Pedaling backward: Chicago’s attack on pedicabs
Pedaling backward: Chicago’s attack on pedicabs
These new rules are hitting drivers hard, and limiting their ability to make a living.
Illinois needs a real balanced budget requirement
Illinois needs a real balanced budget requirement
Politicians are waiting for Gov. Pat Quinn to approve their state budget, and many are complaining that the budget isn’t balanced. “The effect of the budget is to delay doomsday by borrowing and increasing our backlog of bills,” said a spokeswoman for Senate President John Cullerton. “Admittedly, this budget reverses some of the progress that...
State Rep. Derrick Smith, D-Chicago, convicted of taking $7,000 bribe
State Rep. Derrick Smith, D-Chicago, convicted of taking $7,000 bribe
A federal jury has found state Rep. Derrick Smith, D-Chicago, guilty of taking a $7,000 cash bribe in exchange for writing a state grant recommendation letter in 2012. Under state law, Smith automatically loses his office with the felony bribery conviction. This is the second time Smith has lost his office. Smith was originally expelled from...
The Pledge
The Pledge
Illinois Policy Action is announcing an initiative to help hold legislators accountable to their word following the three major state income tax defeats during the spring session. We will be asking all House and Senate members to sign our “Keep Your Promise” pledge, which will affirm politicians’ stated opposition to keeping permanent the temporary 5...
Chart of the week: Setting the record straight on employment under Quinn
Chart of the week: Setting the record straight on employment under Quinn
When Gov. Pat Quinn’s campaign spokesperson, Brooke Anderson, joined host Mike Flannery on Fox Chicago on June 8, she claimed: “Unemployment is at its lowest point in more than five years. More people are working in Illinois today than when the governor took office.” But that’s simply not true. While the unemployment rate in Illinois...
Quinn signs Chicago cell-phone tax hike
Quinn signs Chicago cell-phone tax hike
Chicagoans could be on the brink of a cell-phone tax hike. Gov. Pat Quinn has signed into law an amendment to House Bill 2453, which gives the city of Chicago the authority to raise the city’s per-line 911 fee to $3.90 from the current fee of $2.50. Chicago cell-phone users are already hit hard by...
Chicago Public Schools prom slogan: ‘This Is Are Story’
Chicago Public Schools prom slogan: ‘This Is Are Story’
It’s hard to deny just how poorly Chicago’s public schools are performing when it hits you in the face. Such is the case with Paul Robeson High School’s 2014 prom theme: “This is Are Story.” That image came from veteran investigative reporter Chuck Goudie, who posted this image on his Facebook page. Some people might...
The nation’s 7 million “jobs gap”
The nation’s 7 million “jobs gap”
The nation’s unemployment rate remained at 6.3 percent in May, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest unemployment report. But with 217,000 jobs created, the total number of payroll jobs has finally recovered to its pre-recession level. In other words, the nation is finally back to where it was six years ago. While...
The power of your voice
The power of your voice
It’s easy to be apathetic when it comes to effecting change in Illinois. Rampant corruption, legislators voting on bills they don’t read and the oversized influence of lobbyists all make trying to change public policy for the better a seemingly impossible task. But this doesn’t have to be the case – there are plenty of...
Not as good as you think: Illinois’ underperforming schools
Not as good as you think: Illinois’ underperforming schools
Is the school your child attends as good as you think it is? New research by Lance Izumi – senior director of education studies at the California-based Pacific Research Institute – shows that a large number of suburban Illinois public schools aren’t making the grade. His study complements research conducted by the Illinois Policy Institute...
2014 legislative victories
2014 legislative victories
The driving goal of the Illinois Policy Institute is to transform liberty principles into marketable policies that become law. The ultimate sign of success is when free market ideas are enacted into laws that change Illinoisans’ lives for the better. Illinois Policy Action’s 2014 legislative agenda emphasized the importance of a financially responsible and limited...
Illinois craft brewers fight to stop damaging regulations
Illinois craft brewers fight to stop damaging regulations
The Illinois Liquor Control Commission, or ILCC, has proposed new regulations to the craft brewing industry that would halt expansion plans for many craft breweries throughout the state. The proposed regulations would limit brewpubs’ ability to produce and sell more than 1,200 barrels of their beer for offsite consumption, even to licensed distributers. This is...
Illinois’ fiscal year 2015: The good, the bad and the ugly
Illinois’ fiscal year 2015: The good, the bad and the ugly
The 2014 legislative roller coaster is finally over. The good news is that all Illinois taxpayers are on track to see income tax relief next year. The bad news is that politicians pushed through a last-minute budget deal that relies heavily on gimmicks and budget games. Here’s a snapshot of the good, the bad and...
Illinois per-gallon gas taxes are 8th highest in nation
Illinois per-gallon gas taxes are 8th highest in nation
Illinois drivers pay, on average, $0.39 per gallon in state gas taxes. That amount adds up quickly. A driver purchasing 15 gallons of gas in Illinois shells out about $6 extra in state taxes, on top of the price of the gasoline itself. Illinois’ per-gallon gas tax is the eighth highest in the country, according...