Shortly after a downstate judge threw Pritzker’s mask mandates into question, a bipartisan committee voted against reimposing another K-12 school mask mandate.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker will end the statewide indoor mask mandate for most Illinoisans Feb. 28, joining the 39 other states who have already lifted COVID-19 restrictions on residents. Illinois will be the only state in the Midwest still mandating masks in schools at the state level.
In one of his first re-election political TV ads, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker takes credit for passing a balanced budget. Budget documents tell a different story, showing a deficit instead of the reported surplus.
Today marks day 700 of life in Illinois under Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s emergency executive orders. Other governors, including neighboring Iowa, are rolling back executive control, and the majority of Midwest states are no longer under emergency authority.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is keeping Illinois’ indoor mask mandate in place through Feb. 28. Schools statewide will be required to keep students and staff masked.
Despite claims Illinois’ budget was “balanced,” a closer look shows federal stimulus money propped it up. Only long-term reform on pensions, taxes, health care and school district consolidation can balance state finances and end 21 years of deficits.
Illinois is one of the few states that taxes groceries. Gov. J.B. Pritzker is suggesting a suspension of the 1% grocery tax to help struggling families. Some lawmakers said if Pritzker really wants to help, he needs to end grocery sales taxes.
Despite claims during Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s speech, his budget documents show a flood of federal COVID-19 aid temporarily shrank Illinois’ deficit but failed to balance its budget. His next budget will not end well.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is expected to unveil $1 billion in temporary tax cuts on groceries, property taxes and gas bills in his new budget. It all goes away just months after he seeks reelection Nov. 8, changing little.
Chicago’s $1.15 billion projected budget gap is the latest in a decades-long string of structural deficits. Making Chicago’s high taxes worse is not the solution.