A Better Illinois is claiming that the progressive tax and higher taxes on the wealthy are responsible for the “Minnesota miracle.” But the only marvels here are the impressive contortions they used in concluding that higher taxes is what holds Illinois back from impressive job growth and a budget surplus. The problem with their analysis...

You’re a small business owner planning out your budget for the next five years. You expect explosive growth and a lot of hiring. But your financial future is uncertain, so you factor business risks and uncertainties into your plan. At least you can count on your state government for stability and a clear tax structure...

JOB CREATION: Since 2010, Illinois has recovered only 215,800 jobs, which is 42,000 fewer than Gov. Pat Quinn’s claim of 257,400. More importantly, Illinois is the only state in the Midwest that had fewer payroll jobs in January 2014 than it did when Quinn took office in January 2009. UNEMPLOYMENT: Illinois has the second-highest unemployment...

House Speaker Mike Madigan has proposed an extra tax on million-dollar incomes. His proposed legislation, HJRCA51, would amend the Illinois Constitution to impose an additional tax of 3 percent on income over $1 million. This tax won’t touch any millionaires who don’t want to pay it. They’ll simply leave, and they are well-equipped to do so. The middle...

Until the mid-1900s, people from across the world stampeded into Illinois in search of opportunity. Workers from rural America came to build Pullman cars, erect skyscrapers and fill factories. Immigrants from Eastern Europe arrived in search of economic freedom. And laborers left the agrarian South to participate in America’s industrialization. Illinois’ population doubled from 1900...