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This decline in Illinois followed the broader national pattern of a slowing recovery from the short, but sharp COVID-19 recession of 2020.
Griffin Thompson, formerly a lead climate negotiator for the U.S., now teaches at two Chicago universities: “But while federal officials will huddle and struggle over the linguistic nuances of the Paris accord rule book, mayors and governors are busy finding solutions to the climate challenge. That is why it is important that Pritzker show what practical, not partisan, climate action looks like. Local and regional officials, from around the globe, have traditionally been the leaders on innovative climate policies and programs.”
The judge reported having had multiple email and telephone conversations with officials at FMC Rochester prison in Rochester, Minnesota, who reported their institution – a medical facility with 24-hour nursing care on all floors and access to the Mayo Clinic – can accept the 83-year-old and provide any medical care he may need.
One of the major tenets of the Reimagine Public Safety Act is that it creates the Office of Firearm Violence Prevention within the Illinois Department of Human Services to coordinate the state’s violence prevention efforts. That office, and its assistant secretary of firearm violence prevention, has grant-making authority to distribute the state funds to violence prevention organizations.
The issue over mask mandates in Illinois schools hasn’t gone away, despite all schools that weren’t complying having their state-sanctioned recognition status restored.
“I think we’re going to get past the pandemic and the Democrats are going to say ‘this is an easy way to do business where we don’t have to come to Springfield and we don’t have to see people directly, we can just hide behind our computer screens,’” said state Rep. Tim Butler. “I really fear that this is where we’re going.”
Barring reforms, the Teachers’ Retirement System could eventually run out of money and be unable to pay promised benefits to retirees, all while making it more expensive for teachers to live in Illinois.
“Clearly, there’s only one way to protect the lake from which 6.5 million Illinoisans drink water: Given its repeated abuse of Lake Michigan, Indiana no longer deserves to be a Great Lakes state… Indiana has only 45 miles of shoreline, compared to Michigan’s 3,224, but it sullies the waters far more. Michigan derives its identity from the Great Lakes, and takes their protection seriously.”
Rich Miller: “But, when the Democrats finally took up the Health Care Right of Conscience Act legislation last week, folks like Rep. Dan Caulkins argued that the General Assembly ought to drop this issue and instead allow the courts to decide whether the HCRCA applies to the current controversy over vaccines and testing. That makes no sense considering the endless GOP demands that the General Assembly ‘do something.’”
“More than half of CPS schools are underutilized, according to district data for the 2020-2021 school year. The district is cash-strapped and lacks the wherewithal to keep half-empty or mostly empty buildings operating. And given the enrollment tailspin, expect the number of underused schools to grow. Things are only going to get worse.”
Dolton, Markham and University Park village boards approved such a push tax Sunday, while Homer Glen trustees soundly rejected similar action. Special meetings were also called in Calumet City and South Chicago Heights. The tax first enacted by Oak Lawn still faces a legal challenge by operators of video gambling terminals.
“Gun violence is so embedded into the city, the scale of the problem is so large, that no single program that focuses on individuals will be able to put a dent in the aggregate rate,” Northwestern University sociology professor Andrew Papachristos said.
Officers must still follow some parts of the mandate: They must report their status and get tested if they are not fully vaccinated, or the city can discipline them. But the Dec. 31 deadline for actually getting the shots is on hold.
Year-to-date, 3,766 people have been shot in Chicago. That’s 323 more shooting victims than last year at this time.
Illinois’ sluggish labor market is driven by a record number of workers quitting their jobs at the same time there are fewer job opportunities than in nearly any other state. But Illinois was only No. 7 in the nation for resignations.
Cotton: “No provision is more pernicious than the immigration proposal pushed by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who has tried to force amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants into this bill not once, not twice, but three times…. His most recent proposal would amount to nothing less than DACA-For-All. It would grant full public benefits to millions of illegal aliens and grant five-year “amnesty passes” for illegal border crossers. These amnesty passes could be renewed in perpetuity, until Congress is forced to make this amnesty plan permanent. This proposal would cost the American people unknown
U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood explained, “I’d love to think about doing all these things that they want to do, including federal family medical leave if we had $29 trillion in surplus money, but we’re $29 trillion in debt, and that’s the reality.”
Dishonesty, despotism and undisguised ignorance were on full display in an move to assure compliance with vaccine and other COVID mandates.
Although most progressive aldermen voted in favor of it, some did not, including Ald. David Moore. “For me what was important, it was broad and although you want to be trusting of the administration, I want as much detail I can get in terms of where this money is going in the community. You want something to be able to touch and say to your community, this is what I’m bringing back.”
West Loop restaurant owner Patrick Berger says customers get it, hearing about supply chain issues all the time now. “Most don’t notice” the shortages, he said. “The ones who do seem to be sympathetic. Where we’re missing sympathy with the customers is with service. They don’t understand why there is one server for 15 tables, and they are not getting the topnotch service they usually do.”
At least three of the surviving victims were under 18.
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