SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois House on Monday approved a bill aimed at making it easier for relatives of children in state care to get licensed as foster parents and receive assistance.

The measure, which passed without opposition, now goes to Gov. JB Pritzker, who has said he will sign it.

“We’re going to change some kid’s life,”...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Surrounded by supporters on a chilly Tuesday morning, Monique Worrell climbed the steps of the Orange County courthouse complex where she had spoken after the governor suspended her in August 2023 as Orange-Osceola state attorney — only this time she was returning newly reelected.

“This moment represents more than a return...Read more

NEW YORK — Federal prosecutors who indicted Mayor Adams on corruption charges last year allege they have uncovered “additional criminal conduct” that the mayor and others engaged in.

The prosecutors from the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office wrote in a court filing late Monday they unearthed evidence of the conduct as part of their “...Read more

North Carolina will receive $1.6 billion in federal grants to help rebuild communities ravaged by Helene, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Tuesday.

The money can be used to help rebuild homes, develop affordable housing, help small businesses, and repair roads, schools, water treatment plants and other critical ...Read more

President-elect Donald Trump says wind farms off the Massachusetts coast are “driving the whales crazy,” and his administration will look to enact a policy that halts the development of the “garbage” energy source.

“They are dangerous,” Trump said of wind farms during a lengthy news conference Tuesday, touching on his central ...Read more

WASHINGTON ― The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allocated nearly $461 million in disaster aid this week to Michigan, Detroit and Wayne County to help individuals, businesses and localities recover from flooding, tornadoes and storms in late August 2023, officials said Tuesday.

The funding was approved in late December as ...Read more

A federal judge on Tuesday approved a Kansas Jan. 6 defendant’s request to attend president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, the first person charged with a felony to receive such permission.

William Pope, of Topeka, filed a motion with the court on Dec. 28 asking for approval to go to the Jan. 20 event. His request was granted by U.S. ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A fire was burning out of control Tuesday in Pacific Palisades, destroying homes and forcing residents to abandon their vehicles and flee amid a potentially “life-threatening and destructive” windstorm.

Most of Pacific Palisades was under an evacuation order by the afternoon, as residents fought traffic jams and heavy smoke ...Read more

NEW YORK — An off-duty MTA cleaner’s offhand complaint about a delayed Bronx subway train led to an argument with the repeat offender accused of stabbing him as their quarrel escalated, police sources said Tuesday.

“Where the hell is the train? Where the f--- is the train?” the upset 47-year-old victim said out loud as he waited at the ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — Police said Tuesday that the suspect in a New Year’s Day Tesla Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump International Hotel used ChatGPT to help plan his attack and left behind a six-page manifesto.

Authorities identified the man behind the explosion as active-duty military operations sergeant Matthew Livelsberger.

Livelsberger, ...Read more

NEW YORK — Top Eric Adams administration official Jesse Hamilton pressured the city government’s top real estate broker to put one of his friends in charge of its dealings with the city, who in turn used that role to sideline a competitor and maximize her own commissions, according to a bombshell complaint filed late Monday.

The complaint ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Moving swiftly to distance herself from her embattled predecessor, newly minted Supervisor of Elections Karen Castor Dentel said Tuesday that her administration has begun efforts to claw back taxpayer funds from Valencia College and the Central Florida Foundation.

Payments to those groups were made by the previous elections ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A fire was burning out of control Tuesday in the Pacific Palisades, threatening numerous homes and forcing thousands to evacuate, amid a potentially “life-threatening and destructive” windstorm.

Most of the Pacific Palisades was under an evacuation order, as residents and firefighters fought traffic jams in some areas trying...Read more

MIAMI — The discovery of two bodies in the landing gear of a JetBlue plane on Monday night has drawn widespread attention. The flight had arrived at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport from New York City. While tragic and unsettling, such incidents, though rare, are not unprecedented.

The first recorded case of an aircraft ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A committee of the Sacramento City Council voted Tuesday to gave preliminary approval of six recommended steps toward pedestrian and cyclist safety on city streets after a year in which 32 people were killed in traffic collisions.

The unanimous vote of the Personnel and Public Employees Committee, however, does not mean ...Read more

CHICAGO — Illinois is now experiencing high levels of respiratory illness, up from moderate levels the previous week, the state health department reported Tuesday.

The increase is not a surprise, given that this is the typical season for spikes in the flu, RSV and COVID-19, health officials and doctors say.

“The New Year has arrived, and ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — The state of Nevada is suing grocery giant Kroger, alleging that its Smith grocery store pharmacies “flooded” the state with opioids knowing that overprescribing of the synthetic drugs was contributing to a growing crisis, according to a lawsuit.

Attorney General Aaron Ford’s office filed a 56-page complaint Monday in Clark ...Read more

The first day of the Kentucky General Assembly’s regular session brought with it the expected formalities of swearing in new members, introduction of their guests and a helping of pomp and circumstance.

It also came with what’s become another routine: procedural rule changes by the ruling Republican majorities that Democrats say will stifle...Read more

ATLANTA — After months of silence and denials about the crisis in the Georgia state prison system, Gov. Brian Kemp on Tuesday made a powerful statement acknowledging the troubles. He unveiled a series of recommendations to address long-standing problems, and he called for more than $600 million in additional funding for the Georgia Department ...Read more