Permanent vote-by-mail registration opens Aug. 10 in Illinois

By Dylan Sharkey

08/08/2022

Permanent vote by mail allows Illinoisans to vote at home, offering convenience and a chance to make better-informed decisions. Voters automatically receive a ballot for each future election, so illness or forgetfulness aren’t barriers to civic duty.

TAGS: Illinois, vote-by-mail

38 challengers give Illinois voters first choices in decades

By Dylan Sharkey

07/31/2022

Alper Turan fled Iran 24 years ago to seek a better life for himself and his family. He wants to help his new home by being one of 38 candidates recruited by Illinois Policy to run for the Illinois General Assembly. He wants voters to have a choice.

TAGS: election, gerrymandering, Illinois, vote-by-mail

High gas prices mean Illinois’ sales tax adds $200 a year

By Miles Dintzner

07/30/2022

Surging gasoline prices mean Illinois is getting a boost in sales taxes from fuel, but that’s because drivers are paying the extra $200 a year. Most states don’t charge sales tax on gasoline, but Illinois adds it atop other taxes – taxing the taxes.

TAGS: gas prices, Illinois, inflation, sales tax

Illinois sees nation’s largest drop in job openings as recession fears grow

By Bryce Hill, Matthew Badali

07/29/2022

Illinois’ job opening rate declined 1.5 percentage points in May. That’s not a good way to enter a potential recession.

TAGS: Illinois, jobs, recession, unemployment

Rising prices cost Illinoisans $522 more for groceries this year

By Bryce Hill, Thomas Erie

07/29/2022

Inflation sends grocery prices rising at the fastest rate since April 1979, costing the average Illinoisan $522 more at checkout.

TAGS: grocery tax, Illinois, inflation

Illinois leads the nation in foreclosures in 2022

By Bryce Hill, Matthew Badali

07/29/2022

Illinois homeowners are most likely in the nation to be in foreclosure. The looming $2,100 property tax hike from Amendment 1 would make housing even more unaffordable.

TAGS: Amendment 1, foreclosure, housing market, Illinois

What a recession would mean for Illinois

By Bryce Hill

07/28/2022

Politicians and pundits can’t seem to agree about whether the U.S. is in a recession, but the semantics matter little for struggling Americans. Illinois can expect economic pain regardless of what it’s called.

TAGS: GDP: gross domestic product, Illinois, recession

Illinois slices into family deli’s bottom line

By Ann Miller

07/25/2022

Gov. J.B. Pritzker added $650 million in taxes and fee hikes for small businesses in his last budget. Voters will decide Nov. 8 if Illinois’ business climate will get tougher, yet, through Amendment 1.

TAGS: Illinois, inflation, small business, tax burden

Illinois adds 18,800 jobs in June, still missing 117,000 from pandemic

By Bryce Hill

07/22/2022

Illinois’ employment recovery continued in June, but the state is still missing one in seven jobs lost during the pandemic.

TAGS: economic recovery, Illinois, jobs, unemployment

Report: Illinois likely to see high public pension debt go higher

By Dylan Sharkey

07/20/2022

Forecasts predict Illinois public pension debt will grow despite the funds having one of their best investment years ever in 2021.

TAGS: debt, Illinois, pensions