ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE PRESS RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT: Diana Rickert

Diana@IllinoisPolicy.org or (312) 607-4977 



July employment report: Illinois leads the nation in jobs lost

Is the tax hike costing Illinois its economic recovery?

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (Aug. 22, 2011) — Nationally, lawmakers and economists are debating what policy changes will help the U.S. progress toward economic recovery. Here in Illinois, residents are getting a harsh lesson of what happens when taxes go up, government spending isn’t reformed and past-due bills continue to go unpaid.

Last week the Bureau of Labor Statistics delivered three pieces of bad news to Illinois:

• The number of Illinoisans employed continues to fall.
  
  
• Illinois lost more jobs during the month of July than any other state in the nation. After losing 7,200 jobs in June, Illinois lost an additional 24,900 non-farm payroll jobs in July.
  
  
• The Illinois unemployment rate, which rose to 9.5 percent, now exceeds the national rate.

 “The policies currently in place – higher taxes, more spending, and unreformed liabilities – are clearly not working for those who are struggling to make ends meet,” said Kristina Rasmussen, executive vice president at the Illinois Policy Institute. “A great starting place for lawmakers eager to create an atmosphere of job growth would be to repeal the recent income tax increase, which robs families and businesses of resources they could put to better use.”

The chart below shows how the passage of a 67 percent income tax hike in January 2011 coincided with the downturn in the state’s employment numbers:

To view the Institute's new report online, visit: http://tinyurl.com/3mvvr92

For bookings or interviews, contact Diana Rickert (312) 607-4977.

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The Illinois Policy Institute is a nonpartisan research and education organization dedicated to making Illinois a beacon for liberty and prosperity for all citizens. As a leading voice for economic liberty and government accountability, the Institute engages policy makers, opinion leaders and citizens on the state and local level by promoting free market principles and liberty-based public policy initiatives for a better Illinois. To learn more about the Institute or review policy briefs, please visit: www.illinoispolicy.org.