Illinois is one of only eight states that do not enforce food-stamp work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents. But reinstating work requirements would benefit Illinois food-stamp enrollees as well as state and local economies.
Illinois’ 2011 income-tax hike caused out-migration that cost the state high-earning taxpayers. New IRS data show taxpayers who left had an average income of $77,000 per year, compared with taxpayers who entered Illinois, who had an average income of $57,000 per year.
New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show Illinois’ professional and business services sector has fared better than the state’s manufacturing industry, which recorded 800 job losses in September.
The Education Freedom Tax Credit, also known as the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit, will give Illinois students access to donor money if the state opts into the program.