House Speaker Chris Welch (D-Hillside) at a news conference in June. During Thursday’s floor debate, Welch urged his colleagues to set aside politics and rhetoric while considering the omnibus energy bill. 

Despite months of gridlock, the House vote to approve the omnibus energy bill on Thursday was overwhelmingly in favor of the legislation. The bill (SB 2408), which required 71 votes for approval, ultimately received 83 “yes” votes.  

Illinois recorded more opioid overdose deaths in 2020 than any other year on record. (Photo: US Department of Homeland Security) 

Illinois recorded more opioid overdose deaths in 2020 than any other year on record, according to report released last month from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH).  

Rep. Jay Hoffman, Rep. Marcus Evans and Rep. Robyn Gabel addressed reporters Thursday night after the passage of the omnibus energy bill.

The Illinois House of Representatives on Thursday approved yet another version of the omnibus energy bill, signaling the most significant movement to date for an issue that has been years in the making. The chamber’s approval is set to be confirmed by the Senate on Monday so it can head to the governor’s desk.   

The House on Thursday accepted Gov. JB Pritzker’s amendatory veto of the ethics bill. And businessman Jesse Sullivan entered the race to be the GOP nominee for governor.  

Eureka College president Jamel Wright on Wednesday endorsed an effort by Rep. Tom Bennett (R-Gibson) to add a statue honoring former President Ronald Reagan to the Capitol grounds.

Former President Ronald Reagan is the first and only president of the United States to be born, raised and educated in Illinois and as such should have a statue honoring him on the state Capitol ground, a college president told a panel of lawmakers on Wednesday.  

Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced a probe of the Joliet Police Department. And Rep. Mike Halpin (D-Rock Island) will run for the state Senate. 

The need for workers across various Illinois job sectors has resulted in an increase in starting pay, according to a new report from the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability. [Unsplash]

The need for workers across various Illinois job sectors has resulted in an increase in starting pay, according to a new report from the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability (COGFA). 

In May, Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White warned residents about the dangers of phishing schemes. 

Sending legal notices to Illinois drivers via email could expose the state to cybersecurity risks, Secretary of State Jesse White wrote in a message to lawmakers eager to end the office’s reliance on snail mail. 

House Speaker Chris Welch (D-Hillside) announced the House will return on Thursday to take up the pending energy bill. And former U.S. Sen. Adlai Stevenson III has died. 

A newly filed House bill requires Prairie State Energy Campus and other municipal facilities to meet emissions reduction goals before their closure.

Facing a Sept. 13 deadline for the closure of the one of the state’s nuclear facilities, House lawmakers revealed some of their priorities before the holiday weekend for the omnibus energy bill that recently passed the Senate.