Lawmakers Approve Proposal To Allow Sex Workers To Expunge Past Felony Prostitution Convictions
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois General Assembly this spring approved a proposal to allow sex workers’ criminal charges expunged from their records for convictions dating back to when prostitution was classified as a felony in Illinois. Back in 2013, Illinois reduced a prostitution conviction down to a Class A misdemeanor. Despite no longer being considered a felony offense, a […]
More Than 660 Bills Will Head To Pritzker After Legislative Session
SPRINGFIELD – With the first year of the 102nd General Assembly mostly wrapped up, lawmakers as of Friday had officially passed 664 bills through both houses for eventual consideration by the governor. Gov. JB Pritzker had signed 17 of them as of Friday, including the Thursday signing of the state’s operating budget and a bill making […]
Illinois Governor Signs $42B State Spending Plan Into Law
CHICAGO (AP) — Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed a $42 billion spending plan for Illinois that includes $2.5 billion in spending from a multiyear federal relief package. The budget came together after Pritzker issued dire predictions for coming fiscal pain last fall. Voters soundly rejected his proposed constitutional amendment to scrap the state’s flat-rate income […]
Illinois Joins Midwestern States In Funding Farm Runoff Reduction Program
SPRINGFIELD — Illinois is the latest Midwestern state to earmark funding for a program to reduce nutrient runoff from farmland into waterways. It’s the first time the state has dedicated money to its Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS). Twelve states within the Mississippi River basin have similar strategies in place, and some, like Iowa, have […]
Former GOP Rep. Seeking Back Pay For Himself, All Other Lawmakers In Class Action Suit
SPRINGFIELD — A former state lawmaker is suing the state comptroller for salary increases he claims he was entitled to while serving in the Illinois General Assembly for 12 years, even though he voted against those raises as a lawmaker. Former Rep. Mike Fortner joins two other former state senators in filing separate lawsuits against […]
While States Restrict Voting, Illinois Would Expand Access
SPRINGFIELD — For Illinois, the changes to voting law that legislators made in the final hours of their legislative session this week seemed innocuous. In some cases — voting by mail, allowing jail inmates awaiting trial to cast ballots — are affirmation or expansion of practices already put to the test. But they present an […]
Pritzker Signs New Legislative Maps Into Law One Week After Democrats Push Them Through
SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday signed new legislative district maps Democrats pushed through the General Assembly a week ago — maps Democrats approved on partisan lines over objections from community advocacy organizations, self-styled government reform groups and Republicans. “Illinois’ strength is in our diversity, and these maps help to ensure that communities that have been […]
Deal Reported To Be Near On Energy Overhaul Package
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers are staying open for business as they await a possible deal on a sweeping energy proposal that would keep the state’s fleet of nuclear power plants online while providing incentives for development of more wind and solar generation. Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, issued a statement Tuesday saying he had […]
Dems’ $42B Budget Plan Held Back From Pritzker As Energy Deal Stalls — Again
SPRINGFIELD – While many Illinoisans spent Memorial Day off from work or maybe at a barbecue, Democrats in the General Assembly introduced, debated, altered and voted to pass a $42 billion dollar spending plan in just 24 hours early Monday into early Tuesday morning. The new state budget, which is slated to take effect July 1, […]
UPDATED: Both Houses Pass Election Bill Postponing 2022 Primary To June
SPRINGFIELD – Lawmakers passed an omnibus elections bill Monday that would push back the date of the 2022 primary elections amid other major changes to the state’s election code. The 156-page omnibus bill, an amendment to Senate Bill 825 filed by Rep. Maurice West, D-Rockford, would also strengthen the state’s cybersecurity surrounding elections and make Election Day […]
Lawmakers Pass $42.3 Billion Budget After 2:00 A.M.
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers worked into the early hours of Tuesday morning to pass a $42.3 billion state budget plan for the upcoming fiscal year that Democrats say would fully fund K-12 education and the state’s pension obligations while also paying down a sizeable portion of the state’s debt. Lawmakers have been working on the […]
Democrats Float Slightly Tweaked Remap Plans To Bolster Claims Party Heeded Community Input
SPRINGFIELD – Democrats in Illinois’ House and Senate Thursday evening released a second set of proposed legislative district boundary maps with four days left in the General Assembly’s regularly scheduled spring session. The new maps are tweaked ever so slightly from versions made public over the weekend, giving Democrats cover from complaints the majority party […]
Lawmakers Gear Up For Ethics Debate
SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois Senate is gearing up for a debate over a package of ethics reforms, possibly as early as this week, but it’s one that Republicans say doesn’t go far enough. Senate Bill 4, which moved out of the Senate Ethics Committee on April 21, is a package written largely by legislative Democrats […]
Illinois General Assembly Passes Hundreds of Bills As Session End Approaches
SPRINGFIELD — The state Senate and House passed more than 750 bills between them last week, addressing isolated timeouts in schools, youth vaping, teaching Muslim history, the commemoration of Juneteenth and automatic voter registration in prisons, among other topics. Friday was the deadline for the General Assembly to pass bills out of each chamber, for […]
Bill Placing Term Limits On General Assembly Leadership Passes Committee
SPRINGFIELD – A bill which would implement term limits on leadership roles in the Illinois General Assembly advanced out of committee Wednesday. House Bill 642, introduced by Rep. Anthony DeLuca, D-Chicago Heights, would bar any individual from serving more than 10 consecutive years in a leadership position in the General Assembly, including speaker of the […]