(Springfield-jm) –  The price of insulin could soon be set at a reduced rate in Illinois after a House measure passed both chambers unanimously. House Bill 2189 would create the Access to Affordable Insulin Act, which requires the Illinois Department of Insurance to offer a program that allows participants to purchase insulin at a discounted, post-rebate price. The measure originally would have capped the price of insulin at $35 but was amended to the post-rebate price.

 

(Springfield-jm) – Car manufacturers will be required to set up a 24-hour hotline to help law enforcement track stolen cars after a bill passed both the Illinois House and Senate. Many advocates say this will help reduce the numbers of car theft. 

The measure, House Bill 2245, passed unanimously in both chambers. The bill now goes to the governor’s desk for his signature. The one thing that would be required before the tracking process can get started is the authorization of the vehicle’s owner.

 

(Springfield-jm) – The new state budget includes an initiative to address homelessness in Illinois. The budget invests more than 360 million dollars into the effort, an 85 million dollar increase over the previous year. Governor J-B Pritzker says “Home Illinois” will include homeless prevention programs, street outreach and more temporary housing…

 

 

Illinois Governor J-B Pritzker. The goal is to reach “Functional Zero” as a state, which would mean that there are enough resources to assist everyone about to become homeless.

 

(Rantoul-jm) – Rantoul Police are investigating a shooting that left three people hurt in April and Crime Stoppers is now involved to help solve the case. Officials said that at 2:50 a.m. on April 30, officers were dispatched to three separate locations in Rantoul for reports of shooting victims. All three victims were treated for their injuries at an area hospital and survived. Officials added after interviewing the victims, officers learned they all attended a party on Heath Drive. They discovered shell casings of various calibers in between Heath Drive and East Perimeter Road.

 

(Champaign-jm) – Champaign Police are investigating after a bank was robbed at gunpoint on Monday. Police officials said the robbery happened at the Midland States Bank on West Springfield Avenue just before 2 p.m. When officers responded to the bank, they were told a suspect had entered the bank, brandished a gun and demanded money. The suspect was given an undisclosed amount of cash and left, officials said. Officials said the suspect appeared to be a man with a medium build; he was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, light gray sweatpants, black shoes, gloves and a black face mask.

 

(Springfield-jm) – The hot, dry weather is affecting Illinois crops. With virtually no rain this past week, Illinois farmers have now planted 96 percent of soybean acres. 89 percent of the crop emerged, well ahead of previous years. But the condition of the soybean crop declined to 51 percent in good to excellent shape. Statistician Mark Schleusener turns to corn…

 

 

State Crop Statistician Mark Schleusener. Winter wheat conditions dropped by just a point, to 65 percent in good to excellent condition. Average statewide topsoil moisture also declined, to 29 percent very short, 43 percent short, 27 percent adequate and just one percent surplus.

 

(Urbana-jm) – An Urbana man has been sentenced to over a decade in prison. Demondre Carter was sentenced to 14 years in prison after being found with a 9 mm handgun with a switch to make it fully automatic. In exchange for his guilty plea, a charge of possession with intent to deliver cannabis was dismissed. 

 

(Springfield-jm) – As the dry weather continues, a horticulture expert at the University of Illinois Extension offers some advice about watering. Lawns and plants need about one to one and a half inches of water a week, and unless you have a sprinkler and irrigation system or we get some rainfall, that means watering by hand. For trees, the Extension’s Chris Enroth recommends laying a hose about two feet from the trunk and setting the flow to a drip…

 

 

U of I Extension Horticulturist Chris Enroth. Enroth says ideally, it’s best to water in the morning when less of the moisture will evaporate. Mulch is a great way to help the soil hold moisture and can even be used in your flower pots.
 

(Springfield-jm) – The Illinois Supreme Court is poised to hear a challenge to the state’s law consolidating police and firefighter pension funds. The law consolidating about 650 first responder pensions outside of Chicago was enacted in 2019 by Governor J.B. Pritzker. All existing funds were pooled together into two separate funds, one for police and one for firefighters. Each local fund retained a separate account managing operation and the financial condition of each participating pension fund with the power to adjudicate and award retirement and other benefits from the funds. More than a dozen of the hundreds of funds have not consolidated, arguing in court the consolidation takes away local board voting rights for control of the funds. They alleged in a three-count complaint that the law violated the pension protection clause, the contract clause, and the takings clause. The Kane County trial court dismissed the case. Earlier this year, the Appellate Court of Illinois Second District upheld the lower court’s ruling. Last month, the Illinois Supreme Court accepted the plaintiffs’ appeal. It’s not yet known when the case will be heard. 

 

(Springfield-jm) – A record number of small businesses in Illinois couldn’t pay their rent in full or at all in May. The small business network Alignable reports that 52% of small business owners surveyed weren’t able to pay their rent in full, the highest percentage in the country. That is an 11% increase over April. The second highest percentage was in New York at 49%, followed by Minnesota at 47%. That is compared to 37% nationally.

 

(Springfield-jm) – The Illinois Department of Public Health is providing air purifiers to head start programs around the state. More than one thousand purifiers are going to 45 different programs to help improve indoor air quality and reduce transmission of viruses, says State Public Health Spokesperson Mike Claffey…

 

 

State Public Health Spokesperson Mike Claffey. Along with the air purifiers come replacement filters as well as rapid COVID-19 tests for staff and families served by Head Start and Early Head Start programs.

 

(Urbana-jm) – The University of Illinois Police Department is sounding the alarm after three people were pepper sprayed in Campustown last week. The UIPD sent out a campus safety notice on Sunday to alert the community of three attacks within a five-day span. All three attacks, officials said, happened randomly between the hours of midnight and 3 a.m. The first attack happened on Wednesday, when a 41-year-old man was attacked while sleeping outside on Sixth Street. Another attack happened Thursday to a 61-year-old man in Scott Park and a third happened Sunday to a 28-year-old man.

 

(Gibson City-jm) – Gibson City is starting to ease its water restrictions by allowing homeowners a limited opportunity to water their lawns again. The city announced last Wednesday that its public works and police departments would immediately start enforcing an emergency ordinance concerning water use during drought conditions. Under that ordinance, watering lawns was prohibited until further notice. On Monday, Mayor Dan Dickey said on Facebook that homeowners can water their lawns again, but only once per week and on a specific day decided by address. Addresses ending with an even number can water their lawns on Tuesdays. Those ending with an odd number can water their lawns on Thursdays.

 

(Springfield-jm) – The hot, dry weather is affecting Illinois crops. Temperatures were above normal and rainfall was nearly non-existant this past week. 91 percent of corn has now emerged but just 50 percent of the crop is rated in good to excellent condition. Crop Statistician Mark Schleusener looks at soybeans…

 

State Crop Statistician Mark Schleusener. 65 percent of winter wheat is rated in good to excellent condition, a slight drop from the previous week. Average statewide topsoil moisture declined to 29 percent very short, 43 percent short, 27 percent adequate and one percent surplus.

 

(Ford County-jm) – The Ford County Sheriff’s office has released their May activity report. During the month deputies responded to 12 traffic accidents and issued 3 citations for speeding, 2 for DUI and 1 each for illegal transportation of alcohol, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, driving with a revoked license, failure to reduce speed and leaving the scene of an accident. Deputies also handled 14 animal complaints, 13 domestic disputes, 8 welfare checks, 7 reports of a suspicious person, 5 juvenile complaints, 3 each of theft, stolen vehicle and suicidal subject, 2 each of abuse, burglary, hit and run, trespassing, person with a weapon and harassment and 1 each of vandalism, fraud, fight in progress and criminal damage to property.

 

(Springfield-jm) – May weather was warmer and drier than normal in Illinois. Statewide average rainfall was about two inches below normal, although totals varied widely. State Climatologist Trent Ford says most of Illinois is sitting at 50 percent of normal precipitation for the last month or two…

 

 

State Climatologist Trent Ford. The average statewide temperature was just a little above normal. Ford says although there were some warm days, the low humidity made for some cooler nights.