Gallup, Inc.

Waste Watch: Nearly $100M of waste in Illinois state and local government

By Adam Schuster, Alec Mena, Travis Nix
10/08/2018
Illinois taxpayers are fed up and overtaxed. Residents have little faith that their governments are spending their tax dollars well – and for good reason. The state’s most recent spending plan is out of balance by as much as $1.5 billion, and includes $54.2 million in wasteful spending and $27 million in pork-barrel spending. The...

Is pension reform dead in Illinois?

09/19/2014
In June 2014, in response to attempts by the state to reform government-worker health-care costs, Illinois’ Supreme Court found these benefits to be protected by the state’s pension clause ­– even though retiree health-care benefits are nowhere to be found in the state pension code. As a result, many assume that if the state can’t...

TAGS: budget, pensions, taxes

Labor Day poll shows popular support for Right-to-Work laws

By Paul Kersey
08/31/2014
As is their custom around Labor Day, the Gallup Organization has released a nationwide poll on attitudes toward labor unions. While a majority of Americans still approve of unions, their support is close to an all-time low. And support for Right-to-Work laws is strong. According to the Gallup poll, 71 percent of Americans would vote...

4 in 10 paying more for health care in 2014

By Naomi Lopez Bauman
07/16/2014
The Obama administration’s celebrations touting the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, as a rousing success were premature. There will be little to celebrate as Americans face dramatically higher health-insurance premiums, more health policy cancellations and limited access to providers in the coming years. Now, according to a recent Gallup poll, four in 10 Americans are...

More inspectors general necessary to fight Illinois’ corruption woes

By Brian Costin
07/12/2014
For far too long Illinois politicians haven’t done enough to address a public corruption epidemic that has wreaked havoc on the state’s image and the pocketbooks of its taxpayers. Illinois consistently ranks in the top five states for public corruption, and a recent study estimated the cost of corruption in Illinois at nearly $1.4 billion...

Saving Chicago: Reforming city-worker retirement ages

By John Klingner
07/02/2014
The problem Chicago is suffering from one of the worst pension crises in the nation. To begin fixing its failing system, the city should move away from a politician-controlled, defined-benefit system. But another important step is reforming retirement-age requirements. The Chicago systems’ retirement ages don’t reflect today’s fiscal and demographic realities. People are living longer,...

Chart of the week: Waning entrepreneurial spirit in Illinois

By Naomi Lopez Bauman
06/27/2014
According to a recent Gallup survey, only 60 percent of Illinoisans believe that this is a good state to start a business. Not only do we have one of the most negative views in the nation, but it stands in stark contrast to booming states such as North Dakota and Texas, where more than 80...
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Chicago Forward 2026: A pro-growth plan to end city budget deficits

Chicago’s $1.15 billion projected budget gap is the latest in a decades-long string of structural deficits. Making Chicago’s high taxes worse is not the solution.

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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