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The temporary restraining order for the assault weapons ban has survived another legal challenge.

(Springfield-jm) – A new report shows rising costs are continuing to drive up spending on payroll, infrastructure, and other major areas of Illinois’ budget. According to Pew Charitable Trusts, for November, the consumer price index rose nearly 7% in Illinois over the past year. Justin Theal, state fiscal health officer at Pew, said if inflation continues, a lack of spending by Illinoisans will affect the state’s budget.

 

(Springfield-jm) – Illinois’ state of public health emergency is coming to an end. According to a Pritzker press release, the emergency declaration will end on May 11. The state will align with the federal government’s decision to end the national public health emergency. Illinois originally joined 12 other states and the Department of Health and Human Services in declaring a public health emergency on March 9, 2020. Illinois had continued to remain aligned with the federal government to ensure resources were utilized in the state’s COVID-19 response, including additional SNAP benefits, Pandemic EBT support, and Medicaid expansion.

 

(Springfield-jm) – This is Identify Theft Awareness Week and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office has some tips to protect yourself. Identity theft can happen to anyone, so it’s important to safeguard your personal information, says Susan Ellis, the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Head. That means not using public wi-fi to shop online or conduct banking, setting up separate usernames and passwords for different accounts, and being careful with your mail, even junk mail…

 

 

Susan Ellis, the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Head. Ellis says you should also think about creating a two-step authenticator on apps like paypal and venmo and carefully review bank and credit card statements.

 

(Paxton-jm) – A former suburban Chicago man has been found guilty of sexual assault, domestic battery and unlawfully restraining his girlfriend in Paxton. A Ford County jury found Arthuro Crawford guilty on one count of criminal sexual assault, two counts of aggravated domestic battery and one count of unlawful restraint. Ford County prosecutors say Crawford committed the acts September 2-4, 2022. The victim suffered a shattered nose, broken eye socket and multiple other injuries, some of which required surgery to repair. Crawford will be sentenced March 14th. He faces up to 15 years in prison.

 

(Urbana-jm) – The University of Illinois’ Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program will open today. The program offers free tax assistance to low-income , elderly, disabled, and limited English speaking taxpayers. Participants in the program will visit with a trained volunteer that will conduct a brief interview and scan relevant tax documents to a secure folder. To participate in the program, people should bring identification and tax documents to Salt & Light at 1819 Philo Road in Urbana during drop-off hours: Tuesday: 1-7 p.m. and Wednesday through Saturday: 1-5 p.m.

 

(Milford-jm) – The Milford FFA Chapter will hold their annual scholarship auction Saturday at Town and Country in Milford. Milford FFA Secretary Gracelyn Gregory previews the event…

 

 

Milford FFA Secretary Gracelyn Gregory.

 

(Champaign-jm) – A Urbana man with multiple prior convictions has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for having guns. Jose Miller received the sentence after he pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a weapon by a felon. Police say they were called to a report of shots fired on December 1, 2021 and found a shell casing on the porch of a residence he was staying at. In exchange for his plea, charges of being an armed habitual criminal, aggravated discharge of a firearm and reckless discharge of a firearm were dismissed.

 

(Rantoul-jm) – The Rantoul Family Sports Complex will be hosting the US Quadball Midwest Regional this November 18-19. The quidditch-inspired sport is made up of mixed gender teams competing in a blend of rugby, dodgeball, and tag. A quadball team consists of seven players who must compete with a broom between their legs at all times. Since starting in 2005, the sport has grown to nearly 40 countries and 600 teams. The tournament is expected to bring in teams from Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Illinois.

 

(Washington-jm) – Our nation Tuesday announced it is seeking a second dispute resolution panel under U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement to challenge Canada’s dairy tariff-rate-quota allocation policy. Rod Bain reports…

 

 

(Springfield-jm) – The Illinois State Board of Education on Tuesday named Elgin School District U-46 Superintendent Tony Sanders the new state superintendent of education after a nationwide search. Sanders has served as the head of the second largest school district in Illinois. He will assume his duties in late February. Carmen Ayala announced her retirement after 40 years of service in Illinois public schools.

 

(Effingham-jm) – The temporary restraining order for the assault weapons ban has survived another legal challenge. In a decision released Tuesday, the Fifth Illinois Appellate Court ruled 2-1 to uphold the temporary restraining order, which only affects the named plaintiffs in the case. The lawsuit alleges the Illinois General Assembly broke the Illinois Constitution because the bill did not follow the required length of time to pass the law. The lawsuit does not argue if the assault weapons ban violates the Second Amendment.

 

(Springfield-jm) – Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs is announcing improvements to his office’s unclaimed property website: i-cash. I-cash is where you can search for any long-forgotten items or money the office is holding, and file a claim online. Treasurer Frerichs says you can search using your name, a friend or relative’s name or business name. And if you have a question, the new “ABE” chatbot can help…

 

 

State Treasurer Mike Frerichs. There is also a new share feature, so if you find property belonging to someone else, you can easily pass along the information. The website is: illinois treasurer dot gov slash icash.

 

(Springfield-jm) – As work begins on the state’s next budget, State Senator Chapin Rose of Mahomet will be leading the efforts for the Senate Republican Caucus as their chief budget negotiator. As the caucus’s chief budget negotiator, Rose will serve as the ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

 

(Champaign-jm) – A Champaign man is in custody following an investigation into an October 2022 shooting that injured a 12-year-old. Jamonte Hill, 28, of Champaign, was arrested Tuesday by members of the United States Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Task Force. A release from Champaign Police said that Hill fired upon the vehicle that contained the 12-year-old and an older family member on October 19, 2022.

 

(Decatur-jm) – State Representative Dan Caulkins of Decatur is sponsoring legislation during the spring session of the Illinois General Assembly which requires a healthcare facility or health care practitioner to notify the patient in writing when the health care facility or health care practitioner alters the patient's record within 3 business days of the alteration. Representative Caulkins explains…

 

 

State Representative Dan Caulkins of Decatur.

 

(Urbana-jm) – Governor JB Pritzker announced construction will begin on the $100 million investment for the Illini Hall Replacement and Altgeld Hall Renovation Project at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus. The project includes a restoration of Altgeld Hall, the demolition of Illini Hall, which is underway, and the construction of a new 140,000 square foot facility to replace Illini Hall. The project will also include a new data science center as part of the Champaign-Urbana hub of the U of I System-led Illinois Innovation Network.

 

(Champaign-jm) – Champaign County Crime Stoppers is asking for the public’s help in identifying the person responsible for an assault that happened inside a University of Illinois bar last fall. Officials said the assault happened at Kam’s, the morning of September 4, 2022. At approximately 1:15 a.m., an unknown male asked a female patron to follow him to another area of the bar. When she tried to leave, the offender became aggressive and repeatedly pushed the victim against a wall. She was able to get away while the offender left Kam’s on foot. He is described as being White with brown hair, 5 feet 10 inches tall and spoke with a slight European accent. He was last seen wearing a black shirt with a lion design on the front and back, khaki pants and white shoes.

 

(Washington-jm) – Producers on average saw an increase in what they received pricewise for their commodities in the final month of 2022, per USDA latest Agricultural Prices Report. Rod Bain reports…

 

 

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