(Springfield-jm) -- A new proposal in Springfield would open up a whole new market of direct-to-consumer wine delivery. Currently, only the producer of wine can ship bottles into Illinois and deliver them to a customer. A vineyard sending their wine club shipment, for instance. If Senate Bill 3830, sponsored by state Sen. Sara Feigenholtz of Chicago, is enacted, Illinois residents could have wine shipped to them from retailers or wine clubs from all over the world. 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Officials from the Illinois Municipal League said communities have concerns about the governor’s proposal to hold 5 percent of Local Government Distributive Funds in reserve from local governments if voters don’t approve a progressive income tax in November. Of the $1.4 billion in reserve funds the governor plans to hold back if the flat tax isn’t changed by voters to a progressive one, there’s $73 million, or 5 percent for Local Government Distributive Funds. Another 5 percent of state sales taxes shared with local governments, or $25 million, would be held in reserve. That’s on top of $150 million in K-12 funding, nearly $15 million for community colleges, nearly $56 million from public universities, and $300 million in corporate income tax refunds being held if voters don’t approve higher income tax rates for higher earners.

 

 

(Springfield-cf)-- There has been support on both sides of the aisle in Springfield about fully funding schools. 53rd District State Senator Jason Barrickman of Bloomington gives his thoughts on the issue.

 

53rd District State Senator Jason Barrickman of Bloomington.

 

 

(Paxton-jm) -- Water meters in Paxton will be replaced. The meters were upgraded not long ago however, they are running out of battery power sooner than expected. The replacement is expected to take several months and won’t cost the city anything as they are under warranty.

 

(Urbana-jm) -- University of Illinois students will vote this week on a possible new mascot. The proposed mascot is the Belted Kingfisher, a bird native to Illinois that is orange and blue in color. Voting will take place Wednesday and Thursday with the results of the vote to be announced on March 11th.

 

 

(Undated-jm) -- How does the weather look for the beginning of March? State Climatologist Trent Ford has the answer…

 

 

State Climatologist Trent Ford.

 

 

(Rantoul-jm) -- Rantoul will purchase a new truck for the villages electric department. In a 5-1 vote, the village will spend $56,000 on the new truck from Shields. The village will also work on creating a plan to update all the village departments vehicles over the next several years.

 

 

(Watseka-jm) -- Iroquois Memorial Hospital in Watseka is teaming up with a leading cancer treatment facility in the country. The hospital is teaming up with Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Chicago to provide advanced oncology care. Cancer patients will be able to receive care from specialists at both facilities.

 

(Washington-jm) -- USDA is planning domestic and international exercises involving African Swine Fever.  Stephanie Ho reports…

 

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- A 4th presumptive positive case of Coronavirus has been reported in Illinois. The Illinois Department of Public Health says the recent case is the spouse of the 3rd case. The health department is waiting for confirmation from the CDC.

 

(Springfield-jm) -- A new proposal in Springfield could change the way schools report their data to the State Board of Education. State Rep. Jeff Keicher, R-Sycamore, said the existing requirements need a review, in part because of the burden they place on local districts. He said he wants to study how data collection could be streamlined, ways to eliminate inefficiencies in the system, and figure out which metrics are still needed and which might be outdated. The proposal gives the Board of Education a year to conduct the study. Lawmakers would examine the findings before determining the next step.

 

 

CHICAGO (AP) — Justice Charles E. Freeman, the first African American to serve on the Illinois Supreme Court, died on Monday, according to a statement from the state’s high court. He was 86. Current Chief Justice Anne M. Burke heralded Freeman as someone with a sharp legal mind who broke down barriers throughout his life. The statement didn’t include a cause of death.

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Governor J-B Pritzker is promoting the benefits of the passage of adult use marijuana in Illinois. The governor spoke about the benefits during his State of the State address…

 

 

Illinois Governor J-B Pritzker.

 

(Rantoul-jm) -- Redistricting will be a main topic at tonight’s Rantoul village board study session. Village trustees will continue the discussion following the November 2018 vote. In addition to continued discussions on redistricting, trustees will also discuss the purchase of 14 tasers for the villages police department and a resolution to use motor fuel tax funds to stripe a bicycle lane on Route 45. The Rantoul village board study session gets underway at 6pm.

 

 

(Urbana-jm) -- University of Illinois police are investigating after two students were robbed at gunpoint. Campus police say the first incident occurred Sunday night in the 400 block of S. Fifth Street in Champaign. The student was approached by two men both of whom displayed handguns and took the students belongings. A few minutes later a second student was approached by a man with a handgun in the 300 block of S. Fifth Street. The suspect fled before taking anything. 

 

 

(Washington-jm) -- March 15th is the deadline for producers to purchase crop insurance for Spring planted crops, but that date is also important to producers who accepted federal prevented planting top up payments last year. Rod Bain reports…

 

 

(Rantoul-jm) -- The woman accused of stealing more than one hundred thousand dollars from a veterans organization in Rantoul has been formally charged. 75 year old Brenda Davis-Wise is charged with one count of theft. If convicted she faces penalties ranging from probation to four to 15 years in prison.

 

(Gifford-jm) -- A Gifford man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for robbing a business in May of last year. Chad Billings pleaded guilty in December to aggravated robbery after he pointed a BB gun at an employee of the Homestead Restaurant and Bar.

 

(Buckley-cf)-- This year’s location for the 2nd Annual Girls Day Out will be at the 103 in Buckley. Doors will open at noon for vendors, and doors for shoppers open at 2pm. However, shoppers can start lining up at 1:30 says Organizer Missy Smith.

 

 

Girls Day Out Event Organizer Missy Smith. There will also be lunch available for purchase. ¼ of a chicken will be available for $5.50 and a ½ chicken will be available for $7.50, both come with coleslaw and a baked potato. 

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- A measure at the Illinois statehouse that would require every fire district in the state to add a fee on out-of-state fire insurance policies is being called a tax increase. State Sen. Robert Martwick said the foreign fire insurance fee is a fee paid for by out-of-state insurance companies that sell fire insurance policies to in-state homeowners. Martwick’s bill would mandate all districts to assess a 2 percent tax on out-of-state insurers.