News / State
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Bill aims to guarantee youth sentenced to life in prison a chance at parole after 40 years
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers advanced a bill last week that would effectively abolish life sentences for any incarcerated individual who was under the age of 21 when they received their sentence. In January, Gov. JB Pritzker s... — Updated 3/16/2023
Appellate Court Upholds Restraining Order on Assault Weapons Ban
SPRINGFIELD – A temporary restraining order that partially blocks Illinois’ new assault weapons ban from going into effect will remain in place after a divided state appellate court panel’s ruling Tuesday. The restraining order... — Updated 2/5/2023
Rifle Association Files Federal Suit Against Assault Weapons Ban
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State Rifle Association has joined forces with other gun rights advocates in filing a federal lawsuit challenging the state’s new ban on the sale and manufacture of semiautomatic weapons and hig... — Updated 1/21/2023
Pritzker Signs Reproductive Rights Expansion
SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law Friday expanding access to abortion and other reproductive health care services. House Bill 4664, passed Tuesday during the G... — Updated 1/21/2023
Treasurer's Race: Frerichs touts investment gains, Demmer sees opportunity for GOP check
SPRINGFIELD – In Illinois, the role of state treasurer is that of chief investment officer. Treasurer Michael Frerichs has held that position for two full terms, winning by less than 10,000 votes in 2014 before cruising to an 18 p... — Updated 9/26/2022
Pritzker makes abortion rights central issue
SPRINGFIELD – Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker said Tuesday that abortion rights will be a central issue in the 2022 election, not just in his bid for reelection but in races up and d... — Updated 9/19/2022
In visit to Illinois, VP Harris rallies voters around abortion rights
SPRINGFIELD – Vice President Kamala Harris came to Chicago Friday to rally voters who support abortion rights and urge them to turn out in the upcoming midterm elections. Speaking at a roundtable discussion on reproductive r... — Updated 9/19/2022
National Guard to assist migrant welcoming effort as Pritzker declares disaster
SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker said Wednesday that Illinois will continue to welcome migrants bused here from Texas as he blasted that state’s governor for relocating them to other cities without sharing information or pro... — Updated 9/19/2022
Pritzker calls for changes after "awful" reports of abuse at developmental center
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker called patient abuses at the Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in rural Anna “awful” and “deeply concerning,” and he said the future of the facility depends on correcting poor conditi... — Updated 9/18/2022
State announces first REV Act tax credit to Decatur manufacturer
SPRINGFIELD – The state on Tuesday announced the award of the first electric vehicle manufacturing-targeted tax incentives made possible by a law signed by Gov. JB Pritzker last year. The incentives come from the Reimagining Electr... — Updated 9/18/2022
New ammendments to sports gaming laws pass
Betting on in-state college sports could become legal with the stroke of the governor's pen after lawmakers in the General Assembly approved an amendment to the state's sports... — Updated 6/3/2022
Troy 30-C choir instructor Kelsey Robb receives statewide honor
Troy Middle School and William B. Orenic Intermediate School choir instructor Kelsey Robb has received the Illinois Grade School Music Association's 2021 Barbara Buehlman Young... — Updated 10/6/2021
Lewis University holds ceremony to remember 9/11
Lewis University rightly prides itself as an excellent academic institution that is always seeking to not only to provide its students with quality educational opportunities but... — Updated 10/6/2021
Masks mandated at schools, day cares, long-term care facilities
Masks will be required at all Illinois long-term care facilities, day cares and Pre-K-12 schools, Gov. JB Pritzker announced Wednesday amid a nationwide surge of COVID-19. "Every... — Updated 9/13/2021
Pritzker signs law repealing criminal penalties for HIV transmission
Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law Tuesday that repeals criminal penalties for people who transmit HIV to others. House Bill 1063, by Rep. Carol Ammons, D-Urbana, and Sen. Robert Peters, D-Chicago, deletes language adopted in... — Updated 7/27/2021
Unemployment deficit threatens to 'cripple' businesses, claimants
Since economic shutdowns began and COVID-19 death counts started to rise in March 2020, national unemployment rates have hovered at historically high numbers, stressing state unemployment systems left dealing with an unprecedented... — Updated 7/13/2021
Lawmakers could redraw Illinois Supreme Court districts
Drawing new district lines for state and federal elections is the main focus for lawmakers when they begin the redistricting process every 10 years. But Illinois Democrats, who cont... — Updated 5/25/2021
Republicans call for Prisoner Review Board appointees to testify
Republican senators on Monday raised concerns about four Prisoner Review Board members who have continued to serve for almost two years despite not being confirmed by the Senate... — Updated 5/25/2021
Crest Hill's Hareld joins Space Force
Whether it was ship captains navigating by the stars, Neil Armstrong walking on the moon or the countless Hollywood adaptations of what the future may look like, space has been a... — Updated 5/17/2021
LaSalle investigation prompts legislation strengthening inspectors general
Lawmakers representing the LaSalle Veterans' Home, including Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, unveiled new legislation that would allow inspectors general of state agencies to subpoena... — Updated 5/10/2021
Springfield Republican calls out Democrats for placing bill 'on review'
Republican Rep. Tim Butler on Thursday accused the new Democratic leadership in the state House of Representatives of preserving practices from previous leadership which Republicans say unfairly benefits the majority party. “So, w... — Updated 4/25/2021
Lawmakers, Pritzker administration spar over projected fiscal year revenues
Members of an Illinois Senate committee sparred with officials from Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration Friday in a hearing on tax changes proposed by the governor in an effort to balance the state’s budget for the 2022 fiscal yea... — Updated 4/25/2021
Health care reform bill will head to governor
SPRINGFIELD – A massive health care reform bill, the fourth and final pillar of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus agenda, passed the state Senate Friday, the final step before heading to Gov. JB Pritzker for his signature. H... — Updated 3/25/2021
Expansion of vote by mail, curbside voting will head to governor
A bill to expand the use of vote-by-mail and curbside voting in future elections passed the Illinois Senate Thursday, meaning it needs only a signature from the governor to become... — Updated 3/25/2021
Report: Illinois' pension debt tops $300 billion
A new report by the credit rating agency Moody’s says Illinois will set a new record this year when it reports a total net pension liability of more than $300 billion, the highest of any state in the nation. As of June 30, 2020, t... — Updated 3/4/2021