* ICYMI: Uncertainty marks Illinois legislature’s final weekend as lawmakers debate Bears stadium, gas tax and budget. Tribune…

- Staring down a month-end adjournment deadline, Illinois state lawmakers convened Friday in an atmosphere of indecision, with the fate of tax breaks to keep the Chicago Bears in Illinois and a new state budget still unresolved as myriad closed-door negotiations spread throughout the Capitol.
- Progressive Democrats and some moderate Democrats are pushing for new taxes to offset cuts Pritzker proposed in his budget plan and to partially counter reductions to federal social programs that the Trump administration has targeted at Democratic-run states.
- Emerging midday from the governor’s second-floor Capitol office alongside House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch after a roughly hourlong meeting with Pritzker, Senate President Don Harmon said Democratic leaders still were finalizing a spending plan for the coming budget year.

* Related stories…

• ABC Chicago: Bears stadium ‘mega-projects’ bill among Illinois lawmakers’ items before end of legislative session
• Daily Herald: ‘We’re getting near the end’: Clock ticking for a Bears stadium deal this weekend in Springfield
• WGN: ‘Frustration’ in Springfield as negotiations over the budget, Bears stadium reach final hours

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* 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 ***

* Sun-Times | State Rep. Buckner predicts last-minute score for Bears stadium in Arlington Heights: State Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago) is still trying to hammer out the changes needed to get the bill through the Illinois Senate. Buckner said there is no one in Springfield that he trusts more than Cunningham to be “an effective negotiator who’s practical and logical” enough to “get big things done.”

* WCIA | University of Illinois study reveals where ticks are most common in Illinois: After analyzing 1,414 ticks collected throughout 80 Illinois counties from 2018 to 2022, researchers said the lone star tick is most prevalent in southern Illinois, while the black-legged tick is most common in the northern and central portions of the state. As for the dog tick, it is most common in the central and southern parts of Illinois. Researchers added that Hamilton, Pope, and Macon counties had the highest tick-collection numbers, with each reporting 100 ticks or more.

*** Statehouse News ***

* CBS Chicago | Push for Chicago Bears stadium legislation coming down to the wire in Springfield: The governor has said he expects a deal to get done before the end of the legislative session on Sunday night. “We’ve got three days left in the legislative session, and in most cases, three days does not seem like a long time, but in Springfield terms, that is a lifetime,” Buckner said. “The bill is in the hands of the state Senate, and they’re going to do their job to work through this and do it the right way.”

* Tribune | GOP governor candidate Darren Bailey held fundraiser on legislative session day in apparent violation of ban: Republican governor nominee Darren Bailey held a fundraiser in Joliet on May 22, his campaign acknowledged Friday, an apparent violation of a 2022 Illinois law prohibiting state elected officials and candidates from holding events to raise campaign cash on days when lawmakers are in session in Springfield. The revelation comes after a Republican group in northwest suburban Barrington Township called off a fundraiser scheduled for Thursday, when lawmakers were also at work in the Illinois Capitol, following questions from the Tribune about whether the $500-per-plate dinner would have complied with the session-day fundraising ban.

* WNIJ | A new model for conservation funding could pass in the state budget: Soil and Water Conservation District protect natural resources on a local level. There are offices in nearly every county in Illinois. For two years, the state budget allocated about $40,000 per office, which advocates have said isn’t enough to pay even one full-time employee. To increase their budget, some lawmakers are proposing a $67 fee on every acre of farmland that gets developed or taken out of production. Eliot Clay is the Executive Director of the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts. He said this new funding model could appeal to lawmakers.

*** Chicago ***

* ABC Chicago | City of Chicago says bus companies that dropped off migrants from Texas owe over $440K: The City of Chicago says bus companies that dropped off migrants from Texas starting in 2022 owe the city more than $440,000. The city sued dozens of bus companies, claiming they failed to comply with Chicago’s municipal ordinance. The ordinance states a bus company must have authorization from the CDOT commissioner to unload passengers. The city reached settlements with 15 companies and had default judgements issued against 12 more.

* WBEZ | In cue from Paris, Chicago to introduce $500 French lawn chairs beside Buckingham Fountain: The 100 chairs, which were manufactured by the brand Fermob in Paris, cost $54,438 in total, according to a Park District spokesperson. Of that, $24,438 was footed by the city. Lollapalooza, which partnered on the project and will host its 21st festival in Grant Park July 30-Aug. 2, paid the remaining $30,000. In a statement, the Park District said, “the seating program will transform the space and encourage social gathering.” The movable chairs will be in the park until September, except, the city says, during major events hosted in Grant Park, although it did not specify which events would prompt chair removal.

* Sun-Times | A down-and-up night for Sox: Munetaka Murakami exits with injury before Miguel Vargas hits walk-off homer: Marquee slugger Munetaka Murakami left the game in the third inning with a right hamstring injury and likely is headed to the injured list. But the Sox bounced back after being stymied at the plate most of the night and pulled off a thrilling 4-3 victory in 10 innings.

* Bloomber | FCC moves up expiration date of ABC-TV station licenses, including Chicago’s: The Federal Communications Commission moved up the expiration date of Walt Disney Co.’s eight owned and operated ABC TV stations to Thursday, according to filings on the commissions’ website. The licenses had been set to expire as late as 2031. The commission, which oversees US airwaves, said last month that it was going to seek early reviews of the station licenses due to concerns about the company’s diversity and inclusion programs.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Lisle board mulls zoning revision amid concerns over data centers: A proposed text amendment to village code would eliminate new data centers as a permitted use in Lisle’s industrial zoning district. The village board is scheduled to vote on it Monday night. “I’m not against data centers, but right now, I agree that it’s not something that we should be looking to attract at the moment, until we know more, and until we feel like we could do it in a way that would be safe for all residents as well,” Lisle Mayor Mary Jo Mullen said last month when the board discussed data center zoning regulations.

* Daily Southtown | Lockport swiftly suspends data center discussions following community outcry: “Many residents expressed concern that even strong local protections may prove insufficient without broader state and federal oversight addressing the cumulative impacts of the rapidly expanding compute industry and large-scale data center development,” the city said in a news release. Lockport Mayor Steven Streit emphasized Tuesday the opportunity the city had to impose stringent restrictions on any potential data center, because the parcel of land up for development is owned by the city.

* Daily Southtown | Homer Township ends aid agreement with Orland, will keep ambulances at home: Orland Professional Firefighters Local 2754 union Vice President Dave Popp said he understands the Homer Township chief’s position, but removing the backup service from the neighboring fire district could result in delayed care for those who need to be taken to a hospital within the Orland district’s jurisdiction. “Oftentimes, strokes, heart attacks, different situations — those patients need to be transported immediately,” Popp said. “There is a built-in delay if they (Homer Township) are not going to come and sit in our station.” But Bricker said he’s worried about Orland taking resources from his own fire district, an issue he discussed with Doyle multiple times before sending the letter.

* Daily Herald | Affordable housing apartment plan near Lake Zurich recommended for approval: The advisory panel Thursday voted 7-0 to recommend approval of a proposed 24-unit apartment building at Midlothian Road and North Lakewood Drive. As proposed, Housing Opportunity Development Corporation would raze the existing facility and build an apartment building, parking and stormwater detention. About 40 residents attended Thursday’s ZBA public hearing. Many spoke and most were in favor of advancing the project but several nearby residents expressed concerns, according to Chair Greg Koeppen.

* Shaw Local | DeKalb Park Board appoints familiar faces to leadership at annual organization meeting: n making appointments to board leadership, the DeKalb Park District this month saw some familiar faces take up posts. The park board held an organizational meeting on May 21, an annual undertaking, for the election of new officers. The park district conducts such meetings every May. The board decided to retain David Castro as board president in a 4-0 vote. Other appointments were unanimously made to name Brian Tobin as vice president, Tia Anderson as Treasurer, and Michelle Foster as Secretary.

* Daily Herald | What you need to know about the iconic Big Boy locomotive’s visit to West Chicago: Union Pacific’s Big Boy No. 4014 is scheduled to arrive Tuesday evening in West Chicago and be on display the following day before departing Thursday morning. On Wednesday, the 600-ton locomotive will be on public display between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the Larry S. Provo Union Pacific Training Center, 335 Spencer St., south of the West Chicago Metra station.

*** Downstate ***

* WGLT | B-N electricity price spikes tied to general volatility and the Iran war: Electricity markets are volatile again this year and that will cost Bloomington-Normal residents on their heating and cooling bills. For the last two years, the so-called municipal aggregated rate negotiated by a group of cities and towns has seen a big increase — 30% this year alone. Last year’s jump was more, 40%. And for only the second time in 13 years, the municipal aggregated rate is higher than the base Ameren summer rate for electricity. Bloomington Deputy City Manager Sue McLaughlin said the other time that happened was in 2019.

* WSIL | Marion marks 44 years since devastating 1982 tornado: The City of Marion held its annual ceremony at the Tornado Memorial on the courthouse square, marking 44 years since the tornado struck the community on May 29, 1982. At 3:15 p.m. — the exact time the tornado hit Marion — the names of the ten victims were read aloud during a brief but heartfelt ceremony. The gathering served as both a remembrance of those who lost their lives and a reflection on the community’s ability to rebuild in the decades that followed.

* WCIA | Urbana School District offering free meals this summer to children, adults with disabilities: The Urbana School District is once again offering free breakfast and lunch this summer through its annual Summer Meal Program. The district will be offering meals to children ages 18 and younger and to adults with a state-defined mental or physical disability. Children do not have to be enrolled in summer school or attend Urbana schools to receive a meal, and there is no income requirement or registration.

*** National ***

* MediaITE | ‘Less Than $200 in Extra Gasoline Cost’: Scott Bessent Attempts to Quiet Economic Fears: Per CNBC anchor Steve Liesman on Friday morning, however, the war in Iran has cost Americans an extra $59 billion on gas, diesel, and jet fuel since it started in February. He went on to emphasize that this year’s larger-than-expected tax refunds aren’t large enough to cover the extra gas cost for each American, with an average of $447 each in extra costs versus a $384 average refund increase — notably more than Bessent’s cited $200.

* AP | Adult cigarette smoking rate hits another all-time low in US: The cigarette smoking rate among U.S. adults dropped to another all-time low last year, with 1 in 11 adults saying they were current smokers, according to government survey data released this week. […] In the mid-1960s, 42% of U.S. adults were smokers. The rate has been gradually dropping for decades, due to cigarette taxes, tobacco product price hikes, smoking bans, public education campaigns and changes in the social acceptability of lighting up in public.

* NOTUS | White House Website Touts Arrests of Immigrants… From the U.S.: When NOTUS asked why the United States was listed for arrests made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, the White House said it was an error. “The site aggregates directly from arrest reports and pulls data directly from DHS, which initially included a handful of non-immigration [Homeland Security Investigation] arrests. This has been updated,” a White House official told NOTUS on Thursday night.