House investigative committee calls for Madigan testimony in corruption scandal

By Joe Barnas

09/18/2020

Following initial hearings, a committee formed to investigate House Speaker Mike Madigan’s involvement in a ComEd corruption scandal requested testimony from key players.

TAGS: bribery, ComEd, corruption, federal investigation, Mike Madigan

U.S. attorney gives go-ahead to Illinois House committee investigating Madigan

By Ben Szalinski

09/15/2020

House committee hearings were paused on the first day so lawmakers could ask whether their investigation would hinder a federal corruption probe.

TAGS: bribery, ComEd, corruption, Mike Madigan

Sen. Terry Link latest ‘fair tax’ supporter to resign amid corruption charge

By Ben Szalinski

09/14/2020

Five key supporters of the progressive tax in the Illinois General Assembly are facing corruption probes. Four have been charged. Three have resigned.

TAGS: bribery, corruption, fair tax, federal investigation, Mike Madigan, Terry Link

Investigative committee begins hearings into Madigan misconduct

By Ben Szalinski

09/11/2020

It’s the third time in 20 years a committee has been formed to investigate misconduct by a state lawmaker. Day 1 was brief.

TAGS: bribery, corruption, investigation, Mike Madigan

Feds charge former ComEd vice president with scheme to bribe Madigan

By Austin Berg

09/05/2020

The sweeping federal corruption investigation threatens to derail Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s progressive tax hike amendment, which voters will decide Nov. 3.

TAGS: bribery, ComEd, corruption, federal investigation, Mike Madigan

Illinois House investigative committee to review Madigan’s role in ComEd scandal

By Joe Barnas

09/02/2020

The special investigative committee will determine whether Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan should be disciplined after being implicated in the ComEd bribery scandal.

TAGS: bribery, ComEd, corruption, federal investigation, Mike Madigan

Link in the chain of Illinois power, corruption, taxes

By Vincent Caruso

08/26/2020

With the "fair tax" campaign, lawmakers aim to sell voters a shovel to entrench the status quo by advertising it as a weapon with which to fight against it.

TAGS: corruption, fair tax, federal investigation, JB Pritzker, Mike Madigan, Terry Link

Corruption costs Illinois an estimated $556M per year

By Bryce Hill

08/25/2020

Illinois’ high levels of corruption damage the state’s economy, costing it $10.6 billion since 2000. States with higher levels of corruption average lower levels of economic growth.

TAGS: corruption, economic growth, ethics, JB Pritzker, Mike Madigan, tax burden

Political patronage? Not in Illinois, Pritzker argues in court

By Brad Weisenstein

08/20/2020

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker sees no patronage problem in his administration – not that there’s no patronage, just that he apparently doesn’t see it as a problem.

TAGS: corruption, JB Pritzker, Mike Madigan, patronage, watchdog

Democratic state lawmakers demand ethics reform in wake of Madigan scandal

By Mindy Ruckman

08/17/2020

Pressure continues to build to repair Illinois’ broken ethics laws, as more Democrats demand reform and more lawmakers face corruption charges.

TAGS: corruption, Democratic Party, ethics, federal investigation, lobbying, Mike Madigan

Pension apocalypse? COVID-19 exposes long-running fragility of Illinois public pensions

Illinois’ pension crisis has been a growing problem for decades, and its negative effects on state residents are well documented.1 Economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and related government shutdown orders threaten to bring that long-running crisis closer to its breaking point. The state’s five pension systems collectively held nearly $139 billion of debt at...

View Report

Pension apocalypse? COVID-19 exposes long-running fragility of Illinois public pensions

Report Archive

Joanne Troesch

Policy lessons from Illinois’ exodus of people and money

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