Question of the day
Tuesday, Nov 9, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Gov. Pritzker at the UN Climate Summit watching former President Barack Obama speak…
* The Question: Caption?
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* Mike Miletich…
Illinois had several weeks of continued decrease in new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. However, that quickly changed over the past ten days.
The Illinois Department of Public Health has tracked an uptick in new cases across the entire state. IDPH officials also said that led to more people going into the hospital in certain regions. […]
Gov. JB Pritzker recently said he hoped to ease back the mask mandate for the holiday season, but that may not happen now. IDPH Director Ngozi Ezike said it’s inappropriate right now to think of going mask-free for the holidays. […]
Ezike said many events that may have been held outdoors with warmer weather moved inside over the last few weeks.
“As we’ve moved indoors, we haven’t maybe taken our masks indoors with us. So a lot of unmasked indoor gatherings are likely part of the problem,” Ezike said. “Of course, COVID is so complicated. It’s been throwing us curveball after curveball.”
Ezike said she understands the fatigue around wearing masks and that people want to return to the lifestyle they enjoyed before the pandemic started, but she stressed we’re not beyond this virus. COVID-19 is still spreading quickly in indoor settings.
Discuss.
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* You knew about some of this already, but here’s WBEZ on the congressional remap drama…
Displeased by that development, some of Casten’s DuPage County-based allies in the Illinois House threatened to withhold voting for the congressional maps unless he was treated more favorably. That appeared to be why the final map that won approval on Oct. 29 moved Newman’s home in LaGrange six blocks out of the 6th, unleashing fury in her camp.
“Clearly, the folks who did that little maneuver in the middle of the night didn’t understand Marie Newman,” she told WBEZ. […]
So, in a last-ditch political Hail Mary, Newman’s backers got their hands on the personal cell phone numbers of Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, and House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, and made call after call after call to protest her treatment. It was pure lobbying chutzpah, multiple legislative sources confirmed.
Ultimately, it didn’t move the needle, and it’s a tactic from which Newman seeks to distance herself.
“I know they made calls to all the legislators that had involvement in remapping,” she said, when asked whether she signed off on the move. “So I have no idea who was called or who wasn’t called. But I do know that my constituents followed all of the rules, and they were very angry about these middle-of-the-night shenanigans.”
So, wait. She says that the people who drew the map “didn’t understand Marie Newman” and yet she claims no knowledge of her people bombarding the two legislative leaders’ private mobile phones?
Right. OK.
Both Newman and Casten complain about their predicament in the article, but Illinois lost a congressional district and a Latino-influenced district had to be created. Somebody in the Chicago area was gonna end up with the short end of the stick.
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* Last year’s General Funds Walk Down produced by GOMB projected the Fiscal Year 2021 deficit at $3.9 billion with a payment backlog of $10.16 billion. That backlog was projected to grow to $33.16 billion by Fiscal Year 2026, with deficits between $4.2 billion and $4.8 billion every single fiscal year.
This year’s GOMB walk down is a whole lot different. GOMB is projecting a surplus in FY 2022 of $418 million, with deficits of $406, $820, $1,061, $903 and $598 million in the coming fiscal years.
That still ain’t great, but it’s a world away from where the state was. That is, of course, if those projections hold up. Last year’s projections were obviously way off.
* Press release…
The Governor’s Office of Management and Budget (GOMB) released the annual Economic and Fiscal Policy Report showing Illinois has made significant improvement in its structural deficit under Governor Pritzker’s leadership. As the state recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, this progress has been fueled by the Governor and the General Assembly passing and implementing balanced budgets, promoting economic development to create jobs and boost economic activity, and closing corporate tax loopholes.
GOMB is now projecting significantly smaller deficits than estimated previously in the general funds budget for fiscal years 2023 through 2027. The forecasted fiscal year 2023 shortfall was reduced from $2.9 billion, as estimated in 2019, to $406 million, and the 2024 shortfall was reduced from $3.2 billion, as estimated in 2019, to a deficit of $820 million.
“With our partners in the General Assembly we’ve made tremendous progress in putting Illinois on the right fiscal path, supporting small businesses, and creating good jobs in every part of our state,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “I am committed to building on this significant progress while tackling our remaining fiscal challenges. Together, we can build long term fiscal stability for Illinois while ensuring economic opportunity in all of our communities.”
The future years’ budget outlook also benefits from strong pension fund investment returns in fiscal year 2021, substantial early debt retirement in 2021 and interest cost savings from paying down the State’s unpaid bill backlog.
The Governor intends to pursue several actions to continue Illinois’ strong path forward, including directing funds to further reduce the state’s existing payables, reserving additional funds for fiscal emergencies or economic downturns, and continuing the management controls put in place at the beginning of the Pritzker Administration to continue to responsibly manage the limited resources of state government. With the Governor’s recommended actions, the state’s unpaid bills have been significantly tamed, with the vast majority of bills now paid within 30 days. The outstanding invoices, most of which are less than 30 days old, are estimated to fall below $2.75 billion by the end of fiscal year 2022, down from the $9.2 billion of outstanding bills and cashflow borrowings prior to taking office. This would be a nearly $6.5 billion - or 70 percent reduction - while replenishing the Budget Stabilization Fund that was drained during the previous administration.
Illinois’ significant improvement to its fiscal outlook was heralded last summer by the state’s credit rating agencies, with an upgrade to its general obligation bond credit rating granted by Moody’s Investor Services and S&P Global Ratings in June and July 2021.
GOMB is required to annually submit an Economic and Fiscal Policy Report to the General Assembly outlining the long-term economic and fiscal policy objectives of the state, along with the economic and fiscal policy intentions for the upcoming fiscal year and for the subsequent four fiscal years.
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* Press release…
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) today announced $38 million in federal funding to identify and support students experiencing housing insecurity. The funding will bolster schools’ efforts to identify students in temporary living situations and provide them with services.
Students in many different living situations qualify for extra resources. The additional funding announced today will help schools overcome barriers to identifying students for services, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools statewide identified 17 percent fewer students to receive services related to housing insecurity last school year compared to the year before. The number of students identified statewide dropped from 38,898 to 32,301.
* The Daily Herald’s Katlyn Smith had a good piece over the weekend about this very topic…
Months into the pandemic, school districts across Illinois braced for a rise in the number of students without stable housing.
The COVID-19 crisis had unleashed widespread job loss and health complications, leaving “many more families and children homeless or at risk of homelessness,” the Illinois State Board of Education warned in July 2020.
When the numbers came in, however, it was “quite a shock,” said Deb Dempsey, an advocate for homeless students with the Kane County Regional Office of Education. Schools identified thousands fewer homeless students in 2020-21 than in the year before.
“It was like, ‘Oh my God, where are these kids?’” Dempsey said.
But what appears to be a significant decline is not only misleading. It’s cause for concern. Educators say there isn’t a reduction in homelessness.
“It’s just that we’ve lost track of them, which is the worst thing that can happen because then they’re kind of falling through the cracks and not getting the services that they need,” said Tom Bookler, a regional homeless liaison in the North Cook Intermediate Service Center.
* Back to the press release…
“So many families have experienced financial hardship during the pandemic. We hope to increase understanding among parents and educators that students in many different living situations can qualify for and benefit from this funding,” said State Superintendent of Education Dr. Carmen I. Ayala, “Living with friends or relatives, staying in motels or other short-term housing, or having to move out due to unsafe conditions or a disaster like flooding or fire – students and families in any of these circumstances are entitled to extra money to ensure they can continue to participate fully in all the opportunities school has to offer, as well as support for any trauma they may be going through.”
A new study by the University of Chicago’s Inclusive Economy Lab found that housing insecurity can affect students’ grade point averages, attendance rates, and graduation rates. The extra funding for schools will help ensure students experiencing housing insecurity have equitable opportunities by covering the costs of school fees and school supplies; transportation to and from school, extracurricular activities, and appointments; counseling; and other supports.
ISBE has already distributed $6 million to the state’s regional lead area liaisons and allocated $6 million in regular federal funding for students experiencing housing insecurity. An additional $24 million will go directly to school districts to boost their efforts to identify students who quality for extra services due to housing insecurity. ISBE will use the remaining $2 million to provide professional development to educators and community partners to increase understanding about the impact housing insecurity has on students.
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* Neil Bluhm was on defense last week…
“You know, I’m embarrassed if somebody says I’m a billionaire,” he said in an interview with another Chicago billionaire, Sam Zell. “It’s like I’m a criminal.” […]
“I’m a Democrat, but I worry that there’s part of our country that views that as being wrong because of the inequality over wealth,” Bluhm said. “Inequality in part has occurred because of the action of the (Federal Reserve) and interest rates being so low, so asset values have gone up, and our net worth has gone up. But it isn’t our fault. We took chances, we got educated, we went into business and there was the hope—and that was what America was all about.”
Bluhm knows something about the American Dream. He came from a modest upbringing, raised by a single mother, who worked as a bookkeeper, in an apartment over a drugstore in Albany Park. He went on to obtain a law degree from Northwestern University and made a fortune in real estate. He’s the founder of JMB Realty, Walton Street Capital, two Chicago real estate investment firms, and Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming, a casino owner whose assets include the Rivers Casino in Des Plaines.
Bluhm is worth $6.4 billion, up from $4 billion in 2020, according to Forbes magazine. He’s slightly ahead of Zell, whose fortune rose to $6 billion this year, up from $4.7 billion.
* This week, he went on offense…
Casino magnate Neil Bluhm has lined up a team of blue-ribbon lobbyists to try to convince the City Council not to lift the ban on sports betting in Chicago.
On Monday, Bluhm made the argument himself during a subject matter hearing on sports betting before a joint meeting of the zoning and license committees. It’s the political equivalent of a heavyweight boxing match that has pitted sports team owners against clout-heavy developers vying to build a Chicago casino. […]
Bluhm’s interest in blocking the ordinance is two-fold. His Rush Street Gaming company is part of two separate groups vying to build a Chicago casino.
And his Des Plaines-based Rivers Casino already has a sports book that stands to lose business if sports betting is legalized in Chicago.
* But there was some push-back…
Mara Georges, who worked as the city’s top attorney under former Mayor Richard M. Daley, said Bluhm’s projections on tax revenue losses “are not to be taken seriously.” Georges is lobbying for the ordinance on behalf of the Wirtz family, who own the Blackhawks and the United Center, and the Ricketts family, who own the Cubs and Wrigley Field.
Bluhm’s projections “rest in conjecture and fail to accurately state the facts,” Georges said, adding his comments “seem to assume that no person who places a wager at a sports book venue will venture to a casino after the game.”
Plus, Bluhm’s Rivers Casino in suburban Des Plaines is already benefiting from the ban on sports betting in Chicago, Georges said.
“If the tax rate in Illinois gets too high on sports book or sports book is not allowed in the city of Chicago, all that will happen is those bettors will leave the city and flee to locations outside the city,” she said.
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* Greg Hinz…
With the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure bill now awaiting only a presidential signature, a parade of state and local officials is moving to insure that a stalled plan to rebuild the Eisenhower Expressway is a priority to get some of that money.
Legislative leaders, Chicago Transportation Commissioner Gia Biagi and top labor officials are set to hold a press conference in the morning intended to give a big push to fund reconstruction of I-290 from the Jane Byrne Interchange to Hillside.
The state in 2017 estimated the cost of rebuilding the road and the Chicago Transit Authority blue line, which runs in its center, at $3.2 billion. But no construction has occurred because the state has lacked funding.
Notice of the event came from a spokesman for IUOE Local 150, a politically connected union representing operating engineers that has considerable Springfield influence.
* Press release…
Following the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Plan, Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch and Senate President Don Harmon will join the Rebuild 290 Coalition today to call for federal funds to speed up the reconstruction of Interstate 290 from Hillside to the Byrne Interchange and the CTA’s Blue Line. Both legislative chambers passed Senate Joint Resolution 31 in June, which requested federal support to expedite engineering and construction.
Local mayors, business leaders, organized labor representatives, community organizations and economic policy analysts will discuss I-290’s current state of disrepair as well as the economic, community and safety benefits of the proposed reconstruction.
* From the Illinois Economic Policy Institute…
A multi-modal infrastructure proposal that would modernize the 13-mile stretch of I-290 between I-94 and the I-88/294 interchange would create more than 22,000 jobs, reduce traffic congestion by 25-56%, and dramatically enhance access to jobs for Chicago’s most disadvantaged communities, according to a new study by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute (ILEPI).
The $2.7 billion project, which combines innovative transit and pedestrian improvements alongside bridge and roadway upgrades, is projected by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) to provide amongst the best economic, equity, and traffic impacts of any project in the region by 2050. The recently passed Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 31 encouraged priority funding for the project. […]
Originally built in the 1950’s alongside CTA’s blue-line, as much as ninety percent of the project’s existing pavement structure is original and exceeds the normal roadway design life of 25-30 years. Of its 44 bridges, 34% are considered “structurally deficient” and 86% are “functionally obsolete,” according to Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) data. According to CMAP, vehicle traffic on the stretch has increased by more than 16% since 1984.
In her research, Tyler illustrates the severely limited pedestrian access to adjacent transit facilities, emphasizing safety hazards from narrow sidewalks along busy roads and dangerous crosswalks across I-290 exit and entrance ramps. Tyler also found that over the past decade, I-290 had both the highest number of fatal crashes and the highest fatal crash rate amongst comparable stretches of highway in the Chicago metropolitan area. […]
The proposed I-290 reconstruction project, that was detailed in a 2017 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) from the Illinois Department of Transportation, incorporates not only bridge and highway upgrades—including a new High Occupancy Toll lane (HOT3+) to support Express Bus service and promote carpooling—but also wider sidewalks, pedestrian safety islands, high visibility crosswalks, lighting, and signals to better facilitate pedestrian/bicycle traffic and transit riders. A concurrent CTA project would upgrade blue line transit facilities, including reconstruction of the entire Forest Park Branch (including track and related infrastructure) as well as stations from UIC-Halsted to Forest Park and six substations.
By 2050, CMAP projects the project will reduce travel times by 25-56%, while increasing the number of jobs within 45 minutes of each household in the region by more than 17,000, and high wage jobs not requiring a college degree for “Economically Disconnected Areas” (EDAs) by more than 1,300. Importantly, it projects that fully 31% of those using the rehabilitated stretch of I-290 will come from EDAs, making the project not only one of the region’s best values to reduce congestion, but to expand opportunity to historically marginalized communities.
Using industry standard IMPLAN modelling, Tyler’s study examined the potential overall economic impact of the project, concluding that it would create nearly 22,000 new jobs paying an average of almost $80,000 per year, while growing the economy by more than $2.6 billion and boosting local, state and federal tax revenues by more than $450 million.
“While I-290 is a prime example of an infrastructure corridor in dire need of attention for safety and traffic related concerns, it is an equally stark example of how such investments can be a game changer for the local economy that uplifts our most historically disadvantaged communities,” Tyler added.
While SJR 31 were recently passed, calling for the project to be prioritized, a funding source has yet to be identified. However, Tyler’s research highlights several potential sources—including tens of millions in toll revenues expected from the project, a new state law providing Tax Increment Financing for certain transit systems, and the possibility of over $300 billion in new federal transportation funds that have been proposed as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The full study is here.
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* President Trump won Sangamon County by 4 points last year, but Republicans hold 76 percent of the seats on the local county board…
Republicans outnumber Democrats 22-7 on the board.
I don’t pay much if any attention to the county board where I live, so I don’t know if the Democrats just run ridiculously horrible candidates and back them with amazingly lousy campaigns or if the map is truly that lopsided.
Either way, though… Wow.
In comparison, the Illinois Senate Democrats hold 70 percent of the seats in their chamber, but Biden beat Trump statewide by 17 points.
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HCRCA clarification signed into law
Tuesday, Nov 9, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release last night…
At the request of the Attorney General, Governor JB Pritzker today signed SB 1169 into law, clarifying the legislative intent of the Health Care Right of Conscience Act so that it cannot be abused or misinterpreted to jeopardize workplace safety. This amendment will ensure the long tradition of vaccine requirements by employers can continue with regard to the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Masks, vaccines, and testing requirements are life-saving measures that keep our workplaces and communities safe,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Keeping workplaces safe is a high priority, and I applaud the General Assembly for ensuring that the Health Care Right of Conscience Act is no longer wrongly used against institutions who are putting safety and science first.”
The Health Care Right of Conscience Act was originally enacted to allow medical professionals to refuse to receive or participate in healthcare services that are contrary to their personal beliefs, including religious or moral objections to specific services, such as abortion.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the law has been improperly invoked to evade employers’ requirements for testing, masking, and vaccines. The misuse of the law’s original intent has put customers, staff, and community members at risk by exposing employers to legal retaliation for enacting life-saving public health measures.
“With Governor Pritzker’s signature today, we continue our effort to keep the people of this state as safe as possible,” said House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch (D- Westchester). “Despite deliberate attempts to misinform the public, nothing about this law takes away anyone’s rights to claim religious or medical exemption, which are protected by federal law. While only a small minority of people are skirting COVID-19 requirements, our goal is to make sure workers in high-risk environments are doing what’s needed to fulfill their responsibility to public health and keep everyone alive and healthy.”
“I hope this provides clarity to the situation as we work to protect the public’s health and beat back this pandemic that has taken so much from us,” said Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park).
“Today we are taking critical action to protect people in high-risk environments—such as hospitals, veterans’ homes and schools—from the dangers of COVID-19,” said State Representative Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston). “While this law will not take away anyone’s right to claim exemptions based on religion or medical need, it prevents a small group of people from distorting the meaning of the Health Care Right of Consciousness Act and putting some of our most vulnerable members of society in danger. I would like to thank Governor Pritzker for the steps he’s taking today.”
This amendment preserves the legislative intent established by the Act’s 40 years of precedent, clarifying that it is not a violation of the Act to take workplaces measures intended to prevent the spread of deadly, communicable diseases like COVID-19.
The law explicitly reiterates federal protections of sincerely held religious objections.
SB 1169 is effective June 1, 2022.
* Sun-Times…
“He continues to strip individual freedoms and make decisions that should be between an individual and their doctor,” said state Sen. Darren Bailey of downstate Xenia. “A few months ago we called healthcare workers heroes [but] now Pritzker wants to ensure they can be fired if they don’t submit to his tyrannical rule.
“These never-ending mandates and radical attacks by Pritzker on individual freedom must stop.”
The campaign of venture capitalist Jesse Sullivan argued the Health Care Right of Conscience Act was in place to “ensure no one could be discriminated against in their job because of their conscientious objection to not getting a medical procedure.
“Over 50,000 Illinoisans filed witness slips against this radical change,” according to Sullivan’s campaign statement. “Nevertheless, Pritzker pushed ahead, once again demonstrating his disregard for the will of the people. Jesse Sullivan opposes this scary legislation.”
“Scary.”
* Gary Rabine…
Gary Rabine, Republican candidate for Illinois Governor, is issuing the following statement on the Governor signing legislation to shield employers from litigation stemming from vaccine mandates.
“The Right of Conscience has long been a part of our nation’s heritage. Going all of the way back to the American Revolution, the Colonial Army made allowances for conscientious objectors. The Right of Conscience is engrained in our American heritage and our way of life.
The idea that employers can mandate a vaccine and be protected from lawsuits ought to frighten us all. If we cannot make healthcare for ourselves, what other ways can government limit our freedoms?
Governor Pritzker may not like the choices people make, but he should respect their right to make decisions for themselves. The courts will ultimately decide the legality of this new law, but there is no denying our individual rights and freedoms were dealt a major setback today.
Illinois does not need a despot. The residents of our state need and deserve a Governor who will listen to them and treat them with dignity and respect. Unlike JB Pritzker, I will put the rights and liberties of Illinois citizens first. I will end the war on families, and I will protect the Right of Conscience for all Illinoisans.”
Do you know what George Washington did during the revolution? Vaccine mandate for troops.
* Tribune…
Senate President Don Harmon argued there are legitimate limits to personal freedoms.
“The line of my personal liberty ends at the beginning of your nose,” Harmon said [during floor debate]. “That’s all we’re trying to do here. We’re trying to strike a balance. This law was never intended to preclude public health responses to a pandemic. And it shouldn’t be.”
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