Sticking with a now yearslong trend, Preckwinkle’s proposal does not include any new taxes, fines or fees, and eliminates a projected $211 million shortfall thanks in large part to better-than-expected revenues. The county is projecting a nearly $300 million deficit in 2027 and $402.2 million in 2028.

Downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly was unmoved by Bally’s warning about job and revenue losses: “After Bally’s rosy and overinflated revenue projections for their temporary casino in River North fell embarrassingly and predictably short by millions, it’s hard to take any of their projections seriously,” Reilly said.

The United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois alleges that Dr. Devon Horton steered contracts to companies owned by three of his life-long friends while superintendent of the Evanston/Skokie School District 65; He then received kickbacks worth around $85,000. The indictment identifies the other three defendants as Antonio Ross, principal of Chicago’s Hyde Park Academy; Alfonzo Lewis, the athletic director of Hyde Park Academy and owner of New Flight 35 Sports & Academic Academy LLC; and Samuel Ross, the owner of Asset Protection Specialist LLC.

“Rising costs associated with public safety pension obligations, inflationary pressures on capital projects, continued demand for high-quality municipal services and social programs, and contractual wage increases to attract and retain talent all contribute to mounting budgetary challenges,” City Manager Luke Stowe wrote.

Illinois state lawmakers required the creation of a Chicago Board of Education Non-Citizen Advisory Board when it established an elected school board for the city under legislation passed in 2021. Lawmakers sought to provide the school board with an advisory panel focused, in part, on improving the outcomes and experiences of noncitizen students and sharing the perspectives of noncitizen parents, who can not vote in school board elections

In 1861, South Carolina troops fired on Fort Sumter. That act of rebellion launched the Civil War. Today, the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois aren’t firing artillery — they’re firing press releases, policy memos, lawsuits, and street-level sabotage. But make no mistake: the target is the same. Federal sovereignty. Federal enforcement. Federal agents.

A Northwestern center dedicated to fostering dialogue is facing criticism after co-chair Nour Kteily praised and negotiated for encampment activists accused of anti-Semitic harassment. Critics argue his role undermines the center’s credibility as the university continues grappling with controversies over anti-Semitism.

Founded in 2019, the company builds and commercializes quantum computers that are powered by neutral atom technology. The company plans to create 50 full-time jobs at the Chicago campus.

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said the government is buying more buildings in Chicago to conduct their activities. “What they are trying to do with these riots and violence is they’re trying to distract us” from going after suspects, Noem said. “If we have to do the hard way in Portland and Chicago, we will.”

The actual threat to people in cities like Los Angeles, Portland, and Chicago comes from the Trump administration, as it attempts to turn the military and federal law enforcement into the president’s personal enforcers.

The FBI director said: “When I was there today … we learned that the Chicago city streets have 110,000 gang members. That’s right. You heard me right. They had 1,200 shootings this year alone, 360 homicides.

School leaders at Chicago High School for the Arts notified CPS it will not seek renewal of its contract and will no longer continue managing the school at the end of the current 2025-2026 school year. There are currently 559 students enrolled in ChiArts, according to the district’s enrollment report for fall 2025. Four-in-five students are Black or Hispanic.

“Before Johnson attempts to arrest federal officials, he might want to take another look at the Constitution and review some history on the subject. Wallace also tried to ride the wave of rage to power after “standing at the schoolhouse door in person, if necessary.” It did not work. The federal government prevailed, and Wallace was left as a tragic relic of history.”

At the Chicago protest, Ald. Jessie Fuentes called the National Guard troops in Illinois a “Gestapo” force before the crowd.

While Preckwinkle’s proposal does not require any employee layoffs, it proposes no new significant programs or hiring. It does not add funding to the county’s Equity Fund, established in 2020 to “address historic disparities and disinvestments in marginalized communities.”