Funding included two grants totaling $500,000 from the llinois Department of Human Services for “administrative services associated with violence prevention programs, youth employment programs, and operational expenses,” a single grant of $500,000 “from the State Coronavirus Urgent Remediation Emergency Fund” through the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority “for administrative costs.” CTC received five additional grants totaling $500,000 from the “Build Illinois Bond Fund” through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity “for costs associated with building renovations” and “for costs associated with infrastructure improvements.”

Jim Dey: “The Illinois Supreme Court has ruled politicians here can use campaign funds to pay legal debts. Previously, they were entitled to convert all of it to personal use. But the Legislature, acting under public pressure, recently modified the amount legislators can devote to personal use.”

“It’s important to remember these consolidated elections are not always a reliable indication of the future. They’re very low turnout, and in years like this one — when the election was held during a hugely controversial U.S. president’s first 100 days — they can be influenced by the outrage of the moment, particularly when one political party was putting its finger on the scale, as the Democratic Party of Illinois was.”

Illinois voters should have the opportunity to send a message to politicians on the most important issues affecting their quality of life and cost of living. Unfortunately, they rarely have that chance. That’s

Under the proposal, companies by 2030 would be required to use either paper bags or another re-usable alternative; This is mostly targeted at big companies such as Walmart and Target. A second bill aims to remove polystyrene from food containers, also with a 2030 deadline.

State Rep. Terra Costa Howard says Lombard Police are investigating death threats her office has received.

With nearly 10,000 units of local government, Illinois has more taxing bodies than any other state. According to an Illinois Auditor General report, it was found that over 100 state boards in Illinois were inactive. Illinois has more than 850 school districts.

The leadership of the Springfield Catholic Diocese has signed on to a new lawsuit challenging a new Illinois law, supposedly forbidding discrimination against women over their “reproductive health choices,” which the church leaders say would actually trample the First Amendment religious freedom rights of organizations which oppose abortion, along with other controversial “reproductive freedom” issues championed by Illinois’ Democratic leaders.

Advocates questioned the constitutional legitimacy of the proposal when it comes to concealed carry or allowing people without a FOID card to use their firearm. Another challenge was a provision in the current bill language that would allow police officers to revoke a FOID card, which opponents said only a judge can do.

According to Illinois statute, consumers should pay a 1 percent tax on medically-required equipment and the customary 6.25 percent or more on the rest of the vehicle. State Sen. Don DeWitte said the law is applied when people add the equipment after they receive their vehicle, but they get charged 6.25 percent or more on the equipment when it comes with the car from the factory.

At SIUE, students voiced concerns about the proposed cuts earlier this month, holding a demonstration asking for more transparency from SIUE leadership regarding the potential cuts. The university has reported a budget shortfall of more than $10 million.

Rep. La Shawn Ford, who represents a district that includes parts of Chicago, made the remark as parents, students and opponents of HB 2827, the Homeschool Act, rallied in the city’s downtown. “And finally, we’ve seen, since the pandemic, the growth in home schooling. It has increased across all demographics, but specifically in the Black community, from 3.3 percent to almost 17 percent of Black people use homeschooling in this state,” he added.