The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation updated lawmakers Wednesday on its new online licensing system to streamline the process and eliminate backlogs. … MORE
Category Archives: State News
In remarks to teachers union, Pritzker lashes out at Trump’s education cuts
Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday delivered more harsh criticism against President Donald Trump’s administration over attempts to drastically downsize, and possibly eliminate, the U.S. Department of Education.… MORE
‘You are flying.’ Inside the harrowing 100-mile police chase in Sangamon County
When Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Jonathan Pearce saw a white pickup spotted outside a motorcycle shop that had been burglarized earlier that night, he punched the gas and chased the fleeing truck, reaching race car speeds and screeching his tires through hairpin turns.… MORE
‘Right to Play’ bill that would affect high school athletes advances in House
A House committee advanced a bill Wednesday that would give high school student athletes the right to participate in both school-sponsored teams and nonschool teams in the same sport at the same time, despite concerns that such a policy could create friction between coaches and jeopardize students’ safety.… MORE
Partisan politics infiltrating non-partisan local Illinois elections
It’s been just four months since the last election concluded, but another election is on the horizon in Illinois: the April 1 elections for school boards and municipal offices. … MORE
Republican bills aim to assist Illinois in its battle against fentanyl
Illinois Republican senators have filed bills that would combat the state’s fentanyl crisis and further punish major possessors of the drug.… MORE
Pritzker wants Illinois to be latest state to ban cellphones in classroom
Are cellphones a useful tool or a distraction in the classroom? According to Gov. JB Pritzker, they’re a distraction, and he has proposed banning them during classroom instruction. … MORE
With electricity price spikes coming, environmental and industry groups pitch reform
By ANDREW ADAMSCapitol News [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Illinois faces potential energy shortfalls and all-but-guaranteed price spikes for northern Illinois this summer, consumer and environmental advocates say. Lawmakers and advocates in Springfield have proposed bills that they say would address their concerns — but it’s unclear whether they’re likely to pass by the General Assembly’s expected…… MORE
Judge grants retrial on most bribery counts in ‘ComEd 4’ case nearly 2 years post-verdict
A federal judge on Monday granted a partial retrial on several bribery counts in the case of four former executives and lobbyists for electric utility Commonwealth Edison who were convicted in 2023 for their roles in bribing longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.… MORE
Accused Highland Park shooter pleads guilty
Robert Crimo III, the man accused of carrying out a mass shooting in Highland Park in 2022 that left seven people dead and prompted the passage of a ban on assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines in Illinois, pleaded guilty Monday to all charges stemming from that shooting.… 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…