Gov. JB Pritzker at the Pace South Campus Acceptance Facility in Markham [BlueRoomStream]

Pace and the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) will purchase new electric buses with funding Illinois received through a multi-billion-dollar federal settlement with Volkswagen. 

Pictured, top to bottom: The METX 196 Metra train in Aurora, Illinois, taken December 2024. [Guo Rui Pei / Public Domain] / The 26 Pace bus in Oak Park, Illinois, taken in August 2019. [David Wilson / CC BY 2.0] / Chicago "L". [Rene Schwietzke / CC BY 2.0]

Days after an Illinois lawmaker filed a bill that would combine the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra and Pace mass transit systems into one under a newly formed Metropolitan Mobility Authority, current Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) officials announced a proposed $1.5 billion plan to create more synergy with Illinois’s existing three public transit systems while still keeping those systems siloed. 

Kirk Dillard, former Illinois state senator and current chairman for the RTA, said during a Jan. 15 City Club of Chicago public affairs forum the current Illinois General Assembly needs to figure out a legislative solution by the end of spring session in May to help fund public transit in the northern part of the state especially. He said the three mass transit systems under the RTA umbrella are facing a fiscal cliff with the state no longer receiving COVID-19 pandemic relief funding starting next year. 

“We are at a critical moment where we must think big to fix the chronic underfunding and disjointed governments that have plagued our transit system for too long,” Dillard said during his Jan. 15 prepared comments. “There is no time to delay because the consequences of inaction are dire.”

Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago) speaks at a press conference Tuesday in Springfield. 

A measure in the Illinois General Assembly looks to end the practice of issuing municipal tickets to public school students. 

Gov. JB Pritzker signs the Kinship in Demand (KIND) Act Wednesday at the Illinois State Capitol Building. [BlueRoomStream]

Grandparents and other relative caregivers can now receive full financial support from the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) in Illinois. 

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul speaks at a press conference Jan. 29 after announcing a lawsuit challenging a Trump administration order to pause federal spending. [BlueRoomStream] 

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and 13 state attorneys general are doubling down on their commitment to protect access to gender-affirming care, following an executive order to restrict care signed by President Donald Trump. 

Senate Democrats are introducing legislation aimed to help new, working mothers. 

Illinois House Republicans are calling for hearings to discuss the Illinois TRUST Act. 

Abortion foundations and providers saw an uptick in donations after Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022. More than two years later, financial support has decreased, creating a “dire” situation for abortion funds. 

From left to right: Sen. Graciela Guzmán (D-Chicago), Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) and Sen. Adriane Johnson (D-Waukegan) speak at a press conference in Springfield [BlueRoomStream]

Democratic lawmakers want to divest the state’s pension funds from fossil fuels.  

Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) says doing so won’t just align with Illinois’ climate goals, it would improve the funds' performance.  

Advocates for the Prescription Drug Affordability Board in Illinois speak at a press conference in Springfield [BlueRoomStream]

State lawmakers are again attempting to create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board in Illinois.