Area congressman supports No Budget, No Pay Act

Members of the U.S. House want the Senate to pass a budget.  Among them is Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger.

He’s backing the No Budget, No Pay Act, legislation that suspends the debt limit and makes the House and Senate pass a budget by April 15. If they don’t, their paychecks will be withheld.

Kinzinger says, “It’s time for Washington to tackle the government’s spending addiction.”

State chipping in for Peru airport repairs

The road leading to the Illinois Valley Regional Airport in Peru is a bumpy ride but at least the entrance is getting repaired.

The Illinois Department of Transportation is giving Peru nearly $249,000 to redo the entrance road and parking lot.  The city will have to pay about $28,000 towards the balance.

The state’s portion is coming from the IDOT’s State-Local Airport Improvement Program.  The funding was announced Wednesday.

Parolee accused of stealing a car in La Salle

A man with a criminal history was back in jail after police say he stole a car in La Salle and drove it to Oglesby.

Nathan Cummings of Ottawa was arrested Tuesday after the 2008 Pontiac Grand Prix missing from Limberg Road in La Salle was found on Walnut Street in Oglesby.

Cummings was arrested for motor vehicle theft and theft under $500.  He was also arrested on an Illinois Department of Corrections parole violation warrant.

Cummings was convicted of a drug related charge in 2009.

Familiar Faces To Compete On Amazing Race

Remember the twin doctors whose exit from St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Ottawa created a stir?  They’re making news again.

Dr’s Jamil and Idries Abdur-Rahman are going to be on the new season of CBS’s Amazing Race.  The long-running reality show released its cast today.

The twins had OB offices in Streator, Marseilles and Ottawa but announced in December that they were relocating to Waukegan.  Jamil Abdur-Rahman mentioned on Facebook that he didn’t think they would be able to continue to work for OSF because of philosophical differences.

The Amazing Race premiere is February 17^th.

Local Home Sales End Year On High Note

Home sales are staying steady in the Illinois Valley.

According to the Illinois Association of REALTORS, 84 homes were sold in La Salle County in December, up from 77 the month before.  Nineteen homes went off the market last month in Bureau County, down from 20 the month before.  In Putnam County, four homes were sold in December, the same as November.

Statewide, home sales were up 15 percent.

Bureau County Man Killed In Snowmobile Crash

Snowmobiling is fun but is also plenty dangerous.  A Cherry man is dead after a snowmobiling accident.

KKCO TV in Grand Junction, Colorado reports that 31-year old Mike Fonderoli died Monday at a Delta, Colorado hospital.  Fonderoli was rushed to the hospital after a snowmobile accident in a remote area that was only accessible by snowmobile or helicopter.

Officers say Fonderoli was snowmobiling with a large group.  Funeral service information can be heard during AM 1220 WLPO’s In Memoriam.

George Ryan Leaving Prison Soon

CHICAGO (AP) – Imprisoned ex-Gov. George Ryan is scheduled to be released to a Chicago halfway house at the end of January.

Ryan attorney Albert Alschuler says Ryan will leave prison Jan. 30 through a work release program, something attorneys have mentioned before. The federal Bureau of Prisons website lists Ryan’s official release date as July 4. The 78-year-old Ryan is serving a 6  1/2-year sentence in Terre Haute, Ind., for a 2006 corruption conviction.

Ryan was convicted of steering state contracts and leases to insiders in exchange for vacations and gifts while he was in office. He was accused of stopping an investigation into state employees accepting bribes in exchange for truck driver’s licenses.

Streator And Fieldcrest Go For State Dance Title

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (AP) – Could an area high school bring home state hardware this weekend?

The Illinois High School Association will hold its first ever state dancing championships this weekend at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in Bloomington, with the preliminary rounds on Friday and the finals on Saturday. Dance teams from Fieldcrest and Streator are among 91 teams competing for the Competitive Dance state title. Fieldcrest and Streator are both in Class 1A.

On Friday and Saturday, the teams with as many as 28 members, will perform routines in a variety of dance styles, including jazz, hip hop, kick, or combinations of various styles. They will be judged on technique, choreography, synchronization, musicality, formations, transitions and overall effect.