The BGA's Illinois Answers Project

06/04/2026

This free program offers therapies to Illinois toddlers experiencing developmental delays or disabilities. But the therapists who run it are leaving by the hundreds.

Illinois Answers Project spent months talking to dozens of Early Intervention therapists and the families that they help. Here’s what we found:

➡️ The demand for Early Intervention is increasing among families
⬅️ But therapists are quickly leaving the program – citing low pay, poor benefits and no reimbursement for hidden costs as mounting barriers to participation.

05/28/2026

If you don’t make six figures, it can be hard to find housing in Burr Ridge, Illinois – one of 44 towns required by state law to explain how they plan to create more affordable housing.

Advocates are pushing lawmakers to beef up the 23-year-old law so it would apply in Illinois towns where fewer than 25% of homes and apartments are considered affordable. That would be nearly double the number of towns, like Burr Ridge, required to report what they’re doing to expand affordable housing.

05/22/2026

After former Chicago Police Officer Carlos Baker shot and killed his police partner, Krystal Rivera, last June, dozens of officers arrived on the scene. New video shows officers carrying Rivera out of the building and rushing to get her to a hospital. But before they could leave, they were delayed for more than a minute as they searched for keys and cleared parked cars.

The rush to get Rivera to a hospital was apparently delayed almost three minutes after she was shot by her partner, new records show.

05/22/2026

The city’s premiere development initiative, Invest South/West, has brought hope to areas long ignored by developers and the promise of hundreds of millions of dollars. But some residents say they’ve been left out of real decision-making on the major projects coming to their areas.

Read the full story at the link in our bio.

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05/21/2026

In Illinois, many foster parents are grappling with a health care program that’s often underperforming and in disarray, according to interviews with foster parents, frontline medical providers, state officials and former Centene employees, as well as a review of thousands of pages of state contracts.

Read more at the link in the bio.

05/20/2026

While there is excitement around the possibility of an offshore wind farm, there is also concerns. Learn more at the link in our bio.

05/18/2026

For years, Daniel Brown cycled in and out of jail.

Then a judge sent him to mental health court. There, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

“It made sense when they explained it, because it broke down a lot of things I was dealing with,” he said.

05/15/2026

Chicago police officer Carlos Baker shot and killed his partner Officer Krystal Rivera in 2025 — the first officer-on-officer shooting in nearly 40 years. We, in partnership with Chicago Sun-Times, have covered this case extensively. Our coverage has raised questions about how Baker was assigned to the tactical team with his partner, Krystal Rivera, given his troubled work record, which includes accidentally firing his Taser during another pursuit. We partnered again with the Sun-Times to fight CPD in court and get the body camera footage of both officers released. The videos and audio recordings of Chicago Police Officer Carlos Baker’s later interview with investigators examining the shooting provide the clearest view yet of what happened.

To read the full story, click the link in bio.

05/14/2026

GRAPHIC WARNING: Here's a side-by-side view of the newly released body camera footage of the moments leading up to and after Chicago police officer Krystal Rivera was shot by her partner, Officer Carlos Baker.

The footage released Friday shows that Baker ran up a stairwell after his gun went off when they encountered an armed man, leaving Rivera bleeding for nearly 90 seconds from a gunshot he initially said had been fired by someone else. He later told an investigator he would have risked his life to help Rivera, saying, “I will die for her.”

The Illinois Answers Project, in partnership with Chicago Sun-Times, has covered this case extensively. Our coverage has raised questions about how Baker was assigned to the tactical team with Rivera, given his troubled work record, which includes accidentally firing his Taser during another pursuit.

To read our reporting, click the link in bio.

05/13/2026

The goal of these courts is to help people with severe mental illness get treatment instead of going to jail or prison. Critics say it's a band-aid on the underlying mental health crisis and mentally ill people should be able to access treatment without being arrested first. What do you think?