There’s room for a healthy debate about political considerations at play in the policy shift, but whether someone endorses or rejects underlying motives, the situation illustrates the perils of delivering state services with federal money.

Nine of the governments that did submit plans took note of a fundamental challenge: they don’t control their residents’ salaries.

Devore: "I just read Reed Harris’ column, 'Consider this: Why I love Rochelle', in the Sunday, Nov. 23, Rochelle News-Leader and I commend his love of Rochelle."

The one-hour walk through the halls of the Executive Mansion, led by Mrs. Kennedy with CBS correspondent Charles Collingwood, gave the American people a behind-the-scenes look at the history, style, and décor of the White House. It remains a signature moment of the Kennedy years.

Schwendau: Given the disrespect and misinformation being shown towards our seated President Donald Trump, I think it is time to drop some hard truths that are not up for debate.

The present reality, at best, makes it harder for taxpayers to advocate for better allocation of public resources. At worst, the system offers an inviting shield for elected officials to deflect blame for poor (or intentionally harmful) decisions.

In the Nov. 17, 2025, edition of Ogle County Life, Reed Harris asked “When do we start winning?” He posed a lot of questions for our consideration. They were more than questions, though. Framed in a manner critical of the current administration, they make me ask questions.

Density, infrastructure and other factors vary widely by ZIP code, but every state agency deals with similar regional discrepancies and SB 2111 simply didn’t go far enough in addressing concerns about the shared basic need to get from here to there.

Rochelle stands at the doorstep of another wave of technology investment: data centers. Questions about water, energy and neighborhood impact are natural — but so are the opportunities.