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Associated Press: Illinois comptroller appeals ruling ordering lawmaker pay
Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza has appealed a Cook County judge’s ruling that state lawmakers must be paid on time despite their failure to pass a budget.
Mendoza said Wednesday that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office filed the appeal on her behalf Tuesday. The judge ruled last week in favor of lawmakers who sued Mendoza’s predecessor seeking pay.
WTTW Chicago Tonight: Legislators Propose Alternatives to ‘Grand Bargain’
Nearly three months after Senate leaders unveiled a so-called “grand bargain,” the gridlock in Springfield has only intensified.
For two years, Illinois state government negotiations have revolved around Gov. Bruce Rauner’s “turnaround agenda.”
WBEZ: People’s Court: How Judges Are Keeping Illinois (Mostly) Running During the Budget Impasse
Illinois’ historic budget impasse has lasted nearly two years, but some taxpayers might not have even felt it. After all, drivers can still get their state licenses renewed, the lights are still on in government buildings, doctors are still accepting Medicaid patients and, of course, the state is still collecting taxes.
Chicago Sun-Times: 1.4M affected in data breach at Illinois employment department
A hacker gained access last month to about 1.4 million job seekers’ personal information on file with the Illinois Department of Employment Security’s online job board, including their names, Social Security numbers and birth dates.
The data breach happened because of a “vulnerability” in the application code of America’s Job Link Alliance, the software vendor that runs IllinoisJobLink.com, according to a statement from IDES.
Chicago Sun-Times: CSU audit finds the university improperly reported federal awards
An audit of Chicago State University by the state’s auditor general released on Wednesday found that the embattled university improperly reported more than $51 million in federal awards.
According to the report by the state’s Auditor General Frank Mautino, the university did not properly prepare expenditure reports, as federal law requires, for federal awards amounting to $51,731,277 for two loan programs from the Department of Education.
Crain's Chicago Business: Illinois one of the worst states for retirees
Illinois is one of the worst states for retirees, says a new Bankrate report that ranked Illinois as the 17th-worst state to retire in.
The study surveyed 643 non-retired U.S. adults to find out which factors are most important to them when choosing a retirement destination. Top factors included cost of living, health care quality, crime, cultural vitality, weather, taxes, senior citizens’ well-being and the prevalence of other seniors. Bankrate then gathered data on those criteria for each state.
Chicago Tribune: Online privacy debate moves from Washington to Springfield
As the federal government rolls back internet privacy regulations under the Trump administration, Illinois is leading a pushback among states, with a groundbreaking bill to increase protection of personal information online under consideration in Springfield.
The proposed Right to Know Act, which is scheduled for a committee hearing Thursday in the Illinois House, would require online companies such as Google, Facebook and Amazon to disclose to consumers what data has been collected on them and shared with third parties.
Chicago Tribune: Bill to expand CTU's ability to strike passes through state House committee Plea to use TIF money for CPS Chicago Public Schools parents gather around Ald. Raymond Lopez, 15th, before a City Council meeting March 29, 2017, to demand that tax increment financing money be used to prevent a shortening of the school year. (Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune) Juan Perez Jr.Contact Reporter Chicago Tribune A proposal to give the Chicago Teachers Union expanded authority to go on strike advanced out of an Illinois House committee Wednesday over opposition from Chicago Public Schools and its allies. The legislation would dramatically transform the rules of contract negotiations between the union and the district when a deal reached just before a strike deadline in October expires in 2019. But even if the proposal makes it through both legislative chambers, it would still need to win the signature of Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, a CTU opponent. The amended bill, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Silvana Tabares of Chicago, would do away with a provision that prevents the CTU from striking over issues including class sizes, outsourcing, staffing, layoffs and the length of the school day. Under current law, contract talks can cover those subjects, but CPS has broad authority to implement its own policies on those matters without fear of a teacher walkout. Union leaders testifying in Springfield on Wednesday argued that the law is partly responsible for the district's financial problems. "What was sold as a way to avoid labor strife, to help the schools balance their budget and to improve education in Chicago, has produced in fact the opposite effect," CTU Vice President Jesse Sharkey told the House Labor & Commerce Committee. Sharkey cited the district's use of four furlough days to save money, and more recently its threat to shorten the school year by as much as three weeks to balance a budget that relied on millions of dollars of state aid that has not materialized. Chicago Teachers Union threatens 1-day walkout in May "With four furlough days that the (Chicago) Board (of Education) has already announced, and 13 more being threatened, the longer day and longer year stand as a prime example of how to screw up school reform by ill-considered and unilateral action," Sharkey said. A CPS labor negotiator countered that the law was intended to allow the district to address its needs while still giving the union some ability to influence decisions. "All this (law) really does … was give CPS freedom of movement to be able to address more quickly urgent needs of the students of the city of Chicago," Joe Moriarty, CPS chief labor relations officer, told lawmakers. "It's not broken; please don't fix it." The committee endorsed the legislation with a 17-10 vote. The bill is not likely to provide cover for the one-day strike CTU has threatened to have on May 1. Union leaders are expected to vote early next month on a May Day walkout, which has already prompted a legal challenge from the district. Chicago Public Schools proposals face rough road in Springfield Also on Wednesday, aldermen and community groups allied with the CTU staged a demonstration prior to the City Council meeting to call for local measures that would send new money to CPS by re-enacting a tax on corporations, drawing from excess city funds and changing the rules governing the use of surplus money from the city's tax increment financing districts. jjperez@chicagotribune.com Twitter @PerezJr Copyright © 2017, Chicago Tribune Unions Chicago Teachers Union Chicago Public Schools Illinois General Assembly Bruce Rauner Chicago Public Schools chief fires back at Gov. Rauner State asks judge to dismiss CPS lawsuit alleging 'separate and unequal' education funding CPS makes cuts to alternative programs for drop-outs, at-risk children SPORTSBREAKINGREDEYETRENDINGOPINIONSUBURBSENTERTAINMENTADVERTISING 43° This is your first free story of the month. Subscribe for unlimited access, only 99¢ for 4 weeks. Support Quality Journalism Subscribe for only 99¢START NOW
Aproposal to give the Chicago Teachers Union expanded authority to go on strike advanced out of an Illinois House committee Wednesday over opposition from Chicago Public Schools and its allies.
The legislation would dramatically transform the rules of contract negotiations between the union and the district when a deal reached just before a strike deadline in October expires in 2019.
State Journal-Register: Illinois House committee approves self-driving vehicle testing
Illinois motorists might have to make room for self-driving vehicles in a few years.
Sponsored by Rep. Mike Zalewski, D-Riverside, a bill making its way through the General Assembly would allow vehicle manufacturers to start self-driving car projects in Illinois and to test them on the state’s roads.
State Register: Senate approves bill to block further privatizing of prison medical care
Legislation to prevent further privatization of health care jobs at Illinois prisons won quick Senate approval Wednesday.
The Senate voted 40-15 on Senate Bill 19, whose chief sponsor is Sen. Sam McCann, R-Plainview.
Crain's Chicago Business: Which Midwestern universities graduate students with the most debt?
Any parent shopping for colleges this spring with a high schooler is keenly aware of tuition cost. But there’s another crucial metric to consider: the average undergraduate debt load, and how much that number might continue to soar.
In Illinois over the past five years, undergraduate student debt has risen 21 percent, more than the national rise of 19 percent. That surge is attributed to skyrocketing public tuition rates, driven in part by states across the U.S.—and not just Illinois—pulling back on university funding during the recession and failing to restore pre-recession contribution levels after the economy improved.
Chicago Tribune: High rollers to pay $40K at Rauner fundraising dinner Thursday
The Illinois Republican Party holds its annual “Governor’s Dinner” fundraiser Thursday night to pay tribute to Gov. Bruce Rauner, the state GOP’s leader and biggest donor.
Tickets for the event at the Hilton Chicago range from $500 per person all the way up to a special $40,000 “gold” sponsorship. Included is a private reception and photo opportunity with dinner following afterward.
Chicago Tribune: Alderman urges Cubs not to create own cable network
A powerful alderman on Wednesday called on the Chicago Cubs not to pursue plans to create their own cable network, saying the move would shut out many of the team’s loyal fans from being able to watch games on TV.
Southwest Side Ald. Edward Burke laid out three arguments on behalf of his resolution, which carries only symbolic value: Cubs fans stuck by the team through many lean years before the 2016 World Series championship. The City Council already approved plans to allow the Cubs’ owners, the Ricketts family, to add massive video boards to generate more advertising revenue at historic Wrigley Field. And the team recently raised ticket prices, making it more expensive for fans to attend games.
Chicago Sun-Times: Cubs to open ‘Park at Wrigley’ plaza April 10 amid security fears
An open-air plaza adjacent to Wrigley Field will make its long-awaited debut hours before the Cubs’ April 10 home opener amid concern that hard-fought rules restricting occupancy and the sale of beer and wine will be difficult to enforce.
The plan approved by the City Council last summer gave Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) many of the safeguards he wanted to prevent the plaza from turning into what his constituents fear will become the “Midwest’s largest beer garden.”
Chicago Sun-Times: City Council finalizes surge parking rates near Wrigley
With the Cubs home opener 12 days away, the City Council on Wednesday finalized plans to double parking meter rates at 1,100 spaces around Wrigley Field amid fears that “surge pricing” could someday spread throughout the city.
“Whenever the city has found a way to make some money, they tend to expand it,” said West Side Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th), pointing to the nation’s largest red-light camera network.
NBC 5 Chicago: Chicago Lowers Age Requirement for Serving Alcohol
Employees 18 and older working at grocery stores and restaurants in Chicago will now be able to serve and sell alcohol.
City Council voted Wednesday to let those between the ages of 18 and 20 sell unopened bottles of alcohol at grocery stores and serve booze at restaurants.
Chicago Tribune: New street musicians plan would limit louder music downtown to certain hours
Amplified street musicians and drummers on some downtown streets would be restricted to performing during particular hours under a hoped-for compromise aldermen introduced Wednesday after musicians’ supporters questioned the legality of a proposed outright ban in some areas.
Under the ordinance introduced by downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly and Near North Side Ald. Brian Hopkins, musicians who use “a bullhorn or electronic amplifications, or a musical instrument or other object that is struck manually or with a stick or similar item to produce a sharp percussive noise” would be subject to the new rules.
Chicago Sun-Times: Violent crime falls in 2 districts run by the Johnson brothers
Twin brothers.
Twin police districts.
And twin drops in crime.
Chicago Tribune: North Chicago mayor's luxury car raises questions about wasteful spending
North Chicago Mayor Leon Rockingham Jr.’s new 2017 Hyundai Genesis G80 — a luxury car worth $47,000 and leased for $524 a month at taxpayers’ expense — has some in the city, including three aldermen, worried about wasteful spending, while Rockingham and others say the vehicle is necessary for travel and entertaining business and government leaders.
A measure to approve leasing the car for the mayor was narrowly approved by the council in a 4-3 vote during a Feb. 27 City Council meeting. The three aldermen who voted no — Ald. Bobby Allen, 4th; Ald. Torrance Markham, 5th; and Ald. Kathy January, 7th — questioned whether the mayor needs the car at a time when North Chicago’s rising labor and pension costs and declining property tax values are contributing to potential structural imbalances in the city budget.
Bloomington Pantagraph: ISU recommends not hiking tuition, fees, housing for fall
Tuition, fees and on-campus housing costs would not go up for incoming Illinois State University students this fall if the board of trustees goes along with a recommendation from the administration to hold the line on those charges.
In the midst of the ongoing state budget impasse, ISU President Larry Dietz said Wednesday people are “looking for a little silver lining. We hope this will be one of those silver linings.”