“In Illinois this March, nearly 150 students are taking matters into their own hands over a school policy that allows biological men to enter women’s locker rooms and bathrooms. Students were told to use a single-stall bathroom if they were uncomfortable, so the high schoolers lined up down the hallway to use the restroom in protest. The protest didn’t come without consequences, as the superintendent of Waterloo High School marked the children tardy, while those who continued to protest were disciplined.”

Daniel Montgomery, president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers, and William McNary, co-executive director of Citizen Action/Illinois: “An EBF model for public higher education could provide a permanent solution to our underfunding crisis by ensuring equitable funding and improving access and affordability, starting with the colleges and universities that serve those with the greatest need.”

“Now is not the time to put corporate profits ahead of the lives of our constituents who may want to board a commercial flight in the future,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, adding that supporters of the FAA reauthorization bill would have “blood on your hands.”

“Revenue estimates are showing that we’re not gonna be able to afford these appropriations amounts, and there’s already conversations about what kind of tax increases we’re looking at down the road,” state Rep. Adam Niemerg said. “They’re talking about a corporate income tax increase, and they’re talking about a personal income tax surcharge.”

“While Illinois accounts for just 4% of the American economy, our workers have been responsible for more than 7% of all labor productivity growth in the United States since 2019. Illinois businesses have reaped the rewards, with the profits of Illinois’ corporations more than doubling and the profits of Illinois’ small business quadrupling in just three years.”

Nearly 10,000 scholarship recipients and their families face uncertainty after Illinois lawmakers failed to extend the Invest in Kids program.

The Illinois Supreme Court has released some opinions in recent weeks but high-profile cases are still pending.

Illinois child care is among the most expensive in the nation when compared against incomes, costing the average single mother more than a third of her pay, per a new report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

“(T)he Illinois Department of Human Services…inspector general last week released a report recommending a series of major changes to end the physical abuse and neglect of patients at the Choate Mental Health and Development Center in downstate Anna…The inspector general cited more than 1,500 incidents of abuse and neglect reported over the past decade. They ranged from physical abuse to outright neglect of those in need.”

St. Louis police homicide clearance rates have jumped to 80%. Police say increased presence of cameras could be part of why. But the high clearance rates may not persist through violent summer.