Progressive income tax study guide

By Orphe Divounguy, Adam Schuster, Bryce Hill

08/27/2020

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker calls it the “fair tax.” Opponents say it’s a “blank check” for irresponsible spending. Here’s what you need to know.

TAGS: ballot referendums, California, Connecticut, corporate income tax, fair tax, general election, graduated income tax, ILGA: Illinois General Assembly, Illinois, income tax, JB Pritzker, middle class, outmigration, Springfield

Indiana drops corporate tax rate as Illinois considers increasing it

By Ben Szalinski

07/17/2020

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s ‘fair tax’ would raise Illinois business taxes to the highest in the nation as neighboring Indiana cuts taxes to draw businesses across the border.

TAGS: corporate income tax, Indiana, JB Pritzker, progressive income tax

Why Illinois lawmakers can and should withdraw the progressive income tax hike

By Bryce Hill

04/09/2020

State lawmakers in 2019 passed a progressive income tax amendment at the behest of Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Now that coronavirus has ravaged the state’s small business community, they should withdraw the amendment.

TAGS: corporate income tax, Don Harmon, fair tax, graduated income tax, Illinois Constitution, progressive income tax, small business

Illinois moves Tax Day to July 15 in response to coronavirus spread

By Ben Szalinski

03/25/2020

The change puts Illinois in line with the new federal deadline announced in response to the spread of the coronavirus.

TAGS: coronavirus, corporate income tax, COVID-19, income tax, JB Pritzker

Slowest-growing states have progressive income taxes

By Bryce Hill

02/07/2020

Fewer people want to live in states with progressive income taxes. So after 6 straight years of population loss, why would Illinois want to join them?

TAGS: ballot, ballot referendums, corporate income tax, fair tax, flat tax, graduated income tax, Great Recession, ILGA: Illinois General Assembly, Illinois, Illinois Constitution, income tax, JB Pritzker, outmigration, pensions, population, progressive income tax, recession, spending cap, Springfield, tax burden, tax hikes, tax increase, Tennessee, Texas, U.S. Census Bureau, West Virginia, working-age

Chicago area up 241K jobs, rest of Illinois down 41K jobs from before recession

By Austin Berg

01/21/2020

Illinois’ uneven recovery reflects national trends, but also raises important questions about the state’s economic future ahead of a key tax hike vote.

TAGS: BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics, capital gains, Chicago, corporate income tax, economic competitiveness, economy, graduated income tax, Great Recession, ILGA: Illinois General Assembly, Illinois, investment, JB Pritzker, labor, minimum wage, outmigration, population, progressive income tax, real estate, recession, Springfield, tax hikes, tax increase

Illinois personal income growth 2nd lowest in U.S. since Great Recession

By Bryce Hill

01/09/2020

Only Mississippi has fared worse than Illinois in personal income growth since the Great Recession hit at the end of 2007. Analysis shows state income taxes matter.

TAGS: corporate income tax, flat tax, graduated income tax, Great Recession, ILGA: Illinois General Assembly, Illinois, income, income growth, income tax, JB Pritzker, labor, marginal tax, personal income, population, progressive income tax, recession, Springfield, tax burden

Illinois House committee passes progressive income tax rates without public notice

By Bryce Hill, Austin Berg

05/25/2019

In a party-line vote that even fellow lawmakers were unaware of, Illinois House Democrats passed out of committee a progressive income tax rate structure that would take effect should Gov. J.B. Pritzker succeed in scrapping Illinois’ constitutional flat income tax protection.

TAGS: corporate income tax, fair tax, graduated income tax, income tax, JB Pritzker, Margo McDermed, Michael Zalewski, progressive income tax, taxes

Energy company shelves $500M Illinois expansion, cites ‘anti-business’ climate

By Vincent Caruso

05/02/2019

An Illinois-based energy company will halt construction on a planned $500 million plant, a casualty of the Land of Lincoln’s hostile business environment.

TAGS: corporate income tax, fair tax, income tax, JB Pritzker, jobs, progressive income tax, taxes, unemployment

Small businesses are Illinois’ lifeblood, but they’re treated like dirt

By Austin Berg

11/22/2017

The uncomfortable truth is that no matter how many hands they shake, most General Assembly members aren’t really friendly to small businesses.

TAGS: corporate income tax, ILGA: Illinois General Assembly, income tax, regulations, small business, taxes

Pension apocalypse? COVID-19 exposes long-running fragility of Illinois public pensions

Illinois’ pension crisis has been a growing problem for decades, and its negative effects on state residents are well documented.1 Economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and related government shutdown orders threaten to bring that long-running crisis closer to its breaking point. The state’s five pension systems collectively held nearly $139 billion of debt at...

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Pension apocalypse? COVID-19 exposes long-running fragility of Illinois public pensions

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Joanne Troesch

Policy lessons from Illinois’ exodus of people and money

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