State Senator Jason Barickman

Central Illinois Republican party leaders say they expect a lot of interest in the appointment to the soon-to-be vacant 53rd Senate District seat that Jason Barickman is giving up at the end of the year.

Less than a month after winning an uncontested new term in office, State Sen. Jason Barickman of Bloomington said Monday he'll resign instead of taking office again next year.

State Sen. Jason Barickman said Illinois voters punished Republicans in the midterm election, in part, because of the GOP stance on abortion. He said his party needs to acknowledge there are instances in which abortion should be legal and be willing to say what those legal conditions are.

Marijuana is too expensive in Illinois, according to Republican state Sen. Jason Barickman of Bloomington, who says he'd support lowering taxes on legal cannabis in the state.

Bloomington state Sen. Jason Barickman says the recent indictment of another senator, Emil Jones III, shows current ethics laws do a poor job of holding lawmakers accountable to the people they serve.

There's already a lot of consumer angst about rising electricity rates in central Illinois. Ameren Illinois said the average bill for households in this part of the state could rise by $500-600 this year. And when there's that much pain and that much stress, lawmakers get calls.

Charlie Schlenker talks with state Sen. Jason Barickman about policy choice in the debate over guns. Barickman is a Republican from Bloomington-Normal. Barickman says he acknowledges the system is imperfect and society needs to find ways to do better. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Former Congressman Tim Johnson has died. He was known as a quirky, sometimes caustic, and always energetic public servant. Johnson never lost an election. He represented Bloomington-Normal in Congress for 12 years in an older version of the 13th District before deciding not to run again in 2012

State Sen. Jason Barickman said early in the spring legislative session he expected very little productivity coming out of it. And now Barickman said his expectations have been fulfilled.

The state agency that runs Illinois prisons said it wants to cut the inmate capacity at the Pontiac Correctional Center by more than half. That comes as the aging facility in Livingston County has infrastructure needs and as the overall state prisoner population is falling.