Democrats’ Late Friday Maps Drop Brings Decennial Redistricting Fight To Fever Pitch
SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois General Assembly’s typical end-of-May rush is headed for an acrimonious conclusion after Democrats published their long-awaited proposed legislative maps Friday evening, kicking off what those in the party hope is the final leg of a contentious once-in-a-decade redistricting process. Republicans — along with many self-styled government reform organizations and minority advocacy […]
GOP Accuses Pritzker Of Breaking Campaign Promise On ‘Fair Maps’
SPRINGFIELD — Illinois Republicans are blasting Gov. JB Pritzker for walking back a pledge he made while running for governor in 2018, when he said he’d veto any legislative maps drawn by lawmakers, political party leaders or their staff. Democrats — who hold veto-proof supermajorities in the General Assembly — are in the thick of […]
Redistricting Hearings Focus On Champaign-Urbana
URBANA – An Illinois House committee is gathering input from different parts of the state, as its members prepare to redraw legislative and congressional districts. On Thursday, the Redistricting Committee heard via Zoom from the Champaign-Urbana area — one of the few parts of Illinois seeing population growth. Gloria Yen with the University YMCA’s New […]
Environment Bill Would Ban Celebratory Balloon Releases
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House Energy and Environment Committee advanced a pair of bills in a Monday hearing, one that would ban ceremonial balloon releases and another that would make utility companies responsible for the response to gas leaks. House Bill 418, introduced by Rep. Sam Yingling, D-Grayslake, would impose a $500 penalty for first-time […]
Planned Central Illinois Youth Center Will Advance Juvenile Justice Overhaul
SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration announced the planned opening of a new center for incarcerated youth in central Illinois Tuesday, the latest step in a plan to reform the state’s juvenile justice system. The Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice is establishing an Illinois Youth Center in the city of Lincoln in Logan County. The […]
Permanent Vote-By-Mail Expansion Moves To House Floor
SPRINGFIELD – The House Executive Committee advanced an election bill that would make permanent some of the expansions to mail-in voting that were passed for the 2020 general election. The bill would require election authorities to accept mail-in ballots that were submitted without sufficient postage and allow election authorities to set up collection sites or […]
GOP Lawmakers Introduce ‘Fair Maps’ Legislation
SPRINGFIELD – Republicans in the Illinois House said Tuesday that they hope to use legislation, instead of a constitutional amendment, to change the way state legislative and congressional district lines are redrawn every 10 years. The so-called “fair maps” proposal would authorize the General Assembly to set up an independent, nonpartisan commission to redraw the […]
Mitigations Triggered In 9th Of 11 Regions As COVID-19 Rages
A ninth of the state’s 11 COVID-19 reopening regions triggered increased mitigations Thursday as the governor touted the release of federal funding for…
Republicans Ask For Modifications To Regional Plan, Say Governor Should Not Withhold Aid From FEMA
A group of downstate Illinois lawmakers are calling again for an alternative plan to reopen the state’s economy. Those lawmakers said since economic and…
News Around Illinois – March 12, 2020
Illinois Colleges Suspend In-Person Classes Due To COVID-19 CHICAGO — Illinois, DePaul, Northwestern and Illinois State universities have decided to suspend in-person classes due to coronavirus fears. The schools on Wednesday joined colleges and universities around the U.S. that have announced a halt to face-to-face instruction. None of the universities are reporting cases of COVID-19 […]