Illinois lawmakers are heading into a marathon weekend in Springfield as they race to finalize a state budget and approve incentives to keep the Bears in Illinois.

The big picture: While lawmakers are expected to pass a budget in the final hours of the session, many of the biggest decisions are still being negotiated behind closed doors.

Gov. JB Pritzker proposed a roughly $56 billion spending plan that includes:

• $250 million for his BUILD housing initiative.
• $500 million for the ongoing Quantum Park development on Chicago's Southeast Side.

What we're watching: Lawmakers still need to find roughly $150 million in additional revenue or spending cuts to balance the budget.

• Progressive Democrats are pushing for new taxes on wealthy residents, Republicans are calling for spending cuts, and lawmakers in both parties are eyeing a delay to the state's scheduled gas tax increase.
• Chicago leaders are also lobbying Springfield for additional CPS funding as the district faces a projected $732 million budget deficit next year.

Friction point: The Bears' stadium incentive package remains in limbo.

• The proposal — which would offer tax breaks tied to a new stadium development — has stalled since the House passed a version of the bill in April.

The intrigue: The measure has drawn criticism from across the political spectrum, including from the Cook County Treasurer's office, which said this week the package could deliver close to $1.5 billion in tax breaks to the team over the next four decades.

• Now, Senate Democrats appear to be scaling back the proposal. Crain's reported that lawmakers are considering narrowing the bill so that incentives would apply only to the Bears project rather than to broader developments statewide.

The bottom line: The clock is ticking.

Go deeper

Local public media is starting to feel the impact of federal funding cuts.

The latest: National Public Radio announced layoffs and voluntary buyouts this week, including veteran reporters Don Gonyea and Nell Greenfieldboyce.

The big picture: The network — whose programming is widely aired on WBEZ-FM locally — blamed Congress' rollback of federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

State of play: When Congress voted to cut funding, analysts warned that smaller, university-run stations across Illinois would likely be hit harder than major outlets like WBEZ.

Reality check: They were right.

• WEIU-TV in Charleston announced recently that it is shutting down after more than 40 years. The station — which also served as a training ground for Eastern Illinois University students — relied on federal funding to operate.
• The station ended its PBS affiliation in October and will now go off the air.

The intrigue: As stations like WEIU-TV fold, Illinois lawmakers quietly moved to shield public media outlets at state universities from politically motivated funding cuts.

• A bill passed by the General Assembly would protect university license holders and journalists from retaliation for coverage critical of the government.

Zoom out: So far, Chicago's major public media outlets haven't announced cuts tied to the federal funding rollback.

• In fact, WBEZ is adding staff, including two full-time state government reporters funded through a new partnership with Illinois Public Broadcasters.
• The station also announced that it is bringing Vocalo back to its airwaves. The former sister station was cut in 2024, but the brand maintained an active digital presence.
• The rebooted version — "The Vocalo Hotline" — launches Friday as a live-music call-in show hosted by Nudia Hernandez.

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✝️ During his conversation with Pope Leo yesterday, Mayor Brandon Johnson invited the pontiff to officiate a Mass in Grant Park next year. No word if the Pope accepted. (Tribune)

The FBI is investigating a deadly shooting that involved an agent near Homan Square yesterday. (ABC 7)

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⚽️ Chicago Fire FC goalkeeper Chris Brady was named to the U.S. World Cup roster. Brady grew up in Naperville. (NBC 5)

This year, meteorologist and local media personality Brant Miller is celebrating his 35th anniversary at NBC 5.

The latest: To honor the occasion, NBC 5 is airing "Meet the Millers: Chicago's First Family of Weather," a documentary that peeks behind-the-scenes at the working relationship between Miller and his son, Joey Miller, who also produces forecasts at the station.

What they're saying: "I've spent 35 years guiding Chicago through everything from blizzards to heat waves, but the moment my son joined me in the NBC 5 Weather Center became one of the proudest in my career," Miller said in a press release.

• "Working with my dad is equal parts chaos, comedy, and genuine pride, and this special captures all of it," Joey Miller added.

When to watch: The documentary premieres tomorrow at 6pm on NBC 5.

In honor of Miller's 35th anniversary at the station, we asked him to provide what his perfect day in Chicago would look like, depending on the weather:

🥪 Breakfast: "Manny's Deli. Grab my tray and silverware, give the nod to Gino, slicing the meats. Order a pastrami Reuben on rye with a potato pancake (hold the applesauce)."

🛠️ Morning activity: "Assess what's broken, what I can defer, and what's in need of immediate repair. Let the tinkering begin!"

🥩 Lunch: "Choose between an Italian beef (dipped) with sweet peppers, a Chicago dog with everything on it, a gyro with extra tzatziki, or all three. No limp fries! Crinkle or fresh cut, well done."

More of Brant Miller's perfect day

This weekend, several Chicago-area high schools will hold graduation ceremonies.

State of play: That's a good enough reason for today's quiz: Chicago high schools. Sure, you know their names, but do you know where they are located?

Last week's quiz on street festivals was way too hard. There were 26 winners for the stadium hijinks quiz, but only one winner from last week.

• Congrats to Matt R.!

Take the high school quiz here