Get the latest news from around Illinois.
The Center Square: Chicago to receive $336 million in federal funds to replace lead pipes
The city of Chicago is the recipient of more than $330 million in grants from federal tax funds to replace lead pipes.
Mayor Brandon Johnson and U.S. Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Schaumburg, and Dick Durbin, D-Springfield, announced that $336 million has been granted to the city to help cover the costs of replacing lead pipes that carry residents’ drinking water.
Chicago Sun-Times: Carlos Ramirez-Rosa resigns as Zoning chair, mayor’s City Council floor leader
Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th) is resigning from his posts as chairman of the City Council’s Zoning Committee and as Mayor Brandon Johnson’s floor leader, a decision coming just days after being accused of “manhandling” the Council’s longest-serving Black woman.
“Because the position of Floor Leader especially requires the confidence of our colleagues, and because through my actions I lost that confidence, I have informed the mayor that I will be stepping down from that position,” Ramirez-Rosa said in a statement. “Furthermore, I am resigning as Chair of the Committee on Zoning, Landmarks, and Building Standards effective December 1st, to allow time for an effective transition.”
Chicago Tribune: Illinois EPA accepting applications for $4,000 EV rebates, but money for program likely to run out quickly
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency began accepting applications last week for its latest round of the electric vehicle rebate program. The agency urges people to submit their materials quickly, because “substantial interest” and lower funding for the popular program means it will likely send out fewer checks.
This rebate cycle, which started Wednesday and runs until Jan. 31, is open to Illinois residents who purchase a new or used EV from a licensed dealer within the state. Applicants must apply within 90 days of buying a vehicle, in addition to other requirements. There’s a $4,000 rebate for vehicles and $1,500 for motorcycles.
Daily Herald: State lawmakers debate scholarship tax credit, other issues in final days of session
Lawmakers will return to Springfield this week for the second half of their fall veto session, giving advocates of a tax credit program for private school scholarships one last chance to push for its extension before it expires at the end of the year.
The Invest in Kids program is scheduled to reach the end of its five-year life on Dec. 31. The program, which launched in 2018, costs the state $75 million annually in tax breaks for donors to private school scholarship funds. Those funds awarded nearly 10,000 scholarships last year.
WICA: Catalytic converter theft in IL down compared to past years, State Farm data shows
New data from State Farm shows that in the first half of 2023, catalytic converter theft in Illinois went down compared to the previous year.
Data taken in 2022 showed that there were almost 3,880 claims made in Illinois during the entire year, averaging 1,940 for each half of the year. During the first half of 2023, the number of claims made in the state was 1,300, a 33 percent decrease.