October 19–25, 2026
Cook County locked in new data privacy rules for immigrants, the City Council set a date for next year's budget hearing, and two federal laws took effect.
Your data and immigration enforcement. The most concrete change this week came from the Cook County Board. A new policy, now adopted, bars county workers and any company with a county contract from sharing your Social Security number, home address, driver's license number, or financial information with immigration enforcement agents. The only exceptions are a criminal warrant or a court order. Vendors who receive personal data through county contracts also cannot sell it to data brokers or use it for commercial purposes. The county's Inspector General will audit compliance. This is now in effect.
On the public record. The Chicago City Council set December 8, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. in the Council Chamber as the date for the public hearing on the city's 2027 budget proposal. That's the official moment for residents to speak on record before alderpersons vote on next year's spending plan. Mark it.
Federal laws now in effect. A new federal law (HR 227) gives ordained ministers, nuns, and Christian Science practitioners a two-year window to rejoin Social Security and Medicare after previously opting out for religious reasons. If you or someone in your household took that exemption years ago, this reopens the door to future retirement and Medicare benefits. Separately, a new law (HR 7022) allows wireless carriers to send emergency alerts, such as severe weather warnings and Amber Alerts, through satellite networks in addition to regular cell towers. Carriers can choose to opt in, and individual users would have the option to opt out of satellite delivery. That means better coverage in spots where your cell signal drops.
Several federal bills this week dealt with matters entirely outside Chicago: a Bureau of Land Management parcel sale in Sacramento and a San Francisco Bay cleanup funding bill.
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Coming up next week:
Cook County homeowner tax rescue. The county is weighing a plan to step in when a home is about to be sold for unpaid property taxes. Instead of letting a private investor buy the tax certificate, the county would purchase it and offer the homeowner a payment plan with no added interest charges. This measure cleared committee and has no firm floor vote date yet; it remains on the county's agenda.
Cook County Inspector General powers. A separate measure would give the county's watchdog office clearer authority to investigate elected officials without waiting for a complaint, review contracts and vendor spending, and run a toll-free anonymous tip line for reporting fraud or waste. Like the homeowner measure, it cleared committee and is awaiting a full board vote with no date confirmed. If you want to weigh in before that vote, reach out to your Cook County commissioner.
San Francisco Bay cleanup funding. Federal legislation (HR 1382) that expands restoration funding for San Francisco Bay cleared committee and heads toward a House floor vote with no date set. This one does not affect Chicago directly and is included here only for context.
See what's up for a vote now · Find your representatives