Illinois' legislative leaders are set to meet again Tuesday about the state's continuing inability to send money to schools.

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It’s no secret that hotels in southern Illinois have few if any vacancies left ahead of Monday’s total solar eclipse. But for $1,200 a night between Sunday and Tuesday, you can rent a four-bedroom house in Salem, about 45 miles south of Effingham.

Salem, like Effingham, is outside the path of totality in Illinois. But Mistie Urdaneta, who owns a wedding business call...   < read more >

GRANVILLE — The state of Illinois still owes $294,418.64 to Putnam County schools from the last fiscal year.

“It is really complicated right now; it is really a mess,” said superintendent Carl Carlson. The district received the third categorical payment for last fiscal year, but the district hasn’t received the fourth payment.

Carlson said he’s...   < read more >

Starting at 1:20 p.m. Monday, people in downstate Illinois will watch as their view of the sun is obliterated for 2 minutes and 43 seconds. Astronomy buffs have plotted a journey to Carbondale and other points to stand in the path of the first total eclipse to sweep across the continental U.S. since 1918.

We’re sure that will be a thrilling sight. But there’s another ...   < read more >

The Will County Board is continuing its push for a permanent air traffic control tower at Lewis University Airport in Romeoville.

State Rep. Margo McDermed, R-Mokena, presented the board with a resolution Thursday in support of the permanent tower, which offic...   < read more >

The state of Illinois, as of Friday, owed its vendors about $14.7 billion.

At least, Comptroller Susana Mendoza thinks that’s what the debt is, based on the bills in her office and the ones she is aware of at state agencies.

Ridiculously, state agencies are only required to annually report in October the aggregate amount of bills being held as of June 30. By that poi...   < read more >

You could say Gov. BRUCE RAUNER was not a happy man last week.

A couple of media outlets filed open records requests to get emails sent by first lady DIANA RAUNER on a state email account. It was not a question of trying to get emails sent on a personal account. One reason was to determine if the first lady had a hand in all of the recent staff ch...   < read more >

Racism, hate and bigotry are evil and wicked no matter how you try to rationalize it. As a citizen of our great nation, I cherish our nation’s freedoms, equality for all. We — as a nation, a state, a town, a city or a village — must work tireless to ensure racism, hatred and bigotry are not tolerated.

You and me, we must build on the positives and not the negati...   < read more >

The nine Democratic candidates for governor — some better known than others — had a great audience of 1,800 party faithful at the Democratic County Chairmen’s Association at the Crowne Plaza on the State Fair’s Democrat Day last week.

In his speech, one of them, CHRIS KENNEDY, didn’t take the usual tack — he didn’t mention...   < read more >

Gov. Bruce Rauner has approved regulations that require pharmacists to counsel customers who seek to fill prescriptions for new medications or need changes to longtime prescriptions.

The higher counseling standard comes after a Chicago Tribune investigation in December revealed pharmacies frequently failed to warn customers about severe drug interactions. Pharmacies have been r...   < read more >