Dierks Bentley, Little Big Town, Greg Allman and ZZ Top are among the acts announced for the Grandstand schedule at the Illinois State Fair in August.

No reasons were given for the resignations of state Agriculture Director Phil Nelson and State Fair manager Patrick Buchen.

If you noticed the price of eggs going up this summer - there's a reason. Several states' bird populations were hit -- hard -- by avian flu. Wild birds, captive ones, and commercial and backyard poultry. But no cases were detected in Illinois.

Despite ideal weather, State Fair officials report fewer than 412,000 people attended this year.  The state provided no explanation for the figure that was less than half the 961,000 who attended as recently as two years ago.

What Democrats say they're organizing around — or more accurately against — is Rauner's "Turnaround Agenda." His wish list includes giving businesses a better shot at defending against lawsuits, making companies pay less to take care of injured workers, and limiting how many times people can run for election to the Illinois House and Senate.