Springfield News
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NOV 18, 2021
Rep. Ann Gillespie (D-Arlington Heights), who sponsored a bill to phase out the use of prone restraint in schools, said lawmakers will track implementation but are unlikely to follow up with additional legislation.
After a bombshell investigation revealed the use of brutal practices of restraining and isolating students in Illinois schools last year, state officials responded quickly.
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NOV 17, 2021
Rep. Denyse Stoneback (D-Skokie) and Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) speak during a House Housing Committee meeting on Tuesday.
An Illinois House committee on Tuesday held the second of three public hearings set to discuss the future of affordable housing in Illinois. The hearing was led by the chair of the Housing Committee, Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago), who called for the state to prioritize affordable housing with the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) monies streaming into state capitals including Springfield.
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NOV 17, 2021
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signs the Reimagining Electric Vehicles act as members of the legislature applaud behind him.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the Reimagining Electric Vehicles Act (HB 1769) Tuesday, marking the next step in state leaders’ efforts to make Illinois a hub for electric car and battery manufacturers.
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NOV 16, 2021
Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot attended President Joe Biden's signing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on Monday. [White House]
As Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot were in Washington D.C. Monday to celebrate the signing of Democrats' long-awaited Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, elected officials from across Illinois were already making plans for the $17 billion that will come to Illinois.
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NOV 16, 2021
Rep. Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) introduced an omnibus elections bill on the final night of the veto session that contained provisions changing how state judicial races could be funded. Gov. JB Pritzker signed the bill into law on Monday.
After a day traveling to Washington D.C. and back, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law Senate Bill 536, better known to many as the omnibus elections bill.
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NOV 15, 2021
State senators participate in a Redistricting Committee hearing on March 30, 2021. [Erin Hegarty/The Daily Line]
Now that the General Assembly has wrapped up its redistricting process to draw new boundaries for the Illinois state legislature, congressional districts and the state Supreme Court, the immediate focus has turned to the legal challenges and the decisions candidates are making ahead of the 2022 filing deadline.
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NOV 12, 2021
A bill approved by Illinois lawmakers last month seeking to curb out-of-state money on judicial races is part of a larger trend, according to a national expert.
A recent effort to restrict campaign money flowing into Illinois’ judicial elections is part of a burgeoning trend that has arisen in part because of a rapid increase in outside spending on judicial races, a national attorney told The Daily Line this week.
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NOV 11, 2021
Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs acting director Terry Prince on Tuesday provided lawmakers with an update on his efforts to improve the agency.
One year ago, Gov. JB Pritzker and U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) celebrated Veterans Days by commemorating the anticipated opening of the state’s Chicago Veterans’ Home. At the time, Pritzker, who said he was the proud son and grandson of naval officers, said he had a “personal commitment” to the state’s nearly 650,000 veterans.
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NOV 10, 2021
Illinois Department of Human Services Secretary Grace Hou praised House lawmakers on Tuesday for their efforts to identify health care coverage gaps among the state’s veterans.
Homelessness, high rates of suicide, a lack of dental coverage and insufficient outreach efforts are among the most pressing issues facing Illinois’ veterans, a panel of state officials and other witnesses told lawmakers on Tuesday.
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Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday participated in a panel discussion on climate change in Glasgow with the governors of three other states.
Less than two months after signing a massive energy measure into law, Gov. JB Pritzker touted Illinois’ recent progress while expressing optimism about the ongoing effort to combat climate change during recent appearances at the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties.
