WCBU Newscasts - 7:04am 7-2-2026

From the WCBU newsroom, I'm Rich Drager. The Peoria Public Schools Board of Education has delayed a vote on proposing a half-cent sales tax increase to help pay for facility maintenance. The administration says the move will allow the new administration to get more feedback on the proposal. The action comes after incoming member Andy Diaz says he had his bid denied for a temporary restraining order to postpone the meeting. The fact that this school board continues to have open meeting violations. that continues to dismiss the public and quite frankly just do as they please. Those days are going to come to an end. Diaz and fellow newcomer Sarah Howard took their oaths after being elected to the board in March. A jury in Cook County has returned a record high $50 million judgment against the Chicago-based owners of a Peoria fitness camp after an eight-year-old boy was allegedly sexually assaulted by another male camper. The incident happened in July of 2022 in a shower at what was then called the kids' climbing camp where a 13-year-old was accused of attacking the younger boy. Attorneys for the boy's family alleged employees knew of a previous incident involving the older boy but did nothing to prevent the two from being together unsupervised in a bathroom. U.S. Senator Dick Durbin says President Trump's Save Act is a voter suppression bill. The proposal would require a photo ID and proof of citizenship to register to vote and to vote. Speaking in central Illinois, Dick Durbin said driver's licenses alone would not be enough, and birth certificates are often hard to find. He says passports to prove citizenship are expensive. That turns out to be a voting charge. a requirement that you pay a fee in order to be able to vote in this country. When did we get into that business? I thought we got out of that business. The Senate has so far refused to take up the matter because there aren't enough votes for it to overcome a filibuster. Players for the Peoria Chiefs are no longer subject to Illinois minimum wage requirements. A new law signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker exempts affiliated minor league baseball teams. The change only applies to the Chiefs as the only affiliated minor league club in the state. The team's players are salaried and their wages are governed by a collective bargaining agreement. Each story you hear on Planet Money starts with a question. What happens if we refund tariffs? Why are groceries so expensive? At NPR, we stand for your right to be curious because the forces shaping our world can be hard to seek. Follow NPR's Planet Money wherever you get your podcast and start seeing how the economy really works.