(Springfield-jm) -- Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza says the state’s backlog is now under control. The stack of bills waiting to be paid totaled well over 16 billion in 2017, but that has since been whittled down to three point five billion. Comptroller Mendoza says this is very exciting news…

 

 

State Comptroller Susana Mendoza. Mendoza says having a reasonable payment cycle also helps the state’s credit rating. She cautions that lawmakers must pass a balanced budget this spring that doesn’t rely on the one time influx of federal relief money.

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- The public is getting even more time to get the Real I-D. There’s still no need to rush into your local Driver’s Services Facility says Secretary of State Jesse White’s Spokesperson Beth Kaufman…

 

Secretary of State Spokesperson Beth Kaufman. Kaufman urges Illinoisans to wait until their current driver’s license or ID is close to expiring before coming in. When you’re ready, there’s a handy online checklist of documents you’ll need at cyber drive illinois dot com.

 

 

(Undated-jm) -- The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,728 new cases and 33 additional deaths Wednesday bringing the state’s total number of cases to 1,328,454 and deaths to 21,891. Champaign County reported 69 new cases bringing their total to 20,176. Vermilion County 14 new cases bringing their total to 9,166. Ford County reported 14 new cases bringing their total to 1,725. Iroquois County reported 8 new cases bringing their total to 2,943.

 

 

(Gibson City-jm) -- The Harvest Moon Twin Drive In in Gibson City will be hosting a spring fling this Saturday. Spokesperson Ben Harroun talks about the event…

 

Harvest Moon Twin Drive In Spokesperson Ben Harroun. The show runs from 9 to 2. Parking and admission is free.

 

 

(Urbana-jm) -- The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is getting millions of dollars in state funding. On Wednesday, the Illinois Capital Development Board announced more than $3.2 million for safety upgrades at the university. 

 

 

(Paxton-jm) -- The Paxton Police Department will be getting an upgrade to their fleet. Normally the department goes with a Chevy Tahoe but Mayor Bill Ingold says the department is going with a different vehicle…

 

 

Paxton Mayor Bill Ingold.

 

 

(Ford County-jm) -- The Ford County Board is the latest to issue a resolution supporting local zoning control over wind and solar farms. Legislation in the Illinois General Assembly would take the control of zoning from counties and put it in the hands of the state. Iroquois County also recently passed a resolution supporting local control.

 

(Springfield-jm) -- Governor J-B Pritzker is announcing a 15 million dollar investment in two new manufacturing training academies in downstate Illinois. The state of the art training facilities are being built at Heartland Community College in Normal and Southwstern Illinois College in the Metro East area. Governor Pritzker says it’s more important than ever that the state has a skilled workforce…

 

 

Illinois Governor J-B Pritzker. The academy at Heartland will be a partnership with Rivian Automotive, focusing on electric vehicle energy storage. Training at Southwestern will include precision machining starting in the fall of 2022, to be followed by welding manufacturing and industrial electricity.

 

 

(Springfield-jm) -- The Illinois State Police is graduating a new cadet class. The class of 39 cadets began last October, and after 26 weeks of training, is ready to hit the road. State Police Director Brendan Kelly referenced tensions with the public across the country and had this message for the graduates…

 

 

State Police Director Brendan Kelly. The new troopers will be paired with field training officers and assigned to districts all over the state.

 

 

(Undated-jm) -- The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,728 new cases and 33 additional deaths Wednesday bringing the state’s total number of cases to 1,328,454 and deaths to 21,891.

 

(Champaign-jm) -- Farm safety is key this time of year as farmers are hitting the fields for the spring planting season. Champaign County Farm Bureau Manager Brad Uken provides some safety tips…

 

 

Champaign County Farm Bureau Manager Brad Uken.

 

 

(Gilman-jm) -- An instructor in the Iroquois West school district is being recognized. Superintendent Angelo Lekkas talks about the accomplishments by Ashley Carlson…

 

 

Iroquois West Superintendent Angelo Lekkas.

 

 

(Champaign County-jm) -- Champaign County home sales hit another monthly record in March. 265 homes were sold last month, up 18 percent from March 2020, when 225 homes sold. Median prices were also up 9 percent. The median price in March was $169,900 up from $155,000 from March 2020.