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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) today introduced the Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act . The bipartisan legislation would correct abuses of the bankruptcy process that deprive employees and retirees of their hard-earned wages, benefits, and retirement savings. As businesses’ bankruptcy filings have increased, jobs, pensions, and long-promised benefits are at risk. Yet, laws have not adapted to give employees and retirees a fair shake in the bankruptcy process. The Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act would modify Chapter 11 bankruptcy procedures by expanding available claims for employees and retirees and granting them improved priority, while placing restrictions on excessive compensation for executives. “When their company files for bankruptcy, employees should not have to worry that the

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St. Louis-based coal producer Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE: BTU) said it's "reviewing all options" related to its planned $3.78 billion acquisition of Australian steelmaking coal assets from Anglo American PLC after a fire stopped production at a mine that's part of the deal.

Demand for homes has held strong in recent years, and the price tags for the best of the best homes keep climbing, even in lower cost-of-living states like Missouri.

CHICAGO – Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 22 attorneys general, today sent a letter to the leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives and the House Financial Services Committee urging the House to vote against a resolution that would overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) 2024 rule limiting overdraft fees imposed by the country’s largest banks. The rule prevents big banks from charging excessive overdraft fees that can hurt their customers’ credit and sometimes lead to account closures. “Vulnerable families cannot afford the burden of overdraft fees and resulting damage to their credit as they try to pay for necessities on top of additional debt they may have. That is why I am urging the House to vote against the overturning of CFPB’s 2024 rule limiting excessive overdraft fees,” Raoul said. “I will continue to protect consumers in Illinois and across the nation from excessive fees tha

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The city’s Missing Persons Unit is asking for the public’s help in locating a missing 19-year-old who went missing 11 days ago.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today led U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Gary Peters (D-MI), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Tina Smith (D-MN) in sending a letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. demanding answers about the closure of five regional Head Start offices across the country, including the Region 5 office in Chicago. The Region 5 office serves Head Start grantees in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. In their letter, the lawmakers made clear that Secretary Kennedy’s decision will harm children’s access to early education and cut jobs for hardworking Midwesterners dedicated to early childhood development. “We are writing to express concern with your April 1, 2025, announcement that the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of Head Start (OHS) plans to close five regional offices across th

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Sean Lennon has weighed in on the casting of Sam Mendes’ upcoming Beatles films, and he is putting his faith in the director.The cast of The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic…

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SPRINGFIELD – Illinois youth turkey hunters harvested a preliminary record total of 2,091 birds during the 2025 youth turkey season, breaking the previous harvest record of 2,010 set in 2024. The dates for this year's season were March 29-30 and April 5-6. A total of 6,573 youth turkey permits were issued this year, compared to 6,541 in 2024. The top five counties for harvest during this year's youth season were Jefferson, 69; Pike, 69; Randolph, 67; Fayette, 62; and Macoupin, 60. The following table shows preliminary harvest figures for the youth turkey season by county for 2024 and 2025: County 2024 2025 AD 49 50 ALEXANDER 24 13 BOND 18 20 BOONE 4 4 BROWN 35 39 BUREAU 14 19 CALHOUN 24 38 CARROLL 8 9 CASS 19 24 CHAMPAIGN 3 6 CHRISTIAN 6 7 CLARK 32 28 CLAY 49 49 CLINTON 30 31 COLES 7 7 CRAWFORD

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A federal grand jury has charged the former second-in-command of a Metro East bank for engaging in a fraud scheme to obtain more than $2 million.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) in sending a bipartisan letter to urge the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to restore integrity, stability, and growth to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and the U.S. biofuel sector by raising Renewable Volume Obligation (RVO) levels for biomass-based diesel and advanced biofuels. In a letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, the Senators pressed EPA to implement multi-year RVO standards to provide certainty and growth for the biofuels industry. “The biofuels market continues to expand to new frontiers including marine shipping, aviation and rail. These markets are driven in part by demand for low carbon fuels that biofuels can uniquely provide … biofuels provide a buffer to market fluctuations in the liquid fue

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of both the U.S. Senate Armed Services (SASC) and Foreign Relations (SFRC) Committees—and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined U.S. Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Chris Coons (D-DE) and other Senate Democratic colleagues in sending a letter to President Trump expressing concern over the firing of the Director of the National Security Agency (NSA) and Commander of U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) General Timothy Haugh, as well as the reassignment of the Deputy Director of the NSA Wendy Noble. “These actions severely compromise our ability to keep Americans safe,” the Senators wrote. “As you are well aware, our nation currently faces serious cyber threats from foreign adversaries, such as from China’s Salt Typhoon, with near-daily attacks against our critical infrastructure. In addition, our nation’s military is engaged in ongoing

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen and 22 Senators in writing to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Tedd Lyons. The Senators’ letter urged Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a father who was living legally, under a protected status, in Maryland with his family until he was wrongfully deported without due process by the Trump Administration last month to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador. The Administration has admitted that Abrego Garcia’s deportation was the result of an “administrative error.” In their letter, the Senators call on the Trump Administration to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return and ask for responses to questions regarding ICE’s enforcement policies

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke on the Senate floor slamming the Trump Administration for its attempts to dismantle the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the harmful impacts it will have on medical research across the country, including in red states. Durbin began his remarks by highlighting the importance of NIH funding to patients nationwide. Durbin said, “There is certainty in funding medical research. Certainty in knowing that while not all trials, experiments, and grants will result in a breakthrough—some of them will. Because of medical research, kids with ear infections or pneumonia can find relief in antibiotics; because of medical research, we have vaccines that have saved tens of millions of lives worldwide; because of medical research, we have anesthesia that allows patients to safely undergo major surgeries; because of medical research, people are surviving heart attacks, beating cancer, living with HIV/AIDS

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly (IL-02), Ranking Member Diana DeGette (CO-01), and five more members of the Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee marched to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today to demand a meeting with Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. After waiting in the lobby for almost half an hour, Secretary Kennedy nor his office responded to schedule a meeting to explain recent layoffs and restructuring of HHS. “RFK Jr. is a coward. He followed orders from Elon Musk to fire 10,000 HHS employees, eliminated half of the HHS regional offices – including the one in Chicago that serves the Midwest – and now refuses to answer questions,” said Rep. Kelly . “Americans’ health should not be in the hands of RFK Jr., who refutes basic scientific truths. These DOGE-led layoffs are cruel, politically motivated, and will irreversibly damage public health.” On March 27, Secretary Kennedy announced the termination of

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WASHINGTON — Suddenly veering from his declaration a week ago, President Donald Trump on Wednesday paused his sweeping “liberation day” tariffs for 90 days on countries he’s said are willing to negotiate new trade deals. Stocks surged upon his announcement after days of wrecked markets erased trillions of dollars from investor portfolios. The Nasdaq index […]

GODFREY – The New Horizons Band of Godfrey presents Sounds of Spring on Saturday, April 26, 2025 at 7 p.m. at the McNicholas Club (Godfrey KC Hall). Be prepared to mambo, tango, polka and waltz at the upcoming spring concert under the direction of Stanley Chytil on Saturday, April 26 at 7 p.m. at the McNicholas Club. The band will play some new and familiar hits and encourages everyone to tap their feet on the dance floor. Doors open one hour before the concert starts. Admission is $15 per person, children 12 and under are FREE. The McNicholas Club is located at 1713 Stamper Lane in Godfrey. A limited menu with many desserts and a cash bar will be available. The band currently consists of 40 adult musicians. This full-sized band presents the finest in Big-Band sounds. The New Horizons Band of Godfrey is a member of New Horizons International Music Association (NHIMA) and is one of many such bands across the United States that offer older citizens a chance to get back playing

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SPRINGFIELD - State Representative Kevin Schmidt (R-Millstadt) co-sponsored House Bill 1607 that creates the Commission on Eliminating Food Deserts Act. The bill helps state-led efforts to eliminate food deserts in Illinois, specifically in underserved communities and rural areas across the state. State Representative Kevin Schmidt said he’s proud to co-sponsor legislation that will expand access to healthy food and daily essentials for families in Illinois, including the East St. Louis community. “I support HB1607 because families should never have to struggle to find groceries and other daily essentials due to inadequate access to grocery stores,” said Rep. Schmidt. “This bill will help fill the gap in food insecurities we continue to see around the state, and it will also help create healthier lifestyles for families by having access to fresh fruit, vegetables, and other healthful whole foods.” Many factors contribute to causing a food desert,

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