Quincy Reporter

Progress towards startup of a new Central Illinois school focusing on the building trades

The San Damiano College for the Trades will provide adult-level education aimed at skilled-trades career pathways. The college will focus on carpentry, plumbing, and electrical contracting, which will be taught through a Catholic framework that will concentrate on the future of households and families in Illinois. The current scheduled operational startup date is the fall of 2025.

The San Damiano College will be located on a repurposed footprint on the grounds of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis near Springfield, Illinois. Together with hands-on training in the building trades, the new college plans to offer coursework oriented towards awarding associate’s degrees to student learners.

Safe-T Act test

The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments this week in a pair of cases that test the authority of local courts to hold criminal suspects behind bars while they await trial.

House Republicans focus on delays in issuing required State licenses

House Republicans have introduced a comprehensive plan and bill package intended to unsnarl the license-issuance and license-renewal processes operated by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). In recent years, this routine procedure – one depended on by hundreds of thousands of Illinois residents – has become dysfunctional. Illinois license applicants mail to the department the fees required to take out or renew a license, submit required documentation, and then have to wait long periods for a license to be issued or renewed.

IDFPR blames “computer problems” for the delays and snafus. The department’s licensure paradigm is based on an antique 1990s electronic technological platform that is no longer receiving adequate support from professional solutions providers. The General Assembly has issued bipartisan instructions to the department to switch out their licensure hardware and software and create a new platform, but state personnel have so far been unable to do so. The House Republican legislative package aims to speed up procuring new hardware and software and getting it operational.

Corn and Soybean Yields

The USDA’s September yield forecast for corn and soybeans is in. Here’s what we expect to see in Illinois this year.

Mark your Calendar!

Next month I am teaming up with other area legislators and the Kroc Center to host a Senior Wellness Fair, including free health screenings and some fun as well! I hope to see you there!