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* Politico | Walgreens won’t distribute abortion pills in some states where they remain legal: Nearly two dozen Republican state attorneys general wrote to Walgreens in February, threatening legal action if the company began distributing the drugs, which have become the nation’s most popular method for ending a pregnancy.
* Sun-Times | Founding fathers didn’t own AR-15s or large capacity magazines, Pritzker and Raoul argue in defense of ban: Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul filed the brief to answer challenges to the assault weapon ban, arguing the nation’s founding fathers owned guns that could only shoot a single shot before reloading — proving assault weapons weren’t in “common use” at the time.
* Capitol News Illinois | One year after Madigan’s indictment, former House speaker’s allies prepare for trial: The anniversary comes roughly two years after Madigan’s fellow Democrats forced him to cede the title of longest-serving speaker of any legislature in U.S. history. His ouster in January 2021 was followed by his resignation from both the House seat he’d held since 1971 and as chair of the state Democratic Party he’d molded in order to further consolidate power.
* WAND | IEA: Retirement age forcing teachers out of Illinois: The General Assembly passed a measure a decade ago requiring teachers who were hired after 2011 to work until age 67 before they can collect full retirement benefits. IEA President Kathi Griffin says the age requirement forces teachers to either find another career or leave the state.
* Bloomberg | Chicago’s Next Mayor Must Have a Plan to Tackle the City’s $34 Billion in Pension Debt: The city has long struggled with pension debt and chronic structural deficits. With about one out of every five budget dollars going to pensions, there’s less money available for crucial services like policing. This comes as the city struggles with rising crime, a key issue that contributed to Lightfoot’s loss. Both Vallas and Johnson have promised to make the city safer and more equitable for residents but differ on how to fund their plans.
* WAND | Illinois financial leaders provide revenue forecast amid recession concerns: Financial experts expect to see a recession in the second half of Fiscal Year 2023. However, Illinois leaders believe the country can recover from the slight recession during the third quarter of this year.
* Jim Dey | ‘It’s just politics’? Maybe that’s one of Illinois’ problems: Get ready to hear that defense raised as four alleged ringleaders of the Commonwealth Edison bribery conspiracy prepare for their mid-March trial while former House Speaker Michael Madigan seeks dismissal of charges against him.
* Michael Frerichs | Climate change poses financial risks. Why would officials want investors to ignore that fact?: That ongoing risk and reward analysis is what the investment industry is all about. That’s why there are whole subfields of analysts who study the short- and long-term horizon of the economy, the fluctuations of specific industries and the growth prospects of individual companies. And as part of that responsibility, institutional investors, such as large asset managers running mutual funds or state treasurers managing public funds, are legally required to identify risks that can pose material harm to returns.
* WMAY | Governor JB Pritzker stands by Illinois COVID-19 policy nearly three years later: He notes that with the restrictions put in place, Illinois has had a lower per-capita death toll from COVID than other states – like Florida – with less stringent rules.
* Tribune | Chicago police union President John Catanzara faces election challenge: Elected in 2020, former CPD officer and firebrand Catanzara helped secure a long-awaited raise for officers during his first term. But as a loud and often confrontational union figurehead who traded verbal jabs with Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Catanzara has faced criticism for souring relationships with city leaders and making controversial statements.
* Press release | Rep. Ann Williams Selected as NCEL State Lead for Illinois : State Representative Ann Williams, D-Chicago, has been named the 2023-2024 Illinois State Lead for the National Conference of Environmental Legislators. In this role, Williams will serve as Illinois’ liaison to the leading national organization of state legislators focused on environmental issues, clean energy policy and growing the green economy.
* ABC Chicago | Calumet City Mayor injured in chain-reaction crash: Police said two cars collided and that caused a secondary crash on River Oaks Drive Wednesday night. That second crash is the one Mayor Thaddeus Jones was involved in.
* SJ-R | Here’s what candidates for Springfield City Council say about redeveloping the Wyndham: Brad Carlson: “For me on this one, I’m listening to the experts – which is the Convention and Visitors Bureau – and what I’m hearing coming out of the council hearing and talking to various people is that we would lose 17 conventions if we converted those into apartments.
* WBEZ | Amid layoffs and reshuffling, anxious Chicago tech workers seek solace in pinball: National cutbacks from tech giants such as Amazon and Google have put the local industry on tilt. The gossip gets traded at the arcade.
posted by Isabel Miller
Friday, Mar 3, 23 @ 7:41 am
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Re: the Springfield Wyndham. Could the State get involved in this, perhaps an out-of-the box proposal (probably in my brain only) to renovate the Wyndham to a mix of State offices, efficiency apartments (great for legislators and other short-term tenants), conference rooms, and hotel rooms (plus a few businesses), and the top of the Hilton a tourist attraction? Maybe move some things out of the Stratton and other rentals scattered throughout the downtown and put them in the “new” Wyndham instead.
Also, in my early years of living in Springfield I actually thought the Hilton was the headquarters of the Illinois Central Railroad–since the insignia resembled that of the RR during the ill-fated “Illinois Central Gulf” merger (1972-87).
Comment by Stuck in Celliniland Friday, Mar 3, 23 @ 8:21 am
Re: the IEA bill… Agree that the Tier 2 changes were not good for younger teachers. But what other state has better retirement benefits for teachers? Maybe California, but good luck buying a house there.
Comment by Friendly Bob Adams Friday, Mar 3, 23 @ 9:59 am
Jim Dey might want to pay attention to what is going on presently 2 states to the east before he writes another column like that again.
Comment by Anyone Remember Friday, Mar 3, 23 @ 11:44 am