(Springfield-jm) – With Illinois households already saddled with the third-most pension debt in the country, a new Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability report finds that the state's mounting pension liabilities spiked by nearly $3 billion over a 12-month window. Much of the rising cost COGFA attributed to the increase was because of “larger than expected salary increases” for state employees. Researchers added that unfunded costs for the five pension systems overseen by the state now stand at nearly their highest level in well over a decade. With the state having saved roughly 44 cents for every dollar of benefits now owed to retired state employees.
(Washington-jm) – USDA's Prices report shows most farm commodity prices are below what they were one year ago. Gary Crawford reports…
(Urbana-jm) – Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana announced the birth of the first 2024 baby there. Baby Aleaha was born at 12:57 a.m. Monday. She weighed 7 pounds, 13.2 ounces and has a big sister named Brooklynn. The family lives in Champaign County, and the mother was also born at Carle Foundation Hospital. Aleaha waited until the new year to be born as her due date was three days ago.
(Springfield-jm) – Governor J-B Pritzker is touting the state’s investment in road and bridge projects. The Governor has been traveling the state talking about the massive investment into updating roads and bridges throughout Illinois. He recently made a stop in Champaign to discuss the I-57/I-74 interchange project. The Governor talks about the investment…
Illinois Governor J-B Pritzker.
(Champaign-jm) – Champaign Police were dispatched at 10:39 p.m. on December 31, 2023, to the 2400 block of N. Neil Street for a report of shots fired. As officers arrived on-scene and began to investigate, a 24-year-old woman from Rockford, arrived at a local hospital by personal transport suffering from a non life threatening gunshot wound. The victim remains hospitalized in stable condition. The initial investigation indicates that the victim was seated in her vehicle when she heard multiple shots fired in the area by an unknown subject. The gunfire was found to have struck a building in the area and the victim’s vehicle, resulting in injury to the victim’s leg. No arrests have been made.
(Danville-jm) – Danville Area Community College is bringing in a couple new two-year medical oriented degrees; one in Diagnostic Medical Sonography, and the other in Echocardiography. Currently DACC offers certificates in both Sonography and Echocardiography. An appeal will now be made to the State of Illinois to offer the Associate’s Degrees.
(Springfield-jm) – A new animal welfare law that went into effect in California January 1 mandates space requirements for pigs, cows and chickens has some livestock farmers on edge. Proposition 12 prohibits sales in California of pork, veal and eggs from livestock whose confinement doesn't meet certain minimum space rules. Those rules mandate hog pens to be large enough for an animal to turn around. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the law, ruling 5-4 that “while the Constitution addresses many weighty issues, the type of pork chops California merchants may sell is not on that list.” The Illinois Pork Producers Association estimates it will cost $3,500 per sow to upgrade infrastructure to become Prop 12 compliant, a cost they warn would be passed onto the consumer.
(Washington-jm) – In the battle for acreage this spring, who will come out on top--corn or soybeans? Gary Crawford reports…
(Iroquois County-jm) – The new year will bring Iroquois County's effort to update its Hazard Mitigation Plan. An updated version of the plan seeks to reduce damage caused by severe weather, including thunderstorms, floods, snow and ice storms, tornados and other events. The first of a series of planning meetings is scheduled for Thursday, January 18. The 6:30 pm meeting is at the MABAS 37 Building, 103 1/2 Main Street, Crescent City. The meeting is open to the public. All County, Township and Municipal officials are encouraged to attend and provide input. Other necessary stakeholders include schools, fire protection districts, healthcare services and technical partners. Input gathered during working sessions will be used to update the Hazard Mitigation Plan. The series of committee meetings welcomes residents to ask questions.
(Springfield-jm) – What started as a school project for students in one Illinois district has led to the successful changeover to more energy efficient school buses. Terri Dee reports…
(Springfield-jm) – If you had a baby or adopted in 2023, don’t forget to open a Bright Start or Bright Directions college savings account and claim your $50 seed deposit from the Illinois First Steps program, State Treasurer Michael Frerichs reminded new parents. To qualify for the Illinois First Steps $50 seed deposit, parents or legal guardians must be Illinois residents at the time of birth or adoption, the beneficiary child must be born or adopted on or after Jan. 1, 2023, open an Illinois529 college savings account with Bright Start or Bright Directions, and claim the seed deposit before the child’s 10th birthday. Parents can open an account at brightstart.com and submit a claim for the $50 First Steps seed deposit during the enrollment process. Parents who already have a Bright Start account for their eligible child can go to brightstart.com/first-steps/claim/ to submit a claim. Bright Start is accessible and affordable, with no minimum contribution, minimum balance, or annual fee.
(Rantoul-jm) – Technology on the streets is helping Rantoul police with the recent rise in gun crimes allowing police to seize more guns and keep the community safe. It’s called the Raven Gunshot Detection System. The system uses microphones trained to recognize gun fire. It’s being used in the east side of Rantoul, and it has helped police get guns off the street from crimes they otherwise may not have been alerted to. Police have been using the system since spring 2023. The equipment can pinpoint the location accurately by working with other microphones located all around the east side of Rantoul.
WPXN News Notes…
The City of Paxton will start collecting Christmas trees today. Those wanting to dispose of their live trees are asked to place them by the street and remove all decorations.
The St. Joseph Township-Swearingen Memorial Library announces its Winter Used Book Sale. The book sale will begin today and will end Thursday, January 25th.
The Eastern Illinois Foodbank’s Foodmobile will be in St. Joseph today from 9-9:30 at Feed the Need, the old high school ballpark in Ogden from 10-10:30, in Homer across from the post office from 11-11:30, Sidney community building from 12:30-1, Philo village hall from 1:30-2 and The Oaks in Tolono from 2:30-3.
