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Two Semi Accident on Route 48 Friday Morning

January 9, 2026

CHRISTIAN COUNTY — On Friday, January 9, 2026, there was an accident involving two semi trucks with trailers on Route 48 near Cclarksdale. This accident happened approximately 9:00 a.m. Emergency personnel including police, fire, and ambulance were on the scene. Breeze-Courier Photo/Kim Paisley-Jones

Reception Held For Bourne

January 9, 2026

TAYLORVILLE— A retirement reception was held in honor of Taylorville Memorial Hospital CEO Kim Bourne on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. Bourne shared her gratitude during the event saying, “I am just so blessed to have been able to finish my career here. It’s such an awesome hospital that cares so much for the community.…

Trump freezes $10B in social service, child care funding for Illinois, others

January 9, 2026

Children play outside at Our World of Learning Child Development Center in Alexander County in December 2024. File photo by Julia Rendleman Peter Hancock Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – The Trump administration announced late Tuesday that it was freezing distribution of about $10 billion in federal child care and family assistance funds to five…

TJHS 7th grade learns about Alaska

January 9, 2026

TAYLORVILLE — Mrs. Tammy Reindl, a teacher and Technology Integration specialist at the Taylorville Junior High School, went into the 7th Geography classes and worked with students on drawing a map of Alaska. They had to label popular cities and towns as well as the stops on the Iditarod Trail. Once that was completed,…

US trade rep: Renewal of deal with Mexico, Canada not a ‘rubberstamp’

January 8, 2026

The success of Illinois agricultural exports has become dependent on market access to Canada and Mexico through tariff-free provisions, Illinois Farm Bureau noted. Photo by Catrina Rawson of FarmWeek TAMMIE SLOUP FarmWeek US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said while there is value with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the US will not rubberstamp the agreement with…

VFW Patriot’s Pen/Voice of Democracy Essay Contest Winners

January 8, 2026

DECATUR — Students from Taylorville Junior High and High School were honored in Decatur at the VFW Post 99 this past Sunday for the Patriots Pen/Voice of Democracy Essay Contest. The VFW is dedicated to promoting patriotism and investing in future generations, establishing scholarship opportunities up to nearly $1 million in state and national awards.…

Peoples Gas files $202 million rate increase request with Illinois regulatory body

January 8, 2026

Maggie Dougherty Capitol News Illinois CHICAGO — Peoples Gas on Monday filed a $202.3 million rate hike request with the Illinois Commerce Commission, sparking public outcry and protests from consumer advocates. The increase, which the company estimates will add $10-11 to monthly gas bills for typical residential customers in Chicago if approved by the…

County Sheriff Candidate speaks at Village meeting

January 8, 2026

Rachel LeBeane Breeze-Courier Writer MT. AUBURN — The Village of Mt. Auburn held a regular meeting on Tuesday, January 6, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. in the Village Hall. Phil Deal, a Republican Candidate running for the office of Christian County Sheriff in this year’s election, took time to come to the Village Hall and speak…

LLCC offering free three-part series on cryptocurrency

January 8, 2026

SPRINGFIELD — Lincoln Land Community College’s Academy of Lifelong Learning (ALL) has partnered with financial experts, Fidelity, J.P. Morgan and Capital Group, to offer a three-part speaker series on understanding cryptocurrency and the digital ecosystem. The virtual series is free and will be offered via Zoom. Jan. 21, 2026, 3-4:30 p.m., Fidelity will present “Bitcoin and…

Taylorville Council Approves Water Rate Increase

January 6, 2026

Rachel Elam Breeze-Courier Writer TAYLORVILLE — The Taylorville City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers of the Municipal Building. Council voted 4-3 to approve a water rate increase beginning Jan. 1, 2026. Discussion revealed the increase is approximately 16%, followed by annual 4%…