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The Legislative Ethics Commission, a bipartisan group of almost all lawmakers who are appointed by leaders in the state House and Senate, hasn’t been able to reach consensus on whom to recommend to the General Assembly for Pope’s replacement, LEC chairperson Jill Tracy said Thursday.
From author, blogger and Chicagoan Matt Rosenberg: “Unless Chicago breaks out of its rut, Chicagoland will become a donut chewed up from the inside out.”
“Corey DeAngelis, a Cato Institute adjunct scholar who is also national director of research for the American Federation for Children, reported on Twitter that 91% of the (CTU) members who responded said they’d participate in a ‘remote work action’—that is, a strike—if the schools don’t pause in-classroom learning.”
“And the Democrats, said the judges, openly and admittedly drew the maps as they did, not to intentionally discriminate against Black and Latino voters, but simply to seek to maximize their already massive majority in Springfield, a goal the judges said is beyond the courts’ jurisdiction to address.”
This blog highlights changes in three consumer taxes since the Civic Federation’s 2021 Consumer Taxes Report was released in February 2021.
There have been nearly 820 homicides in Chicago this year, according to data from the Cook County medical examiner’s office. That’s the most since 828 homicides were recorded in all of 1995. The total for 1994 was 931. As of Tuesday, at least 4,390 people had been shot in Chicago, an increase of 8% from last year and 68% more than in 2019.
“For Democrats, the spring 2022 session of the Illinois General Assembly will focus on drafting a budget that responds to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. For Republicans, the session will give another opportunity to highlight missed opportunities by Democrats to stem crime waves affecting many parts of Illinois and root out corruption. At least that’s what key legislative leaders predict for the session, which begins Wednesday.”
Evanston is one of only a few suburbs with its own health department, meaning it sets its own local public health rules. The requirements are similar to those recently announced for the city of Chicago and suburban Cook County, where the proof of vaccination mandate will begin one week earlier.
Families who participate in programs, sports or extracurriculars across the city received an email earlier this week that participants must be fully vaccinated by the Monday deadline. After parents complained about the short notice, the Park District issued a statement that said there will now be exemptions.
Students are set to return to schools Monday, but the CTU called for a two-week delay to the start of classes and said many drop off sites were overwhelmed.
“We are preparing for a post-holiday surge, and with hospital staff already working so hard, I appreciate the work hospital leadership is doing to assure capacity, including postponing non-emergency surgeries and procedures to ensure their ability to handle serious COVID cases and other emergencies without putting patients at risk,” Pritzker said in a statement.
Full opinion is linked here.
Mark Konkol: “Sure, there were silver linings: The Chicago Sky won the WNBA championship. Lollapalooza made a late-summer comeback. The White Sox won the American League Central Division. But all the while, the coronavirus crisis maintained its stranglehold on city life during a most tumultuous year.”
The wage increase comes as business owners are already dealing with inflation, COVID-19, and a worker shortage. “This is like throwing fuel on the fire as far as that goes,” one business owner said. “It’s pretty much crippling. I mean the only way you can make that up is by raising your prices, and in this environment that we are in right now raising your prices is the last thing you want to do.”
The Illinois General Assembly is scheduled to meet Wednesday, Jan. 5, but Tuesday, Jan. 4 and Thursday, Jan. 6 session days are canceled. House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch and Senate President Don Harmon also said the following session week, Jan. 11 -13, is likely to be canceled because of the pandemic.
“Both updates come as the Omicron variant continues to spread throughout the U.S. and reflects the current science on when and for how long a person is most infectious,” IDPH said in a statement.
Under a new rule for the City of Chicago that takes effect Jan. 1, anyone who hires a domestic worker must provide them with a written contract in whatever language they choose. Domestic workers include home health care workers, nannies, and house cleaners.
Police describe the suspects as two to five Black males, between the ages of 13 and 25, wearing dark hooded sweatshirts and wearing ski masks.
“It affects us in a big way. We’re mostly shorthanded,” one restaurant owner said. “There might be some issues with the customers that aren’t vaccinated.”
“I have bailed on Illinois. I’m now a resident of a great state out West. God knows I tried to be a loyal Illinoisan! They say that in the marketplace people vote with their pocketbooks. In Illinois, people are voting with their feet.”
The owners and operators of 15 bars and restaurants in Pike County filed a lawsuit in May 2020 naming Pritzker and Acting Illinois Emergency Management Agency Director Alicia Tate-Nadeau as defendants.
The Alexander Cairo Port Authority states 80% of all inland barge traffic passes by the Cairo. Senator Dale Fowler has been an outspoken proponent of the port project for years: “When you talk about the possibility of creating the nation’s hub for river port transportation opportunities…see what lies here, and southern Illinois at the confluence.”
Lincoln Park Alderman Michele Smith is asking her constituents to buy whistles and blow them if they see certain crimes unfold. Smith says the WhistleStop Program proved successful in the 1970s, before her ward was largely gentrified.
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