Topinka: Taxpayers Should Be Worried About Credit Downgrade For Illinois
Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka says people should be very fearful about the downgrading of the state's bond rating by Standard & Poor's.
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Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka says people should be very fearful about the downgrading of the state's bond rating by Standard & Poor's.
Illinois State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka has launched a new Web site that allows the public, government watchdogs, and the media to follow the state's finances more easily.
Gov. Pat Quinn said Monday that he plans to call for significant cuts to Medicaid funding as part of his effort to slash the state budget to spending levels lower than fiscal year 2008.
Illinois keeps falling farther behind on its debt, and Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka says it's even worse than it appears.
Illinois State Comptroller Judy Barr Topinka, who ran unsuccessfully against Rod Blagojevich for governor in 2006, now says he deserves the 15 to 20-year sentence prosecutors are seeking.
Illinois' state treasurer and comptroller have given up, at least for now, on the idea of unifying their offices.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his new schools CEO took a knife to the Chicago Public Schools budget Thursday, but they also took a shot at state government for making the financial crisis worse.
Critics say the State of Illinois is robbing Peter to pay Paul in its plans to borrow money to balance the state budget, and now, Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka is calling for major changes.
The state is more than $4.5 billion behind in payments to doctors, hospitals, school districts, universities and businesses, according to state Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka.
Illinois senators have signed off on a proposal to allow voters to decide if the state should combine the two offices that handle state finances.
Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka says the state should not even think about bankruptcy.
The state's new comptroller is incredulous that Illinois lawmakers would impose a whopping increase on taxpayers without passing a single budget cut.
The Seniors Ride Free program is only one of a number of financial issues facing the debt-ridden Regional Transportation Authority.
Democratic State Rep. David Miller has conceded in the race for Illinois comptroller.
The city of Aurora is kicking off Black History Month by honoring a living legend, one of the last remaining Negro Leagues baseball players.
Fewer Chicago kids are getting the dental care they need, and some dentists are blaming Chicago Public Schools.
A federal judge has ruled that the man cleared of offering $10,000 for the murder of Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino must be released from custody or given a bond hearing by Wednesday.
Former Joliet Bishop Ronald Hicks was installed on Friday as the new Archbishop of New York in a ceremony at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Midtown Manhattan.
Two west suburban high schools have something extra to celebrate Sunday, when alumni from their schools make their Super Bowl debuts.
The footage is included in a video that promotes false claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged against Mr. Trump.
The FBI has arrested "one of the key participants" behind the attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012 that killed four Americans.
A new push to pass a GOP elections bill known as the SAVE America Act is underway in Congress, but Democrats warn the proposal could disenfranchise millions of eligible voters.
As immigration sweeps expand nationwide, the work of justifying detentions is overwhelming federal prosecutors, who are being forced to sideline a range of other cases in order to keep pace.
Marimar Martinez, the Chicago woman shot five times by a Border Patrol agent in October, plans to attend President Trump's State of the Union address to Congress later this month, according to her attorney.
This week marks Identity Theft Awareness Week, and Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza emphasized some safety tips Monday for avoiding and dealing with identity theft.
A controversial data center in Naperville, Illinois, could be the cause to pack a city council meeting there on Tuesday night.
Police in the west Chicago suburb of Geneva are warning of a scam involving spoofed phone numbers.
Protesters on Tuesday were cranking up the heat on Peoples Gas over a recently proposed rate hike that would add an additional $10 to $11 a month to utility bills.
A lawsuit filed late last month took Chicago-based McDonald's to task over the McRib sandwich, calling its name a form of false advertising.
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital announced this week that it is planning to open a new pediatric hospital in the west Chicago suburb of Downers Grove.
It has been nearly six years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and one of the many questions doctors are still working to answer concerns the long-term effects.
Leaders from Cook County, the Illinois Department of Human Services, and the Greater Chicago Food Depository denounced changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program on Wednesday.
The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center has received a grant from The Ralph Lauren Corporate Foundation for a new cancer center.
Chicago's Lurie Children's Hospital said Tuesday that it is no longer initiating gender-affirming medical treatment for minors.
A Near West Side diner known for drawing in Blackhawks fans and players is up for sale.
January may be the coldest time of the year, but Chicago is already looking forward to summer farmers' markets.
A development proposal issued this month calls for the replacement of a building housing a Giordiano's pizzeria in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood with a new mixed-use building with 28 residential units.
United Airlines flight attendants picketed outside Chicago's Willis Tower Thursday morning as they fought for a new contract.
WSCR-AM, 670 The Score, will begin a simulcast on 104.3 FM next month.
Gamers across the world can now recreate drone strikes in Ukraine from the comfort of their own home, with this newly released game.
The members of Ratboys were teenagers when they met by chance, and now in their 30s, the Chicago band formed by two college friends almost two decades ago appears to be on the brink of something big.
Chuck Negron, a founding member of Three Dog Night whose lead vocals powered a string of hits for one of the top rock acts of the late 1960s and early '70s has died. He was 83.
Bad Bunny used his Grammy acceptance speech on Sunday to denounce U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and call for the end of the ongoing immigration crackdown.
The 2026 Grammy Awards recognized the best of the best in music from last year, with big wins for Kendrick Lamar and Bad Bunny. Here's the full list of winners and nominees.
The city of Aurora is kicking off Black History Month by honoring a living legend, one of the last remaining Negro Leagues baseball players. Dennis Biddle, 92, is sharing a narrative that was never shared in textbooks, a history he said has been largely covered up.
Fewer Chicago kids are getting the dental care they need, and some dentists are blaming Chicago Public Schools. For many of Chicago's neediest children, in-school dentists are their only access to care, but some frontline dentists say the system at CPS is driving providers away and leading to fewer kids getting the dental care they need.
A federal judge has ruled that the man cleared of offering $10,000 for the murder of Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino must be released from custody or given a bond hearing by Wednesday.
A South Side community came together on Friday, hoping for justice after a woman was shot and killed while her baby was in the back seat of their car earlier this week.
Former Joliet Bishop Ronald Hicks was installed on Friday as the new Archbishop of New York in a ceremony at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Midtown Manhattan.
A source close to the investigation said the woman worked for the city's Office of Emergency Management and Communications.
A federal judge in Chicago has ruled key evidence in the Marimar Martinez shooting, including bodycam video and text messages, can be released.
A South Side community came together on Friday, hoping for justice after a woman was shot and killed while her baby was in the back seat of their car earlier this week.
The city of Aurora is kicking off Black History Month by honoring a living legend, one of the last remaining Negro Leagues baseball players.
Fewer Chicago kids are getting the dental care they need, and some dentists are blaming Chicago Public Schools.
Fewer Chicago kids are getting the dental care they need, and some dentists are blaming Chicago Public Schools.
Cynthia Eason recounted the moment Chicago police officers raided her family's home in 2018.
Water bills could be going up in several Chicago suburbs and other parts of Illinois, as Illinois American Water seeks a rate increase to fund infrastructure improvements.
The case involves a Chicago grandmother, her daughter, and her four grandchildren, who all said that Chicago police officers pointed guns at them during the botched raid.
Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel no longer will have to testify about an alleged "code of silence" at the Chicago Police Department, after a federal judge reversed an earlier ruling that would have allowed him to take the stand in a lawsuit over a botched police raid.
Two west suburban high schools have something extra to celebrate Sunday, when alumni from their schools make their Super Bowl debuts.
The 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics are underway after the lighting of the Olympic cauldrons and the Parade of Nations at the opening ceremony.
Caleb Williams certainly had plenty of big throws to celebrate in 2025, but it wasn't hard to pick his most memorable one after he launched a 46-yard touchdown pass to DJ Moore to beat the Packers in overtime in Week 16.
Brandon Ingram scored 33 points, Immanuel Quickley had 24 and the Toronto Raptors beat the new-look Chicago Bulls 123-107.
Chicago Bears guard Joe Thuney was named the NFL's top offensive lineman of 2025 on Thursday, winning the inaugural Protector of the Year Award.
A South Side community came together on Friday, hoping for justice after a woman was shot and killed while her baby was in the back seat of their car earlier this week.
A Chicago city employee was found shot to death Friday morning inside an apartment in the West Ridge neighborhood.
Actor Timothy Busfield has been indicted on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a child, officials said Friday.
A burglary crew smashed into a restaurant in Chicago's southwest suburbs, leaving the owner cleaning up a big and frustrating mess.
Six months after a well-known charter boat captain was found dead at DuSable Harbor in downtown Chicago, a man has been charged with his murder.