‘Welcoming City’ ordinance, hiked pollution fees set for final approval in first City Council meeting of 2021 

The City Council is poised to solidify legal protections for undocumented immigrants, raise fines on scofflaw industrial polluters and try to slow displacement in gentrifying neighborhoods among dozens of measures set for approval during their first regular meeting of the new year on Wednesday. 

The “Welcoming City” proposal, proposed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot and a handful of aldermen, would eliminate carve-outs in existing sanctuary city rules that allowed police to cooperate with federal immigration agents in some cases. The newer ordinance strikes language that has allowed such cooperation in cases that involve any suspect who has an “outstanding criminal warrant,” has been charged or convicted of a felony or “has been identified as a known gang member.”