January 22, 2021
Gov J.B. Pritzker – PHOTO IDPH
SPRINGFIELD – Governor J.B. Pritzker announced on Friday, new investments by the State of Illinois to help more small businesses access federal COVID-19 emergency programs. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) will direct a $3.4 million investment to expand community navigator outreach programs and technical assistance services provided through the State’s Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs). These investments are designed to help more businesses take advantage of billions of dollars of financial assistance recently made available through the renewed Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and with other federal programs set to launch in the coming weeks.
The White House
Today, Acting Small Business Administrator Tami Perriello, Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese, Deputy Director of the National Economic Council Bharat Ramamurti, and other senior Biden-Harris Administration officials from the SBA and Department of Treasury held a virtual meeting with more than 100 representatives from small business advocates, minority and women small business leaders, lenders, and other economic organizations.
The senior administration officials underscored President Biden and Vice President Harris’s commitment to providing small businesses with the support they need throughout the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, especially ensuring minority- and women- owned businesses have fair and equitable access to small business relief programs. They discussed how the Biden-Harris Administration will focus on identifying Navigators to ensure small businesses in communities of color and underserved communities can better access t
The small-business aid included in the $900 billion federal pandemic relief package approved last month has started to flow, and more could be on the way. Here's what's available now.
Tamara L. Smith
Alejandro Morales, a drummer with the Chicago punk trio Running who also played with other experimental noise groups, died Jan. 3 while visiting his family in Puerto Rico, where he grew up.
He was 46. The cause of death wasn’t disclosed.
Ben Billington, a musician and friend of Mr. Morales, said he remembers seeing him play with Running when the group was first making a name for itself, playing seven- to eight-minute sets at DIY spots across the city.
The group played so hard that, Billington said, “Alejandro would just fall off his drum stool at the end of the set. It wasn’t about the length. It was about the strength, the power, the energy.
Heartland Alliance: Historic legislation to prevent predatory loans passing Illinois House
Heartland Alliance: Historic legislation to prevent predatory loans passing Illinois House
SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Jan. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ The Illinois House of Representatives passed the Predatory Loan Prevention Act, which if passed by the Senate, would implement a 36 percent interest rate cap on consumer loans, including payday and car title loans. The legislation passed with a bipartisan vote, without a single member voting no. It is part of an omnibus economic equity bill, one of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus four pillars, sponsored by Rep. Sonya Harper.
In Illinois, the average annual percentage rate (APR) on a payday loan is 297 percent, and the average APR on an auto title loan is 179 percent. Federal law already protects active-duty military with a 36 percent APR cap. This bill would extend the same protection to Illinois veterans and all other consumers. Seventeen st