Cook County Board Approves Proposed Sugary Beverages Tax
A penny-an-ounce tax on sugary and artificially sweetened drinks has been adopted by the Cook County Board of Commissioners in Chicago.
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A penny-an-ounce tax on sugary and artificially sweetened drinks has been adopted by the Cook County Board of Commissioners in Chicago.
County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said the sugary beverage tax would help close a $174 million budget gap and avoid layoffs.
The most controversial issue at the moment in Cook County politics is not even something on which you can vote Tuesday.
The price of a pop could go up next summer in Cook County. Board President Toni Preckwinkle has proposed a new tax on sweetened drinks in her budget address on Thursday.
Retailers were speaking out Wednesday amid published reports Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is considering a new tax on sugary soft drinks, up to a penny an ounce.
Cook County has made a major upgrade to its official government website, and officials said it's truly user-friendly now.
Cook County government and healthcare officials on Tuesday applauded the American Medical Association's decision to declare gun violence is a public health crisis that requires federally funded research.
Dr. Stephen Cina took over in 2012 after the previous medical examiner resigned amid criticism that bodies were stacking up in the morgue. Preckwinkle says Cina took the office from "crisis to full accreditation."
It has sat vacant for nearly 15 years, and become a popular target for graffiti artists, but the old Cook County Hospital building could get new life as a hotel and apartment building, with stores at ground level.
A CBS 2 and Better Government Association investigation found that Cook County has failed to collect up to $20 million in fines for the tax violations.
When the office lost accreditation in 2011, there was a shortage of staff, and overcrowding that led to bodies being stacked on top of each other.
Members of the Cook County Board spoke to county department heads on Tuesday about how the state's budget impasse is affecting local services.
Cook County has launched a two-year program to try to better identify people who have trouble putting food on the table for their families and getting them help.
Civic leaders and representatives of the Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities came together today to denounce the anti-Muslim, anti-refugee sentiment that has been picking up steam around the country.
Ousted Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy appeared Friday at a public event with his former boss, Mayor Emanuel, and Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez.
The continued tension over the Laquan McDonald case was a hot topic Friday morning at an annual prayer breakfast attended by some of the state's leading politicians, business leaders, and clergy.
The head of the Chicago's official tourism agency has warned a planned Cook County hotel tax could hurt the city's convention industry, but Mayor Rahm Emanuel seemed less concerned.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle has said she has enough votes to approve a new countywide tax on ammunition for handguns and rifles.
There had been a lot of opposition to the amusement tax hike, which would have hit cable-television customers, bowlers, golfers and others involved with for-profit sports activities.
Three months after pushing through a plan to raise sales taxes by a penny on the dollar, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle is seeking some more new taxes to balance the budget next year.
The Inspector General's 15-page report also refers to Cook County's animal control unit as "efficiently operated," but says there is an "over-reliance on euthanasia."
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle met with a group of anti-violence activists on the South Side on Wednesday, and announced the county would spend $500,000 on so-called "restorative justice" programs in an effort to help prevent ex-cons from going back to court or jail, and to curb violent crime.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle was making her final pitch for a sales tax hike, as the Cook County Board met Wednesday to debate a tax increase she railed against five years ago.
Board President Toni Preckwinkle is seeking to reinstate the tax -- first enacted during the administration of predecessor Todd Stroger -- primarily to cover the county's pension shortfall.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said Tuesday she will present a preliminary budget plan that includes a proposal to increase the county sales tax she spent years rolling back.
Police said the victim suffered cuts to his neck and the left side of his body and was taken to Stroger Hospital in fair condition.
Witnesses called 911 to report an overturned kayak with fishing gear, but no one was around it.
Joabe Barbosa became the first person to have run every street in Chicago, finishing his quest at Buckingham Fountain on Sunday morning.
The former president spent time with families and community members on the center's playground on Sunday.
The White Sox trailed 1-0 and had one hit before they smacked six straight hits off Dodgers starter Emmet Sheehan and reliever Jack Dreyer to open the sixth.
The U.S. and Iran are expected to meet for a signing ceremony on Friday, June 19, in Switzerland, Pakistan's prime minister said.
Paramount Skydance's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would not harm U.S. consumers or weaken competition, DOJ antitrust enforcers said.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill Friday that restricts the sale of intoxicating hemp products to the same ages as recreational marijuana.
A federal appellate court denied a last-minute attempt by the Trump administration to stop the removal of President Trump's name from the Kennedy Center on Friday.
The Pentagon on Friday released a new group of documents and videos related to UFOs, or UAPs, with 72 more documents, images and recordings.
An Illinois law banning "swipe fees" on taxes and tips — already delayed twice by lawmakers — appears to be on life support after a federal judge that once permitted it issued a permanent injunction against it this week.
A new study from the Cook County Treasurer's office underlines growing concerns about the impact the Illinois megaprojects bill could have on the county's property tax base and overall fiscal health.
As thousands of Chicagoans wrap up road trips over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, gas prices in the city have reached the highest levels seen in four years.
Consumer and environmental advocates said Monday that they found overcharges buried in the most recent rate-hike request by Nicor.
One week away from Memorial Day weekend and the unofficial start of the summer travel season, with gas prices remaining high, negotiations were set to resume Monday at the largest oil refinery in the Midwest.
Dr. Peter Stafford was working with a missionary group in the Congo when he came down with the virus last month.
While 330 Ebola infections are confirmed in central Africa and huge challenges remain, hundreds more suspected cases "have been cleared out," the WHO says.
June is World Infertility Awareness Month, and Northwestern Medicine on Monday shared the story of a woman who is celebrating the birth of her second child after a tumor disrupted her fertility.
The Centennial Park Aquatic Center in the southwest Chicago suburb of Orland Park has been closed to the public after two recent cases of E. coli infection.
Menopause can feel like a major turning point for millions of women, with symptoms like fatigue, weight gain, and brain fog can make women feel like their bodies aren't their own.
Daley's Restaurant, known as Chicago's oldest, has served Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood for more than 130 years.
Walgreens is set to close in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood on Thursday, and there's growing concern about where families will get their medications.
The owners of Gene & Georgetti steakhouse are suing a concessions operator over their expansion at Midway International Airport.
DraftKings announced Monday that it is closing its sportsbook operation at Wrigley Field after only about two years.
After more than 80 years, there will be no Ann Sather restaurant location in the 900 block of West Belmont Avenue in Chicago's Lakeview community, effective in June.
Rio de Janeiro's Military Fire Department said one of the helicopters crashed in the parking lot of a car dealership, where several electric vehicles were parked, igniting a fire.
Actress Sarah Jessica Parker addressed the Class of 2026 at Northwestern University at their commencement ceremony at the United Center Sunday.
Forty years ago last weekend, crowds turned out for the Chicago Blues Festival — an event studded with a roster of stars for a spectacle that's still talked about today.
Visitors will soon be able to check out the set from CBS' "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" in Chicago, at the Museum of Broadcast Communications.
"Schmigadoon!" — which was tied for the most nominations, with 12 — won Best Musical, and "Liberation" took home the honor of Best Play at the 2026 Tony Awards.
Arlington Heights police said the sexual assault occurred on the afternoon of June 13 at the top level of the Eastman Parking Garage, at 155 E. Eastman St. near Arlington Heights Road and Miner Street.
The crash happened just after the plane took off from Butler Memorial Airport, about 65 miles south of Kansas City.
Witnesses called 911 to report an overturned kayak with fishing gear, but there was no person around.
The spokesperson did not disclose what led to the hospitalization, but said McConnell is receiving “excellent care.”
ComEd has mobilized more than 3,000 employees, including line workers, tree crews, and damage assessors, along with help from other utility partners to get things restored as quickly as possible.
Teams from the National Weather Service on Sunday will be surveying damage caused by severe storms that brought tornado touchdowns to the Chicago area and other parts of northern Illinois last week.
The U.S. and Iran are expected to meet for a signing ceremony on Friday, June 19, in Switzerland, Pakistan's prime minister said.
Joabe Barbosa became the first person to have run every street in Chicago, finishing his quest at Buckingham Fountain on Sunday morning.
Police said the victim suffered cuts to his neck and the left side of his body and was taken to Stroger Hospital in fair condition.
Only a couple of nights after severe storms brought 11 tornado touchdowns to northern Illinois and Northwest Indiana, another storm system was to blame for even more damage.
The Crisis Alternative Response Evanston, or CARE, team responds to calls that, before July 2024, would have been lumped into police calls.
The system will provide all heating, cooling, and ventilation for the high school's new physical education facilities and contribute to the school system, saving the district nearly $400,000 a year.
The forecast for a summer reopening of West Suburban Medical Center in Oak Park is growing cloudy, as negotiations continue between the owners and landlord, after the safety net hospital abruptly shuttered its doors in March.
The Obama Presidential Center has been built with sustainability literally in its foundation. But its infrastructure for clean energy, environmentalism and climate change resiliency will also help the communities around it on Chicago's South Side.
A driver in Carol Stream says a band of hungry squirrels caused nearly $30,000 in damage to three different luxury vehicles because of plant-based parts they view as a tasty snack.
The White Sox trailed 1-0 and had one hit before they smacked six straight hits off Dodgers starter Emmet Sheehan and reliever Jack Dreyer to open the sixth.
Logan Webb and Caleb Kilian combined on a seven-hitter and the San Francisco Giants beat the Chicago Cubs 5-1 to avoid a series sweep.
Pete Crow-Armstrong homered on the first pitch of the game and the Chicago Cubs hit two more home runs in a 6-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Saturday night.
The New York Knicks captured their first NBA championship since 1973 with a 94-90 win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Saturday night.
The 27-year-old Yamamoto struck out seven in his fourth consecutive victory. He threw 109 pitches, 74 for strikes.
A SWAT response at an apartment building ended with people in custody in the west Chicago suburb of Addison early Sunday.
Police in Arlington Heights, Illinois, were searching for a man accused of sexually assaulting a girl at the top of a parking garage this weekend.
After the Knicks won the NBA title, the NYPD said dozens of rowdy fans climbed onto a row of school buses, ripped off the hoods, smashed windshields and lit one of fire.
A man was shot and killed in Chicago's Roseland community Saturday night.
It's the second time this year that authorities detained a stowaway holding a huge stash of drugs in the same harbor.
