News Coverage: Rules Committee

It seems that the city isn't yet ready to comply with a request from Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office.

The request, written in a memo to Mayor Richard M. Daley's office last Friday, orders the city to release the names of applicants under consideration for two open aldermanic seats. City officials previously denied Freedom of Information requests for the applicants' names from the Current and other news organizations.

Daley is expected to recommend his picks on Wednesday, but so far, I've had no luck getting an advance look at who he's considering.

City officials have said it would be an invasion of privacy and perhaps jeopardize the jobs of applicants if it released their names. But Madigan's office said the applicants' right to privacy does not outweigh the public's right to know who might represent the city's 1st and 29th wards. Read more...

Cook County Board commissioners yesterday shelved an ordinance that would eliminate the remaning half percent of the sales tax hike, calling it a political ploy designed to rally voters before next week's primary elections.

Republican Commissioner Tony Peraica introduced the ordinance, which would require the remainder of the penny-on-the-dollar increase to expire Oct. 1.

But Democrat Commissioner Larry Suffredin said moving so quickly to roll back the tax would hurt county residents. Read more...