Government estimates state's stimulus take

Government estimates state's stimulus take: The U.S. Department of Education said Thursday that Illinois could receive more than $3 billion for schools as part of the economic stimulus bill that President Obama signed earlier this week. That figure, which the department says is an estimate, includes roughly $1 billion for dedicated programs like Title I and special education, and about $2 billion in "state fiscal stabilization" funds that can be used to prevent teacher layoffs and program cuts. Illinois education officials are now awaiting guidelines from the federal government on how to allocate the money.