Illinois Politics
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Transportation unveiled a plan on Friday for spending nearly $41 billion in federal, state and local funds over the next six years to repair and upgrade roads, bridges, airports, rail lines and other infrastructure throughout the state. The latest version of the plan, which IDOT updates annually, is the largest…
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SPRINGFIELD – Immigrants in Illinois with or without permission from U.S. immigration authorities will soon be able to obtain standard driver’s licenses that can be used for identification. Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday signed House Bill 3882, which will phase out the “Temporary Visitor Driver’s License,” or TVDL, which noncitizens currently use to drive legally in…
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Independence Day is a time to celebrate sacrifices by those who died to secure freedoms we enjoy today. It calls for backyard barbecues and a booming night sky. But not in Illinoisans’ backyards. It is one of three states banning some or all fireworks. The other 47 states, or nearly 94% of country, celebrate freedom with the flair of…
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There were no champagne toasts or fireworks, but when the clock struck 12 a.m. on Saturday, it marked the start of a new year in Illinois – a new fiscal year, that is. And just as a new year is a time to contemplate recent accomplishments and make resolutions for the future, Illinois Comptroller Susana…
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SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed legislation Tuesday that will dramatically alter the health insurance market in Illinois. The measures establish a state-based exchange for policies sold under the Affordable Care Act and give the Illinois Department of Insurance the authority to modify or reject proposed rate increases. “Since day one of my administration, I’ve…
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CHICAGO – In a whirlwind visit to Chicago on Wednesday, President Joe Biden trotted out a re-election campaign message built on economic recovery – and effusively praised Gov. JB Pritzker for helping him win the White House in 2020. “There’s a guy that helped me more than – I can say this without equivocation –…
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CHICAGO — A trip from St. Louis to Chicago via Amtrak’s Lincoln Service will be about 15 minutes quicker starting this week due to track upgrades that allow for increased speeds. The Amtrak line ran its first 110 mph service on Monday, up from 90 mph previously, which would make the one-way trip less than…
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SPRINGFIELD – A new state fiscal year will begin July 1, ushering in the reinstatement of a 1 percent tax on groceries and a second increase to the state’s motor fuel tax in 2023. Amid record-high inflation last spring, the General Assembly temporarily waived Illinois’ grocery tax for the coming fiscal year and delayed the…
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QUINCY — About 25 nurses spent a couple of hours before their shifts Tuesday morning walking the picket line outside the 12th Street entrance to the Illinois Veterans Home. Margo Gislain with the Illinois Nurses Association said the nurses were “protesting unsafe working conditions for both the union nurses and the veterans that they care…
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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Justice Lisa Holder White has announce she is running for a full term on the Supreme Court of Illinois. The Supreme Court appointed Holder White on July 7, 2022, to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Rita B. Garman. Holder White was sworn in as an Associate Judge for…
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SPRINGFIELD – While hundreds of bills cleared the General Assembly in the final month of the legislative session, some big-ticket measures will have to wait until at least the fall. Sponsors of several stalled bills say they will consider reviving their proposals when lawmakers return to the Capitol in October and November for their annual…
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CHICAGO — Millions of Illinoisans could see higher energy bills next year, but the size of those increases will be determined by a state agency that has recently had its oversight powers expanded. Four gas utilities and the state’s two largest electric utilities are currently requesting authority from the Illinois Commerce Commission to increase rates.…
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CHICAGO – Next time you attend a parade, there might be an eye in the sky. A new law signed by Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday expands local police departments’ authority to use drones to surveil certain events, respond to certain 911 calls, inspect buildings and participate in public relations events. House Bill 3902 passed 56-1…
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The number of patients seeking abortions from Planned Parenthood of Illinois increased dramatically since last June after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The amount of patients seeking both medication and procedure abortions rose 54% in the last year, Planned Parenthood reported Monday. Patients needing financial and travel help also more than doubled…
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SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed legislation Monday that seeks to protect public and school libraries from pressure to ban, remove or restrict access to books based on “partisan or doctrinal disapproval.” Speaking at the Harold Washington Library Center in downtown Chicago, Pritzker said there were 67 attempts in 2022 to have various books removed…
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SPRINGFIELD – Former Gov. Bruce Rauner’s portrait has joined the “Hall of Governors” in the Illinois Capitol. The Winnetka Republican-turned-Florida resident on Monday unveiled the portrait, which was painted by Chicago Artist Richard Halstead and privately funded by Rauner. The 42nd governor of Illinois who served from 2015 to 2019, Rauner said he returns to the…
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Illinois is reinstating the state grocery tax on July 1 after an election-year suspension. Illinois will again become an outlier by taxing food at the supermarket: 37 states don’t tax groceries at all. Among the 10 most populous states, Illinois is the only one with a grocery tax. Among the 13 states that tax groceries, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas and…
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CHICAGO – Gov. JB Pritzker signed the state’s operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year on Wednesday, marking the first spending plan of his second term as governor. The $50.4 billion spending plan anticipates about $50.6 billion in revenues for the fiscal year that begins July 1, making for a projected surplus of roughly $183…
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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — On Tuesday, Gov. JB Pritzker signed House Bill 3062 into law, which requires any constitutional challenge to state laws to be filed in either Cook or Sangamon counties, a measure supporters say is intended to put a stop to what they describe as “venue shopping.” This was one of the final bills…
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SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers passed 566 bills through both chambers of the General Assembly in the recently concluded legislative session – all but one of them in May. It sets the table for an approximate three-month bill-signing season for Gov. JB Pritzker. That’s because the state’s constitution gives legislative leaders 30 days from a bill’s…
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QUINCY— Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker stopped by John Wood Community College Monday afternoon to discuss the state’s recently passed budget and a large increase in Monetary Award Program for higher education. MAP grants, which do not need to be repaid, are available to eligible Illinois residents who attend approved Illinois colleges and demonstrate financial need, based on the information provided…
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Todd Maisch: A Man Proud of the Place in Which He LivedBy State Senator Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) President Abraham Lincoln had an inspirational quote that, for me, epitomizes the life and career of Illinois Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Todd Maisch, and what he meant to our state and its many businesses. I like…
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SPRINGFIELD – The 2023 spring legislative session came to an end in the early hours of Saturday morning after the Illinois House gave its approval to a $50.6 billion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year that begins July 1. The 73-38 party-line vote came around 2:30 a.m. after lengthy debate during which Democrats called the budget…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House is planning to work until the early hours of Saturday morning to finalize a $50.6 billion state spending plan for the fiscal year that begins July 1. That announcement came early Thursday evening, more than 24 hours after Gov. JB Pritzker and the Democratic leaders of the General Assembly announced…
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UPDATE: The budget was filed as a 3,409-page amendment to Senate Bill 250 late Wednesday evening. This story has been updated to reflect the latest developments as of Wednesday night. SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker and Democratic leaders announced Wednesday they’ve agreed to a framework for next year’s roughly $50 billion state spending plan, even as negotiations continued…
Read Full Article November 13, 2024
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