Stratton just returned from leading a delegation of 20 government and business leaders on a mission to reinforce economic cooperation between Japan and Illinois. Japan is one of the state’s largest partners for trade and foreign direct investment.

Senate Bill 1909, as signed by Gov. JB Pritzker in July, allows the Illinois Attorney General to shut down pregnancy resource centers in Illinois if they’re found to conduct deceptive practices. In a 62-page response to a lawsuit filed soon after the law was signed, the state agreed laws should not limit free speech. However, the AG’s office said this measure does not do that and is protected under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act.

Jonathan Williams, chief economist with the American Legislative Exchange Council, says the amount of money that left Illinois is staggering. “Nearly $11 billion in annual wealth in Illinois was lost, more than the 49 other states on net,” Williams said. “That is just a crushing blow to the future prospects of Illinois turning it around economically.”

Not only was the agency enforcing the suspended rule limiting day care assistants’ ability to monitor rooms of children under two, state Rep. Steven Reick said it is publishing such violations, which could impact whether parents want to send their child to a particular day care. “What effort is going to be made by the department to publicize the fact that these violations that are being cited are really not a violation because of the suspension of this rule?” Reick asked.

Despite Illinois’ Amendment 1 being championed by friends of unions in the Illinois General Assembly to guarantee the right of any government employees to unionize, Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch has reportedly failed to meet with Statehouse staffers who are pushing for unionization.

David Greising, of the Better Government Association.: “There’s a lot of people in the General Assembly, and a lot of people who represent public employee unions, who think that continuing to strengthen pensions and solve some of those problems out there are priorities,” said former state Rep. Greg Harris, a lead budget negotiator for years. “But now there’s just a lot of other very equally important needs for a lot of folks. And if the solution is going to be we need to find some more resources somewhere, they’re all going to be competing for that solution.”

Pritzker has become a favorite of some on Twitter for his progressive policy positions, the possibility that he may one day run for president and, dare I say, his “memeable” personality. Journalist David Weigel, writing for The Washington Post, first documented this “Pritzker Pals” phenomenon in early July 2022, writing that “they want to meme … Pritzker into the White House.”

Shelby County State’s Attorney Rob Hanlon said in his county, about 55 miles southeast of Springfield, they have a total of about 800 active felony cases, and are averaging about 200 new cases a year. Hanlon estimated about 80% of those cases are meth-related. “By letting out the drug dealers, what are we doing to our society as a whole?” Hanlon said. “We’re inviting, to some degree, anarchy.”

Cara Smith, director of the Office of Statewide Pretrial Services, a new agency created by the Illinois Supreme Court, announced in August that her office was assuming responsibility for electronic monitoring in 70 of the state’s 102 counties. Her announcement talked up electronic monitoring as “a tool to reduce jail populations, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as to monitor domestic violence and other high-risk offenders.” But Smith said the timing does not mean her office is urging judges to order electronic monitoring as a substitute for cash bail.

IDPH is relying more on 79 treatment plants across the state to track COVID-19 through wastewater samples. “What it allows us to do is communicate to our local health departments in those counties and encourage them to then convey messages to their constituents,” said Charles Williams, bureau chief of testing at IDPH, “it may be increased masking, we’re not doing as much social distancing but we might also consider increased testing in that area.”

“Bail should be based not on what you have, but on what you are suspected of having done and are known to have done in the past. The risk in the ‘no bail’ provisions of the SAFE-T Act is in the extent to which it tries to correct for the first part of that equation at the expense of the second part. The state legislature needs to address that by enacting clear exceptions for dangerous offenses and habitual offenders when making bail and sentencing determinations.”

“Other methods of screening included parameters like those from Chicago’s Oak Park 97 district, which recommends considering ‘whether a candidate demonstrates interests and skills that reflect the district’s equity policy’…Oak Park-River Forest High School in Illinois declared ‘we seek faculty and staff who reflect the demographic of our student population’…”

Jim Dey: “Three legislators — state representatives Stephanie Kifowit, Steve Reick and Mark Walker — have been holding hearings and proposed legislation calling for contributing an additional $500 million a year on top of the state’s regular contributions to pensions for teachers, state employees, university employees, judges and legislators. At the same time, two private groups — the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability (CTBA) and the Civic Committee of Chicago’s Commercial Club — have offered their own ideas about what needs to be done…At the same time, analysts at the Illinois Policy Institute and Wirepoints have their own ideas.

Ald. Andre Vasquez, chairman of the Immigrant and Refugee Rights Committee, said a solution more permanent than winterized tents is needed. “We need to the governor to convene cities across Illinois, which is also a welcoming state, so that they can help in taking on some capacity.”

David Greising, of the Better Government Association: “Illinois has a little momentum. But with federal pandemic funds no longer flowing, and talk of a possible recession, the need for pension discipline is one of the most difficult and important issues facing the state. Demands on state funds are rising, with competition for spending on education, public health and safety.”