Fifty-five Illinois local news organizations operating 130 outlets have received $4.3 million in state tax credits so far this year under a law designed to encourage the retention and hiring of journalists, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information request by the Medill Local News Initiative.
It matches the total disbursed in all of 2025, the first year of the program. Just under $700,000 budgeted for this year remains available to local news outlets for hiring additional local journalists.
The organizations that received credits represent a cross section of Illinois’ local news ecosystem. They span major legacy organizations, small community newspapers, digital start-ups and broadcasters, according to state records.
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