy on July 6, recently seated its members and named two new co-chairs, JoAnn Johnson and Shadia Massey, Sonya Massey’s cousin, replacing the Rev. T. Ray McJunkins and Nina Harris after an initial listening session.

* WCIA | U of I professors and students searching for rare comet passing over: Professor Tony Wong said the comet has been so deep in the solar system for so long that it still has ice surrounding it. As it gets closer to the sun it’ll warm and then start to evaporate its gasses. This means it’ll create a bright light to where people can view it. “We are just starting to get a good show now because the comet has already passed the sun. And as it’s moving away from the sun, it’s becoming visible in our night sky. And so that’s why everyone’s looking at it this week, is because it’s becoming visible to our night sky,” U of I Professor Tony Wong said.

*** National ***

* AP | US agency adopts rule to make it easier for consumers to cancel unwanted subscriptions: The “click-to-cancel” rule will prohibit retailers and other businesses from misleading people about subscriptions and require them to obtain consumers’ consent before charging for memberships, auto-renewals and programs linked to free trial offers. The FTC said businesses must also disclose when free trials or other promotional offers will end and let customers end recurring subscriptions as easily as they started them. Most of the provisions take effect effect 180 days after the rule is published in the Federal Register, the agency said.

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Live coverage

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* You can click here to follow the Madigan trial. Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. It’s the best we can do unless or until Twitter gets its act together.

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Selected press releases (Live updates)

Thursday, Oct 17, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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Isabel’s afternoon roundup

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Former Pritzker communications staffers launch Abudayyeh Rubin Communications Strategies…

Jordan Abudayyeh and Jason Rubin announce the launch of Abudayyeh Rubin Communications Strategies (ARC Strategies), a cutting-edge communications firm designed to transform how clients tell their stories. From corporate boardrooms to the legislative arena, ARC Strategies is poised to assist companies and organizations in raising their profiles, ensuring the right messages reach the right audiences, and navigating through crises as they arise.

ARC Strategies offers a comprehensive suite of services including crisis communications, public relations, media training, and speechwriting. Founded by a team of seasoned communications professionals with deep experience in media, government, and national and state politics, the firm’s mission is to provide tailored, results-driven solutions that meet clients’ needs and anticipate challenges in an evolving media landscape.

“Building on a record of success in reshaping the communications narrative for the state of Illinois, we are thrilled to launch ARC Strategies and ready to get to work on behalf of businesses and organizations of all sizes,” said Jordan Abudayyeh and Jason Rubin, founders of ARC Strategies. “We’re excited to utilize our extensive skillsets, homegrown in one of the toughest political environments in the nation, to provide strategic counsel to clients. From driving a successful message in Springfield, to navigating through a crisis, to carrying a message in a high-profile interview - ARC Strategies will be a full-service communications partner, helping clients tell their stories.”

Jordan Abudayyeh and Jason Rubin have over twenty years of combined experience working in politics, government, and media. They most recently served as Deputy Chiefs of Staff for Communications in Gov. JB Pritzker’s office where they led the Governor’s communications through major economic development announcements, transformative legislative efforts, and crises ranging from day-to-day government operations to the COVID-19 pandemic.

ARC Strategies’ launch comes at a time when effective communication is more crucial than ever. As organizations seek to connect with their audiences in an ever-changing media landscape, ARC Strategies provides the expertise and strategy needed to stand out in a crowded marketplace.

* Tribune

A day and a half of intensive questioning yielded no new jurors by midday Wednesday in the corruption trial of Michael Madigan, as the already sluggish pace of jury selection slowed to a crawl.

From Tuesday morning to midday Wednesday, 18 prospective jurors were questioned, some of whom were on the witness stand for 45 minutes or longer. The majority of them were rejected from consideration due to apparent bias or hardship.

The handful remaining were kicked off the panel by peremptory strikes, for which attorneys do not have to articulate a reason.

Eleven jurors have already been chosen over the course of jury selection, which began Oct. 8 with prospective jurors filling out a written questionnaire. Attorneys still must select one final person for the regular jury as well as six alternates.

* Democratic Party of Illinois…

Ahead of Election Day, the Democratic Party of Illinois is excited to host a Day of Action this Sunday in Lake County in support of U.S. Representative Brad Schneider (IL-10), Maria Peterson for State Representative (IL-52), Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart, Hilary Winiarz for Lake County Board District 2, and down-ballot Democrats. Through rallying, canvassing and door-knocking, Chair Lisa Hernandez, Governor JB Pritzker, candidates, and volunteers will mobilize their communities to get out the vote.

WHO: Democratic Party of Illinois Chair Lisa Hernandez, Governor JB Pritzker, U.S. Representative Brad Schneider (IL-10), Maria Peterson for State Representative (IL-52), Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart, Hilary Winiarz for Lake County Board District 2, and Lake County Dems

WHAT: Rallying, canvassing and door-knocking for county-wide Democratic candidates
Governor Pritzker and Chair Hernandez to speak around 10:50 AM

WHEN: Sunday, October 20, 2024, 10:30 AM-3 PM

WHERE: 454 Sheridan Rd., Highwood, IL 60040

*** Statehouse News ***

* Capitol News Illinois | In final public transit hearing, downstate operators join chorus for more state funding: “We are approaching a similar fiscal cliff to the northeast region,” Karl Gnadt, managing director of the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District, said. Gnadt said CUMTD is expanding to a point where the state may not be able to cover necessary costs. The state funds up to 65% of downstate transit agencies’ yearly costs through the “Downstate Operating Assistance Program,” but transit agency heads say the program is underfunded and can’t keep up with planned expansions.

*** Statewide ***

* Center Square | Panel discusses proposals to shore up Illinois’ unfunded pension liability: Among the issues discussed were how Tier II pensions, or benefit plans for public employees in Illinois hired after 2011, may need to be addressed because it may not comply with Social Security rules. State Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, D-Oswego, was part of the panel. “Regardless of what plan comes out that’s agreed upon, that’s fiscally responsible for the state, No. 1, and equally respectful of the job that our employees do,” Kifowit said. “We need to acknowledge that it needs to be fixed.”

* SJ-R | Illinois prison employees to picket for safer working conditions: Members of the AFSCME Could 31 union will hold an informational picket from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Thursday. Members will be outside the Pontiac Correctional Center and other prisons throughout the state, according to local AFSCME President William Lee. A flyer advertising the event states “Safety Matters” followed by the words ‘Say no to drug smuggling,’ ‘Say no to assaults on staff’ and ‘Join the picket line.’

* Press Release | Governor Pritzker Temporarily Suspends IFTA/MFUT Requirements Due to Hurricanes Milton & Helene: Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) have temporarily waived the International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) registration and motor fuel use tax (MFUT) single trip permitting for qualified motor vehicles engaged in interstate disaster relief efforts as a result of Hurricanes Milton & Helene. The suspension, pursuant to 35 ILCS 505/13a.4 and 13a.5, is effective from October 11, 2024, through November 09, 2024.

*** Chicago ***

* Bloomberg | Johnson-CPS drama has credit assessors on alert: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed a new slate of board members earlier this month after all seven prior designees resigned from their seats. While the management changes alone don’t represent a “material” shift in credit quality, the new board may undertake policies that could change the district’s financial operations,” Moody’s analysts led by David Levett said in a report on Tuesday.

* Chalkbeat | Chicago Public Schools sees enrollment bump for second year in a row: As of the 20th day of school this year, CPS had enrolled 325,305 students compared to 323,251 students this time last year, according to district data. That’s less than a 1% increase from last year. The district uses the 20th day of school as the official date to take stock of enrollment and demographics each year. Officials hinted at the slight bump last month, when by the 15th day of school 2,800 more students had enrolled compared to that day last year.

* Block Club | Should City Pay For New Bears Stadium? West Side Voters Can Weigh In On November Ballot: Voters in parts of the 29th Ward, including portions of Austin, Galewood and Montclare, have a referendum question on their ballots that asks, “Shall the people of Chicago provide any taxpayer subsidy to the Chicago Bears to build a new stadium?” The question was put on certain West Side ballots by former Gov. Pat Quinn with the help of Jacob Drews, a former intern to U.S. Rep. Danny Davis, records show. It will appear on ballots for voters in the 29th Ward’s 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15 and 17 precincts.

* Sun-Times | Chicago-based True Value hardware files for bankruptcy, agrees to sell to Do it Best: True Value, the hardware retailer based in Chicago, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and agreed to sell itself for $153 million to Do it Best Corp., the home improvement company based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, according to court filings.

* Block Club | Busted Sidewalk In Pilsen Unfixed For Over A Year, Stranding Neighbor In Wheelchair: Hernandez said he and his family have reported the sidewalk’s condition to Ald. Byron Sigcho Lopez’s (25th) office several times and made city requests over the past year — requests that remained open until Block Club brought the issue to the city’s attention last week. “The government of the city does not remember us at all, except when they collect the taxes and our alderman is the worst that we ever had,” Hernandez said.

* Sun-Times | What a La Niña winter could mean for the Chicago area: La Niña has around a 60% chance of emerging through the end of November and could last until March, according to projections from the National Weather Service. This year, La Niña is forecast to be weaker than normal, making weather predictions this far in advance tricky, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Zachary Yack.

* Chicago Reader | Mazdaznan’s enlightened grifter: In late-1800s Chicago, a charismatic eccentric built a religious cult following. : The first time Otoman Zar-Adusht Hanish caught significant press attention was in 1904, when Emma Reusse—or Eloise, as she was sometimes called—was seen running from his temple shrieking and pulling out her hair. She was committed to an Elgin sanitarium after the guru and self-described doctor had advised her to juice fast for 40 days to spiritually and physically “perfect” herself. Two weeks later, she died.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Press Release | Illinois Man Sentenced to Prison for Assaulting Law Enforcement During Jan. 6 Capitol Breach: Robin Lee Reierson, 69, of Schiller Park, Illinois, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $7,000 in restitution and fines by U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton. […] At approximately 2:06 p.m., Reierson used his back and body to push against a bike rack barrier and into the line of assembled officers. The police line began to fall at approximately 2:25 p.m., and, minutes later, at approximately 2:30 p.m., Reierson physically pushed against police officers using both of his hands and by lowering his shoulder into officers. Reierson also attempted to take hold of an MPD officer’s baton.

* Daily Herald | Verna Clayton, ‘a pioneer leader’ in Buffalo Grove, guided village through period of growth: A housewife in Buffalo Grove’s Strathmore subdivision, Verna Clayton didn’t initially seek a career in politics. But her dissatisfaction with the village board led her to a political career that saw her rise to Buffalo Grove village president and ultimately a state representative. Today, the village’s municipal campus bears her name. Clayton died Oct. 8 in Anderson, Indiana at 87.


*** Downstate ***

* Fox Chicago | Illinois trooper honored with Medal of Honor after suffering injuries in Will County crash: An Illinois State Police (ISP) trooper was awarded the Illinois Law Enforcement Medal of Honor on Tuesday after he suffered incapacitating injuries in a Will County crash in 2021. The award was presented to ISP Trooper Brian Frank by Gov. JB Pritzker and ISP Director Brendan Kelly.

* BND | Well-known Madison County attorney, gun rights advocate could lose his law license — again: An attorney from a prominent legal family in Madison County who’s known for representing clients in Illinois gun-rights cases may get his law license suspended for the second time in five years. A hearing board for the Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission is recommending that the Illinois Supreme Court suspend Wood River-based Thomas Maag for two years.

* WGLT | With an open seat, east Bloomington voters to choose between two candidates for McLean County Board: Voting is underway, and Bloomington’s east side must select a new McLean County Board representative for District 10. Republican Chuck Erickson served the area for over a decade but is vacating the seat, opening the door for one of two new candidates to fill the role. Republican Mark Clauss and Democrat Erica Larkin are battling it out on the ballot to represent the district. Both are new to politics and said they will rely on experts to steer policy decisions.

* KWQC | Deere laying off hundreds more: Deere confirmed about 287 will lose jobs at Harvester Works in East Moline, 80 at Davenport Works and seven in Moline Seeding. Employees were being alerted on Wednesday. The layoffs are the latest in a global workforce reduction happening at Deere.

* Journal Gazette | Vice Chair Bennett steps down from Shelby County Board following Chair Orman’s resignation: Bennett wrote, “For which in the last four years the audits have disclosed procedures and policies with which need to be followed and an unwillingness by many of those employed by Shelby County, as well as the public, to accept these changes. The Constitution comes first and foremost.”"Bobby Orman was a great chairman for Shelby County. Thank you, Bobby, and many of my colleagues,” Bennett wrote. He added,” Harassment has no place in our day-to-day representation as a board member. I encourage all people to educate themselves on the Constitution.”

* WCIA | State Comptroller honors three Illinoisans for Hispanic Heritage Month: Mendoza’s office held a ceremony celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. The three who were honored included Héctor Javier Maymí-Sugrañes, the Dean of Libraries and General Studies at Western Illinois University, Yolanda Alonso, a blogger for Latinos en BloNo, and Carolina Huser, the Visionary Society & Development Manager for the Peoria Riverfront Museum.

* WCIA | Springfield’s Lincoln Library celebrating 20th anniversary: On Oct. 16, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM) will host a reception to honor its 20th anniversary. It’s been 20 years since the library section of the ALPLM started serving the public in Oct. 2004. The museum opening came just a few months after in April 2005.

* WICS | $5 million for biomanufacturing research at U of I: The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will receive a $5 million National Science Foundation grant to support groundbreaking biomanufacturing research and advance the future of sustainable production. This funding will support research to develop more reliable biomanufacturing processes that can be scaled up and replicated to facilitate commercial production in industries at the forefront of the growing bioeconomy, such as pharmaceuticals and biofuels.

* Smile Politely | After 30+ years, Cafe Kopi is closing in December: “We are very grateful to the wonderful customers who have supported us through the years. You are what made Cafe Kopi such a special place. Coffeehouses are not just businesses; they are communities where lasting connections are made, and lifelong friendships are forged,” says Cafe Kopi owner, Douglas McCarver. “Cafe Kopi holds a special place in the hearts of many, and while we are saddened by this chapter’s end, we believe that all good things must come to a close. Serving generations of patrons has been both an honor and privilege.”

*** National ***

* AP | Listeria recall grows to 12 million pounds of meat and poultry, some of it sent to US schools: The updated recall includes prepared salads, burritos and other foods sold at stores including Costco, Trader Joe’s, Target, Walmart and Kroger. The meat used in those products was processed at a Durant, Oklahoma, manufacturing plant operated by BrucePac. The Woodburn, Oregon-based company sells precooked meat and poultry to industrial, foodservice and retail companies across the country.

* WTTW | Are People Loving Monarch Butterflies to Death? New Study Suggests ‘Helpful’ Human Interventions Contributing to Decline: Researchers at the University of Georgia combed through 17 years’ worth of observational data on roost sizes during monarchs’ annual fall migration to Mexico. What they found was a stable breeding population in the north, but then a consistent decrease in roost size as the butterflies make their way south — falling off by as much as 80% — indicating something is going awry along the route. Davis and his fellow researchers identified two likely culprits. One is the misguided planting of non-native tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica), milkweed being the only plant on which monarchs lay their eggs and that monarch caterpillars feed on.

* Press Release | Federal Trade Commission Announces Final “Click-to-Cancel” Rule Making It Easier for Consumers to End Recurring Subscriptions and Memberships: “Too often, businesses make people jump through endless hoops just to cancel a subscription,” said Commission Chair Lina M. Khan. “The FTC’s rule will end these tricks and traps, saving Americans time and money. Nobody should be stuck paying for a service they no longer want.”

* Politico | Crypto has quietly become one of the biggest electoral players. You wouldn’t know it from their ads: The industry’s ads are about trying to help their preferred candidates win elections — not making cryptocurrency a campaign issue. That reflects a reality acknowledged by several candidates: Cryptocurrency is hardly top-of-mind for most voters. The ads from the various industry-linked super PACs are instead universally positive spots about their candidates, often biographical or hitting on hot-button issues such as the border, the economy and access to IVF.

* WSJ | The Death of Main Streets Across America—and the People Trying to Save Them:There was a time when the main streets in small towns were the lifeblood of small businesses. The hardware store, the candy counter, the dress shop—this was where the locals gathered and where entrepreneurs thrived. But that hasn’t been the story for a long time. Across the country, many small towns have been reeling, as local industries close down, and people move to find jobs. Main streets have lost out to the convenience of online shopping, as well as to nearby malls, where chains and big-box stores offer lower prices and a greater variety of goods. Meanwhile, credit can be hard to obtain for entrepreneurs, and inflation has driven up costs.

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There isn’t much the locals can do without the state, and the state can’t do much without more money

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* It’s really easy to understand the popularity of the state legislature killing off the 1 percent local grocery tax. It’s popular. Just about everyone is campaigning on the move this fall. But the repeal once again narrows an already too-narrow taxing base - a serious problem here. And, as locals are finding out, municipalities just don’t have a whole lot of other taxing options. From the Peoria Journal Star

Councilmember Mike Vespa said he believed the governor and legislators in Springfield are well-intentioned in ending the grocery tax, but he was concerned with what Peoria will be able to do about the $4 million the city will lose when the tax ends and said the city will have to lobby Springfield to repeal the repeal.

“It is a pass through, and it does hurt us and it hurts municipalities across the state, and having to make a tough decision to pass a tax to replace it — and there’s not an easy decision when it comes to making it progressive, making it more onerous on the rich than the poor,” Vespa said. “We can’t do income taxes. There’s only so much we can do. Luxury taxes, alcohol taxes, and I don’t know if we can make up that $4 million, unfortunately, without just instituting our own grocery tax.”

The state ain’t repealing the repeal. That horse has left the barn. Peoria is just gonna have to do its own grocery tax. Not ideal, but not much can be done about it now.

* Crain’s

Mayor Brandon Johnson should consider every option to avoid raising property taxes to close a $982 million budget gap for 2025, including hiking sin taxes, raising fees on garbage collection, implementing employee furloughs and putting a pause on making an advanced pension payment, according to the Civic Federation.

Without specifically endorsing every revenue or cost-cutting measure available to the mayor, the Civic Federation, led by former Chicago Inspector General Joe Ferguson, released the report detailing the options available to Johnson and the City Council two weeks before the mayor will announce his plan to bridge the shortfall for next year and close a $223 million 2024 deficit.

“While we applaud the assertion that ‘everything is on the table,’ the main course does not need to be and should not be property taxes,” Ferguson said in a press release.

“This report maps out a host of options whose consideration and implementation we hope will precede a historically reflexive recourse to property taxes, especially at a time of rising assessments and the looming, likely call for increased levies by other units of government, foremost CPS,” he said.

More details are here, including a bit about reinstating the grocery tax to plug an $80 million hole.

* Meanwhile, CPS CEO Pedro Martinez testified to the city council today. From a Chalkbeat Chicago reporter…


True, but the state finally has its own fiscal house in order. Without additional revenues, there can be no major local government/school bailouts…


But hardly any progressive legislators, let alone everyone else, are currently making a strong case for more revenues. They’re mostly about more spending, like everyone else.

* Also, from Republican Sen. Seth Lewis

At about the same time Johnson said Springfield needed to cough up billions for a Bears stadium, the mayor announced that the state “owed” Chicago Public Schools $1 billion. Despite pushback from leaders in the Senate and House, Johnson continues to insist he needs more money than is currently provided through the evidence-based funding formula (EBF), the system through which all Illinois public schools are funded based on need.

The passage of EBF was heavily negotiated and included input from CPS. In fact, the formula already gives Chicago a leg up with financial benefits and carve-outs that are not available to other school districts. For example, when EBF passed, CPS received a $203 million allocation (formerly the Chicago Block Grant) built into its base funding minimum. No other school district received this sweetener in its base funding minimum.

CPS has also benefited from legislation that allows the district to circumvent property tax limitation laws and receive a guaranteed minimum 37% of the state’s annual Early Childhood Block Grants regardless of CPS’ declining enrollment. CPS is also able to claim a legacy pension credit worth hundreds of millions of dollars annually that is not included in CPS’ EBF calculation. This makes the school district look less wealthy than it actually is.

There are students throughout the state attending schools with even greater need than CPS for more state resources. Chicago schools cannot jump the line to take a larger share because the needs of students in Chicago are not more important than the needs of other students across the state.

Every time the mayor and the CTU leadership make this stuff about them, they weaken the case for everyone else, including the state.

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Rate McGraw’s new ad

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Isabel posted this earlier today…


This is a swingy district. Pritzker won it by two points in 2022, but Alexi Giannoulias lost it by 5 that same year. Joe Biden won it by 7.6 percentage points four years ago.

* McGraw’s new ad

Script

I’m Judge Joe McGraw and I approve this message. Take away the weatherman Eric Sorensen’s green screen, and there’s a darker side. Sorensen supports exposing minors to life-altering sex changes, hosting drag events that exposed children to adult sexual content, telling adults to bring cash to tip child performers.

‘Congressman Sorensen, do you regret hosting drag shows for children?’

‘No.’

Eric Sorensen. Look beyond the green screen, and you’ll see his values are not our values.

Also, note the uniformed county sheriff who appears in the ad.

  17 Comments      


Greyhound plans to stay at its Chicago station for now

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* NBC Chicago in August

This Labor Day travel holiday could be the last for Chicago’s intercity Greyhound bus station.

The Greyhound bus line has been sold to German operator Flixbus, but much of its real estate has not and could soon be sold to a developer.

The possible closure of the terminal located in the 600 block of West Harrison Street could make Chicago the largest city in the Northern Hemisphere without an intercity bus terminal, according to a new report from the Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development at DePaul University.

“We may be down to the last few weeks with the station. No real plan has been formed to save it,” Chaddick’s director Joe Schwieterman said. “That’s all bad for lower income and disabled communities. We need a fix.”

Although advocates have been sounding the alarm about a possible closure for more than a year, efforts to address the situation have only picked up in the last few months. Chicago’s Chief Operating Officer, John Roberson, said in a statement that the Johnson administration is continuing to work with Greyhound and other stakeholders to “find a viable solution for intercity bus services and its passengers in downtown Chicago.”

* The Sun-Times yesterday

Greyhound Bus won’t be leaving its West Loop station just yet, its parent company FlixBus announced Tuesday.

The bus operator said it is finalizing a lease extension with the new property owner that will allow it to continue operating buses at 630 W. Harrison St. after Sunday, when its lease was set to end.

“Our team is finalizing a month-to-month lease extension with Twenty Lake [Holdings], and our operations will continue without disruption,” a FlixBus spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

“This is a temporary solution, and we remain actively engaged with the city and other stakeholders to secure a long-term home for intercity bus service in Chicago,” the statement said.

The spokesperson said the lease extension had not yet been signed and could not share more details about the potential arrangement.

* Tribune

Advocates have been sounding alarm bells about the possible closure of the downtown Chicago bus station for more than a year, saying such a move would have repercussions for the many low-income travelers who rely on Greyhound, residents of communities without easy access to train or airline service, and others who rely on buses to travel between cities, as well as Chicago’s status as a transportation hub. […]

Greyhound stations in other cities have already been relocated, in some cases moved miles outside the city center or shifted to only curbside pickup and drop-off locations, with no indoor waiting areas. For example, in Knoxville, Tennessee, riders have reported waiting hours outside in the heat and cold for sometimes delayed buses, with no access to food, water, restrooms or a station building, according to local reporting.

Joseph Schwieterman, director of DePaul University’s Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development, who has been a proponent of a dedicated bus station, said the lease extension offered a temporary reprieve, but Chicago still needed to resolve what kind of station the city would provide travelers.

“Hopefully, public agencies will feel the need to deepen their involvement to avoid a meltdown that could hurt a critical travel sector,” he said.

* Crain’s

The city attempted to acquire the site to keep it a transportation hub, but the funds were not available, Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, 35th, said at a virtual meeting in August. He said it would cost the city around $25 million to buy the station.

If it loses the station, Chicago, would become the largest city in the Northern Hemisphere without an intercity bus terminal, joining Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Nairobi, Kenya, as the only three of the 130 largest global cities to have no intercity terminal, according to a study by DePaul University.

Flix had been eyeing alternatives after failing to reach an agreement for an extension of its lease at the Harrison Street terminal, looking instead to the traffic lane across the street from Union Station. The Jackson Boulevard location was strongly considered, in part, because there is a Greyhound ticket counter nearby.

However, having a pickup and drop-off location there would mean buses could not operate during peak hours and services would be cut. The proposal also received pushback from Amtrak, which owns Union Station and is concerned about congestion and safety.

  16 Comments      


Please, watch this video

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From earlier this month…


We’re going to Greece! And the donation only cost me an arm and a leg. Whatever. You can’t take it with you.

* LSSI sent me a video yesterday which was played during the event. Marnie Jameson is an extraordinary person and you should definitely watch it. Also, please remember this video when we start our fundraising drive to buy Christmas presents for foster kids

“There’s nothing more awesome than having a kid that you didn’t birth call you ‘Mom.’ Because that’s a special thing that they share with their birth parents that now they’re willing to give you, put you in that role. It tells me I did something right.”

We play a very narrow, yet quite special role in helping foster parents like Ms. Jameson every year. It definitely keeps me going. Thanks!

  8 Comments      


Open thread

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…

  21 Comments      


Isabel’s morning briefing

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: Illinois voters asked to weigh in on IVF coverage, taxing high-earners in statewide ballot questions. Tribune

Illinois residents heading to the polls in November to register their choices for president and a host of lower offices will also have the option to weigh in directly on three policy issues.

Voters will be asked if millionaires should help fund property tax relief, whether insurance should cover in vitro fertilization and if there should be civil penalties for candidates who interfere with election workers.

“All three of the issues that we’re talking about have been at the forefront of political discourse and discussion,” said Democratic state Rep. Jay Hoffman of Swansea, who sponsored the legislation to get the advisory questions on the ballot.

The results of the three referendums are nonbinding and do not carry the power of law. But, in addition to potentially driving election turnout, they could show district-by-district support for specific policies and, if passed overwhelmingly, provide more firepower behind policies promoted by the General Assembly’s Democratic supermajority. A 2014 ballot question on minimum wage, for example, preceded 2019 legislation that ramped up the rate and will bring it to $15 an hour at the start of next year.

* Related stories…

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Crain’s | City Hall may have disqualified itself from getting millions in federal housing dollars: Since 2018, the city has been engaged in a legal fight with Access Living, a disability rights group. Access Living alleges the city ignores federal requirements that it confirm a portion of the affordable housing that gets built in the city with federal funds is designed according to disability-access standards. The litigation may disqualify Chicago’s application under HUD rules issued in July that said cities would be ineligible to receive new discretionary funds from the agency if they have “with “unresolved civil rights matters” that the US Department of Justice has taken a role in.

* Capitol News Illinois | A mentally ill man was restrained in a chair for 68 hours at Franklin County Jail, violating policies, report says: Franklin County Jail restrained two mentally ill men in chairs for prolonged periods, in violation of state standards and county policies, a new report from an Illinois disability rights watchdog group found. The jail provided inadequate medical and mental health care and improperly restrained Travis Wade Braden for 68 hours in 2022, as well as another man for 27 hours, said the report from the Human Rights Authority of the Illinois Guardianship and Advocacy Commission, a state agency.

* NBC Chicago | Deadline to submit Illinois flag designs rapidly approaching: According to the Illinois Flag Commission, the public submission deadline for designs is Friday, Oct. 18. The commission will look through the designs submitted, and will chose a total of 10 to be put up for a public online vote, which is set to take place in January.

*** Madigan Trial ***


* Tribune | No jurors picked in landmark Madigan corruption case Tuesday as painstaking selection process enters second week: A total of 13 people were interviewed, but no final decisions were made on who might serve on the panel because there are still more prospective jurors in their group who did not get a chance to be questioned. That means that seven panel members — one regular juror and six alternates — still need to be selected before the trial can begin in earnest with opening statements.

*** Statehouse News ***

* SJ-R | Illinois lawmakers pushing for more stringent gun storage laws. What you need to know: The Safe Firearm Storage Act, filed under Senate Bill 3971 and House Bill 5891, would prohibit the possession of a firearm outside its owner’s “immediate possession or control” and increases the age to 18 from 13 where safe storage in homes are required. In the case of a lost or stolen firearm, Senate Bill 3973 and House Bill 5888 would require the owner to report it with local law enforcement within 48 hours instead of the original 72. It comes after reports show that approximately 380,000 guns are stolen per year nationwide.

* Center Square | Final hearing held in a series on Illinois’ public transit systems: State Sen. Don DeWitte, R-St. Charles, said providing reliable mass transit should not be exclusive to the Chicago area. “I think this state has to make mass transit, across the state, a priority,” said DeWitte. “Getting people from point A to point B, to work, school, to the hospital, a doctor’s appointment, is critical.”

*** Statewide ***

* Midwest Books to Prisoners | IDOC Shouldn’t Ban Mail and Books in Prisons: Facing pressure from Republican legislators, the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) is considering draconian new restrictions on incoming mail and books, including banning all mail pending a transition to controversial privatized mail digitization services. We are organizing to stop this egregious censorship attempt that undermines education, rehabilitation and community connection. To the IDOC and the IL general assembly: do not ban people from accessing physical letters and books through the mail, do not concede to easily disproved right-wing drug war copaganda—invest in resources, not restrictions!

*** Chicago ***

* ABC Chicago | Chicago Inspector General asks state regulators to ban some CPD officers from law enforcement: Since Jan. 6, 2021, more than a dozen CPD officers have been tagged as members of radical, sometimes violent groups, even as they deny it and remain on the job. […] “In order to serve as a police officer in any department in Illinois, a person must be certified as eligible to do so by the state of Illinois,” said Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg. Witzburg is recommending that the state de-certify a number of CPD officers and has sent the names and alleged misdeeds of those officers to the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board headquartered in Springfield.

* Sun-Times | Former Business Affairs and Consumer Protection official accused of creating hostile work environment: A former high-ranking official at the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection accused of creating a hostile work environment by using “prolonged verbal abuse and discrimination” to underlings so shaken by the treatment, many of them quit, then lied to investigators when questioned about it. A Chicago Public library clerk who used access to personal information to sexually harass library patrons on social media.

* Sun-Times | Bally’s Chicago casino enters 2nd year on the rise, but behind projections in loaded Illinois market: Bally’s finally put to bed questions about financing their permanent $1.34 billion entertainment complex, remapped their site plan at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street after old water pipes forced them back to the drawing board — and saw steadily increasing returns from their temporary operation in River North. But the money still isn’t flowing like city budget officials initially hoped, and in a new report released this month, state revenue forecasters say they have questions about how many more dollars can be squeezed from a crowded and ever-growing Illinois gambling market.

* Sun-Times | Blackhawks chairman Danny Wirtz ‘disappointed’ by Chicago Sports Network’s lack of carriage: One week into the Blackhawks’ season, the team’s new TV network has yet to reach a carriage agreement with Comcast. That appears unlikely to change before the home opener Thursday. That scenario would’ve been tough to imagine a year ago, but the difficulties that Chicago Sports Network — which launched Oct. 1 as the new home of the Hawks, Bulls and White Sox — has encountered in negotiations with the area’s dominant cable provider has made it a reality.

* WTTW | New Comet Is ‘Living Up to the Hype’ and Chicagoans Could Get a Glimpse in Coming Days: Michelle Nichols, director of public observing at Adler Planetarium, knows Chicagoans are skeptical about being able to see space phenomena, having been burned plenty of times by light pollution. “It’s living up to the hype,” Nichols said of the comet’s brightness.

* WGN | Lincoln Square restaurant spearheads campaign to end 117-year alcohol ban: The ban was originally put in place in 1907, which wasn’t a bad year overall for the City of Chicago. An economic boom fueled the city’s industrial sector, while the Chicago Cubs swept the Detroit Tigers to win their first-ever World Series. […] It was a little-known law unbeknownst to Lucia Herrejon, owner of XOchimilco Mexican Restaurant on the north side of Montrose, until they discovered it accidentally as a part of a 2023 city inspection. “Last year, June 2023, we applied for a liquor license,” Herrejon said. “Every thing went well. We had inspectors come out … We found out that day this was boarded dry in 1907.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Leaking Chicago Bears Arlington Heights tax appeal information earns Cook County official a slap on the wrist: County Inspector General Tirrell Paxton’s report did not name any officials. But the facts of the case match allegations in a whistleblower lawsuit filed against Board of Review Commissioner Samantha Steele this summer, dealing with the wrangling between local school districts and the Bears, who bought the former Arlington racetrack property and set their sights on building a new stadium there. The team has since focused on staying on Chicago’s lakefront, though officials have said the suburban location remains a possibility. The IG’s finding does not carry a penalty, only a recommendation that Steele take ethics training for violating the board’s ethics policy and the state’s property tax code by leaking confidential information about the pending Bears’ appeal of their property assessment and exhibiting bias against the team in comments to the media.

* Daily Herald | Gun violence, public corruption top issues for Cook County state’s attorney candidates: Prosecutors will file detention petitions “each and every time someone is caught with an assault weapon, including guns that have switches and extended magazines,” Burke said during a recent Daily Herald endorsement interview. Prosecutors also will ask “for detention each and every time someone is charged with forcible felony with a gun, knife or some type of weapon,” she said. And they will request detention for individuals charged with a forcible felony in sexual assault cases and individuals charged with committing a violent crime on public transit.

* Daily Herald | Arlington Heights country club where Ray Kroc made business deals turns 100: Much has changed at Rolling Green Country Club, the Arlington Heights golf course celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, and where a members-only black-tie gala was held Saturday night. Its textured history is detailed in a new 113-page coffee table book by Larry Bruck, a board member and unofficial club historian who spent the last year combing through thousands of articles in the Daily Herald and other newspapers, county records, board meeting notes and genealogy documents at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library. Bruck also reached out to a long list of current and past members and employees to gain their insights and recollections.

*** Downstate ***

* Journal Courier | Jacksonville schools take stance against teacher mistreatment; NAACP says handling of past incidents contributed to climate: The superintendent of Jacksonville schools is taking on what he says is mistreatment of teachers by some students and parents. While his call that “enough is enough” is getting plenty of backing, the message is also drawing heat from places such as the Jacksonville NAACP, which said some of the attitudes he targets are the result of how the administration has handled problems in the past. […] The letter was inspired by an incident between a parent and a teacher that occurred in the same week the letter was published. According to Ptacek, the teacher changed a seating arrangement in response to concerns about how a student was behaving toward others. The parent of the student then contacted the teacher and threatened them with physical violence.

* WCIA | Housing project planned for a growing Paxton: Developer Joe Warner originally put the plan in motion, but now his daughter and brother are building on his foundation. The first phase plans to provide 35 single-family homes and 11 duplexes. The site will also have a half-acre park in the middle to be used as a green space.

* WAND | Advocates say central Illinois communities deserve more bus service, funding: Experts say 30% of the population can’t drive, leaving many people with unsafe and inadequate options to get them where they need to go. Champaign-Urbana transit planner Cynthia Hoyle told the Senate Transportation Committee that people in small central Illinois communities desperately need rides.

* Pantagraph | Heartland starts equity tax levy talks, hears from Lincoln campus director: Heartland Community College is continuing to use the state’s equity tax provision to levy additional revenue from property in the district. In a meeting at the college’s Lincoln campus on Tuesday, trustees adopted an equity tax resolution for taxes payable in 2025. Under state law, Heartland can to levy the additional property tax to bring its revenue in line with other community college districts throughout the state, said Noah Lamb, vice president of finance and administration.

* PJ Star | Bernie Sanders in Belvidere: Climate change is real. Electric vehicles can help: Before firing up the crowd at last week’s “Rally with the Working Class to End Trump’s NAFTA 2.0″ in Belvidere, U.S. Sen Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, sat down with Register Star reporter Jeff Kolkey to talk about his views on the auto industry, electric vehicle production, free trade and climate change.

* SJ-R | Central Illinois microbrewery debuting new beer supporting Hurricane Helene relief efforts: Obed & Isaac’s Microbrewery & Eatery at 500 S. Sixth St. announced sales from its new Appalachia Strong IPA will support the relief efforts following the devastating impacts of Hurricane Helene. […] The central Illinois brewery has partnered with the North Carolina Brewers Guild to help displaced people from Hurricane Helene, alongside eight to 10 other brewers across the Prairie State. Through the Pouring for Neighbors initiative, Obed & Isaac’s aims to rally the central Illinois community to contribute to the rebuilding efforts.

* WCIA | ‘That place should be rocking’ Bielema asking for crazy crowd vs Michigan: The game versus Michigan is already sold out, but the Illini head coach wants more than just a full house. “We haven’t lost a game [at home] this year,” Bielema said on Monday. “That place should be rocking. That place should be going crazy. To have two ranked teams, that’s what I want to hear… When we go to Michigan we have to prepare for crowd noise there. I would really like for someone to have to prepare for crowd noise here. That’s when we’ve arrived.”

* WAND | Illinois apple farmer sees decreased harvest after cicadas: It’s been a year of ups and downs for apple farmers in central Illinois. On top of an early bloom, many trees were devastated by the influx in cicadas this spring and summer. Mike Mitchell, who owns Okaw Valley Orchards, said his yield has dropped by about 60% since last year. Because the cicadas laid their eggs on the key branches apples grow on, the trees weren’t able to provide the necessary nutrients for fruit to thrive.

*** National ***

* WSJ | This AI Pioneer Thinks AI Is Dumber Than a Cat: Yann LeCun helped give birth to today’s artificial-intelligence boom. But he thinks many experts are exaggerating its power and peril, and he wants people to know it. While a chorus of prominent technologists tell us that we are close to having computers that surpass human intelligence—and may even supplant it—LeCun has aggressively carved out a place as the AI boom’s best-credentialed skeptic.

  17 Comments      


Showcasing The Retailers Who Make Illinois Work

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

Retail provides one out of every five Illinois jobs, generates the second largest amount of tax revenue for the state, and is the largest source of revenue for local governments. But retail is also so much more, with retailers serving as the trusted contributors to life’s moments, big and small.

We Are Retail and IRMA are dedicated to sharing the stories of retailers like Linda, who serve their communities with dedication and pride.

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

This post is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

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Live coverage

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* You can click here to follow the Madigan trial. Click here and/or here to follow breaking news. It’s the best we can do unless or until Twitter gets its act together.

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Selected press releases (Live updates)

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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« NEWER POSTS PREVIOUS POSTS »
* Do better
* Big Beautiful Bill roundup: Pritzker says special session may not be needed, warns 330,000 Illinoisans could lose Medicaid; Planned Parenthood of Illinois pledges to continue care despite cuts
* RETAIL: The Largest Employer In Illinois
* 'The Chosen One' tones himself down
* Open thread
* Isabel’s morning briefing
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today's edition
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today's edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
* Selected press releases (Live updates)
* Live coverage
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* Yesterday's stories

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