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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * NPR Illinois…
* An interesting comparison fom ShotSpotter CEO Ralph Clark. Politico…
* The American Cancer Society Action Network….
* Tribune | For Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, federal recognition at last: The designation marks a long-awaited victory in the tribal nation’s fight to recover its ancestral home. When the land is placed in trust, the legal title is transferred to the U.S. government, which will hold it on behalf of Prairie Band and establish tribal governance. It opens up a string of benefits including tax credits and land use exemptions. […] At the state level, a bill would immediately turn over Shabbona Lake State Park, around 1,500 acres adjacent to the reservation. If passed, Prairie Band would assume ownership but continue to operate the property as a public space. The bill is still in committee, but Rep. Mark Walker, a Democrat from the Northwest suburbs and one of the co-sponsors, is optimistic that it will go forward. * Block Club | Bally’s Profits Continue To Lag At Medinah Temple, Executives Say: The budget anticipates $35 million in local tax revenue from Bally’s, averaging out to $3 million a month. As of the end of March, Medinah Temple has generated about $3 million in tax revenue this year for Chicago. A revenue report for April is expected to be released this week, according to a company spokesperson. * WBEZ | Faced with cuts under a new funding formula, several CPS schools are rejecting their budgets: “The budget that we have does not meet the need,” said Sequoiah Brown, a member of the Local School Council at Poe Classical School in Pullman on the Far South Side. “Our parents are adamant about the needs of our students. You should be trying to bring up the others to that standard, not taking from one to give to the other. That is not how equity works.” […] School district officials say they are aware that some councils rejected their budget, but they will not have a tally until later this month. The schools confirmed by WBEZ include Poe, another selective enrollment elementary school, one neighborhood high school and one neighborhood elementary school. Selective enrollment and magnet schools have been speaking out about being hurt by a new budgeting formula in use by the school district for next school year that prioritizes schools with the neediest students. * WTTW | Probe Into 8 CPD Officers Found No Evidence They Were Active Members of Oath Keepers — But Investigators Only Asked Them: However, investigators with CPD’s Bureau of Internal Affairs did not interview anyone other than the eight officers accused of belonging to the Oath Keepers, according to the 30-page report. Interviewing the officers appears to be the most significant investigative step taken by investigators during the probe, which was completed in less than six months. The eight officers were each questioned by investigators for an average of 29 minutes, according to the summary of those interviews included in the report. The longest interview lasted 48 minutes, the shortest just 17 minutes, according to the probe. * Tribune | Johnson pulls plans to place migrant shelter site in 11th Ward after stiff opposition from alderman, property owners: The change came after the owners of the property said Johnson never informed them of his plans to use the building at 3951 S. Canal St. for a shelter. When the Tribune asked the city about that apparent disconnect, the Department of Family and Support Services released a Monday statement saying the city is “no longer considering” housing migrants there. * Block Club | For 2 Decades, A Historic Pullman Home Has Been Vacant Under CHA’s Watch: The CHA acquired the Corliss home to house people in need. But after letting the house sit empty for nearly two decades and racking up violations with the city’s Department of Buildings, the CHA announced this fall the home was one of more than 40 scattered site properties the agency would rehab, restore and sell so families can live in them. But now CHA officials say they’ll move forward with “alternative plans” for the home they let sit empty for years after an assessment found needed repairs could total nearly $500,000, records show. * Chicago Reader | Publisher’s note: why the Reader is returning to weekly publishing: First, because Chicago’s creative, civic, and cultural concerns don’t reproduce on a biweekly basis, nor do they circulate equitably from behind an online paywall. From Portage Park to Pullman, Chicago is a living conversation. For the tens of thousands of people who use our printed paper, that conversation doesn’t pause for two weeks so we can recapitulate it. It’s time for the Reader to get back on beat, back in rhythm with the verses and views, pictures and sounds, tastes and takes that make this the best city in the world. * Daily-Journal | Alliance grows with Gotion as members visit China sites: The cross-cultural awareness presentations which Gotion officials extended to the Kankakee County contingent was most impressive to Michael Boyd, president of Kankakee Community College. […] Boyd was part of the group that made the trip to China — paid for by Gotion — that also included Angela Morrey, vice president of business development for the Economic Alliance; Jeff Bennett, of McColly Bennett Real Estate and vice chairman of the Economic Alliance board; Theodis Pace, an alliance board member and also president of the Kankakee County Branch of the NAACP; Pat Martin, former past chairman of the board for the Economic Alliance and executive vice president with Iroquois Federal; and Ryan Marion, building official for the village of Manteno. * WSIL | SIU wraps Saluki Takeover Tour: Saturday’s event concluded the tour aimed at recruiting more Southern Illinois students to SIU. SIU Chancellor Austin Lane appeared alongside the school’s athletic director and new basketball coach. SIU officials told News 3 the tour covering all 17 counties in the Southern Illinois was a success and plan to make the events bigger and better in coming years. * WSIL | One Sent to Hospital After Crashing into Sinkhole in Jackson County, Sheriff’s Office Says: News 3 previously reported a sinkhole forming along Highway 51, just north of De Soto on Thursday. A section of highway surrounding this sinkhole was reportedly closed by the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to all traffic on Friday morning. IDOT also then said an assessment of the damage will take place the following week. * Chicago Mag | Best Seats in Sox Park: One upside to the White Sox’s dismal start to the season: You can have your pick of seats. For cheap. And while Guaranteed Rate Field will never get the love Wrigley does, it’s still an enjoyable place to watch a Major League Baseball game. As long as you can stomach seeing the home team lose. So where should you sit? We offer these three (highly specific) suggestions. * Daily Herald | From promises of no new taxes to Burnham, Bears’ latest stadium presentation sounded familiar: As Chicago Bears executives last week presented glossy renderings and extolled the virtues of building a new stadium on the city’s lakefront, one could hear echoes of similar remarks some of those same leaders made a year-and-a-half before to a suburban audience at John Hersey High School in Arlington Heights. While the intended location for a new Bears stadium might have been different, officials from the NFL franchise came to both events with Power Point presentations and talking points in hand, as they made pitches for public subsides to help bankroll the envisioned megaprojects. * STL Today | Busch Stadium needs renovations. Should St. Louis taxpayers kick in?: DeWitt says he is not “fishing” for public money now. He might in the next few years. The club, he says, is just starting to study the stadium’s needs. If the Cardinals ask for taxpayer help, however, it could be a fight. New leaders have taken over City Hall, vowing to do more for the poor and neglected. They are pushing to improve services for the homeless, rebuild north St. Louis and dig into longstanding inequalities. They have begun to take a harder line on subsidies for developers, forcing some concessions to city schools, affordable housing and workers. * Tribune | Illinois cicadas, loud but harmless, to make historic emergence in mid- to late May: Yet despite recent reports of cicadas coming out, experts say the insects probably won’t do so en masse in Illinois for another few weeks, as early as mid-May, but more likely toward the end of the month. Reports of sightings are likely individual “stragglers” that have come out too early or from people who have taken a shovel to the ground. * Here’s the DuPage Forest Preserve District on the life cycle of a 17-year cicada… * Block Club | Cicada Parade-A Art Project Raising Money For Insect Asylum’s Rooftop Garden: Inside the basement of the Avondale museum at 2870 N. Milwaukee Ave., volunteers and employees are hard at work making over 1,000 cicada plaster molds for a spectacular community-wide art project that will celebrate the convergence of two cicada broods while raising money for its rooftop garden project. Last month, The Insect Asylum launched the Cicada Parade-a 2024, an art initiative organized by the museum and Baltimore-based Formstone Castle Collective artist Michael Bowman to bring awareness to the double cicada emergence through collaborative art. The idea was birthed by Roger McMullan, of Salt Lake City, a lifelong enthusiast of the periodical cicada and author and illustrator of the new graphic novel “Cicadapocalypse.” * PJ Star | Do cicadas destroy crops? What farmers in Illinois need to know: “Periodical cicadas don’t pose a risk to any of the major crops in Illinois,” said Illinois State Entomologist Christopher Dietrich. “They are restricted to areas with mature natural forest, and they don’t move around much so we’ll see few, if any, in areas dominated by row crops.” * PJ Star | What animals eat cicadas?: When periodical cicadas emerge, they’re consumed by just about anything that eats insects. Mammals and birds, amphibians and reptiles, and fish all eat cicadas — and benefit from the glut of them. […] Yes, and eagerly, reports the University of Maryland Extension. “If you have free-range chickens, they will happily scratch up the cicadas and eat them. The cicadas aren’t poisonous.” * AP | Dozens of deaths reveal risks of injecting sedatives into people restrained by police: At least 94 people died after they were given sedatives and restrained by police from 2012 through 2021, according to findings by the AP in collaboration with FRONTLINE (PBS) and the Howard Centers for Investigative Journalism. That’s nearly 10% of the more than 1,000 deaths identified during the investigation of people subdued by police in ways that are not supposed to be fatal. About half of the 94 who died were Black, including Jackson. * Axios | More women are working now than at any time in U.S. history: The rise in flexible work arrangements is likely helping, in addition to the strong labor market. […] The employment numbers — technically the employment-to-population ratio — include part-time workers. So it would include women who want to work full-time but can’t due to child care issues. Women overall are working less now than in 2019, as ADP research found earlier this year.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Fundraiser list
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Behind the CMS cost projections
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * From a recent Sun-Times editorial…
Let’s take a look. * Seven out of nine state health insurance policies were already covering these drugs. This was an expansion, mainly to Downstate areas that aren’t covered by Health Alliance and Aetna HMO. Those two state plans cover about 72,000 employees and dependents out of a total of 350,000 or so, about 21 percent. Of those seven which already did cover the weight-loss drugs, Blue Cross’ HMO IL and its Blue Advantage plans don’t break out individual costs. Those two plans cover about 41,000 employees and dependents out of about 350,000 employees and dependents, or about 12 percent of all covered people. * Five of those seven plans which were already covering the drugs, Aetna OAP, Aetna PPO, Aetna High Deductible Health Plan, HealthLink OAP, Blue Cross Blue Shield OAP, do have trackable expenditures because their prescriptions are administered by the state’s Pharmacy Benefit Manager, CVS Caremark. Those five plans cover almost 154,000 employees and dependents, about 44 percent of the total in all nine plans. From the state…
So, that’s a total of about $10.649 million last fiscal year for about 44 percent of all covered employees and their dependents. That would be around $23 million for everybody in the system if you extrapolated it out and everything else is even. We don’t know yet what the FY2024 numbers are. * However, CMS is projecting usage will rise to about Plausible? I guess we’ll see. But the thing to remember is that the recent expansion will only account for a fraction of the total new cost increase.
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The Field Museum unveils earliest bird fossil known to science
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller
Click here to watch the unveiling. * Sun-Times…
* More… * WTTW | The Field Museum Now Has an Incredibly Rare Fossil Proving Birds Are Dinosaurs. Here’s a Behind-the-Scenes Look at How They Got It: After pulling back one last flap of tissue paper, O’Connor finally had her “ta-da” moment, introducing the “Chicago Archaeopteryx … the most important fossil ever.” That’s quite a statement coming from a curator at the Field, home of the mighty T. Rex, Sue. But what Archaeopteryx lacks in size, it makes up for in significance as a “transitional” species that essentially proved Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. … In front of gathered dignitaries and the press, the Field formally announced to the world what had become a not-so-well-kept secret: The museum had acquired just the 13th specimen known to exist of Archaeopteryx (ar-key-AHP-ter-icks), a fossil often described as the “missing link” between dinosaurs and birds. “It’s a spectacular example … teeth like a dinosaur, a tail like a dinosaur, but it’s a bird,” said Julian Siggers, Field Museum president and CEO. “The top-level message is that dinosaurs didn’t go extinct, they actually evolved into birds.” The Field Museum has acquired the 13th known specimen of Archaeopteryx, often called the “missing link” fossil between dinosaurs and birds. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News) * WTTW | Meet Jingmai O’Connor, the Punk Rock Paleontologist Who Leads the Field Museum’s Archaeopteryx Team: Dead Bird Nerd alert! WTTW News sat down with paleornithologist Jingmai O’Connor and talked about dinosaurs, birds, the Chicago Archaeopteryx, evolution and why studying fossil birds is more important now than ever. O’Connor is associate curator of fossil reptiles at Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History. * WGN | Field Museum acquires fossil of earliest known bird: “Archaeopteryx is arguably the most important fossil ever discovered. It transformed how scientists see the world, by providing strong support for Darwin’s theory of evolution,” said Field Museum President and CEO Julian Siggers. “This is the Field Museum’s most significant fossil acquisition since SUE the T. rex, and we’re thrilled to be able to study ‘the Chicago Archaeopteryx’ and to share it with our visitors.”
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Today’s must-read
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * A commenter recommended this piece from the New York Times…
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Uber Partners With Cities To Expand Urban Transportation
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Uber is leading the charge to close critical transportation gaps, ensuring reliable access to its services in places that need it most, such as underserved areas like Englewood. This is a part of Uber’s broader commitment to augment and expand the reach of Chicago’s transportation ecosystem, focusing on overcoming the first-mile/ last-mile hurdles that have long plagued residents in farther afield neighborhoods. Uber aims to extend the public transit network’s reach, making urban transportation more accessible and efficient for everyone. Discover the full story on how Uber is transforming city transportation for the better.
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It’s that time of year again
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * As we head into the final weeks of session, it’s important to always keep in mind the Statehouse adage, “Watch the rollercoaster, don’t ride it” Here’s a new twist on that admonition… [Stolen from the Internet.]
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It’s just a bill
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Chalkbeat…
* Shaw Local…
SB2784 was re-referred to Senate Assignments last week. * State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally…
* SJ-R…
* NBC Chicago…
* WGN…
* Pantagraph…
* WAND…
* Patch…
* Pantagraph…
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Pritzker unexpectedly won’t rule out service tax for mass transit
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * My weekly syndicated newspaper column…
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Open thread
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Hope you all had a great weekend! What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: Pritzker eyes a $20 billion quantum-computing campus. Crain’s…
- The campus would be anchored by PsiQuantum, a Silicon Valley startup that is evaluating two Chicago-area locations for a site to build the world’s first industrial-scale quantum computer. -PsiQuantum’s project initially would bring about 1,000 construction jobs and up to 500 direct jobs, including hardware and software engineers. Governor Pritzker will be at the Field Museum at 10 a.m. to celebrate a new acquisition. At 2:30, the governor will give remarks at the Thompson Center redevelopment groundbreaking. Click here to watch. * The letter is signed by Reps. Jimenez, Rashid, Guzzardi, Mah and Gonzalez…
* Capitol News Illinois | Lawmakers pitch sweeping changes to energy industry and Chicagoland transit system: A group of lawmakers and influential environmental advocates are calling for broad changes to the state’s energy industry and a massive increase in state oversight of Chicagoland’s transit system – which faces a projected $730 million budget shortfall. Advocates for the policy platform, which is broken up into three bills, describe much of it as a follow-up to the 2021 Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, a landmark energy policy that set emissions goals for the state and massively altered the state’s energy sector. The proposals [are] unlikely to be passed in their current form this year. * WMAY | Governor makes the case for Illinois, promises growth for Springfield: Another facet of Springfield which deserved attention, the Governor said, is the Illinois State Fairgrounds. “That fairgrounds is a phenomenal piece of property — but it’s been neglected, like so many other things in the State government… I said in my first year in office to my staff, I want our Fair to –– first of all be profitable, and I want it to be something that people love going to.” Pritzker told the Citizen’s Club that money from the Rebuild Illinois plan is being dedicated to renovating and improving the fairgrounds. “This is an investment in the Fairgrounds here, in Springfield. It is an investment for a lifetime: we want to be able to show off what Springfield is.” * J.B. Pritzker, et al | Clean water is our moonshot moment for Midwest climate leadership: One-fifth of the planet’s surface freshwater sits in our Great Lakes. Demand for it will only grow, which gives us both an opportunity and a responsibility to speed the pace of water innovation. We must manage and conserve our finite fresh water as if it were a sea of diamonds. Even our “waste” water is precious. Over the next 10 years, a bipartisan coalition called Great Lakes ReNEW will invest millions of dollars in new technologies to recover and recycle valuable minerals, such as nickel, cobalt and lithium, from our water, and remove toxic chemicals such as per- and polyfluorinated substances, known as PFAS. The goal is to destroy what’s toxic and reuse what’s valuable. * Herald-Whig | Illinois monitoring H5N1 influenza in dairy cattle: While no cases have been reported in Illinois, federal agencies confirmed the H5N1 influenza virus in dairy herds in eight states across the U.S. The Illinois Department of Agriculture and the Illinois Department of Public Health are working closely to monitor the situation and are jointly coordinating prevention and response measures including working with producer groups and partner organizations to promote education to veterinarians and cattle farmers on the clinical signs of H5N1 so that potential infections quickly can be identified and contained. * Crain’s | Illinois awards 35 new pot-shop licenses: The licensees announced today are the third round of applicants chosen by lottery and will join 200 other licensees chosen in two previous lotteries. The new licenses are conditional until applicants open stores and receive final certification from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. The state originally had authorized 55 licenses in the latest round. Thirteen applications are still under review, and seven others chosen in the lottery did not meet the state’s social-equity criteria. Seven new potential licensees will be chosen from the lottery pool. * WTAX | Boyd succeeds Neely as IL National Guard adjutant general: Gen. Rodney Boyd, installed Saturday at Glenwood High School, is proud to break the glass ceiling. “It’s also a way of showing how far we’ve come as an organization and as a state,” Boyd said in an interview before the ceremony, “that we are preparing people of color to take these very important roles within our organization and the other organizations within our state.” Boyd, the product of Chicago public housing and son of a single mother, urged today’s young people who believe they have been given lemons to squeeze them and get an education. * WBBM | City’s plan to replace downtown migrant shelter with one in Bridgeport getting some pushback: The City of Chicago notified Ald. Nicole Lee (11th) this past week of plans to move migrants from downtown to Bridgeport ahead of the Democratic National Convention. […] In an update to her constituents, Lee said the city has not signed a lease for the property yet and that she met with Mayor Brandon Johnson to express her opposition. * Tribune | Optimism, doubt ahead of Johnson’s Treatment Not Trauma mental health plan: Johnson quickly passed an ordinance to launch the city’s working group once in office, but to move forward, the policy needs “active leadership” from City Hall, not “infinite working groups, infinite consensus buildings and no movement,” said Eric Reinhart, a public health, law and psychiatry anthropologist and physician who co-drafted the “white paper” report published by the activist coalition that pushed for the policy. “I think it’s quite disappointing to all of us that a year into this administration, that even on the campaign stage held up Treatment Not Trauma as one of its core priorities, we still haven’t made any steps forward,” he said. “Everybody’s getting a working group, but where are we seeing implementation?” * Crain’s | Airlines and City Hall reach agreement on O’Hare revamp: However, key details were not immediately available. Included on the list of unanswered questions are under what conditions the second satellite, which would add most of the expansion gates, would begin construction; when construction of the first two terminals will begin; and how the city intends to cut billions of dollars in cost overruns to bring the project back to its original budget. * Crain’s | Offices near O’Hare with little vacancy hit the market: A joint venture of Calgary, Alberta-based MDC Realty Advisors and Vancouver, British Columbia-based Nicola Wealth Management has hired brokerage Cushman & Wakefield to sell the One O’Hare office building at 6250 N. River Road, according to a marketing flyer. The offering comes more than eight years after the pair of investors bought the 12-story building for $83 million. Amid weak demand for offices and higher interest rates weighing down property values, One O’Hare is almost certainly worth less than that today. There is no asking price listed for the 380,360-square-foot building, but a source familiar with the listing said bids are expected to come in close to $70 million, or $184 per square foot. * Block Club | Chicago Cinco De Mayo Parade Canceled Due To ‘Gang Violence,’ Police Say: The parade was called off shortly after it began at noon Sunday at Cermak Road and Damon Avenue. The cancellation was “out of an abundance of caution” following gang violence near the parade and the decision was made by police, local officials and parade organizers, according to the Chicago Police Department. Police said they made multiple arrests at the parade. Officers cleared the parade route around 1:30 p.m., the time the police department announced the parade’s cancellation on social media. * Sun-Times | Chicago’s top cop defends clearing officers on extremist group’s membership list: In October, Snelling had promised the City Council that the CPD would conduct “thorough investigations” and show no tolerance for cops with extremist connections. But Friday, at an unrelated news conference alongside Mayor Brandon Johnson, Snelling said he felt strongly there was no cause for action against the cops. “I can tell you that we reached out to everybody,” Snelling said. “Our internal affairs division has reached out to everyone to gather information to determine if these officers were actually proven to be members of hate groups.” * Daily Herald | Local law enforcement agencies find success in crisis intervention teams, training: The Lake County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said that for five years the department has focused on a philosophy of de-escalation first when possible, and particularly when dealing with situations potentially involving a mental health crisis. “It’s proven to be extremely successful,” Covelli said. “It’s the right thing to do, to take time and engage in healthy dialogue with individuals, especially those who might be in crisis.” * Daily Herald | Cat condos and better digs for dogs: DuPage County animal shelter undergoing a $14 million expansion: The $14 million project is the first expansion of the Wheaton facility in the agency’s 45-year history. “It’s going to be a luxury to have twice the space that we have now once it’s all done,” DuPage County Animal Services Operations Manager Laura Flamion said. The project is being paid for through a mix of public and private funding. DuPage Animal Friends, a nonprofit benefiting the shelter, has helped secure more than $5.6 million for the project and is working on raising another $7.4 million through events and naming rights to various features — from dog kennels and trees to the new lobby — in the expanded facility. * SJ-R | Illinois postal workers march for transparency in Springfield amid USPS changes: Springfield residents had until April 10 to fill out a survey to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to voice their opinion on the changes before the USPS changes would start. During the picket line, Bishop said National Postal Mailhandlers President of the Springfield branch, Jeff Bridges, was informed impacted numbers were in for the Springfield distribution center, but the actual number was not given by USPS. * BND | St. Clair County Board approves pay raises for elected officials, but not unanimously: The St. Clair County Board voted 20-4 at their last meeting to increase elected officials’ salaries starting after the general election, including an 11% raise for the county board chairman.[…] The raises begin Jan. 1, 2025, when the chairman, treasurer, assessor, county clerk, auditor, circuit clerk, coroner and county recorder will all be paid $106,540. The other elected administrative officials were already making over $100,000 but the chairman’s salary was $95,899. * Tribune | ‘It still doesn’t feel real.’ Chicago wrestler Joe Rau’s improbable journey leads him to the Olympics — at age 33: In May 2022, Rau competed in freestyle at the U.S. Open and surprised everyone by finishing second. It didn’t take too long for Team USA’s Greco-Roman coaches to reach out and ask him to come back. “I told them no about three times, I think,” Rau said. “Then I just really did some soul searching and I talked to my wife. She said, if you really want to, I’m not stopping you.”  * WaPo | Senior homes refuse to pick up fallen residents, dial 911. ‘Why are they calling us?’: Some senior-care homes say they don’t have the ability to lift fallen residents. Many have adopted “no lift” policies to avoid the risk ofback injuries for staff and other potential liabilities. But firefighters and other experts say there are tools to make lifting easierand safer, ranging from $70 cloth straps with handles to $1,500 hydraulic lifts. Heritage Woods, which accounted for the highest number of lift-assist calls to 911 in Rockford last year, is owned by GardantManagement Solutions, the 10th largest assisted-living provider in the nation. * WaPo | Google’s empire is massive. A judge will soon rule if it’s a monopoly: The judge’s ruling, which is expected in the coming months, could put new limits on Google’s ability to run its search empire. The company may be barred from paying billions to secure prime placement for its search bar on Apple’s iPhones or other web browsers. It could even be forced to sell off part of its business, like the Chrome browser, and open up competition to other search engines. The judge could also rule that Google isn’t a monopoly after all, which would be a major setback for the government and antitrust advocates who say the power of Big Tech has grown too large. * AP | Celebrating excellence in journalism and the arts, Pulitzer Prizes to be awarded Monday: The Pulitzer Prizes are set to be announced on Monday, traditionally the most anticipated day of the year for those hoping to earn print journalism’s most prestigious honor. Along with honoring winners and finalists in 15 journalism categories, the Pulitzer Board also recognizes distinguished work in areas including books, music and theater. The awards, which will honor work from 2023, are scheduled to be announced via livestream at 3 p.m. Eastern time. * Business Times | More than 90% of stablecoin transactions aren’t from real users, study finds: The dashboard from Visa and Allium Labs is designed to strip out transactions initiated by bots and large-scale traders to isolate those made by real people. Out of about US$2.2 trillion in total transactions in April, just US$149 billion originated from “organic payments activity”, according to Visa. * Rolling Stone | ‘Politico’ Misses Mark in Story on Who’s Funding Pro-Palestine Protests Against Biden: The Tides Foundation donated roughly $100,000 that year to the pro-Palestine protest groups, Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow. Attempting to connect the $300,000 going into the organization, as part of its $573 million in contributions, to the $100,000 going out to these groups is unrealistic, to say the least, without any specific indication from the donor. … Politico continues: “Another notable Democratic donor whose philanthropy has helped fund the protest movement is David Rockefeller Jr., who sits on the board of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. In 2022, the fund gave $300,000 to the Tides Foundation; according to nonprofit tax forms.” This is wrong. The linked document in that paragraph shows a donation the Tides Foundation made to the Rockefeller Brothers Fund — not the other way around. * AP | Missouri abortion-rights campaign turns in more than double the needed signatures to get on ballot: “Our message is simple and clear,” ACLU Missouri lawyer and campaign spokesperson Tori Schafer said in a statement. “We want to make decisions about our bodies free from political interference.” If approved by voters, the constitutional amendment would ensure abortion rights until viability.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Live coverage
Monday, May 6, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * You can click here 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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Reader comments closed for the weekend
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * Rachel Bradshaw and Jamey Johnson cover Townes Van Zandt… A treasure for the poor to find
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COGFA says revenue growth ‘largely in line’ with its forecast
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability’s April report…
It’s been a crazy four years for revenue forecasters. Maybe - maybe - things are becoming more predictable now.
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* Route Fifty…
 * Sun-Times…
* Chalkbeat…
* Capitol Connection | Stadelman discusses proposal to alleviate medical debt burdens: Governor J.B. Pritzker (D-Illinois) is pushing one proposal. It would have the state work with third party organizations to buy up people’s medical debt, and save the long term impacts of the payments. Senator Steve Stadelman (D-Rockford) has a different approach. He is pushing a bill in the Senate that would prevent medical debts from impacting a person’s credit score. * Daily Journal | Illinois gun lawsuits headed to U.S. Supreme Court?: After Illinois banned more than 170 semi-automatic firearms and magazines over certain capacities in January 2023, federal lawsuits were filed. Appeals of separate preliminary actions against the law were shot down by the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals last year. Plaintiffs in February asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene. On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court moved several Illinois cases, and one challenging Maryland’s ban, to conference for May 16, 2024. * Capitol News Illinois | Former state trooper who caused fatal crash halts effort to get driving privileges restored: Tom Daley, a retired Belleville criminal defense attorney who for 25 years specialized in handling DUIs and drivers’ license reinstatements, said he’s never seen an instance where a client had to submit to a mental evaluation for reinstatement purposes. But a Giannoulias spokesperson said that in cases where a crash caused by the driver has resulted in a death, it is common to require the petitioner to provide a mental evaluation and prove that they can safely operate a vehicle. Former Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White had previously blocked Mitchell’s attempts to have his license reinstated, overturning recommendations by his own hearing officer. * WCIA | State representative visits UIUC pro-Palestine encampment: Encampment organizers announced in their Telegram group that State Representative Abdelnasser Rashid will be visiting the encampment for a press conference at 1:30 p.m. to extend his support. * University of Illinois System | April University of Illinois System Flash Index increases for the third month in a row: The University of Illinois System Flash Index for April continued its upward trend moving to 103 from its 102.8 reading in March. “The strength of the U. S. and Illinois economies has surprised many observers. Over a year ago, a minor recession was expected but the hope was for a soft landing instead,” said Fred Giertz, Professor Emeritus, Institute of Government and Public Affairs, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “More recently, the desired soft landing seems to have been achieved. Now a third possibility is in play, that of no slowdown at all. The strength of the economy and recent inflation numbers has persuaded the Federal Reserve to defer expected rate cuts.” * Illinois Times | Lincoln and American Immigration: Expert to discuss latest book about Springfield’s favorite son Preeminent Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer will speak May 7 about his new book, Brought Forth on this Continent: Abraham Lincoln and American Immigration, during an event at the Lincoln Home National Historic Site. * News Channel 20 | Gov. Pritzker in talks with Springfield officials about revamping Y-Block: The Governor said he’s been in talks with Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher about placing something at the Y Block. […] Pritzker says he would like to see the potential site to be open all year long and open to the public. * SJ-R | Pritzker hints at Y-Block development during forum in Springfield: Of other local note, Pritzker maintains that state lawmakers will approve his proposal eliminating the grocery tax in the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. … “I know some of you will say ‘Well, gosh, one penny on a dollar doesn’t seem like a lot,’ but then again, people come and say, ‘Well, you know, every tax is, you know, is burdensome,’” Pritzker said. “I really believe in having a less regressive tax system. This is one tax I think we can eliminate.” * Illinois Times | An odd business partnership: An Illinois State Police officer who jointly owned a Wabash Avenue building with a Springfield man charged with using the site for sex trafficking and prostitution didn’t know anything illegal might be going on there, according to his attorney. “He denies any wrongdoing,” Springfield lawyer Scott Sabin said on behalf of state trooper Nathan Shanks. “He owns a legal and clean and appropriate real-estate business on his own with his wife.” Shanks hasn’t been charged with any crimes in a local and federal investigation into Asian massage parlors in the Springfield area. But Shanks’ name has come up in court documents in the case against Springfield resident Gregory Fraase. * In These Times | The Fight to Bring Chicago Home Isn’t Over: Polls and outreach by community organizations showed that the plan enjoyed significant support in the year leading up to the referendum. But the real estate industry wasn’t having it. Powerful real estate and property owner organizations declared that Bring Chicago Home would chill development and kill jobs. A dark money Political Action Committee (PAC) called Chicago Forward (formed in 2014 to support Emanuel’s re-election as mayor) contributed $800,000 to a separate committee called “Keep Chicago Affordable,” which opposed Bring Chicago Home, according to an In These Times analysis of Illinois State Board of Elections records between October 2023 and the March 2024 election. * Block Club | Chicago’s Shrinking Pride Parade: Police Want To Shorten Route After City Already Cut Entries: The route proposed by the Chicago Police Department would remove 48 officer posts. Members of the mayor’s Advisory Council on LGBTQ+ Issues say they want the parade restored to its previous form. * Sun-Times | Relative’s bank card crucial to tracking down suspect charged with killing Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca: A relative’s bank card was crucial to tracking down the man suspected of killing Chicago Police Office Luis Huesca as he returned home from work late last month in Gage Park, officials disclosed Friday. The suspect, Xavier Tate, 22, had used the card in a store not long before Huesca was gunned down shortly before 3 a.m. April 21 in the 3100 block of West 56th Street, Police Supt. Larry Snelling said at a news conference before Tate was to make his first court appearance on first-degree murder charges. * WTTW | 5 Years After Shooting Put Him in a Coma, Chicago Police Officer Reflects on the Road to Recovery: ‘I’ve Learned to Forgive’: “Just keep going no matter what,” Jones told WTTW News. “Be your self-motivator, your self-inspiration, your own muse. … You can’t be stuck in the past. Life continues to move forward, so should you.” For a time after the shooting, Jones depended on a wheelchair to get around. Now he moves strategically, using techniques from a therapist. * WBEZ | How the FAFSA debacle is playing out in one college counselor’s office: College counselors like Robinson are helping their students navigate the difficult situation — and trying to promote financial prudence without dimming the teens’ enthusiasm for college. In normal years, colleges send out financial aid award letters by February or March, giving students plenty of time to consider the affordability of their options before College Decision Day on May 1. But this year, colleges are woefully behind. According to a recent survey, as of April 16 about half of colleges had not even started packaging financial aid offers. * Crain’s | This legal startup packs an increasingly powerful political punch: In the last few months, Croke Fairchild brought on David Reifman, the former Chicago planning and development commissioner, to build out a real estate practice and then hired Jim Durkin, who retired last year as the Illinois House Republican leader, to do the same with municipal clients. The firm tapped the third branch of government in luring former Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas Kilbride, who starts June 1, to develop an appellate court practice. * Crain’s | Lakefront homeowners sue Winnetka over new bluff-protection rules: The owners of 25 lakefront homes in Winnetka, claiming a new bluff-protection ordinance will rob them of millions of dollars in property value, sued the village in federal court today. The plaintiffs, who own some of the highest-priced properties on the North Shore suburb’s lakefront, include investment executives Andy Bluhm, Terry Mackay and Michael Hara, former United Airlines president and Computer Discount Warehouse CEO John Edwardson and mortgage company chief Dmitry Godin. * Daily Herald | Wild Ones Kane County to host Native Plant Sale at Gray Willows Farm: Wild Ones of Greater Kane County is partnering with Campton Township Parks and Open Space for the 12th annual native plant sale on Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m to 2 p.m. at Gray Willows Farm, 5N949 Corron Road in Campton Hills. They will be offering over 150 species of native plants, as well as ferns, trees and shrubs. * Crain’s | Inside Edelman’s large language model and how it tracks brand trust: Dubbed “Archie,” the LLM took nearly one year to develop, requiring the use of open source code and training data provided by pre-existing models, as well as significant investments in time and labor. The overall costs have contributed to Edelman more than doubling its spend this year as compared to last year, which itself substantially outweighed the company’s spending for the year prior. * The Root | You Won’t Believe What Tiffany Haddish Has Done to Stop Internet Trolls: Though she denied having a fake Instagram account to snoop on what people are saying, she recently revealed to taking things a step further bringing in extra help to find these trolls and talk to them directly. Per the interview, Haddish shared that she hired a “digital forensics analyst to research where her death threats were coming from — 75% were created by robots in Malaysia and Iran, which made her feel better.” * Crain’s | Rivian taps Volvo exec as COO ahead of new-model launch: The move shakes up leadership at a delicate time for the automaker, which has battled production challenges, stock declines and shaky consumer demand in the increasingly crowded EV market. The Irvine, Calif.-based company, backed by big-name investors including Amazon.com, is the next biggest standalone, pure-play maker of battery-electric vehicles in the U.S. behind Tesla Inc.
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Fun with numbers (Updated)
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * CTU honcho upset at the governor about the Bears stadium plan…  Um, no. * From the linked article…
That works out to $4,594 per job, per year over the 30-year lifespan of the deal. [It’s actually probably much less than that because the company currently employs 8,000 workers in Normal] The deal requires Rivian to pay minimum wages of $51,000. Not to mention the suppliers and other companies coming to the state because Rivian is here and expanding. * From Deputy Gov. Manar…   Also, I asked Mr. Potter where he stood on the Bears stadium plan. He’s so far refused to give me a straight answer. …Adding… From a Crain’s editorial…
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Update to today’s edition
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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It’s just a bill
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Politico…
Yep. Here’s an AFL-CIO press release from February…
The bill is SB3649. * HB793 was re-referred to the House Rules Committee on May 1. WAND…
* WGIL…
SB1807 has not moved out of committee.
* WCIA…
* Sen. Steve Stadelman…
* Illinois Bankers Association…
* [From Rich Miller] Background is here if you need it. The fallout from the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s decision to not bother to challenge the release of an accused domestic abuser who then went on to kill his spouse and himself continues. And it’s getting ludicrous. From the Daily Herald…
I probably shouldn’t be so stunned that local news media outlets are just running with all the official deflection and obfuscation surrounding this case without even the slightest bit of push-back. But here we are. You’re gonna flip the presumption of innocence in some misdemeanor cases and not felonies? What the heck? Seems like a gross overreaction. Ever read People v. Purcell? The burden of proof falls squarely on the state. You know what would be better? If state’s attorneys actually did their jobs. As the above article also notes, DuPage County State’s Attorney Bob Berlin has finally decided to stop the finger-pointing and instead actually revamp his operation to prevent this sort of thing from happening again.
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Illinois Hospitals Are Driving Economic Activity Across Illinois: $117.7B Annually And 445K Jobs
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Over 200 hospitals and nearly 40 health systems: Illinois’ hospital community sparks economic activity and growth throughout the state totaling $117.7 billion every year. Such significant economic impact comes from a diverse group of healthcare providers—community and safety net hospitals, teaching hospitals and academic medical centers, rural and critical access hospitals, and specialty hospitals. Yet each one contributes to their community as economic anchors and large employers providing good-paying jobs. Consider the key findings in a new report on the essential role of hospitals on the economy:
• Illinois hospitals directly employ 190,000 Illinoisans; and • Every $1 in hospital spending leads to another $1.40 in spending. Driving economic growth is just one of the many roles hospitals have. Most associated with providing lifesaving care, hospitals and health systems also promote community health and well-being; foster neighborhood revitalization; enhance public health and safety through community partnerships; and advance health equity initiatives to ensure optimal health for all residents. Illinois hospitals and health systems support working families by generating a combined 445,000 jobs among hospitals and other sectors due to hospital spending. Learn more about the hospital community’s economic impact.
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Pritzker signs bill banning post-primary slating, adding advisory questions to ballot (Updated x2)
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Press release…
* Here’s some background from the Tribune…
* And more from Capitol News Illinois…
…Adding… Leader Curran…
…Adding… I told subscribers about this as well… 
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Rides For Moms Provides Transportation To Prenatal Care
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Surgo Ventures partnered with Uber Health and local health centers to provide transportation assistance to expectant mothers facing transportation challenges to their prenatal appointments. Across one city, the initiative covered over 30,000 miles, ensuring over 450 participants reached their prenatal appointments without hassle. One participant shared, ‘There were days when I didn’t want to get up from bed. Knowing that someone was going to pick me up… made me feel safer.’ With programs like Rides for Moms, transportation is no longer a barrier for new mothers to access essential medical care. Learn more
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Question of the day
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * Shaw Local…
* The Question: Do you or anyone close to you still manually read and/or send text messages while driving? Be honest! Explain.
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Get The Facts On The Illinois Prescription Drug Board
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] The price-setting board proposed in HB4472 is not the solution for Illinois. It would give bureaucrats the power to arbitrarily set medicine prices, deciding what medicines and treatments are “worth” paying for. We can’t leave Illinoisans’ health care up to political whims. Let’s make it easier, not harder for patients to access their medicines. Click here to learn more.
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Doctors accuse McHenry County State’s Attorney of making ‘baseless accusations’ about legislation (Updated)
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * More background on McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally is here if you need it. Click here to read the legislation in question. McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally personally sent me this press release yesterday. Here’s an excerpt…
Those are some pretty bold statements. * From the one-pager issued by proponents…
Some of the “special interests” which support the bill…
Rep. Steven Reick, a McHenry County Republican, is a co-sponsor. * From the Illinois State Medical Society…
* Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser…
* House sponsor Rep. Mary Beth Canty…
…Adding… Sen. Castro’s statement…
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Open thread
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * What’s going on in your part of Illinois?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: IG says state employees made up businesses, lied about income to defraud federal COVID aid program. Tribune…
- There are 275 instances in which the inspector general found PPP wrongdoing, the alleged thefts totaling more than $7 million in public funds. -All employees in these cases were later fired, according to records posted by the ethics commission. * Block Club | Friday Morning Swim Club Canceled As Organizers Blame City’s ‘Unreasonable’ Demands: In a social media video, Friday Morning Swim Club organizers Andrew Glatt and Nicole Novotny said they couldn’t strike a deal to approve the event after being met with “unreasonable demands” by the city. Glatt said he was quoted $108,000 to secure permits for the summer event, which sees thousands of swimmers — often decked out in colorful floaties — jump into Lake Michigan at a portion of Montrose Harbor where swimming is not allowed. * WaPo | Where seas are rising at alarming speed: The Gulf of Mexico has experienced twice the global average rate of sea level rise since 2010, a Post analysis of satellite data shows. Few other places on the planet have seen similar rates of increase, such as the North Sea near the United Kingdom. “Since 2010, it’s very abnormal and unprecedented,” said Jianjun Yin, a climate scientist at the University of Arizona who has studied the changes. While it is possible the swift rate of sea level rise could eventually taper, the higher water that has already arrived in recent years is here to stay. * Tribune | Legislators pass election bill that would favor Democrats in November: But the election bill given final approval by Senate Democrats Thursday on a 35-3 vote, with 18 Republicans voting “present” in protest, would further help Democrats maintain control in the next General Assembly. Under the measure, local political party organizations could no longer appoint candidates to fill out legislative ballots where the party did not field a primary candidate. Current law allows the appointment process within 75 days of the primary. * Crain’s | Rivian will add over 500 jobs in Normal to make new SUV: The state also is funding a second manufacturing-job training academy in Normal. The total value of the incentive package is $827 million and requires Rivian to maintain at least 6,000 jobs in Illinois. “The support from the state will allow us to quickly bring our midsize SUV, R2, to market and provide even greater consumer choice for EVs,” Rivian CEO R.J. Scaringe said in a written statement. “Gov. Pritzker has always been a strong advocate for providing economic opportunities for Illinois residents and business owners alike. We look forward to continuing our close partnership and building upon the success we have enjoyed.” * Tribune | Backed by state incentives, Rivian to invest $1.5 billion and add more than 550 jobs to build new R2 EV at Normal plant: The majority of the incentives will come from state tax credits paid out over 30 years, if Rivian meets its investment and hiring obligations. “They’re growing now and they had the opportunity to grow in Georgia or in Illinois,” Pritzker said during a news conference at the Rivian plant. “We wanted them to stay right here and create jobs here. That was why we put an incentive package together and made that offer to Rivian.” * Capitol News Illinois | Law enforcement community honors fallen officers at Illinois Capitol: The Illinois Police Officers Memorial occurs annually on the first Thursday of May to honor officers who died in the line of duty and to support their families. “No one looks forward to this day. We all wish we didn’t have to have a day like this,” Treasurer Micheal Frerichs said. “Every year we come back. And we’ll keep coming back for those people in law enforcement who gave their lives but also for their families.” * Sun-Times | Chicago Police won’t discipline nine officers who signed up for extremist group: “The investigation is closed and the allegations were not sustained,” a spokeswoman for the CPD said in a statement, declining to provide any documents from the internal probe. The brief statement stood in stark contrast to Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling’s zero-tolerance vow to the City Council in October, after WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times revealed the misconduct records of the cops with ties to the Oath Keepers. * Sun-Times | Asleep at the march? ACLU says Chicago may be unprepared for Democratic Convention protests: “Despite suggestions by some Chicago officials that the city is prepared for the Democratic National Convention, we are here today because they are not,” Ed Yohnka, spokesman for the ACLU of Illinois, told reporters. “Sadly, the city has not created a clear, transparent plan for welcoming those who want to come to demonstrate and express themselves on the issues of our day.” So far, the city has denied nearly every protest application from other groups that applied to march during the convention, which will be held from Aug. 19-22. The city offered them an alternative route through Grant Park, but the activists say that’s too far from their target audience of delegates and reporters who will be converging on the United Center and McCormick Place. * NBC Chicago | Chicago’s mayor seen running away from NBC 5’s Mary Ann Ahern: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was captured on video apparently running from reporters, including NBC 5’s Chief Political Reporter Mary Ann Ahern, following an event Thursday. * NBC Chicago | Suspect charged in killing of Chicago police officer faces additional charges: The suspect charged with the first-degree murder of Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca faces additional charges of aggravated vehicular hijacking and possession of a stolen firearm, Chicago police announced Thursday afternoon. The announcement by authorities comes ahead of a Friday morning news conference where State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Police Superintendent Larry Snelling are expected to reveal additional information. * Sun-Times | At crooked Bridgeport bank, official blew the whistle, but no one did a thing: Glusak “abruptly quit, leaving her keys in the mailbox,” according to court records. But that didn’t stop her from continuing to sound the alarm. She also wrote to the U.S. attorney’s office, which had a long history of prosecuting Chicago’s crooked politicians and business people. Her letter was eventually forwarded to the FBI. * Sun-Times | Red, white and blooey? Demolition begins on Thompson Center exterior: Crews used excavators to tear off lower exterior portions of the building at 100 W. Randolph St. on Thursday, marking an unofficial start to Google’s $280 million renovations of the 17-story building. Permits issued last October by the Department of Buildings called for removing the structure’s metal and glass skin. Renderings released by Google last year show a similar-looking building, with its trademark atrium still intact but absent of its longstanding blue, salmon and white color scheme. * Crain’s | How a deal to restore peace at Northwestern is sparking more friction: “My principles were to prioritize the health and safety of our entire community,” the embattled university chief told Crain’s in an exclusive interview today. But the early praise has given way to a fierce backlash over the agreement and its terms, landing the Northwestern president once again under intense scrutiny for his decision-making and leadership, with some calling for his firing. * Daily Herald | Aurora educator named Teacher of the Year: As a child, Rachael Mahmood struggled with finding a sense of belonging in school. However, the Plainfield resident didn’t let that stop her from pursuing her dream of becoming an educator and making sure her students see themselves in the lessons she teaches. Her journey was highlighted Thursday as state and Indian Prairie School District 204 officials surprised Mahmood with the news that she was named Illinois State Board of Education’s Teacher of the Year. * Tribune | New Dolton subpoena targets financial information for Mayor Tiffany Henyard, spending on trips: The most recent subpoena asks for more detailed information about expense reimbursements and other payments made by the village to Henyard and Keith Freeman, village administrator, according to trustees, who have separately hired former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot to investigate Henyard and a village-financed trip made by her a year ago to Las Vegas. Although it appears federal investigators are digging deeper into the village, trustees said Thursday it’s important to continue with Lightfoot, who will be paid $400 an hour to investigate Henyard and her administration. * WaPo | Texas man files legal action to probe ex-partner’s out-of-state abortion: The case also illustrates the role that men who disapprove of their partners’ decisions could play in surfacing future cases that may violate abortion bans — either by filing their own civil lawsuits or by reporting the abortions to law enforcement. Under Texas law, performing an abortion is a crime punishable by up to a lifetime in prison and up to $100,000 in civil penalties. Women seeking abortions cannot be charged under the state’s abortion restrictions, but the laws target anyone who performs or helps to facilitate an illegal abortion, including those who help distribute abortion pills. * Mediaite | Elon Musk Promises to Lift X Ban on Neo-Nazi Leader : Controversial billionaire and X owner, Elon Musk, vowed to allow avowed neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes back onto his platform on Thursday. Fuentes, the leader of the so-called Groyper Army, has been banned from the platform since 2021 and is infamous for his violent and bigoted rhetoric. Fuentes has long been active on the far-right in American politics and in the past has hosted a conference meant to be counter-programming to CPAC, which included speeches by Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Paul Gosar (R-AZ). * WaPo | Booming labor market poised to reach milestone for low unemployment: Economists predict that the April jobs report, to be released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday morning, will show the unemployment rate holding at 3.8 percent, marking the 27th consecutive month of unemployment below 4 percent. This would match a low-unemployment period between 1967 to 1970, and close in on the longest period on record, between 1951 to 1953. * Crain’s | Q&A: Why the U.S. economy is outperforming much of the rest of the world: The size of the U.S. economy, adjusted for inflation, is 7% larger now than it was before COVID hit these shores. That’s twice the gain in Japan and far better than the 0.3% increase in Germany, according to British Parliament data. In the past four years American workers’ wages grew 2.8% after adjusting for inflation, while wages fell by 9% in Italy and 7% in Germany during the same time.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Live coverage
Friday, May 3, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * You can click here 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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Rides For Moms Provides Transportation To Prenatal Care
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Surgo Ventures partnered with Uber Health and local health centers to provide transportation assistance to expectant mothers facing transportation challenges to their prenatal appointments. Across one city, the initiative covered over 30,000 miles, ensuring over 450 participants reached their prenatal appointments without hassle. One participant shared, ‘There were days when I didn’t want to get up from bed. Knowing that someone was going to pick me up… made me feel safer.’ With programs like Rides for Moms, transportation is no longer a barrier for new mothers to access essential medical care. Learn more
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Isabel’s afternoon roundup
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* JB Pritzker on SB2412, that prevents political party committees from appointing challengers if the party didn’t field a candidate in the primary, at an unrelated news conference today…
 * MAA shows some speed…
* WBEZ | Illinois environmental advocates say coal ash cleanup isn’t happening fast enough: Illinois set itself apart from the majority of the country when it finalized its coal ash rules back in 2021. Most states, save for a handful like North Carolina and Michigan, relied on 2015 federal guidelines designed to monitor and clean up only some coal ash residuals. Environmental groups scrutinized the rule for years as it excluded from potential oversight legacy coal ash ponds and landfills at power plants that were retired when the rule took effect. Now advocates say the forthcoming permits are dragging. “The Illinois EPA has been reviewing these proposed permits for almost two years,” said Andrew Rehn, the director of climate policy at Prairie Rivers Network in Champaign. “And that’s like a long time for these permits to sit and just be under review.” * Sun-Times | Why does Illinois’ Department of Natural Resources claim the public has no right to 98% of waterways?: Not far from our office door in Champaign lies the source of the Embarras River, which flows southward for 195 miles, coursing through eight counties before emptying into the Wabash River. Early settlers used this river and others as corridors for travel, trade and fishing. In time, they enjoyed boating on it in places like Greenup in Cumberland County. But according to the DNR, not one mile of the Embarras River is navigable and hence open to the public. The agency says much the same about tens of thousands of other river miles, including popular canoeing rivers such as the Middle Fork of the Vermilion just east of Champaign, the state’s only nationally designated scenic river. Users of these rivers, the agency asserts, do so only with the implied permission of neighboring landowners — permission that any landowner at any time could withdraw. * SJ-R | Organizations rally for social justice in schools, communities in Springfield: Black Greek organizations were joined by registered participants outside of the state Capitol on Wednesday to advocate for social justice in schools, communities and other spaces. The two oldest and intercollegiate Black organizations, Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority held, a joint advocacy day to focus on topics such as criminal justice reform, education and equitable health care. * IDOT | Rebuilding Metro East: Interstate projects highlight another historic construction season: Entering one of its busiest construction seasons ever, the Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that major projects in the Metro East are planned or underway, fueled by Gov. JB Pritzker’s historic, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital program. Twenty major projects combined represent a total investment of nearly $825 million, improving safety and mobility while sustaining and creating good-paying jobs throughout the region. * Crain’s | Howard Brown Health workers ratify contract: The INA said the three-year agreement includes a 7% average pay raise, a $19.23 minimum wage across the organization, lower health insurance premiums, insurance coverage for part-time workers and two weeks of paid leave for gender-affirming care, among other things. The ratification ends a year and a half of tense labor relations for the LGBTQ-focused health provider, punctuated by two strikes and an investigation by the National Labor Relations Board. * Block Club | Dom’s Kitchen & Market’s Sudden Closure Leaves North Side Food Pantry ‘Scrambling’ For Donations: Care for Real, the food pantry with locations in Edgewater and Rogers Park, used to get thousands of pounds of groceries from Dom’s before the upscale grocer abruptly closed late last month. The food pantry offered its clients pre-packaged meals like sandwiches and salads donated from Dom’s, Jen Kouba, Care For Real director of development and communications, said. * Tribune Column |Why I’m boycotting the Kentucky Derby — and why Chicago sports fans should too: My boycott comes in response to the vital role the management team at Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) played in the Bears’ 2023 destruction of the world-renowned and tradition-rich Arlington International Racecourse, one of the precious gems of Chicago sports. The rubble that remains is a monument to the greed of the people who run CDI and their disregard for the owners and trainers who raced their horses there and the fans and families who made trips to Arlington part of their summer sports and recreation menus. * Tribune | At Graue Mill, historical and environmental interests clash over removal of dam: It should have been a relatively simple project: Dozens of dams have been quietly removed across Illinois amid environmental and safety concerns. Instead, it took over a decade. A group of determined community members believed the dam was an integral piece of the Graue Mill. To remove it was to strip away a historic hallmark in the village, they argued. * Daily Herald | Patience paying off for Buffalo Grove on Rohrman redevelopment: After more than a decade of sitting dormant, the former Rohrman property on Dundee Road in Buffalo Grove is on its way to new life. Buffalo Grove officials and representatives of Shorewood Development Group gathered with hard hats and shovels Wednesday to make a break with the past and break ground on the future. […] When the dust settles and construction is complete, the 16-acre site on Dundee Road between Old Arlington Heights Road and Bison Park will be home to a new Tesla sales and service center, a 224-unit apartment building and 30,000 to 40,000 square feet of retail space. * Reuters | Bird flu outbreak in dairy cows fails to deter US raw milk sellers: Thirty of the 50 U.S. states permit the sale of raw milk, which accounts for less than 1% percent of U.S. milk sales. A nationwide survey of pasteurized milk - heated to kill pathogens - found avian flu virus particles in about 20% of samples tested. […] “Our consumers don’t like the FDA. If the FDA says to do something, they will do the opposite,” said Mark McAfee, owner of Raw Farm in Fresno, California, the largest U.S. raw milk dairy. * AP | Some WNBA teams look for bigger arenas when Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever come to town: The Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have moved their games against the Fever to bigger arenas. The numbers Clark generated in college indicates it’s a smart move. […] “She helps ticket sales, so I think it’s a really great time to have eyes. She’s going to be an elite player,” Aces coach Becky Hammon said. “She has been in college. She’s done stuff in college that nobody else has. She’s going to be a great player in the W. There’s no doubt about it. * Crain’s | Why Walgreens and Walmart struggle to make health care profitable: Walmart’s health care strategy took an abrupt turn Tuesday, as the company announced plans to shutter all clinics and stop virtual care services. Industry watchers say Walmart’s decision to close all 51 centers isn’t surprising, given the steep challenges retailers face to profitably deliver health care services. * 404 Media | Facebook’s AI Spam Isn’t the ‘Dead Internet’: It’s the Zombie Internet: I have spent more time than anyone I know endlessly scrolling through AI spam on Facebook. I have watched the evolution of Facebook’s AI spam go from slightly uncanny modifications of real images to the completely bizarre and obviously fake. I have done this from my own Facebook account, which I have had since 2005, as well as from two burner accounts I created specifically to track how AI-generated content is recommended on the platform and to see whether Facebook would put AI-generated images into my feed organically. I now use Facebook exclusively to see what kinds of bizarre AI content is going viral, and to attempt to figure out who is making it, why they are making it, and who is interacting with it.
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Rivian announces $1.5 billion investment in Normal facility, Pritzker talks about incentives
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * Press release…
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Support House Bill 4781
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] 
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Another budget pressure point (Updated)
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed budget doesn’t include money to help schools deal with the migrant influx. He was asked about that this week and here’s his response…
* But that response ignored the pressures in the suburbs. Capitol News Illinois…
* Chalkbeat…
Rep. Crespo’s amendment would actually appropriate $188 million. * WGN…
Thoughts? …Adding… From the governor’s office…
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Showcasing The Retailers Who Make Illinois Work
Thursday, May 2, 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 the Trebacz’s, who serve their communities with dedication and pride.
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Question of the day
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller * What would it take for you to support a smallish state investment in a new Chicago Bears domed stadium on the lakefront?
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Credit Unions: A Smart Financial Choice for Illinois Consumers
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] 
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$117.7B Economic Impact: More Than Healthcare Providers, Hospitals Are Economic Engines
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department [The following is a paid advertisement.] Illinois hospitals and health systems are essential to economic growth across the state. A new report illustrates the hospital community’s role as strong economic contributors who fuel $117.7 billion in economic activity every year, resulting in good-paying jobs and more vibrant communities. While hospitals are first and foremost providers of life-saving care, their role stretches farther. They are innovators; community partners in addressing challenges of food insecurity, homelessness, health disparities and more; and major employers serving as the hub of economic activity in their communities. Illinois hospitals and health systems create 445,000 direct and indirect jobs, and they support working families through over $50 billion in direct and indirect payroll annually. What’s more:
• Illinois hospitals directly employ 190,000 Illinoisans; and • Every $1 in hospital spending leads to another $1.40 in spending. As larger purchasers of supplies and services, Illinois hospitals and health systems spend nearly $62 billion to have on hand for every patient the medical equipment and supplies needed to care for patients in any circumstance. In addition, the hospital community spends over $5.5 billion in capital projects yearly that benefit patients, and provide good jobs to Illinois workers. Learn more about the hospital community’s economic impact.
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A fun night for all, House wins interchamber softball game
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * The House won last night’s interchamber softball game 14-13…
* From the Statehouse press corps…
* Here’s some cell phone snaps of yesterday’s game!… 
Big thanks to Rep. Marty Moylan for putting it together!
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It’s just a bill
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * Daily Herald…
* WAND…
* WAND…
* NBC Chicago…
* Sen. Mary Edly-Allen…
* WGEM…
* Sen. Rachel Ventura…
* Sen. Cristina Castro…
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Open thread
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * What’s going on?…
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Isabel’s morning briefing
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * ICYMI: House Democrats advance November ballot questions aimed at driving party turnout. Tribune…
- The bill also would afford some incumbent protection for legislators in November by preventing political party committees from appointing challengers to fill out legislative ballots if the party didn’t field a candidate in the March primary. - The referenda package was approved without debate on a 67-4 House vote, with nearly 40 Republicans voting “present.” * Related stories…
∙ WBEZ: Illinois voters could be asked about IVF coverage, millionaire tax in November ∙ Center Square: Democrats replace child welfare bill with changes to election law Governor Pritzker will give remarks at the Illinois Police Officers Memorial Ceremony at 11 am. At 1:30 the governor will announce an expanded investment in Rivian. Click here to watch. * WTTW | Illinois Doctors Would Have Easier Access to Patients’ End-of-Life Wishes Under Bill Advancing in Springfield: Another, more controversial proposal (Senate Bill 3499), that would allow patients with terminal illnesses to pursue physician-assisted suicide has not advanced. Its sponsor, state Sen. Linda Holmes, D-Aurora, said she doesn’t expect to move the bill this spring, as she is continuing to organically build support and plans conversations about it over the summer. * WCIA | IL Comptroller writes to USPS on potential Springfield center change: Mendoza said she’s worried the extra travel required will slow down payments to people if the Springfield Processing and Distribution Center changes and mail distribution is required in St. Louis or Chicago. “Given that Springfield is the seat of state government where a distribution hub is warranted, I ask for specific assurance from the US Postal Service that an impact analysis is thoroughly conducted prior to implementation so that it can verify there is no potential risk for performance delays,” the comptroller wrote in the letter. * Daily Herald | Pritzker: Bears lakefront stadium proposal still ‘a non-starter’: “The governor’s office remains open to conversations with the Bears, lawmakers and other stakeholders with the understanding that responsible fiscal stewardship of taxpayer dollars remains the foremost priority,” Wednesday’s statement reads. The Bears also issued a statement Wednesday, describing the talks with Pritzker’s representatives as “productive.” “We share a commitment to protecting the taxpayers of Illinois and look forward to further discussions,” the team said. * 25News Now | Gov. Pritzker, Rivian to announce ‘expanded Illinois investment’ on Thursday: Although no details about the investment are being released, two reliable sources told 25News on March 8 that state government leaders were working on financial incentives to help Rivian expand the local factory and perhaps hire thousands more new employees to build the more affordable R2 sport utility vehicle in Normal. * Chalkbeat | Illinois high school students must fill out FAFSA to graduate — maybe not this year, state says: State law has required students to complete the FAFSA in order to graduate from high school since the beginning of the 2020-21 school year. Students not planning to go to college could fill out a waiver. But now, a proposal in the Senate would waive the requirement entirely for the current school year. The proposal by state Sen. Dan McConchie, a Republican lawmaker representing northwest suburbs, comes months after the rocky rollout of the federal government’s “Better FAFSA”, which faced multiple challenges including a later opening date and technical issues that caused delays and uncertainty for college-bound students. * NBC Chicago | Illinois bill would combat catalytic converter thefts, lawmaker says: A new bill under consideration by the Illinois General Assembly would aim to discourage the theft and resale of catalytic converters, with the state having one of the worst rates of such thefts in the country. According to research cited by bill sponsor Sen. Michael Hastings, more than 2,000 insurance claims were filed between 2020-2022 after devices were stolen from vehicles, the fourth-highest rate in the U.S. during that time according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau. * WTAX | Illinois House and Senate meet on the field of play: This year the game was played at Robin Roberts Stadium for the first time and a large and enthusiastic crowd was in attendance. The spirit of bipartisanship was strong and several of the players and spectators talked about the importance of events such as this to build personal relationships. * Sun-Times | Suspect in slaying of Officer Luis Huesca arrested in Glendale Heights — with Huesca’s own handcuffs: Xavier L. Tate Jr., 22, was taken into custody without incident shortly after 7 p.m. following a “multi-state investigation” that involved the Chicago Police Department and “many other” law enforcement agencies, according to Belkis Sandoval, a spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force. Authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Tate on Friday night, when documents filed by the Cook County state’s attorney’s office charged him with first-degree murder in the April 21 shooting in the Gage Park neighborhood. * Sun-Times | These flowers are fake, but Chicago businesses are embracing them in a very real way as means to attract customers: They slither, curl and twine around windows, under eaves, over doorways in a riot of color — the way things might be if the world were abandoned to flowers. And they’re everywhere. In New York or London, you can’t help but notice storefront after storefront smothered in elaborate displays of flowers that never wilt or need water or pruning because they’re all fake. * NBC Chicago | 8 Chicago-area hospitals receive ‘D’ safety grade; other area hospitals move up in rankings: report: The report, from healthcare watchdog group and nonprofit Leapfrog, ranks nearly 3,000 hospitals across the country on safety through using more than 30 metrics that have a “direct impact on patient safety outcomes.” Some of those include nurse and doctor communication, hospital staff responsiveness, patient satisfaction and communication and discharge information, a press release said. * Block Club | A North Side Mental Health Crisis Team Has Assisted 94% Of Callers Without Police Help: Trilogy’s First-Response Alternative Crisis Team was founded in 2022 through a state pilot program aimed at providing alternatives to calling 911 for people experiencing mental health issues. The group, also known as FACT, was recently approved for state funding for the next fiscal year, and providers hope to continue expanding the program, leaders said. * Sun-Times | Amtrak adds new trains between Chicago and Twin Cities: The new service, one train in each direction, overlaps the Hiawatha service between Chicago and Milwaukee and the Empire Builder service, which runs between Chicago and Seattle, stopping in St. Paul, Minnesota, along the way. The new westbound train departs Chicago at 11:05 a.m. daily, about four hours before the daily westbound Empire Builder, and arrives in St. Paul at 6:29 p.m. The eastbound train leaves St. Paul at 11:50 a.m. and arrives in Chicago at 7:14 p.m. * Block Club | Logan Square, Avondale Could Get Special Tax District As Talks Revived: The Logan Square Chamber of Commerce is again gauging interest in establishing a “special service area” on Milwaukee Avenue between Armitage and Belmont avenues to pay for neighborhood services and amenities. The chamber has begun talks about the special service area with commercial and condo property owners along that stretch of Milwaukee Avenue. It’s at least the group’s third attempt to establish a special service area, which levies an additional property tax within specific boundaries to pay for communal services such as snow removal, trash pickup, business visibility and special events. * Sun-Times | First-ever trial over Zantac cancer claims gets underway in Cook County: The lawsuit is one of many claims made nationwide that the over-the-counter heartburn drug Zantac and its generics have an active ingredient that causes cancer. This is the first to make it to a jury trial. * Daily Herald | Great Scot: The Highland Games are moving to Wheaton: The Highland Games — convening this June at a new arena in Wheaton — celebrates cherished strands of Scottish culture: clan tartans, song, dance, food and brawn. Athletes heave tree trunks as tall as telephone poles in the caber toss, a test of accuracy. But the Games also showcase the power of family and fellowship. * WGN | Cicadas ahead of schedule, expected soon in Chicago area: Morton Arboretum experts say they have found the first signs of periodical cicadas a week and a half ago. They are ahead of schedule, and they expect the mass emergence in another week — meaning, millions among billions of them will emerge from the ground.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Live coverage
Thursday, May 2, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller * You can click here 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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