The Illinois House passed legislation on Thursday requiring more thorough background checks before police officers are hired, less than a year after a Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy shot and killed Sonya Massey.

Massey was shot and killed last July by former Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson last summer inside her home near Springfield.

Grayson has been fired and charged with first-degree murder in Massey’s killing, and questions have been raised about why he was hired in the first place, given concerns about his conduct at past police jobs.

Grayson shot and killed Massey as she was checking on a pot of boiling water in her kitchen while saying “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” but prosecutors have said Grayson asked her to move the pot off the stove, and that she never posed a danger that justified the use of lethal force.

By a 101-12 vote on Thursday, the Illinois House approved legislation sponsored by state Rep. Kam Buckner (D-Chicago) that would require more comprehensive background checks before hiring police or other law enforcement officers in Illinois.

Law enforcement agencies would not be allowed to make a final job offer for police officers without first inspecting all of their prior employment records.

Anyone applying for a police officer job in Illinois would be required to authorize all previous employers, including other law enforcement agencies, to provide full employment records – including “duty-related physical and psychological fitness-for-duty examinations; work performance records,” and any criminal records or records of other investigations connected to their conduct on the job.

Before Grayson was hired in Sangamon County, questions about his conduct were well-documented by other police agencies. But those concerns were somehow never shared with the Sangamon County Sheriff’s office during the hiring process.

In his fifth police job, he refused to terminate a high-speed chase and drove more than 110 mph — only coming to an end when he hit a deer. A report from a department where Grayson was employed also said he struggled with report writing and was aggressive in his pursuit for drugs.

“It’s just sad that we had to have had a tragedy like this with the Sonya Massey murder to realize that we are doing things wrong,” said Buckner. “This is an opportunity to have some checks and some balances and some processes to make sure that we don’t find ourselves in the same position and situation that we did when Sean Grayson was hired.”

The legislation was passed unanimously by the Illinois Senate last month, and will go to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk.

Grayson is scheduled to go on trial in October in Peoria County. The Illinois Supreme Court is weighing a request from Grayson to be released from jail ahead of his trial.

(WIFR) – Municipal leaders prepare for a taxation juggling act.

Starting January 1, 2026, Illinois will eliminate the 1% grocery sales tax. For DeKalb City Manager Bill Nicklas, that begins the juggle. He claims around $800,000 in annual revenue would disappear with the change.

“Is $800,000 noticeable? Well, it is for us,” asserts Nicklas. In Fiscal Year 2025, the city expects $51 million to arrive from general fund revenues. Within that, the city manager says the grocery tax supports general operations, “That pays for our personnel, fire, police, public works, administrators like myself.”

In February, Gov. JB Pritzker emphasized the need to eliminate the tax. “This year, we are going to need to do even more to address high prices and counteract Trump’s tariffs that will raise taxes on working families.”

While the tax will disappear statewide next year, the law allows municipalities to keep it in place – if they so choose. Some communities, such as Rochelle, have taken steps to reinstate the tax or return it as a smaller charge.

Preparing his city’s upcoming budget, Nicklas sees two options for DeKalb: keep the tax, or let it discontinue.

“Keeping the same tax is going to be one of the options, and I’m not going to preview what the answer’s going to be,” states the city manager. “If we don’t replace it, what don’t we spend?”

Nicklas says he understands the tax’s elimination may benefit working- and middle-class families, but his budgeting process “isn’t about where our heartstrings are.” One figure from WTTW estimates Illinois cities and towns could close $350 million in funding starting Jan. 1.

Durand Mayor Sheila Hoffman shares a similar predicament. While her village differs in size from DeKalb (1,390 residents v. 40,211), she braces for a sprawling impact from the tax’s elimination.

“This year, with the budget, we‘ve really skimmed back as much as we can,” notes Hoffman. According to estimates from the mayor, Durand could lose $50-70,000 in annual revenue without the grocery charge.

Hoffman also focuses on the benefit those in Durand could see in their wallets once the 1% fee evaporates.

“We all have that same pressure on us to perform to the best of our ability for the taxpayers, but to also have the responsibility of maintaining the books to the best of our ability,” she holds.

The mayor sets a deadline for October to decide what’s next for local taxation (a similar goal for Nicklas’ budget proposal). Yet, she mentions where her final choice may rest.

“We‘re not rushing into that decision. Unless we really need to, we‘ll let that lapse with the state,” concludes Hoffman.

Each leader mentions a possible reinstatement depends on council member choices and public feedback. Nicklas suggests the decision process could use more research/data – especially focusing on household incomes in DeKalb.

“What we like to do in democracy is to have some objective basis on which to make decisions, and we‘re going to be lacking in that,” argues Nicklas. “Nobody’s got a chart.”

On Wednesday night, DeKalb County Board members began considering a county-wide 1% grocery tax.

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