The state of Illinois reported that 30% of its adult population has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 on a day when mask guidelines received a major update.

The Illinois Department of Public Health reported that 3,835,491 people — 30.10% of the adult population — had received full inoculation against the virus with two shots of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Our lawmakers have demonstrated short-sighted behavior that will prove detrimental to the Illinois business community. Until they start thinking about the long-term, big picture consequences of their decisions, all Illinoisans will suffer more than they already have.

Take for example Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s decision to raise the Illinois minimum wage each year until it reaches $15 in 2025. Last year, business owners faced two of these increases, followed by a third one in January 2021. While some will benefit from these increases in wages, many others will lose their jobs because of them. Many small businesses will be forced to cut jobs in light of the pay increases. For some, this added cost could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, and they’ll be forced to shut down permanently.

Republican state lawmakers said the newly released U.S. Census figures prove their oft-cited criticism: Supermajority Democrats are running Illinois into the ground

State Rep. Ryan Spain, R-Peoria, was among the GOP members on Monday who cited a familiar litany of negatives — high property taxes and problems with worker’s compensation and medical liability. In short, they say, Illinois is not a welcoming state for businesses.

State Sen. Tom Cullerton, who was indicted in 2019 on charges of embezzlement, is set to go to trial in February next year, a federal judge said on Tuesday.

Cullerton, a Democrat from Villa Park, is scheduled to be tried in the U.S. District Court in Chicago, starting on Feb. 23, 2022.

This week’s announcement that Illinois would lose a congressional seat is the continuation of a trend in the state’s population since the post-World War II era. Although Illinois is the sixth-largest state in terms of population, it used to rank even higher.

Illinois was one of three states to lose population between the 2010 and 2020 census, joining West Virginia and Mississippi, widely considered two of the poorest states in the country. The population dip in Illinois was 7,893 in that span.

Illinois is rolling out the welcome mat for cryptocurrency investors and the firms that serve them.

Springfield is on the verge of clearing legislation that would establish a new state trust charter for companies that hold bitcoin and other digital currencies on behalf of investors. Gov. J.B. Pritzker is expected to sign it.