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There’s a public hearing set for Tuesday over the Chicago Bears’ plan to relocate to Arlington Heights.

A House committee will hear revised legislation in support of the team’s move. It includes a $3 admission tax to help pay off debt from renovating Soldier Field two decades ago.

Even though racing season is well underway, the race track at Arlington Park remained quiet this spring, awaiting a new sport from the new owners. The Bears are apparently still working on the details with community leaders and lawmakers.

“As the Bears work out details, one of the chief concerns for all sides is how the property will be taxed so that the communities will be able build infrastructure needed to support an NFL team,” said Jon Ridler with the Arlington Heights Chamber of Commerce. “The latest proposal, lawmakers will unveil in a hearing in Springfield tomorrow, would freeze the current property tax assessment on the property. It would establish a $3 admission tax on tickets, which would be used to pay off the city’s debt for renovations to Soldier Field 20 years ago. It would also determine how the communities would divide revenue from sales, hotel, liquor taxes.”

* NRDC…

Illinois should invest in a transportation system that is equitable and increases access to vital services, cleaner air, public transit, and lower-cost transportation options than car ownership—not in widening roads or highways.

Unfortunately, the Illinois Legislature is considering a proposal that would add multiple managed toll lanes to Interstate 55 (I-55) leading into Chicago, a project that threatens to exacerbate existing air quality issues and environmental injustices.

Our transportation system has major implications for climate, health, and equity. As the threat to our climate and our health from fossil fuel burning power plants has decreased, transportation has emerged as the top source of greenhouse gas emissions in Illinois.

Vehicles also emit dangerous air pollutants like particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide linked to increased illness and death. Pollution from diesel engines alone is projected to cause 400 early deaths, nearly 200 heart attacks and thousands of respiratory illnesses this year in Illinois.

* CBS Chicago…

More than 800 moms from across Illinois are getting ready for a fight at the state Capitol.

The moms are part of a coalition that is setting its sights on gun safety legislation. They are on buses from Union Station to rally on Tuesday in Springfield for gun safety legislation. […]

“We want to talk to our reps and senators about things like safe gun storage,” Harper said. “We want to make sure that there’s a priority around the gun industry to be sued.”

Another bill that the group will be backing would prohibit convicted domestic abusers from owning a firearm.

* WICS…

The most dangerous time for a survivor of a domestic violence relationship is when they leave their abuser, according to The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence. Survivors of domestic violence that involved a gun have a 500% higher likelihood of being murdered by their abuser.

Currently a domestic violence survivor has to file for an emergency order of protection and for their abuser’s firearms to be taken away separately. And if their abuser’s firearms are seized, there are loopholes where the abuser could still have access to their guns even after they have been confiscated. Illinois House Bill 676 is looking to change that. […]

If passed, this loophole would be closed and firearms would have to be given directly to law enforcement. It would also allow law enforcement to take the guns when they serve the order of protection. […]

The bill has passed the House and is waiting in the Senate for a vote. The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence and other supporters of the bill are hoping the Senate takes up the bill this year to hopefully decrease the number of domestic violence homicides.

* Effingham Radio…

With unanimous support, the Illinois Legislature has passed a measure that will make it safer for students to get on and off school buses across the state. SB2340 allows Illinois school districts to install a well-lit additional extended stop arm that further obstructs the roadway from passing traffic when a school bus is stopped to pick up or drop off students.

“There is no greater priority we as leaders can have than safety for our children. That includes giving school districts the ability to make the commute to and from school safer and I believe this legislation does that,” said Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield), one of four senate chief co-sponsors.

While the bill does not require districts to do so, the legislation gives Illinois school buses the option to be fitted with up to two additional safety arms.

“More than 17 million incidents of vehicles driving around stopped school buses are reported each year in the US. These extended arms provide a more visible and physical warning to motorists to stop before a tragedy happens,” said State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr (D-Naperville), a chief-co sponsor of the bill in the house.

* Journal Courier…

House Bill 2 would establish the creation of “overdose prevention sites” in Illinois. If the bill passed, these places, also known as safe injection sites or supervised consumption sites, would provide a hygienic location in which those struggling with addiction could take pre-obtained substances such as opiates or heroin.

The bill also mandates these sites would have certain features, like an on-hand supply of the overdose-reversal drug naloxone, safe hypodermic needle and syringe disposal, and staff trained to administer first aid. […]

The bill was filed in December by Rep. La Shawn Ford, D-Chicago, and has picked up 17 co-sponsors — all Democrats from the Chicagoland area and collar counties — through two readings.

Under federal law, overdose prevention sites are prohibited, though one already has opened in the U.S. and other states are considering them. The federal government also has sounded more favorable toward the sites. The Justice Department hinted last year that it would be open to them and, more recently, the government pledged $5 million toward a study looking into their effectiveness.

* Sen. Sue Rezin…

Illinois is one step closer to officially recognizing the Honor and Remember Flag after legislation sponsored by Illinois Deputy Minority Leader Sue Rezin (R-Morris) passed out of the Senate on Thursday, May 11.

“The Honor and Remember Flag is a powerful symbol of the sacrifices made by our men and women of our armed forces,” said Sen. Rezin. “So often, gold star family members want assurance that their loved one’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain and that our nation will never forget that sacrifice. By officially recognizing this flag and what it means, we can help ensure that no gold star family member has to ever wonder about that.”

Senate Bill 1072 designates the Honor and Remember Flag as the official State symbol of concern for and commitment to honoring and remembering the lives of all members of the United States armed forces who have lost their lives while serving or as a result of service and their families.

“The Honor and Remember Flag began its story after Cpl. George ‘Tony’ Lutz II was killed in action while on patrol in Fallujah, Iraq. While coping with this traumatic loss, Tony’s father sought to create a symbol that specifically acknowledged American service men and women who lost their life while in the line of duty that could be easily displayed and recognized by anyone, at any time or at any place,” continued Sen. Rezin. “In that effort, the Honor and Remember Flag was born. This flag was quickly adopted by the gold star family community and has become the unofficial symbol for our nation’s fallen heroes.”

Senate Bill 1072 received unanimous support in the Illinois Senate, and now heads to the Illinois House of Representatives for further consideration.

* Rep. Jackie Haas…

On Monday, a resolution introduced by State Representative Jackie Haas (R-Kankakee) to declare September as River Clean Up Month in Illinois was adopted in the House of Representatives. House Resolution 169 is a bipartisan resolution to encourage chambers of commerce, visitors bureaus, and other area groups to coordinate local cleanup activities along portions of rivers and waterways in their area.

“Illinois rivers are intrinsic to our ecosystems and our state culture,” said Rep. Haas. “However, when trash is disposed of in our beautiful waterways it damages the visual aesthetic and biological qualities of these critical bodies of water. I am proud to have bipartisan support on this resolution to promote citizen participation in keeping our communities and natural habitats clean and healthy.”

HR 169 declares September as River Clean Up Month because water levels are usually low, temperatures are warm, and schools are in session. This presents an educational opportunity to involve area youth and highlight the importance of clean rivers and waterways.

“Whether you’re in a church group, community organization, or leading Scout troops, everyone can chip in to safely organize river clean ups in their communities,” Rep. Haas continued. “Knowing how important the Kankakee River is to the 79th District, we can extend this across Illinois and connect as a state in preserving our phenomenal natural resources.”

* Press release…

To restore dignity and honor to families by carrying out their last wishes, State Senator Adriane Johnson led a measure to allow people with previous felony convictions to serve as an executor of someone else’s estate if expressly named.

Johnson will be joined by a number of advocates at a press conference Tuesday to further discuss the bill.

WHO:

· State Senator Adriane Johnson
· State Representative Lakesia Collins
· Marlon Chamberlain, Fully Free Campaign Manager
· Harry Pena, Fully Free Coalition Manager
· Greg Chambers, Policy and Organizer for Live Free
· Avalon Betts Gaston, Project Manager for the Alliance for Reentry and Justice

WHAT: Press conference on measure to allow formerly incarcerated individuals to serve as executors of someone else’s estate

WHEN: Tuesday, May 16 at 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: Blue Room, Illinois State Capitol and live on BlueRoomStream.com

* Bus Gates press release…

Springfield, IL (May 15, 2023) With unanimous support, the Illinois Legislature has passed a measure that will make it safer for students to get on and off school buses across the state. SB2340 allows Illinois school districts to install a well-lit additional extended stop arm that further obstructs the roadway from passing traffic when a school bus is stopped to pick up or drop off students.

“There is no greater priority we as leaders can have than safety for our children. That includes giving school districts the ability to make the commute to and from school safer and I believe this legislation does that,” said Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield), one of four senate chief co-sponsors.

While the bill does not require districts to do so, the legislation gives Illinois school buses the option to be fitted with up to two additional safety arms.

“More than 17 million incidents of vehicles driving around stopped school buses are reported each year in the US. These extended arms provide a more visible and physical warning to motorists to stop before a tragedy happens,” said State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr (D-Naperville), a chief-co sponsor of the bill in the house.

A 2019 study conducted by the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation (NASDPTS) found that in a single day, more than 95,000 motorists had illegally passed stopped school buses displaying flashing red lights and traditional stop arms.
Across the U.S. an estimated 17 million drivers will illegally pass school buses while their current stop arms are deployed this year a statistic making extended stop arms an increasingly popular option for school districts to install these.

“With driver distraction levels at all-time highs the current warning systems, which haven’t changed in 30 years, simply aren’t enough. We felt compelled to design a simple and cost-effective way to increase the visibility of buses, reduce the liability of motorists, and decrease these tragedies and close calls,” said Illinois-based Bus Gates co-founder Jeff Stauffer.
Under the bill, the front side extension to the required stop arm must extend no more than 78 inches from the side of the bus with the rear side arm not extending more than 32 inches.

Illinois joins a growing list of progressive states to modernize warning systems on school buses. States allowing Bus Gates and other stop-arm extensions including Texas, Montana, Virginia and West Virginia. Bus Gates is federally approved.
“Since installing Bus Gates stop arm extensions, we’ve seen a 95% drop in stop arm passing violations,” said Alvarado, Texas Public Schools Transportation Manager, Terry Woods.

* Capitol News Illinois…

Victims of “deepfake porn” and “doxing” would have a legal pathway to sue their perpetrators in Illinois under a pair of digital privacy measures that have so far received unanimous support in the General Assembly.

House Bill 2954, which would allow victims of “doxing” to pursue civil litigation, needs only a signature from the governor to become law after clearing both chambers of the General Assembly unanimously.

Doxing, as defined by HB 2954, occurs when an individual intentionally publishes another person’s personal information without their consent. For an offense to qualify as doxing, the person publishing the information must have acted with intent to “harm or harass” the victim with “knowledge or reckless disregard” that it could lead to “death, bodily injury, or stalking.”

Additionally, the published information must have caused the victim harm in some way, including economic injury or emotional distress. A person found by a court to have suffered from doxing would be eligible to recover damages and other relief such as attorney’s fees.

posted by Isabel Miller
Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 10:07 am

Comments

If the Bears want to break the lease on the house on the lake, then just like everyone else who does that…they pay off the lease.

Its their problem they bought land in the suburbs for a new house, without thinking about how they were going to pay for it. If they cant afford it, then sell it.

Comment by Jerry Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 10:27 am
The ABC story on the Bears/AH bill reads like a press release in favor of the legislation. The only groups quoted are the AH Chamber of Commerce and the subgroup of business owners that is lobbying for the Bears move.

Someone mentioned yesterday that the local school districts need to hire some PR specialists to help them… this is an example of why they should have done so months ago. They need to get their message out there that every dollar of corporate welfare to the Six Billion Dollar Bears is a dollar being taken from their students. They can and should be pushing every news organization covering this topic to include their voice in coverage.

Comment by Skokie Man Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 10:28 am
If the proposal freezes the property assessment it makes you wonder if the assessor is in cahoots. Remember, the Assessor’s office is valuing the 2022 assessment of the property based on a 2023 sale he should not be considering when determining values. We’ve heard very little on how that assessment was determined

Comment by DuPage County AV Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 10:38 am
No bail out for the Bears. They need to pay up on the old lease, finance a new stadium without diverting tax dollars form local governments.

Comment by froganon Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 10:44 am
I’m gonna go all “Capt. ‘Smiling Jack’ Ross, USMC”…

“We off the record? The Bears are likely gonna get a deal, but it ain’t this deal or anything that looks like a bold face windfall, and it will be done, big bill, no one read, 11th hour of some time, and passed”

For the record,

These sponsors and these bills, it’s an embarrassing thought to trying for some pullback to “get something” or “make whole”, in actuality it’s comically written to seem thoughtful.

I’m well aware and learned my lesson to be cheeky on this, and now with the governor publicly using the term “bailout” at least once, the scoreboard needs no cheekiness to the status, or bricks, or whatnot.

What does need to factor in is the true windfall of the sale of the Washington Commanders, sale price $6.05 Billion, (you know the drill) and the Bears before the transaction valued greater than the sold Commanders on the market.

It’s a $200-400 million dollar windfall by actually voting for the sale’s completion. Literally the raising of a hand, the Bears Or-Gan-Eye-Zay-Shun will be worth even more.

A business model that has revenues by merely existing and values increasing by merely voting on a sale does not make the Billion Dollar Bears “poor” by any measure, or incapable of raising private funds to build the building and support the creation of its “commercial footprint”

Aiding and abetting the Billion Dollar Bears Bailout is turning your back on Chicago finances AND the children in school districts hurt to appease a family that can’t grasp or understand that a “want” by them doesn’t make this state or that town beholden to them.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 10:51 am
=would freeze the current property tax assessment on the property. It would establish a $3 admission tax on tickets, which would be used to pay off the city’s debt for renovations to Soldier Field 20 years ago=

Were I a local community, I would not invest one penny in additional infrastructure, no over time for police on game days. Zip.

Why would Arlington Heights raise money for Chicago? The Bears should pay that bill and I cannot fathom why anyone else should or why the legislature should be involved.

Freezing property values? I know a particular law firm that has had success against these types of things that should be getting a call right now.

The whole thing is absurd.

Comment by JS Mill Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 11:04 am
Will any of the former Arlington racing dates be moved to Hawthorne or Fairmont (FanDuel)?

Comment by Gravitas Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 11:44 am
Buy a piece of property for 197 Million and ask its taxes be frozen until whenever. Now the homeowners will be picking up the slack and they seem to be ignorant to the fact. Shame on them. Upon completion the Bears are going to pay FULL MARKET RATE taxes? Sure they are.

Comment by regular democrat Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 11:52 am
Jerry and JS Mill are on it.

Why should AH care about the McCaskey’s vanity project or the debt owed to Chicago? Any bank or bond market would LEAP at the opportunity to lend them the dough.

Comment by Jocko Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 12:43 pm
I’d argue that I-55 needs to be improved AND today’s vehicle fleet needs to be de-carbonized. A win-win.

Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Tuesday, May 16, 23 @ 1:27 pm
Highway expansions don’t fix the problem. Alternatives to driving do.

Examples abound around the country of widened expressways that fill with more cars, do not reduce commute times, and increase local air pollution issues. CTA, Pace, and Metra desperately need funding–they offer reductions in all the problems above, but not at current reduced service. There are fixes to congestion and associated health problems, but the money is not going to them…

Comment by JM Wednesday, May 17, 23 @ 11:07 am