“The Republican Party was founded to end government Bureaucracy and to end slavery. Brandon Johnson and J.B. Pritzker are both obviously not students of history and are hoping many of their followers never get off Tik-Tok to discover accurate historical information,” state Rep. Martin McLaughlin said in a statement.
Legislation awaiting the governor’s signature would lift Illinois’ nuclear ban beginning in 2026 — but only for reactors that have an output of 300 megawatts or less. With not a single such small reactor in operation or production anywhere in the country, the technology is still in its early stages, but legislators say the state needs to prepare now to stay ahead of the game. The new generation of nuclear power, many argue, could cut costs, produce less waste and provide more flexibility when it comes to siting and cooling.
Evanston Township High School officials believe these single-race classes offer underperforming minority students greater access to advanced instruction. Though their initial proposal received significant media backlash, Evanston officials remain committed to their race-conscious approach.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin cited a 231% increase in assaults against postal workers over the last three years. Reports indicate that some Chicago mail carriers were robbed within their first week on the job, and certain neighborhoods have experienced weeks without delivery due to safety concerns.
Illinois has the third-largest cannabis market in the nation.
“The growing wave of arrivals make our immigration advocacy more challenging. Their arrival has created some tensions, some questioning,” said U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García, whose largely Latino district includes a large immigrant population. People have been “waiting for decades for an opportunity to get a green card to legalize and have a pathway to citizenship.”
Shouts of “traitors!” and murmurs from the Manteno community echoed through the room after the Manteno Planning Commission voted unanimously Nov. 27 to change the zoning for the proposed Gotion lithium ion car battery plant facility site from light industrial to heavy industrial. Legal action appears to be the next step for Concerned Citizens for Manteno, as they argue that the approval violates the village codes prohibiting heavy industrial development.
Saying Illinois’ property tax collectors are continuing an unconstitutional system in direct defiance of a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court, a group of Illinois homeowners have filed suit against some of Illinois’ most populous counties, seeking to end those counties’ property tax buying regime, and secure refunds for people who were stripped of hundreds of thousands of dollars in equity when their homes were seized under Illinois law over unpaid property taxes. Defendants named in the lawsuit include the county clerks and treasurers from DuPage, Kane, Lake, Will, Winnebago, Boone, Carroll and Peoria counties.
The governor’s public-private partnership Innovate Illinois — which Pritzker has used to secure all sorts of federal dollars in the energy sector, biotech industry and even quantum technology — is requesting federal grant money to aid in the state’s effort to clean up industrial corridors and nearby neighborhoods.
Former Riverside Police Chief Tom Weitzel: “What we can do and what our leaders should do to deter crime is provide law enforcement with the resources they need to investigate crimes, make arrests and secure convictions. We need to support more focused, research-based policing strategies that concentrate on areas with high crime numbers.”
“There have been times where things have gotten or seem to have gotten out of hand,” Rich Guidice, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s chief of staff, said. “I would just say that there’s a lot of contentious situations that are taking place in our city at this time. And we’re just trying to balance it with First Amendment privileges and rights.”
Ameya Pawar, a senior adviser at the Economic Security Project — which is providing pro bono services to support the city’s feasibility study, according to Grigbsy — said a public option for a grocery store could allow the city to take a more active role in economic development than it is able to when handing out tax incentives.
Originally developed to keep the university operational during the pandemic, this saliva-based test for COVID-19 evolved into SHIELD T3, a company with global reach. At its most successful, SHIELD T3 employed more than 170 people. But now, plans are in place to wind down operations by the end of this year.
In total, Chicago’s animal control officers have picked up more than 4,000 dogs since the start of 2022. That is on top of the dogs being brought directly into the shelter. “A lot of people aren’t working right now. Some people went back to work, and they don’t have time for their pet anymore,” a city spokesman said. “Evictions started again, so that’s a part of it too, that we’re seeing.”
“Do you hear that, Chicago? Are you listening, America?
“The mayor seeks to advance his progressive agenda by punishing the business community with unfunded mandates, regardless of ability to pay. These mandates will worsen Chicago’s status as a hostile place for employers of every size and sector to do business, discouraging economic development, investment and job growth in communities that need it the most.”
About 5,500 general education students who were previously eligible for bus transportation were not offered busing this year — mostly those who attend magnet and selective-enrollment schools. Additionally, the school district is still working to shorten bus rides for more than 100 students with disabilities to comply with state law.
United and American airlines are slated to share a new “global terminal” handling both domestic and international flights – a project funded in part by airlines. But the city has confirmed the the next major phase of O’Hare work is $1.5 billion — 24% — over budget. Ald. Matt O’Shea said it is particularly “concerning” that United has revived a 2018 threat to move its corporate headquarters at Willis Tower out of Chicago.
Ted joined Dan and Amy to talk about Gov. Pritzker’s continued attempts to spin his record on issues like employment and crime, why Illinois residents should care about who replaces Kim Foxx, the latest developments on the Gotion controversy, and more.
Johnson: “Everyone knows that the right-wing extremism in this country has targetted Democratically-ran cities and quite frankly, they’ve been very intentional about going after Democratically-ran cities that are led by people of color…. They’re still mad that a black man is free in this country. This is nothing new.”
The village says it was informed that an unspecified entity was considering several suburban hotels, including three in Schaumburg, to house migrants — and board members responded with a strategy already being used in nearby Rosemont. Rosemont passed a tax on long-term stays if a migrant housing plan is executed. The ordinance includes a $1,000 per month tax for stays of 30 days or more.
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