Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan’s grip on the state’s legislative process once delayed the Cubs’ quest for lights at Wrigley Field – and 30 years later, the Cubs are still feuding with politicians.
In his annual budget address, Mayor Rahm Emanuel provided an optimistic outlook on city finances, but no major reforms to give taxpayers reason to smile.
A law passed by the Illinois General Assembly in June allows Chicago to create new transit-based super TIFs, adding more opportunities for city-run slush funds to divert and hoard property-tax dollars.
City Council violates procedural rules and plays political games to put popular, but toothless, measures on the ballot and protect the mayor and bureaucrats from any real challenges to their power.
In a July 11 resolution, Chicago City Council’s Committee on Public Safety urged the General Assembly to pass “meaningful sealing reform” to help ex-offenders re-enter the job market and their communities more successfully.
The city will require rideshare drivers to complete an online course before hitting the road, and will allow ridesharing platforms such as Uber and Lyft to continue conducting their own background checks.
The Education Freedom Tax Credit, also known as the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit, will give Illinois students access to donor money if the state opts into the program.