Bill would stop Pritzker from paying state workers on the side

By Brad Weisenstein
01/12/2020
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has used his private fortune to pay $3 million in state expenses, including boosting salaries of 16 top staffers. Some lawmakers want the ‘unethical’ practice to stop.

TAGS: bipartisan, clout, conflict of interest, corruption, fair maps, house rules, Illinois, Illinois Constitution, Illinois General Assembly, independent maps, JB Pritzker, lawmaker pay, lawmakers, Legislative Inspector General, legislative map, lobbying, lobbyists, mapmaking, revolving door, salary increase, Smart Scale, Springfield, watchdog

Madigan celebrates 35th anniversary as Illinois House speaker

By Austin Berg
01/12/2020
Illinoisans will soon cast a vote on the biggest ballot question in the history of Madigan’s record-breaking speakership.

TAGS: anniversary, credit rating, Daley, debt, fair tax, FBI, federal investigation, graduated income tax, house rules, House Speaker, Illinois, Illinois Constitution, Illinois General Assembly, junk credit rating, legislative map, lobbying, lobbyists, mapmaking, Mike Madigan, patronage, pension crisis, pension debt, population loss, progressive income tax, progressive tax, property taxes, redistricting, Richard Daley, Springfield, tax burden, U.S. Census Bureau

Feds investigating former Cook County assessor, Madigan rainmaker Joe Berrios

By Austin Berg
12/17/2019
The probe potentially opens up a new front in authorities’ investigation of House Speaker Mike Madigan: the property tax appeals game from which he has made millions.

TAGS: appeal, assessor, capital project, Chicago, clout, conflict of interest, Cook County, Cook County assessor, Cook County Democratic Party, corruption, Ed Burke, extortion, federal investigation, house rules, Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, JB Pritzker, Joseph Berrios, law firm, Legislative Inspector General, legislative map, Madigan & Getzendanner, Mike Madigan, objective scoring, property taxes, redistricting, revolving door, Rod Blagojevich, Springfield

Illinois lawmakers should hold Pritzker to his ‘fair maps’ promise

By Austin Berg
12/03/2019
Even without a constitutional amendment, there are changes lawmakers could make as soon as session resumes to get politics out of mapmaking.

TAGS: amendment, bipartisan, commission, ethics, gerrymandering, Illinois, Illinois Constitution, Illinois General Assembly, Illinois House of Representatives, Illinois Senate, JB Pritzker, lawmakers, legislative district, legislative map, lobbyists, nepotism, redistricting, reform, Springfield, task force, uncontested

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Power in payments: Illinois can help unbanked residents, save money by adopting best practices in payment methods

Each year, tens of billions of dollars flow through Illinois state government.1 These flows all depend on methods of payment. In deciding on those payment methods, policymakers must consider a number of important factors, including security controls, cost effectiveness, accessibility, speed and allowance for choice. This report shows that by adopting best practices across all...

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Ifeoma Nkemdi

Policy lessons from Illinois’ exodus of people and money

By J. Scott Moody, Wendy Warcholik
07/07/2014

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

By Ted Dabrowski
05/02/2016