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Top Illinois Stories
"Illinois law is supposed to cap year-to-year growth in property levies, but exemptions—especially for underfunded school pensions—have caused bills to soar. 'This system is rigged,' a pastor at a local church said. 'It can’t be fair.'"
The state’s annual wagering report shows tax revenues from casinos, sports gambling, slot machines and the lottery exceeded $2.7 billion. It marks a 90 percent increase from fiscal year 2019, the final year before the state approved a massive gambling expansion aimed at raising revenue for the state’s ongoing capital infrastructure plan.
More Highlighted Illinois Stories
Stratton faces Republican candidate Don Tracy, who served as the former chair of the Illinois Republican Party, and independent candidate Whitfield Harrington Jr. in the Senate race.
For the Nov. 3 general midterm election, the referendum on the ballot in 12 counties reads “Shall the board of [specific] County correspond with the boards of the other Counties of Illinois outside of Cook County, about the possibility of separating from Cook County to form a new state, and to seek admission to the Union as such, subject to the approval of the people?”
The growing tax burden is a symptom of the overarching spending problem in Illinois. The state faces a mounting fiscal crisis driven by consistent overspending that is sapping economic growth and threatening Illinois’ long-term economic health.
"Last year, I welcomed a group of Texas legislators to Illinois. ... I invited them to Illinois because I wanted to support them in their fight [against gerrymandering], and when they came, I was proud to host them."
Ted Dabrowski, founder of Fight for Illinois, said superintendent compensation should be examined alongside student outcomes and overall district spending when taxpayers are asked to provide additional revenue. He pointed to Dolton Public School District 148, where former Superintendent Kevin Nohelty received approximately $530,000 in total compensation in 2025, according to public records, and approximately 19 percent of students in the district are proficient in reading.
Illinois Superintendent of Education Tony Sanders ranked eighth on the list with a salary of $323,420.
A report by The American Tort Reform Association said businesses and insurers have filed nearly 300 RICO lawsuits since 2024, claiming that organized fraud rings allegedly involve law firms, litigation funders, medical providers and others. Association Vice President and Counsel Lauren Sheets Jarrell said the report flagged asbestos cases in Illinois.
She breaks down the economic impact for local communities, the push for reliable round-the-clock power, and how nuclear energy fits into Illinois' clean energy transition.
Statewide, consumers are seeing more choices since the state added 29 new dispensaries, increasing the number of stores by 10 percent. “Overall, you’re seeing price compression,” said Scott Redman, founder of the Illinois Independent Craft Growers Association. “That’s always been expected, and it’s going to continue. More dispensaries, unless they’re in locations that are underserved. It just divides the pie into more pieces.”
Jim Dey: "That’s why Unit 4 is sending out taxpayer-funded brochures that supposedly contain “neutral” information that pushes the property-tax increase and advocates are making the rounds to explain how the world will come to an end if voters say no. ... And what are taxpayers getting for their annual investment in local education? Not much in terms of educational results, if the state’s 2024 education report cards are considered, just equal-opportunity failure."
An Illinois Senate Democrat is furious that State Farm is raising homeowner insurance rates by 8 percent just months after massive insurance reforms were signed into law. Sen. Michael Hastings is now calling for lawmakers to pass stronger consumer protection plans.
Gov. JB Pritzker was critical of the agency in June: “FEMA is a mess. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, they've cut back significantly on the support that they give when there are emergencies. They are slow in responding with the dollars that they promise. And there are only so many dollars that a state has for what should be covered."
"According to Wirepoints, Illinois continues to hemorrhage wealthy residents. Since 2000, the state has lost roughly 1.6 million people — third most in the nation, behind only California and New York. Chicago’s population, even with the recent influx of migrants, is now at its lowest level in nearly a century. Almost every county in Illinois has experienced a decline in population."
Retired Chief of Police Tom Weitzel: "I have reached the end of my patience. I have spent nearly four decades in law enforcement, and I believe in due process. I believe defendants are entitled to their constitutional rights and that judges must make individualized decisions. But public safety cannot be an afterthought, and accountability cannot be optional in the criminal-justice system."
At the Governors’ Summit on the State of PJM in Chicago Thursday, Gov. JB Pritzker and 12 other governors agreed to a memorandum of understanding that formally created the PJM Governors’ Collaborative organization, which they say will increase coordinated efforts between states to lower energy costs.
The censors who walk sanctimoniously among us are not conservatives—not by a long shot. The censors are the ones who lie through their teeth as the claim to “honor all voices,” delight in diversity, treasure inclusion, and cherish “representation.”
FEMA granted Indiana’s request Aug. 25 for federal help following the same Aug. 11 storm which left many Illinois residents just across the state line without power for weeks. It’s the third time FEMA has denied a request from Illinois since Trump took office again in 2025.
A $144 million rate hike would raise the average residential bill by as much as $8 starting in January. It wasn’t immediately clear what impact a $66 million hike would have.
“Adding more long-term commitments just to subsidize a football stadium, whether it's privately or publicly owned, it just doesn't make any sense,” said John Mozena, president of The Center for Economic Accountability.
Jim Dey: "While Republicans feud among themselves in their zeal to keep losing elections, Illinois Democrats keep moving further left, piling one tax increase on top of another to fund expanded social-welfare programs even as the state’s finances are in a shambles. All that leaves Democrats self-satisfied, Republicans wrestling with anger and dismay and regular Illinoisans stuck in the middle with just one option — either grin and bear it or move to more welcoming climes."
The Illinois law is already the subject of a challenge alleging that it violates the Internet Tax Freedom Act, Commerce Clause, Due Process Clause, and First Amendment.
"She is clearly relying on the state's left-wing electorate to protect her from any criticism. And she certainly knows that the compliant media won't ding her for refusing to meet her opponent in a frank and honest debate."
A massive T5 data center is being built on 473 acres of land. While the village is touting an estimated $18 billion in private investment, people who live around the land said it was approved without them being given an opportunity to give feedback about the huge project.
Illinois taxpayers spend more than double the national average on a higher education system whose students continue to face some of the nation’s highest tuition. House Bill 5037, introduced by Rep. Jeff Keicher, would examine whether state funding supports educational outcomes and long-term workforce needs.
The survey of 569 Illinois voters also found larger Democratic margins among voters most enthusiastic about casting ballots this fall.
Top Chicago Stories
Evanston officials have improperly distributed millions of dollars in road contracts for more than a decade, skirting an Illinois law that requires municipalities to seek authorization from the state and advertise in a weekly bulletin, records show. Now the city could be on the hook to pay back that money to its motor fuel tax fund.
He said he will use his 2027 budget to level the playing field that has allowed corporations to make “more money ... than they’ve ever made in the history of the world,” including the “free labor period of slavery,” while working people “are standing in lines for food.” More Highlighted Chicago Area Stories
Angel Funez-Reyes, age 17, is the 18th person accused of killing or trying to kill someone in Chicago this year while on felony pretrial release. CWBChicago began this series of reports in November 2019 after then-Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans publicly stated, “We haven’t had any horrible incidents occur” under the court’s bond reform initiative.
“The city wants to avoid distractions for drivers, and wants to keep Chicago the most beautiful city in America,” U.S. District Judge Steven Seeger wrote. “The city was well within its rights to conclude that banning illuminated signs and dynamic displays containing commercial messages would promote those goals. Not everyone wants Chicago to look like Times Square.”
This year, Cook County property owners were charged nearly $20 billion in combined taxes, a more than 23% increase over just five years.
The current CPS inspector general, Philip Wagenknecht, was appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson in January 2025. And the IG’s office reports directly to the Chicago school board, where Johnson has appointed the majority of members, including the board president. Johnson, like Dominguez, was formerly a political organizer for the Chicago Teachers Union. The union and its affiliates are the top financial backers of their respective campaigns.
The lab will create 550 jobs, officials said Tuesday. Of these, 350 would be transferred from the medical center’s main campus in Hyde Park, along with 200 new jobs, said Catina Latham, senior vice president for community health transformation for UChicago Medicine.
A dispute over a seat on a crowded CTA bus escalated into a shooting that wounded two passengers — including a 65-year-old woman who wasn’t involved in the argument, prosecutors say. Cops used facial recognition and a community alert to identify two suspects.
"(Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris”) Welch’s upcoming reelection as House speaker is still in doubt, so numerous media outlets have claimed his nod to the CTU was an effort to bolster his position. But the O’Hare express train has support from several powerful statehouse groups, especially trade unions, which is a big reason it’s doubtful that those agency budgets will be stalled next spring. So Welch’s bluster might help him a bit back in his district, but likely not under the dome when he fights to retain the speaker’s gavel in January."
Smart Streets is projected to bring in millions for the city, on top of the $2.5 million the pilot has raised since its inception two years ago. City officials on Friday estimated the expanded program could garner approximately $6.1 million in net revenue in 2027.
“Neighborhoods with the greatest infrastructure needs should not face additional barriers to securing essential public investment,” Mayor Brandon Johnson wrote in his veto letter to the city clerk. “Delaying infrastructure projects can increase construction costs, worsen deterioration and ultimately cost taxpayers more. While this ordinance increases a voting threshold, it does not put into place any additional measures around debt affordability, reporting requirement or financial oversight.”
Evanston Ald. Clare Kelly and some residents had argued that if fines were calculated from when the buildings had first gone vacant — rather than from when the city first cited the university for the violations — the fines could total several million dollars.
Court records show the suspect failed to appear in court June 1 for two felony retail theft cases, prompting a judge to issue arrest warrants. Both cases also constituted violations of probation he received in a separate misdemeanor shoplifting case. After he failed to appear in that matter, a judge signed another warrant September 24.
Under the proposal, Business Affairs and Consumer Protection would be able to force operational adjustments on businesses aimed at addressing nuisances, including adding security, restricted hours, parking controls, outdoor lighting and security cameras. Failure to follow those requirements could eventually be used to fine, suspend or revoke a business’s license.
Chicago officials must now come up with another $49.1 million to fill the city’s gap, records show. Even if the debt refinancing had brought it as much revenue as Johnson had hoped, the mayor had proposed using the $6 million and $10 million left from Chicago’s $1.9 billion share of the federal relief package known as the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA.
“Ultimately, people need to know, we're talking about just barely two miles worth of sewers and a water retention basin,” said Jill Shestokas, one of three Republican candidates running for three open Metropolitan Water Reclamation District commissioner seats. “Now, at the beginning of when they started this project to when they're now estimating it could be completed is 11 years.”
Mayor Brandon Johnson’s removal of the broad relocation mandate addressed a major problem in the original ordinance. The remaining guidelines still merit scrutiny.
“In the years ahead, we will need to consider additional revenue to preserve the health care safety net, public safety and other essential services our residents depend on,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said.
The U.S. Marshals Service said the fugitives were wanted in cases involving sexual assault, dangerous drugs and weapons. Investigators said the targets were living in or using government-subsidized housing communities.
The workers pointed to former President Barack Obama's own words from a 2016 letter encouraging Americans to join unions: "If I were looking for a good job that lets me build some security for my family, I’d join a union. If I saw a problem in my workplace, I’d organize my coworkers to do something about it."
Nearly two years after its 21 members were seated — and just three weeks before a consequential election — the Chicago school board finally put its three standing committees on finance, operations and student success to work. It’s unclear why the Board of Education took so long to form the committees, even though its bylaws require them.
“If it’s not being used and there are … clear opportunities ... the city is missing. That’s something that I would expect us to point out as well because the city is facing tremendous financial pressure,” Inspector General David Glockner said.
A 41-year-old CTA worker and an unknown male suspect engaged in a "verbal altercation" around 3 p.m. that turned physical, and the unidentified man pulled out a "sharp object" and stabbed the CTA worker in the neck before fleeing the scene, police said.
The proposed budget would also double Evanston’s tax on streaming services to 10 percent, matching Chicago’s rate. It would also raise the city’s rideshare tax from 20 cents to 50 cents per ride. The tax on natural gas use would double, and the tax on real estate transfers valued at more than $1.5 million would also increase. Water rates would increase by 25 percent, and residential garbage fees would increase by 9 percent.
CPD’s overtime costs have soared because officers’ salaries and benefits have gone up significantly while the number of CPD members has decreased by approximately 1,200 employees since 2019, department officials have told the City Council.
The City of Chicago has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Flock, which allows CPD officers to log in to Flock Safety’s portal and gain access to data being shared by surrounding communities. The city is paying CDW-G, a tech reseller and middleman for government agencies, to continue gaining access to Flock’s data. Not having a city contract means there are minimal local rules or oversight requirements in place governing how Chicago officers search, access, or retain that data.
The Finance Department strategy includes 13 new tax auditors brought on to find delinquent entities, like large corporations, and bringing that missing revenue back into the city. Last month, the city announced a recovery of $32.2 million from two large corporations that had been underpaying their city taxes.
Wirepoints Research and Commentary
To top it off, Stratton is funded mostly by Gov. JB Pritzker, who has long purported to be a rock solid supporter of Israel's right to exist. El-Sayed is anything but. 
What Pritzker doesn't tell you that it cost taxpayers billions, not millions, in higher taxes to get those upgrades, vastly exceeding the savings. SIGN UP HERE FOR FREE WIREPOINTS DAILY NEWSLETTER
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Ballots start going out next week and Stratton has yet even to attempt to show that she’s qualified for the Senate. She has assessed that Illinois' media environment and one-party political culture will let her get away with hiding. 
State investment totals have skyrocketed since 2015 from about $10 billion to over $41 billion and political abuse of the money has been common. The money is currently returning just 3.7% per year.
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