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

Illinois personal income growth 2nd lowest in U.S. since Great Recession

By Bryce Hill
01/09/2020
Only Mississippi has fared worse than Illinois in personal income growth since the Great Recession hit at the end of 2007. Analysis shows state income taxes matter.

TAGS: corporate income tax, flat is fair, flat tax, graduated income tax, Great Recession, Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, income, income growth, income tax, JB Pritzker, labor, labor force, marginal tax, personal income, population, population growth, population loss, progressive income tax, recession, Springfield, tax burden

Illinois cannabis taxes among nation’s highest, could keep black market thriving

By Austin Berg
01/09/2020
Springfield lawmakers have yet to learn the lesson that money walks. And it’s not just to other states. Sometimes, it walks past the legal dispensary with a 40% tax rate and into a dealer’s house.

TAGS: black market, Chicago, Cook County, decriminalization, high taxes, Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, legalization, marijuana, medical marijuana, recreational marijuana, Springfield, tax burden, taxes, THC

Indiana is building far more single-family homes than Illinois

By Austin Berg
01/03/2020
The historic change comes as skyrocketing property tax bills eat into Illinois homeowners’ bottom line.

TAGS: constitutional amendment, home values, homeownership, Illinois, Illinois Constitution, Illinois General Assembly, Indiana, JB Pritzker, pension costs, pension reform, population, population loss, property taxes, single-family home, Springfield, state constitution, tax burden, tax hikes, tax increase, U.S. Census Bureau, working-age

Illinois saw nation’s worst population loss during the decade

By Orphe Divounguy, Bryce Hill
12/30/2019
Illinois suffered its sixth consecutive year of population decline in 2019, driven entirely by residents leaving for other states.

TAGS: 401(k), debt, fiscal, flat tax, general revenue fund, Great Recession, high taxes, Illinois, Illinois Constitution, Illinois General Assembly, JB Pritzker, job creation, jobs growth, labor force, Mike Madigan, outmigration, pension debt, pension reform, population, population loss, revenue, shrink, Springfield, tax burden, tax hikes, tax increase, U.S. Census Bureau, working-age

Absent pension crisis, Illinois could afford ‘free’ college

By Adam Schuster
12/10/2019
Illinois could give every undergraduate in public college nearly $70k a year if it spent the same 4% of its budget on pensions as it did throughout the 90s, rather than the 25% it spends today.

TAGS: college, DCFS: Department of Children and Family Services, general revenue fund, Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, illinois state police, pension costs, pension crisis, pension debt, savings, Springfield, state university, students, tax burden, undergraduate

Up to 140,000 able-bodied Illinoisans may need jobs to get food stamps in 2020

By Vincent Caruso
12/05/2019
Just Cook County food stamp recipients were facing work requirements Jan. 1 if they were under age 50, able-bodied and had no dependents. Now the rules will apply throughout Illinois starting April 1.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, Donald Trump, food stamps, Foundation for Government Accountability, Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, job creation, jobs, jobs growth, labor force participation rate, Michigan, National Conference of State Legislatures, over-regulation, regulation, regulations, small business, SNAP, Springfield, tax burden, unemployment, West Virginia, Wisconsin

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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