Illinois’ comeback story starts here.

High black imprisonment risk tied to educational opportunity

Fixing criminal-justice disparities means improving education as well.

By Bryant Jackson-Green, Ted Dabrowski

As Springfield stalls reform, another Illinois manufacturer heads across state lines

Illinois’ broken workers’ compensation system makes it an easy decision to leave.

Chicago now home to the nation’s highest sales tax

Buying local just got a lot less appealing for Chicagoans. The city reclaimed the highest sales-tax rate of any major city in the nation on July 15, when the Cook County Board, which oversees Illinois’ largest city, voted to raise its portion of the sales tax, bringing Chicago’s combined rate to 10.25 percent from 9.25...

By Hilary Gowins

Tamales y temor: The world of Chicago’s shadow chefs

An ordinance that would immediately allow thousands of food-cart street vendors the freedom to serve their communities sits before Emanuel’s City Council, and along with it the potential for explosive growth in the industry.

By Austin Berg