New testing standards, staffing strains, and persistent absenteeism are testing the sustainability of the state’s post-pandemic academic rebound.
Democrats face financial and political risk in their bid to block the GOP plan.
Providers report denial rates up to 17.5 percent. To cope with the mounting financial pressure, some small clinics have stopped accepting Medicaid altogether.
The state is seeing a larger decline in residents 18 and younger than any other state. It’s also getting older and seeing losses in its working-age population.
Local transit agencies are facing a budget gap of nearly $800 million. The Illinois Senate has passed a bill to provide nearly double that amount and overhaul the systems but the House has not yet acted.
Madigan, 83, who for years was widely hailed as the most powerful politician in the state, was convicted on bribery conspiracy and other corruption charges.
Chicago-area transit agencies face a $771 million budget gap. Absent state action, they’re warning about a 40 percent reduction in service and 3,000 layoffs.
The largest increases are on taxes of tobacco, vaping and sports betting, but there are also various changes to corporate rates and collections.
Decatur, Ill., has been losing factory jobs for years. A training program at a local community college promises renewal and provides training for students from disenfranchised communities.
Jurors deadlocked in a bribery case involving Democratic state Sen. Emil Jones III, the third high-profile Illinois public corruption case to end inconclusively over the last several months.
In local elections Tuesday, 79 percent of the candidates backed by the Illinois Democratic Party won. Several Republican mayors were unseated, pointing to problems for the GOP in the suburbs.
The Democrat is expected to announce a run for a third term in the coming weeks. In the meantime, he is devoting much of his energy to attacks on the administration in Washington.
Mike Madigan, a former state Democratic Party chair, had been the longest-serving chamber leader in U.S. history. A jury has found him guilty of multiple counts in a wide-ranging bribery scandal.
Finding ways to support teaching as a career, including training, innovation and community engagement, helped a Chicago-area district increase its retention rate by 23 percent in just three years.
After years of cuts, the agency’s budget has doubled since 2020. But its new director will face challenges due to policy differences with the incoming Trump administration.
The governors of Illinois, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania have called on an electric grid operator to take “swift action” on record-setting electricity prices during times of high demand.
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