ADVANCE FOR USE MONDAY DEC. 31, 2012 AND THERE AFTER - FILE - In this file photo taken Aug. 15, 2012 in Springfield, IL., union members, supporters and labor leaders protest Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn. Lawmakers will convene again the first week in January in hopes of fixing the nation's worst case of underfunding state employees' pensions, a problem approaching $100 billion and mounting by $17 million per day. On the table are solutions that other states adopted as long as five years ago. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

Cracks in the soil display lack of moisture in a corn field along Plank Road in Burlington in northern Kane County on June 13, 2012. The long term forecast indicates ongoing drought or near-drought conditions. | Michael Smart~Sun-Times Media

Convicted former Gov. Rod Blagojevich reports to prison in Littleton, Colorado. | Courtesy ABC7

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY DEC. 23, 2012 AND THEREAFTER - FILE - In this March 20, 2012 file photo taken in Chicago, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill. speaks at a Democratic primary election night party. U.S. Rep. Jackson's resignation from Congress was voted the tenth most important news story in the AP's annual survey of its Illinois member editors and staff. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, File)

Michelle and Barack Obama next to Joe and Jill Biden wave to supporters on election night at McCormick Place Lakeside Center on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. | Richard A. Chapman~Sun-Times

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY DEC. 23, 2012 AND THEREAFTER - FILE - This March 1, 2012, file photo taken in Ridgway, Ill. shows the ruins of St. Joseph's Catholic Church. The devistating EF 4 tornado that claimed seven lives was voted the seventh most important news story in the AP's annual survey of its Illinois member editors and staff. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman, File)

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY DEC. 23, 2012 AND THEREAFTER - FILE - In this Nov. 4, 20102 file photo, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk, right, emerges from the 103rd floor stairwell at Chicago's Willis Tower during the RIC SkyRise Chicago event, a fundraiser for the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where Kirk is a patient. Kirk hasn't been back to the U.S. Senate since suffering a stroke earlier this year. Kirk's plan to return to the Senate in January was the ninth most important news story in the AP's annual survey of its Illinois member editors and staff. At left is Joanne Smith, M.D., President and CEO of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. Behind Kirk is Michael Klonowski, a physical therapist who is assisting Kirk with his recovery from a stroke. (AP Photo/Teresa Crawford, File)

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY DEC. 23, 2012 AND THEREAFTER - FILE - In this photo taken Nov. 14, 2012 in Rockford, Ill. Rita Crundwell stands outside of the federal courthouse. Crundwell, the former comptroller of Dixon, pleaded guilty to allegations she embezzled more than $50 million from the small city in Illinois to fund a lavish lifestyle that included a nationally known horse-breeding operation. Crundwell's crime was voted the eighth most important news story in the AP's annual survey of its Illinois member editors and staff. (AP Photo/The Telegraph, Alex T. Paschal, File)

Al Diez of Leland, bottom center, pickets outside of the Fox Valley Adult Transition Center in Aurora on Thursday, March 15, 2012. Gov. Quinn originally planned to shut the building down due to budget concerns. Diez had worked at the facility for just over a year.But Quinn decided to keep the Aurora facility open, while closing 14 others transition centers, prisons and health care facilities around the state. | Brian Powers~Sun-Times Media

ADVANCE FOR USE SUNDAY DEC. 23, 2012 AND THEREAFTER - FILE - in this Aug. 17, 2012 file photo taken in Springfield, Ill., Illinois House Minority Leader Tom Cross, R-Oswego, listens to lawmakers during session at the Illinois State Capitol after Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn called the legislators into session hoping for a state pension overhaul. The $96 billion gap between Illinois pension obligations and what it can afford was voted the number one important news story in the AP's annual survey of its Illinois member editors and staff.(AP Photo/Seth Perlman, File)