Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Reuters: The man behind Illinois' fiscal fiasco
As speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, Michael Madigan has outlasted five governors and is now on his sixth. This year, the Chicago Democrat will become the longest-serving state or federal House speaker in the United States since at least the early 1800s.
Madigan is to Illinois what his late mentor, Mayor Richard J. Daley, was to Chicago, the state’s great metropolis—a city the political boss once controlled down to the last garbage truck. As speaker for all but two years since 1983, Madigan has directed the fate of key pension, labor and tax laws. As state Democratic Party chairman since 1998, he has shaped the fortunes of his allies and stymied opponents.
Chicago Sun-Times: Pension bill fails—leaders still sold on passing ‘grand bargain’
Putting a snag in the plan to try to pass 12 “grand bargain” budget bills, the Illinois Senate on Wednesday failed to pass a pension reform bill — with a top GOP leader calling the vote a “breach of our agreement.”
The bill had just 18 voting yes, and 29 voting no. Ten voted present. There are procedural ways to get the bill’s language into another bill, however.
State Journal-Register: Failed Senate budget votes won't kill compromise, lawmakers say
The Illinois Senate finally began voting on its “grand bargain” bills Wednesday, but the effort quickly sputtered to a halt when it became obvious Republicans weren’t going to vote for it.
Both Senate President John Cullerton and Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno insisted the development Wednesday didn’t represent a fatal setback for their efforts to jump-start a process to end the nearly two-year budget stalemate in Illinois.
WTTW Chicago Tonight: Illinois Budget: ‘Grand Bargain’ or Bust?
Portions of the so-called “grand bargain” passed the Illinois Senate on Wednesday afternoon, and while Senate President John Cullerton and Minority Leader Christine Radogno have framed it as a bipartisan deal, the measures received no Republican support, raising questions as to whether the entire package is on the skids.
News-Gazette: Success, failure both have risks
State senators are returning to Springfield in search of a deal.
Senate President John Cullerton said this week that “failure is not an option” when it comes to broad-based, bipartisan agreement on a solution to the state’s 19-month-old budget standoff.
That was true a week ago, and it’s even more so in the aftermath of the latest report issued by the state’s Commission on Forecasting and Accountability. The commission indicated that the state’s financial woes, which were terrible, are even worse than imagined.
Wirepoints: Bondholders Taking Dibs on Public’s Bones While Illinois Taxpayers Snooze – Wirepoints Original
Most readers’ eyes surely glazed over when they read last week about the cat fight between two of the agencies that rate credit for Chicago Public Schools. What’s far more important than that dispute is what it illustrated: The municipal bond community is way ahead in putting itself before everybody else with a stake in the financial crises gripping CPS, Chicago, other muncipalities and the State of Illinois. They’ve been hard at work securing positions to ensure they’ll get paid first, ahead of other creditors and ahead of taxpayers hoping to see government cash used for services and a fresh start.
Here’s what this is really about.
Chicago Tribune: Wake up, Illinois. You're surrounded.
To chants from union protesters, new Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signed legislation Monday making Missouri the 28th right-to-work state in the nation. Republican House. Republican Senate. Republican governor. Done, done, done.
By comparison: When Gov. Bruce Rauner two years ago championed a scaled back right-to-work concept — local, voter-approved right-to-work zones, not a statewide proposal — it got no traction in the Democrat-led General Assembly. A bill introduced by House Speaker Michael Madigan to test its popularity, and to embarrass Rauner, got zero “yes” votes. No support whatsoever.
Chicago Tribune: Chris Kennedy says Rauner-driven impasse causing 'economic chaos' for Illinois
Chicago businessman Chris Kennedy formally announced his Democratic candidacy for governor Wednesday, and quickly went on the attack against Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.
In an interview, Kennedy blamed Rauner for the state’s historic lack of a full-year budget and decried the Republican for what he characterized as a lack of leadership with the state’s economy and government finances continuing to weaken.
Chicago Sun-Times: Chris Kennedy comes out swinging, calls Gov. Rauner ‘heartless’
Businessman Chris Kennedy threw daggers at Gov. Bruce Rauner on Wednesday after announcing he’s running for governor — saying Rauner is “heartless” and will go down as “the worst governor in Illinois history” if he doesn’t end the state budget impasse before the election next year.
“I think one of the most important things about running now is to let Gov. Rauner know that unless he’s fixing things, he’s one and done. He needs to know that. He will not be re-elected. He will go down as the worst governor in Illinois history unless he steps up with a balanced budget and puts the state on the right track,” Kennedy told the Chicago Sun-Times. “If he does that, maybe he can get re-elected. And that’s his only hope.”
NBC 5 Chicago: Bustos to Make Decision on Gubernatorial Bid Within Next 30 Days
Rep. Cheri Bustos announced Tuesday that she’s given herself 30 days to decide whether she’ll join the 2018 governor’s race.
Bustos, a downstate Democrat, told the Quad-City Times Tuesday that she’s weighing a variety of factors, like whether the governor’s mansion is the best place for her to affect change.
NBC 5 Chicago: J.B. Pritzker ‘Seriously Considering’ Run for Illinois Governor in 2018
Chicago billionaire J.B. Pritzker announced Wednesday that he’s “seriously considering” running for Illinois governor in 2018.
“I’ve listened to people throughout Illinois, and it’s clear that our government isn’t working effectively for them,” Pritzker said in a statement. “Governor Rauner has failed to address the real needs and concerns facing our state.”
Chicago Tribune: City Hall's CPS blame game: Why isn't Claypool pounding on his fellow Democrats to fix their fiasco?
Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool is scrambling because the district’s budget is seriously out of whack and a huge teachers pension payment looms in June.
On Monday, Claypool announced a $46 million “spending freeze” that will force principals to scramble themselves to rejigger their budgets in the middle of the school year. Those cuts likely will be felt by teachers and students, not just bureaucrats in the central office. And the budget still isn’t balanced.
Chicago Tribune: Republicans cry foul over CPS chief's letter to parents
Chicago’s Republican Party chairman filed an ethics complaint with the Chicago Public Schools inspector general Wednesday alleging district CEO Forrest Claypool improperly used taxpayer resources to deliver a “blatantly political letter” to parents this week.
“It was misusing taxpayer money for political purposes,” Chicago Republican Chairman Chris Cleveland said during a news conference with a small group of GOP volunteers and staffers outside Inspector General Nicholas Schuler’s office. “It is not only improper; it is entirely illegal.”
Chicago Tribune: Unions tell CTA: Port-a-potties unacceptable for bus, rail workers
The union representing thousands of CTA bus operators, mechanics and other staff said they just can’t hold it in any longer: Something needs to be done about the bathroom situation on the job.
Some bus drivers are opting to wear adult diapers while on their routes because they may not be close to a CTA facility or local businesses that have bathrooms, union officials say.
Chicago Tribune: O'Hare runway plan helps with jet noise, might be renewed
A program to reduce jet noise in the worst-hit areas around O’Hare International Airport appears to have worked most of the time, officials said Wednesday, and might be renewed this spring.
The program faces serious challenges, however. While the nighttime runway rotation plan provided relief to some residents closer to the airport, officials said it spread more noise to the northwest suburbs, and that the scheduled closing of one key runway next year will force fundamental changes to the program.
Chicago Sun-Times: Chicago relaxes licensing rules for home-based businesses
Mayor Rahm Emanuel is trying again to bring home-based businesses, a fast-growing segment of the local economy, into the mainstream.
The City Council’s License and Zoning committees approved the mayor’s plan to relax rules to make it easier for Chicagoans to do business out of their own homes.
WTTW Chicago Tonight: After Petcoke, Community Confronts More Dangerous Pollutant: Manganese
They thought it was over when the black dust went away.
For decades, residents on Chicago’s Far Southeast Side complained about thick clouds of black dust blowing across their neighborhoods, through their windows and even into their mouths.
State Journal-Register: Springfield Council rejects 3 of 4 proposed tax hikes
The Springfield City Council approved just one of Mayor Jim Langfelder’s four proposed tax hikes Tuesday, upping the tax on hotel rooms from 6 percent to 7 percent. The aldermen rejected hikes in sales and telecommunications taxes and the creation of a levy on natural gas, all aimed at bridging a multimillion-dollar gap in revenues and expenses.
The city will look at slowing hiring, dipping into city reserves and cutting contractual services, which might include paying for additional snow plow trucks during storms, Langfelder said after the meeting.
Belleville News-Democrat: Lawyers win, taxpayers lose as township road king becomes court jester
St. Clair Township Highway Commissioner Skip Kernan is sticking up the taxpayers — oops, sorry — is sticking up for the taxpayers.
Too bad he couldn’t get a St. Clair County judge, or the township trustees, to get sticky with him.
The legal bills are still rolling in, so we don’t yet know the cost of Kernan’s effort to sue his own township. He wanted a judge to order trustees to let him spend $345,200 for five road workers this year rather than the $250,000 budgeted for 3.5 employees.