Pritzker budget doubles down on failure

By Austin Berg

02/21/2019

Getting behind bipartisan budget reform is the kind of bravery Illinoisans deserve from the executive branch. Instead, they’re getting more of the same.

TAGS: balanced budget requirement, borrowing, budget, debt, JB Pritzker, pensions

Illinois state spending has grown nearly 50% faster than taxpayer incomes

By Orphe Divounguy, Bryce Hill

02/18/2019

A spending cap proposal filed by state Sen. Tom Cullerton, D-Villa Park, would ensure growth in government spending doesn’t exceed taxpayers’ ability to pay for it.

TAGS: budget, debt, deficit, income tax, personal income, Spending, spending cap, taxes, Tom Cullerton

CTBA pension plan: Unsound, unfair and unaffordable

By Adam Schuster

11/26/2018

A pension plan pushed by one Illinois think tank fails to reform the state’s broken pension system and risks repeating costly mistakes. Gov.-elect J.B. Pritzker shouldn’t be fooled and should instead endorse meaningful, lasting reform.

TAGS: CTBA: Center for Budget and Tax Accountability, debt, Edgar Ramp, JB Pritzker, Jim Edgar, municipal pensions, pension guarantee, pensions

Moody’s: Illinois pension debt-to-revenue ratio hits all-time high for any state

By Adam Schuster

08/31/2018

According to a new report by Moody’s Investors Service, Illinois’ unfunded pension liabilities equaled 601 percent of state revenues in 2017, a U.S. record.

TAGS: bonds, credit rating, debt, employment, harvey, Moody's Investor Service, municipal pensions, pension guarantee, pensions, peoria, taxes

30 years later, taxpayers still on the hook for White Sox stadium

By Eddie Damstra

06/29/2018

While the name of the home stadium for the Chicago White Sox has changed over the years, its status as a tax burden has not.

TAGS: bonds, debt, Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, taxes

Will Illinois pass a budget this year?

By Adam Schuster

04/20/2018

History shows lawmakers prefer to avoid tough but necessary choices.

TAGS: balanced budget requirement, budget, credit rating, debt, income tax, Mike Madigan, progressive income tax, Spending, spending cap, taxes

Why Illinois needs a spending cap

By Orphe Divounguy, Bryce Hill, Joe Tabor

01/27/2018

Spending has consistently outpaced state tax revenues in Illinois for more than a decade. To avoid future tax hikes, Illinois must impose real fiscal discipline on state lawmakers.

TAGS: debt, deficit, Illinois General Assembly, income tax, Spending, taxes

‘Sinkhole city’: Accounting watchdog gives Chicago an F in fiscal health

By Vincent Caruso

01/26/2018

A recent analysis ranked 75 of the most populated cities in terms of fiscal health - and placed the Windy City next to dead-last.

TAGS: Chicago, debt, Rahm Emanuel, taxes

Illinois ranks among bottom states in fiscal health

By Vincent Caruso

11/10/2017

A new study highlights the gravity of Illinois' fiscal crisis.

TAGS: budget, debt, deficit, pew research

Cook County local government debt hits $139 billion

By Chris Lentino

11/07/2017

Cook County governments have now amassed $139 billion in debt, a 30 percent increase over the last 5 years.

TAGS: Chicago, Cook County, CPS: Chicago Public Schools, debt, local government, municipal pensions

Budget Solutions 2020: A 5-year plan to balance Illinois’ budget, pay off debt and cut taxes

Gov. J.B. Pritzker inherited a $2.8 billion budget deficit the moment he stepped into office. Next year, that deficit is projected to be $3.4 billion1. It’s the same story every budget season. But Illinois’ budget crises could be a thing of the past if the state would adopt pension reform, right-size its union contracts and...

View Report

Budget Solutions 2020: A 5-year plan to balance Illinois’ budget, pay off debt and cut taxes

Report Archive

Tracy Ross

Policy lessons from Illinois’ exodus of people and money

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