budget

Is pension reform dead in Illinois?

09/19/2014
In June 2014, in response to attempts by the state to reform government-worker health-care costs, Illinois’ Supreme Court found these benefits to be protected by the state’s pension clause ­– even though retiree health-care benefits are nowhere to be found in the state pension code. As a result, many assume that if the state can’t...

TAGS: budget, pensions, taxes

By 2029, Illinois will spend more on pensions than education

By Benjamin VanMetre
09/02/2014
Hardworking Illinois families and entrepreneurs are just four months away from tax relief. The state’s personal income tax rate is slated to drop to 3.75 percent from 5 percent in January 2015. But a number of lawmakers and special-interest groups don’t want to let that happen. Tax-hike advocates across the state argue that Illinois needs...

TAGS: budget, Chicago, income tax, pensions

FAQ: How the federal scholarship program would help Illinois students

Illinois students could soon benefit from scholarship money to help them find a tutor, attend ACT or SAT prep sessions, pay tuition, get special education services or assist with other academic needs. That will happen in Illinois only if Gov. J.B. Pritzker lets the state’s schoolchildren benefit from the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit program, established...

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Diana Graham

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

By Paul Kersey
06/19/2014

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students

By Ted Dabrowski
05/02/2016