Maj. Gen. Rodney Boyd (pictured), recently installed as commander of the Illinois National Guard, gave some insight into the lives of the few who serve: “Veterans have faced our fair share of some challenges. … MORE
Category Archives: State News
Twilight Parade wraps up day one of Illinois State Fair
Illinois 4-Hers are the grand marshals of the 2024 Illinois State Fair.… MORE
With new federal waiver, Illinois expanding Medicaid to nonmedical services
Many people enrolled in the state’s Medicaid program will soon be eligible to receive a host of nonmedical services that could improve their overall health, including housing and nutrition assistance, violence prevention services, and services to help them transition out of incarceration.… MORE
Illinois further expands reproductive health care protections
By DILPREET RAJUCapitol News [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed multiple bills expanding reproductive rights in Illinois on Wednesday, including codifying a federal law that allows medical professionals to perform an abortion in response to a clinical emergency. Another bill bolsters Illinois’ interstate shield law that prohibits Illinois authorities from disclosing information, or using…… MORE
New Illinois law aims to give free ID cards to citizens leaving correctional facilities
Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill on Tuesday that’s aimed at providing free identification cards to more people exiting correctional facilities in Illinois. … MORE
Gov. Pritzker stops short of calling for Sangamon County Sheriff to resign
Gov. JB Pritzker stopped short of calling for Sangamon County sheriff Jack Campbell to resign over the Sonya Massey killing.… MORE
Illinois Senior Senator campaigns for Gov. Pritzker to be Kamala Harris’ running mate
Illinois’ senior U.S. senator, Democrat Dick Durbin, thinks Gov. JB Pritzker would be a worthy choice as Kamala Harris’ running mate.… MORE
Capitol Briefs: Pritzker signs measures reining in biometric data privacy law, eliminating grocery tax
Illinois’ first-in-the-nation law that allows residents to sue companies over the improper collection of their biometric information will be slightly less punitive after Gov. JB Pritzker signed a new law late last week.… MORE
Meet this year’s Miss Illinois County Fair Queen
A soon-to-be college junior studying pre-veterinary is your hostess at the 2024 Illinois State Fair.… MORE
Proposed Aqua rate increase reignites tensions between the company and its customers
As state regulators consider whether to approve a proposed rate increase for the state’s second largest private water utility, its customers are criticizing it for poor service and high prices. … MORE
Blogs
Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
Is federal mobilization the answer?
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…