(Springfield--jc) -- Governor JB Pritzker is announcing an amendment to the state’s constitution moving Illinois to a graduated income tax structure. The constitution currently requires a flat tax system, where everyone pays the same rate. Governor Pritzkers proposal, taxes workers based on how much they earn. The governor says 97 percent of Illinoisans will see tax relief under his plan…
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker
Some Republicans believe that the proposal then would give Democrats the ability to raise taxes again. If the amendment is approved by the legislature, voters will then get a chance to say yay or nay to it on the November 2020 ballot
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Attorney General Kwame Raoul is noncommittal about a proposal to create a statewide investigative unit to review claims of innocence by those convicted of crimes. The Democrat said through a spokeswoman Tuesday that ensuring a conviction is correct by evaluating new evidence or circumstances "is the responsibility of every prosecutor." Private investigator Bill Clutter wrote Raoul to suggest a statewide "conviction integrity unit" to investigate innocence claims.
(Paxton--jc) -- A former Illinois State Trooper was found guilty Tuesday in Ford County court in Paxton of felonious disorderly conduct for calling 9-1-1 and falsely reporting someone was assaulting him. 61 year old Bradley Cluver of Gibson City was found guilty yesterday. He is set to be sentenced on May 14th.
(Washington--jc) -- One ag meteorologist is looking at spring wheat. U-S-D-A Meteorologist Brad Rippey says this is a first look at planting wheat…
U-S-D-A Meteorologist Brad Rippey
(Springfield--jc) Concerns have quieted over artifacts connected to Abraham Lincoln possibly going to auction if millions of dollars aren’t raised for a private foundation, a couple of state lawmakers say.The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum Foundation is a private entity created by state statute and meant to support the public museum, which houses valuable artifacts connected to Lincoln and other figures with Illinois connections. The private foundation reportedly owes $9 million for the artifacts and the loan comes due later this year. Last year, the private foundation was lobbying state lawmakers for a taxpayer bailout to pay off the loan.
(Undated--jc) Two counties will help replace on bridge this year. The Ford County Board and Iroquois County board are sharing the costs of a bridge replacement project on a bridge that spans to two counties. The bridge is located between Milks Grove Township in Northwestern Iroquois County and Rogers Township in the northern part of Ford County. The cost for Iroquois County putting is 560 thousand dollars and Ford County 286 thousand dollars.
(Springfield--jc) It’s work zone awareness week and the Illinois Department of Transportation wants motorists to “Drive like you Work Here.” Kim Howard reports…
(Gibson City--jc) Several bills did not make it out of an Illinois House committee in Springfield this month. 106th district State Representative Tom Bennett talks about two abortion type bills that failed to get support…
106th District State Representative Tom Bennett of Gibson City
(Rantoul--jc) -- It’s a Community Coffee on this morning at 7-30 at the Rantoul Area Chamber of Commerce office. Business professionals are asked to bring business cards, ideas and use the time to network with other business owners in the Chamber.
MARION, Ill. (AP) — The Marion Veterans Affairs Medical Center in southern Illinois will be the home for several days in May of The Moving Wall. The wall is a half size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington and will be on display in Marion beginning May 2 through May 5. The Moving Wall travels across the country to commemorate the war, which dramatically divided the nation in the 1960s and 1970s.
(Washington--ba)-Ever wonder what the date label on your food packaging really means?
USDA’s Stephanie Ho explains.
USDA’s Stephanie Ho
CHICAGO (AP) — Lawyers for an ex-University of Illinois student accused of killing Chinese scholar Yingying Zhang say school counselors didn't offer him adequate care when he sought help for homicidal thoughts months before Zhang went missing. In a filing unsealed this week, Brendt Christensen's attorneys said he told campus counselors he'd been "ruminating" about committing murder but that his treatment by counselors had been substandard. Prosecutors say that claim would be inaccurate and irrelevant.
CHICAGO (AP) — Johnson Publishing Co., publisher of Ebony and Jet magazines, has filed for bankruptcy in a federal court in Chicago. In announcing the Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, the company said it was "caught in a tidal wave of marketplace changes and business issues which, despite exhaustive efforts, could not be overcome." The company was founded in 1942.
(Springfield--jc) The Illinois Department of Human Services, which has one of the largest line items in the proposed budget for the coming fiscal year, is seeking additional money to cover the cost of the state's new minimum wage and expand access to child care assistance. A Senate appropriations committee discussed Senate Bill 2228 this week. The measure asks for a total of $6.8 billion for DHS. Among the various line items is $28.5 million to help the aged, blind or disabled, $134.2 million for temporary assistance for the needy. There's another line item is $431.7 million for Child Care Services.Included in the increased funding request is $107.4 million for increasing the minimum wage of certain caregivers paid with tax dollars.
(Champaign--jc) Warm temperatures yesterday and some cooling coming today, especially in the northern part of the WPXN Listening area. Illinois Water Survey in Champaign Spokesperson Brian Kerschner has the look at the next several days…
Illinois Water Survey in Champaign Spokesperson Brian Kerschner
The Doug Quick weather forecast calls for rain this morning. There is a Code Red Weather advisory for Thursday
