News

Beginning Wednesday, Aug. 18, Illinois small business owners can apply for COVID-19 recovery assistance through the new Back to Business (B2B) grant program. The grants are funded by the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The new $250 million rolling grant program builds on last year’s Business Interruption Grant (BIG) program. Within the new program, $100 million is earmarked for businesses

As the start of the 2021-2022 school year approaches, school districts across the state are making final preparations for students’ return to face-to-face instruction. As local school boards were making COVID-19 safety decisions for students and staff, Gov. Pritzker stepped in last week with a new executive order requiring masks for all Pre-K-12 students and staff regardless of their vaccination

The Illinois State Fairs in Springfield and DuQuoin typically bring hundreds of thousands of people through their gates in celebration of agriculture, the state’s number one employer and driver of the state’s economy. The Fairs feature livestock shows, harness racing, carnival rides, a wide variety of live music and entertainers, and dozens of food and product vendors from across the

The ongoing failures of the FOID card system in Illinois are being perpetuated by legislation signed into law by the Governor on Aug. 2. Senator Syverson says House Bill 562 has been touted as a compromise when it actually further hinders a citizen’s Second Amendment rights and places law-abiding gun owners at the mercy of an outdated and overwhelmed system.

With his announced changes to the state’s COVID-19 mitigation plan on Aug. 4, Gov. Pritzker continues his unilateral approach to pandemic decision-making, which actively undermines Illinois’ ability to have broadly accepted mitigation strategies. Senator Syverson says it’s coming up on 17 months that Gov. Pritzker has been running the state with little to no input by lawmakers or local officials.

State Senator Dave Syverson is calling for a complete audit of Governor Pritzker’s management of the state’s unemployment program following the release of a financial audit of the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES). On July 28 the Auditor General released a financial audit of IDES that detailed the Pritzker Administration’s failures regarding the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) Program. While

After being closed for more than a decade, the Illinois Caverns will finally be reopening to visitors. The Illinois Caverns, which are located in Monroe County in southwest Illinois, were originally closed in 2010 by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources in an effort to slow the spread of white nose syndrome, a fungus that kill bats. The fungus that