Agribusiness giant ADM violated federal regulations, a federal permit and the Safe Drinking Water Act earlier this year when a monitoring well at its carbon sequestration site in Decatur leaked liquified carbon dioxide into “unauthorized zones,” according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In an August notice, the federal regulatory agency also alleged the company […]
Andrew Adams
A civics nerd from childhood, Andrew joined CNI in February 2023 and brings a unique blend of data-driven and traditional reporting to the newsroom. He loves numbers, statistics and visual reporting – things that scare off most journalists. He’s legitimately pumped about helping CNI expand its digital reporting.
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Quantum technology companies set for big tax incentives under new law
Gov. JB Pritzker has given final approval to a plan to bolster the state’s tech industry, including an incentives package – backed by $500 million in the state budget – aimed at making Illinois the nation’s leader in quantum computing. The package also expands tax credits for the film industry, extends a tax credit program […]
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Lawmakers further regulate carbon dioxide pipeline development
After state regulators rebuffed several proposed carbon transport projects over the past year, lawmakers have moved to formally ban new projects until the federal government sets forth new safety rules. The technology is used to take carbon dioxide – a powerful greenhouse gas – and move it through pipelines before storing it deep underground. While […]
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Influx of migrants to Illinois creates tensions
Tensions rose again this week between Gov. JB Pritzker’s office and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson over how to handle the tens of thousands of people who have arrived in the state since August 2022 via buses or planes sent from Texas. The most recent back-and-forth between the two came in response to the city’s recent […]
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New year, new laws
More than 300 new laws took effect Jan. 1, ranging from a ban on book bans to the regulation of “deepfake porn” and prohibitions on videoconferencing while driving. Thanks to a law signed in 2019, workers at the lowest end of the pay scale will see a pay raise with the new year as the state […]
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Legislature approves bill to allow small nuclear plants
Lawmakers on Nov. 9 approved a proposal that would allow companies to develop new nuclear power generation in Illinois for the first time since 1987. House Bill 2473 does not entirely lift the 36-year-old moratorium on nuclear construction. Instead, it creates a regulatory structure for the construction of small modular nuclear reactors, or SMRs. The bill limits […]
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Illinois’ educator workforce improves, but teacher shortages persist in some areas
The supply of education professionals continues to improve in Illinois despite strains brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, but persistent issues remain in certain regions of the state and within some teaching fields. That’s the conclusion of a new report by the education advocacy group Advance Illinois, which was instrumental in the 2017 passage of […]
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Driving test age increasing to 79
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias last week filed administrative rules that would increase the age at which a driver is required to pass a driving test when they renew their license, raising it from 75 to 79. The rules – proposed by Giannoulias to the legislative Joint Committee on Administrative Rules – would keep […]
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Battery manufacturing plant coming to Illinois
A new battery manufacturing plant is set to open in northern Illinois next year after the state offered more than $330 million in tax incentives to make it happen. Gotion, a Chinese battery manufacturing and development company, announced Sept. 8 that it will build a lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility in Manteno, about 50 miles south […]
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Southern Illinois casino opens
Gov. JB Pritzker joined hundreds of people from across southern Illinois Aug. 25 to celebrate the opening of the state’s 14th casino on a rural estate just outside of Carterville, near Carbondale. The Walker’s Bluff Casino Resort is the fourth casino to open in recent years that was authorized by a 2019 gambling expansion law […]
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Pritzker vetoes bill that would have allowed new nuclear construction
Gov. JB Pritzker on Aug. 11 vetoed a bill that would have lifted a 1980s moratorium on the construction of new nuclear reactors. The bill passed in May with three-fifths majorities in both legislative chambers, meaning that if all the members who voted for it also support an override of the governor’s veto, it still […]
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Illinois hotels report record evenues for fiscal year 2023
For hoteliers, business is booming in Illinois. On July 10, Gov. JB Pritzker, the state’s legislative leadership and representatives of the hospitality industry announced that hotels in Illinois saw record revenues in fiscal year 2023, which ended June 30. Across the state, hotels brought in $307.8 million, according to figures from the state’s Department of […]
