The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) has worked on the closure or consolidation of 60 colleges since 2016. The Midwest and northeast in general have had more college closures than other parts of the country, particularly the south and southwest where the population is growing more rapidly.

Illinois would provide up to $10,000 for funerals and burials of children who are murdered by a gun. Forty-five children were murdered by gun violence just in Chicago under the age of 17 in 2021 and 14 have been murdered since the beginning of this year.

The proposed provisions include changes to the electronic home monitoring that would allow for defendants with ankle monitors to have up to “two periods of time” of free movement. Another change would give police officers the ability to arrest someone on minor charges if they believe that person is a risk to the community.

During debate on the budget package earlier in the morning Saturday, state Rep. Tom Demmer, said there are no structural reforms to state spending and that will come back to bite taxpayers.

On the final day of spring session Saturday morning, the Illinois General Assembly approved House Bill 4383 which goes further than President Joe Biden’s rule. The Illinois measure would require built-from-scratch firearms for personal use that aren’t transferred to be registered.

House Bill 246 would inject more than $700 million from state and federal tax funds annually into Medicaid-funded nursing homes to reform the facilities by offering a number of incentives for safe staffing. The measure also includes a pay raise for certified nursing assistants.

“The idea that fuel retailers would have to reach into their own pockets to tell their customers about legislation approved in Springfield and then face heavy fines if they don’t is completely absurd,” IL Fuel and Retail Association CEO Josh Sharp said. If Pritzker signs the signage requirements into law, Sharp is considering filing a lawsuit against the state.

At least 153 pieces of cryptocurrency-related legislation were pending this year in 40 states and Puerto Rico, according to an analysis by the National Conference of State Legislatures. While it was unclear how many were influenced by the crypto industry, some bills have used industry-proposed language almost word for word. One bill pending in Illinois lifted entire sentences from a draft provided by a lobbyist.

Supporters said the legislation will offer greater education stability to participating students with year-over-year scholarship priority.

Paul Arena, director of legislative affairs at the Illinois Rental Property Association, said if the bill is signed into law, landlords statewide will lose control. “It’s a blank check for government to further control rental property moving forward, and that is why it is so dangerous.”

The plan, known as the Fair Food and Retail Act, would prohibit services like Grubhub, DoorDash, and Uber Eats from using the name, likeness, or intellectual property of a merchant without first obtaining written approval.

If a subcontractor fails to pay an employee, HB5412 states that an employee can file a legal claim with the general contractor for any unpaid wages and benefits. The measure exempts unionized contractors from being impacted by the wage theft provisions.

The Illinois Constitution has provisions to prevent rushed legislation. Article IV, Section 8 of the constitution requires each bill be read on three separate days before it can be passed into law so lawmakers can know what they are voting for. But the spirit of this provision is often subverted through the practice of gutting and replacing legislation, often through the use of shell bills that contain no real substance.

The justification for the one-page summary of candidates’ on-the-job contributions to diversity, equity and inclusion is to incentivize faculty as early as possible to do societally impactful work, said Bill Bernhard, executive vice provost for academic affairs.