Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Champaign News-Gazette: Let the good times roll
Some states learned their lesson during the Great Recession.
It’s been nine years since the end of the Great Recession, time enough for states that took it on the chin during that difficult time to recover their mo-jo.
That’s important, too, because the economic recovery the country is in won’t last forever. The economy, owing to a variety of factors, runs in cycles — always has and always will.
Chicago Tribune: Speaker Michael Madigan writes he 'didn't do enough' to address sexual harassment
Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan wrote he “didn’t do enough” to ensure people could report sexual harassment at the Illinois Capitol, where complaints continue to cloud state politics.
“I have made it a personal mission to take this issue head-on and correct past mistakes,” Madigan wrote in an op-ed published by the Chicago Tribune. “I wish I would have done so sooner.”
Chicago Tribune: Chicago schools staff could face jail time for electronic communications with students, under proposed law
A powerful Chicago alderman is proposing a city ordinance that would outlaw personal communications between staff and students in any of the city’s public or private elementary and high schools.
The measure put forth by Ald. Edward Burke, 14th, at Thursday’s City Council meeting would build on recently enacted Chicago Public Schools policies that govern how its employees interact with students, following a Tribune investigation of the district’s failures to address sexual misconduct.
WBEZ: CPS Falling Short Of Promise To Add Social Workers To Help With Trauma
Chicago Public Schools started the year with only 38 more school social workers than last year, far short of a dramatic increase district leaders had promised, new data shows.
The head of the school system announced plans this summer to hire 160 more social workers at a cost of $20 million. These new social workers were to be assigned to particular schools full time — a rarity in CPS — and would help with special education students, as well as serve the needs of the general population. This came after years of cutting back services for special needs students.
Crain's Chicago Business: High court affirms tax break for nonprofit hospitals
A property tax exemption benefiting the state’s not-for-profit hospitals was affirmed today by the Illinois Supreme Court.
In a unanimous opinion, justices upheld a 2016 appellate court ruling on the constitutionality of a six-year-old state law that allows not-for-profit hospitals to offset expenditures deemed charitable against their property tax liability.
Northwest Herald: Judge dismisses lawsuit against McHenry Township board
A McHenry County Circuit Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the McHenry Township board asking officials to remove a referendum from the November ballot that gives taxpayers the power to eliminate the road district with a majority vote.
Filed on behalf of more than 30 McHenry Township residents, the lawsuit alleges that the township board did not follow the directions of electors who voted at the government’s annual town meeting to request a cost study to determine whether consolidation would save taxpayers money.
Daily Herald: Kane County township, local leaders fail to agree on consolidating mental health taxes
Representatives from Kane County, Aurora, Geneva and St. Charles gathered this week with the goal of creating one countywide tax to fund mental health, developmental disability and addiction treatment services. They didn’t get it done.
Funding flows to Kane County mental health, developmental disability and addiction service providers from several pipelines. Most of those lines stem from seven townships that each levy a specific tax to provide such funding. Geneva and St. Charles also levy taxes for the same purpose at the municipal level.
Daily Herald: East Aurora Dist. 131 union to rally Saturday, file strike notice Monday
East Aurora District 131 teachers and other workers intend to file a 10-day strike notice on Monday, their union says.
That means teachers, teaching aides and assistants, other support workers and office workers could go on strike as soon as Oct. 5.
Rockford Register-Star: Winnebago County Board: Budget cuts ‘painful’ but necessary
More than 50 people — many of them holding signs reading “We stand with the sheriff” and “No more public safety cuts” — served as the backdrop to Thursday’s special meeting of the Winnebago County Board.
The lone item on the agenda was County Board Chairman Frank Haney’s proposed fiscal year 2019 budget. Though no action was taken, much of the discussion centered around a projected $4.2 million to $4.3 million deficit and how to balance it.
Champaign News-Gazette: UI pushing tax-incentive program to attract businesses to college towns
A tax-incentive program to attract more businesses to campus communities in Illinois, and spur jobs for students, is being pushed by the University of Illinois.
The “Grow Illinois” bill, as it’s called for now, will be part of the legislative package from the University of Illinois this fall for consideration next spring, officials said Wednesday.
Belleville News-Democrat: Even with a federal grant, MidAmerica Airport improvements could cost county $7M
Passengers could see big changes at MidAmerica St. Louis Airport if leaders secure money from a federal grant, though St. Clair County would still have to foot upwards of $7 million over the next three years as part of the grant agreement.
The Federal Aviation Administration administers grant money to airports annually as part of the Airport Improvement Program. This year, the FAA set the money aside specifically for smaller airports such as MidAmerica, according to airport Director Tim Cantwell.
The Southern: HUD announces $6 million grant to demolish Elmwood and McBride in Cairo
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has secured more than $6 million to demolish two public housing apartment complexes in Cairo.
HUD made the announcement Thursday.