Pritzker signs criminal justice and police reform bill hailed by Democrats, criticized by Republicans 

Gov. JB Pritzker signed into law a comprehensive criminal justice and police reform bill on Monday that was hailed by Democrats as a step toward making the state more equitable and blasted by Republicans and law enforcement agencies as dangerous.  

Surrounded by members of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus at Chicago State University, Pritzker broadcasted his signing of HB 3653, saying it would improve the state while implementing ideas he’s long supported.  

Quinn, Madigan staffer tapped to fill vacancy left by former House speaker 

Southwest Side Democratic Party officials on Sunday appointed Edward Guerra Kodatt, a 26-year-old staff assistant to Chicago Ald. Marty Quinn (13) and an employee of former House Speaker Mike Madigan’s political committee, to fill the  legislative seat left vacant by Madigan’s retirement.  

Kodatt was picked by a five-member committee, which included Madigan, from a field of 10 candidates that included eight Latinos and former Sen. Bob Raica, a Republican who served in the legislature between 1987 and 1997. Although Madigan was just one member of the selection committee, he wielded more than 50 percent of the weighted vote in the process, giving him unilateral power to name his successor. 

Hospitality industry calls for clarity, raised capacity limits as part of pandemic recovery effort 

Representatives from Illinois’ hospitality industry urged Gov. JB Pritzker's administration and state lawmakers on Thursday to provide more clarity, expand vaccine eligibility and loosen COVID-19 restrictions so their members can begin the long process of recovering from the global pandemic.  

Cara Bader, chief of staff for the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, told members of the Senate Tourism and Hospitality Committee Thursday the pandemic has had an “unprecedented” impact on the state’s convention centers, hotels, cultural institutions and restaurants, upending a “thriving tourism industry.”  

Madigan resigns, capping 50 years in public office 

Former House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) announced his resignation Thursday, marking the end of 50 years in public office. 

In a lengthy statement, Madigan said he would resign at the end of February, a little more than a month after the House elected Rep. Chris Welch (D-Hillside) to be his successor as the chamber’s leader.  

Gov. JB Pritzker delivered his third State of the State address Wednesday in a virtual speech recorded at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

Reflecting the unusual circumstances facing the state and the nation as the COVID-19 pandemic continues, Gov. JB Pritzker delivered a virtual State of the State address Wednesday, calling for lawmakers to approve his $41.6 billion budget and pass laws to expand renewable energy, tighten ethics rules and close corporate loopholes.

Speaking from the Illinois State Fairgounds in Springfield, Pritzker began his speech by reflecting on the 1918 Spanish Flu, which led to the creation of a 100-bed makeshift hospital on the spot where he was standing. Noting a recent memorial he participated in to honor those who died during the current pandemic, Pritzker shared a story about an intensive care nurse who died earlier this year.

Faced with spike in carjackings, senators urged against reactionary policy changes 

Despite a recent surge in carjackings in Chicago, Illinois lawmakers on Tuesday were warned against implementing new policies and laws in response that might result in unintended consequences.  

Carjackings surfaced in a wider discussion that took place during a nearly three-hour joint gathering of the Senate Public Safety Committee and Senate Criminal Law Committee, which focused on identifying additional measures lawmakers can take to improve public safety in Illinois. 

News in brief: Pritzker to deliver virtual State of the State; governor issues disaster proclamation; winter storm causes delay in federal vaccine delivery 

As Gov. JB Pritzker prepares to release his latest annual budget proposal to lawmakers on Wednesday, Illinois Republicans are proactively rebuking the governor, calling for the legislature to “reassert” itself as an equal branch of government, as yet another Republican announced a bid to unseat the governor.

During a virtual press conference on Monday, House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs) and Rep. Tom Demmer (R-Dixon) called for Pritzker to propose a balanced budget that wasn’t reliant on “wishful thinking” and to be more transparent in the budget process.

Since the state began offering COVID-19 vaccines to residents in mid-December, officials in Illinois have stressed the importance of an equitable distribution. Yet for the first eight weeks of the vaccination process, little was publicly known about the results of those efforts.

That changed on Friday, when the Illinois Department of Public Health began publishing demographic data on its vaccination website that the state’s vaccinated population is disproportionately white compared to its overall population. The numbers show state leaders’ equity goals have yet to translate into equitable distribution of the vaccine.

News in brief: Welch announces House committee appointments; federal health care marketplace to reopen; expressway license plate readers to be installed in Cook County