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Classroom 1

Iowa teachers will be banned from raising gender identity and sexual orientation issues with students through grade six, and all books depicting sex acts will be removed from school libraries, under a bill Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Friday.

The new law is among similar measures that have been approved in other Republican-dominated statehouses around the country. As with many of those proposals, Iowa Republicans framed their action as a commonsense effort to ensure that parents can oversee what their children are learning in school and that teachers not delve into topics such as gender and sexuality.

Despite the opposition of all Democratic legislators, Republicans who hold large majorities in Iowa’s state House and Senate approved the measure in April and there was little doubt that Reynolds would sign it; she had made issues related to gender identity and sexuality a focal point of her legislative agenda this year.

“This legislative session, we secured transformational education reform that puts parents in the driver’s seat, eliminates burdensome regulations on public schools, provides flexibility to raise teacher salaries, and empowers teachers to prepare our kids for their future,” Reynolds said in a statement.

Under the new law, school administrators also would be required to notify parents if students asked to change their pronouns or names. Religious texts will be exempt from the library ban on books depicting sex acts.

Democrats and LGBTQ groups argued that the restrictions would hurt children by limiting their ability to be open with teachers about gender and sexuality issues and to see their lives reflected in books and other curriculum.

The law’s passage was not a surprise, said Keenan Crow, director of policy and advocacy at the LGBTQ equality group One Iowa. “But we are still very disappointed by it.”

Read more here.

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Arlington

The Chicago Bears took another step toward a potential new stadium at the Arlington International Racecourse site when the village of Arlington Heights on Friday issued for interior demolition of the grandstand, office and jockey building at the racetrack.

Arlington Heights spokesperson Avis Meade confirmed that the village had approved plans for the first phase of demolition at the old racetrack, marking another move toward a $5 billion NFL stadium and accompanying mixed-use residential, commercial and entertainment district the team has proposed to build on the 326-acre racetrack in Arlington Heights.

“Increased truck traffic due to the interior demolition is possible in the area and the property will continue to be monitored by security 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” Meade wrote in an email to Pioneer Press.

A Bears representative confirmed the team had been permitted to begin work and said they expected to start the process Tuesday. The team will not use explosives or implosion to execute the job, they said.

Meade said the village and Cook County would review and approve applications for demolition of the exterior buildings on the site. Arlington Heights Mayor Tom Hayes said earlier this month that the village had fielded a number of questions and comments from residents about the team’s request to do demolition work. He said the village board did not have the authority to approve or deny the team’s request.

More here.

Related:Chicago Bears seek to start demolition work on Arlington International Racecourse

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Field

“What a special ribbon-cutting ceremony this week, as community members came together to celebrate the end of Build 220 construction at the Fields of Dreams, the varsity baseball field, and the new multi-purpose turf field at BHS!

These new and improved spaces will be used by BHS and youth athletic teams, as well as physical education classes. Thank you to the Barrington 220 community for supporting the March 2020 referendum, which made this work possible, as well as the many donors who enabled the district to install wonderful enhancements to the various spaces!”

More photos here.

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Brandon Johnson

The new mayor’s allies lay out their agenda: ‘First We Get the Money.’

Well, that didn’t take long. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was inaugurated last week, and two days later his allies released a report with their agenda for the next four years. Title: “First We Get the Money.”

They mean your money. The report offers a flavor of the trend in Chicago politics and why the once-great city is struggling.

The report says a mere $12 billion in new spending will “make Chicago truly safe” by “addressing issues that underlie crime and poverty.” To get the cash, the mayor should collect $6.8 billion by “making the wealthy and corporations pay what they owe” and then cut spending on the Chicago Police Department.

Mr. Johnson has tried to distance himself from the report, but one gets the sense this is part of the choreography. The report’s creators, Action Center on Race & the Economy (Acre) and the People’s Unity Platform, helped Mr. Johnson win. Co-author Saqib Bhatti is on his transition team. Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates is on the Acre board.

The report suggests Mr. Johnson reinstate a “head tax” on business of $33 per employee. Chicago’s previous head tax of $4 per employee was ended in 2014 by the City Council under Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who called it a “job killer” and a deterrent to business hiring.

The mayor is also urged to raise the real-estate transfer tax on sales over $1 million by 1.9 percentage points from the current 0.75%. Progressives say most of the funds would come from “skyscrapers” and commercial properties. The Windy City has plenty of $1 million homeowners and it already has the second highest tax rates in the country on commercial properties worth $1 million, according to the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Landlords with luxury apartments that are vacant should pay a fee to “encourage” them to “charge more affordable rents.” The authors want to raise the tax on jet fuel to force airlines to pay for “profiting from creating pollution in our city.” Then add a financial transactions tax for a cut of every trade at the Chicago Board of Trade and the Chicago Board Options Exchange.

Read more of the Wall Street Journal Op/Ed piece here.

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Illinois-graduates-most-students-even-though-a-vast-majority-arent-reading-or-math-proficient

Thirty-two state lawmakers have stepped up their efforts to save the Invest in Kids Act, Illinois’ tax credit scholarship for more than 9,000 students.

The House members, all Republicans, have signed a letter indicating their support for the program, which, as we’ve reported, is in danger of being killed by anti-school-choice lawmakers. Lawmakers will decide this month whether or not to extend the program as part of the budget negotiation process.

Those who’ve signed the letter support the hopes and dreams of the scholarship students from low-income, working-class families. For details of the program, see Empower Illinois’ 2022 Impact Report.

Those who refuse to show their support are effectively giving in to the teachers unions, which strongly oppose Invest in Kids and are actively pushing to end the program (see IEA’s stop vouchers in Illinois).

That refusal includes House Democrats who were asked to sign the letter but wouldn’t. Given Democrats’ lockstep support of the teachers unions, it’s unlikely any would sign anyway.

The refusal also includes eight Republican House lawmakers who have not signed: House GOP leader Tony McCombie, as well as Jeff Keicher, Dave Severin, Charles Meier, Norine Hammond, Wayne Rosenthal, Michael Marron and Amy Elik. (Wirepoints is unaware of any similar letter making the rounds in the Senate.)

These unsupportive legislators should be called out because school choice should be a slam dunk for both Republicans and Democrats. As the WSJ reported Tuesday, “The program is popular with voters. In May 2021, an ARW Strategies poll showed 61% of Illinois voters approved the tax-credit program, including 67% of state Democrats. 71% of black voters and 81% of Hispanics statewide approved of the plan.”

Not to mention, states around the country like Indiana and Iowa are greatly expanding their school choice programs and making them universal.

Read more here.

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220 K

A measure that implements full-day kindergarten throughout Illinois is now awaiting to be sent to Gov. J.B. Pritzker for his signature.

State Rep. Mary Beth Canty, D-Arlington Heights, filed House Bill 2396. It passed the House in March. After several amendments in the Illinois Senate last week, the House voted to concur Friday.

State Sen. Kimberly Lightford, D-Maywood, said the bill better prepares the state’s youth for the future.

“Full-day kindergarten has shown to boost academic gains and prepare children for the social and emotional demands of early elementary,” Lightford said. “This can provide students and their families with sufficient support and opportunities in their early education career.”

During Senate committees, state Sen. Dan McConchie, R-Hawthorn Woods, asked about the potential costs on lower-income school districts.

“For them, it’s just an issue of having space,” McConchie said. “They are going to have to build eight classrooms to be able to do this. That is not something they will be able to do in short order. Plus, it will be a million dollars a year to fund this, and they want to make sure they are doing it in a responsible manner.”

The measure phases the policy in over two years so schools can garner funding for the change, which is more than half the state’s schools, according to state Rep. Patrick Windhorst, R-Harrisburg.

More here.

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GETTYRF_101422_PoliceBelt_Thinkstock20Images765572534

Lawmakers have advanced a measure that will soon be sent to the governor’s desk that would allow certain immigrants to become police officers in Illinois.

Current federal law prohibits a non-U.S. citizen from becoming a police offer throughout the country. House Bill 3751 looks to change that law in Illinois.

The measure states that any immigrant who the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has deferred under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals process is allowed to apply for the position of a police officer, deputy sheriff or special police officer.

The measure was amended by the Senate on Thursday and received pushback from Republican lawmakers.

State Sen. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, criticized the idea of a non-citizen being able to arrest a U.S. citizen in Illinois.

“To hand the power to arrest and detain a citizen of this state, or a citizen of any state in the United States, to a non-citizen is a fundamental breach of democracy,” Rose said. “It is antithetical to the police power of any state.”

Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, supports the bill and said during debate that history shows people from different backgrounds have been law enforcement officers for a long time.

More here.

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May 23 BOT

Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.

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illinois_flag-Illinois-StateFlags

“It’s dumb. We’ve got so many things to worry about, and we’re worrying about the flag.”

 

Illinois’ state flag could be headed for a makeover.

A bill that would form a commission to determine whether the flag should be redesigned and potentially pick a new design is awaiting Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s signature after being approved by the Senate in March and the House late last week.

“I think if you asked anyone outside the state to identify our flag, not many could,” said state Rep. Daniel Didech, a Buffalo Grove Democrat who co-sponsored the original Senate bill in the House. “There’s an opportunity to market our state and a side opportunity to engage young people in government, and there’s not many times we’ve had legislation that could do that.”

However, the initiative is not without detractors. Votes in both chambers were largely along party lines, with Democrats in favor and Republicans opposed.

“I think this is a great example of the misplaced priorities we’re seeing this year from our colleagues across the aisle,” said state Sen. Seth Lewis, a Bartlett Republican. “Instead of focusing on really pressing issues like ethics reform … we’re talking about a new state flag.”

Russell Middleton, an architect from downstate Normal who testified against the bill during committee hearings, was more blunt: “It’s dumb. We’ve got so many things to worry about, and we’re worrying about the flag.”

More here.

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illinois-springfield-capitol-and-sky

With no real understanding what’s in it, so far not having seen even a draft, Illinois lawmakers will soon vote on a budget spending about $50 billion of your money.

This portion of Hanna Meisel’s Friday column from Capitol News Illinois is a must-read:

During House floor debate, Rep. Jeff Keicher, R-Sycamore, renewed his request for an estimate as to when a draft copy of the budget might drop – or at least a revenue estimate for the state’s fiscal year that begins July 1.

“You’re asking me?” replied Rep. Jay Hoffman, a Democrat from Swansea who was presiding over the House chamber at the time. Hoffman’s quip elicited laughs from members, and Keicher broke into a smile.

“Funny story,” Keicher responded. “After I made my inquiry last night, I had eight members of the other side of the aisle suggest to me that they hadn’t seen one either.”

The Republican superminority is routinely cut out from budget formation, but that’s a Democrat acknowledging that most of his party, too, is shut out.

And they laughed about it.

Read on here.

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