Selected State Reports

State Documents

■  Is Crime Seasonal?, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (January 1984), 45 pp.

There is no simple answer to this question, but research suggests that certain crimes in certain geographical areas may indeed be seasonal. In addition to explaining the complexities of this issue, this study looks at some specific crimes and presents a critical bibliography of numerous studies done since the sixties on this and related topics.

■  Illinois Law Enforcement Officers Assaulted or Killed: 1972-1982, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (February 1984), 25 pp.

Nearly 23,000 Illinois law enforcement officers were assaulted or battered and 50 officers were killed during the period 1972-82. The rate of such assaults and killings has declined in recent years, although assaults against the public increased by 80 percent. This report contains numerous graphs and tables showing these and other data as well as information on weapons used, the victims and the offenders, and clearance rates.

■ Climate Fluctuations in Illinois: 1901-1980, by Stanley A. Changnon Jr., Illinois State Water Survey, Bulletin 68 (January 1984), 73 pp.

Changes in the period from 1961 to 1980 as compared to the 1901-1960 period indicate cooler and wetter conditions, i.e., more rain and snow and fewer droughts; decreases in temperatures especially in summer and winter, with fewer extremely warm days and many more extremely cold days; increases in cloudiness and decreases in sunshine especially in summer; and increases in wind speeds. Moreover, of the four seasons, winter and summer have changed most drastically in the last 40 years.

■ Illinois Agricultural Statistics, Annual Summary — 1983, compiled by the Illinois Cooperative Extension Service and U.S. Department of Agriculture (October 1983), 126 pp.

Agriculture is Illinois' largest industry, and with over 100,000 farms on more than 28 million acres of land the state is also this nation's number one exporter. By means of tables, graphs and maps (and almost no text) this publication presents information on every conceivable aspect of Illinois agriculture. It includes yields, production and sales of crops, livestock, dairy and poultry, as well as farm income since 1975, fertilizer consumption and sales, and data on the labor force.

■  Annual Report of 1983, Illinois Legislative Investigating Commission (February 1984), 46 pp.

The commission has existed in its present form since July 1971; it has a dozen members, six from the Senate and six from the House, and is a bipartisan body. In 1983 it conducted four investigations and issued two reports, "The Child Victim: Child Abuse in the Family and Society" and "Containment and Care: The Dilemma of Illinois' Dangerously Mentally Ill," in addition to its annual report which is required by law.

■  Natural Gas Regulatory Issues: An Illinois Perspective, Illinois Department of Energy and Natural Resources (October 1983), 63 pp.

Illinois produces less than 1 percent of the total marketed production of natural gas in the U.S. and ranks fourth among the 50 states in total consumption. State and federal regulation of the industry has been of particular interest to the state's residents because of their reliance on other states for the product and because the climate of this region makes us a heavy user of natural gas. This document (volume 9 of the Illinois Energy Plan) describes the regulations now in force, discusses some of the state and federal regulatory issues that need to be addressed, and offers some insights into future developments in the state's natural gas industry.

■  Report and Recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly, Commission on the Status of Women (February 1984), 106 pp.

In addition to presenting the commission's recommendations — which cover 13 broad areas of concern — this report offers six subcommittee reports and a minority report from four of the commission's members.

■  Annual Report on Hazardous Waste: Generation, Treatment, Storage and Disposal, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (March 1984), 31 pp. plus appendices.

In 1982 approximately 616 million gallons of reportable hazardous waste were generated in Illinois, of which about 560 million gallons were treated, stored, or disposed on-site by the waste generators. Another 56 million gallons were shipped off-site (17 million gallons to other states). Douglas County recorded the highest volume; Cook County was third. In addition to further details on such data, this report includes the section of the Administrative Code concerning the identification and listing of hazardous waste and the instructions and forms for completing the annual hazardous waste report.

Items listed under State Documents have been received by the Documents Unit, Illinois State Library, Springfield, and are usually available from public libraries in the state through interlibrary loan.                                      Anna J. Merritt