* Subscribers know more. ICYMI: Illinois’ budget picture tightens in final stretch amid economic uncertainty. Capitol News Illinois…

- Both the governor’s budget office and the General Assembly’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability revised revenue projections for the current year and fiscal year 2027 down by less than 1%. While the change is small and generally keeps budget talks on track, it’s a sign that confidence in the economy is waning.
- Pritzker’s budget office decreased its FY27 revenue projection by $173 million to $55.9 billion. The change leaves projected revenue $149 million short of the spending Pritzker proposed — provided lawmakers approve the measures Pritzker proposed in February to bring $728 million in new revenue.
- COGFA revised its FY27 projection down by $190 million to $55.3 billion. That doesn’t include Pritzker’s proposed revenues, meaning COGFA’s estimate is actually about $180 million more optimistic than the governor’s office.

***************** Advertisement *****************

Sponsored by PhRMA

*************************************************

* Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today.

* BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | Chicago hopes Trump will cooperate as it bids to repeat as host for Democratic National Convention in 2028: Gov. JB Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson offered assurances Wednesday that their ongoing animosity with Republican President Donald Trump wouldn’t hamper security planning with federal agencies if national Democratic officials choose Chicago to repeat as host for the party’s 2028 nominating convention. The two Democratic officials’ comments came as Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, and other party officials wrapped up a three-day visit to Chicago to assess which of the five competing cities will be the best site to host the national convention Aug. 7-10, 2028. Party officials already have been to Atlanta, Denver and Philadelphia, with a site visit to Boston still to come.

* Sun-Times | ComEd electric customers brace for double-digit s pike in bills: The average monthly residential bill is $107, according to ComEd, but that charge will jump to at least $120 as more high-tech operations suck up electricity. A credit related to nuclear power and renewable energy that was a temporary relief from high rates is also set to end at the end of this month. The majority of the monthly increase is due to the credit expiring, but as much as a quarter of that jump in cost is due to the high demand of power and prices set by a multistate grid operator known as PJM Interconnection.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Illinois Soil News | Illinois Conservation Leaders Push for Funding Ahead of Budget Deadline as House Panel Prepares to Consider $10 Million SWCD Proposal: The Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts, or AISWCD, said the state’s current SWCD operations funding — approximately $4.5 million statewide, or roughly $40,000 per district annually — has remained largely stagnant for years despite growing conservation demands. “Illinois cannot afford to treat conservation as an afterthought,” said AISWCD Executive Director Eliot Clay. “Communities across Illinois are dealing with increasing pressure on farmland, water resources, and local infrastructure. At the same time, conservation districts have spent years trying to do more with limited and inconsistent funding.”

*** Chicago ***

* CBS Chicago | Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson reflects on first three years on the job: Asked if his poll numbers give him pause for concern, Johnson asked, “Why are you worried about that?” TYE: “I’m just asking you.”JOHNSON: “I’ve already expressed that, though.” TYE: “You are both a government leader and you’re a politician, and we’re talking about the vocabulary of politics.” JOHNSON: “And I’m talking about the people of the city of Chicago and their ability to feel safe and affordable in their communities.”

* NBC Chicago | How the Chicago Park District would reimagine Soldier Field post-Bears: In an exclusive interview with NBC Chicago’s Mary Ann Ahern, Chicago Park District leader Carlos Ramirez-Rosa discussed how the city would pursue, and ultimately use, a $630 million infusion of capital from the state of Illinois to transform the lakefront stadium from a sports venue into a world-class music destination.

* Sun-Times | Nominee for city transportation commissioner confirmed after getting an earful from alders: Cheaks said Hopkins is “not the only one who has voiced displeasure” with the traffic nightmare on Cortland, Grand, Kinzie and Halsted caused by those bridge closures. “I have been meeting with my team, and we’re gonna look at what happened there so as not to repeat that in the future,” the new commissioner said.

* Chalkbeat Chicago | CPS CEO King subpoenaed to appear at congressional hearing on parental rights, ‘legal abuses’: Rep. Tim Walberg, a Michigan Republican and the chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, notified King about the subpoena in a Wednesday letter. It comes about three weeks after the committee first invited King to testify at a hearing titled, “Breaking Trust: Attacks on Parental Rights, Inappropriate Content, and Legal Abuses in America’s Schools,” according to the letter.

* Sun-Times | As CPS cuts staff to plug deficit, educator unions and school board members press for more state funding: School board members and union leaders called on Chicago Public Schools Wednesday to pressure the state for more funding as the district faces a projected $732 million budget deficit. The calls came a day after CPS officials outlined plans to cut regular teachers and more than 100 assistant principals in the 2026-27 school year. Kia Banks, the president of the Chicago principals union, said that the budgets presented to school leaders were “disappointing” and “frustrating” and will lead to more instability for schools.

* Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago school board members voice concern about school budget cuts and debate state funding resolution: During the meeting’s public comments section, district officials got an earful from labor leaders on the proposed school budgets. Kia Banks, who leads the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association, said the union will fight assistant principal cuts and other reductions. She said many school leaders were taken aback by their budgets after delays in their release. “What we saw was disappointing, frustrating, and sad, and it’s actually self-defeating,” she said, arguing leaner budgets could spur more families to leave the district.

* NBC Chicago | University of Chicago offers free tuition for families making less than $250,000: Starting with the university’s autumn quarter next fall, undergraduate students from families with an annual income less than $250,000 are eligible for free tuition and students from households that make less than $125,000 can also get free housing and meals from the school.

* NYT | In Chicago, a Big Name Art Show Where the Drawings Dominate: Next month, the Art Institute of Chicago offers a notable exception: “Willem de Kooning Drawing,” on view June 14 to Sept. 20. In the fall, a version of the exhibition goes to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The Chicago show will feature 210 works, largely drawings by the 20th-century master de Kooning (1904-97), with some paintings, sculptures and hybrid works on hand for good measure.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Sheriff’s license plate reader deal draws opposition, while AI cameras for Cook County Jail delayed: While they eventually advanced that deal to a final vote Thursday, commissioners deferred another proposed contract from Dart that drew strong opposition from various community groups, to fund artificial intelligence-fueled video surveillance at the Cook County Jail. Dart requested approval for a $1.12 million deal with Safeware for the use of Briefcam, video software powered by artificial intelligence. It is supposed to use facial recognition technology to “detect various types of potential security breaches throughout the Department of Corrections,” according to the proposed contract legislation.

* Daily Herald | Arlington Heights elected officials set for pay raises after three-decade freeze: The mayor’s salary will increase from $8,500 to $33,000, and trustees’ salaries will go up from $2,800 to $11,000, village board members agreed this week. The increases wouldn’t take effect until after the April 9, 2029, municipal elections — whether the current officials are still on the board or not.

* Daily Southtown | Effort to save Blue Island mobile home park culminates in demolished homes, unclear property plans: As 66 homes are set to be demolished by the end of May, what’s next for the more than 15-acre parcel at 13800 Division St., is unknown to the city. An attorney for the property owners, Charles Zivin, said Tuesday he has not heard any recent plans for the property. He said the company received an industrial-use offer from a truck parking company months, but said that is no longer active. Joe Cervantes, one of the residents who advocated for saving the park, said most residents have been priced out of Blue Island and plan to move to Harvey.

* Lake County News-Sun | Medline adds solar installation as federal rebates disappear: Although Grayslake Mayor Elizabeth Davies said a significant portion of the building’s electricity now comes from the solar installation, company representatives declined to give specifics. The solar installation, built by PowerFlex, broke ground last summer and wrapped up this spring. The Medline distribution site first opened in 2022 and makes deliveries throughout the Great Lakes region. It sits on the Cornerstone property in the village’s “central range,” which Davies said is bookmarked for “property tax diversification.”

* Daily Southtown | Markham files for restraining order against Park District following prom helicopter photoshoot: The city of Markham filed for a temporary restraining order Tuesday in response to Markham Park District Executive Director Quintina Brown arranging a helicopter landing on public property for her daughter’s prom photoshoot. […] Quintina Brown “unilaterally” approved the helicopter landing, the filing said. A letter regarding the authorization, included as an exhibit, was printed on Park District letterhead and signed by Brown. “Please allow this letter to confirm that QuaMyra Brown, has been approved to allow Summer Skyz to conduct a prom photo at our location on May 8, 2026, at 7:00pm,” the letter read. “We understand that this will involve a helicopter being on the premises.”

*** Downstate ***

* WGLT | Illinois has 279 new lawyers. The huge 4th judicial district got only 5: The 41-county district encompasses much of Western and Central Illinois, extending from Ford County west to the Iowa state line and running north-south from the Wisconsin border to Macoupin and Jersey County. […] White presided over the swearing in ceremony. She said there are usually more people in the November ceremony, but the trend is real: Most lawyers opt to work in Cook County and its surrounding “collar counties.”The Fourth District fared worst in the most recent pool of graduates, with 93% of newly sworn in lawyers assigned in the northeast corner of the state. The Fifth District, comprised of 48 counties extending from Champaign to the state’s southern tip, got 12 new lawyers this round.

* Illinois Times | New mentoring program aims to turn around juvenile offenders: The ceremony marked the first graduating class of a pilot mentoring program created through a partnership among the Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s Office, juvenile court officials, probation services and The Outlet youth center in Springfield. The initiative targets children – many as young as 10 to 12 years old – who have begun getting into trouble but are still early enough in life to redirect. In an interview with Illinois Times, Tharp said the program grew out of discussions among judges, prosecutors, probation officials and community organizations searching for alternatives to formal juvenile prosecution. “What can we do to divert them from court?” Tharp said. “The earlier we can catch them, I think the better.”

* ABC Chicago | Kankakee County residents still recovering 2 months after deadly tornado leaves devastating damage: Other homeowners are making significant progress, like Chuck Mathis, who has already replaced his roof and some other parts of the home. He has a hefty cost, already surpassing $45,000, with more work still needed. “I just feel darn lucky I’m still alive, because that was nasty,” Mathis said. “I’ve been through some rough things in my life, but that was enough to scare me.” Aroma Park Mayor Brian Stump says they did not meet the threshold for federal or state funding. He says it’s a day-by-day effort from the whole community, trying to get back to normalcy.

* Illinois Times | Historians dispute accuracy of new video at the ALPLM: An exciting tale is told in a new $73,000 state-funded video presentation at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. The animated production brings to life the story of Robert Smalls, an enslaved man who purloined a Confederate boat, picked up other enslaved people, and piloted the boat to freedom as they reached the Union naval blockade outside of Charleston, South Carolina, in 1862. The drama is intense, especially the part in the video where Fort Sumter’s cannons fire on the fleeing boat. The video has most of the elements that bring this dramatic and inspiring story to life. What it doesn’t have, according to historians, including at least one from the Presidential Museum, is historical accuracy – especially the part about cannons being fired at the freedom-seekers on the boat.

*** National ***

* San Antonio Express | Waymo recalls robotaxis after vehicle swept away in San Antonio flood: The vehicle swept away was unoccupied and there were no injuries, but the incident prompted Waymo to review similar scenarios and issue an interim update to its self-driving software. It also suspended operations in San Antonio, a city prone to flooding and where the April 20 incident was the second recent local instance of a Waymo vehicle struggling with flooding.

* NYT | Honda Posts First Ever Annual Loss After Pullback From E.V.s: The automaker reported a net loss of $2.7 billion for the fiscal year that ended March 31. Earnings were weighed down by more than $9 billion in restructuring charges and write-downs following a retrenchment of its E.V. strategy. It is the first loss that the 77-year-old company has reported since listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 1957.