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Top Illinois Stories
Lawmakers are considering House Bill 1429. The proposal would ban local governments from arresting or fining homeless people who are doing things like sleeping, eating or resting outdoors, or anything considered to be a life-sustaining activity. Local governments would also be required to provide social services to anyone being removed if possible.
It’s an ambitious effort that could reshape housing from Chicago to Peoria and across downstate Illinois. But while Pritzker is trying to build support for a far-reaching proposal backed by housing advocates and many developers, he faces opposition from local leaders who say the sweeping approach is wrong for their communities.
"Look beneath the surface of this bill. You will find a troubling set of facts: a sitting state senator who is simultaneously the sole officer of a private consulting corporation and a founding board officer of a nonprofit that lobbies for the very industry her legislation is designed to expand — and a network of multimillion-dollar behavioral health organizations positioned to profit from every referral the system generates."
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In a move to gain union support, last year’s transit bailout bill allows the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority board to implement a hike that could raise $1 billion more in tolls a year starting in 2027.
"They say that Tier 2 benefits 'may' not meet 'safe harbor' requirements that mandate that they at least equal Social Security retirement payments. They may be correct, but they may not be. Before doing anything, why not find out for sure? And if they do fall short, why not find out how much it would cost to bring them into 'safe harbor' line?"
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said on Thursday in a news release it was still moving forward with the construction of deterrents near Joliet to block the path of the carp, but would move management of the project to Michigan.
State Sen. Darby Hills is backing Illinois Senate Bill 4182, which would require most insurance plans to cover a six-month supply of egg and peanut allergen supplements for infants when prescribed by a health care provider.
Schweizer noted that property tax reform and relief measures have bipartisan and bicameral support, yet none of the bills he has backed have been called for a vote.
"It would, as a matter of entertainment, be a shame to see this legal food fight among our black-robed rulers go without its day in court: one judge suing seven other judges in a lawsuit presided over by another judge. Observers wouldn’t be able to identify who’s who without a scorecard."
The Illinois House unanimously passed a bill to require the state to create an online portal detailing utility charges to consumers, separate from delivery and supply charges. The website should include the statutory authority for charges remitted to the state or retained by utility companies, the amount collected each year and a detailed accounting of how funds are spent.
The proposal, Senate Bill 3353, would create the Digital Advertising Tax Act, establishing a 10 percent tax on revenue generated from digital advertising services in Illinois by companies that exceed a high revenue threshold.
House Bill 5408, backed by Rep. Anna Moeller, would create the Abortion Access Fund under the Illinois Department of Public Health, receiving 90 percent of any leftover dollars insurers are already required by the Affordable Care Act to set aside to cover abortion services for policyholders.
Among them, Lincoln College posted record-breaking enrollment in 2019, but was done in three years later by the "economic burdens initiated by the COVID pandemic" and hastened by a cyberattack. The closing of a college can impact a community from multiple angles, from loss of population base, to loss of revenues, to what to do with empty buildings.
The House on Thursday voted along party lines 69-36 to pass a bill that would create a grant fund to cover abortion care for uninsured and underinsured people. House Bill 5408, another of Gov. JB Pritzker’s initiatives, would utilize an under-used provision of the Affordable Care Act that requires insurance plans that offer coverage for abortions in instances that go beyond rape, incest and the life of the mother to collect at least $1 a month from enrollees to cover the cost of abortion claims.
Data centers have been popping up in the suburbs from Aurora to Hoffman Estates.
GOP candidate for lieutenant governor Aaron Del Mar said it’s important to support the Constitution and a free press, but taxpayer dollars should not support outlets like some in Chicago that only show one side of issues.
The bill would allow renters and currently unqualified home owners to use panels designed to be connected to an electrical system through an existing outlet, placed on a balcony, patio, yard or porch, primarily intended to offset energy consumption.
"State government revenues were up $1.571 billion at the end of the third quarter, according to the most recent report from the legislature’s bipartisan, bicameral Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability. The almost $1.6 billion in new revenues is an increase of 4.2 percent The state budget was crafted last year with an expectation that revenues would rise just 2.3 percent for the full fiscal year, so that’s pretty darned good news."
Opponents of House Bill 3320 estimate the Responsibility in Firearms Legislation, or RIFL Act could tack on thousands of dollars in taxes to one firearm purchase, and that would price lower income people out of exercising their Second Amendment rights.
Senate Bill 3495 would update state law to let applicants select “male,” “female,” or “X” when applying for or changing a driver’s license, instruction permit, or state ID. The proposal replaces older statutory language that referenced “non-binary,” aligning Illinois law with federal standards and practices used by other states.
Under current Illinois law, cities are prohibited from requiring officers to issue a specific number of citations within a set time period. The new proposal goes further, preventing police departments from comparing one officer’s citation totals to another when conducting performance reviews.
"When the real statues were under siege, when they were being torn down and hidden away under the cover of “safety,” these same people were nowhere to be found. No outrage. No pressure. No backbone. But now? ... Now they’re brave enough to put Columbus back on display… as long as he’s standing next to a tray of antipasto."
Defense lawyer Amy Saharia reminded the 7th Circuit panel that prosecutors’ theory of the “alleged benefits” prosecutors said Madigan enjoyed were “far outside the typical … bribery case. Speaker Madigan did not take cash from ComEd, he did not take Rolex watches, trips to Vegas, all the things you typically see in bribery cases."
Rep. Mary Beth Canty's proposal to legalize it passed a House committee last month and she's currently writing an amendment to address concerns about regulation and liability in hopes of moving it forward.
The highest effective tax rates were concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest, led by Illinois (1.84 percent), New Jersey (1.58 percent), Vermont (1.4 percent), Connecticut (1.36 percent), and Ohio (1.32 percent). 
Economist James Bohn recently documented the breathtaking resultsof that experiment in which Wisconsin — for a century a high-tax, high-regulation state atrophying in a straitjacket of antique progressivism — turned
President Trump, Pritzker told a conference of Black activists in New York City, is “going to try to call out ICE and CBP and scare people away from the polls, everybody. He’s going to make it seem like you shouldn’t vote. We need to go with purpose and push them out of the way or at least tell them to get out of the way and go in and vote. And all of us as governors need to protect your right to vote.”
“I’m just wondering, if (the school districts are) 90 percent adequate (funding), and we’ve got probably 25 percent of the schools in the state of Illinois that are at full financial adequacy, why aren’t we seeing property taxes come down?” asked Rep. Blaine Wilhour.
"President Trump threatened to wipe out an entire civilization. Let's be honest: There is something genuinely wrong with this man, and the 25th Amendment must be invoked before it's too late," Pritzker declared in a video posted to X this week. He called for removing Trump via the 25th Amendment last year, as well.
Top Chicago Stories
"Reliance on hotel taxes reflects a destructive pattern in Chicago’s fiscal policy: turning to narrow, politically convenient revenue sources instead of addressing core issues driving fiscal gaps. The city has used this approach with taxes on streaming services, sports betting, and social media to cover broader structural gaps."
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"[Owner Dawndria Murray] told me a father came up there with his son by the collar — old school. He said he saw his son in the video and wanted to personally apologize. He also made it clear she would never have an issue with his son again," businessman and philanthropist EarlyWalker wrote to his followers on social media, saying, "this is what accountability looks like."
The ages of the victims range from 14 to 46, according to Chicago police.
The protests were held Saturday outside immigration facilities in Broadview, Portland and Los Angeles, as well as the ICE headquarters in Washington, D.C.,
Over the same period, inflation rose less than 91 percent, and average wages climbed about 161 percent. Cook County government itself has kept its property tax levy comparatively low, increasing just 26 percent over the 30‑year period studied. Cook County instead raised its sales tax to cover rising costs.
The car's owner said she called the Law Department for more information on the denial and was told if someone had called to report the rusty pole before it had snapped, the city would have paid her claim. CDOT said of the light pole that fell, "It was last inspected in 2017, at which time, inspectors noted no observed structural issues and a routine amount of rust."
"Why is shutting down schools for a union-led protest part of a contract discussion in the first place? In part, it’s because of a state law passed in 2021 that repealed limits on CTU’s collective bargaining powers. There are now virtually no limits on what CTU can demand at the bargaining table, which means unlimited political moves and unlimited grievances."
Sundas "Sunny" Naqvi drew national attention with claims that she and five others returned from a work trip in Turkey March 5 and were held by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at O'Hare International Airport for 30 hours, moved to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, and then transferred to the Dodge County Jail. Her supporters, including Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison, decried her alleged detainment before surveillance images were released to show Naqvi was able to leave O'Hare about 90 minutes after she landed.
The shooting occurred around 3:30 p.m. just down the street from Phillips Academy High School as students were let out for the day.
"In other words, Chicago’s finance team came to market with the bond deal and didn’t like the price that municipal markets were telling them they’d have to pay. Instead, they decided to defer the issuance, betting that they could get a better price in the future. That kind of bet is not generally a good idea."
Greg Richmond, superintendent of the Chicago Archdiocese, said students with disabilities who attend nonpublic schools have the right to receive federally funded academic support under the Disabilities Education Act; He said the way the law is written means federal funds are distributed by CPS, even if the child is not enrolled in public school. The archdiocese said if funding isn’t restored, they’re prepared to explore all possible remedies, including legal action on behalf of their students.
"Many on the board appeared to rely on the inaccurate claim (about the federal program) that public money will be diverted for private education. But some seemed wary of blindly following the Chicago Teachers Union, which is less popular than ever."
Vetress Boyce of the city’s Reparations Task Force suggested that reparations could include expanded educational programs in Chicago Public Schools exploring the history of racism in the United States; full tuition coverage for Black college students in Chicago; down-payment assistance for Black home buyers in Chicago to alleviate the impacts of redlining; and high-quality health care for all.
After some 27 seconds of continuous gunfire — yes, 27 seconds of continuous gunfire — at least four men enter camera view with firearms. Some of them are seen running into the street and returning fire downrange. They jog off-screen for a moment, then return and briefly mingle in front of the camera, some holding firearms in plain view, one toting a rifle, others more discreet.
David Greising, of the Better Government Association: "In 2023, Johnson sought to cut off rancorous public demonstrations at City Council meetings by banishing uninvited visitors to the upstairs gallery, behind plate glass. ... Against that backdrop, it’s bittersweet to see Johnson invoking OMA as a clout tool in his unrelenting effort to place (his crony Walter Burnett Jr., a former alderman) in the CEO’s role at the CHA."
The project is one of seven office-to-residential conversions under construction in Chicago. As of late 2025, the city has the third-largest office-to-residential conversion pipeline in the U.S., according to RentCafe.
In a petition to Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago Board of Education, CTU notes the importance of schools as “centers for learning.” Yet the union regards attending class May 1 as less important than its “equity” agenda and “the autonomy of locally governed public schools.”
A city spokesman said council members were told starting in 2024 that part-time staff should work under 700 hours in order to stay below the threshold of being entitled to pension contributions, per state law. “If they elect to have a part-time staffer work more than the prescribed hours per the pension code, they are required to make allowance for that within their appropriated expense budget,” the spokesman said.
The area stretching from 79th and Harlem south to 113th and Harlem now has a sign for formal recognition, the result of two formal resolutions at the state and county levels.
The area stretching from 79th and Harlem south to 113th and Harlem now has a sign for formal recognition, the result of two formal resolutions at the state and county levels.
The works are meant to build context around some of the 41 monuments deemed problematic by a city commission. Hector Gonzalez created "Tierra Nuestra" (Our Land), featuring a young man of mixed Mexican and Native-American heritage standing on a horse with a boom box on his arm in front of the current "Signal of Peace" monument at Diversey and the lake.
Board member Che “Rhymefest” Smith, who abstained from the vote, said the board spends too much time talking about politics. “Fifty-four percent of our time is wasted on politics, and government things, and I’m not saying politics ain’t important, but what are we doing as a board when we only spend 14 percent of our time talking about student outcomes?” Smith said.
"'Violating people's Constitutional rights does not make us safer,' (Mayor Brandon Johnson) exclaimed. Not that illegal aliens have Constitutional rights, mind you."
Fabian Jeffers’ criminal history - nearly 90 cases in Cook County, including 16 felony matters - stretches back to the Bush administration. No. The other Bush administration. This time, prosecutors didn’t ask a judge to hold him, so he was released.
Emmanuel Andre, the deputy of policy for the Cook County Public Defender's office, will be deputy mayor for community safety. At the Public Defender's office, Andre helped expand the county's Restorative Justice Community Courts and co-founded Circles and Ciphers, a "hip-hop infused restorative justice organization led by and for young people impacted by violence."
The complaints center around a report on antisemitism that former city human rights commissioner Nancy Andrade was leading — responding to data showing a rise in antisemitism hate crimes across the city. Andrade accuses the mayor's team of trying to micromanage the process and dilute the report.
Roughly 20,000 approved certificate-of-error refunds, worth more than $46 million in total, are currently stuck at the Cook County Treasurer’s Office. Between late December and early April, the treasurer processed only about 1,343 refunds, worth roughly $2.57 million. That pace barely dents the backlog, and taxpayers and local taxing bodies say the delays are putting real pressure on their budgets.
Wirepoints Research and Commentary
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do. 
The state's existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis. SIGN UP HERE FOR FREE WIREPOINTS DAILY NEWSLETTER
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MORE WIREPOINTS ORIGINAL STORIES
Illinois lost another 54,000 tax filers and dependents, net, according to the IRS. Since 2000, fleeing taxpayers have taken $94 billion of annual adjusted gross income with them. 
Borrowing for current and past operating expenses, blanks for use of funds and more make Chicago's bond sale planned for next week smell mighty bad. Mark Glennon's interview is in the first ten minutes starting here.
It’s March, which means we are being subjected the dumbest annual study going about how well Chicago is doing.
“You didn’t have to be a wizard t.o see it,” Glennon said, recalling that warning signs were evident as far back as the early 2000s when state revenues faltered after the tech bubble burst. The fiscal trajectory of many major cities, he said, has long reflected a pattern of expanding government commitments without sustainable funding models. Full interview here.
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