Good afternoon, Chicago.
Mayor Brandon Johnson issued a hiring freeze on city government positions today as his administration faces a nearly $1 billion budget shortfall next year.
A statement sent out by his budget office said “Effective today, we are enacting a series of budgetary restrictions, including a citywide hiring freeze, and stringent limitations on non-essential travel and overtime expenditures outside of public safety operations.” The statement did not say how many vacant positions or how much savings that amounts to.
Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.
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Cannabis Research Institute opens in Chicago, looking to dig deep into marijuana
The institute’s leader hopes to break new ground in finding medical uses for cannabis, possibly for the treatment of cancer. Read more here.
More top news stories:
- Eleven people robbed at gunpoint within a half hour on Southwest Side early Monday
- Voters will decide Nov. 5 whether Glencoe should have home rule
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Instagram-popular Palatine home sells for $950,000
Built in 1885, the Victorian-style wood house on Plum Grove Road long has been the subject of a popular Instagram feed, @happilyeveretter. Read more here.
More top business stories:
- Morton Grove partners with RTA to boost retail on Dempster Street
- DirecTV files complaint against Disney with FCC as impasse enters 2nd week

No ‘wow’ plays for QB Caleb Williams, but a Week 1 win: Brad Biggs’ 10 thoughts on the Chicago Bears
The much-hyped debut of No. 1 draft pick Caleb Williams will be remembered more for a defensive surge in the second half. Read more here.
More top sports stories:
- Column: Like Midwestern chili in the fall, Big Ten football in Week 2 was a little spicy
- NWSL roundup: Chicago Red Stars fall to the Orlando Pride; Alex Morgan retires with the San Diego Wave
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Review: ‘Royko: The Toughest Man in Chicago’ at Chopin Theatre lets the man and his words take center stage
How much you will enjoy the piece depends on your interest in Chicago history and how much you find the humor in mayoral malapropisms (of father and son), aldermanic antics and ethnic stereotypes. Read more here.
More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories:
- ‘Shogun’ wins record-breaking 14 Emmys at Creative Arts ceremony as Jamie Lee Curtis gets her first for ‘The Bear’
- Morgan Wallen leads the 2024 Country Music Association award noms, Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ snubbed

Mother’s warning to Georgia school raises questions about moments before shooting
The mother of a student at the Georgia high school where a teen allegedly killed four people says information indicating staff were warned he was having a crisis shows the shooting could have been prevented. Read more here.
More top stories from around the world: