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Brian Mackey/The Illinois Senate this week approved the state's new energy package and the governor quickly signed it into law. It saves a pair of nuclear plants, and the jobs and tax base they provide, along with placing Illinois on a path to a renewable energy future. It also shined light on how the leaders of the state can work through complicated issues to reach a deal. Our panel also discusses the current situation with COVID-19, as a vaccine mandate is set to take effect. -
This week, the story of women who worked at the Radium Dial Company factory in Ottawa, using radium-laced paint on glow-in-the-dark clocks and watches. Unaware of the health risks, many died from radium poisoning. Their case became a landmark moment in the workers' rights movement. Also, we'll hear about the stress on health care facilities in southern Illinois amid the latest COVID-19 surge. Those stories and more on Statewide.
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The number of students taking classes through the University of Illinois Springfield has declined by just over 200 from last year. That continues a trend that has seen enrollment drop from a 2014 high of 5,431 to 3,944 in the current fall semester. In the fall of 2020, enrollment stood at 4,146. -
The Illinois General Assembly was back in Springfield for a rare late August session to tackle a couple of key issues. Democrats approved a new version of the legislative redistricting map, over objections of Republicans and various interest groups. But an energy package that has been negotiated for months remains elusive.
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Nursing has always been a stressful job. But COVID-19 has made it worse for many as ICU's fill up. One nurse said it has been like walking into a mass casualty event every day. The pandemic has led many to consider leaving the field. While health officials tout the benefits of the COVID vaccine, a lot of people have delayed getting the shots. We hear from some who have only recently decided to get vaccinated. Those stories and more on this week's Statewide.
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For the second time in three months, Democrats who control the General Assembly on Tuesday night passed a set of new legislative maps over the objections of community advocacy groups and Republicans. But intraparty disagreement on a massive energy and climate bill continues even after the Senate passed a version to the House early Wednesday morning.
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Just three months after Democrats pushed new legislative maps through the General Assembly in the waning days of spring legislative session, lawmakers are back in Springfield on Tuesday to fix those same maps, lest a federal court take mapmaking power out of their hands one way or another.
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Illinois is the latest in a growing list of states that will require teachers and school staff to get vaccinated against COVID-19, Gov. JB Pritzker announced Thursday morning, along with the reinstatement of a mask mandate for all Illinoisans age two and over congregating in indoor public spaces.
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Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a new law this summer that mandates — starting with the 2022-2023 school year — all public elementary and high schools be required to offer a unit of study on Asian American history in the state, Midwest and country.
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The City of Springfield will soon fill an upcoming vacancy on the council.
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Prolific anti-COVID mitigation attorney Tom DeVore on Monday filed suit over Gov. JB Pritzker’s mandate requiring all students, faculty and staff at Illinois schools wear masks in the face of COVID’s more contagious Delta variant spreading across the state.
