Illinois Public Media News

Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin is putting his heart into attacking the Republican health care bill — literally. Durbin is citing his own recent cardiac procedure to point out what he and other Democrats say are flaws in the legislation. Speaking Sunday outside his Springfield home, Durbin says he “feel(s) recovered” and is returning to Washington Monday. There he plans to urge his Senate colleagues to reject the health care bill passed last week in the House.

Champaign-Urbana’s daily newspaper, the News-Gazette, will make a big change later this year, when it closes down its printing press in downtown Champaign, and outsources its printing work to Peoria.  The News-Gazette is just the latest daily newspaper to get out of the printing business, as it changes its identity from a newspaper company to a media company. 

University of Illinois-Springfield administrators and a union representing professors have reached a tentative contract agreement, ending a strike that started last week. The University of Illinois Springfield United Faculty union represents nearly 170 tenured and tenure-track faculty members. Representatives of the school and the union announced the deal Sunday.

Saturday May 6 marked the 80th anniversary of an airship crash immortalized by the recorded description of a Chicago radio reporter. People gathered at the crash site in New Jersey Saturday evening to lay a wreath in memory of the 13 passengers, 22 aircrewmen and one person on the ground who were killed or later died from injuries suffered in the fiery crash of the German airship Hindenburg.

The Illinois Senate passed legislation Friday that’s meant to increase voter registration automatically. Just a few months ago, Democrats failed to override Governor Rauner’s veto of automatic voter registration. The new version is intended to address his concerns. It would automatically add people to the rolls when they interact with government, such as when getting a driver’s license.