Department of Children and Family Services Director Marc Smith testifies during a House hearing in January. [ILGA]

Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) Director Marc Smith will speak to lawmakers Tuesday for the first time since a performance audit of his department found it was not following up on the safety of children under its care.

U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) speaks during a news conference Friday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

After the U.S. Supreme Court dealt several blows to progressives this year, Illinois progressive leaders want voters to turn out in support of Democrats vying for seats on the Illinois Supreme Court, arguing the state court is the last line of defense protecting progressive laws in Illinois.

Sixteenth Judicial Circuit Judge Clint Hull, left, and Illinois Public Defender Association President Keith Grant, right, speak during Thursday’s task force meeting.

Illinois legal officials are working to prepare law enforcement agencies and other local leaders for the implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act, which starting on Jan. 1, 2023 will add new restrictions to when and how people are detained by police in Illinois.

Rep. Mary Flowers (D-Chicago), second from left, questions witnesses during a hearing Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

House members pushed leaders of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services Wednesday to answer why Illinois’ safety net hospitals are not getting payments from Medicaid managed care organizations, as Chicago’s St. Anthony’s Hospital is engaged in a lawsuit against the state over Medicaid reimbursements.

A now-removed statue of former U.S. Sen. Stephen Douglas sits outside the Illinois Capitol. The statue was removed in September 2020. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

This month marks two years since former House Speaker Mike Madigan (D-Chicago) suggested artwork depicting Illinois’ former controversial U.S. Sen. Stephen Douglas be removed from the Illinois Capitol as the nation wrestled with the civil unrest following the police killing of George Floyd.

A House task force created by House Speaker Chris Welch (D-Hillside) in April 2021 is continuing to mull its options for new statues at the capitol and a process for reviewing the complex’s artwork.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks during a virtual congressional hearing in March.  

Gov. JB Pritzker tested positive Tuesday for COVID-19 for the first time during the pandemic following a whirlwind week of trips and events, his office reported.

Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), left, and Gov. JB Pritzker, right, celebrate victories in their primaries on June 28. [Blue Room Stream and Don Vincent/The Daily Line] 

Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) has his work cut out for him during the next three-and-a-half months to compete with the $60.5 million financial advantage billionaire Gov. JB Pritzker carries over his Republican challenger.

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin finished behind Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia) in the Republican primary for governor. [ABC Chicago]

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin raised and spent millions more than his Republican competitors, financial records filed with the State Board of Elections Friday show, only to finish the primary far behind Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia).

Scott Schluter is the Illinois Libertarian Party’s nominee for governor.

As the Republican and Democratic Parties push candidates and policies to appease their most conservative or progressive voters respectively, Illinois’ Libertarian Party is hoping to take advantage of political polarization and grab support from voters who feel left out by both parties as Libertarians look to establish themselves as a major party in Illinois.

Crime scene tape blocks off seats vacated by Highland Park parade goers on July 4. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

Momentum is growing among House Democrats to pass a bill that would ban sales of assault weapons and put restrictions on gun owners as lawmakers search for ways to prevent another mass shooting and reduce gun violence in the wake of the July 4 Highland Park shooting.