Illinois Public Media News

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.

Artists and producers with Champaign-Urbana ties walked away from Sunday's Grammy Awards empty-handed. Nominees included Champaign-based Archeophone Records (in two categories), renowned bariton U of I Lyric Theatre Director Nathan Gunn, and Urbana native Molly Netter, who was featured in a recording by the New York-based Clarion Choir. 

The Nittany Lions used a 14-2 run late in the first half to build a lead they never relinquished. Penn State shot 57 percent from the field and 90 percent from the free throw line.

Nearly 150 bobcats were taken during the first season that a new law allowed the previously endangered animals to be hunted in Illinois.

Chris Kennedy announced Wednesday he's running for Illinois Governor in 2018 in what's shaping up to be a crowded race for Democrats vying to take on Republican Governor Bruce Rauner. The son of the late Sen. Robert Kennedy and founder of a non-profit that works to eliminate food deserts in the Chicago area spoke with Illinois Public Radio's Lacy Scarmana on what he hopes to accomplish.