Seven of the civil rights agency’s 12 regional offices were entirely laid off, including busy hubs in New York, Chicago and Dallas. Despite assurances that the department’s work will continue unaffected, huge numbers of cases appear to be in limbo.

Supporters of the ban said it would strike a necessary blow against animal cruelty, while opponents said it would harm Chicago businesses.

The downtown facility aims to meet the “unprecedented demand” for Real IDs while easing strain on DMV operations, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.

The Chicago City Council voted 34-15 Wednesday to pay $280,000 to activist Miracle Boyd, who was struck by a Chicago police officer during a protest in Grant Park near the Christopher Columbus statue in July 2020.

The CTA board of directors approved the purchase of cameras aimed at catching bus lane scofflaws on Wednesday, making good on a plan announced last year as part of a pilot program.

Tuesday’s escalation and retreat in the ongoing trade war between the United States and Canada only compounded the rising sense of uncertainty in terms of how President Donald Trump’s tariff hikes affect the economies of both countries.

The Trump administration had already been whittling the agency’s staff, though buyout offers and the termination of probationary employees. After Tuesday’s layoffs, the Education Department’s staff will sit at roughly half of its previous 4,100, the agency said.

“The commission believes that strengthening trust in COPA now requires new leadership,” Commission for Public Safety and Accountability President Anthony Driver, Jr. and Vice President Remel Terry wrote, saying they had identified “critical failures of leadership (that) seriously undermine the quality and integrity of COPA’s work.”

After being extended multiple times, the deadline for needing a Real ID to travel domestically is finally approaching. But not everyone needs a Real ID. Who does and how can you make the process as quick and painless as possible?

Under new rules announced Monday, members of the public will be allowed to sign up for a 15-minute slot to inspect the gift room once every three months. Afterward, items will be donated to local Chicago charities, according to the mayor’s office.

Ald Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th Ward) is set to leave the City Council March 31 in order to lead the Chicago Park District, where he will oversee the city’s 600 parks and 6,000 employees.

For decades, the Presidential Management Fellows program was seen as a building block for the civil service with the expectation that the few who earned the position would one day become leaders in the federal workforce. Now the road ahead is uncertain.

In the last five years, voters in 33 Illinois counties have been asked if they want to consider separating from Chicago’s Cook County to form a new state. Each time, a majority said yes. Some politicians in neighboring Indiana seem up for the idea.

The funding freeze has sparked panic among grant recipients who are stranded outside their home countries without clarity on the future of their programs or the money needed to support themselves.

Budget Director Annette Guzman told WTTW News the dashboard was designed to answer questions she and her team fielded during the fraught negotiations over the city’s 2025 budget.

How Mayor Brandon Johnson did in his testimony before Congress. And what’s next for Deerfield-based Walgreens after being picked up by a private equity firm.