Illinois Statehouse

The Illinois General Assembly passed the Warehouse Tornado Preparedness Act — a bill that addresses issues from the fatal Edwardsville tornado in 2021.

Budget talks took up most of the political bandwidth in the waning hours of the legislative session, leaving the big transit question unanswered, among other issues.

Illinois Democrats, who hold supermajorities in the House and Senate, pushed through a spending plan with little time to spare before the May 31 midnight deadline.

The Collinsville Kahoks, Granite City Warriors and Freeburg Midgets are some of the Metro East schools that could be required to change if the bills pass.

University leaders from across the state push for new way of determining state funding. The fiscal year 2026 proposed budget includes a 3% increase for higher education in the general fund for operating costs – which is about the same as the rate of inflation.

The rally on Sunday was hosted by three of the affected districts: the Collinsville Kahoks, Mascoutah Indians and Granite City Warriors.

A case brought to the Illinois Supreme Court by House Republican Leader Tony McCombie asked the court to reject the current legislative map for its partisan bias and have a special master redraw the districts.

The Democratic governor also peppered his seventh budget blueprint — which Republicans derided as the largest in state history — with key policy proposals for the upcoming fiscal year.

If signed by Gov. Pritzker, the measure would end federal minimum wage exemption in Illinois by 2030.

After examining submissions from the public, flag commission members will select 10 entries based on how they reflect the identity of Illinois. The state legislature will have the final say.