More than a dozen Republicans joined House Democrats in passing a budget that includes a massive tax hike and no structural spending reforms. Gov. Bruce Rauner said he would veto the plan.
Illinois’ $1.3 billion in EDGE tax credits has brought in only 34,000 jobs since 2001, and has enabled politicians to hand out tax relief to select companies rather than lowering anti-growth taxes for all businesses.
In January several instances of corruption, influence peddling and mismanagement across Illinois were brought to light, from the College of DuPage’s expense-account mismanagement, to Chicago’s red-light-camera bribery case.
The Education Freedom Tax Credit, also known as the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit, will give Illinois students access to donor money if the state opts into the program.