Pritzker said a facility in the Chicago suburb of Melrose Park will be able to house up to 230 patients, which would help relieve other medical facilities. Three other locations, which include Chicago’s McCormick Place, will allow healthcare workers to care for several thousand more.

“We have no luxury to say, put the remap reform on the back burner and get to it when less pressing matters compete for time and attention. Reality is, if gerrymandering is to end in Illinois, Gov. Pritzker is one of the few people with the power and influence to make it happen. And reality is, if it’s going to happen, it has to happen now, in the next month.”

Illinoisans trying to file for unemployment benefits found the Illinois Department of Employment Security website temporarily down for part of Thursday.

“In terms of state actions, state orders, we’ve nearly exhausted every avenue available. Now, the rest is up to you. Our strongest weapon against COVID-19 is you,” Pritzker said at his daily briefing, which was part bad news and part pep rally.

Comment: But on February 28 Pritzker said, “All I’m saying is we’re not relying upon the White House. We, in fact, have one of the best public health systems in the country,” said Pritzker. “And so we’ve got experts here … who are highly capable of managing the COVID-19 [coronavirus], that’s come upon us.”

“In addition to these emergency relief actions to address immediate economic harm, state lawmakers should vote to remove the $3.7 billion progressive income tax hike from the November ballot, which would harm workers and small business owners across the state – potentially just as they begin to recover from this unprecedented downturn.”

The Joint Commission on Ethics and Lobbying Reform, established in November to study Illinois’ corruption issues, were hopeful ethics reform could be achieved before the General Assembly was scheduled to adjourn on May 31. Springfield had been rocked by multiple corruption scandals during the past year, including the departure and arrest of three lawmakers.

Sandoval’s involvement in the recycled asphalt shingle debate has received little attention, but his penchant for using power in Springfield to advance an industry no longer is secret. Earlier this week, Sandoval pleaded guilty in federal court, with prosecutors outlining how he advanced the interests of a red-light camera company with business in many suburbs.

The third month of sales was on par with the first two despite a stay-at-home order being in place for 11 days in March.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot says city cases are expected to peak in one to two weeks. She previously warned the city could see upwards of 40,000 hospitalizations and U.S. health experts worry Cook County could become one of the nation’s next hotspots.

From Illinois’ Commission on Governmental Forecasting and Accounting: Total revenues for the state of Illinois were largely flat for March compared to March of last year. However, revenue lags the economic slump and is the damage likely to show up quickly in coming weeks and months.

In the case of an epidemic like COVID-19, Illinois governors are given a wide range of emergency powers for a limited period of time. Here is a timeline of Pritzker’s executive orders so far:

The suits stated that as many as 12,000 prisoners could be eligible for release, including many who were convicted of non-violent offenses, are elderly, at elevated risk to get ill, or have already served most of their sentences.

Presented without comment.

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released this month show Illinois was home to one of the worst economies in the nation last year. While almost every other state was expanding payrolls, Illinois actually lost 5,200 jobs in the private sector for the first time in a decade.

According to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Labor, 178,133 workers filed for unemployment benefits for the week ending March 28, a 56 percent increase over last week’s record 114,114 filings.

“When we do get on the other side of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s going to be a long and rough economic recovery. Bold, but necessary, policy decisions will need to be made.”

“While it’s natural to fear the unknown — and vital to protect the interests of minority communities across the state — the Fair Maps Amendment does that. And instead of diluting minority representation, the process could improve it.”