Peter Hancock
Reporter | Capitol News IllinoisPeter Hancock joined the Capitol News Illinois team as a reporter in January 2019.
Before that, Hancock covered Kansas state government for much of the past two decades. For the previous 4 years, Hancock had been the statehouse reporter for the Lawrence Journal-World. He provided year-round daily coverage of the Kansas Statehouse, state government, appellate courts, elections and Kansas’ congressional delegation. He previously worked for 8 years as a statehouse reporter for Kansas Public Radio, and with the Kansas Health Policy Authority and the Kansas Education Policy Report.
“As a longtime veteran of statehouse reporting in Kansas, I know how challenging it is for individual newspapers to make that kind of commitment,” Hancock said. “Capitol News Illinois offers a unique opportunity for newspapers throughout the state to pool their resources and enable a small team of reporters to deliver critical news and information about state government to communities throughout the state.
“ I covered state politics and government in Kansas for the better part of the past 20 years, working in both print and broadcast journalism. I graduated from the University of Kansas with bachelor’s degrees in political science and secondary education. Although I was born and raised in the Kansas City area, I have deep family roots in central and southern Illinois, and so coming to Springfield is a bit like coming back home.”
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Bill allows tribe to acquire 1,500-acre state park in DeKalb County. -
The case, on its second day on Tuesday, is being heard in federal district court in East St. Louis. -
Jail populations are down and there's no change in failure to appear rate, an analysis shows. -
A federal judge in Rockford ruled a state law banning concealed carry on public transit is unconstitutional for four plaintiffs. Both sides are considering their next steps. -
The Health Care Protection Act bars the use of a restriction known as “step therapy" requiring a patient to try and fail on one or more treatments preferred by the insurance company before they can access a doctor-recommended treatment. -
Illinois high school students will begin taking the new exams in Spring 2025. -
Illinois' newly-made Department of Early Childhood will administer several programs such as preschool funding, subsidized daycare services and home visits that are currently spread out among three different agencies. -
Advocates on both sides of the gun control debate are waiting on whether the court will hear a broader constitutional challenge to Illinois' 2023 assault weapons ban, which includes the state-level ban on bump stocks. -
A bill to grant the tribe a 1,500-acre state park stalled in the final hours of the Illinois legislature's spring session -
Illinois' Department of Early Childhood will administer programs currently spread across 3 agencies — the State Board of Education, Department of Human Services and the Department of Children and Family Services. -
Advocates for after-school programs say an estimated 40,000 Illinois students could lose access to services starting this summer unless lawmakers act to fill a $50 million funding shortfall. -
The State-level Community Reinvestment Act was finally mired in the rulemaking process.
