(Undated-jm) — The National Weather Service will be out today doing damage assessments to determine how many tornadoes touched down in central Illinois Sunday. Tornadoes were reported near Martinton, Clifton and St. Anne in northern Iroquois County and down in the Mt Zion-Long Creek area near Decatur. The northwest side of Pontiac received significant damage from a possible tornado. The gym roof at the Prairie Central Junior High in Forrest was peeled off from high winds and a business on the south side of Gibson City lost a significant portion of their roof. It’s unknown if that was caused by a tornado or straight line winds. There have been no reported injuries at this time.

 

(Springfield-jm) – There’s a new state law becoming official on New Year’s Day that gun owners should know about. The Safe Gun Storage Act says that gun owners must keep their firearms out of reach of minors, an at-risk person, or someone banned from using guns. If a minor or a prohibited person gets someone else’s gun, the owner will get a fine of up to $1,000. If that person commits a violent crime with the weapon, the maximum fine increases to $10,000.

 

(Springfield-jm) – Human trafficking is a $236 billion industry worldwide, and it’s something that experts say increases during the holiday season. Police say around 50 million people are trafficked worldwide, and they try to learn as much information as possible to stop these cases before they start. But they say educating oneself is the first step, which enables people to protect themselves. Experts and law enforcement said people of all ages, races and ages can fall victim to it.

 

(Rantoul–dm)-Lincoln Challenges Academy has been located in Rantoul for over 30 years.  Public Relations Director Michael Camacho talks about how the students are involved with the City of Rantoul.

   

Lincoln Challenges Public Relations Director Michael Camacho

 

(Ford County-jm) – Ford County fire departments had a busy weekend. Friday afternoon firefighters were called to a reported vehicle fire on I-57. It ended up being an overheated vehicle. Later that evening emergency personnel were called to a two vehicle accident on the I-57 overpass at Paxton. Also happening Friday afternoon firefighters from Gibson City, Sibley and Elliott responded to a reported fire at the schoolhouse apartments. There’s no word on any damage from that fire.

Two tornadoes also touched down briefly in Macon County on Sunday.

 

(Urbana–jm) — A gas station employee is recovering after being shot on Christmas Eve in Urbana. According to the Urbana Police Department, an armed robber pointed his gun at the clerk and a customer at the Circle K on University and McCullough streets around 11 p.m. on Christmas Eve. The employee was first hit with the weapon and then shot. The victim was taken to an Urbana hospital.

 

(Champaign-jm) – Phase two of construction on the new Champaign Plaza is now not expected to start until summer 2026. Champaign City Council approved an almost $200,000 change order for engineering services on the next phase, bringing the agreement's total not-to-exceed amount up to nearly $1.24 million. City engineers said the project was originally expected to begin work in April. The area will include a fountain, lawn area, swings, benches and specialty lighting.

 

(Springfield–jm) – Tipped workers in Illinois will continue to pay state taxes on their tips, as the state has chosen not to adopt a recent federal tax policy change. The federal tax code, altered by the "One Big Beautiful Bill," allows tipped workers to deduct up to $25,000 from their federal taxable income. However, this deduction will not apply to Illinois state taxes. Katherine Loughead, a senior policy analyst and research manager at the Tax Foundation, explained, "Illinois was never on track to offer a deduction for tips like what is being offered at the federal level." She added, "Nothing will change for Illinois taxpayers. They will still be able to deduct up to $25k of their tips on the federal level, so that is still a benefit that they get when they pay their federal income taxes and nothing will change at the state level." Illinois calculates state income tax based on adjusted gross income, which includes income before federal deductions for tips. Loughead noted, "Illinois used federal AGI, which is a higher amount as the first line on the state income tax form. And so Illinois looks at the amount of income that a taxpayer earns before the federal deduction for tips is subtracted out." Concerns have been raised about the fairness of such a policy, as it may benefit tipped workers while leaving out similarly paid workers who do not receive tips.

 

(Washington-jm) – A senior Agriculture Department official lists some of the events in the ag economy and ag sector that he believes were notable in 2025. Rod Bain reports…

 

 

(Champaign-jm) – Officers with the Champaign Police Department found evidence of gunfire, including multiple shell casings and damage to a building, while responding to a report of shots fired Saturday afternoon. It happened near Bradley and Mattis Avenues at 12:19 p.m. in the parking lot of a nearby business. Once on scene, officers collected evidence from security cameras and talked with potential witnesses. They learned that multiple vehicles may have been involved in the incident. Shortly after, officers found a vehicle that was believed to have been involved. A traffic stop was done in the 2200 block of W. Springfield Avenue and officers detained the driver of the vehicle. After investigating further, police learned the vehicle was involved in the incident — but the driver was not. The driver was released and the vehicle was towed as evidence.

 

(Undated-jm) – Allstate plans to raise Illinois homeowners’ insurance rates nearly nine percent starting February 24. According to a recent article in the Chicago Sun-Times, the increase will impact more than 200,000 policyholders statewide. On social media, Allstate pointed to severe weather and rising construction costs as reasons for the rate increase. Consumer advocates called the increase “excessive,” noting that Allstate reported billions in profits and warning that other insurers could follow suit. The Sun-Times reported Illinois homeowners are already paying about 50 percent more for insurance than they did just three years ago, with consumer groups pushing for stronger state oversight. Bloomington-based State Farm, the nation’s largest insurer, added a 27% rate increase over the summer, also citing severe weather as the reason.

 

(Springfield–jc)  –Pope Leo XIV says he is very disappointed that Illinois Governor. J.B. Pritzker signed Senate Bill 1950 to legalize physician-assisted suicide.The pope said that he spoke explicitly with Pritzker about the legislation when the governor visited Rome last month. Pritzker signed the bill December. 12, on the Catholic feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Pope Leo said he hopes and prays that respect for life will once again grow in all moments of human existence, “from conception to natural death.”