Springfield News
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After weeks of delays and false starts, State Sen. Mike Hastings (D-Orland Park) on Thursday shepherded SB 1407 through the Senate, sending the House a bill that would require firms to pay their workers the equivalent of the local prevailing wage paid to union laborers.
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There are plenty of cities around Illinois that have long jockeyed for a casino after the first nine were built in the early 1990s, and the 10th was established in Des Plaines a decade ago. But perhaps no city’s struggle for a casino is more representative of the years of pent-up angst at play during the final weeks of spring legislative session than Rockford.
Rockford native son Rick Nielsen, guitarist for Cheap Trick, lobby for a casino in his hometown. [Facebook/ State Sen. Steve Stadelman]
The city drafted Rockford’s very own Rick Nielsen, guitarist for Cheap Trick, to spend a day in Springfield lobbying for a Rockford casino in between selfies with fans. It’s also got a robust lobbying effort hammering home the message that the time for a casino is now — especially with a threat from across the Illinois border.
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Fantasy sports companies FanDuel and DraftKings may sue the state of Illinois if lawmakers pass and Gov. JB Pritzker signs a version of a sports betting bill bans the firms now focused on sports betting from operating in the state under a provision pushed by Rivers Casino chairman Neil Bluhm.
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Republicans said Tuesday that it’s unlikely any member of the GOP will even consider voting to legalize marijuana, so long as its includes the Black Caucus’ priorities — including a robust expungement program — that they aren’t prepared to support.
Gov. JB Pritzker said he welcomed feedback on his proposal to legalize marijuana. [Twitter/@GovPrtizker]
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Gov. JB Pritzker’s office was the catalyst behind labor group AFL-CIO Illinois putting together a coalition to push for “vertical projects” — that is schools, public buildings and hospitals — to be included in a final capital bill, sources said.
Three sources confirmed to The Daily Line this week that Pritzker’s office set in motion the formation of Build Up Illinois, a coalition of 45 universities, health, housing and education associations and unions from around the state with vested interests in a “vertical” component to the first capital bill in a decade.
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Seven weeks after victims rights activist Denise Rotheimer and freshman State Rep. Anne Stava-Murray (D-Naperville) complained that their “victims’ bill of rights” had been blocked by House Democratic leadership, the pair said Wednesday that it will part of a larger ethics package.
Victims rights activist Denise Rotheimer, left, and freshman State Rep. Anne Stava-Murray (D-Naperville) tell reporters in March that their victims rights bill was being blocked by Democratic leaders. [Hannah Meisel/The Daily Line]
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A comprehensive package of energy bills faces a tough path to make it to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk before the end of spring legislative session, especially with another major energy company putting forward its own bill earlier this month.
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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Opponents of Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposal to hike taxes on the video gaming industry on Thursday offered a counter-proposal, which it estimates will bring in more than the $89 million from the tax increase the governor needs to balance the state budget.
Charts displayed at a House committee hearing Thursday make the case for allowing increase in the maximum number of video gaming terminals an establishment can own from five to six and an increase in the maximum bet from $2 to $4. [Hannah Meisel/The Daily Line]
However, it’s unclear whether serious consideration of the proposal would invite traditional gaming interests to pile on their own requests.
