News Progress

•June 10, 2020•
By Jim Nowlan and Robert D. Michaelson

This essay is not about who should be elected president in November, but about something arguably as important: How to avoid a sloppy election count, which could throw the nation into chaos.
Election counts have been politicized throughout American history. As we are both native to Illinois, we have beaucoup homegrown examples. Over the early history of Chicago, for example, honest elections were considered quaint. In an 1883 election in the Windy City, the second precinct of the Ninth Ward recorded 1,183 votes — from the total of 351 persons found to be living in the precinct. George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and other distinguished Americans were among those who signed in as voters. Need we go on?
In 1960, most close observers concluded that intensely loyal precinct officials of Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley, knowing who buttered their bread, stole the election in Illinois for John F. Kennedy. JFK “won” Illinois by 8,858 votes out of nearly 5 million cast statewide, on a surge of suspicious late-night returns from Daley’s most reliable precincts. Read More

State’s COVID-19 Metrics Continue to Improve
By Jerry Nowicki
Capitol News Illinois
jnowicki @ capitolnewsillinois.com

Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Insurance are calling on insurers to expedite claims and payments to businesses hit by looters in recent days.
“It is my expectation and the expectation of the Illinois Department of Insurance that insurance companies will do everything in their power to give their customers the resources they need to rebuild and get back on their feet as soon as possible,” Pritzker said. “To that end, my administration has been in consultation with major insurance companies on the quick and robust support they should provide Illinois business owners who have experienced property damage, including but not limited to riots, vandalism and looting.”
Pritzker made the announcement at a Chicago news conference Monday, where he was joined by Robert Muriel, director of the Department of Insurance.
IDOI released the Company Bulletin — a tool aimed at providing “timely, relevant, and helpful guidance” to insurance companies — requesting that insurers take specific measures to help businesses rebuild.
Per a news release from the governor’s office, insurers should “apply claims best practices consistent with the categorization of this event as a catastrophic event.” They should also expedite claims handling, and advance claim payments. Another expectation is “fair treatment of all policyholders, regardless of size.”
Insurers should also implement a moratorium on cancellations or non-renewal of impacted policyholders for 60 days and should “err on the side of the policyholder” when paying claims as a result of “riots, civil commotion, or vandalism” even if the policyholder was unable to make full premium payments during the period following the governor’s stay-at-home order.
Pritzker said as the regulators of insurers, the state has the ability to “write them up” during their licensing processes and processes of review. Muriel also said the department can levy fines and suspend licenses. Read More

•June 10, 2020•
By Supt. Ted Walk,
Sullivan CUSD #300

This week, schools were given the ability to allow for certain in-person activities. Each school is required to have approval from their local health department as well as other agencies before allowing students back into the buildings.
Sullivan Schools are in the process of obtaining our final approvals, and we hope to begin specific programs as early as June 15 for middle and high school students. Read More

•June 10, 2020•
Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) today announced that 32 minority-owned businesses and business incubators will receive a total of $11 million as part of the state’s Minority-Owned Business Capital and Infrastructure Program. These grants will equip minority-owned firms with resources to create jobs, build capacity, increase revenues, and revitalize properties in underserved communities.
Funding will reach businesses of all sizes and types, as well as community-based incubators working to help small and start-up businesses in diverse communities across the state. The development of new grant-funded projects is estimated to create hundreds of full-time and construction jobs for the surrounding community.
“At a time when businesses are facing significant setbacks due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Minority Capital Fund will help eliminate obstacles so minority-owned businesses can rebuild and continue supporting their communities,” said Governor Pritzker. “These small, family-owned businesses are the backbone of Illinois, and capital grants will unlock funding to help them expand, create new jobs, and drive positive economic change for their communities.” Read More

•June 5, 2020•
Lake Shelbyville - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Lake Shelbyville would like to announce
Lone Point Campground is now open. Lone Point Campground is 100% reservable and campers
must have a reservation through R1S prior to setting up on a campsite. Campers are reminded to
follow CDC guidelines while recreating at Lake Shelbyville.
Lone Point Group Camp is also open and available by online reservation. Group camp
reservations must be 2 weeks in advance and no greater than 1 year in advance. The group camp is
available for single site first come, first served camping when there are no reservations posted.
For campsite availability or to make a reservation, please visit www.recreation.gov. Reservations
by phone at 1-877-444-6777 are scheduled to resume on July 1, 2020. For additional information,
please call the Lake Shelbyville Project Office at (217)774-3951.