Seven of 13 Illinois metro areas added jobs from November to December 2023, led by the St. Louis area. Five metros still reported fewer jobs than prior to the pandemic.
Public and private sector unions in Illinois saw another 27,000 workers reject union membership in 2023. Just 12.8% of public and private-sector workers chose union membership, the lowest it’s been in 34 years on record.
With Invest in Kids scholarships expiring, four schools across Illinois already decided to close their doors for good. Futures for nearly 10,000 low-income students remain uncertain.
Illinois’ unemployment rate tied for third-worst in the U.S. in December 2023, despite job gains across most industries since last year. Illinois continues to lag the nation and nearly all its neighbors in job growth.
An embattled Chicago-area township supervisor is being accused of discouraging competition ahead of her campaign by cutting the position’s pay if she loses. It may be illegal, but someone would need to sue.
Seven states enacted new private school choice programs in 2023 and 11 states expanded existing programs. But Illinois killed its Invest in Kids tax-credit scholarship program, ending the only help for nearly 10,000 low-income students.
A Chicagoan was carjacked just outside Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Chicago mansion. Chicago carjackings have more than doubled since 2019, with the attackers rarely caught.
Illinois’ excise tax on wine is more than 4 times higher than the same bottle in New York or California. Buying in Chicago adds extra tax layers, hitting 6 times the taxes of other big cities.
The “gift room” scandal, a botched police raid and a smokestack implosion underscore how the head of Chicago’s Law Department, also known as the corporation counsel, too often lacks independence from the mayor’s office. Chicago’s corporation counsel is appointed by the mayor and can be removed at the mayor’s discretion. Experience in other major cities...