Illinois Public Media News

An Urbana City Council member running for mayor says she wants to strengthen ties between emergency personnel, saying it will make the community safer. Alderwoman Diane Marlin picked up the endorsement Monday of Urbana Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 70 and Urbana Firefighters Local 1147. “Anytime you have an organization - the more dialogue, communication, and collaboration you have among departments makes the city work better," she said.

Donald Trump’s presidency has Illinois lawmakers weighing an issue not usually given as much attention in the General Assembly: abortion. Since the 1970s, Illinois’ abortion laws have stayed mostly the same. Brigid Leahy, legislative director of Planned Parenthood of Illinois, says legal-abortion advocates are now moving to stem the tide they see coming from Washington.

A state budget without a state income tax hike is possible, says the Illinois Policy Institute. The conservative think-tank has released its own budget plan, which balances the budget, in part, by cutting off state subsidies for school districts and other local governments. But it’s not a plan that school administrators seem to appreciate.

On the 21st: As Illinois celebrates President  Abraham Lincoln’s 208th birthday, we talked to people who have made it their life’s work to present Abraham Lincoln in classrooms, at libraries, on stage, even at birthday parties. Plus, we spoke with food historian Rae Eighmey about her book, “Abraham Lincoln in the Kitchen: A Culinary View of Lincoln’s Life and Times.”

Governor Bruce Rauner is scheduled to make his third annual budget speech to the Illinois General Assembly this Wednesday. The speech comes as credit rating agencies say the state’s fiscal condition is going from worst-in-the-nation to … whatever comes below that.