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Isabel’s afternoon roundup (Updated)

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* The governor’s office is not happy with Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet)…

Flagging an interaction from a Senate Appropriations hearing yesterday as well as a statement from Chief of Staff Anne Caprara in response.

Transcript:

    Sen. Chapin Rose to [Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity] Director Kristin Richards: “They asked me if…after making two girls cry already if I could make you guys cry. Anyway, I was [unintelligible] you guys might make me cry.”

    Director Richards: “Women, Senator.”

    Sen. Rose makes mocking hand motion while Director Richards speaks.

    Sen. Rose to DCEO Chief Financial Officer Phil Keshen: “I might make this guy cry.”

    Director Richards: “No you won’t.”

In response to the exchange and other reports of inappropriate conduct, Chief of Staff for Governor Pritzker Anne Caprara issued the following statement:

“Director Richards is a consummate professional who has spent more than 2 decades serving the people of Illinois in roles ranging from Chief of Staff to Director of one of the most important agencies. Speaking on behalf of all of the incredible women who serve in state government, Sen. Rose has vastly underestimated our capacity to deal with performative bullsh*t [redacted]. My suggestion would be for him to woman up, focus less on playing for the cameras and more on doing his job.”

A short clip…


You can click here to watch the full interaction on BlueRoomStream.

Rich has reached out to Sen. Rose for comment.

…Adding… From Sen. Rose…

State Senator Rose (R-Mahomet) issued the following statement about yesterday’s exchange during the appropriations committee meeting.

“Context is everything. I had just finished praising Comptroller Susana Mendoza, as this was her last budget request because she is leaving office after this term. Comptroller Mendoza told me that I was making her cry because I spoke so glowingly about how great of a job she has done as Comptroller. As Director Richards came up for the DCEO budget, I lightheartedly pointed out that I knew I wouldn’t be able to make her cry, and that, in fact, she might actually make me cry - clearly implying that she is a tough and respected person in the Capitol. Judging by how hard she and others laughed at the time, which can clearly be heard in the actual video of the exchange, the exchange was received as lightheartedly as it was sent. Again, context is everything.

“So here is some more context: this all happened yesterday, and so I might question why I’m hearing about this today? Or could it be that Chief of Staff Caprara, who wasn’t even there, decided to make an issue out of it only after my press conference with Angel Father Joe Abraham today. The media would be better off covering Joe Abraham’s comments, and the pain of a father who lost his beloved daughter, then this nonsense of a nothing burger distraction. Just watch the video of the exchange, then ask yourself why Chief Caprara would want to concoct something from nothing.”

The clip.

* Injustice Watch…

About a decade into his prison sentence for a murder he always said he did not commit, Tyrece Williams told his mother to stop bringing his four children to see him. […]

Williams was finally released in 2009, after finishing his term for the 1990 murder in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood. His mother, who kept a bottle of champagne she planned to open the day he walked free, died before that day came. […]

But prosecutors under State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke are fighting to keep Williams from getting the certificate, arguing he can’t prove his innocence. […]

[Former State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s] prosecutors usually took no position, objecting to only 1 out of every 4 certificates sought by people exonerated in her second term. Burke is almost the opposite: Her office has objected in 4 out of 5.

These objections turn into monthslong court battles with prosecutors that have been painful for people who already spent decades in prison and missed out on their youth, lost parents while incarcerated, and watched their children grow up without them. In interviews, eight exonerated men — some of whom have received certificates of innocence, others who are still waiting, and one whose petition was rejected by a judge — said they want the certificates for a mix of practical and profound reasons: to hand to wary employers, to display to guests in their homes, or just to force the system to admit it was wrong.

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* Former GOP consultant Collin Corbett has announced an independent bid for Governor…

…Adding… CNN…

*** Statewide ***

* WBEZ | Illinois schools have been required to teach Asian American history for 5 years. How is it going?: It’s been nearly five years since Illinois lawmakers passed the Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History Act, or TEAACH Act. It ensures that students in every public elementary and high school in Illinois learn about the contributions of Asian Americans in the economic, social, cultural and political development of the U.S.

* NBC Chicago | A popular tree planted all around the Chicago area will soon be illegal: The invasive trees (Bradford Pear) are currently blooming all around the region “and are now spreading into natural areas.” According to the University of Illinois, the trees were widely planted in the 1950s as “a fast-growing popular ornamental tree despite weak branches that break off easily from storms.” (From Isabel: They also stink, good riddance)

*** Statehouse News ***

* Evanston Now | Biss backs push to repeal anti-BDS law he voted for: In 2015, then-State Sen. Daniel Biss of Evanston was among the 49 state senators and 102 state representatives who unanimously supported a bill signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner that required Illinois to divest its public pension funds from companies that participated in the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, in protest against Israel. On Thursday, Biss, now the Democratic nominee to represent Evanston in Congress to replace Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston), wrote in a statement that he “would not cast the same vote today,” throwing his support behind a push from State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid to repeal the 2015 law.

* Capitol News Illinois | New Illinois Chamber president seeks to bolster Statehouse relationships: Jimmy Clayton has been named new CEO of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce following a decade of managing government relationships for the Illinois REALTORS. He told Capitol News Illinois he is focused on building relationships between the chamber and legislators while pushing lawmakers to take a balanced approach toward new regulations that will allow Illinois to attack new businesses. Clayton took over the role in April, replacing Lou Sandoval, who abruptly resigned in November. It gives one of the state’s largest business organization an opportunity to reset its Statehouse priorities and political relationships.

* Press release | Ellman proposes plan to ban toxic herbicide linked to Parkinson’s disease: Senate Bill 3161 would prohibit the use of paraquat beginning next year, with limited exceptions for research conducted under strict protocols established by the Illinois Department of Agriculture. […] Senate Bill 3161 was heard in a subject matter hearing in the Senate Agriculture committee on Thursday and awaits further consideration.

*** Chicago ***

* Chalkbeat Chicago | Macquline King, interim CEO of Chicago Public Schools, hired as permanent leader: The board voted 18-1 to hire King, who has been the district’s interim leader since last June, when former CEO Pedro Martinez left after being fired without cause. Elected board member Jennifer Custer voted no. The board officially picked King last week over Sito Narcisse, the former superintendent of East Baton Rouge Parish schools in Louisiana who was named another finalist earlier this month.

* Tribune | In 4th District, independents unite behind beating Democrat Patty García: President Donald Trump must be beaten, each independent in Illinois’ 4th Congressional District said Wednesday during the campaign’s first town hall. And the five hopefuls, many Democrats themselves, agreed: Patty García, the Democratic nominee, needs to go down too. Nobody in the group that appeared at a forum put on by the College Democrats at the University of Illinois Chicago has major party backing. And they all face the daunting task of collecting thousands of signatures in order to make the general election ballot, at which point they would be underdogs against Patty Garcia.

* Sun-Times | Ald. Knudsen proposes banning city employees from using inside info to bet on prediction market apps: Knudsen is following the trail blazed by Gov. JB Pritzker and his counterparts in six other states by introducing an ordinance that would prohibit present and former city employees — and elected officials — from using insider information to bet on prediction markets. Apps that include Kalshi and Polymarket are being used to place bets on everything from election winners and the number of candidates entering a specific race for office, to budgetary and foreign policy decisions by elected officials.

* Crain’s | Molson Coors beer shipments hampered by glass supply shortage: The Chicago-based maker of Coors Light and Miller Lite expects volume to decline 6% to 9% this quarter due in part to challenges with glass suppliers, Chief Financial Officer Tracey Joubert said during a call with analysts on Thursday. Despite the company’s efforts to work with partners on a solution, “a few pinch points” remain that are impacting shipments, Joubert said. In the first quarter, the company also faced disruptions at some facilities from weather, energy supply and upgrades, Joubert added.

* Crain’s | Bank of America CEO eyes Chicago growth as commercial loans rise 15%: Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan refuses to prioritize which operations — ranging from wealth management to commercial banking — are the most important in the Chicago market. “We have eight lines of business to operate around the world,” Moynihan told Crain’s in an interview. “In Chicago, they all happen to be here. All of them have to grow to make the business work.”

* Crain’s | Chicago museums would rather lose federal grants than ‘whitewash’ history: The Public Housing Museum last year lost four grants totaling more than $500,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Institute of Museum & Library Services (IMLS), although the two IMLS awards totaling more than $300,000 were reinstated. She’ll continue to seek federal funding on an ongoing basis, or new funding. “Our museum board really said, ‘As long as you don’t have to sign a loyalty oath and as long as you feel like your values aren’t compromised, then you should apply,’” Lee says. “We’ll see how it plays out.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Press release | Clerk Gordon Statement on SCOTUS Ruling Impacting the Voting Rights Act: As the chief election authority for suburban Cook County, I see every day how essential trust is to our democracy. Our responsibility is to make voting accessible, secure, and fair for every resident – no matter who they are or where they live. That work does not change because of today’s ruling. If anything, it becomes more important. We will continue to expand access, protect the integrity of our elections, and meet voters where they are. But safeguarding the right to vote has always required partnership across every level of government. Today is no different. This decision is a reminder that the work of protecting equal representation – and the full promise of our democracy – is far from over.

* Daily Herald | Kane County revamping property tax bill look: For one thing, if you want to complain to somebody about how high your taxes are, the bills will now include the names and phone numbers of elected and appointed officials for the various taxing districts. “The people I serve are frustrated,” Kane County Treasurer Chris Lauzen said in a news release. “They want to know who to talk to. This puts that information in one place, right on the bill.”

* Lake County News-Sun | Waukegan joins school districts backing sales tax referendum: ‘A source of income that will benefit our students’: If public school districts representing more than 50% of the students in Lake County approve resolutions asking Karner to certify the referendum to County Clerk Anthony Vega by Aug. 26, voters will decide the fate of a proposed 1% sales tax funding education. The Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 Board of Education unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday at the Education Service Center in Waukegan directing Karner to put the referendum on the ballot, and voted 6-1 to allow the use of funds to abate property taxes. With 13,640 students, according to the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), District 60 is the county’s largest. It joins six other Lake County districts that sent Karner resolutions, bringing the percentage to 27.6% — more than halfway to the needed threshold.

* Daily Herald | $15 million center for ‘complex’ GI care opens at Central DuPage Hospital: Nationwide, there are only a handful of standalone centers “that have this type of equipment, have individuals who do the techniques,” said Sethi, its new medical director. The center and its physicians are able to diagnose early cancers, remove tumors endoscopically and treat GERD, obesity and complex pancreatic and bile duct disease.

* ABC Chicago | Old Joliet Prison hosting Slammers baseball game to celebrate Route 66 centennial: Bill Murray is bringing the laughs and the baseball to the Old Joliet prison Thursday. The Joliet Slammers will play in the “Big House Ballgame” Thursday afternoon as part of the Route 66 celebration. Inmates used to play on the field up until the facility closed in 2002 and now the Joliet Slammers will take on the Gateway Grizzlies.

* Elgin Courier-News | Chicago mayor’s portrait added to Elgin High School’s Alumni Hall of Fame: “I know I am the mayor of Chicago, but I am still loyal to you, Elgin High,” Johnson told the gathering of invited guests, which included family members, old friends, former teachers, school administrators and local leaders. After being introduced by Elgin High School Principal Avelira Rodríguez González, Johnson quipped that her comments were the longest any principal had ever spoken about him.

*** Downstate ***

* Illinois Times | Some council members, community activists question SPD’s plans to purchase new armored vehicle: SPD’s current BearCat was obtained with Department of Homeland Security grant funds that were dispersed to the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System, which then granted the vehicle to SPD more than 20 years ago. ILEAS was formed in 2002 as a response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks to coordinate mutual aid among Illinois law enforcement agencies. Behl told the City Council on March 16 that SPD asked for a new BearCat from ILEAS but the request was denied.

* Fox 2 Now | School bus crash in Greene County sends 12 to the hospital: A school bus crash in Greene County, Illinois, left a dozen people injured Wednesday afternoon after another vehicle crossed the center line. According to Illinois State Police, the crash happened just after 3:45 p.m. on Highway 67 just south of Northeast 400 Street near Carrollton. Police said a North Greene school bus was headed north when a vehicle going southbound crossed into their lane on a curve.

*** National ***

* WSJ | U.S. Debt Tops 100% of GDP: As of March 31, the country’s publicly held debt was $31.265 trillion, while GDP over the preceding year was $31.216 trillion, according to data released Thursday. That puts the ratio at 100.2%, compared with 99.5% when the last fiscal year ended Sept. 30. That figure will likely climb for the foreseeable future because the federal government is running historically large annual deficits of nearly 6% of GDP, which add to the debt.

* AP | Inside ‘Scientology speedruns,’ the viral trend prompting the church to bolster security: The trend took off in early April, with users on social media posting videos of themselves — sometimes inexplicably in costume — entering multiple properties owned or inhabited in some way by the Church of Scientology. Participants film themselves “speedrunning” through the building, or aiming to complete a task as fast as possible per the common video game slang. That task? Map out the church’s buildings and get as much information as they can about the inner workings of the organization.

  28 Comments      


Roundup: Accountability Commission refers federal agents for investigation, releases final report

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Capitol News Illinois …

A state board unanimously voted Thursday to approve a 204-page report detailing its investigations into misconduct by on-duty federal immigration agents amid Operation Midway Blitz.

It is also sending letters to local law enforcement agencies for potential prosecution of the agents. The letters are not determinations of guilt, but requests for further investigation by the relevant agencies.

“Where that record establishes reasonable cause to believe that misconduct may have occurred, we implore those responsible to ensure that this information is reviewed and that it is handled in an appropriate fashion,” said Patricia Brown Holmes, vice chair of the body.

The Illinois Accountability Commission, created by Gov. JB Pritzker through executive order last October, was tasked with forming a public record to document the impact of the federal immigration campaign on Chicago communities, but also to produce recommendations for harm reduction and prevention of future abuses.

Click here for the final report and here for the letter sent to law enforcement agencies.

* During the press conference, Commission Chair and former US Judge Rubén Castillo went after Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke for not appointing a special prosecutor…

Reporter: Sources tell me that the prosecutors want to do this the right way when they have all of the evidence. The governor’s saying the feds are not making this easy. They want the full basket of evidence which they don’t have yet. So there’s on one side of the ledger, let’s do this now. There’s a feeling that we want to do this now. There’s the other side. We want to do it, but we have all of the evidence to secure a win. How do those two things sort of balance out in your mind?

Castillo: I’m glad you said your mind, because I’m going to tell you what my mind says. Because 25 years of being a judge, four years as a prosecutor, all I see… First of all, the premise of your question, rush the judgment. There’s no rush. There’s no statute of limitations on killing someone or trying to kill someone. You can prosecute that any day. So if the state’s attorney wants to look at this for a year, that’s up to her, but to say that she’s not going to look at it at all, that she’s not going to investigate it at all. All I hear, again, in my opinion, are a bunch of excuses. When the mayor tried to put together a protocol to feed her the evidence the state’s attorney had a problem with that. When there was an effort on the part of individuals to have a special prosecutor appointed, which she could have easily recused herself, stepped aside, let the special prosecutor go in, and she or he, would take their lumps, if that’s what’s going to happen. She could have done that. But again, she comes back to ‘well, no one has stepped forward and said they’re a victim and complained.’ Well, Mr. Villegas González is not in a position to complain. He’s dead. And Miss Martinez has complained plenty, and she came before us on Tuesday and says she wants accountability. I don’t think it could be plainer than that. That this should be investigated. If it takes two or three years, that’s on the investigator. If a special prosecutor is appointed and she or he takes two years, that’s fine. There is no rush to judgment, but there should be a judgment about whether or not somebody committed a crime, and that’s all we’re saying.

* The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office’s response…

We commend the bravery of every witness who testified about their harrowing experiences before the Illinois Accountability Commission. There is no doubt that Operation Midway Blitz has traumatized and harmed our communities. We look forward to receipt of the full report and will work with our local, state, and county law enforcement to review the material.

We take any reports of harm seriously. That’s why the CCSAO developed a comprehensive and first-of-its-kind protocol to support law enforcement agencies as they investigate federal immigration officers. This critical guidance has been adopted by every locally elected prosecutor in the state and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office.

Under Illinois statute, our Office can bring charges only after receiving a completed investigation from a law enforcement agency. At that point, we review the available evidence and determine whether criminal charges are warranted in state court. Allegations received from other sources are referred to the appropriate law enforcement agency for investigation. This process protects the integrity of our cases and helps ensure that any resulting conviction will stand.

BACKGROUND
State law limits the CCSAO from serving as a lead investigator into alleged criminal conduct. The CCSAO can play a supporting role in investigations that are initiated and led by a law enforcement agency.

The federal government, including its law enforcement entities, are not required to comply with any subpoena issued by a state prosecutorial body, and CCSAO does not have jurisdiction or authority to mandate subpoena compliance.

The CCSAO reviews evidence that is presented by law enforcement after an investigation has been conducted and makes a charging decision based on the facts and the law.

To date, the CCSAO has not received a request from law enforcement to review any investigation related to on-duty conduct of a federal immigration agent.

The CCSAO filed an amicus brief in support of Cook County to stop the National Guard’s deployment to Chicago, citing the irreparable harm that the Trump administration has caused on the criminal justice system and in our communities.

* Evanston Now…

Gov. JB Pritzker said Thursday that the Evanston Police Department was among several local police departments and county prosecutors that will receive the findings of a months-long compilation of alleged federal agent misconduct during Operation Midway Blitz last fall. […]

In a separate 19-page brief released on Thursday, the IAC outlines its findings regarding the Halloween federal surge in Evanston. It culminated in a clash between bystanders and federal agents at Oakton Street and Asbury Avenue in which three U.S. citizens were detained following a car crash involving federal agents. […]

The Evanston Police Department, in a statement Thursday, said Evanston Police Chief Schenita Stewart is “out of town and has not had an opportunity to review” the report.

It’s unclear whether Evanston police will pursue charges against the agents named in the report, though approving charges and prospecting agents would ultimately be up to O’Neill Burke or a special prosecutor, should one be appointed. […]

Pritzker said he did not want to prejudge potential crimes and said its ultimately up to a jury to decide whether crimes were committed, but said “responsible public servants” should take the evidence before them and investigate.

* More…

    * WTTW | Illinois Commission Details Federal Agents’ ‘Illegal and Violent Conduct’ in Final Report on ‘Operation Midway Blitz’: The commission report also outlined a series of policy recommendations in its report, including prohibiting “roving” patrols; ending warrantless arrests; halting the use of paramilitary tactics; and requiring federal agents to wear body-worn cameras. The report also recommends discipline for ICE and Border Patrol agents who committed misconduct. Throughout a series of public hearings, witnesses detailed the terror and fear they experienced as federal agents sought to “spread fear” in residential neighborhoods, the report found.

    * WAND | Illinois Accountability Commission final report alleges federal misconduct in Operation Midway Blitz: “The Illinois Accountability Commission’s final hearing marks a defining moment. Not an ending, but a reckoning,” Illinois Department of Human Rights Director Jim Bennett said. “This report is a testament to our citizens who came forward and refused to let federal agents’ abusive and extreme actions go unanswered. The state of Illinois had made it clear that no one is above the law, including the federal government, and that documentation of these crimes creates a foundation as we pursue justice. These weren’t abstract violations. They happened to real people, and this record exists because of their courage. We will continue this work until there is full accountability.”

  5 Comments      


A big get for Kwame Raoul

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Background on Witzburg is here if you need it. The AG’s former chief of staff moved into private practice a few months ago. Press release…

Attorney General Kwame Raoul today announced changes to his office’s leadership team. Starting May 1, former city of Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg joins the office as chief of staff.

“I am excited to welcome Deborah Witzburg to the Attorney General’s office. Deborah served the city of Chicago with distinction, and her experience as inspector general and a former prosecutor gives her perspective to lead the office prioritizing efficiency and integrity,” Raoul said. “Now more than ever, the Attorney General’s office is at the forefront of defending the rights of all Illinoisans. I am proud to add talented attorneys to my office’s leadership team at this crucial moment.”

“I deeply admire the work of Attorney General Raoul and his office, and I’m honored to join the team,” Witzburg said.

Deborah Witzburg joins the Attorney General’s office after serving as inspector general for the city of Chicago from 2022 to 2026. Prior to that, she served in several roles in the Office of Inspector General, including as the city’s deputy inspector general for public safety. She also served as an assistant Cook County state’s attorney. Witzburg holds a Juris Doctor from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts from Brown University.

Attorney General Raoul also announced Eric Sacks and Dina Torrisi Martin will serve as assistant chief deputy attorneys general, and Michelle Petersen will serve as public interest counsel.

Eric Sacks joins Raoul’s office after serving in the Cook County state’s attorney’s office where he was first chair, felony trial division and trial supervisor, felony review unit. Previously, he held leadership positions in the Litigation Department of Jenner & Block LLP and was a judicial law clerk for the Honorable John A. Nordberg of the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois. Sacks holds a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Carleton College.

Before joining the Attorney General’s office, Michelle Peterson was an assistant U.S. attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s office, Northern District of Illinois. In the U.S. Attorney’s office, Peterson held a number of leadership positions, including chief, Appeals Section, Criminal Division and chief, Financial Crimes Section. Peterson was also previously a faculty instructor at Harvard Law School and a trial attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice. Peterson holds a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Notre Dame.

Prior to joining the Attorney General’s office, Dina Torrisi Martin was vice president and general counsel at the Kenneth C. Griffin Museum of Science and Industry. Previously, she served as general counsel for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation; was shareholder and practice chair, medical malpractice defense at Hughes Socol Piers Resnick & Dym; and was a founding partner of HeplerBroom’s Chicago office. Torrisi Martin holds a Juris Doctorate from the University Illinois Chicago School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

  2 Comments      


All of a sudden, some folks have stopped talking about giving judges ‘more discretion’ (Updated)

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Last September…

However, many Illinois Republican lawmakers disagree. Some are calling to repeal the law or tweak it to give judges more discretion.

“We’re seeing individuals who are charged with serious violent crimes being allowed to walk out of county jails with no cash bail, sometimes they same day they are arrested and reoffending while they are on pre-trial release,” said Illinois State Rep. Patrick Windhorst, (R) House Minority Floor Leader.

That “more discretion” phrase became quite a buzzword.

* Last December…

Kankakee County Sheriff Mike Downey demanded that judges be given “100 percent discretion” to detain anyone they viewed as a danger to society. Several other sheriffs have since weighed in with the same demand

* 16 days ago from the House GOP…


Partial transcript…

I have HB4104. All that does, it gives judges the discretion. We elect them to have that discretion and so many other things, to trust them to make the right decision and to make sure that families don’t get to have these horrific stories.

* Yesterday, House Republican Leader Tony McCombie introduced HB5757, with Reps. Windhorst and Weber as co-sponsors...

Provides that when a defendant has previously been granted pretrial release for a felony or Class A misdemeanor and has been placed on electronic monitoring as a condition of release, that pretrial release shall be revoked upon a finding of probable cause that the defendant has committed a felony that is alleged to have occurred during the defendant’s pretrial release after a hearing on the court’s own motion or upon the filing of a verified petition by the State. Provides that pretrial detention shall continue pending resolution of the defendant’s charges. Provides that the language that states at each subsequent appearance of the defendant before the court, the judge must find that continued detention is necessary to reasonably ensure the appearance of the defendant for later hearings or to prevent the defendant from being charged with a subsequent felony or Class A misdemeanor does not apply to a defendant whose pretrial release has been revoked pursuant to the new provision.

Press release…

In response to the recent murder and critical injury of two Chicago Police Officers, the Republican leaders filed Senate Bill 4195 and House Bill 5757. This legislation makes a commonsense amendment to the Pre Trial Fairness Act that requires that anyone arrested for a felony while on pretrial release and ankle monitoring to be detained until the charges are resolved.

They can’t talk about “more discretion” now because the judge in that case made such an egregious error in judgement. So, they want to just tell judges what they must do regardless of the circumstances.

…Adding… Leader McCombie…

The point about judicial discretion is that the advocates for ending cash bail said it was about giving judges more discretion, but our pre-trial release scheme does not give the judge discretion to detain in all cases.

My bill allows judges to have discretion to detain in more cases on the initial charge. It applies after a person is already on pre-trial release. If someone commits a crime while on pre-trial release that shows they are a danger and should be held if probable cause exists for the charge.

  23 Comments      


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Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department

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It’s just a bill

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* House Republican Leader Tony McCombie and Senate Republican Leader John Curran…

(Springfield) Today Illinois House Republican Leader Tony McCombie (Savanna) and Illinois Senate Republican Leader John Curran (Downers Grove) filed identical legislation to keep violent criminals from continuing to commit violent offenses while on pre-trial release and ankle monitoring.

“Let’s be clear: this law is not working the way it was promised,” said House Republican Leader Tony McCombie. “No law should prioritize process over protection. If loopholes exist, they must be closed. If policies fall short, they must be fixed. Preventable harm is unacceptable and that is why we are bringing this serious legislative solution forward.”

In response to the recent murder and critical injury of two Chicago Police Officers, the Republican leaders filed Senate Bill 4195 and House Bill 5757. This legislation makes a commonsense amendment to the Pre Trial Fairness Act that requires that anyone arrested for a felony while on pretrial release and ankle monitoring to be detained until the charges are resolved.

Current law is permissive and allows for pretrial release to be revoked but does not require it, potentially leading to violent offenders being let out again and again.

“Any society where killing law enforcement is not taken seriously is not a functioning, safe, democratic society,” said Senate Republican Leader John Curran. “This simple change will not only help prevent future victims, it will also help prevent offenders from committing more crimes while on release and will instead give them a chance to deal with their current charges and, hopefully, get the rehabilitation they need.”

The Illinois Network For Pretrial Justice…

“For a third election cycle in a row, Illinois Republicans are attempting to gin up fear through lies about pretrial reforms in an effort to distract from their party’s historic minorities in the General Assembly. While we join those mourning the loss of Officer John Bartholomew, spreading misinformation about the causes of this tragedy will only make it harder for stakeholders to work together to improve public safety.

The reality is that this is one case and one decision, which reporters have already revealed to be based on a variety of unique factors specific to this individual case. The opportunistic attempts to make this case representative of the entire law is simply dishonest. As we have said before, there was absolutely nothing in the law that prohibited the detention of Alphanso Talley while he was awaiting trial.

Since the Pretrial Fairness Act went into effect, 94% of the more than 150,000 people released pretrial in Cook County have not been charged with new offenses against a person. While the law has been in effect, communities across the state have experienced historical lows in both violent and property crime. […]

For the last several years, Republicans have claimed that judges do not have enough discretion to detain people under the Pretrial Fairness Act—but now they’ve introduced a bill that would eliminate judicial discretion. The bill filed today by Republican leaders would limit judges’ ability to review the facts and circumstances in individual cases where someone has been rearrested while on pretrial release. The GOP proposal flies in the face of the foundational principles of due process: each person is entitled to an individualized hearing and decision. Mandating detention based only on the low standard of probable cause ignores the importance of reviewing the government’s evidence before one’s liberty is taken away.

We all want safe communities, but Republicans are being dishonest about what is possible under any pretrial system. There is no change to our criminal court system that will prevent all instances of violence and harm. If Republicans were serious about protecting public safety, they would stop opposing gun reform measures and investments in mental health and substance use treatment and focus on increasing support and services for survivors of domestic violence and gun violence.

* Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid…

On Thursday, April 30, state Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid, D-Bridgeview, will join community witnesses and experts at an Illinois House subject matter hearing on HB2723, which would repeal Illinois’ anti-boycott law that shields Israel from accountability. A press conference will follow at 1:00 p.m. The hearing will be streamed live and is open to the media. Interviews with the sponsor and witnesses are available upon request.
WHO
- Rep. Rashid - Chief House sponsor of HB2723
- Martin Levine - Jewish Voice for Peace
- Richard Goldwasser - Former J-Street National Board Member; Former J-Street Chicago Chair
- Ken Kriz - Municipal Finance Expert
WHAT
Illinois House subject matter hearing on HB2723, followed by a press conference.

WHERE
- Hearing: Michael A. Bilandic Building, 6th floor hearing room
- Press Conference: Daley Plaza, Chicago
WHEN
- Hearing: Thursday, April 30, 2026 — 10:00 a.m. CT
- Press Conference: Thursday, April 30, 2026 — 1:00 p.m. CT

BACKGROUND

HB2723 would end Illinois’s role as the national template for state laws that direct public pension systems to blacklist companies based on political speech. Enacted in 2015 and copied since by more than 35 states, the current law empowers an unelected seven-member board — expressly exempted by statute from any legal duty to the approximately 895,000 Illinois public employees, retirees, and beneficiaries whose retirement security it controls — to designate companies for forced divestment with no published criteria, no appeals process, and no independent audit.

The 2015 statute (40 ILCS 5/1-110.16) requires the Illinois Investment Policy Board (IIPB) to maintain a list of companies it determines have engaged in “politically motivated” boycotts of Israel or of “territories controlled by” Israel — a key term the statute leaves undefined. The law was drafted by Richard Goldberg, then a senior advisor to Governor Bruce Rauner and now at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, who has publicly described the Illinois statute as the model for similar legislation since enacted in more than 35 states. A frequently cited safeguard in the law — directing the Board to consider the legislature’s intent that it not apply to U.S. companies — was disavowed in writing by the bill’s own chief Senate sponsor in December 2018 correspondence obtained through a public records request. The Board’s most consequential enforcement action came in December 2021, when it voted unanimously to add Unilever PLC to the prohibited list following a Ben & Jerry’s subsidiary decision regarding sales in occupied Palestinian territory. The forced divestment that followed — conducted at a cyclical price low, with no fiduciary analysis required or performed — forced Illinois pension funds to sell an estimated $150–200 million in Unilever holdings. Parallel divestments in other states pushed the cumulative national impact toward $1 billion.

The bill’s chief Senate sponsor, Sen. Porfirio, is carrying the identical companion measure, SB2462.

* Sen. Laura Ellman…

In Illinois, more than 1.9 million residents rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the majority of those benefits going to households with children, underscoring the critical need for consistent access to food both at home and at school. With nearly half of students already depending on free school meals, State Senator Laura Ellman is calling for stronger state investment in student nutrition.

“Funding free school lunches can fill the gaps that are opening for schools as SNAP benefits are increasingly cut at an alarming rate,” said Ellman (D-Naperville). “Funding school lunch could be a way to stretch state dollars while feeding kids in need.”

Senate Bill 1419 would appropriate $67 million to the Illinois State Board of Education to support the Healthy School Meals for All Program, a law Ellman previously supported to expand access to free meals for students across the state.

The proposed funding would help fully support schools participating in the federal Community Eligibility Provision, which allows high-need schools to offer free meals to all students. Currently, about one-third of Illinois students attend schools eligible for this program, but not all schools receive enough funding to cover every student. […]

Senate Bill 1419 was heard in a subject matter hearing on Tuesday in the Senate Appropriations–Education Committee and awaits further consideration.

* WAND…

Illinois Senate Democrats passed a bill Wednesday to ensure people have the right to wear medical masks and respirators in public. […]

“It’s not a mask mandate,” [Sen. Graciela Guzmán] said. “It does not require anyone to wear a mask or any protective equipment. It protects the right of people who choose, need, or use protective medical equipment to do so without punishment or discrimination.” […]

However, Republicans are concerned the plan could have unintended consequences in the workplace.

“Specifically, I was confused why the Human Rights Commission would be hearing complaints on a business mandate or a disagreement with an employee who wants to wear a mask with whatever they have written on it expressing their views,” said Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris). “Employers would have to go through the process with the Human Rights Commission, which we know businesses usually don’t win those cases.”

Senate Bill 3340 passed out of the Senate on a partisan 37-18 vote. It now moves to the House for further consideration.

* Sen. Chris Belt…

State Senator Christopher Belt advanced a measure that would prohibit retailers from refusing cash payments up to $500.

“Cash is still a reality for millions of families, seniors and small-business owners,” said Belt (D-Swansea). “No one should feel excluded from participating in routine transactions simply because they choose to pay with cash.”

Belt’s measure would prohibit retailers from refusing cash payments up to $500 or posting signage that cash is not accepted. The measure includes reasonable exceptions, including retailers with self-service checkout but at least one staffed cash register, late-night sales after 10 p.m. and retailers offering prepaid card systems that allow cash conversion.

The measure would focus on retail transactions and would not affect local government payments. The legislation reflects a growing recognition that, while digital payments are convenient, access to cash remains essential for many households across Illinois.

House Bill 4592 passed the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday.

* CEO of the Community Access National Network Jen Laws…

Illinois policymakers considering House Bill 2371 should stop and ask a critical question: Why are we expanding a program that’s allowing hospitals to funnel billions of dollars away from patients, and even away from our country, into offshore accounts?

Hospitals claim the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program is critical to keeping their doors open. But many of the largest hospitals pushing for 340B expansion are not struggling to survive. In fact, financial data show that Illinois 340B hospitals are quietly sitting on enormous cash stockpiles held overseas, far from the patients 340B is designed to help. […]

Instead, it has become a profit center. Hospitals buy discounted drugs, charge patients and insurers full price and pocket the difference. There is no requirement that patients ever see a discount, no meaningful transparency showing how the profits are used and participation is not meaningfully tied to providing charity care. […]

HB2371 would not only make this broken system worse, but it would also protect these predatory practices. It offers hospitals expanded power with no transparency, no patient‑level discounts, and no requirement that profits actually fund charity care.

* Capitol City Now…

State Sen. Mattie Hunter (pictured) (D-Chicago) is proposing a ban on PFAS – “forever chemicals” – in beauty products. [HB3409] “would make it illegal to knowingly manufacture or sell a cosmetic product that contains any of the eleven specifically named PFAS substances.”

“PFAS are a group of synthetic chemicals widely used in manufacturing that do not break down in the environment or the human body,” Hunter said at a statehouse news conference.

“Despite growing scientific consensus and the dangers of these substances,” said Hunter, “they remain legal ingredients in our lipsticks, the lotions, the mascara sitting on our shelves right now. And you know what? This is unacceptable.”

The chemicals have been linked to cancer and weakened immune systems.

* More…

    * Press release | Jones Passes Bill to Keep Drivers in Control of Auto Insurance Claims for Glass Repairs: Jones’ House Bill 4373 empowers auto insurance policyholders and holds auto repair shops accountable by prohibiting drivers from signing over control of their insurance claims to a repair shop. Currently, some shops enter into benefit transfer agreements with policyholders that allow them to handle claims on the customer’s behalf. While repair shops may claim this provides peace of mind, it can create problems if an insurer does not fully cover the bill.

    * Press release | Villanueva measure to advance Illinois’ environmental justice protections one step closer to law: Senate Bill 3772 would require the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to evaluate environmental justice factors when reviewing certain air pollution construction permit applications. The proposal would require the IEPA to evaluate whether a proposed facility is located in an area of environmental justice concern and determine whether additional safeguards may be needed.

    * Fox 32 | What’s in the six-month gas tax proposal?: Illinois House Republicans want to pause the state’s gas tax to give drivers some short term relief. Oil prices are still soaring amid the war in Iran. Rep. Ryan Spain’s bill would halt the sales tax for six months. But, there’s a payoff. Ralph Matire, the executive director of the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability joins us.

  25 Comments      


Illinois Credit Unions: Member‑Owned, Member‑Focused

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

April is National Financial Literacy Month, a time to highlight the importance of education, understanding, and trust in financial decision‑making. For Illinois credit unions, these values are part of everyday operations, not just a once‑a‑year focus.

Because credit unions are member‑owned, not‑for‑profit, and community‑focused, their structure naturally puts people first. Financial literacy comes to life through relationships, not transactions.

Illinois credit unions know their members as people, not account numbers. Credit union professionals take time to:

    • Listen
    • Offer tailored advice
    • Understand individual needs
    • Make decisions with empathy

This relationship‑driven approach helps members build confidence, ask questions, and make informed financial choices. These are all key elements of financial literacy.

As Scott Credit Union’s Ashleigh Deatherage explains, credit unions’ “purpose is truly to make a positive impact on those we serve.” Credit unions don’t “just look at them as another number”, they focus on the whole person behind the finances.


This Financial Literacy Month, Illinois credit unions continue to empower members through education, trust, and people‑first service.

Learn more at https://betterforillinois.org/

Paid for by Illinois Credit Union League.

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With Bears stadium moving forward and failure of millionaire’s surchage, progressives say it’s time for corporate guardrails and new revenues

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Illinois Senate Progressive Caucus…

Members of the Illinois Senate Progressive Caucus today called for renewed action to advance progressive revenue solutions, protect taxpayers, and refocus the end of session on working families, property-tax relief and sustainable school funding.

Senate progressives support balanced economic development, and want to keep the Chicago Bears in Illinois. But any proposal that offers public benefit to a billionaire-owned franchise must include serious scrutiny, enforceable protections and a full accounting of taxpayer exposure.

“We love our Bears. We want them to stay in Illinois, and we want a solution that works for everyone,” said State Sen. Mary Edly-Allen. “But we should not give billionaires tax breaks at the expense of working people. We want inclusive economic development, not hidden costs or incomplete deals. A thoughtful Senate review of HB 910 is what taxpayers deserve.”

While the millionaire’s surcharge did not advance in the House, the chamber moved quickly on a megaproject framework tied to the new Bears stadium. The proposal requires serious review, public accountability measures and stronger guardrails to protect Illinois taxpayers.

Senate progressives are clear that the fight for a more fair tax system, one that asks more of those most able to pay and delivers more for working families, is not over.

“Now it is the Senate’s turn,” said State Sen. Karina Villa. “Illinois families were told there was not enough time to ask the wealthiest few to pay more. Yet there was time to move a Bears package that even the Bears management themselves say still needs changes. When Springfield decides something is urgent, it finds the time. Working families deserve to be treated as urgent too.”

Any final Bears-related megaproject legislation must include clear public-interest guardrails, including full fiscal transparency, enforceable labor and local-hire standards, clawbacks if promised jobs or investment do not materialize, and ongoing public reporting with a meaningful sunset.

“Illinois Democrats cannot keep acting as though the party can’t get big things done for working people when it controls every lever of power in state government,” said State Sen. Lakesia Collins. “The big question is whether we are willing to use that power to advance the policies working families need. We all know families are already dealing with the highest property tax increases in decades; we can and must do much better for the people we were elected to serve.”

“Families are facing real pressure right now, from food assistance and healthcare to child care, housing, schools and property taxes,” State Sen. Graciela Guzman said. “This is exactly the moment for Illinois to raise revenue from those most able to pay, not shift more costs onto working people.”

Senate progressives called for continued action on serious progressive revenue options that ask more of wealthy individuals and corporations, protect schools and local governments, reduce pressure on homeowners, and stop balancing budgets on the backs of working people.

Budgets are moral documents. So are tax codes. Illinois’ fiscal choices should reflect our values. That means real relief for working people, real protection for taxpayers, and real revenue solutions that stop shifting costs onto the people who can least afford them.

* Affordability and Tax Justice Coalition…

The following is a joint statement from the Affordability and Tax Justice Coalition, following developments in Springfield that made clear that a proposed constitutional amendment to create a “Millionaire’s Tax” will not be moving forward in 2026:

“With the ‘Millionaire’s Tax’ amendment not moving forward in 2026 and the painful impact of the Trump administration’s irresponsible cuts to healthcare, SNAP benefits, public education and more, there is more urgency than ever for legislators to take bold action to make our system of taxation fairer for Illinoisans while addressing rising costs of living that our residents face. We cannot stand by as Illinois remains the 8th most regressive tax state in the country.

“Measures to create a digital advertising tax on the wealthiest corporations (HB4894/SB3353), close corporate loopholes and further decouple from the tax giveaways in HR1 (HB5125/SB3796), tax billionaire wealth (HB5215/SB3376), enact world wide combined reporting (HB5318/SB3486), and close luxury loopholes for millionaires must now become the central focus of our work for the next four weeks.”

* Illinois Revenue Alliance…

The Illinois Revenue Alliance issued the following statement in response to the passage of the “megaproject” bill in the Illinois House:

“On May 1st, thousands of Illinoisans will begin losing SNAP benefits, while the ultra-rich and mega developers continue to get tax breaks. This week’s vote on the Megaproject bill is proof that when there is political will, there is a way. We hope legislators will dedicate that same willpower to addressing food assistance and cuts to our communities.

“As the bill moves to the Senate, Illinois leaders must find the political will to tax billionaires and wealthy corporations to close our budget gap and ensure essential services like education, healthcare, child care, and housing remain funded. The Illinois Revenue Alliance’s $4B revenue package offers four proposals: a digital ads tax, a billionaire tax, an end to offshore tax havens, and the closure of corporate loopholes. These solutions protect communities from federal cuts and the state’s structural deficit.

“The Illinois General Assembly and the Governor can stand up to Trump and his devastating cuts if the ultra-rich finally pay what they owe to protect and fund our communities. The ILRA revenue package is the way.”

Discuss.

  45 Comments      


Illinois Hospitals Fuel $135.5 Billion In Economic Activity Statewide, Strengthening Local Communities – Support Hospitals By Passing HB 2371 SA 2

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

Hospital spending on payroll, supplies, services and capital projects spur $135.5 billion in economic activity annually that helps build vibrant communities across the state. A new report from the Illinois Health and Hospital Association, “Communities Win When Local Hospitals Are Strong,” shows how valuable Illinois’ over 200 hospitals and 40 health systems are to the state and local economies.

Key economic contributions of Illinois hospitals include:

    • Supporting over 500,000 jobs;
    • Spurring job creation in other sectors: Every Illinois hospital job leads to 1.6 jobs in other sectors; and
    • Creating a ripple effect in spending: Every dollar hospitals spend results in another $1.40 in economic activity.

Illinois hospitals are major employers and purchasers of supplies and services. They continue to drive economic spending despite financial pressures, including the loss of up to $57 billion in federal Medicaid matching funds over the next 10 years due to H.R. 1. As hospitals support communities, they ask Illinois legislators to support them: Pass House Bill 2371 SA 2 in the House to restore the federal 340B drug discount program in Illinois. Learn more.

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Isabel’s morning briefing

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Subscribers know more. ICYMI: Illinois Senate halts redistricting constitutional amendment question after Supreme Court’s voting rights ruling. Tribune…

    - Senate President Don Harmon announced Wednesday that a state constitutional amendment to enshrine protections for majority-minority districts will not appear on Illinois’ November ballot.
    - Harmon said in a statement that he wanted legal experts to review the Supreme Court’s ruling they moved forward with the proposal. He added that he expects the amendment to be revisited in a future legislative session.
    - The Supreme Court’s conservative majority voted 6-3 that Louisiana’s second Black-majority district was too heavily reliant on race. The ruling gives an opening to other Republican states to eliminate Black- and Latino-majority districts that typically vote more Democratic.

* Related stories…

***************** Advertisement *****************


Sponsored by The Association of Safety-Net Community Hospitals

No Cuts. No Closures. Fund Safety-Net Hospitals.

For decades, Illinois has underfunded safety-net hospitals, the lifelines for Black and Brown communities. Now, the “Safety-Net Moonshot” and the Medicaid-defunding legislation it has spawned, threatens deeper cuts to these critical health providers. Any reduction inspired by the “Moonshot” would be a killshot to the care our most vulnerable residents rely on.

Weakening safety-net hospitals won’t improve care. It will slash essential services, eliminate jobs, and push entire communities into healthcare deserts and economic instability.

The state cannot balance its budget on the backs of Black and Brown community hospitals. These institutions are not line items to cut, they are the foundation of care for families who have nowhere else to turn. Disinvestment will deepen inequities and worsen outcomes.

When safety-net hospitals are funded, communities are healthier, workforces are stronger, and economies are more resilient.

Illinois must fully fund safety-net hospitals. For the communities they serve, it is life or death.

*************************************************

* At 10:30, Gov. JB Pritzker will host a Press Conference following his meeting with the Illinois Accountability Commission where they will deliver their report and recommendations to the Governor. Click here to watch.

* BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Politico | Dems split on Israel boycott law: n effort to repeal an Illinois law targeting companies that pull investments from Israel is seeing some movement — though it’s also highlighting divisions among Democrats who dominate state government. The proposal would roll back a 2015 law requiring the state to divest from companies that boycott Israel. State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid, who’s carrying the bill, called the current policy punitive and economically short-sighted, arguing it forces Illinois to blacklist companies like Ben & Jerry’s and Airbnb for what he views as human rights positions. […] Now, more than 20 House members have signed onto legislation in the House to repeal the anti-boycott law, and leadership has scheduled a subject matter hearing on the issue for Thursday.

* Sun-Times | Illinois advocacy groups say DOJ ‘quietly gutting’ legal aid services for low-income immigrants: For more than 60 years, the Department of Justice has operated the Recognition and Accreditation Program — a program that lets non-attorneys provide legal services and has made affordable representation available to families who cannot afford a private attorney. […] The group said there were no advance warnings to the more than 900 nonprofit organizations and 2,600 accredited representatives nationwide who participate in the program. Siegel said there is already a massive need for representation while there is also a lack of due process for immigrants who are applying for benefits while also fighting deportation.

* Sun-Times | SNAP food assistance cutoffs begin Friday in Illinois: As of Tuesday, the Illinois Department of Human Services, the state agency that administers the program, estimated that 120,000 individuals were at risk of losing their benefits starting Friday and rolling out over the next several months. That’s down about 280,000 from what the state originally anticipated would be pushed out of the program as people received exemptions from the work rules.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Cook County Record | Ex-Dem Rep. Stoneback can’t sue gun control group, current Rep. Olickal over NRA smears: However, in their ruling, the justices still likely dealt a mortal blow to Stoneback’s lawsuit, finding her claims to be “meritless.” Stoneback sued Olickal and Gun Violence Prevention PAC in 2023 in Cook County Circuit Court. The lawsuit accused the current state lawmaker and the activist group of partnering on a smear campaign against Stoneback, which was centered on allegedly lying to voters and the public about her positions on gun control amid the 2022 Democratic primary election in Illinois’ 16th State Representative District.

* Daily Herald | NFL focuses on fate of Bears stadium as the legislative clock ticks: She added sources told her the “committee also acknowledged the Illinois legislature needs to continue to work to move the process forward.” Meanwhile, Senate Democrats have signaled they need to thoroughly vet the controversial megaproject bill, which includes property tax breaks for the Bears.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Graduate student workers at UIC go on strike: ‘We want to be paid a living wage’: Most work 20 hours per week, for nine months of the year, on a $24,000 salary. But Ph.D. student Macy Miller said their workload often stretches well past those hours. Many graduate students teach their own classes. “Especially if you have to create your own course from the ground up, you’re responsible for all the materials, the syllabus, the grading,” said Miller, who also serves as the union’s treasurer and outreach chair. “That’s way more than 20 hours.” The union’s latest wage proposal is $38,000. That figure is still below the wage floor for graduate workers at other local universities — doctorate students at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago earn a base pay of about $45,000.

* WGN | Former Chicago Board of Education VP running for board president: Sendhil Revuluri, the former Vice President of the Chicago Board of Education, is running for the top spot this year. Revuluri was appointed to the Board by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot in 2019 and served for three years. He tells WGN-TV Political Editor Tahman Bradley the Board has become too political and should focus more on the needs of students.

* Crain’s | Blue Cross Illinois parent posts nearly $2 billion loss for 2025: Health Care Service Corp., the Chicago-based parent of Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois, posted a $1.9 billion loss in 2025 despite record membership and revenue growth. Much of that red ink stems from underwriting losses of $3.5 billion, up nearly $3 billion from 2024 and from higher benefit expenses, up from nearly $57 billion in 2024 to $63.1 billion, according to its 2025 Annual Report.

* Sun-Times | Gov. Pritzker strengthens quantum computing partnership with IBM to benefit City Colleges students: Pritzker announced the new partnership at Olive Harvey College, one of the seven City Colleges whose current and future students stand to benefit from the apprenticeship program and the pipeline to permanent jobs it will create. Pritzker called it a quantum leap in his drive to ensure the economic opportunities created by the new campus will benefit everyone in the state.

* Sun-Times | These CPS students care for horses and pigs at school. They’re adding shelter puppies to their resume: The students volunteered to care for the puppies to get them out of the shelter for a few days and raise awareness about the event, but also to get more experience working with animals. Both students are learning how to raise livestock and other animals as part of the school’s animal science program, and hope to go into animal care after they graduate.

* Tribune | ‘I loved being a lawyer’: Longtime Chicago attorney Joseph Duffy retires after five decades: It’s an art that Duffy mastered over his decades as a trial lawyer, both as a federal prosecutor and later in white-collar defense. He once used bar receipts to show that an undercover agent had been lying about how many drinks he bought an allegedly corrupt yen trader during an investigation at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in the 1980s. “He said maybe one or two. I pulled out this receipt that said it was 12 beers,” Duffy said.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Southtown | La Grange establishes task force to explore issues with affordable housing: Village President Mark Kuchler said the new task force “would be created to review, specifically, to maintain and potentially increase affordable housing to stay in compliance with Illinois state mandates, and which will also, of course, help with a healthy community.” The state Affordable Housing Planning and Appeal Act of 2003 requires non-exempt local governments that have less than 10% affordable housing have an Affordable Housing Plan to address the issue, and submit it to the state for review.

* Shaw Local | DeKalb OKs $3.5M water main project for south-side development, including incoming 560-acre data center: Economic development on DeKalb’s south side has grown significantly over the years with the addition of major industrial users, including Meta, Amazon and Ferrara Candy Company. Once it comes online, the transmission water main will also serve the new Edged data center. The city received six bids on the water main project, city documents show. The lowest bidder was Elliott and Wood, which submitted a $5 million project bid. The total project cost of $5.3 million includes a city contingency of $253,750, documents show.

* Pioneer Press | Israel boycott question won’t appear on Oak Park Township ballots after packed meeting, passionate comments: The meeting had originally been slated for April 14 but was rescheduled after the expected crowds became too large for the Oak Park Public Library’s Dole Branch, which holds around 60 people. On Tuesday, the cafeteria’s seats all were filled and standing people lined the walls, though the cafeteria was said to hold more than 200 people, according to Evan Michel, Oak Park Township manager. Part of a larger initiative to place the question in several townships around the state, the measure had already passed in several Illinois townships including Champaign, Cunningham, Peoria, Kickapoo, Medina, DuPage and Normal. It failed in Capital and Wheatland townships, according to advocates.

* Daily Herald | DuPage County OKs raises for board members, other elected officials: A dozen DuPage County Board members and several countywide officials will get salary increases after the fall election, including a 35% pay hike for the board chairman. The raises were approved Tuesday when the county board set the pay for the next four years for the sheriff, treasurer, county clerk, county board chairman and 12 county board members. All the positions are up for election in November. The new salaries will take effect on Dec. 1, when the county’s 2027 fiscal year begins.

*** Downstate ***

* WGLT | Judge denies attempt to kick temporary workers at ISU off the job as AFSCME strike continues: McLean County Judge Rebecca Foley on Wednesday denied AFSCME Local 1110’s request for a temporary restraining order that would have kicked temporary service employees off the job. Representing the union, attorney Stephen Yokich argued Wednesday in McLean County court that Illinois State is violating the Illinois Employment of Strikebreakers Act that prevents employers from contracting day laborers to ease the impact of a strike.

* Illinois Times | Chief addresses use-of-force policy: The Springfield Police Department’s chief sees calls for changes in the department’s use-of-force policy as opportunities to educate the public on how officers make split-second decisions that may result in viral posts on social media and accusations of police brutality. […] When speaking with Illinois Times about the 15-page use-of-force policy and training program, Behl said police must weigh the “totality of the circumstances” when deciding whether to use everything from their mere presence and simple verbal direction all the way to a punch, a Taser strike or deadly force.

* WICS | No new moratorium, but no data center either for Logan County: No data center is heading to Logan County… yet. While their moratorium was not extended, the county board says there’s still more to be done. The board kicked the moratorium back to their zoning board, while they wait for an ordinance to be passed regarding regulations for data centers.

* WCIA | HOLY COW: Cow spotted roaming UI campus Wednesday afternoon: The cow that was roaming the University of Illinois’ campus on Wednesday has been safely recovered and is now being checked over by a veterinarian. Patrick Wade, the director of executive communications and issues management for the university, said the cow got loose around 3:30 p.m., while being unloaded from a trailer at the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Large Animal Clinic.

* Illinois Times | ABC loses State Fair contract: Since the first term of Dwight D. Eisenhower’s presidency, one organization – the American Business Club of Springfield – has volunteered to serve beer and other concessions at the Illinois State Fair, with their share of money earned funding grants to dozens of local charities. For the first time since 1954, ABC will no longer occupy that role. Another group of local veterans, the Combined Veterans Association, lost their contract to operate a beer and beverage tent as well, after more than 50 years of service. Like ABC, the group is a volunteer organization, and the sales from the State Fair provide the sole operating income for many veterans’ organizations.

* PJ Star | Smokey Bones shutters last Illinois location amid nationwide closures: Illinois is set to lose its last Smokey Bones, a once popular barbecue restaurant, as the chain shutters locations across the country. Known for its authentic fire-grilled and house-smoked meats, the chain closed various locations April 28, including a restaurant in Springfield.

*** National ***

* AP | Union Pacific argues for its $85B acquisition of Norfolk Southern in new railroad merger application: The U.S. Surface Transportation Board rejected Union Pacific’s initial application because regulators wanted more details about how the deal would affect the competitive balance between the five remaining major freight railroads and the impact on customers. Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena said the new application makes an even stronger case for the benefits of the merger that he believes would shave a day or two off the delivery time for many shipments because they would no longer have to be handed off between two railroads in the middle of the country. The Omaha, Nebraska-based railroad projects that the merger could lead to shifting 2.1 million truckloads off the highway onto trains.

* NYT | Oil Hits Wartime High Above $120 a Barrel as Standoff Shows No End in Sight: The average price of regular gasoline in the United States has followed oil higher, hitting $4.30 a gallon on Thursday, up 27 cents in a week, according to data from the AAA motor club. After the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday, Jerome H. Powell, the central bank’s chair, said that policymakers needed to be “very cautious” about their next steps, given the significant uncertainty about the economic outlook.

* IPM News | U.S. House still hasn’t voted on a farm bill: According to Jonathan Coppess, Director of the Gardner Agriculture Policy Program at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, there have been three major sticking points that have been especially contentious: year round sale of E15 fuel; a provision blocking some lawsuits from pesticide companies; and an effort to overturn a California law that sets minimum space requirements for farm animals. “Those three together have added very specific complications on top of what they did last summer and the SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] provisions,” he said.

  6 Comments      


Good morning!

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Rolling Stone…

David Allan Coe, the outlaw country music singer known for his unrepentant, confrontational image and songs such as “You Never Even Called Me by My Name” and “The Ride,” has died. He was 86. […]

Coe was one of country music’s most complex figures. A walking tall tale who boasted about past exploits in prison and on the road, he was the author of his own mythology. Coe wrote mainstream hits for Tanya Tucker and Johnny Paycheck — “Take This Job and Shove It” was entirely his creation — and recorded country songs that still appear on multiple playlists and in radio rotation (countless jukeboxes include “You Never Even Called Me by My Name”). Still, a period of offensive, racist songs that Coe claimed were parodies make many bristle to this day.

Born September 6, 1939, in Akron, Ohio, Coe spent much of his early years in and out of reformatories and prisons, serving time for charges ranging from grand theft auto to possession of burglary tools. During one period of incarceration in the fall of 1963, he claimed to have killed a fellow inmate with a mop bucket after the man threatened him in the prison showers. In a 1975 interview, Coe said he once felt like he belonged in the penal system. “There were a lot of times when I would actually be in the county jail after being busted and I’d wake up the next morning and say to myself, ‘Oh I’m glad it’s over; I’m glad I’m going back to prison now, where I know I’ll be safe, where I’ll be out of society,’” he said.

* He was a flawed and even at times a bad, mean man. I will never make excuses for his personal behavior or some of the stuff he wrote. But the dude also composed some real bangers. And this song in particular has always meant a lot to me. His ironic menacing boasts predate some of the best hip-hop…

Country deejays knows that I’m an outlaw
They’d never come to see me in this dive
Where bikers stare at cowboys who are laughing at the hippies
Who are praying they’ll get out of here alive

The loud mouth in the corner’s gettin’ to me
Talking ’bout my earrings and my hair
I guess he ain’t read the signs that say I’ve been to prison
Someone ought to warn him ‘fore I knock him off his chair

‘Cause my long hair just can’t cover up my red neck
I’ve won every fight I’ve ever fought

This is an Illinois open thread. Have at it.

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Selected press releases (Live updates)

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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Live coverage

Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…

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Isabel’s afternoon roundup (Updated)

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Crain’s…

IBM plans to dramatically increase its presence in Chicago with a commitment to hire 750 technical workers at the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park on the South Side.

The company will create jobs in AI, cybersecurity, data science, quantum and other technologies, in part through an apprenticeship program with City Colleges of Chicago. […]

IBM, which already planned to be part of the R&D park as an anchor of the National Quantum Algorithm Center along with the University of Illinois, also will house its FutureNow Chicago delivery center at the park.

“IBM’s investment in Illinois is a powerful vote of confidence in our state’s growing technology and quantum ecosystem and the world-class workforce that powers it,” Pritzker said in a written statement announcing the partnership.

**************** Advertisement ****************

Sponsored by Phrma

Illinois is paying the price for 340B medicine markups.

Through the federal 340B program, nonprofit hospitals can buy medicines for pennies, then charge huge markups – even on life-saving medicines. Those markups have become big business for large hospital systems, driving higher costs for Illinois patients, employers and taxpayers.

And the problem is getting worse. The program’s lack of oversight has allowed 340B to become a revenue stream for hospitals, PBMs, private equity firms and big chain pharmacies — with no requirement that the money be used to help patients afford medicines. It’s time for Washington to hold hospitals accountable and fix 340B. Read more.

****************

…Adding… From Rich: The sports talkers convinced themselves that today would be the day that Indiana finally beat Illinois. Nope…

* Gas prices just keep going up…

*** Statewide ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Illinois retailers celebrate early successes of state-funded apprenticeship program: Tribin is one of 11 apprentices in the early stages of the program, which comes during a time of significant workforce investment in Illinois. A little over a year into the program, which was formally announced in February but began recruiting last year, organizers and participants already claimed individual success stories, touting a 100% apprentice retention rate as they focus on sharpening the skills of current retail employees.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Daily Herald | Bears megaproject bill takes baby steps in Senate, but ‘lots of work to be done’: “There’s lots of work to be done,” said Murphy, a member of the Assignments Committee. “We’re going to take our time and analyze everything that’s in the bill. We have one chance to get this right.” […] “We’re going to review what the House passed, gather input from senators and stakeholders and assess the path forward,” said John Patterson, spokesman for the Senate Democrats.

*** Chicago ***

* WTTW | Overtime Cost Chicago Taxpayers $544.4M in 2025, Including $285.8M for Police, Down 6.3% From Last Year: The $544.4 million includes approximately $77.3 million in holiday and compensatory time and more than $467 million paid directly to employees who worked more than eight hours a day or 40 hours per week, according to data published by the city’s Office of Budget and Management. By comparison, the city spent $581 million on overtime in 2024, according to the data.

* Tribune | Chicago progressive leaders remember organizer Amisha Patel: Leaders of the city’s political left credited Patel with uniting community groups and labor unions by fostering deep personal relationships. Her work helped create the working-class movement that made Mayor Brandon Johnson’s election possible, they argued. Johnson, who is expected to eulogize Patel at her funeral Saturday, praised her work as a senior adviser to his mayoral transition committee, calling Patel a “dear friend” and her death “a profound loss.”

* Block Club | Pete Kastanes, Vanished Chicagoland Founder Who Uplifted City History, Dies At 62: For a decade and a half, Pete Kastanes highlighted Chicago’s history online through his website, Vanished Chicagoland, and associated social media accounts. He died from prostate cancer on Saturday at 62. Kastanes’s passion for Chicago’s history spanned from the North Side to the South Side, as the historian would share photos and stories of the city’s yesteryears. He launched his first of 30 Facebook pages for various closed businesses in the early 2010s. “A Tribute to Kroozin’ Music II on W 79th St Ashburn Chicago” celebrated a record store across from Bogan High School, where Kastanes attended.

* Sun-Times | Davis Martin’s hot start to a potential breakout season is built on trust with White Sox: Manager Will Venable might’ve called it a night for other arms on a young pitching staff that has produced uneven results early in the year — but not from Martin, who got two more outs en route to his fourth win of the season. It’s a sign of trust the second-year skipper has in the veteran righty, who has put himself on the map over the first month of the season with a 1.95 ERA that was tied for eighth in MLB entering play Wednesday

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* NBC Chicago | ‘Does not work’: Cook County State’s Attorney decries electronic monitoring system as broken: Burke on Tuesday lashed out at the system that she said made it possible for Alphanso Talley to disregard his monitor and allegedly continue a crime spree that ended in the shooting death of Chicago Police Officer John Barthelomew and the severe wounding of his partner. “Electronic monitoring is not an alternative to detention. It does not keep people safe,” Burke said during a late afternoon news conference in the lobby of the Leighton Criminal Courthouse.

* Daily Southtown | Blue Island residents speak out against possible data center, mayor says comments are premature: Mindeman and nine other Blue Island residents told the City Council Tuesday they still feel connected to the former hospital, even seven years after its closure, and they oppose the property owners intentions to build a data center. Although Mayor Fred Bilotto assured residents the city has not received a formal proposal for a data center, residents said it’s not too early to worry that a place that once healed them could bring harm into the heart of the city.

* Daily Herald | Schaumburg extends TIF district to Loeber Farm for controversial residential development: Three months after approving the controversial 33-acre Loeber Farm development, Schaumburg trustees approved a tax incentive extension to fund public improvements. The expansion of the tax increment financing district along Meacham Road aims to cover utilities, a bridge over Salt Creek and flooding solutions. The Loeber Farm has seen various residential proposals in the 21st century. This January, the Elmhurst-based Nitti Group’s plan for 43 single-family homes, 37 row houses, and 42 townhouses was approved. It replaced a withdrawn plan for 357 rental units, which faced strong opposition from Rolling Meadows residents.

* Pioneer Press | Chicago Stars’ Bannockburn site is only for training. So is Evanston’s Ryan Field still in play for games?: Evanston and Wilmette residents who opposed the Chicago Stars playing games at Ryan Field might not yet want to breathe a sigh of relief — even though the Stars recently announced they plan to build a new performance center in Bannockburn. A spokesperson for the club clarified that the planned Bannockburn facility will function solely as a training center and not a stadium where games will be played. The National Women’s Soccer League team has not yet announced where it will seek to play games in 2027 and beyond, and it’s not known whether they might request to use Ryan Field.

*** Downstate ***

* WCIA | Macon Co. farmers no longer worried about drought — too much rain is now the concern: Here’s why: When rain comes down as hard and as fast as it did Monday night, it can pack the soil down, hardening it and making it difficult for the corn to poke through and grow. Eads said that they have to be careful what they wish for, because over the last several months, they were concerned about the drought conditions.

* WSIL | Jackson County clerk weighs new Carbondale ballot drop box: Frank L. Byrd, Clerk and Recorder of Jackson County, Illinois, announced Tuesday that his office is evaluating the potential placement of an additional ballot drop box in Carbondale, Illinois. The move is part of ongoing efforts to ensure voting remains secure, accessible, and efficient for residents. As the county’s Election Authority, Byrd is responsible for determining ballot drop box locations. Carbondale, the county’s largest municipality, serves a diverse and significant population, making accessibility and geographic coverage key considerations in the decision-making process.

*** National ***

* Inside Radio | Ex-FCC Officials Push Court To Break Agency Silence On News Distortion Policy.: A bipartisan coalition of former Federal Communications Commission chairs, commissioners, and senior staff filed a petition last November calling on the FCC to formally rescind its news distortion policy. It has been met with silence in the months that have followed, and now the group is asking a federal appeals court to order the Commission to act on their request. The former FCC officials, along with the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), filed a petition for a writ of mandamus Tuesday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The rarely-used maneuver asks the court to order the Commission to issue a final decision within 90 days. If the court agrees to intervene, it would not only compel the FCC to take a position on the future of the news distortion policy, which the bipartisan coalition believes current Chair Brendan Carr has abused to chill press freedoms.

* AP | Push for raw milk intensifies across the US, despite illness outbreaks and scientists’ warnings: More than three dozen bills supporting raw milk have been introduced in statehouses across the nation, The Associated Press found. A growing number of states are making it legal to sell. Dairy farmers say they can barely keep it in stock, even though prices can exceed $10 or $20 a gallon. Top government officials and internet influencers are helping drive this momentum. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. downed shots of raw milk at the White House last May and previously promised to halt “aggressive suppression” of the product. On social media, posts about raw milk have surged in recent months, often touting unproven claims about its health benefits.

* Tribune | Gregory Bovino finds a new mission in retirement: Trolling DHS: In a April 15 post, the Department of Homeland Security posted the disputed claim that “each illegal immigrant costs the American taxpayer nearly $8,776 every single year” and vowed to put “the American worker FIRST.” Bovino responded: “Then restart mass deportations and quit messing around with it.”

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Pritzker claims today’s US Supreme Court ruling ‘validates’ the current Illinois district maps

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* The ruling is here if you need it. SCOTUSblog…

The Supreme Court on Wednesday, in the case of Louisiana v. Callais, struck down a Louisiana congressional map that a group of voters who describe themselves as “non-African American” had challenged as the product of unconstitutional racial gerrymandering. By a vote of 6-3, the justices left in place a ruling by a federal court that barred the state from using the map, which had created a second majority-Black district, in future elections. Although Wednesday’s ruling did not strike down a key provision of the federal Voting Rights Act, as Louisiana and the challengers had asked the court to do, Justice Elena Kagan suggested in her dissent (which was joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson) that the majority opinion by Justice Samuel Alito had rendered the provision “all but a dead letter.”

The decision was the latest, and presumably final, chapter in a long-running dispute arising from Louisiana’s efforts to adopt a new congressional map in the wake of the 2020 census. The first map that the state adopted, in 2022, had one majority-Black district out of the six allotted to the state. A group of Black voters – who comprise roughly one-third of the state’s population – went to federal court, where they alleged that the map violated Section 2 of the VRA, which prohibits discrimination in voting. […]

In this case, Alito said, Louisiana’s goal in adopting the 2024 map “was racial”: the state enacted it in the wake of the lower court’s finding that the 2022 map likely violated Section 2, and sought to avoid having the court impose a different map that would have created a second majority-Black district but which would also “have imperiled one of the influential incumbents the legislature sought to protect.” […]

In a somber tone, Kagan read a summary of her 48-page dissent from the bench – a signal of her strong disagreement with the majority’s ruling. “The Voting Rights Act,” she wrote “is—or, now more accurately, was—‘one of the most consequential, efficacious, and amply justified exercises of federal legislative power in our Nation’s history.’” But the requirements that the court imposes on Wednesday, she contended, “will effectively insulate any practice, including any districting scheme, said by a State to have any race-neutral justification. That justification can sound in traditional districting criteria, or else can sound in politics and partisanship. As to the latter, the State need do nothing more than announce a partisan gerrymander,” she said. “Assuming the State has left behind no smoking-gun evidence of a race-based motive (an almost fanciful prospect), Section 2 will play no role.”

* Gov. JB Pritzker was asked today about the ruling’s impact on Illinois…

I talked to lawyers this morning, people who are experts in this, who’ve said that everything that we have in Illinois now is constitutional, even under the new ruling. So I’m sure there will be people who try to attack it. But the reality is that if you read through the Supreme Court decision, I’m told that it validates the maps that are already in place.

* I also consulted with an election law attorney who has been involved in redistricting here…

When drawing a legislative map, the General Assembly must adhere to the U.S. Constitution and federal law, in addition to the Illinois Constitution and state law. For at least a decade it has been clear that the 14th and 15th Amendments prohibit using race as a predominant factor in drawing a map. In 2011, Illinois adopted the Illinois Voting Rights Act which urges the creation of crossover districts, coalition districts, or influence districts “in addition and subordinate to any requirements or obligations imposed by the United States Constitution, any federal law regarding redistricting Legislative Districts or Representative Districts, including but not limited to the federal Voting Rights Act, and the Illinois Constitution.” For the last 2 cycles, the General Assembly produced a document publicly explaining how and why districts were drawn, and it was clear that race was not the predominant or only critieria used to draw the maps.

The most recent explanation for how districts are drawn can be read here or here.

* The East St. Louis NAACP tried to overturn the latest remap because map-makers diluted Black voting strength in the 114th House District. A federal court rebuffed the claim…

In the end, East St. Louis NAACP Plaintiffs’ evidence amounts to a claim that “the district’s shape, its splitting of towns and counties, and its high [White] voting population” together with various public statements that legislators were aware of race shows that race predominated the 2021 legislative redistricting cycle. See Cromartie II, 532 U.S. at 243. The Supreme Court’s decisions since Cromartie II tell us that this direct and circumstantial evidence is not enough to support a finding that race predominated over politics where, as here, the record is replete with political and other traditional justifications for the districts that the legislature drew. Accordingly, we reject East St. Louis NAACP Plaintiffs’ racial gerrymandering challenge to HD 114.

Interestingly enough, the incumbent Black House Democratic member went on to lose to a White Republican in 2022. The House Democrats have not yet been able to flip that seat back.

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RETAIL: Strengthening Communities Across Illinois

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

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Retail generates $7.3 billion in income and sales tax revenue each year in Illinois. These funds support public safety, infrastructure, education, and other important programs we all rely on every day. In fact, retail is the second largest revenue generator for the State of Illinois and the largest revenue generator for local governments.

Policies that support small businesses help communities thrive as retailers like Jerri and Lyndon in Macomb are better equipped to meet local needs. We Are Retail and IRMA are showcasing the retailers who make Illinois work. Please visit https://WeAreRetail.IRMA.org/.

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Feds drop felony conspiracy count against remaining ‘Broadview 6′ defendants

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Sun-Times…

Federal prosecutors in Chicago say they will dismiss the controversial conspiracy charge against the remaining four members of the so-called “Broadview Six,” with plans to revise the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney William Hogan shared the news with U.S. District Judge April Perry during a status hearing in the case Wednesday. Hogan said prosecutors plan to file a new charging document, focused on the remaining misdemeanor counts against the defendants who demonstrated last fall against Operation Midway Blitz.

The revelation came during a hearing scheduled by Perry late last week. At the time, she told prosecutors to bring with them unredacted copies of transcripts showing how prosecutors had explained the law in the case to grand jurors.

By dropping the conspiracy count, the feds avoided having to share those transcripts with the judge.

Charged in the case are former congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh, Oak Park village trustee Brian Straw, 45th Ward Democratic committeeperson Michael Rabbitt and Andre Martin, a former member of Abughazaleh’s campaign staff. All four are involved in local Democratic politics. […]

U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros has denied that politics played any role in his office’s charging decisions.

Sure, sure.

* More…

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Never let the facts get in the way of a made-for-TV news attack line

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* From an Illinois House Republican press release earlier this week…

According to the Chicago Police Department, Alphanso Talley has now been charged in the heinous murder of a Chicago police officer and the attempted murder of another officer, along with a long list of additional felony charges.

At the time of this horrific attack, Talley was wanted on three warrants, was on parole in two separate cases, and had a lengthy criminal history dating back to 2017.

Yet earlier this year, Governor JB Pritzker and Speaker Chris Welch praised the SAFE-T Act as sound and effective policy. Now Illinois families are left asking how a repeat violent offender with this record was free to take a police officer’s life and leave another in critical condition.

I asked the HGOP which provision of the SAFE-T Act did he use to get out of jail.

* The Illinois House Republican response is italicized, and a rebuttal from the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice is in bold…

HGOP: The SAFE-T Act begins with the presumption that a person will be released

INPJ: This was true before the law took effect. It’s in the Illinois Constitution and case law. “As our constitution expressly protects the right of a defendant to bail unless certain circumstances exist, the prosecution must have the burden of showing sufficient evidence that a defendant should be denied that constitutional right.” People v. Purcell (201 Ill. 2d 542, 550)

Put simply, the Illinois Supreme Court has said there is a presumption of release in the Illinois constitution, which is why it struck down a previous statute shifting the burden to the accused.

HGOP: A petition for detention requires showing the defendant committed the offense and the dangerousness standard must be proven by clear and convincing evidence

    • Clear and convincing evidence is one of the highest legal burdens
    • This is a new requirement implemented by the SAFE-T Act.

INPJ: There are three burdens of proof. “Clear and convincing” is the middle. This was the standard under the old system. See (c)(2) on page 2 of the attached document with the old statute. “The facts relied upon by the court to support a finding that the defendant poses a real and present threat to the physical safety of any person or persons shall be supported by clear and convincing evidence presented by the State.”

HGOP: While EM is not newly implemented in the SAFE-T Act, it is listed in the SAFE-T Act as a condition of pre-trial release if no less restrictive condition of release or combination of less restrictive condition of release would reasonably ensure the appearance of the defendant for later hearings or protect an identifiable person or persons from imminent threat of serious physical harm

INPJ: The SAFE-T Act does not require judges to release anyone on electronic monitoring.

Long before the SAFE-T Act, electronic monitoring has been available as an alternative form of incarceration for defendants who judges believe can safely return to the community while awaiting trial with supervision. Electronic monitoring has been found to replicate many of the harms of pretrial jailing in a brick and mortar jail including the loss of employment, housing and community connections. The parameters of electronic monitoring are so serious that even prior to the SAFE-T Act, the legislature permitted the courts to give credit for time in custody for people subjected to electronic monitoring.


HGOP: Even if an offense is eligible for detention, the presumption of release and burden of proof in the hearing work in the defendant’s favor to tip the scales toward release with limited or no conditions. Arguably, based on Talley’s extensive criminal history – releasing him on pretrial release does nothing to protect the community.

INPJ: Again, the presumption of release is in the Illinois Constitution and was well established prior to the passage of the Pretrial Fairness Act.

The reality is that this is one case and one decision, which reporters have already revealed to be based on a variety of unique factors specific to this individual case. The attempts to make this one decision and case representative of the entire law is simply dishonest.

Cook County judges are not struggling to detain people they believe to be a danger to others.

    • The number of people incarcerated in Cook County Jail has increased by nearly 500 people since the Pretrial Fairness Act went into effect.
    • In the spring of 2025, the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice organized community members to observe more than 400 detention hearings in Cook County. Of the 30.5% of the people with low risk assessment scores that signal a judge should release the person with limited conditions, 80.4% of these people were either jailed or placed on electronic monitoring.
    • All of this has occurred even while the city of Chicago has seen a dramatic decrease in robberies, shootings, and murders and numbers are similarly low across the state.

      o According to police data East Saint Louis experienced a significant decline in homicides over recent years. In 2019, the city recorded 36 murders. By 2025, that number dropped to 15 – the fewest homicides in 45 years. Nonfatal shootings likewise precipitously declined, from 127 in 2020 to 50 in 2025.
      o In 2025, Peoria experienced a 61% decrease in homicides.
      o In Elgin, crime decreased by 8% and a 63% decrease in gunfire incidents.

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Roundup: Illinois Accountability Commission to urge charges over federal agent misconduct

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* The Illinois Accountability Commission…

The Illinois Accountability Commission, housed in the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR), today held its fifth public hearing to reveal further findings from the investigations on the misconduct of federal agents during Operation Midway Blitz, including the names of various rogue Border Patrol agents the administration protected by offering preemptive immunity.

“In my 25 years as a federal judge, I have never seen the type of brutality shown by the agents involved in Midway Blitz. It has been unprecedented,” said Chair Ruben Castillo. “The brutal conduct examined in these hearings does not reflect isolated incidents. It reflects a pattern that, across locations and operational contexts, is consistent in structure and effect. But the record documented today goes further. It addresses how that pattern was enabled by directives issued from the top.”

“Today, we turn to what made Operation Midway Blitz possible—immunity,” said Vice-Chair Patricia Brown Holmes. “Federal officials did not just tolerate lawlessness. They encouraged it. They shielded it. And they made a grand bargain with the agents: deliver arrests, occupy the city through fear, and we will protect you.”

During the hearing, lead investigators presented evidence and testimony that illustrated how the Trump Administration encouraged lawlessness. They outlined how the federal government deployed hundreds of masked and heavily armed agents from Border Patrol units known for their aggressive behavior. These agents violated federal court orders by making warrantless arrests without justification, fired off chemical weapons against entire neighborhoods, and covered up their misconduct by lying in reports. Agents identified for lawless behavior include:

    • East Side Investigation – Border Patrol Agents Benito Nuñez, Carlos Chavira, and Jesus Guillen chased two men in a rental car without sirens in a residential area. A section chief ordered them to stop, and a field supervisor relayed that order multiple times. The agents said “no” and kept driving and turned on their body cameras after the pursuit was underway. The Chicago Police Department (CPD) also asked the agents not to deploy tear gas. The agents had already planned the gassing, and they followed through by gassing residents, journalists, and the very CPD officers who asked them to stop.

    • Brighton Park Investigation: Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum, crashed into Marimar Martinez’s vehicle, and shot her five times without justification. The commission featured an anonymous eyewitness account from a person who saw Agent Exum shoot Ms. Martinez and corroborated Ms. Martinez’s account. The anonymous witness was invited to speak today, but through her attorney, she declined. Her attorney explained that she is afraid of reprisals and retaliation for speaking out. Through their investigation, the Commission also found that:

    o Evidence was deliberately tampered with and destroyed
    o Federal agents produced materially inaccurate official reports
    o Chemical agents were deployed indiscriminately against a residential neighborhood without warning
    o DHS leadership failed to ensure accountability at every level

    • Repeat Offender: Yesterday, Evanston witness Jennifer Moriarty shared how Border Patrol Agent Timothy Donahue pulled his gun on civilians, dangerously brake checked vehicles, and denied medical care to a man with serious injuries. The body-worn camera footage the Commission reviewed also showed Agent Donahue at the scene of the most violent and chaotic episodes of Operation Midway Blitz, including in Brighton Park, Broadview, Albany Park, Little Village, and other neighborhoods. […]

A comprehensive report will be issued to the Governor and the People of Illinois on Thursday, April 30, 2026. This report will contain specific findings, referrals, and recommendations.

* Sun-Times…

Judge Rubén Castillo, chair of the Illinois Accountability Commission, made the call to action during his closing remarks at the commission’s final hearing Tuesday. The commission was tasked with scrutinizing the tactics used last fall during President Donald Trump’s deportation campaign.

A final report from the panel is scheduled to publish Thursday and will include specific recommendations for local and state officials, Castillo said.

“Our report is going to make very specific and detailed recommendations aimed at strengthening accountability and preventing the reoccurrence of the community devastation that has occurred in Illinois and in other communities such as Minneapolis,” Castillo said. “This report needs to be evaluated by other states and by public officials in this state who can take appropriate action, starting with the Cook County State’s Attorney, who will be referred cases for criminal prosecution.”

Castillo, a former U.S. district chief judge, is among the coalition calling for a special prosecutor to investigate federal agents.

* Tribune…

[Marimar Martinez, the 31-year-old who was shot five times by a U.S. Border Patrol agent in October,] testified at the final hearing of the Illinois Accountability Commission, which examined the Trump administration’s sweeping immigration enforcement operation this past fall. Tuesday’s session focused on what commissioners and attorneys described as a lack of consequences for federal immigration agents’ misconduct.

“Federal officials did not just tolerate lawlessness. They encouraged it. They shielded it. And they made a grand bargain with the agents: deliver arrests, occupy the city through fear, and we will protect you, even if you violate the Constitution,” said commission Vice Chair Patricia Brown Holmes.

Martinez, a U.S. citizen and teaching aide at a Montessori school, was shot by Border Patrol Agent Charles Exum on Oct. 4 after a traffic crash on the 3900 block of South Kedzie Avenue.

Federal prosecutors initially charged Martinez but later dropped the accusations. Investigative material made public after the shooting revealed that Exum joked and bragged about the shooting in a text chat with colleagues, was called a “legend” by a fellow agent and received praise directly from his supervisor, Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino.

* WTTW…

Included in the evidence presented Tuesday was never-before-heard testimony from an anonymous eyewitness to Martinez’s shooting who backed up her accounting of the incident.

That witness, a woman whose testimony was heard only through snippets presented by the commission, said Exum fired at Martinez without provocation and that the federal agents on scene never appeared to be under any sort of attack. […]

After the shooting, the anonymous witness said Chicago police officers warned her and others to “be careful” because they had no idea what the agents were capable of.

“You could see the frustration … that there was this group of military personnel that came and just disrupted our Saturday,” the witness said. “It was insane.”

* Capitol News Illinois…

The commission also heard testimony about the importance of free and fair elections, featuring testimony from former Illinois House Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs.

Durkin, a longtime Republican who described himself as pro-law enforcement, told the commission that Operation Midway Blitz was “the furthest thing” from our nation’s finest hour.

Now, he says, the Trump administration is threatening the sanctity of free and fair elections by floating the possibility that federal immigration agents could be at polling sites this November.

“This form of voter suppression isn’t new in Illinois,” Durkin said. “This trick is what has been used in Chicago for many years in elections: place menacing people in front of precincts, cause a disturbance, scare voters away. That’s a form of voter suppression.”

* More…

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Healthcare Workforce Shortages And Rising Costs Strain Hospitals – Pass HB 2371 SA 2

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

As demand for healthcare rises with an aging population, a strong workforce and financially viable hospitals are essential to meeting today’s patient needs—and their expectations well into the future. Hospitals confronting financial pressures that strain operating budgets are also challenged by significant workforce shortages among nurses and physicians.

Over half of Illinois’ nurses are over age 55 and over a quarter of those nurses plan to retire within five years. Our state currently needs 15,000 more nurses working in healthcare, a shortage the American Nursing Association in Illinois has called a crisis. With one-third of Illinois physicians within retirement age, a shortage of 6,200 physicians is expected in the state by 2030. Just over 1,000 of those physicians are needed in primary care.

Unprecedented federal funding cuts to the Medicaid program will strip Illinois hospitals of $57 billion over 10 years. Over that same decade, hospitals must put more resources towards training and hiring needed clinicians and keeping up with the rising cost of supplies and drugs. Illinois hospitals caring for low-income and uninsured patients can’t afford to keep losing out on federal 340B drug discounts.

Support your local hospital by restoring the 340B program in Illinois. Pass House Bill 2371 SA 2 this spring. Learn more.

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It’s just a bill

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Crain’s…

Business groups are worried that legislation to allow striking workers to collect unemployment benefits could prolong labor disputes.

The bill now under consideration in the Illinois House of Representatives would allow workers to begin receiving unemployment benefits after two weeks on the picket line. Currently, striking workers are ineligible to receive unemployment benefits. […]

“This is top of mind at the executive level at companies,” says Mark Denzler, CEO of the Illinois Manufacturers Association. “This will incentivize further strikes and lengthen the time workers are on strike. If the law passes, companies with large unionized workforces will factor it into whether they expand here or not.”

The National Federation of Independent Business told legislators that nine out of 10 of its Illinois members said in a recent survey they opposed giving unemployment to striking workers.

The House bill passed out of committee 18-7 but has not been called for a floor vote, nor has it been taken up in the Illinois Senate.

* WAND…

The Illinois Senate Criminal Law Committee unanimously passed a bill Tuesday to ensure people in the Department of Corrections are not charged unreasonable fees for sending mail. […]

“Basically, we’re just codifying into law the current practice of IDOC, which is just to charge the market rate of a stamp,” said Rep. Rita Mayfield (D-Waukegan). “So if a stamp is 25 cents on the outside, it’s 25 cents on the inside.” […]

The Department of Corrections would be banned from generating revenue from communication between families and loved ones. This plan could also require annual reporting on rates paid for mail and how the department spends the money.

House Bill 4235 now heads to the Senate floor for further consideration. The measure passed unanimously out of the House earlier this month.

* Press release…

Senate Deputy Minority Leader Sue Rezin (R-Morris) and State Senator Erica Harriss (R-Glen Carbon) recently unveiled a legislative package aimed at strengthening protections for children online by addressing social media harms, sexual exploitation, and minors’ access to adult content.

The legislative package is designed to put stronger safeguards in place for children in the digital space by restricting harmful online access, increasing accountability for tech companies, and improving social media algorithms. […]

Among the proposals included in the package is Senate Bill 4046, sponsored by Sen. Rezin, to restrict social media access for children under the age of 16 by requiring platforms to implement age assurance measures. The proposal is intended to address growing concerns about the harmful effects social media can have on children’s mental health, development, and overall well-being.

Sen. Rezin is also sponsoring legislation focused on improving how social media platforms operate. Senate Bill 3454, the Better Social Media Feeds Act, would require companies to disclose how their algorithms recommend content, including the data inputs used to shape what users see. The bill also directs platforms to prioritize long-term user well-being over engagement-driven design and gives users more control over their content preferences. The measure is intended to increase transparency and reduce exposure to harmful content.

The legislative package also includes the Age-Appropriate Design Code Act, Senate Bill 3241, which is sponsored by Sen. Rezin, requiring companies that collect children’s personal data in Illinois to prioritize the best interests of minors over commercial gain. The bill would establish stronger privacy protections by default, limit data collection, and restrict profiling and targeted advertising aimed at children. It would also require businesses to conduct data protection impact assessments and provide them to the Attorney General upon request. Violations could result in civil penalties of up to $7,500 per affected child. […]

As part of the package, Harriss is sponsoring the Adult Content Age Verification Act, Senate Bill 3945, to require websites containing adult content to verify that users are at least 18 years old through government-issued identification or other approved methods. Companies that fail to comply could face fines of up to $5,000 per day, with penalties directed to support child cybercrime investigations.

* SB3161, which would ban the use and sale of the pesticide paraquat dichloride, has a subject matter hearing scheduled for tomorrow. The Michael J. Fox Foundation…

We’re seeking a statewide ban on paraquat (SB 3161), a herbicide that multiple peer-reviewed studies link to increased Parkinson’s disease risk, particularly with repeated occupational exposure in agricultural settings (here and here). One study showed that paraquat users were 2.5 times more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease, with the association still holding after adjustment for other pesticides (here). The scientific evidence is so compelling that paraquat is routinely used to induce Parkinson’s-like pathology in laboratory animals for the express purpose of studying new drugs and therapies for this devastating disease (here).

Paraquat is already banned in 70+ countries, including the EU, China, Brazil, and Canada. It’s also a troubling dynamic that China prohibits paraquat domestically due to health concerns, yet a Chinese-owned company (Syngenta) manufactured and sold it to American farmers for years. Syngenta halted production in early 2026 amid growing lawsuits from Parkinson’s patients (here), but paraquat manufacturing continues in China for other distributors

Addressing Common Objections: Opposition to banning paraquat typically centers on four arguments: cost, effectiveness, lack of research, and claims that personal protective equipment (PPE) provides adequate safety. Each argument fails under scrutiny.

1. Cost Concerns Are Overstated. Burndown herbicide costs represent a small fraction of total production expenses. Total soybean production costs in Illinois averaged $863-$931 per acre in 2024, with herbicides comprising only a portion of total chemical expenditure (here). A comprehensive weed control program runs at least $50 per acre in product costs alone, making a few dollars difference in burndown applications unlikely to materially impact farm economics, especially when weighed against potential market access risks (see below).
Personally, I’ll also just add: if they think using alternatives will hurt their financial position, they should try having Parkinson’s. It’s no picnic physically or financially.

2. Agricultural Productivity Remains Unaffected A rigorous 2023 peer-reviewed study analyzed mean annual yields for paraquat-dependent crops across five countries, examining the six to seven years before and after their respective bans (here). The research found no negative impact on agricultural productivity for any crops studied. Brazil, which banned paraquat, actually outproduces the United States in soybeans—the very crop for which American farmers claim paraquat is essential.

3. The Research Isn’t There: This claim is so thoroughly disproven, it’s almost not worth addressing, but here we are! When opponents say ‘the research isn’t there,’ they are essentially asking for studies that show direct causation. To prove direct causation we would have to intentionally expose human beings to paraquat via randomized controlled studies. This would be wildly unethical, not to mention that research already shows a strong correlation (see above, but there are many, many more). In fact, one of the nation’s top scientists called it “overwhelming” (see ABC video above).

4. PPE Provides False Security The notion that protective equipment adequately safeguards against paraquat exposure is thoroughly debunked by scientific evidence. The UCLA-led Parkinson Environment Gene (PEG) study found that agricultural workers who reported using PPE, particularly gloves, actually faced higher rates of Parkinson’s disease (here). This suggests that standard protective equipment fails to prevent exposure to this uniquely toxic chemical. Moreover, paraquat’s propensity for drift makes PPE irrelevant for broadering communities. Multiple studies demonstrate that people living within 500 meters of paraquat application sites face significantly elevated Parkinson’s disease risk (here).

The University of Illinois Farm Policy News reported that the EU is exploring tighter restrictions on imports produced with pesticides banned in the EU, specifically citing paraquat as an example (see here). If the EU follows through, market access could matter more than modest per-acre cost differences. For background, the EU is one of the top U.S. soybean export markets (often among the top three), and Illinois is one of the country’s biggest soybean producers (see here). Further, 60 percent of the soybeans grown in Illinois are exported to international markets (see here). And, this is just soybeans! Corn is another major export to the EU, where Illinois plays an important role.

* Chalkbeat Chicago…

A bill limiting cell phone use floundered last year despite winning unanimous approval in the state Senate. But an amended version this spring passed the House and appears headed for Senate backing.

The bill would ban cell phone use in elementary and middle schools throughout the school day but give districts the option of restricting high school use only during instruction time. It also aims to address concerns about overly punitive or uneven discipline for students and about the access some students — such as those with certain disabilities or medical conditions — need to their phones throughout the day. […]

The Illinois Senate will likely take up the bill later in May — and Michelle Mussman, its sponsor in the House, feels good about its odds of passage. So does the Senate sponsor, Cristina Castro, who notes that similar proposals have drawn bipartisan backing across the country.

“I feel we are in a good place to finally send this bill to the governor,” she said. […]

The Illinois Federation of Teachers has said the cell phone bill imposes another “unfunded mandate,” noting that the Peoria school district spent almost $250,000 on pouches to store cell phones during the school day. The union says that only adds to other obligations the state places on districts without providing full funding for them, such as providing transportation for students with disabilities. Leaving cell phones at home is not an option for some students, including those from immigrant families terrified of stepped-up immigration enforcement near schools, a union spokesman said.

* WAND…

The Illinois Senate could pass a bill in the final month of session to help homeless students find housing.

This plan would allow school districts to provide an extended an extended motel stay for students and their parent, guardian or person who enrolled them in school. […]

“Right now, our schools can help with rent, mortgage payments and help cover some utility bills,” said Sen. Karina Villa (D-West Chicago). “But they can’t step in with short-term help like paying for motel rooms when the family is in crisis and they need a safe place to stay.”

House Bill 4137 passed out of the Senate Education Committee Tuesday on an 11-2 vote. The proposal now moves to the Senate floor for further consideration.

* Sen. Paul Faraci…

A measure backed by State Senator Paul Faraci that aims to provide ongoing, accessible railroad safety education to students in Illinois’ public schools passed the Senate Education Committee. […]

House Bill 3743 would require all K-12 public schools to include railroad safety information in their student handbooks. A school would be able to opt out of this requirement if the school board determines that railroad safety is covered in the school’s curriculum.

According to the Illinois Commerce Commission, highway-rail crash statistics for 2025 indicate that Illinois had 134 collisions between trains and motor vehicles or pedestrians at highway-rail crossings. Thirty-four people were killed and 27 seriously injured. Illinois has 7,300 miles of track with 7,482 public highway-rail crossings and 3,280 private highway-rail crossings. Nationally this puts Illinois second in both categories, with only Texas having more rail crossings than Illinois.

House Bill 3743 passed the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday.

* More…

    * WCIA | Illinois bill aims to protect homeowners from ‘storm chaser’ contractors: State Senator Michael E. Hastings (D-Frankfort) said Senate Bill 3029 would prevent contractors from offering home repair or remodeling services while severe weather or natural disasters are actively occurring, while emergency crews are responding, or between 7 p.m. and 8 a.m. Hastings also said that for at least 72 hours after a disaster proclamation is issued, contractors would not be allowed to solicit a contract with a consumer in person for home repair or remodeling services.

    * Press release | Glowiak Hilton prioritizes railroad safety for students: “Student safety has to be at the forefront of our priorities,” said Glowiak Hilton (D-Western Springs). “Our residents have expressed concern about schools near railroads and ensuring students understand the protocols in place to keep them safe.” House Bill 3743 would require all K-12 public schools to include railroad safety information in its student handbook. A school may opt out of this requirement if the school board determines that railroad safety is covered in the school’s curriculum.

    * WGLT | Statewide housing legislation could have a big effect in Bloomington-Normal: It’s worse than that in Bloomington-Normal, close to 80%, according to realtors. There’s a cost to that too. Brandon Shaffer, deputy managing director of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services in Bloomington, said he understands the concerns of people who do not want multifamily housing in their backyard but noted they do want income for the community. “Economically, the community has lost as a whole concerning this. …Bloomington, in the last five years, has lost $66 million in real estate development with the inability to do it,” said Shaffer.

  15 Comments      


Built For Illinois. Built With Transparency.

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Advertising Department

[The following is a paid advertisement.]

Public safety technology only works when communities trust it. That’s why Flock Safety built privacy and transparency into every layer of our system from the beginning of the design cycle — not as an afterthought. In Illinois, that means:

    • Your data belongs to you. 100% community-owned, never sold to third parties.
    • Only local law enforcement decides who can access data. Flock never shares without explicit permission.
    • Compliant with Illinois law. Sharing data with out of state agencies is regulated.
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    • Flock Safety is trusted by hundreds of Illinois law enforcement agencies — from Crystal Lake to Champaign — because we believe safety and privacy have to coexist. Not someday. Now.

See how we’re building trust in Illinois.

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Isabel’s morning briefing

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Subscribers know more. ICYMI: Illinois Senate slows down rush to pass Bears stadium bill. WGN…

    - The Illinois Senate’s lead sponsor of the Bears megaproject legislation said Tuesday the upper chamber is in no rush to pass the bill that cleared the House last week. “We’re going to take our time with this,” said Sen. Bill Cunningham.
    - Yesterday, Gov. Pritzker again called for a quick resolution on the bill saying the state has to be “competitive. We want to make sure that the Bears see Illinois as the best alternative for them and that they have something that they can make a decision about that’s in front of them.”
    - Sen. Cunningham said he’s hopeful the Senate can act before the end of the May 31 spring session.

* Related stories…

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For decades, Illinois has underfunded safety-net hospitals, the lifelines for Black and Brown communities. Now, the “Safety-Net Moonshot” and the Medicaid-defunding legislation it has spawned, threatens deeper cuts to these critical health providers. Any reduction inspired by the “Moonshot” would be a killshot to the care our most vulnerable residents rely on.

Weakening safety-net hospitals won’t improve care. It will slash essential services, eliminate jobs, and push entire communities into healthcare deserts and economic instability.

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* At 10:30 am, Gov. JB Pritzker will announce a new business deal and innovative workforce development initiative during National Apprenticeship week. Click here to watch.

* BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | Gov. JB Pritzker pushes Illinois watchdog to speed up investigation into Rep. Harry Benton: At an unrelated event on Tuesday, Pritzker said he “would like the LIG to work faster” in the Benton case. “This thing has been going on for months now. We should already have had some kind of report to the leadership, and there should already have been some action,” the governor said. “That should happen truly soon … so that we know how, I think the voters want to know how to proceed. I think that the legislature wants to know how to proceed. And obviously, you know, someone who’s been accused, you know, deserves due process, but I think this is taking longer than anybody expected.”

* Sun-Times | Cuts to SNAP food assistance starting this week worry grocers, local vendors: “When we talk about what has happened because of the decrease in SNAP benefits, we also understand that there’s a ripple effect that will happen, not just to the big [stores] but to the little guy,” Winston said on Monday. “The little guy is the one who’s fighting for community. The little guy is the one who stays here no matter what the margins are.” Illinois officials have estimated that about 150,000 individuals will lose benefits starting in May, unless they successfully apply for an exemption or show proof of volunteering or working 80 hours per month. The expanded work rules, which now include 55- to 64-year-olds along with parents whose youngest child is 14 years or older, went into effect in February and stem from President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax bill that passed last year.

* Tribune | Illinois farmers hope Supreme Court protects state safeguards in Roundup cancer case: In Illinois — the nation’s leading soybean producer and a top corn producer — glyphosate is heavily used to boost crop yields. But critics say widespread reliance comes with health and environmental risks, as long-term exposure has been linked to cancer and other chronic diseases. “All of the stuff I sprayed, a lot of it’s carcinogenic, and I probably breathed some of that in,” Wilken said. “It was a risk I took. But as an organic farmer now, I wish that I would have gotten wise to this earlier.” […] Illinois joined 18 states defending consumers’ ability to file lawsuits in state courts against pesticide manufacturers for not including warning labels on products. Fifteen other states, including Iowa and Missouri, filed a brief emphasizing the importance of preserving access to affordable glyphosate.

*** Statehouse News ***

* NBC | Video: Comey indictment shows Trump is ‘weaponizing’ DOJ against his ‘political enemies’: Gov. Pritzker: Governor JB Pritzker (D-Ill.) joins Meet the Press NOW to react to the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey. Pritzker also discusses the recently formed commission in Illinois to investigate last year’s federal immigration crackdown in Chicago.

* WTTW | Illinois Lawmakers Discuss Budget, Policy Before End of Spring Session: State Reps. Tony McCombie (R-Savanna) and Kam Buckner (D-Chicago) joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss ongoing budget and policy negotiations. […] McCombie: “To be a ‘maintenance budget’ it would be a flat budget, and this had $728 million in proposed increases. … You can’t keep doing this every year as you’re the governor and not expect increased spending.” Buckner: “I’ve heard many of my colleagues say this is a ballooning budget, but the truth is a balloon floats away when it has no anchor. … (This budget is) anchored in schools, anchored in healthcare, anchored in pensions, public safety, human services.”

* TIME | JB Pritzker May Be Running for More Than Governor: As she prepared to march in the St. Patrick’s Day parade, MK Pritzker, the governor’s wife, considered what she thought of her husband’s running for a third term. Her shoulders sank. “‘Oh jeez.’ That was my response,” she says. “If the national landscape was a little bit different, maybe he wouldn’t have run, but he’s in a strong position to continue the fight.” Those close to Pritzker say his decision on whether to run for President will hinge on conversations with his wife and two college-age children. The governor insists he is undecided. There’s “not some plan of what’s going to happen in the future,” he says.

*** Chicago ***

* ABC Chicago | Chicago Mayor Johnson answers wide range of questions as part of ABC7 town hall: The mayor expressed disappointment that the Illinois House declined to take up the so-called millionaires tax that Johnson had supported. “I’m going to continue to work with the speaker of the House. I’m glad that I have his support and many members of the General Assembly to ensure that whether it’s a millionaires tax, whether it’s, you know, a digital ad tax, whether it’s a progressive income tax, we cannot continue to balance budgets off the backs of working people,” Johnson said.

* WGN | What court transcript shows about hearing that released alleged cop killer in previous case: The judge noted prosecutors’ objections to releasing Talley on electronic monitoring and their concern that the community’s safety couldn’t be guaranteed if he was released. A prosecutor told the judge the charges Talley was facing in that case were detainable under the Pre-Trial Fairness Act. “The mere fact that he has four pending cases is egregious in and of itself, and it may in certain instances shock the conscious,” Lyke said during the hearing, while also noting Talley has been in trouble with the law since he was roughly 12 years old.

* Sun-Times | White Sox loving Munetaka Murakami’s home-run bonanza, but they’re striving for balance on offense: But to stay close in the bunched-up American League Central, the Sox likely will need to diversify an offense that has generated more than half its runs via the long ball early in the season, according to Baseball Prospectus. The Sox have 38 homers (tied for seventh in the majors) and 126 runs scored (19th). Manager Will Venable said the Sox are proving that when they’re executing, they can score however they need to. In modern baseball, that includes a healthy dose of dingers.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Southtown | BEDS Plus withdraws proposal for apartments for chronically homeless people in Alsip: Opposition for the proposal expressed during a public hearing last month at the Alsip-Merrionette Park Library led the southwest suburban nonprofit focused on housing and supporting chronically homeless people to reconsider its plans to purchase and construct two 3-story apartment buildings at 12147 S. Cicero Ave, BEDS Plus Executive Director Tina Rounds said. “What’s the point of a public process if you don’t listen to people?” Rounds said Tuesday. While Rounds said she thinks the organization adequately addressed concerns raised about how the supportive housing facility would operate, she said she wanted to incorporate residents’ feedback on parking and housing density. She said zoning plans included fewer than two parking spaces per unit, as chronically homeless people often don’t own their own vehicles.

* Sun-Times | Ex-Park City police officer charged with assaulting woman during traffic stops: The department was notified of the allegations in late January that he “had acted unprofessionally and possibly engaged in criminal conduct while on duty on more than one occasion” over several weeks with a woman during traffic stops, according to the statement. The Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board waived him from training to be reactivated as an officer in September.

* Daily Herald | Judson University faces backlash over ‘Democracy Award’ to sanctioned Bosnian leader: On Thursday, the private Baptist university in Elgin plans to give Milorad Dodik its first “Leadership and Standing Up for Democracy Award” during a World Leaders Forum event. But Jedna BiH Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based organization of expatriates dedicated to preserving the unity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is asking Judson to rescind the award and cancel the event. The group says Dodik was charged with violating a law that prohibits denying the July 1995 Srebrenica genocide, in which about 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys were killed when a United Nations-designated safe zone was overtaken by Bosnian Serbs during a civil war.

* Daily Herald | ‘Still loyal to you, Elgin High:’ Chicago mayor named to school’s Hall of Fame: “The last time a principal talked so long about me, I was about to get suspended,” he joked after EHS Principal Avelira Rodriguez-Gonzalez introduced him. Rodriguez-Gonzalez said it was important for today’s students, especially those of color, to know that one of them grew up to become a significant leader. It will inspire them, she said. “His journey from student to public servant and leader of one of the nation’s great cities is a testament to perseverance, purpose, and the power of public education. It shows that the path from Elgin High School can lead anywhere, even to the highest levels of leadership,” she said.

* Daily Herald | Story of resilience continues with annual return of piping plover to Waukegan: Last year, Pepper and his mate, Blaze, who winters about 750 miles away near Wilmington, North Carolina, arrived separately May 6 within a few feet of their 2025 nesting spot. Semel, Carolyn Lueck, president of the Lake County Audubon Society, and volunteers with Sharing Our Shore — Waukegan are on alert with fingers crossed waiting for Blaze. They’re also on the lookout for two male and two female piping plovers nurtured in captivity and released last summer.

* Naperville Sun | Naperville robotics teams compete this week at FIRST World Championship: “The last three to four years have been a real turning point for the team,” said Brian Bellot, coach for the Roaring Robotics, noting that the team has worked on developing a “can-do attitude.” Twenty-seven students from 14 different school districts make up the team. Founded in 1989, FIRST is an international organization that aims to inspire students to develop an interest in technology and engineering and prepare them for a career in those fields. FIRST runs a number of engineering competition leagues, including the FIRST Robotics Competition, which is the program in which both the Huskie Robotics and the Roaring Robotics compete. The FIRST Robotics Competition is one of the largest youth contests of its kind, with the championship bringing together about 600 teams from around the world.

*** Downstate ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Striking Illinois State University staff frustrated over lack of negotiations: A group of striking workers traveled to the Capitol in Springfield Tuesday to call attention to their strike, which has become an issue in the governor’s race. “Without us, I know they’re not getting the quality of cleaning they deserve,” building service worker Sue Perry told reporters at a news conference in Springfield. Little progress has been made in negotiations since January, according to Renee Nestler, AFSCME’s staff representative. That’s when the university put forward its latest offer, which it also says is its final offer.

* WICS | Douglas County to lose only behavioral health provider: “For lots of years we’ve navigated raising operational costs, workforce shortage, its been really difficult to fund our services, fund our staff and hire staff who want to work in rural communities. Reimbursement rates haven’t kept up with the true cost of care,” said Lauren Christina, RISE Behavioral Health Executive Director. […] RISE serves about 350 clients, seeing roughly 35 people a day, ranging from young children to seniors. As the closure approaches, staff are working one-on-one with each client to ensure continuity of care and prevent anyone from falling through the cracks.

* IPM | Springfield FBI starts sweep in Danville, says it is not immigration-related: The arrival of federal agents in Champaign this weekend fueled fears of a major immigration crackdown. The Springfield FBI clarified Monday that there are agents in town, along with federal drug and law enforcement agencies, and that they are not doing immigration enforcement.

* NPR Illinois | Ribbon cutting for SCHEELS Sports Park in Springfield: Spanning over 70 acres with eight outdoor fields and the largest air-supported sports dome in the world, the facility on Springfield’s south side, at Legacy Pointe near Interstate 72, can play host to both local teams and travel clubs. “Over the past six months, we’ve had over 55 different events, hosting over 40,000 athletes from 38 states and two separate countries,” said Brandon Doherty, the general manager of the site. Local colleges, Special Olympics, local recreational clubs and others have also played at the park. Participants have competed in baseball, softball, soccer, gymnastics, archery and more.

* KHQA | Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois’ Quincy office closes it’s doors, moving all of their employees fully remote: The company tells us they’re quote “consolidating their physical footprint” after continuously evaluating their workforce and business operations, and ensuring they’re effective and productive as they meet the challenges of an evolving health care industry.

* WGLT | Illinois State Athletics discontinues men’s tennis, effective immediately: The announcement came after the team’s season ended April 24 at the Summit League Championships. The team finished the 2026 season with a 9-14 record and exited in the semifinals for the third consecutive year. Because the program will end in the spring semester, current student-athletes will have an opportunity to consider the transfer portal, which opens May 4. Five of the eight roster members are seniors.

*** National ***

* Crain’s | Rivian is challenging franchise laws. Here’s what it means for EV direct sales: Electric vehicle makers are escalating their fight to sell directly to U.S. consumers, using ballot threats and new legal strategies to challenge dealer franchise laws. Rivian, saying it believes the public is on its side, won a dealer license in Washington state in March after its threat to fund a ballot initiative sparked a legislative compromise with dealers. It’s also pursuing direct sales in other states’ courts.

* NPR | Supreme Court weighs Trump’s effort to end temporary protected status for Haitians, Syrians: President Trump could move forward with mass deportations of people who have been living legally in the U.S., many of them for more than a decade, if he prevails in two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday. At issue is the temporary protected status program, which permits eligible individuals to live and work in the United States if they cannot return to their home countries because of natural disasters, armed conflicts and other “extraordinary or temporary conditions.” Congress enacted the TPS program in 1990 to establish criteria for selecting, processing and registering people fleeing such turmoil.

  19 Comments      


Good morning!

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

* I am in dire need of a warm-weather music festival…

Wellness check! How are you?

  2 Comments      


Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today’s edition

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today’s edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Selected press releases (Live updates)

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

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Live coverage

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2026 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Click here and/or here to follow breaking news on the website formally known as Twitter. Our Bluesky feed…

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