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   SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn is holding fast to his position that legislation calling for the carrying of concealed weapons should allow city governments to decide their own standards.

   But the Democratic governor's preference goes against lawmakers, who have given such ideas a chilly reception.

   The General Assembly has until June 9 to end Illinois' last-in-the-nation ban on concealed carry because of a federal appeals court ruling.

   Quinn wants larger cities such as Chicago to be able to set up their own standards for gun-toting citizens.

   Gun-rights advocates say that would create a confusing "patchwork" of laws and put gun owners in jeopardy.

   A plan in the Senate would give Chicago-area police the ability to deny gun permits. Gun owners and Republicans are cool to the idea.

 

   Illinois Governor Pat Quinn says there's nothing wrong with waiting until the last minute to file tax returns. The Chicago Democrat admitted to reporters yesterday that in the past he's been guilty of coming right up against the deadline.  

   Monday is that deadline -- the final day for Americans to file their 2012 tax returns.

   Quinn says it's no fun to pay taxes, but it's the price of living in a democracy.  

   The governor has released his tax returns in years past and he said yesterday that he plans to do so again soon.

Hundreds of millions of dollars is on the way for Illinois road projects and child abuse investigators.

Governor Pat Quinn signed a supplemental appropriation bill Thursday evening that's meant to shore up parts of state government that are running short of money half-way through the budget year.

It includes $675 million in unanticipated federal and state money available for road projects this spring. It also shifts $25 million saved from Quinn's closure of correctional facilities to the Department of Children and Family Services.

Republicans have complained the bill was rushed.

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn's state of the state address is receiving mixed reviews.

Quinn said Illinois's $100 billion pension shortfall is the number one problem for the state.

That feeling was echoed by business interests. The Illinois Manufacturers' Association says the time for talk is over and the Illinois Chamber of Commerce calls a failure to address pensions unconscionable.

But the president the Illinois Retail Merchants Association criticized the governor's plan to raise minimum wage from $8.25 to $10.00 per hour, saying it would hurt both employers and job seekers. The governor argued that no one working 40 hours a week should live in poverty.

During the speech, Quinn also said it was time for the state to allow same-sex marriages, and he renewed his call for an assault weapons ban.