Springfield News
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An ambitious bill unveiled in Springfield Thursday would set a deadline to move Illinois to 100 percent renewable energy by 2050 — a dramatic increase from the 4 percent renewable energy Illinois currently uses, and the 25-percent goal by 2025 set by a previous law.
A coalition of groups and lawmakers unveiled an ambitious bill to move Illinois to 100 percent renewable energy by 2050. [Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition]
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House Democrats on Wednesday introduced a six-bill package aimed at bringing down the cost of prescription drugs, tackling an issue typically reserved for federal lawmakers.
State Rep. Mary Flowers (D-Chicago) told reporters Wednesday that it was wrong a heart medication for a dog is less expensive than a heart medication for a human. [Hannah Meisel/The Daily Line]
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Illinois’ House Republican Caucus on Wednesday introduced a resolution of opposition to any attempt to change Illinois’ constitution to permit a graduated income tax — Gov. JB Pritzker’s top priority.
State Rep. Avery Bourne (R-Raymond), along with other members of the House Republican Caucus, introduces a House Resolution opposing a constitutional change to a progressive income tax — Gov. JB Pritzker’s top priority — in Springfield on Wednesday. [Hannah Meisel/The Daily Line]
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Credit rating agency Fitch Ratings is the second of the three major Wall Street agencies to weigh in on Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed budget and warn that it may not put Illinois back on the path to fiscal stability — at least not in the way the agencies would like to see. Meanwhile on Tuesday, a transgender woman prisoner filed a federal lawsuit against the Illinois Department of Corrections to get her moved from a men’s prison, where she alleges she’s suffered abuse and harassment, to a women’s prison.
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The Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund continues to be a model in funding its pension liabilities, while most other retirement systems in Chicago are funded at an average of 37 percent, according to a report out last week from the state’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability.
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FEB 26, 2019
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A framework for a much-anticipated capital bill is unlikely to emerge any time before May, Democratic senators said Thursday, as they embark on a six-city statewide “listening tour” that will last until late April — trying to gather as much public input as possible about capital needs in Illinois.
A crack in a steel beam shut down Lake Shore Drive for 24 hours in early February. [Photo courtesy of Ald. Brian Hopkins (2)]
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Gov. JB Pritzker received raucous applause during his inaugural address last month when he promised to do his part to fulfill the “most basic responsibilities” of state government — proposing, debating and passing a balanced budget.
Gov. JB Pritzker delivers his first Budget Address in Springfield on Wednesday. [Lee Milner]
“Balancing the budget means lowering the cost of government while delivering the high quality services Illinoisans deserve,” Pritzker said Jan. 14, moments after being sworn in.
The new governor got his chance to propose that balanced budget Wednesday when he addressed a joint session of the General Assembly and his administration released hundreds of pages of budget documents to the public. But whether Pritzker’s budget proposal is truly balanced is up for debate.
