Illinois

Federal court strikes down ObamaCare subsidies

10/01/2014

People who don’t like the lawlessness displayed by the Obama administration in its implementation of the Affordable Care Act have something to celebrate. On Sept. 30, a federal court in Oklahoma ruled that the Affordable Care Act means what it says: ObamaCare insurance subsidies are only available in states that have established their own health-insurance...

Why a Medicaid card ≠ care in Illinois

By Naomi Lopez Bauman

10/01/2014

A recent report from the Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, confirms that it will likely become harder to get access to care through Medicaid’s managed care program – a program that Illinois is using to provide care to an increasing number of Medicaid enrollees. With Medicaid enrollment...

TAGS: health care, Medicaid

Wilmette 7th in Illinois to ace online-transparency test

By Brian Costin

09/30/2014

The village of Wilmette is a leader when it comes to online transparency of local governments in Illinois. It recently became the seventh local government in Illinois to score a perfect 100 percent on the Illinois Policy Institute’s 10-Point Transparency Checklist. With nearly 7,000 local governments in Illinois, Wilmette’s score places the village in the...

TAGS: good government, transparency

State, suburbs double down on Divvy

By Austin Berg

09/30/2014

Chicago’s Divvy bikes will soon be pedaled down suburban streets. On Sept. 29, Gov. Pat Quinn approved a $3 million state grant expanding the bike-share program to the suburbs of Evanston and Oak Park, while adding 50 new docking stations to Chicago’s Garfield Park, Austin, Rogers Park and West Rogers park neighborhoods. Seven hundred new...

TAGS: Divvy, rideshare, taxes

Illinois Sunshine Award winners

09/29/2014

Illinois is known for its culture of government corruption, fiscal mismanagement and cronyism. That reputation is backed up by hard statistics that say Illinois is the third most corrupt state in the country and the Chicago region is the most corrupt area in the country. Illinois’ citizens deserve better. Illinois’ government culture on the state...

TAGS: good government, Sunshine Award

Jobs vs. food stamps: Illinois last in the Midwest

By Michael Lucci

09/29/2014

Since the Great Recession ended, Illinois’ food-stamp enrollment has outpaced job creation by a ratio of nearly 2-to-1. The jobs versus food stamps comparison is a strong indicator of economic hardship. And compared to the rest of the Midwest, Illinoisans are truly feeling the pain. Since the Great Recession ended, Illinois is the only state...

TAGS: employment, jobs, unemployment

From first to worst: Illinois tops nation in legislative leader experience

By Brian Costin

09/28/2014

Here’s an interesting argument against term limits: Government business is hard. That’s why we need politicians to hold office for a long time – so they can gain the experience they need to understand how to govern effectively. That’s effectively what Christopher Mooney, director of the institute of government and public affairs at the University...

TAGS: Chicago

Illinoisans pay twice for their legislators

By Ted Dabrowski

09/27/2014

Illinois’ active legislators will each cost the state budget about $180,000 next year.

TAGS: budget, pensions

5 reasons why anti-Right-to-Work study is flawed

By Paul Kersey

09/27/2014

A few weeks ago, Frank Manzo IV of the Illinois Economic Policy Institute teamed up with Robert Bruno from the University of Illinois Labor Education Program to release yet another demonstration of how sophisticated mathematical analysis can’t fix bad data. Their report, titled “Free Rider States: How Low-Wage Employment in Right to Work States is...

TAGS: labor, unions

America’s digital divide: Startups fly, storefronts struggle

By Michael Lucci

09/26/2014

This article was written by Satta Sarmah and featured in Fast Company on September 26, 2014. When 30-year-old Chicago native Sheyla Jarocz talks about how a brick and mortar storefront survives in the city’s North Center neighborhood, it sounds like a lonely mission. “I’ve tried to do promotions with nearby businesses,” said Jarocz, who opened Maash Boutique two years...

TAGS: Chicago, jobs

Pathway to a Profession: How Apprenticeships Could Reshape Illinois’ Beauty Service Industry

Occupational licensing requirements present one of the steepest barriers to low-income Illinoisans starting careers in beauty services. Illinois requires anyone seeking to become a barber, cosmetologist, nail technician or hair braider to obtain a state license, essentially a permission slip to work. Unlike 45 other states, Illinois offers only one pathway to licensure for each...

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