Illinois Governor JB Pritzker spoke Friday about proposed plans for a new Chicago White Sox stadium in the South Loop. […]
“It looks beautiful, and obviously we want all of our professional teams to succeed in Illinois,” Pritzker said.
Despite seeming impressed with the renderings of an open-aired, half translucent ballpark, Pritzker voiced concerns about how the plan would be funded.
“We need to be careful about how we use public dollars,” Pritzker said.
* Better Elections for Illinois…
The state-mandated Ranked-Choice and Voting Systems Task Force met today for the first time to evaluate the current state of Illinois’ election systems and discuss the process of implementing Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) for Illinois’ 2028 presidential primaries. State Sen. Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) and State Rep. Maurice West (D-Rockford) were elected as co-chairs of the Task Force during the call.
The Task Force will facilitate an accounting for how the state certifies certain election systems and equipment because right now, 30% of Illinois’ counties are utilizing outdated voting machines and systems that are vulnerable to election security threats.
“We took a concrete step today towards creating a more inclusive election process that will benefit voters and candidates, while helping Illinois modernize its election technology and improve election safety,” said Murphy. “I look forward to our upcoming meetings and am proud to be on a team that is dedicated to making elections better in Illinois.”
Using RCV in presidential primaries ensures that nominees represent a true reflection of the will of the people. It helps reduce wasted votes, curb toxicity, encourage greater diversity of candidates, and empower voters to back their preferred candidate instead of feeling they have to vote “strategically” against another candidate. Four states and territories will use RCV in their 2024 presidential primaries, and over 60 cities and counties have adopted RCV for local elections.
* WJBC | Study shows Illinois students have made a full recovery since the pandemic in English and language arts: Tony Sanders says a Harvard – Stanford study says Illinois is one of just three states making a full post-pandemic recovery in English and language arts. He is not surprised. “We actually have the best students in the nation. We really do,” said Sanders. “All the national reports indicate that Illinois is ahead of other states in our public education system. You look at the U.S. News and World Report report from last year that showed that we were ranked in the top ten in the nation for public education, K-12, you look at this report that Illinois continues to make gains.
* Tribune | Illinois plans to add more than 1,000 new public EV chargers: In addition, more than 200 charging ports are slated to be installed on the state’s interstate highways by the end of 2025. “You’ll see a whole lot of chargers,” said Lakhchaura, and they will be installed relatively quickly, “to make up for lost time.”
* SJ-R | Former state senator McCann taken into custody after violation of pre-trial release order: Central District of Illinois Judge Colleen Lawless said that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Illinois proved “clear and convincing” evidence that McCann had violated the conditions of his pre-trial release set back in 2021 when McCann was indicted on federal wire fraud, money laundering and tax evasion charges.
* Block Club | ShotSpotter CEO, Public Safety Leaders Clash With Activists As City’s Contract Set To Expire: “This issue is not as binary as you are making it,” said Anthony Driver, moderator and president of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, raising his voice after activists interrupted a commissioner’s turn to speak. “For people who have a ton of privilege … to dictate to communities that live under gun violence every day how they are supposed to feel … be respectful,” Driver said. “That is not OK.”
* Capitol News Illinois | Misdeeds by Carlinville funeral home director spur legislative proposals: On Thursday, Sen. Doris Turner, D-Springfield, introduced legislation mandates that a funeral director must place a unique identifier on the deceased’s body, body bag, and any body part, organ, or tissue separated from the deceased to be used in nontransplant organ donation. A director must also maintain chain of custody documentation for all dead bodies and human remains.
* WTTW | After 80 Families Received Wrong Remains From Downstate Funeral Home, Illinois Lawmakers Propose New Legislation: While Sangamon County Coroner Jim Allmon – who brought to light the misdeeds of August “Gus” Heinz, the funeral home’s operator – does not have a complete count of families affected, he said he knows of more than 80 cases where loved ones received the wrong cremains. To date, Allmon said, there have been at least nine exhumations, including the five at Camp Butler. Some of the cases go back to 2019.
* WBEZ | An in-depth look inside the campaigns for and against a tax to pay for homelessness prevention: On one side are the progressive grassroots organizers, homelessness prevention advocates and unhoused people themselves who for years have been pushing for the Chicago City Council to pose the question to voters. On the other side are real estate organizations and commercial property owners, who are raising money for mailers and holding Zoom roundtables in opposition to the referendum.
* Nieman Lab | Patterns in philanthropy leave small newsrooms behind. Can that change?: In the world of nonprofit news, it’s common knowledge that securing the funding to survive is an uphill battle. But the 32 nonprofit newsrooms that have joined the Alliance of Nonprofit News Outlets (ANNO) since last August, mostly comprising small, local newsrooms like the Ally and the Post, say that on top of that general difficulty, specific patterns in the way foundation funding is distributed disproportionately disadvantage their outlets.
* Chicago Reader | Saving the South Shore Nature Sanctuary: The sanctuary is straddled by the Jackson Park and South Shore golf courses, and plans to expand both into a single, PGA-caliber one by Tiger Woods’s design firm have been in the works since 2016. Efforts to privatize the untouched landscape and its “money shot” view of the downtown skyline—one of the best in the city—for televised golf tournaments could eliminate the entire sanctuary. But not if locals can help it.
* WBEZ | Looking back at the 1940 exposition that showcased Black art and innovation: Black people could pay to attend the 1893 World’s Fair, but as far as any other kind of participation, they could only work service jobs. The fair’s organizers didn’t approve any of the proposals for participation submitted by Black Americans. Borne out of the lack of accurate representation at events like the World’s Fair, Black organizers took it upon themselves to create expositions that presented Black history, Black achievement and Black innovation.
* WBEZ | Start your engines: Chicago Auto Show returns to McCormick Place this weekend: Electric vehicles will be in the spotlight this year. With nine electric vehicle manufacturers set to attend, the show will feature not just opportunities to purchase these cars, but also information for potential buyers unfamiliar with electric cars.
* WTTW | Forget Something? Drawings of Proposed White Sox Stadium Leave Nature Out of the Picture, Advocate Says: “Our job is to be ever watchful,” said Margaret Frisbie, executive director of Friends of the Chicago River, which has a seat on the task force. Among the group’s charges: “review of specific planned development proposals and potential site changes for buildings and properties along the river’s edge to ensure that new development is in line with the natural environment, recreation, and connectivity goals of the Chicago River Design Guidelines.”
* NYT | 40 Years Ago, This Ad Changed the Super Bowl Forever: In recent interviews, several of the people involved in creating the “1984” spot — Scott; John Sculley, then chief executive of Apple; Steve Hayden, a writer of the ad for Chiat/Day; Fred Goldberg, the Apple account manager for Chiat/Day; and Anya Rajah, the actor who famously threw the sledgehammer — looked back on how the commercial came together, its inspiration and the internal objections that almost kept it from airing. These are edited excerpts from the conversations.
* WSJ | Abraham Lincoln’s Unchurched Faith: The church came to Springfield slightly ahead of Lincoln. The town was surveyed in 1821, its first lots sold in 1823. The area was so undeveloped that one visitor described it as “a few smoky, hastily-built cabins, and one or two little shanties called ‘stores.’ ” John G. Bergen, a Presbyterian missionary, arrived in 1828 and two years later had built his first church.
Pretty pictures and rosy financial forecasts have piqued interest in building a new White Sox ballpark in the South Loop, but it’s time to put some meat on the bone and talk about how to pay for it.
That was the bottom line Thursday from Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, a key player in determining if the dazzling renderings released by developer Related Midwest turn into reality or remain a pipe dream.
“I would love to know how they’re planning to pay for it. I look forward to hearing that from the developers. I imagine they’re taking it step-by-step. They want to make sure there is an appetite for it,” Welch told the Sun-Times.
Spielman: Mayor Brandon Johnson’s first budget includes just $150 million for the migrant crisis that will run out in April … What is the mayor asking you to do and what are the chances he’ll be successful in getting more migrant money?
Welch: I have not received an ask from the mayor of Chicago regarding migrants. You know, it is the second week of session and I have not heard from the city of Chicago with an ask as of yet. Will one come? I’m pretty sure, but we have not received been asked yet.
Spielman: There is a new drive to eliminate the sub-minimum wage for tipped workers statewide just as Brandon Johnson progressive majority did in Chicago. Is that going anywhere?
Welch: You know it’s early on. I don’t know the answer to that, Fran. It’s so early. I don’t like to get ahead of the process. I had committees scheduled this week, but most of the House committees were cancelled. So we haven’t had any real substantive hearings on anything yet. We want the committee process to work. We want to vet bills, give people an opportunity to testify in hearings and hear the pros and cons. We want to hear the governor’s budget address and whether or not he has a position on that. You want to hear from those that have stakes in the budget and see how we can balance these things as we come towards the end here.
Spielman: Do you support eliminating that sub-minimum wage?
Welch: Again, I’m gonna not get ahead of the process. If I state a position on an issue, you know that could tip the scale. I want to let the process work. I want to hear the testimony in committees. Typically what I do after bills come out of committee, I will give my staff a list of bills that I want to jump on as co sponsors, bills that I want to vote for yes or no. And so I think this is no different. I want to let the process work. And at some point, I’m going to let my staff know whether I want to co-sponsor it, whether I want to vote for it. But we’re not at that point yet.
* Asked whether he would run any sort of House resolution on the war in Israel, as Mayor Johnson just did, Welch had this to say…
I mean, we have a job to do here in the state of Illinois. I think it’s extremely important that we stay focused on what we have to do here. We have a big budget ahead of us. Budgets are never easy to land … That’s what we’re focused on, the things that here in the legislature that we can control. And we you know, we’re gonna get the job done like we’ve done the last five years in a big way, that has led to credit upgrades. And I just want to stay focused on the things that we can control here in Springfield.
Spielman: Have you talked to your mentor Mike Madigan recently? Do you seek his sage advice when it comes to legislative issues?
Welch: [Laughs] I have not spoken to Speaker Madigan in a couple of years. It’s been some time since I last spoke to the speaker.
Spielman: Why not seek his advice?
Welch: I actually have sought advice from speakers all across the country. As I sit here today talking with you. There are seven Black speakers, we’re all first in our respective states. We use each other as sources, you know, to rely on to help. Because this is a difficult job. And so I have used some of my colleagues that are currently speakers dealing with diverse caucuses like I have, that have similar populations that we have in their respective states. And so I’ve been able to rely on my colleagues who are current speakers.
Illinois education officials are proposing an increase of $350 million in funding for local school districts next year, an amount that falls short of expectations and deals an initial blow to Chicago Public Schools’ efforts to address an impending budget crisis. […]
“Good luck with the state making that case to Chicago legislators” that $350 million is enough, [CTU President Stacy Davis Gates ] said.
“This idea that they are going to get out of this session without acknowledging the obvious about Chicago, I think that’s ridiculous,” she said.
* Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson sat down with WBEZ and talked about state school funding…
If you can’t convince Springfield to pony up more money, what is your backup plan?
It’s not like we’re asking for anything radical. We’re talking about social workers, counselors, class sizes that are manageable. We’re talking about full wraparound services for treatment for families who are experiencing the degree of trauma that exist in this city. We’re also challenging the state of Illinois to recognize that as our English-language learners population grows, that there’s support there, that individuals with disabilities, that those families have real accessibility within our public school system. Anything short of ensuring that Chicago Public Schools has everything that it deserves and needs is not acceptable.
But you don’t control Springfield. What is your backup plan?
To defund public education is a bad idea. That’s what it comes down to. Either we’re going to defund the school district or we’re going to fund it. Those are our two choices. For too long, politicians have come up with excuse after excuse of why we cannot fund public education. Public neighborhood schools were demonized. And where has it gotten us? We have vacancies, closures. We have population loss. There are people’s lives at stake.
You are demanding more money from Springfield, but isn’t there more you can do to run Chicago Public Schools more efficiently? The school district has some very small schools that some will say are inefficient.
We need to address it in a way that holds the community harmless. Now, are there bureaucratic structures that create a great deal of bottleneck? Of course. And is that something that the Board of Education in my administration would have to look closer at? Absolutely. But whether you are in a small school setting, or you are in a larger school setting, families still deserve a social worker and a counselor. The key is to make sure that the dollars reach the families … and it has to reach the families in a very meaningful way.
*** UPDATE *** Asked if the CTU or the mayor had made any formal ask of the governor for increased school aid, spokesperson Jordan Abudayyeh had a one-word response…
No
Keep in mind that the governor’s budget address will be delivered 12 days from now.
This is all performative, or amateur hour, or both.
Do you happen to know if there is any truth to (Illinois Governor JB) Pritzker sending buses to Quincy with migrants? Supposedly they are going in ShopKo.
Have you heard the rumor that the old ShopKo building is being retrofitted to bring in illegals from other countries to live/house/etc.? Please investigate. We absolutely don’t want this in western Illinois.
The number of similar questions about the same topic received by the staff at Muddy River News is easily in double digits.
RLP Development Company, Inc., a real estate development firm in Edwardsville, bought the former ShopKo property at 3200 Broadway for $1.8 million. Documents filed in the Adams County Recorder of Deeds office show the sale was finalized Dec. 16, 2021. RLP Development Company, Inc., in Edwardsville was listed as the buyer, while 3200 Quincy Holdings LLC from Brooklyn, N.Y., was listed as the seller. […]
When Ryan Darr, another project manager for RLP Development, was asked if the property eventually would be used to house migrants from Chicago, he laughed.
“Absolutely not,” he said.
Click here for one social media example. And, whew, this comment…
Sure would be a shame if that building happened to catch fire
[O’Hare] airport — for months home to hundreds of migrants who have camped out there while awaiting beds in the city-run shelter system — currently only has four migrants waiting there as of this morning, according to city data. The tentative relief comes after Chicago police stations, which at one point saw more than 3,300 asylum-seekers sleeping on floors, were also cleared of encampments in December.
Johnson’s deputy chief of staff Cristina Pacione-Zayas noted to reporters the progress coincided with accelerated efforts to resettle migrants in permanent housing or in other cities. But she acknowledged hard choices lie ahead for the city as the $150 million Johnson budgeted for the migrant response this year is slated to be spent by April.
“Every day we’re in meetings, on calls with the state, with the county, to figure out what the long-term plan is to get through the calendar year together,” Pacione-Zayas said.
She did not say whether closing shelters or making budget cuts midyear was on the table.
The other option is going back to the city council and asking for a supplemental appropriation since the city deliberately underfunded the spending lines.
As far as I can tell, the Tribune is the only major Chicago news media outlet to publish a story about how O’Hare has been emptied out. Click here to learn more, including that the shelter population has dropped by more than 11 percent since the end of December.
Lawmakers’ questions about the safety of Boeing’s airplanes had to compete Tuesday with GOP complaints about airports that house migrants.
Republicans have groused for months about unhoused migrants being kept in a shuttle bus facility at Chicago O’Hare International Airport and have prodded the Federal Aviation Administration to use its power to force airports to stop the practice before it spreads. They have argued that FAA approval is required before airport facilities can be used for things unrelated to aviation, while the agency has insisted that it doesn’t have total control over how airports use their ground space. […]
In response to questions from Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) — who tried to clear up the FAA’s role — [FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker] affirmed that the agency only has oversight of air operations, not necessarily what ground facilities are used for.
Last month, GOP members of the Senate Commerce Committee, including top committee Republican Ted Cruz of Texas, sent a letter to Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson asking whether resources at O’Hare are being diverted to house migrants.
More than 5,700 newly arrived immigrant students have enrolled in Chicago Public Schools since the beginning of the school year, district officials said Thursday.
Preliminary school enrollment data updated daily on the city data portal and analyzed by Chalkbeat shows overall enrollment increased by 4,500 students since the official count on the 20th day of school in September. After more than a decade of decline, CPS saw its enrollment stabilize this school year.
“The number is fluid and evolving,” CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said Thursday. “Our principals and teachers and school communities have been incredibly welcoming to the students and their families.”
* More from Isabel…
* Block Club | ‘Everyday Chicagoans’ Can Help Migrants Through New Volunteer Program: City leaders announced the New Neighbors Campaign on Thursday, saying it is collaborating with ChicagoCares and the Chicago Refugee Coalition to streamline and standardize volunteer opportunities to help migrants. The campaign’s first phase started last week, which included volunteers helping with things like the City Clerk’s Office’s city key events, the Resurrection Project’s temporary protected status workshops and New Life Centers’ donation work, said Rey Wences Najera, first deputy of immigrant, migrant and refugee rights.
* WGN | New city initiative to streamline resources to better handle migrant crisis: Interested organizations that would like to be a part of the New Neighbors campaign should reach out to the Office of Immigrant, Migrant, and Refugee Rights to be put in contact with Chicago Cares for additional support and for volunteer opportunities.
* Shaw Local | La Salle County approves non-sanctuary status to deter potential migrant influx: Chicago city leaders, however, have since imposed penalties of their own on unscheduled bus drop-offs, saying the abrupt nature of the drop-offs doesn’t allow the city to adequately prepare to house those in need. As a result of these new rules in Chicago, a number of buses have left migrants in the Chicago suburbs. So far, no buses have arrived in La Salle County.
We reported earlier this week that she'd been fired from American Income Life Insurance "for cause" in 2014 but that the reason was unknown. So now we know. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Parthum asked that she be able to question Collins on the topic and the judge agreed.
Sam McCann has been *taken into custody* after not being able to prove he communicated to the federal probation office like he was supposed to after getting discharged from the hospital Weds
Judge Lawless: “There seems to be an excuse every time. There are no more excuses, sir.” https://t.co/gLNQk5He8D
A longtime Chicago political operative pleaded guilty Tuesday to a scheme to bribe then-state Sen. Martin Sandoval on behalf of a suburban construction company that needed state approval for a development in East Dundee.
William Helm, the onetime deputy commissioner of the Chicago Department of Aviation and a former state transportation official, also admitted in a plea agreement with prosecutors that he and others helped arrange $40,000 in bribes to other, unnamed officials. […]
Sandoval pleaded guilty in January 2020 to bribery and tax charges and was cooperating in the ongoing investigation when he died in December 2020 of COVID-19 complications.
He admitted to taking $20,000 in campaign contributions — and later $70,000 cash from a SafeSpeed co-owner who was secretly working with agents — to act as the company’s “protector” in the Illinois Senate.
U.S. District Judge Colleen Lawless had ordered McCann to communicate with the federal probation office upon his discharge from Missouri Baptist Hospital in St. Louis, where he’d checked himself in after a weekend of feeling unwell.
But McCann was only able to prove he’d emailed his probation officer on Wednesday, when he was told he’d be discharged from the hospital later in the day. Accompanied by an assistant U.S. marshal, McCann went to retrieve his cell phone from his Ford F-250 pickup truck parked outside the courthouse – the same make and model of a vehicle prosecutors allege McCann partially funded illegally with campaign cash – in order to show Lawless he’d also emailed the probation officer when he got home, like he’d been ordered to.
But he couldn’t find anything in his sent email folder.
“I don’t see it, your honor,” McCann said. “I know that I sent it. I know that I hit ‘send’ twice.”
Federal prosecutors revealed Friday that former state legislator Annazette Collins was fired from an insurance job shortly after leaving the General Assembly for filing bogus insurance policies for customers who either didn’t ask for them or “did not exist.”
The disclosure came after lawyers for Collins told the judge she intended to testify in her own defense in her tax fraud case, which is now in its fourth day at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse.
Sen. Doris Turner, D-Springfield, is leading Senate Bill 2622 which would prevent any municipality from establishing a moratorium on a requirement that workers must hold residency to be employed. The bill clarifies the ability to initiate pauses is solely a state function. […]
The legislation comes after Springfield City Council adopted a moratorium in November. The pause allows Springfield to hire outside the city limits, needed to address hiring challenges its backers said.
The initiative was a push of first-term Mayor Misty Buscher with Ward 2 Ald. Shawn Gregory, Ward 3 Ald. Roy Williams Jr. and Ward 4 Ald. Larry Rockford voting against the ordinance. The council will revisit the moratorium in November, but no sunset date was established.
“The problem is we don’t have enough applicants for the jobs we need to hire for,” Buscher told The State Journal-Register following the vote. “It’s my job as the mayor to lead the city forward in getting the workforce, getting the things taken care of.”
Two state lawmakers on opposite ends of the political battlefield agree on one thing: People who make Illinois their home deserve some tax breaks.
Democratic state Rep. Kelly Cassidy’s HB5152 would benefit people who relocate to Illinois “as a result of attacks on health care access and free speech in their home states.” Under her bill, any taxpayer who relocates to Illinois as a patient or household member of a patient is eligible for a $500 tax credit. The bill also provides the same credit for licensed healthcare providers or teachers and their households. […]
Republican state Sen. Seth Lewis is championing legislation that rewards businesses who are staying put in Illinois.
His Senate Bill 2075 calls it a “legacy tax credit.” It gives $100 for each year the taxpayer owner of a sole proprietorship, LLC or corporation has been headquartered in Illinois. There would be a limit to 10 percent of their state income tax obligation, says Lewis, a small business owner as a State Farm agent.
Illinois Senate Democrats are moving forward on legislation that would give mentally capable patients who are terminally ill an option of ending their own lives.
The “medical aid in dying” measure, sponsored by State Sens. Laura Fine, D-Glenview, and Linda Holmes, D-Aurora, would allow terminally ill adults with a prognosis of six months or less to obtain prescription medication that they can self-ingest to end their lives. It was filed in the General Assembly Thursday evening. […]
The bill would allow qualified individuals, not medical professionals, to self-administer a medication to end their lives. It also would require doctors to inform patients about all of their end-of-life options, including hospice, palliative care and pain control.
Patients would have to give two verbal requests for the medication — with a five-day waiting period between the first and second request. A written request would also be required.
And no physician, health care provider or pharmacist would be required to participate in the law — offsetting concerns from doctors and hospitals operating in institutions affiliated with religious organizations.
Amends the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Act. Creates the Youth Nonviolent Crimes Resource Program. Provides that the Criminal Justice Information Authority shall provide resources to people under the age of 18 who have committed a nonviolent crime. Provides that these resources shall include youth employment initiatives throughout the State, access to educational resources in collaboration with the Illinois State Board of Education, and parental mentorship training conducted by the Department of Human Services. Provides that the Authority shall develop a mentorship initiative for youth that have been convicted of a nonviolent crime. Provides that the Authority may establish a grant program for non-profit organizations. Provides that the Authority shall publish this program on its website by no later than January 1, 2024. Effective immediately.
Amends the Hospital Licensing Act. Provides that “hospital worker” means any person who receives an hourly wage directly or indirectly via a subcontractor by a hospital licensed under the Act. Replaces references to “nurse” with “hospital worker”. Provides for additional staffing transparency and reporting requirements. Provides that hospitals licensed under the Act must employ and schedule enough hospital workers to provide quality patient care and ensure patient safety. Provides that hospitals must make available, at the beginning of each calendar year and upon request, all staffing matrices and other staffing metrics, if any, used to assess and maintain safe staffing levels for hospital workers in each unit. Provides that the Department of Public Health shall produce an annual report based on staffing disclosures. Provides that the Department shall make recommendations for minimum staffing standards for hospital workers in each hospital unit. Provides that hospitals licensed under the Act shall conduct, within the first month of employment and at no cost, a competency validation for each hospital worker hired. Provides that a hospital must submit documentation of each hospital worker’s competency validation to the Department within 4 weeks after the worker’s start date. Provides that hospitals shall conduct ongoing verification for each hospital worker employed during a given calendar year to determine each worker’s continued competency to perform the worker’s job and shall submit documentation of each worker’s ongoing verification to the Department within 2 weeks of completion. Provides that hospitals shall submit a list of all competent employees currently employed at the end of each calendar year. Provides for a public registry of all competent employees to be maintained by the Department. Provides for the imposition of civil penalties for specified violations of the Act. Describes an assignment despite objection resolution process to be implemented by each hospital that is licensed under the Act. Provides for a Hospital Safety Advocate role to be created within the Department.
Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that insurers shall cover all services for pregnancy, postpartum, and newborn care that are rendered by perinatal doulas or licensed certified professional midwives, including home births, home visits, and support during labor, abortion, or miscarriage. Provides that the required coverage includes the necessary equipment and medical supplies for a home birth. Provides that coverage for pregnancy, postpartum, and newborn care shall include home visits by lactation consultants and the purchase of breast pumps and breast pump supplies, including such breast pumps, breast pump supplies, breastfeeding supplies, and feeding aides as recommended by the lactation consultant. Provides that coverage for postpartum services shall apply for at least one year after birth. Provides that certain pregnancy and postpartum coverage shall be provided without cost-sharing requirements. Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that post-parturition care benefits shall not be subject to any cost-sharing requirement. Provides that the medical assistance program shall cover home visits for lactation counseling and support services. Provides that the medical assistance program shall cover counselor-recommended or provider-recommended breast pumps as well as breast pump supplies, breastfeeding supplies, and feeding aides. Provides that nothing in the provisions shall limit the number of lactation encounters, visits, or services; breast pumps; breast pump supplies; breastfeeding supplies; or feeding aides a beneficiary is entitled to receive under the program. Makes other changes. Effective January 1, 2026.
State Senator Doris Turner is outlining a plan to hold funeral homes accountable following the mishandling of human remains at a funeral home in Carlinville.
“The status quo isn’t working,” said Turner (D-Springfield). “These are people who deserve dignity and respect. This legislation will ensure that no family will have to worry that the death of their loved ones aren’t handled with dignity and respect.”
Senate Bill 2643 would require the death care industry in the state as well as state regulators to implement a mandatory identification tagging system for all human remains. It also would establish a chain of custody system that tracks the human remains of a deceased person whose death occurred in the state from death to final disposition, if the final disposition is in Illinois.
The measure would put procedures and protocols in place to prevent the misidentification and misplacement of bodies or human remains and conduct that results in a method of final disposition that differs from what is stipulated by the deceased individual or the deceased’s next of kin.
Creates the Gas Stove Labeling Act. Provides that no person shall sell, attempt to sell, or offer to sell to a consumer in the State a gas stove that is manufactured on or after January 1, 2025 unless a label on the gas stove bears a specified message. Provides that manufacturers or importers shall affix adhesive labels to the gas stove in a position that is easily read by a consumer examining the product. Provides that the label must be in a type size no smaller than the largest type size used for other consumer information on the product. Provides that a violation of any of the provisions of the Act is an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides that all remedies, penalties, and authority granted to the Attorney General by the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act shall be available to him or her for the enforcement of the Act. Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act to make a conforming change.
Creates the Lawns to Legumes Act. Establishes the Lawns to Legumes Program, which requires the Department of Natural Resources to provide assistance for installing pollinator-friendly native plants in residential lawns to protect and support native species of pollinators. Provides that the Department shall adopt rules for the Program. Provides for individual support grants to reimburse Illinois residents for up to $400, subject to appropriation and other requirements. Provides for demonstration neighborhood grants to units of local government and nonprofit organizations through a request for proposal process, subject to appropriation and other requirements. Provides that homeowners associations and common interest communities may not prohibit the planting of pollinator habitats. Defines terms.
New legislation in Springfield backed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker would require a lawyer for young people under 18 during a police interrogation, an expansion of juvenile rights after video obtained by WBEZ showed a suburban Chicago detective extracting a teen’s false confession to a shooting.
The bill, introduced this week by state Sen. Robert Peters, D-Chicago, applies to any public official’s questioning of a child in custody about any crime. It would also bar kids from waiving their right to counsel. Under the measure, any statement by a minor without a lawyer’s presence would be inadmissible as evidence against the child in any juvenile or criminal proceeding. […]
The law enforcement groups have derailed attempts to pass similar legislation. One such attempt resulted in a compromise measure that took effect in 2017. The law requires a lawyer for kids under 15 and applies to homicides and sexual assaults only.
That measure did not protect a 15-year-old interrogated for 43 minutes in 2022 at a Waukegan police station without a parent or attorney. The police charged him with a shooting that injured a dollar store clerk. The teen went to jail and stayed there until his basketball team proved he was in another town during the shooting.
* ICYMI: Democratic candidates for state’s attorney split on juvenile crimes, retail theft. Tribune…
- It was the first televised debate between former Illinois Appellate Justice Eileen O’Neill Burke and ex-prosecutor and corporate lobbyist Clayton Harris III.
-Harris and O’Neill Burke diverged on where to place thresholds for prosecuting retail thefts as a felony and the treatment of minors arrested for carjackings and coordinated retail thefts.
- O’Neill Burke said she would work to make sure juvenile offenders were supervised after school.
* Center Square | Former Madigan chief of staff set for sentencing after judge rejects call for delay: Tim Mapes, 68, served for decades under Madigan as the clerk of the Illinois House and as Madigan’s chief of staff. In August, a federal jury found Mapes guilty of perjury and obstruction of justice for lying to a grand jury investigating Madigan and others. He is set to be sentenced at 10 a.m. Monday in the courtroom of Judge John Kness.
* Sun-Times | Top lawmaker says Sox must say how they hope to finance South Loop ballpark: Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, briefed on the Related Midwest plan, told the Sun-Times “pretty pictures” building public interest are not enough. “If they’re trying to do something in this legislative session, they need to start educating and informing people relatively soon.”
Governor Pritzker is kicking off a state-wide tour to highlight smart start investments. Easterseals DuPage and Fox Valley in Villa Park will be the first stop at 10 am then First United Methodist Child Care Center in Champaign at 1:15 pm. Click here to watch.
* Here’s the rest of your morning roundup…
* Tribune | White Sox likely would have to change state law to get taxpayer funding for new stadium: The Chicago White Sox met with a state funding agency to present plans for a new stadium, but officials say lawmakers would have to increase the borrowing limit if the team wants taxpayer financing. The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority would be a major potential source of financing, because it funded construction of the current Sox home at Guaranteed Rate Field. But without a change in state law, the agency has only about $100 million in available funding, CEO Frank Bilecki said — not nearly enough for a development that could cost more than $1 billion.
* Crain’s | Democratic Party of Illinois launches new fundraising push: Chicago insurance executive Charles Smith will helm the Democratic Party of Illinois’ newest fundraising initiative, InvestBlue, the party announced. Smith will work closely with Democratic Party of Illinois Chair Elizabeth “Lisa” Hernandez, to recruit and maintain a base of party funders through the new membership program.
* WCIA | IDOT workers authorize strike with 95% in favor: Matt McQuaid, a Teamsters spokesperson, said the primary roadblock to getting a new contract is that the state wants to switch workers to a different healthcare plan. The workers want to keep using the plan they currently have.
* WAND | Changes coming to early voting in Sangamon County: Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray says voters may see some differences this year. The primary change will be with the technology at the voting location. “We’re into a new modernized age of tabulation equipment that is much more hardened and secure,” said Gray. “You’re getting the very best in updated equipment to ensure the accuracy and the integrity of your election.”
* BND | St. Clair County adds 1K new voters ahead of IL primary election. Are you registered? With the primaries still more than a month away, Holbrook expects those numbers to increase and said registrations are trending at the expected rate for a primary election in a presidential election year. The 2020 primary election saw 2,304 St. Clair County residents register to vote.
* Herald-Whig | Fraternal Order of Police voice support for Moore for House seat: On the first day of early voting in the Illinois, representatives from the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police were in town to show their support for former Quincy Mayor Kyle Moore, who is running to replace Randy Frese, R-Paloma, in the state’s 99th legislative district.
* Tribune | Joliet massacre suspect’s girlfriend to plead not guilty to hampering investigation: Cleveland-Singleton faces obstruction of justice charges for allegedly making false statements to Joliet police shortly after the shooting spree. A grand jury indictment alleges that Cleveland-Singleton claimed to not know Nance’s phone number, said falsely that she last spoke to Nance at a gym and kept her cellphone from investigators.
* WHBF | Thomson prison workers push for federal protections; inmate charged under new state law: Employees say a recent guilty plea from an inmate is a start, but they’re looking for more. Inmate Fred Smith pleaded guilty to exposing himself to a woman who works at the prison. Prosecutors charged Smith under a new Illinois law that makes that activity in a prison illegal. However, there’s no federal law that does the same thing, and union leaders at the prison want that to change.
* Crain’s | Lion Electric to get nearly $50 million in EV incentives — much more than expected: When the Canadian bus and truck maker announced its plans to build a factory in Illinois, the tax credits were estimated at $8 million with an employment target of about 750 jobs. That was before Illinois created incentives tailored to help electric-vehicle and battery manufacturers as part of a broader clean-energy effort by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. The law was updated in late 2022.
* Tribune | Off display: As new rules about Native American artifacts go into effect, the Field Museum and others in Illinois must comply: The revised regulations are sweeping: They demand museums speed up the process of repatriating Native American “human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects or objects of cultural patrimony,” establishing ownership and lineage between museum collections and Native American descendants, returning anything requested. Museums must update their inventories of Native American remains and funerary objects within five years. Also, curators can no longer categorize such items as “culturally unidentifiable,” thereby holding them indefinitely. Tribal knowledge and traditions must be deferred to.
* Crain’s | Questions swirl around Trump’s Chicago tower as a judge weighs his company’s fate: And even if Trump chose to liquidate assets, there’s not much to sell in the case of the Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago. The luxury hotel is not generating a lot of cash, documents show. More than 200 of the 339 hotel rooms are owned by investors. And the 485 residential condo units are individually owned. There is, of course, the value of Trump’s brand equity, open to a wide interpretation.
* Sun-Times | City approves new hotel design for Bally’s Chicago casino site — but location of additional 400-room tower still up in the air: The hotel was originally supposed to go on the north end of the plot near the Chicago River, with a massive 400-room hotel tower slated to be added on top in a second phase of construction. But that plan went bust when planners determined massive caissons needed to support such a tower would damage water pipes at that location, Bally’s announced last month. The Rhode Island-based company blamed “unforeseen infrastructure issues,” though the site had been under consideration for well over a year.
* WSIL | SIU Carbondale sees increase in enrollment for spring semester: Southern Illinois University in Carbondale saw a growth in overall student population for its Spring 2024 semester. The college enrolled 401 new students, a 4% growth from Fall 2023. The Fall semester was the first time since 2014 the university saw an overall growth in enrollment numbers.
* reason | Surging Immigration Will Reduce Deficits by $1 Trillion: That reduction is due in part to higher-than-expected economic growth, which the CBO attributes to “more people working.” The labor force has grown by 5.2 million people in the past year, “mostly because of higher net immigration.”
* News-Gazette | Clash of the bots: Illini robotics team to host college, high school competitions: This is only the second year for the Cornfield Clash Tournament hosted on the University of Illinois campus, but the team is already pushing to make it bigger. Last year, they hosted ten college teams. This year, there will also be 30 high school teams entering a second day of competition
* Semafor | How Condé Nast bought and destroyed America’s iconic music publication: Last month, Semafor broke the news that Condé Nast will fold the publication into GQ, laying off Pitchfork’s top editors and at least 10 other longtime staff writers, some of whom had joined the music media outlet when it was a Chicago-based blog in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
* SJ-R | Former state representative Sandy Hamilton returning as SHG volleyball coach: If she wanted to, Hamilton could’ve simply applied by handing in her resume, but even SHG administration knew what they had in the candidate. After three seasons away, Hamilton is back. Hamilton, who coached the Cyclones for eight seasons from 2013-21, went 196-56 and won Class 3A regional championships in 2014-15 and 2017.
