<?xml version="1.0" encoding="windows-1252"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Illinois IGNN: Main State Page News</title><link>http://www.illinois.gov/news/</link><description>The Illinois Government News Network (IGNN) section is your online source for news from the State of Illinois. Choose from the IGNN Links on the right to locate press releases in the categories that are of interest to you, or use the search the news feature to locate specific press releases or a different topic of releases. For other media, access the Illinois Information Service (IIS) Radio page for digital radio feeds and news soundbites.</description><language>en-us</language><copyright>Copyright &#169; 2013 State of Illinois</copyright><pubDate>Fri, 17 May 2013 18:32:03 CST</pubDate><ttl>2</ttl><webMaster>cms.rss@illinois.gov</webMaster><lastBuildDate>Fri, 17 May 2013 18:32:03 CST</lastBuildDate><image>  <title>IGNN</title>  <link>http://www.illinois.gov/news/</link>  <url>http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/images/IGNN133x45.jpg</url>  <width>133</width>  <height>45</height>   </image><!-- Note: You can get the HTML version by replacing .xml to .htm --><item><title><![CDATA[Governor Quinn Praises Final Ratification of Best Contract for Taxpayers in Illinois History - Three-year Agreement Receives Final Union Approval After 15 Month Negotiation]]></title><link>http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&#x26;RecNum=11192</link><description><![CDATA[SPRINGFIELD – Governor Pat Quinn today praised American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 31 members’ final ratification of a new union contract covering approximately 35,000 state employees. Negotiations took more than 15 months and the agreement received final ratification by AFSCME members in a vote that concluded yesterday. The agreement is part of the governor’s agenda to restore fiscal stability to Illinois.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 CST</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">3791226CB3FCB9A6710E1EAD55571D86</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[Governor Quinn Requests Federal Disaster Aid for Families and Businesses in 16 Additional Counties - More Than 800 Homes Damaged by Floods in 16 Counties]]></title><link>http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&#x26;RecNum=11191</link><description><![CDATA[SPRINGFIELD – Governor Pat Quinn today asked the federal government to add 16 Illinois counties to a recent federal disaster declaration for 11 counties hit by widespread flooding in mid-April. Counties included in today’s request are Bureau, Crawford, Henderson, Knox, Livingston, Marshall, Mason, McDonough, Peoria, Putnam, Rock Island, Schuyler, Stark, Tazewell, Warren and Woodford.]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 CST</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">EE7AF88F5686A35A7943F5DD9EA727F6</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[Unemployment Rate Declines to 9.3 Percent - April Shows Job Growth Over Year; Loss Over Month]]></title><link>http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&#x26;RecNum=11190</link><description><![CDATA[CHICAGO – The April unemployment rate fell to 9.3 percent from 9.5 percent in March, according to preliminary data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES). There were -2,000 fewer jobs over the month yet +40,300 more jobs than one year ago. The data is seasonally adjusted.]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 CST</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">E81F1E4FE5B85BE7A6619D0B33427E01</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[Chicago Trade Show Represents World Of Opportunity For Illinois Food Companies - National Restaurant Association Show to bring food buyers from more than 100 countries to McCormick Place]]></title><link>http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&#x26;RecNum=11189</link><description><![CDATA[SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Illinois Department of Agriculture will have a bigger presence at the world’s largest food service industry trade show, giving more Illinois food companies an opportunity to meet thousands of international buyers and grow their export business.]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 CST</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">30F985EC9336F2A5C2142FEB9EBDBB53</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New American Sign Language Videos will Help Deaf, Hard of Hearing Prepare for Disasters - Videos Available at www.Ready.Illinois.gov and www.idhhc.illinois.gov]]></title><link>http://www3.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&#x26;RecNum=11187</link><description><![CDATA[SPRINGFIELD – Information on how to prepare for tornadoes, severe storms and flooding is now available for people who are deaf and hard of hearing in a series of new videos that use American Sign Language (ASL) and are fully captioned.  The new videos join 11 other ASL and captioned disaster preparedness videos developed by the Illinois Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission (IDHHC) and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA).]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 CST</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">421B9FF13E012545C871FFF7824CD12A</guid></item></channel></rss>