Tuesday, July 20, 2021 Today’s headlines: Governor J.B. Pritzker has ended speculation about his political future. The governor says he will seek another term. School districts are trying to figure out the best approach to having students and staff back in the classroom this fall. An American Legion post in north Champaign was the scene…
Monday, July 19, 2021 Today’s headlines: A child poverty report released today shows major improvement in the last decade, but for kids in many rural pockets of the state, progress was less significant. The Red Cross is urging people to donate blood to help with a blood shortage as patients resume elective surgeries and trauma…
Friday, July 16, 2021 Today’s headlines: Illinois will become the first state in the nation to ban police from lying to suspects under 18 during interrogation under a measure signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker Thursday. Researchers at Southern Illinois University are studying the causes of burnout in the nursing profession. Some Illinoisans are…
Thursday, July 15, 2021 Today’s headlines: An Urbana man faces multiple charges after allegedly ramming a stolen truck into the Champaign County jail Wednesday morning. The Illinois General Assembly’s watchdog is resigning from her job, saying her calls for reform have gone unheeded. Car catalytic converter thefts have increased in Champaign-Urbana, and auto shop owners…
Wednesday, July 14, 2021 Today’s headlines: As the Delta variant of the coronavirus spikes COVID-19 caseloads and hospitalizations in Missouri, Illinois regions near the Missouri border have seen huge jumps in test positivity, too. State Treasurer Mike Frerichs says state lawmakers and Governor Pritzker did a good job in passing a balanced budget this year…
Tuesday, July 13, 2021 Today’s headlines: Cities and towns in Illinois are calling on Governor J.B. Pritzker’s administration to apply for the federal funds they’re entitled to under the American Rescue Plan. The annual Redneck Fishing Tournament is coming back to Central Illinois after a two-year hiatus. A new bill awaiting Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature…
Monday, July 12, 2021 Today’s headlines: Governor JB Pritzker signed a law Friday making Illinois the first state in the nation to mandate schools teach Asian American history. U.S. Senator Dick Durbin says Senate Republicans face a “moment of truth” on infrastructure. Recent tests confirm air and water quality levels near the Rockton chemical fire are safe….
Friday, July 9, 2021 Today’s headlines: Provisions in a massive criminal justice reform bill pushed by Black Illinois lawmakers earlier this year began taking effect last week, but the state’s legislative Black Caucus has experienced fractures over something that didn’t end up in the law: ending qualified immunity for police officers. Millions of rural residents across the…
Thursday, July 8, 2021 Today’s headlines: Illinois’ first vaccine lottery drawings take place today, with $1 million dollars and three scholarships on the line. A pro-EV group is urging Illinois and other states to encourage more widespread adoption of electric buses and semis. Researchers in Fulton County are using image recognition technology to control invasive…
Tuesday, July 6, 2021 Today’s headlines: There have been no arrests after a mass shooting at an American Legion post on the north side of Champaign on Friday afternoon. Calling the police simply because a person looks suspicious based on their race could become a hate crime under a measure awaiting the Illinois governor’s signature….
Friday July 2, 2021 Today’s headlines: Drivers in Illinois will no longer have their licenses suspended because of unpaid fines, under a law that took effect Thursday. A Bloomington attorney and Lincoln scholar is giving an 1854 letter Lincoln wrote to a Peoria Attorney to the Abraham Lincoln Library and Presidential Museum in Springfield. Only…
Thursday, July 1, 2021 Today’s headlines: Illinois’ senior-most judicial authority says Springfield Democrats’ efforts to re-draw the state’s judicial district boundaries for the first time in 60 years could interfere with a major law aimed at criminal justice reform. A portion of Illinois’ recreational cannabis revenues goes into the R-3 program, which aims to reinvest…
Wednesday, June 30, 2021 Today’s headlines: The investigation continues into Monday night’s explosion at a residence hall on the University of Illinois Urbana campus. Public health officials say a more contagious variant of the coronavirus is fueling a rise in infections just to our west in Missouri. College athletes throughout Illinois will now be able…
Tuesday, June 29, 2021 Today’s headlines: Urbana firefighters are trying to figure out what caused an explosion at a privately-run residence hall on the University of Illinois campus Monday night. A Champaign County Board committee holds a study session Tuesday to gather input on improving local broadband service. The Illinois Department of Public Health is…
Monday, June 28, 2021 Today’s headlines: Cleanup continues after a portion of a historic building in Champaign collapsed over the weekend. The General Assembly this spring approved a measure that would allow pharmacists to hand out hormonal birth control to a patient who has not seen a doctor. New research from the University of Illinois explores…