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“It’s a pretty straightforward tax on speech, and a discriminatory one at that,” said Adam Thierer, senior fellow at the R Street Institute. “It basically suggests that it’s alright for government to be singling out types of media or media platforms that it does not like and assessing special taxes accordingly.”
Dana Incorporated announced plans to close its plant in Robinson, according to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. The first layoffs were scheduled to begin June 15 and affect more than 80 employees.
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State Rep. Dan Ugaste said key points of the proposed bill include property tax relief for all property owners in Illinois under a “cap and drop” plan, which puts all referendums on the November General Election ballot and stops any future “backdoor” bond rollovers.
Instead of cutting the sales tax on gasoline, lawmakers voted to divert $150 million of the extra revenues to the general fund to balance the budget. “What the budget did was essentially acknowledge that those sales tax revenues have been running much higher than initially expected because they directly move with fuel prices,” said Paula Worthington, a senior policy adviser with The Civic Foundation. “Some people call it the ‘dirty little secret’ around inflation and state tax revenues,” said Worthington, noting that when prices rise, sales tax revenues follow.
By the time the vote came, the commemorative day was 24 days in the past. After assuring State Rep. John Cabello, a Rockford police detective, that the resolution had nothing to do with law enforcement, state Rep. Mary Beth Canty was asked by State Rep. La Shawn Ford to squeal like a pig.
Among them is Deb’s Law. Patients with a terminal disease may ask a doctor to prescribe aid-in-dying medication allowing them to end their life “in a peaceful manner.” Senate Bill 1950 was originally titled “Sanitary Food Preparation” and amended in the last week of the 2025 regular session to the “End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act.”
"Then, there is Illinois. While valuations in the Prairie State are much lower on average than in Northeast states, this Midwest state has the highest effective tax rate at 1.84%. So it's no shocker that Illinois is one of the states revolting."
House Bill 4984 prohibits ticketsellers and resellers from offering the sale of a ticket they do not-yet possess – which is often an issue with third-party ticketsellers. The other, Senate Bill 318 effectively prohibits ticket scalping, or the use of automated bot systems to buy up a large number of tickets for an event, such as concerts or sports games.
In analyzing whether a permanent injunction would or would not harm the public interest, Chief Judge Virginia M. Kendall stated that “while there is strong public interest for the people of Illinois to see their legislative determinations come to fruition, there is a stronger interest still in ensuring the Supremacy Clause [Article VI, Clause 2 of the US Constitution] is properly effectuated.”
Jim Dey: "The bill would allow state universities to keep the funding they have now but apportion annual $135 million spending increases among them based on a 'need' formula. ... But there are at least two questions surrounding the proposal. Is the formula sound public policy? If it is, will Illinois have the money to implement it?"
Sports betting revenues are concentrated geographically, with New York accounting for roughly one-third of all state collections and New York and Illinois together generating nearly half. Those states could also be among the first to feel the losses as wagering shifts to prediction markets.
State Sen. Chapin Rose says wages for direct support professionals who provide services for people with developmental disabilities and serious mental illnesses lag behind where they were when Gov. JB Pritzker took office.
House Bill 4327, which was described as a “transparency” bill, calls on the Illinois Department of Insurance to conduct an audit of the 340B program in Illinois to determine how much revenue hospitals and clinics are earning through the program and how that money is being used.
The Illinois State Board of Education expects the state’s number of “low-income” students to drop over the next several years. Instead of celebrating that, the board asked lawmakers for money to redefine “low income” so more students will qualify for benefits under the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP).
Gregory M. Gilmore was nominated Jan. 13 by President Donald Trump and confirmed May 18 by the U.S. Senate, including by Illinois Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth. Before he became an attorney, Gilmore was an accountant for a big-four accounting firm in Chicago and for the FBI.
“When you’re talking about people getting off of SNAP, we had a 6 percent error rate when the governor started. We’re an over 11 percent right now,” House minority leader Tony McCombie said. “The federal government’s push is to get us at 6 percent, and the people that are getting off of SNAP are being told to get off SNAP is because they recertified and no longer qualify.”
“We need to have a total rewrite of our tax policy in the state,” said state Sen. Dave Koehler. “We have a structural deficit every year. We look at what income taxes coming in with sales taxes coming in, and then we say, well, ‘we can’t fund all the things we want to.’ Like education or social services.”
Jim Dey: "For starters, a qroup of Democratic legislators in Springfield, including Urbana state Rep. Carol Ammons, has been publicizing its effort to pass legislation reversing state law barring its public pensions from investing in companies that support the BDS (Boycott, Divest, Sanction) movement against Israel. So far, however, all that effort has drawn is a few headlines."
“Every acre of ag land that was taken out of production would be assessed a fee of $67.” said Eliot Clay, of the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts, “That fee would go into an operations fund for soil and water conservation districts and basically create a sustainable funding source.” He said the fee, to be paid by developers, drew support from both sides of the political spectrum.
"For me and millions of others managing conditions ranging from thyroid disorders to severe reproductive health issues, hormonal treatment is a standard necessary medical care," said Sen. Lakesia Collins.
Altogether, Gov. JB Pritzker has said the plan would cost taxpayers about $1 billion. The new prisons will include design features that focus on “creating rehabilitative and gender-responsive spaces with housing, education, programming, medical and mental health, dietary, and recreational areas to support the successful re-entry of individuals into their communities,” according to the statement.
The three biggest spenders in Illinois leveraging the childcare initiative are fathers of young children. State Sen. Ram Villivalam reported more in childcare spending from his campaign account than the total amount advocacy group Vote Mama said was spent by state and local candidates in any other state: roughly $200,000 in such spending since 2021 on his two sons.
“Time will tell if this is truly going to discourage investment. I think that obviously these were very generous tax credits that were driving development,” Rep. Amy Elik told The Center Square.
State legislators passed historic reforms to Illinois’ controversial tax sales, which had led to thousands losing their homes and all of their home equity.
Illinois State Rep. Bill Hauter, a Republican physician and graduate of the University of Illinois College of Medicine, sharply criticized reports that the school is promoting “equitable assessments” in medical education. He called the approach “outrageous,” “unconstitutional,” and dangerous to the medical profession. Top Chicago Stories
“Your administration agreed to a binding timeline on behalf of the City of Chicago without informing the body that must vote on the underlying transaction. This is not a procedural technicality. It is a fundamental failure of the separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches of city government,” the letter states.
More than 100 people, most of them teenagers and some preteens, had gathered around 9 p.m. Saturday when the crowd began spilling into traffic. Officers moved in to contain and disperse the gathering, but the situation became increasingly disorderly, with people fighting, jumping on vehicles, and setting off fireworks, according to witnesses and video from the scene.
Friday, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson posted on social media, in part, "We refuse to accept any level of violence as normal. But we are encouraged, especially on Gun Violence Awareness Day, of the progress Chicago is making in driving down crime. My administration will continue strengthening community violence intervention, coordinated responses to crime, and increased investment in our young people."
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"First, the media normalized illegal immigration itself. We were told entering the country illegally was merely a civil matter, or an act of desperation, or somehow morally justified. Then the media began attacking anyone who actually attempted to enforce immigration law. ICE became demonized. ... Now we are told unlicensed street vending should essentially be tolerated because some of the vendors are migrants or asylum seekers."
Ald. Timmy Knudsen said concerns about the Lincoln Avenue bar corridor are not new to his office. He said he is “urging city departments to allow us to set new rules on this stretch of businesses to ensure that nothing like this happens again.”
The neighborhood saw 14 shootings, including five mass shootings from April 1 to June 7, according to police data. There were eight shootings in the same period last year, according to police data.
"For both big corporate rental-apartment operators and small 'Ma and Pa' owners, the dinosaur in the room is soaring property taxes caused by exorbitant governmental spending in Chicago and Cook County. However, the Mayor doesn’t mention that issue."
"Above all, pension funding must be shielded from political interference."
You ride the elevator up a dozen floors. When the doors open, a faint earthy smell greets you. Stepping off the elevator, instead of rows of cubicles, you find racks of vegetables growing under LED lights.
News of the arrest comes one day before a special Chicago City Council hearing that hopes to glean answers from Cook County officials about ongoing concerns regarding the handling of criminal warrants, orders of protection, and the county’s electronic monitoring programs.
Much of a homeowner's tax bill in Riverdale goes toward funding local government services and public education, including District 148 and Thornton Township High School District 205. However, both districts perform below Illinois state averages in reading and math proficiency on standardized exams.
“We’ve gone through an incredibly thorough vetting process, and here’s why we’ve been so thorough: Two administrations ago did not go through as comprehensive of a process as I’m going through, and what did we get? We got junk; it was an ineffective tool,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said.
Mayor Brandon Johnson has repeatedly accepted campaign contributions from those doing business with City Hall since he took office — even though city ethics rules prohibit it. And time after time Johnson’s campaign has returned such contributions when the giving has come to light or proved embarrassing.
Among the possible leverage points some are considering is a clause in the meter deal that allows the council to consider "the background and reputation" of the proposed operator. Buyer Stonepeak Partners, aldermen have noted, owns an air freight company with a subsidiary that carries out deportation flights for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. That background puts the company starkly at odds, they argue, with policies and values in Chicago that seek to oppose ICE activities.
“We need to ask ourselves as the adults in the community: Where are their parents? Where are the role models? Why are children out at night when, quite honestly, they should be home and in bed? How are we failing our youth? Parents must be accountable,” she said in the letter.
"There will always be something profoundly odd about the windowless — by design — exhibition spaces occupying a large swath of the tower. This isn’t really what Sullivan had in mind when he dictated 'form follows function.' The image of the tower is clearly not meant to be easy, in the same way that American democracy isn’t easy in the 21st century."
"Every election season, lawyers trained in the dark arts of signature challenges spend weeks in the basement of the Chicago Board of Elections, working to kick candidates off the ballot."
"Moving a stadium location within a state pits Illinois municipalities against each other, and you don’t want to do that 'particularly when the municipality on the losing side has way more members (in the legislature) than any other municipality in the state.'"
"But the pope was not interested in policy debates. He wanted to know how people 'back home' were doing. One of the first questions he asked me was how immigrant families have coped with aggressive enforcement actions? He asked how communities are confronting violence and unemployment. He asked how working families are managing amid rising costs and growing uncertainty." 
While the Save A Lot stores are still operating, Canfield’s sudden death has triggered a default in their redevelopment agreement with the city, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned. 
"A 76% discount from the tower’s 2006 sale price and a staggering example of the post-pandemic pain for downtown office buildings."
While licenses for short-term rentals have declined citywide since 2019, they have increased by 46 percent in the 20th Ward, which includes most of the Woodlawn community just west of the Obama Presidential Center. Airbnb “Superhost” Kristy Ramsey says she usually makes around $60 a night, with people paying close to $80 for cleaning and Airbnb fees. But with the Obama Presidential Center opening, Airbnb allowed her to raise her nightly rate by about $30.
"The worst of the Johnson administration's ideas therein is to compel landlords to pay thousands to tenants when their leases aren't renewed or are forced to move due to an 'unconscionable' rent increase. 'Unconscionable,' as far as we know, isn't a legal term."
According to the Chicago Police Department, there were 36 homicides throughout last month, two fewer than were recorded during May 2025. Last month’s total was fewer than any other May in Chicago since 2007, when there were 35 homicides recorded, per CPD data. But the number of shootings (127) and shooting victims (165) in May were up 1 percent and 4 percent, respectively over last year.
Said Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, "Without a final site selection, until we see shovels in the ground in Hammond, the City will continue to engage in discussions grounded in the interests of our residents."
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun issued the following statement: “Hoosiers, help me welcome the Chicago Bears to our great state! We look forward to building a partnership as strong as the ’85 Bears defense, creating opportunities and economic growth that will benefit our state and the Bears organization for decades to come."
"Getting in and out of Soldier Field is an absolute nightmare. Let me tell you how bad it is. Bears vs. (Green Bay) Packers; I’m at the game, we’re losing. I decide to leave to beat the traffic," Brandon Johnson said. "Before I get out of the footprint, the Bears had come back to win."
Police said two male suspects approached a group of people standing outside and fired multiple shots into the crowd before fleeing.
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A mess of uncertainty and litigation is sure to follow. 
With $162 billion more from taxpayers, couldn't you deliver a few bond upgrades, too 
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A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.
Everybody needs a side hustle these days, and mine is Ukraine, where I am now.
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If this bill passes, say goodbye to local control over all Illinois parks and expect to see open drug and alcohol use, needles, no sanitation and fire hazards, but no ordinary park users.
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