Illinois Quick Hits: State spends $87M on ISU fine arts project
(The Center Square) – Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker joined officials at Illinois State University on Tuesday to break ground on the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts Transformation Project.
Pritzker said the investment of $87 million in state taxpayer funds would expand ISU’s fine arts complex to offer academic, instructional, and performance spaces through phased renovation, demolition, and new construction.
STATE POLICE REPORT
Illinois State Police say they recovered 243 stolen or hijacked vehicles, made 24 arrests and seized five firearms from October through December.
ISP targets vehicle theft, hijacking, and related crimes using grant funding from the Illinois Secretary of State Illinois Vehicle Hijacking and Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention and Insurance Verification Council.
ISP was awarded a $10 million grant for the first fiscal year, another $677,000 in June 2024 and $637,500 in July 2025.
SMALL BIZ OPTIMISM
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose 0.5 points in December to 99.5 and remained above its 52-year average of 98.
The Uncertainty Index dropped 7 points to 84, the lowest reading since June 2024. NFIB Illinois State Director Noah Finley said, with federal small business tax cuts locked in, Main Street is starting the year on a more optimistic note.
Showers And Thunderstorms Likely
Latest News Stories
War of words reignites with Trump, Pritzker, Bailey
Nesbitt asks DOJ to investigate Whitmer’s ties to grant scandal
Senate Republicans’ rebellion in War Powers Resolution vote could sway House vote
Cassidy breaks with Trump on Iran, spending after reelection defeat
Nashville, state spent billions of taxpayer funds drawing Super Bowl
Judge won’t let ConAgra off hook in class action over fish fillet brine
Legal analysts applaud yet are skeptical of American Bar Association’s DEI elimination
Illinois Quick Hits: Bill offering CTE alternative clears senate committee
Workers say mass Spirit Airlines layoffs violate federal law
Bill that tried to kill secret agreements with your tax dollars now faces its own silent death
After-school program orgs seek $70M in new state grants to cover gap from fed cuts
Collins, Dooley to face off in June runoff for U.S. Senate
