SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – Anyone under 18 who’s caught with electronic cigarettes or other tobacco-free nicotine products would face a fine or community service under a new Illinois law. Gov. Bruce Rauner signed legislation last week that imposes penalties for minors who possess e-cigarettes. State Sen. Julie Morrison sponsored the measure. The Deerfield Democrat says…
( KTRS ) Illinois Democratic Senate President John Cullerton says he’s delaying a funding bill for colleges in the hopes that Gov. Bruce Rauner will reconsider his threat to veto it. Democrats last week approved a $721.5 million to be split between community colleges and tuition grants for low-income students who qualify for the Monetary…
CHICAGO (AP) – Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner wants lawmakers to address Illinois’ worst-in-the-nation pension crisis “right away.” But despite a rare agreement between Rauner and Democratic Senate President John Cullerton, it’s unlikely a bill will advance anytime soon. Cullerton says it’s tougher than usual to pass a pension bill this year. That’s because of upcoming…
A law enforcement agency must have reasonable suspicion that there’s a danger to the applicant or others in order to object to a concealed carry permit application
MASCOUTAH, Ill. (AP) – A southern Illinois airport that has struggled to attract airliners in its nearly 20-year existence has unsuccessfully sought federal financial support in recent years to help bolster its bottom line. The Belleville News-Democrat reports that Mid America Airport in Mascoutah applied for $525,000 grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation in…
( KTRS ) A two-state fight for a federal spy agency’s new regional headquarters and more than 3,000 high-tech jobs has gained increased urgency in St. Louis after the failed bid to build a $1 billion riverfront stadium. St. Louis leaders had envisioned a new Rams stadium and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency complex as anchors…
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – The Federal Emergency Management Agency is coming to Illinois to help assess damage from early-winter floods that struck nearly two dozen counties. Gov. Bruce Rauner on Thursday vowed to “do everything possible to help people and communities” affected by the late December and early January flooding. FEMA will work with its…
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – Illinois Democrats have approved $721.5 million for tuition grants and community colleges, but Republicans call it an empty promise because the state still doesn’t have a budget. The funding measure sent to Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner Thursday allocates $324.4 million to community colleges for operating costs and $397.1 million to the…
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner will propose fixing the state’s underfunded pension system and eliminating what he says is wasteful bureaucracy in public schools during his State of the State address. The Republican governor is delivering his second State of the State speech Wednesday with no budget and mounting pressure over the…
CHICAGO (AP) – Bruce Rauner takes pride in not being like any of Illinois’ previous governors, either on matters of style or substance. A multimillionaire in his first public office, the former private equity investor drops by watering holes in the state capital of Springfield to have a lowbrow Stag beer, despite having belonged to…