Members of the University of Illinois-Springfield United faculty voted today to authorize a strike.

The IFT Local 4000 and the the UIS Administration have been in collective bargaining for more than a year.

According to a press release from the union, their contract with the university expired in August of last year. The union says it intends to file an intent-to-strike notice with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board tomorrow, with a possible strike beginning as early as May 2^nd.

According to the union, faculty union members earn 20% less than educators at other Illinois institutions and they have not received a cost of living raise in two years. The union has also accused the administration of over hiring on administrative positions, saying the school has “bloated management.”

UIS currently receives 4% of the the University of Illinois system budget, according to the union.

UIS interim Chancellor Karen Whitney issued the following statement this evening about the notice to strike: “The University has learned that the UIS United Faculty, which represents 134 tenured and tenure-track faculty, has announced a vote to authorize a strike and plans to file an intent-to-strike notice with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board (IELRB) tomorrow, April 21. While we are disappointed, holding a strike authorization vote is not uncommon in the negotiation process. It gives the union the option to call for a strike, once all the legal requirements and timelines are met, but doesn’t necessarily mean a strike will occur. The University will continue to negotiate in good faith.

“We know that our students, faculty and staff are counting on us to work tirelessly to bring this to a successful conclusion as soon as possible. Our next scheduled bargaining sessions are April 22, 25 and 27, and the parties are currently discussing additional dates. We greatly value and appreciate our faculty, and we are committed to the academic success of our students. I am hopeful that we will be able to reach a fair, sustainable and fiscally responsible agreement-at the bargaining table-with which both parties can be satisfied.”

A request for comment from union representatives have not yet been returned.

13^th District Congressman Rodney Davis has joined in a fight over new definitions of the Waters of the United States rules.

Last week, Davis filed an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court in support of the Trump Administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule.

Davis said in the brief that Congress never intended to give the Environmental Protection Agency jurisdiction “over every ditch, puddle, or stream. Davis called the Biden Administration’s new definition of WOTUS an overreach and called the repeal and rewriting of the rule confusing to the agricultural community. Davis called the Biden Administration’s rule “a one-size-fits all approach” that he called unworkable.

Environmental groups have largely praised the undoing of the Trump-era rules, while most of the agricultural community in the Midwest have largely panned it. The EPA is expected to deliver a complete definition of WOTUS within the coming months.

The Jacksonville Salvation Army has received two awards for their new client choice food pantry.

Captain Chris Clarke says that the Jacksonville Salvation Army has been working with the University of Illinois Extension Office to help obtain a complete shopping experience for the clients of the food pantry: “People can go through with a shopping cart and shop aisles full of food. We have glass-door refrigerators and freezers for meat and dairy items. We always have produce and bakery items, as well. We encourage people to choose healthy items as often as they can. We also want to have an assortment of items so people can choose items that fit their dietary restrictions or just have a choice of foods that they like.”

Clarke says that their Client Choice pantry along with the work with the Extension Office has earned them Gold Level Status from the U of I Extension: “With the Gold Standard Award, there is a set of requirements to receive it. We are one of only a couple food pantries in the whole state to have received that status. It has to do with a lot of things. It has to do with client choice. It has to do with providing healthy options, and also having sections for people with various dietary restrictions, cultural food needs, and those type of things.”

The Salvation Army was also recently recognized with the Healthy Pantry Initiatives Award for the State of Illinois at the recent Hunger and Health Regional Conference held in Springfield on March 17^th. This award recognizes one food pantry that demonstrates excellence in healthy pantry initiatives. Clarke says their pantry always carries fresh produce options and vegetables, canned or otherwise. He says encouraging clients to eat healthy goes beyond that: “We have signage throughout our food pantry telling people about the recommendations are for a healthy types of foods that you should eat. We are also doing food classes as well as other educational classes about living a healthy lifestyle and just ways to improve people’s overall lifestyle.”

The Salvation Army Food Pantry is open every Wednesday from 1pm-3pm. Additional evening hours are available the last Wednesday of each month from 5pm – 7pm. Anyone needing food can come. The Salvation Army’s Food Pantry expects to distribute 400,000 pounds of food and 15,000 personal care items to area residents this year. Area social workers and area emergency & first responders can access the food pantry at anytime for emergency food needs for their clients.

Clarke says the food pantry’s success has been due in part to volunteers and donations from the community as well as cooperation with Prairieland United Way, The Central Illinois Food Bank, Walmart, County Market and Aldi’s.

Those wishing to donate to or volunteer at the Salvation Army can call 217-245-7124 or visit them in person at 331 West Douglas Avenue in Jacksonville.

A popular General Mills breakfast cereal is under investigation by the federal government.

You may want to let Lucky the leprechaun keep his Lucky Charms. The FDA said Monday that it was looking into reports of thousands of people becoming ill with gastrointestinal problems after eating the “magically delicious” treat.

According to the New York Times, more than 3,000 people submitted reports on iwaspoisoned.com after consuming the cereal. Several reports on the site detailed bouts of diarrhea, nausea, stomach pain and vomiting after consumption. The F.D.A. said in a statement yesterday that it had received more than 100 submissions related to Lucky Charms this year through its own reporting system for adverse events and product complaints.

A spokesperson for General Mills said Monday that internal investigations had “not found any evidence of consumer illness linked to the consumption of Lucky Charms.” The cereal’s Twitter account also shared similar messages Monday. General Mills has encouraged consumers to share their concerns directly with the company.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s Office has announced the arrest of a Virden man for disseminating child pornography.

34 year old Jacob R. Rogers was charged in Macoupin County Circuit Court with 3 counts of dissemination of child pornography, each a Class X felony punishable by 6-30 years in prison, and 6 counts of possession of child pornography, each a Class 2 felony punishable by 3-7 years in prison. Rogers’ bond was set at $500,000 with 10% to apply, and his next court date is scheduled for May 3rd. The case will be jointly prosecuted by Raoul’s office and Macoupin County State’s Attorney Jordan Garrison.

Rogers has since posted bond and been released, according to the Macoupin County Sheriff’s Office.

Raoul’s investigators, with the assistance of the Macoupin County Sheriff’s Office, and the Virden Police Department, conducted a search of a residence on Thursday, April 14th on East Lincoln Avenue in Virden, and arrested Rogers after discovering evidence of child pornography.

The arrest is part of Attorney General Raoul’s work to investigate and prosecute child pornographers in Illinois through the work of the Illinois Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

Lincoln Land Community College student Kayleigh Ambrose of Jacksonville has been chosen as one of 10 students to participate in a summer research internship at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana.

Ambrose will participate in the Phenotypic Plasticity Research Experience for Community College Students. The internship is supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation and will include a boot camp on topics ranging from specific laboratory methods to research ethics.

Students will then join a research immersion program in phenotypic plasticity, the phenomenon of a single genotype producing multiple phenotypes depending on environment. Ambrose will then present findings at LLCC as well as at an undergraduate research symposium at UIUC. Ambrose will be awarded a $6,000 stipend along with food, housing and travel allowances for the 10-week program.

Following LLCC, Ambrose plans to transfer to UIUC to pursue a biology major followed by graduate school on the east coast.

Ambrose joins fellow Jacksonville resident Becky Rose, who was chosen to participate in the same research internship in 2019.

3^th District Congressman Rodney Davis spoke last week to the 173^rd Airborne Brigade Association in Springfield. Known as the “Sky Soldiers” from their actions in Vietnam, the group was being honored with an honorary week named after them due to a proclamation from Congress.

87^th District State Representative Tim Butler was also on hand for the ceremony.

The ceremony was supposed to take place at Camp Butler National Cemetery but was moved to American Legion Post 32 in Springfield due to inclement weather. The ceremony was supposed to encompass the presentation of a recently placed memorial at the cemetery to preserve the memory of all fallen Sky Soldiers of the 503rd Infantry Regiment.

Davis says he’s always proud to speak to the nation’s veterans and honor their sacrifice and service to the country. Davis says its because of actions of veterans of all wars in all branches of service that the nation gets to enjoy freedoms that it sometimes takes for granted.

Davis says that he got to hear stories from Vietnam veterans at the ceremony as well as veterans from Operation: Iraqi Freedom and Operation: Enduring Freedom. Today, the 173^rd Airborne Brigade serves as the Army’s Contingency Response Force and currently is deployed in Italy.

Davis urges anyone who is in the area to go to Camp Butler National Cemetery to pay respects and see the monument. He says the reason the monument is a rock is because the 503rd Infantry Regiment is nicknamed “The Rock.” The nickname is derived from the World War II Battle of Corregidor in 1945. Under heavy fire from enemy Japanese troops on the island fortress, the 503rd Parachute Regimental Combat Team, descended upon “The Rock fortress” and liberated the island. The unit was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for its actions and has been called by the nickname ever since.

For more information about the 173^rd Airborne Brigade and its history and the association. Visit skysoldier.net.

The U.S. Supreme Court has left the future of a West Central Illinois natural gas pipeline in doubt. Yesterday, the court declined to hear an appeal from the owners of the Spire STL Pipeline without comment. The appeal comes after a lower court ruled in June that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had not adequately demonstrated a need for the project, vacating the pipeline’s operational permit.

The Spire STL Pipeline runs from southern Scott County all the way to the Metro East. The pipeline’s existence has raised eyebrows since its construction more than 4 years ago. Landowners have claimed that the pipeline company did not adequately take care of topsoil and topography during and after construction along the pipeline’s right of way, causing extreme environmental issues from affecting crops to creating erosion and run off.

The Environmental Defense Fund sued in 2020, raising questions whether the pipeline was approved by the federal government without an adequate review. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia found what they called “serious flaws” in FERC’s approval of the project.

The case continues to play out with the federal government. Last year, FERC issued a temporary operational certificate to Spire. FERC, now under new leadership in the Biden Administration, now is reviewing the pipeline’s appeal for operations.

Spire leadership told the Associated Press yesterday that they are confident FERC regulators will see the benefits of having the pipeline operational to provide energy that they characterized as reliable and affordable to the greater St. Louis area. FERC has not announced a timeline on their decision.

The Jacksonville Fire Department was called out for an indoor fire at a business yesterday in the late afternoon.

An emergency dispatch came into the department at approximately 4:31 yesterday to Monqui Suds Laundromat & Dry Cleaning in the 900 block of West Morton Avenue.

Crews responded to the scene in a matter of minutes. Smoke could be seen billowing from inside the business upon arrival.

A commercial dryer and contents had caught fire. According to a report from Jacksonville Fire Chief Doug Sills, fire fighters were able to contain the blaze to a single machine and its contents. Estimated damage was totaled around $8,000. Fire fighters were on scene until approximately 5:05PM.

No injuries were reported in the incident.