You’d think, with the state of Illinois billions in the red and adding $11 million more in debt every day, there would be a sense of urgency in Springfield to get a budget.

Ah, you don’t know Springfield.

Recent years have seen forests felled and lakes of ink drained in order to bemoan, deplore and condemn the abysmal state of Illinois government.

Efforts to encourage, rebuke or shame our elected representatives into fixing this atrocious and unsustainable mess seem more futile as the problems grow more dire.

Isn’t it nice that senators and representatives came together last week to welcome the Chicago Cubs’ World Series trophy when it appeared at the Statehouse? They filed into the House to laud the Cubbies, smiling as they took pictures with the trophy and Cubs great Ryne Sandberg.

One would have hoped that seeing a tangible achievement of what can happen when a group of people actually work together to accomplish a goal might have been an inspiration to get their own act together.

If the state’s largest union decides to strike, it’s unclear whether the people who replace those workers will keep permanent positions or not.

According to the State Journal-Register, Governor Bruce Rauner’s administration has begun collecting names of people willing to work if AFSCME members strike.

Gov. Bruce Rauner and Mayor Rahm Emanuel were back at each other’s throats again this week with some extra creative put-downs. And right in the middle of the their latest public spat? Grammy-award winner Chance the Rapper.

WBEZ’s political reporting duo Lauren Chooljian and Tony Arnold sat down with host Greta Johnsen to catch listeners up on just what happened and why it mattered.

It’s unclear whether people who might replace state employees in the event of a strike by Illinois’ largest public-employee union could end up with permanent jobs.

Around fourteen hundred employees at North Eastern Illinois University will be forced to take unpaid leave for five days over the university’s spring break due to the state budget crisis, officials say.

“We are impacting about 1,100 employees and about 300 student aides who will have to go without pay for those days,” said interim Northeastern President Richard Helldobler.

Gov. Bruce Rauner has been joined by Democratic lawmakers to sign a measure his office said is “the most comprehensive criminal justice reform” in Illinois history.

The state’s video gaming system has proved to be a boon for businesses and municipalities that never benefited from riverboat gambling revenue before the first legal video terminals switched on more than four years ago.

More than 23,000 video gambling terminals have come online in Illinois bars, restaurants, convenience stores and cafes since the state-monitored system became operational in fall 2012. In fiscal year 2016, revenue from the machines surpassed $1 billion for the first time.

City of Springfield hiring numbers from 2016 show some progress to those who feel the city should employ more women and people of color.

Still, community advocates are urging the city to recommit to minority hiring efforts, particularly its affirmative action plan that was adopted in 2013. The plan includes a detailed breakdown of the city’s workforce by department and sets hiring goals for specific positions.

In Smithton, some students take their classes in a trailer that has no running water or bathrooms.

Superintendent Susan Homes said that’s because Smithton School District 130 has added more than 150 students since it last expanded its building 15 years ago.

Happy Sunshine Week, when we celebrate “access to public information and what it means for you and your community.”

Often what that means is hounding the public officials as Kie Zelms did for two years until she was able to prove O’Fallon City Council members illegally held a secret meeting to discuss privatizing city water and sewer service.