Education experts said they are excited to see more money being set aside for education from pre-K to college to fund investments they argue are critical. […]
One of the headlines from Governor J.B. Pritzker’s February budget address was Smart Start Illinois. The program aims to provide early childhood programs for all young Illinoisans. The budget would allocate $250 million for the first year of the plan. […]
For K-12 public schools, the evidence-based funding model would get a major boost of $350 million. The funding model uses certain metrics to determine how much money schools need to give students a proper education. […]
Students’ college education would also get a boost in funding, with the budget providing an additional $100 million for MAP grants. With those grants, students can receive more need-based financial aid making sure getting a degree remains affordable.
* Some are not…
The budget released by the Illinois General Assembly failed to increase funds for statewide sexual assault services. Throughout the legislative session, the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault (ICASA) called upon legislators to invest an additional $12 million in state General Revenue Funding to the 31 rape crisis centers in Illinois. These funds are desperately needed to offset a drastic $9.5 million federal funding cut and the ongoing impact rising inflation has had on the workforce. Unfortunately, the agreed budget released today by Illinois legislators failed to increase the designated line item beyond Governor Pritzker’s introduced $7.69 million. Without the increase, numerous Illinois communities will be forced to severely reduce rape crisis services across the state. The gap in funding will result in longer waiting lists, staff layoffs, and satellite/outreach office closures, reversing years of progress toward comprehensive statewide access to services.
In House Exec now-ish: SB 1298 deals w Medicaid reimbursement rates; also gives @GovPritzker's administration emergency rulemaking power to manage fast-growing costs in IL's health care program for noncitizens, which @NowickiPress has written lots about: https://t.co/yrN88pquLCpic.twitter.com/YbjSWz2xtc
A bill has bubbled up suddenly in the final days of the Legislature’s spring session that could give downstate utility Ameren Illinois a highly lucrative gift and leave Commonwealth Edison in the cold. […]
There’s sudden momentum in the state Senate for legislation that would give Ameren the right to box out competition in its service territory to build any new high-voltage lines. […]
Advocates for competition say these laws will inflate costs of the projects, which could benefit from competitive bidding. Ultimately, ratepayers will cover those costs in their electric bills. Likewise, clean-energy advocates are concerned, worried that inflated costs of needed high-voltage connections will hold back renewable power development as rate shock leads to consumer pushback.
The Illinois House voted 106-0 to concur with the Senate on a sweeping ethics measure targeting red-light camera companies, sending the measure to Pritzker’s desk. It comes after several elected officials were charged in connection with the feds’ probe of politically connected red-light camera company SafeSpeed deals.
The legislation prohibits contractors who provide equipment and services for red-light camera companies from making campaign contributions.
It would also allow the Illinois Department of Transportation to remove specific red-light cameras that have been connected to a bribery or corruption scandal. It also creates a two-year revolving door provision — which would prohibit members of the General Assembly and officers of municipalities and counties from accepting employment from a contractor that provided automated enforcement equipment.
* As subscribers know, there are some very real problems with the existing state law. A punt was inevitable…
Lawmakers also look ready to punt on another outstanding issue, with the House voting 69-36 vote Thursday to send the Senate a measure that would extend the deadline for approving map for Chicago’s new elected school board districts to April 1 from July 1. This move comes after two draft maps were criticized in public forums for not being representative of the diverse student population of Chicago Public Schools.
“The extension gives us more time to ensure that these last minute submissions are given the thought and the analysis they deserve,” said Democratic Sen. Robert Martwick, vice-chair of the committee charged with crafting the map and a sponsor of the legislation creating an elected school board in Chicago.
Separately, the House voted 69-35 to send Pritzker a measure that would require lawsuits challenging laws under the state constitution to be filed in either Cook County or Sangamon County, home to Springfield.
Democrats who supported the measure said it was necessary to prevent people who sue the state from trying to get their cases heard before judges who they believe will rule in the favor, while also conserving resources for the attorney general’s office, which represents the state in court.
* The second BIMP amendment didn’t change much, but, man, this was just not cricket…
UPDATE: A few minutes after filing an 899-page amendment to the BIMP, the Senate sends the budget implementation bill to the House for concurrence https://t.co/NeKXKBq3JZhttps://t.co/Wk2fi5×5AR
A lawmaker flagged this for me. On page 1,344 of the budget: $50 million appropriated from @illinoiscdb "for costs associated with planning and design of a new legislative building and related planning and design costs for demolition of the Stratton Office Building." 👀 https://t.co/kjA11BietSpic.twitter.com/SYhNqeYpKj
Following the Senate passage of the FY24 budget agreement, Governor JB Pritzker released the following statement:
“My thanks to President Harmon, Leader Elgie Sims, and all the members of the Senate who voted today to advance our fifth balanced budget. This budget makes transformative investments in the children and families of Illinois while building on our record of fiscal responsibility. I look forward to the House taking up this budget that will make childcare and education more accessible, healthcare more affordable, and our state’s business and economic position even stronger.”
* IMA…
The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association (IMA) released the following statement regarding the Fiscal Year 2024 State Budget:
“A skilled, educated workforce is critical to the future of the manufacturing industry in Illinois, which is the largest contributor of any sector to the state’s Gross Domestic Product. We are encouraged by the additional investments in education, which will help to better prepare students for the high-tech, advanced manufacturing jobs that will grow our economy and move our state and nation forward,” said Mark Denzler, President & CEO of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association. “We proudly partnered with the Governor’s office and legislative leaders in securing $400 million to close major economic development deals and attract businesses to the Land of Lincoln, as well as expand programs to strengthen our state’s electric vehicle and clean energy ecosystem. These initiatives, along with the reinstatement of the Blue Collar Jobs Act and continued elimination of the franchise tax, will further aid economic development across the state, and we look forward to building on these efforts in the coming years.”
* Illinois Municipal League…
The Illinois Municipal League (IML) issued the following statement in response to the State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2024 state budget which includes an increase to the Local Government Distributive Fund (LGDF), which is estimated to provide an additional $112 million annually to cities, villages and towns:
“The Local Government Distributive Fund is an important tool to help Illinois cities, villages and towns pay for services like mandated pension benefits, critical infrastructure repairs, public safety and other important programs. We are pleased that the General Assembly recognizes the importance of LGDF to Illinois communities, and has chosen to increase the LGDF rate from 6.16% to 6.47%. We appreciate the increase and we are hopeful that LGDF will be put on a more rapid path to full restoration of 10% of the state’s total income tax revenue. The Illinois Municipal League will continue to advocate on this issue until LGDF is fully restored,” said IML Executive Director Brad Cole.
* Senate President Harmon…
Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) issued the following statement after the Senate voted to pass a balanced budget:
“This budget continues the work Democrats have done to restore economic prosperity to our state. It encompasses our shared goals of responsible budgeting and paying down debt while investing in key priorities like education, violence prevention and affordable housing.
“This was a collaborative effort. I am proud of the work we did, and I look forward to the House sending this balanced budget to the governor so he can sign it into law.”
* Leader Lightford…
Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford (D-Maywood) declared the state’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget a positive investment for our state’s children – prioritizing education, youth employment and mental health.
“A person’s educational success begins the day they are born. The quickest way to fail a generation is by failing to prioritize their education,” said Lightford (D-Maywood). “In Illinois, I am proud to say we took a positive step toward ensuring our students aren’t failed by an unjust system.”
The budget – backed by Lightford – includes a $250 million investment into early childhood education. The funding will be used to expand preschool, stabilize the child care workforce, and provide more early intervention and home visiting programs.
Further, the budget includes additional MAP grant funding, ensuring everyone at or below the median income can go to community college free. This builds upon Lightford’s commitment to prioritize education from birth to college.
“As a General Assembly, we did what was right by the people of Illinois and fought for equitable funding and access to education,” said Lightford. “I was proud to vote for a budget that provides our youth with greater opportunities for success – from investing in early childhood education to ensuring higher education is more affordable and accessible.”
The budget also included investments into workforce development – particularly for teens and young adults. It passed the Senate Thursday.
Lawmakers also wobbled some on a measure designed to nullify former Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s last-second appointment of top aide Samir Mayekar to the board of the agency that runs McCormick Place, initially rejecting one version, floating a compromise and now talking about both versions. […]
On Lightfoot ex-aide Samir Mayekar, a motion to undo her appointment of him to the Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority board was abruptly pulled off the House floor Wednesday evening after advocates headed by the Chicago Federation of Labor concluded it lacked the votes to pass.
A compromise of sorts then was offered, one that would allow anyone appointed by a mayor at the end of their term to serve, but only for six months, after which the new mayor would get to fill the slot.
All sides were declining comment while talks and vote-counting continued.
* IDES…
The unemployment rate increased in six metropolitan areas, decreased in five, and was unchanged in three for the year ending April 2023, according to data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Illinois Department of Employment Security (DES). Over-the-year, total nonfarm jobs increased in thirteen metropolitan areas and was unchanged in one. […]
The metro areas which had the largest over-the-year percentage increases in total nonfarm jobs were the Champaign-Urbana MSA (+2.7%, +3,200), the Peoria MSA (+2.4%, +4,100), and the Elgin Metro (+2.4%, +6,200). Total nonfarm jobs in the Chicago Metro Division were up +1.6% or +59,800. The Carbondale-Marion MSA saw no change in total nonfarm jobs. Industries that saw job growth in a majority of metro areas included: Education and Health Services (thirteen areas); Leisure and Hospitality, Other Services and Government (twelve areas each); Manufacturing, Wholesale Trade and Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities (nine areas each); and Mining and Construction (eight areas).
The metro areas with the largest unemployment rate increases were the Lake-Kenosha County IL-WI Metro (+0.3 point to 4.3%), followed by the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island IA-IL MSA (+0.2 point to 3.5%), the Kankakee MSA (+0.2 point to 5.4%) and the Rockford MSA (+0.2 point to 6.2%). The metro areas with the largest unemployment rate decreases were the Chicago Metro Division (-1.1 percentage points to 3.2%), a record low unemployment rate for the month of April, followed by the Springfield MSA (-0.4 point to 3.7%) and the Carbondale-Marion MSA (-0.2 point to 3.9%). The unemployment rate was unchanged in the Bloomington MSA (3.4%), the Champaign-Urbana MSA (3.6%) and the Peoria MSA (4.5%).
* Chicago mayor…
Mayor Brandon Johnson on Thursday announced a comprehensive public safety and engagement plan for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, including a $2.5 million investment from the Partnership for Safe and Peaceful Communities’ 8th annual Chicago Fund. The public-private partnership investment will support violence prevention and youth outreach efforts across the city by funding the work of 253 grassroots organizations working across 24 communities on the South and West sides, beginning with engaging young people in activities during Memorial Day weekend and during the gap between the end of the school year and the beginning of Chicago Park District programming. The funding will also support youth programming efforts during the summer and fall.
With many festivals, concerts, athletic events, the opening of beaches and simultaneous events throughout the city and along the lakefront this Memorial Day weekend, the City of Chicago is advising residents and visitors to be aware of street closures, additional crowds, increased traffic and to plan accordingly. The Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) is reminding residents and visitors of security measures in place and stresses the importance of always being aware of your surroundings and to report suspicious activity to on-site event security or by calling 9-1-1.
The City of Chicago will have citywide deployments for Memorial Day Weekend to ensure the safety and security of the public. The OEMC will monitor weekend events and weather conditions citywide from the Operations Center and coordinate public safety resources with critical stakeholders.
Earlier this month, OEMC and the Chicago Police Department activated the Summer Operations Center. The OEMC will also be activating its Emergency Operations Center for the weekend to allow for enhanced citywide coordination amongst the Chicago Police Department; Chicago Fire Department; and City of Chicago infrastructure departments, city agencies, and private partners.
To supplement resources already within police districts, CPD will increase its presence across the city and on the lakefront this summer to maintain public safety in areas of large-scale events, gatherings, and car caravans. In addition to these precision deployments, the Bureau of Patrol has also held numerous tabletop exercises and drills to ensure appropriate police response to active situations. CPD is also working closely with community organizations and leaders to provide safe spaces for youth and families to enjoy the city.
Join the Champaign County Republican Party for our Annual Lincoln Day Dinner!
Join us for a fun evening of cocktails, dinner, conversation with fellow Republicans, and hear remarks from party and elected officials as well as our keynote speaker, Brandon Straka of the #WalkAway Campaign.
Brandon Straka, a self-described “former liberal” who founded the #WalkAway campaign to encourage people to leave the Democratic Party, admitted to recording himself telling the mob to “go go go” as they reached the Capitol and telling rioters who were wrestling a shield away from a US Capitol Police officer to “take it, take it.”
He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct on Capitol in October. Straka will have to pay a $5,000 fine, the maximum fine allowed, and an additional $500 for the damage done to the Capitol building by the mob.
Come celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s legacy and meet an insurrectionist!
* Isabel’s roundup…
* Sun-Times | Judge says he won’t toss portions of perjury indictment against Madigan’s ex-chief of staff: Mapes has pleaded not guilty. And last spring, his attorneys argued that portions of his perjury indictment should be tossed because the questions he fielded in front of the grand jury were ambiguous. They also said some of his allegedly false answers were “literally true.” During a brief hearing in the case Wednesday, U.S. District Judge John Kness told lawyers he intended to deny that request. The judge also said he planned to release a written ruling later Wednesday or Thursday.
* Illinois Newsroom | Statewide task force aims to decrease barriers for immigrants in Illinois: These are a few of the recommendations in a new report by the Illinois Immigrant Impact Task Force, a group created by the General Assembly in 2021 to help immigrant communities. Ruth Lopez McCarthy is a senior immigration fellow at the Illinois Department of Human Services and is working with the task force.
* Center Square | Illinois pork producers brace for impact from U.S. Supreme Court ruling: Pork producers in Illinois and across the U.S. are scrambling after the U.S. Supreme Court narrowly ruled against them. In a 5-4 decision announced earlier this month, the Supreme Court majority voted to dismiss the pork producers’ challenge to Proposition 12, a California law that requires pork producers to give gestating sows 24 feet of space, rather than confining them in crates for their protection. Chad Leman, a third generation hog farmer and president of the Illinois Pork Producers, said his members are “deeply disappointed” in the ruling. “We know what is best for the animals. We certainly know more than the activists or the politicians do,” Leman told The Center Square.
* Michael Sneed | Michael Pfleger wants houses of worship to provide youth programs or lose tax exemption: “Although Mayor [Brandon] Johnson’s public safety team is still in the discussion phase, I plan to propose the removal of the tax exemption status given to thousands of churches, synagogues and mosques citywide if they don’t provide a full load of activities for young people, especially on weekends,” he said … noting some blocks on the south and west sides have many churches.
* The Telegraph | Freightway announces transportation priorities: The list included recently-completed projects — such as the $222 million reconstruction of the Merchant’s Bridge and replacement of the Union Pacific’s Lenox Tower in Mitchell — as well as ongoing projects that include $1.3 billion in improvements slated for Interstate 270 from Illinois 143 to I-70 in Missouri. New projects include improvements to the MacArthur Bridge, the other major rail bridge spanning the Mississippi in St. Louis, and a major expansion of railyard operations in the Metro East.
* Tribune | Cook County judge dismisses city’s lawsuit against Gary gun shop: The city filed the lawsuit against Westforth Sports, located in Gary, Ind., in April 2021, alleging the shop repeatedly violated federal gun laws, often resulting in criminal charges against straw purchasers. The city further alleged that the shop’s owner, Earl Westforth, ignored warnings from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives about suspicious purchases at the store.
* Crain’s | Amazon drops plans to open warehouses in Bridgeport, Addison: But Amazon went too far, adding more space than it needed. Over the past year the company has been cutting jobs, closing existing warehouses and postponing plans to open new ones. In 2022, Amazon closed small distribution centers in Elgin and Mundelein and scrapped plans for new facilities in Hoffman Estates and Crystal Lake. Earlier this year, Amazon postponed the opening of a new warehouse in West Humboldt Park that would have employed as many as 500 people.
* Daily Herald | Struggle for control leads to past due bills: DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek has come under fire for unpaid bills totaling $180,520. … County board members expressed concern over the precedent Kaczmarek could set for other countywide elected officials and what the clerk’s actions could mean for the county’s financial ratings. Others suggested action against the clerk, such as official misconduct charges or misdemeanor charges for exceeding line item limitations, could be filed against Kaczmarek or others in her office.
* WAND | Multi-million dollar renovations happening at Illinois State Fairgrounds: Construction is underway to restore and renovate the Multi-Purpose Arena (MPA). The $8.6 million project will repair sidewalks, walls, steps, and expansion joints, while also repairing electrical systems, readjusting the tension structure, installing a new canopy, and rebuilding the retaining walls around the facility.
* Crain’s | Judge orders Chinese investor to surrender Loop office tower: In a ruling meant to help resolve an unpaid $185 million judgment against HNA International as the China-based firm works through bankruptcy, Judge John Koeltl ordered HNA to turn over its interest in the Chicago property to a venture led by New York-based SL Green, according to Southern District of New York court records.
* KCTV | Carbondale man arrested in Nevada; accused of stealing backhoe, driving to airport to catch flight : According to the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, Timothy J. Baggott, of Carbondale, was arrested in Elko County, Nevada on May 21 for charges related to the possession of a stolen vehicle. He was later released. The sheriff’s office said Baggott was arrested again on May 22 in Wells, Nevada for charges related to the possession of an additional stolen vehicle.
Legislators have sent a spate of pro-LGBTQ and specifically trans-inclusive legislation to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk this month, sharpening Illinois’ contrast against its neighbors as surrounding state legislatures move to add restrictions on healthcare, bathroom access and school sports for transgender and nonbinary residents.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb last month signed a law that bans minors from receiving hormone therapy or other forms of gender-affirming care. Missouri’s Republican attorney general imposed an order clapping tight restrictions on gender-affirming care for youth and adults before the rules were blocked by a local judge earlier this month. And Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed laws earlier this year banning hormone therapies for trans minors and requiring transgender students to use bathrooms corresponding to their sex assigned at birth.
“With this slate of bills passing … in other states, it is incumbent on us not just to say that Illinois has great laws on the books now that protect equality, diversity and dignity of LGBTQ-plus folks,” said Michael Ziri, director of public policy for the advocacy group Equality Illinois.
“We’ve got to keep moving forward as a state … so we can continue to be a beacon in the Midwest and across the country,” Ziri said.
Illinois’ property tax sale system is slated for reform now that a Senate bill amendment backed by the Cook County treasurer’s office and the Chicago Community Trust has cleared the legislature and is headed to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk, where he is expected to sign it into law. […]
The amendment to Senate Bill 1675 — originally Amendment 1 but now House Amendment 2 due to minor changes in the bill’s language — would reform the state’s system for selling delinquent property taxes. Under the current system, property owners who don’t pay their bills can see their taxes put up for auction. When sold, a lien is put against the home or business until the owner can pay the taxes back to the buyer, plus interest. Delinquent sales allow taxing bodies to collect revenues they’re owed while giving property owners extra time to pay their bills without losing their homes. Investors also can make a profit at a low risk. Most homeowners do eventually pay back their taxes with interest.
But a study from the treasurer’s office published last fall found a small number of private investors were exploiting the system using a “sale in error” loophole to undo the transaction and recoup their investment, plus interest.
Legislation proposed by state Rep. Amy Elik, R-Alton, aimed at retaining hundreds of Metro East manufacturing jobs is now awaiting action by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
“My proposal is another tool for Illinois to help incentivize large employers from leaving our state due to other states’ tax breaks,” she said. “This update to the Reimagining Electric Vehicles (REV) Act could help retain jobs at large employers throughout Illinois.”
Language in Elik’s original House Bill 4064 has been included in the revenue omnibus bill (Senate Bill 1963) approved by the legislature. The proposal offers tax incentives to businesses currently operating in the state if the business plans to convert or expand as an electric vehicle manufacturer, an electric vehicle component parts manufacturer, or a renewable energy manufacturer.
* Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton…
To build safer communities and reduce recidivism, it’s critical that we make state ID’s more accessible to justice-impacted people upon release. I commend the Illinois General Assembly for its passage of House Bill 3345 which amends the Illinois Identification Card Act and ensures those leaving the Department of Corrections and Department of Juvenile Justice can better access needed services and resources by obtaining a state-issued identification card from the Secretary of State.
This legislation will help eliminate a critical barrier to housing, healthcare, employment, transportation and more—all of which require a state ID to gain access. I’m proud that it stemmed from the State ID Pilot program, a collaborative effort with my office’s Justice, Equity and Opportunity Initiative, the office of First Lady MK Pritzker, the Secretary of State, and the Departments of Corrections and Juvenile Justice. The pilot program launched in April 2021 and to date more than 1500 people have been released from IDOC with a state ID.
As a state, we must continue to remove barriers to reentry for those exiting incarceration and ensure that those returning to their communities can successfully reintegrate and lead productive lives. Congratulations to Rep. Cyril Nichols, Sen.Willie Preston, Speaker Welch, Senate President Harmon, and all who worked on behalf of this bill. Our only way forward is together, and Illinois is providing the means for all to take the next step to thrive.
…Adding… Press release…
The Illinois Healthcare Cultural Competency Coalition applauds passage by the Illinois General Assembly of legislation that will ensure cultural competency is part of continuing medical education for a range of healthcare providers in Illinois.
“We are a coalition of civil rights, community healthcare, and labor organizations. Thanks to the leadership of State Senator Ram Villivalam and State Representative Dagmara Avelar, HB 2450 will ensure that healthcare providers are equipped with critical information and tools to deliver culturally competent care for the diverse communities they serve. We appreciate the leadership of Sen. Villivalam and Rep. Avelar and thank the Illinois General Assembly for passing this important legislation with overwhelming bipartisan support. We urge Governor JB Pritzker to approve the bill when it reaches his desk.”
The required healthcare cultural competency will support healthcare providers, such as physicians, nurses, and dentists, with the tools and information they need to effectively and affirmingly serve communities of color, people with disabilities, people of diverse faiths, undocumented individuals, LGBTQ+ people, people living with HIV, intersex people, and other communities that have been marginalized in the healthcare system. HB 2450 also provides healthcare professionals with the flexibility they need to fulfill their continuing medical education requirements. The bill does not eliminate or repeal any currently mandated topic.
HB 2450 passed the Illinois House on Thursday with a bipartisan 103-01 vote and the Illinois Senate on May 19 with a bipartisan 52-04 vote. The legislation would take effect on January 1, 2025.
* Press release…
The Illinois General Assembly passed the Racism Free Schools Act (SB 90) sponsored in the House by State Rep. Maurice West (D-Rockford). The legislation requires school districts to create a policy on discrimination and harassment based on race, color, or national origin, as well as track incidents of discrimination within their districts.
“Here in Illinois, we will not tolerate racism or discrimination within schools – period.” said Chief Sponsor Rep. Maurice West. “But as we continue to see a rise in incidents of hateful conduct across our country, it is clear that our actions need to match our words. That’s why the Racism-Free Schools Act is so important, because it will not only require districts to create and implement a policy on discrimination and harassment, but also help the state track incidents of racism so we can better address concerning conduct across our state. I want to thank Sen. Murphy for her partnership as well as the advocates who made their voices heard.”
“With hate and race-based crimes on the rise in schools, the Racism-Free Schools Act addresses a pressing need to keep students and teachers safe by making it easier for victims, student victims especially, to come forward and stop harassment,” said Bill Curtin, Teach Plus Illinois Policy Manager. “I’m grateful to Senator Murphy and Representative West for listening to teachers in our state who know schools are not yet doing enough to address acts of hate and calling for action to change that.”
“When it comes to racial harassment, words are not enough. A concrete and meaningful policy response is needed to change behavior in our schools,” said Madeline Wood, Teach Plus Illinois Senior Policy Fellow who teaches music at United Junior High and United High School in Monmouth.
“As a student, I faced racial harassment every year. I became a mute - I stopped speaking because I didn’t think my voice mattered. Now, as a teacher, I’ve found my voice again to speak up for my students, who are still experiencing the same racial incidents that I did,” said Breana Calloway, Teach Plus Illinois Policy Fellow and 3rd Grade math and science teacher at Deneen School of Excellence in Chicago.
The legislation requires each school district, charter school, or nonpublic, nonsectarian elementary or secondary school to create and implement a policy on discrimination and harassment based on race, color, or national origin. The legislation also requires the Illinois State Board of Education to create a data collection system to report on allegations of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation against students.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Laura Murphy in the State Senate, passed the Illinois House of Representatives by a vote of 87 to 18 and the Illinois Senate by a vote of 53 to 0. The legislation now goes to Gov. JB Pritzker for his signature before being enacted into law.
* Press release…
The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) applauded the Illinois House and Senate which approved a bill (SB 89) that includes language extending cocktails to-go and delivery until August 1, 2028. The measure now goes to Governor J.B. Pritzker for his signature.
“A five-year extension of cocktails to-go gives local businesses and their customers the ability to continue to enjoy what has become an integral part of take-out dining,” said Andy Deloney, senior vice president & head of state public policy at DISCUS. “Cocktails to-go provide much-needed revenue to hospitality businesses facing supply chain issues, staffing shortages and inflation. They also give adult consumers the added convenience they have come to expect when ordering from their favorite restaurants. We urge Governor Pritzker to sign this bill and continue cocktails to-go in support of Illinois businesses and consumers.”
Illinois’s current cocktails to-go law is set to expire June 1, 2024.
* Press release…
The Park District of Tinley Park today lauded the passage of House Bill 3743 by the Illinois General Assembly that would turn over the site of the former Tinley Park Mental Health Center and Howe Development Center to the Park District to begin redevelopment of the long-vacant land.
House lawmakers voted today in favor of the legislation after the measure was passed by Senators last week. The bill, which would sell the land to the Park District for $1, now goes to the Gov. Pritzker for his consideration. Importantly, the legislation prohibits any form of gaming at the site, supporting feedback of local residents, and saves Tinley Park taxpayers the estimated $4.5 million price tag to purchase the site.
“We are very grateful to members of the General Assembly for supporting our vision for the Mental Health Center to create new recreational opportunities and green space to benefit the entire Southland region,” said Park District Board President Marie Ryan. “The Park Board of Commissioners is hopeful Gov. Pritzker will sign the legislation into law, and we can partner with the state to begin needed environmental cleanup at the site.”
Last November, the Park District formally bid on the property located at 7400-7600 W. 183rd St. and laid out its vision to meet the needs of the Tinley Park residents and expand opportunities for neighboring communities. The plan includes a hub of athletic fields, track and field facilities, a domed sports complex and open recreational space. Since the plan was released to the public, it has gained widespread community support and private developer interest.
Phase 1 of property development includes a playground and sports facilities fully accessible for people living with special needs, multipurpose athletic fields, a domed sports complex with a full-size soccer field, a stadium with a track, a splash pad, concession stands, spectator stands, lighting, ample parking, as well as a pond, picnic areas and open green space.
An audit of the $585 million Business Interruption Grant, the Illinois program using federal tax dollars to give to businesses for relief during COVID-19, reports checks on the spending “failed to work as advertised” with insufficient oversight.
The BIG program was operated by Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and other state agencies. A new, similar program is currently underway called Back 2 Business for a total of $175 million split between restaurants, hotels and creative arts venues.
Illinois Auditor General Frank Mautino’s office released the BIG audit Wednesday with more than a dozen findings and 15 recommendations for DCEO.
• DCEO could not provide documentation to show how or why it selected organizations to administer Round 1 of the BIG program. One of the grant administrators, as well as a DCEO official, appears to have not complied with conflict of interest policies at DCEO. The BIG grant administrators were to distribute $580 million in funds. An additional $5 million was to be administered by DOA.
• DCEO initiated the small business component of the BIG program without having emergency administrative rules in place for the administration of the program. Rules had not been implemented before the completion of Round 1 of the small business component of BIG. Additionally, even after the lack of timeliness for Round 1, DCEO was unable to amend the rules for Round 2 of the small business component of BIG timely. DCEO filed amended rules 12 days after the Round 2 application process had started, a process that utilized a preference for certain types of businesses to receive preferential treatment in the selection process.
• DCEO allowed, without verification, BIG small business grant applicants to self-certify that they complied with all laws as well as reporting other pandemic funding. We found that not all applicants’ certifications were
accurate. Nonetheless, DCEO and its grant administrators awarded funding to these applicants.
• The BIG program was designated by the General Assembly to provide assistance for businesses that had losses due to COVID-19. DCEO utilized an eligibility category for the small business component of BIG that was not specified in the Public Act passed by the General Assembly. DCEO paid over $11 million to 630 applicants that applied under this eligibility designation.
• DCEO awarded small business applicants in Round 1 of the BIG program funding when the businesses were not eligible based on information submitted in the application. Our analysis found 196 ineligible applicants received $3.42 million. Additionally, the application system developed by a DCEO grant administrator that was supposed to not allow ineligible applicants to submit finalized applications failed to work as advertised.
• DCEO oversight of the award selection process for the small business component of BIG was insufficient. Our testing of the selection process found significant deficiencies in both rounds.
• In Round 1, we were only able to concur with 8 percent of the BIG awards from our sample. We determined that 16 percent of the BIG awards, totaling $430,000, in our sample were ineligible for reasons such as revenues outside the criteria or restaurants providing outdoor dining. We also questioned 76 percent of the BIG awards, totaling $1,980,000, in our sample due to lack of required documentation being submitted by the applicant.
• In Round 2, we were only able to concur with 41 percent of the BIG awards from our sample. We determined that 29 percent of the BIG awards in our sample had one or more questioned elements. Additionally, we determined that 30 percent of the awards made by DCEO in our Round 2 sampling were ineligible. Finally, questionable expenses from our selection-testing sample totaled $1,335,708 – 28 percent of all funds awarded from the Round 2 sample.
• DCEO utilized an award determination process which failed to follow the directive of State statute relative to funding for COVID-19 losses. By rounding loss amounts up to the next $5,000, DCEO reduced the funding levels while some applicants went without funding. In our selection testing work, we found 47 percent of the awards overpaid the documented losses by a total of $171,000. Our sample of 150 award winner cases was just over 2 percent of the total awards in Round 2 of the small business component of BIG.
• DCEO and its grant administrators for the small business component of BIG awarded funding in excess of program policy. Eleven business owners received funding for businesses in excess of the three for which each owner was eligible. Total overpayment of funds totaled $220,000. DCEO is responsible for overseeing grant programs, including ones in which program administrators are utilized.
• DCEO failed to execute grant agreements with grant administrators for the small business component of the BIG program prior to the grant administrators working on the BIG program. Further, DCEO required funding applicants to submit multiple pieces of confidential information to these grant administrators that were operating without an executed grant with the State of Illinois. Finally, DCEO was unaware of the actual individuals that would view this confidential information, even though some of these individuals were temporary staff hired by the grant administrators.
• DCEO failed to maintain notifications to applicants of the BIG program. Additionally, DCEO paid an outside vendor for a mass mailing system that did not maintain a retrieval function instead of utilizing a State system at the Department of Innovation and Technology, which could have been less costly and had the ability to retrieve the notifications.
• DCEO failed to monitor that the payment of small business component funding was provided within program guidelines. During our testing we found that in 49 percent (67 of 136) of the cases, the grant administrator failed to provide funding within 14 days of DCEO approval.
• DCEO had monitoring weaknesses relative to the uses of funding provided as part of the small business component of the BIG program. DCEO failed to conduct routine monitoring of the funds provided under BIG and at times did not have documentation to conduct monitoring. The lack of documentation made it impossible for DCEO to know if the same claimed losses were utilized by an applicant to obtain funding under different programs.
• DCEO and its grant administrators failed to follow BIG program requirements relative to deducting previous awards from future BIG funding for the small business component of the program. This inaction resulted in the overpayment of $4.29 million in BIG funds.
• DCEO failed to monitor all terms of the grant agreements with grant administrators. The lack of monitoring resulted in one grant administrator not providing tax information on $4.4 million in BIG funds to 305 sub-recipients.
• DCEO did not claw back funds for noncompliance. DCEO became aware of instances of violations but did not initially have a system in place to manage businesses found to be in violation of law, regulations, and executive orders. DCEO relied on the attestations of the recipient that they would comply or were already complying with the mitigation efforts.
• Testing for the child care component and the livestock management component did not find any significant or pervasive issues. We concurred with all of the grant awards and grant denials in our sample.
Additionally, the audit found “DCEO became aware of notices of BIG Program violations from news stories, forwarded complaints, and internal agency reviews. Businesses most often having documented violations were restaurants failing to follow local mitigations and executive orders. We found that DCEO was not prepared to handle such notices of violation, did not have complete information on all violators, and did not always enforce a return of funds when such violations were confirmed.”
Keep in mind they were building a plane that was already in the air and experiencing unprecedented turbulence. Even so.
…Adding… DCEO…
“In mid-2020 during the height of the pandemic, DCEO delivered grants to thousands of businesses in dire need of support – to offset the impact of closures, and to help them survive the global economic upheaval occurring at the time. With many small businesses on the brink of financial collapse, DCEO’s highest priority was to support Illinois’ businesses as efficiently as possible. A traditional grant program can take more than a year from conception to grants going out the door. BIG was launched 3 weeks after legislation became law and thousands of small businesses and jobs were saved as a result. After developing a first-of-its kind program during an unprecedented global economic crisis, the agency learned valuable insights and has since vastly improved processes through additional large-scale funding programs for Illinois businesses through its B2B program.”
If the wealthy are leaving Chicago, or even contemplating it, it’s news to the country’s largest bank.
Over the next five years, JPMorgan Chase is planning to triple the number of advisers in its Chicago private bank catering to wealthy families and individuals. […]
“We’re really bullish on Chicago,” [Chase co-head Maggie O’Brien] said in an interview. […]
“We don’t see anything to make us believe that trajectory is going to slow,” O’Brien said.
Chase’s actions belie the narrative some are telling about the Chicago area — that people with money are leaving for lower-tax states or because of perceptions that crime is out of control. That debate has taken on new life since the election of Brandon Johnson as Chicago mayor. Johnson has proposed millions in controversial new taxes, while allies are urging $12 billion in financial moves, including enacting city income and wealth taxes, meant to affect the wealthy rather than the middle class.
Some people can apparently see through the news media’s narratives, particularly the great freakout after two far-left groups proposed a laughably unrealistic fiscal plan.
The Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, which frontline staff who work with developmentally disabled individuals, came out against the budget. Workers have been advocating for a $4-an-hour wage increase, but said the proposed budget gives them half that, a boost that IARF said will not do enough to bring more people into the profession, therefore prolonging a workforce shortage.
From today’s Senate Appropriations Committee hearing…
Sen. Sims presenting the budget, notes providers for individuals with disabilities will see a $2.50 rate increase in yet-to-come amendment to the budget, SB 250
The main move came when Democratic lawmakers agreed to give the governor what he described as seven management “tools” to slash health spending for immigrants. The final budget figure for that item now will be $550 million, not the advertised $1.1 billion.
Among those tools, according to Pritzker spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh, the General Assembly agreed to reduce and manage the program’s costs by limiting future enrollment, maximizing federal funds designated for immigrant health care and utilizing managed care models, which prioritize quality of care over quantity in a manner that often lowers costs.
But the Senate Democrats are trying to gingerly sidestep the issue…
Back to health care for noncitizens: What's the total budgeted amount? Sims: At this point we dont know what expenditures will be in FY24 because "cost containment measures" are yet to be passed by administrative rule
Sims on FY23 final numbers: Revenue will end at $50.7 billion and spending at $50.4 billion. Sims is also proposing $50.7 billion of revenue in FY24 #twill
Now Sen. DeWitte on the local government distributive fund. Sims: LGDF percentage to locals will grow 6.47% Locals wanted 10% over period of years. I believe that's an increase from roughly 6.16 percent. Sims says = $112 million
* I’m probably excerpting way too much from Patrick Smith’s WBEZ story, so I apologize in advance. However, it’s really interesting…
Two years after the creation of a specialized carjacking task force, numbers from the Cook County sheriff’s office show law enforcement agencies in and around Chicago are recovering nearly 9 out of every 10 carjacked vehicles. That is a huge increase from 2020 and sheriff Tom Dart says authorities are learning more about who is doing the carjacking and why.
Meanwhile, data from the sheriff also show the number of carjacking incidents is trending downward. […]
The regional carjacking task force was formed in March 2021 in response to a dramatic increase in hijackings during the pandemic. Data from the city of Chicago show the number of vehicular hijacking victimizations leapt up from 736 in 2019 to 1,684 in 2020. The number got even higher in 2021 before starting to recede last year. […]
Roe Conn, a former radio host and a sheriff’s employee, leads the team from an upscale office with high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Chicago’s iconic Holy Name Cathedral. There, Conn’s unit analyzes carjacking data to “try to put together living models for how, when, where and, in some cases, why these crimes are being committed.” […]
The result, according to numbers provided by the sheriff, has been an increase in recovered vehicles, up from about 40% of carjacked cars recovered in 2020 to close to 90% in 2022. The length of time between when cars are stolen and when they are recovered has also been dropping, going from eight days recovery time in 2020 to a little more than four days recovery time last year. […]
In March 2021, shortly after the task force was formed, then-Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown told reporters that most of the hijackings were being done by kids seeking quick, cheap thrills. […]
Then, last year, University of Chicago professor Robert Vargas published a study looking at car recoveries by Chicago police between 2017 and 2021, and found the data indicated it was not capricious kids robbing people of their cars for fun, but rather sophisticated criminals with a profit motive. Vargas hypothesized the cars were most likely being sold on the black market, either whole or in parts.
Dart said the increase in vehicles recovered and the information sharing through the task force has helped them learn more about the people behind the carjackings … and Dart believes it’s proven both Brown and Vargas wrong.
If the cars were being resold then authorities wouldn’t be recovering so many after just a few days, and so close to where they were originally stolen.
And Dart said many of the people being arrested for carjacking are juveniles, but they’re not out stealing cars so they can “joyride” as Brown said.
Could the 2022 massacre during Highland Park’s July Fourth parade have been prevented with a small change to state law?
It’s never been publicly reported before, but several local sources confirmed this week that Highland Park Police Chief Louis Jogmen wanted to send a city-owned drone above the parade last year. That camera-equipped drone could’ve spotted Robert Eugene Crimo III on a building rooftop overlooking the parade before he allegedly fired 83 shots that killed seven people and wounded 48 more. But the chief couldn’t launch that drone because of state law.
Jogmen’s police department has for years wanted to launch the camera drone, which the city uses for search-and-rescue and other emergencies, to fly over major public events. But state law prohibits law enforcement agencies from using the drones for things like event surveillance.
In other words, state law allows police to use drones in the aftermath of horrific and deadly mass shootings, but not to safeguard the public before they happen. […]
Highland Park City Manager Ghida Neukirch pointed to a bill introduced last year that would’ve allowed police to use the drones for proactive law enforcement. “Had we had the opportunity to use it last July Fourth, it would have provided our employees with an aerial view of the entire parade grounds and rooftops and the entire area,” she said of the drone.
State Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Lake Forest, went further, suggesting that Highland Park’s drone could have prevented the mass killing. […]
The General Assembly passed sweeping legislation to ban assault weapons after the Highland Park shooting. But, so far, those are just words on paper as court challenges to the law work their way through the system.
People should have the right to attend public events without nervously scanning unprotected rooftops, or worse. Nobody is talking about giving the police unregulated and unfettered access to drones. Nobody is talking about blocking Chicago’s drone program. It is time to come to an agreement.
* Press release today…
Less than a year after State Senator Julie Morrison and her family ran for their lives as a man opened fire from a rooftop in Highland Park, she passed a measure to enhance public safety through the use of drones.
“Drones provide an invaluable resource that can be used to monitor large crowds for suspicious activity,” said Morrison (D-Lake Forest). “This technology exists – there’s no reason we shouldn’t put it in the hands of law enforcement.”
The Morrison-led measure allows law enforcement to use drones to monitor special events, like parades and festivals, to detect breaches and identify public safety issues.
It comes in response to the Fourth of July mass shooting that killed seven and wounded dozens more in Highland Park. The shooter fired a rifle on parade crowd from the rooftop of a downtown building.
“The devastating July day in Highland Park underscored the need for increased public safety initiatives for large events,” said Morrison. “I can’t help but wonder what the outcome of that July day would’ve been had this law been in place.”
“The City of Highland Park appreciates the work of Senators Morrison and Holmes leading on legislation that will broaden the use of drones by public safety in certain situations, specifically for preventative use against public safety threats towards public gatherings,” said Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering. “Allowing our public safety personnel the use of drones to monitor large scale public events will increase their ability to secure an area, and save time while improving the delivery of life-saving services.”
House Bill 3902 passed the Senate Wednesday.
The ACLU of Illinois opposed the bill last year, but the group negotiated some changes this year and is now neutral.
Thursday, May 25, 2023 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Illinois hospitals have been working for years to close racial and ethnic gaps in access to care and improve outcomes. They have established programs to identify and address risk factors—social, economic and environmental conditions that impact health outcomes—and expanded services targeting health disparities within their communities, such as transportation, housing and access to healthy food. These significant investments in health equity are now being threatened by dramatically higher operating costs.
Consider these three powerful facts:
• Research shows that underfunding of the Medicaid program stands in the way of addressing health disparities and removing barriers to care in already hard hit communities
• A 2019 study presented evidence that reimbursement rates play a critical role in Medicaid recipients’ ability to secure access to care, their utilization of healthcare services and their health status.
• The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) says that closing the gap in payments between Medicaid and private insurers would reduce more than two-thirds of disparities in access among adults and would eliminate access disparities entirely among children. NBER goes on to emphasize that improving access contributes to “more office visits, better self-reported health, and reduced school absenteeism.”
Because Medicaid rate increases are vital to both preserving and expanding access to care, all Illinois hospitals urge you to enact the first state-funded Medicaid increase in 28 years. Discover the facts to learn more.
* Crain’s | How Illinois’ $50 billion budget deal got done: The main move came when Democratic lawmakers agreed to give the governor what he described as seven management “tools” to slash health spending for immigrants. Details weren’t immediately available about what those tools encompass, but the final budget figure for that item now will be $550 million, not the advertised $1.1 billion.
* Shaw Local | Staggering new abuse report should spur learning, action: All this crime falling under the umbrella of “the Catholic Church” or sorted amongst Illinois’ six dioceses certainly sets it apart from one-off abusers, both in terms of the sheer scale of numbers and the context of the size of the establishment and specific, administrative choices that continued rather than curtailed. But this one institution, and even its individual operations, are far from the only environments where abuse is possible and plausible without safeguards.
* Agri Pulse | Illinois dust storm underscores the urgency for a new approach to farming: Soil is a finite resource — the foundation of our food supply and habitat for about a quarter of the world’s biodiversity. Soil is one of the earth’s greatest carbon-capturing systems. When it blows away with the wind, it’s always a tragic loss — even when it doesn’t cause fatal car crashes.
* Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson’s first City Council meeting: Early victory on installing allies, a dig at Fox News and a delay on migrant spending vote: “This City Council meeting is being recorded live from Naperville,” Johnson joked, a jab at a “Fox & Friends” segment in which two men were interviewed at a diner in the western suburb about crime in Chicago and their purported lack of faith in Johnson. The clip that aired the day of Johnson’s inauguration last week was panned for taking place about 30 miles away from the city, and the two Black Chicagoans featured told The TRiiBE their appearance was arranged in advance and they were misled about the purpose of the interview, which they thought was about gun violence only.
* Sun-Times | 2 Chicago-area brothers plead guilty to assaulting officers in Jan. 6 Capitol breach: Daniel and Joseph Leyden, of Chicago and La Grange, respectively, attended the “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C., pushing to stop Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election results fueled by remarks from former President Donald Trump. The brothers joined other rioters in marching toward the Capitol and pushing past barricades, according to court documents.
* WBEZ | Authorities are recovering more carjacked vehicles in Chicago, providing crucial data: The regional carjacking task force was formed in March 2021 in response to a dramatic increase in hijackings during the pandemic. Data from the city of Chicago show the number of vehicular hijacking victimizations leapt up from 736 in 2019 to 1,684 in 2020. The number got even higher in 2021 before starting to recede last year.
* WBEZ | Chicago promised students would do better after closing 50 schools. That didn’t happen.: Ten years ago, Chicago officials closed 50 schools in large part because they said Chicago Public Schools had too many seats for too few students. At the same time, federal education policy promoted closing struggling schools or firing their entire staff and handing their management to private companies — and other cities closed schools, too, in the name of school reform.
* Block Club | The Weekend Blue Line Is Finally Back: Crews have successfully replaced the old Belmont crossover along the O’Hare branch. Normal service between the Addison and Western stations will resume this weekend, officials said.
We are approaching the hour of 11 pm. The Senate did file a budget earlier this evening. Our agreement with the House and the governor was to not act on that proposed budget until we had agreement with both the House and the governor.
The House is in caucus now as I understand it. We are eagerly awaiting their final input into the budget.
I think it is a mechanical impossibility for us to pass a budget tonight in time for the House to read it in on this calendar day, so I think the wisest course of action is to wrap up our business today, give more time for review of the introduced budget and consideration of proposed amendments.
We will ask our appropriation committee to meet at 9am tomorrow morning to take public testimony on the budget and to answer any questions that folks might have. We would plan to come in session shortly thereafter. I know the caucuses may want to meet, so we will leave ample time for that as well.
I appreciate everybody’s good humor today as we try to pass a responsible balanced budget. I appreciate the bipartisan way in which we addressed this issue and we’ll continue those bipartisan conversations through the day tomorrow. So, go home, get a little bit of rest, come back at 9am tomorrow for a committee hearing on the appropriation bill and related titles. And we’ll wrap up our business on the floor tomorrow. Thank you very much.
ADDED: Capitol News Illinois | Top Democrats announce budget ‘deal,’ but details are scant as last-minute negotiations continue: The trio was especially short on details when pressed on how the state would manage the biggest unforeseen cost facing lawmakers: a still-growing program that grants Medicaid-type health care coverage to noncitizens ages 42 and over. The governor’s office recently estimated the program would cost $1.1 billion in the upcoming fiscal year, or five times more than he had initially budgeted. “The Senate and the House have agreed to give us the tools to manage the program properly so that it doesn’t reach a ($1.1 billion) proportion … and instead allows us to provide health care for the people who are on the program now and make sure that we’re continuing the program going forward, but in a budget friendly way so that everybody gets the health care that they deserve,” Pritzker said. His office said those options include limiting future enrollment in the program, requiring copays, maximizing federal reimbursement and a possible move to managed care.
* Tribune | Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Democratic legislative leaders reach deal on $50 billion budget: The cost of the Medicaid-style program that covers immigrants 42 and older who are in the country without legal permission or who have green cards but haven’t completed a five-year waiting period and therefore don’t qualify for the traditional insurance program for the poor will continue to put pressure on the state budget. […] The deal allocates about $550 million for the program, according to the governor’s office, and gives the administration “tools” to control the costs.
* WCIA | Pritzker announces agreed FY2024 Illinois budget: “I vowed to work with the General Assembly to bring fiscal sanity to Illinois while restoring a compassionate state government that invests in the things that build a stronger economy and future,” Pritzker said. “I’m pleased to say that’s exactly what this balanced budget does, for the fifth time in a row.”
* AP | Gov Pritzker, Illinois legislative leaders announce agreement on state budget: “Today’s agreement” Welch said, “proves once again that Democrats can produce a state budget that is both fiscally responsible and compassionate at the same time. We will pass a budget that is balanced, it’ll make smart investments in the services people need, and it will be a reflection of the values we share as Illinoisans.” Harmon called it “a responsible balanced budget that recognizes our shared goals and commitment to making progress on key issues for the people of Illinois.”
* Crain’s | Pritzker announces deal reached on state budget: Boasting about the state’s improved financial picture, Pritzker added that the budget achieves his goal of “restoring a compassionate state government that works to meet the needs of Illinois residents and invest in the things that build a stronger economy and a stronger future.”
* NBC Chicago | Pritzker, Democrats in General Assembly Reach FY 2024 Budget Deal: Illinois Republicans criticized the budget as a one-sided agreement that focuses too much on taxation. “Governor Pritzker and Illinois Democrats can twist words with the best of them, but the truth is that this budget constitutes a partisan wishlist, not a negotiation,” GOP Chairman Don Tracy said. “With complete control of government, Illinois Democrats continue to tax and spend, with Illinois ranking at the top of every metric of tax burden on residents and driving away families year over year.”
Debt Free Justice Illinois, a statewide network of bipartisan organizations, and youth and racial justice advocates, today celebrates the passage of legislation through the Illinois General Assembly aimed at eliminating the unjust assessment of juvenile court fees and fines against Illinois youth and their families.
Today’s Senate passage is the final legislative action for the bill and a momentous step in the direction of economic justice for the state. Senate Bill 1463, sponsored by Senator Robert Peters and Representative Justin Slaughter, is aimed at abolishing juvenile court fees and fines in delinquency proceedings. Twenty other states, both majority Democratic and Republican, have eliminated or reduced these fees and fines in recent years.
“Today’s vote in the Illinois Senate is further proof that Illinois intends to continue moving in the direction of economic justice for Illinois youth and their families,” said Sen. Peters. “The status quo of unjust fees and fines do not work for our state’s young people and families and do not keep our communities safe. We must work toward accountability and rehabilitation for Illinois’ young people in the juvenile court system, not punishing them with monetary fees and fines.”
“I’m proud to stand with the advocates across our state for economic justice and working families,” said Rep. Slaughter. “Our vision of a fairer and more just juvenile court system is one that many other states have embraced. I encourage Governor Pritzker to sign this bill into law as quickly as possible and continue our work of building up youth and families to dismantle system inequalities and protect Illinois’ most vulnerable communities.”
Juvenile court fees and fines can range from $25 to over $800 and can quickly add up to thousands of dollars for a single family, depending on where they live. This unjust disparity creates a patchwork of injustice across the state, landing hardest on youth and families of color living in underserved communities. […]
SB1463 would prohibit courts, state agencies, and local government entities from assessing fees and fines in juvenile court in delinquency proceedings and requires the automatic discharge of all outstanding debt. Enacting the bill is important in furthering the goals of strengthening Illinois’ vulnerable families, improving the way we approach youth rehabilitation, and increasing the credibility and effectiveness of our public systems.
* Rep. Harper…
A bill by state Rep. Sonya Harper, D-Chicago, aimed at addressing the theft of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, is headed to the governor’s desk after unanimously passing both houses of the General Assembly.
“That protecting the most vulnerable people and families in our state is critically important should go without saying,” Harper said. “Sadly, theft of SNAP benefits that can deprive needy families, including children, of their access to proper nutrition have been a persistent and increasing problem. It’s past time that something was done.”
SNAP benefits are also sometimes referred to as “food stamps”. In recent years, food stamps have been issued to recipients using a debit-card system where benefits are loaded onto the recipient’s card. Thieves have targeted food stamp recipients by using devices (called “skimmers”) that are covertly inserted into payment machines at food retailers to steal card information, or devices that can need only be held near a victim’s wallet in order to remotely copy the information necessary to make a “clone” of the victim’s benefit card which the thief can then use. This type of benefits theft has been on the rise, and authorities have struggled to address it.
Victims of SNAP theft generally do not have their benefits replaced, meaning that recipients whose benefits are stolen often end up struggling to buy food until their next installment.
Harper’s House Bill 2214 would require the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) to track and collect data as to the scope and frequency of SNAP benefits fraud, especially when it occurs by means of skimming or cloning. Beginning in 2024, IDHS would be required to report its findings to the General Assembly quarterly.
Harper’s original bill included a requirement that IDHS replace victims’ stolen benefits, but this measure was removed by a Senate amendment.
“This legislation represents a solid first step in addressing this pressing issue. Going forward, it will be necessary to do more to make victims of SNAP benefits theft whole again,” Harper said. “Nevertheless, IDHS as well as my fellow lawmakers and I can now look forward to having much more robust information about this problem and how and where it is occurring, which is sure to help us craft smart policies to address it.”
* Press release…
The Illinois Secure Communities Coalition and REFORM Alliance applaud the General Assembly for passing smart and sensible supervision reforms that will increase public safety, save taxpayer dollars, and promote stronger, more stable communities.
More than 100,000 people in Illinois are currently serving time on probation, parole, or mandatory supervised release. Instead of holding people accountable, contributing to public safety, and increasing stability in communities, Illinois’ supervision system too often operates as a revolving door back to prison. A Department of Corrections (DOC) report revealed that more than 1 in 4 - or 25% - of people released from prison in Illinois end up back behind bars for a non-criminal technical violation, (like missing a meeting with their probation officer) within three years of their release. This needless incarceration places a heavy burden on taxpayers, crime survivors, and Illinois’ communities.
With unanimous support in the House and Senate, the General Assembly passed Senate Bill 423, evidence-based legislation to create a more effective and transparent supervision system. Along with decreasing taxpayer costs and reducing the likelihood of recidivism, these reforms also significantly contribute to public safety by creating an incentive for people to pursue recidivism-reducing activities like education. These improvements would also safely reduce supervision officers’ caseloads, allowing officers to spend more time on those individuals with the greatest risks and needs.
SB423 was sponsored by Speaker Pro Tempore Jehan Gordon-Booth, Rep. Patrick Windhorst and Senate President Pro-Tempore Bill Cunningham. It now awaits Governor Pritzker’s signature. There are four evidence-based provisions that are expected to become law:
1. Education credits. People on mandatory supervised release will be eligible to earn 90 days off their supervision terms by completing a secondary education diploma or career/technical certificate. These activities help individuals form a positive self-image and gain marketable skills, increasing their ability to transform their lives and provide for their families.
2. Virtual check-ins. SB423 creates a statewide, permanent framework to enable people on probation, parole, and mandatory supervised release to report to their probation officers remotely. This mitigates one of the most common sources of technical violations while providing greater flexibility for officers to manage their caseloads and connect with people on supervision in a manner that better supports their rehabilitative goals. Many counties in Illinois embraced the greater use of technology for remote reporting during the pandemic, and successfully maintained accountability and protected community stability and safety.
3. Sensible supervision conditions and drug testing. The newly passed legislation requires that courts impose individualized supervision requirements on each defendant, ensuring that one-size-fits-all conditions do not unduly serve as barriers to success. This also includes ensuring that drug testing is utilized only when there is a reasonable suspicion of illicit drug use, which will conserve state resources and limit interruptions to employers.
4. Prisoner Review Board transparency. People on mandatory supervised release or parole have the opportunity to go in front of the Prisoner Review Board (PRB) to file for early discharge. But to date, the process lacked transparency. SB423 standardizes the case review process for early termination of supervision and creates clear guidelines and timelines. Those who are denied early discharge by the Department of Corrections (DOC) or PRB will have clear guidance on how they need to improve to be a good candidate in the future. This ensures that people are aware of the hurdles they must clear to be considered in the future and reduces the current frustration and confusion that comes from the lack of information and guidance accompanying present decisions.
…Adding… Maria Pappas…
Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas spearheaded the passage of groundbreaking property tax reform legislation to help struggling homeowners.
The Illinois General Assembly passed the legislation today, Wednesday, May 24. It is expected to be signed into law by Governor JB Pritzker soon.
One of the key provisions of the legislation is that it will drop the interest rate homeowners and businesses in Cook County are charged for late property tax payments from 18% to 9% a year.
The interest rate reduction will save property owners between $25 million and $35 million a year with most of those savings benefiting Black and Latino communities.
It will also close loopholes that tax investors have exploited at the expense of local governments and allow the county to move away from the Scavenger Sale.
A news release is attached and also available here.
* Personal PAC…
Personal PAC, one of Illinois’ most prominent reproductive rights advocacy organizations, and Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, celebrated the passage of HB3326 by the full Illinois General Assembly on Wednesday. The bill ensures that Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs) cannot be used for tracking individuals seeking reproductive healthcare or individuals assisting them, and that restricts data sharing with other governments or law enforcement agencies related to healthcare needs or immigration status.
“Anyone seeking abortion care in Illinois should not be harassed in any fashion, and this first-in-the-nation legislation will prevent Automatic License Plate Readers from being used as a tool for tracking, harassing or criminalizing lawful behavior,” said Secretary Giannoulias. “I am committed to allowing individuals to pursue and obtain the lawful healthcare they need without government intrusion. This legislation sets common-sense standards and protocols to ensure that Automatic License Plate Reader data is used properly.”
“We are thrilled the passage of HB3326 and thank chief sponsors Rep. Ann Williams, Sen. Sara Feigenholtz, and Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias for their championing of this crucial civil liberties issue that will help ensure that Illinois remains an oasis for safe access to abortions and other reproductive healthcare. HB3326 ensures that those seeking healthcare in Illinois can trust that their license plate data will be secure and protected, and that Illinois law enforcement agencies and municipalities will never turn their information over to states seeking to persecute them. This legislation is a model for the nation, and we are proud to have been part of the coalition that led to its passage.”
* Chicago Community Trust…
A coalition of community developers, affordable housing advocates and tax policy experts led by The Chicago Community Trust today applauded the Illinois Senate for passing legislation to reform Illinois’ delinquent property tax sale system that will increase investment in historically disinvested communities across the state. The bill now goes to the Governor’s desk.
Senate Bill 1675 Amendment 1 reforms the Illinois Property Tax Sale system by closing loopholes that prevent blighted properties from redevelopment and allows local governments to intervene to save abandoned properties after only one failed delinquent tax sale rather than watching them to cycle through the tax sale system for years while the property deteriorates, requiring taxpayer-funded maintenance and eventually demolition. The measure, which was crafted in partnership with the Cook County Treasurer, is supported by cities with high concentrations of vacant properties across Illinois, including Chicago, Peoria, Rockford, Decatur and Kankakee.
These common-sense reforms would empower local governments to work with community developers and residents to restore vacant properties to return them to viable use. In Cook County alone, an estimated 50,000 vacant or abandoned properties are concentrated in its Black and Latinx neighborhoods on Chicago’s South and West sides and in the south suburbs.
The legislation is the result of three years of community engagement convened by the Trust and grounded in findings from intensive academic research, including a landmark 2021 study by the Center for Municipal Finance at the University of Chicago analyzing the Cook County Scavenger Sale. The bill aims to increase homeownership, build community wealth and make the tax sale system work for communities instead of private tax buyers and institutional investors.
“Introducing this legislation is a big step forward for the Trust to advocate for systemic solutions in some of our most vulnerable and disinvested communities,” said Andrea Sáenz, President & CEO of The Chicago Community Trust. “We’re hopeful that putting the Trust’s name and century-old reputation behind this measure will send a clear message that we fully believe in the transformative power of this bill. Reforming Illinois’ property tax code can create a ripple effect, spurring investment in neighborhoods with high rates of vacant property, which, in turn, will stabilize neighboring property values, preserve homeownership, and strengthen the county tax base. This legislation is the spark we need to revitalize communities that have borne the brunt of the discriminatory policies of the past.”
* This post will be updated as language is introduced and bill statuses change. I’ll also carry the content over from day to day. If you see a mistake, or believe something should be added, please speak up in comments or just text me. Thanks.
* Still waiting on language/numbers for the big ones…
HB 3817 - BIMP (Formerly the Official State Bean bill)
Wednesday, May 24, 2023 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
The Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, representing community providers of services for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, today issued the following statement after a new state budget proposal emerged in the Legislature:
“We regretfully must oppose this and any other state budget proposal that includes a proposed wage structure for our frontline workers that will not meet their needs and leave our workforce crisis intact.
We have advocated all spring for a $4 an hour increase in wages for Direct Support Professionals (DSPs), the brave frontline staff who meet the basic needs for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. These are very difficult but rewarding jobs, and we need to pay them more to draw more people into these careers.
The $2 an hour increase proposed in this state budget is only slightly above the $1.50 proposed earlier this year in the Governor’s budget plan, and half of what we believe is needed for real progress in three areas:
• To make these jobs competitive with the minimum wage increases seen at restaurants, retailers, etc.
• To bring our state closer to compliance with a long-running Consent Decree mandating that persons with disabilities have opportunities to live in their communities. We have been out of compliance for six years in a row.
• To help reduce a waitlist of nearly 15,000 people seeking care today, including those in state developmental centers such as Choate where the Administration has plans to move residents into community settings
We are grateful for the dollars invested in recent state budgets to help our workers support those they serve. But we must speak up now and urge the Governor and Legislature to reconsider the wage increase in the latest budget proposal and move closer to the $4 an hour increase we and our legislator champions have advocated.”
* The Trace | Illinois Legislators Want to Expand Prison Alternatives for Gun Possession: The program’s goal was to show that rehabilitation is more effective than incarceration in reducing gun violence. While data on its success rate is limited — the program isn’t required to collect data, and Illinois courts are not subject to Freedom of Information Act requests — sentencing trends in Cook County show that a significant number of judges have used the program since its inception, lowering the rate of 18- to 20-year-olds being incarcerated by about two thirds. Last year, legislators extended the program by one year, moving its expiration date to January 2024. Now, Democratic legislators and advocates are pushing to make the diversion program permanent and include people of all ages.
* Tribune | DCFS day care manager charged with stealing millions meant for child care, blowing it at casino: The investigation showed some of the locations that Pridgeon had claimed were providing day care for foster children were either vacant buildings or other businesses. In other instances, Pridgeon overcharged DCFS for child care from legitimate providers who were supposed to be paid at a lower rate, the complaint alleged.
* Sun-Times | Johnson wins first test of City Council muscle: Presiding over his first City Council meeting, Johnson easily won passage of the compromise he forged, shrinking the number of committees from 28 to 20 and replacing Finance Committee Chairman Scott Waguespack (32nd) with Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd), whose decision to abandon Mayor Lori Lightfoot and endorse Johnson was a turning point in Johnson’s winning campaign.
* Sun-Times | Here’s some steps Mayor Brandon Johnson can take to fix public transit: And private security, with its high cost and a lack of oversight, and more police won’t solve the the root causes of violence or make for healthy, comfortable rider conditions. Both also create their own risk of violence. Instead, better reliability and reduced wait times encourage ridership, which can improve a collective sense of safety. And the Johnson administration could create a transit ambassador or social worker program to support those in need, while also enhancing the rider experience.
* Sun-Times | Migrant funding hits roadblock in City Council: The delay will require the Council to return to session sooner than late June, as originally planned. Chicago is literally out of money, space and time to solve the migrant crisis and the influx of over 8,000 migrants. refugees and asylum-seekers.
* NPR | Illinois Republican leader shares her concerns about the state budget: With the most recent legislative map redistricting, her constituency now includes part of DeKalb County, including the City of DeKalb. “Welcome to creative drawing,” said Rezin about her 38th District senate seat. “And just so you know, both parties are guilty of it.”
* Sources have been saying for a while now that the governor and the Democratic leaders wanted to have a press conference to announce a budget deal. Well…
What: Governor Pritzker to join Speaker Welch and Senate President Harmon to brief media on FY24 budget negotiations.
Where: Governor’s Ceremonial Office, Illinois State Capitol, Springfield.
When: 2:30 pm
Watch: www.illinois.gov/livevideo
This post will be updated.
…Adding… They have two of these signs, one on each side of the lectern…
I’m standing alongside Senate President Don Harmon and House Speaker Chris Welch to announce that we have an agreement on a balanced budget for the coming year.
…Adding… Senate President Harmon thanked all the staff for their hard work and said…
The Senate hopes, we hope to take action tonight to be able to deliver the legislation to the House so that the House can act as soon as Friday, and then send it straight to the governor. I applaud the trust and cooperation we’ve developed. I’m not sure either chamber in the past would have trusted the other chamber to adopt the budget without an amendment. I appreciate Speaker Welch’s commitment.
Please pardon all transcription errors.
…Adding… Speaker Welch…
For the second year in a row, we are increasing funding for the Local Government Distributive Fund to help communities across the state fund essential services and programs like public health, safety, and basic infrastructures. […]
We are looking forward to continuing to cross the t’s and dot the i’s here in the next couple of hours so that we can get this agreed budget on the board and over to the House.
…Adding… Pritzker on the exploding costs of the healthcare program for undocumented immigrants…
The Senate and the House have agreed to give us the tools to manage the program properly so that it doesn’t reach a proportion that you named and instead allows us to provide health care for the people who are on the program now and make sure that we’re continuing the program going forward, but in a budget friendly way so that everybody gets the healthcare that they need. […]
We had seven options that we presented that are ways in which the program could be managed. We did not have the tools in law for us to actually be able to do that. And so we asked for those tools, we’ve been given them and we’ll be using any number of those seven.
…Adding… Asked about Invest In Kids, the tax credit program for private school scholarships, Pritzker said…
This is not something that’s been covered by the budget agreement. It’s something that still has time, potentially, but it’s not something that’s in the budget agreement.
…Adding… Senate President Harmon was asked about any Republican support…
I’m very hopeful and my next stop is to chat with the Republican Leader.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The one-pager…
Fiscal Year 2024 Budget
The FY 24 budget is a balanced plan with conservative revenue estimates that builds on our fiscal progress while making transformative investments in early childhood and higher education, workforce development, and efforts to fight violence and poverty
• This budget builds on four years of historic fiscal progress with balanced budgets, eight credit rating upgrades, a Rainy Day Fund set to surpass $2 billion, the elimination of the bill backlog, and $1 trillion in GDP
• $200 million additional pension payment beyond what’s required, bringing total pension stabilization investments to $700 million
• $450 million to pay off rail-splitter bond debt – saving the state $60 million in interest and virtually eliminating all short and medium-term debt
Education
• Early Childhood
o Smart Start IL — $250 million to fund the first year of the Governor’s early childhood plan with funding increases to eliminate preschool deserts, stabilize the childcare workforce, expand the Early Intervention Program and Home Visiting programs, plus funding to begin the overhaul of the childcare payment management system
o $50 million for early childhood capital improvements
• K-12
o $350 million for K-12 evidence-based funding formula
o $45 million for the first year of a three-year pilot to fill teacher vacancies
o $3 million to expand access to computer science coursework
o $1.6 million to launch Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library statewide
• Higher Education
o $100 million in additional MAP grant funding, ensuring everyone at or below the median income can go to community college for free
o $100 million increase for public universities ($80.5 million) and community colleges ($19.4 million) – the highest increases in more than two decades
Fighting Poverty
• HOME ILLINOIS — $85 million increase, bringing state funding to over $350 million, to support homelessness prevention, affordable housing, outreach, and other programs
• $20 million investment in a new Illinois Grocery Initiative to expand grocery access to underserved rural towns and urban neighborhoods
Health and Human Services
• Nearly $75 million increase for DCFS to hire 192 staff, expand training and protection, increase scholarships for youth in care, and improve facilities
• $22.8 million in funding to begin implementing the new Children’s Behavioral Health Transformation Initiative
• $18 million increase to support reproductive health initiatives
• $24 million for a rate increase for home workers who assist the elderly, increased outreach to the elderly, and an increase for Adult Day Service
• Continued funding for the $250 million Reimagine Public Safety Act to prevent gun violence and expanded funding for youth employment programs
• $53.5 million to overhaul IDPH disease monitoring IT and prepare for future public health emergencies
• Over $200 million increase to better serve Illinoisans with developmental disabilities
Economic Development
• $400 million to close major economic development deals and attract businesses and jobs to the state
• Expanded workforce development programs to build a pipeline in the industries of the future, like data center, EV, and clean energy
• Taking another step towards phasing out of the franchise tax
• $20 million to Rebuild Illinois Downtowns and Main Streets Capital Program
• $40 million for forgivable loans to launch more social equity cannabis businesses
• $10 million to fund a “one-stop business portal” to foster entrepreneurship
…Adding… ILGOP…
“Governor Pritzker and Illinois Democrats can twist words with the best of them, but the truth is that this budget constitutes a partisan wishlist, not a negotiation. With complete control of government, Illinois Democrats continue to tax and spend, with Illinois ranking at the top of every metric of tax burden on residents and driving away families year over year.
It’s time for Governor Pritzker to govern responsibly and stop dreaming about the White House” said Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy.
…Adding… Leader McCombie…
In response to Democratic leaders announcing a budget agreement, House Minority Leader Tony McCombie released the following statement:
“I have repeatedly said it, but will say it once more:
Republicans and Democrats have shared priorities and past promises that need to be kept. Extension of the Invest in Kids Scholarship & the R&D tax credit, fully phasing out the franchise tax, and making essential changes to the estate tax code - SHARED priorities that should be included in budget discussions. Today we learned from Governor Pritzker and Democratic leaders that our shared priorities are not included. I am incredibly disappointed for Illinois families.”
* Sun-Times | Catholic church in Illinois vastly underreported clergy sex abuse, Kwame Raoul finds: In August 2018, shortly after then-Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced an investigation into whether the Catholic church in Illinois had fully disclosed the scope of child sex abuse by priests and other clergy members, Cardinal Blase Cupich said the church had nothing to hide. “Our record’s clean,” the top Catholic cleric in Chicago told a closed-door gathering of about 200 men studying at the Mundelein Seminary to be priests, according to sources who were there. “I’m confident that, when the attorney general looks in our files … that she will, in fact, find that we’re doing our job.”
* Tribune | Scope of clerical sex abuse against children in Illinois widens with release of new report: The investigation determined that Catholic leaders in Illinois have vastly underreported clergy sex abuse against children, finding that “decades of Catholic leadership decisions and policies have allowed known child sex abusers to hide, often in plain sight,” according to the report. The 700-page document revealed the names and detailed information of 451 Catholic clerics and religious brothers who abused at least 1,997 children across all six dioceses in Illinois, between 1950 and 2019.
* Time | 4 Major Takeaways from Illinois’ Investigation Into Child Sex Abuse in the Catholic Church: The report includes detailed narrative accounts from survivors from all six dioceses and shows a pattern of the church failing to support survivors, covering up reports of abuse, and re-victimizing survivors who came forward to report being abused. The dioceses also publicly undercounted the number of child sex abusers in the clergy on their websites. […] The report detailed the long-term impacts the abuse had on survivors, reporting that nearly every survivor interviewed noted struggling with their mental health in the years and even decades after the abuse. Survivors struggled with challenges including insomnia, anxiety, suicidal ideation, addiction, depression, and PTSD.
* AP | Catholic clergy sexually abused Illinois kids far more often than church acknowledged, state finds: The lengthy report describes Illinois church leaders as woefully slow to acknowledge the extent of the abuse. It also accuses them of frequently dragging their feet to confront accused clergy and of failing to warn parishioners about possible abusers in their midst, sometimes even decades after allegations emerged. […] In a statement released Tuesday, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests called the report “stunning” but emphasized that the numbers of victims and abusers cited by Raoul are likely undercounted. The group also called on state and local officials to conduct similar reviews.
* NYT | Sex Abuse in Catholic Church: Over 1,900 Minors Abused in Illinois, State Says: Most of the abuse documented in the report happened decades ago. The report acknowledges that criminal prosecutions and civil lawsuits will be impossible for many victims, because of statutes of limitations and the fact that the majority of the perpetrators have died. Some states, including California and New York, have enacted a “look-back window” allowing victims of child sex abuse to bring civil claims that would otherwise be barred by statutes of limitations, but Illinois is not among them.
* USA Today | Nearly 2,000 children abused by more than 450 Catholic leaders in Illinois: The Archdiocese of Chicago, and the dioceses of Belleville, Joliet, Peoria, Rockford and Springfield issued a joint statement regarding the findings. […] “At this time, working with the Office of the Attorney General of Illinois, the leaders of all six Illinois dioceses endeavored to make clear and update our approach, mindful of our lived experience and best practices in this field. Our common goals in doing so are to ensure we offer pastoral support to those affected by this tragedy and to work diligently to prevent it from occurring again.”
* WCIA | State report shows Catholic Diocese underreported number of abusive Illinois clergy, advocacy group responds: The Attorney General noted that the Springfield diocese does not include nine of the abusive clergy members and eight listed for the Peoria diocese. “The Diocese of Springfield refuses to include [Father John] Beatty on its list of substantiated abusers, because “Beatty did not hold a parochial ministry in this diocese,” referring to a parish ministry, the report reads. “But Beatty taught for years in a Catholic high school in Springfield, with day-to-day access to children.”
* WAND | Raoul releases report naming 451 Illinois Catholic leaders who sexually abused nearly 2,000 children since 1950: In a statement Tuesday, Bishop Thomas Paprocki said he cannot undo damages of the past. However, the Springfield Diocese leaders stressed that he has been and will continue to be fully committed to ensuring the diocese does everything it can to prevent abuse from happening again. Paprocki also said he is not aware of a single incident of sexual abuse of a minor by clergy in the Springfield Diocese in nearly 20 years. Paprocki said the Diocese credits the Attorney General’s office for bringing about greater transparency and keeping the spotlight on this issue to guard against any future threat of abuse.
* ABC Chicago | Survivors of sex abuse by Catholic priests in Joliet diocese react to Illinois AG’s report: The Illinois attorney general’s scathing 700-page report on Catholic Church abuse was particularly critical of the Joliet diocese, especially under Bishop Imesch’s leadership. The report said, “The diocese covered up abuse committed by Joliet priests by shifting them off to new parishes without relaying their history of abuse.” […] The Joliet diocese’s new Bishop Ronald Hicks was not available for an interview, but did release a lengthy written statement expressing profound remorse over any failure to respond to an allegation of abuse with prompt and compassionate attention.
* Daily Herald | Far more Catholic clergy sexually abused Illinois kids than dioceses acknowledged:According to the report, former Joliet Bishop Joseph Leopold Imesch failed to protect children from even convicted sex abusers on several occasions “by giving these abusers the green light to minister in the diocese.” Imesch — who served as the diocese’s bishop from 1979 to 2006 — covered up for abusers by sending them to new parishes without relaying their history, the report states. When that practice came to light, “Imesch caused further harm by casting blame on others and mistreating abuse survivors,” according to the report.
Commonwealth Edison today is filing with state regulators to hike its delivery rates by $1.5 billion over four years, beginning in 2024.
The multiyear rate plan, authorized under the landmark Climate & Equitable Jobs Act, would boost ComEd’s distribution revenue by nearly 50% over that period if approved as submitted, according to a Securities & Exchange Commission filing this morning by ComEd parent Exelon. […]
Much of the eye-popping increase can be explained by a spike in the return on equity ComEd is requesting—essentially its profit level. ComEd’s requested ROE for 2024 is 10.5%. Its returns on the most recent rate hike—nearly $200 million, the last such increase under the old formula law—were less than 8%.
Consumer advocates and staff of the Illinois Commerce Commission today urged the regulator to dramatically reduce Commonwealth Edison’s $1.5 billion rate hike over the next four years.
The Citizens Utility Board in testimony filed with the ICC recommended cutting that amount by 60% to $585 million.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office recommended a more modest reduction, to $1.1 billion. But CUB Executive Director David Kolata in a statement said he expected his group and the AG to combine forces to push to reduce that $1.5 billion request by more than $1 billion in coming months.
In addition, ICC staff — in the past typically less critical of utility rate recommendations than CUB or the AG — urged that commissioners sharply reduce ComEd’s equity return embedded in its rate proposal to 8.91% from a utility-proposed rate starting at 10.5% in 2024 and climbing 0.05% each year to end at 10.65% in 2027. […]
A host of other business and municipal parties filed testimony on ComEd’s proposal, showing how much is at stake for the region. They included the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra, the city of Chicago, the Building Owners & Managers Association of Chicago and Walmart.
The proposed rate hike is also projected to increase the profit rate for ComEd shareholders to 10.5% in 2024, growing to 10.65% in 2027. In its filing, CUB argued for “a more reasonable” 9.4% return on investment, which would reduce the rate hike by $570.4 million.
In addition, CUB challenged ComEd’s forecast for residential usage as “unrealistically low,” with the utility overstating its revenue requirements in the proposed rate increase by an additional $194.7 million.
“We’re still analyzing CUB’s testimony, but based on an early review, we disagree with CUB’s assessment of our multiyear plans,” ComEd spokesperson Paul Elsberg said in an email. “Our proposed investments provide meaningful benefits to our customers and communities and support the goals of the state’s Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, and we look forward to working with the Commission and all participants in the proceeding to prove that out.” […]
CUB also cited the bribery lobbying scandal that resulted in the conviction of the “ComEd Four” earlier this month as leading to $1 billion in rate hikes over the last decade.
* In 2019, USA Today revealed that the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office did not keep a “Brady list” in accordance with a US Supreme Court ruling that prosecutors must tell anyone accused of a crime about all evidence that may help their defense. Instead, higher-ups merely advised Assistant State’s Attorneys whenever a police officer shouldn’t be allowed to testify…
Reporters for USA TODAY and its partners, including the Chicago-based Invisible Institute, spent more than a year gathering Brady lists from police and prosecutors in thousands of counties to measure compliance with the landmark 1963 ruling in Brady v. Maryland. […]
In Chicago, the Cook County State’s Attorney, the second biggest prosecutor’s office in the country, said it does not keep a Brady list.
Instead, the office sends individual memos to its prosecutors when it learns a police officer was convicted of a crime or was found by a judge to have lied under oath, telling them to avoid using the cops if possible or to notify defense attorneys. The system leaves individual prosecutors in the sprawling jurisdiction with America’s second-largest police force on their own to track officers with credibility issues.
The result: A USA TODAY analysis found that dozens of officers flagged by judges or convicted of crimes were summoned to testify at trial in recent years, with no assurance the defense was notified.
* In March, WGN reported the Cook County State’s Attorney’s do-not-call list was mostly former police officers…
A WGN Investigates review found that the vast majority of those on the list are, in fact, no longer cops. Of the 66 names on the list, only 18 remain certified by the state to be law enforcement officers. Of those, 13 work for the Chicago Police Department. Three of those officers are detectives, according to the CPD.
Hundreds of current and former Chicago police officers can never be called to testify by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office (SAO) because they have histories of misconduct or untruthfulness that would undermine their credibility on the stand, according to documents obtained by The TRiiBE.
The SAO’s so-called Brady and Do Not Call lists, which include names of officers who can’t be relied on in court, are far more extensive than has been previously reported, and include officers who were not included in previous releases by the SAO. One such officer who was not on previously released lists, but is now, is January 6 Capitol rioter Karol Chwiesiuk, who was fired by the Chicago Police Department (CPD) in 2021 and has been charged with five misdemeanors for his part in the attack. Another is Nicholas Jovanovich, who was fired last year for knocking out an activist’s teeth during a 2020 protest in Grant Park.
John Catanzara, the current president of the Fraternal Order of Police, is also listed. Catanzara resigned from CPD in 2021 while facing termination for nearly a dozen rule violations, but was reelected president of the city‘s largest police union earlier this year.
Officers who are still active members of CPD are also on the lists. Marc Jarocki, a 43-year-old officer who is in his 21st year on the force and currently works in the 7th District, is one. He has cost the city more than $200,000 in civil lawsuits and racked up at least 31 civilian complaints, including allegations of excessive force, illegal searches, and false arrests, according to the Invisible Institute’s Civilian Police Data Project. […]
Via Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, The TRiiBE obtained the SAO’s most up-to-date Brady and “Do Not Call” lists in April. The lists include 275 names of officers, 200 of whom are or were CPD members. Sixty-four are still employed, meaning they may still be policing out in communities or overseeing active investigations, with annual salaries totaling nearly $7.5 million.
Wednesday, May 24, 2023 - Posted by Advertising Department
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On average, the U.S. spends about $7,100 per individual covered by Medicaid with full benefits. Illinois, though, spends about $5,000 and is among the lowest-paying states—ranking 48th out of the 50 states and Washington D.C.—ahead of only Georgia, South Carolina and Nevada.
Illinois hospitals are asking state lawmakers to invest in Medicaid, which provides health coverage to one in three Illinoisans today compared with one in 10 in 1995. As hospitals are squeezed by rising labor, drug and supply costs, they are facing tough decisions to reduce costs while still serving patients with the highest quality care.
Increasing the General Revenue Fund (GRF) portion of Medicaid hospital rates can help preserve patient access to care. Consider the following:
• GRF funds less than 18% of hospital Medicaid spending.
• Hospitals fund over 22% of hospital Medicaid spending through an almost $2 billion assessment tax they pay.
Increasing the GRF Medicaid hospital rate—for the first time in 28 years—is urgently needed as hospital costs have increased 85% since 1995 and have jumped significantly due to inflation, supply chain disruptions and staffing shortages.
Illinois hospitals are urging legislators to move on a much-needed 10% across-the-board increase to hospital Medicaid base rates. Discover the facts to learn more.
The legislation faces potential legal hurdles. Kent Redfield, an emeritus professor of political science at the University of Illinois at Springfield and an expert on state campaign finance law, questioned whether the proposed restrictions on campaign contributions would be effective — or constitutional.
“The broad constitutional framework is that contributing or spending money to influence politics is protected political speech under the First Amendment, and so, if you’re going to restrict it, then it has to be narrow,” Redfield said.
Although there’s a record of political corruption in the industry, it is by no means unique, he said, raising the issue of why red-light camera companies would be subjected to restrictions that don’t apply to other state-regulated industries.
* The Question: Do you support the idea of banning certain industries/entities from contributing to campaigns? If so, which would those be? Make sure to explain. Thanks.
Gov. J.B. Pritkzer in February proposed a nearly $50 billion plan, up from around $37 billion in fiscal year 2014.
After factoring in inflation, the FY24 budget will wind up being about 6 percent higher than it was in FY14.
* Today’s Tribune editorial features a cartoon from 2011 about the state’s pension horrors. Since then, the Tier 2 program has kicked in and annual state payments have stabilized. The General Assembly and the current governor have also boosted pension fund contributions above the minimum required by law. But the editorial skips over all that…
The state’s long-standing pension crisis poses an ever-present threat to Illinois’ long-term financial stability, bottoming out the state’s credit ratings and discouraging prospective employers from bringing jobs to this state. Who would want to invest heavily in a state with such an abysmal financial outlook?
Um, the state’s credit ratings have steadily improved since that paper’s endorsed (through thick and thin) governor was overwhelmingly voted out of office in 2018. And as far as outlooks go, two rating agencies say Illinois has a “stable” outlook, and one (Fitch) has given the state a “positive” outlook. The outlook of an editorial board perpetually stuck in the past doesn’t really mean much.
ANDRADE WATCH: You can’t be a senator if there’s still a senator. Cristina Pacione-Zayas was appointed to Martinez’s 20th District seat in 2020, elected in 2022 and was named Johnson’s first deputy chief-of-staff in mid-April, a policy-making job which pays over $150,000. According to Jaime Andrade Jr. (D-40), whose state rep district covers half of the 20th, Pacione-Zayas is still collecting her state pay, has not resigned, shows up for work since May 15 at City Hall but is NOT collecting her city paycheck.
“Can you imagine if I did that?” asked Andrade. “The media would be all over me.” Andrade is “interested” in the senate appointment, which will be made by the weighted-vote of the 20th’s ward committeepersons (D), who must meet within 30 days.
“I’m waiting for a vacancy” to decide, he said. Already in the mix is wealthy area pharmacist and sometime farmer Dave Nayak.
It’s OK for state Rep. Brad Stephens (R-20) to be the $265,000 mayor of Rosemont, but it’s dubious that 20th District voters want a senator who is MIA.
Sen. CPZ was in Springfield voting last week and will be here this week. Plenty of people have outside jobs, including Rep. Andrade. CPZ may be the first, however, to refuse the entire salary of a non-legislative job while still managing to stay on top of her legislative gig.
Also, if you click here and then click “Inquiry Reports,” load the CSV file into Excel and create a Pivot Table, you’ll see that Rep. Stephens has been recorded as either “Excused” or “Not Voting” on 18 percent of roll call votes this year (157 of 863), while Sen. Pacione-Zayas has been recorded as not voting on 6 percent (52 of 848).
Illinois lawmakers were supposed to be off for a summer break, instead they’re set to return to the capitol this week to take care of unfinished business.
Passing a budget is arguably the single must-happen task for lawmakers and it was supposed to have been done by Friday, but that self-imposed deadline came and went without any budget action. […]
They’re scheduled to be in the capitol for a few days starting Wednesday, but they could stretch things out through May 31.
Come June, it gets tougher to pass because it requires a supermajority versus a simple majority to pass, which needs to happen as the fiscal year ends in July.
Introduced at the tail end of the Illinois legislative session, a pair of measures that promote private funding of road projects are moving through quickly as state lawmakers try to wrap up their session this week. One is a resolution that would allow state transportation officials to find private funding for the Stevenson expansion, which runs through Little Village and other communities, and it is in the Senate after moving quickly through the House Chamber. The other is an even more expansive rewriting of rules to encourage private dollars for state transportation projects, which was added as an amendment to a large spending bill on Friday.
“Expanding highway capacity will incentivize more driving and more harmful emissions in an area already burdened by high asthma rates and other chronic health problems,” said José Miguel Acosta Córdova of the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization.
Community, environmental and health organizations oppose the 11th-hour moves to bring private highway funding to Illinois, proposals supported by labor and business groups. […]
Marc Poulos, executive director of the labor management group for Local 150 International Union of Operating Engineers, said private money is needed to make sure road projects get funded. Some labor and business advocates have wanted to see the state enter into its first private transportation partnership for a number of years, and the proposed changes are a “modernizing of the statute” that allows such projects.
The widening of the Stevenson has been envisioned since the expressway was built in the 1960s, he said.
As the General Assembly prepares to wrap up its spring legislative session this week, Democratic lawmakers are advancing bills that would mandate job postings to include a salary range and grant further protections to temporary workers in moves they say would promote equity within the workplace. […]
House Bill 3129 passed with a 35-19 vote. It went back to the House, which passed it 75-39 on Wednesday.
The bill would require expected pay disclosures from employers with 15 or more employees in the state and would apply to things such as job board listings, newspaper ads and postings made by a third-party on behalf of an employer. […]
Labor advocates had another victory with the passage of the Temp Worker Fairness and Safety Act on Friday, a bill requiring temporary workers be paid the equivalent rate of pay received by a permanent worker after 90 consecutive days of employment.
Facing pressure to bolster state ethics laws following the recent federal bribery convictions of former top Commonwealth Edison executives and lobbyists, Illinois lawmakers have turned their attention to another branch of a sprawling corruption investigation: the red-light camera industry.
A measure introduced and approved in the Illinois Senate late Friday seeks to place new ethical guardrails around an industry that has been at the center of multiple federal probes that have ensnared a host of state, county and local officials, including two state senators. […]
Members of the General Assembly as well as county and local officials would be prohibited from going to work for or receiving compensation from red-light camera companies for two years after leaving office, under the legislation. That’s much stronger than a six-month prohibition on state lawmakers becoming lobbyists that just took effect this year.
The Illinois Department of Transportation would be able to revoke a county’s or municipality’s authorization for red-light cameras if a local official or employee is charged with bribery, official misconduct or similar crimes related to the placement of the cameras, and municipalities would no longer be allowed to outsource the issuance of citations to their camera system vendors.
* WTTW | Illinois Lawmakers Set to Return Wednesday In Push to Pass a Budget: They’re scheduled to be in the capitol for a few days starting Wednesday, but they could stretch things out through May 31. Come June, it gets tougher to pass because it requires a supermajority versus a simple majority to pass, which needs to happen as the fiscal year ends in July.
* Center Square | Illinois legislators return Wednesday to reveal, pass state budget: Gov. J.B. Pritkzer in February proposed a nearly $50 billion plan, up from around $37 billion in fiscal year 2014. Since the governor’s budget address earlier this year, revenues have come in below expectations. The Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability projected revenues for April 2023 were $1.8 billion less than the same month the year before.
* Tribune | State deploying 30 ‘peacekeepers’ in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend in effort to prevent violence through de-escalation: The workers are with the Illinois Department of Human Services’ Citywide Crisis Prevention & Response Unit, whose goal is to address street conflicts through mediation and de-escalation. According to the governor’s office, the unit will send out over 30 workers — whom the state is calling “peacekeepers” — to various neighborhoods. The unit will work with community groups and various city and state agencies on the violence prevention efforts.
* WSJ | Will Illinois Still ‘Invest in Kids’?: Started in 2017 under then-Gov. Bruce Rauner, the Invest in Kids program provides privately funded scholarships for low-income children so they can escape failing public schools. The program so far has funded more than 40,000 scholarships, with all recipients qualifying based on financial need. But the current program expires at the end of this year and needs to be renewed. The futures of some 9,000 children hang in the balance. The scholarships are in high demand every year with about five applicants for each place offered, according to Empower Illinois, the largest scholarship organization.
* Tribune | ComEd’s proposed $1.47 billion rate hike challenged by watchdog group: The filing Monday with the Illinois Commerce Commission seeks to reduce ComEd’s proposal by at least $914.5 million, with additional testimony by other watchdog groups and the Illinois attorney general’s office expected to bring the cumulative recommended cuts to over $1 billion.
* WBEZ | Cook County Health is bracing for a financial storm to pay for migrants’ health care: There’s the cost of running the clinic for migrants and the possibility more health services will be needed as this population continues to swell. The state stopped contributing money to the clinic in February. Add to that, Cook County Health is bracing for a deluge of low-income patients losing their public Medicaid health insurance and becoming uninsured, yet still needing treatment but with perhaps no way to pay. That’s because after a three-year pause during the pandemic, the state is back to requiring that people prove they qualify for Medicaid.
* WBEZ | A plan to spend $51 million to aid migrants rekindles a heated debate in a new Chicago City Council: Having received only a small fraction of the hundreds of millions of dollars in federal and state funding requests since last year, the City Council is expected to vote Wednesday on using $51 million set aside for “unanticipated emergencies.” If approved, the funding would go toward staffing for seven city shelters, three so-called “respite centers,” meals, legal services and transportation for migrants.
* Tribune | Plan to house migrants at Far Northwest Side college met with boos, support as total new arrivals reach 10,000: Before the meeting kicked off, the crowd’s polarization was already reflected in the presence of pro-law enforcement Blue Lives Matter flags as well as rainbow posters reading: “A better Chicago starts with US!” City officials then began their briefing on the temporary shelter but were often drowned out by alternating waves of boos and applause. Lastly, a question-and-answer portion saw residents verbally clash over purported safety and public health concerns and whether Chicago is living up to its ideal as a sanctuary city.
* Sun-Times | Lightfoot’s security detail dramatically reduced: Law enforcement sources acknowledged Lightfoot’s detail has been slashed. But a police spokesperson refused to reveal specifics, fearing it could invite more threats to a former mayor who has already had her share.
* SJ-R | ‘The best in the world’: Vose Korndogs has a new stand in a familiar place: Ken Vose said the building, in its familiar placement on Grandstand Avenue, had long been planned and replaces a stand from around the mid-1970s. Vose bought the shells of both buildings and had been working on it “day and night” at his house since October.
Attorney General Kwame Raoul today filed a lawsuit, alongside 48 attorneys general, against Avid Telecom, its owner Michael Lansky and vice-president Stacey S. Reeves, for alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the Telemarketing Sales Rule and other federal and state telemarketing and consumer laws. Avid Telecom allegedly initiated, facilitated, and transmitted more than 7.5 billion illegal robocalls to millions of people on the National Do Not Call Registry. Between December 2018 and January 2023, more than 290 million of those calls were to Illinois residents.
Avid Telecom is a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service provider that sells data, phone numbers and dialing software to help its customers make mass robocalls. It also serves as an intermediate provider and allegedly facilitated or helped route illegal robocalls across the country.
“Robocalls violate consumers’ privacy and unnecessarily cost them time and money. Companies responsible for this illegal practice must be held accountable,” Raoul said. “I am happy to work with fellow attorneys general addressing this problem in Illinois and will continue to protect consumers’ rights by fighting against these unlawful actions.”
Between December 2018 and January 2023, Avid sent or attempted to transmit more than 24.5 billion calls. More than 90 percent of those calls lasted less than just 15 seconds, which indicates they were likely robocalls. Further, Avid helped make hundreds of millions of calls using spoofed or invalid caller ID numbers, including more than 8.4 million calls that appeared to be coming from government and law enforcement agencies and private companies.
Avid Telecom allegedly sent or transmitted scam calls about Social Security Administration scams, Medicare scams, auto warranty scams, Amazon scams, DirecTV scams, credit card interest rate reduction scams and employment scams.
The USTelecom-led Industry Traceback Group, which notifies providers about known and suspected illegal robocalls sent across their networks, sent at least 329 notifications to Avid Telecom that it was transmitting these calls. Avid Telecom allegedly continued the calls.
The legal action arises from the nationwide Anti-Robocall Multistate Litigation Task Force Raoul joined in August 2022 along with 50 bipartisan attorneys general. The task force is investigating and taking legal action against those responsible for routing significant volumes of illegal robocall traffic into and across the United States. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General provided investigative assistance in this matter.
Attorney General Raoul has been a consistent advocate for protections against illegal robocalls. In 2022, Raoul joined a coalition of 33 attorneys general in filing a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court defending the anti-robocall provisions of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. In August 2019, Raoul joined a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from all 50 states and Washington D.C. in partnering with 12 phone companies to create a set of principles for telecom companies to fight robocalls. In June 2019, Raoul, in cooperation with the FTC, announced a major crackdown on robocalls that included 94 actions targeting operations around the country that were responsible for more than 1 billion calls. Raoul has also submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission urging the adoption of its proposed rules on enforcement against caller ID spoofing.
Joining Raoul in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
* The Question: How do you deal with these robocalls?
* NYT | Sex Abuse in Catholic Church: Over 1,900 Minors Abused in Illinois, State Says: The report adds 149 names to lists of child sex abusers whom the dioceses themselves had publicly identified before or during the investigation. That brings the total number of identified abusers to 451, the report says. The additional names were supplied by victims who came forward and shared their accounts with investigators, who then followed up on their accounts. Investigators also reviewed more than 100,000 pages of files held by the dioceses, and interviewed church leaders and their representatives. The 149 new names are religious brothers, who are accountable primarily to independent religious orders rather than to local dioceses and bishops.
* WJOL | Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias Awards $221,000 to Joliet Public Library: Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias announced that his office is awarding nearly $18 million to 639 public libraries statewide – including more than $221,000 to the Joliet Public Library. These grants, awarded once every fiscal year, will help provide library services to nearly 12 million patrons statewide and approximately 150,000 Joliet residents.
* Center Square | Proposal to consolidate lawmaker pensions with other funds to be discussed this summer: Reick said the goal of the proposals is to bring the state to conformity with the nation’s Employee Retirement Income Security Act. “What we are trying to do with this bill is basically bring Tier 2 into conformity with safe harbor provisions of ERISA,” Reick said. “Which we have been out of compliance with since 2012.”
* Sun-Times | Brandon Johnson’s first City Council meeting certain to be tamer than Lightfoot’s: Ald. Ray Lopez (15th), whom Lightfoot accused that first day of “carrying the water for Burke,” also expects zero fireworks. He noted that Lightfoot and Johnson are “two different personality types.” “She came in with much more animosity towards certain individuals than Brandon has. He’s actually been pretty pro-active in reaching out to make human connections with members. So, I would be surprised if he got off on that foot,” Lopez said.
* Crain’s | Top Lightfoot aide rips move to dump him from the McPier board — but he says he might quit if Johnson asks: In his first comments on the matter, the former deputy mayor, who served as Lightfoot’s top aide for relations with the business community, said a pending bill to rescind Lightfoot’s last-second move appointing him to the board of the Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority may be illegal and is “terrible for democratic values.” The authority, generally known as McPier, operates the McCormick Place convention center and plays a major role in the city’s economy. It also owns Navy Pier but does not run the facility.
* Bloomberg | Walgreens settles consumer claims it knew Theranos was a fraud: US District Judge David Campbell in Phoenix this month ordered the case to go to trial after concluding there are factual issues that only a jury can resolve over whether Walgreens entered into an ill-fated partnership with Theranos to offer tests at its drugstores even while it had good reason to suspect the startup’s technology didn’t really work.
* Bloomberg | How mega-retailers like Walgreens became health care’s biggest disruptors: In 2021, Walgreens invested $5.2 billion to take a majority stake in primary care provider VillageMD, accelerating plans to open 1,000 co-branded “Village Medical at Walgreens” practices by 2027. CVS says primary care complements its value-based care efforts. It acquired Oak Street Health in a $10.6 billion transaction earlier this year and plans to expand to 300 Oak Street sites by 2026. The company has also built a national network of roughly 1,200 MinuteClinic walk-in medical clinics.
* WGLT | Lincoln brought Guy Fraker to Illinois; preserving the landscape came later: A lawyer by profession, Fraker’s two avocations are studying Abraham Lincoln and land conservation — so it is serendipitous that he chose to settle in the Twin Cities. His commitment to both topics is what prompted McLean County Museum of History to select Fraker as a 2023 History Maker.
* WCIA | Grammy-winning Alanis Morissette to headline Illinois State Fair in August: “We are excited to welcome Alanis Morissette to the Illinois State Fair for the first time,” said state fair manager Rebecca Clark. “Her album ‘Jagged Little Pill’ was a defining music achievement for my generation and over 25 years later, you still hear ‘You Oughta Know’ or ‘Ironic’ on the radio.”
* AP | UPS strike looms in a world grown reliant on everything delivered everywhere all the time: Annual profits at UPS in the past two years are close to three times what they were before the pandemic. The Atlanta company returned about $8.6 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and stock buybacks in 2022, and forecasts another $8.4 billion for shareholders this year. The Teamsters say frontline UPS workers deserve some of that windfall.
Officials with the Shawnee School District #84 fear schools could face closing if the county reassesses a southern Illinois power plant’s property value.
A letter from the Jackson County Board of Review to the school district details the Grand Tower Energy Center, LLC is asking the county to lower its full market value on the Grand Tower Power Plant from $100,337,421 to $7,049,295. […]
Now, a letter from the county to the school district details what the plant’s new owner is asking. It asks that the county lower its full assessed value on the property by more than $90 million.
A power plant says it hasn’t been able to pay more than $2 million in taxes to Jackson County because of a property tax assessment.
The Grand Tower Energy Center said in a statement to the Southern Illinoisan that it’s “not in a financial position to make tax payments based on the current assessment.” The plant said it has been working with the county assessor’s office for nearly two years to resolve the issue but its efforts have been “rebuffed.”
The Jackson County Board of Review in May upheld the assessed tax valuation after plant officials tried to get the property’s full valuation reduced from about $100 million to about $7 million.
In the statement from the power plant, it says the plant has submitted its appeal for the second year to the Board of Review.
Rendleman said the decision on the property taxes in 2014 has already been made by the Board of Review. If the power plant wants to appeal that decision, it must go through the Property Tax Appeals Board in Springfield.
Scott Ginsburg, legal representation for the Shawnee School District, said the procedure in Springfield requires the plant to pay the taxes first, and if it wins, they get the difference back plus interest.
A recent decision by the Property Tax Appeal Board could cost local taxpayers millions of dollars.
The board decided Tuesday to lower the Grand Tower Energy Center’s property tax bill retroactively for 2014 and 2015. […]
Ameren owned the power plant until 2014, when it sold the plant, along with two others in Illinois, to a financial firm called Rockland Capital. […]
The Shawnee School District stands to lose the most, about $2.5 million according to the Jackson County Tax Assessor’s office.
* The school district had also complained that Grand Tower Energy Center was “required to pay the taxes under protest before filing a statutory objection with either the PTAB or the court.” PTAB rejected that argument and the school district appealed. The Fifth District Appellate Court ruled three years later, in 2022, that PTAB was right on both counts (the property value and that the company didn’t need to pay taxes up front in protest). From the school district…
In a momentous departure from longstanding Illinois law, an appellate court found that delinquent taxpayers who deliberately withhold taxes may still pursue a claim for property tax assessment relief. In so doing, the court, in the case of Shawnee Community Unit School District No. 84 v. Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board, 2022 IL App (5th) 190266-U, provided a roadmap to taxpayers looking to coerce taxing districts into accepting favorable settlements, lest the taxing districts, including schools, lose the local property tax revenue they need to perform their essential functions like providing education to children and safety services to the public. […]
The Fifth District’s decision upended nearly a century of Illinois case law reaffirming the “payment under protest” doctrine meant to prevent taxpayers from harassing local taxing bodies by withholding operating funds as part of a strategy to extract favorable property tax settlements.
Shawnee School District Superintendent Shelly Clover-Hill says her schools and Galatia School District will receive a significant loss grant in the Illinois State Fiscal Year 2023 budget.
“Can you imagine the catastrophic breakdown of social services if every tax payer in Illinois found out now, there’s a 5th district decision that says you don’t have to pay while you protest,” [Shawnee School District Superintendent Shelly Clover-Hill] explains. “That’s hospitals and road and police and fire and schools.” […]
Clover-Hill says other school districts across the state are concerned about the 5th district’s decision and how it could impact their tax funding. Those districts have offered their support to Shawnee.
She expects this case to be heard by the Illinois Supreme Court in the Spring of 2023.
A school district in southern Illinois is asking the state for some financial help and this isn’t the first time a company nearby refuses to pay its property taxes, for the second year in a row.
“This is unfortunately not the first time they have failed to pay their taxes. They put us in this same boat last year,” said Shawnee District #84 superintendent Shelly Clover-Hill.
A Prophetstown, Illinois, man, Philip J. Buyno, 73, has been arrested and charged by federal criminal complaint with attempting to use fire to damage a building used in interstate commerce. Danville, Illinois, police officers arrested Buyno on Saturday, May 20th, and he is scheduled to appear in federal court in Urbana today at 1:15 pm before U.S. Magistrate Judge Eric I. Long. At that time, Judge Long will address whether Buyno will be released on conditions of bond or held in custody pending further proceedings.
According to the affidavit filed in support of the complaint, Danville police officers responded to an alarm at 600 N. Logan Avenue in Danville around 4:30 a.m. early Saturday morning. They found Buyno stuck inside a maroon Volkswagen Passat that he had backed into the entrance of the building, which is being renovated for use as a reproductive health clinic. According to the affidavit, Buyno brought several containers filled with gasoline with him.
If convicted of attempted arson, Buyno faces a minimum penalty of five years up to twenty years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and three years of supervised release.
The charges are the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office, and the Danville Police Department. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugene L. Miller is representing the government in the prosecution.
Members of the public are reminded that a complaint is merely an accusation; the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
“Let’s focus and call it what it is. This is an act of terrorism, and this is a fight against women’s rights,” said Caylynne Dobbles, President of VC Pride Coalition. […]
WAND reached out to Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. who said that he did not have a comment due to this being an open investigation.
“The community should know that not everyone on either side is like this. Not everyone is out to hurt people or harm buildings. And that the VC Pride Coalition is here,” said Dobbles.
A neighbor, who doesn’t want to be identified, says she heard banging that sounded like someone was messing with her car, but instead, she says it was someone ramming their own car into the clinic building. She says shortly after she saw a man trying to get away. […]
The neighbor says police used to sit in the parking lot to keep an eye on the building. But since these no-trespassing posts went up, she says she hasn’t seen them. While she doesn’t agree with the clinic opening, she says that doesn’t give people the right to destroy it.
The alleged attack follows recent heated, high-profile demonstrations in support of and against abortion access in this community of about 30,000.
Earlier this month, the Danville City Council narrowly passed a controversial ban on the mailing and shipping of abortion pills, a measure Attorney General Kwame Raoul and civil rights experts have warned is illegal in Illinois. […]
The attack in Danville occurred just a few months after another man was accused of setting fire to a Planned Parenthood Health Center roughly a hundred miles away in Peoria.
Tyler W. Massengill, 32, of Chillicothe in February pleaded guilty to setting the fire; when he was arrested in January, he told authorities that an ex-girlfriend had an abortion several years ago in Peoria, which upset him. The blaze was set a few days after Illinois passed expansive reproductive rights legislation that included protections for abortion providers and out-of-state patients as well as an expansion of the pool of clinicians that can perform abortions.
Buyno is a decades-long activist. Click here for video of him being arrested outside a clinic in Milwaukee back in 1991. And click here to see him talk about being arrested in Peoria a few years ago.
* The state’s turnaround times are still too long, but at least the trend is finally moving in the right direction…
Illinois State Police (ISP) Director Brendan F. Kelly today announced ISP has received final accreditation for the new ISP Decatur Forensic Science Laboratory and it is now officially open for business. The new four-story facility located along U.S. Route 51 on the south side of Decatur houses12,200-square feet of laboratory space and will serve law enforcement agencies across the state.
“This top-tier facility will increase capacity to significantly reduce turnaround time for DNA testing, produce rapid results, and further reduce the case backlog,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Since day one, my administration has been committed to delivering justice for every Illinoisan, and this new Decatur lab will ensure we can accomplish that.”
The new lab will focus on high-throughput DNA testing, which comprises about 20% of all ISP forensic cases in the laboratory system. Forensic scientists at the laboratory will examine evidence collected from crime scenes and analyze biological material to identify DNA profiles from suspects.
“The Decatur facility is equipped with the latest state-of-the-art technology and will be staffed with highly trained individuals who are critical to providing DNA analysis for the citizens of Illinois,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly. “The new lab will further reduce backlogs and allow us to solve crimes faster and bring justice to all involved.”
The new high-throughput DNA laboratory utilizes robotics, which will increase ISP’s testing capacity. These robots can process case samples with minimal hands on from the forensic scientist. The technology will be crucial in providing a short turn around for cases such as property crimes, homicides, and criminal sexual assaults requiring DNA analysis.
The Decatur facility houses ISP’s seventh forensic laboratory, as well as Crime Scene Services. The new facility brings new jobs to the area and has space for approximately 27 employees, including 12 forensic scientists, five evidence technicians, five administrative staff, and five crime scene investigators. Approximately $5.4 million was awarded for staffing and equipment at the new laboratory for the first year.
The ISP forensic science laboratory system has been recognized as one of the largest crime laboratory systems in the world providing forensic science analytical services to more than 1,200 state, county, and local criminal justice agencies. The ISP laboratory system, currently comprised of seven operational laboratories and a training and application laboratory, processes evidence from criminal cases in seven disciplines: drug chemistry, trace chemistry, toxicology, biology/DNA, latent prints, firearms/toolmarks, and footwear/tire tracks.
The average turn-around-time for a DNA case to be completed is 3.6 months. At the end of March 2023, 37% of the assignments for DNA analyses were completed in 60 days or less. Backlogs in testing for trace chemistry, drug chemistry, latent prints, firearms, toxicology, and footwear have all decreased by approximately 37% since 2021.
In June 2022, ISP announced that after decades of extensive sexual assault forensic backlogs, the number of pending sexual assault forensic assignments older than 180 days reached zero. This was the first time since the General Assembly passed the Illinois Sexual Assault Evidence Submission Act in 2010 that the State of Illinois was in compliance with the statute.
It’s just ridiculous how the state let the rape kit problem so horribly deteriorate. I mean, it was so bad they had to pass a law, and it still took a dozen years to reach what is really a not optimal result of 6 months.
Attorney General Kwame Raoul today released a comprehensive report detailing decades of child sex abuse by members of the Catholic clergy in Illinois. The report concludes a multi-year investigation into child sex abuse by members of the clergy in all six Catholic dioceses in Illinois. Attorney General Raoul’s report reveals names and detailed information of 451 Catholic clerics and religious brothers who abused at least 1,997 children across all of the dioceses in Illinois.
The Attorney General’s Report on Catholic Clergy Child Sex Abuse in Illinois – released this morning during a press conference in Chicago – represents the state of Illinois’ first comprehensive accounting of child sex abuse by members of the Catholic clergy in the six dioceses across Illinois. The nearly 700-page report features detailed narrative accounts of child sex abuse committed by Catholic clerics. Many of the narratives were written in consultation with survivors, are based upon their experiences, and told from the survivor’s point of view. Although the report formally concludes the investigation the Attorney General’s office opened in 2018, it contains 50 pages of the office’s recommendations to the dioceses for the handling of future child sex abuse allegations.
“I was raised and confirmed in the Catholic church and sent my children to Catholic schools. I believe the church does important work to support vulnerable populations; however, as with any presumably reputable institution, the Catholic church must be held accountable when it betrays the public’s trust,” Raoul said “It is my hope that this nearly 700-page report will provide some closure to survivors of child sex abuse by Catholic clerics by shining a light both on those who violated their positions of power and trust, and on the individuals in church leadership who covered up that abuse,” Raoul said. “These perpetrators may never be held accountable in a court of law, but by naming them here, the intention is to provide a public accounting and a measure of healing to survivors who have long suffered in silence.”
Before Raoul’s investigation, the Catholic dioceses of Illinois publicly listed only 103 substantiated child sex abusers. By comparison, Raoul’s report reveals names and detailed information of 451 Catholic clerics and religious brothers who abused at least 1,997 children across all of the dioceses in Illinois.
Attorneys and investigators in Raoul’s office reviewed more than 100,000 pages of documents held by the dioceses and received more than 600 confidential contacts from survivors through emails, letters, interviews and phone calls. Raoul’s office also worked closely to record accounts of the survivor experiences of children who were sexually abused by clerics.
“I am extremely proud of the work done by my office’s team of investigators and attorneys who faced challenges and intervening factors including a pandemic and a ransomware attack to the office’s IT infrastructure. The emotional impact of the work was unique to this investigation, and our team committed to approaching the investigation with grace and compassion,” Raoul added. “I thank each of them for the tireless work and commitment to allowing survivors to share their experiences.”
Raoul’s nearly 700-page report is organized into five sections, with sections highlighting detailed information on each diocese’s historic handling – and inaction – of child sex abuse, data analysis showing the extent of child sex abuse by clerics in each Illinois diocese, and specific recommendations from the Attorney General’s office to the dioceses for handling future child sex abuse allegations.
The survivor narratives demonstrate a troubling pattern of the church failing to support survivors, ignoring or covering up reports of abuse, and survivors being revictimized by the church when they came forward to report being abused. Repeatedly, church officials prioritized the reputation of the institution over protecting children, frequently giving abusive priests the benefit of the doubt – giving abusers the chance to abuse again – and even covering up the abuse by misleading the public. The Attorney General’s investigation also found instances in which church officials were in a position to report abuse but chose not to do so. As a result, many narrative accounts demonstrate the continued trauma and impact survivors continue to experience decades later.
As a result of the Attorney General’s investigation, Illinois Catholic dioceses have adopted uniform policies to improve the handling of alleged child sex abuse. Among those are policies requiring dioceses to investigate allegations against clerics who are deceased, have resigned or been laicized. Additional policies require the dioceses to ensure that allegations against religious order and extern clerics are investigated, and to publicly list a religious order or extern cleric who is substantiated as a child sex abuser if the cleric had sufficient connection with the diocese.
While these policies demonstrate a step in the right direction, they do not go far enough. Attorney General Raoul’s report includes 50 pages of recommended policies the office strongly encourages the dioceses to enact to further improve the handling of future allegations of child sex abuse. Those recommendations range from how the dioceses communicate with and support survivors, investigate and make determinations related to alleged abuse, as well as disclosure and transparency protocols, mediation and compensation, and the handling of allegations related to religious orders.
Raoul’s report contains detailed descriptions of child sex abuse, assault and trauma. Resources for survivors of child sex abuse can also be found in Attorney General Raoul’s report.
In August 2018, shortly after then-Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced an investigation into whether the Catholic church in Illinois had fully disclosed the scope of child sex abuse by priests and other clergy members, Cardinal Blase Cupich said the church had nothing to hide.
“Our record’s clean,” the top Catholic cleric in Chicago told a closed-door gathering of about 200 men studying at the Mundelein seminary to be priests, according to sources who were there. “I’m confident that, when the attorney general looks in our files . . . that she will, in fact, find that we’re doing our job.”
“We posted all of the names,” Cupich told the group, referring to the publicly available church list of clergy members in the Archdiocese of Chicago deemed to have been credibly accused of sexual abuse.
Cupich’s assertions were far off the mark, according to the results of the investigation announced Tuesday by Madigan’s successor, Kwame Raoul, who said the archdiocese, covering Cook and Lake counties, and the rest of the Catholic church in Illinois failed to acknowledge hundreds of allegedly abusive priests and other religious figures.
…Adding… Ugh…
An extremely gross finding: Even though the Catholic Church sex abuse scandal had been in the public discourse for a long while by 2011, in that year MORE THAN 10% of priests in the diocese of Belleville (see map in this tweet https://t.co/VT23QgxE9O) were abusive. WOW. pic.twitter.com/c8xxj03LyH
. What can be said is that as things stand, the Diocese of Springfield has yet to reconcile itself with its past. To do that, the diocese must commit to transparency and survivor healing through deeds, listening to survivors and their pleas for trauma-informed responses. The diocese must also openly acknowledge that turning its back for half a century on the needs of children suffering sex abuse at the hands of its clerics was in no way “virtuous.”
A bill moving through the state legislature would prohibit Illinoisans from paying exorbitant costs for generic brand medications.
A bipartisan group of legislators worked to pass the Pharmaceutical and Health Affordability Act, which aims to stop skyrocketing prices of generic and off-brand prescription medications. The bill passed the Senate Wednesday and the House of Representatives Friday and now heads to the governor’s desk.
In the bill, price gouging is defined as “an increase in the price as 30% or more within the preceding year, 50% or more within the preceding 3 years, or 75% or more within the preceding 5 years.” It also must be found the price hike burdens consumers because of little to no competition in the marketplace. The bill does exempt if companies raise the price because of production cost increases. […]
If signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker, the law would go into effect Jan. 1, 2024.
A bill that would allow the state to explore entering into an agreement with a private company to run the World Shooting and Recreational Complex near Sparta is headed to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk.
The legislation is a trial balloon of sorts that will permit the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to gauge interest in a public-private partnership to manage the state-owned, 1,600-acre site, which is the home grounds for the Amateur Trapshooting Association’s Grand American Trapshooting Championships.
The amended bill, sponsored by state Rep. David Friess, R-Red Bud, and state Sen. Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro, passed the Senate 56-0 and the House 111-1 earlier this month.
“IDNR is constantly reviewing our nearly 400 property holdings across the state and considering our options,” said IDNR director Natalie Phelps Finnie in a statement to Lee Enterprises. “Top of mind for the department is always whether we are providing taxpayers with the best value for their money.
A bill headed to the governor’s desk will assist law enforcement in finding stolen vehicles by requiring automakers to provide location information.
HB2245 passed unanimously in both the Illinois House and Senate and, if signed by Gov. JB Pritzker, will force any car manufacturer which sells its vehicles in the state to create a 24/7 hotline. This hotline would be used by law enforcement, to include 9-1-1 center operators, to obtain a stolen car’s location to the best of a manufacturer’s technical abilities.
Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart helped to craft the bill and he wants to see similar legislation at the federal level.
Dart held a news conference Tuesday morning to discuss the state legislation and what he sees as its impacts on his own fight against carjacking in Cook County.
The passage of Senate Bill 1701 advances agriculture conservation in Illinois by supporting farming practices that will yield healthier, stronger soils and cleaner water across the state, advocates said May 19.
Legislators approved Senate Bill 1701 as part of the final days of the spring legislative session in Springfield. It now goes to the Governor for review. […]
The legislation sends a strong message that Illinois must accelerate its efforts to protect soil health and prevent nutrient losses. It directs the Illinois Department of Agriculture to work with Soil and Water Conservation Districts and other conservation-focused state agencies to help with the accelerated soil health framework. […]
The organizations supporting this legislation are now calling on legislators to vote for an Illinois state budget that follows through on SB1701’s promise of more support for sustainable farming practices. By putting more money into Soil and Water Conservation Districts and urging farmers to make voluntary conservation practices a key part of how they manage their operations, we will invest in our future success – on our farms and across our state.
* Sen. Willie Preston…
Taking a step forward in ensuring the safety and well-being of employees and incarcerated individuals, State Senator Willie Preston advanced a measure through the Senate addressing indecent exposure in correctional facilities. […]
House Bill 1399 amends the Criminal Code of 2012 to create the offense of “lewd sexual display in a penal institution,” making it a Class A misdemeanor for incarcerated individuals to expose themselves with the purpose or effect of intimidating, harassing or threatening someone in the presence of such a display. Repeat offenders would face more severe penalties, with subsequent violations being considered Class 4 felonies. The provisions will be repealed on Jan. 1, 2028, allowing for thorough review of annual reports provided by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.
Brought forth by the Cook County Sherriff’s Office, the measure mirrors penalties for public indecency but changes the penalties given the context and motivation of the crime. House Bill 1399 excludes facilities of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice and other juvenile detention facilities, as well as individuals under the age of 18 and those suffering from behavioral health issues. […]
A measure that implements full-day kindergarten throughout Illinois is now awaiting to be sent to Gov. J.B. Pritzker for his signature.
State Rep. Mary Beth Canty, D-Arlington Heights, filed House Bill 2396. It passed the House in March. After several amendments in the Illinois Senate last week, the House voted to concur Friday.
State Sen. Kimberly Lightford, D-Maywood, said the bill better prepares the state’s youth for the future.
“Full-day kindergarten has shown to boost academic gains and prepare children for the social and emotional demands of early elementary,” Lightford said. “This can provide students and their families with sufficient support and opportunities in their early education career.”
Environmental justice organizations and allies will speak at a press conference calling on the Illinois General Assembly to oppose House Bill 2878 and House Joint Resolution 23 (HJR23). At the tail end of a legislative session marked by the failure to act on environmental injustice, advocates are urging lawmakers to reject last-ditch efforts to prop up polluting industries and instead protect communities from diesel emissions, air pollution, and environmental injustice.
In the eleventh hour of the spring legislative session, the legislature introduced HJR23, which would allow the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to enact a public-private partnership to fund a construction project expanding I-55. Expanding this highway would worsen climate change, increase pollution, and put already overburdened environmental justice communities at risk. Then, the Senate amended HB2878, an omnibus state procurement bill, to include new pathways to highway expansions like the I-55 widening project in HJR23, through a broad expansion of public-private funding for large transportation projects. Both HJR23 and HB2878 hurt environmental justice communities and should be opposed by lawmakers.
WHAT: Press conference calling on the Illinois General Assembly to prioritize environmental justice ahead of key votes during the final week of the spring legislative session.
SPEAKERS:
State Rep. Theresa Mah
Jen Walling, Illinois Environmental Council
José Miguel Acosta-Córdova, Little Village Environmental Justice Organization
Brian Urbaszewski, Respiratory Health Association
Additional speakers to be announced, and legislators will be present.
WHEN: Tuesday, May 23, 2023 at 2:15pm CT
WHERE: Virtual via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84815172312
An Illinois House Democrat has been trying to phase out the sub-minimum wages for workers with developmental and intellectual disabilities since 2019. State representatives had the opportunity to pass a bill tackling this issue Friday, but the Dignity in Pay Act failed to gain enough support after an intense debate.
Disabled workers have been paid much less than the state’s minimum wage for many years, and some lawmakers stress it is past time to eliminate the sub-minimum wage. […]
The plan failed to pass on a 59-32 vote with 11 representatives voting present.
Mah asked for the bill to be put on postponed consideration. That means the House could vote on her plan when lawmakers return this week.
If your dentist closes permanently, how do you find out? What do you need to do to get your records so you can start with a new dentist? Thanks to legislation sponsored by State Senator Steve McClure (R-Springfield) dental patients will have advanced warning of closures as well as information on obtaining copies of their records. […]
House Bill 2077 requires that dental facilities are required to inform patients of a planned closure at least 30 days in advance. As part of that requirement, the facilities must inform their patients about how they obtain copies of their dental records.
The legislation also contains several updates to dental rules and cleans up errors in existing law.
House Bill 2077 passed the Illinois Senate on May 19th and awaits a concurrence vote in the House.
After months of contention between two Tinley Park public entities, the much-coveted Tinley Park Mental Health Center campus and Howe Developmental Center could soon be in the hands of the Tinley Park-Park District—at a price of just $1—following the advancement of a piece of legislation Friday. […]
Tinley Park-Park District’s officials are invigorated by the legislation.
“We are excited to hear about legislation supporting the Park District’s vision for the vacant land and hope for the General Assembly’s support of our plan to finally move forward with the vacant property, clean it up, and redevelop the site,” the board of commissioners said in a prepared statement. “After years of inaction, we are thrilled with the prospect of turning the site into a recreational and athletic hub for the entire southland region to enjoy.”
Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz and Village Manager Pat Carr called the move “disappointing” in light of the Village’s more than decade-long quest to acquire the property. […]
The amended legislation will need to go back before the House, ultimately also requiring Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s signature.
State Rep. Maurice West, D-Rockford, filed Senate Bill 90. The measure, as amended by the House, requires Illinois school districts, excluding private religious schools, to create and maintain at least one written policy prohibiting discrimination and harassment against students based on race, color or national origin. […]
State Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City, said if you read between the lines, there is another motive involved.
“In the analysis it says that this is for teachers to grow in their skills for culturally responsive instruction, so if you’re against some of the culturally responsive teacher standards, you may want to take a look at this,” Wilhour said.
The House passed an amendment to the bill by an 87 to 18 vote, and it now heads back to the Senate for concurrence. Legislators return Wednesday.
Tuesday, May 23, 2023 - Posted by Advertising Department
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* WTTW | Illinois Lawmakers Set to Return Wednesday In Push to Pass a Budget: Passing a budget is arguably the single must-happen task for lawmakers and it was supposed to have been done by Friday, but that self-imposed deadline came and went without any budget action. Democrats, who control the General Assembly, say continued negotiations are coming along, but they’re not at the point of full agreement.
* Scott Holland | Hoping for a productive, substantial General Assembly week: New members from Democratic strongholds have their own learning curves, but Democrats who might have won seats from Republicans are likely to be advocating for constituents trying to make newer voices heard. Add in this being the first budgeting process following the decennial redistricting as well as the fact House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch is relatively fresh in his role, compared to the lengthy shadow of predecessor Michael Madigan, and it seems clear getting anything done early was always fairly ambitious.
* Patch | For $1, Tinley Park District Could Soon Own Mental Health Center Land: Backed by Sen. Mike Hastings (D-Frankfort), House Bill 3743 would grant ownership of the 280-acre campus and adjacent Howe Development Center to the park district, as written into an amendment to the bill declaring September as Alopecia Awareness Month.
* Daily Herald | Deal would allow Schaumburg police to access school cameras in emergencies: The Schaumburg Police Department’s 18-month-old Real-Time Information Center is expanding its capabilities through a recent $175,000 grant. It was created with the help of an earlier $552,000 federal grant. Though the information center’s operators can routinely monitor municipal cameras throughout the village, they won’t have the same freedom with those in District 211’s schools.
* Chicago Defender | Hunter Celebrates Resolution Creating Task Force on Black Immigrants: House Joint Resolution 18 creates the Task Force on Black Immigrants to study the economic, social and legal status of Black immigrants and provide recommendations for how to better support them — whether through state resources, programs or funding. The task force will consist of 16 members, serving without compensation, with the Illinois Department of Human Rights providing administrative support.
* Sun-Times | Chicago’s top cop ends training agreement with Texas firm with ties to ex-police superintendent: Chicago’s acting top cop is ending the department’s relationship with a Texas firm that has been paid more than $1.3 million to train officers and is owned by a colleague of the city’s former police superintendent. The firm, Professional Law Enforcement Training, is led by Byron Boston, who served in the Dallas Police Department with Fred Waller’s predecessor, David Brown.
* Tribune | Developer transforming Northwest Side’s Marshall Field’s complex into Chicago’s latest film studio: Knickpoint Ventures held a topping-off ceremony Monday for The Fields Studios, what the company bills as Chicago’s first purpose-built film studio, at the former Marshall Field’s warehouse campus on the Northwest Side. The developer bought the site in 2018 and plans to complete construction and open nine soundstages, along with creative and production offices, by early next year.
* Daily Herald | Bloomingdale mayor leads effort to go big in remaking Stratford Square: Bloomingdale has been buying mall real estate to facilitate a full-scale redevelopment of Stratford Square. The village paid $2.4 million for the vacant Carson’s department store, $2.15 million for the former Burlington building and $1.1 million for a vacant parcel east of the mall, between townhouses to the north and medical offices to the south.
* I really do like the direction Jeremy Gorner is taking the Tribune’s Statehouse bureau. That shop has produced yet another high-quality story…
While failing to get a budget done by its self-imposed deadline, the Illinois General Assembly passed measures addressing issues ranging from abortion rights to full-day kindergarten during its spring session, which this week goes into overtime.
It was the first full session since the November election, when Democrats won victories in every constitutional office and expanded their overall supermajority in the General Assembly. Despite the single-party control, legislators didn’t complete their work Friday as scheduled and will reconvene Wednesday to get back to work on a spending plan that became complicated by the spiraling costs of a health care program for immigrants.
Here’s a look at some of the bills heading to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk.
The law that prohibited out-of-state donations to judicial committees and capped contributions at $500K was permanently enjoined on May 18. The order followed an agreement between the Attorney General and plaintiffs, in which the Attorney General opted not to appeal and the plaintiffs agreed not to file a motion to recover legal expenses.
From the time buses full of migrants began arriving in Chicago last summer, city officials scrambled to find them places to stay. And even when they did, officials often failed to communicate their plans to alderpeople, advocates or other community residents.
Yet as the pace of arrivals built into a humanitarian crisis, the City Council committee responsible for overseeing immigration issues didn’t ask questions or propose solutions.
In fact, for more than a year, the council’s Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights didn’t meet once, though it is tasked with making sure immigrants are treated humanely.
By the time the committee finally convened in late April, the migrant crisis was overwhelming Chicago’s social service systems. With nowhere else to go, families ended up sleeping on police station floors. City officials have turned shuttered schools and park field houses into makeshift shelters, and more migrants are on the way from border states.
But the committee still didn’t take any action.
Hilarious. Not.
* Illinois PIRG…
Legislation to phase out the use of single-use plastic polystyrene foam foodware in state facilities passed both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly last week and is being sent to Gov. Pritzker for his signature. Also last week, Oak Park became the first municipality to pass a ban on polystyrene foam foodware as part of a broader ordinance tackling single-use plastic waste.
The EPA estimates that Americans throw away almost 70 million plastic foam cups every day. Twenty-two million pounds of plastic enter the Great Lakes each year and just over half of that ends up in Lake Michigan alone. Already, eight states and roughly 200 cities and municipalities have enacted bans on polystyrene foam containers.
Under the state legislation passed last week, sponsored by state Sen. Laura Fine and state Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, no state agency may purchase polystyrene foam foodware after January 1, 2025, and no vendor with a state contract may distribute any foam products to customers after January 1, 2026. Under the ordinance passed by Oak Park, restaurants may not sell or distribute polystyrene foam foodware after January 1, 2024.
The Coalition for Plastic Reduction, a coalition of more than 35 organizations across Illinois championed legislation that would phase out foam foodware statewide starting in 2024. That legislation passed the state House but not the state Senate. The coalition plans to push for the full statewide ban in next year’s legislative session.
* Appellate Justice Jesse Reyes has been gearing up hard to run for the Supreme Court. In the meantime, here’s the Illinois Latino Agenda…
The Illinois Latino Agenda (ILA) is calling on the Cook County Democratic Party to slate a Latino for the Illinois Supreme Court in the 2024 primary election when Justice Burke’s term officially expires. ILA and other networks believe that there are plenty of well qualified Latinos with experience in judicial matters to warrant slating a Latino candidate for the State’s highest court.
Last fall, more than 25 Latino leaders from the community, government, and private sectors, were unified in voicing their disappointment with the Illinois Supreme Court’s appointment to fill the Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court Anne Burke vacancy. The Court denied the historic opportunity to appoint Illinois’ first Latino Supreme Court Justice when it selected Justice Burke’s recommended nominee.
“The Illinois Supreme Court sorely lacks Latino representation in a state where Latinos make up 18% of the population and are one of the fastest growing demographics” Jose M. Muñoz, Co-Chair of the Illinois Latino Agenda, said. “We demand a fair opportunity to elect the first Latino Supreme Court Justice with the support of the Cook County Democratic Party.”
Cook County’s District 1, where the latest appointment was made, has a Latino population that is 26% and growing. The Cook County Democratic Party stands at the forefront of rectifying an inequity that has existed for far too long by slating a Latino candidate that would create a truly diverse elected Supreme Court
“The Illinois Judiciary has a growing number of Latinos, the most it has ever had in its 205 year history, yet a Latino has never sat on the Illinois Supreme Court,” said Juan Morado Jr., Chair of the Latino Leadership Council and Illinois Latino Agenda member. “There is undoubtedly a pipeline of Latino Judges that the Cook County Democratic party can slate for Illinois’ Supreme Court and we strongly urge them to do so.”
“If there was ever a time to bring true diversity and equity to the Illinois Supreme Court, the time is now,’ said Sylvia Puente, Co-Chair of the Illinois Latino Agenda and President and CEO of the Latino Policy Forum. “Latinos are embedded in Illinois, our communities contribute to our state’s economy and culture, and we deserve to be represented at all levels of government, the Illinois Supreme Court should not be an exception.”
Other stakeholders, including political leaders and bar associations, are expected to make their own statements in the upcoming days.
The Illinois Latino Agenda (ILA) is a coalition of 26 Latino leaders, most of whom head Chicago’s largest Latino-serving organizations.
* Harsh judgement on Proft’s part, but all HGOPs were individually asked to sign the letter and these did not…
32/40 House GOPers put their names on the line to extend privately-funded K12 scholarships for low-income families.
8/40 didn't–House GOP leader McCombie along w/ teachers' union toadies: Keicher, Severin, Meier, Hammond, Rosenthal, Marron, Elik.
* WCIA | Illinois may crack down on generic drug price gouging with proposal advanced in legislature: In the bill, price gouging is defined as “an increase in the price as 30% or more within the preceding year, 50% or more within the preceding 3 years, or 75% or more within the preceding 5 years.” It also must be found the price hike burdens consumers because of little to no competition in the marketplace. The bill does exempt if companies raise the price because of production cost increases.
* WTTW | Illinois Bills Look to Crack Down on Deepfakes and Doxing, Would Allow Civil Suits: Illinois lawmakers are working to catch up with artificial intelligence developments and social media by passing a pair of bills cracking down on deepfakes and doxing. Both measures give victims the ability to bring a civil lawsuit against an alleged perpetrator — a step that has raised alarm from civil liberties advocates and media groups like motion picture and cable organizations.
* Chicago Tribune | Threats of violence don’t belong in the state Capitol. Sen. Neil Anderson must apologize: Nonetheless, the language used by Republican Sen. Neil Anderson of Andalusia during the debate over a bill introduced by Democrat Rep. Katie Stuart was shocking, to say the least. Stuart’s bill, which was debated Thursday, provided (with certain conditions) that “any multiple-occupancy restroom may be identified as an all-gender, multiple-occupancy restroom and designated for use by any person of any gender.”
* Crain’s | Aldermen revive effort to make COVID-era outdoor dining program permanent: The program was twice extended for a year, but when Lightfoot sought to make the program permanent, the effort fell apart amid pushback from the City Council that the ordinance would take them out of the decision making process and because powerful interests had lined up on opposing sides of the closure of a portion of Clark Street in River North.
* Sun-Times | From inside Cook County Jail, chess spreads across the globe: Chicago hosted an international conference on teaching chess to detainees in jails and prisons. Officials from the International Chess Federation and corrections agencies from around the world are exploring how chess can be used to help rehabilitate incarcerated people.
* Crain’s | CEO pay disclosures are getting weird: Michael Pykosz’s compensation as CEO of Oak Street Health dropped by $50 million to a “negative” $48.4 million last year. Anders Gustafsson did better at Zebra Technologies, but his pay was a negative $17.5 million. Dover CEO Richard Tobin finished $13.7 million in the hole.
* Community Voices | Springfield’s African American History Museum grows with addition of Executive Director Nalo Mitchell: Nalo Mitchell is the Executive Director of the Springfield and Central Illinois African American History Museum. She sat down with Vanessa Ferguson on Community Voices to discuss how she plans to increase outreach in the community and provide inclusive exhibits. She also shared information about the many things to see in the museum and how her family history ties into one of the featured exhibits.
* SJ-R | Budzinski, joining local Reps., banned from entering Russia: Following new sanctions from the Biden administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation released a new list of political and corporate leaders banned from entering the country. Joining former President Barack Obama and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, among the 500 added officials on Friday was U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Springfield.
Danville police are declining to release information about damage recently done to a building identified as the future site of a new abortion clinic.
“Due to coordinating efforts with federal authorities, we will not be releasing information at this time,” said Danville Deputy Police Chief Josh Webb. “The initial release of information will come from either the FBI or the U.S. Attorney’s Office once they have a press release prepared.” […]
The property was sold in March to Indianapolis-based McGhee Investment Group, which has the same address as Clinic for Women, an Indianapolis abortion provider. […]
Damage done to the Danville building followed a May 4 passage of an ordinance by the city council that would ban the shipment of abortion pills and other items intended for abortions.
* Urbana-Champaign Reproductive Justice passes along allegations from the National Abortion Federation…
*** UPDATE *** The News-Gazette has updated. Was he trying to be a suicide bomber?…
Philip J. Buyno was charged with terrorist threat, burglary, conspiracy to commit arson, attempted arson and criminal damage to property in excess of $10,000.
According to a court filing by Vermilion County State’s Attorney Jacqueline Lacy, Buyno “intended to cause or create a risk and created a risk of death or great bodily harm by using his vehicle as an incendiary device to burn down the building” at 600 N. Logan Ave., Danville.
The filing also states Buyno drove a vehicle loaded with flammable material into the building at 600 N. Logan, intending to damage the building by fire.
While rank-and-file lawmakers awaited the budget details Friday, several other major, wide-ranging initiatives were filed in a similar last-minute fashion. That included an expansive cannabis regulatory bill, a change to Illinois’ strongest-in-the-nation biometric privacy law, a broad elections bill and an ethics proposal prohibiting political donations from red light camera companies among other reforms.
CANNABIS: A bill that aims to implement a variety of reforms to Illinois’ burgeoning cannabis industry would change dispensary operations and restrictions on craft growers. […]
The amended Senate Bill 1559, among other things, would increase canopy space for craft growers from 5,000 square feet to 14,000 square feet. It would also allow dispensaries to operate drive-thru windows and offer curbside pick-up services, making sure they prioritize medical patients.
BIOMETRIC PRIVACY: Business groups balked Friday after Democrats dropped a bill that would change Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act, a first-of-its-kind law that allows individuals to sue companies over improper collection or storage of information such as fingerprints or facial scans. […]
Friday’s amendment to House Bill 3811 stipulates that “the same biometric identifier from the same person using the same method of collection has created a single violation,” but business groups said the language was too vague. They also assailed the proposed fine increase for negligent violations from $1,000 to $1,500 and decried the addition of another type of biometric data to the law – electronic signatures – as a giveaway to trial lawyers.
* SB281 passed through the GA on Friday in shell bill HB2862. The Labor Tribune…
The Illinois AFL-CIO and Chicago Workers Collaborative stood with legislators, advocates and workers on Latino Unity Day to urge the passage of the Temp Worker Fairness and Safety Act (SB281).
“Passing the Temp Worker Fairness and Safety Act is a crucial step to address the uptick we are seeing in workplace deaths among Black and Brown workers,” said Senator Robert Peters, the bill’s Senate sponsor. “We cannot continue to ignore the plight of these workers and their families. We must take action to ensure that they are protected from exploitation and unsafe working conditions.” […]
The Temp Worker Fairness and Safety Act would support workers by improving safety standards, and mandating equal pay for equal work after a 60-day grace period. It creates a whistleblower right of action to allow worker advocates to bring enforcement actions against abusive employers. […]
The Illinois workforce includes 650,000 temp workers, 85 percent of whom are people of color. Data shows that temp workers are seriously injured at three times the rate of direct hire employees. Furthermore, these workers face high rates of wage theft and are paid, on average, $4 per hour less than their direct-hire colleagues doing the same or comparable work.
Lawmakers are advancing pioneering legislation that would protect people traveling to Illinois seeking abortions from being tracked by out-of-state police.
The bill, approved by the Illinois Senate Friday night, would prohibit local police from sharing data collected by license plate readers with out-of-state law enforcement departments that seek to use it in abortion-related investigations.
An increasingly hostile abortion access landscape, combined with an explosion of law enforcement surveillance technology, has created new risks for pregnant people traveling to obtain abortions even in states where it is legal. Privacy advocates have warned that automated license plate readers (ALPRs) especially, which are used by traffic and law enforcement officials to identify law-breaking drivers, could be a powerful tool for investigators looking to track people’s movements into abortion-friendly jurisdictions. […]
Illinois’ legislation, which is now going back to the House for final adjustments before being sent to the governor, applies not only to law enforcement agencies, but to private businesses or even individuals that have access to license plate reader data.
Senate President Don Harmon introduced an amendment to House Bill 3062 earlier this week, which sets courtrooms in Sangamon and Cook counties as the only locations where actions alleging constitutional violation brought-on by legislation or executive orders can be heard.
Harmon, along with Gov. JB Pritzker, Attorney General Kwame Raoul, and House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, have often been at the center of recent constitutional challenge lawsuits. The bill passed on a 37-16 vote and now returns to the House for a concurrence vote as part of next week’s extended session.
“These cases are all going to end up in Springfield or Chicago,” he said during floor debate Friday evening, referring to the Illinois Supreme Court’s presence in both cities. “It’s our judgment that it is best to simply, streamline that process and make sure these cases are all heard in an organized fashion.”
Spirited debate led by Senate Republicans claimed the bill would be unfair to many downstate communities due to the extended travel time needed to make it to these courtrooms.
In recent months, some individuals have published fake news about the Illinois Republican Party’s policy on endorsements in primary elections. First, it was said that the State Party sent mail in last year’s gubernatorial primary in support of one of the several gubernatorial candidates and against other Republican candidates for Governor. That claim is false. Pursuant to longstanding policy, the State Party did send mail supporting State House candidates in last year’s primary, but did not send any mail in the primary in support of, or against, any gubernatorial candidate.
More recently, it has been claimed that the State Party recently established an “Endorsement Committee.” That claim also is false. Several months ago, I appointed an “Endorsement Policy Committee” to review our current policy of not endorsing in statewide primaries and compare how that is handled in other states including Virginia. That Committee has never met. And, a majority of the State Central Committee appear not to support reviewing that policy at this time.
Therefore, our current policy of not endorsing in statewide primaries will continue for the foreseeable future.
* The Question: Should the Illinois Republican Party take more or less of a role in statewide primaries? Explain.
Increasingly, warehouses crop up beside neighborhoods, exposing people living nearby to exhaust fumes from starting, stopping and idling trucks. And these diesel plumes carry a host of potential health threats to the public, including low birth rates, respiratory illnesses, even dementia.
These are the findings of a recent report from the Environmental Defense Fund, an advocacy group that, using proximity-mapping technology, found that about 15 million people live within a half mile of a warehouse in 10 states it examined, including more than one million children under 5 years old. […]
The problem is especially acute in Illinois as a freight-handling, crossroads transportation hub where the study showed nearly two million people, including 138,000 children under 5, live within a half mile of a warehouse. […]
The Environmental Defense Fund tallied 17,600 warehouses in the 10 states it examined, 2,401 in Illinois, with the homes of Black, Latino, Asian and American Indian people disproportionately affected. […]
The pattern of unequal warehouse distribution holds across all states, the study found, but in Illinois, the disproportionality is double what would be expected given the state’s population. The same was found to be true for Colorado and Massachusetts.
* Last month, Warehouse Workers for Justice released a report detailing air pollution in Joliet and Elwood. Herald News…
Warehouse Workers for Justice on Wednesday released a report saying air pollution in residential areas in the vicinity of the Joliet and Elwood intermodal facilities is at unhealthy levels and urging a move to electric trucks.
The report comes after a study by WWJ monitoring pollution from particulate matter 2.5 in the air at four locations in Joliet and Elwood over eight weeks.
“This report was born from health and safety concerns of warehouse workers and local residents living close to warehouses, highways and ports who are growing increasingly worried about levels of chronic lung conditions like asthma and [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease] in the area,” Madison Lisle, co-author of the report, said at a news conference.
One participant in the study said that more than 1,000 trucks could be counted at one Joliet intersection in a two-hour period.
In the closing days of the Illinois General Assembly, some lawmakers are supporting a dubious idea: adding managed toll lanes to a section of Interstate 55 between the Dan Ryan Expy. and I-355.
What transportation planners really should be doing is focusing on clean air, reviving public transit — in line for big post-pandemic funding cuts — and finding other low-cost alternatives to driving. Transportation is the No. 1 source of greenhouse gas emissions in Illinois, and it also releases particulate matter and other pollutants. Expanding interstates is not going to fix that. […]
I-55 does suffer from traffic congestion, especially where the road shrinks from three lanes to two. Intermodal facilities on the Southwest Side have added to the truck traffic. But urban planners have long known that adding lanes to deal with congestion also puts more vehicles on a particular road — which in this case would increase vehicle emissions on the Southwest Side. And where is the discussion of adding infrastructure for electric vehicles?
The most successful route to reducing congestion is to provide people with alternatives, including safe, reliable and frequent public transit. Any move for public-private financing demands a lot of discussion to make sure it benefits the taxpayers.
* Sen. Rachel Ventura cited pollution from semi-trucks for her “no” vote on the Peotone Airport bill. WJOL…
Illinois lawmakers have passed legislation which takes steps toward the development of a new airport. If the governor signs the bill, it will direct the Illinois Department of Transportation to create a list of qualifications for proposals to build a cargo airport in Peotone. The project has been debated for around 40 years. IDOT has spent nearly $100 million acquiring land in the area over the years.
But Joliet State Senator Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet) voted against House Bill 2531 – which would bring a new freight airport to Will County. Ventura spoke out during Senate debate against the bill, citing increased cargo truck traffic along with local opposition from the Will County Farm Bureau and a majority of Will County Board members.
In response, she released the following statement:
“If this airport is built, the residents of Will County are going to face increased truck traffic on our roadways and interstate highways. This cargo airport is going to bring more freight into the region that will be transported to intermodal yards via roadways instead of using railways. Overall, the airport is a bad deal for Will County residents who are likely to see more congestion, more accidents, more pollution, and higher property taxes to pay for road repairs.”
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to conflict with the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act of 2004 and the rules promulgated thereunder.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to apply to a contractor, subcontractor, or agent of a State agency or local unit of government when working for that State agency or local unit of government.
* I received this email on Friday…
Hello Mr. Miller,
Thank you for everything you all are doing over at Capitol Fax. An amendment was just filed on BIPA reform. But, the bill does nothing to protect small fingerprint vendors and locksmiths, who follow the rules to a T and are true stewards/SMEs of the law, from frivolous lawsuits. Fingerprint vendors are vertically integrated throughout the state in healthcare, cannabis, FOID/CCL, gaming, DCFS, etc. See the attached listing of areas where fingerprint vendors are integrated. BIPA is not complicated law at all, but the locksmith Act exemption in BIPA doesn’t really have any teeth. BIPA even has an exemption for subcontractors of government agencies, but you still need to defend against an expensive, frivolous lawsuit. The exemptions are, effectively, rather circular. I think that those who flout the law or are not in compliance should pay a dear price for violating consumers. However, licensed, regulated entities who follow the law should not be subjected to damaging or crippling causes of action brought by nationwide law firms that are frivolously seeking a settlement from Illinois small businesses. […]
I think a “simple” fix would be to amend the Locksmith Act or JCAR rules to allow the “aggrieved” to seek relief through IDFPR or injunctive relief. This way BIPA is not watered down and the locksmith act exemption gains the teeth that the 2008 legislature intended. Again, thank you for your blog and stellar journalism .
* I followed up and asked about what he called “circular” exemptions…
BIPA allows a private right of action. The locksmith act does not provide a private right of action or any consumer relief. BIPA points to the locksmith act and the locksmith act rules point to BIPA. The circular logic is licensees can maintain their IDFPR license, follow all the BIPA rules (written notifications, obtain consent in writing, retention schedule), and still be sued even when the plaintiff/lawyer knows that the rules were followed. It’s a loophole and it’s incredibly damaging to small businesses. While they can be successful in defending themselves in court by showing how they followed the rules, the legal fees and insurance claims are abundant. These matters last months or even years. The IDFPR exemption lawsuit loophole should be closed and I think it can be by giving IDFPR a stake in ensuring BIPA is being conformed to among its licensees. This leaves BIPA intact, as it should be.
Rep. Ryg: Senate Bill 2400 creates the Biometric Information Privacy Act which will be applicable to private entities doing business in Illinois. It sets collection and retention standards while prohibiting the sale of biometric information. It provides exemptions as necessary for hospitals, organ donation efforts, licensed fingerprint vendors working with State Police doing background checks and private subcontractors working for a state or a local unit of government and banks that are covered under Federal Law.
The bill passed the House unanimously. Here’s one reason why…
This Bill is especially important because one of the companies that has been piloted in Illinois, Pay By Touch, is the largest fingerprint scan system in Illinois and they have recently filed for bankruptcy and wholly stopped providing verification services in March of 2008. This pullout leaves thousands of customers from Albertson’s, Cub Foods, Farm Fresh, Jewel Osco, Shell, and Sunflower Market wondering what will become of their biometric and financial data. The California Bankruptcy Court recently approved the sale of their Pay By Touch database. So, we are in very serious need of protections for the citizens of Illinois when it comes to biometric information. I know of no opposition to the legislation and I’ll attempt to answer any questions.
People across the state are waiting on refunds after installing solar panels to their homes and businesses in an effort to lower their electric bills. […]
FOX Illinois contacted [the Illinois Power Agency] and it responded with a statement saying how the organization went through a change in administration, which caused other areas to be impacted: “the need to create a new portal and build a new, larger team, incentive payments have not been processed in as timely or urgent a manner as we’d hoped.”
This lasted from July 1st to September 1st of 2022, and more than 2,000 families are waiting in line plus more who applied during that pause.
Republicans decry end of scheduled session without budget from Illinois Democrats […]
Friday, on the last day of scheduled session without a budget, House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, said Republicans have not been invited by the Democratic majority to help craft the budget.
House Republicans’ lead budget negotiator Rep. Norine Hammond, R-Macomb, said members of her party have been essentially uninvolved or uninvited to budget negotiations throughout the spring session.
“We have attempted numerous meetings with the House Democratic budgeteer, with the speaker and the governor,” Hammond said at a Capitol news conference. “Only one group has met with us on more than one occasion; that is the governor and his team. No negotiations with others have occurred.” […]
Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonville, said he expected the budget to once again be filed “at the last minute” and quickly pushed through by the supermajority party, a customary process in recent years.
* Mike Miletich was the only one of this bunch to run the Senate Republicans’ statement…
“Our budgeteers have been meeting throughout the budget process and the Leader and the budgeteers plan to continue conversations,” said Senate Republican Leader John Curran’s (R-Downers Grove) spokesperson Whitney Barnes.
I’m told that Curran has met with the governor and the Senate President and the SGOP’s budgeteers have sat down with the SDem’s budgeteers.
An anti-carjacking initiative, crafted by Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, has been approved by the state’s General Assembly.
Although the bill is awaiting Governor JB Pritzker’s signature, it mandates automakers selling vehicles in the state to establish a 24/7 hotline for tracking carjacked cars or cases involving kidnappings. […]
With 488 carjackings occurring in Cook County from January to date, 88% of cars are recovered within 72 hours.
Sheriff Dart believes this initiative will lead to a decline in carjackings, and the tracking service would be provided free of charge to car owners.
A bill that passed the Illinois Legislature requires school principals to report bullying to parents within 24 hours. Some opponents say that is not feasible.
House Bill 3425, sponsored by state Rep. Margaret Croke, D-Chicago, passed the Illinois House in March. The measure passed the Senate earlier this month. Some school associations opposed the bill, saying a 24-hour time limit puts an undue burden on schools.
Mark Klaisner, president of the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools, told The Center Square that the 24-hour deadline is not feasible. […]
In conversations Klaisner has had this spring, he said school administrators tell him “we’re all about stopping bullying and working with parents.” The problem, he said, “is we can’t always ensure that there will be a 24-hour turnaround in reporting back to the parents, especially if the bullying is happening after school on social media.”
After spending several years advocating for laws protecting stranded drivers from injury or even death, Distress Bandanna announced that both houses of the Illinois General Assembly have voted in favor of Senate Bill 2028, which would amend the state’s driver safety protocols to include new information and guidance for drivers who are stranded and those who might come across stranded vehicles on the road.
Both Illinois House and Senate voted unanimously to pass SB2028 on May 16.
If the bill is approved by Gov. J.B Pritzker, the state’s safety protocols for stranded drivers would be updated and new language would be added to the Illinois Rules of the Road by the Illinois Secretary of State.
According to the bill, the updated protocols, among other things, advise drivers on how to pull safely out of traffic and into a safe location, use hazard lights, when to stay in a stranded vehicle, and when and how to safely exit a stranded vehicle.
Among the health care measures sitting on Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk awaiting signature is a measure making behavioral telehealth permanent for Illinois Medicaid recipients. Senate Bill 1913 has been approved by both houses of the General Assembly.
The bill allows Illinois Medicaid patients to continue to receive behavioral health telehealth care remotely. The state already has made delivery of substance use disorder and mental health treatment via telehealth permanent under commercial insurance plans in 2021.
“As soon as Governor Pritzker announced in February the formal end date of his COVID-19 public health emergency orders, the Illinois Association for Behavioral Health leadership knew that the continuance of telehealth services for Medicaid patients would enter an uncertain, unwelcome legal gray area,” Illinois Association for Behavioral Health CEO Jud DeLoss said in a statement.
“Within hours we had legislation written and swiftly recruited state Sen. Laura Fine and state Rep. Jenn Ladisch Douglass to serve as legislative champions, who expeditiously advanced the bill.”
Revenge porn, or the non-consensual sharing of sexual images, has been a felony in Illinois since 2014. In 2019, in the wake of since-resigned state Rep. Nick Sauer posting images of naked women without their consent, Illinois allowed victims to sue for civil damages.
The deepfake legislation (House Bill 2123) piggybacks onto that law, adding “digitally altered sexual images” to it.
A victim of a sexual digital forgery can sue for $10,000. […]
The proposal (House Bill 2954) seeks to create a civil liability when someone non-consensually posts private information online with the intent to “harm or harass” and with “reckless disregard that the person whose information is published would be reasonably likely to suffer death, bodily injury or stalking” and that sharing the information would cause a person to “suffer significant economic injury or death” or that it would cause the individual to “suffer a substantial life disruption.” […]
Both measures passed the House and Senate without opposition and require signatures from Gov. J.B. Pritzker before becoming law.
From Illinois law: “No unit of local government shall levy any tax on stock, commodity or options transactions.”
That statute has long been targeted for elimination by the Chicago Teachers Union and its allies. The CTU reliably shuns any proposal to increase property taxes across the board, instead pushing often-times “magical” solutions as alternatives. It’s one way the union has maintained its popularity among Chicago voters.
And new Mayor Brandon Johnson, who spent much of his career working for the CTU, made it clear during his inaugural address that he will eschew property tax increases, lumping them in with onerous fines and fees.
“We have a structural deficit,” Johnson told his audience. “And we have to invest in people. And we have to do that without breaking the backs of working people with fines, fees and property taxes.”
During the campaign, Johnson proposed a 1%-2% “Big Banks Securities and Speculation Tax” that would raise $100 million. So, naturally, there’s worry he will try to use his considerable contacts in the General Assembly and CTU’s clout to persuade Gov. J.B. Pritzker to reverse his position on allowing Chicago to impose a transaction tax and ease the city’s structural deficit.
When he was asked last month about the transaction tax, Pritzker said, “Obviously, what we all want is a thriving financial services economy in the state and the city. I have not stood for a transaction tax, because I think it would be easy for those companies’ servers to move out of the state.”
The financial services industry employs thousands of Illinoisans. And one of the leaders of that industry left Chicago in a huff last year. Citadel CEO Ken Griffin abruptly announced his move to Florida after shutting down funding for his preferred Republican gubernatorial candidate, Richard Irvin. Griffin and Pritzker have exchanged verbal jabs ever since then, and Pritzker has repeatedly full-on attacked Griffin’s Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
It’s not a stretch to believe Griffin would love to see more Illinois-based companies relocate to Miami. Crain’s Chicago Business, citing “multiple industry sources,” recently reported that investment firm Guggenheim Partners, which has strong Chicago ties, “is on the verge of deciding to move its headquarters to Miami, the Florida city to which Citadel recently decamped.”
And lots of heads turned last week when Bloomberg reported that CME Group CEO Terry Duffy indicated the company could leave Chicago. CME has already sold all of its real estate in the city and the state, Duffy said.
“In our leases, we have a language in there that says if there’s something that’s ill-conceived from the city or the state, that our leases are null and void,” Duffy said on a Bloomberg podcast. “We’re in a very strong position. If we had to leave, we could leave.”
Duffy did make it clear that “we like Chicago,” saying he wants to be “part of the solution, not a part of the problem.” Also, if you listen to the podcast, Duffy made a point to say he realized that campaign rhetoric often changes when people assume office and have to govern.
And Johnson’s own campaign website claims: “We should raise revenues from activities that won’t leave and cost us jobs.”
While Duffy has strong, lifelong ties to Chicago, he is clearly not happy with how the city has been run. Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Duffy said: “Three o’clock in the afternoon, my wife got carjacked right in the city of Chicago, and it’s absolutely insane what’s going on here.”
Duffy said he was also upset with the response he received from then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot about how the homicide rate was falling. “I said, ‘Don’t go there. Please don’t go there.’ One is too many.”
I would assume Duffy has been inundated with offers to move his company elsewhere since the progressive Johnson’s election. Company headquarter locations are very often subject to the whims of the CEO.
Duffy said during his most recent interview he hadn’t yet talked with the new mayor. “I’m hopeful that he reaches out, I don’t care if it’s me or whoever, and talks about these things.”
So, I reached out to the two legislative leaders to see where they stood on allowing home rule units like Chicago impose a tax on electronic transactions.
Spokespersons for both Senate President Don Harmon and House Speaker Chris Welch said their bosses opposed the idea.
This thing is off the table.
…Adding… The Chicago news media freakout over a proposal by a couple of fringe groups continues unabated in Crain’s Chicago Business…
When pressed for insight on the mayor’s own attitude toward these proposals, a senior adviser told Crain’s, “if we were for these ideas, we would have said it.” And yet, given many opportunities to express opposition to these measures, the adviser said only: “Everybody should have a right to put their ideas into the public square.”
That’s not exactly comforting. Nor is the pushback from some observers who have been quick to argue these are merely fringe ideas that would be dead on arrival in Springfield, where many of these measures would have to be blessed before they could be implemented. Messaging matters — especially at a time like this, when investor and employer faith in Chicago as a great place to do business is faltering. If the mayor truly isn’t considering things like a city income tax, a wealth tax, a financial transactions tax or any of the other ideas contained in this report, he ought to say so, loudly and unequivocally.
“We put out a plan that we had to [argue about internally] a hundred different times. It was about $800 million. This is $12 billion. So it has nothing to do with what we’re trying to do,” Johnson’s senior adviser Jason Lee told the Sun-Times.
The final amount was “based on our kind of sober analysis of what might be feasible. … Their employee head tax is proposed to raise $100 million a year. Our head tax was proposed to raise $20 million a year. … They raise $2 billion off the income tax alone. We didn’t have an income tax in our plan. We didn’t think that was the right thing to do. They have a wealth tax. We don’t have a wealth tax.”
Chicago had four years of a mayor saying everything “loudly and unequivocally,” and she still flip-flopped on a regular basis after hemming herself in.
* Daily Herald | Four years in, Rebuild Illinois has been a success — but more can be done: Rebuild Illinois has generated $2 billion in additional transportation funding annually. As a result, four years into the six-year program, Illinois has repaired 5,000 miles of highway, restored nearly 500 bridges, constructed more than 700 safety improvements, and supported 3,800 local transportation projects.
* Effingham Daily | Bill aims to protect stranded Illinois drivers: After spending several years advocating for laws protecting stranded drivers from injury or even death, Distress Bandanna announced that both houses of the Illinois General Assembly have voted in favor of Senate Bill 2028, which would amend the state’s driver safety protocols to include new information and guidance for drivers who are stranded and those who might come across stranded vehicles on the road.
* WIFR | New bill worries some local shop owners: Erik Carlson owns Buckbee Weed Co. in Rockford and worries if the bill and the tweaks added to it become a law, his business will take a major hit. He says it would ban the sale of hemp products in businesses that aren’t classified as licensed dispensaries.
* Crain’s | Johnson’s labor allies move to undo Lightfoot’s 11th-hour McPier board pick: The measure — pushed by allies of new mayor Brandon Johnson and organized labor groups headed by the Chicago Federation of Labor — would reverse Lightfoot’s decision, announced in the final days of her tenure, to place her deputy mayor for economic development on the board that oversees the city’s McCormick Place convention center and Navy Pier.
* Chicago Mag | Yesterday’s Radicals Have Become Today’s Establishment: Brandon Johnson’s mayoralty is seen as the culmination of teachers union militancy that began in 2012, when his predecessor Rahm Emanuel closed 50 schools. But as Johnson pointed out, the union movement that produced him has such a long history in Chicago that yes, it is striking that we’ve waited so long for one of its members to become mayor.
* Tribune | While DNC coming to Chicago might provide good vibes, experts say economic boost might be overhyped: Much has been written about the squishiness of pre-convention economic benefits, along with the costs cities end up eating themselves getting ready for the pomp and circumstance. While boosters have predicted economic returns of $150 million or more to cities that hosted them recently, economists say those numbers have been overblown.
* The Triibe | ‘Fox and Friends’ staged Naperville interview criticizing Mayor Brandon Johnson: One of the men, Lavondale “Big Dale” Glass, is an assistant director of violence prevention for Project H.O.O.D., a nonprofit whose founder endorsed Vallas. The other man, Andre Smith, was paid more than $10,000 by Vallas‘s campaign committee, and told The TRiiBE he ran field operations for the campaign. Glass told The TRiiBE that he didn’t work for Vallas’s campaign and was not aware Smith had been a paid Vallas operative.
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