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by Peggy Boyer Long

One month to go. As this edition of the magazine goes to press, there's at least another month left in the legislative session. We don't know yet whether lawmakers will end up resolving the key issues they've set for themselves this spring, including school funding reform and electric utility deregulation. So there's still time to read up on the policy questions under discussion.

And we think there's no better place to do that than Illinois Issues. When I arrived at the magazine three years ago, readers told us we could be more useful if we provided current information, especially during the months when the General Assembly is in session. At the same time, they told us they still want the depth, the context that will help them understand the complicated issues of the day.

That's one of the challenges of putting out a monthly magazine. We can't beat the daily media on timeliness. But we can take the time to reflect on today's news. That requires looking ahead to see what could become important, and looking back for precedents.

This spring we've made every effort to be that kind of resource. We examined school finance, education accountability and school construction funding (in the March and April issues). We outlined concerns about state and federal campaign finance laws, as well as proposals for change (February and March). We detailed proposals for deregulating electric power (January and April). We related problems along the Illinois River (January). We wrote about economic development in urban centers and small towns (February) and regions (March). And we even defended the much despised property tax (February). Finally, this month we take a look at gambling, the difficulties of welfare reform and the politics of public employee pensions.