(SPRINGFIELD) A government integrity & accountability group says Democratic members of the Illinois State Board of Elections rescued State Senate President Don Harmon from having to pay a nearly $10 million penalty for alleged campaign finance violations. Last week, the board deadlocked along partisan lines on whether to grant Harmon’s appeal. The fine had been recommended by State Board of Elections’ staff & upheld by an independent hearing officer. Officials say Harmon ignored warnings from elections board staff and others while continuing to take in donations above what Illinois’ legal limit is.
(ROCKFORD) A Rockford factory is slated to reopen with help from Illinois tax incentives. State officials have announced that Rockford Brake Manufacturing has plans to reopen a brake component factory that closed last year in February. As part of the state’s incentive package, the company received a tax credit for startups and committed to creating 150 jobs.
(SPRINGFIELD) Folks from around the state and nation will turn back their clocks this coming Saturday night before going to bed, marking the end of daylight saving time in 2025. While officially ending at 2:00 Sunday morning, everyone will gain an extra hour of sleep this weekend. The Illinois State Fire Marshall’s office is also recommending folks to check their smoke and carbon dioxide detector batteries to make sure all are in working order. It’s also a good time to plan and practice a fire escape plan for your family as well.
(WESTVILLE) A driver has been charged in connection with a crash that killed a Charleston couple and injured two other people in Clark County last Friday night. Authorities report 34 year old Edwin Pacheco-Meza of Indianapolis is charged with aggravated DUI and reckless homicide in connection with the head-on collision that killed Coles County Board member Mike Clayton and his wife, Gail. Downstate lawmakers Adam Niemerg, Chris Miller, Chapin Rose, and others have all issued statements saying the driver who caused the fatal accident is in America illegally. But, due to new state laws initiated by the state’s administration, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office is not allowed to enforce an ICE order to detain the suspect, plus the Illinois State Police have apparently been ordered not to release the citizenship status of the suspect. The lawmakers say the citizens of Illinois should be outraged.