Illinois House Majority Leader Greg Harris, the highest-ranking openly gay lawmaker in Illinois history, said after 15 years, he’s ready to move on. His current term ends in 2023.

Chicago's updated travel advisory includes 38 states, announced Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health.

Every year, the start of the snow route ban catches hundreds of drivers unaware, forcing them to travel to the city’s auto pound — and pay at least $235 — to retrieve their cars, officials said.

“The many challenges of COVID-19, coupled with the inconvenience of life-threatening conditions that cold weather and extreme weather brings every year, that means we’ve got to utilize every tool that we can to protect the health and well-being of our residents,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Monday.

If 41 alderpeople do not agree on a map, the final decision could be made by voters for the first time in 30 years via a referendum.

Speaking Monday at the White House, Biden said it was inevitable that the new variant would reach the U.S., but he also said the country has the tools necessary to protect Americans — particularly the approved vaccines and booster shots.

The case being argued Wednesday comes from Mississippi, where a 2018 law would ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, well before viability. The Supreme Court has never allowed states to ban abortion before the point at roughly 24 weeks when a fetus can survive outside the womb.

As 2021 draws to a close, the 2022 election is already well underway and Chicago’s election in early 2023 is looming on the horizon. On a special holiday edition of “The Week in Review,” a look at what offices are on the ballot, who’s running, and the key issues at stake.

The long-awaited report by the Interior Department stops short of recommending an end to oil and gas leasing on public lands, as many environmental groups have urged. But officials said the report would lead to a more responsible leasing process that provides a better return to U.S. taxpayers.

Lawmakers in at least seven states considered eliminating use of “alien” and “illegal” in state statutes this year and replacing them with descriptions such as “undocumented” and “noncitizen,” according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The op-ed also raises the idea of doing away with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and says tribes would be “freed” of treaties with the federal government – an idea some Native Americans oppose.

Naperville Mayor Steve Chirico said that he supports Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s mitigation efforts but still believes Illinois should follow the other 44 states that do not have a mask mandate. 

Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi has vowed to fix what has been a broken assessment system, but it’s meant some big increases for business owners who say they can’t afford it.

The U.S. action is focused on helping Americans coping with higher fuel and other prices ahead of Thanksgiving and winter holiday travel. Gasoline prices are at about $3.40 a gallon, more than 50% higher than a year ago, according to the American Automobile Association. 

The number of residential and commercial evictions in Chicago and Cook County were 32% lower in October 2021 than in October 2019, according to data provided by the office of Cook County Chief Judge Tim Evans. October was the first full month with no restrictions on enforcing eviction judgements in Illinois.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot rejected the probe of the botched police raid in February 2019 that left Anjanette Young handcuffed while naked and pleading for help conducted by former Chicago Inspector General Joseph Ferguson as incomplete and once again declined to commit to publicly release its findings.