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Eligible homeowners and business owners would be able to have their water bills lowered if they can prove their higher bill is the result of leak in the underground service line.
David Steele got the $5,000 refund he'd been wanting for months, but didn't get an explanation why the city suddenly changed its mind.
Glenn Jones can't sell the vacant house until he figures out the water bill issue with the city.
Through our "Getting Hosed" series on bad water bills, we have found that often communication issues between different city systems have often been the source of the headaches.
Even after David Steele won the first round in his dispute over his bogus water bill, the city figured out a way to hose him again.
The Chicago City Council Finance Committee held a hearing Tuesday with the heads of the Water Management and Finance departments.
A week-by-week log of meter readings showed zero water usage on some entries. Other times, the report came back at 6 million gallons used in a week.
The family knew they had unpaid water charges to settle before selling their three-flat in Roseland, but nothing like the amount they got.
The circumstances vary from case to case, of course, but in short, the pattern involves Chicagoans getting socked with bills for water they didn't use.
"You've got people walking around on fixed income and they can't afford to pay a $500 bill," Burns said. "I would like to see mistakes corrected and I would like to see communication. There's no communication!"
"It's just nuts to me that we have this issue that continues to be reported, on and the city departments are not doing anything about it," Villegas said.
Numerous people whose stories we've reported over the past four years have been getting hosed by bogus bills - often rising into the tens of thousands of dollars.
This did not happen until the CBS 2 Investigators got involved.
Connie Abels has been waiting five years for her hearing.
The homeowner was just being an honest guy and alerted the Chicago Department of Water Management to his unusually low bill.
"The issue with being a city employee is we are obligated to pay any city obligation," said paramedic Lisa Beard.
In Chicago when you die, ComEd shuts off your electricity, and Peoples Gas shuts off your gas. But the city does not stop your water.
Illinois' lead pipe situation is the worst in the country.
Yasser Almanaseer said he has had no luck in getting it fixed.
How does a City of Chicago water bill for $70 turn into a $10,000 tab from one bill to the next?
Getting Hosed, our exposé on Chicago's bad water billing, has saved consumers hundreds of thousands of dollars. So we wanted to know - what happens if you take on the City yourself?
"They told me to hire a good lawyer, that this is probably a billing issue with the city."
Aldermen voted against Ald. Daniel La Spata's proposal for helping low-income residents with water bills, while a competing proposal from Mayor Lori Lightfoot remains bottled up in a separate committee.
Hundreds of thousands of Chicagoans with unmetered accounts pay inflated bills – and you can't get a meter for a fair bill until you get a non-lead service line.
Rodney Andrews — a Vietnam Veteran, a Chicago cabbie, and our main protagonist — was among those "Getting Hosed" by the City until we fixed his water bill. Then, out of the blue, the City had his garage bulldozed.
Nikola Vucevic scored 19 points and 10 assists to lead the Bulls, whose season-high three-game winning streak ended.
Idalia Corcoles' attorneys said she suffered internal bleeding that went untreated for hours after liposuction.
The train was stopped in the town of Hastings, about 20 miles from St. Paul, due to "switch issues," according to Amtrak's train status website.
Crundwell, now 71, admitted to embezzling more than $53 million from the tiny town in western Illinois over 22 years.
Booser went 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA, one save and 43 strikeouts in 43 relief appearances with the Red Sox in his first season in the majors in 2024.
Several City Council members have called the school board's vote to fire Martinez without cause reckless and irresponsible.
Because Martinez was fired without cause, his contract allows him to stay on the job for another six months, and receive 20 weeks of severance pay.
Martinez was at Luther Burbank Elementary, 2035 N. Mobile Ave., as the Special Olympics recognized the school for excellence in inclusive sports programming.
Henyard had named three people to serve as police chief, village administrator, and village attorney without approval from the village board.
Many, including alderpersons and the members of the incoming elected school board, are denouncing the planned agenda.
The strike was deliberately authorized in the midst of the busy holiday delivery season nationwide for a reason—with the Teamsters Union pushing the company for a contract.
The oysters were sold as Fanny Bay, Buckley Bay, and Royal Miyagi.
Customers said contractors from the company, Orange Elephant Roofing & Solar, seemed simply to disappear into thin air. But that is only the tip of the iceberg.
Anyone who has an affected Connie's Pizza in the freezer should either throw it out or bring it back to the store for a refund.
The Chicago-based company is accused of tricking diners about delivery fees, misleading drivers about pay, and listing restaurants on its platform without permission.
Some 13 oz. bags of Lay's Classic Potato Chips may contain an undeclared allergen, according to the snack company.
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services announced Wednesday that it had detected presumptive positive human case of H5N1 in Barron County.
The sisters share a special bond of getting a second chance at life, which they both received at the age of 38 years old.
An even larger investment of $500 million is going toward 10 new outpatient facilities throughout the South Side that will add 85,000 health care appointments each year.
Scientists used the NanoGripper to grab particles from the SARS-CoV2 virus that causes COVID-19.
The strike was deliberately authorized in the midst of the busy holiday delivery season nationwide for a reason—with the Teamsters Union pushing the company for a contract.
Owner Eddie Lakin made the announcement Wednesday. He said the last day for the restaurant at 1571 Sherman Ave. would be this coming Saturday, Dec. 21.
This move was anticipated back in the summer, and comes months after the mortgage company Guaranteed Rate changed its name simply to Rate.
Both President Biden and President-elect Trump have vowed to block the $15 billion acquisition on national security grounds.
The bar has been in the ownership of the same family since 1989.
Taylor also played two nights at Ravinia this past June.
Mindy Kaling and Morris Chestnut announced the nominations for the 82nd annual Golden Globes, with 10 nominees revealed live on CBS News.
The lawsuit alleges the unidentified girl was raped at a Video Music Awards afterparty in 2000.
Social media sleuths noticed that the house next door to the iconic "Home Alone" house in Winnetka is now up for sale.
Here are the top songs, artists, and albums streamed on Spotify in Chicago this year, according to communications agency Burson Global.
CBS News Chicago meteorologist David Yeomans has the latest 7-day forecast.
Thirty-six kids from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago have holiday gifts this year, thanks to nurses at Lurie Cancer Center at Northwestern Medicine.
A funeral was held Saturday for 14-year-old Rubi Patricia Vergara, who died in a school shooting in Madison, Wisconsin. A teacher also was killed in the attack.
A man drove into a Texas mall after a 19-mile police chase, hitting four people before officers shot and killed him. A fifth person went to the hospital on their own.
A court has awarded $66 million to the family of a Chicago mother of four who died due to complications from plastic surgery in 2019.
A Level 1 hazardous materials response also was initiated. According to unconfirmed fire dispatch reports, there were explosions inside the building after the fire started.
Several City Council members have called the school board's vote to fire Martinez without cause reckless and irresponsible.
When officers arrived, they saw a gunman shooting at an individual on the ground. The suspect then fired at officers, hitting their squad car.
Nikola Vucevic scored 19 points and 10 assists to lead the Bulls, whose season-high three-game winning streak ended.
Idalia Corcoles' attorneys said she suffered internal bleeding that went untreated for hours after liposuction.
"San Antonio has really led the way in using aerial surveillance technology to prevent these activities," said Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd), who chairs the City Council Public Safety Committee.
Customers said contractors from the company, Orange Elephant Roofing & Solar, seemed simply to disappear into thin air. But that is only the tip of the iceberg.
Survivors, advocates and experts have weighed in on Mayor Brandon Johnson's pledge to create a task force to study the safety of Black women in Chicago.
The Chicago-based company is accused of tricking diners about delivery fees, misleading drivers about pay, and listing restaurants on its platform without permission.
Now-retired Joliet police Sgt. Javier Esqueda was charged in connection with leaking squad car video of a man who died in Joliet police custody.
Nikola Vucevic scored 19 points and 10 assists to lead the Bulls, whose season-high three-game winning streak ended.
Booser went 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA, one save and 43 strikeouts in 43 relief appearances with the Red Sox in his first season in the majors in 2024.
Tyler Bertuzzi had two goals and an assist, and Connor Bedard added a goal and two assists for the Blackhawks.
Rickey Henderson is widely considered to be one of the best leadoff hitters and base stealers in baseball.
Jeremiyah Love tied the Notre Dame record with a 98-yard touchdown run, Riley Leonard added two more scores and the Fighting Irish shut down the highest-scoring team in the College Football Playoff, overwhelming Indiana 27-17 on Friday night.
With the holidays fast approaching, many Lincoln Parkers want others to be aware and stay safe as they get ready to travel.
It happened around 4 a.m. at Eddie's Market in the 11000 block of South Halsted Street.
Richard Allen was sentenced to 65 years for each death, totaling 130 years in prison.
Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, 22, had been facing hate crime and terrorism charges in an attack on a Jewish man in late October. He has since died by suicide in custody
Damonte McCorkle is charged with aggravated kidnapping, two counts of aggravated carjacking, and armed robbery.
