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Top Illinois Stories
On July 24, U.S. District Judge David W. Dugan ruled Illinois Democratic lawmakers and Gov. JB Pritzker violated federal law and the U.S. Constitution by enacting laws specifically designed to allow illegal immigrants to attend Illinois public colleges and universities at the same tuition rate normally reserved for U.S. citizens and legal non-citizens who live in Illinois.
The Chamber of Digital Commerce, an organization that says it represents more than 250 members of the global digital asset industry, filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Sangamon County Circuit Court which argues the tax violates due process rights protected under the state and federal constitutions, along with state and federal provisions protecting interstate commerce and uniform taxation.
- CTU controls IFT.
- IFT spends a disproportionate amount of money on CTU over other affiliates.
- Less than 28% of the union’s spending is on representing teachers.
- IFT and its affiliates were the No. 1 funder of Chicago politics in the last municipal election.
- IFT lies about its membership numbers.
- IFT lavishes six-figure salaries on its own employees.
- Teachers can opt out, keep their benefits and get liability insurance elsewhere.
More Highlighted Illinois Stories
“The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment, or PPRA, prohibits educational institutions that receive federal funding from requiring students to submit to a survey, analysis or evaluation without the parent’s consent, should such a survey or evaluation ask for sensitive information about the student,” Miller said during a hearing last week.
Saying to find otherwise would leave him with no option other than to allow the justices of the Illinois Supreme Court — the very people he is suing — to control the fate of his case, a former Cook County judge has asked a federal appeals court to carve a path forward in federal court for his claims that Illinois' top state court judges trampled his personal and professional rights by abruptly ousting him for supporting President Donald Trump.
"(House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch) Welch went into damage control and met privately with most of his members in groups. Some of his members were skeptical of his answers, and his future is at least somewhat uncertain. One member asked, for example, if any other stories would come out about him. He said that since he didn’t realize he had made the young woman uncomfortable by posting 'heart eyes' emojis on her online photos and suggesting a meeting in a swanky bar, he had no idea if more might come out."
According to the letter, IDHS plans to cease operations for the intellectual and developmental disabilities general units by Sept. 30. The department will also “phase down” 75 civil mental health beds at Choate while adding beds to the Madden Mental Health Center in Chicago.
Over-the-year, the unemployment rate increased in 11 metro areas and was unchanged in 1 for the year ending June 2026, according to data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Illinois Department of Employment Security (DES).
This represents a roughly $33 million increase over last year's spending plan. However, ISU board chair Kathryn Bohn also expressed concerns about declining enrollment as a result of a projected decline in traditional college-aged students over the next 15 years.
Consumer advocates in Illinois are sounding the alarm over a new wave of utility rate cases that could raise costs for electricity, gas, and water customers across the state.
The lawsuit has been threatened since the moment Illinois Democratic lawmakers rammed through the tax as part of the state's $56 billion budget bill, which was passed hastily and with minimal public review in the closing hours of the 2026 spring legislative session. The lawsuit particularly takes aim at the differences in how Illinois would tax transfers of cryptocurrency vs. other financial assets, such as stocks and bonds.
Bringing new nuclear to all nine sites would not be necessary to meet Pritzker’s two-gigawatt goal; that could likely be achieved by building just two new power plants. One response came from the Illinois Nuclear Power Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, which is seeking a microreactor for research and workforce training purposes.
The state board of education approved a comprehensive plan to guide school districts on evidence-based math instruction.
The state recently scrapped a proposed new alcohol tax rule that could well have violated the Illinois Constitution. If it had passed, any canned cocktails with an added spirit or any product with added spirits, such as ice cream infused with bourbon or rum, would have faced the $8.55-per-gallon rate if the final product contained more than 0.5 percent alcohol by volume.
The investigation report won’t be released immediately, but instead likely by the end of next week, according to an official statement from the Illinois Legislative Ethics Commission. Chair of the commission, Rep. Jeff Keicher, said state law requires time for all involved parties to request redactions and provide a response to the report.
In their lawsuit, the states — led by Rhode Island, California, Illinois and New Jersey — said the administration's plans to condition the funds on election changes exceeded the federal government's authority. The U.S. Constitution assigns states the role of administering federal elections. "Congress never gave DHS or FEMA authority to rewrite state election law," the complaint read.
Blagojevich is reporting income of $50,000 tied to lobbying activities for Frank Kollintzas, a former Indiana city councilman who allegedly fled to Greece after being convicted in a vote-buying scheme. He previously tried to seek presidential clemency for former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, reporting income of $280,000 tied to lobbying for her.
“Taxes should be carefully considered, not only for the revenue they produce but for the fairness of those being taxed,” Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone said in a statement. “That was not the case here, as the provision slipped into legislation the night before the bill’s final consideration.”
Gov. JB Pritzker was also asked, based on currently known information, if state Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch should step down from being the House speaker. He responded, “There is more information and more revelation, in my view, that must come. And indeed, I believe that the speaker should answer questions about that, and be very transparent. He has pledged to do so. I’m just saying these meetings are not over."
Heitman is a public relations professional who served stints doing communications for the Illinois Senate and House. She was briefly Benton’s media and community outreach coordinator in 2023. And yes, she is the granddaughter of late two-term Democratic U.S. Sen. Alan Dixon.
"...Illinois lawmakers are celebrating a temporary discount worth about the price of a deep-dish pizza. Meanwhile, the state’s broader tax environment remains unchanged. ... Temporary tax breaks are welcome, but they make for better politics than policy."
According to a statement from Pritzker’s office, Zero Point Cryogenics will make “a substantial capital investment” and create more than 20 new, specialized jobs in Illinois.
"An analysis by the Cook County treasurer’s office found that voters approved 14 of 15 referendums in 2024 in which local taxing bodies sought permission to borrow above state limits. Between 2020 and 2023, voters approved about 80 percent of similar requests. Voters in northwest suburban Mount Prospect in 2024 approved not one, but two, high-dollar referendums, worth a whopping $100 million that would add nearly $1,000 in property taxes for a home worth $400,000 in exchange for a new middle school and park facilities."
When asked Wednesday if he might have second thoughts about pretrial release in Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker said there’s a reason the process involves a judge. But, he also said Cook County judges need to pay attention as they try to reform the electronic monitoring system. “Should people get this kind of monitoring, how is that monitoring taking place, and is it being done well enough? It clearly in this case wasn’t,” the governor said.
He was specifically asked about the St. Clair County state’s attorney’s decision not to file charges against trooper Gary Blake Novack for shooting and killing Rachel Tarrence, a mother of three, during a traffic stop in East. St. Louis Jan. 4.
"What do you call it when a congressman handpicks his successor and then fights tooth and nail to keep other viable candidates off the ballot? Illinois' 4th Congressional District."
Brian Costin, of Americans for Prosperity Illinois, said it is against the State Ethics Act to engage in political polling for a referendum that may be placed on the ballot. “It's all prohibited political activity that they're not supposed to be engaging in, and our taxpayer dollars shouldn't be used by local governments to create campaigns to raise our taxes even further,” Costin said.
Transit funding legislation signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker last December provided for the 0.25 percent increase to take effect on Aug. 1 in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties. The tax hike is projected to generate $478 million a year as part of the $1.5 billion in annual transit funding provided in Senate Bill 2111.
Illinois law allows public schools to charge fees for participation in curricular or extracurricular programs and for textbooks, lockers, field trips, uniforms, graduation costs and school records. The income threshold to get help for items like these from the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit program is much broader than the state's free-lunch standard.
Top Chicago Stories
Nothing in the U.S. Constitution prevents the city of Chicago from forcing landlords who purchase apartment buildings out of foreclosure to pay $10,000 in "relocation assistance" to tenants who don't want to renew their lease, a federal appeals court has ruled. The ordinance does not require tenants to prove they actually used any of the money to fund a security deposit on a new apartment or in any way to help find a new rental home for them or their family.
More Highlighted Chicago Area Stories
Two watchdog groups are calling attention to Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, one for what it says is the system's prioritizing DEI and discriminatory policies, transgender ideology, and climate activism; the other for the center's spending practices. In its letter to Gov. JB Pritzker, Save Our States noted that Rush has received nearly $75 million in state tax dollars since he took office.
“While reimbursement from the federal government will never undo the harm caused by Operation Midway Blitz, Cook County taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize the costs of an unprecedented and ill-conceived federal operation,” Cook County Commissioner Bridget Degnen said. “The County incurred real and significant expenses in response to these actions, and our residents should not be left footing the bill.”
Over time, network office staffing has fluctuated from a low of 119 positions in 2017 to a recent high of 248 in 2024, before falling to 227 last year. Even as the district trimmed administrative and school positions to close a $732.5 million gap this summer, network staffing will remain relatively flat, with the budget for networks inching up to $42 million.
Northwestern has had a “charter exemption” since 1855, when the Illinois General Assembly approved an amendment that “all property” owned by NU is “forever free from taxation for any and all purposes.” 
"The city of Chicago is billions of dollars in debt, including $36 billion in pension debt. The Chicago Public School district also has a budget deficit of more than $700 million. Despite these very dire fiscal parameters, Mayor Brandon Johnson wants to spend more taxpayer money to give reparations to areas where ICE conducted immigration enforcement raids."
The absence of any apparent disciplinary complaint against Judge Cynthia Ramirez for these posts contrasts with the events surrounding Cook County Circuit Judge James R. Brown earlier this year. In January 2026, the Illinois Supreme Court revoked his temporary judicial assignment after receiving complaints from two bar associations about a conservative opinion column he had written as a private citizen before the court recalled him to the bench for a one-year assignment.
"Every disagreement becomes evidence of racism. Every criticism becomes an attack on his identity. Every difficult question is transformed into a morality play in which he is the victim, and the questioner is the villain. It’s a remarkably disingenuous strategy that allows him to avoid discussing the substance of the issue altogether. Chicagoans deserve better than that."
“If we don’t change, there’s a 100% chance of failure,” said FERC Commissioner David LaCerte. “If we don’t get that action out of PJM, we will use every single legal authority within us, and maybe some more, to figure that out.”
Spokesman Jim Thompson says the county is offering a $300 million loan program to local governments – like towns, libraries and school boards – who need to borrow to make payroll. CPS, however, is not eligible for that loan – Thompson says the county is in ongoing talks with the school district to figure out a way to help them out with the lost revenue due to this current property tax delay.
Adamson Plumbing Contractors has since filed a $1.72 million mechanic’s lien against the property, escalating the payment dispute into a legal fight. The company is one of several subcontractors to report financial trouble after working on the center.
Police also investigated a stabbing overnight in Humboldt Park.
Board member Jennifer Custer said that even if a special session were approved and the state agreed to send more money, it’s unlikely that money would arrive quickly enough to help CPS in the short term. “Those (state dollars) wouldn’t be realized in this budget to help us in the crisis we’re in now. They wouldn’t show up until next year,” she said.
He also acknowledged that not every proposal from his administration has been successful but defended his overall record. "Do I always get it right? Of course not, but I've learned that something doesn't have to be perfect in order for it to work," Johnson said.
"Chicago is the shining example of how soft-on-crime policies devastate families across our nation. ... Those who have chosen to put virtue signaling ahead of victims have turned one of America's great cities into a graveyard of broken promises."
"Whether this approach proves sustainable will depend not only on the City's eventual TIF surplus declaration, but also on whether the District can continue reducing its reliance on an inherently uncertain revenue source."
“It would have been nice if the state or county would have held him for us,” a federal law enforcement agent said, noting that neither the county nor the state gave the feds a heads-up that Jose Hernandez was going to walk free — though he was in the country illegally and had sold firearms to federal agents. “He seems like the sort of person the government would like to have removed from the community.”
With his microphone turned off, Ald. Andre Vasquez, who chairs the Hispanic Caucus and co-chairs the Progressive Caucus, shouted from the floor that the Council can create its own legal counsel. The mayor replied, “You all are not gonna shout me down."
The Chicago Policy Center‘s Austin Berg says the tech trouble is the perfect example of having too many cooks – or in this case, politicians – in the kitchen. “Cook County needs an assessor. We need a board president. We need a clerk, but those don’t necessarily need to be elected offices that are completely separate and independent,” Berg said. “We saw here the result of that, just being a complete mess in trying to do something the county really needs.”
Alderman William E. Hall explained his reason for the ballot measure is because the September, 2025 ICE operations in the city cost the local government resources: “It cost our city not only dignity, it also invoked the trauma that can never be paid for. But in addition to that, the resources spent to protect Chicagoans has not only cost us financially, but it has cost a lot of people a lot of nights of no rest."
"The City accurately and transparently reported spending," wrote newly appointed Inspector General David Glockner. "OIG found that the City's publicly reported cost dashboard was generally complete..." In total, Chicago spent $269.1 million of its Corporate Fund on the migrant mission, or about 42 percent of the total. Another 29 percent came from federal grants, 23 percent from the state and 6 percent from Cook County.
The new poll also examined Chicagoans’ feelings on affordability in the city, with two-thirds of residents saying the cost of living in their area is unaffordable.
Fifty Chicago public schools closed amid the largest mass closure of public schools in the nation’s history in 2013; more than half remained vacant for the decade that followed, despite the city setting a goal to sell or tear down all closed buildings by 2017.
Mayor Johnson declined to answer if he was running for re-election.
Ervin’s proposal would call for cobbling together the money using Tax Increment Financing funds, but there's a catch, as Ervin acknowledged state lawmakers would have to modify state law to allow it. The proposal for the new expenditure comes after $425 million in TIF funds were recently approved for infrastructure around a new stadium for the Chicago Fire in the South Loop.
First responders had no indication the boy had been shot, or even that there had been gunfire in the neighborhood, because nobody called 911 to report shots fired, records show. Ald. Jason Ervin represents the block where the boy was killed, and was among roughly one-third of City Council members who supported Mayor Brandon Johnson’s decision to end the city’s relationship with ShotSpotter. Ervin argued at the time that the technology discouraged residents from engaging with police.
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For the sake of the nation, we can only hope that, on this, America agrees with veteran Democratic strategist James Carville: "I'm not in that f-ing party." 
Moreover, the portion of new education dollars going to pensions is accelerating rapidly. 
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