Andy Shaw

Despite the budget blues, legislators passed several good government bills on their way to the governor’s desk.

In 2001, 40 journalists covered the Capitol full-time. Now there are only 10.

Hats off to the Police Board, Ethics Board and IGs that are stepping up to hold public officials accountable.

While leadership flails on a budget deal, rank-and-file legislators in Springfield are moving the ball on good government issues.

“By any statistical measure we’re a worse democracy today than 40 or even 20 years ago.” -Dick Simpson, political scientist

Illinois school districts are so administratively top heavy that they’re depriving schools of valuable instruction dollars.

Reforming gun sentencing, bail and police union contracts are just some of the encouraging efforts around Chicago.

Critics of longer prison sentences for gun crimes compare the idea to the “War on Drugs,” which imprisoned thousands of minorities without reducing drug trafficking or usage.

Hey pols: Are you finally ready to equip your internal watchdogs with a loud bark and sharp teeth? The silence is deafening.

We can’t let public officials hide conversations that affect our lives and tax dollars in personal email accounts that are often inaccessible.