Analysis of GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner’s ‘Bring Back Blueprint’
Analysis of GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner’s ‘Bring Back Blueprint’
Illinois GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner released yesterday another portion of his “Bring Back Blueprint,” acknowledging Illinois’ jobs crisis and identifying many of the pain points that make Illinois the lowest performing state in the Midwest, economically. The Illinois Policy Institute has reviewed Rauner’s proposal, and while the plan is not perfect, it addresses many...
By Michael Lucci, Benjamin VanMetre
Illinois has a cow over raw milk
Illinois has a cow over raw milk
The Illinois Department of Public Health is posed to release new, stricter regulations on the sale of raw milk in Illinois this month, several media outlets report. But many small-farm operators are concerned they won’t be able to meet the new standards. Raw milk sales have only been growing more popular in recent years, and...
By Bryant Jackson-Green
‘Lewis for mayor’ is a fundraising force to be reckoned with
‘Lewis for mayor’ is a fundraising force to be reckoned with
For years the left has complained about the influence that money has on politics. And almost without fail, they have focused on money held and used by private businesses. But money is money, whether it comes from companies or some other source, and it can be used to buy political influence, or political office, just...
By Paul Kersey
Illinois teacher licensing clouded by corruption, needs reform
Illinois teacher licensing clouded by corruption, needs reform
Illinois’ public schools are in trouble. As if shuttering schools, the faltering Chicago Public Schools system and unfunded pension liabilities weren’t enough, it seems the teacher licensing system is mired in clout and corruption. A front page story from the Chicago Tribune on July 12 details findings of “nearly 100 cases in the past five...
By Anthony Trania
Local Transparency Project
Local Transparency Project
The Local Transparency Project is an encouraging example of a successful grassroots effort and a great resource for citizen activists looking to organize and mobilize.- Sunlight Foundation For democracy to work citizens need access to the information about what government does. Proactive transparency is the best way to educate society about the actions of government....
Elgin taxpayers contribute almost 3 times more to pensions than city employees
Elgin taxpayers contribute almost 3 times more to pensions than city employees
Local pension crises are severely affecting cities, towns and villages across Illinois. Even local governments that have a good track record with transparency and high credit scores are struggling to pay for pensions. Take the AAA-rated city of Elgin, for example. To get its pension system’s funding level up to par, the city would have...
By Benjamin VanMetre
Liquor license red tape favors the politically connected
Liquor license red tape favors the politically connected
How much political influence should you need to get a liquor license in Chicago? The Chicago Sun-Times highlighted the role of “clout” in helping Pete’s Fresh Market, a grocery chain opening a new location on Chicago’s underserved West Side, get one. On its face, the article is a critique of how well-connected people use political ties...
By Bryant Jackson-Green
4 in 10 paying more for health care in 2014
4 in 10 paying more for health care in 2014
The Obama administration’s celebrations touting the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, as a rousing success were premature. There will be little to celebrate as Americans face dramatically higher health-insurance premiums, more health policy cancellations and limited access to providers in the coming years. Now, according to a recent Gallup poll, four in 10 Americans are...
By Naomi Lopez Bauman
ACA driving part-time nation
ACA driving part-time nation
Evidence that the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, is harming the nation’s labor market continues to mount. U.S. News & World Report Chairman and Editor Mortimer Zuckerman explained in a recent op-ed in The Wall Street Journal that less than one-half of working-age adults are working full time. Zuckerman lays blame to slow-growth and the...
By Naomi Lopez Bauman
Real pension reform includes a reality check for retiree health benefits
Real pension reform includes a reality check for retiree health benefits
Illinois’ budget battle took a turn for the worse earlier this month. A decision by the Illinois Supreme Court put the state and its taxpayers at risk. The Supreme Court ruled that Illinois has its hands tied when it comes to reforming retiree health insurance benefits for government workers. The problem is that Illinois has...
By Benjamin VanMetre
Piling it on: Fitch downgrades Cook County
Piling it on: Fitch downgrades Cook County
Cook County residents got more bad news last week when Fitch Ratings, the global rating agency, downgraded Cook County’s debt to A+ from AA-. The rating agency cited skyrocketing pension costs as one of the key reasons for the credit downgrade. The most direct impact of the downgrade is higher borrowing costs for Cook County. Infrastructure and...
End the crony slush fund that is the Ex-Im Bank
End the crony slush fund that is the Ex-Im Bank
An important debate about the future of the Export-Import Bank of the United States is raging in Congress and in the media. The House Financial Services Committee held a hearing last month to ask if the bank was “corporate necessity or corporate welfare?” The Ex-Im Bank originated as a New Deal-era program, financing loans to...
By Bryant Jackson-Green
Make Chicago a 24-hour city
Make Chicago a 24-hour city
Chicago needs entrepreneurs. But too often, the city slows them down or chases them out of town. The “City that Works” doesn’t work for startups. A simple process is necessary so that startups in Chicago can get off the ground and start working, hiring and paying taxes. One good place to start is to make...
By Michael Lucci
More inspectors general necessary to fight Illinois’ corruption woes
More inspectors general necessary to fight Illinois’ corruption woes
For far too long Illinois politicians haven’t done enough to address a public corruption epidemic that has wreaked havoc on the state’s image and the pocketbooks of its taxpayers. Illinois consistently ranks in the top five states for public corruption, and a recent study estimated the cost of corruption in Illinois at nearly $1.4 billion...
By Brian Costin