* New report puts Illinois $12.8 billion in the red

Maybe the candidates would like to run for an easier job — like finding the cure for cancer, or rebuilding Haiti.

* State Of Ill. Is A Deadbeat Tenant, Landlord Says

Government Owes At Least $43,000 In Back Rent For Evergreen Park Office Space

* Falling stone closes west door to state Capitol

* State Rep Sara Feigenholtz Takes Aim at Looming Financial Crisis in Illinois AIDS Drug Assistance Program

* Copy of Emancipation Proclamation to be on display in Springfield

* Here’s a way to save: Cut number of taxing districts

* Decision on Verizon’s sale of lines expected in spring

Verizon has proposed selling rural land lines in 14 states, including Illinois, to Connecticut-based Frontier so Verizon can concentrate on wireless communications and urban areas.

* State raises maximum on loans for beginner farmers

The Illinois Finance Authority’s Beginning Farmer Bond Program now allows farmers the chance to borrow up to $470,100, up from $250,000.

* Small towns concerned about high-speed rail

In Williamsville, for instance, the Union Pacific Railroad’s tracks cut across Main Street, which brings traffic from Interstate 55 into the village. More and faster trains could increase emergency response times, endanger pedestrians and possibly jeopardize buildings along the tracks, Village President Tom Yokley said.

* December home sales down nearly 17 percent

* Housing Market May Not Fully Recover Until Late 2011

* New Sales Tax Rollback Plan Coming For Cook County

County Commissioner Tony Peraica Hopes To Roll Back What’s Left Of Tax Hike

* Teen jobs disappearing in city, state, report says

Conducted by researcher Andrew Sum at Northeastern University in Boston, the study concludes that youth of all racial and socio-economic backgrounds increasingly do not work, but finds that the problem is particularly severe among minorities.

* Employment rate for teens plunge in Illinois

* Mayor Daley orders inspection of accused slumlord’s properties

* Chicago is the only U.S. metro area that would fail proposed nitrogen oxides limits

* Mayor Stands By 2-Hour Snow Rule For Plow Drivers

Part-Time Drivers Can Now Be Sent Home After 2 Hours If Snow Doesn’t Fall

* Daley won’t criticize, awaits reports on CPS credit card use

Four days after South Side residents disrupted a Plan Commission meeting to demand Finney’s ouster, Daley agreed to investigate their claims of deplorable living conditions at properties owned by Finney’s Woodlawn Redevelopment Corporation.

* Daley waiting to see reports on schools’ credit card use

* Board of Education credit cards revoked

* CTA installs more security cameras at stations

With the most recent installation of cameras at 24 Green Line stations, CTA officials say the system now has 1,657 cameras at 73 rail stations. By summer, there should be at least one at every CTA station.

* Mayor Daley: Why would city truck drivers risk ‘tremendous’ jobs with a strike?

* Recession hurts job seekers’ ability to relocate

* New property tax law hits Cook Co. homeowners up front

A homeowner who paid a $5,000 tax bill last year, for example, would have a first installment of $2,750 this year — $250 more than under the old law. But proponents point out that the change won’t hike the total taxes property owners will pay over the course of the year and could result in lower tax payments on the second installments of their bills.

* Trains to stop using horns in western suburbs

* Rolling Meadows may delay new fire station

The city has gotten a federal stimulus grant to pay for half of the cost up to $1.8 million, said Mayor Ken Nelson. He said the city could request bids and then not accept any of them, and there is no hurry because the grant deadline is lenient.

* Mayor to keep focus on schools

Ardis will talk about some of District 150’s successes in State if the City address Tuesday

* Sarah Palin booked to speak in central Illinois

Organizer Sherril West said former Republican congressional candidate John Morris helped with the booking. Morris was an unsuccessful GOP candidate for the 18th Congressional District in 2008.[…]

The event will be used as a fundraiser for Washington’s community center, and tickets will cost up to $100 to see the speech and $200 for the banquet and speech. The group also hopes to set up a scholarship fund.

* Fairmount deal could restore racing dates

* Aldermen OK Meadow Mart plan changes

* Tourism bureau to reveal tourney expansion details

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau officials will announce details Wednesday of a new deal to expand a softball and baseball tournament series this summer.

* Kadner: 55 percent tax bill is not a solution

* Champaign County voters OK’d sales tax second time around

* Pekin Daily Times moves to morning publication cycle

* Despite new county ordinance, gentleman’s club is open

* Partisan maps not acceptable

Democrats like Steve Beckett and Barb Wysocki are working with Republicans like Al Nudo to put in place a process for drawing county board district maps on a non-partisan basis. That means drawing lines that are compact and contiguous, not spread hither and yon to jam Republicans here and Democrats there.

* Champaign council to vote on ‘Big Broadband’ grant

Of the 900 systems in the world that utilize the type of technology proposed for Champaign-Urbana, only one is active in the United States – a 3,500-population New York community.

* McLean Co. Board member drops defamation suit

* Decatur businesses gradually prepping for legal video poker

* Maryville board switches power suppliers

Maryville has joined a growing number of communities, among them Glen Carbon, in making the switch to the non-regulated arm of Ameren Corporation’s energy operations, represented by Ameren Energy Marketing.

* Mokena District 159 says plunging state aid is forcing tax increase request

* Suburban schools hoping for tax increase approval

For the third time since 2007, voters in Lansing and Lynwood are being asked to approve a tax increase to help keep Sunnybrook School District 171 running. The district has already cut all extracurricular activities, and officials say a failed referendum will bring even more cuts.

* Union school board wants to expand building

* SD 122 looks at cuts, including layoffs

* Dist. 88 plans $3.2 million in cuts for 2010-11 budget

Due to falling property tax revenues and weakened state funding, administrators in DuPage High School District 88 will begin planning $3.2 million in budget reductions for the 2010-11 school year.

* Dist. 300 looks to borrow $11 million

The borrowing comes on top of more than $6 million in budget reductions - including layoffs and program cuts - that district officials are contemplating for the 2010-11 school year.

* Washington’s District 50 approves new superintendent

* 5-year charter school contract approved

District 150 formalizes agreement with PCSI for math, science and technology academy

* Officials want to put facilitators in all grade schools

* Champaign school district seeking $2 million in cuts

* Marion Unit 2 School District has not set date to meet with Marion council

* Frankfort Park District wants to keep its tax rate

* Park District Board to vote on 2010 budget

The district’s overall budget is $52.1 million, but that includes capital expenses and other costs. The smaller $30.1 million operating budget pays for most of the services people who use the district are familiar with, such as soccer programs, lifeguards at Magic Waters and maintenance at neighborhood parks.

* Village president: State of Glen Ellyn “sound”

* Mayor: Not business-as-usual in Naperville

Pradel told the crowd gathered for a Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon that the city has not been immune to economic troubles. It faced an $11 million budget deficit going into the current fiscal year and what was once a $14.1 million hole in the coming budget.

Just weeks ago, the city eliminated 49 employee positions - 22 that were filled and 27 that were vacant.

* Layoffs threatened at CWLP unless unions OK concessions

Ward 3 Ald. Frank Kunz asked for a breakdown of how the potential layoffs would affect each of the utilty’s departments, such as the water fund and electric fund, but Renfrow couldn’t provide it to aldermen during the budget workshop.

* Springfield home sales show improvement over ‘08

Home sales were up 6.5 percent last year over 2008, and prices climbed by 4.8 percent.

* Home sales on roller-coaster ride in 2009

December sales dropped to 168 sales in St. Clair County and 179 in Madison County according to numbers reported Monday by the Realtor Association of Southwestern Illinois in Belleville and the Greater Association of Realtors in Glen Carbon.

Home sales locally before December had been above 200 each month for most of the year. For the year, St. Clair saw sales fall slightly from 2,478 in 2008 to 2,430 last year. In Madison County, annual sales dropped for 2,734 in 2008 to 2,698 last year.