How cold was it? April was a record setter as May now rolls in with temps in the 80s.… MORE
Category Archives: State News
Ill. House passes grant for school psychologists, not armed resource officers
A measure creating a new taxpayer-funded grant that directs money to schools for psychologists rather than armed security officers is heading to the Illinois Senate.… MORE
LaHood: Free trade with China is good for America, great for Illinois
A central Illinois congressman said there is a split inside the White House on trade, and he’s picking a side.… MORE
Retired lawmakers costing taxpayers millions in pension payouts
Funding pensions for retired lawmakers falls to the taxpayers, and one advocate is calling to end the “pension palace”.… MORE
Illinois moves closer to bump stock ban
Members of the Illinois House of Representatives could soon send a ban on a gun accessory used in the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting that killed 58 people to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s desk.… MORE
New ad campaign warn taxpayers about progressive tax
Get ready to hear a lot more about what a progressive income tax could mean for Illinois.… MORE
Illinois lawmakers studying local public safety pension consolidation
The state’s five pension funds for state employees have a combined unfunded liability of $130 billion.… MORE
Senators divided on plan to split SIU
It’s not that Illinois Senators don’t want to see Southern Illinois University spin its two campuses off. It’s that they are a bit confused about the plan to make it happen.… MORE
Madigan resolution supports progressive income tax
House Speaker Michael Madigan and many other Democrats in the House are putting their names behind a non-binding resolution urging support for a progressive income tax. … MORE
All Illinois metro areas see job gains
The over-the-year unemployment rate fell in all Illinois metro areas last month.… 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…