Nearly 200 new Illinois laws take effect Jan. 1

January 2, 2017 By Leave a Comment

state-capitolThere were 192 laws that took effect yesterday in the state. I am going to give you a small sampling of them from the AP story. Click on the link to read the full text of them…I am going to give you the “Cliff Notes”…..Illinois is believed to be the first state to require hairstylists to undergo training to help them spot signs of domestic or sexual abuse…..Another law says employees allowed sick leave for injuries or doctor appointments can take leave for the illness or appointment of a family member…..The state will also extend the statute

This law was inspired by the case of Molly Young of Carbondale, which is very familiar to most of us in Southern Illinois

This law was inspired by the case of Molly Young of Carbondale, which is very familiar to most of us in Southern Illinois

of limitations from two years to five years for people to file wrongful death lawsuits and will increase fines for public bodies, including police departments, that don’t comply with court orders to release information. ……….Police can no longer interrogate anyone younger than 15 without an attorney present when investigating serious crimes. The age was previously 13………….Illinois will eliminate the so-called “tampon

The "tampon law" goes into effect where the tax has been eliminated on feminine hygiene products. I feel it ought to be eliminated on all health and beauty aids.

The “tampon law” goes into effect where the tax has been eliminated on feminine hygiene products. I feel it ought to be eliminated on all health and beauty aids. (an editorial comment)

tax,” which proponents say is a matter of gender equity. ……..Insurance companies must provide coverage for nearly all forms of contraception approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which the law had limited to fewer options……..Two laws focus on the state’s ongoing efforts to fight opioid addiction. One allows drug court participants to use medication, like methadone, for treatment. Another requires state-licensed treatment programs to provide education information about medication-based treatments and the use of anti-overdose drugs………..The new state artifact will be a long canoe once used by Native Americans, including the Illini. It’s called a “pirogue” and state Rep. Laura Fine, a suburban Democrat, credited a middle-school history project as the impetus….This has my curiosity….I will try to find all of the statues….

Filed Under: Breaking News, Slider, State News

Trump blasts Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel for high homicide rate

January 2, 2017 By Leave a Comment
President elect Donald Trump with the future first lady blasting mayor Emanuel for the violence in Chicago (Daily Mail photo)

President elect Donald Trump with the future first lady blasting mayor Emanuel for the violence in Chicago (Daily Mail photo)

Click on link to read the story from DAVID MARTOSKO, US POLITICAL EDITOR FOR DAILYMAIL.COM… Donald Trump used his Twitter bully pulpit on Monday to blast Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel for allowing his city’s murder and firearms shooting rates to spiral out of control. ‘Chicago murder rate is record setting – 4,331 shooting victims with 762 murders in 2016,’ Trump tweeted. ‘If Mayor can’t do it he must ask for Federal help!’ 2016 was one of the most violent years in Chicago history with the most homicides in two decades – more than New York and Los Angeles combined. The nation’s third largest city also saw 1,100 more shooting incidents last year than it did in 2015, according to data released Sunday by the Chicago Police Department. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4080790/Chicago-records-762-homicides-2016-making-bloodiest-12-months-20-YEARS-Windy-City.html#ixzz4UdPqVG3A Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Filed Under: Breaking News, Slider, State News

IDOT testing drones to help with inspections

December 27, 2016 By Leave a Comment

The Illinois Department of Transportation thinks that two new, 7 1/2-pound, 2 1/2-foot-wide devices will help the agency rise to new heights of safety and cost efficiency. “We’re excited to have drones idotavailable to help us with the work we do at the Illinois Department of Transportation,” said IDOT Secretary Randy Blankenhorn. “Because drones can access places that are difficult and dangerous for people to get to, we expect this technology to enhance employee safety as well as reduce costs. “We also believe drone technology will be able to support other agencies, whether it’s during natural disasters or helping first-responders determine the appropriate response to emergency situations.” The drones and their supporting technology, purchased for $8,800 from IDOT’s operating budget, are now being tested to see how they may work for a variety of tasks, including bridge inspections, mapping, surveying, work zone progress, emergency response and other applications, according to IDOT spokeswoman Kelsea Gurski. Please click to read the rest of the story from David Blanchette of the Springfield journal-Register

Filed Under: Breaking News, Slider, State News

Imprisoned Rod Blagojevich awaits Obama decision on commutation

December 26, 2016 By Leave a Comment

CHICAGO – One of the last chances for former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to win early release from federal prison rests on a pending decision by the man whose Senate seat Blagojevich was blagoconvicted of trying to sell – President Barack Obama. Blagojevich, 60, is in the fourth year of a 14-year prison term. He recently submitted a request to have his sentence on wide-ranging corruption convictions commuted, the U.S. Department of Justice has confirmed. Obama has rarely mentioned his fellow Chicago Democrat since Blagojevich’s December 2008 arrest, a month after Obama won the presidency, so it’s hard to gauge if he’d give Blagojevich’s request for a reduced sentence serious thought. A look at the commutation process and factors that could influence a decision:….Please click to read the rest of the story from the Associated Press

Filed Under: Breaking News, National News, State News

State lawmakers’ education funding talks continue

December 22, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Despite a standstill over the state budget, a group of bipartisan lawmakers has been meeting more often in recent weeks to devise a plan to overhaul funding for public schools. Although Illinois’ top educationleaders aren’t meeting to discuss the budget, members of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s education funding reform commission told the Springfield Bureau of Lee Enterprises newspapers they’re optimistic that the group will be able to come up with at least outlines of a new school funding formula. “We’ve made meaningful progress on an incredibly difficult issue,” said Republican state Sen. Jason Barickman. Rauner set a Feb. 1 deadline for the group to complete its work when he announced its formation in July. Barickman said that if reform is going to happen, the group, and ultimately the legislature, must come to a consensus on complex issues, such as property taxes and achieving parity among school districts. Click to read the rest of the Associated Press story….

Filed Under: Breaking News, Slider, State News

Former Gov. Blagojevich again appeals prison term

December 21, 2016 By Leave a Comment

By Michael Tarm, The Associated Press CHICAGO – Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich is asking a U.S. appeals court to nullify his 14-year

Gov. Rod Blagoevich being arrested by US Marshalls for trying to sell president elect Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat back in 2008 (NBC News)

Gov. Rod Blagoevich being arrested by US Marshalls for trying to sell president elect Barack Obama’s vacated Senate seat back in 2008 (NBC News)

prison term and order a third sentencing hearing, with a lawyer arguing on his behalf that the Democrat’s model behavior behind bars and other factors justified a reduction in his sentence. Attorneys for the Chicago Democrat filed the appeal late Tuesday with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The filing comes in the wake of Blagojevich’s re-sentencing on Aug. 9, when trial Judge James Zagel refused to lower the original 14-year sentence. The 7th Circuit had ordered that August re-sentencing after tossing five of Blagojevich’s 18 convictions in 2015. The 60-year-old’s remaining convictions include trying to trade an appointment to President Barack Obama’s old Senate seat for campaign cash. Prosecutors will have a chance to respond to the filing, and oral arguments would then be scheduled before a three-judge panel of the Chicago-based appellate court. Please click to read the rest of the associated press story.

Filed Under: Breaking News, National News, Slider, State News

Sangamon County Board prayers…..Atheist Rob Sherman passes last week……Former Illinois First Lady Passes away…

December 19, 2016 By Leave a Comment
Governor Richard Ogilve (R term 1969-1973) and his wife Dorothy while he was in office (Chicago Tribune photo)

Governor Richard Ogilve (R- term 1969-1973) and his wife Dorothy while he was in office (Chicago Tribune photo)

Here is an editorial piece by Bernard Schoenberg of the SpringfieldJournal-Register that I came across. It talks about how some came to issue with a prayer that was said before a Sangamon County Board meeting. This slipped by me but Rob Sherman, an atheist who had several filings in court claiming separation of church and state, was killed in a plane crash last week. Also he memorializes the life of former Illinois first lady Dorothy Ogilve. Click to read the entire article.

Filed Under: Editorials, State News

Speeding ticket numbers down, fatalities up on Illinois roads

December 19, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Things are changing on Illinois’ interstates. Over the past five years, the number of Illinois State Police troopers on patrol and the 70-mph-speed-limitnumber of speeding citations they’ve issued statewide have gone down significantly. Troopers issued 211,857 speeding tickets in 2010, and last year, 126,959 tickets were issued, a decline of 40 percent. In 2016, state police handed out 78,006 speeding tickets through Sept. 30, putting the agency on pace to end the year at 104,000 tickets. The data was obtained through the state’s Freedom of Information Act. Meanwhile, the number of traffic fatalities statewide has bounced around a bit, but overall, the number of people killed on Illinois’ roads is higher than it was five years ago. In fact, for the first time since 2008, Illinois in 2016 has surpassed the 1,000 mark in annual statewide fatalities. Is there a correlation between the two? Please click to read the rest of the story from John Reynolds of the Springfield Journal-Register.

Filed Under: Featured, Slider, State News

Andy Manar in the mix for governor in 2018

December 16, 2016 By Leave a Comment

State Sen. ANDY MANAR of Bunker Hill isn’t a billionaire and doesn’t have a name known statewide, but he is being mentioned as a possible Democratic candidate for governor in 2018. “It’s humbling to have so many people come to you and say you should give this

State Senator Andy Manar (D) Bunker Hill on the Senate floor

State Senator Andy Manar (D) Bunker Hill on the Senate floor

serious thought,” Manar told Springfield Journal-Register reporter Benard Schoenberg an interview this week. First elected to the Senate in a close race in 2012, and more easily winning a four-year term in 2014, Manar was familiar with the legislative process, having been chief of staff to Senate President JOHN CULLERTON, D-Chicago. Manar was among Democrats named this weekend in a GREG HINZ column in Crain’s Chicago Business about potential Democratic candidates for governor now that U.S. Sen. DICK DURBIN of Springfield took himself out of the running. Several people are on the list, some of whom are CHRIS KENNEDY, son of the late ROBERT F. KENNEDY; J.B. PRITZKER, who Forbes magazine says is worth $3.4 billion; U.S. Reps. ROBIN KELLY of Matteson and CHERI BUSTOS of Moline; state Treasurer MIKE FRERICHS; and state Sen. DANIEL BISS of Evanston. Click to read the rest of the story from the Springfield Journal Register

Filed Under: Slider, State News

Update on the winter weather event

December 16, 2016 By Leave a Comment

winter-weather-eventThis is a typical “Southern Illinois” forecast.  It is going to be mostly cloudy with a high of 35 degrees today.  Tonight we have a 60% chance of rain with temperatures rising to 52 degrees by daybreak on Saturday.

There is a 50% chance of rain on Saturday with a high of 56 degrees with the temperatures nosediving after a very strong cold front comes through the region projected around nightfall.

Precipitation chances will increase to 70% Saturday night, with freezing rain, changing to sleet, then light snow before ending early Sunday morning.  The low will be 12 degrees.  Total ice and snow accumulation will be around 1/2 inch.

Bitter cold will grip the region with wind chills of -5 to 5 degrees all day Sunday into Monday morning.

Weather conditions will rapidly deteriorate around dark on Saturday night.  This is something to stay abreast of if you are out and about.  Roads, parking lots and sidewalks will deteriorate quickly.  With the gusty winds, Christmas decorations need to be secured.

Franklin-county-news. com will keep you updated on this developing weather situation quickly, as well as any cancellations and school closings throughout the winter months.

Source-Several different products from the National Weather Service in Paducah KY.

 

 

Filed Under: Breaking News, Franklin Co. News, Slider, State News
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