As anti-trans legislation piles up in red states, Springfield is looking to raise a ‘beacon’ for inclusiveness in the Midwest
Investigations
Posted inEducation
CPS Faces Dwindling Enrollment, Empty Buildings, Soaring Deficits Decade After Mass Closure of Schools
Top public officials vow improvements as the district marks the 10th anniversary of its decision to close 49 schools.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Mayor Brandon Johnson Says He’ll Reopen the City’s Mental Health Clinics. It Won’t Be As Easy as It Sounds.
The mayor’s top allies say beefing up the city’s direct mental health services will be a long-term project. That means new clinics won’t open overnight.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
A Pension ‘Fix’ Could Blow a Hole in City Budgets. Here’s Why Supporters Say It’s Worth It.
A group of bills moving through the legislature would balloon Chicago’s and Cook County’s pension benefits at a time when taxpayers are already being pressed.
Posted inEquity & Economic Opportunity
Explained: Chicago’s Migrant Crisis
Chicago has been staring down a manufactured migrant crisis for months that has entered a boiling point — leaving vulnerable asylum seekers in despair and struggling to find safe shelter.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Tax Hikes to Ebb for Many North Suburban Businesses, Leaving Homeowners on the Hook
Thousands of homeowners in north and northwest Cook County are in for sticker shock this fall, data shows
Posted inInvestigations
Naked land grab or a boon to the environment? Proposed ‘carbon-capture’ pipelines across central Illinois trouble land owners
Carbon capture and storage is a process to clean dirty industry and reduce emissions, but environmental groups are ringing the alarm that Illinois doesn’t have the proper guardrails in place.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
The Feds Are Pushing for Millions More Electric Vehicles on the Road, But Is Illinois Ready?
Gov. J. B. Pritzker’s administration says it welcomes the goal of increasing the number of electric vehicles by 2032 but is still examining the implications of a new proposed EPA standard.
Posted inGovernment Finance & Accountability
Brandon Johnson Wants To Raise $800M in New Revenue. Can He?
Johnson has surfaced at least a half-dozen ideas to find more money to close the city’s structural deficit. All will face high hurdles in the way of implementation.
Posted inEquity & Economic Opportunity
South-Suburban Homeowners Next in Line for Property Tax Pain
3 years after home valuations were deflated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ‘we’re going to see the pendulum swing,’ one official says