Ald. Ray Lopez’s proposals included “conception fees” and a license on childbirth, before later conceding that “this is not China” and that such measures were unlikely lawful in the United States.

Lopez’s tweets also called for a “toddler escrow.” He told the Chicago Sun-Times that he “was serious” and that if it were possible “to legally implement parental licensing or conception fees” he would spearhead the effort.

“The order threatens to expose decades of police corruption and other skeletons out of CPD’s closet, prevents the City from continuing to expend millions in taxpayer dollars to keep police misconduct secret, and makes patterns of police misconduct readily available to the public, which will inform the ongoing public debate over how to police the police,” said the attorney behind the FOIA request.

After a building boom that has stretched the boundaries of downtown and put a record number of cranes in the air, new construction projects are forecast to fall 10 percent this year, according to New York-based research firm Dodge Data & Analytics. If that prediction is right, it would mark the third annual decrease in four years and the biggest single-year drop in construction starts since the Great Recession

Of the 11 states where recreational marijuana has been legalized, Illinois’ taxes are second only to Washington state

Chicago has lost 54,100 public school children in the past decade. That has left 145 district-run schools less than half-full.

The Chicago Tribune launches a six-month series: “Chicago Forward / Young Lives in the Balance: How to reach Chicagoland’s disconnected youth.” This campaign will engage our readers in a search for the best ways to prepare young people to live fulfilling, productive lives and contribute to the well-being of our city. It is outside of the Tribune’s paywall.

An omen for Michael Madigan?