By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Maybe state lawmakers are ready for a couple of days off. A lengthy, heated debate in the Illinois Senate Friday was about a bill requiring Illinois foster parents to have a “hair care plan” to assist in allowing the foster child’s hair to be worn in a way reflecting the…… MORE
Organizers of Springfield’s PrideFest say it’s the largest such event in downstate Illinois.… MORE
By WMBD-TV SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House gave final passage Thursday to a bill establishing a new cabinet-level state agency whose mission will be to provide a kind of one-stop shop for services focusing on early childhood development and education. By the time it’s fully operational in 2026, the new Department of Early Childhood will…… MORE
If life were a Nat King Cole song, the upcoming days of summer would be lazy, hazy, crazy, and be saturated in soda, pretzels, and beer.… MORE
By WMBD-TV SPRINGFIELD – A new bill that is heading to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk would help disabled veterans who need to modify their homes. Illinois Senate Bill 2751, will amend the codes in Illinois counties, townships and municipalities so that disabled veterans or their caretakers will not be charged any building permit fee. The…… MORE
The Illinois Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigations leader plans to leave the state for a position at FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. … MORE
Tuesday’s annual Illinois fallen firefighters memorial service honored those who died in the line of duty in 2023: four from the Chicago Fire Department and the chief of the Maroa Countryside Fire Protection District.… MORE
By WMBD-TV SPRINGFIELD – Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs announced on Monday the state’s missing money program, I-Cash, has returned $20.6 million to residents for the month of April. A news release from Frerichs’ office stated that 16,662 Illinoisians were given the missing money. “Putting money back in people’s pockets helps families and our state’s…… MORE
The Illinois House gave final passage Thursday to a bill establishing a new cabinet-level state agency whose mission will be to provide a kind of one-stop shop for services focusing on early childhood development and education.… MORE
Diabetics today are prescribed continuous glucose monitors. A bill would require insurers to cover more of them.… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…