Illinois Public Media News

Michael Finke scored a game-high 17 points to help the Illini men break a three-game losing skid, winning 76-64 over the Iowa Hawkeyes last night in Champaign. Both teams are now in a five-way tie for 9th place in the Big Ten, with a conference record of 3-5. Illinois improves to 13-8 overall. Iowa drops to 11-10 on the year.

On the 21st: How would changes to the Affordable Care Act affect the million people in Illinois who receive coverage? We talk with health experts to get the latest. Plus, we discuss issues Illinois is facing heading into Gov. Rauner's "State of the State" address on Wednesday.

New legislation from State Representative Carol Ammons takes on Illinois’ temporary staffing agencies over poor working conditions and wages. The Urbana Democrat says many temp workers are subject to low wages, unsafe working conditions, and sometimes, racial and gender discrimination. She's the lead sponsor of the Responsible Job Creation Act, which will offer protections to these workers and increase transparency in hiring practices. 

Gov. Bruce Rauner says he is "deeply optimistic'' about the future of Illinois despite the state's problems, and praised State Senate efforts to reach agreement on a new state budget. Rauner addressed a joint session of the General Assembly on Wednesday with his third State of the State address. 

The president of the University of Illinois last month rejected calls to make the U of I a so-called sanctuary campus. But President Timothy Killeen is pledging to continue protections for undocumented students on the university’s three campuses.