Good afternoon! Don’t be surprised if you see a bunch of drunk Vikings in Andersonville this weekend. Here’s what you need to know today.

1. Mayor Brandon Johnson’s $16 billion budget passed today despite questions about migrant funding

Several alderpersons said the city is being reckless by budgeting just $150 million for next year to help shelter and support migrants, Tessa Weinberg writes for WBEZ.

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration estimates the city could end up spending more than $361 million by the end of the year to help migrants who have arrived in the city since August 2022.

Meanwhile, Johnson is sticking to his campaign promise of not raising property taxes or decreasing funding for the Police Department. The budget also lays the groundwork for reinstituting a Department of Environment and piloting the reopening of two shuttered mental health clinics. [WBEZ]

The $16.77 billion budget relies on one-time revenue and hopes for federal and state funding. If that additional money doesn’t come through, the city will have to make hard choices between less-than-ideal options: midyear budget cuts and layoffs; draining reserves and endangering the city’s bond rating; or raising property taxes, Fran Spielman reports for the Chicago Sun-Times. [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. One year before Chicago’s first school board election, key details remain unresolved

Chicago education advocates landed long-sought legislation in 2021 to create the city’s first-ever elected school board. But with the elections a year away, many details are still unresolved — including even a few points that once again appear open to negotiation, my colleagues Sarah Karp and Nader Issa report.

Even the schedule for electing members to the board is in flux after Illinois Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, last week proposed moving elections for all 20 board members to next fall, instead of just the first 10.

And there hasn’t been any progress on noncitizens’ voting eligibility.

Advocates across the board support allowing noncitizens to vote in Chicago’s school board elections to give those communities representation. But lawmakers, citing constitutional issues, haven’t found a solution.

Other unresolved issues include board member compensation and campaign finance rules. [WBEZ]

3. A 3.6 magnitude earthquake shook central Illinois

The quake rattled Standard, Ill. — about 110 miles southwest of Chicago — around 4:40 a.m. There were no reports of injuries, but the U.S. Geological Survey said around 120 people reported feeling the vibrations.

No damage was reported.

“It shook my house. It wasn’t a rattle, I thought something hit the house. A lot of people were waking up,” said Administrative Lt. Doug Bernabei with the Peru Police Department, located several miles north of Standard.

In June 2016, a 2.9 magnitude earthquake was centered much closer to Chicago, about a mile west of suburban Lake in the Hills. [Chicago Sun-Times]

4. President Joe Biden is Sister Jean’s latest fan

Loyola University’s Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt garnered national attention as the biggest cheerleader for the men’s basketball team during their 2018 run to the Final 4. During his visit to Illinois last week, President Joe Biden sent a bouquet of flowers to the 104-year-old sister as an amiable gesture to a fellow Catholic.

“Dear Sister Jean, Thinking of you during my trip to Chicago today! Keep the Faith!” Biden wrote in a note sent along with the flowers, which were purchased from a florist in Rogers Park, Heather writes.

Earlier this year, Sister Jean delivered a signed copy of her book, “Wake Up With Purpose: What I’ve Learned in My First Hundred Years,” to the president and first lady.

Sister Jean sent Biden a thank-you note, but didn’t reveal what it said. [Chicago Sun-Times]

5. The stars of the high school concert? A rock band of migrant teens.

At Sullivan High School in Rogers Park, Venezuelan migrants took an annual fall concert and imbued it with sounds of Venezuela as a way to connect their old and new life, Elly Fishman writes for WBEZ.

Venezuela has a strong musical tradition, including El Sistema (the system), a national training program that aimed to help young people out of poverty through music education.

Ahiled, whose last name WBEZ agreed to withhold, was one of the first students to volunteer to perform at the school show and she recruited Luis and Antony. Together, the trio chose to mash-up the pop hit No Se Va by popular Colombian group Morat and the 2010 tune Mi Niña Bonita by Venezuelan band Chino & Nacho.

“We chose these songs because Venezuelans are always getting over obstacles,” Ahiled said. “We’re showing that no matter what happens to us, we’re happy to be here.” [WBEZ]

Here’s what else is happening

• The U.S. Senate will vote on a spending bill that would avoid a government shutdown for at least two more months. [NPR]

• A Chicago judge ruled a federal law banning felons from owning guns is unconstitutional. [Chicago Tribune]

• Retail spending fell last month for the first time since March. [AP]

• Midwestern corn and soybean crops are threatened by climate change, according to the new National Climate Assessment. [WBEZ]

Oh, and one more thing …

Remember those commercials where a guy in a shag hairdo opens a turquoise Chevy Impala, only for the door to fall off its hinges?

Victory Auto Wreckers, the Bensenville wrecking yard featured in the famous ’80s TV commercials, is closing up shop, Stefano Esposito reports for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Cars — at least the kind that end up at Victory Auto Wreckers — aren’t worth as much as they once were.

The last day vehicles will be accepted at the yard is Nov. 18 — and the last day it will be open to the public to purchase parts is Nov. 30. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Tell me something good …

Thanksgiving is more than a week away but some of y’all have already decorated for Christmas.

It seems like the winter holiday season starts earlier each year. So what’s your favorite holiday movie? Yes, Die Hard counts.

Sofi writes:

“My favorite Christmas movie isn’t a movie, but a television special - ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’. Even at the age of 58, I am still a massive ‘Peanuts’ fan (Snoopy is THE MAN!), and the message of the program is timeless. It also doesn’t hurt that it packs a lot of laughs. It’s been a tradition in my household since I was a kid, and I don’t believe it will ever get old.”

Paul writes:

“Two Thanksgiving ‘have to’ movies for me are Pieces of April for the emotion and The Last Waltz for the music. The former set on Thanksgiving Day and the latter performed/recorded on it.”

Feel free to email me your favorite holiday movies, and your response might be shared in the newsletter this week.