IL: Contender for Jackson Jr.’s seat arrested for having gun at airport

By   /  December 5, 2012  /  Illinois WatchBlog, WatchBlog  /  No Comments

Illinois Sen. Donne Trotter

State Sen. Donne Trotter was arrested Wednesday morning at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport after authorities found an unloaded handgun and bullets in his luggage.
Trotter, 62, who is a contender for the Congressional seat of ex-U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., told police he worked late Tuesday night at his job as a security officer and didn’t [...]

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IL: Pension experts divided over Nekritz-Biss plan

By   /  December 5, 2012  /  Featured, Illinois, News, Pensions  /  4 Comments

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By Jayette Bolinski | Illinois Watchdog
SPRINGFIELD — Two Illinois pension experts are divided on the merits of a new reform proposal that seeks to cut pension costs but does little to address the state’s pension borrowing issues.
The plan is either a dramatic step toward rescuing the state from financial ruin or a potentially unconstitutional failure that [...]

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IL: New pension-reform proposal to be unveiled Wednesday

By   /  December 4, 2012  /  Illinois WatchBlog, WatchBlog  /  1 Comment

Illinois Rep. Elaine Nekritz

Wednesday is the last day of the fall veto session for the Illinois General Assembly.
That means no pension reform will take place before the holidays, nor will action on a borrowing bill that would enable the state to take out a loan to pay down its backlog of bills.
Those issues, as well as others, could [...]

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IL: Senate approves illegal immigrant drivers license measure

By   /  December 4, 2012  /  Illinois WatchBlog, WatchBlog  /  3 Comments

A measure pending in the Illinois legislature would make it possible for undocumented immigrants to get a special, three-year drivers license and car insurance.

By Jayette Bolinski | Illinois Watchdog
SPRINGFIELD – Despite a show of Republican support Tuesday morning, half of the GOP lawmakers in the Illinois Senate voted against a measure that enables undocumented immigrants to obtain temporary drivers’ licenses and insurance.
The measure passed, though, with a final vote of 41-14. It now goes to the House for [...]

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IL: Week in Review – State lawmakers return for veto session; no action on pension reform

By   /  November 30, 2012  /  Illinois, News  /  No Comments

The Illinois state flag.

By Jayette Bolinski | Illinois Watchdog
SPRINGFIELD – State lawmakers converged on the Illinois Capitol this week for the first week of the fall veto session and addressed a variety of issues, none of which involved pension reform.
Senate signs off on corporate tax transparency measure
The Illinois Senate on Wednesday approved a plan to require some companies [...]

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