Quick hits: Illinois news in brief for Thursday, March 11, 2021
Pritzker says administration is making changes to COVID-19 rules
Gov. J.B. Pritzker says his administration is making changes all the time to COVID-19 restrictions, but legislators from both parties are critical of the lack of clarity.
State Sen. Terri Bryant said the governor’s lack of clarity is hurting the state on many fronts.
Pritzker said he has concerns about variants. Eighty-eight variant cases have been reported in Illinois in the past two months.
State officials looking at how to spend federal dollars
With the passage of the $1.9 trillion federal spending plan, the state of Illinois is evaluating how the money will be spent.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s budget director anticipates much of the money will go toward COVID-related expenses, but there’s also money for infrastructure projects like water, sewers and broadband.
The Illinois comptroller expects to use $3 billion from the plan to pay off recent short-term borrowing.
Senate cancels session
The Illinois Senate canceled session Thursday.
Senators are scheduled back Tuesday.
The House canceled most of its days next week, but will be back in-person Thursday.
Both chambers continue to hold committee hearings on budget requests, proposed legislation and subject matter hearings on various issues.
State changes COVID-19 safety guidelines for schools
It’s no longer 6-feet social distancing in public schools. It’s now 3 feet.
And symptom screenings are no longer recommended. That’s the word from Illinois State Schools Superintendent Carman Ayala.
A letter she sent Tuesday to school officials said capacity limits should be based on space available, not a set number or percentage. She also said social distancing in schools is now defined as 3 feet instead of 6 feet. Unvaccinated staff should maintain a 6-foot distance, she said.
Five faces voter fraud charges in DuPage County
Voter fraud charges have been leveled against five people in DuPage County.
The state’s attorney there said the charges related to the November election stem from investigations of alleged election fraud.
The charges include forgery and perjury against three Illinois residents and two residents of Texas.
The charges could lead to Class 3 felonies.
Supreme Court hears Mautino campaign finance case
The Illinois Supreme Court will now rule on whether Auditor General Frank Mautino’s campaign fund from his time as a state lawmaker violated election law.
The civil case filed by a citizen in 2016 advanced the charges after the Illinois State Board of Elections failed to find a violation.
The election board did fine Mautino’s now closed campaign $5,000 for poor record-keeping.
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