* Seems a bit late. From the Suburban Mayors Coalition for Fair Transit via the Illinois Municipal League…
Honorable Members of the Illinois General Assembly:
Over the past 18 months, members of both chambers have dedicated considerable time to evaluating our region’s transit system and exploring ways to improve service for the more than one million daily riders who rely on Metra, Pace, and the CTA. Many of these riders are among our most vulnerable residents, who have no alternative means of transportation. We appreciate your commitment to addressing the looming fiscal cliff facing public transit. However, the legislative proposals introduced thus far raise significant concerns for municipalities and the residents we represent.
We respectfully share the following concerns:
Real Estate Transfer Tax
The proposed $3 per $1,000 real estate transfer tax would apply to transactions in suburban Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties while excluding the City of Chicago. This new tax would add to the growing barriers to affordable housing in our communities. Furthermore, it would derail parallel legislative efforts that aspire to improve housing access across the state.
Retail Delivery Fee
A statewide $1.50 delivery fee on all motor vehicle deliveries of goods subject to sales tax would affect every household, regardless of income or proximity to transit. This fee is regressive, disproportionately burdens low to moderate income families, and lacks a clear connection between those paying and those benefiting from the transit system.
Development Authority
The proposed authority for the new regional transit entity to acquire, develop, or redevelop property within a ½-mile of transit stations or ⅛-mile of bus stops raises serious concerns about local control and private property rights. Even with the inclusion of local zoning requirements, granting such powers to an unelected regional board would allow development across broad swaths of suburban communities potentially overriding local planning efforts. This also includes concerns about the regional board exerting authority over local parking requirements. These decisions should remain under municipal governments.
Board Composition and Voting
The proposed structure of the NITA Board lacks the necessary safeguards to ensure balanced regional representation. We urge you to consider models like the CMAP Board, which requires a 4/5 majority vote to pass all major decisions. Without similar protections, there is a real risk of disenfranchising any one subregion and discouraging collaboration.
Board Membership
The restrictions on who may be Directors on the NITA Board and service boards preclude local elected officials who may be the most knowledgeable people on transportation needs of their constituents. Local elected officials have been some of the most reliable and knowledgeable members of our region’s boards for decades. There is a reason so many members of boards like CMAP, the service boards, and ISTHA have been elected officials or former elected officials, they know the regional challenges of funding and operating complex systems.
Service Standards and Funding Distribution
The proposed performance metrics and service propensity measures may disadvantage Metra and Pace in favor of CTA, potentially skewing future funding and service priorities. Considering the legislation proposes only fifteen votes of the NITA Board to approve these criteria, the suburbs and collar counties could face significant hurdles in receiving sufficient funding to providing transit to their residents. Greater clarity and assurances regarding service equity and long-term funding parity are essential before finalizing this legislation.
We are asking you, our legislators, to stand up for our hometowns and your constituents in northeastern Illinois and across the state. We urge you to pass legislation that would provide for a more efficient and regionally balanced approach to public transit. We further hope this new legislation will align new revenue sources with access to transit service, ensures meaningful representation for all subregions, and preserves local authority over land use, parking and development.
Transit reform should focus on improving service, expanding access and financial sustainability, not on development powers at the expense of municipal autonomy or creating new burdens on residents with little connection to the transit system.
We respectfully ask to be included in ongoing discussions to better collaborate on a path forward that supports fair, reliable, and equitable public transit for all northeastern Illinois.
Thank you for your service and for your attention to this critical issue.
Sincerely,
The undersigned Mayors and Village Presidents:
Rodney Craig, Village of Hanover Park
Leon Rockingham, Jr., City of North Chicago
John Noak, Village of Romeoville
Nancy Rotering, City of Highland Park
William McLeod, Village of Hoffman Estates
Frank Saverino, Village of Carol Stream
Craig Johnson, Village of Elk Grove Village
Jeffery Schielke, City of Batavia
Tom Dailly, Village of Schaumburg
Philip Suess, City of Wheaton
Gary Grasso, Village of Burr Ridge
Frank Trilla, Village of Willowbrook
Paul Hoefert, Village of Mount Prospect
Eleanor Sweet McDonnell, Village of North Barrington
Donna Johnson, Village of Libertyville
Tom Hundley, Village of Addison
David Kaptain, City of Elgin
Rick Reinbold, Village of Richton Park
Mark Kownick, Village of Cary Larry Herman, Village of Oak Brook
Rick Mack, Village of Ringwood
David Pileski, Village of Roselle
Joseph Marchese, City of Darien
Sam Cunningham, City of Waukegan
* From a spokesperson for Reps. Eva-Dina Delgado and Kam Buckner…
Years of discussions and more than a year of formal negotiation have generated valuable feedback, and that has brought us to the point where we are close to a better path forward for our transit agencies. While some discussions continue, those discussions need to be focused on constructive feedback and solutions.
* From Senate President Don Harmon’s spokesperson John Patterson…
We welcome the feedback and look forward to their input and ideas on how to resolve this looming crisis.
Your translation of the responses?
* Meanwhile, Sen. Ram Villivalam talked to Governing Magazine about the immediate future…
Governing: Are there sticking points in the reform conversation. If so, what are they?
Villivalam: The reforms that have been presented in House Bill 3438 are largely agreed to by all of the stakeholders and I think represent what our residents and taxpayers want to see in terms of having a safe, reliable, accessible and integrated public transit system. The Senate has passed a package of reforms and funding with a transformational investment of $1.5 billion. We believe the package of reforms has really achieved a consensus of stakeholders and residents that have been involved in this process.
Governing: You’re waiting for the House to vote on that.
Villivalam: If there’s a better funding plan that achieves $1.5 billion in investment, we’re happy to work with folks on that. Our position, though, is that we passed a bill, and short of there being a better funding plan, we’d like to see our bill passed and sent to the governor.
In other words, the governance and related reforms are basically locked down. Some revenues are still up in the air.
…Adding… Press release…
Labor, Environmental, and Transit Advocates call on legislators to return to Springfield, address $770 million transit fiscal cliff
With pink slips scheduled for September and planned cuts to transit service, advocates and workers rally, urge state lawmakers to prevent a catastrophe
WHAT: The Illinois General Assembly adjourned on May 31 without addressing the state’s $770 million transit fiscal cliff. With pink slips scheduled for September and the RTA’s instruction for the CTA, Metra, and Pace to plan for service cuts, transit riders and workers are urging the General Assembly to avert a catastrophe by returning to Springfield for a special summer session.
After months of negotiations, legislation passed the Senate on May 31, but was not available to be called in the House. The bill included long-awaited reform measures agreed upon by labor, environment, and transit advocates and a new, dedicated revenue stream for transit.
As a result of Springfield’s inaction, the RTA estimates that nearly 3,000 transit workers could lose their jobs, including 2,000 CTA workers. The service boards have indicated that staffing cuts will result in a 40% reduction to service, leaving Chicago with a transit network smaller than Madison, WI.
By law, the 2026 CTA, Metra, and Pace budgets must only include the funding they will receive for the next year when the budgeting process begins in July 2025. As such, even though the General Assembly is scheduled to return in October for a fall veto session, the agencies must still plan as if they are not receiving the funding to address the fiscal cliff. All four agencies have indicated that, even if a revenue solution were proposed, the collected revenue from October through December would not be enough to plug the budget hole.
WHO:
State Senator Ram Villivalam
State Senator Graciela Guzmán
Tiffany Rebb, CTA Bus Operator
Orlando Rojas, Metra Conductor
Ann Marie Moore, Flight Attendant, Transit Rider
Evan Urchell, The People’s Lobby, Transit Rider
Jose Manuel Almanaza, Equiticity, Transit Advocate
WHEN: Thursday, June 26, 2025
12:00 PM
WHERE: 238 S. Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL (Between Union Station & Chicago River under the overhang)
Today, members of the Illinois House and Senate Republican caucuses joined together to call on Gov. Pritzker to veto Senate Bill 328, legislation that would serve only to enrich trial lawyers at the expense of jobs and economic growth. They also filed a lawsuit in Sangamon County court to enforce the Illinois Constitution’s Three Readings Rule, due to the blatant unconstitutional manner the Democratic Majority rammed the special interest proposal through the General Assembly after midnight on the last day of session.
The legislation would overhaul Illinois’ judicial system and allow out-of-state businesses to be sued by out-of-state plaintiffs in Illinois courts for incidents with no connection to the state. A lesser-known provision in the law, also allows foreign businesses registered in the state as well. It was passed using a variety of procedural gimmicks to avoid constitutional requirements and public scrutiny.
“We are answering the call of job creators, good government watchdog groups, and most importantly, our constituents, to stand up for transparency and against this job-killing legislation,” House Minority Leader Tony McCombie (R-Savanna) said. “Governor Pritzker must veto SB328 and show not only the people of Illinois, but also businesses around the world, we want to put all of our people to work, not just trial lawyers.”
Despite Democrats’ super majorities in both the House and Senate Chambers, major pieces of legislation continue to bypass the constitutionally required Three Readings Rule to avoid due process, transparency, and public engagement. Senate Bill 328 was passed after midnight with a gut-and-replace maneuver that allowed the majority party to avoid proper due process such as committee hearings and public input, violating the Three Readings Rule required in the Illinois State Constitution.
“This special interest proposal was passed by the Democratic Majority using a shady process that clearly violates the substance and spirit of the Illinois Constitution,” said Illinois Senate Republican Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove). “I am calling on Gov. Pritzker to join us in standing up for Illinois taxpayers and promote economic investment in our state by vetoing this anti-business legislation.”
* Their problem is their lawsuit and their public remarks today cite dissenting opinions. For example, this is some of what Senate Republican Leader John Curran said today…
This process used was a complete gut and replace on the last day in the second chamber, completely new language, completely changing the bill and then passing it through that second chamber. In this instance, the Senate and back to the House for concurrence in the same day. That is a clear violation of what the Constitution calls for. And we are seizing upon that the courts have been more acutely aware recently of the abuse of this process, which is rampant in the Illinois General Assembly. Leaning into Justice Holder White’s recent dissent, calling out and highlighting this abuse of the legislative process in the Caulkins case.
Former challenges to legislation as having not met the Three Readings Rule have been countered by the Enrolled Bill Doctrine. See, e.g., Geja’s Café v. Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, 606 N.E.2d 1212 (Ill. 1992); Fuehrmeyer v. City of Chicago, 311 N.E.2d 116 (Ill. 1974). Illinois Courts have held that the legislative leaders’ sign-off creates the presumption that all procedural requirements — including the Three Readings Rule — have been met. Fuehrmeyer at 119; Cutinello v. Whitley, 641 N.E.2d 360 (Ill. 1994); Cincinnati Ins. Co. v. Chapman, 691 N.E.2d 374 (Ill. 1998); Friends of the Parks v. Chicago Park District, 786 N.E.2d 161 (Ill. 2003).
Judicial adherence to the Enrolled Bill Doctrine is far from unanimous, however. In People v. Dunigan, Justice Heiple drafted a pointed dissent questioning the logical underpinnings of the Enrolled Bill Doctrine as well as the majority’s problematic reliance on the testimony of delegates to the 1970 Constitutional Convention to support it.
* We have seen this citation from the new lawsuit quite a bit over the years…
While not invalidating the Enrolled Bill Doctrine, the Illinois Supreme Court reiterated in Friends of the Parks that the legislature has “shown remarkably poor self-discipline in policing itself in regard to the three-readings requirement.”
We noted in Geja’s Cafe and again in Cutinello that the legislature had shown remarkably poor self-discipline in policing itself in regard to the three-readings requirement. The same poor self-discipline is alleged to have occurred in this case. The record below has not, however, been sufficiently developed to support or contradict this claim. Nevertheless, because this court is ever mindful of its duty to enforce the constitution of this state, we take the opportunity to urge the legislature to follow the three-readings rule. While separation of powers concerns militate in favor of the enrolled-bill doctrine (see Cutinello, 161 Ill.2d at 425, 204 Ill.Dec. 136, 641 N.E.2d 360), our responsibility to ensure obedience to the constitution remains an equally important concern.
In sum, we hold that section 3 of the Illinois Sport Facility Act violates neither the public purpose doctrine nor the public trust doctrine and that Public Act 91-0935 is not subject to procedural challenge in light of the enrolled-bill doctrine. We therefore affirm the circuit court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of defendants.
So, the Republicans are likely hoping that if they keep bringing these cases to the court’s attention, the Supremes will eventually decide that the record has been “sufficiently developed” to support their claim.
Also, they’ll get a decent press pop about a bill their business allies strongly oppose.
…Adding… ITLA…
ITLA Statement on Senate Bill 328: Protecting Illinoisans from Dangerous Toxins
Lawmakers took a significant step to protect workers and consumers from exposure to toxic substances by passing Senate Bill 328, which will improve the likelihood that all corporate actors that contributed to poisoning a person will be held responsible in our state’s court system — regardless of where those business are physically or legally headquartered.
Toxic tort cases occur when individuals are injured, made ill or die if they ingest, inhale or absorb hazardous substances. Businesses can be held responsible for the harms they cause if they didn’t properly warn about the risks of their product, gave false or misleading information about the possible dangers, or engaged in negligent manufacturing practices.
This proposed change in law applies only in cases alleging injury or illness resulting from exposure to a substance that is defined as toxic based on the state’s Uniform Hazardous Substances Act and that also involves multiple defendants where at least one defendant is already subject to specific jurisdiction in Illinois for that case. Once the connection to a company operating in Illinois is established, other entities registered to do business in Illinois (no matter where they are based) may be brought into the case as co-defendants if their use of toxic substances in their products contributed to causing harm to that person, whether that occurred in Illinois or in another state.
One example of who would benefit is a person who was employed by a contractor and sent over the course of their career to do repair work at power plants located in Illinois and multiple other states. At those job sites for extended periods of time they were unknowingly exposed to asbestos, an extremely hazardous substance that causes irreparable lung damage leading to terrible suffering and an agonizing death. That cumulative exposure across years caused their illness. Under current law, companies based in other states could move to dismiss a case against them filed in Illinois, even though they had chosen to do business here by hiring a contractor based in our state. This helps people who may be gravely ill by keeping the case in Illinois, rather than requiring them to file separate cases and travel for court hearings in multiple states where other defendants are located.
No company should be permitted to escape accountability for the misuse of dangerous toxins simply by being headquartered in a different state. Illinois has long opposed predatory profiteering by providing a civil justice system in which everyone, regardless of their means, gets a fair shake. Senate Bill 328 upholds that tradition by recognizing that the privilege of doing business here comes with the responsibility of not hurting Illinoisans.
At a time when the Trump Administration and Republican-controlled Congress are gutting environmental, patient, worker and consumer protections, it is vital that states step up to fill the federal government’s vacuum.
Contrary to the fear-mongering and misinformation propagated by opponents, Senate Bill 328 does not apply to cases involving food or prescription drugs. This measure does not add to the volume or types of cases that can already be brought in Illinois. It is relevant in a more limited set of circumstances and merely ensures that parties that should rightfully be included as defendants are included, so plaintiffs have the prospect of obtaining more complete justice. It is also a response to the realities of the modern American economy in which people are employed by Illinois businesses, but work in other states on projects that expose them to hazardous substances, or live in Illinois and unknowingly purchase from an Illinois retailer goods made with cancer-causing toxins by an out-of-state manufacturer.
This legislation follows a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision concerning the liability of out-of-state companies. The court ruled in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co. that a Pennsylvania law requiring out-of-state companies to consent to the jurisdiction of its court system, as a condition of registering to do business in that state, did not violate the Due Process Clause of the United States Constitution. The nation’s high court rejected an argument from Norfolk Southern, a company incorporated and headquartered in Virginia, that it did not consent to the jurisdiction of the Pennsylvania state court system.
U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski on Tuesday confirmed her name was included in notes left behind by Vance Boelter, the man charged with killing a Minnesota lawmaker and injuring another.
“On Sunday, I was informed by Capitol Police that my name was included in the Minnesota murder suspect’s notes,” Budzinski, D-Ill., wrote on X. “I want to again send my condolences to the family of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark. I will continue to keep them as well as State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette in my prayers. My deepest sympathies go out to their families, friends, and the entire Minnesota community.
“As I’ve said before, there is absolutely no place in this country for political violence. We must be a nation that values civility and mutual respect — always,” Budzinski said.
She declined further comment.
* United Food and Commercial Workers Local 881…
Local 881 United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) endorsed Robert Peters for Congress in Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District on Tuesday. Local 881 represents 34,000 hard-working members across Illinois, including thousands in the district, in grocery, retail, pharmacy, cannabis, food processing, and other essential industries.
“Robert Peters has always been a champion for working people,” said Local 881 UFCW President Steve Powell. “He understands the challenges our members face, from wages and health care to safe working conditions and dignity on the job. We need his voice fighting for us in Washington.”
As a current Illinois State Senator and longtime organizer, Peters has stood shoulder to shoulder with labor, advocating for fair pay, strong unions, and a people-first economy. His campaign for Congress centers working families, racial and economic justice, health equity, and a bold vision for the future of Illinois and the nation.
“I’m proud to receive the support of Local 881,” said Peters. “Their members—essential workers who keep our communities going—deserve more than lip service. I will continue standing for their right to organize, earn a living wage, and build a better life for their families as we fight back against Trump’s onslaught against working people.”
* The state headquarters building in Chicago experienced a power surge today. This email was sent out by CMS at noon…
555 W. Monroe just experience a power surge. Power has been fully restored to the building; however, we are in the process of manually switching power back on throughout the building. The surge effected the elevators, and we are working to have the power restored quickly. If you need to exit the building during this time, please take the stairs to the ground level. We will keep everyone informed as we work through this situation.
Several employees went home to work remotely, we’re told.
*** Statehouse News ***
* Press Release | Illinois governor signs bill, delays implementation for state interchange act: “Credit unions across Illinois applaud Governor Pritzker for his swift action in signing House Bill 742, extending the effective date of the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act,” said Ashley Sharp, senior vice president of state advocacy and legislative Counsel for the Illinois Credit Union League. “While litigation challenging the law proceeds, it is imperative to provide relief to credit unions, local banks, Main Street businesses and consumers throughout the state of Illinois – all who stand to be negatively impacted by this law.”
*** Statewide ***
* WaPo | Maps show the cities about to experience extreme humidity and heat: Chicago: Maximum humidity level: Very high: High humidity will develop Tuesday, becoming very high Wednesday, when strong-to-severe storms are possible. After a brief break Thursday, humidity levels will surge from Friday through next week as a period of dangerous heat arrives. … St. Louis: Maximum humidity level: Extreme: High to extreme humidity levels show no signs of letting up through next week. This will fuel strong-to-severe thunderstorms on Wednesday. A period of excessive heat is forecast to arrive on Saturday.
* Tribune | Photos: Our Route 66 road trip: As the 100th anniversary of Route 66 approaches in 2026, join Pulitzer Prize winners Jonathan Bullington and E. Jason Wambsgans as they spotlight the stops and people who live along America’s highway. Route 66 was created to connect us, a fused chain of existing roadways many unpaved that stretched 2,448 miles across eight states and three time zones, starting steps from Lake Michigan in downtown Chicago and ending near the Pacific Ocean and Santa Monica’s famed fishing pier.
*** Chicago ***
* Injustice Watch | Pilsen tenants followed the law in withholding rent. They were forced to move out anyway.: By the time three Pilsen tenants began writing letters to their landlord requesting repairs in May 2023, water was dripping from the ceiling of a third-floor hallway even on sunny days. “Right outside my unit, there is water leakage from the fourth floor and damage in floorboards due to oversaturation,” wrote Cristina Miranda, one of the tenants, who just months earlier had moved into the four-story building on the southern edge of the trendy Mexican neighborhood. “This water leakage is random and independent from rainy weather,” Miranda wrote.
* Block Club | Chicago Police Have Failed To Solve More Homicides. Could A New Law Help?: The late May passage of the Illinois Homicide Data Transparency Act — which will require law enforcement to track and publish detailed, standardized homicide reports — was welcome news to gun reform advocates in Chicago, a city where many shooting survivors say they distrust police. That distrust exists, in part, because Chicago Police typically solve gun crimes at lower rates than their counterparts in other cities, and they report their clearance rates in a way that tends to inflate their track record.
* WGN | Illinois Congressmen visit immigration facility in South Loop as Trump orders ICE to increase deportation efforts: Two Illinois Congressmen, U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (8th District) and U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson (1st District), visited the ISAP (Intensive Supervision Appearance Program) office in the South Loop on Tuesday. The immigration office is run by ICE officials. Several Chicago residents have received text messages to show up there. When they arrived for check-in, they were detained. […] “For ICE and Donald Trump to specifically target Chicago for these types of raids and these types of fraudulent text scams to get people to come in, only to be snatched away, is wrong,” the congressman said.
* The federal legislators entered the ISAP office but were denied access once inside…
.@rep_jackson and I were just denied entry to the South Loop ICE facility in Chicago.
We went to ask questions and perform congressional oversight of potential illegal ICE activities as Donald Trump's administration targets immigrant communities.
— Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (@CongressmanRaja) June 17, 2025
…Adding… Statement from Krishnamoorthi…
“People in Illinois are confused, scared, and deserve answers,” Congressman Krishnamoorthi said. “It is my responsibility as an elected member of the United States Congress to conduct oversight of this center and get answers for our neighbors and constituents. These raids are not isolated incidents. The facility leadership’s decision to deny me entry into the center is disappointing and outrageous, and I will continue to demand information from ICE personnel to ensure everyone’s rights to due process are being upheld – as is the law.”
On Monday, a man was arrested and detained by ICE agents in Elgin, located in Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s congressional district, despite having no previous criminal record and having lived and worked in Elgin for 12 years.
“We made it through the double doors into the facility. We talked to an ICE officer who refused to identify himself. He was wearing a mask to obscure his identity. We asked for his name. We asked for his badge. He refused,” Krishnamoorthi said. “He then called Chicago Police to evict us from the property as trespassers. This is federally paid property. We should be able to conduct oversight here, and we’re going to insist following this visit on doing just that.”
Jackson said police officers were “gracious and kind,” and he called them “conflicted.”
“What you’re beginning to see is the officers are conflicted. He was calling the police on two members of Congress and said that we were trespassing,” Jackson said. “This is a federal contractor in the 1st District, and there’s been some really slimy and scammy things that have happened with text messages and people being picked up. We came here simply to ask.”
Krishnamoorthi said “several people” from Elgin, in his district, have received texts to show up to an ICE office. Jackson said two constituents have reached out to his office about missing family members.
* Block Club | MAT Asphalt Complaints Continue Even After Mitigation Technology Installed Last April: Over the last year, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) has received more than two dozen air pollution complaints against MAT Asphalt and ticketed the facility for environmental ordinance violations, according to records obtained by Borderless Magazine. In a handful of instances, inspectors have identified odors escaping from the plant and trucks when loaded with asphalt, a petroleum-based material, according to environmental inspection records.
* Tribune | Ald. Jim Gardiner cleared of ethics charge, $20k fine; ethics board chair stepping down: It’s a rare win in a string of other controversies for the alderman. Czosnyka and others won a $157,500 settlement after claiming Gardiner unfairly blocked critics from his official Facebook page, which was paid in part by the alderman and partly with taxpayer dollars. Taxpayers also had to pick up the tab for a separate $100,000 settlement to a man that claimed Gardiner had him wrongfully arrested. Gardiner also publicly apologized for what he described as “offensive” texts using derogatory language against City Council colleagues and women.
* Tribune | Chicago police still seeking suspect in foot chase that led to shooting death of Officer Krystal Rivera: Meanwhile, investigators with the Civilian Office of Police Accountability continue to probe the gunshot that resulted in Rivera’s on-duty death, CPD’s first of 2025. In the moments after the chase, Rivera was shot and killed by her own partner, authorities have said. […] With no time to wait for an ambulance, Rivera was placed into a squad car to be driven to University of Chicago Medical Center. During the trip to the hospital, though, the police vehicle caught fire and Rivera was transferred to a different squad car. She was pronounced dead at the hospital. In the chaos, the suspect who prompted the stop was able to escape. A Police Department spokesperson told the Tribune that they remained at large.
* Crain’s | With latest deal, United Center owners cross $100M in land purchases: A venture controlled by the Reinsdorf and Wirtz families, which co-own the Near West Side venue, paid just more than $12 million late last month for a surface parking lot and brick building at the southeast corner of Washington Boulevard and Damen Avenue, according to Cook County property records. The entity bought the property from an affiliate of Red Top Parking, a longtime operator of parking lots near the United Center that has sold other land nearby to the team owners in recent years.
* Sun-Times | Chicago public pools to open 7 days a week for first time since COVID-19 closings: The outlook this summer is for above-average temperatures and intense humidity, according to Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford. Chicagoans will get the first taste of extreme heat this weekend when temperatures are forecast above 90 degrees and humidity levels are expected to be oppressive, Ford said. It’s been a cool June so far.
* Sun-Times | Earl Moses, ‘true newsman,’ former Sun-Times editor, dies at 94: Moses, a respected Chicago newspaperman, died May 24 at his home in Torrance, California. He was 94. […] Moses joined the Sun-Times in 1962, rising from reporter to night city editor, then city editor, assistant managing editor, assistant to the personnel director and assistant to the editor before taking early retirement in 1988 after suffering a stroke. “My dad was a true newsman. The Sun-Times was his life,” said Matthew Moses, who remembers his father interacting with colleagues. “Roger Flaherty, Leon Pitt, I remember their confidence. They saw through all the bs going on in the city. It was fun watching them hang out, hearing them swap stories. That made him a superhero in my eyes.”
*** Cook County and Suburbs ***
* Daily Southtown | Students complained about Bloom Trail teacher years before sexual assault charges brought, records show: Records obtained from District 206 show Giglio was placed on paid administrative leave for an investigation on the same day the district was served with a lawsuit, May 14, 2024. The school board voted to terminate his employment July 8, 2024. In February 2021, a person stating they were a parent of a Bloom Trail student sent the district an anonymous email listing concerns with Giglio’s behavior. The parent claimed to have contacted Bloom Trail Principal Glynis Keene with concerns in December 2020 and wanted to know why Giglio was still teaching.
* Daily Herald | Hoffman Estates approves $385,000 purchase of TIF-funded land: The redevelopment includes the land on the southeast corner of Barrington road and the Interstate 90 tollway which is adjacent to the village’s public works maintenance garage. Although 11 acres of land were purchased, not all are usable, which resulted in the affordable price, according to village manager Eric Palm.
* Daily Herald | Indivisible Elk Grove Township’s inaugural event draws 6,000: One of the Indivisible Movement’s newest chapters, Indivisible Elk Grove Township, hosted their first event on June 14 in Arlington Heights to join with millions of protesters nationwide who gathered on Flag Day to demand an end to executive overreach and to reclaim a country that is governed according to the Constitution by We the People. Lynne S, the Indivisible Elk Grove Township chapter’s founder, attributes the overwhelming success of this event to many factors. “We had an incredible lineup of speakers headlined by U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi and including state Rep. Mary Beth Canty (54th), state Rep. Nicole Grasse (53rd), County Commissioner Kevin Morrison (15th) and Jesse Rojo (Illinois Veterans for Change) among others.”
* Daily Herald | Ex-chief to get $99,210 from Wheeling in separation deal: Former Wheeling Police Chief Jamie Dunne will receive more than $99,200 from the village when he officially retires in a few weeks. Dunne will get a one-time, lump payment of nearly $86,305 within 14 days of his July 4 retirement, documents indicate. He’ll also receive a $12,905 payment for his employee-sponsored retirement account. Additionally, Dunne is due unspecified payment for earned but unused vacation time and personal time. The payments are part of a separation agreement approved by the village board Monday night. The deal was authorized without public discussion as part of the consent agenda, which is reserved for routine matters.
*** Downstate ***
* WGLT | Bloomington looks to adopt new housing rehabilitation strategy: The proposed Housing Rehabilitation Program, part of a larger neighborhood revitalization effort, was presented publicly for the first time during Monday’s Committee of the Whole meeting. Cordaryl Patrick, the city’s community impact and enhancement director, said estimates indicate Bloomington has about 300-400 properties that are currently vacant and derelict and would be targeted by the initiative.
* Capitol City Now | District 186: Scope makes progress: The rising cost of before- and after-school care in District 186 is a concern administrator Terrance Jordan is feeling. The popular Scope program now must be self-sufficient, after the administration’s attempt to transfer it to the YMCA failed. “Currently, if they don’t receive CCC, which is Community Child Care Connection, that price is $115 per child,” said the district’s Terrance Jordan, “and we have received emails from concerned parents about that increase and how it may be pricing them out.”
* WSIL | T-Mobile grant to enhance safety and access in Carbondale: The City of Carbondale has been awarded a $46,000 Hometown Grant from T-Mobile. This makes Carbondale one of just 25 communities nationwide and one of two in Illinois to receive this grant in the latest funding round. […] The grant will fund the installation of decorative wayfinding signage along the Downtown-Campus Connector and decorative alleyway lighting in three key downtown locations. These improvements will enhance connectivity and safety between Southern Illinois University (SIU) and downtown Carbondale.
* WCIA | Vehicle drives into Baskin-Robbins in Springfield; two hospitalized: In a Facebook post Tuesday afternoon, Springfield Fire Fighters Local 37 said they responded to a vehicle impacting the Baskin-Robbins at the intersection of S MacArthur Blvd. and W Laurel St. As a result, two occupants of the vehicle were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Additionally, nobody inside of the Baskin-Robbins nor the neighboring business were hurt in this incident, and everyone involved has been accounted for.
* WSIL | Anna, IL to boost accessibility with $2.1M transportation grant: “We’re pleased to receive this money from ITEP and excited to put these dollars to work in our community,” said City Administrator Dori Bigler. “The multi-use path to Walmart will improve accessibility while increasing safety for residents and visitors alike.” The path will extend from the intersection of Springfield Avenue and East Vienna Street to Walmart. Anna is among 66 projects statewide receiving funding, with a total of $139.2 million awarded through the Illinois Department of Transportation.
*** National ***
* Lexis Nexis | Will Genetic Privacy Concerns Raised by 23andMe’s Collapse Last?: In the wake of 23andMe’s bankruptcy announcement, attorneys general in Alabama, Arizona, California, Kentucky, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Texas all issued warnings to their residents about the company’s collapse and encouraged them to delete any genetic data held by the company. In the wake of 23andMe’s bankruptcy announcement, attorneys general in Alabama, Arizona, California, Kentucky, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Texas all issued warnings to their residents about the company’s collapse and encouraged them to delete any genetic data held by the company. […] This month, 27 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent 23andMe from selling customers’ genetic data without obtaining their “explicit consent” first.
* Nielsen | Streaming Reaches Historic TV Milestone, Eclipses Combined Broadcast and Cable Viewing For First Time: Streaming reached a historic milestone in May as its share of total television usage outpaced the combined share of broadcast and cable for the first time ever, according to Nielsen’s monthly report of The Gauge™. Streaming represented 44.8% of TV viewership in May 2025, its largest share of viewing to date, while broadcast (20.1%) and cable (24.1%) combined to represent 44.2% of TV.
* TPM | Senate Republicans Propose Gutting Medicaid Further To Make Trump Tax Cuts Permanent: Committee Republicans propose steeper cuts to certain programs, including Medicaid and the Child Tax Credit, in order to make President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts permanent. The panel has also proposed a slower phase out on the Biden-era clean energy tax credits, though experts point out the overall effect would still be equal to gutting the clean energy incentives. Many Senate Republicans have vocalized issues with a handful of provisions in the House version of the bill — Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) has warned against a “full-scale repeal” of current energy tax credits; Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MS) has made some noise about cutting Medicaid; Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) goes back-and-forth daily about whether he’s content with the federal spending cuts outlined in the bill.
Gun rights advocates once again are asking a federal appeals court in Chicago to overturn Illinois’ ban on assault-style firearms and large-capacity magazines in a case that may be destined for the U.S. Supreme Court.
In briefs filed Friday with the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, attorneys representing plaintiffs challenging the law urged the court to uphold the decision of a lower court judge in East St. Louis who said the law violates the Second Amendment because it bans weapons that are commonly used for lawful purposes like self-defense.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office is appealing that decision, arguing that the weapons banned under the law such as the AK-47, AR-15 and other similar firearms are primarily military in nature and therefore are not protected by the Second Amendment.
The state has until June 27 to file a response to the gun industry’s brief. The court is then expected to set a date for oral arguments, possibly later this year.
* Assistant United States Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division…
The amicus brief’s introduction points to Bruen (2022) and says in part:
Three years ago, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision meant to break a habit developed by some States of treating the Second Amendment as “a second-class right, subject to an entirely different body of rules than the other” constitutional rights. …[Bruen] (2022).
Regrettably, not every State got the message. Just a few months after Bruen, Illinois outlawed some of the most commonly used rifles and magazines in America via a so-called “assault weapons” ban. In doing so, Illinois violated the Supreme Court’s clear directive that States cannot prohibit arms that are “in common use” by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes. …[Heller] (2008).
The Civil Rights Division’s brief centers on two issues:
1. Whether the Act violates the Second Amendment to the extent that it bans the possession of firearms that are in common use by law-abiding citizens for lawful reasons.
2. Whether the Act violates the Second Amendment to the extent that it bans the possession of magazines and other firearm attachments that are in common use by law-abiding citizens for lawful reasons.
The brief then notes that the AR-15 is among the “arms” protected by the Second Amendment, and that those protections also include the magazines necessary to feed ammunition to the rifles.
Q: The DOJ has now joined a lawsuit over the assault weapons ban and whatnot. Can you comment on that? And why are they wrong in getting involved with this?
Pritzker: Look, change of administration. They obviously don’t understand the damage that’s being done across the country where there are no assault weapons bans. And they have paid zero attention to the fact that in the 90s, when there was a national assault weapons ban, the number of killings went down significantly. They’re wrong-headed on so many things, but this is yet another of those.
…Adding… Illinois State Rifle Association…
Late Friday, the U.S. Justice Department filed an amicus brief with the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in support of our challenge to the Illinois ban on commonly owned firearms. The Department of Justice argues that such bans violate the Second Amendment — a position we’ve consistently maintained since this unconstitutional legislation was first introduced several years ago.
“This historic and unprecedented move is welcomed news,” said ISRA Executive Director Richard Pearson. “The ISRA remains on the front lines and continues to stand up to Gov. Pritzker and anti-gun legislators in Springfield on behalf of 2.5 million law-abiding, responsible firearms owners in Illinois – and this latest development proves it.
The ISRA has been working diligently behind the scenes to ensure that the Trump administration — particularly the Justice Department — holds Illinois’ anti-Second Amendment leaders accountable for their unconstitutional actions.
In a social media post over the weekend, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote, “The Second Amendment is not a second-class right. See you in Court, Illinois.”
The ISRA is presently leading the charge as a named plaintiff on two cases and playing a supporting role in an additional five more – totaling 7 cases dealing with constitutional issues and on behalf of law-abiding gun owners in Illinois.
* During the press conference announcing the arrest of alleged assassin Vance Boelter, Minnesota’s Superintendent of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Drew Evans told reporters that Illinoisans were on the list compiled by the alleged Minnesota assassin. When asked if others in states beyond Minnesota were on the list…
I don’t want to say it, because it won’t be exhaustive, but Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, some others that were on there. There was a variety in Nebraska, Iowa.
* Gov. JB Pritzker said this today in response to a question about Evans’ comment. Rush transcript…
Let me begin by saying that, no, there is not a hit list that has Illinois politicians on it. There was a list, as you may recall, that was in the car that was recovered before they arrested the perpetrator. And that list was referred to as a hit list. It has Minnesota politicians, as I understand it, on it, about 70 of them.
Later, as the FBI and the Minnesota police were going to the various locations that this man lived, they recovered devices and other papers that had on them 600 names, more than 600 names, more of a hodgepodge. It wasn’t a list of 600. It was literally like a few people here, a few people there, websites that he had visited, etc.
And they put all that together, and I think out of a desire to be responsive to the media and to other inquiries, the FBI decided to put out the list, or at least the the information about the list, again, a hodgepodge of names that were put together, but not, as I have been told, a ‘hit list’ of any sort. And… the people who were among that very large list were not targeted in any way.
There are Illinois folks, like Iowa and others, but very few, and the again, no one, the FBI specifically said to me that these people are not targets, and they certainly, now that he has been apprehended, are they’re not concerned about those people being targeted in any way whatsoever.
Pritzker also said, “As I understand, I was not on that list.”
The suspect in the killing of a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband in addition to the shooting of another lawmaker and his wife also visited two more politicians’ homes, according to authorities.
“In the early-morning hours of June 14, Boelter went to the homes of four Minnesota state politicians with the intent to kill them,” Joseph H. Thompson, the acting US attorney for the District of Minnesota, said at a news conference Monday.
The amount of $5,000,000, or so much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the General Revenue Fund to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for a grant to NASCAR events and Entertainment LLC for costs associated with operating expenses.
This is a reduction from the current fiscal year, which provided $7 million to NASCAR ($2 million for operating expenses and $5 million for “capital improvements, including prior year costs.”
There are a ton of very worthwhile programs which desperately needed $5 million GRF this year.
* If we won’t give money to the Bears and the White Sox, why are we appropriating $5 million in “operating expenses” (of all things) to NASCAR?
…Adding… Isabel just asked Gov. Pritzker about the NASCAR appropriation. His response…
I can’t speak to the specific reason for that, I can tell you that our tourism budget in the state of Illinois has increased over the last six and a half years since I became governor. Very importantly, it has brought enormous benefit to the state. Specifically, the investment in tourism yields revenue for the state that is vastly more than the investment that gets made by our tourism office. And so I’m proud of the work that we’ve done, and we’re going to continue to make investments there.
