Illinois quick hits: Fatal helicopter crash; Comptroller orders another extra pension payment

Illinois quick hits: Fatal helicopter crash; Comptroller orders another extra pension payment

August 7, 2025/
Spread the love

By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
The Center Square

Fatal helicopter crash

Two people are dead after a helicopter crashed into a barge on the Mississippi River.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the Hughes 369D with two people on board went down around 11:05 a.m. Thursday in East Alton.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.

Comptroller orders another extra pension payment

Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza says she is ordering a third round of pension pre-payments.

Mendoza said more than $1.3 billion in payments to the state’s five retirement systems will include $428 million in pre-payments, allowing the pension systems to keep more money in their portfolios and earn more in returns.

Statehouse rematch shaping up

State Rep. Amy Briel, D-Ottawa, and Republican Liz Bishop are gearing up for a potential rematch in Illinois’ 76th House District.

Briel defeated Bishop by 595 votes, or 1%, in the general election last November.

Bishop will first face a primary rematch with Crystal Loughran.

Leave a Comment





Latest News Stories

Illegal immigrants across U.S. get financial aid for college

Illegal immigrants across U.S. get financial aid for college

By Esther Wickham | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – State financial aid continues to expand within higher education, allowing money to go to eligible illegal immigrant...
Illinois Quick Hits: Pritzker signs bill creating new state agency

Illinois Quick Hits: Pritzker signs bill creating new state agency

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed legislation elevating the Illinois Guardianship and Advocacy Commission to the cabinet-level Illinois...
Will County Board Graphic.01

Will County Board Members Spar Over Wheatland Township Mental Health Grant

Will County Board Executive Committee Meeting | June 11, 2026 Article Summary: A $155,000 mental health grant to Wheatland Township drew sharp questioning at the Will County Board Executive Committee...
Congressional candidate caught in teen takeover

Congressional candidate caught in teen takeover

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – An Illinois candidate for Congress says a teen takeover arrived like a storm at a Chicago grocery...
REPORT: 2M Illinoisans face $500 cut as Social Security faces cliff

REPORT: 2M Illinoisans face $500 cut as Social Security faces cliff

By Sean Reed | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – New data and reports from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget have shown that if no...

Illinois Quick Hits: Cook County announces $20M in CVI spending

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle has announced $20 million of taxpayer funding for community violence intervention....
Rising prices growing concern in Illinois, U.S.

Rising prices growing concern in Illinois, U.S.

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – As voters express growing concern over inflation, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker says federal policies are to blame....
Peoria school safety director faces criticism over social media post

Peoria school safety director faces criticism over social media post

By Catrina Barker | The Center Square contributorThe Center Square (The Center Square) – A social media post by Peoria Public Schools' Director of School Safety is drawing criticism from...
Illinois Quick Hits: Rockford to fill budget gap with reserve funds

Illinois Quick Hits: Rockford to fill budget gap with reserve funds

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – Rockford officials are planning to spend reserve funds to close a $9.4 million revenue shortfall. The Rockford...
Feds seek to join case to halt Evanston black ‘reparations’ payments

Feds seek to join case to halt Evanston black ‘reparations’ payments

By Jonathan Bilyk | Legal NewslineThe Center Square The Justice Department is jumping into court against the city of Evanston, lending the heft of the federal government to a lawsuit...
Hern projected to win Oklahoma GOP Senate primary

Hern projected to win Oklahoma GOP Senate primary

By Caroline BodaThe Center Square U.S. Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla., is projected to win the Republican nomination for Oklahoma’s U.S. Senate seat in an effort to succeed recently installed Homeland...
Pan criticizes Kiley as California congressional race heats up

Pan criticizes Kiley as California congressional race heats up

By Chris WoodwardThe Center Square The race for California’s Congressional District 6 is a “priority race” for Democrats. That is according to Dr. Richard Pan, the Democrat who appears headed...
U.S. Department of Justice investigates Newsom's associates

U.S. Department of Justice investigates Newsom’s associates

By Liam HibbertThe Center Square The U.S. Department of Justice has been investigating people close to California Gov. Gavin Newsom over the past year for reasons that have not been...
Advocates say price transparency alone won’t fix healthcare prices

Advocates say price transparency alone won’t fix healthcare prices

By Tom JoyceThe Center Square Letting patients see hospital prices can help, but it will not fix the high cost of health care by itself. That's what witnesses told members...
Social media platforms challenge Chicago tax; Pritzker confident in statewide plan

Social media platforms challenge Chicago tax; Pritzker confident in statewide plan

By Sean Reed | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – Chicago faces an ongoing lawsuit over a tax ordinance on social media platforms that was imposed four...