Illinois has paid out millions in pensions to ex-lawmakers who have admitted criminal wrongdoing or are awaiting trial. CHICAGO — Illinois state senator-turned-government mole Terry Link infamously asked “What’s in it for me?” while wearing a wire in a 2019 federal bribery sting that snared a corrupt legislative colleague. Link played the role of undercover…
NORMAL — Illinois State University marked its annual Founding Celebration on Thursday with the usual traditions – bellringing and a toast of faculty and staff – even as unanswered questions hovered as to why President Terri Goss Kinzy had abruptly resigned. Some faculty and staff told WGLT they were surprised by Kinzy’s exit. Others heard…
SPRINGFIELD — Building on a “remarkable” fiscal rebound, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker proposed a $49.6 billion state budget Wednesday, prioritizing increased spending on everything from early childhood initiatives to education to reproductive health care. In the first big swing of his second term, Pritzker also underscored his work the past four years in stabilizing Illinois’…
NORMAL — Illinois State University President Terri Goss Kinzy has resigned after less than two years on the job. The surprise announcement came Wednesday afternoon in an email to campus. Kinzy’s resignation is effective Tuesday, but she’ll be paid an additional 20 weeks of salary (about $144,000) and her unused vacation time, plus get to…
ROCKFORD — A group of Rockford elementary school students stand against the front of Lewis Lemon Elementary, trying to stay out of the snow. They’re wearing colorful winter coats and hats to keep warm, which is tough since it feels like -4 degrees with the wind-chill. They live within a mile and a half of…
Hundreds of Illinoisans fall victim to online romance scams every year. While the numbers for 2022 are still being calculated, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center preliminary results show a reported victim loss of $739 million, impacting 19,000 victims. In Illinois, the FBI reported 591 victims in 2021, the last year data was available. The…
COLLINSVILLE — Collinsville City Manager Mitch Bair has managed a budget that’s seen between $1.5 million and $2 million in extra sales tax revenue since 2020 from the addition of recreational marijuana. But the sales tax generated from Illinois dispensaries is expected to drop now that Missouri approved its first shops to sell recreational marijuana…
CHAMPAIGN — A central Illinois teen started a nonprofit that educates the youth. Now she’s taking things a step further by adapting a concept that one Princeton change agent helped start. Sophia Libman is the founder and CEO of X-TIME. “In math, I learned that x is kind of this value that’s constantly changing,” Libman…
ROCKFORD — On a winter’s day, 5th grade students at Gregory Elementary School in Rockford run around outside at recess. It’s a scene most people are probably familiar with from when they were in elementary school: kids in puffy winter coats playing all sorts of games and walking around with their friends. Of course, there…
When President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union Address Tuesday, central Illinois Congresswoman Mary Miller won’t be in attendance. The second-term Republican from Illinois’ 15th District says she is boycotting the speech in protest of what she calls “Biden’s record of lying to the American people.” “Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi ripped up President…
DEKALB — Northern Illinois University professor Zach Wahl-Alexander pulls a virtual reality headset over his face, ready to transport to any number of far-flung alien locales, scenic vistas or even a virtual Oval Office. Listen to this story here. But, he’s not going there. He’s going to a school gymnasium. Particularly, the gym in Anderson…
NORMAL — A recent study that tied the use of gas stoves in homes to rates of childhood asthma — especially in Illinois — inadvertently brought gas stoves to the forefront of the culture wars, adding a new layer to ongoing public discourse on climate change, business interests, and public and environmental health concerns. Researchers…
DECATUR — There’s a new legal spat between two parties on the same side of the gun rights issue in Illinois. An attorney who won a court ruling against the state’s new assault weapons ban has a problem with how a similar lawsuit was filed. State Rep. Dan Caulkins, a Republican who represents parts of…
SPRINGFIELD – A $15 million state investment at the Old State Capitol in Springfield means more renovations to the historic site. The funding will help pay for removing and replacing the historic site roof, repairing damaged plaster, replacing wood flooring on the main and upper levels, basement waterproofing, restoring the perimeter fence, and upgrading one hydraulic…
UAW Local 974 second vice president Tony Newton said 98% of membership voted in favor of strike authorization.