Get the latest news from around Illinois.
State Journal-Register: State has to explain what it’s doing to make good on step increases
Illinois officials have 20 days to explain what steps the state is taking to get union workers their past due step increases.
The Illinois Labor Relations Board issued the decision this week in the ongoing case of members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees trying to get step raises owed to members as far back as 2015.
Chicago Tribune: Mayor Emanuel cuts Chicago pension debt, but future hits to taxpayers are still expected
The city’s annual comprehensive financial report offered a classic good news/bad news scenario on pensions: Mayor Rahm Emanuel has dramatically cut the long-term pension shortfall, but at a steep cost to Chicago taxpayers.
As of the end of 2017, City Hall was about $28 billion short of what’s needed to cover future pension payments to retired city workers. That debt was about $7.7 billion less than at the end of 2016.
Chicago Tribune: Sears lays off 200 more employees
Sears Holdings Corp. laid off 200 corporate employees last month, following a round of 220 job cuts earlier this year.
About 150 of the employees affected in the latest round of job cuts worked at the company’s Hoffman Estates support center, Sears spokesman Howard Riefs said Wednesday in an email.
WTTW Chicago Tonight: CPS Watchdog Adding Staff for New Sex Abuse Investigations Team
Chicago Public Schools’ legal watchdog is looking to hire a dozen full-time employees to staff a new dedicated unit tasked with investigating sexual abuse allegations made by district students.
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) posted a series of job listings Tuesday afternoon, seeking to hire a chief investigator, assistant inspector general, administrative assistant and eight investigators to examine allegations of adult-on-student abuse within CPS.
WBEZ: Chicago School Improvement Spending Targets North Side
Parents and advocates are questioning Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s highly unusual plan to build two new schools and put additions on others in neighborhoods where existing schools are not overcrowded.
The new buildings and additions are all on the city’s North Side or in the center of the city. That’s leading some parents and advocates to wonder if politics, not need, is driving the building decisions. Emanuel is facing re-election next year.
Northwest Herald: Consolidation referendum fails
In the end, silence was the final vote.
At Algonquin Township’s monthly meeting Wednesday night, Trustee Rachael Lawrence motioned that board members read aloud and adopt a resolution to push forward a referendum to the November ballot asking whether the highway department should be consolidated.
Met with silence from the rest of the board, her motion – and the referendum – died.
Northwest Herald: Lakewood village president 'getting close' to stepping down
Lakewood Village President Paul Serwatka said he’s “getting close” to stepping down but hasn’t chosen the exact date to do it.
Serwatka said he’s going to spend the summer going back-and-forth between Lakewood and his new home out of state.
Decatur Herald & Review: Housing authority disbands Decatur Improvement Association
A dormant nonprofit arm of the Decatur Housing Authority met a quiet end on Wednesday when the agency’s board of commissioners voted to disband it after more than 50 years.
The Decatur Improvement Association was an entity through which the housing authority could own property and make business deals, and it received financial support from state and federal governments.
The Southern: With a potential lien, Marion officials hope to have future say in who buys mall property
During Monday’s City Council meeting, Marion city officials voted to begin the process of filing a lien against the owners of the Illinois Star Centre mall for not paying its taxes to the city.
“Actually what propagated a lot of this was we ended up having to pay an individual back over $700,000 after they filed for bankruptcy,” Mayor Anthony Rinella said Wednesday.