* Governor JB Pritzker put out a statement late last night on Trump’s tariff plan…

“Trump’s Tax on Working Families will have a devastating impact on Illinois’ manufacturing and agriculture sectors and will hurt hardworking Illinoisans at the grocery store checkout, on their utility bills, and at the gas pump. I have spent the past few weeks talking with farmers, manufacturers, and even breweries who have been preparing to reduce production and raise prices – actions that may have ripple effects for supply chains in Illinois and across the country. 
 
“Donald Trump swore to bring down costs on Day One. Instead, he’s taxing working families while embarrassing America on the world stage. I will be staying in close contact with representatives from Canada and Mexico to emphasize Illinois’ commitment to an ongoing trade partnership, and I will not stop fighting to ensure Illinoisans get a fair deal for our economy and our families.”
 
Governor Pritzker has repeatedly spoken out against the planned tariff increases. Last month, he met with Illinois agricultural leaders to identify how Trump’s Tax on Working Families will impact the Illinois beef, corn, pork, and soybean industries. Illinois is the nation’s third largest exporter of agricultural products and relies on these industries for employment and economic stability.
 
Trade is an anchor of the Illinois economy with state trade exports supporting 800,000 jobs across the state. Illinois’s top trading partners are Canada and Mexico, so Governor Pritzker has also held conversations with the Consul General of Mexico in Chicago and the Canadian Ambassador to the U.S. to affirm his commitment to maintaining a positive trade relationship with both countries.
 
Under Governor Pritzker’s leadership, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) has supported more than 1,600 company trade missions to grow export sales – creating nearly 3,000 new jobs and retaining 9,000 jobs. For every $1 the State of Illinois has invested in its trade and export program, company sales generate a $253 return on investment.
 
More information about Illinois’ trade with other countries can be found here.

* NBC Chicago…

Canada is one of Illinois’ biggest sources of oil and gas products, with more than $47 billion worth of those products imported each year, according to state data.

The imposition of tariffs could cause gas prices to rise, and could also impact heating bills.

Illinois’ primary import from Mexico are alcohol and tobacco products, with the state bringing in nearly $6 billion worth of those products each year.

Homeowners could also be hit hard with increased costs for electrical equipment and appliances, with the state importing nearly $2 billion worth of those products form Mexico each year.

* Illinois Farm Bureau President Brian Duncan…

“Illinois Farm Bureau urges President Trump to honor the USMCA, which was successfully negotiated during his last term, and to find other methods to combat illegal drugs and secure our border. We remain deeply concerned with the use of tariffs and their potential to spark retaliation on America’s farmers. Illinois farmers’ products – from grains and feed, corn, soybeans, ethanol, beef, pork, and more – rely on access to foreign markets and will undoubtedly be impacted by these new tariffs either through increased prices or decreased market access. This uncertainty coupled with an already struggling farm economy has farmers worried as we head into planting season.”

Illinois is the third largest exporter of agricultural commodities in the U.S. Total exports from Illinois in 2023 were estimated at $81 billion, of which $13.7 billion was attributed to agriculture.

According to the USDA Global Agricultural Trade System (GATS), in 2024 Illinois accounted for over $12.4 billion of agricultural product exports, including $3.6 billion worth of products to Mexico ($2.5 billion) and Canada ($2.1 billion). Similarly, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, in 2024 Illinois accounted for over $784 million in agricultural product imports, including $542 million worth of products from Canada ($314 million) and Mexico ($228 million).

* FYI: Cafe Moxo is having a grand reopening at its new location this Saturday. Click here for more info.

* ProPublica | Amid Increasing Domestic Violence, Illinois Struggles to Review Fatalities: In a near-unanimous vote, they passed legislation designed to blunt the trend. The state would establish a network of panels to review killings related to domestic violence and identify whether existing strategies for preventing them fell short. But since then the state has made only meager progress in implementing the plans laid out in that law, and the number of domestic violence killings continues to increase.

* Journal Courier | Illinois invests $15M in Polish bonds for portfolio diversification: The Republic of Poland bonds were purchased to diversify the state’s portfolio and achieve stable returns from a strong investment, he said. The bonds will mature in four years with an interest rate of 4.625% and a current yield of 4.831%.

* Public health expert joins UI Board of Trustees: The University of Illinois Board of Trustees seat vacated by former Chair Don Edwards is set to be filled by public health expert Suzet McKinney. Gov. J.B. Pritzker appointed McKinnney, who has served as principal and director of life sciences at Sterling Bay, CEO and executive director of the Illinois Medical District and deputy commissioner of Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response at the Chicago Department of Public Health.

* Crain’s | Trump seeks to put 443 federal properties up for sale — including 11 in Chicago: In total, the structures represent almost 80 million rentable square feet (7.4 million square meters) of usable space — 12 times the size of the Pentagon. The GSA estimates that selling them could save more than $430 million in annual operating costs, a key focus for Trump and his efforts to reduce government spending. The president is expected to address a joint session of Congress later Tuesday.

* WBEZ | Chicago Teachers Union pushes petition drive as strike threat looms: The Chicago Teachers Union will deliver a stack of petitions to the Board of Education Wednesday that leaders say will show there is widespread member support to keep pushing on five key issues, but the union is holding off on a vote to authorize a strike. Nearly a year into negotiations between CTU and Chicago Public Schools, the legal process that must be undertaken before a strike is called is almost complete. A month ago, the union rejected an independent fact finders report after which they could issue a strike authorization at any time, but still had to wait 30 days to actually call a strike. The 30 days are up on Friday.

* WGN | Chicago small business owners concerned over Trump’s tariffs on Mexican imports: Mexico is the third largest importer of goods for Illinois, bringing in an estimated $18 billion dollars in 2023. The talk of tariffs comes at a time when business owners say Mexican brands were beginning to recover from the pandemic. […] Meanwhile, the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is tasked with easing consumers and conglomerates as they attempt to build more Mexican investment in Illinois. WGN Investigates’ Lourdes Duarte spoke with one business owner who laid out what it means for Illinois.

* Tribune | Effort to house Gompers Park homeless moving forward, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration says: City officials laid out their plan Tuesday for an “accelerated moving event” at the Northwest Side park where people have lived in tents for months. The delayed effort’s “north star” is to get the encampment’s 29 residents into permanent housing, but the city will not be asking people to leave, Chief Homelessness Officer Sendy Soto said. “We want to ensure that they are receiving the services and that this does not feel like a displacement for them, but rather receiving a benefit and an opportunity,” Soto said.

* Block Club Chicago | Chicago’s Most Endangered Buildings 2025: Delaware Building, Darrow Bridge And More: A bridge named for legendary attorney Clarence Darrow, one of Chicago’s oldest post-fire towers and a landmark house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright are among this year’s “most endangered” properties, local preservationists announced Tuesday. Preservation Chicago released its annual “7 Most Endangered” list Tuesday, coinciding with Chicago’s 188th birthday. The nonprofit has updated the list annually since 2003, highlighting significant local buildings most threatened by neglect or impending demolition.

* Daily Herald | Two write-in candidates create contested race for District 211 school board election: The declaration of two write-in candidates has made the Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 board of education election on April 1 contested for the first time since two different candidates were removed from the ballot in December. Violetta Flis of Hanover Park and Natasha Mucci of Palatine met the filing deadline to be considered valid write-in candidates, the Cook County Clerk’s office confirmed Tuesday. Flis’ name appears as Wioletta Myskal-Flis on the write-in candidacy paperwork filed with the clerk.

* Daily Southtown | Attendance doubles for Palos Heights Library’s Ramadan story hour: Rashid said library director Jesse Blazek and staff embraced her events when she suggested them. But Rashid said a goal was to make children happy. “I love when I see children happy,” said Rashid, who has three sons, ages 8, 13 and 16 and lives in Palos Park. It was also good to see their community, growing, she said. While 30 people attended the story hour last year, there were 65 this time.

* Pioneer Press | Northbrook, Glenview candidate forums set for March 13, 16 for April 1 election: The League of Women Voters of Glenview-Glencoe has announced the dates of candidate forums that will take place prior to the April 1 consolidated election in the Chicago suburbs. Voters will elect mayors, trustees, school district board members, park district commissioners, library board members, township officials and officials of some other local offices.

* WTVO | Winnebago County Juvenile Center recognized for sexual abuse prevention:
The Juvenile Detention Center becomes the fourth out of fifteen facilities in Illinois to receive recognition from the federal government. […] Over the last six months, detention center staff worked to bring the facility in line with federal requirements, including enhancing PREA signage, improving PREA investigation forms used during inquiries, developing and implementing a direct supervision staffing schedule, providing resident education on PREA, conducting training for both residents and staff on PREA, and increasing accessibility to reporting channels and PREA procedures for residents.

* Rockford Register Star | What next for set of Rockford office, retail buildings purchased in $8M deal?: An Oklahoma City real estate investor said he chose Rockford for his latest acquisition of office space because it is a safe investment untouched by inflationary pricing and remains in demand. Mason Ghaniabadi of Spark Properties Group said that with the properties already at 80 to 90% occupancy, he is not planning major renovations. Ghaniabad acquired the Rockford-based Fridh Corp.’s portfolio of five Rockford office and commercial buildings.

* WCIA | Decatur City Council tables massage parlor ordinance discussion: The City of Decatur is looking to explore new requirements and regulations for massage parlors. It’s after similar measures were enforced in Springfield last month, which resulted in 11 parlors shutting down after not following new guidelines. The proposed ordinance would look to establish rules on preventing illicit activities within massage parlors. Although nothing illegal has happened in a Decatur parlor, officials say it’s meant as a preventative measure.

* WGN | Shoeless Joe Jackson’s personal scrapbooks hit auction: The first scrapbook has a leather back cover with the front cover missing. There are about 118 pages in the scrapbook that contain various newspaper articles, box scores, summaries of baseball games and photographs of Jackson mounted to the pages, which are filled with various, mostly pre-1920s newspaper articles on Jackson.

* WaPo | Senate blocks ban on transgender athletes, as Trump pushes forward: The Senate on Monday blocked legislation that would have banned transgender girls and women from competing in female sports in elementary school through college. But even without a new law, the Trump administration is advancing the cause, opening investigations and notching victories, particularly in college sports. The vote was 51-45. The bill needed 60 yes votes on the Senate floor to overcome a Democratic filibuster and advance. That required at least seven Democrats to vote yes; none did.

* WaPo | RFK Jr.’s focus on vitamin A for measles worries health experts: Kennedy, who in his years as an anti-vaccine activist criticized measles shots and boosted vitamin A as a treatment, is now using his government position to tout the vitamin’s accepted benefits. The Department of Health and Human Services has directed the nation’s top public health agency to add similar language to its guidance for caring for measles patients.