Get the latest news headlines from around Illinois.
Nasdaq: Deere: 120 Employees Placed On Indefinite Layoff At John Deere Harvester Works
Deere & Co. has informed about 120 production employees at John Deere Harvester Works in East Moline, Illinois that they will be placed on indefinite layoff effective September 6. The factory’s workforce currently includes about 1050 production employees.
Deere said the company continues to adjust the size of its production workforce to market demand for products manufactured at each of its factories.
Forbes: Coming Tax Hikes For Government Pensions, How Much Will You Pay?
Decades of generous pension increases made to government employees by politicians are looming larger on state and local government balance sheets across America.
Days ago, Ted Eliopoulos, head of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), announced that he earned 0.61 percent in the prior year on a $300-billion-dollar investment fund—California’s worst year since the stock market meltdown in 2009. CalPERS expects to earn 7.5 percent annually on its investments. Last year, the nation’s largest state and local pension fund returned 2.5 percent; the year before, 1 percent. CalPERS’ 20-year return now comes in at 7.03 percent and will likely drop further.
Why should you care what CalPERS or your home state counterpart makes on its investments? Simple: if you’re a taxpayer, you’re on the hook to make good on the promises politicians have made with the government employee unions that helped elect them.
Chicago Tribune: Rauner publicly apologizes for calling half of CPS teachers 'virtually illiterate'
Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner on Friday publicly apologized for writing a 2011 email in which he asserted that half of Chicago Public Schools teachers “are virtually illiterate,” saying the comment was “inaccurate and intemperate” and he regrets writing it.
The apology came moments after half a dozen or so teachers interrupted a bill-signing ceremony at the Thompson Center in the Loop, reading statements that criticized the governor for his comments and for his handling of state government more broadly.
“The remark I made in that email five years ago was both inaccurate and intemperate,” Rauner said. “And I apologize. I am a strong advocate for teachers. Always have been, always will be.”
AP: Illinois ordered to reconsider medical marijuana for migraines
A judge has ordered Illinois health officials to reconsider their decision not to include migraine headaches on the list of conditions that qualify for use of medical marijuana in the state.
A Cook County judge overturned Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Nirav Shah’s denial of a petition to add migraines to the list, the Chicago Tribune (http://trib.in/2alSY7m ) reported.
Chicago Tribune: Illinois Supreme Court to consider remap ballot measure
The Illinois Supreme Court agreed Friday to quickly take up a case challenging the constitutionality of a ballot measure that could alter the way Illinois draws its political maps.
Just two days after a Cook County judge ruled the redistricting question was unconstitutional for November’s ballot, the state’s high court granted an emergency motion for direct appeal and set a briefing schedule, bypassing the appellate court.
A group called the Independent Map Amendment cited an Aug. 26 State Board of Elections deadline to get on the ballot in their request to the court. They’ve proposed an 11-member commission be in charge of drawing the state’s legislative boundaries, instead of party leaders. It’s the second time since 2014 supporters of redistricting reform have tried to get the high stakes issue before voters.
Chicago Tribune: Rauner OKs regulating police use of cellphone data tracking
Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed a law limiting police use of devices that can collect cellphone data and track phone locations.
The Republican took action Friday on technology — often known by the brand name Stingray — that gathers phone usage data on targets of criminal investigations, but also on the hundreds of other cellphones.
The law requires police to delete all non-target phone information within 24 hours and prohibits them from accessing data for use in an investigation not authorized by a judge. The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois says it also prohibits police from using the tool to block phone calls or intercept calls, web-browsing or text messages.
Sun-Times: IPRA rules 2 police shootings unjustified, marking a turnabout
Chicago’s embattled police oversight agency ruled this week that two police shootings weren’t justified, including one in which a 27-year-old man was killed.
The findings mark the third time that the Independent Police Review Authority has made a finding that a Chicago Police Department officer had no reason to shoot at a suspect since the Mayor Rahm Emanuel installed a new boss at the agency in December in the wake of public outrage following the release of the Laquan McDonald video.
Sun-Times: State won’t explain ‘Chicago Fire’ tax credits
Gov. Bruce Rauner’s administration issued $15.9 million in tax credits for the hit TV show “Chicago Fire” late last year, but state officials no longer will release the names of the Illinois residents and businesses the show hired to get those tax breaks.
That’s a departure from last year, when the state released the names and amounts that the producers of “Chicago Fire” spent on actors, extras, crew and businesses that worked on the series’ pilot episode in 2012. Those records detailed expenditures including $215,161 to Cinespace Chicago Film Studios, $6,200 to the Chicago Fire Department for “fire equipment” and $272 to Nordstrom for two pairs of shoes for the character Kelly Severide, played by actor Taylor Kinney.
Daily Herald: Rauner signs plans aimed at curbing local government costs
Gov. Bruce Rauner on Friday signed legislation from a bipartisan duo of suburban lawmakers geared toward cutting local government costs.
One new law was sparked by the reporting of Daily Herald columnist Jake Griffin and would limit spending on travel for local officials and prohibit using taxpayer money for entertainment costs.