“As the fifth largest exporting state in the nation, our $78.7 billion in international sales support countless jobs across the state – a sign of a thriving economy,” Gov. JB Pritzker said. Since 2019, Illinois exports have increased by 32 percent. Top export markets include Canada, Mexico, Germany, China and Australia.

Since July 1, 2023, Illinois has collected $2.67 billion in taxes on fuel, according to Illinois State Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s office.

The order provides protective status to undocumented spouses of American citizens who have been in the country for ten years or more. Ramirez is the only member of Congress in a “mixed-status” family, making the executive order both political and personal for her.

Gov. JB Pritzker is joining three other Democratic governors to urge the country’s largest electricity company to plan for more zero-carbon power as demand goes up. Pritzker’s goal is to have 1 million electric vehicles on Illinois roads by the year 2030, an ambitious plan considering the charging infrastructure is not close to being able to handle that many electric vehicles.

“Having identity documents that don’t match your gender is a public safety issue. This is a life or death issue for folks,” said state Rep. Kelly Cassidy. “It’s very simple to create a pathway for folks who are now here in Illinois but maybe were born elsewhere…last I checked we all really like it when people choose to come to Illinois, so let’s make it possible for residents to live their best lives.”

The bigger the divide gets between the government sector, which has pension guarantees, the Constitutional protections of Amendment 1, guaranteed labor contracts, guaranteed raises … they get all that. The private sector doesn’t get any of those kinds of protections, and yet they have to pay higher and higher taxes to pay for the government class. We’re creating two classes of workers: one that’s protected and one that’s not,” said Wirepoints President Ted Dabrowski.

Opponents argue that perhaps improving weather siren infrastructure is a different solution rather than imposing a construction mandate on private developers.

Illinois State Board of Elections members voted 7-1 to adopt a hearing officer’s recommendation, which agreed with radio host Dan Proft and former Republican state Sen. Darren Bailey’s contention that state law was not specific enough to find a violation had occurred and that there wasn’t enough evidence to prove that ads Proft produced during Bailey’s general election challenge to Gov. JB Pritzker amounted to illegal coordination.

An occupational license is essentially a government issued-permission slip to work. Even working as a florist or barber is illegal without a license. In 2022, Illinois licensed 41 out of 102 lower-income occupations surveyed by the Institute for Justice.

“Despite the importance of (credit card) rewards programs to everyday Americans, Senators Dick Durbin and Roger Marshall seem determined to undermine them. Their proposed credit card legislation would restrict card issuers’ ability to fund rewards programs and adversely impact cardholders of all incomes.”

Winning the federal money is key to helping fund Quantum Shield, the fraud-detection project that’s part of Illinois Tech Hubs bid, said Brad Henderson, chief executive officer of P33

“It also comes at a time when the federal government is seemingly throwing money at conservation through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, with $19.5 billion over five years to support conservation programs. The catch? (Michael Woods, of the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts) says you need state infrastructure to take advantage of it.”

While there are strong protections in place for students 17 and younger, sponsors say that educators and staff should be charged for sexual conduct with students between 18 and 23 years old.

The Illinois Senate could pass a plan in November to phase out the sub-minimum wage for workers with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The proposal could create a special grant fund of $2 million to help community agencies transition away from the sub-minimum wages.

Environmental groups and farmers alike have raised concerns about the potential impact of operating a cargo airport and warehouses near Peotone to allow the Will County area to cash in on the increased demand of fast shipping from companies such as Amazon. But the passage of two bills over the past two legislative sessions have renewed the hopes of government officials who see the project as a generator of opportunity.