By NIKA SCHOONOVERCapitol News Illinoisnschoonover@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinoisans seeking to legally change the gender on their birth certificate will have an easier time under a new law signed by Gov. JB Pritzker last week. “Here in Illinois, we recognize that gender transition is a personal journey that doesn’t always follow […]
By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker on Wednesday laid out a $49.6 billion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year that calls for significant new spending for early childhood education and efforts to combat homelessness among other areas. He also claimed credit for putting the state […]
By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Five years ago this month, Illinois lawmakers passed legislation that overhauled the way public schools in the state are funded. The so-called Evidence Based Funding formula, or EBF, was designed to calculate the actual cost for each district to provide the kind of […]
By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker said Tuesday that he is asking President Joe Biden and the federal government to increase Illinois’ share of federal funding to reflect the results of a recent Census Bureau study showing the state was very likely undercounted in the 2020 […]
By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A leaked draft of an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision that could overturn the landmark 1973 case Roe v. Wade reignited a political debate over whether access to abortion is a constitutional right or something that can be regulated by the states. The […]
By GRACE KINNICUTTCapitol News Illinoisgkinnicutt@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker and Illinois Democrats warned of an “end to the constitutional right to privacy” if a leaked U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning the 1973 landmark decision in Roe v. Wade becomes finalized as precedent. “It means women who lose access to […]
By JERRY NOWICKICapitol News Illinoisjnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A pair of bills on Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk would expand a state roadway camera monitoring program to 21 additional counties while also expanding the number of crimes the cameras can be used to investigate and the number of parties that can prosecute […]
By JERRY NOWICKICapitol News Illinoisjnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinois on Thursday received its second credit rating upgrade from Moody’s Investors Service within one year, moving up one notch but remaining in the worst shape of the 50 states. It’s the third upgrade between the three major credit ratings agencies during Gov. […]
By PETER HANCOCKCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed a package of bills Tuesday that make up a roughly $46 billion Fiscal Year 2023 state general revenue funds budget that includes increased funding for education and human services and $1.8 billion in mostly-temporary tax relief. Pritzker signed the […]
By JERRY NOWICKICapitol News Illinoijnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed his final first-term budget into law Tuesday, a roughly $46 billion spending plan buoyed by pandemic-driven revenue windfalls and a current-year surplus that helped the state pay down debts and offer temporary tax relief. Between the three budget-related bills […]
