Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Chicago Tribune: Comptroller calls for hearing on food stamp computer contract in wake of problems
State Comptroller Susana Mendoza is calling for a public hearing on a proposed $67.5 million improvement to a state computer system after its rollout resulted in thousands of households temporarily losing their food stamp benefits last month.
If an amended contract for the additional work is approved next week, total payments to Deloitte, the company that built the system, would reach an estimated $288 million — more than double the amount agreed upon in the original contract in 2012, said Patrick Corcoran, policy director for Mendoza’s office.
Chicago Tribune: Rauner grants 10 requests for clemency, denies 78
Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has granted 10 petitions for clemency and denied 78 other requests.
The Republican’s office announced the clemencies Friday.
Chicago Sun-Times: The cost of Forrest Claypool’s coverup? $120K so far to taxpayers
Forrest Claypool’s cover-up of his top attorney’s ethics violation has cost him his $250,000-a-year job leading the country’s third largest school system.
But the cover-up also cost city taxpayers $120,000 to date, according to a review of legal bills and the damning 103-page internal report that led to Claypool’s recent ouster from the Chicago Public Schools.
Chicago Tribune: Illinois Supreme Court grants Dorothy Brown’s request to delay e-filing in Cook County
Days after announcing her office couldn’t meet a statewide deadline to end paper filings in lawsuits and other civil cases, Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown on Friday won a reprieve from the state’s highest court.
The Illinois Supreme Court didn’t directly address Brown’s request to push back the Jan. 1 deadline an entire year, to January 2019, but said her office could continue to use its current system until June 30. Brown’s office said on Friday afternoon it “greatly appreciates” the extension and that the June date is the new deadline for its transition to mandatory electronic filing.
Chicago Tribune: Cook County Jail drops below 6,000 inmates to lowest level in decades
The population at the Cook County Jail has fallen below 6,000 inmates, its lowest point in decades, sheriff’s officials said Thursday.
Cara Smith, chief policy officer for Sheriff Tom Dart, said the number has been declining for some time in part because of a drop in arrests, but the biggest change came some three months ago when criminal court judges were ordered to set bail only in amounts that defendants could afford to pay.
Northwest Herald: How much do McHenry County municipalities spend on holiday decorations?
Each holiday, public works teams throughout McHenry County are put to the task of decorating for the holidays. Here is how much some municipalities are spending and what their process is for setting up lights.
Daily Herald: Former District 211 cashier charged with stealing more than $80,000
A sick day a former Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 employee took in September sparked an investigation that led Hoffman Estates police to arrest her on theft charges.
Former cashier Denise Bazsali, 54, of Schaumburg was charged with stealing more than $80,000 from the district where she had worked for 12 years.
Daily Herald: Maine Township highway commissioner says trustees broke law
Maine Township’s highway commissioner accused trustees of breaking the law this week when they voted against his proposed tax increase.
Highway Commissioner Walter Kazmierczak asked for a 2 percent increase Tuesday in the township’s road and bridge fund levy — arguing the extra money might be needed if winter weather is bad, asphalt prices go up or state lawmakers freeze property taxes. What’s more, he said, state law gives the highway commissioner control of setting the levy.
The Southern: Harrisburg council votes to raise tax levy
Harrisburg City Council voted to slightly raise its tax levy during a special meeting Thursday morning.
Mayor John McPeek said each municipality is mandated by law to levy taxes.