The Trump administration says it will begin withholding federal money tied to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) from most Democratic-controlled states as soon as next week unless those states turn over detailed information about people receiving food aid, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday. Rollins […]
Air travelers who show up at airport security checkpoints without a REAL ID or other acceptable form of identification will soon face a $45 fee under a new identity verification program announced by the Transportation Security Administration on Monday. Beginning February 1, 2026, passengers aged 18 and older who lack a […]
Illinois has officially declined to adopt the federal “no tax on tips” provision signed into law this summer, meaning service workers across the state will continue to pay Illinois income tax on their tip earnings—even as those same tips are exempt from federal taxation. The decision places Illinois among a […]
Santa’s Secret Star, a family-friendly holiday planetarium show, will light up the dome at the William M. Staerkel Planetarium on Saturdays, Dec. 6, 13 and 20, 2025, at 1 p.m. The program blends seasonal storytelling with stargazing, inviting children and adults to help Santa find his way home by discovering […]
U.S. consumer confidence fell sharply in November, hitting its lowest level since April, as Americans grew more pessimistic about current business conditions, the labor market, and their financial future, according to the latest report from The Conference Board. The Consumer Confidence Index declined by 6.8 points to 88.7 in November, […]
President Donald Trump announced Friday that he will grant a “full and complete pardon” to Juan Orlando Hernández, the former president of Honduras currently serving a 45-year sentence in federal prison after being convicted in 2024 of conspiring to import more than 400 tons of cocaine into the United States. […]
The Republican and Democratic leaders of the House Armed Services Committee announced a bipartisan investigation Saturday into reports that U.S. forces conducted follow-up strikes on suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean, killing survivors who had initially lived through missile attacks. In a rare joint statement, Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) and […]
A comprehensive new state report reveals that 219 Illinois women died while pregnant or within one year of pregnancy during 2021-2022, with Black women facing mortality rates more than double those of White women and substance use disorders emerging as the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths. The Illinois Department of […]
The Village of Mahomet Plan and Zoning Commission is set to review a proposal for a new residential subdivision on Thornewood Drive at its upcoming meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 2. The development, dubbed “The Knolls at Wrenwood,” would bring 34 new single-family homes to a 12-acre site located on the […]
The Trump administration has unveiled a new rule that would dramatically reduce federal protections for millions of acres of wetlands and streams across the United States. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the proposal on November 17, positioning it as a regulatory victory that will “cut red tape and provide predictability” […]
