A proposed new map of Cook County judicial subcircuits drew mixed praise during a hearing on Thursday.

Legislators from the Senate and House hosted a joint public hearing on Thursday to discuss the recently revealed map of proposed Judicial Subcircuits in Cook County. Co-hosted by House Redistricting Committee Chair Rep. Lisa Hernandez (D-Cicero) and Sen. Elgie Sims (D-Chicago), the hybrid meeting occurred at the Michael A. Bilandic Building in Chicago. Most legislators and participants chose the remote Zoom option.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Thursday signed Senate Bill 280, launching a new Regional Water Commission for Joliet and its surrounding communities. The bill was originally introduced to the Senate in February by Sen. John Connor (D-Lockport) and passed both the House and the Senate unanimously in October. 

Lt. Gov Juliana Stratton speaks during an event in Little Village on Wednesday to announce new funding through the state’s Restore Reinvest Renew (R3) program.

State officials on Wednesday announced $45 million in new funding for a program designed to heal communities harmed by the decades-long War on Drugs. Gov. JB Pritzker celebrated the program as hallmark of the state’s “equity-centered” cannabis legalization law while lamenting the loss of one of the law’s foremost architects to a national organization.

A rendering of The Prime Group’s $280 million plan to renovate the Thompson Center [JAHN Architecture, Inc.]

State leaders are closing in on a deal to sell the James R. Thompson Center to a private developer who plans to renovate the controversial downtown building while keeping its iconic exterior intact, Gov. JB Pritzker announced Wednesday.

Illinois Secretary of State candidate Alexi Giannoulias speaking during the Cook County Democratic Party slating event on Tuesday. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The Cook County Democratic Party voted on Tuesday to throw its weight behind Illinois Secretary of State candidate Alexi Giannoulias, solidifying his frontrunner status in the race as one of his challengers considers dropping out.

A map of 20 proposed Cook County judicial subcircuits [House Redistricting Committee]

Democratic legislators from both the Illinois Senate and Illinois House of Representatives announced a new map of Judicial Subcircuits on Monday, saying it will bring equity and fairness to a remapping process that has been starved for attention.

Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill on Friday that will regulate when flags are flown at half staff.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a string of bills into law on Friday. They will regulate flags flying at half staff, medicare reimbursements for hospitals, milk served to children at restaurants and the impacts of COVID-19 on the state’s transportation system.

Gov. JB Pritzker officially authorized $250 million in new funding to fight gun violence as part of the Reimagine Public Safety Act (HB 2791) on Friday. 

Photo illustration by Alex Bandoni/ProPublica. Source Images: Roseland Hospital by Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Chicago Sun-Times via AP, Background by Getty Images.

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An Illinois lawmaker said she will propose legislation to require hospital employees to report suspected patient-on-patient sexual assaults to law enforcement.

From left: Health care technology entrepreneur Frank Naeymi-Rad, Primary Health Care Association lobbyist Cyrus Winnett and Lake County Health Department director Mark Pfister all testified during a Senate Health Committee hearing on Thursday.

State lawmakers should explore loosening Medicaid spending rules and cracking down on hospital acquisitions to rein in mounting health care costs, a researcher testified on Thursday. Other officials called on state leaders to push for a more centralized system to store and share patient data.