A life raft for homeowners behind on taxes: The Rundown

Good afternoon! It’s Monday, and I finished reading “Project Hail Mary” after obsessing over the movie for months. From now on, this is how my friends should check on me when I seem out of it. Here’s what you need to know today.

1. Illinois lawmakers passed a bill to help homeowners catch up with property taxes before losing their homes

After three years of noncompliance with a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Illinois lawmakers have passed a measure that would fundamentally change how counties and taxing bodies in the state can recoup delinquent property taxes.

For years, Illinois counties have sold property tax debt to investors who can ultimately seize the properties if their owners fail to redeem the delinquent property taxes, my colleague Nicole Jeanine Johnson writes. The high court ruled it was unconstitutional to withhold the surplus equity from property owners who lose their properties in the process. Illinois is the only state affected by the ruling that has not yet reformed its property tax debt system.

Late Saturday night, by an 80-35 vote, the Illinois House approved a measure to comply with the ruling. The Illinois Senate approved the measure on Thursday. The legislation, which now awaits Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature, creates a payment plan option, expands the redemption period and creates a surplus equity fund for homeowners at risk of losing their homes

In the current system, Cook County can put tax liens on properties with at least one year of delinquent property taxes and sell those tax liens or certificates at the annual tax sale. [WBEZ/Chicago Sun-Times]

Over the weekend, state lawmakers also passed a $56 billion budget that funds increased food assistance through new taxes on prediction markets and crypto. [Chicago Sun-Times]

What didn’t pass: a proposal to fund a new stadium for the Chicago Bears in Illinois. Gov. JB Pritzker said his “principles have remained intact” throughout the five-year saga. [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. Spencer Leak Jr. of Leak and Sons Funeral Homes, which handled the funerals of Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. and many more, died at 56

One of three sons of Spencer Leak Sr., he helped run the family funeral homes for more than 45 years as they grew and remained a staple of the South Side’s Black community, my colleagues Violet Miller and Mariah Rush report.

Leak Jr.’s family described his death as “sudden” but didn’t immediately share the cause of his death. They praised him as a ”family man, champion of Chicago’s businesses and a generous mentor to entrepreneurs across our city.”

The family has handled the funerals of several notable Chicagoans through the years, including soul singer Sam Cooke, comedian Bernie Mac, rapper Juice WRLD and drug kingpin William Morris “Flukey” Stokes. Earlier this year, they hosted the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.’s funeral.

The Leak family has been in the funeral business since 1933, when the Rev. Andrew Leak, Mr. Leak Jr.’s grandfather, started the funeral home with what he saved from working as a bathroom attendant at the Chicago World’s Fair and a loan from his wife. He said he wanted Black Chicagoans to be able to bury their loved ones respectfully. [Chicago Sun-Times]

3. The ‘Broadview 6’ defendants reflected on a case doomed by the feds’ apparent misconduct

Free of the charges they faced for seven months, three of the defendants targeted in the high-profile prosecution spoke to the Chicago Sun-Times after the case fell apart and created a credibility crisis for Chicago’s top federal prosecutor.

Prosecutors accused the six of a felony conspiracy for being part of a crowd on Sept. 26 whose members surrounded an immigration agent’s SUV and pushed, scratched and otherwise damaged it. Later, prosecutors sought to put the final four defendants on trial for misdemeanors.

They have stories to tell. About how Oak Park village trustee Brian Straw pressed legal issues in court when others might have given in. How 45th Ward Democratic committeeperson Michael Rabbitt confronted the trauma of his father’s federal prosecution in Missouri. And how former congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh ran a political campaign while under indictment.

You can read — and watch videos of — what they had to say in the link. [Chicago Sun-Times]

4. Evanston novelist Daniel Kraus says his biggest fear is dying before he can write it all down

Kraus, who recently won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for “Angel Down,” taps into a cavernous reservoir of stomach-churning, astonishing imagery in the novel and, happily for his fans, a wellspring in no danger of running dry.

“I don’t ever really get writer’s block,” he told the Chicago Sun-Times last week. “My issue with writing is that I’m going to die before I get everything out. I have so many books I want to write.”

As my colleague Stefano Esposito reports, Kraus is among the headliners at this year’s American Writers Festival, featuring some 90 writers June 6 at the American Writers Museum (180 N. Michigan Ave.) and June 7 at the Harold Washington Library Center (400 S. State St.). The novelist will appear with writer Susan Orlean at noon June 7 at the library center. The two will discuss cinematic adaptations of their work. [Chicago Sun-Times]

5. A Lake View shop brought the dirty soda trend to Chicago

Dirty soda — a customized iced drink mixing soda, flavored creams, syrups or fruit — has grown in popularity thanks to the Hulu reality TV show “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” which follows a group of Mormon mom influencers.

The viral concoction spurred the opening of family-owned Johnny’s Dirty Soda and Snacks, my colleague Mariah Rush reports for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Johnny’s has 18 customizable drinks, some coming in bright colors. The blue-colored Electric Slide is a mix of Sprite, blue raspberry and lime flavors with cold foam. My Leige mixes Dr. Pepper, cherry and vanilla syrup with a spritz of cold foam.

“Chicago has everything,” co-owner Omar Ewaida said. “But we didn’t have a dedicated [soda] shop, and I think that [it’s] so super-cool for people that don’t drink coffee or don’t drink alcohol but still want something to drink and something fun.” [Chicago Sun-Times]

Here’s what else is happening

• The Trump administration illegally banned transgender troops from the military, an appeals court ruled. [AP]
• Artificial intelligence giant Anthropic will sell stock to the public. [NPR]
• Taylor Swift will have an original song on the “Toy Story 5” soundtrack. [Deadline]
• Here’s a virtual tour of bookstores owned by famous authors across the U.S. (Alas, none of these is in Illinois, but I’m keeping them in mind when I travel.) [AP]

Oh, and one more thing …

The resort area of southwest Michigan along Lake Michigan is wildly popular with Chicagoans in summer and fall, offering sophisticated dining and shops, breweries, wineries, beaches, sunsets on Lake Michigan and a vacation vibe.

If you haven’t been in a couple of years, you’ll find Indiana’s coast, home of the Indiana Dunes National Park and Indiana Dunes State Park, is worth more than a hiking or gas-station stop, arts contributor Jan Parr writes.

Though the towns along the lake are small and don’t have centers of commerce, many exciting new places have sprung up on U.S. Route 12, the scenic drive that skirts the lake’s edge.

You can see our guide (which I’m definitely bookmarking for this summer) in the link. [WBEZ/Chicago Sun-Times]

Tell me something good …

It’s Pride Month, and I’m wondering: What is your favorite book, movie, TV show or other media with a prominent LGBTQ+ storyline?

Feel free to email me, and your response may be included in the newsletter this week.