Chicago Board of Ethics fines Ald. Carrie Austin’s political committee $145,500

The Chicago Board of Ethics fined embattled South Side Ald. Carrie Austin’s political committee $145,500 for accepting more money in campaign cash from a contributor than is allowed, officials said. Austin accepted $48,500 more from a vendor that’s doing business with the city than is legally allowed, officials said. The board hit the contributor, Benchmark Construction Co., with a $5,000 fine.