Instead of spending reform and policies to promote economic growth, Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan proposes the same high-taxing, big-spending plans that got Illinois into its current fiscal mess.

Illinoisans handed over a larger portion of their earnings to state and local governments than did taxpayers in 45 lower-tax states in fiscal year 2012, according to a new Tax Foundation study.

The 2011 income-tax hike was supposed to address the state’s unpaid bills and ailing government-worker pensions; but five years and $31 billion in additional revenues later, Illinois’ unpaid bills are back up to 2011 levels, and the state’s government-worker pension debt has soared to $111 billion.

Amid budget gridlock, Illinois lottery winners sue to have their winnings paid with interest and to prevent the state from selling more tickets it can’t pay out.