An Illinois appeals court upheld a temporary restraining order on Cook County’s proposed sweetened beverage tax. Cook County officials claim 1,100 jobs will be lost if the tax does not go into effect.

The Cook County sugary drinks tax was set to go into effect July 1, but a circuit court judge has temporarily blocked the implementation of the tax in response to a lawsuit opposing it.

Three days of special session have cost Illinois taxpayers $150,000 for less than an hour of work.

Less than 43 minutes of work over two days has cost Illinois taxpayers $100,000.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is again mailing notices of vehicle-emissions-testing requirements to vehicle owners, and effective June 1, the Illinois secretary of state has resumed requiring certain drivers to pass emissions tests prior to renewing their license plates. Drivers scrambling to comply by the secretary of state’s June 1 effective date caused headline-making traffic jams throughout Chicago and its suburbs.