Illinois is stepping up the battle against breast cancer. Private insurers and Medicaid will now have to cover diagnostic mammograms and other breast-cancer screenings.… MORE
Category Archives: State News
Crops enter the home stretch under favorable conditions
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD– As the Illinois cash crops prepare to head down the stretch, the conditions and progress are halfway decent. USDA Illinois statistician Mark Schleusener says 75 percent of corn is in the dough stage, 34 percent in the dent stage, with about half in good to excellent condition. 93 percent of…… MORE
Attendance up at Illinois State Fair
Before the Illinois State Fair began, returning fair manager Kevin Gordon said the turnstile count could top 500,000. Preliminary estimates approach 509,000, up 37 percent from 2018.… MORE
State Police trooper shot in East St. Louis
Illinois State Police are confirming that a trooper was shot while on duty in East St. Louis.… MORE
McLean County hit by contagious virus
McLean County has been hit hard by an outbreak of a highly contagious virus affecting the liver.… MORE
Jobs up in Twin-Cities, all metro areas across Illinois
Jobs were up in all 14 Illinois metro areas for the first time in 19 years.… MORE
Illinois Democrats raise concerns about Census undercount in rural, minority areas
Illinois’ Congressional delegation is concerned that the U.S. Census may to get everyone when the agency tallies the state’s population next year. … MORE
Governor signs law setting minimum teacher salary at $40,000
As a second-year teacher, Bentley Stewart makes about $34,000. She says a new law setting a minimum salary for teachers — $32,076 a year from now and $40,000 four years from now — will help.… MORE
Polling places headed to Cook County Jail
Some jail inmates will get the vote as part of a criminal justice package signed by Gov. JB Pritzker.… MORE
McLean County Libertarian seeks state leadership post
McLean County Libertarian Party Chair Steve Suess announced Wednesday evening he’s running to become chair of the Libertarian Party of Illinois.… 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…