Quick hits: Illinois news in brief for Friday Feb. 11, 2022
Mask debate continues amid legal wrangling
The debate over mask policies is causing disruptions for school districts all across Illinois.
A county judge issued a temporary restraining order against Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s mask mandate for schools and the Illinois attorney general is appealing that ruling.
Since then, there have been many protests demanding school districts make wearing masks optional, including in Naperville, Normal and Lincolnshire.
Alderman demand no mandates for Super Bowl & Valentine’s Day weekend
A group of Chicago aldermen is demanding Mayor Lori Lightfoot lift its mask and vaccine mandate so residents and businesses can celebrate Valentine’s Day and the Super Bowl without them.
In a letter to the Chicago Department of Public Health, 11 aldermen cited data from the department showing declines in new COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths.
They added the mandates have hurt restaurants and bars and lifting them for this weekend would allow people to enjoy the events while deciding how to protect themselves.
El Salvador migrants for Illinois farms
A new temporary visa program for workers from El Salvador aims to beef up the labor pool for Illinois farms this year.
Thanks to a 2020 agreement between the United States and the El Salvador governments, the labor program is set to bring workers to the U.S. for maximum 10-month terms.
A COVID-19 vaccination is one of the requirements for the temporary visas.
Biden’s transportation secretary coming to Central Illinois
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is coming to Illinois this weekend to highlight work the Department of Transportation is doing to make electric vehicles and charging stations more accessible to Americans as part of $5 billion in federal spending.
Buttigieg is scheduled to visit Bloomington-Normal, the home of EV manufacturer Rivian Motors, to announce infrastructure funding for the industry and the launching of a new rural EV Toolkit.
Contraception vending machine at universities
Public university students across Illinois could have expanded access to emergency contraception on college campuses if a new bill passes through the General Assembly.
State Rep. Barbara Hernandez has sponsored a bill mandating that all Illinois public universities have a vending machine that dispenses emergency contraception in a place that is accessible after hours and on the weekends.
Litter fines issued to porch pantry
A Porch Pantry in Central Illinois, which provides food and clothing for the needy, has been fined twice for what city officials called “storage and accumulation of litter.”
Charles Martin, who has run the pantry for two years, said he talked with city officials in Peoria and was told if the litter is gone, the fine will go away.
Martin said he hopes he can continue helping people without issues from the city in the future.
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