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Governor Bruce Rauner visited the Iroquois County seat of Watseka Tuesday morning, where about 50 had to leave their homes last week. Mayor Bob Harwood says given all the severe flooding problems in Southern Illinois, he feels good about the state's chances of a federal declaration. The bulk of damage in Vermilion County was to rural roads, and a sanitary sewer line in Danville.
The Flash Index to the Illinois economy fell to 105.5 in December, from its November level of 106.1. Any reading above 100 reflects economic growth. But the December reading was the lowest in 2015 --- in fact the lowest reading since March, 2013.
McLean County Board Chairman Matt Sorensen was named in a federal court indictment Monday, accusing him of conspiring with an outside consulting firm to defraud State Farm Insurance. He allegedly kept more than $370,000 for work that was never performed.
Illinois public school students officially return from winter break this week. But some students, many of them Mexican-American, are still south of the border for the holidays.
A task force that Gov. Bruce Rauner appointed to find ways to shrink Illinois government is recommending several changes that mirror the Republican's anti-union agenda.
