If you're still waiting to apply for financial aid for college, you might want to get yourself in gear because the deadline is this coming Friday--making it the earliest cut-off for state aid ever. The Illinois Student Assistance Commission informed school administrators on Saturday that the deadline to receive grants from the state's Monetary Award Program is also on Friday. more ›

The unions aren't the only folks facing a deadline; Chicagoans in need of a city sticker have through midnight tomorrow to get in on the act and grab their new city sticker to avoid late fees ($40) and tickets ($120). Our pal The Parking Ticket Geek has a suggestion or two for those of you who have waited til the final few hours. Of course, this year's sticker not only features the design (seen above) by Denise Ferguson, recent graduate of Corliss High School, but it also combines the need for a vehicle sticker and a residential sticker in one, easy-to-display multi-purpose sticker. more ›

While one of three unions that have been holding out on a labor deal with Mayor Daley has agreed to terms with the Mayor, two others are still not budging as Daley's self-imposed midnight deadline approaches tonight. Laborers Local 1001 recently reached an agreement with the Mayor, leaving just the Teamsters and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) as the lone hold-outs, according to the Tribune's Clout Street. Daley has been threatening to lay off as many as 1,500 workers if the city's unions didn't reach a deal with him that included concessions and unpaid holidays. The city claims deals reached with other unions have saved 800 jobs and that if the two hold-out unions don't come to an agreement, around 700 jobs from those two groups will be cut. more ›

With the state budget crisis growing worse by the day, Governor Quinn has prepared $1 billion in state cuts he plans to announce today in an effort to show legislators he's done all he can to save the state money. A good portion of the cuts will include laying off state workers and Quinn also plans to ask those who remain employed to take 12 furlough days. Said the Governor, "Nobody should be exempt from making sacrifices when all of our state finances are in peril. If the rest of state government is taking 12 furlough days, including my office, I think all the legislators and all the legislative staffs should participate in the sacrifice." more ›

We're less than 12 hours from the deadline to pass a budget that won't completely mess with the state's finances and it seems we're no closer to having a solution than we were before. Last night, the House approved a plan to borrow $2.2 billion to help soften the blow of the expected cuts, but Gov. Quinn isn't too happy about it and, though it still has to pass the Senate, he seems hell-bent on making sure a tax increase is somehow passed. Without saying he'd veto it, Quinn did say, according to the Tribune, "If they throw that my way tonight, they will see it thrown right back at 'em. For those who might be advocating things in the budget that are unfair, are not humane, or indecent, I'm not going down that road." more ›

AP Photo/Paul Beaty more ›