Category: State News

By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker on Wednesday announced the release of nearly $60 million in grant funding to help local governments develop public parks and open spaces, over 20 percent of which will go to “distressed” communities. The money through the Open Space Land Acquisition and Development grants […]

By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – In the wake of a pair of recent decisions from the Illinois Supreme Court strengthening the state’s law governing how companies must treat employees’ and customers’ biometric data, longtime critics of the law see an opening to weaken it. But backers of Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy […]

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Citing what he called a nationwide crisis in children’s mental health, Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday unveiled a sweeping plan to overhaul and expand the availability of children’s behavioral health services in Illinois. “Long before COVID-19 turned our world upside down, our nation was facing a […]

By NIKA SCHOONOVER Capitol News Illinois nschoonover@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinois House Democrats announced the formation of a cannabis working group Thursday that will aim to steer the burgeoning industry’s expansion in a business-friendly way while still satisfying the equity goals of the landmark 2019 legalization law.  The group is led by Rep. La Shawn Ford, […]

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – S&P Global Ratings announced Thursday that it had raised Illinois’ long-term credit rating to A-, up from BBB+, marking the seventh upgrade the state has received from a major rating agency in less than two years. The rating applies to roughly $27.7 billion in outstanding general […]

By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois & MOLLY PARKER Lee Enterprises Midwest news@capitolnewsillinois.com   This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with Lee Enterprises, along with Capitol News Illinois. All 59 Republican members of the Illinois General Assembly are calling for legislative hearings on a state-run mental health center in rural […]

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A bill that would allow restaurants, hotels and other public places to designate “all-gender multiple-occupancy” restrooms passed out of a House committee Wednesday, sending it to the full House for consideration. House Bill 1286, sponsored by Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville, is similar to one that passed […]

By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Capitol News Illinois on Wednesday announced the hire of Andrew Adams as a state government and data reporter, further expanding its newsroom to five full-time reporters. Adams joins the team after a stint at Government Technology magazine, where he covered the public-sector technology industry, focusing on state and […]

By NIKA SCHOONOVER Capitol News Illinois nschoonover@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 a prescriptive medical […]