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CHICAGO – Building on four years of fiscally responsible leadership, Governor JB Pritzker signed the Fiscal Year 2024 budget into law today, delivering his fifth balanced budget while making transformative investments in early childhood, K-12 schools, higher education, workforce and economic development and efforts to fight violence and poverty. The Fiscal Year 2024 budget prioritizes fiscal responsibility, contributing an additional $200 million to the state’s pension systems beyond what is required, continuing to pay down the state’s remaining outstanding debts, and making ongoing contributions to the state’s Budget Stabilization Fund, set to surpass $2 billion. “From the beginning, I promised to work together with the General Assembly to restore fiscal responsibility to our state government after years of mismanagement,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Thanks to our firmer fiscal foundation, we have been able to put billions of dollars back

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CHICAGO - Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 28 state attorneys general, filed comments calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to clarify the federal rules requiring telemarketers to obtain consent between an individual consumer and one specific seller or business before making telemarketing robocalls and text messages. Raoul and the coalition filed the letter in response to an FCC notice of proposed rulemaking. The FCC has proposed an amendment to its rule concerning the proper way to obtain a consumer’s consent to receive robocalls as required under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Raoul and the coalition also call for the FCC to strengthen protections against illegal text messages and clarify that National Do Not Call Registry protections apply to text messages. “Robocalls and text messages are a constant source of frustration for millions of Americans, which is why I am asking the FCC to clarify consent requirements

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ALTON - Alton’s 26 th annual All-Wheels Drive-In Car Show will be held on Sunday, June 11 th from 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. The event typically attracts over 200 classic cars, hot rods and motorcycles, which the public is welcome to browse on 3 rd , 4 th , State and Belle Streets. There is no charge for admission. Alton Main Street organizes this tradition with support from Time Machines Unlimited Car Club. Come out for the autos and stay for the live music, 50-50 drawing, vendor displays and festival food court. This year’s entertainment is Number4Combo; from 1:00-3:00 p.m. the band will perform live rock music with a smooth dance groove. We will also be featuring a pin-up contest at 3:00 p.m. to celebrate the glamour, sophistication and class of the 1950’s. Registration for automobiles is open from 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m., and trophies will be given at 4:00pm. Please note that we are reconfiguring the event grounds to improve traffic flow, and registration

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CHICAGO - Attorney General Kwame Raoul today urged Illinois residents to be wary of scammers who use unsolicited email or text messages to trick consumers into sharing personal and financial information. Raoul encourages all consumers to stay aware of these unsolicited messages and to continue to report these incidents to his office. Unsolicited messages may be email phishing or text message smishing scams. Phishing is when scammers send a deceptive email to trick Internet users into revealing personal or confidential information. Smishing, or Short Message Service (SMS) phishing, is when scammers send a deceptive text message to trick cell phone users in the same way. Phishing and smishing messages may contain links to harmful software that could enable scammers to steal information from your phone or computer. Raoul’s office warned consumers to not click any links in an unsolicited email or text and to delete the message immediately. “Consumers should be suspicious

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GODFREY - Godfrey officials are advising residents that Union Pacific Railroad will be temporarily closing the North Alby Street (at Humbert) crossing this Sunday near Humbert Road for routine maintenance and repairs. Village officials are advising local residents and motorists to prepare and pre-plan for temporary detours next Sunday night due to the fact the Union Pacific Railroad will be temporarily closing the North Alby Street railroad crossing (at Humbert) overnight for routine maintenance/repair work. Work shall begin Sunday night, June 11th starting at 7 p.m. and will re-open on Monday morning, June 12th around 7 a.m. Godfrey Public Safety Administrator Chris Sichra states that local first responder agencies and mutual aid companies (Fire, Police, EMS), as well as local utility companies, have already been notified of the upcoming temporary closure so that they can adjust their response routes accordingly. Residents and motorists should also pre-plan to consider alternate

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ALTON - Earlier this spring, Jolena Pang joined the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC) education team as an environmental educator. She will be responsible for leading tours of the NGRREC facility for students of all ages and community members. “I hope to make the community more cognizant of the environmental issues facing our rivers and watersheds, and what that means for them,” Pang said. “And I hope to help inspire and motivate the community into positive action.” Prior to joining NGRREC, Pang completed a master's degree in political ecology and environmental justice in Barcelona, where she lived for the past few years. Pang also worked as a community organizer for the Wilderness Society, where she engaged over 600 grassroots supporters and led events focused on bringing a more diverse and inclusive perspective to conservation. “The best part of being an environmental educator is getting a chance to teach kids about the

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ALTON – Lewis and Clark Community College’s National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC) will host a Coffee and Cleanup event this month as part of the 1 Mississippi River Days of Action Initiative. The event will take place from 9 a.m. to noon, Thursday, June 15, at the NGRREC Field Station, located at 1 Confluence Way, East Alton, Illinois. All are welcome to join for free coffee and bagels and to learn about the Mississippi River Plastic Pollution Initiative , a community science project aimed at tracking trash in the Mississippi River watershed using the Marine Debris Tracker app. Community Ecologist Anthony Dell will give a brief overview of his research, which focuses on microplastics found in rivers. Microplastics come from plastic litter and trash that degrade overtime into microscopic pieces and exist in water sources, especially near more populated areas. Microplastics are a growing concern as they become more prevalent in drinking sources,

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O'FALLON - Sam Andria was a man of many talents, and his creative energy held no bounds. Searching for a permanent place where his trio could play, Sam stumbled across the countryside home that continues to operate as Andria’s Steakhouse today. In the late 70’s upon the inception of the restaurant, Sam and his friends held “Jam Sessions” in the house’s basement (rathskeller) for hours on end. Andria’s began as a place for people to dance and musicians to play. When people became hungry, Sam put his creative talents to the test by serving football size prime rib and mouthwatering steaks, the restaurant quickly grew its reputation and patrons raved about the distinct flavor (Andria’s Brush-On Steak Sauce) of the steaks and quickly returned for more. Sam’s music career was always a large part of his identity. He played Gaslight Square in the ’60s, released his technique and passion for the saxophone into archives at Southern Illinois

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GRANITE CITY - The Granite City Police Department is investigating a traffic crash where one individual lost their life Tuesday night in the 3500 block of Nameoki Road. Major Nick Novacich provided this statement from the Granite City Police about the accident: "This is an ongoing investigation that our officers will be working on for some time. We have one suspect in custody and we are not looking for any other suspects. "We at GCPD would like to extend our sincerest condolences to the family of the individual who lost their life and offers our support to them in their time of need." Novacich said that no other information about the crash could be released at this time.

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GODFREY - The Godfrey Village Board of Trustees approved including the entire length of Pierce Lane from Stamper Lane to Airport Road as part of the Pierce Lane Reconstruction project. The total cost of this extension project is not to exceed $190,000. The original Preliminary Engineering Services agreement the Village had with Sheppard, Morgan and Schwaab (SMS) of Alton, IL covered Stamper Lane to Airport Road with no plans for construction or development past Winter Lane. At the time, the Village planned to use Business District funds to cover the design and construction of Lars Hoffman Crossing. Since then, the Village has agreed to transfer jurisdiction of Lars Hoffman Crossing and Airport Road to Madison County, which has more funds available to extend the project’s construction. When the Finance Committee met last month, there was some discussion in support of including the Phase 6 section of the Pierce Lane project (from Winter Lane to Airport Road) into the construction

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METROPOLIS – Illinois State Police (ISP) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) officials announce the arrest of 29-year-old Eric Rushing of Metropolis, IL, for Aggravated Battery (Class 3 Felony) and Possession of a Weapon by a Felon (Class 2 Felony). On June 5, 2023, ISP was investigating an incident of an aggravated battery involving a firearm in Metropolis. The suspect was identified as Rushing. Following the incident, Rushing barricaded himself inside a residence located in the 400 block of W. 20 th Street. ISP SWAT and Crisis Negotiators responded to the scene to assist. At approximately 7:15 p.m., Rushing exited the residence and was taken into custody without incident. On June 6, 2023, the Massac County State’s Attorney filed the above charges against Rushing. Rushing is currently in custody at the Massac County Jail, with bond set at $200,000, 10% to apply. The Massac County Sheriff’s Office and the Metropolis Police Department assisted with the

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ALTON - Alton Police Chief Jarrett Ford this afternoon released more information about the shooting at Rent-A-Center Tuesday morning. "At 10:12 a.m. on June 6, 2023, the Alton Police Department received a 911 call from a female indicating she had just been shot. A separate 911 call was also received from an employee of Rent-A-Center, 2831 Homer Adams Parkway, Alton, Illinois, indicating a shooting had just taken place inside the business. "Alton Police Officers arrived at the business as well as to the female who had been shot. The female was in a vehicle and located in close proximity to Rent-A-Center. Initial investigation revealed that the female who was shot had come to the business to confront a relative who is employed by Rent-A-Center, despite an active order of protection prohibiting contact with her relative and from being at Rent-A-Center. "In doing so, the female engaged in a verbal conflict with her relative which escalated into a physical altercation. A separate Rent-A-Center

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ALTON - Alton has become very known for its Annual Juneteenth Freedom Celebration over the years. On June 17, the 32nd Annual Juneteenth will be held at James H. Killion Park (formerly Salu Park) from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Set up begins at 7:30 a.m. and opening ceremony begins at 11:30 a.m. Abe Lee Barham, one of the organizers of the event, said: "The Juneteenth Celebration is a community effort to celebrate the memory of 1865 freedom for African Americans in the history of the United States. Our ancestors were slaves/property in 1776 when independence was declared for the United States - July 4). Barham said all pastors, praise dancers, choirs, soloists, praise teams, poets, food vendors, storytellers, creative artists, musicians craft/merchandise vendors and those who portray famous black Americans should sign up for the event. "This is a most commemorative event and if you plan to participate contact Marquato Rattler (618) 910-7422, Anne Johnson at (618) 466-9369 or Lee Barham at (618

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WOOD RIVER - Wood River City Council members voted to delay the reappointments of Sara Hall, Sheila Angel, and Shelly Fitzgerald, as well as the new appointment of Kristen Burns, to the city’s Planning Commission. Jesse Daniels was to be appointed as Chairman and Councilman Bill Dettmers was to be appointed as Ex-Officio before the council voted 3-2 to table the item until the next meeting. After the motion to approve Mayor Tom Stalcup’s recommended appointments to the commission was made, Councilman David Ayres moved to table the item until the next meeting, stating he suggested the council meet about this topic twice since their first meeting, but no such meeting had taken place. Councilman Bill Dettmers said the goal of reviewing and limiting these committee appointments is based on “several cities” which have tried to limit the size of their committees, adding that the Wood River Planning Commission is the largest committee in the city. He said the

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ALTON - Jack Keller has always been one to serve his community and country. This past Memorial Day, he was honored with one of his biggest accomplishments - he was the grand marshal for the historic Alton parade. Jack rated the day as "quite an honor." "It was very kind of them to do that," he said. "I always loved doing community service type of work and my work with East End Improvement Association," one of the parade sponsors. East End also is a coordinator of the Alton Halloween Parade and Jack has been involved in both for years upon years. Jack and his wife, Joan, both rode together in the parade. He describes Joan as "the love of my life." Jack is now 92 years old. Jack was a 3rd Class Petty Officer during the Korean War and was based in Key West, Fla. Keller spent much of his time aboard a submarine and part of a crew. He said he retained friends from those days for the rest of his life. Jack returned home to raise his children and now loves not only his children but also

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ALTON - Legendary Alton attorney Robert Ryan today reflected on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day. Ryan, now 99 years old, had an interesting perspective on that historic day, as he was a prisoner in a Nazi prison camp. Ryan is a Marquette graduate and entered the U.S. Army Air Corps at age 19. When he came back home, he returned to school and graduated with a law degree from St. Louis University. Later in the day of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944, Ryan said he joined several other Allied prisoners for a gathering inside the prison camp. “Some of the German officers called us together and stepped out and said the invasion had begun and that the slaughter of Allied troops was terrible,” Ryan said. “I thought to myself that day, ‘We will be here for another 10 years.’ I was devastated that day, it was a very depressing day." Ryan also said he and the other prisoners were greatly impacted by the thought of the loss of American lives in the invasion.

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WOOD RIVER - Wood River is reporting higher property values and lower property taxes this year, including the largest one-year tax rate decrease since 1970 and the city’s lowest tax rate since 1996. City Manager Steve Palen said Madison County was being “conservative” with last year’s equalized assessment valuation (EAV), and that the new EAV is a nearly $12 million or 8.13% increase over last year, making it the highest EAV in the city’s history. “With the EAV increase, we have an expected tax rate of 1.5509 … versus 1.6674, which was projected,” Palen said. “Therefore, the tax rate decrease from the ‘21 levy is 0.1266 - this is the largest one-year decrease since at least 1970 and the lowest tax rate since 1996. “Since the EAV increased nearly $12 million, the city now has the highest EAV in its history, exceeding last year’s previous high mark of $147 million. The approximate effect on a $100,000 home

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EDWARDSVILLE – Edwardsville Community Unit School District #7 has announced the hiring of Amy Boscolo as Athletics Director beginning with the 2023-24 school year. Ms. Boscolo’s hire was approved on June 5, 2023, by the District #7 Board of Education. Ms. Boscolo comes to District #7 from Highland High School where she has been the Athletics Director/Assistant Principal for the past five years. In 19 years of education, she has also served as a junior high assistant principal, physical education and health teacher, and athletic trainer for various school districts throughout Illinois. “Amy brings a variety of experiences to District #7 and will be able to build on the solid foundation and growth in the athletic program established by Alex Fox,” said Superintendent Dr. Patrick Shelton. “She brings a student-centered approach to Edwardsville and will be able to continue the wonderful support our athletic programs have received within the

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ALTON - Alton Police Department officers are investigating a report of two injured in a shooting around 10 a.m. at the Rent-A-Center in Alton. A woman apparently entered the location and hit an employee in the face with a weapon, then another employee fired and hit the woman with three bullets. The woman departed in a vehicle but was discovered at Claire and Seminary streets in Alton and was eventually transported to Alton Memorial Hospital, then taken by Arch helicopter to a St. Louis hospital. Alton Police Chief Jarrett Ford said more information on the shooting will be released Tuesday afternoon. Alton Battalion Chief Derrick Richardson said he didn't know the exact location of the bullet wounds, but there were three bullet wounds. He said she was in serious condition at the scene from the wounds.

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WOOD RIVER - Ceremony Chairperson Mary Roberts thanked members of the Wood River City Council and several other local organizations for their help and participation in the Wood River Memorial Day Service, which was held on Memorial Day, May 29, in the Round House Recreation Center. She spoke during the Public Comment portion of the last City Council meeting. “It was a fitting tribute to our men and women who put on the uniform to serve our country and died for our freedom,” Roberts said of the event. “I want to thank Mayor Tom Stalcup for giving me the opportunity to chair this committee to honor these heroes. “I want to thank Councilman Jeremy Plank for being our Emcee, and Councilmen David Ayres and Bill Dettmers for attending our service.” Roberts also thanked the Marine Corps Ladies Auxiliary Unit 488 Chaplain/Judge Advocate Lola Cochran and Marine Veteran Daphine Kappos for reading the names on the Memorial and chiming a bell after each name

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