Sanitary sewer overflows, SSOs, are a release of untreated or partially treated waste from a city sewer. Sanitary sewer overflows are illegal. But when normal systems become overloaded through heavy rain or a larger load from an increasing population, SSOs occur.
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Posted inInvestigating Responses
Unsettling Accounts: How Illinois is Confronting the Student Loan Crisis
Illinois has one of the highest rates of student loans in the country, compelling the state to intervene so that residents burdened by debt can have some financial freedom to pursue their goals, including offering state-level loans and programs like the SmartBuy program which relieves a portion of student loan debt for residents who sign up to purchase a home through the program. But legislative support and limited funding for some of these initiatives are barriers to success.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
‘We’re at the Mercy of Child Care:’ Child Care Costs are Crushing Families — Illinois’ Largest Subsidy Excludes Thousands
While the state infuses hundreds of millions of dollars a year into child care programs, the strict eligibility requirements and limitations for its largest child care subsidy exclude tens of thousands of families.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
When Seniors Face Expensive Home Repairs, the Solutions Can be a Lifeline…Or Leave Their Families an Inheritance of Debt
Wealth and property passed down from parents to their children can be a major financial boost. But as some aging parents struggle financially, they can become prey to mortgage scams or even the complicated lifeline of reverse mortgages, where homeowners trade equity in their homes for cash but won’t be able to leave their property to their family. Home repair is at the root of the ability of senior Chicagoans to stay in their homes as they age. Local organizations are trying to provide relief without depriving seniors of the ability to pass their homes down to the next generation.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Jobs. Block Clubs. Investment: How Chicagoans are Interrupting Violence at its Roots
The causes and solutions to gun violence are difficult to quantify—or control. One thing is clear: gun violence is highest in Chicago’s poorest neighborhoods.
Organizers in the hardest-hit communities like Garfield Park say tackling poverty is the only way to create lasting change.
Posted inInvestigations
Making it in Chicago: Detours and Dead Ends on the Path to Opportunity
The path to upward mobility is paved by affordable and quality education, housing, health care, as well as safe neighborhoods and good-paying jobs… things increasingly out of reach for many Chicagoans. Some city, state and community -led efforts could be part of a roadmap to economic opportunity.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Cook County Tried to Rid People of Medical Debt, but, for Many, Help Comes Too Late
Since 2022, Cook County has spent more than $4 million to forgive nearly $500 million worth of medical debt for some 278,000 residents, becoming a pioneer among local governments and garnering waves of positive publicity for their efforts.
But an analysis of Cook County’s debt relief accounts show that many people like Ciaccio saddled with debt should have qualified for free care, a sign that local hospitals are failing to screen for some of the region’s poorest patients even as some use aggressive tactics to collect debt.
Posted inEquity & Economic Opportunity
‘Most Drivers Aren’t Making Money:’ App-Based Gig Work Promised Freedom and Flexibility. Workers Feel Exploited and Unsafe.
As the app-based informal economy grows, its many low-wage workers are demanding the same protections and benefits that many other full and part time workers have – to limited success in Chicago.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
‘Granny flats’ are illegal to build in most of Chicago —and political gridlock is keeping it that way.
A three-year pilot program that legalized accessory dwelling units or “granny flats” in some areas of the city opened up more housing options in neighborhoods where cheap apartments have become increasingly rare. But the burst of construction seen so far is a pittance compared to the more than 100,000 affordable units experts say it would take to satisfy demand.
Posted inStatewide Investigations
[Video] Strapped Down: Investigating Restraint Chairs in Illinois Jails
The Illinois Answers Project’s “Strapped Down” series investigated the overuse, misuse and abuse of restraint chairs in county jails across Illinois.
