As top legislators emphasize affordability this session, several lawmakers are taking aim at regulating algorithmic pricing that uses consumers’ personal data.

Organized retail theft has been a felony in Illinois since 2023, through a law dubbed the INFORM Consumers Act, which broadly characterizes the crime as when someone knowingly steals at least $300 in merchandise from one or more stores with the intent of reselling it.

Current Illinois law allows employers to pay their tipped workers 60% of the state’s minimum wage. That amounts to $8.40 hourly, compared to the minimum wage of $14 per hour. If their wages plus tips do not equal minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.

Grocery stores remain one of the few places in Chicago where large numbers of people are still able to mingle, and that — rightfully — has put both employees and customers on edge.