Families in Illinois are struggling to afford higher education for their children. Incoming undergraduate students have seen tuition and mandatory fees at Illinois’ public universities increase by more than 60 percent since 2004. But that’s not the only problem. The government expects families to pick up the education bill for state employees, too. The Upward Mobility Program, available...

If Illinoisans want a glimpse of the state’s upcoming fiscal cliff, they should look no further than the failed negotiations between the maker of Twinkies and the unions that took them on. Hostess Brand’s bankruptcy is much more than the demise of famous brands like Twinkies, Ho Hos and Wonder Bread. It’s also the tragedy...

For the third time in the last five years, the General Assembly Retirement System (GARS) has posted a negative investment return. Although the pension fund predicted it would earn $4 million in fiscal year 2012, it actually lost $81,448. The fund posted an investment return of -0.14 percent, far below the 7 percent it expected....

Illinois’ pension systems are one year closer to complete insolvency. According to actuarial reports, the state’s five public pension systems owe a combined $94.6 billion. That’s up 14 percent from the $82.9 billion reported last year. Worse yet, none of the pension systems have enough assets on hand to pay benefits to those who have...

Does the government have any business taxing foods it deems unhealthy? That was the status quo in Denmark until recently, when the country got rid of its controversial fat tax. This nanny-state policy, originally put in place about a year ago, increased taxes on all foods with a saturated fat content of above 2.3 percent. Authorities...