(Springfield-jm) – The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency will receive nearly $140 million in grant funding to help get lead and other contaminants out of the state’s drinking water. The federal tax dollars will help Illinois remove and replace lead water pipes. Illinois leads the nation in the number of lead service pipes. The funds will also help remove and prevent contaminants, including forever chemicals known as PFAS in the state’s drinking water.

 

(Springfield-jm) – The Illinois Department of Insurance reports it has assisted life insurance consumers collect more than $8 million this year from lost or unclaimed policies. Officials said the states’ Life Policy Locator can be used by Illinoisans to find out if they are the beneficiary of a deceased relative’s lost or missing life insurance policy or annuity contract. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners reports that millions of dollars in life insurance benefits remain unclaimed each year.

 

(Washington-jm) – The harvests of corn and soybeans are running only slightly ahead of average. Gary Crawford explains why…

 

 

(Ford County-jm) – The Ford County Public Health Department has a new administrator. Donald Gill replaces Lana Sample who stepped down earlier this year to move to Florida. Gill served as program director for Head Start of Ford, Iroquois and Vermilion Counties. He’s also served two other previous health departments, in Kentucky and Indiana.

 

(Paxton–jc)  The 5th annual Wine and Chocolate Walk is set for Saturday October 7th from 11am to 4-30pm in the city of Paxton. Paxton Area Chamber of Commerce Vice President Dawn Stack says 22 businesses are participating and shuttle transportation will be available throughout the event…

 

 

Paxton Area Chamber of Commerce Vice President Dawn Stack. Tickets for the event are available on event-bright, on line or by contacting the chamber in Paxton.

 

(Urbana-jm) – Coroner Duane Northrup is releasing the name of a Champaign,

Illinois man that was found unresponsive in a jail cell at the Champaign County Sheriff’s Correctional Facility on Sunday. Raymond C. Gwin Jr., 33, was pronounced dead at the Champaign County Sheriff’s Correctional Facility in Urbana. An autopsy was performed on Monday at the Champaign County Coroner’s Regional Autopsy Facility. The cause of death is pending toxicology results.

 

(Gilman–jc)  What started as a store promotion has grown to a city event in Gilman. The last “Junk in the Trunk” event is set for Saturday starting at 8am at the Gathering in Gilman. The Gathering’s Jody Thompson says vendors will set up around the parking lot and across route 45…

 

 

The Gathering in Gilman’s Jody Thompson. Again the event starts at 9am on Saturday in Gilman. 

 

(Urbana-jm) – A collaborative group of local agencies is studying how to improve Lincoln Avenue in Urbana and is looking for feedback from the public. The Lincoln Avenue Corridor Study is evaluating 1.2 miles of Lincoln Avenue in Urbana, focused on the area between Green Street and Florida Avenue. The  corridor is a high-traffic location along the edge of the University of Illinois campus. The goal of the study is to identify and coordinate infrastructure improvements to increase safety and mobility along this corridor. This includes addressing known high-frequency crash locations and proposing recommendations for safe and efficient multimodal improvements to the corridor.

 

(Undated-jm) – House Democrat Sue Scherer says she is tired of getting calls from people in her district about Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois. Now, she wants the state to take unprecedented action against the largest health insurance provider in the state, a cease and desist order. Scherer wants the Department of Insurance to stop Blue Cross Blue Shield from taking on any new clients until they fix the issue. The Department of Insurance has already completed an investigation into Blue Cross Blue Shield. So far the company has racked up around one million dollars in fines from the state. One of the reasons that the state fined the company over $600,000 in March of 2023 was because Blue Cross Blue Shield “failed to make its provider directories clear for consumers to determine which directory applies to which plans.”

 

(Chicago–jc)  – An Illinois Lottery retailer in the Champaign County  town of Savoy is buzzing with excitement after selling a winning scratch-off ticket worth a cool $5 million. The winning ticket, Million $$ Match, was sold at Schnuck’s supermarket in the Savoy Plaza Center l. One lucky scratcher turned a $30 play into a $5 million payday - scoring the game’s jackpot prize. This is also a big win for the retailer that sold the winning ticket, as the store will receive a cash selling bonus of one percent. For Schnuck’s in Savoy, that means a bonus of $50,000.

 

(Cissna Park–jc)  Kinos Coffee of Cissna Park and Paxton is the WPXN Business of the Day today. Owner Jared Kaeb says they ship the coffee in from Mexico and roast the coffee at the two locations…

 

 

Owner Jared Kaeb says the only difference between the two locations is the size of the store as delicious products and customer service are top priorities.

 

 

Kinos Coffee Owner Jared Kaeb.  You can hear more with Jared Kaeb of Kinos Coffee throughout the day today and an interview during the noon news. 

 

(Springfield-jm) – The Illinois Airports of the Year awards have been announced by the Illinois Department of Transportation. The facilities were selected because of their cooperation and coordination with the state, safety record, maintenance of the facility, and promotion of aviation and educational events. The Primary Airport of the year award went to Willard Airport in Champaign. Illinois is home to 100 public-use airports and heliports, with nearly 3,000 aircraft registered with the Federal Aviation Administration.

 

(Washington-jm) – Illinois is bracing for a possible government shutdown. On Monday, Congress returned to deal with an October 1 deadline to avoid a government shutdown. In a shutdown, hundreds of thousands of federal employees, including over 40,000 in Illinois, would be furloughed or forced to work without pay. This includes active-duty military and federal law enforcement. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates that the last three government shutdowns cost taxpayers nearly $4 billion.

 

(Washington-jm) – Condition ratings for some crops are still changing, even at this late date in the season. Gary Crawford reports…

 

 

(Champaign-jm) – A Champaign man is being inducted into the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame. David Monk of Champaign, who died in December 2022, devoted his life to educating the public about the importance of prairie conservation. Monk had  creative outreach endeavors like towing native prairie plants in the Champaign-Urbana Fourth of July parade, Monk’s passion for environmental education and stewardship resonated deeply. His instrumental roles in saving Busey Woods, advocating for interagency cooperation, restoring urban prairie pockets, and spearheading the Kickapoo Rail Trail.

 

(Springfield-jm) – Those who need assistance paying their energy bills can get assistance. 53rd District State Senator Tom Bennett of Gibson City explains…

 

 

53rd District State Senator Tom Bennett of Gibson City. November 1st, households that have been disconnected or received a disconnection notice can apply. All other income eligible households can apply starting December 1st.

 

(Farmer City-jm) – A Mahomet man is facing multiple charges after Farmer City and Illinois State Police said he led officers on a chase stretching from Farmer City to Champaign on Interstate 74. Farmer City police said an officer found two people inside a car at Weedman Park and the officer observed drug paraphernalia and what appeared to be a gun also inside the car. The officer asked the driver, 29-year-old Kody Davis, and his female passenger to exit the car. Instead, Davis sped off, nearly hitting the officer in the process. The chase neared the interchange with Interstate 57 when Davis’ car hit a State Police squad car causing him to lose control and crashed into the median cable barrier and came to a stop. He and his female passenger were taken into custody and were taken to Carle Hospital in Urbana for medical treatment. The squad car was damaged, but the trooper inside and no other officers were hurt.

 

(Paxton–jc)  Testing on a new Speaker system for the downtown area of Paxton continues this week. The block with city hall went on-line for the Paxton Swine and Dine and testing will continue on Friday afternoon. Pride in Paxton’s Dawn Glad says the next block north in downtown will be next, soon…

 

 

Pride in Paxton’s Dawn Glad

 

(Champaign-jm) – Over $800,000 is coming to communities in Champaign and Vermilion counties to support local revitalization efforts. The Illinois Housing Development Authority recently approved $19 million to support affordable housing and community revitalization efforts across Illinois. Awarded under the Strong Communities Program, the initiative will provide funding to 68 units of local governments and land bank authorities for the acquisition, maintenance, rehabilitation and demolition of abandoned residential properties in their communities.