News

Instead of raising income taxes on working families and employers like the General Assembly did last year something I didnt vote for we need to grow the tax base instead of the tax rate. We need to offer relief, not more burdens, on the people of Illinois.

To correct an oversight in Illinois property law,State Sen. Jil Tracy and State Rep. Norine Hammond sponsored legislation that allows spouse-to-spouse transfers of wooded acreage without undergoing a property assessmentor incurring higher property taxes.

Illinois Senate Republicans officially opened their fourth annual Memorial Day Wall of Remembrance display in the state Capitol Rotunda on Thursday. Joining Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady in opening the display was Gov. Bruce Rauner and Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs Chief of Staff Renysha Brown.

Drawing Illinois closer to the enactment of the life-saving Annie LeGere Law, the Illinois House of Representatives passed an amendment sponsored by State Sen. Chris Nybo (R-Elmhurst) that would encourage medical professionals participation in the initiative to equip police officers with epinephrine auto-injectors (EpiPens) for allergy-related emergencies.

Senator Paul Schimpf recently joined WHCO’s “People Speak” to talk about a recent initiative he worked on with Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to carry out a strategic planning study on the future economic vitality of the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta and Pyramid State Park in Perry County.

Irwin Soliday, a 100-year-old World War II veteran and Forsyth resident was a guest of State Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) at the Statehouse May 23.

The Illinois Senate has approved the town of Normals request to extend the Uptown TIF district for 12 additional years, according to State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington). This a situation where the town and the affected taxing bodies have come to an agreement to extend the TIF, so we are making sure the General Assembly respects the decisions made by our local governments...

The Human Trafficking Task Force held a meeting on May 22 to present reports of their findings and recommendations, which State Senator Karen McConnaughay, co-chair of the task force, says outlines a more effective and comprehensive approach to tackling the human trafficking problem in Illinois.

State Senator Karen McConnaughay (R-St. Charles) joins several other lawmakers in calling for an investigation following the recent allegations made by Rep. Kelly Cassidy, who says she was forced to resign from her part-time job at the Cook County Sheriffs Office after speaking out against Speaker Mike Madigans handling of sexual harassment claims within his political office. McConnaughay says retaliation of this kind, or any kind, needs to be taken very seriously and has no place in the Capitol.

Illinois High School students could soon have another option to help prepare them for their future careers, thanks to legislation sponsored by State Senator Chuck Weaver (R-Peoria) that passed the Illinois Senate...

State Sen. Dale Fowler (R-Harrisburg) will represent the 59th Senate District in this years Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development (BILLD) program, an annual training institute for state leaders in the Midwest.

Illinois counties may soon be able to dissolve their board of election commissioners into the county clerks office as part of legislation cosponsored by State Sen. John Curran, which has passed out of both the House and Senate Chambers.

Illinois High School students could soon have another option to help prepare them for their future careers, thanks to legislation sponsored by State Senator Chuck Weaver (R-Peoria) that passed the Illinois Senate...

With about week and a half left in the spring legislative session, Senate Republicans remain hopeful a balanced budget, without a tax increase, will be approved by May 31. Meanwhile, Governor Rauner introduced his public safety initiative and the U.S. Supreme Court announced a major decision on sports gaming.

As an initiative to investigate and prevent elder abuse and exploitation, State Sen. John Curran cosponsored legislation to allow Adult Protective Services (APS) to more fully investigate their claims of abuse. The State Senate passed the proposal unanimously on May 17.

Parents and teachers could soon get help identifying and assisting children with dyslexia, thanks to legislation sponsored by State Sen. Chuck Weaver (R-Peoria) and approved by the Illinois General Assembly. We need to give all students every chance to succeed, said Weaver. This legislation will give parents and educators tools to identify and help students with dyslexia....

Candidates for certain offices could soon be ditching certain paper filings and moving to modern electronic methods, thanks to legislation sponsored by State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) and approved by the Illinois Senate. This is about giving our local and state government the ability to modernize part of a candidates filing and reduce clutter...

Underscoring the importance of the tourism industry in Illinois, State Senator Dale Fowler (R-Harrisburg) is bringing attention to recently released numbers which reported an all-time high in visitors from 2017.

As Senator Tracy was working in Legislative Session in Springfield, she released the following statement to commend the City of Quincy's announcement to invest in a new water supply.

The Illinois Senate got an up-close look at the face of teaching excellence, as the chamber welcomed Dwight Township High Schools Lindsey Jensen, the 2018 Illinois Teacher of the Year, according to State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington)...

In an effort to reduce gun trafficking stemming from Illinois gun dealers, State Sen. Chris Nybo negotiated several significant revisions to a Gun Dealer Safety measure, which passed the Senate on May 16one day after a bipartisan group of legislators, including Nybo, announced their support.

Senator Dan McConchie (Hawthorn Woods) sat down with Comcast Newsmakers' Paul Lisnek to talk about his proposal to allow certain taxpayers vote to reduce their property taxes.

"I believe that reinstating societys most serious penalty for the most serious of violent crimes, with the proper safeguards, is an appropriate response to the horrific violence we have witnessed far too often in recent times. The Governors action today recognizes the need for a multi-pronged approach to dealing with deadly assaults. As part of that, those who choose to murder innocent victims in mass attacks or kill law enforcement officers should know they face the severest of sentences."

Illinois is one step closer to honoring the dedication and sacrifice of a firefighter who lost his life in the line of duty 30 years ago, thanks to legislation sponsored by State Sen. or Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) and adopted by the Illinois Senate May 10....

To reform the reporting of sexual offenses for victims unaware of a sexual crimedue to circumstances such as a drug-induced or unconscious encounterslegislation sponsored by State Sen. Jil Tracy extends the statute of limitations to allow for the prosecution of a sexual offense committed against an adult within one year after the victims discovery.