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* Steve Daniels at Crain’s…
A $6 billion program to bail out unprofitable nuclear plants is part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill the U.S. Senate will consider this week, but it won’t save two nukes Exelon has said it plans to close this fall.
Even if the federal bailout becomes law, it doesn’t offer enough financial security to keep the Byron and Dresden plants operating, the company said today. […]
“While we remain encouraged by growing support in Congress to preserve nuclear energy to help combat climate change, the provisions currently under consideration in the Senate infrastructure bill do not provide the policy and funding certainty we need and could take months or even years to come to fruition, if at all,” the company said in a statement. “Meanwhile, our Byron and Dresden nuclear plants must be refueled this fall—Byron in September and Dresden in November. If we refuel both stations to delay their retirement, we will be committed to running the plants for up to an additional two years, during which we could face revenue shortfalls in the hundreds of millions of dollars. We can’t risk taking those losses with no guarantee of a legislative solution.”
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Question of the day
Monday, Aug 2, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* AP…
Illinois will effectively end immigration detention and strengthen protections limiting cooperation with federal immigration agents under a plan signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday, August 2.
The measure targets local agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) allowing county jails to house immigrant detainees awaiting court appearances.
Current contracts would end by January and no new contracts would be allowed. Three counties - Kankakee, Pulaski and McHenry - have such agreements and currently house roughly 260 immigrant detainees.
Proponents of the law say it’ll end inhumane practices in Illinois and encourage alternatives. But some counties argue they’ll lose much-needed revenue.
* The Question: Your thoughts on this new law?
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* From numerous top labor leaders…
Dear Governor Pritzker and leaders of the Illinois General Assembly:
In spite of months of productive, thoughtful debates with a diverse set of stakeholders to create an aggressive plan to overcome the threat of climate change in Illinois, we are no longer confident that a deal can be reached this summer.
We sadly write to inform you today that as a result of the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition’s failure to negotiate in good faith, we have reached what we believe is an impasse in reaching an agreed-upon clean energy bill due to seemingly intractable differences on the issues of decarbonization and prevailing wage standards.
We do not take this action without exhaustive deliberation and consideration, but in assessing our counterparts’ track record over the last several weeks of negotiations following the spring session, it appears they do not share our goal of finding common ground. Rather, they seem intent on running out the clock in order to force events that actually detract from the state’s ability to generate more clean and reliable energy.
Following a June 16 meeting between Climate Jobs Illinois and the Clean Jobs coalition in Springfield, it was agreed that both sides would produce updated decarbonization and prevailing wage offset language. The lead negotiators for Climate Jobs Illinois submitted proposed language on decarbonization to the Clean Jobs coalition on June 27, and a day later, our negotiators submitted updated prevailing wage offset language to their Clean Jobs counterparts
Our coalition learned the next day—via a morning alert in Capitol Fax—that the Clean Jobs coalition had rejected our proposed decarbonization language. In at least 4 subsequent meetings since we provided alternative language on these two areas, the Clean Jobs coalition has failed to submit any counter proposals. That leads us to believe our counterparts have no intention of working with us.
Because of the group’s failure to negotiate in good faith, we are forced to declare an impasse in the negotiations. We do not relish this moment. No one wins in this scenario.Clean Jobs coalition has failed to submit any counter proposals.
As our state’s leaders, we implore you to step in and work to find a way to get a deal done. There is too much on the line: Tens of thousands of good-paying union jobs. Thousands of new jobs created to build our clean energy infrastructure of the future. Greater opportunities for underserved communities to have a fair shot at learning new skills and earning a decent wage to lift their families out of poverty. Energy efficiency for our public schools. Clean energy fleets for our public transit system. And so much more that is necessary to reduce emissions and generate new clean power sources.
As we see in the eroding shores of Lake Michigan and the hazy skies over Illinois caused by the wildfires raging in the West, the threat of climate change is not an imaginary or far-off problem. It is a very real and imminent danger for our communities.
As subscribers know, the unions’ proposal was dismissed out of hand as a non-starter. More at the link.
* From Nakhia Crossley on behalf of the Path to 100 Coalition…
Illinois legislators agreed in May, after years of discussion and debate, to expand renewable energy, create 53,000 thousand new jobs, adopt best-in-nation diversity and equity investments and generate billions in local property taxes. But that legislation has been delayed for months. Throughout the summer, solar businesses in Illinois have been forced to lay off workers and clean energy growth has ground to a halt. There’s too much at stake to delay any further. It’s time for our state’s leaders to forge a compromise that will move Illinois forward to the clean energy future we desperately need.
* Hannah Meisel…
The impasse declaration comes just days after nuclear giant Exelon doubled down on its threat to close two of its power generators in mid-September and November — major pieces of Illinois’ energy puzzle that can’t immediately be replaced by other types of power generation. […]
According to draft language obtained by NPR Illinois, organized labor adopted environmental groups’ basic framework for so-called declining carbon caps until 2035, but also proposed a carbon offset program to allow fossil fuel plants to achieve “net zero emissions,” which would open the door to allowing those facilities to stay open beyond 2045.
Environmental groups balked at that idea, but labor complained its coalition had to learn about that rejection through the media, and not a direct response. In the four meetings since then, labor claims environmental groups have not put forward new ideas. The last meeting between the two sides was July 16.
Both sides say the fight over the last outstanding item — prevailing wage — is not as insurmountable. […]
But over the weekend, congressional Democrats surfaced new language for President Joe Biden’s $3 trillion infrastructure bill, which includes funding for unprofitable nuclear plants. But there’s a catch: federal support for those plants would be decreased depending on state support for nukes.
State Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago), a lead energy negotiator aligned with labor, said he’s eager to receive a briefing from Illinois’ congressional delegation about the proposal soon, but acknowledged it may take weeks until the final version is passed in D.C., which runs up against existing timing pressure from Exelon.
“It would be foolish to count on Washington but also foolish to ignore what’s happening in Washington and end up sticking ratepayers with a bill they shouldn’t have to pay,” Cunningham said Monday. […]
Additionally, September marks a deadline contained in FEJA wherein the Illinois Power Agency will be forced to give back to ratepayers more than $300 million that was supposed to be used for renewable energy projects if there is no legislative fix to prevent that mass rebate.
I’ve asked others for comment and will update when they respond.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Response letter from Gov. JB Pritzker…
Dear Climate Jobs Illinois,
I am disappointed to hear that you feel you’ve reached an impasse in climate negotiations with the Clean Jobs Coalition. As I have made clear, the time for climate action is now. Comprehensive, clean, equitable, and ethical energy reform is what the people of this state need and deserve, and the clock is ticking.
In your letter, you requested that I work to reach compromise with stakeholders. That work has been done. As you know, after dozens of working group meetings and hours of discussion and negotiation, my office sent a compromise bill to members and stakeholders on June 10 that reflected discussions in legislative working groups and included agreed upon policies. That compromise bill would phase out coal by 2035 (except Prairie State and City Water Light and Power (CWLP), which could stay open until 2045 with 90% carbon capture) and natural gas by 2045 through declining caps on greenhouse gas emissions, prioritizing equity investment eligible communities and dedicating $2 million per year in ratepayer funds to fund Prairie State’s 2035 decommissioning costs. It also would require prevailing wage on nearly every renewable energy project, with a 5-year exemption for equity eligible contractors, and require project labor agreements on all utility-scale solar and wind projects. Importantly, the compromise bill also contains robust ethics provisions, a new performance-based ratemaking system that would create thousands of jobs, and critical workforce and clean transportation provisions that would create even more jobs.
That compromise bill is the best starting place for you as you consider possible next steps. I have always believed that we can decarbonize while creating and maintaining good paying, union jobs. That’s why I negotiated a clean energy bill that would do just that. On May 31, President Drea and Vice President Devaney visited my office in Springfield to request that the Governor’s Office reach a deal on right- sized subsidies for Exelon’s Illinois nuclear fleet, as their number one priority for the legislative session. My administration was able to negotiate a deal that would provide needed short term financial relief to Byron, Dresden, and Braidwood over 5 years, thereby securing the near-term financial safety of Exelon’s entire Illinois fleet, saving tens of thousands of good jobs at a cost to the average residential ratepayer of just $0.80/month. That deal is reflected in the compromise bill that my administration put forward in June, a bill that I would sign immediately, ending the heartbreaking uncertainty facing the nuclear workers at Byron and Dresden, including those of our friends at IBEW Local 15.
However, the Illinois Power Agency needs significant time to set up this nuclear support program. The next capacity auction is in November. If a deal is not passed by around mid-August, some observers have indicated that there will likely not be enough time to save Byron and Dresden. Last week, Exelon announced its intentions to move forward with filing decommissioning plans for Byron and Dresden with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Under those plans, Byron would close in September, and Dresden would close in November, causing about 1,500 workers—primarily IBEW members—to lose their jobs soon. The decision to draw a line in the sand to prevent potential job loss in 2045 over certain job loss in 2021 is a negotiating position that does a disservice to both workers and our climate.
I will reiterate what I have said previously: any decarbonization framework must move Illinois aggressively beyond the status quo. That means good faith attempts at meaningful decarbonization are necessary to move our discussions forward. It is my understanding that the proposed draft language from Climate Jobs Illinois, sent to the Clean Jobs Coalition in June, would allow dirty power plants to stay open in perpetuity, threatening the health and wellbeing of the very communities that Climate Jobs Illinois’ letter states it wants to protect. Moreover, despite efforts to prop up coal plants, the market is forcing closures, outpacing our attempts to help impacted communities. We saw this with the recent Waukegan and Romeoville closure announcements. The bottom line is that pointing fingers at the Clean Jobs Coalition, whose members have already made significant compromises on decarbonization and equity provisions, is unproductive, especially after Climate Jobs Illinois has refused to send an additional written proposal that was promised to them for weeks.
Again, considering the timeline of events is important. Climate Jobs Illinois sent a letter to my office in the waning hours of May session, pleading with the Governor’s Office to make a deal with Exelon to save the nuclear fleet. We were able to do so. Then, at the 11th hour, we were informed that the fate of the Prairie State Energy Campus – the 7th largest emitter of greenhouse gas in the country, with voluminous amounts of co-pollutants that endanger the health and safety of Illinois’ residents—many of them black and brown—was now the new critical issue.
We negotiated again in good faith and, taking both PSEC and CWLP at their word, agreed to allow them to remain open until 2045 if they installed 90% carbon capture equipment by 2034 – a date they expressed to legislative negotiators that they could meet. Our June legislative language further clarified that natural gas caps would be sector wide, rather than plant specific, and that IEPA rulemaking would, by law, be required to allow the cleanest plants to stay open the longest. This represented a good faith compromise, and one where both my office and environmentalists moved significantly.
I have negotiated in good faith as pro-coal forces have shifted the goalposts throughout this process. I indicated then, and I am reiterating now, that I stand ready and willing to sign the bill that reflected discussions in legislative working groups and included agreed upon policies that you received on June 10. If you are willing to remove the barriers to moving forward, the impasse you find yourselves at can be resolved. I now call on the General Assembly to pass that compromise bill immediately, save tens of thousands of union jobs that may otherwise disappear in mere weeks, and move Illinois toward a clean energy economy.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Senate President Don Harmon…
We were disappointed to learn the parties involved could not come back to the General Assembly and governor with an agreed path forward on a clean energy future for Illinois.
The Illinois Senate remains committed to enacting an aggressive, nation-leading energy plan that is renewable, reliable and affordable for the people of our state.
We are encouraged by recent news out of DC that federal leaders may reach a bipartisan agreement on providing billions worth of federal assistance to clean energy resources, which would be a major win for Illinois. We look forward to the outcome of those discussions.
Moving forward here, the Senate intends to keep discussions going with stakeholders in an effort to produce legislation that can get at least 36 votes in the Senate and 71 in the House in order to take effect in the immediate future. Our goal is to protect jobs and promote a clean energy future, because we can and should do both.
*** UPDATE 3 *** Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition…
To Members of the Illinois General Assembly and Governor Pritzker:
We write to regretfully inform you that negotiations between the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition (ICJC) and Climate Jobs Illinois (CJI) around passing a climate and equitable jobs bill in Illinois have reached an impasse. CJI’s insistence on allowing all coal and gas plants to stay open and pollute forever is something our communities and climate cannot afford or survive. Further, CJI continues to seek full domain over new and emerging clean energy jobs, and to shut the door on opportunities for Black and Brown contractors to stake their claim in the new energy economy.
The cost of doing nothing is colossal. Thousands of union workers and solar installers are about to lose their jobs, as could teachers and first responders whose salaries are paid with property taxes dependent on the local energy sector. The impact on our climate and public health will worsen. Black and Brown communities will continue to be shut out of the clean energy economy while they disproportionately suffer the impact of pollution. Big utility companies will remain unchecked, raising rates and racking up profits while consumers foot the bill.
And, President Biden will be unable to meet his administration’s goals to contain the climate emergency we find ourselves in if the state’s biggest polluter - the Prairie State coal plant, which accounts for 28% of Illinois carbon emissions and is the 7th worst polluter in the country - remains open indefinitely.
For the past three years, the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition has focused on building a statewide effort to pass nation-leading legislation that positions Illinois to do its part to tackle climate change, and to center equity and justice at the heart of our state’s energy future. We almost reached that point this May, and again in June, until the fossil fuel industry threatened immediate layoffs at planned new gas plants and the Senate delayed action on that bill at the last minute.
Since June, the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition has been willing and eager to work with CJI on finding a path forward on a nation-leading climate bill. In June, the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition received a proposal from labor that was a step backward. CJI’s proposal created unlimited carbon emission loopholes, allowing any polluting fossil fuel plant to stay open in the state as long as it wanted, and completely exempting gas plants from any pollution reductions for the next two decades. Further, CJI’s proposal would require small Black and Brown renewable energy contractors to jump through major hoops in a new state bureaucracy just to participate in the state’s renewable energy programs. In reviewing these proposals with existing Black and Brown contractors, they believe these restrictions would put them out of business, and instead stake labor’s claim on small renewable energy projects that union contractors historically have not been interested in building.
ICJC has been assured by CJI nearly daily since June that they were working on an alternate decarbonization proposal to find common ground and to achieve some possible alignment. That proposal never appeared, and now appears it is not forthcoming.
The Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition continues to stress that the path to an agreed climate and equitable jobs bill must include real action on pollution reductions in the coming decade in order to avoid the catastrophic impacts of climate change, and ensure that communities of color are able to create wealth and equity in a clean energy future. We have expressed openness on how to get there, but we cannot sacrifice those principles.
To achieve a carbon-free power sector in Illinois, we have proposed a number of options, including the following:
• While we originally proposed achieving a carbon-free power sector by 2030, we agreed to shift those targets to the framework supported by the Governor and Senate President, which would be 2035 for coal plants and 2045 for gas plants, with interim targets so that we aren’t delaying action on climate for 20 years.
• We agreed to a proposal to allow the Prairie State Energy Campus and Springfield CWLP’s Dallman station to stay open until 2045 if they can achieve 90% carbon-capture by 2035.
• To address the concerns of the Senate President about immediate job impacts to gas plants under construction, we have expressed openness to prioritizing pollution reduction from power plants that impact environmental justice communities first, while allowing newer gas plants a longer time frame before they have to begin pollution reductions. This would allow those gas plants to get built.
On labor standards, the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition has agreed to Climate Jobs Illinois’ proposed requirements that would apply to 96% of new renewable energy projects - up from 0% today - but seeks to create at least a viable pathway for new Black and Brown businesses seeking renewable energy contracts. We have proposed a number of options, including:
• Creating a prevailing wage carve-out for new Black and Brown businesses for a period of time to allow them to grow to the point where they can be union signatories. This was included in the bill in May.
• Allowing projects under a certain size - a size that labor historically has not and would not work on - to move forward without being subject to labor union standards, which has been done in every other state that has passed ambitious renewable energy policy.
• Allowing projects of certain types, such as small businesses, community centers, and churches, not to be subject to prevailing wage standards.
• Allowing projects built by businesses under a certain size to be able to work on projects and not be subject to the same labor union standards as large contractors.
• Allow clean energy developers to pay wages that are commensurate with the experience and training required to install solar panels, and not the $82/hour wage of a journeyman electrician that labor is demanding.
• Requiring additional efforts on the part of labor unions to diversify their workforce in the near-term.
When Climate Jobs Illinois was formed nine months ago, its top priority was saving Exelon’s nuclear plants; this was the sole focus of their late May rally at the Capitol. The Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition saw potential for alignment around a nation-leading equitable climate bill in their intention to build significant amounts of renewable energy and create a just transition for fossil fuel workers and communities.
The potential for alignment still exists, but it cannot be achieved by putting the interests of large, multi-billion dollar fossil fuel interests first or shutting out communities of color from a clean energy economy.
We remain willing to roll up our sleeves to get this climate and equitable jobs bill done.
*** UPDATE 4 *** Press release…
Deputy Senate Republican Leader Sue Rezin (R-Morris) and State Senator Brian Stewart (R-Freeport) along with Deputy House Republican Leader Tom Demmer (R-Dixon), and House Republican Conference Chair Leader David Welter (R-Morris) issued a joint statement calling for legislative leaders to reconvene the Illinois General Assembly at the earliest possible date to pass legislation that will keep the state’s nuclear fleet online and extend Illinois’ renewable portfolio standard (RPS):
“If action is not taken soon, tens of thousands of workers will lose their livelihoods, millions of utility customers across Illinois will begin paying higher energy costs, and we will all suffer an immediate environmental impact equivalent to putting 4.4 million additional cars on the road, emitting carbon and other harmful sources of air pollution. Too much is at stake to wait for the demands of every individual interest group to be satisfied in a comprehensive energy package. We must act now to pass the provisions there is broad agreement on, which include preserving Illinois’ nuclear fleet and extending the state’s renewable portfolio standard with incentives for critical solar and wind initiatives. We are committed to passing these items now and coming back to the table to negotiate the more long-term aspects of Illinois’ energy future with the various stakeholders between now and the General Assembly’s Fall Veto Session in October. Time is of the essence. We cannot wait until later this autumn to protect energy jobs, protect our environment, and prevent dramatic rate hikes on utility customers.”
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COVID-19 roundup
Monday, Aug 2, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The nation’s trajectory in one image…
* AP…
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The state of California. New York City. Hospitals and nursing homes. Colleges and universities. Employers are putting COVID-19 vaccine mandates into place and it’s getting attention. […]
Federal legal guidance out this week suggests the law is on the side of employers. Vaccination can be considered a “condition of employment,” akin to a job qualification.
That said, employment lawyers believe many businesses will want to meet hesitant workers half-way.
* Mandates move numbers much more than incentives…
* I expect business leaders are heading that direction. Another shutdown would be devastating. Here’s Mark Cuban…
“Sick employees not only put their peers at risk, they miss work days. Which impacts productivity, which impacts profitability, which impacts the number of people who have jobs at the organization.
“Sick people also impact health-care and insurance costs, which are already incredibly expensive.
“Public health organizations can work together to quantify the impact of non-vaccinated employees, contractors and even vendors on an employer and their employees. That could lead more employers to require vaccinations to keep jobs. To not offer insurance or increase deductibles for the un-vaxxed or on the other side, offer raises or better perks to employees who have been vaxxed.
“At the companies I operate, I am requiring vaccination as a term of employment. I don’t want one employee putting the health of another at risk simply by doing their job.”
I don’t think you can legally withhold insurance from people if you offer it to others.
* Illinois…
New cases of COVID-19 came to 5,608 over the weekend with 11 more people dying from the respiratory disease, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported Monday.
From Friday through Sunday, 79,040 more COVID-19 shots were administered. The seven-day average is 27,396. […]
The state’s positivity rate for COVID-19 cases is 4.3% based on a seven-day average, reflecting a continued rise.
* More Illinois…
Masks now will be required in all state facilities, regardless of a person’s COVID-19 vaccination status.
The decision was announced Thursday and aligns with recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC this week issued guidance that masks should be worn by anyone in an area where there is a substantial or high risk of transmission of the coronavirus and its variants.
The state will continue to evaluate the need for additional mitigations and Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he will not hesitate to put them in place as needed to protect the health of residents.
“Vaccines work — but we cannot promise those protections for every single future variant if we allow this virus to spread and mutate unchecked in our communities,” Pritzker said. “With all the misinformation out there, I encourage all eligible Illinoisans who haven’t been vaccinated yet to talk to their doctors to alleviate any of their fears. Vaccines are how we put this pandemic behind us for once and for all, but I will continue to evaluate the need for further additional mitigations.”
* Also…
Masks will be required at driver’s license facilities in Illinois starting Monday, Secretary of State Jesse White announced Wednesday
* Onward…
Hours after Lollapalooza got underway Thursday, Cook County was added to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s list of areas experiencing “substantial” COVID-19 transmission.
Citing that development, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker later Thursday announced a new mask requirement for everyone in state-run facilities, including those who are vaccinated, starting immediately.
Cook now joins DuPage, McHenry and Will counties in the Chicago area, and 80 others statewide, in meeting the threshold where masks are recommended for everyone indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
* Chicago…
Everyone in Chicago, regardless of their vaccination status should wear a mask indoors, Chicago health officials recommended Friday after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added Chicago to its list of areas experiencing “substantial” transmission of the coronavirus.
However, the recommendation announced by Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady stops short of reimposing the city’s mask mandate even as confirmed cases of COVID-19 are surging across the country because of the delta variant, and new data suggests the virus can now be spread by fully vaccinated people.
“This isn’t forever, but it is necessary to help decrease the risk for all Chicagoans right now,” Arwady said in a statement.
* Also…
While a mask recommendation for public indoor spaces regardless of vaccination status only recently returned for the city of Chicago, mask mandates for public transit under federal guidelines have never gone away.
* Other stuff…
* The Anti-vaccine Con Job Is Becoming Untenable - Why targets of deliberate deception often hesitate to admit they’ve been deceived: The seminal text in the field—Erving Goffman’s 1952 essay “On Cooling the Mark Out”—observes that all targets of con artists eventually come to understand that they have been defrauded, yet they almost never complain or report the crime to authorities. Why? Because, Goffman argues, admitting that one has been conned is so deeply shameful that marks experience it as a kind of social death.
* With new vaccine and mask requirements, businesses scramble to respond to delta variant and shifting health guidance
* Chicago clinics serving low-income patients mandate COVID-19 vaccines for employees, following lead of big hospitals
* The NFL has incentivized getting the COVID vaccine — so why is a vocal minority still so hesitant?
* DuPage and McHenry counties now under indoor-masking-for-all guidance as COVID-19 spread deemed ‘substantial’ by CDC
* Who is Joseph Mercola? 5 things about the doctor called a COVID-19 misinformation ‘superspreader’ — from Chicago roots to bizarre battles with government regulators
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Pritzker signs FOID compromise into law
Monday, Aug 2, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release excerpt…
Standing with legislators, gun-safety advocates, and mass-shooting survivors, Governor JB Pritzker signed House Bill 562, landmark legislation which expands background checks on all gun sales in Illinois and provides mental health funding for communities most impacted by gun violence, among other life-saving measures.
The legislation is the latest effort by the Pritzker administration and General Assembly to address gun violence as a public health crisis, building on the $128 million investment in violence prevention programs included in this year’s state budget.
“The bill I sign today delivers to Illinoisans everywhere the most comprehensive reform to our state firearms laws in over a generation. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have come together to shape a law steeped in a commonsense commitment to safety,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The state will now require universal background checks on all gun sales in Illinois. We’re also taking action to ensure responsible gunowners aren’t held back by an antiquated licensing system – which hasn’t seen significant updates since its founding more than 50 years ago.”
Passing with bipartisan support, House Bill 562 makes sweeping modernizations to the Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) card system, which hasn’t been updated since its creation over 50 years ago. In the last decade, the number of Illinoisans with a FOID Card has nearly doubled without modernization of statutory framework or technology – from 1.2 million in 2010 to 2.2 million today.
The legislation does the following:
Expands background checks to all gun sales in Illinois starting in 2024.
Invests in community-based, trauma-informed mental health programs in the communities most impacted by gun violence.
Properly funds the Illinois State Police’s ability to enforce the surrender of firearms from people who have lost their license for gun ownership.
Requires ISP to remove guns from people with revoked FOID cards who have not surrendered their weapon.
Amends how FOID card fees are distributed: $5 will go to the State Police Firearm Services Fund and $5 will go into the State Police Revocation Enforcement Fund (previously, $6 went to the Wildlife and Fish Fund, $1 to the State Police Services Fund, and $3 to the State Police Firearm Services Fund).
Creates a stolen gun database and requires ISP to continuously monitor state and federal databases for prohibited gun buyers.
Creates stronger identification factors, like fingerprints, so Illinois State Police can more easily verify the identity of FOID applicants and firearm purchasers, as well as increase the frequency of background checks. Allows responsible gunowners who opt into this process to see their FOID and Concealed Carry applications expedited and automatically renewed going forward.
Streamlines the FOID card system by allowing ISP to create electronic records, creating a combined FOID and concealed carry license, offering cardholders the ability to apply for renewal six months before the expiration date, and establishing a professional appeals board.
Formalizes in law preventative actions the Illinois State Police has taken under Director Brendan Kelly’s leadership: giving all Illinois law enforcement agencies access to the FOID status of any individual, ensuring State Police continuously monitor federal and state databases for any new threat to safety, requiring every Illinois law enforcement agency to submit ballistics information to national crime databases within 48 hours, and making available to the public all firearms reported stolen to crack down on illegal gun trafficking.
“Effective violence prevention requires a multi-faceted approach, and partnerships between local law enforcement and state and federal government agencies are critical in order to reduce gun violence and violent crime in communities throughout Illinois,” Attorney General Kwame Raoul said. “I appreciate Governor Pritzker recognizing this and signing House Bill 562 into law as another important step in our collective goal to prevent violent crime. I look forward to continuing to use the tools within my office and building upon our partnerships with law enforcement agencies and advocacy groups to work to prevent violent crimes and support crime victims across the state.”
“The ISP welcome the signing of this bill which modernizes FOID and eliminates redundant and duplicative processes that do nothing to improve public safety. This act will help us in our mission to make lawful gun ownership easier for the good guys while keeping guns out of the hands of those who threaten public safety,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly.
“This is the type of lasting change the people of our state need and deserve,” said House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch. “Never again will we allow another senseless tragedy like the mass shooting in Aurora, where a convicted felon killed five innocent people and wounded several others, to happen on our watch. With this bill we are giving our state police additional money and resources to ensure law abiding citizens can exercise their second amendment rights, while also equipping our officers with the tools to keep them out of the hands of individuals who present a danger to themselves or others.”
“With the help of a broad coalition of legislators, we are finally able to modernize the back-logged FOID system to ease the process for law-abiding residents while helping prevent those who should not have a gun from getting one,” said Leader Jay Hoffmann (D-Belleville, IL). “I thank the parents and advocates who helped push this issue, and I thank Governor Pritzker for signing this balanced, comprehensive bill into law that will save lives.”
“This consequential piece of legislation modernizes our decades-old FOID system and ensure we keep firearms out of the hands of people who are a danger to themselves and others, while at the same time streamlines the process for responsible gun owners,” said state Sen. Dave Koehler (D-Peoria). “As gun violence continues to devastate families across the country, Illinois is taking a major step forward in leading the effort to keep people safe and families together.”
“This critical legislation will keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people through implementing universal background checks, empowering partners in law enforcement to act before the next tragedy can occur, and dedicating life-saving mental health funding to communities most impacted by gun violence,” said Senator Ram Villivalam (D-Chicago).
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* Brenden Moore at the Herald and Review…
Though some high-profile Republicans, such as Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, have encouraged people to get vaccinated, leadership has been lacking on the issue from others.
Rep. Mary Miller, R-Oakland, who has openly flouted the mask mandate on the U.S. House floor and just recently tweeted “Do vaccines work?” in response to the revised CDC mask recommendations (they do).
Only about 34% of Miller’s constituents are fully vaccinated, the lowest of any congressional district in the state, according to data from Harvard University. A public message encouraging vaccination could go a long way.
Same with state Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, a downstate candidate for governor. He pointedly refused to endorse the vaccine in an interview earlier this week with WCIA, despite the vaccine’s effectiveness at preventing hospitalization and death.
* No relation…
* Mark Maxwell on Darren Bailey…
Throughout the pandemic, Bailey has promoted the importance of individual responsibility over collective action and personal freedoms over government mandates. What advice would he give responsible individuals about how they could best protect themselves and others during the pandemic?
“I think the one thing that people need to do is understand the constitutional basis of freedom that this country stands on: the Constitution,” Bailey answered, avoiding any reference to vaccines.
Publicly available data posted on the Illinois Department of Public Health’s website says that 97.7% of people who died due to COVID-19 this year were unvaccinated. Asked how he would respond to that data if it came across his desk as governor, Bailey dismissed the readily available numbers as untrustworthy, without offering any evidence or explanation.
“We asked for the proof,” Bailey said. “We want to see it. Where’s this coming from? Where’s this going? And they never present it. So, my facts, your facts, my data, your data.”
* Um…
* Maxwell…
When a reporter asked Bailey how he squares that comment with speed limit laws that were intended to keep people safe, he seemed to suggest those laws were merely “advice.”
“Speed limit laws, you know, that’s, that’s an advice, that’s a law. You drive the speed limit, or you speed, or you drive slower. It is up to government, it is up to the Illinois Department of Public Health, to best advise what they think is best. It is up to the American people to decide on their own if they’re going to go with that advice or not. It’s that simple.”
* Bailey also refused to say whether he was vaxed…
* He’s not vaxed and neither is fellow Republican gubernatorial candidate Gary Rabine…
* The depths some people will sink just to score political points with the most deliberately ignorant segment of the GOP base…
According to fellow church members, Bailey’s own brother-in-law was transferred to a hospital in St. Louis under a medically induced coma for specialized [COVID] treatment.
The church is asking for urgent prayers while Bailey sows doubts about public health data that shows vaccines are effective.
Public health data shows nearly 98% of Illinois patients who died due to covid-19 illness this year did not have the vaccine.
Pritzker responded to the reports and said leadership is about listening to experts.
“I am sorry for his brother-in-law who is hospitalized with COVID-19,” he said. “Misinformation is killing people. And people who are promoting misinformation, people who are not listening to the science, are not helping anyone. We need leaders in the state of Illinois listening to the science.”
* And Bailey isn’t alone…
Rabine falsely said that if the vaccines were FDA approved, they “would have been taken off the shelf about 5,000 or 6,000 deaths ago.”
Rabine’s comment, which he repeated throughout the interview, either misunderstands or misinterprets the CDC’s regular, routine collection of “adverse event” reports from people who took the vaccine. As a part of rigorous review protocols, the law requires public health experts to cast a wide net and collect a variety of tips or reports from anyone and everyone who may have gone through some sort of medical episode or death after taking a vaccine, even if the vaccine had nothing to do with their medical episode. Those reports are gathered and collected for medical professionals to thoroughly examine and look for any potential link back to the vaccine. The CDC calls the process the “most intense safety monitoring in U.S. history,” and says the vaccines are “safe and effective.” […]
Asked to clarify what he meant, Rabine again incorrectly attributed thousands of deaths directly to the vaccine. He was apparently using the CDC’s ‘Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System’ (VAERS) to inflate fears about the risks of the vaccine. While the CDC says “reports of death after COVID-19 vaccination are rare,” the agency did collect “6,207 reports of death (0.0018%) among people who received a COVID-19 vaccine,” adding that the “FDA requires healthcare providers to report any death after COVID-19 vaccination to VAERS, even if it’s unclear whether the vaccine was the cause.”
* Rabine’s spokesman walked it back…
After the interview, Maxwell wrote in a story for his station that he received a voicemail from Rabine’s spokesman, Travis Akin, who sought to retract the candidate’s claims of thousands of deaths directly attributable to vaccines. “I think we are walking that back,” Akin said, according to Maxwell’s story.
* But…
Attacking a reporter for tweeting simple facts. Great. Also, Rabine didn’t go after any of the male reporters who were calling him out and even mocking him. Gonna be a long year.
* Even the ILGOP cringed…
* Like I said, it’s gonna be a long year…
* But hilarity will certainly abound…
So, he held his little rally outside. Great advance work, bub.
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* Institute of Government and Public Affairs…
The University of Illinois Flash Index in July ended its rapid climb from the depth of the COVID-19 crisis, falling to 105.8 from the 106.0 level in June. This does not signal a flagging Illinois economy, only that the rate of increase has plateaued.
The monthly indicator of Illinois economic activity had risen for 13 consecutive months since bottoming out at 92.8 in May 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic-induced economic slowdown. As always, the 100 level is the dividing line between economic growth and decline. See the full Flash Index archive for monthly readings.
“In retrospect, the recovery both nationally and Illinois has been remarkable, exceeding the expectations of almost all observers,” said U of I professor emeritus J. Fred Giertz, who compiles the monthly index for the university’s Institute of Government and Public Affairs. “Overall, the economy is now above the pre-crisis level achieved in early 2020.
“It is not surprising that the rate of increase has stopped rising,” Giertz said. “There are now mixed economic signals with bottlenecks arising in some areas, the result of labor or materials issues along with the threat of renewed COVID impacts. However, consumers remain a source of strength with substantial spending power coupled with pent-up demand resulting from depressed spending opportunities during the shutdown.”
The decline in the Illinois’ unemployment rate has also stopped, remaining at more than 7 percent for the last three months. This is more than one percentage point above the national average. However, the bond rating agencies have upgraded Illinois after years of continuing downgrades.
Illinois sales tax receipts were up almost 17 percent from last year’s depressed level, Giertz said. However, individual income tax and corporate income tax revenue was down significantly from July of last year. Fortunately, this does not imply a weakness in economic activity since July 2020 was the filing deadline for income tax returns when final payments boost receipts. This is one reason why state tax receipts were so strong in fiscal 2020 with two filing deadlines in the same fiscal year—July and May.
The Flash Index is normally a weighted average of Illinois growth rates in corporate earnings, consumer spending and personal income as estimated from receipts for corporate income, individual income, and retail sales taxes. These are adjusted for inflation before growth rates are calculated. The growth rate for each component is then calculated for the 12-month period using data through July 31, 2021. Even though more than a year has passed since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, ad hoc adjustments will still be needed for some time because of the timing of the tax receipts resulting from state and federal changes in payment dates both this and last year. For example, the change in the filing date from 2020 to 2021 necessitated ad hoc adjustments this month as will the recently approved changes in the Illinois corporate tax.
* Chart…
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Them’s fighting words, governor
Monday, Aug 2, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* News media Q&A with Gov. JB Pritzker on July 27th…
Mike Flannery: Are you confident that the World Series, if it comes to 35th Street, will move forward?
Gov. Pritzker: It’s, it’s coming to Wrigley before it’s gonna… [laughter, applause]
* Later that day…
* July 30th…
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Another Blagojevich publicity stunt
Monday, Aug 2, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The I-Team…
Blagojevich tells the I-Team that he will file a [federal] lawsuit against the state of Illinois, objecting to the way he was removed as governor and challenging the prohibition against his running for state elective office. He claims the methods used against him by the General Assembly violated his constitutional rights.
“I could legally run for President of the United States, but I can’t run for alderman of the 33rd Ward,” said Blagojevich in an exclusive interview with the I-Team and part of a special report on Sunday night.
Blagojevich says he has no actual interest in ether position — president or alderman — but that on Monday, says he will go to the Dirksen federal courthouse in Chicago with a lawsuit alleging the legislative actions that now prevent him from running for statewide office were unconstitutional.
Just weeks after Blagojevich was arrested by the FBI in 2008, and charged in an expansive corruption case, the Illinois House voted to impeach him followed by a senate conviction, thereby removing the state’s 40th governor from office.
Blagojevich says his new lawsuit will accuse the state of an unconstitutional impeachment proceeding, claiming that he was not allowed to call and question witnesses, or play all of the voluminous FBI undercover recordings made during the corruption investigation. […]
“I think he’s got a very hard argument to make. And the reason is this: impeachment is not like a criminal proceeding. A criminal proceeding clearly under the Constitution has certain constitutional protections,” said [ABC7’s legal analyst Gil Soffer, a former assistant U.S. attorney in Chicago]. “But it is much less clear for an impeachment proceeding. An impeachment proceeding is more political than certainly criminal. It’s more political-at least as part political and legal-and so it’s not at all clear that he has the same right, the same due process protections as he would in a criminal proceeding.”
I can’t help but wonder who’s financing this.
* Anyway, Soffer is right. And Hannah Meisel digs up some judicial precedent…
Blagojevich’s assertion that being blocked from running for state office is unconstitutional is similar to a losing argument made in federal court by a man barred from running for a local school board a decade ago. The case ended up at the Seventh Circuit Appellate Court, which in 2014 ruled an Illinois election law banning people with certain convictions on their records from running for office does not violate the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection clause.
“The right to run for or hold public office is not a fundamental right,” the court wrote in its opinion. “Thus, a ban on felons running for elective office is valid if it is rationally related to a legitimate state interest. Illinois’s stated interest in barring felons from elective office is to ensure ‘public confidence in the honesty and integrity of those serving in state and local offices.’”
The court also ruled the law doesn’t violate the First Amendment.
The law prevents those convicted of so-called “infamous” crimes like murder, rape, sexual assault, burglary, arson and selling narcotics, but also includes non-violent crimes like perjury and bribery. Blagojevich’s first trial ended with him convicted on a charge of lying to the FBI, and the subsequent trial ended with the jury finding him guilty on 17 charges, including counts of bribery and conspiracy to commit bribery.
The Illinois Constitution allows the Senate to prohibit an impeached and removed official from ever running for state and local elective office.
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New laws
Monday, Aug 2, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Sun-Times…
Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Thursday signed legislation ushering in an elected school board in Chicago over the strong objections of Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
That legislation, which the governor signed into law without the fanfare that has accompanied other bill signings, would create a 21-seat board in January 2025, initially split between 11 mayoral appointees — including the board president — and 10 elected members. […]
In a statement, Pritzker said the plan laid out in the bill he signed will “help students and their families have a strong voice in important decisions about the education system in Chicago.
“I applaud the members of the General Assembly for working together on behalf of their constituents to pass legislation that required compromise and thoughtful deliberation,” Pritzker said. “I look forward to ongoing conversations with the General Assembly and mayor, in particular about the district’s finances, board members’ compensation and campaign rules.” […]
But a high level source close to Pritzker said the governor opted to avoid such an event for the school board bill because he didn’t want to “poke [Lightfoot] in the eye” on what was for her a major defeat. […]
“If Springfield draws these districts based on population, the true diversity of CPS could be under-represented on the Board … While the current language of HB 2908 fails to address these concerns, I am hopeful that by working together with the bill’s sponsors and other stakeholders, we can agree to trailer bill language that does so.” [Lightfoot wrote in a letter to Pritzker].
I’m not sure I quite follow her logic about basing districts on population. Doing that has made the Illinois General Assembly, the Chicago City Council and most other bodies quite diverse.
* More new laws…
* Bills expanding access to mental health care are among several signed into law
* Pritzker signs law repealing criminal penalties for HIV transmission
* New law aims to expand affordable housing through $75 million investment, tax credits
* Education services extended for special needs students
* Pritzker signs dozens of bills into law
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* He waited until Sunday to say anything, though…
* From the story…
According to data published by the CDC, virtually every county in the Chicago metropolitan area is currently experiencing “substantial” transmission of COVID-19, meaning that residents are urged to wear masks in indoor settings, even if they are vaccinated.
That includes the city, with officials saying that they are seeing an average of 202 new cases per day over the last seven days.
Even with increases in cases, city officials expressed confidence that Lollapalooza could be held safely. According to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, more than 90% of attendees at the shows were vaccinated, and hundreds had been turned away at the gates after failing to provide proof of vaccination or of a negative COVID test, with concertgoers required to furnish one of those items.
City officials also tweaked the guidelines at Lollapalooza over the weekend, saying that guests should wear masks in indoor spaces at the annual festival.
Thoughts?
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* Joe Mahr at the Tribune…
IDES has said it cannot by law discuss individual cases. In what little IDES has said about account hijacking, the agency has suggested that beneficiaries are falling for scams that allow thieves to steal their login information and redirect the cash, as opposed to hackers breaking into computer systems used by IDES.
Even if that’s true, IDES has yet to explain how it has been unable to stop repeated thefts from the same accounts, even after fraud was reported.
That’s the case with Winston. Winston, who lives about 45 miles southeast of Quincy, on the state’s western border, provided records to the Tribune showing that payments were being sent to his bank near Springfield through late March.
When an IDES email alerted Winston in April that his direct deposit information had been changed, he called IDES to report the fraud, then dug into it more himself.
Logging into his account, he saw his bank’s name had been erased from the direct deposit screen, and the routing and account numbers had been replaced.
Winston traced the routing number to a bank registered in Sandy, Utah, tied to Go2Bank. That’s an affiliate of the branchless Green Dot financial services firm that scammers have used to quickly transfer cash online or siphon it out through prepaid cards.
IDES told Winston to reenter his banking information online, and he did. Winston said he changed his IDES account password, to better protect himself, and also reported the fraud to Green Dot. So both IDES and the bank were on notice, according to a complaint Winston later filed with the state. Yet weeks after the first fraudulent transfer, another one was sent to the same Go2Bank account, Winston’s records show.
And then it happened yet again.
* Meanwhile, here’s Jared Rutecki and Ray Long…
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said he has spent more than $2.5 million in crisis management after a massive ransomware hack crippled the agency in April and potentially exposed gigabytes of personal and confidential records on the dark web.
The taxpayer money is being used to rebuild computer systems, notify individuals their personal information may be at risk and get the office fully back online following the April 10 attack, carried out under a name linked to a notorious gang of cybercriminals based in Russia.
The breach came just eight weeks after state auditors met with officials at the attorney general’s office to warn of deficiencies in the agency’s cybersecurity programs.
In the meantime, many of the basic functions of the office — including consumer complaints, public records disputes and financial aid for crime victims — are being conducted by mail and telephone as online access remains shut down. The office has established a call center to handle identity theft issues and other public inquiries.
In his first detailed interview about the attack, Raoul told the Tribune and the Better Government Association his office never considered paying the blackmail demand from the hackers. He declined to say the amount of the ransom demand or how it was conveyed because of the ongoing federal investigation.
* Related…
* How Unemployment Insurance Fraud Exploded During the Pandemic - Bots filing bogus applications in bulk, teams of fraudsters in foreign countries making phony claims, online forums peddling how-to advice on identity theft: Inside the infrastructure of perhaps the largest fraud wave in history.
* Organization warns about continues scams in Illinois amid pandemic confusion: Illinois residents should be on high alert for potential scams. That’s the word from the Better Business Bureau, which says the state has become a hot spot for identity theft attempts. “In particular, they’re claiming to be from the Secretary of State’s office,” said Steve Bernas, president and CEO of the BBB in Chicago and Northern Illinois. “They’re basically asking you to click on a link or a text message, because something is wrong with your account or you need to update your driver’s license information or something of that kind.”
* IDES news: Illinois Republicans seek review of potentially fraudulent jobless payouts
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* My weekly syndicated newspaper column from last week…
This past May, Illinois House Deputy Majority Leader Jehan Gordon Booth, D-Peoria, and Gov. J.B. Pritzker worked out a deal with some key state business groups to mandate seven days of paid leave per year for every employee in Illinois. Workers wouldn’t have to give any reasons for the guaranteed paid leave.
But organized labor, in particular some Chicago union leaders, angrily came out against it, arguing that the bill’s home rule preemption language would prevent Chicago from eventually enacting an even broader ordinance.
I asked Gov. Pritzker the other day if he planned to bring the paid leave bill back next year.
“I want to expand paid leave,” the governor said. “We’ll continue to work with legislators to make sure that we’re overcoming the hesitancy. But yeah, I’m not going to stop fighting for more paid leave for people across the state.”
I had talked to some downstate legislators and labor folks after the bill fell apart and they were clearly upset because the legislation would’ve been a boon to workers in their part of the state.
“It’s been deeply concerning to me that when you get outside the City of Chicago, and particularly when you get to central, southern Illinois, paid leave is non-existent. Non-existent,” Pritzker said, repeating himself for emphasis.
“Nothing happens instantaneously, usually, in Springfield,” Pritzker said. “And sometimes it takes a session or two to get something done, and sometimes more than that, but I’m impatient. So, I’m going to keep working.”
Pritzker’s Springfield recent news media interviews to kick off his reelection campaign were held at the downtown office of the Laborers Union. Early union support was crucial to his 2018 primary victory and Pritzker has trumpeted their causes.
But some cracks beyond the paid leave proposal emerged during the spring session. A small union local held up an important bill for the state’s burgeoning data center industry over the hiring of a tiny handful of non-union workers. Labor had targeted a non-union contractor at a refinery a few years ago, then agreed to set aside their bill, but when it reemerged this year a host of industries were targeted by what some business groups labeled as “forced unionization.”
And, of course, organized labor has put a brick on the climate/energy bill that Pritzker wants passed over worries that coal and gas-fired electric power plants will be closed. Almost two months after talks broke down, little to no progress has been made.
So, I asked Pritzker how he can maintain his relationship with organized labor while still saying, “Folks, maybe you’re going a little too far here.”
As expected, Pritzker claimed he has an “excellent” relationship with organized labor. “We talk all the time. And I think that having a good relationship means that you say what you really think, and you share your concerns with one another. And we do that with one another. So, there are going to be disagreements that occur, and you got to work through these things.”
On the climate/energy bill, Pritzker said he believes there’s a “misunderstanding about whether we’re talking about 2035 or 2045” for his decarbonization goals.
“The reality is that the industry itself, the coal industry for example, has said that they can get [carbon] sequestration to 90 percent by 2035. They’re the ones who volunteered that to begin with. And so, we want to make sure that happens. But we’re not trying to close them down in 2035, we want to go to 2045, 24 years from now.”
I’m pretty sure it’s far more complicated than that, and I’ve been hearing from some very depressed folks in the past week when I’ve asked about the prospects for a deal anytime soon.
When an energy bill was negotiated while the anti-union Bruce Rauner was governor, the unions agreed to drop their demands for some all-important prevailing wage language in order to get a deal done to save a couple of nuclear power plants. Now, the unions have prevailing wage in this new bill, but are also pushing the pro-union Pritzker hard to stand with them against his own stated desires to eventually decarbonize the electric power industry.
Union leadership isn’t as cohesive as it was when they were all banding together against Rauner. And now that Michael Madigan is no longer the House speaker, there’s nobody in Springfield with the authority and might to convince the politically powerful unions to back down a bit. Pritzker has to find a different, uncharted way.
* Related…
* Press Release: Exelon Generation Submits Decommissioning Plans for Byron and Dresden Nuclear Plants - Job reduction notifications to affected employees will be next step in shutting down the plants this fall
* Exelon moves ahead with plans to shut down Byron, Dresden nuclear plants
* ‘This is not a bluff’: Exelon moves to shut down 2 nuclear power plants in Illinois as parent company of scandal-plagued ComEd seeks more state subsidies
* How much time does Exelon want to clean up a nuke site? The utility files for the maximum—a couple of generations.
* Prairie State Energy Campus a piece in solving Illinois’ clean-energy legislation puzzle
* Jobs, reliability and bailouts chief concerns amid possible Illinois energy legislation
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