Mark Denzler of the Illinois Manufacturers Association explains why so many industries in Illinois could be crippled by BIPA. Upwards of 2,000 cases have been filed in Illinois in the last few years.

“Illinois’ current BIPA law is outdated and flawed, resulting in thousands of lawsuits and billions of dollars in damages, even when there has been no harm to an individual,” Illinois Manufacturing Association CEO Mark Denzler said. “It’s time for lawmakers to put an end to this rampant abuse of the law and enact commonsense reforms that protect businesses while preserving privacy rights.”

The state’s new CDCRC website.

A national republication of our Wirepoints column.

The Illinois Realtors Association lists about a half dozen pending rent control legislation before Illinois’ 103rd General Assembly.

“There’s no benefit whatsoever of rushing this case to the supreme court, not for the gun case and certainly not for trying to get something done to alter how laws are passed in Illinois which benefits much, much bigger issues ladies and gentlemen than a gun issue,” attorney Thomas DeVore said.

Gov. JB Pritzker has made child care and early childhood education a priority in this year’s proposed budget. But part of the problem in Illinois is that there are more children than “slots” for them in child care settings. Day care centers, in-home day cares and preschools all have a capacities based on staffing levels and facility size.

The revenue plan proposed by mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson calls for $800 million in new taxes on city businesses and middle-class workers. This includes taxes on those coming to Chicago by air, workers commuting into the city by train, taxing businesses for each employee, taxing those enjoying a night out and taxing “rich” residents – who turn out to be middle-class Chicagoans when the details of his plan are examined.

“BIPA is hurting our industry, and it is making our roads less safe” because many trucking companies are removing in-cab cameras due to involvement in or fear of a BIPA lawsuit, ITA Executive Director Matt Hart said. “Likewise, trucking companies that were considering these cameras to improve their safety have now decided against installing these cameras in Illinois because they fear being sued in this state.”

The power grid operator serving northern Illinois and points east to the Mid-Atlantic is sounding the alarm about potential electricity shortages over the coming seven years, driven in part by state policies like Illinois’ clean-energy law that are forcing power plants to close. The report explicitly cites Illinois’ Climate & Equitable Jobs Act, or CEJA, enacted in 2021, as a contributor to the issue.

“Groups all across the political and issue spectrum try to encourage people to file witness slips on the General Assembly’s website in support or opposition to bills to show supporters, donors, the other side and legislators that they have public backing. The slips are empowering. People feel seen. They believe they’re making a difference. But the slip wars also provide a positive feedback loop for dark conspiracy theories.”

Joe Cahill: Rivian will have to consider whether it makes sense to go it alone in a fast-growing but increasingly competitive EV market. Rising costs and increasing competition are stiff.

“No wonder The Washington Post and other national analysts consistently include Pritzker on the short list of Democrats who might realistically run for president next year if Joe Biden doesn’t seek reelection.”

In 2021,103 principals throughout the state resigned, according to State Board of Education data. The following year, that number shot up to 198. Likewise in Chicago Public Schools, the number of resigning principals went from 15 to 27. The surging number of principals leaving — and the declining number of teachers interested in moving up — worry state education leaders about the disruption it can cause schools and communities.

Jim Dey: “The Constitution mandates that ‘a bill shall be read by title on three different days in each house. A bill and each amendment thereto shall be reproduced and placed on the desk of each member before final passage.’ The rule, like ones adopted in other states, is designed to assure legislators and the public have time to learn what’s in proposed legislation…Illinois legislators refuse to comply.”

According to 2015 data from the Illinois State Board of Education, nearly 80% of all kindergarten classes were full-day. Those that do not, however, often have to seek tax increases to afford a new program said Zack Messersmith, director of government relations for the Illinois Association of School Boards.

Bereavement on the basis of race requires a day off, an ability to work from home, a deadline extension and to have their workload reassigned. Including these benefits will help “for the retention of Black faculty and staff.”

Jim Harper, of the American Enterprise Institute: “Passage of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act made the Land of Lincoln a ‘leader’ in regulating biometrics. But it’s an example other states have not followed, for good reason. The difficult work of balancing multidimensional values like privacy against new uses of technology is not done with sledgehammers.”