This year, Illinois has experienced more than 100 tornado incidents, doubling the state’s typical annual average. The recent outbreak underscores escalating weather volatility in the region. Notably, earlier this month, the National Weather Service in Chicago issued 16 tornado warnings in a single day, the highest […]
A global technology outage affected all 138 DMV locations in Illinois recently, disrupting services across the state. A routine update from the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike to Microsoft on its Windows devices triggered an enormous national technological outage on July 19. This led to widespread chaos that […]
The State of Illinois was recently awarded more than $430 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) for its Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program application. The funding will be utilized for building and industry decarbonization, freight electrification, climate-smart agriculture, and renewable energy deployment. According […]
Legislation enabling sheriffs to play a pivotal role in Illinois’ 9-1-1 emergency systems was recently signed into law. House Bill 5128, sponsored by Senator Dale Fowler, amends the Emergency Telephone System Act to explicitly recognize sheriffs as eligible members of local 9-1-1 boards, ensuring their insights […]
Legislation signed into law on July 19 aims to aid child victims of human trafficking to heal and move on with their lives following their trauma. House Bill 5465, sponsored by Senator Erica Harriss, enhances previous legislation by simplifying the process for child trafficking victims to […]
Senate Republicans are partnering with the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office to bring ICASH events to communities across the state, helping residents identify and reclaim unclaimed property held by the Treasurer’s Office. Since 2015, the Treasurer’s Office has successfully returned over $2 billion in assets to Illinoisans. […]
Earlier this month, Illinois began a sharp tax increase on its sportsbooks, with rates more than doubling for some operators. This tax hike, driven by Governor Pritzker’s bloated budget, introduces a progressive tax system to Illinois’ robust sports betting industry. Under the new tax system, the […]
The Illinois State Police (ISP) is continuing its efforts to combat vehicle theft and hijacking, thanks to a substantial $10 million grant from the Illinois Secretary of State’s Illinois Vehicle Hijacking and Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention and Insurance Verification Council. This funding aims to support ISP’s […]
An Illinois Senate Transportation committee recently hosted the first in a series of public hearings to discuss the possibility to merge the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Metra, and Pace into a single public transit agency. This initiative comes as legislators face a $730 million funding deficit […]
In the wake of the tragic shooting at a recent political rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, law enforcement officials are reaffirming confidence in security protocols for the upcoming Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago. During the political rally for former President Donald Trump, a […]