Get the latest news from around Illinois.
WTTW Chicago Tonight: City Analysis: Pension Debt Grew Last Year
The city of Chicago saw a little more tax revenue than expected last year. That’s the sliver of good news in a new report that spells out the bleak long-term financial forecast.
The Comprehensive Financial Report is a deep dive into the final 2018 performance the city is obligated to release every year.
Chicago Tribune: Lightfoot pauses water meter installations after city finds spikes of brain-damaging lead in homes
Mayor Lori Lightfoot put the brakes on Chicago’s aggressive water meter program last month after another round of city testing found spikes of brain-damaging lead in more than 1 in 5 metered homes sampled, the Chicago Tribune has learned.
The decision by Lightfoot comes after five years of denials by former Mayor Rahm Emanuel that the nation’s third-largest city has a widespread problem with lead in drinking water.
Chicago Sun-Times: Ald. Carrie Austin exceeded committee budget by 65 percent
Ald. Carrie Austin (34th) last year spent 65% more than the annual amount allotted to the City Council’s Budget Committee she chaired in the run-up to a federal raid on her ward office.
An annual audit known as the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report shows the Budget Committee’s annual budget was $543,968 and that Austin blew past it — by $352,629. The audit was conducted by the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche LLP.
WTTW Chicago Tonight: City Can’t Keep Impounded Cars After Drivers File for Bankruptcy: Court
A federal appeals court says Chicago can no longer continue to hold impounded vehicles of drivers in debt to the city after the vehicle owner files for bankruptcy. It’s all part of a complicated legal case related to a ProPublica and WBEZ investigation last year that found city ticketing policies put a huge burden on mostly low-income Chicagoans of color.
The court case hinges on Chapter 13 bankruptcy, writes reporter Melissa Sanchez of ProPublica Illinois. “This kind of bankruptcy allows for ticket debt forgiveness and what’s known as an ‘automatic stay,’ a protection that gives debtors the opportunity to regain their financial footing and repay their creditors. For years, what that meant for indebted motorists in Chicago was the ability to quickly reinstate drivers’ licenses suspended over unpaid tickets and retrieve impounded vehicles without having to first pay fines or fees,” Sanchez wrote.
Daily Herald: Des Plaines park commissioner resigns in May, gets hired by district in June
A longtime Des Plaines Park District board member and one-time board president stepped down from his elected position in May, only to be hired by the district as its superintendent of recreation.
Joe Weber, who spent a decade as an elected parks commissioner, resigned from the board so he could apply for the administrative role that became available when Nick Troy left to take a similar position with the neighboring Mount Prospect Park District.
Rockford Register-Star: Rockford mayor authorized to hire more casino consultants
City Council on Monday night authorized Mayor Tom McNamara to spend up to $150,000 on consultants and lawyers to help the city sift through, score and negotiate proposals for a Rockford casino.
With a countdown already begun to an Oct. 25 deadline to submit the best proposal or proposals to the Illinois Gaming Board, McNamara said time is of the essence. He said experienced consultants could be needed to assist the city in landing the best deal possible.