Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I think you’re gonna like this one. Man, it’s so good. I could listen to it all day. Here’s Rhiannon Giddens…

Just follow me tonight

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Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Block Club Chicago has more on the Pilsen shelter measles case…

Migrants at a city-run shelter in Pilsen were startled awake about 1 a.m. Friday and told there was a measles outbreak, the doors were locked, there was a 10-day quarantine — and anyone who left would lose their place there, new arrivals told Block Club. […]

Those who can prove they have been vaccinated were allowed to leave starting late in the morning Friday, while others must stay inside the shelter and quarantine.

* Tribune…

A large majority of Illinois students who participated in specialized, intensive tutoring during the 2022-23 school year met academic goals in reading and math, highlighting the success of an education recovery program that targets students most impacted by the loss and disruption of learning during the pandemic.

From fall to spring, nearly 90% of tutored students met or exceeded expected growth in math, and 80% did so in reading, according to a report published in January.

The report analyzed more than 1,300 students in grades 3 to 8 who received individual or small group tutoring as part of the Illinois Tutoring Initiative, a collaboration between school districts and a handful of higher education institutions.

Known as “high-impact tutoring,” the tutors met with the students for one hour, three times a week for eight to 14 weeks in sessions linked with what they are learning in the classroom, according to the Illinois Tutoring Initiative which operates the program.

Click here for the full report.

* Sun-Times…

Lance Michael Ligocki, 34, of Oakwood was arrested Thursday and is charged with civil disorder and assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers — both felonies — along with other misdemeanor charges. The feds say he was given the moniker #FullFlagSuit online.

A photo allegedly from Ligocki’s Facebook account depicts him wearing an American-flag “Trump” hat while holding a bust of former President Donald Trump. And in one online message written Jan. 9, 2021, Ligocki allegedly said, “Trump is a lone Wolf, Pence is a snake and we the people are being silenced.”

Prosecutors say Ligocki can be seen on video footage from the riot approaching the Capitol’s lower west terrace. That’s where investigators say he swung a pole with the “Trump” flag at police three times while carrying a “Stop the Steal” sign.

The attack on the U.S. Capitol prompted a massive criminal investigation that led to criminal charges against more than 1,300 people across the country. Ligocki is now one of nearly 50 Illinois residents who are among them.

* Also, Jason Meisner…

* Here’s the rest…

* NPR Illinois | When it comes to sports betting, Pritzker wants a bigger cut of the action: It’s safe to say Illinois’ bet on sports wagering has paid off. The state’s revenue is higher than anticipated when lawmakers made betting on sports legal. Gov. J.B. Pritzker, as part of his budget proposal, called for more than doubling the tax from 15% to 35%. An analyst who follows the industry said it’s a bold move, but thinks the governor can make it happen.

* SJ-R | Biden calls Belvidere, Illinois, “the great comeback story’ during State of the Union: All told, the $19 billion contract sets aside nearly $5 billion for the Belvidere plant and looks to add 2,500 jobs — hiring 1,200 employees to build pickup trucks and another 1,300 more workers for an electric vehicle battery factory.

* Crain’s | Biden highlights Stellantis’ plans to reopen Belvidere plant in State of the Union address: He called out UAW President Shawn Fain and autoworker Dawn Sims, who were in the audience. Matt Frantzen, head of the UAW local in Belvidere, also was scheduled to attend the State of the Union as a guest of Illinois Rep. Bill Foster, whose district includes the plant. “To folks in Belvidere, Instead of your town being left behind, your community is moving forward,” Biden said. “Before I came to office, the plant was on its way to shutting down. Thousands of workers feared for their jobs. The UAW worked like hell to keep the plant open and get those jobs back.”

* WGLT | From the projects to the bench: Carla Barnes-Wheeler’s important journey: When Barnes-Wheeler was 12, the matriarch of the family, her grandmother, died. The children were scattered. Barnes-Wheeler came to Bloomington-Normal to live with her sister, a student at Illinois State University. For the first couple months that was living, very quietly, in a Wright Hall dorm room. Uprooted. Absent father. Ill mother. Many people would be crushed by those hits. Barnes-Wheeler said it made her more determined.

* Daily Herald | Democratic congressional candidates differ on NATO, military spending: Casten, a former energy industry entrepreneur who’s seeking a fourth term, said NATO’s existence is crucial to the “post-World War II order in Europe.” The organization’s collapse, he said, “is (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s dream.” […] Ahmad, a health care advocate making her first bid for elected office, was critical of the amount of money the U.S. spends on its military, calling it “absolutely unsustainable.” She insisted the U.S. needs to be “for peace” and to pursue diplomacy and statesmanship instead of using military might.

* Crain’s | NanoGraf inks deal for big Near West Side expansion: After securing two big contracts with the U.S. Army to develop and ramp up production of batteries for soldiers’ equipment, NanoGraf has inked a deal to occupy the entire 67,850-square-foot building at 455 N. Ashland Ave., the company said in a statement. The industrial building is just more than a block west of NanoGraf’s existing home at 400 N. Noble St., where it debuted a new 17,000-square-foot production facility in December.

* Shaw Local | McHenry County jail expects to bring in more than $500K for first 2 months of housing Lake County inmates: The average daily population of Lake County inmates in McHenry County jail was about 102 in January, the first month of the arrangement, but that climbed in February to 150, the maximum allowed, according to county documents. The Lake County Sheriff’s Office began transferring inmates to McHenry County Jail shortly after the new year, following an agreement the McHenry County Board approved in November to help Lake County cope with staffing shortages. Lake County pays McHenry County $100 per inmate daily as part of the contract, but McHenry County remains on the hook for expenses such as health care, food and transportation, which county officials estimate are about $31 per day per inmate. “It’s very fluid,” McHenry County Chief Financial Officer Kerri Wisz said of the expenses.

* Tribune | Mistrial declared in juice loan extortion case after agent mentions ‘organized crime’: A federal judge on Friday took the rare step of declaring a mistrial for two west suburban men accused in a juice loan extortion scheme after an FBI agent testified he investigated “organized crime matters,” a term that the judge had explicitly barred to avoid prejudicing the jury. Gene “Gino” Cassano, 55, and Gioacchino “Jack” Galione, 47, both of Addison, are charged with conspiring to collect a debt by extortionate means, which carries a maximum of 20 years in prison. Galione is also charged with using violence to collect a debt.

* Daily Southtown | Business owner sues Calumet City for reversal of gas station approval, alleges racism: Mohammed Abdallah received a unanimous recommendation in September from the Zoning Board of Appeals to develop a gas station on property he purchased at 473 Burnham Ave. The City Council approved the plans Sept. 11 by a 3-2 vote and two alderman voting present, according to the meeting minutes cited in the lawsuit. City officials indicated the development would move forward and Mayor Thaddeus Jones offered congratulations, according to the lawsuit and interviews with Abdallah.

* Sun-Times | Chicago cop shown kneeling on 14-year-old’s back in viral video faces dismissal: However, formal disciplinary charges seeking his dismissal still haven’t been filed or made public. Vitellaro was off duty when he learned his son’s bike had been stolen and drove to a Starbucks at 100 S. Northwest Highway in Park Ridge, where someone had brought it, police oversight officials said in a report obtained through a public records request.

* Block Club | Logan Square Women Donate Homes Worth More Than $1.5 Million To Preserve Affordable Housing: Sally Hamann and Anne Scheetz gave their homes to a community land trust to help lower-income neighbors buy homes in the gentrifying area. Families will move into the renovated homes this year.

* Sun-Times | Alligator gar, Illinois’ biggest native fish, spread farthest north in latest restoration: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began a multi-state effort to reintroduce alligator gar in the 1990s. Illinois became involved in 2010. Before reintroduction began, the last known alligator gar, about 7 feet in length and weighing about 130 pounds, in Illinois was caught in 1966 from the Cache-Mississippi Diversion Channel in Alexander County.

* Block Club Chicago: This Week In Photos: Primary Races Ramp Up, Scientology Church Opens Next To Dorm And More. The temperatures have dropped since the warm weekend and news has been nonstop. See what Block Club reporters captured while covering the neighborhoods this week.

* WBEZ | ‘Oppenheimer,’ nukes and secrets: Take a walking tour of Chicago’s atomic history: UChicago played an absolutely critical role in the Manhattan Project, the U.S. government’s top-secret initiative to develop nuclear weapons. The university’s Hyde Park campus is where scientists led by Enrico Fermi built the world’s first nuclear reactor in 1942, generating just a tiny amount of energy — half a watt — but proving that it could be done.

* ABC Chicago | Artificial intelligence runs fully-operational kitchen at Mall of India food court in Naperville: The Nala Chef is a robot that uses machine learning to replicate recipes and customize food to each individual’s preference. It can also operate 24/7. Nala Robotics, the company behind the technology, states that it’s the, “world’s first fully-automatic multi-cuisine robotic chef.”

* WCIA | EIU preps for Unofficial St. Paddy’s festivities: “Ideally, it’s going to be an experience where students will have challenges, but we would like them to simply be smart, be wise and be adults,” said Lieutenant Michael Lusk of the EIU Police Department. “But, we want them to have fun at the same time.”

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Fun with numbers: When a claimed 40 percent cut is actually a 43 percent increase

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The Tribune editorial board likes the idea of eliminating the grocery tax, but hates the idea of cutting funding for local governments…

And when you look at the fiscal problems present in suburbs like Evanston, which has little or no money to pay for replacements to aging city facilities, you can understand why the municipalities are trying to argue that the small individual savings are insignificant compared with their own cumulative losses.

You could, of course, argue that about any potential tax cut. But officials like Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara already were complaining about the reductions in the so-called Local Government Distributive Fund. “Since 2011,” McNamara wrote recently in the Rockford Register-Star, “the state has unilaterally decreased the local share of LGDF by almost 40%, so that in State Fiscal Year 2023, the local government share is only 6.16% of individual income tax collections and 6.845% of corporate income tax collections.”

The state did indeed reduce LGDF from its longtime percentage of 10 percent during the 2011 tax hike debate, at least partly because so many mayors were adamantly against that tax hike.

* I asked the governor’s office for a response…

In FY2010, Rockford received $11,392,699 in LGDF. In FY2023, Rockford received $23,167,389 in LGDF. Just FYI, Rockford also received $229,053 in FY23 as its portion of the monies sent to locals through the Cannabis Regulation Fund.

And you did not ask, but I thought I would include statewide totals for LGDF FY10 vs FY23: In FY10, $985,358,544 was distributed to locals through LGDF. In FY23 $1,996,786,951 was distributed to locals through LGDF.

As you can see, LGDF distributions to Rockford and statewide more than doubled from FY10 to FY23.

Adjusted for inflation, the statewide FY10 LGDF would’ve been equal to $1.39 billion at the end of FY23, compared to the $2 billion they actually received from the state last fiscal year.

So, LGDF disbursements to locals weren’t cut by 40 percent, as the Tribune’s editorial more than implies. Instead, municipalities have received a 43 percent increase in inflation-adjusted state LGDF dollars since their percentage was cut.

Also, restoring LGDF to 10 percent would cost the state as much as $850 million and equal a 100.5 percent inflation adjusted increase over what locals received in 2010.

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After Johnson repeatedly sidesteps questions, city confirms evictions will go forward

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Mayor Johnson just being his usual forthcoming self…

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration suggested this week it has no plans to postpone enforcement of its 60-day shelter stay policy, meaning scores of migrants could soon be forced to leave city’s shelters starting on March 16.

Johnson initially side-stepped questions about this earlier this week when asked by NBC 5 Investigates if the City of Chicago was prepared to postpone enforcement again.

“We’re compassionate people, I got you,” Johnson said.

When pressed that he did not provide a “yes or no” response, Johnson said: “So, it’s not okay that I let people know that Chicago is compassionate? Let me just say it though, okay? Thank you. We are compassionate people and so we are doing everything in our power to demonstrate compassion. Now as far as whether or not we will extend deadlines, we haven’t gotten to that point, alright.”

When NBC 5 Investigates asked for clarification, Communications Director Ronnie Reese confirmed that the March 16 date still holds true for the first wave of migrants to move out of the city’s shelter system.

* I do not see how Comptroller Mendoza can accomplish this. You can’t just send the federal government a bill and expect payment unless the feds have already set the money aside, like it did during the pandemic…

From New York to Denver, city and state officials have asked President Joe Biden to pay their bills for housing migrants. So far, they haven’t got much help.

Now one politician in Illinois is trying a different approach to amp up pressure. Comptroller Susana Mendoza is opening the state’s books to the public with an online portal that allows anyone to track how money is being spent. She plans to use the tally to garner state support for her pitch to claw back funds from the federal government.

There’s precedent for that, Mendoza said in an interview at Bloomberg’s office in Chicago. When the pandemic hit, states paid for things like gloves and masks before assistance from the federal government started flowing in. Illinois should also get aid now, said Mendoza, who wants reimbursement for a bill that has already reached $478 million.

“We should be able to claw back those funds,” said Mendoza, a second-term Democrat who is responsible for cutting the checks to pay the state’s bills. “This is a situation that the federal government has allowed to happen and now states are having to deal with it.”

The state can claw back some of its own revenues to, for instance, local governments and subsidized corporations.

* Good on WICS TV for debunking this hateful online nonsense…

A rumor circulating in Decatur has residents up in arms. The rumor is that 2,000 migrants are to be housed in a vacant building in the former Cub Foods building in Decatur.

The current owner of the building and city told us the posts circulating social media are not true.

“There’s absolutely no truth to it,” Tim Vieweg, one of the current owners, said.

This comes after multiple social media posts from Decatur residents saying the former Cub Foods building will be fixed up to house migrants coming to the state.

“Number one, this isn’t zoned for it. So that would be the first step that would have to take place if you’re going to change this into some sort of residential use,” Vieweg said.

Some of the posts are here…

* From Isabel…

Block Club | 7 Things Migrants Should Know About Upcoming Shelter Evictions:

* Tribune | Measles case reported at Chicago’s largest migrant shelter: The site of the newly confirmed case is the most crowded shelter in the city’s web of 23 buildings currently housing over 11,600 migrants, thousands who have arrived on buses sent by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott — many who come fleeing a failed economy and health infrastructure in Venezuela.

* Tribune | Amid migrant crisis, Chicago food pantries experience unprecedented demand: The network of the Greater Chicago Food Depository, which includes over 800 food distributors across the city, served 186,000 households in December, a 29% increase from the previous year. While pantries don’t ask guests their status, anecdotally, a significant portion of the new visitors are Latino migrants, several organizations said.

* WREX | Winnebago County Operations committee divided on migrant solution: The resolution around the county leader’s response to the possible abandonment of asylum seekers in Winnebago County aims to inform residents that there is a plan in place to get potential arrivals to Chicago. The resolution also pushes for President Biden to pass immigration reform, but some board members say because migrants are already being sent to Chicago, the resolution is not needed on the county level.

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Sen. Hunter says she’s ’shocked and appalled’ at Speaker Welch’s effort to unseat Rep. Flowers

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Background is here and here if you need it. Chinta Strausberg at the Crusader…

[House Speaker Chris Welch’s] targeting [of Rep. Mary Flowers, D-Chicago] for political defeat is shocking to Black leaders like Alderman David Moore (17th) who told the Chicago Crusader, “It’s not what they are doing to Mary Flowers. It’s what they are doing to Black women. So, when you start attacking Black women especially, and they use Black men, it’s a problem.

“They cannot find anything wrong with her record and the work that she has done,” Moore said. “So, they tell lies, and you try to put a bad light on a Black woman. I’m standing up as a Black man not only in protecting her, but letting other people know when you come after a Black woman, you got to come through David Moore.”

Asked how he felt about Welch putting up more than $500,000 to support an unknown candidate to defeat Flowers, Moore said, “It’s a waste of money.”

Senator Mattie Hunter (D-3rd) said she too is “shocked and appalled at what’s going on with our senior leader. She’s committed herself to her district over 40 years. It seems seniority doesn’t matter anymore. So many younger folks are willing to just disregard that and disrespect our leadership and take them out. It’s totally unfair, and I don’t like it at all.”

* Rep. Flowers also brought up this topic to the Crusader…

Saying she was just trying to respect and protect him, Flowers also told Welch privately about one staffer who Flowers said had begun to look like Adolf Hitler. When Flowers talked to the staffer, whom she had known more than 20 years, and asked about his appearance, Flowers said he just laughed so she forgot about it.

That isn’t nearly the entire picture. From Welch’s letter to Flowers last year…

Specifically, in a Caucus meeting on Tuesday, May 2, you used language widely recognized as a slur intended to divide people - including members of our own Caucus - based on their national origin. In this same meeting, you compared the appearance of a staff member to Adolf Hitler. You declined to offer the caucus a sincere apology for either comment when asked. This was not the first time you made derogatory comments toward colleagues and staff.

At a Caucus meeting earlier this year, when several members expressed that they felt bullied or insulted by you, you dismissed their concerns and attempted to further belittle them in front of colleagues and staff.

One private remark like that about a staff member is not enough to get anyone kicked out of leadership and caucus meetings. This was about a pattern of behavior toward her legislative colleagues and other staff members.

That being said, Welch’s primary campaign against her has been so negative that I’ve been wondering if it might create a backlash.

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Rate the new Trumpy Bost ads

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Press release…

Congressman Mike Bost’s campaign this week has released its fifth television advertisement of the 2024 election cycle. The ad, titled “Bost Results,” will air district-wide on cable, broadcast, and satellite television, as well as on streaming services.

The ad…

Script…

PRESIDENT TRUMP: “Mike Bost fights every day for the hard-working people of Illinois.”

ANNOUNCER: “That’s why National Right to Life endorsed Mike and called him a courageous fighter.

The NRA’s endorsement says Bost is a proud defender of the 2nd Amendment.

And the Farm Bureau calls him one of the strongest protectors of farmers and rural America.”

PRESIDENT TRUMP: “A vote for Mike is really a continuation to Make America Great Again.”

BOST: “I’m Mike Bost and I approve this message.”

* Meanwhile, in the mailboxes…

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Once Converted To Electric, Consumers Will Pay 3x As Much. Keep Our Energy Options Safe And Affordable.

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

There are real costs and risks associated with decarbonizing without a plan. To convert to electric could cost as much as $70,000 per home. Once converted to electric, instead of saving, consumers would be hit with higher prices. The cost of an electric BTU is 3x more than the cost of a natural gas BTU.

When Governor Pritzker’s appointees on the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) shut down the natural gas line Safety Modernization Program, it not only wiped out 1,000 jobs, but also subjected residents and business owners to the unnecessary danger of old, leaky gas infrastructure.

It makes no sense for Illinois to shut down the gas line safety program that prevents methane leaks and catastrophic accidents. We are calling on Illinois residents to fight back with us and tell Governor Pritzker and the ICC to decarbonize the right way. Fix our dangerous gas lines first.

Click on the links to view our ads: Ticking Time Bomb & Real Change.
To learn more and help fight back, visit us online at Fight Back Fund.

Paid for by Fight Back Fund

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It’s just a bill

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Capitol News Illinois…

A pair of competing bills in the House would, for the first time in Illinois, offer state-funded stipends for student teachers. […]

Both bills call for paying stipends of $10,000 for a semester, the rough equivalent of $15 per-hour for 40 hours per week – even though most student teachers say they work much more than that. Assuming an average of 5,400 student teachers per year, that would work out to $54 million in state funding needed to support the program.

The major difference between the two bills is how the program would work in years when lawmakers don’t fully fund the program.

House Bill 4652, by Rep. Barbara Hernandez, D-Aurora, does not account for underfunding the program. An initiative of the Illinois Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, it assumes lawmakers would fully fund the stipends each year. […]

House Bill 5414, an initiative of the advocacy group Advance Illinois, calls for paying the same $10,000 stipend to student teachers, plus another $1,500 to cooperating teachers, raising its total price tag to an estimated $67 million per year. But in years of underfunding, it would prioritize recipients on the basis of financial need, then focus on hard-to-fill subjects and areas of the state with the highest teacher vacancy rates.

* WICS…

Senate Bill 3203 limits the cost an individual with health insurance pays for an inhaler to $25 for a 30-day supply.

Under [Sen. Mattie Hunter’s] proposal, health insurance providers would be prohibited from denying or limiting coverage for prescription inhalers beginning Jan. 1, 2026. […]

Despite insurance coverage, many individuals still face out-of-pocket expenses ranging from $180 to $300 per month for inhalers. This legislation aims to alleviate this financial burden on asthma patients.

Senate Bill 3203 passed the Senate Insurance Committee on Wednesday.

* WCIA…

“The AI-generated material is often indistinguishable from reality, where maybe several years ago, if you saw a video or saw an image that was meant to portray a candidate, you can kind of tell most people would be able to say, ‘I know that’s fake, or that’s photoshopped,’” State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid, (D-Bridgeview) said. […]

Rashid is pushing for a bill to stop people from distributing or working with someone else to knowingly distribute deceptive political media, including the intent to harm a candidate’s electoral chances and to influence voting behavior. […]

The bill does carve out an exception for political media that includes a disclaimer informing people that the content was manipulated with the help of technology, or by disclosing what was said or what occurred in the content didn’t actually happen. […]

If the bill becomes law, anyone who violates it could be charged with a Class C misdemeanor. If someone violates it again, it would be considered a Class 3 felony.

* H/T Chicago Bars…

* Hyde Park Herald…

As a tool to help revitalize commercial corridors across the state, Buckner is pushing for the creation of Business Improvement Districts (BIDs). Similar to Special Service Areas, which exist in Chicago, BIDs impose a specific local tax on property owners in commercial corridors.

This tax revenue is invested in the area through efforts usually overseen by chambers of commerce, such as business retention, beautification efforts and security.

“SSAs work, but in certain areas like the Mag Mile, which I represent, and State Street Corridor, there really is a need for more targeted investment and resources in these spaces to allow businesses to grow, thrive and flourish,” Buckner said.

Initially filed last February by Rep. Robyn Gabel (D-18th), Buckner became the chief sponsor of HB 3303 the following month. The bill is awaiting committee assignment in the General Assembly.

State Senator Rachel Ventura held a press conference on Thursday, joined by mental health advocates and professionals, to advocate for the legalization of psilocybin, commonly known as ” magic mushrooms.” […]

Senate Bill 3695, named the CURE ACT (Compassionate Use and Research of Entheogens Act), targets treatment-resistant conditions such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, substance abuse, eating disorders, and other mental health ailments. Additionally, it aims to facilitate research into the safety and efficacy of psilocybin through medicinal, psychological, and scientific studies. […]

“Law Enforcement Action Partnership recognizes this bill as nothing short of life saving. Providing a proven means for people to work through their traumas and live happier, healthier, and more productive lives, stated Dave Franco, retired police officer and speaker for the Law Enforcement Action Partnership. “The benefits for mental and behavioral health can also have a sizable impact on community and public safety.”

Under Senate Bill 3695, psychedelic therapies would be administered in controlled, supervised settings to ensure safety and treatment effectiveness. Retail sales of these medicines would be prohibited, and they could only be used under supervision at designated service centers. […]

Senate Bill 3695 has been assigned to the Senate Executive Committee for further consideration.

* WGEM…

State Rep. Jeff Keicher, R-Sycamore, is sponsoring a bill allowing minors in juvenile court to petition the court to immediately seal or expunge their records if the crime they committed was a direct result of human trafficking. […]

State Rep. Nicole La Ha, R-Homer Glen, introduced three pieces of legislation. One bill would remove the affirmative defense of mistake of age for someone soliciting a minor engaged in prostitution. Another bill would remove the statute of limitations for prosecutions of involuntary servitude, involuntary sexual servitude of a minor and trafficking in persons and related offenses when the victim is a minor at the time of the offense. Her third bill requires those convicted of trafficking in persons, involuntary servitude or involuntary sexual servitude of a minor register as a sex offender.

State Rep. Jennifer Sanalitro, R-Hanover Park, is sponsoring two pieces of legislation. One bill creates an affirmative defense for victims of human trafficking who commit the offense as a result of being trafficked. Her other bill creates the Human Trafficking Order of Protection Act, which would allow victims of human trafficking to obtain orders of protection against their traffickers.

State Rep. Brad Stephens, R-Rosemont, is also sponsoring a bill adding “patronize” to involuntary sexual servitude of a minor. This would mean people soliciting underage prostitutes are held accountable as sex trafficking offenders.

* WTTW…

Illinois law has no explicit restriction on guns in polling places.

State Rep. Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield) is working to change that with a proposal (House Bill 5178) that would forbid firearms at “any building, real property or parking area of a polling place.” […]

Gun rights advocates said Morgan’s proposal is an answer in search of a problem.

“Show me the data that there is a problem, and if there is a problem, then great, let’s see it,” Illinois State Rifle Association lobbyist Ed Sullivan said. “I can almost guarantee you, there’s not.” […]

“This is something we saw in Wisconsin and Michigan in 2020, where polling locations were literally under threat and people were showing up with extensive amounts of firearms to intimidate and scare people,” Morgan said. “We’re not going to let that happen in Illinois. We’re going to make sure that polling locations are a safe place to go.”

* WJBD…

Senate Bill 3077, by Sen. Dave Koehler, D-Peoria, would establish a $2 million per-year grant program within the Illinois Department of Agriculture to help fund projects to enhance local food processing, aggregation and distribution within the state. Those could include projects such as food hubs, canneries, mills, livestock processing and other kinds of infrastructure that help move food from a farm to communities.

“And this is important because while we have some of the best farmland in the world, we don’t actually have the infrastructure in place to feed ourselves,”said Molly Pickering, deputy director of the Illinois Stewardship Alliance. “Ninety-five percent of the food that we eat here in Illinois is imported from out of state. That means every dollar that anyone spends on food is not going into our local communities. It’s being exported.”

Senate Bill 3219, by Sen. Doris Turner, D-Springfield, would establish another kind of grant program through the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to help fund equipment upgrades at farmer-owned grocery stores. […]

Both bills advanced out of the Senate Agriculture Committee Thursday and could be taken up soon by the full Senate.

* Sen. Laura Fine…

One family’s tragic loss will help others in the future. Last fall, an Evanston family lost their son, Jordan while he was seeking treatment in a substance abuse treatment facility. Working with the family, the state and mental health care providers, State Senator Laura Fine is leading a measure to require substance abuse programs and mental health facilities to better communicate and give a patient’s family or caretaker timely notice of the patient’s passing.

“No parent or caretaker should have to wait days to be notified that their loved one has died while under the care of a treatment facility,” said Fine (D-Glenview). “It is essential that these facilities and programs have clear standards in place for sharing information with a patient’s loved ones. No one should ever have to go through what Jordan’s family experienced.”

Under current law, a facility must provide verbal notice regarding a significant incident to the Department of Human Services within 24 hours. However, there is no mandate that requires a family member to be notified of a patient’s death within a specific timeframe.

Jordan’s Law is named in honor of an Evanston family who shared their story about their son, Jordan, who passed away while in a rehab facility. The family was not notified of their son’s death until at least a week later and wanted to ensure other families never experience this kind of tragedy. This bill requires substance abuse disorder programs and mental health and developmental disability facilities to notify a patient’s personal representative of their death within 24 hours and provide a written notice within five days. […]

Senate Bill 3137 passed the Senate Behavioral and Mental Health Committee on Wednesday and heads to the full Senate for consideration.

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Open thread

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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

8 Comments

Isabel’s morning briefing

Friday, Mar 8, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* ICYMI: Illinois lawmakers approve elected school board for Chicago. What comes next? Sun-Times…

* Related stories…

- Tribune: Plan for hybrid elected Chicago school board now in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s hands
- Fox Chicago: Elected Chicago school board proposal needs approval from Pritzker
- Chalkbeat: Illinois House passes plan for Chicago’s elected school board

* Isabel’s top picks…

* Crain’s | Rivian will launch new R2 SUV in Normal as it taps brakes on Georgia factory buildout: “We’re able to achieve that accelerated timing by leveraging our production capabilities in Normal, using our Illinois site to launch R2 and get it into market as quickly as we can,” CEO R.J. Scaringe said during a March 7 launch event for the much-anticipated smaller-scale version of its original EVs.

* Tribune | Illinois moves to limit toxic forever chemicals contaminating wells throughout the state: Regulations unveiled Wednesday by the Illinois Pollution Control Board are intended to protect millions of people from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, some of which build up in human blood, cause cancer and other diseases and take years to leave the body.

* Fox Chicago | Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard sued by church for alleged discrimination: Redeemed Christian Church of God Resurrection Power Assembly alleges the mayor and the village failed to apply Dolton’s zoning code by preventing the church from renovating the building it purchased. […] “In my all years, I’ve never seen such a blatant disregard for an ordinance and religious civil rights. Religious institutions are permitted in the area under the zoning code. Based on statements from employees, the mayor is calling the shots,” said John Mauck, with Mauck & Baker Law.

* Here’s the rest…

* Tribune | Rivian to launch second-generation R2 electric SUV production in Normal, as plans for Georgia plant are delayed: In addition to the downsized R2, Rivian introduced an even smaller R3 and souped-up R3X crossover, hoping to capture a larger share of the nascent EV market. The production timing and location for the R3 has yet to be announced.

* Journal Courier | Moore, Snellgrove compete to replace Frese in Illinois House race: Moore, 43, of Quincy is a former alderman and mayor of Quincy who announced his candidacy in September. Moore was elected mayor in 2013, becoming the first Republican to be elected to that role since 1981. He was re-elected in 2017, serving until 2021, after keeping his pledge to serve only two terms. Moore has been president of the Great River Economic Development Foundation in Quincy since 2021.

* Tribune | Harris leans on personal story in state’s attorney stump speech: As a former assistant state’s attorney, Harris said he saw the “churn” of Black men “in and out of the system”; as a resident of Washington Park, he said his family has “to worry about bullets flying” and being profiled by the police; and as a father raising young boys, he said he was heartbroken to read about a case prosecuted by his opponent that has become central to his campaign for both safety and justice in the office.

* Tribune | Chicago Bears add former Minnesota Twins executive Meka White Morris as EVP of revenue and chief business officer: Morris’ arrival continues a revamping of the Bears executive staff under President and CEO Kevin Warren, whose one-year anniversary with the team is in April. The Bears announced this week that they promoted longtime chief financial officer Karen Murphy to EVP of stadium development and chief operating officer. Corey Ruff was promoted to senior vice president of strategy and analytics and chief of staff.

* Crain’s | Economic development group Intersect Illinois names trio of Chicago biz vets to board: Intersect Illinois, a statewide business attraction organization focused on bringing new jobs, businesses and investment, has appointed three new members to its board. Michael Fassnacht, president and chief growth officer of Clayco’s Chicago-area region; Kristi Lafleur, CEO of Skyway Concession; and Mark Denzler, president and CEO of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association have joined the board of directors, the organization said in a March 7 announcement.

* Sun-Times | Helping the unhoused ‘a matter of life and death,’ Johnson says during Bring Chicago Home push: Johnson visited with social workers and health care providers at Jesse Brown who help connect veterans to Department of Veterans Affairs services including housing opportunities, primary medical care, assistance for interpersonal violence victims and reentry programs after incarceration.

* CBS Chicago | While newly arrived migrants can obtain work permits, some of the long-undocumented feel forgotten: “Seeing so many new arrivals get work authorization – which is something that we all celebrate – but now we know that this is something that the president can give without congressional approval,” said immigration organizer Enddy Almonord.

* Tribune | Amid migrant crisis, Chicago food pantries experience unprecedented demand : The network of the Greater Chicago Food Depository, which includes over 800 food distributors across the city, served 186,000 households in December, a 29% increase from the previous year. While pantries don’t ask guests their status, anecdotally, a significant portion of the new visitors are Latino migrants, several organizations said. Nonprofit food distributors in Denver, another city that has received thousands of migrants, are facing similar challenges.

* Sun-Times | How Brandon Johnson’s inner circle compares to past mayors’: It’s more heavily Black, with no Asian Americans among his top political appointees. Overall, the city payroll is far different from the significantly white employee base that Mayor Richard M. Daley had when he left office in 2011, a Sun-Times analysis finds.

* Tribune | Bally’s Chicago revenue grows in February, generating more than $1 million in local tax revenue: Revenue at the temporary Medinah Temple casino grew 6.5% to nearly $9.9 million in adjusted gross receipts, according to February data released Thursday by the Illinois Gaming Board. But Bally’s Chicago slipped behind Harrah’s Joliet to rank fourth in revenue among the state’s 15 casinos.

* WBEZ | A new casino coming to the south suburbs says it will hit the jackpot despite a run on casinos: And just across the state line, Northwest Indiana has four casinos, which raises concerns about whether a casino glut permeates the region. Ed Feigenbaum, who monitors gaming for Indiana Gaming Insight, a casino publication, said competition is a concern for all involved.

* Daily-Journal | Bourbonnais mayor, clerk annual salaries see first increase in 35 years: The salary for the mayor will go from $12,000 a year to $16,000, which represents a 33% increase. The clerk’s salary goes from $4,200 to $6,000, a 43% hike, said Finance Director Tara Latz.

* Sun-Times | Chicago reports first measles case since 2019, seeking others possibly exposed: The health department is finding those who may have been exposed to the person with measles. The person with the confirmed case was recovering well and their infectious disease period ended Wednesday, Block Club Chicago reported.

* WICS | ISP release video footage of officer involved shooting: Illinois State Police has released video footage of the officer-involved shooting on February 24, at 12:42 p.m. on Interstate 55 northbound near Lexington, milepost 177.

* News-Gazette | Budzinski, Miller question post office changes: Budzinski and Miller requested that the U.S. Postal Service provide written responses to questions they have about the plan, including the number of employees that will be asked to relocate or change jobs, alternatives for those unwilling or unable to relocate, and how public comments will be factored into the Postal Service’s decision about the Mattis Avenue post office.

* Block Club | Scientology Church Opens In South Loop, Raising Concerns Of Columbia College Students Living Next Door: “Everyone’s talking about it,” said Jazlynn “Jazzy” Edwards, a sophomore majoring in journalism who lives at the Dwight Lofts. “It’s all negative. No one wants them here.” Some students said they are concerned with the organization’s presence — and the crowds it draws — next to the place they call home, given the Church of Scientology’s controversial history and the demographics of college students.

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