Politics
SPRINGFIELD – The state’s eviction moratorium expired Sunday, and what comes next for renters will likely depend on their county of residence, as county courts and sheriffs will all have different approaches to executing evictions. The original eviction moratorium was issued in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic began shutting down the state and national…
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SPRINGFIELD — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration on Thursday announced the awarding of the first $24 million in “Back to Business” grants, a program funded with federal relief aid to help businesses recover and reopen from the pandemic. The announcement took place at a Mexican restaurant in the Little Village neighborhood of Chicago, Mi Tierra…
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Pump prices for gas and diesel didn’t change much Friday in Missouri, despite being the first day of a 2.5 cents per gallon increase in the state fuel tax. The cheapest gas in the state was $2.49 a gallon in Springfield, according to GasBuddy.com. That was unchanged from earlier in the week. The most expensive, AAA of…
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Shawndra Taylor had just 12 hours notice when the first truck canceled. In it, contained food to help prepare the 3,000 meals served each day in her school district in Eldon — including items she needed to make dinner for students. Her supplier, Kohl Wholesale in Quincy, Ill., was too short-staffed. Taylor, the district’s food services…
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Gov. Mike Parson announced Wednesday the state of Missouri has approved more than $1.8 million in grant assistance to 19 agencies across the state to investigate and prosecute crimes that victimized children. “Criminals who victimize children must be investigated, prosecuted, and brought to justice, no matter when they commit these heinous crimes,”…
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SPRINGFIELD – Illinois community colleges have a multi-billion dollar impact on the state’s economy and will be “integral in making a recovery from the pandemic an equitable one,” according a new report from the Northern Illinois University Center for Governmental Studies. The Illinois Community Colleges’ Economic Impacts and Student Employment Outcomes report said the indirect…
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Illinois taxpayers are on the hook for nearly double the debt burden of just 12 years ago. That’s according to a new report on the fiscal state of the state. Truth In Accounting (TIA) has been evaluating state governments for how much debt the state has versus how much they bring in. Their Financial State of…
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SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker announced Thursday the state will award more than $40 million in workforce training grants, focusing on communities hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and youth who are particularly at risk of violence. That includes $40 million in Workforce Recovery Grants that will go out in two phases over the next…
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With thousands of students quarantined in the first weeks of the new school year, Missouri’s health director said the state is exploring a new strategy that aims to keep kids in class through regular testing. Donald Kauerauf, the new director of the Department of Health and Senior Services, said his agency discussed a new modified…
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A new analysis shows Illinois ranks 41st in the country in unemployment recovery, with unemployment down 40 percent from this time last year. The study was done by WalletHub and shows Illinois’ job recovery post-pandemic. The survey was conducted from March 15, 2021, to August 30, 2021, showing a 69 percent decrease in unemployment claims…
Read Full Article Attorney who is fighting governor’s orders calls latest one “nonsense” On top of his most recent 30-day COVID-19 disaster proclamation, Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued his 90th executive order, which is about who can be excluded from schools, such as those with possible exposure to COVID-19. Pritzker on Friday reissued a majority of orders from the past 19 months. On…
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SPRINGFIELD – The state’s moratorium on enforcement of residential evictions will expire on Oct. 3, according to Gov. JB Pritzker’s latest COVID-19 executive order issued Friday. Pritzker had extended the order each month with minor to substantial revisions since March 2020. The extensions have come in 30-day windows, coinciding with his monthly reissuance of a disaster proclamation…
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Gov. J.B. Pritzker has issued dozens of executive orders since March 2020, affecting everything from the economy to education and healthcare. He started by limiting dine-in restaurants for two weeks to slow the spread of COVID-19. That’s evolved over the past 19 months to mask mandates in schools and vaccine mandates for health care workers,…
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Employers warn inaction by state lawmakers could ‘cripple’ businesses and the COVID-19 economic recovery. Illinois state leaders missed the Sept. 6 deadline to repay a $4.2 billion federal loan to the state’s unemployment insurance fund, which leaves Illinois taxpayers on the hook to pay $60 million in annual interest on that loan. The unemployment fund has been depleted during…
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SPRINGFIELD — Gov. JB Pritzker was joined by environmental and social justice activists, union representatives, and lawmakers from both parties Wednesday as he signed into law a sweeping energy regulation overhaul that aims to phase out carbon emissions from the energy sector by 2045 while diversifying the renewable energy workforce. His signature marked a celebratory…
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Three children in Effingham County can’t be forced to wear masks without an official quarantine order from the county health department, a judge ruled Wednesday. Later in the day, a different judge enjoined an entire school district from requiring masks without a court order. The attorney who brought the cases anticipates more such cases across…
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Ask state education board to adopt formal rules on enforcement actions By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Expressing concern that the Illinois State Board of Education might have overstepped its bounds by threatening to withhold funding from school districts that do not enforce its mask mandate, a legislative panel on Tuesday urged the agency…
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Senate takes final legislative step on bill creating massive renewable, nuclear investment By JERRY NOWICKICapitol News Illinoisjnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Senate put the final legislative stamp on an energy regulation overhaul bill Monday, sending it to Gov. JB Pritzker, who says he will sign it. It’s the culmination of years of negotiation, and it…
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Missouri Republicans assailed President Joe Biden’s push to require employees of private businesses to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing, vowing a legislative response and legal action. Gov. Mike Parson promised to “fight back against federal power grabs and government overreach” in a tweet Thursday afternoon, calling Biden’s plan “an insult to our…
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SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House approved an energy regulation and decarbonization bill Thursday, a major step forward for a wide-ranging omnibus bill that had eluded lawmakers throughout the legislative session and the governor’s three years in office. The measure that aims to bring Illinois’ energy generation sector to 100 percent carbon-free by 2050 and 50…
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A new bill would give the Illinois State Board of Education the authority to issue, withhold and revoke state recognition of schools who fail to comply with COVID-19 health regulations. Notably, the bill has not yet been introduced to a committee, meaning beyond being drafted and introduced, there has been no legislative activity on the measure. The…
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SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House is scheduled to return to Springfield Thursday to try again at passing an elusive energy regulation overhaul days after the governor’s office announced support for a new proposal. It’s the latest push for a legislative accomplishment that has eluded Gov. JB Pritzker in his three years in office, and it’s…
Read Full Article After more than 17 months of expanded benefits, federal pandemic unemployment programs are set to end on Labor Day, cutting off weekly payments to 7.5 million people — including 452,000 in Illinois. The sudden expiration of emergency federal assistance, which some economists have likened to a fiscal cliff, could precipitate everything from a flood of…
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Closure of municipal coal plants remains sticking point By JERRY NOWICKICapitol News Illinoisjnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Senate approved an energy bill in the early hours of Wednesday morning but it’s likely to change as negotiations continue in the House, which has not set a date as to when it will return. A lead negotiator…
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Latest maps introduced Tuesday morning, passed Tuesday night By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Democrats in the General Assembly pushed through a new set of legislative maps during a one-day special session Tuesday, although the process they used sparked the ire of Republicans and voting rights advocates alike. If accepted by Gov. JB Pritzker,…
Read Full Article July 02, 2025
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