1 Front
Serving Bureau County Since 1847
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
NEWSSTAND PRICE 75¢
Taking a gamble There’s gold in them there slots By Ken Schroeder news@bcrnews.com
Editor’s note: This is the first in a three-part series on video gaming in Illinois; how it works, where the money goes and who can benefit from allowing video gaming in their establishments. From its beginning in July
2009, video gaming in Illinois has been growing steadily. In 2014, state coffers took in almost $165 million from individuals playing the machines. That figure is just the tip of the iceberg compared to overall totals for video gaming terminals (VGTs).
Nuts and bolts of Illinois’ video gaming The state allows up to five ter-
minals per establishment, and the number of terminals in the state went up by almost 33 percent during the year. In January 2014, 14,426 machines were operating in 3,527 establishments. By year’s end, 19,182 terminals filled 4,675 businesses, an average of 4.1 terminals per location. How much money has gone into the terminals statewide? According to the Illinois Gaming Board, more than $8.24 billion was fed into the terminals in 2014,
with a payout of more than $7.5 billion — an overall payout rate of 92 percent. Illinois requires a minimum payout rate per machine of 80 percent. The nearly $660 million left over after payouts to VGT players is divided four ways. Using the rounded figure, the VGT profits would be separated by percentage like so: Local municipalities — towns and counties where the VGTs are located — get 5 percent of the total, which statewide
amounted to $33 million. The state receives 25 percent of the income for its share, the aforementioned $165 million. The owner of the machines and the owner of the establishment split the remainder down the middle for 35 percent each; roughly $231 million each statewide. The online application form for a license to have a VGT in an establishment is 10 pages of
Gaming Page 4
Right to Try Act passed in Senate Bill allows terminally ill patients to try experimental drugs By Zita Henneberry zhenneberry@bcrnews.com
SPRINGFIELD — When it comes to saving a life, anything and everything is worth a try. The Associated Press (AP) is reporting the Illinois Senate recently approved a bill which would allow terminally ill patients access to experimental drugs. “There are many very sophisticated new products that are in various levels of clinical trials,” said Perry Memorial Hospital President and CEO Rex Conger. An AP article said the Right to Try Act passed in the Senate Thursday, April 16, with a 52-0 vote. This bipartisan measure was approved one day after a version of the bill was passed in the Illinois House of Representatives. “It means that some experimental drugs, that previously were not available to most people — unless they were actively participating in a drug study program — can now be made available to other patients outside of the study,” said Conger. The Right to Try Act will soon head to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s office. According to the AP, chief sponsor of the bill, Sen. Michael Connelly, said he was “pretty confident” Gov. Rauner will sign the measure. While Conger does not believe this legislation will have much impact on hospitals, he said it could potentially mean a great deal to individual patients. He explained the physicians are the ones who are aware of the many studies currently underway in the medical field. These physicians, he said, will be the source of information for their patients when they can help those in need gain
Bill Page 2
BCR photo/Zita Henneberry
‘Trash to Treasure’ at Lincoln Elementary School Third-grade students at Princeton Elementary School District’s Lincoln School constructed their inventive “Trash To Treasure” projects. Posing with their projects are Landen Koning (from left) from Stacy May’s class; Annagrace Isaacson from Angie Thompson’s class; Jocelyn Nordstrom from Janda Nordstrom’s class; McKenzie Borys from Deb Vrana’s class; and Lea Quinlan from Jodi Hartman’s class.
St. Bede gearing up for annual auction gala By Goldie Currie gcurrie@bcrnews.com
PERU — St. Bede Academy will host its 32nd annual auction gala Saturday, April 25. This year’s auction will celebrate the academy’s history with its 125-year anniversary, while also introducing the future with mobile bidding to the annual silent auction. The goal of the night Along with the challenge to raise $200,000 to help offset tuition costs for students, this year’s auction will also help
fund a need. The academy plans to purchase Google Chromebooks for every student next school year. That’s 330 computers — an $85,000 investment. Principal Michelle Mershon said the transition is a step to prepare students for 21st century learning. Over the next three years, the academy will transition much of its textbook inventory to digital copy. “(Students) are going to learn in a world far different than any of us learned in,” she said. “So we need to put these resources
in their hands so they can learn with them, learn from them, most of all, prepare them for the future they are going to be educated in and live in.” Superintendent Ted Struck explained the academy has been working with its school and staff to prepare for this transition. “The staff at this institution, in my 40 years in this business, is by far the most aggressive in embracing change and the way we teach kids as times change,” he said. Struck said this is possible because of three things: Lead-
ership at the principal’s level; professionalism at the teachers’ level; and a culture in the hallways that’s fostered by the fact the academy doesn’t have tenure. “Put those three things together, and our staff is by far the most progressive group I’ve ever been associated with in 40 years,” he said. About the 2015 auction gala Bonnie Prokup is looking forward to spearheading another successful auction this year.
St. Bede Page 4
Year 169 No. 48 One Section - 20 Pages
Turn your auto loan around. See us for your next auto loan or a refinance of your current one! Would you like great auto loan rates and excellent customer service? Call Linda or Julie today to see if you qualify for our new loan rates.
© Bureau County Republican