By Shia Kapos

Good Thursday morning, Illinois. It’s City Council Day, so expect some shenanigans.

AT THE TABLE: The Chicago mayor’s office has been talking regularly, including this week, to Springfield lawmakers about how the Illinois General Assembly might be able to help Chicago as it faces a $538 million budget deficit — specifically related to asylum seekers.

A huge part of the deficit, as much as $200 million, is due to the cost of handling the growing number of immigrants arriving in Chicago by buses from Texas, sent by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, or by plane from New York, courtesy of FEMA and Democratic Mayor Eric Adams.

“The ask is to join forces intergovernmentally to advocate for federal support [to more effectively manage resettling new arrivals]. And it’s to look at capturing additional funds,” Cristina Pacione-Zayas, the mayor’s first deputy chief of staff, told Playbook.

Hashing it out: Pacione-Zayas, a former state senator, said the mayor’s office has met with General Assembly members twice this week and in August to talk about the budget and possible avenues for the state to help.

One idea is to beef up two budget lines that would fund the Illinois Welcoming Centers and Immigrant Integration Services. “New York does something similar,” Pacione-Zayas said.

The mayor’s mantra: He doesn’t want to raise property taxes.

The challenge: State lawmakers will meet next month to start their fall veto session, but that legislative action generally addresses existing legislation and doesn’t make funding decisions. We’ll see.

Today’s City Council won’t focus on the budget, but it will showcase a new policy initiative of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration: A city-owned grocery store for food deserts in some of Chicago’s neighborhoods.

RELATED

— Feasibility study will explore the possibility of a city-owned grocery store, by Tribune’s Gregory Royal Pratt

— The budget gap could reach $1.9B by 2026 if the economy tanks, writes Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman

— South Shore affordable housing protections to be proposed at City Council amid fears of Obama center gentrification, by Tribune’s Lizzie Kane and Alice Yin.

— OPINION: Plan for tent camps for immigrants is reminiscent of the ‘Hoovervilles’ of the Great Depression, writes Paul Vallas, who lost his bid for mayor earlier this year.

Madigan drama hits Biden-world: The Springfield #MeToo case that erupted in 2018 in former House Speaker Michael Madigan’s office prompted him to hire a public relations firm co-founded by Anita Dunn, who’s now a top adviser to President Joe Biden.

Fast forward to an Illinois courtroom: An email popped up in a recent corruption trial that revealed Dunn’s PR firm also was advising Alaina Hampton, who had accused the speaker’s office of harassment.

The seeming conflict of interest drew double-takes Wednesday from Democrats and women rights activists, including Hampton. “They never told me that they were also working for Michael Madigan and had they disclosed that with me, I would have never applied for legal funding or PR support with them," Hampton told NPR’s Tom Dreisbach, who broke the story.

It’s not unusual for big PR companies and law firms to create a wall within the organization to prevent conflicts of interest. SKDK (the D is for “Dunn”) said as much initially, according to NPR. But then it acknowledged an “error,” saying, "We apologize to Ms. Hampton and her allies and reiterate our full support for the survivor community.”

If you are Anita Dunn, Playbook would like to hear from you. Email [email protected]

No official public events.

In City Hall at 10 a.m. to preside over the City Council meeting, which will be live-streamed on the City of Chicago's social media channels — At the Chicago Cultural Center at 5:30 p.m. for a reception for members of the Chicago Consular Corps, volunteers of Chicago Sister City International.

Online at 6 p.m. to give virtual remarks at the Cook County Equity Fund Hearing.

Before you buy your apples, honey and pomegranates, send me a line: [email protected]

GO INSIDE THE WORLD’S BIGGEST DIPLOMATIC PLATFORM WITH UNGA PLAYBOOK: The 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly will jam some of the world's most influential leaders into four city blocks in Manhattan. POLITICO's special edition UNGA Playbook will take you inside this important gathering starting Sept. 17 — revealing newsy nuggets throughout the week and insights into the most pressing issues facing global decision-makers today. Sign up for UNGA Playbook.

— PRESTO-O, CHANGE-O: Joseph Severino is running again for the 10th congressional seat. But this time he says he’ll be running as a Democrat in the primary against U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider. “There is an absence of leadership and identity in the Republican Party. Particularly with the current Lake County Republican Board,” Severino said in a statement. “The interest is more transactional than community-centric. Therefore, I am running for the party that is more civic-minded and engaged in the community.”

— State Rep. Jeff Keicher (70th), a Republican businessman from Sycamore, will seek re-election to the Illinois General Assembly in 2024. The 70th District includes portions of DeKalb, Kane and McHenry Counties.

— CORRECTING: Chris Balkema is running for the Illinois state Senate in the 53rd District, which encompasses 13 counties that include Grundy, where he’s the county board chair. The seat is now held by Sen. Tom Bennett, who announced he’ll retire after 2024. Your Playbook host mistakenly listed details Wednesday about the 53rd House district.

— No cash bail set to start Monday in Illinois: Here’s what you need to know: “Starting on Monday at 12:01am, anyone suspected of committing a crime will have their case put into the new system. People arrested before then, or who are already being detained, will have to petition the court for a hearing under the new rules,” by WGN 9’s Tahman Bradley.

— Copay requirements paused for noncitizens on state health plan: “IDHFS says it’s not ready to implement cost-saving measure created by Pritzker administration,” by Capitol News’ Peter Hancock.

— Fermilab’s $1B accelerator project remains on hold during investigation into May accident that injured construction worker, by Tribune’s Robert Channick

— Examining the plans to tackle Illinois’ pension debt: “Over time, if we aren’t aggressive, we’ll end up running the state of Illinois as a sort of grand retirement plan,” Boston Consulting’s Marin Gjaja tells Better Government Association’s David Greising, via Tribune.

— Nearly 65 percent of homeless population in Chicago lives in doubled-up, temporary housing: “An analysis from the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless found that most people in “couch surfing” situations are on the city’s South and West sides,” by Sun-Times’ Elvia Malagón.

— Chicago Housing Authority leaseholders accuse management companies of retaliation, blast agency oversight: ‘They’re not dictators,’ by WTTW’s Nick Blumberg

— Ald. Lamont Robinson is out with his own 100-day report. He was busy. Read it here.

— NEW PODCAST: Help This Garden Grow is a docuseries about Hazel Johnson, known as “the mother of the environmental justice movement” and a resident of the Altgeld Gardens community on Chicago’s far South Side.

— Bears to pull back from Arlington Park tax-break legislation — at least for this fall: The Payments in Lieu of Taxes financing concept — contained in the bill sponsored by state Rep. Marty Moylan — could return in the new year, reports Daily Herald’s Christopher Placek.

— April Perry’s historic nomination as first female Chicago U.S. attorney to go before Senate Judiciary Committee: “Perry’s selection, which was announced by President Joe Biden three months ago, is among a dozen federal nominations to be considered at an executive meeting of the Judiciary Committee, which is chaired by Democratic Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin. The hearing will be livestreamed here beginning at 9 a.m. Chicago time,” by Tribune’s Jason Meisner.

— Allison Arwady was a guest lecturer in former Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s class at Harvard, according to a social media post. The course is focused on handling the pandemic. Arwady, the former commissioner of Chicago’s Public Health Department, and Lightfoot know something about that.

— William J. Quinlan was named president of Lawrence Hall's Board of Directors. Lawrence Hall helps children and teens affected by childhood trauma.

— Earvin “Magic” Johnson will be the keynote presenter at the Chicago Treasurer’s Office “Building Wealth Today for Tomorrow Career Fair and Financial Empowerment Summit” on Oct. 5 and 6. Details here

— Supervisor denies DCFS workers were ‘lazy’ at endangerment trial in death of 5-year-old AJ Freund, by Tribune’s Robert McCoppin

— Lake in the Hills woman charged in connection with U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, by Tribune’s Caroline Kubzansky

Enter the “room where it happens”, where global power players shape policy and politics, with Power Play. POLITICO’s brand-new podcast will host conversations with the leaders and power players shaping the biggest ideas and driving the global conversations, moderated by award-winning journalist Anne McElvoy. Sign up today to be notified of the first episodes in September – click here.

We asked what you think will come of the impeachment push.

Robert Barry: “It will energize/satiate the conservative base and create a platform to raise questions in the minds of voters about the president.”

 Elena Maria Gottreich: “An impeachment attempt against Joe Biden will result in a big nothing burger.”

Mark Michaels: "The House will vote not to indict. The endangered Republican House members will vote against indictment. And the other right-wing members can claim they tried, while Biden looks bad throughout the campaign."

Bill Utter: “No good will come except the further erosion of the Republican Party as a responsible political party capable of governing the country.”

What was the last political poll you took? Email [email protected]

— ‘You’re screwed': Romney’s exit threatens a collapse of Senate’s middle, by POLITICO’s Burgess Everett

— Haley gets a bounce in New Hampshire – right into the veepstakes, by POLITICO’s Lisa Kashinsky

— Newsom relishes role as Dem attack dog, by POLITICO’s Christopher Cadelago

— Patrick Waller is the new chief of the Special Prosecutions Bureau and Tene McCoy Cummings is deputy chief in the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. Waller has been with the office 18 years, most recently as deputy chief of the Special Prosecutions Bureau. And Cummings has been a prosecutor 21 years and most recently led the Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Division.

— Kate Durkin is now chief of staff in Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky's office. Durkin was legislative director.

— Quiwana Bell has been appointed by the governor as assistant secretary of Firearm Violence Prevention, a statewide initiative within the Illinois Department of Human Services. Bell has been chief development officer for the Westside Health Authority nonprofit.

— Frank Dery is now managing director at Berkeley Research Group global consulting. He joins from PricewaterhouseCoopers.

— Sunday at 2 p.m.: Prisoncast!, a program of music, interviews and information for people in prison and their loved ones, returns via wbez.org or on Illinois Public Radio stations.

— Sept. 25: Aviation expert Angela Gittens headlines a luncheon event titled “South Suburban Airport’s Promise.” It’s organized by the South Suburban Mayors & Managers Association, the Chicago Southland Economic Development Corporation, the Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce and Ida's Legacy. Details here

WEDNESDAY’s ANSWER: Long-time White Sox play-by-play announcer and Hall of Famer Bob Elson was appointed to a four-year term on the Illinois Racing Board.

TODAY’s QUESTION: Who was the Cook County probate judge who went on to become a two term governor of Illinois? Email [email protected]

Former Ald. Sandi Jackson, former Cook County Commissioner Jeff Tobolski, Regiment Securities investment banker Andrew Ross, community advocate Ayana Clark and graphics designer Karen Zane.

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