Sen. Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet) speaks in the Senate Transportation Committee Tuesday. [Blue Room Stream]   

A Senate committee gave a skeptical green light to a bill to create a warning system designed to prevent trucks from hitting short bridges, overpasses and viaducts under a program Sen. Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet) is pushing for.  

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at Springfield Early Learning Center Thursday on his Fiscal Year 2024 budget proposal. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Gov. JB Pritzker’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget proposal focuses on increasing funding for early childhood education and college but does not make a substantial funding increase to go directly to underfunded K-12 school districts despite some organizations hoping schools would see a greater funding increase.

Comptroller Susana Mendoza, in red, sits with other executive branch officials at the State of the State address Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

While expressing caution, Comptroller Susana Mendoza is pleased with Gov. JB Pritzker’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget proposal and is glad to see surplus funds are being injected into existing programs rather than a host of new ideas.  

Gov. JB Pritzker delivers the State of the State address Wednesday. [Blue Room Stream] 

Gov. JB Pritzker spent most of his State of the State speech Wednesday focused on budget proposals and how he plans to make education more affordable in Illinois, but he didn’t miss the opportunity to weigh in on controversial political issues with some thinly veiled shots at Republicans.

Gov. JB Pritzker delivers the 2023 State of the State address in Springfield Wednesday. [Blue Room Stream]   

With a recession in the back of his mind, Gov. JB Pritzker presented a spending plan after two years of revenue topping $50 billion that focused on making education more accessible and affordable.  

House Democrats budget leader Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth (D-Peoria) speaks at a news conference Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

Gov. JB Pritzker’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget proposal was met with a positive response from members of his party, but others were more cautious about new spending plans as revenue figures and economic conditions are expected to change in the coming year.  

Gov. JB Pritzker gives the 2022 State of the State address at the Old State Capitol in Springfield. [Blue Room Steam]  

Gov. JB Pritzker intends to fulfill early campaign promises in his State of the State Address Wednesday and will announce a four-year plan to boost access to childcare and preschool in hopes of making early childhood education accessible to all children.  

Senate Republicans said they hope Gov. JB Pritzker will focus on bringing down high energy prices in his budget address Wednesday. And House Republicans are adopting a working group model to focus on five policy areas.  

The Illinois Capitol.   

A bill establishing five days of paid leave for all Illinois workers still awaits Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature, but Democrats are already pushing to take paid leave another step further in Illinois by targeting 26 weeks of paid leave.  

Rep. LaShawn Ford (D-Chicago) speaks at a news conference in Springfield Tuesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is not doing enough to direct grant funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment to Black organizations despite Black residents making up half of the state’s HIV/AIDS cases, advocates and lawmakers said.