Cook County

Preckwinkle’s Office Briefed on Probation Problems

12/31/2010
The Illinois Policy Institute was asked to brief Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle's staff about systemic flaws uncovered during its ongoing investigation of the county's Adult Probation Department.

Tax Hike Reaction

12/31/2010
On the same day the General Assembly abolished the death penalty, lawmakers also implemented the death penalty on Illinois’s economy and taxpayers by passing a 67 percent income tax hike in the face of overwhelming public opposition.

Calls for Budget Cuts in Cook County

By Chris Andriesen
11/20/2010
by Ashley Muchow Cook County Board President-elect, Toni Preckwinkle, recently warned county officials they would be responsible for making major spending cuts in their budgets to close the county’s $487 million gap. Preckwinkle met with elected county officials, including Cook County Clerk David Orr, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, and Treasurer Maria Pappas, asking each to cut...

Property Tax Bills Confusing Many in Cook County

By Chris Andriesen
11/17/2010
by Wesley Fox Many property taxpayers in Cook County are confused and angry by their property tax bills.  While property value assessments are supposedly declining, tax bills are increasing leaving many asking, “Why?” According to one columnist at the Southern Star: I have been writing about the property tax for more than two decades now and still...

New TIF in the Loop

By Chris Andriesen
11/09/2010
by Kate Piercy The city of Chicago has just approved 6 million dollars in tax increment financing (TIF) for Accretive Health Inc. “to pay for job training and the build-out costs” of a new facility, which will be located at 231 South LaSalle Street. By law, TIFs are intended to promote economic development in blighted areas,...
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Pathway to a Profession: How Apprenticeships Could Reshape Illinois’ Beauty Service Industry

Occupational licensing requirements present one of the steepest barriers to low-income Illinoisans starting careers in beauty services. Illinois requires anyone seeking to become a barber, cosmetologist, nail technician or hair braider to obtain a state license, essentially a permission slip to work. Unlike 45 other states, Illinois offers only one pathway to licensure for each...

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Diana Graham

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

By Paul Kersey
06/19/2014

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

By Ted Dabrowski
05/02/2016