State News
Cell-phone ban, loosening foreign language requirements among education bills to pass
Lawmakers expand in-state tuition, amend child care licensing Article Summary Several educations measures were among the hundreds of bills that cleared the General Assembly before it adjourned on June 1. Schools will have to adopt policies next year banning cell phones in the classroom under a bill Gov. JB Pritzker says he will sign. Another…
Read MoreBoeing Defense Headquarters Returns To St. Louis
By Melissa Ann Meske Managing Editor of Illinois Business Journal —— Key takeaways: Boeing announces move of its Defense, Space & Security Headquarters from the Washington DC area to St. Louis Adds to St. Louis’ aerospace and defense tech strengths, including NGA and Scott AFB Advances broader mission to create more and better jobs across…
Read MoreMascot ban stalls as Native-backed land conservation bill advances
Legislative session ends with no final action on school mascot bill By BRIDGETTE FOX Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Illinois’ legislative session concluded without passage of a Native American K-12 school mascot ban, but another issue sought by Natives will make its way to the governor. Despite desire from Native Americans in Illinois, the…
Read MoreSummer electric price spike fuels policy tensions in Springfield
Price hike due to lack of energy supply comes alongside rocky transition to renewable power By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois [email protected] Customers around Illinois will see significantly higher prices on their electric bills next month. The average residential customer of northern Illinois’ Commonwealth Edison will pay about $10.60 per month more this summer, according…
Read MoreOn May Day, thousands march for immigrant, labor, women and LGBTQ+ rights
By SONYA DYMOVA Medill Illinois News Bureau [email protected] CHICAGO — Michelle Nolasco, a 20-year-old DePaul University student from Orland Park, Illinois, held a sign that read: “I was supposed to be at school … Instead, I am here, fighting for mi familia y mi gente,” meaning “my family and my people.” “I feel like being…
Read MoreDriver of Chatham fatal crash had clean toxicology, Illinois State Police confirm
By JADE AUBREY Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD — Illinois State Police released preliminary toxicology results that showed no drugs or alcohol in the system of a driver who crashed into a central Illinois after-school program, killing four young girls. Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly said Thursday police are still investigating the cause of…
Read MoreTuition, fees rising at Illinois universities as state funding lags inflation pace
By BRIDGETTE FOX Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – The cost to attend state universities has been rising, and some institutions have said they’ll have to continue pushing the brunt of state budget shortfalls onto students and families if there isn’t a change. Data from the Illinois Board of Higher Education, which oversees public…
Read MoreHomeschool bill stalls in Illinois House, but sponsor says it’s still alive
By MOLLY PARKER and BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois [email protected] A bill that would tighten homeschooling regulations in Illinois missed a key deadline on Friday. But its sponsor, Rep. Terra Costa Howard, said it’s still alive — and she’s working on changes recommended by fellow lawmakers to get it passed. “We recognize that there’s some…
Read MorePared-back ‘Right to Play’ bill advances in General Assembly, awaits Senate action
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House gave its approval to legislation that would give high school athletes a limited right to compete in non-school events or on non-school teams during the same season in which they play for their school. The House voted 68-39 on April 9 to pass…
Read MoreLawmakers approve bills easing driving tests on seniors, limits on student fines
By BEN SZALINSKI & PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD — Road tests to renew driver’s licenses could be a thing of the past for many seniors in Illinois under a bill unanimously approved Wednesday by the Illinois House. The House voted 114-0 to approve House Bill 1226, which would raise the age that…
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