What state officials described as a “troubling” loss of 16,700 jobs in December turns out not to have been so bad after all.

In fact, Illinois gained 2,000 jobs in December, according to revised figures released Thursday with the state’s January unemployment report. The state added another 1,700 jobs in January.

Nine schools on the city’s South and West sides will each receive $10,000 through a philanthropic effort led by Chance the Rapper, the performer announced on his Twitter feed Thursday.

The rapper earlier this week turned over a novelty check for $1 million to Chicago Public Schools and challenged businesses and philanthropies to follow him in helping out the financially ailing district.

Hirsch Principal Larry Varn learned via Twitter Thursday that Chance the Rapper was giving his school $10,000.

The Chatham native announced in a tweet Thursday that he was giving $10,000 grants to nine Chicago schools, in addition to the $1 million he plans to donate to Chicago schools for arts education. Chance’s donation to Chicago’s schools — through the Chicago Public Schools Foundation — will come from the proceeds of his Spring Tour, set to kick off April 24 in San Diego.

Illinois Senate Democrats said Thursday that Rauner administration officials failed to outline where additional spending cuts could be made, despite the Republican governor saying that a proposed budget that’s part of the so-called “grand bargain” needs further reductions.

A Statehouse news conference Thursday followed a week of Senate committee hearings where agency directors were grilled on how much and where their budgets could be cut.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan wants the Illinois Supreme Court to take up the issue of whether state employees can be paid without a state budget.

Madigan filed a motion Wednesday asking the state’s high court to quickly take up the issue, bypassing a ruling from the state appellate court.

Rep. Avery Bourne said Thursday there is renewed urgency for the House to stop delaying action on her bill to ensure that state employees will be paid even without a budget in place.

At a Statehouse news conference, Bourne, R-Raymond, said the Democrat-controlled House should act now that Attorney General Lisa Madigan is asking the Illinois Supreme Court to decide if workers can be paid without an appropriation by the General Assembly.

Gov. Bruce Rauner’s attempt to get a handle on labor costs has sustained a serious setback.

Members of a state employees’ union who recently voted overwhelmingly to go on strike got a big break last week from a state appeals court.

In an unsigned opinion, the 4th District Appellate Court rejected a request by Gov. Bruce Rauner’s staff to lift a court order blocking the administration from implementing its last, best and final offer to members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. So the stay will remain in place while the union’s legal challenge to the state labor board’s finding that contract negotiations had reached an impasse plays out.

The Illinois House adopted a resolution last month designating October of this year as “Zombie Preparedness Month.”

The living-dead-legislation, sponsored by Democratic state Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch, encourages Illinoisans to learn about natural disasters and take steps toward stockpiling three days worth of emergency rations.

Chicago State University agreed Thursday to pay a former school attorney $4.3 million, ending a long and expensive landmark whistleblower lawsuit.

The unexpected agreement came after the cash-strapped public university, whose delays had driven up the interest it owed, told a Cook County judge it would immediately pay James Crowley, who said he was fired in 2010 after reporting alleged misconduct by top university officials.

Northeastern Illinois University will reinstate hundreds of student jobs after a universitywide furlough this month, officials said Thursday, changing a recent directive that would have kept those students out of work indefinitely.

Last Friday, Northeastern announced 1,100 employees will take five unpaid days off during spring break, March 20-24, due to a state budget impasse that has left the school with limited funding. Nearly all school operations aside from police and engineering will shut down for the week.

Businessman and Democratic candidate for governor Chris Kennedy called Illinois’ current chief executive’s pro-business agenda “B.S,” while speaking to a group of South Side pastors Thursday.

“What we need is certainty. What we need is predictability,” Kennedy said, speaking at Bethlehem Star Church on South Cottage Grove. “What we need is a budget. Gov. Rauner, do your job. Get us a state budget.”

A clout-heavy attorney sanctioned by the newly-energized Chicago Board of Ethics has landed a $159,141-a-year job as the CTA’s vice-president of legislative affairs.

Gerald Alder’s resume includes stints as an assistant to former Mayor Richard M. Daley and current Mayor Rahm Emanuel; project coordinator for the CTA; intern for the Department of Buildings and chief of staff under former City Treasurer Stephanie Neely.

Airbnb hosts in Chicago and around the country are bulking up on rental properties, according to a hotel industry-backed study released Thursday, creating what critics call “illegal hotels.”

The study, paid for by the American Hotel & Lodging Education Foundation, comes as parts of a new city ordinance imposing rules on Airbnb and other home-sharing sites are being delayed in court. Hosts argue some of the city’s regulations are unconstitutional, while many in the licensed hospitality industry want a more level playing field.

Lake County and the village of Fox Lake face a civil lawsuit over the alleged misappropriation of $2.2 million in wastewater treatment funds.

The suit was filed by the Lakes Region Sanitary District and the villages of Round Lake and Round Lake Heights on Feb. 22 in Lake County Circuit Court.

Limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency to protect the public from exposure to manganese might be too lenient, says one of the world’s leading experts on the health effects of manganese.

Neurologist Brad Racette has devoted his career to studying the impact of exposure to manganese. Primarily used in steelmaking, manganese has been shown to negatively impact the nervous system at high concentrations.

O’Fallon Township High School District 203 leaders have a $1 million problem and came up with a $610,000 solution.

The district already cut $4 million since the 2010-2011 school year, but the state’s broken promises and declining dollars leave O’Fallon High needing to cut more.