On Thursday, Sen. Doris Turner, D-Springfield, introduced legislation mandates that a funeral director must place a unique identifier on the deceased’s body, body bag, and any body part, organ, or tissue separated from the deceased to be used in nontransplant organ donation. A director must also maintain chain of custody documentation. 

The eight local unions that authorized strikes are spread throughout Illinois and represent around 3,800 employees, including drivers, highway maintainers and bridge tenders. Negotiations between the state and the unions have lasted more than seven months. 

The report from special counsel Robert Hur, released Thursday, represents a harshly critical assessment of Biden’s handling of sensitive government materials, but also details the reasons why he should not be charged with the crime.

The case is based on claims that former President Donald Trump’s actions surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol amounted to an insurrection, and thus he should be disqualified from holding public office under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.

The indignity of a distant second-place finish behind “none of these candidates” was a fresh blow for Haley, facilitated by the staunch Trump allies who lead Nevada's GOP. 

Environmental and public health groups hailed the new Environmental Protection Agency rule finalized Wednesday as a major step in improving the health of Americans, including future generations. 

A big decision on whether to keep CPD’s controversial ShotSpotter system. Ongoing tensions between the city and the state over how to care for new migrant arrivals. And an elected school board for Chicago is back on the agenda in Springfield.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the ban on the sale, possession and manufacture of a long list of firearms, high-capacity magazines and certain accessories in January 2023. State Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur, quickly challenged it. 

The emotional debate was over a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. Chicago became the largest city to pass such a resolution after Mayor Brandon Johnson cast a tie-breaking vote. 

The Chicago Police Department would be required to immediately launch a new study of whether officers are efficiently and effectively deployed across the city, under a measure set to be considered by a key City Council committee.

The president of the union that represents Chicago Public Schools principals and administrators says he’s concerned about recent comments from CTU President Stacy Davis Gates and other “incendiary language.”

An oversight board is criticizing Facebook owner Meta's policies regarding manipulated media as “incoherent" and insufficient to address the flood of online disinformation that already has begun to target elections across the globe this year.

A contentious vote in City Hall to back a cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas. And a CPS principal files a police report over allegedly violent rhetoric by CTU President Stacy Davis Gates.

Democratic leaders in the legislature appear ready to revive talks to reform the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act, or BIPA, after business groups poured cold water on the majority party’s ideas last spring.

Mayor Brandon Johnson suspended the 60-day shelter limit for migrants for the third time since November this week, saying in a news conference that the city’s plan for temporary emergency shelter “was never meant as a long-term housing solution.”

“The City Council, if they’re going to talk about the challenge of war in the Middle East, you’ve got to make sure that you include all the perspectives,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said. “They did not do that.”