A plan proposed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel would charge downtown motorists a $2-a-day "congestion fee" to help fund a new CTA Green Line station near McCormick Place and establish express bus lanes downtown. more ›

Labor Day's not too far off but coming up sooner is a new tax hike on booze that might make that Labor Day picnic whiskey a touch more expensive if you wait until after September 1 - when the hike goes into effect - to hit the liquor store. Distilled spirits have the highest increase, with a fifth going up from $0.90 per bottle (to a total of $1.71 a bottle), a bottle of wine jumps by $0.13 to $0.28 a bottle, and beer goes up to $0.13 a six-pack. So, as always, the cheapest option is to just buy a case of High Life and see where the day takes you. [Tribune] more ›

The Reader's Mick Dumke has an interesting solution for how to help the City close that budget gap: legalize marijuana and tax it. Mayor Daley has supported decriminalizing marijuana in the past (before he was against it). And Lord knows he loves to tax stuff. This could possibly work. But it's only a matter of time before he privatizes more ›

As if we needed another tax, a group of dentists are descending upon Springfield with the hopes of adding a five percent tax to soda. The Illinois State Dental Society says it would use the proceeds from the tax to help fund a dental program that serves the state's poorer residents. According to the group's Greg Johnson, the extra proceeds would help cover costs for dentists, hopefully encouraging more dentists to participate. He told WBBM, "This is one that we think, because of the sugar in soft drinks and the acid and effects on teeth, that it would be a nice tie in because it is related." The City of Chicago already has a three percent soda tax. [WBBM] more ›

As the sun sets on another year, it's a time for reflection and appreciation. We've had a blast covering the news, arts, events, food, drink, and everything in between of Chicago this year and we thank our readers for coming along for the ride. From Obama's campaign to Blago's arrest, this year has given us all sorts of ups and downs, and we're looking forward to another unpredictable and amazing year. Thanks for a fantastic 2008 and we'll see you back here tomorrow morning to get a jump on what promises to be an exciting 2009. more ›

The long-threatened lawsuit challenging the city's bottled water tax was finally filed in Cook County Circuit Court yesterday, five days after the tax went into effect. more ›