Illinois Quick Hits: Unemployment up over last year
(The Center Square) – According to preliminary figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Illinois’ statewide unemployment rate for December 2025 was 4.8%, up from 4.4% in December 2024.
Over the year, non-farm jobs decreased in nine of the state’s metropolitan areas and increased in three.
The Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg area has reported 18 consecutive months of job growth.
CHILD PORNOGRAPHY CHARGE
A church official from Illinois is facing a charge of producing child pornography.
Michael William Mohr, 54, is president of the Central Illinois District of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod.
The affidavit in support of the complaint alleges that searches of residences used by Mohr revealed cameras disguised as electronic devices and videos of juveniles in the bathroom.
STATE AG GRANTS
The Illinois Department of Agriculture has announced plans to distribute $3.6 million in grants to support local food processing, aggregation and distribution.
Grants will be available for collaborative projects from $1,000 to $250,000 and for individual projects from $1,000 to $75,000. Eligible entities include businesses with fewer than 50 employees, nonprofits and units of local government.
The funds were appropriated in the 2026 state budget.
Chance Showers And Thunderstorms
Latest News Stories
Op-Ed: If Illinois wants clean energy, it needs data centers
Illinois senator’s bill on transgender ‘mental illness’ sparks debate
Lawmaker says Illinois behind 44 states in legislative transparency
Illinois Quick Hits: Foreign national faces harboring, forced labor charges
Meeting Summary and Briefs: Legislative Committee for February 3, 2026
Health & Safety Committee: Opioid Overdose Deaths Drop to Zero in January as Behavioral Health Department Expands Role
Illinois GOP state reps call on Dems to stop taxing s’mores, other goods
Illinois Quick Hits: Tangent to expand in Montgomery
Retail advocate: Swipe fees ruling is largest Main St. ‘relief package’ in Illinois
Smith & Wesson wins appeal chance in Highland Park lawsuits
Illinois Republicans say federal student data probe may reach Illinois State after Tufts review
Violence Interrupters, local activists lead CTA safety push
