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Even though gas costs about $1.25 more per gallon, or about $3.45 per gallon of regular, about 5.1 million Illinoisans will be driving while around 290,000 will opt to fly. The rest — just over 146,000 — would be taking trains, buses or cruises, according to AAA.
But major “non-lobbying costs” were included in refunds. For example, former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, who’s under indictment, was listed in a chart as being paid $1.8 million in compensation and benefits in 2011 for “non-lobbying activity.” John Hooker, a former top executive and lobbyist also indicted, received $1.15 million in compensation and benefits in 2011 for similar “non-lobbying” activity. And Fidel Marquez, an ex-executive who oversaw lobbying and who has pleaded guilty, earned $748,000 in 2012, also for “non-lobbying activity.” Those payments are included in ComEd’s proposed refund, ComEd said.
Then, the chief of staff began ignoring the aide’s phone calls, lying about meetings being canceled, and bad-mouthing her to Sims, according to the complaint. In May 2017, Sims questioned the aide about the staff member’s fraying relationship with the chief of staff, leading to the aide reporting that he sexually harassed her, the complaint states.
Nonetheless, lawmakers in October approved a package with broad bipartisan support that also will allow Wintrust Arena, the home court of the Chicago Sky and the DePaul Blue Demons, to apply for a sportsbook license, putting the WNBA champions on equal footing with the home stadiums of men’s professional teams in the city.
In a statement on the village website, Koziol explained that he proposed the sale as an alternative to the union fighting the issue. There are 83 sworn officers in the village, but with each having up to a dozen uniforms and coats, and some buyers donating extra, they hoped to raise $15,000 to $20,000 selling the patches at the police headquarters.
Dr. Richard Wunderink, right, gets updates on patients during morning rounds in the intensive care unit at Northwestern Memorial Hospital Feinberg Pavilion in Chicago on Dec. 16, 2021. ICUs across the state are filling up again, partly because of the COVID surge, and partly because of staff shortages and many non-COVID patients. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
As it stands now, the law allows minors seeking an abortion to ask a judge to waive the notification requirement if they fear for their safety. Since 2013, when the law went into effect after years of legal challenges, judges granted more than 99.5% of bypass requests in Illinois, according to the ACLU, which has argued the notification law serves no public policy purpose.
The measure, co-sponsored by Ald. Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez, 33rd, calls on City Council to develop a plan to increase public restroom access. More than 20 organizations and state officials are also backing the resolution, including the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, Arab American Family Services and the Center on Halsted.
Under Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s directive, all city employees had until Oct. 15 to report their vaccination status but could choose to undergo regular COVID-19 testing, rather than get shots, through the end of the year. After police unions challenged the vaccine mandate in court, though, a judge suspended the Dec. 31 date for those members to be fully inoculated, saying that needed to go through arbitration.
Aida Mendoza, third from left, arrived at 9:55 a.m. to stand in line with others at the Chicago Central Illinois Secretary of State facility in the Thompson Center in Chicago on June 24, 2021. Mendoza was in line to renew her license and get a real ID card. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)