Lawmakers Approve $1 Per Pack Cigarette Tax Hike
Illinois lawmakers have approved a $1 per pack cigarette tax increase to help fill a gaping Medicaid budget hole, and the governor has indicated he'll sign it quickly when it reaches his desk.
Watch CBS News
Illinois lawmakers have approved a $1 per pack cigarette tax increase to help fill a gaping Medicaid budget hole, and the governor has indicated he'll sign it quickly when it reaches his desk.
A new poll shows Mayor Rahm Emanuel getting high marks from voters during his first year in office, but little public support for an early vote on a possible Chicago teachers' strike.
A piece of proposed legislation now on Gov. Pat Quinn's desk gives motorists some more reasons to lose the cell phone.
A plan to cut government pensions and shift some retirement costs to schools has cleared its first hurdle in the Illinois Legislature.
The ex-wife of U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) has filed a federal election complaint, alleging he improperly paid his ex-girlfriend for campaign work.
Only three days remain in the Illinois General Assembly's spring session. As WBBM Newsradio's Alex Degman reports, those days should be busy.
The Memorial Day parade and politics made for an interesting mix in Park Ridge, CBS 2's Derrick Blakley reports.
Suburban prosecutors say they are satisfied that it is now a lot more difficult for someone to be wrongfully convicted of a crime than it was years ago.
Robert Blagojevich, who was caught up in the federal investigation that saw his brother Rod Blagojevich sent to prison for 14 years, said U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald's decision to resign was a good day for justice, claiming Fitzgerald overreached and was unfairly allowed to gather unchecked power.
U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald, who is stepping down from his post after nearly 11 years next month, said Thursday that he felt "blessed" to have served as the top prosecutor in northern Illinois.
Offering up a direct challenge to a resistant Gov. Pat Quinn, the Illinois House resurrected a huge expansion of legalized gambling Wednesday that includes a land-based casino in Chicago, four more on riverboats and allowing ailing horse-racing tracks to add slot machines.
Democratic Ward Committeemen in the 10th state House District have picked a onetime aide to former Cook County Board President Todd Stroger to mount a third-party challenge against indicted state Rep. Derrick Smith in November.
About 5,000 Chicago Public Schools teachers rallied downtown Wednesday afternoon, before shutting down a stretch of Michigan Avenue to take their contract demands directly to CPS headquarters in the Loop.
U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald announced Wednesday that he will be stepping down at the end of next month.
An Illinois lawmaker called the state's rejection of an anti-bullying ordinance "disgusting." The bill was voted down after some conservative lawmakers expressed concern that it might be used to promote acceptance of homosexuality.
Sheri Mecklenburg resigned from the Department of Justice this week, penning a scathing letter in which she said U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros "personally directed" the Broadview 6 prosecution that she says ended her career.
The Chicago City Council deferred a full vote on the sale of the city's parking meters from one private company to another to their next full council meeting as they face an end-of-month deadline.
In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration in its push to use a controversial database to review state voter rolls for potential noncitizens.
Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois is demanding the Pentagon and Federal Aviation Administration reject President Trump's call to convert plans for a massive triumphal arch into a "top grade Military Complex."
With an unprecedented budget, ICE spent billions in a rush to expand its detention network, wasting millions in the process, the Government Accountability Office found.
Scammers are now impersonating the patient portal MyChart, using realistic-looking emails, texts, and websites to try to steal personal information and, in some cases, get malware on your computer.
Fuel prices continue to climb across the country, and that has U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) pointing the finger at President Trump.
Nicor customers will get a break on their bills this fall after Illinois Attorney General Kwame Roul reached an agreement with the utility to cut $140 million from its requested rate hike.
Drivers in Chicago and beyond were paying the highest gas prices ever recorded for the Labor Day holiday as millions of Americans were making their way home on Monday.
Around 115 million domestic and international tourists visited Illinois last year, pushing visitor spending past $50 billion for the first time and generating more than $88 billion in total economic impact.
Sixteen of the state's cases this year trace to an outbreak among people who were unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination history. Health officials say the overall risk is very low but want residents to confirm they're protected.
The Chicago Department of Public Health on Wednesday launched its first "street psychiatry" teams, in an effort to provide mental health services to some of the city's most vulnerable people.
A new Illinois law lets terminally ill patients request a lethal prescription to end their lives, making the state the 13th in the U.S. — and the first in the Midwest — to permit it.
Nearly half of Americans with medical debt owe at least $2,000, forcing them to make tough choices, new research shows.
A judge on Tuesday was expected to place two shuttered Chicago-area safety-net hospitals into receivership.
McDonald's said Wednesday it will spend $8.5 billion over the next decade to modernize its restaurants globally.
The future of Rate Field was back in the spotlight on Wednesday.
Plans for a new Chicago White Sox stadium in the South Loop have residents near the existing ballpark in Bridgeport concerned, not just because the team might be leaving, but also what might be coming nearby.
A new report from the University of Illinois Chicago said federal immigration enforcement led to $1.26 billion in unspent money at retail establishments and restaurants in Cook County.
Around 115 million domestic and international tourists visited Illinois last year, pushing visitor spending past $50 billion for the first time and generating more than $88 billion in total economic impact.
Challenging documentaries and award-winning features are among the offerings of New York City's leading cinema event, starring such luminaries as Pedro Pascal, Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore and Godzilla.
Taylor Swift announced her new single "Patient Zero" earlier this week, saying she has been "impatiently waiting" to announce that it will be out on Friday.
A Tennessee judge granted Dolly Parton's estate a temporary restraining order Wednesday against the late singer's nephew Bryan Seaver and his private security company.
An autopsy by the Greenville County Coroner's Office determined Hayden Panettiere's death was due to an accidental overdose of several drugs, including fentanyl.
Nike-owned Converse acknowledged that an ad for its Chuck Taylor sneaker is "deeply upsetting."
Chief meteorologist Albert Ramon has the latest First Alert Weather forecast.
If you can't make it to Germany for Oktoberfest, the West Lakeview neighborhood in Chicago offers an easy alternative.
People living near the shuttered Ford City Mall said they remain concerned about the site's future, after the Chicago City Council this week approved plans to transform it into an industrial warehouse complex.
The National Hurricane Center is warning people on Hawaii's Big Island to find a safe place as Hurricane Nolo rapidly intensifies in the Pacific.
A nor'easter is barreling toward New England after bringing floodwaters to North Carolina and Virginia.
People living near the shuttered Ford City Mall said they remain concerned about the site's future, after the Chicago City Council this week approved plans to transform it into an industrial warehouse complex.
Sheri Mecklenburg penned a scathing letter in which she said U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros "personally directed" the Broadview 6 prosecution that ended her career.
The MLB Postseason begins on Tuesday, and anticipation is high across Chicago, with both the Cubs and White Sox making the playoffs in the same year for only the fourth time ever.
If you can't make it to Germany for Oktoberfest, the West Lakeview neighborhood in Chicago offers an easy alternative.
Munetaka Murakami homered twice to increase his season total to 35, and the playoff-bound Chicago White Sox beat the Colorado Rockies 6-1 as they tried to gain ground in the AL Central.
In 2024, an off-duty Chicago police officer shot and killed a dog that was being held by its owner. COPA and CPD Supt. Larry Snelling agreed the officer should be fired. But more than two years later, that hasn't happened.
Surging gas and diesel prices are putting the pinch on farmers with harvest season underway, and could drive grocery prices even further up.
Another business owned by a couple under investigation for mishandling bodies at funeral homes and crematories on the South Side and in the south suburbs was raided by law enforcement Thursday.
Crown Point native Chris Payne was arrested for the 2018 sexual assault of a woman, which he has adamantly claimed from the beginning that he had nothing to do with.
A Chicago nonprofit is suing its former president, accusing him of illegally diverting millions of dollars in charitable funds and jeopardizing the charity's future in fighting homelessness.
Munetaka Murakami homered twice to increase his season total to 35, and the playoff-bound Chicago White Sox beat the Colorado Rockies 6-1 as they tried to gain ground in the AL Central.
The Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago Cubs 2-0 Friday night to sweep a doubleheader.
Major League Baseball announced Saturday's game has been moved to the home of the Tampa Bay Rays.
The MLB Postseason begins on Tuesday, and anticipation is high across Chicago, with both the Cubs and White Sox making the playoffs in the same year for only the fourth time ever.
The Boston Red Sox rallied from a three-run deficit to beat the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in a doubleheader opener on Friday.
A Chicago violence interrupter is remembered for the difference he tried to make in his South Shore neighborhood. Courtney Harris worked to keep young people away from violence, but died in a shooting over the weekend.
Three men were wounded in a shooting on Thursday night outside a liquor store in the South Chicago neighborhood.
A sixth-grade teacher and basketball coach at a school in Island Lake, Illinois, was arrested Thursday on child pornography charges.
Boise police have identified a man known as the "Unknown Wanderer" who was found dead in a church in 1982, and revealed a possible link to the Chicago Tylenol murders.
A Mundelein, Illinois, high school teacher and volleyball coach appeared in court Wednesday morning on charges of making an unauthorized video recording of a minor.
