Progress Illinois

House Debates Bailout Proposal
Following weekend negotiations, the U.S. House is now debating a proposed $700 billion bailout of the financial services industry.  However, members from both sides of the aisle are said to be wary of the bill and many predict that the vote later today will be extremely close.

Feds Oversee Another Bank Buy-Out
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has stepped in and brokered the second major bank sale in a week to avoid another major corporate failure in the midst of the ongoing financial crisis. Citigroup has agreed to buy Wachovia, the FDIC announced this morning. This move concentrates the large majority of America bank deposits within three institutions: Citigroup, Bank of America, and JP Morgan Chase.

Analysts Say New Jobless Figures Won't Be Pretty
New unemployment figures for September are due out this week and they're likely to contain more bad news. The Labor Department's jobs report is the last one to be released before the Nov. 4 election. Some say that the new data could help Democrats, who have made economic turmoil a central campaign theme.

State Budget Cuts Hang In The Balance
Despite state legislators voting to restore $220 million worth of budget cuts -- from drug treatment programs to keeping state parks open -- the future of those programs remain unknown. That's becuase of uncertainty about how the governor will respond to a plan to tap earmarked funds to pay for the cuts at a time when state revenues are down.

Death Penalty Defense Fund Looted?
Questionable legal fees and other unchecked expenses drawn from an eight-year-old, $10 million annual fund established to cover the costs of death penalty review cases are being scrutinized. Some of the prosecutor expenses have critics charging that attorneys are seek the death penalty in some cases merely to offset costs from their counties' budgets.

Chicagoland Air Quality Among Worst In Nation
A Tribune analysis of EPA data shows that people living in Chicago and Cook County are subject to some of the highest risks for cancer, lung disease, and other health problems because of high levels of industrial toxins that are released into the air. Cook County ranked among the worst in the nation for dangerous air pollution and Chicago was included in the 10 worst polluted cities in the U.S.