WILL-AM

News Local/State

Illinoisans are likely to have to pay more sales tax when shopping online after state lawmakers made two big changes to tax rules. State tax collections are expected to increase by $288 million this year.

News Local/State

The Autism Program on the University of Illinois Urbana campus is a statewide network of agencies that provides resources and services for children and adults with autism. Illinois Public Media spoke with the program’s director, Linda Tortorelli, about the challenges people with autism face living in central Illinois and how The Autism Program aims to help.

News Local/State

A commission with members on both sides of the Chief Illiniwek debate is recommending ways to move forward together --- twelve years after the University of Illinois retired the controversial symbol. But Chief supporterswere criticizing its findings on the day they were issued.

News Local/State

A string of natural disasters has hit the central U.S. in recent weeks. Tornadoes have devastated communities, tearing up trees and homes. Record rainfall has prevented countless farmers in America's breadbasket from planting crops. Rising rivers continue to flood fields, inundate homes and threaten aging levees from Iowa to Mississippi. And while none of these events can be directly attributed to climate change, extreme rains are happening more frequently in many parts of the U.S. and that trend is expected to continue as the Earth continues to warm.

News Local/State

The Illinois legislative session that wrapped up a few days ago was dominated by debates over weighty topics like preserving abortion rights, legalizing recreational cannabis sales, and changing the income tax structure of the state. But no action was taken to address Illinois' continuing teacher shortage.

News Local/State

Last week, Illinois Newsroom reported on the removal of more than 200 books from the shelves of a college in prison program’s library inside the Danville Correctional Center in east-central Illinois. Several authors and editors of books that were removed from the EJP library agreed to speak to Illinois Newsroom.

News Local/State

State Representative Carol Ammons said she didn’t vote on a historic bill to legalize the use and sale of cannabis in Illinois because she didn’t have a chance to express her concerns about the legislation.

News Local/State

State Representative Tom Bennett (R-Gibson City) discusses the major votes of the end of the spring session in Springfield, including the new state budget, a new infrastructure plan, the legalization of recreational marijuana and a proposed constitutional amendment for a progressive state income tax.

News Local/State

When you go to the doctor, there is a pretty good chance that person wasn’t born in the United States. There are thousands of foreign-born doctors working here — in every specialty. But recent changes in immigration law are making the transition tougher.

News Local/State

Rural communities are some of the most politically disenfranchised when it comes to climate policy, and last year’s National Climate Change Report showed they’re also among the most at risk when it comes to the effect of climate change. This could mean stronger storms, more intense droughts and earlier freezes.