Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Chicago Tribune: Former state lawmakers ask judge to order Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza to pay back raises they voted to reject
Two former Democratic state senators are asking a Cook County judge to order Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza to pay back wages they and other lawmakers gave up when legislators voted repeatedly over a decade to freeze their salaries.
The request from Michael Noland of Elgin and James Clayborne of Belleville was filed Wednesday in a lawsuit the former lawmakers brought against Mendoza, a fellow Democrat.
WBEZ: Pritzker Reviewing How Prisons Investigate Inmate Deaths, But Won’t Commit To Transparency Bill
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzer is refusing to say if he would support a bill that would require transparency around prison deaths after a WBEZ investigation found prison staff ignored warning signs and falsified documents connected to three men who died on three consecutive days at Menard prison. An internal investigation by the Department of Corrections largely absolved staff of wrongdoing, and a correctional officer who admitted to falsifying documents remains employed.
Family members say they were given very little information about the deaths of their loved ones at Menard. A bill that would have required jails and prisons to provide family members and the Illinois attorney general with information about prison deaths recently failed to pass the state legislature, but lawmakers and advocates say they plan to try and pass a similar bill soon.
Daily Herald: Leadership changes at tollway mean new positions and salaries
New blood is infusing the Illinois tollway after controversy over patronage and nepotism resulted in the ouster of the board of directors and exodus of top staff members.
Reforms, however, come at a cost. Three new administrators brought on by tollway Executive Director José Alvarez to improve procurement policies will earn a collective $512,000 a year. The three are former colleagues of Alvarez from the Chicago Housing Authority, where he was chief operating officer until joining the tollway in April.
Chicago Sun-Times: Casino developers put chips on table for Waukegan gambling den
Helipads and posh villas. Italianate fountains and dine-in movie theaters. Saltwater pools and cavernous concert halls.
And lots of slots.
They’re all included in a slate of packages being offered by a handful of developers vying for the opportunity to run a newly authorized casino in Waukegan, according to documents released by the city last week.
Bloomington Pantagraph: City library expansion, joint project not on the books
The head of the Bloomington Public Library board doesn’t want the city’s reading and learning resource to be used as a “potential savior” for some spots in and near the downtown in need of development.
Mayor Tari Renner has suggested a public-private partnership involving, in part, the library as a possibility for saving the former corporate headquarters of State Farm, a historic landmark in the heart of downtown.