Press Releases

Appeals court ruling clears path for U.S. Supreme Court to hear lawsuit to end mandatory union fees

MEDIA CONTACT: Diana Rickert or Melanie Krakauer media@illinoispolicy.org or 312-607-4977 CHICAGO (March 21, 2017) – An Illinois lawsuit challenging mandatory union fees paid by government workers could soon make its way to the U.S. Supreme Court as a result of an appellate court ruling issued this afternoon. The plaintiffs in the case, Janus v. AFSCME, are two employees...

Statewide poll: Likely Illinois voters support property tax freeze, pension reform and strengthening power of local governments

CHICAGO (March 21, 2017) – Not only do the majority of likely Illinois voters want the state to close its budget deficit by only cutting spending, but they also support major reforms that would make that possible. These are the findings of a poll of likely Illinois voters, released today by the nonpartisan Illinois Policy...

Statewide poll: Majority of Illinois voters say state should balance the budget through spending cuts, not tax increases

CHICAGO (March 7, 2017) – More than half of Illinoisans say state government spends too much money, and should close its budget deficit by only cutting spending – not raising taxes. This is according to a new poll of likely Illinois voters, released today by the non-partisan Illinois Policy Institute. The state has been without...

Illinois Policy statement: Don’t mourn the ‘grand bargain.’

It’s time now for lawmakers to craft a reform budget that is a deal for taxpayers.

Liberty Justice Center lawsuit argues for ending mandatory union fees

Janus v. AFSCME, which was filed in 2015, will be heard by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at 9:30 a.m. today

Illinois Policy CEO John Tillman urging lawmakers to vote NO on massive state income tax increase and ‘grand bargain’ budget proposal

SPRINGFIELD (March 1, 2017) – Illinois lawmakers have begun voting on the components of a “grand bargain” budget proposal, and voting is expected to continue today. Illinois Policy CEO John Tillman released the following statement: “This entire budget package is a weak charade meant to convince Republicans to provide Democrats cover on yet another tax...

Chicago City Council amends home-sharing ordinance following lawsuit brought by the Liberty Justice Center and the Goldwater Institute

CHICAGO (Feb. 27, 2017) – Chicagoans who share their homes through online platforms, such as Airbnb, will no longer be forced to allow city officials to inspect records of their guests’ personal information at any time without a warrant. The change in Chicago’s home-sharing ordinance follows a lawsuit filed by the Liberty Justice Center and...

State employee union, AFSCME, expected to release results of strike authorization vote

SPRINGFIELD (Feb. 23, 2017) – This morning the union that represents more than 35,000 employees of state government is expected to announce the results of a strike authorization vote. Experts from the Illinois Policy Institute and Liberty Justice Center are available to provide reaction to the vote result, discuss what’s at stake and what happens next....