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Iroquois County has a confirmed case of the Covid-19 virus

(Watseka--jc)  -- Iroquois County has a confirmed case of the Covid-19 virus. WPXN’s Joel Cluver has the story…

 

(Springfield-jm) -- President Donald Trump’s administration has approved Illinois’ COVID-19 disaster declaration, which opens the state up to federal assistance. In an announcement Thursday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said federal emergency aid will be made available to Illinois to supplement local recovery efforts. The approval also means federal funding will help cover up to 75 percent of local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations costs for various protective measures where the federal government will cover 75 percent. That includes federal assistance for all areas affected by COVID-19.

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Governor J-B Pritkzer is issuing a strong warning to those not doing their part to stop the spread of COVID-19. Cases of COVID-19 in Illinois have jumped to more than 25 hundred and 26 have died. The Governor says you have to take this threat seriously…

 

 

Illinois Governor J-B Pritkzer. Iroquois County is reporting their first confirmed case. The health department says the individual is a man in his 50’s. Champaign County is also reporting 2 additional cases.


 

(Springfield-jm) -- Unemployment claims in Illinois for the week ending March 21 jumped ten-fold from the previous week as employers and employees continue to feel the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. Initial unemployment claims in Illinois for the week ending March 21 were 133,763, up 122,893 from the 10,870 claims filed the previous week, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor and later updated by the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Governor J-B Pritkzer is launching the new “Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund” to help those affected by the pandemic. The Governor says this is a statewide fundraising effort to help support nonprofit organizations helping people in their communities…

 

Illinois Governor J-B Pritkzer. The fund has already raised 23 million dollars, including four million dollars from Governor Pritzker. Visit: il covid response fund dot org for more information.

 

 

(Danville-jm) -- Colorful hot-air balloons will not be taking to the skies over Vermilion County this summer. Balloons Over Vermilion 2020 has been canceled due to COVID-19 concerns. The event was set to take place on July 10, 2020. Balloons Over Vermilion 2021 has been scheduled for July 9, 2021.

 

 

(Washington-jm) -- Is all that's going on in grocery stores right now changing the prospects for food price inflation for the year? Gary Crawford has the details…

 

 

 

 

(Springfield-dg)-It’s National Ag Week and WPXN would like to salute the American Farmer. Consumers are becoming more involved than ever in the state’s agriculture industry, with readily available agritourism destinations, community gardening and an ever-growing interest in buying local. This interest is backed by the state’s legislation, which encourages consumers to purchase Illinois-produced food and products through the Buy Illinois Challenge program. Despite setbacks from weather challenges and more, Illinois’ farmers and agricultural leaders continue to push forward, growing in their diverse and important industry.

 

 

(Ashkum-jm) -- District 21 Illinois State Police in Ashkum will be conducting Alcohol Countermeasure Enforcement Patrols in April. WPXN’s Jason Madden has the details…

 

 

 

(Urbana-jm) -- Illinois election officials scolded a Champaign County official for counting early votes before Election Day, which is against Illinois law.  Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons was accused of tabulating early votes beginning the night before the election. A first summary report of results from the primary election had a time stamp of 10:19 p.m. on Monday, March 16. The State Board of Elections says Champaign County was the only county to have such issues in the 2020 Illinois primary election. 

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Secretary of State Jesse White is announcing the federal government has decided to push back the deadline for residents to get their REAL ID. The original deadline was Oct. 1, 2020. White joined the National Governors Association, other states, government leaders and the travel industry, to ask the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on March 18 to extend the enforcement date on REAL ID due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

(Springfield-jm) -- Analysts with Fitch Ratings said the federal stimulus plan will help state and local governments, but it won't replace lost revenue from the economic downturn. Eric Kim, head of U.S. State Governments for Fitch, said Illinois was in a tough spot before the COVID-19 crisis because of existing risks, such as having the lowest investment-grade credit rating and the state's high pension debt. 

 

 

SPRINGFIELD – A commission that advises the General Assembly on revenue and economic issues is warning that a slowdown of business activity caused by the COVID-19 outbreak is likely to bring about a recession that could cause a 20 percent drop in state revenues, spread out over a number of fiscal years. The Commission on Government Finance and Accountability, gave that warning as part of its three-year budget forecast, which it is required to make annually. Those forecasts include an analysis of potential threats and opportunities to the state budget.

 

 

 

(Urbana-jm) -- The University of Illinois is temporarily changing its grading policy. The university announced in a mass mail that students now have the option to take their spring classes as "credit or no credit." This comes after the university moved its classes online due to COVID-19 concerns. Undergraduate and graduate students have until April 30 to make a decision in an effort to "lessen their stress."

 

 

(Loda-cf)-- Murdock’s kitchen is still in full operation amid the stay at home order from Gov. JB Pritzker. Murdocks will have an employee on site all day on Fridays for people who want to call in their orders throughout the day and bring it home to eat, says owner Brent Sinn…

 

 

Owner of Murdocks Brent Sinn


 

(Oakwood--jc)  -- 104th District State Representative Mike Marron of Oakwood is offering some help. The local Representative says his office will be available for information, legal help and more…

 

 

104th District State Representative Mike Marron of Oakwood

 

(Undated-jm) --  County Market is taking an additional step to protect its customers and employees during the COVID-19 outbreak. They are creating plexiglass shields for the cashiers. The shields are going up at all County Market locations. 

 

(Washington-jm) -- Farmers and other rural residents may have some unique challenges in dealing with the COVID-19 situation. Gary Crawford reports…

 

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has added his voice to a coalition urging online giants Amazon, Facebook, eBay, Walmart and Craigslist to “rigorously monitor price-gouging practices by online sellers” who use those sites. Raoul joined 33 other attorneys general across the country in issuing letters to the five companies; while the companies’ cooperation with state efforts to stop price-gouging in general was acknowledged, they were urged “do more to monitor listings by third-party sellers.”

 

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