Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Associated Press: Illinois Senate vows swift action on ambitious budget plan
If last week’s action is any indication, the Democratic and Republican leaders of the Illinois Senate are serious about attempting to bust the state’s 18-month budget deadlock — quickly.
Democratic Senate President John Cullerton and Minority Leader Christine Radogno negotiated an ambitious, multi-part plan to end a nearly two-year battle between Democrats and GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner, which has forestalled an agreed-upon annual state spending plan since 2015.
Chicago Tribune: Chicago aldermen want federal investigation of city law department
As the U.S. Justice Department asks Chicago to address deep flaws in police officers’ use of force, a group of aldermen is accusing Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s law department of enabling the misconduct and is asking federal authorities to investigate.
The City Council’s progressive caucus sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch last week, asking her to launch a federal review of the law department’s federal civil rights litigation division, which has been sanctioned eight times during Emanuel’s tenure for withholding possible evidence in police misconduct lawsuits, which it defends.
Fresno Bee: California union dues case dies, but another rises up
The case originally pitted Bruce Rauner, the Republican governor of Illinois, against AFSCME, the nation’s largest public employee union. Illinois requires non-members to pay fees to unions, and Rauner set the money aside in an escrow account while he sued to overturn the law.
However, the suit was thrown out because it was deemed that Rauner lacked standing, so it was taken up by a couple of public employees, and is now known as Janus vs. AFSCME.
CBS 2 Chicago: Rauner To Sign School Lead Testing Mandate
Legislation requiring lead testing in Illinois schools was set to become law on Monday.
It’s a mandate that aims to prevent children from being exposed to lead poisoning in their drinking water.