chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Pritzker in self-isolation, 4 states join Chicago travel quarantine

Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Pritzker in self-isolation, 4 states join Chicago travel quarantine order; 1,362 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and 23 more deaths reported

The hotel will reopen with its Lead With Care program in place — enhanced health and safety measures , supplies @ @ @ @ @ expect to be greeted at the door with a contactless temperature screening and a set @ @ @ @ @ Using the Four Seasons ' mobile app created in 2017 for guests to chat with @ @ @ @ @ check in virtually , and room keys will be ready at the reception desk .
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Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is going into self-isolation for the second time after a third staff member in his office tested positive for the coronavirus, the governor’s office said Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the city of Chicago added Kentucky, Wyoming, Texas and Nevada to its quarantine list and made no removals, officials announced. The additions will be effective Friday, when the list will cover 23 states and territories, according to a Chicago Department of Public Health news release.
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Later on Tuesday, Illinois officials announced that a resurgence in coronavirus rates in a northwest Illinois region that includes Rockford and Northern Illinois University will result in a return to tighter restrictions aimed at curbing the disease’s spread.
The news comes as the state reported 1,362 newly diagnosed cases and 23 additional confirmed deaths of people with COVID-19, raising the statewide tally to 291,001 known cases and 8,637 deaths.
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Here’s what’s happening Tuesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
5:50 p.m. (updated): Tougher restrictions return to northwest Illinois region that includes Rockford, NIU after surge in COVID-19 cases
A resurgence in coronavirus rates in a northwest Illinois region that includes Rockford and Northern Illinois University will result in a return to tighter restrictions aimed at curbing the disease’s spread, officials announced Tuesday.
The nine-county region bordering Wisconsin and Iowa will see increased mitigation efforts beginning Saturday because its seven-day average of positive cases was 8% or higher for three consecutive days — a 2 percentage point jump in two weeks, state officials announced.
On top of that, the region has seen hospital admissions creeping up, although that uptick is not yet at warning levels.
Last week, Gov. J.B. Pritzker sounded the alarm on the area, noting the region’s positivity rate was already at a “concerning” 7.5% as of Wednesday.
“As other regions have demonstrated, stricter mitigations will lead to safer communities when people mask up, keep their distance, wash their hands and respect public health,” Pritzker said in a statement Tuesday. “It is my hope that the residents of Region 1 can turn this situation around quickly.”
The region is the third one in the state to have its reopening efforts scaled back. The first was the Metro East region outside St. Louis, where bar service and indoor dining are still closed. That area’s seven-day test positivity rate remains above 6.5% and recently increased.
The region that includes Will and Kankakee counties also reverted to tougher rules but returned to the state’s phase four restrictions after the positivity rate decreased.
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Read more here. —Alice Yin
5:10 p.m.: Park Ridge private school switches to remote learning after students test positive for COVID-19
A Park Ridge Catholic school has switched to remote learning after students reportedly tested positive for COVID-19.
St. Paul of the Cross Catholic School, which had been open for full-time, in-classroom instruction since the beginning of the school year, closed its doors this week after “multiple” students tested positive for the virus, said Manuel Gonzalez, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Chicago.
A message shared by the school with parents indicated that the students were members of two families and that they had participated in activities outside of school as well.
Gonzalez said students began remote learning on Sept. 29 and are expected to return to the school building on Oct. 13. Parent-teacher conferences are scheduled for Oct. 8 and Oct. 9, followed by the Columbus Day holiday on Oct. 12, he said.
Read more here. —Jennifer Johnson
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4:15 p.m.: Thanks to outdoor dining, Sophia Steak in Wilmette beat the odds when it opened during a pandemic. Now, cold weather is coming.
Veteran Chicago restaurateur Glenn Keefer says he was undaunted by the prospect of launching his latest venture, Sophia Steak in Wilmette, amid a global pandemic.
After all, Keefer has been in the hospitality business for more than five decades, pedaling his Schwinn Varsity to his first job as a bus boy on Long Island, New York, in 1969, and orchestrating restaurant openings that coincided with the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack, and the recession of 2008.
“This is a wonderful business, and the hardest business in the world, because there’s about a 95% failure rate,” said Keefer.
He opened Sophia Steak in downtown Wilmette with business partner Ryan O’Donnell in May.
“Opening during the pandemic, we came up with an estimate of how the business would do this summer, and we’re now at a pace of doing one and a half times better than we expected,” Keefer said. “I don’t know exactly what that means. But when I’m at the restaurant, it never feels like work.”
Now, with the arrival of cooler weather, Keefer, who sells commercial insurance for his day job, said he and O’Donnell are facing the challenge of keeping their 40 employees on the payroll and serving customers safely indoors when the restaurant’s current outdoor dining along Wilmette Avenue becomes prohibitive due to cooler temperatures.
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Read more here. —Karen Ann Cullotta
4:10 p.m.: COVID-19 cases rising among kids as US schools reopen
After preying heavily on the elderly in the spring, the coronavirus is increasingly infecting American children and teens in a trend authorities say appears fueled by school reopenings and the resumption of sports, playdates and other activities.
Children of all ages now make up 10% of all U.S cases, up from 2% in April, the American Academy of Pediatrics reported Tuesday. And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday that the incidence of COVID-19 in school-age children began rising in early September as many youngsters returned to their classrooms.
About two times more teens were infected than younger children, the CDC report said. Most infected children have mild cases; hospitalizations and death rates are much lower than in adults.
Dr. Sally Goza, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said the rising numbers are a big concern and underscore the importance of masks, hand-washing, social distancing and other precautions.
"While children generally don’t get as sick with the coronavirus as adults, they are not immune and there is much to learn about how easily they can transmit it to others,'' she said in a statement.
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The CDC report did not indicate where or how the children became infected.
Read more here. —Associated Press
4 p.m.: Suburban parents sue IHSA, hoping to force return of high school football and other sports
The parents of four DuPage County high school athletes have filed a lawsuit, hoping to force the return of football and other sports that have been postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the Illinois High School Association violated its bylaws when it agreed to follow the state’s safety guidelines.
The suit, filed on behalf of a basketball player, two football players and a competitive dancer, says the IHSA failed to follow its procedures when it “adopted as binding guidelines on IHSA schools several non-binding guidelines issued by (Gov. J.B.) Pritzker regarding the conduct and timing of interscholastic athletics for its member schools.”
The Pritzker administration in July issued rules categorizing youth and high school sports at various levels of risk. Football, wrestling and competitive dance were listed as high-risk sports, meaning athletes can practice if there is no contact, but cannot compete. Basketball, categorized as medium risk, can have players scrimmage but not play games.
The IHSA, already facing a similar lawsuit in Montgomery County, near St. Louis, said it would defer to state officials about returning to play, and moved football, boys soccer and girls volleyball to the spring. But as other states have restarted those sports, the IHSA has sought unsuccessfully to regain authority over its schedule.
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This is a developing story. Check here for more details. —John Keilman
3:30 p.m.: Notre Dame traces the COVID-19 outbreak on its football team to a pregame meal and a player vomiting on the sideline
Notre Dame will resume football practice Wednesday despite having 39 players in isolation or quarantine due to a COVID-19 outbreak that ESPN.com reported was traced to a pregame team meal and a player vomiting on the sideline.
The Irish reported 18 new positive tests Monday. The outbreak from events around the Sept. 19 game against South Florida has resulted in 25 players in isolation and 14 others in quarantine due to contact tracing.
Read more here. —Shannon Ryan
12:20 p.m.: Illinois announces 1,362 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 23 additional deaths
Illinois public health officials Tuesday reported 1,362 newly diagnosed cases and 23 additional confirmed deaths of people with COVID-19, raising the statewide tally to 291,001 known cases and 8,637 deaths. The seven-day statewide positivity rate from Sept. 22 to Sept. 28 is 3.6%.
—Chicago Tribune staff
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11:25 a.m.: Notre Dame president apologizes for not wearing mask during White House announcement of Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination
In a letter to students, faculty and staff released late Monday afternoon, University of Notre Dame President the Rev. John I. Jenkins apologized for not wearing a mask Saturday during the announcement of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the United States Supreme Court.
Photographs of Jenkins sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with others, shaking hands and not wearing a mask during the ceremony at the White House circulated quickly Saturday and drew criticism on social media.
“I write to express my regret for certain choices I made that day and for failing to lead as I should have,” Jenkins wrote.
The letter explains that it was important for him to attend the ceremony because Barrett is a Notre Dame alumna and a professor at Notre Dame Law School and that upon arriving at the White House, he and other attendees received rapid-response COVID-19 tests.
“I regret my error of judgment in not wearing a mask during the ceremony and by shaking hands with a number of people in the Rose Garden,” Jenkins wrote. “I failed to lead by example, at a time when I’ve asked everyone else in the Notre Dame community to do so. I especially regret my mistake in light of the sacrifices made on a daily basis by many, particularly our students, in adjusting their lives to observe our health protocols.”
Read more here. —South Bend Tribune
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11 a.m.: 4 states added to Chicago quarantine order for travelers, while none removed
The city of Chicago added Kentucky, Wyoming, Texas and Nevada to its quarantine list and made no removals, officials announced Tuesday.
The additions will be effective Friday, when the list will cover 23 states and territories, according to a Chicago Department of Public Health news release. They are Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
While no states or territories were removed Tuesday, Georgia is on track to be taken off next week if it continues its progress, the news release said.
Read more here. — Alice Yin
10:30 a.m.: Gov. J.B. Pritzker to isolate for a second time after another staffer tests positive for coronavirus
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is going into self-isolation for the second time after a third staff member in his office tested positive for the coronavirus, the governor’s office said Tuesday.
The unidentified staff member tested negative Wednesday during a routine screening for employees in the governor’s office but was tested again Monday after developing symptoms and that test came back positive, according to the governor’s office.
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The staff member attended a Wednesday event with Pritzker in Chicago and traveled with the governor to Marion on Thursday and Marseilles on Sunday.
Both Pritzker and the staffer wore masks “during the entirety of their interactions,” according to the governor’s office.
Pritzker and all close contacts will be going into isolation for 14 days, and contact tracing is underway for the staff member who tested positive.
Read more here. —Dan Petrella
10:15 a.m.: Renovated Four Seasons Hotel plans to reopen Thursday in the middle of a pandemic. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look.
Four Seasons Hotel Chicago is set to reopen Thursday after its largest renovation since opening in 1989.
The hotel, which was ranked No. 9 nationwide by U.S. News & World Report in February, started renovations in September 2019 and closed completely March 21 because of the pandemic. The renovation updated the hotel’s suites and public spaces — including the lobby, lounge areas, reception area, bar spaces and the restaurant — in a postmodern look with a contemporary luxury twist. Meeting spaces are also getting a new look, and a junior ballroom will be available for the holidays.
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The hotel will reopen with its Lead With Care program in place — enhanced health and safety measures, supplies and equipment. Guests can expect to be greeted at the door with a contactless temperature screening and a set of COVID-19 health questions. Using the Four Seasons' mobile app created in 2017 for guests to chat with hotel personnel, they can check in virtually, and room keys will be ready at the reception desk. A welcome kit with hand sanitizer, wipes and masks is provided in each room, along with a remote control with a band indicating it was sanitized between guests.
Read more here. —Darcel Rockett
8:10 a.m.: Big Ten football is coming back — but how safe will it be for the players and fans? Medical experts answer lingering questions.
Four FBS conferences postponed fall sports because of COVID-19 concerns last month.
Several football games scheduled in conferences that have been playing were postponed or canceled. Outbreaks have occurred on numerous campuses nationwide.
But games continued in the ACC and Big 12, and a push from many fans, players, coaches, players' parents and President Donald Trump urged conferences such as the Big Ten to reconsider.
It worked. All 10 FBS conferences will be on the field this fall.
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The Big Ten said medical advice guided its Aug. 11 decision to postpone football and all fall sports after an 11-3 vote by university presidents and chancellors. The conference cited medical advice again when it announced about a month later that it would play football after all in a unanimous vote, planning to start an eight- or nine-game schedule Oct. 23-24.
The Pac-12 on Thursday also reversed course and announced it would come back earlier than expected, as did the Mountain West. The Mid-American, the first major football conference to postpone its season because of the pandemic, became the final one to jump back in Friday.
The Big Ten laid out plans for rigorous daily testing and cardiac MRI scans as it gears up for the late October start. Athletes who test positive will sit out 21 days, and teams with a positivity test rate of more than 5% and an individual rate greater than 7.5% must stop games and practices for seven days.
Will it be enough as the nation tops 204,000 deaths and teams in various conferences continue to halt practices after outbreaks? Medical and health experts answered some of the most prevalent questions.
Read more here. —Shannon Ryan
7:02 a.m.: Lightfoot to appear in web discussion on economic recovery
Mayor Lori Lightfoot was set to appear in an online event Tuesday afternoon on “Economic recovery in American cities” sponsored by the Brookings Institution.
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Lightfoot was set to discuss with Chicago Community Trust CEO and Brookings Trustee Helene Gayle “how the city is leveraging the public, private, and philanthropic sectors to rebuild better and set a course to be more racially inclusive,” according to Brookings.
More details are available on the Brookings site. —Chicago Tribune staff
6:56 a.m.: Former Chicago schools chief protests with Arlington Heights families, calling for in-school instruction: ‘Our young people are hostages’
Joining organizers of a rally in Arlington Heights Saturday calling for schools to open for student onsite learning, the former Chicago Public Schools chief told the crowd kids are being held “hostage.”
“There is no reason why we could not have opened our schools. This is simply the hostage taking of our young people,” said Paul Vallas, former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, the nation’s third largest school district. “Our young people are hostages.”
Organizers estimated close to 300 people attended the “Rally to Reopen Our Schools” at North School Park in Arlington Heights Saturday.
A group of Township High School District 214 parents and students planned the afternoon rally to call for school buildings reopening for in-class instruction. Families from other local school districts also participated, including Arlington Heights School District 25 – which is a feeder elementary school district for SD214 – and Glenbrook High School District 225, based in Glenview.
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Read more here. — Karie Angel Luc
6 a.m.: New city report on battling crime problem highlights domestic violence in Chicago, and says it may be significantly underreported during pandemic
Domestic violence remains a stubborn piece of the puzzle in the effort to deal with Chicago’s overall violence issues, and may be underreported during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report issued by Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration.
The 103-page report dubbed “Our City, Our Safety: A Comprehensive Plan to Reduce Violence in Chicago” acknowledged how Chicago’s intractable gun violence, which has given the city an unflattering national reputation, has overshadowed domestic, or family-related, violence, such as domestic batteries, crimes that are statistically more common.
“Although it does not garner the same level of media attention, the incidence of domestic violence is actually greater than that of community or gun violence,” according to Lightfoot’s report, which was to be released publicly Tuesday morning.
As the mayor has done in the past, the new report calls the city’s violence problem a public health crisis and one that reflects entrenched racial inequity. The report calls for prevention efforts and community empowerment despite funding challenges, after the city endured a summer spike in homicides.
But the report paid special attention to domestic violence, and the effect the pandemic could be having on it. Crime experts and law enforcement leaders across the country had warned about possible upticks in domestic crimes and family-related incidents as the coronavirus lingered and government restrictions kept more people in their homes and with fewer options to avoid abusive relationships.
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Read more here. —Jeremy Gorner
Breaking coronavirus news Stay up to date with the latest information on coronavirus with our breaking news alerts.
In case you missed it
Here are five stories from Monday related to COVID-19:


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--4 states added to Chicago quarantine order for travelers, while none removed

Chicago public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady acknowledged in an online Q & A on Tuesday that some establishments might @ @ @ @ @ was only expanded from 25 % to 40 % capacity , or a maximum of @ @ @ @ @ fewer .
But she said Chicago can not go the way of other areas in @ @ @ @ @ forward with a full reopening .

Asia Brown, right, and co-worker Lekia Wilson grab bottles of bleach as they shop at Pete's Fresh Market in Oak Park on March 19, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
The city of Chicago added Kentucky, Wyoming, Texas and Nevada to its quarantine list and made no removals, officials announced Tuesday.
The additions will be effective Friday, when the list will cover 23 states and territories, according to a Chicago Department of Public Health news release. They are Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
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While no states or territories were removed Tuesday, Georgia is on track to be taken off next week if it continues its progress, the news release said.
The city adds a state to its quarantine list if it averages more than 15 new daily COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over a seven-day period. People who have spent more than 24 hours in the high-risk states are required to self-quarantine for 14 days after entering Chicago.
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North Carolina has risen above that threshold, but its spike last week was possibly because of a “data anomaly,” so it was not added to the list this week, according to the release.
Last week, Wisconsin was added to the list for the second time as the neighboring state’s governor declared “a new public health emergency” due to a surge in cases.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s self-quarantine requirement was implemented during the Fourth of July weekend. Though the order is generally not being enforced aside from signs and billboards telling people that they must self-quarantine, violators are subject to fines of $100 to $500 per day, up to $7,000.
Exceptions to the self-quarantine order include essential workers, those traveling for medical treatment and those for whom “self-quarantine is not possible, practicable or advisable.” The order also does not apply to people who are at the airport for a connecting flight or are driving through the city on their way elsewhere.
Since the end of August, Chicago’s daily cases over a seven-day average have steadily dropped to 300 and its positivity rate has declined to 4.3%, according to Monday data. That has led to Chicago loosening up some of its restrictions on businesses in a Monday announcement, but the city cannot go to phase five of Lightfoot’s reopening plan until there’s a coronavirus vaccine.
Chicago public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady acknowledged in an online Q&A on Tuesday that some establishments might be disappointed that indoor dining was only expanded from 25% to 40% capacity, or a maximum of 50 people if that is fewer. But she said Chicago cannot go the way of other areas in the U.S. that are charging forward with a full reopening.
“There are lots of businesses that are struggling around this, but we make our decisions based on what the data shows us here,” Arwady said. “And now is the time to sort of take a careful step.”
That judiciousness must also apply to mask-wearing and other measures, Arwady said, especially as the winter sets in and indoor gatherings, as well as the flu, become more common.
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“People really need to be doubling down on the masks, on the social distancing and protecting folks who are vulnerable, and really picking up your hand-washing,” Arwady said.
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--The Spin: Rahm Emanuel, Chris Christie on Trump vs. Biden debate | IL House committee investigating

The Spin: Rahm Emanuel, Chris Christie on Trump vs. Biden debate | IL House committee investigating Madigan begins | Pritzker again self-isolating after staffer tests positive for COVID-19

Deflect , Part II : “ And there ’ s really no allegations in that New York Times story that @ @ @ @ @ the law , Joe Biden was part of making those tax laws over all the @ @ @ @ @ the Congress , ' Christie said on GMA .
“ And so , you know @ @ @ @ @ president should answer it that way and then move on to the other issues that @ @ @ @ @ more of a concern to the people who ’ ll be sitting on their couches @ @ @ @ @ listening tonight .
They want to know about their futures and what taxes they ’ @ @ @ @ @ next four years , rather than what taxes the president may have paid over the @ @ @ @

In this combination of file photos, former Vice President Joe Biden, left, speaks in Wilmington, Del., on March 12, 2020, and President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in Washington on April 5, 2020. The two presidential candidates will debate Sept. 29, 2020. (Patrick Semansky/AP)
With tonight’s Trump-Biden debate closing in, two people who know them well, former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and ex-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, suggested during a morning interview on ABC to expect a mix of policy talking points and personal attacks. Remember, the Democrat Emanuel was chief of staff in the Obama-Biden White House while the Republican Christie has helped Trump prepare for the debate.
Hearings began today in front of a bipartisan legislative panel looking into Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan’s conduct amid the sprawling ComEd bribery probe. The key question: Is it a fact-finding mission, or is the outcome preordained?
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My colleague Dan Petrella points out in his piece that politics is all about doing the math, writing: “The House committee could subpoena witnesses, but that would require one Democrat to vote with the Republicans to compel testimony. One Democrat also would have to side with Republicans for the special committee to approve a charge against Madigan.”
And Gov. J.B. Pritzker is once again self-isolating after a member of his staff tested positive for COVID-19, his office announced this morning.
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Welcome to The Spin.
Workers adjust signage as preparations take place for the first presidential debate in the Sheila and Eric Samson Pavilion on Sept. 28, 2020, in Cleveland. The first debate between President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to take place Sept. 29. (Patrick Semansky/AP)
During an interview this morning on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” George Stephanopoulos asked both former Mayor Rahm Emanuel (who worked with Stephanopoulos in the Clinton White House) and former Gov. Chris Christie what the candidates need to accomplish. Watch the interview here.
Both candidates need to lay out their visions for the next four years - including how to continue navigating the country through the pandemic - in a way that distinguishes them from their opponent and quickly deflect when their opponent strikes.
Deflect, Part I: Emanuel’s take is that it could be a brawl — and get personal. (Christie didn’t disagree.)
“I do think when the attack comes in, it will come personal (and) Joe Biden needs to, say, deflect it with ‘Look, I can say a lot about your family, you can say whatever you want about my family, but that has nothing to do with the American family, and we’re here to talk about their family and their future,’” Emanuel said.
Family affairs: Biden could go after Trump for making his daughter and son-in-law top advisers while the president can ask Biden, face to face, about the work his son Hunter Biden did in Ukraine while the former vice president was involved in Ukraine policy. Trump himself has drawn attention to the issue, The Associated Press reminds, with his request for Ukraine to investigate the Bidens — spurring the impeachment case against him.
Taxing question: As for the New York Times' series on Trump’s taxes, including reports that the self-described billionaire paid just $750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and again in 2017, and is facing a mound of debt, Christie says the accounts merely back what Trump has been saying for years: that his taxes are under ongoing audit and that while in the business world, he tried to pay as little taxes as possible while following the law.
Deflect, Part II: “And there’s really no allegations in that New York Times story that he did anything to break the law, Joe Biden was part of making those tax laws over all the years that he was in the Congress,' Christie said on GMA. “And so, you know, I think that the president should answer it that way and then move on to the other issues that I suspect will be much more of a concern to the people who’ll be sitting on their couches in their living rooms and listening tonight. They want to know about their futures and what taxes they’ll be paying over the next four years, rather than what taxes the president may have paid over the last 20.”
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David Axelrod, who heads the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics, is a CNN political commentator who, like Emanuel, is an alum of the Obama-Biden White House and had his own take. Some excerpts from opinion piece he wrote for CNN:
What to expect from Trump: “He will try to bait the former vice president by calling him soft on China, and an aged and addled tool of a mob-coddling, police-hating, immigrant-loving left. Though he is the incumbent, Trump will try to portray himself as a force for change and Biden as an exemplar of a failed status quo in Washington," Axelrod wrote, noting what others have said about Trump talking up Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine.
On Biden: “Expect him to return again and again to the President’s mishandling of COVID-19 and efforts to scuttle the Affordable Care Act, with its protections for people with preexisting conditions. This will take on added meaning after Trump’s nomination to the Supreme Court of Amy Coney Barrett, who has expressed skepticism about the constitutionality of the ACA and may become a vote to dismantle it in a case currently before the court.”
Mayor Lightfoot tells supporters her political team’s working with Biden’s: In a fundraising and get-out-the-vote email from her political arm, the mayor tells supporters, “I’ll be watching the debate, you should, too,” ticking off a list of the key issues at stake including affordable health care, the nation’s response to COVID-19 and how to rebuild the economy.
“Be informed, be vigilant, and be a resource for everyone in your network. We must get them out to the polls and get our country back on the right track,” said Lightfoot, a Democrat. “Our team is working hard with the Biden campaign to help candidates up and down the ballot in this election cycle,” before making a request for donations.
Road to November: In bid for 5th term, Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin just released two new campaign ads - the first TV spots of the general election cycle. One of the spots includes a Springfield brewery owner who praises Durbin for helping secure small business loans to help bridge small businesses survive amid the pandemic. Watch it here.
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In a second spot, Lynard Joiner, who served nearly 17 years of a federal prison sentence for a drug case in Sangamon County, praises the veteran lawmaker for helping shave a few years off his prison sentence. Joiner now runs a program to help the formerly imprisoned get on their feet. Watch it here.
Running regionally, the TV ads will air on broadcast and cable stations.
Durbin is facing challenges from Republican Mark Curran, formerly the Lake County sheriff, and millionaire businessman and philanthropist Willie Wilson.
Wisconsin Supreme Court deciding whether to purge 130,000 from voter rolls 5 weeks before election: Read the full story here.
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President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk to board Marine One at the White House on Sept. 29, 2020, in Washington, for a short trip to Andrews Air Force Base en route to Cleveland for first debate against Democrat Joe Biden. (Carolyn Kaster/AP)
The New York Times' examination of President Trump’s tax returns shows he paid just $750 in federal income tax — far less than most regular working stiffs — the year he entered the White House. And, after reporting colossal losses, he paid zero income tax in 11 of the 18 years that the newspaper reviewed.
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I turned to CPA and DePaul University assistant professor in accounting Stephani Mason to get a better understanding of the intersection of politics and tax returns.
Mason says it’s hard to untangle the two when you’re talking about Trump’s 2016 bid for the White House: ″What his campaign became about was, ‘I’m rich, I’ve run successful businesses, and therefore you should hire me in order to come in and reform a system,'" she said. “And people believed him.” And he defeated Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, at least by the Electoral College’s math. She won the popular vote.
While candidates for state and federal office are asked to release their tax returns, which can reveal where their financial interests are and show potential conflicts of interests, the documents also tell someone’s values, including where they make their charitable donations — or don’t at all, said Mason, who received her master’s in business administration at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and a Ph.D. at Rutgers University.
The Times reports that Trump’s tax records show he repeatedly took multiple conservation easement deductions on his property that “represent the lion’s share of his charitable giving — about $119.3 million of roughly $130 million in personal and corporate charitable contributions reported to the I.R.S.”
“When I look at any story about someone’s taxes … I can see immediately who they really are as a person,” Mason tells The Spin. “Many people claim to be outwardly charitable or altruistic. They really are, right, because you get to see where people place their value in a very human level. So if someone has, you know, donated to Salvation Army over the years for hurricane relief, we get to understand where they place their value, where they themselves as a citizen of the world — and we can see that in tax return.”
Trump has called the New York Times' pieces “fake news” but has, as the Times piece reminds, “previously bragged that his ability to get by without paying taxes ‘makes me smart.’"
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On the latter, he may have a point.
“I am not saying anyone should pay more taxes than is necessary, right, we have a tax code that allows any person to use the tax code to their advantage,” Mason said. “But again, what people choose to do on their personal return — it really tells you a lot about who they are.”
Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan walks out after a House Democratic caucus meeting on Nov. 12, 2019, at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois House committee set to hear testimony from Exelon executive today: The Tribune’s Dan Petrella has the story here.
Given the tenor of politics today, Democrats and Republicans are likely to go to their corners, arms folded, The Chicago Sun-Times' Rachel Hinton reminds us in her preview.
In a new analysis, Hinton looks at whether the House panel investigating Madigan over the ComEd case will accomplish anything. She writes in part: "(I)nfighting, as well as the makeup of the House itself, could determine how much the committee is able to get done and the result of its investigation — should anything come of it at all.
“That’s because while the investigation committee is made up of three Democrats and three Republicans, the House is solidly Democrat, with a 74-member supermajority that towers over the 44-member Republican Caucus.” Read her story here.
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Meantime in federal court: Former Commonwealth Edison executive Fidel Marquez entered into a plea deal today that lets him avoid jail over the ComEd scheme. The Tribune’s Jason Meisner writes: “According to the plea, from 2011 to 2019 Marquez conspired with others to corruptly solicit jobs, contracts and monetary payments for the benefit of Madigan — identified as Public Official A — and his associates with the intent of influencing legislation beneficial to ComEd." Read the rest of his story here.
Madigan went to bat for wife, mother of chair investigating ComEd scandal: “Madigan tried to get state jobs last year for a half-dozen people with close ties to the chairman of a new, special House committee investigating Madigan’s links to a Springfield bribery scandal, according to records obtained by WBEZ.” The chairman, state Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch, did not reply to the outlets repeated messages seeking comment. Read the full story here.
Other state business: Statue of Stephen A. Douglas, Lincoln’s debate nemesis, removed from Capitol in Springfield — The Associated Press writes, “The board of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol voted unanimously on Aug. 19 to remove both statues after House Speaker Michael Madigan asked the panel in July to consider removing portraits and statuary of Douglas in and around the Capitol. The Chicago Democrat said he had recently read a book about pre-Civil War history that mentions Douglas profiting from slavery.” Read the full story here.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker wears a mask during a news conference at the James R. Thompson Center on Sept. 22, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
This marks the second time the governor has self-isolated after a third staff member in his office tested positive for the coronavirus, his office announced.
4 states — Kentucky, Wyoming, Texas and Nevada — added to Chicago’s quarantine order for travelers: My Tribune colleague Alice Yin has the details here.
Former Chicago schools chief Paul Vallas protests with Arlington Heights families, calling for in-school instruction: ‘Our young people are hostages’: Taking a break from criticizing Lightfoot — who bested him and a handful of other candidates in the 2019 Chicago mayor’s race — Vallas attended Monday’s protest, the Arlington Heights Post’s Karie Angell Luc reports.
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“There is no reason why we could not have opened our schools. This is simply the hostage taking of our young people,” said Vallas, former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, the nation’s third largest school district. Read the rest of the story here.
More suburban news: University Park mayor: Contaminated water problem would be fixed if it were in “an affluent, white suburb.” Read the Daily Southtown’s full story here.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker at the James R. Thompson Center, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
The Tribune’s Rick Pearson writes: “The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, comprised of top executives of the region’s leading employers, said Tuesday it opposes Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s proposed graduated-rate income tax proposal, adding to the split between business and labor interests over the proposed state constitutional amendment.”
“Based on the state’s decadeslong history of fiscal mismanagement, the graduated income tax amendment, if passed, all but promises that Illinois will not address its long-term financial challenges,” the committee said in a statement.
Pearson notes that the “Pritzker-backed Vote Yes for Fairness Committee said the group’s opposition was not a surprise, contending the Civic Committee is ‘an organization of the wealthiest people in our state who have benefited from avoiding paying their fair share for 50 years.’”
Thanks for reading The Spin, the Tribune’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to have it delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons. Have a tip? Email host Lisa Donovan at ldonovan@chicagotribune.com.
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Twitter @byldonovan


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Former ComEd VP pleads guilty, agrees to cooperate with feds in bribery case orbiting House Speaker

Former ComEd VP pleads guilty, agrees to cooperate with feds in bribery case orbiting House Speaker Michael Madigan

The fact that Marquez is now also working with investigators significantly ramps up the pressure against others who have been @ @ @ @ @ charged — in the scheme , including former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore ; lobbyist and @ @ @ @ @ Hooker ; Jay Doherty , a consultant and former President of the City Club ; @ @ @ @ @ former lobbyist for the utility and one of Madigan ’ s closest confidants .

Former Commonwealth Edison executive Fidel Marquez could have faced years behind bars for his role in a massive bribery scheme that directed illicit payments to allies of powerful Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan.
Instead, by cooperating with prosecutors, Marquez is in line to avoid prison altogether.
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Marquez, 58, a longtime lobbyist and former senior vice president of governmental affairs at ComEd, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of bribery conspiracy, marking the first criminal conviction in an ongoing investigation that has shaken the Illinois political landscape and threatens Madigan’s decadeslong hold on power.
“I plead guilty your honor,” he told U.S. District Judge Mary Rowland via a video link from Tucson, Arizona, where he moved after stepping down from the utility last year.
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Prosecutors said in a plea agreement that they intend to ask for probation for Marquez when he’s sentenced after the case is over — a huge break given the length of the scheme and that ComEd allegedly reaped tens of millions of dollars in illegal benefits.
The judge set a status hearing for Jan. 7.
ComEd was charged with bribery in July and has entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the government, agreeing to pay a record $200 million fine and cooperate with investigators in exchange for the charges being dropped in three years.
The fact that Marquez is now also working with investigators significantly ramps up the pressure against others who have been implicated — but not yet charged — in the scheme, including former ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore; lobbyist and former ComEd executive John T. Hooker; Jay Doherty, a consultant and former President of the City Club; and Michael McClain, a former lobbyist for the utility and one of Madigan’s closest confidants.
Fidel Marquez, Jr., shown in 2008, pleaded guilty to one count of bribery conspiracy on Tuesday. (Candice C. Cusic / Chicago Tribune)
The plea also made a reference for the first time to McClain’s wife, noting that McClain and his “spouse, operated an entity ... that provided lobbying services.”
The Chicago Tribune has exclusively reported that McClain arranged for payments to be made from current and former ComEd lobbyists to Kevin Quinn, a longtime Madigan political operative. The speaker publicly fired him in early 2019 amid accusations that Quinn had sexually harassed a female campaign worker.
Records show that McClain gave a $1,000 check to Quinn, and it was signed by McClain’s wife from the couple’s joint account.
Reached by phone Tuesday, McClain’s attorney declined to comment.
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Marquez’s guilty plea came on the same day a special legislative committee in Springfield heard testimony about the scheme from a current ComEd executive. The committee has also sought the testimony of Madigan and a number of lobbyists and former ComEd officials implicated in the bribery case, but all have declined.
Marquez’s attorney had asked that the request for Marquez’s testimony be postponed due to his required appearance in federal court.
His plea agreement with prosecutors largely mirrors facts that were laid out two months ago when ComEd admitted to the bribery scheme.
According to the plea, from 2012 to 2019 Marquez conspired with others to corruptly solicit jobs, contracts and monetary payments for the benefit of Madigan — identified as Public Official A — and his associates with the intent of influencing legislation beneficial to ComEd.
“As Speaker, Public Official A had the ability, using procedural mechanisms in the House of Representatives, to prevent legislation that Public Official A opposed from moving forward,” the plea stated. “Conversely, Public Official A could also serve as a very powerful and persuasive force to move legislation forward.”
Many of the illegal payments allegedly were arranged by McClain, a key confidant and adviser at the center of the probe, according to court records. The Tribune reported in November that the FBI had tapped McClain’s cellphone, and some of the conversations were previously detailed by prosecutors in ComEd’s deferred prosecution agreement.
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According to the plea, McClain, who is identified only as Individual 1, told Marquez in 2013 that he wanted to shift the payments from the lobbying firm he co-owned with his wife to Company 1, which was owned by a longtime ComEd consultant. Marquez agreed to facilitate the shift, the plea stated.
Neither the consultant nor the company were named in court records, but testimony in Springfield on Tuesday confirmed it is Doherty and his firm, J.D. Doherty & Associates. A call seeking comment from a lawyer for Doherty, Michael Gillespie, was not immediately returned Tuesday.
In 2018, Pramaggiore — identified as CEO-1 — told Marquez that McClain had contacted her to ask that a different Madigan associate be hired, resulting in “a stream of monthly payments” from the utility that were disguised to appear like they were coming from Doherty’s company, according to the plea.
Those details appeared to match allegations in the deferred prosecution agreement with ComEd stating that Pramaggiore had been asked by Madigan, through McClain, to hire an associate of the speaker who was leaving the Chicago City Council. Pramaggiore agreed to pay the associate $5,000 a month as a subcontractor, according to ComEd’s admissions in court.
The Tribune has identified the council member as 23rd Ward Ald. Michael Zalewski, whose home was raided by the FBI in May.
The ComEd agreement also described several conversations between Marquez and others allegedly involved in the scheme. In February 2019, for example, McClain advised Marquez on how to communicate with other ComEd officials about renewing the consulting contract for Doherty’s company.
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“I would say to you, don’t put anything in writing," McClain told Marquez, according to the document. “All it can do is hurt ya.”
A week later, Doherty told Marquez that two of Madigan’s associates had been put on his company’s payroll as do-nothing “subcontractors” and that ComEd should not tamper with the arrangement because “your money comes from Springfield,” the ComEd agreement states.
The new hires “keep their mouth shut,” Doherty allegedly said. “But do they do anything for me on a day-to-day basis? No.”
Doherty also warned Marquez that he had “every reason to believe” that McClain had spoken directly with Madigan about the deal, the document stated.
“(It’s) to keep (Madigan) happy (and) I think it’s worth it, because you’d hear otherwise,” Doherty told Marquez, according to the ComEd agreement.
In all, prosecutors put a value of at least $150 million on the legislative benefits ComEd received. The federal court documents specifically noted the 2011 passage of the Energy Infrastructure and Modernization Act, which “helped improve ComEd’s financial stability” by establishing rate guidelines and a smart grid overhaul.
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ComEd has publicly apologized for its actions, but the company also has denied the scheme meant customers were unfairly charged.
Records show ComEd tried to clean up its lobbying operation in the midst of the investigation last year. One of those departing was Marquez. ComEd officially announced it on Sept. 23, saying only that Marquez was “retiring after 39 years of service.”
Chicago Tribune’s Ray Long and Dan Petrella contributed.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--As shifting deadlines create confusion over census count, Chicago officials make last-minute plea in

As shifting deadlines create confusion over census count, Chicago officials make last-minute plea in communities of color

“ Just a 1 % undercount will cost this state $ 195 million in federal funds at a time when @ @ @ @ @ , ” she continued .
“ These federal funds impact each and every one of @ @ @ @ @ s money for your neighborhood , it ’ s money for your block .
For @ @ @ @ @ brown communities like this one , an accurate count often means a seat at the @ @ @ @ @ like us and are advocating for us .
”

Standing in a West Side park, surrounded by neighborhoods with some of the lowest response rates to the census in Chicago, state and county officials urged residents Tuesday to fill out their forms as soon as possible as the Trump administration continues to shift deadlines and create confusion.
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, center, stands for a photograph with others Sept. 29, 2020, in Douglas Park after a news conference about the 2020 census. (Jos M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
“We’re here to say that we’re going to continue to fight to count every single individual and to encourage everybody to complete the census,” said Cook County Commissioner Alma Anaya. “At this point, our lives are in jeopardy, our future is in jeopardy, our schools, our health system, they’re in jeopardy, and it’s all because there’s been a political fight back and forth on when the deadline is.”
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The official deadline was the end of July, but it was pushed back to Oct. 31 because of the pandemic. Then the Trump administration abruptly moved the deadline up to Sept. 30, despite warnings from the Census Bureau. Advocacy groups and civic organizations went before a federal judge to challenge the new deadline, arguing more time was needed for an accurate count, especially in communities of color where response rates badly lag behind the national average.
Last week, the judge scrapped the Sept. 30 deadline. But then early this week, the Trump administration announced without explanation that it would end the count on Oct. 5, arguing the judge did not explicitly set a new deadline in her ruling.
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On Tuesday, though, the judge said the latest deadline does appear to violate her ruling and more hearings are scheduled on the issue this week.
In the meantime, state and county officials say they are working under the assumption that the count will end Oct. 5, and are instructing residents to fill out census forms immediately and be included in a count that will determine Illinois’ representation in Congress, as well as the state’s and city’s share of billions of dollars in federal aid over the next 10 years.
Statewide, the self-response rate has already surpassed 2010 levels at just over 70%. But rates in Chicago continue to hover around 60%, with some neighborhoods reporting rates as low as 30%. Some of the city’s lowest rates are in neighborhoods around the park, such as Back of the Yards, West Englewood, Little Village and North Lawndale, all areas that have struggled with poverty and a lack of resources.
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton said the constantly shifting deadlines are the Trump administration’s latest effort to “suppress the count” by generating confusion.
“The census has its own terminology, and in that terminology Black and brown communities are called hard to count, but why is that?” Stratton said. “Well, because historically systemic racism has put obstacles in the path of Black and brown people, from underfunding schools to denying voting rights to preventing us from being accurately counted for years, for decades, centuries even.
“Just a 1% undercount will cost this state $195 million in federal funds at a time when we need it the most,” she continued. “These federal funds impact each and every one of you directly. It’s money for your neighborhood, it’s money for your block. For people in our Black and brown communities like this one, an accurate count often means a seat at the table for people who look like us and are advocating for us.”
Stratton was joined by members of Habilitative Systems Inc. and the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, two organizations that have been leading outreach efforts. The groups said they planned a push this week in undercounted areas.
The Census Bureau had said it also planned a final push in the last weeks, but then reported around 3,000 fewer people in the field earlier this month. Officials insisted no one was being laid off and speculated that people were leaving as the work neared an end.


Corrections and clarifications

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· A story in Sunday’s Business section about companies encouraging employees to vote incorrectly described C.A. Fortune’s policy on holding meetings on Election Day. The company encouraged employees, not clients, to avoid scheduling meetings that day.
· In an appreciation Friday of People’s Music School founder Rita Simo by columnist Heidi Stevens, Simo’s cause of death was listed as complications from dementia. Simo died of heart failure.
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chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Committee of region’s top executives comes out against Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s graduated-rate income ta

Committee of region’s top executives comes out against Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s graduated-rate income tax amendment

Pritzker has noted that a 20 % hike in the flat tax is an option , along with 15 % @ @ @ @ @ , if voters reject the proposed amendment .
At the same time , opponents have @ @ @ @ @ the state ’ s income tax to retirement income though Illinois does not tax retirement @ @ @ @ @ amendment changes that law .

The Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, comprised of top executives of the region’s leading employers, said Tuesday it opposes Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s proposed graduated-rate income tax proposal, adding to the split between business and labor interests over the proposed state constitutional amendment.
“Based on the state’s decadeslong history of fiscal mismanagement, the graduated income tax amendment, if passed, all but promises that Illinois will not address its long-term financial challenges,” the committee said in a statement.
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“The result will be further loss of jobs and people, long-term cuts in critical social services, a shrinking tax base burdened with growing debt, and a guarantee that Illinois will continue to have the worst credit rating of any state in the country,” the statement said.
The Pritzker-backed Vote Yes for Fairness Committee said the group’s opposition was not a surprise, contending the Civic Committee is “an organization of the wealthiest people in our state who have benefited from avoiding paying their fair share for 50 years.”
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Gov. J.B. Pritzker at the Thompson Center on Sept. 22, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
The proposed amendment, the top item on the Nov. 3 ballot, asks voters whether to eliminate the constitutional flat-tax rate mandate on income and replace it with language to create a graduated-rate tax with varying rates that increase with income.
The state’s current personal income tax rate is 4.95%. Supporters of the graduated tax, backed by organized labor and Democratic allies, say that 97% of Illinoisans — those who make $250,000 or less — would pay the same if not less in income taxes. They contend the current flat-tax mandate unfairly puts a higher tax burden on lower incomes to pay the state’s bills.
Opponents representing the business community and its Republican allies in the legislature contend a graduated tax would hurt small business owners who pay their business taxes through the personal income tax, cost jobs and fuel an exodus of wealthy taxpayers from the state.
In its statement, the Civic Committee said it “could support a graduated income tax as part of a comprehensive plan” that includes new tax revenues, spending cuts “and reforms far more substantial than the projected revenues from the graduated income tax.”
If it is adopted by voters, the graduated-rate tax is projected to raise about $1.2 billion for the final half of the current budget year and generate more than $3 billion over a full spending year.
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The Civic Committee in a 2019 report called for an $8 billion package of tax increases, budget cuts and more funding for Illinois' massively underfunded public employee pension systems to stabilize the state’s finances. That report called for increasing the flat-rate tax by 20%, from the current rate of 4.95% to 5.95%, as well as imposing the income tax on retirement income.
Both issues have surfaced in the debate over the fate of the proposed amendment.
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Pritzker has noted that a 20% hike in the flat tax is an option, along with 15% across the board spending cuts, if voters reject the proposed amendment. At the same time, opponents have contended the amendment would open the state’s income tax to retirement income though Illinois does not tax retirement income and nothing in the amendment changes that law.
“Instead of standing up for working people, the Civic Committee has repeatedly advocated for increasing the flat tax by 20% and implementing a retirement tax because they prefer to put the tax burden on our lower and middle-income families and seniors,” said Quentin Fulks, who chairs the Vote Yes for Fairness campaign.
“The choice facing Illinois voters is clear: Either vote yes for the Fair Tax to ask the wealthiest in the state to pay their fair share and give a tax cut to 97% of Illinoisans or let the millionaires and billionaires have their way and make hardworking families pay,” he said.
rap30@aol.com


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--4 more states were added to Chicago’s travel quarantine list this week. Here’s what you need to know

4 more states were added to Chicago’s travel quarantine list this week. Here’s what you need to know to avoid a large fine.

States are added to the list when they have an infection rate higher than 15 cases per 100,000 residents and @ @ @ @ @ average remains below that rate for two consecutive weeks .
According to an order from @ @ @ @ @ city ’ s Department of Public Health , those who travel to any of the @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 risk must then quarantine for two weeks upon their return or face hefty fines @ @ @ @ @ not issued any since the policy was put in place early in the summer .

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Dick DeGray, of Brattleboro, Vt., puts on his mask before going into the Municipal Building, in Brattleboro, as the town started to require visitors and staff to put their masks back on Aug. 11, 2021, due to COVID-19 virus numbers increasing in Windham County. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer)
Chicago has revamped its travel quarantine order to reflect rising rates of the coronavirus in Chicago and the rest of Illinois, moving from a blanket list of states to a color-coded list comparing the rate of infection here with that in other states.
On Tuesday, the city added New York, California and Washington, D.C., to its orange list, requiring all travelers from those states to either quarantine or prove they have had a negative COVID-19 test 72 hours before arriving in Chicago. Idaho was moved from the stricter red list to the orange list.
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Under the original version of the emergency travel order, states had been added to the list when they reached an infection rate greater than 15 cases per 100,000 residents and removed once the daily case average remains below that rate for two consecutive weeks.
Now, the city is using a color-coded list, which will be updated every two weeks.
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“First and foremost, I would like people to avoid travel at this time if at all possible. But by creating a tiered system and using Chicago’s case rate as a category threshold, it allows us to be responsive to the changing dynamics of the pandemic,” said city health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady.
States that weren’t on the quarantine list that were added to the orange list the first week were Michigan, Connecticut, Arizona, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Georgia, Maryland, Oregon, Washington and Louisiana.
Yellow-coded states are those with a rolling seven-day average below 15 cases per day per 100,000 residents. Anyone returning from these states doesn’t have to quarantine. Three states qualified as of Tuesday.
Orange-coded states are those with a rolling seven-day average between 15 cases per day per 100,000 residents and Chicago’s rolling seven-day average, which was 60 as of Tuesday. People traveling from these states must either quarantine for 14 days or show they had a negative COVID-19 test no more than 72 hours before arrival in Chicago. There were 35 orange states, plus Washington, D.C., as of Tuesday.
Red-coded states are those with a rolling seven-day average above Chicago’s. Anyone traveling from these states has to quarantine. There were 11 red-coded states as of Tuesday.
People who commute across the Indiana or Wisconsin state lines to or from Chicago to work or go to school will be exempt from the quarantine rule, a nod to the symbiotic relationship between the neighboring states. But workers in Chicago from Indiana will be expected to avoid restaurants, bars and other public spaces in the city.
Here’s what you need to know about the city’s quarantine policies:
City says people will be fined
Anyone who visits red-listed states should stay inside for two weeks upon their return or risk a fine of $100 to $500 per day, according to the city. Those who visit orange-listed states are subject to the same fines if they don’t have a negative COVID-19 test or quarantine.
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Despite the list’s fluctuating size, enforcement of the order so far has been nonexistent, save for some billboards and signs that Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said are intended to “educate” people into compliance.
Lightfoot’s initial self-quarantine requirement was implemented during the Fourth of July weekend.
If city contact tracers get information that people who’ve caught the virus were in proximity to someone from a quarantine state and flouted the rules, they’ll issue a citation, Arwady has said.
They’ll also be on the lookout for people who are on social media “flagrantly posting their social activities, clearly out and about in Chicago after being in settings that are subject to our quarantine order, within the time frame,” she said. Investigators will look into any reports about city workers not following the guidelines, the health commissioner said.
Arwady has since clarified that the city “is not Big Brother,” nor does it have the resources to dedicate anyone to aimlessly scroll feeds from Chicagoans.
But if the agency receives a tip or is already looking into someone to determine whether to fine them, that’s when the city may scour social media.
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“One of the easiest ways to sort of get enough proof … without me having to send out an inspector … is to look at social media,” Arwady said.
Details for travelers
The order has plenty of exceptions for different types of workers and depending on how long travelers spend in the listed states.
If someone drives through a state on the list but does not stay more than 24 hours, that person does not need to quarantine. But a city employee clarified that Chicagoans who choose to drive into Wisconsin and go out in public, regardless of whether they return later in the same day, do need to quarantine after such voluntary activities.
For example, Chicagoans who drive through Indiana (a red-listed state), Ohio and New York (orange-listed states) to spend a week in Vermont (a yellow-listed state) but who did not stay in Indiana and Ohio more than 24 hours do not need to quarantine. There are similar restrictions for air travelers. .
Travelers visiting Chicago from red- or orange-listed states also are subject to the order if they are staying longer than a day. Everyone older than age 2 who lands at a Chicago airport is required to wear a mask, then quarantine if they’ve come from a listed state.
If someone is staying with a Chicago resident after traveling to an affected state, the traveler must quarantine, but other people in the home who did not travel to a listed state are not required to quarantine. The resident should follow guidance for being around someone who has potentially been exposed.
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Travelers or area residents who leave a Chicago airport and immediately travel to a suburb or outside Chicago limits are not required to quarantine — unless their municipality also has a travel restriction in place. The order also states that face coverings should be worn and that public transportation should not be used by those headed outside city limits.
Testing and exceptions to quarantine requirements in the revised rules
Under the guidance revised in November, Chicago residents returning from travel in red states or residents of red states who travel to the city are required to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival here, according to the city travel order website.
People in similar circumstances entering Chicago from orange states must either quarantine for 14 days or, with a “pre-arrival negative test result” from no more than three days before traveling to Chicago, may choose instead to employ “strict masking, social distancing and avoidance of in-person gatherings.”
There also is an option for those who can’t get a test while visiting an orange state, such as a visit not much longer than 24 hours. Someone can quarantine upon arrival in Illinois until a test can be arranged locally, according to the city’s travel order website. The test needs to be issued by a private provider because of concerns about limited capacity at public health testing sites.
“If you cannot be tested for COVID-19 prior to arriving in Chicago and do not take a post-arrival test, you must quarantine for 14 days (or the duration of your stay, whichever is shorter),” according to the website.
Essential workers and other exceptions
For those who live outside Chicago but work in the city, it’s important to determine whether you’re an essential or nonessential worker according to the executive order.
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There are limited exceptions to the quarantine order for essential workers who have to travel for work. Travelers who don’t live in Chicago but who have to be in Chicago to work and who traveled to an orange- or red-listed state for work do not need to quarantine. Travelers who live in Chicago and who travel to a listed state for work do not have to quarantine, according to the order.
But if workers go to a listed state when they didn’t have to, or for medical care, or because of parental shared custody, they would be subject to quarantine.
People who work in Chicago and live elsewhere can do so if they haven’t traveled to a high-incidence state. If they have traveled to a high-incidence state, they are subject to requirements regarding essential workers who are Chicago residents.
For the purposes of the order, an “essential worker” is a person who works in any one of the 16 critical employment sectors. The term also includes any government workers traveling in their official capacities. Essential workers must:
Avoid any nonessential interactions until the quarantine period has ended. They must limit themselves to work-related activities and related functions, and avoid public spaces as much as possible.
Monitor temperature and signs of symptoms, wear a face covering when in public, maintain social distance, and clean and disinfect workspaces.
Avoid as much as possible extended periods in public, contact with strangers and large congregate settings.
What does quarantine mean?
According to the emergency travel order, quarantine means staying at one place for 14 days before doing any activities outside of the home. Included in the restrictions:
Not go out in public or otherwise leave home, unless seeking medical care or COVID-19 testing.
Wear a face covering and do not use public transit if seeking medical care or testing, or when traveling to or from an airport, train station or bus station.
Don’t go to the grocery store; instead have food and other supplies delivered.
Stay in separate quarters with a separate bedroom and, if possible, use a separate bathroom than non-traveling household members.
Travelers still must quarantine even if they had a negative COVID-19 test because people “can develop symptoms and become contagious up to 14 days from their last exposure.”
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Are the rules different for each state or territory?
Generally, the emergency order is applied uniformly to any state or territory on the list. However, with neighboring states, travelers should pay close attention to what constitutes a visit and distinctions between essential and nonessential workers.
What are the state lists?
The following is a rolling list of states on Chicago’s red, orange and yellow lists. The lists will be updated every two weeks:
Red-listed states (11): Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Orange-listed states and Puerto Rico (36): Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia.
Yellow-listed states (3): Hawaii, Maine and Vermont.
Chicago Tribune’s Alice Yin, John Byrne and Gregory Pratt contributed.
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kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Gov. J.B. Pritzker to isolate for a second time after another staffer tests positive for coronavirus

Pritzker and all close contacts will be going into isolation for 14 days , and contact tracing is underway for @ @ @ @ @ positive .
Organizers of the events the staffer attended have been notified , the governor @ @ @ @ @ All staff who are working in the governor ’ s office rather than working from @ @ @ @ @ won ’ t be allowed back until testing negative .

Gov. J.B. Pritzker is going into self-isolation for the second time after a third staff member in his office tested positive for the coronavirus, the governor’s office said Tuesday.
The unidentified staff member tested negative Wednesday during a routine screening for employees in the governor’s office but was tested again Monday after developing symptoms, and that test came back positive, according to the governor’s office.
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The staff member attended events Wednesday with Pritzker in Chicago and traveled with the governor to Marion on Thursday and Marseilles on Sunday.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker appears at the Thompson Center on Sept. 22, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Both Pritzker and the staffer wore masks “during the entirety of their interactions,” according to the governor’s office.
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Pritzker’s public schedule on Wednesday included a news conference at the Chicago Cultural Center held in response to a Kentucky grand jury’s decision in the case of Breonna Taylor. Spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh said the staff member was at that event, which also was attended by Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and the Rev. Jesse Jackson, among others.
A spokesman for Lightfoot said the mayor tested negative for coronavirus Tuesday morning and was “not in close contact” with the Pritzker staff member during the news conference.
Pritzker and all close contacts will be going into isolation for 14 days, and contact tracing is underway for the staff member who tested positive. Organizers of the events the staffer attended have been notified, the governor’s office said. All staff who are working in the governor’s office rather than working from home are being tested and won’t be allowed back until testing negative.
State public health officials on Tuesday announced 1,362 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 23 additional deaths. That brings the total number of known cases to 291,001 and the death toll to 8,637 statewide since the pandemic began.
The share of coronavirus tests returning positive results stood at 3.6% statewide for the seven-day period ending Monday. The rate has remained relatively stable since dropping below 4% earlier this month.
Pritzker isolated in his Gold Coast home for several days in May after a senior staff member tested positive for the coronavirus. The governor tested negative at the time. He also tested negative in June after attending an event with Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, who was later diagnosed with COVID-19.
The governor’s office first announced that a staff member tested positive for the coronavirus in April. Pritzker was not tested then because he wasn’t showing any symptoms.
Chicago Tribune’s Alice Yin contributed.
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dpetrella@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood

Search below by street address , ZIP code or city , then click on the map to see the number @ @ @ @ @ state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer .

Note: With Chicago and Illinois moving into phase 5, the Tribune is no longer updating this data. If the state moves back into bridge phase, the Tribune we reassess. Daily metrics on COVID-19, like cases, deaths and hospitalizations, can be found here. And Daily metrics on the vaccination effort can be found here. More on where the coronavirus stands nationally and around the world can be found here.
Illinois releases the number of positive COVID-19 cases by ZIP code daily. The map below shows the cumulative cases for each area as well as other analysis of the data.
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Tracking daily Illinois coronavirus deaths, cases and tests.
Search below by street address, ZIP code or city, then click on the map to see the number of confirmed and probable cases. The state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer.
Data as of June 10.
The map search tool above works best in Chrome or Firefox and may not perform consistently in Internet Explorer.
Note: Because of a coding error this map was displaying the incorrect rates for new cases in the last 7 days per 100,000 people — the issue should now be resolved.. The Tribune adjusted the data shown on the map below to focus on new cases, those the state tracked in the last 7 seven days. The totals for the entire pandemic are still available, but in the pop-up after tapping or clicking on a ZIP.


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 23 new deaths, 1,362 new confirmed cases and 45,624 new test resu

Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 23 new deaths, 1,362 new confirmed cases and 45,624 new test results

Illinois announced 1,362 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 Tuesday for a total of 291,001 .
The state also announced 23 @ @ @ @ @ of 8,637 and 45,624 new test results for a total of 5.57 million .

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine tracked coronavirus cases, deaths and test totals from Jan. 22, 2020 through March 10, 2023, but is no longer providing this data. These charts will no longer be updated.
Check the Illinois Department of Public Health for the most up-to-date data for Illinois.
[ Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus ]
Can’t see these charts? Go here.


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Notre Dame president apologizes for not wearing mask during White House announcement of Amy Coney Ba

Notre Dame president apologizes for not wearing mask during White House announcement of Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination

“ I regret my error of judgment in not wearing a mask during the ceremony and by shaking hands with @ @ @ @ @ the Rose Garden , ” Jenkins wrote .
“ I failed to lead by example @ @ @ @ @ I ’ ve asked everyone else in the Notre Dame community to do so .
@ @ @ @ @ in light of the sacrifices made on a daily basis by many , particularly our @ @ @ @ @ lives to observe our health protocols .
”

Guests applaud as President Donald Trump introduces Judge Amy Coney Barrett as his nominee to the Supreme Court in the Rose Garden at the White House on Sept. 26, 2020. University of Notre Dame President the Rev. John I. Jenkins, seen in the second row from bottom and second from the right, apologized for not wearing a mask. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
In a letter to students, faculty and staff released late Monday afternoon, University of Notre Dame President the Rev. John I. Jenkins apologized for not wearing a mask Saturday during the announcement of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the United States Supreme Court.
Photographs of Jenkins sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with others, shaking hands and not wearing a mask during the ceremony at the White House circulated quickly Saturday and drew criticism on social media.
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“I write to express my regret for certain choices I made that day and for failing to lead as I should have,” Jenkins wrote.
The letter explains that it was important for him to attend the ceremony because Barrett is a Notre Dame alumna and a professor at Notre Dame Law School and that upon arriving at the White House, he and other attendees received rapid-response COVID-19 tests.
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“I regret my error of judgment in not wearing a mask during the ceremony and by shaking hands with a number of people in the Rose Garden,” Jenkins wrote. “I failed to lead by example, at a time when I’ve asked everyone else in the Notre Dame community to do so. I especially regret my mistake in light of the sacrifices made on a daily basis by many, particularly our students, in adjusting their lives to observe our health protocols.”
University of @NotreDame President Rev. John Jenkins is in attendance for Barrett’s nomination. He is one of the many people in the audience not wearing a mask pic.twitter.com/dzlPvmsCEu — Max Lewis (@MaxLewisTV) September 26, 2020
On Sunday, three Notre Dame students — Ashton Weber, Makira Walton and Patrick Kelly-Dutile — circulated an online petition among students that calls for the Student Senate to demand Jenkins' immediate resignation as university president.
“To see him appear on a national stage not following the rules he’s asked us to follow is frustrating and a bit hypocritical,” Weber said by phone Monday in reference to the university’s COVID-19 protocols and the numerous emails Jenkins has sent to the student body about them.
The Tribune interviewed Weber before Jenkins issued his apology.
It took 24 hours for the students to gather the minimum 200 signatures they need to bring their resolution before the Student Senate, which meets next on Thursday.
Weber said she and the other students “understand that it’s unlikely” Jenkins will resign.
“I think the most important part of this is to send the message that his actions are unacceptable and not a good demonstration of leadership, especially when he made us a national example with reopening,” the junior from Cincinnati said. “I think the goal is to bring to light a deep, deep dissatisfaction with this and to say this is not just a little disappointing.”
Most students, Weber said, have taken the university’s COVID-19 protocols seriously and followed them since it had to revert for two weeks to virtual instruction in August and September.
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The university has encouraged students to report their fellow students who don’t follow COVID-19 protocols, Weber said, and has a website for doing so, which she said “tons of students” used to report Jenkins after Saturday’s ceremony.
“They have very much stepped up their disciplinary procedures for students who don’t comply, which is another layer to this,” she said. “...That’s another reason we wanted to have a significant mention of him breaking the same rules student have been punished for breaking.”
Jenkins had previously drawn criticism -- and apologized -- for posing for a photograph in August in close proximity with more than 20 residents of Farley Hall.
“This is the second time, and we all received multiple emails promising to do better,” Weber said, “and this stands in contradiction to those promises to do better.”
In his letter, Jenkins said he consulted with the Notre Dame Wellness Center and that, “in an abundance of caution, I have decided also to quarantine in accordance with University protocols.”


chicagotribune--2020-09-29--Spectacle casino executive, former Indiana state senator charged in illegal campaign scheme

The indictment also charges Waltz with lying to FBI agents by telling them that $ 12,000 he received from Rogers @ @ @ @ @ to provide investment banking services .
Waltz is also charged with falsely telling investigators he @ @ @ @ @ for more than $ 100,000 that he loaned his campaign , while two people not @ @ @ @ @ gave him that money .

John Keeler, Vice President and General Council for Spectacle Entertainment, addresses the members of the Indiana Gaming Commission. (Doug McSchooler/Post-Tribune)
A top executive of an Indiana casino company that is building a new $400 million casino in Gary has been indicted on federal charges of illegally funneling campaign contributions to a former state lawmaker’s unsuccessful congressional campaign, officials announced Tuesday.
The federal indictment charges Spectacle Entertainment vice president John Keeler and former Republican Sen. Brent Waltz, of Greenwood, with taking part in a scheme to direct more than $25,000 in illegal corporate contributions through straw donors to Waltz’s 2016 campaign.
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Keeler was then an executive of Centaur Gaming, which sold Indiana’s two horse track casinos in Anderson and Shelbyville to Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment Corp. in 2018 for $1.7 billion.
Messages seeking comment were left for Keeler and at a phone number previously listed for Waltz, who was a state lawmaker for 12 years before giving up his seat for the congressional run.
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Indianapolis-based Spectacle said in a statement that Keeler has taken administrative leave.
“It is important to remember that Mr. Keeler is presumed innocent of all charges,” the statement said. “Spectacle Entertainment will have no further comment at this time.”
The Indiana Gaming Commission this spring forced Keeler and fellow Spectacle executive Rod Ratcliff to give up their ownership stake in a planned new Terre Haute casino after a political consultant pleaded guilty in Virginia in January. The consultant had admitted to arranging for several people write campaign checks with casino company money funneled through a fake contract with for political work.
Ratcliff and Keeler, a lawyer who was a Republican legislator for 16 years in the 1980s and 90s, have been active lobbyists in the Indiana Legislature for many years on casino matters. They pushed lawmakers last year to allow the Gary casino’s move from along Lake Michigan to a more lucrative location along Interstate 80/94 in Gary. Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb faced a state ethics review last year of his dealings with Ratcliff.
Ratcliff, who is not named in the indictment and does not face any criminal charges, resigned in June as Spectacle’s chairman and CEO, in a move apparently not publicly announced by the company.
Ratcliff is no longer allowed “to exert any control or management” over the new Gary casino but remains a substantial owner of Spectacle, according to the Gaming Commission.
Spectacle’s announcement last week of the promotion of executive vice president Jahnae Erpenbach as chairwoman and CEO included no mention of Ratcliff. A company spokeswoman didn’t immediately reply to a request for an explanation of his departure.
IGC Executive Director Sara Gonso Tait issued an emergency suspension of Keeler’s Level One casino license Tuesday.
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In a release, Tait said, "This matter is extremely serious. The ability for this company to continue to hold an Indiana gaming license is in question. The remaining Board of Managers have urgent questions to answer.
To say the allegations outlined in the court documents are disappointing is a vast understatement."
In the release, Tait also said the IGC has started its own probe into Spectacle and former Centaur Gaming key persons.
Ratcliff and Keeler were leaders of Centaur Gaming, which sold Indiana’s two horse track casinos in Anderson and Shelbyville to Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment Corp. in 2018 for $1.7 billion. They led a group that then formed Spectacle to buy the Gary casino operation.
According to the federal indictment, 15 people were recruited in the scheme to make maximum contributions of $2,700 to the Waltz campaign while they were illegally repaid from nearly $80,000 that originated from the casino company to the Virginia-based political firm Strategic Campaign Group.
Firm executives Charles O’Neil and Kelley Rogers have pleaded guilty in separate campaign finance violation and fraud cases.
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The indictment also charges Waltz with lying to FBI agents by telling them that $12,000 he received from Rogers was a retainer for Waltz to provide investment banking services. Waltz is also charged with falsely telling investigators he sold artwork and other items for more than $100,000 that he loaned his campaign, while two people not named in the indictment illegally gave him that money.
Waltz finished fourth in a five-candidate field in the 2016 Republican primary for the 9th Congressional District that stretches from the southern Indianapolis suburbs to Ohio River communities just north of Louisville, Kentucky.
The Indianapolis Star reported last year that Ratcliff treated Holcomb to private jet flights in 2018 as they traveled together for meetings hosted by the Republican Governors Association in Colorado and Arizona. But the state’s inspector general concluded the governor committed no wrongdoing as it determined the flights were provided to the governor’s group rather than Holcomb’s office.
The flights were among $500,000 Ratcliff and his companies contributed in 2018 to the Republican Governors Association, which gave Holcomb $7.6 million of the $14.5 million he spent on his 2016 election campaign.
Gary Mayor Jerome Prince declined to comment on the indictments Tuesday.
“Nearly every day I see the progress being made as the land based Hard Rock Casino of Northern Indiana is being built in the city of Gary and I think of how this will be an economic game changer for our city,” Prince said.
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“We will continue to work closely with all parties involved to see this project through to the completion and beyond,” Prince said.
Post-Tribune correspondent Carrie Napoelon contributed.