September 2026 Calendar and News Items

Good morning everyone - we hope that you are all enjoying this stunning weather as much as we are!  

As next month’s meetings are fast approaching, we wanted to get the calendar to you all so that you may start planning ahead.  Committee meetings, if you can find the time mid-week and mid-day, are where things are discussed in more depth and first readings of ordinances/etc. are often introduced.  Once again, despite there not being a time limit declared for public comment during this past full county board meeting,  it is (generally) held  firmly at 3 minutes.  (If it is helpful for you, do not hesitate to use your preferred timing mechanism during your time at the podium.  As far as we know, that is still allowed.)

September 8th, 2026 (from 8am to 4:3pm)
8am: Road & Bridge Committee
9am: HR & Risk Management
10am: Assessments, Planning & Zoning
11am: SA, Court Svc, Focus House, Judiciary, & Circuit Clerk
12pm: Ethics & Governance
1pm: County Facilities, Security, & IT
2pm: Long Range & Strategic Planning
3pm: HEW, Solid Waste, & VAC
4pm: Finance & Insurance
4:30pm: Executive

September 15th: 
5:30pm, Ogle County Board (Full)

September 17th:
6:00pm, Regional Planning Commission

September 24th: 
Zoning Board of Appeals CANCELLED

In our next update, we will be sharing information as it relates to the hydrogeology of our region.  This information is readily accessible for all…unsure what the OCB finds it so objectionable to share.  

Below, you will find relevant and information we have found illuminating: 
From the NIH: Extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields disrupt magnetic alignment of ruminants.
From Bloomberg Law: Data Centers Use More Water Than California Cities, Study Says
(Also from Bloomberg Law): AI’s Billion Dollar Tax Breaks: Data Center Incentives Fuel Backlash
Ceres: Water Behind the Watts: The Hidden Risk of Powering Data Centers
California Legislative Analyst’s Office: A.G. File No. 2021-014
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab: 2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report
Gadget Review: O’Hare-Area Data Centers Won $100M in Tax Breaks – Homeowners Still Pay
Nearly $100 million in local tax breaks landed with 18 data centers clustered near O’Hare International Airport for the 2025 tax year. That money came from somewhere. Without these breaks, the average Northlake homeowner’s annual property tax bill would drop by more than $2,000— roughly 30% — according to an August 2026 investigation by the Illinois Answers Project and the Chicago Tribune.
[Referenced within article: Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity: Data Center Investment Tax Exemptions and Credits]
Microsoft’s AI Ambitions Just Blew a 25% Hole in Its Climate Pledges
The Guardian: Two planned datacentres will have higher UK carbon emissions than ExxonMobil, analysis finds