This post covers many of the other County level government and related news items for May and June. For County Board specific updates, see our other post today here.
Mahomet Aquifer Updates:
A bill banning carbon sequestration in the Mahomet Aquifer is awaiting the Governor's signature. State Senator Faraci's (IL-52) office is expecting him to sign it in the coming weeks. It is still unknown whether the Governor will visit the area when he does so.
The Daily Illini had coverage of the bill being passed by the Illinois General Assembly back in May:
After months of debate, the Illinois House and Senate passed a bill to ban carbon sequestration projects at sole-source aquifers on Tuesday, May 20. In a bipartisan effort, the House voted 91-19, sending the legislation to Governor Pritzker’s desk for approval.
“Although carbon sequestration undergoes rigorous federal and State permitting, the uniqueness of the Mahomet Aquifer being the sole source of drinking water for central Illinois residents warrants additional protection,” reads the bill.
Carbon sequestration is the process of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and injecting it underground. After Archer-Daniels-Midland’s carbon sequestration facility in Decatur, Illinois leaked, environmentalists started lobbying for efforts to protect the integrity of the Mahomet Aquifer, which serves nearly one million people.
That full article here.
July 4th Events and Organizing.
There is a great deal of work that goes into local events, fundraising, and organizing body behind our local July 4th events. The Champaign County Freedom Celebration Committee is also looking for more volunteers for this year's events. The News-Gazette had a detailed overview of events here. Illinois Public Media also had a brief rundown of the events, timing, and security issues for this year's event:
The Champaign County Freedom Celebration has been East Central Illinois’ premier patriotic party since 1949 -honoring a longstanding custom to celebrate Independence Day in Champaign County.
...
New Timing
This year’s event will include some changes to its parade route and time.
Captain Joe McCullough with the University of Illinois Police, said that due to the lack of volunteers, the celebration had to delay its parade time to 4:30 p.m. — several hours later than its traditional time.
More at that full article here. Publicity Chair, Diane Ducey also explained some of the changes in a recent Kathy's Mailbag article here. For a little background, there was also a struggle for volunteers last year as well, as reported in the News-Gazette back in 2024.
After this year's July 4th events there were concerns raised about limiting protests, banning pamphlet distribution, and accessibility.
Kickapoo Rail Trail Update:
IPM also reported a large amount of State funding for the Kickapoo Rail Trail project:
The Kickapoo Rail Trail expansion received over $9.5 million dollars in the 2026 Illinois state budget to continue a construction project that involves converting an out of service railroad into a recreational trail...
Bridgette Moen, planning director for the Champaign County Forest Preserves, said the final trail will be about 25 miles long. The trail will connect Urbana to Oakwood and cap out near Kickapoo State Park.
“Currently we have about three miles built in Vermilion County and about eight in Champaign County,” she said. “But this project includes building close to nine additional miles in Vermilion County, about four and a half in Champaign County and then a trailhead structure in Urbana at the Urbana Park District.”
The funding for the project is from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity through the Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan. The total cost of the expansion is $11.2 million.
That full article here.
C-UPHD Updates:
There are ongoing disputes about the Sooie Bar-B-Que Joint dispute that had both the restaurant owner and the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District claiming to be vindicated after Judge Bohm ruled that the restaurant was to remain closed until it was in compliance with its existing food-service plan. In May the restaurant's lawsuit against the C-UPHD was dismissed, with the option of filing an amended complaint. The latest update from the News-Gazette notes that amended $3.5 million complaint has been submitted last week after an extension. The recent News-Gazette article was primarily on a separate new legal petition against the C-UPHD.
A local restaurant that has been shut down for nearly four months claims that, by not allowing it to reopen, the health district has violated a court order.
Sooie Bros. Bar-B-Que Joint co-owner Alven Allison has filed a petition for adjudication of civil contempt arguing that the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District has not complied with the order issued by Champaign County Judge Jason Bohm in late April.
Bohm wrote that the injunction to close the restaurant will remain in effect until Allison either “comes into compliance with the existing food-service plan dated February 2, 2023,” or submits an amended plan that is approved by the health district...
According to the case docket, any materials opposing Allison’s motion must be filed by July 14, and any rebuttal by Allison to these materials must be filed by July 21.
The court will then review the documents and decide whether to schedule a hearing.
That full article here with details on both the recent petition and amended $3.5 million lawsuit against the C-UPHD.
State's Attorney and Campus Protest Cases:
We've previously covered the Champaign County State's Attorney's controversial decision to charge campus protesters with felony mob-action charges which organizations like the Illinois ACLU raised serious concerns over. In case after case after case, the felony mob action charges have been dropped. From the News-Gazette coverage of the Yafa Issa case back in May:
A 19-year-old Savoy woman’s trial on charges related to her actions at a pro-Palestinian protest at the University of Illinois last year came to a close Thursday, with her found guilty of a misdemeanor.
Champaign County Judge Roger Webber dismissed felony mob-action charges against Yafa Issa after the state rested its case, saying the “evidence falls woefully short” of demonstrating that she was involved in any kind of violent activity. Issa was the first individual connected with the protest to go to trial.
Webber did not dismiss her misdemeanor charge of resisting or obstructing a peace officer, however, and, after hearing closing arguments, ruled it was clear beyond a reasonable doubt that Issa attempted to block officers from accessing tents erected by protestors near the Alma Mater statue.
That full article here with updates on that case, sentencing, and other cases in coverage last week here.
While multiple other individuals who faced charges after the April 26, 2024, protest at the University of Illinois have taken plea deals, Issa was the first to go to trial.
Ultimately, Champaign County Judge Roger Webber made a similar ruling to the negotiated pleas others have accepted: He dismissed a felony mob-action charge and convicted her of resisting or obstructing a peace officer.
At the agreement of Assistant State’s Attorney Eileen Keeley and Issa’s attorney, Evan Bruno, Issa will be required to complete 100 hours of public service work and 12 months of conditional discharge.
That is also the sentence that other individuals have accepted as part of their negotiated pleas.
Given the passionate views on the topics of the protests themselves, I will repost the disclaimer from our previous coverage on these protests and related charges:
The Cheat Sheet does not take any position on foreign policy and generally limits its content to local government related news and information. On controversial issues like this, we will try our best to highlight different perspectives, while still doing our best to confirm any facts in contention. We leave it to the reader to form an opinion.
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