The National Federation of Independent Business index dipped in May after a record high 48% of owners reported unfilled job openings. State director Mark Grant said members are disappointed that Gov. J.B. Pritzker and legislative leaders haven’t done more to address the worsening problem.

State Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, said what he’s seen isn’t good policy. “When things are driven by ideology instead of by facts, that leads us to bad places, and that’s always been the case, it always will be the case. We have to look at the facts.”

“In terms of spectator limitations, those are no longer in place, so we can have 100% capacity at all of our upcoming events,” IHSA Assistant Executive Director Matt Troha said.

In an interview with Campus Reform, professor Ralph Martire clarified that his approach to social justice in class is “data-based…It’s funny, people that come in with some preconceived notions that are, let’s say, more left of center, move a little right, frequently, and people that come in right of center definitely move a little left, very frequently, sometimes a lot.”

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, or MALDEF, filed the lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court in Chicago on behalf of several individuals of Hispanic heritage. The lawsuit is similar to one filed earlier in the week by House and Senate Republican leaders.

There’s another way to refer to states with right-to-work laws. They’re pro-job growth states. Pro-economic development states. Pro-stable business environment states. Illinois isn’t a right-to-work state. It is, however, run by Democrats heavily aligned with organized labor.”

Despite the support of law enforcement groups, State Rep. Jim Durkin, the House Minority Leader, did not support the trailer legislation. “It’s fundamentally unfair against law enforcement officers,” Durkin said of the original bill. “I just can’t support a very weak trailer bill to a terrible bill.”

Patrick De Haan, of GasBuddy, says Illinois is 6th highest for gas prices in the nation and the highest in the midwest by far. “Illinois is not the place to fill up if you’re hitting the road this summer. You’ll want to get outside the state before filling your tank.”

Tim Benson, policy analyst for the Heartland Institute, which focuses on education among other things, said the statewide teachers shortage is more nuanced than simply raising salaries across the board, and that the state’s Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois continues to play a role in discouraging newcomers into the field.

Mitchell Bair is the city manager of Collinsville, home to the world’s largest ketchup bottle. He told the committee the labor shortage is a big concern. “We are going to be driving on the interstate of recovery with the parking brake on, unless we figure out this labor because that is what is going to hold this recovery back.”

Gov. JB Pritzker said it is critical that schools and day cares use and layer prevention strategies. The two most important ones are universal and correct use of masks, and physical distancing, which he said should be maximized to the greatest extent possible.

Jim Dey: “While Democrats prattled on about the fairness and diversity of interests reflected by their work, Republicans cried the blues…But the Republicans’ trail of tears turned out to be twice as long as they originally expected because Democrats didn’t stop with redrawing state House and Senate maps.”

For years, residents in at least 54 homes in the 4.29 square-mile area of the former north Centreville community have struggled with flash flooding and raw sewage in yards and homes that does not drain away. Residents say failed infrastructure and neglect by public agencies have hurt their community and made it almost impossible to live there.

“It’s a new chapter, of course, in the pandemic but we aren’t quite ready yet to remove the disaster declaration,” Gov. JB Pritzker said of the disaster proclamation he first issued March 9, 2020. “There are things that need to be ramped down and, you know, making sure of course that we actually are seeing continued decrease of cases and hospitalizations.”

She said, in part, “Hindsight is always 20/20 and we can armchair-quarterback and talk about what we could have done differently. But it is important to do that so we can better prepare for the next pandemic, which probably won’t take another 100 years.”

“Someone had gone into the system and changed my bank, then all of a sudden, I was locked out of IDES,” said Valerie, an out-of-work financial analyst. The response she received from IDES begins, “This type of fraudulent activity…is often the result of individuals having weak security measures in place, or sharing information about their claim online.”