Category Archives: Headlines
Early morning road work planned near Illinois State University
NORMAL, Ill. (WMBD) - A road near Illinois State University will be reduced to one lane early Thursday morning as crews repair the pavement. Beginning at 4 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 16, there will be a l...
Oct 15, 2025 (Photo courtesy: Illinois State University)
Report offers mixed review of educational progress in Illinois
SPRINGFIELD - A new report about education in Illinois suggests that overall, the state has made significant progress in key areas, from readying toddlers for kindergarten to helping young adults earn...
Oct 15, 2025 Students do math problems at an elementary school in Springfield. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Campbell)
Ex-AT&T Illinois head could see bribery charges dismissed under agreement with feds
CHICAGO - Former AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza, who had been accused of bribing then-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan in exchange for the 2017 passage of legislation backed by the...
Oct 15, 2025 Former AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza exits the Dirksen Federal Courthouse in Chicago in September 2024 after jury selection in his bribery trial, which ultimately ended in a hung jury. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
More than half of Illinois communities have enacted a local grocery tax
Illinois will stop levying a statewide grocery tax on Jan. 1, but millions of people throughout the state will continue paying it locally. Data compiled by the Illinois Municipal League released Monda...
Oct 15, 2025 Apples displayed at a farmers market. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Campbell)
ISU alum Jane Lynch to perform in Bloomington
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (WMBD) - Award-winning comedian and Redbird alum Jane Lynch will take the stage in December for a special holiday performance. At 7 p.m. on Dec. 12, Lynch will be joining others as "...
Oct 15, 2025 (Photo courtesy: File)
Bloomington City Council votes for grocery tax to fund only infrastructure projects
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (WMBD) - The Bloomington City Council on Monday voted for the grocery tax funds to be used only on infrastructure projects. On Sep. 22, the council voted to continue a 1% grocery tax...
Oct 14, 2025 Bloomington Mayor Dan Brady (Photo courtesy: WJBC)
Olympia upsets No. 1 school in state after taking lesson from 1985 state finalist team
STANFORD, Ill. (WMBD) - Not too many football teams in Central Illinois had a better Friday night than Olympia. The Spartans knocked off the number one team in 2A, Maroa Forsyth. The win snapped a thr...
Oct 14, 2025 (Photo courtesy: File)
Ex-Speaker Madigan reports to West Virginia prison to begin 7 ½-year sentence
CHICAGO - Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan reported to a West Virginia federal prison on Monday to begin his 7 -year sentence for public corruption - nearly 600 miles away from his native...
Oct 14, 2025 Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan exits Chicago's Dirksen Federal Courthouse on June 13 after receiving a 7 ½-year sentence for corruption. The former speaker reported to a federal prison in West Virginia on Monday, eight months after a jury convicted him on 10 of 23 counts of corruption, including bribery, in February. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
Budzinski urges bipartisan deal to end shutdown, but draws 'red line' on health care
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski said Thursday reopening the federal government will take a bipartisan agreement, but she drew "a red line in the sand" on health care, warning that some premium...
Oct 13, 2025 Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski speaks at an event in Springfield in May 2025. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Jerry Nowicki)
El Paso man arrested for allegedly spreading child pornography on social media
EL PASO, Ill. (WMBD) - An El Paso man was arrested by the Woodford County Sheriff's Office accused of sharing child pornography. Members of the sheriff's office's Pro-Active Unit arrested George W. Le...
Oct 13, 2025 (Photo courtesy: Tazewell County Sheriff's Department)
