Term limits popular with local voters, but Illinois state lawmakers try to blunt reforms

By Vincent Caruso

01/02/2019

Since 2014 alone, voters in 11 suburban Cook County communities approved term limits on elected leaders. A bill in the Illinois General Assembly seeks to curb those reforms.

TAGS: Chris Welch, harvey, Sam McCann, term limits

How a ballot selfie could put you in jail in Illinois

By Austin Berg

09/27/2018

There are clear First Amendment issues with outlawing this kind of political speech.

TAGS: Chris Welch, First Amendment, Illinois Election Code, voting

Cursive mandate greets Illinois elementary school students this fall

By Vincent Caruso

08/21/2018

Lawmakers overrode the governor’s veto of a 2017 bill mandating cursive instruction in all public elementary schools in Illinois. That measure becomes law this year.

TAGS: Bruce Rauner, Chris Welch, ISFRC: Illinois School Funding Reform Commission, unfunded mandates

New bill would allow state to place a lien on business owners’ property for unpaid wage allegations

By Joe Kaiser

02/27/2018

A bill in the Illinois House of Representatives would allow the Illinois Department of Labor to place a lien on a business owner's property should he or she fail to respond to an allegation of unpaid wages within five days.

TAGS: Chris Welch, Department of Labor, jobs, lien, small business, taxes

New bill would hike, expand obscure tax for Illinois small businesses

By Amy Korte

02/26/2018

State Rep. Emanuel "Chris" Welch has proposed a measure that would increase by 400 percent the personal property replacement tax imposed on partnerships, LLCs and other types of businesses.

TAGS: Chris Welch, small business, taxes

Illinois General Assembly passes cursive writing mandate

By Joe Kaiser

11/08/2017

Despite the potential for imposing new costs on school districts, Illinois lawmakers overrode Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto on a bill mandating cursive writing instruction.

TAGS: Bruce Rauner, Chris Welch, education

October marks Illinois’ first-ever ‘zombie preparedness month’

By Joe Kaiser

10/31/2017

A resolution introduced by state Rep. Chris Welch, D-Westchester, and passed by the Illinois House designated October as “Zombie Preparedness Month.”

TAGS: Chris Welch

House overrides Rauner veto on cursive writing mandate

By Joe Kaiser

10/27/2017

Despite the potential for imposing new costs on school districts, the Illinois House of Representatives overrode Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto on legislation mandating cursive writing instruction.

TAGS: Chris Welch, education

Rauner vetoes cursive writing mandate

By Joe Kaiser

09/25/2017

A bill that would have mandated cursive writing instruction in public elementary schools contained an unknown cost for school districts.

TAGS: Bruce Rauner, Chris Welch, education, veto

‘Illinois math’ in one tweet

By Michael Lucci

07/05/2017

The Land of Lincoln needs to end the phony math and restructure its debts and pensions. But legislative incompetence will keep the state in a death spiral.

TAGS: budget, Chris Welch

Bureaucrats over classrooms: Illinois wastes millions of education dollars on unnecessary layers of administration

Illinoisans pay large sums for public education, yet a large portion of the money goes to Illinois’ bloated school district bureaucracy that diverts resources away from the classroom. Through smart, strategic reforms, Illinoisans can better prepare their youth for the future as well as provide property tax relief.

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Bureaucrats over classrooms: Illinois wastes millions of education dollars on unnecessary layers of administration

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Al Lashbrook

Policy lessons from Illinois’ exodus of people and money

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students