Governor Pat Quinn claims that $3.2 billion in new personal and corporate income tax receipts are necessary to put Illinois’s budget back in the black. In a down economy, however, the last thing that families and businesses need to worry about is the dangling noose of higher taxes. The Illinois Policy Institute recently released an...
The Problem • State spending in Illinois has skyrocketed over the past decade, increasing 39% after inflation per capita since 1998. Meanwhile, population has only grown 6.8%. • In 1998, state spending per citizen was $3500. Ten years later, state spending per citizen was $4600 (inflation adjusted). • Overall, the state budget has ballooned from...
The Problem What would you do if your children could be on a championship-level team…but they weren’t allowed to try out? Every day, Chicago kids prove they can compete. All they need is the opportunity. Tragically, thousands of children are not given a chance to “try out” for better schools. They are locked into continually...
Thousands of children in Chicago are not given a chance to “try out” for better schools. They are locked into continually failing schools with low graduation rates, largely because Illinois lawmakers will not remove the arbitrary cap placed on the number of charter schools in the state. However, urban charter school graduation rate rival the...
The Problem Budgeting and ethics problems continue to compound in Illinois. The state’s budget deficit tops $9 billion, spending continues to surge, and there is little to no transparency as to where—and to whom—tax dollars are going. This must be checked and stopped. Our Solution Implementing statewide transparency and creating a Council on Efficient Government...
Government has become a glutton. In Illinois, a voracious appetite for more spending has led the state budget to balloon from $24.7 billion in 2004 to $32.2 billion in 2009 – an increase of nearly 30 percent over just five years. It’s time to put government on a diet. A sensible expenditure limit would ensure...
While families and private businesses balance their budget in tight economic times, the government continues with its extravagant spending. Deficits don’t appear out of nowhere, especially not with our state’s irresponsible spending habits. When it comes to balancing the budget in hard times, every little bit counts. This report presents some silly spending and wasteful programs funded...
The Issue Throughout Illinois, a new kind of public school has emerged: charter schools. The “charter school movement,” as it has been called, has been a success in Illinois. Studies have consistently shown that charter schools routinely perform above the norm at comparable district schools. To date, however, most of these studies of school performance...
Over the past few weeks, the U.S. government has been busy issuing “stress tests” to determine whether the nation’s largest banks are solvent. Today, the Illinois Policy Institute decided to join in by releasing it’s very own “stress test.” There’s one catch: It’s not for troubled banks. It’s for the government itself. You can check...
Joe and Kathy Ray are trying to stretch the value of their dollars in these tight times. They have four kids in grade school, and saving for college sits at the top of their priority list. As two frugal parents, they routinely shop around for the best deal–clipping coupons, bidding on new and used products...
How economically healthy is Illinois compared to its neighboring states? The American Legislative Council has updated its eye-opening annual report, Rich States/Poor States, for 2009. The report evaluates the fiscal and economic policies of each of the 50 states- and in Illinois, things aren’t looking good.
The Problem Illinois desperately needs economic reform. We have a $9 billion budget hole, families are fleeing the state, and our job and income growth has stagnated. Meanwhile, spending is skyrocketing — up approximately 39% since 1998. In the same time period, population has grown only 6.8%. We don’t have a revenue problem. We have...
There are more than two million students enrolled in Illinois’ public schools. Private providers — firms and individual contractors — play a pivotal role in helping schools to educate those children. No district can perfectly predict the future needs of their students. Nor can every district maintain a permanent staff capable of meeting the specific...
The Problem Bob and Rita Smith* are generous people. Every year, they give about $2,000 to wealthy, politically connected real estate developers doing business in their Wilson Yard neighborhood. Bob and Rita live frugally, work hard to save for retirement, and struggle to make ends meet each month—and yet, they keep on giving to the...